St. Martin's Newsletter
   Weekly E-News July 15, 2016

Worship Schedule
(This schedule will begin again September 11)
Sunday  
   8:00am  Holy Eucharist
   8:45am  Bible Study 
   9:15am  Nursery
   9:30am  Holy Eucharist with choir
and sermon
 
     10:45am   Christian Formation
 
Tuesday-Friday
9am Morning Prayer in the Chapel
Wednesday
                                                              7am service with Holy Eucharist

(see box below for summer schedule) 



Remember our End-of-Year Story on June 26th? You can see the presentations online here. Take a look please. Even if you did attend, the videos are so much better than the real thing. For instance you can actually see the slideshow that both Sean and I are talking to, which on the day was not so clear.
 
Over the last two weeks I have reviewed numbers 2 and 3 of our three strategic RenewalWorks priorities: Engaging Our Passion and The Heart of the Leader. This week I want to review priority number 1: Embedding the Bible in parish life.
 
The most direct way to deepen the spirituality of a community is to engage in some form of collective Bible Study. In the first year of implementing this priority we have chosen to read together something called The Story. Our purpose is to literally discover the narrative flow of our salvation story by starting at the beginning and working through to the end. Even though we know how the story ends. It ends with Jesus, or more correctly, through Jesus the story continues with us, the people seeking to live faithful Christian lives amidst the turmoil of this part of the 21st -century. We can't really understand the ending until we know how and where it begins.
 
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Remember this Sunday, July 17th is the next installment of our discussion of The Story. Please have read chapters 10-12 in preparation. You can find the discussion questions already posted here.
 
At the End-of-Year Story, Sean Mulholland presented our immediate budgetary challenge. The Finance Committee and the Vestry want to be transparent and to update the congregation concerning the follow-up from the Executive's letter, sent out the day after the End of Year Story. In this E-News you will find a communication from Sarosh Fenn reporting the latest update on the call for all of us to help bridge this year's operating deficit in order to avoid drawing another percentage point on the Endowment. Please read Sarosh's note. You might note the pleasing dollar amount of the response alongside the less encouraging percentages of those who have, and have yet to step-up to the plate!
 
You might like to check out the sermon for last week, titled- Race: the current lightening rod for otherness. Looking forward to seeing you in Church, this Sunday.
 
Mark+
Summer Schedule 

JULY 3rd through SEPTEMBER 4th:

9:15am Nursery 
ONE SERVICE of Holy Eucharist Rite II at 9:30am 
Office Hours  M-F  9am to 12noon

NO: 
Morning Prayer on Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday 
Gander meetings 
News & Notes 
Christian Formation (starts again Sunday, September 18th) 
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YES: 
Morning Prayer on Wednesdays at 9am 
+
Sundays, July 17th & August 21st 
Christian Formation - ' The Story ' 
10:45am
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Our guest organist for the month of August  
will be Diana-Norton Jackson. 

Please click here for Participants list for Sunday, July 17th.   
READINGS THIS WEEK

 
Amos 8:1-12 (OT)
Colossians 1:15-28 (NT)
Luke 10:38-42 (Gospel)
Click here for this Sunday's readings.
     THIS SUNDAY
9:15am  Nursery   
+
9:30am Holy Eucharist Rite II 
+
10:45am   
Christian Formation: 
'The Story' 
+
Healing Prayers during Communion
( this and every Sunday)
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Gluten Free Hosts available at the altar rail. 
MORNING PRAYER
    
Morning Prayer is said in the Chapel of the Church at 9am on Tuesday through Friday each week. All are welcome!
               Mark+

Update from the Treasurer!
 
Thank you all for attending, listening and responding to our End of Year Story appeal for additional pledges to cover our projected operating budget deficit for 2016. In the last 10 days, since the meeting, we have been very encouraged to have received $31,209.40 in additional pledges, which represents 78% of our $40,000 goal. In terms of pledging units, this represents 44% or 62 out of 142 pledging units for 2016.
 
We are about $8,800 shy of our goal. As a reminder, our appeal was for each pledging unit to pledge an additional $285 or at least increase their 2016 pledge by 12%. We look forward to hearing from the remaining 80 pledging units and continuing to support OUR
St. Martin's community.
 
Sarosh Fenn

Biblebox
(Weekly Bible Study) 
Luke 10:38-42
To dig a little behind the Gospel text for this Sunday, take a look at this week's  Working Preacher in preparation for discussion at our weekly Sunday Bible study at 8:30am in the Church Office this week.
FYI

Applications are now available for grants from St. Martin's Outreach Committee. 

Grant amounts generally range from $250-$1000.  The deadline is September 1st. 
If you are interested in applying, please contact the church office.

 
Imagine a Life In Which You Can Say:
Yes! to God; Yes! to Your Neighbor; and Yes! to Your Self
Yes! A workshop series by the  
Commission on Ministry
Beginning on Sept. 21, 2016

The Commission on Ministry will again offer the Yes! curriculum beginning on September, 21, 2016. The 7 session course will be facilitated by our Archdeacon, The Venerable Janice Grinnell and will be held at St. Columba's Chapel in Middletown, RI.

This program is in direct response to lay people who are seeking ways to discern and understand their God given purpose. The dates and times are as follow:

Session 1
September 21, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.

Session 2
September 28, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.

Session 3
Evenings of Discovery
October 5, 2016 from 6:30-9:30 p.m.
Session 4
October 19, 2016 from 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Session 5
October 26, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.

Session 6
November 2, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.

Session 7
(last)

November 9, 2016 from 7-9 p.m.
 
 
What is Yes!?
 
Yes! was developed to help you create that life God is calling you to live.
Rather than egotistically creating your own life, Yes! uses appreciative inquiry and conversation to help you awaken to the life-giving purpose that is already within you.

Yes! is based on several assumptions:
  • We are made for a purpose
  • We have been fully equipped with gifts and talents to fulfill that purpose
  • We most closely manifest our purpose when we are at our best, being and doing those things that flow from the core of our being and bring deep satisfaction
Life and the abundant life that Jesus' promised comes from what we deeply and profoundly say yes to, for it is in what we say Yes! to that we manifest our God given purpose.

Cost:
$100 (includes cost of materials)
Limited scholarships available. To learn more, please contact Canon Betsy Fornal, Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island, at 401-274-4500, ext. 225 or email [email protected].
 

[Correction to step #4 below...please take note]

St. Martin's joins the Amazon Smile Program!
St. Martin's has registered with Amazon's charitable giving program which is called Amazon Smile. Under Amazon Smile, � of 1% of all your purchases go a to a charity of your choice. Parishioners can now designate St. Martin's to receive � of 1% of their Amazon purchases.  
Here is how to participate:
  1. Go to smile.amazon.com
  2. Enroll in program by giving your email address and your regular Amazon password
  3. The next page will welcome you to the program and show a default charity such as the Audubon Society. Next to the default charity name will be a small arrow asking if you want to change the charity. Click on the arrow.
  4. Type in St. Martins Parish (exactly) in the box and our name will come up. Click select.
  5. After this, when purchasing from Amazon you must go through smile.amazon.com for you purchases to qualify.
  6. Price, service and selection is exactly the same as on the 'normal' Amazon web site. Subscribers to Amazon Prime can use the Smile program.
If you have any questions please contact the office. (And thank you!!)