St. Francis Episcopal Church

We seek to be instruments of God's peace, bearing witness to the love of God in Jesus Christ for all people.

Lenten Meditations written by and for the people of St. Francis and friends can be found here.

Stone of Unction

Little Portion

Week of April 14, 2014

Holy Week and Easter...

Maundy Thursday ~ April 17

Please note: there will not be a Noon time service this year

7:00 p.m. ~ Holy Eucharist, Foot Washing, Stripping of the Altar

9:00 p.m. ~ Gethsemane Watch begins - Sign up in the Narthex

The Maundy Thursday offering has been designated for Dismas Farm

Good Friday ~ April 18

8:00 a.m. ~ Stations of the Cross

12:00 p.m. ~ Ecumenical Service begins at the Senior Center Gazebo

12:15 p.m. First Congregational Church

1:15 p.m. First Baptist Church

2:15 p.m. St. Francis Episcopal Church

7:00 p.m. ~ Good Friday Liturgy, with Communion from Reserved Sacrament

The Good Friday Offering ~ Since 1922 Episcopalians have supported the ministries of

the Episcopal Church of Jerusalem and the Middle East. The Diocese of Jerusalem is

comprised of churches in Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Palestine.

Holy Saturday, April 19

9:00 a.m. ~ Holy Saturday Liturgy

9:30 a.m. ~ Vigil rehearsal

The Great Vigil of Easter~ Saturday, April 19

8:00 p.m. ~ Holy Eucharist and Lighting the Paschal Candle

The Resurrection of Our Lord ~ Easter Sunday, April 20

8:00 a.m. & 10:00 a.m. ~ Festival Eucharist with Choir and Handbells

The Easter offering has been designated to support the mission and ministry of

Tom and Dianne Wilson in El Maizal, El Salvador.

Mustard Seed...

Many thanks to all the Mustard Seed shoppers, bakers and confirmands who served dinner at the Mustard Seed last week.

Lenten Book Study Blog Post 6...

Karen, the associate rector, has been blogging weekly through Lent offering reflections on the book Who's Got Time? Spirituality for a Busy Generation. Through reflections on the book the posts have explored different spiritual practices we can use in our busy lives to connect with God. Check out the final post on how we can encounter the holy even in the mundane here.

Didn't have time to read the book during Lent? You can still find a copy online through Amazon or Barnes and Noble for Kindle or Nook.

Our Care of Creation... "God so Loved the World"

On Saturday, April 26, and Sunday, April 27, the Rev. Dr. Margaret Bullitt-Jonas, Diocesan Missioner for Care of Creation, the Diocese of Western Massachusetts, will preach and present an Adult Forum following our 10:00 a.m. worship service.

The Forum will begin at 11:30 a.m. Part of the presentation will be a 20 minute PowerPoint she and her husband produced. It is called, GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD. I encourage you to go to her website, www.holyhunger.org, and see her professional bio and click on multimedia, click on PowerPoint, "God So Loved the World."

I was a colleague of Margaret's for one year when I served as Interim Rector at Grace Episcopal Church, in Amherst, MA. She is a bright, loving person, who has experienced her own share of pain and recovery. She is an excellent teacher, preacher, and presenter.

I believe our time with Margaret will bless us all and open us up to new possibilities as we care for God's creation.

If you have any questions please contact me at 413-687-5568 or rkwilburn@comcast.net.

Rev. Dr. Randy Wilburn

Interim Rector, St. Francis Episcopal Church

Serving this week:

April 17 through 20, 2014

Altar Guild: Bev Giarusso, Dianne Thibeault, Lucy Nowak, Maureen Lowell

Maundy Thursday, April 17

7:00 p.m.

Acolytes: TBD

Ushers: Paul McIntyre and Tina Chen

LEMs: Nancy Gundersen and Art Heinricher