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December 18, 2015
Greetings!

Help Green the Church This Sunday After 10am Service

Please join us for "Greening of the Church" on Sunday, December 20 after the 10am service. Many hands are needed to make the wreaths, hang the garland, tie the bows, and putting the Christmas trees up. There will be chilli, bread and cookies on the patio for those who are hungry. The transforming of our church for the Christmas season is a wonderful sight to see so please be a part of it!
Christmas At All Saints!
Christmas Eve Services
 
4:00 p.m. Family Service
7:00 p.m. Carol Sing
7:30 p.m. Service
10:00 p.m. Carol Sing
10:30 p.m. Service (with incense) 
 
Christmas Day Service
 
10:30 a.m. Service followed by lunch
 
Christmas Lunch:
Please join our All Saints family on Christmas Day for lunch at 11:30 a.m. on December 25 following our Christmas Day worship service at 10:30 a.m. All Saints will provide pot roast and noodles, and we ask parishioners to provide appetizers, side dishes, desserts, and preferred beverages including wines, juices, or soft drinks. To make a reservation for lunch, please sign up at the Information Table on the patio after worship services and indicate what you will bring to share, the number of people in your party, and your contact information. Join us for this time of celebratory fellowship as we welcome in the Christ Child! Please contact Rev. Vicki withe questions at 969-4771.
Thank you to everyone who helped with the St. Nicholas Market last Sunday. Whether you donated, bought, promoted, or worked at the market, your generosity is greatly appreciated. We are still collecting funds for a few items that were sold and we should have a total raised that will be used to support our family & youth ministry soon!
Remember Items for All Saints' Food Wagon 
All Saints' Food Wagon program will continue each Sunday, as we collect food for the hungry along with essential hygiene products. Food and items that you bring for the hungry will be gathered each Sunday at the entrance in a green wagon and brought forward to the altar with our offerings and oblations to God. Your donations will be delivered to Cafe Picasso Food Pantry at St. Michael's University Church (St. Mike's) in Isla Vista to serve UCSB and SBCC students struggling with food insecurity. 

All Saints' Food Wagon provides us all with an opportunity to give out of our abundance. One way to do so is to try spending 10% (the biblical tithe) of your grocery bill on food that you will give away. Parents, you might invite your children weekly to choose the food that your family will bring to church to give to those who don't have enough to eat. This makes them aware of the blessings of their life and forms them at a young age to make a difference in the hurts of their world. Through this simple but loving service, both young and old can extend Christ's grace from the meal we share at the altar to our hungry neighbors' tables.

End of Year Signifies Time of Giving


As we close out 2015, we all seem to be in the spirit of giving. This means not just to friends and family, but also to the organizations that mean so much to each of us throughout the year. Your Budget and Finance Committee is readying the 2016 spending plan and wants to remind everyone that paying your current year pledge as well as sending in your commitment for 2016 is an important step in your spiritual journey. It's also an important aspect of being active and loving members of the parish. The Church Office will be open until noon on Christmas Eve, again on Dec. 28, 29, 30 and until noon on Dec. 31 to assist you with any end-of-year questions. 
 
Each year we have parishioners who benefit from contributing appreciated securities or other assets instead of selling first and then donating the proceeds as a way of making your end-of-year pledge or a special contribution to All Saints. You can avoid paying capital gains taxes on those assets and enable more money to be donated. Below is an excellent example of how we can all benefit from donating stock vs. cash. Please see your own tax advisor for details.
New Year Toast & Pinata Party!
Sunday, January 3
Let's celebrate the New Year together! On Sunday, January 3 we will toast the New Year with a champagne and (equally festive) sparkling juice toast after both the 8 and 10 a.m. services. And for the children, we will have a pi�ata party on the patio after the 10 a.m.service! ALL are invited as we are so blessed to be able to serve God and the world together in 2016!

Pledge Update

So far we have received 193 Pledge Cards. 78 of these have made an increase over last year and 19 of these pledges are from brand new pledgers. The dollar total so far is $715,088.00. If you haven't turned in your pledge card yet, please feel free to drop it in the offering plate or mail/bring it to the church office.

All Saints Book Club Meets January 11

Our next All Saints Book Group will meet on Monday, January 11th in the Parish House for potluck and discussion at 6:00 p.m. The book we will be discussing is Brussels to Beirut to Bali: The 1958 World Travels of Four Girls in a Second-Hand Chevy by parishioner Dana Kent. We are delighted that Dana will joins us that night to talk about her adventures. We have several copies of of her book at church which can be purchased after services at our Book Table, or you can find her book locally at Chaucer's and Tecolote book stores, and of course online. Dana tells the story of her travels with three other young women who drove through Europe, Turkey and into the war-torn Middle East. When civil upheaval in Iraq threatens to disrupt their plan to circle the globe, they sell their car and travel by an means available through 26 countries. Join us for a delightful evening. [email protected]
 Photo of the Week

Oh, what fun! The students of All Saints Parish School singing Christmas Carols to the "Grandmas and Grandpas" of the Friendship Center.
Rehearsals for Epiphany Pageant Underway
The Epiphany Pageant is set for Sunday, January 10th at the 10 a.m. service. The children, cast and crew have already begun rehearsing for this liturgical drama about the birth of the Christ child and the arrival of the Magi in Bethlehem. Don't miss this wonderful intergenerational service!
Online Giving
All Saints-by-the-Sea now offers online giving.

Convenient. Easy. Secure.

Give out of God's love and gifts in your life that others may feel Christ's love and grace. 

Looking Ahead...
  • December 20 - Greening of the Church after 10am service
  • December 24 - Christmas Eve Services at 4pm, 7:30pm, 10:30pm with Choral Singalongs at 7pm and 10pm 
  • December 25 - Christmas Day Service & Lunch at 10:30am
  • January 3 - New Year's Toast after each service, Pinata Party after 10am
  • January 5 - Bible & Babble resumes at 6pm in Church Office
  • January 10 - Epiphany Pageant at 10am service
  • January 11 - All Saints Book Club at 6pm in Parish House

Meme of the Week

Because we all deserve a chuckle now and then... 

 

From Around the Web
There are many more items for your attention than we can comfortably fit in the email each week. Please click on the headlines below to view some of the stories from the All Saints website and from around the country and the world! 

Episcopal COP21 delegates emboldened in climate change advocacy - Negotiators reach historic agreement to limit warming


Presiding Bishop and Primate Michael Curry released from hospitalPresiding Bishop Curry expressed his gratitude for the healthcare team of doctors, nurses and all "who have been helpful to me during the hospitalization."

Panorama: Blogs of the Episcopal Church - Various opinions and viewpoints of Episcopalians, as well as discussions of personal faith journeys, and conversations about the mission and ministry of the Episcopal Church.

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