| This Weekend's Readings | The Twenty-First Sunday after Pentecost
Click HERE to view this weekends readings.
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This Weekend's Preacher
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The Reverend Joyce Matthews
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10/15 Thursday
| 8:30 AM - Morning Prayer
5:00 PM - Cranbrook Choristers Rehearsal
7:00 PM - L/EM Training
7:30 PM - Christ Church Choir Rehearsal
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10/16 Friday
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8:30 AM - Morning Prayer
9:30 AM - Al-Anon Meeting
12:00 PM - Women's Spirituality (11:30 Lunch)
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10/17 Saturday
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10:00 AM - Baldwin Soup Kitchen (off-site)
5:00 PM - Sanctuary Holy Eucharist: Rite II
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10/18 Sunday
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8:00 AM - Holy Eucharist: Rite I
9:00 AM - Rector's Forum
9:00 AM - Middle School Sunday School
10:00 AM - Holy Eucharist: Rite II
10:00 AM - Sunday School
11:15 AM - High School "Hang Out"
11:30 AM - Docent Tour
11:30 AM - Saint Francis Children's Choir Rehearsal
11:30 AM - Baptism Preparation Class
11:30 AM - Youth Group Pizza Lunch and Trip 6:00 PM - Congregational Evensong
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10/19 Monday
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8:30 AM - Morning Prayer
7:00 PM - Vestry Meeting
7:00 PM - Cranbrook Choristers Rehearsal
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10/20 Tuesday
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8:30 AM - Morning Prayer
11:00 AM - ECW Program (off-site)
4:00 PM - Columbarium Committee Meeting
7:30 PM - Shiloah Meditation Group
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10/21 Wednesday
| 7:30 AM - Bible Study
8:30 AM - Holy Eucharist: Rite II
9:30 AM - Adult Children of Alcoholics Meeting
6:00 PM - Renew
7:00 PM - Cranbrook Ringers Rehearsal
7:00 PM - Stewardship Committee Meeting
7:00 PM - Understanding Your Grief Support Group
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10/22 Thursday
| 8:30 AM - Morning Prayer
5:00 PM - Cranbrook Choristers Rehearsal
6:30 PM - Thursday Night Movie
7:30 PM - Christ Church Choir Rehearsal
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| Why Pledge? My Story | | Earlier this year, I asked some of our parishioners to answer a simple question: "Why pledge?" To answer that question myself requires that I reveal things about me that I usually don't share. My story is precious to me, and it is also something I cannot remember except with a mixture of seriousness and humor that I have come to recognize as the shape of God's grace in my life.
Although baptized as a baby, I was not raised as a Christian. The first time I became aware of God happened when I was sixteen. I was suffering from depression, and the dean of students at my boarding school recommended counseling. So, once a week, I got into a van and was driven off to see a psychiatrist who practiced out of a small office in a nearby village. The counselor was a thin, quiet man with a predilection for tweed jackets and cumbersome brown footwear. At the time, I felt like I was living in a poorly done remake of J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye (1951).
In our sessions, the psychiatrist asked me probing questions about my inner life that I had a hard time understanding. Instead of paying attention to the discussion, I focused on the difference in seating between us. We sat in identical brown leather chairs, which seemed odd, because I had imagined I would be lying on a couch like the cartoons I saw in the New Yorker. I soon realized why he always insisted that we sit in the same seats. His chair was beautifully maintained. Mine had been scratched, ripped and picked down to the frame at different points by other patients.
Instead of verbalizing my feelings, which at the time seemed to be an impossible task outside the realm of normal expectations for a sixteen year-old boy, I found myself wondering about the patients who had damaged the chair I was sitting in. I imagined previous patients struggling with their straight jackets, the buckles of which made the first cuts in the leather. Then, those with nervous disorders picked away and chewed pieces of the leather for comfort. I managed to resist the temptation to add to the damage, which, I believed, placed me in a different category - more a peer than a patient. We looked together at the problem that I was. My neurosis was straightforward. I found my life worthless and occasionally thought of ending it.
The psychiatrist evidently had a long fix in mind, and I wasn't feeling any better. So I decided that the best thing for me to do was to pray. I am not sure why I decided on this course of action. My prayer was unelaborate. I imagined placing my life in larger, more capable hands. Late one night, as I prayed, I was astonished to experience God's love in a new way. It was as if light had suddenly flooded my small, dank and dark dorm room. The next day, I saw the world as more vivid, more beautiful, more joyful. I realized that my life was not worthless, because I was beloved. This meant that my life was a gift. The question then became how I would tell others about this joyful discovery of the love of God.
This moment of revelation was accompanied by other points of development in my life. I experienced a growth spurt, which left me larger and stronger than the boys who picked on me at the time. (This led to a few delightful moments of cosmic justice that I will refrain from describing further.) I discovered intellectual gifts that had lain dormant, which improved my grades and, more importantly, put me in touch with a deep sense of curiosity. I discovered that I occupied a different place in the weird Darwinian pecking order of my boarding school.
My parents and teachers attributed these changes to the counseling I had received as well as to the deeper mysteries of adolescent development. But I believed, and told them, that it was because of the presence of God in my life. All the other things that happened to me paled in comparison to this discovery, this love. I even asked to see the psychiatrist to explain it to him. Sitting across him, I went into detail about the transformation I had experienced, because this was something others should know. He smiled weakly and said, "What a wonderful thing to discover about yourself."
I found his answer unsatisfying. At the time, I rebelled against any suggestion that my discovery of God was anything less than the powerful truth I experienced it to be. I suppose he was suspicious and perhaps a bit worried. My parents as well did not know what to make of me, and they worried that I had become, they said, a "Jesus Freak" and susceptible to spiritual snake-oil salesmen. In the end, I realized that the only way I could convince anyone about the profound difference God made in my life was to live out that change over an extended period of time. And so I did.
My point in this story is not to cast aspersions on the therapeutic community. There have been other times in my life when I have found counselors and counseling wonderfully helpful and effective. Nor do I want to suggest that faith in God is always a sure antidote to mental illness, although it did relieve me -- that time - of a serious depression. Finally, I have learned to see, and appreciate, the many ways that God touches different people differently. My experience is not a template or cookie cutter to press on anyone else's faith journey.
What I want to say is that my discovery of God's love came to me as a gift. To say it more carefully, after I placed my life in God's hands, I was surprised to realize that God had given it back to me, now imbued with the joyful discovery that I was God's own forever. I realized that the only way forward for me was to give that life back to God again in return. My life, and all that it is, was God's life, and God's life was what made my life the gift it might be. This giving back and forth is the heart of the Christian journey. For standing behind it is the larger gift to us of God's Son and Spirit, by which God is both the Giver and the Gift.
For me, pledging completes in monetary terms the larger gift I give back to God. Pledging is often placed under the category of stewardship, and it is true that there are other ways to give our time, talent and treasure. But pledging is, for me, the most pure and tangible way to express that cycle of gift giving, which is the ultimate source of the joy and love we know in this world.
-Father Bill
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| This Week's Intercessions | | |
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| All Saints' Pontiac, Fall Rummage Sale | | |
October 14-17: Wednesday 5-7pm (10/14) First Choice Sale with Wine and Cheese. $6 admission at the door. Thursday through Saturday 9am-3pm (10/15-17). We've become one of the largest sales in Oakland County and this fall's sale has even more great things than ever before. Everything from art, linens, electronics, exercise equipment, antiques and toys to furniture plus a whole room full of books. And, of course, great clothes for everyone in the family. 171 W. Pike, Pontiac, 2 blocks west of the Woodward Loop and between Huron (M-59) and Orchard Lake. Plenty of safe, well lit parking. (248) 334-4571.
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| The Rector's Forum | | |
Living Religion(s)
Sundays at 9:00 AM in the Hospitality Center
We live, as the saying goes, in interesting times. Religion, once considered a spent force in society, continues to figure in world events as a source of conflict and compassion, of violence and peace, of wounding and healing. Join us for an informative and interesting look at some of the world's religions as we look for the overlaps that exist between them as well as their different claims about God and humanity.
The Rector's forums are recorded and can be viewed by clicking HERE.
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| CCC Youth Group is going to Airtime Trampoline Park | |  On Sunday, October 18, the 6th-12th graders will meet at 11:30 AM for a pizza lunch in the Hospitality Center. At 12:00 PM we will carpool from church and arrive at 12:30 PM at Jump at Airtime. We will arrive back at CCC at 2:00 PM for pickup at the front doors of the church. The cost is $12 per person. The Trampoline Park is located at 662 East Big Beaver, Troy. A pink CCC Permission slip is required in order to participate. Drivers are needed to help transport youth. Sign up HERE. Any questions contact Jill Bednas 630.779.6866 or jbednas@christchurchcranbrook.org |
| Be a Youth Lector! | |
Youth Lector Training is on Sunday, October 25 from 12 PM - 1 PM in Rooms 201/202. Pastor Manisha will train any youth from sixth grade up who is interested in being a reader at the 10 AM service. You will learn how to prepare for and read the First Lesson and Psalm. Questions? Ask Pastor Manisha (mdostert@christchurchcranbrook.org).
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Choral Evensong and God in the City
| |  Please join us the first Sunday of the month for Choral Evensong at 6:00 PM. There will be an organ recital preceding each Choral Evensong at 5:30 PM.
This year, at our 6:00 PM Choral Evensong services, we will provide an opportunity for activists, academics, clergy, community leaders, and artists to share how they find God in the midst of their work in the Greater Detroit Area and beyond. After offering a sermon at our monthly Choral Evensong, they will offer additional remarks and take questions about the work they do during a special reception.
Our next Choral Evensong and God in the City preacher will be the Rev. Faith Fowler, Executive Director of Cass Community Services. On December 6, Mary McLaren Honsel, the Executive Director of Crossroads of Michigan will be our preacher. If you would like to read Dr. Glenda Price's sermon from Sunday, October 4, please click HERE. |
| Upcoming Music at Christ Church Cranbrook Events | |  Friday, October 30th at 7:30 PM - Family Film Night featuring Stephen Warner, organist. The evening will begin with the short comedy, The Haunted House (1921), starring Buster Keaton. The feature presentation will be Nosferatu (1922). For children not interested in the feature film can watch Hotel Transylvania in the Hospitality Center. Tickets at the door will be $12 adults, $5 children, the ticket price will include popcorn and beverages. Please join us for this special pre-Halloween event, costumes are encouraged!
Friday, November 6th, at 8:00 PM - Birmingham Bloomfield Symphony Orchestra concert featuring the Christ Church Choir and guest conductor Christopher Wells. The BBSO will perform Zoltán Kodály's Summer Evening and Franz Schubert's Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major. The Christ Church Choir will perform Morten Lauridsen's Lux aeterna with the BBSO. A pre-concert talk with Maestro John Thomas Dodson will be before the concert at 7:00 PM. Ticket information can be found at www.bbso.org. |
| Item of the Month | | Collecting SOCKS in October! All types of socks are welcome including those for adults and children. These items will be donated to Crossroads of Michigan. Mary Honsell, Executive Director, stated that socks are critical to them as a prevention of frostbite and that athletic socks for men are most useful. After preparing lunch for our friends at Crossroads J J Benkert took the opportunity to talk with our guests when one young man in a wheelchair asked, "Did you bring any clothing?" When JJ asked what was needed he answered, "THERMAL UNDER WEAR AND THERMAL SOCKS." Prayerfully consider donating these warm items to Crossroads of Michigan. Thank you for your generosity in supporting this cause.
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| Episcopal Church Women: Program & Luncheon | |  ECW Tour of Bharatiya Hindu Temple
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
In keeping with the theme of expanding our comprehension of other faiths, on Tuesday, October 20, ECW will travel to the Bharatiya Hindu Temple, 6850 N. Adams Road, Troy (south of South Boulevard). We will have a guided tour of this magnificent edifice, commencing at 11:00 AM. Please wear socks. Everyone is welcome! If you are interested in carpooling from the church lot at 10:15 am, please call Kate Stella at 248.737.7970.
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| Youth Happening | |  Happening #17, November 13-15 at Christ Church, Grosse Pointe
Happening is a retreat weekend "for youth" "by youth" that allows young people (grades 9-12) to explore their relationships with Jesus, each other and the world.
Concentrating closely on the person and teachings of Jesus Christ, Happening gives those who attend the desire to understand and serve the church. Happening begins on a Friday at 6 p.m. and goes until 5:30 p.m. Sunday. Participants are expected to be at Happening the entire time. The Dioceses of Michigan and Eastern Michigan share in this ministry for young people. Christ Church, Grosse Pointe hosts the event. Click HERE for more information, a downloadable flyer and to register. |
A Rare Opportunity To Serve: Baldwin Soup Kitchen
| | We are looking for one or two more people to serve at the Baldwin Soup Kitchen in Pontiac from 10 AM - 1 PM on the following days:
- Saturday, October 17 (2 people)
- Wednesday, November 4 (2 people)
- Saturday, December 19 (1 person)
If you are able to do this good work, please email Pastor Manisha at mdostert@christchurchcranbrook.org. |
| Cub Scouts / Boy Scouts / Venturers | | A religious education program is being offered at Christ Church Cranbrook to encourage the spiritual growth of youth. This Religious Emblem Program is recognized by the Boy Scouts of America and Girl Scouts of the USA. The programs offered are: God & Me (grades 1 - 3), God & Family (grades 4 - 5), God & Church (grades 6 - 8) and God & Life (grades 9 - 12). Upon completing the program, a scout is awarded the religious emblem medal suitable for uniform wear. For registration and additional information, contact Scott Bednas at 313.686.1020, or email: sbednas@umich.edu
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| Thanksgiving Eve Service | | Start a new family tradition! Join us Wednesday November 25 at 7 PM for our Thanksgiving service. After the service join us for ice cream and pumpkin pie. Come, let us give Thanks to the Lord our God! Save the Date for our next Children and Youth Liturgical Drama at the Thanksgiving service. We have many silent and speaking roles for children Kindergarten through High School. Middle and High Schoolers are needed for leadership positions. Please RSVP for the casting call to Jessica Neeper at 248.506.1177 or email jneeper@christchurchcranbrook.org
Performance: Thanksgiving Eve, November 25, 7 PM.
Casting Call: November 1 (directly after the 10 AM service in St. Dunstan's Chapel)
Rehearsals: Tuesdays in November 3, 10, 17 and 24 at 5:30-7:30 PM.
Pizza dinner will be served at rehearsals.
attendance at all rehearsals is encouraged
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| Hospitality | | |
Hospitality: Generous and friendly treatment of visitors and guests.
The purpose of the Hospitality Committee is to support our mission of extravagant hospitality. We embrace this mission by offering our time to support the events and activities which are so vital to our capacity to reach out and transform strangers into friends. Our intention is to continue to foster a welcoming environment of inclusivity and kindness. Our many thanks and appreciation go to everyone who has volunteered their time in this meaningful ministry. We invite all hospitality volunteers and those who would like to join our hospitality team to a reception and overview of event operations on November 12th from 6:00-7:00 PM in the Guild Hall (food and beverages will be served). Please contact Garland Perhacs at 248.709.3069 or garlmys@aol.com. We are grateful for your time, energy and commitment in making our parish a welcoming home for all!
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| Healing Ministry | |  Are you interested in joining our Healing Ministry? Members of Christ Church Cranbrook Healing Ministry are embarking on a new study for induction into the Order of St. Luke. The International Order of St. Luke the Physician is made up of clergy, health professionals, and lay people who feel called to make Jesus' ministry of healing a ministry they will engage in at their respective churches. Our brown bag studies will take place on Sunday from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM on November 1, November 8, November 15, November 22, December 6, January 11, January 24, and February 7. We welcome those from other Christian churches who want to discern their call to healing ministry. Please contact the Reverend Joyce Matthews if you are interested at jmatthews@christchurchcranbrook.org or 248.644.5210, Ext. 15. |
| Understanding Your Grief Support Group | |  Experiencing the death of someone you love may be one of the most difficult things you have ever done. Understanding your grief describes ten touchstones that are essential physical, emotional, cognitive, social and spiritual actions for you to take to help yourself heal. The group will meet at 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM on; October 21 & 28, November 4 (Room 201/202) & November 18 (Conference Room) and December 2 (Room 201-202). To register please contact the Reverend Joyce Matthews at jmatthews@christchurchcranbrook.org or 248.644.5120, Ext. 15. |
| Thursday Night Movie | |  "The Swimmer" (1968)
October 22, 6:30 PM, Hospitality Center
Please join us for this symbolic, thought provoking, and unconventional film starring Burt Lancaster in one of his finest roles. Based on the famous short story by John Cheevers, Lancaster plays a suburbanite in upscale Westport, Connecticut. He notices the many swimming pools in the neighborhood, and decides one day to use them to swim/walk his way home. At each location, insights into his difficult past life are revealed for all to see. Mike Frank will provide interesting insights and lead the post-movie discussion. |
| Fact and Fiction Fun | |  The next Fact and Fiction Fun will meet on Monday, October 26, 2015 from 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm in the Conference Room at Christ Church Cranbrook. The selection for this month is Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. Everyone is invited to join the discussion. This exquisite novel tells the story of one of the most compelling heroines in modern literature--Emma Bovary. Unhappily married to a devoted, clumsy provincial doctor, Emma revolts against the ordinariness of her life by pursuing voluptuous dreams of ecstasy and love. But her sensuous and sentimental desires lead her only to suffering corruption and downfall. A brilliant psychological portrait, Madame Bovary searingly depicts the human mind in search of transcendence. Who is Madame Bovary? Flaubert's answer to this question was superb: "Madame Bovary, c'est moi." Acclaimed as a masterpiece upon its publication in 1857, the work catapulted Flaubert to the ranks of the world's greatest novelists. |
| Advent by Candlelight | |  Advent by Candlelight is a moment of quiet in the chaos that Christmas can so easily become. Many women describe it as the one thing they do for themselves during the holiday season - an evening of delicious food, warm fellowship, and thoughtful worship. It's a special holiday gift to our sisters, our mothers, our friends and ourselves and believe it or not, it's right around the corner. Mark your calendar for Monday, December 7th. All women are welcome! If you would like to hostess a table this year or if you would like to be our guest, just let us know! You may sign up to hostess a table or attend at the Advent by Candlelight by clicking HERE.
No special invitation is required. We hope you'll add this special evening to your holiday calendar. Reserve your spot by signing up at SignUpGenius site or with Mandy Andrews (mandycheesecake@yahoo.com) or Hillary Orlowski (hillaryjane@hotmail.com) by November 27. |
| Saint Francis Children's Choir | | St. Francis Choir meets on Sundays following the 10 AM Service! All children, 4 years old to second grade, are welcome and encouraged to join the St. Francis Choir and experience the joy of choral singing. Kate Bublitz will direct the choir again this year. Rehearsals are held in the Choir Room immediately following Sunday's 10:00 AM service. For more information contact Kate at kate.bublitz@hotmail.com.
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| Prayer Shawl Ministry | |
Please consider joining the CCC Prayer Shawl Ministry on the second Monday of the month. We meet from 12:00-2:00 PM. in Rooms 201 and 202. The shawls are created with prayers of hope, comfort, and peace, and delivered to those in need or to celebrate a special occasion.
Some choose to bring a brown bag lunch.You may be an experienced knitter, a beginner, or someone who would like to learn. Committee members are happy to guide you as you begin.
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| Do You Need a Ride to Church? | |  Do you or someone you know need a ride to the 10:00 AM service on Sundays? We now have a shuttle running from Fox Run retirement community in Novi to CCC every Sunday for the 10:00 AM service. The shuttle leaves Fox Run at 9:15 AM and will make stops between there and Christ Church Cranbrook. If you or someone you know lives in Farmington Hills, W. Bloomfield, Bloomfield Hills, Beverly Hills or Birmingham and would like a ride to church, please contact Mr. Don Canavesio at 586.747.6587.
If a ride is needed, you need to contact Don by Saturday at Noon for a ride for the next day. Seating is limited so rides are on a first come-first served basis. There is no charge for this service. |
| CCC Nametags | | | We would like for everyone to wear a Christ Church Cranbrook name tags to CCC services and events. Please complete a nametag request found in the pews. Name tags are ordered once a moth and are posted on the metal boards on the porch leading into the front doors of the church. If you have requested one recently, please check the board. If it is not there, please email Peggy Dahlberg at pdahlberg@christchurchcranbrook.org. |
| Interfaith Question of the Week | | |
As a way of learning about our neighbors of different faith traditions, we will be providing a link to the Question of the Week on the InterFaith Leadership Council (IFLC) of Metro Detroit's website. Please feel free to submit our own questions to IFLC for consideration to be featured.
The InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit is a faith-based civic organization made up of visionary religious and lay leaders of many faiths whose shared values compel them to work toward a community that lives together in harmony.
Our Goals:
BRING TOGETHER, encourage and nurture interfaith groups and networks
SUPPORT CONCILIATION between and among religious groups as well as the community at large through active conflict resolution
PROMOTE INTERFAITH EDUCATION so that the metropolitan Detroit community can benefit from the synergies and creative benefits that knowledge and understanding can provide. |
| Volunteers Needed | | Volunteers are needed on Friday, October 23, and/or Saturday, October 24 to assist with the 181st Convention of the Diocese of Michigan. You may choose to serve as hospitality/greeters, tellers, or assist with vendor set-up/break-down. In addition to our gratitude, volunteers also receive special treats and perks. Convention volunteers may also take advantage of the special room rates available to delegates. For more information, or to request a volunteer form, please contact Julie Travis, 181st Convention Volunteer Coordinator, at pcjuli@yahoo.com or 734.233.7334.
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| CCC Services Live Streamed | | Christ Church Cranbrook is now live streaming our 10:00 AM Sunday service! No matter where you are you don't have to miss a service. To view services, please click HERE. Videos of previous services are archived on this page as well.
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| Online and Text Giving - It's Easy! | | |
 Contributions can now be made online and by text messaging. Please click HERE and see how quick and easy it is.
We invite you to consider our new electronic "Online Giving" program as a way to automate your donations to Christ Church Cranbrook. Read more
We encourage you to consider these new giving opportunities.
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| Follow CCC on Facebook! |
|  We hope you "Like" us!
 You can view our Facebook page even if you don't have a Facebook account! Our page show a more "relaxed" version of CCC! If you have a Facebook account, simply click the button above and then click the "Like" button on our page. We're just getting started and we need your help to really get moving. |
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