| This Weekend's Readings | The First Sunday of Advent
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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11/26 Thursday
| Church Offices Closed
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11/27 Friday
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Church Offices Closed
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11/28 Saturday
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5:00 PM - Sanctuary Holy Eucharist: Rite II
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11/29 Sunday
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8:00 AM - Holy Eucharist: Rite I
8:00 AM - Prayer Shawl Ministry Sale
9:00 AM - Rector's Forum
9:00 AM - Middle School Sunday School
9:00 AM - Wreath Sales
10:00 AM - Holy Eucharist: Rite II
10:00 AM - Sunday School
11:15 AM - High School "Hang Out"
11:30 AM - Advent Family Fair
11:30 AM - Docent Tour
11:30 AM - Healing Ministry (Order of St. Luke)
11:30 AM - Rehearsal for Advent by Candlelight 6:00 PM - Congregational Evensong
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11/30 Monday
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8:30 AM - Morning Prayer
7:00 PM - Cranbrook Choristers Rehearsal
7:30 PM - Fact & Fiction Fun
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12/1 Tuesday
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8:30 AM - Morning Prayer
11:00 AM - ECW Program
7:00 PM - One Bread Ministry
7:30 PM - Shiloah Meditation Group
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12/2 Wednesday
| 7:30 AM - Bible Study
8:30 AM - Holy Eucharist: Rite II
9:15 AM - Prayer Card Ministry
9:30 AM - Adult Children of Alcoholics Meeting
6:00 PM - Renew Service
7:00 PM - Cranbrook Ringers Rehearsal
7:00 PM - Understanding Your Grief Support Group
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12/3 Thursday
| 8:30 AM - Morning Prayer
5:00 PM - Cranbrook Choristers Rehearsal
7:30 PM - Christ Church Choir Rehearsal
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| Festival of Gifts | |  The Festival of Gifts is a long-standing tradition here at Christ Church Cranbrook. Many, many parishioners and people from neighboring areas come to this service and look forward to it year after year. This year in the spirit of long standing traditions the Festival of Gifts service will follow the original service program and lessons from December 1928.
You may be wondering if this will look and sound very different from recent years. The answer is the order of service will change and some of the prayers will sound a little different but we think you will find that the language and prayers will paint a beautiful picture of this very special time in our Christian faith. Of course, the readings and the story of the birth of our Lord Jesus remains the same as does the role of our beloved Acolytes who will enact the story and display a living crèche. We will also process as usual past the live crèche to view the scene of the birth of our Lord. You will note in keeping with this "retro" theme, the service program will also take on the historical look of the original 1928 enactment and includes some photos from past years. I hope you and your family will worship at one of the Festival of Gifts services which are offered on Saturday, December 5th and on Sunday, December 6th.
Parishioners are invited/encouraged to bring unwrapped gifts, which will be collected by various service agencies in southeast Michigan. They are:
- Baldwin Center
- Bound Together
- Butzel Family Center
- Children's Aid Society of Detroit
- Crossroads for Youth
- Crossroads of Michigan
- Easter Seals
- Federation of Youth Services
- Lutheran Social Services of Michigan
- Matrix Human Services
- Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
- Oakland County Children's Village
- Oakland Family Services
These agencies will "shop" on Monday, December 7 for those in need - at-risk, low-income youth and young adults, ages newborn to 21. Items requested include, but are not limited to cold weather gear, college-themed hoodies (teen/adult sizes), infant/toddler clothing, toys, board games, card games, arts and crafts, age appropriate books, puzzles, action figures, dolls and sporting good items. |
| Special Notice | |
The Church Offices will be closed on Thursday and Friday for the Thanksgiving holiday.
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| This Week's Intercessions | | |
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| Item of the Month | | |
Throughout the month of November we will acknowledge and give thanks for our abundance and for our ability to share gifts with all of God's creation. Parishioners are encouraged to bring warm hats, mittens, scarves, gloves and blankets to be distributed to the Baldwin Center to help the needy fend off the cold winter. Donations are needed for adults and children. Please be generous and think of those whom these warm items would be a significant and meaningful gift. Kindly place your donations in the bins located in the Narthex and at the South Entrance. Thank you for supporting this worthy cause.
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| Advent Family Fair | |
 A few years ago I purchased The Advent Book while living in Illinois, during a fellowship event at our church.This book has been a bit hit in our house and reading it together has become my family's favorite Advent tradition ever since.
The Advent Book is a beautiful keepsake. It tells the story of Mary and Joseph and the birth of Jesus. Each day you read the pages leading up to the current day of Advent. It builds as you add one more section as each day passes. Since you are repeating the previous days, the story becomes memorable as you read the book. My boys know it well and they are 8 and 12 years old. My friends with older children say their teens still look forward to reading through the book because it brings back such fond memories. It forces you to slow down each night and spend a few quiet minutes together. The illustrations are beautiful and the quality of the book is such that it will last for many years.
CCC will host the author and illustrators of The Advent Book, an heirloom keepsake book by Jack and Kathryn Stockman, during the Advent Family Fair on Sunday, November 29 at 11:30 AM in the Hospitality Center. Jack and Kathryn will visit with parents and discuss Advent and other family traditions. This special coffee hour will include advent activities for the children while the parents visit with the author.
The Advent Book has sold over 65,000 copies worldwide. There will be a personalized book signing afterwards for those who wish to purchase it as part of a new family tradition or as a gift to loved ones.
- Jill Bednas
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| United Thank Offering This Weekend | |  For over 125 years, the United Thank Offering of the Episcopal Church has helped needy persons in our country and around the world. Our autumn collection for UTO continues this weekend. Please consider your many blessings and give with gratitude, prayer, and generosity. Blue UTO envelopes are in the pews. Checks should be made out to Christ Church Cranbrook with "UTO" in the memo line. |
| 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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Advent Lessons and Carols
| | Sunday, December 6 at 6 PM, Pre-Service music at 5:30 PM
Join us for a service of Advent Lessons and Carols on Sunday, December 6 at 6:00 PM. A pre-service recital of music with baroque strings will begin at 5:30 PM. Our God in the City preacher will be Mary McLaren Honsel, the Executive Director of Crossroads of Michigan. All are welcome!
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| Salon Concert and High Tea | | Wednesday, December 9 at 4 PM
A beloved tradition at Christ Church Cranbrook, these jazz flavored musical presentations are offered with Tea and Hors d'oeuvres in the Guild Hall. Join us for what has become an annual holiday tradition by welcoming back harp trio, Christa Grix Trio - Chrisa Grix, harp, Kurt Krahnke, bass, and Pete Siers, percussion. Free-will offering. All are welcome! |
| Christmas Services | | Please join us for Christmas Eve services on Wednesday, December 25th. This year we will be offering four unique services:
Jazz Mass, 1:00 PM
Family Service, 4:00 PM
Festival Holy Eucharist, 7:00 PM, featuring brass and choir
Choral Holy Eucharist, 10:00 PM, featuring brass and choir
On Christmas Day, we will have celebrate Holy Eucharist at 10:00 AM, followed by the Christmas Brunch (for more details on the brunch, see below).
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| 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.
As part of this event, we are collecting feminine supplies for Crossroads of Michigan. Please consider making a donation to support this outreach ministry. |
| Sunday School Outreach | |  Pennies for Piggies
In November and December we will collect a special offering during Sunday School for the Episcopal Relief and Development organization to help impoverished families make a living by raising pigs. Go "Hog Wild" and help the Sunday School with your spare change.
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| Episcopal Church Women | |  Tuesday, December 1, 2015 at 11:00 AM
Everyone is invited to join ECW for our first meeting in December, as we welcome the holiday season with a program of Christmas music in the Guild Hall at 11 AM on Tuesday, December 1st. Our featured artist is singer, pianist, and composer Alice Bentley of Royal Oak. She will perform and share stories about how several popular carols came to be written, and we will sing some of our favorites to her accompaniment. Lunch will be provided in the Guild Hall in lieu of the potluck. All are welcome!
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| What? and When? are the Youth Mission Trips? | |  Every CCC Middle and High School youth has an opportunity to go on a mission trip! A mission trip provides an important avenue of spiritual formation for all young people. On mission trips, youth grow in faith through the disciplines of manual labor and simple living in community. While working for others, youth experience the generosity of those whom they are helping. These week-long trips provide a way to experience God that has lasting impact on a young person's life.
CCC is offering four mission trips for youth:
* June 27-July 4, 2016: Dominican Republic
* July 4- 11, 2016: Dominican Republic
* July 17- 23, 2016: Chicago
* August 7-12, 2016: Mission: Possible! In Detroit
Current 6th and 7th graders are eligible for the Detroit trip. Current 8th graders through college students may go on any trip. Trips range in cost from approximately $150 to $2,000, including transportation. Each student can receive help in raising funds. This year, we are delighted to be partnering with the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan and local churches to make these trips possible.
If you are interested in the Dominican Republic trips, speak to Pastor Manisha or visit http://www.edomi.org/yaya/camp-compassion/ to secure a spot and place a deposit. The trips will fill up fast.
Questions: contact Pastor Manisha (mdostert@christchurchcranbrook.org) or Jill Bednas (jbednas@christchurchcranbrook.org)
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| High School Hang Out | | An opportunity for High Schoolers to hang out and connect with their peers and make a connection. If you are in 9th - 12th grade come check it out, come to the parlor immediately following church service. This is a new location. The parlor is the room straight ahead of you, as you exit the church at the end of the hallway, on your way to Guild Hall. Youth Leaders will be there to greet you: Pastor Manisha, Jill Bednas, David & Joan Jensen,or Michael & Maryilyn Roche. This is sort of High School coffee hour with guided conversation.
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| Women's Spirituality Group | | Women's Spirituality Group (WSG) on Fridays from noon to 1 PM. WSG is a way for women to develop a rhythm to their spiritual life by living in "seasons." We are in the season of the Scriptures. Pastor Manisha is leading a study on Galatians, a book in the Bible with a razor-sharp focus on Christ's work of setting humans free. Come for any or all sessions through December 18. Brown bag lunch and fellowship begins at 11:30 AM in Room 201-202. All are welcome!
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| 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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| Fact and Fiction Fun | |
 Fact and Fiction Fun will meet again on Monday, November 30, 2015 from 7:30 pm to 9:00 PM in the Conference Room at Christ Church Cranbrook. The selection for this month is Chaucer's Tale: 1386 and the Road to Canterbury by Paul Strohm. In addition to reading the book, we will also read one of the Canterbury Tales: The Wife of Bath, which can be Googled and obtained online. Please come and join in the discussion.
At the beginning of 1386, Geoffrey Chaucer-lauded today as the father of English literature-was a middle-aged Londoner with a modest bureaucratic post; his literary successes had been confined to a small audience of intimate friends. But by year's end, he was swept up in a series of disastrous events that would ultimately leave him jobless, homeless, separated from his wife, and exiled in the countryside of Kent. Unbroken by these worldly reversals, Chaucer pursued a new life in art. In this highly readable social history, Paul Strohm, one of the finest medievalists of our time, vividly recreates the bustle of everyday life in fourteenth-century London while he unveils the fascinating story behind Chaucer's journey from personal crisis to rebirth as the immortal poet of The Canterbury Tales. In addition to reading the book, we will also read one of the Canterbury Tales: The Wife of Bath, which can be Googled and obtained online.
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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 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: December 2 (Room 201-202). To register please contact the Reverend Joyce Matthews at jmatthews@christchurchcranbrook.org or 248.644.5120, Ext. 15. |
| Blue Christmas Service | |  Sunday, December 20 at 4:00 PM - St. Dunstan's Chapel
This service offers comfort, hope, and healing for all who are challenged by this year's holiday season. The holidays have a way of focusing and heightening our sorrows, sadness and fears. We are missing our loved ones, worrying about money, and obtaining suitable employment, wondering what's true. At the Blue Christmas service, we will have a chance to address the sad, dark things that are weighing us down and ask God's help to endure them, pray for their healing, and reach for hope. The Service will include: Prayer & Song, Comforting scripture and words of encouragement, Holy Eucharist, Healing station for very specific and private prayer, and Pastoral counsel, light refreshments and friendly companionship.
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| Christmas Day Brunch | |  Join us on December 25th at 11:00 AM for a traditional Christmas Day feast with turkey, ham, and all the trimmings. You will also enjoy appetizers, festive music and warm-hearted conversation with others in the community. Please RSVP by December 22 to Shirley Green at 248.253.1316 or the church office at 248-644-5210. Transportation can be arranged if needed. All are welcome! |
| 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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| 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. |
| Old Rectory Resale Shop at All Saints', Pontiac | |
The Old Rectory Resale Shop at All Saints' Pontiac has new hours and all new stock. Fridays & Saturdays 10-2. All new, but gently used, fall and winter clothes, kitchen and decorating items, plus a huge stock of Christmas decorating items, at fabulous prices. The Produce Market is right next door, open Saturdays 10-2, with fresh fruits and vegetables at near wholesale prices. Our Book Nook has thousands of gently read titles for adults and children, Saturdays 10-12. Come by to shop or to volunteer. New help is always welcome for these major ministries of All Saints'. Pike & Exchange Sts., west of Woodward, between Orchard Lake and M-59. Check out our new website www.allsaintspontiac.org or Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/oldrectoryresaleshop.
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| Interfaith Question of the Week |
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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. |
| 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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