|
The Sunrise |
...at Episcopal Church of the Resurrection
Starkville, Mississippi
January, 2004
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Because Nancy Christiansen (our newsletter editor) will be gone after Christmas and Nelda will have entered her retirement when we close Christmas Eve, I write this entry the Saturday before Christmas, with the hope you will receive it before the new year. Because this Advent has been fuller than most and next week will be even more packed, I will be brief (Okay, some of you can recover from your shock!).
Whether a jubilation celebration with family, a time of awareness of our loneliness or a time of missing a loved one who has died or for other reasons not with us, Christmas has come and gone. Even if on Christmas Eve we experienced a spiritual depth as our parish family, once again, figuratively gathered around the innocent babe lying in a manger as we sang familiar and nostalgic carols and for a brief moment experienced the presence of the Holy a little deeper, Christmas has come and gone.
Yes, it's time to take down the tree, throw out all the shredded gift wrapping, lament the weight we gained, and begin the new year - whatever lies ahead of us.
If, however, we allowed just a glimpse of the Holy to enter during Christmas, if we listened to the words of our Christmas carols rather than just mouthing nostalgic tunes, if we truly understand the implications of the incarnation we bury in our Christmas commercialism, then Christmas hasn't come and gone. It has taken on a deeper meaning and prepared us for the days, weeks, seasons, and years ahead.
And so, I close with a poem Diane and I have used occasionally as our Christmas card.
When the star in the sky is goneWhen the Kings and Princes are home
When the shepherds are back with their flocks
The work of Christmas begins
To find the lost
To heal the broken
To feed the hungry
To release the prisoner
To teach the nations
To bring Christ to all
To make music in the heart
Howard Thurman
I pray that each of you have been touched by the incarnation of Christmas and experienced the manifestation of Epiphany as we, together, begin a new year of carrying the Good News into a world that so desperately needs to hear it.
Christ's Peace,
NEWS & EVENTS
January, 2004 Newsletter
EYC News
I've had the pleasure of meeting many of you through Canterbury or other EYC events. However I realize that the vast majority of the Resurrection congregation has no idea who I am. Since I will be attempting to fill Jessica's shoes come January, I figured it best to give you all a little background information about myself.
I was born and raised in Vicksburg and a member of St. Alban's, Bovina. Since the summer of 2000 I've been on staff for several sessions at Camp Bratton-Green where I met a handful of your kids. I am currently a sophomore Aerospace Engineering major at MSU, and began helping Jessica with EYC in the spring of this year. This fall I began cooping with Redstone Technical Test Center at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, AL.
I'm excited about leading the EYC this semester and am looking forward to getting to know the rest of the congregation. We will have our first meeting on January 11. I will see you all next month!
Sincerely,
Carey Price
Outreach News
The Outreach Committee would like to thank the congregation for its generous support of the Angel Tree Christmas program. This year we adopted five families (15 people ranging from 9 months to 91 years of age) and put 95 angels on the tree. The overwhelming response on the part of the congregation is a testimony to our commitment to sharing Christ's love with the community. The families were deeply appreciative that we reached out to them in their time of need. We will maintain contact with these families throughout the year. One family in particular still has an immediate need that we will try to meet in the coming months. A single mother with one child (5 years old) is expecting twins in March. She is currently on bed rest. In addition to such things as clothes, blankets, diapers, and bottles, she will need cribs and car seats. If you know of anyone who has any of these items and no longer needs them, please contact David Foote (320-4777 or ). Merry Christmas and thanks again for your concern and generosity.
Sincerely,
Outreach Committee
Convocation Caucus
All are invited to attend a Tombigbee Convocation Caucus, at which the Diocese budget and pre-filed Council resolutions will be presented and discussed. Council Delegates and Alternates are strongly requested to attend this meeting. It will be Saturday, January 10, 10:00 - 12:30, with coffee and refreshments available at 9:30 a.m.
New Office Administrator:
With Nelda's retirement, the Vestry has reviewed the parish needs and has revised the title and job description. In addition to secretarial duties, the Office Administrator will begin assuming the bookkeeping duties currently performed by Babs Deas, prepare the monthly newsletter, oversee the office operations (picking up and sorting the mail, ordering supplies, maintaining equipment leases, etc.), and assist with parish and diocese reports. Sandra Sistrunk will assume these duties beginning Monday, January 5. Her work hours will be 9:00 -11:30 a.m. and 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Thanks to Retiring Vestry Members:
Our thanks go to Mary Eleanor Anderson, David Lewis, and Marsha Williams for having served on the Vestry the past three years.
Music Notes
Thank you, thank you to all who helped make the reception after the Lessons and Carols a delicious, beautiful, and friendly event! Babs Deas organized and many helped with the tasty food.
The choir and members of the congregation sang their hearts out for the Caroling event on December 18. We visited several nursing homes as well as some church members who are home-bound and finished up at the home of John and Mary Lee Beal for a soup supper (soup supplied by Michael Fazio).
Annual Parish Meeting
The 2004 Annual Parish meeting will be 10:30 a.m., Sunday, January 25. Both the 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. services will be cancelled, with one service at 9:30 a.m., followed by the Annual Parish Meeting, followed by a "Dutch treat" lunch. Please notify the Parish Office if you plan to attend the lunch so that we can plan appropriately for the number of needed meals. The Annual Parish Reports will be available Sunday, January 18, please pick one up and review prior to the parish meeting.
Thank You
As we move beyond the Christmas Season and begin a new calendar year, we wish to thank you for the many ways you have supported us. We thank all of you who contributed to the very generous financial gift. We thank you for so enthusiastically welcoming Diane as the Interim MSU Chaplain and as Deacon to Resurrection. We thank you for the many kind ways you invite us into your homes and lives and for the many ways you have supported us through 2003. May God bless you as we begin a new year together.
Christ's Peace,
Bill & Diane
Your Prayers are Asked For…
...Expectant Mothers: Paige Passons Simmons, Robin Passons Bryan, and Kathleen Batson
...Those serving in the military: Steve VanLandingham, David Callahan, Chris Livingston, Justin Van den Berg, Fran Miller, Bob Tipton, Banks Waldrop, Richard Baswell, Andrew Wheatley, Meredith Roberson, Ruby Licona.
...Those serving as missionaries: Bob and Amy Little
...Special needs within the Church of the Resurrection: Sally Stetson, Jeanne Ferris, LaVora Williams, Don Emerich, Edna Wilkerson, Jan Handy, Lorenzo Crowell, Dee, Clifford Anderson
...Relatives and friends of the Church of the Resurrection: Luella Brand, Johathan Franks, Ophelia Luntrell, Robert McClain, A.C., Margie Cook, Melanie Pharo, Nora Ware, Stella Madar, Oma Lee Pierce, Kathy Harris, Ron Newell, Kate Hummel, Annie, Brenda Baswell, Marilyn
...The departed: Carolyn Crowder
About Making Prayer Requests
To include names for prayer requests in the newsletter or in Prayers of the People, you may make an entry in the "Prayer Requests Notebook" on the shelves in the side narthex or entry into the church, call the parish office, or tell Bill or Diane. While your clergy regularly pray for individuals within the parish, as well as for special requests, they consider information and prayer requests confidential. If you want clergy to include your requests in the corporate prayer requests, please let them know. In addition, if you are adding someone to the list, please have the person's permission and let us know how to list their name, first and last names or only first name.
To keep our prayer lists current, names of persons outside the parish will be included in the newsletter only once and in the Prayers of the People for only one month. Please re-submit prayer requests monthly to have them remain on the list. (Again, this is only for those who are not members of the parish).
December 15 Vestry Summary
The Vestry met on Monday, December 15 in the home of Beth Batson. A brief social was held prior to the beginning of the meeting. For the devotional Bill read a scripture concerning Elizabeth and Mary answering God's call. Reading the scripture the second and third times, Bill asked the Vestry to think how each one has answered God's call as well as Resurrection. Do our responses include preconditions or limitations before we answer?
Old Business - Marsha presented a report from the Audit Response Committee. The committee recommended some "housekeeping" changes. These will be accomplished after the first of the year when our new office administrator replaces Nelda.
Bill gave an in-depth report on our 2003 Stewardship Campaign. Pledging units are down but the amount of pledges is up. Several factors count towards the decrease number of units. Members have died, members have moved and some are not pledging because of the actions of the General Convention this past summer.
The new telephone system will be installed on January 6, 2004. This new system will greatly increase the efficiency of the office as well as reduce the parish phone bill approximately $50.00/month
Bill reported that Sandra Sistrunk has accepted his offer to become our Parish Administrator beginning January 5, 2004. Her hours will be from 9:00am - 4:00pm, Monday -Thursday. The office will be closed on Fridays.
The Vestry Retreat has been scheduled for February 20-21 and the topics will be our Parish evaluation as well as planning for our future growth.
New Business: The 2004 Budget was presented by the Budget Committee. After discussion, the Budget was approved as presented.
Bill announced that our current nursery worker has resigned and he has contacted Kathy Brandon, Chairman of the Nursery Committee, to begin the search for a replacement.
The minutes for the November 17 were approved and the November Financial Report was accepted. The Vestry will not meet in January and the February meeting will be the Vestry and Leadership Retreat on February 20-21.
January Birthdays
|
1
Susan Clark |
12
Bill Stark |
21
Bill Livingston |
Vestry/Warden Nominations
Forms are in the Narthex to nominate persons for Vestry and as Wardens. We will be electing two new Vestry persons. Both Mary Lee Beal and Michael Fazio are eligible to serve another year, and both have agreed to be nominated. Please prayerfully consider individuals for these positions. Please review the criteria for Vestry persons and obtain permission before nominating.
Thanks
Thanks to Babs Deas, who chaired the festive and lavish reception which followed Lessons and Carols and to Ann McVey and Kim Noffsinger who were her very able assistants. Thanks also to everyone who brought all the wonderful goodies.
Following the Annual Meeting on January 25th. there will be a Dutch Treat Sandwich lunch. Please call Mary Eleanor Anderson 323-3259 or e-mail if you plan to eat. We need to know how many sandwiches to order. I don't have an exact price but watch the Sunday Pew Sheet it will be listed soon. Plan to come!!
Diocesan Council Feb 6,7,8, 2004
Council is in Hattiesburg February 6, 7th and 8th. After January 6th the registration fee goes from $65 to $85! Mail your check to me at 113 Grandridge or leave it for me in the church office marked "Council Registration." Our two hotels are Comfort Suites at 601-261-5555 or Hawthorne Suites 601-296-0302. You must make your own room reservation. We will be releasing the unused rooms in our block on January 6th. I will be out of town until then, but will try to check my email in case you have questions.
Christian Sympathy
Our Resurrection Parish Family sends their sincere sympathy to Peyton Crowder and the family of Carolyn Crowder who died December 21.