October, 2007

Welcoming the Winters

On Sunday, October 7, we will have a welcome brunch for Lee and Ruth Winter.  The brunch will be in the Student Center from 9:00-10:15 a.m.  I have planned a menu and am asking for volunteers to make the listed items and bring them to the Student Center by 9:00 that morning.    The menu includes…

• Bacon Tomato cups
• Cheese Biscuits with Ham
• Shrimp Grits tartlets
• Sausage Balls
• Assorted Breads & Muffins
• Fresh Fruit
• Sour Cream Coffee Cake
• Quick Cinnamon Rolls
• Mini Quiches

• Young Adult
• Nursery
• Inviting
• Columbarium
• Stewardship
• Pool
• Youth Christian Formation
• Adult Christian Formation

If you are able to volunteer for one or more of these committees please contact Jim Jones at 324-5756 or by email at jdbirdiems@netscape.com.

Diocesan Communications: YOUR Survey Input Needed

Many changes are being made in the communications world, and the Diocese of Mississippi is evaluating its ways of communicating the mission and ministry of the diocese to all Mississippi Episcopalians. Please help the diocese serve you better by completing a survey on the various communications tools now used. 

Your input is very important! Visit http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=ayF_2fLTrwUGreNReHtMAdHw_3d_3d to complete the survey. Those wishing to complete a paper survey are encouraged to pick one up in the Narthex, complete it and return it to the Diocesan Office:  P.O. Box 23107, Jackson, MS  39225.  You can also fax your survey to the Diocesan Office at 601-354-3401.

Once surveys are returned, the Executive Committee will review the input and evaluate. Your response is very important and your time to complete the survey is very much appreciated! The Diocese hopes to have all surveys received by October 1.

CANTERBURY TELLS

Canterbury Fellowship
Canterbury Fellowship meets on Wednesday evenings at 5:30 p.m. for food, fun, fellowship, study and worship. ALL are WELCOME! For further Canterbury information and details on its programming, visit: www.resurrectionchurch.com/canterbury, or contact the Rev. Brian Ponder, chaplain, at 662.323.3483 x 102 or msu_canterbury@bellsouth.net.

Attention MSU Students & Parish 20- & 30-Somethings!
Pews, Views & Brews is a book-club-style gathering and offering of the Canterbury Fellowship where participants read a book over the course of the semester, discuss it over dinner at a local restaurant and share in fellowship. This semester’s book: A Wing and a Prayer: A Message of Faith and Hope by Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori.

PV&B provides a great opportunity for folks to get to know one another better and to talk about faith in the context of the real world. If you’re interested, it’s not too late to join. We meet on the second Mondays of the month at 7:30 p.m.   Upcoming dates for the semester are: October 8 (at The Grill) and November 12 (location TBA). For more information contact Brian Ponder, chaplain.

Dinner & a Movie & Compline, TOO!
DMC2 continues this semester, meeting on third Sundays at 6:30 p.m. in the Canterbury Lodge. This offering is open to all! We gather monthly to share a meal, watch a movie, have a brief discussion on it and close with worship. It’s a great opportunity to round out the weekend and start your week off right! Upcoming dates: October 21 and November 18.

Canterbury Group attends NOLA Service
On September 20th, a group of five from the Canterbury Fellowship traveled to New Orleans for an Ecumenical Worship Service called "Humanity Renewed, Restored, Re-Centered In God." led by the archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. and Rt. Hon. Dr. Rowan Williams. The service was held in conjunction with the fall House of Bishop’s Meeting and served as the official rededication of the city’s Convention Center.
Those traveling to NOLA for the event: Merry Barnes, Becca Horton, Dorothy Porcello, Stephen Huddle (May ’07 grad) and Brian Ponder.

Canterbury TAILS!
A group from Canterbury is organizing a tailgating event for students and parishioners for MSU Homecoming on October 6. If you’re interested in tailgating with us, please email Merry Barnes, merrizzle@yahoo.com, so that we can keep you informed of plans and tent locations. GO DAWGS!

Chairs for the Lodge
Canterbury is looking to replace existing chairs in the Lodge’s worship space with ones that will be more comfortable when used and will stack efficiently when using the space for different events such as EYC lock-ins, meditation, EYC Get-fit, etc. Will you sponsor a chair? Chair costs are $70.00 each, and we hope to purchase 30 in the coming weeks. Can’t pay for a whole chair? How ‘bout half? For more information, contact Brian Ponder at msu_canterbury@bellsouth.net.

Canterbury Needs Your HELP!!!
Canterbury continues to rely on the generous support of Resurrection and parishioners who go above and beyond to make this parish-based campus ministry a reality! Thanks for all you do! Here is one way for you to help out! Canterbury Meals – We’re looking for parishioners to cook and serve meals on Wednesday evenings throughout the academic year. We hope you’ll not only cook for us but that you’ll stay and eat with us, too! Contact Merry Barnes, 601.506.1021 or merrizzle@yahoo.com to sign up today! Thanks for keeping us wonderfully fed!

Around Resurrection

Sunday School’s in Session!
Sunday School for All Ages has resumed on Sunday mornings at 9:15 sharp and continues throughout the year. Join us for an array of Christian formation opportunities this year!

Servant Ministry
The Servant Ministry Committee continues to meet every third Wednesday at noon in the Student Center. Our next meeting will be October 17 and anyone interested in this outreach program is invited to bring a sack lunch and join us.

In addition to our regular contributions to Food Pantry/Safe Haven, we will be gearing up to provide a Thanksgiving meal for our adopted families from last year. At our next meeting will also be discussing preparations for participation in bell-ringing for Salvation Army Kettle during the Christmas season as well as making preliminary plans for adopting families for Christmas and putting up the Angel Tree during Advent.

The mission of the servant ministry is to extend Christ’s presence in and beyond the parish, so join us as we seek to live into the prayer Jesus taught us — “Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” For more information about the work of the Servant Ministry Committee call Martha or Dolton McAlpin at 323-7206.

Boys & Girls Club Say Thanks
The Boys & Girls Club of Oktibbeha County/Starkville sent their thanks for your continued interest in and support for their organization.  Their letter is posted on the narthex bulletin board.

Music Notes
The Bell Ministry is finally underway again, as the bell’s chord has been replaced and the bell is good to go.      Anyone who is at least in the first grade is eligible to sign up and ring the bell on a given Sunday.    See Nancy Christiansen to sign up.

The organ has had both keyboards replaced, which means that all the keys now play.    Thanks to Mary Lee and John Beal for financing this wonderful project!

The Adult Choir is enjoying having MSU students join us:    Kathryn Buckley,   David Eldridge,  Claire Fellman,   and Summer Hopper.

Singing the Psalm 
Have you noticed that we are singing a different psalm  melody at the 10:30 service?  The melody is taken from the beginning of Hymn 339 in the 1982 Hymnal  (“Deck thyself, my soul, with gladness”).

Lessons and Carols
will be at 5:00 p.m. on December 2nd and will be followed by a Festive Reception in the Student Center.  

The Children’s Choir …
...has been sitting on the back pew near the Adult Choir,  as well as taking communion with the choir.     The Children  have learned all the service music and are enjoying a symbiotic singing relationship with the Adult Choir.

A new Habitat House
Habitat for Humanity has started a new house at 579 Curry Street, and volunteers are needed every Friday and Saturday at 8:00 a.m.  Please contact Holly Potts (615-5453) or the Habitat office (324-7008) if you are interested.

SJG:  Fall Workday Set for October 27
St. Joseph’s Guild will have a workday Saturday October 27, from 8:00 to noon.  Come when you can and stay as long as you would like.  Items on the agenda include: cutting and priming wood and replacing decayed fascia and soffit, painting, and installing new blinds.  As always, all are welcome and if you have a specific project that you would like to work on or add to the agenda, please let me know.   For more information contact Clarissa Balbalian at cbalbali@ext.msstate.edu or 662-615-2146.

Last month’s workday was a success.  Leanne Fazio and Adele Crudden cleaned the nursery and vesting area from top to bottom, and Mary Sears spruced up the Parish Hall. James McCormick and David and Matthew Christiansen tamed the vegetation on the front bank.  Debbie Nettles and Charlie Perkins weeded the pool, and Charlie also removed the leftover pile of sand.  Paul Martin weeded the labyrinth and helped paint.  David Van Landingham applied weed killer, edged and used the leaf blower to clean up all the messes we made.  Bill Batson spent several days sanding and scraping the wood in the Columbarium courtyard and helped us prime and paint on workday, Julia Heard painted the columns in the courtyard area.  As they have all summer, Michael Fazio and Wayne Wilkerson mowed the lawn, and Michael fixed us a gourmet lunch to end another extremely hot, but very productive workday.  Thanks to everyone for your time and efforts!

POD was a success too and we welcome our new volunteers.  Bill Batson, Happy Deas, Debbie Nettles, Matthew Christiansen, David Christiansen, Will Christiansen, Michael Fazio, Glenn Cook, Jay Perry, Lori Mitchell, and Jo Bright.  Anyone who has signed up for St. Joseph’s Guild during my tenure as Jr. Warden will remain on my contact list unless they request otherwise.

Fall Blood Drive:  October 21
The next Blood Drive at the church will be Sunday, October 21. If it is more convenient for you to donate at another United Blood Services drive, do so, and ask them to credit Resurrection. Then notify Ellen Newsom so she can make sure we get credit! Remember...if we make our quota all members of the parish family are covered for blood needs for another 6 months.

Baptism Dates
There are two days in the coming months when we will have baptisms: November 4, All Saints’ Sunday, and January 13, the Baptism of our Lord (the first Sunday after Epiphany).  Anyone desiring to be baptized or any parent desiring to have a child baptized, please call Fr. Lee (323-3483) to schedule an appointment to discuss the Church’s teachings on Holy Baptism.

Coming Events & Important Dates

October

• 1-4 Clergy Conference
• 5-6 Licensed Lay Ministry, Gray Center
• 5-7 New Beginnings
• 7 Fr. Lee’s First Sunday at Resurrection
• 7 Welcome Brunch, 9:00-10:15 a.m.
• 7 St. Francis Day Celebration with Blessing of the Animals, 4:30 p.m.
• 7 Pews, Views, & Brews    
• 12 Parents Night Out
• 17 Servant Ministry, noon
• 19-20 Vocare Staff Training
• 21 Blood Drive
• 22 Dinner & A Movie & Compline, Too
• 27 Day on the Diaconate
• 31 All Hallows’ Eve & Blessing of the Trick-or-Treaters

November

• 1 All Saints’ Day
• 4 All Saints’ Sunday (baptism date)
• 4 Daylight Saving Time Ends
• 14 Celebration of a New Ministry
• 22 Thanksgiving

December

• 2 Lessons & Carols
• 25 Christmas

October Birthdays

We share in sorrow for the death of:
Heyward Strickland, father of Bronson Strickland
Elizabeth Watts, mother of Lin Watts, grandmother of MSU student Ben Watts

Our prayers are asked for... ... those with child, especially Leslie Zacharias, Jessica Harris, Christine Williams, Rowan Williams Haug.... those who suffer in mind, body or spirit, especially Jeanne, Lorenzo, Edna, Don, Ophelia, Bridget Burdan, Chad Green, Marian, Richard Christiansen, Murray Bullock, Hattie Shelley, Liam Livingston, Rozella, Teresa Phillips, Marguerite McKell, Russ McReynolds, Horace Boyer, Myrlene Wilkerson, Mary Jean Wiltse, Bob Stevenson, Prince Hollingshed, Robert Pilgrim, Dave Cook, Tom Bell, Rod Geuder, Karen, Guy Hargrove, Caroline Brady, Victor Rudis, Gretchen Passons, David Cook, Laura, Russell, June, Pat, Walt Newsom, Hunter Maye, Melinda Gwin, Lisa Smith, Sondra Price, Rebekah Huston....those who serve in the military, especially Steve, David, Chris, Fran, John Burdan, Rob Kennington, David McCaffree, Leslie Esher, Carl Makin, Will Mitchell, Tommy McMinn, Tim Reid....and those in harm’s way.

From the Vestry 

The vestry of the Church of the Resurrection met September 17, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. in the Student Center.    The Rev. Brian Ponder opened the meeting by reading to the vestry about Edward Bouverie Pusey, since September 17th is the day the church celebrates his ministry.  The minutes from the June vestry meeting and August vestry meeting were approved, and the August financial report was accepted.

The vestry watched a video from Bishop Gray urging us to consider raising our pledge to the Diocese to help cover the cost of the churches on the coast.  Further discussion will take place at the next vestry meeting.

Senior Warden, Babs Deas, gave an update on the Winters’ plans and announced the formation of a Transition Committee.  This committee, along with the congregation, is committed to helping the move be as smooth and pleasant as possible.  Melinda Myers will chair the committee and Holly Potts and David Christiansen will serve on the committee.  Their job will be to coordinate plans within the congregation to help the Winters’ in any way possible.

The vestry was reminded that in the past the 1% support for the seminary was divided evenly between the seminary the Rector attended and the seminary the Chaplain attended.  Brian shared a communication from the Bishop about the House of Bishops meeting in New Orleans September 19-25.

Action taken included:  approving Lynn Phillips Gaines’ request to apply to become a licensed Lay Reader; voting to pay up to $1000 extra for moving expenses if necessary; and moving the October meeting to the 22nd due to the Senior Warden being out of town.

Holly Potts, Festivals & Celebrations, discussed her plans for a brunch to be held for the Winters on their first Sunday in Starkville, October 7th, between the two services.  Details will be forthcoming.  Jim Jones, Parish life, passed out POD sheets but noted there were several opportunities for which no one signed up.  Rachel McCann, Adult Christian Formation, reported that four people had signed up for adult Sunday School.  David Christiansen, Evangelism, showed the vestry examples of postcards to be sent to newcomers to Starkville, inviting them to worship with us.  He also discussed plans to revamp the visitor’s cards.

The meeting adjourned with the Lord’s Prayer.

Babs Deas
Senior Warden