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News for and about Grace Episcopal Church
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May 22, 2009
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| Thanks to ...
... Mary
McLain, Chuck Bowles, J. White, Belinda and Roger Perna, Tammy Robertson and
Lisa Perry for their help with the final Stir the Pot event
last Sunday.
And we want to thank all
who have made these films and discussions an interesting and provocative series
this year. |
Painting Brightens our Worship Space--Help Needed to Finish
Fresh paint in our worship space has immeasurably brightened our services, thanks to lots of volunteer painters. To finish the job, we
have to pay the person who is doing the very high areas. If you would like to help with this, any
contribution will be appreciated. |
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| Dear
Friend,
Apologies from your editor to all those who came last Sunday expecting to experience a Sunday School-led Service; that special service is actually this coming Sunday. See you Sunday!
Help keep Grace's members & friends informed by passing your news along to the editor.
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| Sunday School Service this Sunday at Grace
This Sunday, May 22, the Sunday School will lead us in worship at the 10 am service. The Sunday School will read the
lessons, lead the prayers of the people and preach the sermon.
They will also serve as ushers and acolytes.
Your editor missed the previous Sunday School service, and was informed later that he'd missed something great. He won't make that mistake twice.
Bring your friends. See you Sunday!
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| A Note on Sunday's Readings
See the readings for the Seventh Sunday of Easter--Year B.
Sunday begins the final week the Easter Season celebration of the Lord's
resurrection. Each Sunday during these fifty days, we have explored some aspect
of our baptism into the dying and rising of Jesus.
The sense of unity within the fellowship of Jesus' disciples was
reflected in the period between his ascension and the day of Pentecost. We hear
about the most significant event during that period in the first reading Sunday
when, under Peter's leadership, the disciples chose a replacement for Judas.
The reading from the first letter of John also reflects the theme of unity between
Jesus and the Father, and between Jesus and us.
Sunday's Gospel reading is a
portion of Jesus' prayer for his disciples on the night before he died. In that
prayer, he asked the Father to unite us with him and to give us the same
mission and grace the Father gave to him.
Our life in Christ is the gift of God in and through the
resurrection. That new life by water and the Holy Spirit will be our theme next
week when, on Pentecost--the fiftieth day of Easter--we rejoice that we are filled with
the Spirit of God. | |
| Keep in Your Prayers ...
Elaine Hughes, Maureen Back, Eloise Pinto, Ruth
Bertram, Joyce Markham, Mrs. Matthews, Judy Handy, Shelly Martin, Barbara Todd, Kim Martin, Robb Martin, Florence and
Bob Poyer, Dean Bryeans, Mary Hall, Chris,
Irene Bryeans, Joshua, Caleb, Anne, Darryl Handy, Marcus
Flemister, Kim Herrmann, Al Berghausen,
Teri, Mary Lou Bellows, Jackie Lewis.
Please let us know if you need pastoral care
or know of someone who does. This includes
information about illness, hospital stays, requests for visits, communion, and
prayers for special concerns. Please help us to serve you.
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Pentecost Service Preview
 Pentecost on May 31 is shaping up to be something special. At the 10 am service: - We will be honoring all those who have ever been associated with Grace Church throughout its rich history.
- Bob Laake and the drummers from the healing service will be with us.
- Graduates of our Education for Ministry program will be honored as well.
The word of the day: WEAR SOMETHING RED. |
| Education for Ministry Graduates Recognized
 Seven students complete the four year Education for Ministry program at Grace Church this year. The graduates, who come from all over Greater Cincinnati, include our own Organist/Choirmaster/Administrator Jim Edgy. He will be recognized in our Sunday service on Pentecost, May 31.
Other graduates are
Handel Bhola, Christ Church Cathedral; John Deaver, Trinity
Church Covington; Larry Haas, Christ Church Glendale; Bruce Knapp, St. James Westwood; Holly Pratt, Christ Church Cathedral; and Shirley Wang, Christ Church Cathedral.
Education for Ministry students dig deeply into their Christian faith, studying the Bible, Church history
and theological ideas and learning to connect their faith with life
experiences through theological reflection.
See below for more about this program. |
| Honoring Our Past on Pentecost
Grace Church is honoring those who
have been associated with Grace throughout its rich history on Pentecost Sunday,
May 31. Invitations are being sent to everyone we know of. If you have and address a name of someone who should be included, please, please, let
us know (millerw@fuse.net, 513-542-7892).
This is a fitting
Sunday. It is just after Memorial Day and it
is Pentecost. What a day for a
celebration!
Our service that day is
promised to be lively. We encourage all
who have been active in our past as well as our present to celebrate the day
with us. Let's pack the house!
After the invigorating
service, we will have a wonderful coffee hour to honor our guests. The Holy Spirit will be in attendance.
Wanda Miller, Sub-committee of Mission
Council |
Our Best Kept Secret--Education for Ministry
 Have you ever had a desire to know who God is? Have you ever wondered what is in the Bible and how it came to be? Would you like to have Jesus as part of your daily life and decision making? Do you enjoy exploring different perspectives and coming to your own conclusions? Do you long to talk with other people who are asking these questions? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then please read on!
For the past nine months, 21 participants from 11 parishes in Cincinnati and northern Kentucky have met at Grace Church to be involved in an extensive study of scripture and their Christian faith. This study is known as EfM, Education for Ministry. We have met weekly to investigate many of the most fundamental issues in our lives. It has been an exciting time of growth, challenge, and spiritual exploration as each of us has come to realize what we truly believe about God and the world in which we live.
If you are looking for an opportunity to expand your understanding of scripture and theology, then EfM is for you!
Each EfM class involves three separate elements. The majority of our time is devoted to learning about God and the various ways faithful people have encountered Him in their lives. Secondly, each session includes prayer and worship in order to provide opportunities for participants to directly focus on the immediacy of God's presence. Finally, each class sets aside time for fellowship and the sharing of a "common snack."
EfM is a program of theological education from the School of Theology of the University of the South (Sewanee). It is designed to provide seminary education for parishioners in order to prepare them for whatever their ministry might be. While EfM is a four-year course of study (Hebrew Bible, New Testament, Church History, and Theological Issues), each participant commits to one year at a time. There are no tests or papers to write and one does not need any prior knowledge or training.
There will be two classes offered at Grace this coming school year. The Monday evening class will meet from 7:00 to 9:30 pm and the Friday morning class from 9:00 to 11:30 am. Classes will begin the second week in September (the 7th and the 11th) and conclude the end of May.
Hawley Todd TSSF is the mentor
for these groups. He was trained in the Anglican tradition at Bexley
Hall Episcopal Seminary, taught World Religions at McMaster University and has
been an EFM mentor since 1996. He has been an Assistant Formation
Director for the Third Order of the Society of St. Francis and was the Director
of Christian Formation at St. Thomas Episcopal Church from 1990 to 2006.
He is a trained spiritual director and has led retreats and missions in the
United States and Canada. He is currently
Foundation Director for the Episcopal Healing Ministry Foundation.
Now is the time to consider joining a
class. The deadline for registration is July
25. Classes fill up early so if you are
interested in becoming a participant, please contact Hawley Todd TSSF (todd@epsicopalhealing.org, 513-967-6581).
Thanks to Hawley Todd for providing this article. |
Grace Church Visitors With a Historical Connection
Last Sunday, Grace was visited by several people with a connection to Grace Church history. Among those visiting was Stuart Pierson, descendant of a Grace Church founder, and his wife, accompanied by Ed Loyd and his parents, Larry and Gloria Loyd.  The Piersons were visiting the Loyds, current owners of the home that Mr. Pierson's ancestor, Daniel Pierson built on Hillcrest Road east of the church (the biiiiiig white house). Daniel Pierson financed and gave the property for the first Grace Church in 1868 (right), and his son and grandson remained active at Grace. Residents of the big white house have a history of involvement at Grace beyond that of the Piersons. In the 1920's, Mrs. Simpson, who lived in that house, invited the wardens to visit her. She offered to build what is now our worship space, on condition that it would be built to her architect's specifications. Later, during the last half of the last century, the home was owned by Fred and Betty Berger, who were active Grace members.
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Sunday Service Volunteers Schedule Posted
The Sunday Service Volunteer schedule through June is now posted here. If you are not able to serve at your scheduled time, please tell the office (513-542-2941, office@gracecollegehill.org). |
 Stethoscope Hears the Heart of Things
Susan Givler sent us an intriguing video called "The Stethoscope" in which a man finds a stethoscope with the power to hear into the heart of things. You can see it here on youtube. Watch all the way to the end to get the punch line. |
 Choral Evensong Inspires
Choral Evensong is the prayer book's Evening Prayer service set to music. For many, this beautiful combination of music and text provides a soul-stirring experience. The Wikipedia entry provides information about this service, but can't, of course, recreate the experience. You can experience Evensong in person at our own Christ Church Cathedral downtown. Their Evensong page and calendar provide more information. You can always hear a recent Choral Evensong from England on the BBC site here. |
| Eucharistic Visitors, Worship Leaders, Preachers Needed
If you would like to assist in visiting the sick and
shut-in and in taking them Communion please plan to get Eucharistic Visitor Training. Let Vicar Ernestein or Jim Edgy know of your
interest.
We also need volunteers to
train as lay worship leaders and preachers.
These positions need to be trained before Ernestein leaves us. If you are willing to do any of these, please
let us know.
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 Walk for Hunger
A Hunger Walk to benefit the Free Store is coming this Sunday, May 25. Anyone interested in joining a group of
walkers from Grace Church should contact Vicar Ernestein.
The entry fee is
$25 with a T shirt, $20 without a T shirt. |
Safe Church Training
Many of us are required to take this training for the prevention of sexual misconduct and child abuse. Ken Lyon will attend the session in June at All Saints in Pleasant Ridge. If anyone wishes
to go with him, let us know.
The diocese requires Safe Church Training for:
* All clergy
* All wardens
* All full time employees of
the church
* All who
regularly work with or around children or youth
* All licensed by
the Bishop as Eucharistic Visitors
* All who have
the authority to begin new programs which involve children or youth
The Diocese strongly encourages Safe Church
Training for:
* Vestry or mission council
members and congregational officers
* All who give
any kind of pastoral care
* All who contract their
services to the diocese or congregations
* All who
occasionally work with or around children or youth
Workshops offered in the Cincinnati area:
* June 27, 2009 All Saints,
Pleasant Ridge, Cincinnati.
Fill out the online registration or
contact Geraldine McDaniel at the Diocesan House. Phone: 513-421-0311. Cost for
training is $15, which you can mail along with registration or pay online.
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