News & Notes - 8 - 15 October 2006
Published October 7th, 2006 in Events
8 SUNDAY: THE EIGHTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST (Proper 22)
Holy Eucharist 11:00 AM
Childcare provided. (Coffee & Conversation follows)
St Francis Festival & Blessing of Animals 12:30 PM
Parish House:
AA 7:30-8:30 AM
9 Monday: Robert, Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln, 1253
Columbus Day
Parish & School Office Closed
School Closed
10 Tuesday: Weekday
Holy Eucharist 9:00 AM *
BOOK READING GROUP 7:30 PM, The Vicarage
Parish House:
LINDEN TREE PRESCHOOL - 9:00 AM-12:00 Noon
NEIGHBORHOOD PLAYSPACE 9:30 AM-12:00 Noon
COBBLE HILL BALLET 1:00-2:30 PM
MUSIC TOGETHER - 3:30-5:00 PM
ACTORS WORKSHOP - 5:15-7:30 PM
11 Wednesday: Philip, Deacon and Martyr
Evening Prayer 6:00 PM
Parish House:
LINDEN TREE PRESCHOOL - 9:00 AM-12:00 Noon / 12:30-3:30 PM
NEIGHBORHOOD PLAYSPACE - 9:00 AM-12:00 Noon
12 Thursday: Weekday
Parish House:
LINDEN TREE PRESCHOOL - 9:00 AM-12:00 Noon
NEIGHBORHOOD PLAYSPACE 9:30 AM-12:00 Noon
GYMSTARS - 3:00-4:00 PM
COBBLE HILL BALLET - 1:00-3:15 PM
AA - 6:30-7:30 PM
13 Friday: Weekday Day of Special Devotion: Abstinence
Holy Eucharist 9:00 AM *
Parish House:
LINDEN TREE PRESCHOOL - 9:00 AM-12:00 Noon / 12:30-3:30 PM
NEIGHBORHOOD PLAYSPACE - 9:00 AM-12:00 Noon
14 Saturday: Samuel I. J. Schereschewsky, Bishop of Shanghai, 1906
Parish House:
AA 7:30-8:30 AM
COBBLE HILL BALLET - 10:00 AM-12:45 PM
15 SUNDAY: THE NINETEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST (Proper 23)
Holy Eucharist 11:00 AM. (Coffee & Conversation follows)
Parish House:
AA 7:30-8:30 AM
* At Saint Andrew's House, 199 Carroll Street, between Court and Clinton Streets
THIS TUESDAY- CHRIST CHURCH BOOK READING GROUP
The Christ Church Book Reading Group is currently reading Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem is published by Vintage Books at $13.95 (available from Amazon.com starting at $2.94); ISBN: 0375724834. 336 pages. The discussion notes and a review of the book are on the leaflet table by the church entrance. We will meet this Tuesday, 10 October, at the Vicarage for a good food and drink, and a lively discussion of this book following the 6:30 p.m. Mass. If you are interested in joining us, please R.S.V.P. on 718-625-2919, or speak with the Vicar.
CHRIST CHURCH COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Can and Will You Help with our outreach ministry? We want to schedule a meeting to plan for the future of this work, including applying for grants and working more closely with Family Consultation Service to distribute food, clothing, school supplies, campers supplies, toys, etc. and adopting a family year-round — and working with Cobble Hill Nursing Home to provide on-going visits to residents. CHIPS (Christian Help in Park Slope) feeds the hungry and provides counseling and clothing to those in need. Please consider this outreach of our Christian community to our wider community!
WHAT CAN I DO: LET US KNOW
Christ Church, Cobble Hill, is made up of people from many countries and a variety of cultures, backgrounds and languages — but we are all one parish family. God has given each one of us gifts and talents. Today, the anniversary of the dedication of the church, we are having a Talent Fair: not a show where you are asked to get up then and there and perform, but an opportunity for you to volunteer some of your time and gifts and talents to your parish. We obviously need acolytes, lay readers, altar guild members, but, there are many other opportunities for you to help build this church.
REFLECTION
In all of the thousands of chapters found in the books of the Bible, only the first two chapters of Genesis present an image of the human race before we fell into sin and became subject to evil and death. The introductory chapters of the Bible’s first book are among the most theologically profound and sophisticated of any in scripture. Their subject matter is well known even in the secular world, though easily misunderstood and underestimated.The rest of scripture presents the relationships between human beings and their God as tragically marked by violence, exploitation, severe disappointment, and anguish, but there is also a deep and insistent memory of a pristine time that the human race has lost, and longs to experience again.There are few occasions in life that are virtually guaranteed to be marked by exultant happiness, but weddings surely must be among them. One may well ask, as one sees the tragically high divorce rate, why does the promise of love that is so strong and hopeful at the wedding fail so often to fulfill its potential? Even the Pharisees, so proud of their moral rectitude,
begin at the wrong end. Instead of asking Jesus, “How can a husband and wife realize the fullness of God’s promise in their marriage?” they ask, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”
The question means, “Is there a way we can permit divorce without going against the law?” i.e., “Is there a loophole?”Reflect on how Psalm 128, one of the options for today’s readings, puts the teaching about the permanence of marriage into a context of blessedness and joy.
Where are the escape hatches in the marriage vows? See the Book of Common Prayer, page 427.
PRACTICE OF FAITH: NIGHT PRAYER. Night prayers, important as they are, cannot always be a family ritual. Bet we can tailor the bedtime routine to the needs and ability of the people who pray together. A father can talk with his child as he helps put toys away. A mother can rub her ten-year-old’s back as the child tells here the events of the day. Together
parent and child can form this evening talk into prayer. Children need to be brought back to a state of peace at the end of a busy day. Many parents discover that bedtime rituals are the most intimate, precious minutes they spend with their children. The problems and feelings heard and blessed bring families closer to each other and to the Lord. [ more ]
PRACTICE OF HOPE: ONE FLESH. It has become popular for dioceses to arrange an annual celebration for married couples who have celebrated significant anniversaries. Cathedrals fill with couples celebrating three, four, five and more decades of life together. These gatherings of couples, family members and friends are an annual highlight in the life of the church. And equally good for the live of the church in that in recent years more and more couples per year have celebrated the sacrament of marriage in their parishes.
PRACTICE OF CHARITY: HEALING OUR MOTHER. What comes to mind when you hear the word “habitat”? It means more than just house or apartment. Our habitat goes beyond the walls that give us shelter to include land, trees, water and air around us. Last Monday, 2 October, was World Habitat Day, a day to consider how well we are caring for our planet. It is essential to care for our natural environment. We cannot stand by while rainforests are harvested and plowed under, the earth is poisoned and air and water are polluted. Save the Rainforests, Greenpeace, the Wilderness Society and Sierra Club are just a few of the organizations committed to our habitat – planet Earth. Find out more about these groups and learn what part your can play to improve our world! [ more ]