The E-postle May 10, 2020

Fifth Sunday of Easter
E-Postle
May 10, 2020

“The Parish of St. John the Apostle is called to be
*             A Spirited Community at the heart of Port Moody
*             transformed through the experience of the presence of Christ
*             and sent out to share God’s Love”

 

THIS ISSUE AT A GLANCE

• Upcoming Dates
• Rector’s Note
• Stewardship: Stewardship Reflection, Community “Phone a Friend”
• Worship: Virtual Coffee Hour
• Parish Matters: From the Wardens – Parish Giving, Order of the Diocese of New Westminster – Nominations Open!, Ongoing Updates Pages, E-Postle Submissions
• Parish Ministries: Anglican Church Women (A.C.W.) Meeting, Food Bank Temporary Suspension & Ongoing Support Needed
• Community News: Forward Day by Day, Welcome Post Project 2020 – XAPAYAY – Tree of Life, Sacred Teachings Podcast
• Weekly Devotions: Prayer Cycle, Scripture Readings
• Important Contact Information

 

UPCOMING DATES

Note: All gatherings below take place online via Zoom unless otherwise indicated.
(Visit https://www.stja.ca/2020/program-updates/ for connection information)

 Sunday, May 10                     8:30am & 10:00am – Sunday Morning Prayer

Meeting ID: 542 312 325
Password: 010729

Sunday, May 10                     following 8:30am and 10:00am worship – Informal Virtual “Coffee Hour”
Tuesday, May 12                    10:15am – 12:00pm – Bible Study
Tuesday, May 12                    7:00pm – 8:00pm – Prayer Group
Thursday, May 21                  7:00pm – A.C.W. Meeting
Tuesday, May 26                    7:00pm – 9:00pm – Parish Council Meeting

 

RECTOR’S NOTE

I hope that all of you are well as we move into the 5th week of the Easter season.

As I continue reflecting on what it means to be “church” in this Covid-19 time (both lower-case “church” as in St. John’s, and upper-case “Church” as in part of the Christian family worldwide and throughout history) I was struck by a line in this week’s reading from 1 Peter 2: 5—“…like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house…” It is amazing to me to witness our human spirit of resilience in this time, as we have made so clear that church is never just about the building, but rather about the people who make it up. We are all living, breathing, thriving stones that make up this vast spiritual house, with Christ our precious cornerstone holding us all together. And each of us, as part of this larger spiritual structure, help to hold each other up and make something more amazing together, than we could ever be apart. Especially in challenging times as we are in now, it is comforting to know that even when we have days when we are feeling weak and not up to the task, we can lean on the rest of the stones making up our spiritual house. On those days when we are feeling particularly strong, we can lend that strength to others in the structure who need the extra support. And always, we have Jesus under-girding all of us, being the rock-solid foundation from which we can draw whatever we need in the moment.

Beloved friends in Christ, I invite you this week to reflect on what are the ways, as living stones, that you are helping to hold up this spiritual house that is St. John’s and the wider Church everywhere? What are ways that other living stones are supporting and holding you up? How are we all leaning on our great cornerstone of Christ?

Peace, Vivian

STEWARDSHIP

Stewardship Reflection

From Sunday by Sunday: Reflections on Stewardship, prepared by the Ven. Dr. Michael Pollesel:

5^th Sunday of Easter – John 14:1-14
Jesus tells Philip that anyone who believes in him will be able “to perform even greater feats” than he himself has. A faithful steward lives AS IF they have not only heard this message, but have also accepted it as a basis for their day-to-day interactions with those around them.

 

Community “Phone a Friend”

Your St. John’s Stewardship Team have set up a “phone a friend” service for us all to keep from feeling a bit disconnected during these days of physical distancing. We have set up phone teams to call each week to “check in” and help relieve some of the loneliness that is inevitable in the current circumstances.

We would like to make sure no one out there is left out, so email or call Kristin (bobandkristinkuhn@gmail.com or 778-957-8987) or Natasha (freefromfear101@gmail.com or 604-961-6630) if you are not receiving a call and would like to, or if you are interested in helping to make these phone calls, and we will make sure you get hooked into the service.

We know that the caring community that is St. John’s will not leave any of its people feeling more separated than is absolutely necessary. “Distance means so little when people mean so much.”

-Your Stewardship Team

 

WORSHIP

Virtual Coffee Hour

Thanks for everyone who tried out the Zoom “Breakout Rooms” last Sunday after the 10am service. We’ll be continuing to experiment with them this Sunday, so please consider joining us! These Breakout Rooms allow us to video chat with each other in smaller groups. We’re hoping they will be a little more like regular coffee hour (i.e. chatting while sitting around tables), and would love your feedback.

 

PARISH MATTERS

From the Wardens – Parish Giving

We are pleased to let you know that in addition to PADs and cheques, we have now set up e-transfers directly to the church account. Should you be interested in this method of contribution, please contact Amalia treasurer@stja.ca or Ruby at peopleswarden@stja.ca for more details.

Order of the Diocese of New Westminster – Nominations Open!

If there is someone in the parish that you would like to nominate, please let Vivian know at rector@stja.ca. It would be helpful if you could write up a short biography (bullet points are fine) about why you are nominating the person. Applications to the Diocese will be closed by 29th May and we would appreciate receiving nominations by this Friday, 15th May.

For more information, you may log on to: https://www.vancouver.anglican.ca/programs/the-odnw

Ongoing Updates Pages

There are 2 important pages on our parish website which will be updated regularly as we have new information (links to both pages can also be found at the top of our homepage www.stja.ca):

1. Program & Worship Updates/Links – https://www.stja.ca/2020/program-updates/ – current information on programs, including Zoom meeting information for Sunday worship.
2. Updates on Covid-19 at St. John’s – https://www.stja.ca/2020/updates-re-coronavirus/ – a collection of all special correspondence from Archbishop Melissa and from our parish re: actions that St. John’s and our greater diocese are taking with the Covid-19 virus.

E-Postle Submissions

If you have submissions for the E-Postle, please email them to Kathy by Wednesday at 9pm at news@stja.ca.

 

PARISH MINISTRIES

Anglican Church Women (A.C.W.) Meeting

We will be holding our May A.C.W. meeting via Zoom on Thursday, May 21 at 7:00pm! (Please contact acw@stja.ca for connection information.)

At this meeting we will discuss the dispersal of our funds and a future collection of our layette as well as any plans for the Fall.

-Ann Adair-Austin

 

Food Bank Temporary Suspension & Ongoing Support Needed

The St. John’s Food Bank is not able to operate until further notice due to the COVID19 virus and the many restrictions that are in place for the safety of all our community and beyond. The Food Bank will resume when safe to do so and will continue to rely on the generosity of our parishioners. Please speak to Lynne Milner at foodbank@stja.ca with any questions about the Food Bank ministry in general.

Since this ministry to our community is a priority for St. John’s, Parish Council has decided at our March 31 meeting to use funds that would normally have gone into purchasing food for our own Food Bank to support others who are able to continue to serve our community in this time. We will be giving $1000/month for April-June to SHARE Food Bank. Please continue to give generously to our Food Bank ministry so that in this time of great need we can continue to support this important work for the most vulnerable among us.

In the meantime, we have been informed about 2 local food programs that are currently still operating if you are interested in inquiring about other ways to help.

1. SHARE Food Bank – https://sharesociety.ca/news/share-covid-19-update
2. Club Freedom, a meal program run by CityReach Care Society, Broadway Church, and Eagle Ridge Bible Fellowship – https://www.cityreach.org/clubfreedom. (To volunteer or donate food for Sun/Tues/Thurs contact Craig Savage at craigs@cityreach.org or 604-253-2700. To volunteer or donate food for Mon/Wed/Fri/Sat—contact Debbie Fell at debbiefell@shaw.ca or call 604-942-5622)

 

COMMUNITY NEWS

Forward Day by Day

Forward Day by Day is a booklet that is published every three months by the Forward Movement, a ministry of the Episcopal Church in the US.  It is a daily devotional with an excerpt from scripture and a short meditation, with each month featuring a different author.

Previously, copies of the booklet would be available at church, however, we cannot provide printed copies at this time.  The good news is that there are several other ways to receive Forward Day by Day:

• Sign up for an email subscription;
• Go to forwardmovement.org every day to access your daily devotional;
• Visit the App Store on your smartphone and download the Forward Day by Day app;
• Get a daily podcast either through their website or anywhere you listen to your podcasts;
• Subscribe and receive your personal copy by mail (deadline for the May through July booklet has passed); or
• Follow Forward Day by Day on either Facebook or Twitter.

You can review these options in more detail by visiting their website at https://www.forwardmovement.org/Pages/About/Subscription.aspx and finding which option works best for you.

 

Welcome Post Project 2020 – XAPAYAY – Tree of Life

The last of the on-line events for this year will be this upcoming Monday at 7:30pm.  It can be accessed through the Noons Creek Hatchery Facebook page https://facebook.com/Noonscreek/ or by going to Port Moody Ecological Society on-line https://noonscreek.org/, where it will bring you to the list of events and links on how to particpate.

• Monday, May 11 – 7:30pm – 8:00pm – Rennae Morriseau and M’Girl

Salia Joseph in her talk on the third evening said…

“Cedar – Xapayay – teaches how to care for ourselves and for others” She went on further to say …. we can look to cedar to learn about …. “reverence, stewardship, advocacy, and gratitude”

As we come to understand more deeply at this time, the environment is resilient – we just need to look around us at the signs of resurgence of the creatures of the woods, the greening of the plants, the birds of the air and the pictures of the healing atmosphere. We see there is hope if we can become better stewards of creation.

As Salia said … “if we co-operate and collaborate with Mother Earth … not dominate.

-Anne Anchor

Sacred Teachings Podcast

The Sacred Teachings podcast’s current season has the theme “Path to the Stronghold”. In the 4^th episode “The Life of Odeiman,” Archbishop Mark MacDonald shares the story of Odeiman and reminds us of the sweet yet painful power of Sacrificial Love. Check it out at https://www.anglican.ca/im/podcasts/.

The teachings, languages, traditions and stories of the Ancestors are shared in this “Sacred Teachings” podcast series, which is sponsored by the Anglican Church of Canada. Highly respected Indigenous speakers are featured in this series, with a different theme for each season, including the sacredness of Creation and finding meaning in a global crisis.

 

WEEKLY DEVOTIONS

Prayer Cycle

The Anglican Church of Canada – the Most Rev. Linda Nicholls, Primate, and the Most Rev. Mark MacDonald, National Indigenous Anglican Archbishop.

The Diocese of New Westminster – the Most Rev. Melissa Skelton, Archbishop, and Metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of BC and Yukon.

And this week:

• St. Matthias & St. Luke, Vancouver – The Rev. Marion Wong
• Our partner Diocese of Northern Philippines, Bishop Brent Alawas, and especially the people of our twin church at St. John the Evangelist Mission, Balugan;
• The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada – National Bishop Susan Johnson, BC Synod Bishop Greg Mohr;
• The brothers and sisters who share our worship space: The Port Moody Korean Presbyterian Church

 

Readings for May 10, 2020 – Fifth Sunday of Easter

Acts 7:55-60; Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16; 1 Peter 2:2-10; John 14:1-14

 

Readings for May 17, 2020 – Sixth Sunday of Easter

Acts 17:22-31; Psalm 66:7-18; 1 Peter 3:13-22; John 14:15-21

 

IMPORTANT CONTACT INFORMATION

Rector	The Rev. Vivian Lam	rector@stja.ca	604-936-7762 (church voicemail) / 604-723-5029 (cell)
Deacon	The Rev. Anne Anchor	deacon@stja.ca
Parish Office		administrator@stja.ca	604-936-7762
(Office is closed at this time, but email and voice messages will be checked Tuesday – Friday)
Rector’s Warden	Geri Grigg	rectorswarden@stja.ca
People’s Warden	Ruby Ng	peopleswarden@stja.ca
Treasurer	Amalia McGlashan	treasurer@stja.ca
Envelope Secretary	Sheila De Vaal	envelopesecretary@stja.ca
Parish Council	Kristin Kuhn, Secretary	parishcouncilsecretary@stja.ca
Altar Guild	Brenda Binns	altarguild@stja.ca
Anglican Church Women	Alma Oldenburg	ACW@stja.ca	604-788-2562
Bible Study	Lynne Milner	biblestudy@stja.ca
Building Repairs / Maintenance	Brian McGlashan, Building Coordinator	property@stja.ca
Children’s Ministry/Godly Play	Christina Anchor	children@stja.ca
E-Postle	Kathy De Vaal	news@stja.ca
Food Bank	Lynne Milner	foodbank@stja.ca
Pastoral Visiting Ministry	Joanne Walton/Alma Oldenburg	pastoralvisits@stja.ca
Prayer Circle	Sue Elliott	prayer@stja.ca
Prayer Shawls	Rosa Weisensel	administrator@stja.ca