The E-postle May 24, 2020

Ascension Sunday
E-Postle
May 24, 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: Pentecost Red
• Parish Matters: Delaying Parish Opening, Banner at Front of Church, From the Wardens – Parish Giving, Ongoing Updates Pages, E-Postle Submissions
• Parish Ministries: Parish Visiting Ministry Zoom Meeting, Food Bank Temporary Suspension & Ongoing Support Needed
• Community News: XAPAYAY Welcome Post Project, 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 24                     8:30am & 10:00am – Sunday Morning Prayer

Meeting ID: 542 312 325
Password: 010729

Sunday, May 24                     following 8:30am and 10:00am worship – Informal Virtual “Coffee Hour”
Sunday, May 24                     11:45am – Parish Visiting Ministry Meeting
Tuesday, May 26                    10:15am – 12:00pm – Bible Study
Tuesday, May 26                    7:00pm – 8:00pm – Prayer Group
Tuesday, May 26                    7:00pm – 9:00pm – Parish Council Meeting

 

RECTOR’S NOTE

We are celebrating the feast of the Ascension this Sunday, that marks when the resurrected Jesus says his goodbyes to his disciples and is carried up to heaven before their very eyes. I can only imagine how disoriented and lost I would have felt if I were one of the disciples – they had just gotten used to having Jesus around again, and that sweet time was abruptly cut short, leaving them to adjust to yet another change in their lives. Our text from Luke says only, however, that as he ascended, “they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy.” (Luke 24:52). What a difference this was from the disciples who “were startled and terrified, and thought they were seeing a ghost” (Luke 24:36) when they first encountered the risen Lord! I suspect that at least some of this difference was due to the hard-won lessons they had learned from their past challenges. Perhaps with all the changes and chances of the past several weeks, when so many things they had taken for granted and thought they understood were shaken to the core, had strengthened them and made them more resilient. And of course having spent some time with the risen Jesus, they knew beyond a doubt that nothing at all could ever separate them from God.

And so it is, I hope with us. All these changes and chances we are going through in these unprecedented pandemic times—these, too, are strengthening us and building our resiliency in known and unknown ways. In this Easter season, I hope that we, too, have caught glimpses of, and had some time with the risen Jesus. And my prayer is that we, too, would know joyfully that for ever and without a doubt that there is nothing that could ever, ever separate us from our God.

Peace, Vivian

 

STEWARDSHIP

Stewardship Reflection

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

Seventh Sunday of Easter – John 17:1-11
Jesus is leaving this world. He will no longer be physically present to his disciples. It is now up to them – to you and me – to be the ears, the eyes, the feet, the hands of Jesus in this world of ours. And, oh yes, it’s also up to you and me to be the heart of Jesus here and now. Tall order? Not for the faithful steward.

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

Pentecost Red

In celebration of Pentecost next Sunday, May 31, we invite everyone to wear something red to our Zoom worship services, to represent the power and presence of the Holy Spirit!

 

PARISH MATTERS

Delaying Parish Reopening

Parish Council will be emailing a statement out today to all parishioners, that outlines our discernment to not reopen St. John’s for in-person worship on June 14. Please see the full statement at https://www.stja.ca/2020/5-22-20-parish-council-statement-on-re-opening.   

For more details on the diocesan requirements for reopening, please see https://www.vancouver.anglican.ca/news/documents-available-phased-re-opening-for-in-person-worship.

Banner at Front of Church

If you have not seen it already, we have installed a banner at the main entrance of the church which reads:

St. John the Apostle Anglican Church
Connected to You in Prayer, Care, and Shared Experience

Join us online for Sunday Worship and Daily Psalms and Prayers
www.stja.ca

You may have noticed it as the Cover Photo of our Facebook page, as well as the background for Vivian’s Zoom profile for Sunday worship.

We also received some diocesan communications coverage at: https://www.vancouver.anglican.ca/news/online-worship-numbers-at-two-st-johns

From the Wardens – Parish Giving

Thank you to all who have continued with your offerings via PADs and cheques. If you are interested to e-transfer your contributions directly to the church account, please contact Amalia treasurer@stja.ca or Ruby at peopleswarden@stja.ca for more details.

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 9:00pm at news@stja.ca.

PARISH MINISTRIES

Parish Visiting Ministry Zoom Meeting

Our Parish Visiting Ministry group was to have met at the home of the Waltons later this month. We have done this before and look on it as body (lunch), mind (meeting), and spirit time as we walk alongside the Fraser River and through the grove of cedars, perhaps seeing eagles, herons, geese, or seals. Ah well, a Zoom meeting instead will bring us together on Sunday, May 24^th at 11:45am.  The link for the Zoom meeting has been sent out to the group.  If you have not received it, or have any questions, please contact Joanne Walton.

–   Submitted by Joanne and Alma

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

Welcome Post Project 2020 – XAPAYAY – Tree of Life

Join us for a conversation with five Coast Salish artists – James Harry, Roxanne Charles, Angela George, Ocean Hyland, Carrielynn Victor – who have been creating pieces of cedar artwork over the past month.

• Friday, May 29 – 4:30pm

This event can be accessed through the Noons Creek Hatchery Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Noonscreek/ or by going to Port Moody Ecological Society on-line https://noonscreek.org/

Once again I reflect on the similarities we have with Indigenous thinking. The theme for the project this year is “Tree of Life” and I am reminded of the song we sang at the beginning of Lent, “Tree of Life and awesome mystery.

Due to the current situation with large gatherings there will be no celebration on National Indigenous Day, June 21st. In honour of and in remembering the Indigenous people of these Coast Salish Lands, I commend that you read on the Noons Creek Facebook page (that I have linked to on St. John’s Facebook page) a statement made by Tasha Faye Evans who is the organizer and passionate Curator of the Welcome Post Projects.

–   Anne Anchor

Sacred Teachings Podcast

The Sacred Teachings podcast’s current season has the theme “Path to the Stronghold“. In the special 6^th episode “Gathering at the River,” you’ll learn about the upcoming online Gospel Jamboree streaming LIVE and for FREE Friday, June 5^th, 3pm PST (6pm EST). Ginny Doctor and Archbishop Mark MacDonald talk about why Gospel Jamborees have such an impact and why you should tune in for the special event. Featuring musical pieces from Ginny and Mark themselves, you won’t want to miss the prologue to the upcoming Jam! Check it out at https://www.anglican.ca/im/podcasts/ or https://vimeo.com/channels/sacredteachings.

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:

• The Deanery of Tri-Cities / North Burnaby – The Reverend Eric Mason, Regional Dean
• 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 24, 2020 – Ascension Sunday

Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 93; Ephesians 1:15-23; Luke 24:44-53

Readings for May 31, 2020 – Pentecost

Acts 2:1-21; Psalm 104:25-35, 37; 1 Corinthians 12:3b -13; John 20:19-23

 

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
Parish Visiting Ministry	Joanne Walton/Alma Oldenburg	pastoralvisits@stja.ca
Prayer Circle	Sue Elliott	prayer@stja.ca
Prayer Shawls	Rosa Weisensel	administrator@stja.ca