Dear friends of St. Edward’s,
We welcome you to a wide variety of online worship and ministry offerings, to view in reflection, and to view as new, for this peaceful weekend after Christmas Day. All essential links are noted below.
Due to the alarming rise in cases within Lancaster County and here in our own township, as your rector, I prayerfully request that we continue to refrain from gathering with other parishioners in public groups, particularly in restaurants, indoor spaces, or even outdoors without masks. COVID-19 is not a hoax. We are all in this together, and honoring our parish community, by complying with the recommendations set forth during this time, conveys our love for God in Christ, the members of our parish family, and the wider community.
Here are two links that may be helpful:
Lancaster County, PA COVID-19 Hub
Father Rick +
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Click here to view the Service of Lessons and Carols from our own Lancaster Convocation
Click here to view St. Edward’s Christmas Eve service: The Feast of the Incarnation
Click here to view the wonderful music of the Central PA Episcopal Collaborative Choir
As you snuggle in your warm homes today, staying in from the winter’s chill, perhaps basking in the glow of a warm fire and a beautifully lit Christmas tree, let us remember that today, December 26th, is the Feast of Saint Stephen and is remembered in the traditional Christmas carol “Good King Wenceslas” – a wonderful message of struggle and piety in a journey to deliver alms to a poor peasant. There are many versions of this famous carol, but one you may find lovely to listen to is performed by The Roches – Maggie, Terre, and Suzzy – three Irish-American sisters who formed their trio in the 1970s and performed as a group until 2017. We share this YouTube link with you, to enjoy, on this feast day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-G4TWr4Zi8
We also wanted to take this opportunity to share with you important announcements regarding upcoming events, as well as prayer and adult spiritual formation opportunities.
During this Christmastide, while we must stay socially distanced and refrain from in-person worship, in our sanctuary, there are many opportunities for us to worship together during this Covidtide. Please see a listing below and stay tuned to our weekly emails, web site posts, and Sunday bulletins for updates on specific details as we are updated with times and links. We invite you to celebrate with us, as a community of faith! Let us read the Collect for today, The Feast of Saint Stephen:
We give you thanks, O Lord of glory, for the example of the first martyr Stephen, who looked up to heaven and prayed for his persecutors to your Son Jesus Christ, who stands at your right hand; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
Did you miss viewing the Virtual Christmas greeting card? Well, the great thing about YouTube is it is there, anytime, for all to see and remember the members of your St. Edward’s parish family! Click here to view.
Virtual Coffee Hour this Sunday, December 27th, from 11:00 AM – 11:40 AM, on Zoom. Hosted by Christina McLaughlin. Let us share our fellowship with one another during this stay-at home holiday season! Your join code and pass code can be found in your Saturday email message.
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Grocery Cards: We will be ordering grocery cards for January and you will be able to pick them up on January 4th.
Giving Envelopes: YES! Our 2021 giving envelopes are in and if you are a household who gets giving envelopes they can be picked up starting January 4th from 11 AM-3 PM.
Office Closed: December 24th – January 3rd. BUT, if there is an emergency or a need, you can always reach out to leave a message on the parish office phone, via email, or contact Father Rick, for pastoral needs, or Michelle for church “business.”
Welcome to Congregational Care! Each Saturday, we will include in our messages any submissions we receive from our parish community, as we invite you to share prayer requests or news about yourselves or your family. We believe this outreach to be incredibly important to keep our spiritual community connected to each other and to Jesus Christ, our Lord, as we walk in love with one another in our daily journeys. Please submit your “news” to the parish office by Friday of each week and we will feature it in the Saturday email, bringing it to our hearts and minds in our Sunday prayers.
We continue to pray for so many, during this Covidtide. Those who are ill or recovering from illness; all of our essential and front-line workers; those who are hungry and in jeopardy of losing their shelter, as their most essential lifeline benefits they rely upon expire today; and those who struggle in their own lives, yet find alms to help others – they all need our prayers. And, we especially keep all those who are experiencing loneliness, during this holiday season, in our prayers. There are so many stories of people, stricken with COVID19 and struggling, and people who continue to self-isolate to be safe, but are experiencing deep loneliness. So, for this week, our message is the same as last week: Let us be gentle and kind, to ourselves, and each other, continue to find ways to “pay it forward,” take deep breaths, be safe, and thank God for all of our blessings.
Besides prayers, calls, cards and emails, there is one more thing you can do to support St. Edward’s. Please keep up-to-date with your pledge or regular contribution. Pledges/giving can be mailed to the church, and we also have an easy-to-use “Give to St. Edward’s” button on our website that links to our secure Paypal page, as well as a “Donate” button on our YouTube Channel home page.
To assist parishes, the diocese has set up online giving for each parish. If you feel comfortable making your weekly giving or pledge donation in this manner (it is a secure giving tool), simply go to the diocesan web site, click on the tab up top and it will take you to a page where you can scroll down, find St. Edward’s, and continue with making your contribution! Thank you for maintaining your faithfulness through your financial stewardship!
To learn more about St. Edward’s, please click our website, YouTube, or Facebook icons at the bottom of this email.
Be well. Stay safe. Keep the faith.
– Michelle