Dear parishioners and friends of St. Edward’s,
We welcome you to our online worship and ministry offerings for this Sunday, the Second Sunday after the Epiphany. All essential links are noted below.
Due to the alarming rise in cases within Lancaster County and here in our own township, 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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A message from our bishop:
I am writing to you with an update on the health of The Rev. Canon Stephen Casey who, as you know, has been hospitalized at Lancaster General Hospital for COVID-19 for the past week. Father Casey remains in the Intensive Care Unit, sedated and on a ventilator. In spite of the excellent care that Stephen has been receiving, his recovery has not been promised and the situation is grave.
Rayelenn and their girls, Emily and Elizabeth, son-in-law Kevin and granddaughters Sadie and Emma are gathered together and able to spend time with Stephen via an iPad app used by the hospital. I, too, have been able to be in prayer with Stephen in this way and am grateful for the opportunity to share words of comfort, hope and healing from our Holy Scriptures and the Book of Common Prayer.
Rayelenn wants you to know how deeply appreciative she and the family are of all of the cards, messages and prayers that you have sent. Your kindness is so cherished at this time.
Please do continue your prayers for Stephen and the Casey family, and we will keep you informed of his progress.
With love and on behalf of Rayelenn.
The Rt. Rev. Audrey C. Scanlan
XI Bishop
Cards can be sent to:
The Rev. Canon and Mrs. Stephen C. Casey
429 Camp Meeting Road
Landisville, PA 17538
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Sunday Service Information:
Click here to download our service bulletin for the Second Sunday after the Epiphany.
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.
We continue to honor the guidance delivered by our bishop, as well as our love of God in Christ, to care for one another, by remaining socially distanced, and refrain from in-person worship and gathering. There are many opportunities for us to worship, and perform ministry, in community, in other ways, during this continued 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!
Virtual Coffee Hour this Sunday, January 17th, from 11:00 AM – 11:40 AM, on Zoom. Hosted by Christina McLaughlin. Let us share our fellowship with one another during our extended Covidtide. Your join code and pass code are in your Saturday email message.
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At St. Edward’s, we have two ministries, we would like to call to your attention, in need of parishioner support:
Our first, is our continued support of the Hempfield Area Food Pantry. So many of our neighbors are in dire need. St. Edward’s provided, generously, to this social outreach in 2020. The need continues in 2021, for both financial and food donations. Here is a food wish list for January: Spaghetti; Spaghetti sauce; Mac and cheese; Jelly; Peanut butter; Canned pears; Canned peaches; Instant oatmeal; Regular oatmeal. Let us continue our tradition of generosity for those less fortunate than ourselves.
Our second, is our Altar Flower ministry. It is through the generous donations of parishioners that we beautify our altar shelves with fresh flowers. These symbolize for us, a lifting up of God’s creation and are displayed in memory of those whom we love, and in thanksgiving for the blessings in our lives. Such a subtle, yet important, component of our worship services at St. Edward’s. There are 41 weeks in a calendar year that we seek donations of $100 for our altar flowers, with the remembrance printed in our bulletin and read during the Prayers of the People. We currently have commitments for 9 Sundays in 2021 and we are seeking 32 additional commitments. It is our hope that you will prayerfully consider donating to this important ministry. Please contact the parish office with questions on how to donate and submit your remembrance.
We have exciting Spiritual Formation opportunities to engage in starting in January, 2021. Click here to get an overview, but please pay attention to weekly emails which will provide the Zoom invitation details.
To our dear friends at St. Edward’s,
Please accept our humble thanks for all the love and support we’ve received this past week as we honor the life of our father/grandfather Robert Carter. We are blessed to have such a spiritual community to embrace us always, but especially in times such as losing someone we love and care for dearly. Thank you for reaching out through meals, cards, emails, phone calls and prayer. We feel your love and we are truly grateful.
With love,
The Ishlers
Dina, Patrick, Faith, Carter & Thomas
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Please keep Ian Bentley in your prayers as he has been diagnosed with COVID-19, today. He was not feeling well earlier this week and after visiting his doctor was administered a test, which came back positive. His symptoms are mild.
Be well. Stay safe. Keep the faith.
Michelle
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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.