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The Message

Vol. 14 No. 2
June 2003

Saint Mary’s Anglican Church, Richmond Hill

We, the people of Saint Mary’s Anglican Church, called by God and committed to Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, seek to live and make known, in word and action, the good news of God’s love in the world. Using our gifts, we worship, proclaim, learn, serve, reach out, welcome others, and develop a caring and sharing community of believers.

From the Desk of the Incumbent
Staff changes at St. Mary’s
Use your leisure time well
"MERE" ANGLICAN CHRISTIANITY - A Family Ministries Perspective
Adult Christian Education at St. Mary’s
Pennies* From Heaven
News from Youth Ministry at St. Mary’s
Donations are up!
This is our faith
The Wardens Report
Ecumenical Ministry in Richmond Hill
SARS and the Eucharist
From My Pew
Further Adventures While Growing Up in the Church
Outreach in Romania
Liturgical Vestments of the Church (contd.)
SUNDAY NIGHT PRAISE: SEPTEMBER 28TH, 7:00 PM
The Harvest Ball
Summer Services
WOMEN OF ST. MARY’S
Kidnapped in Guatemala
SERVANT DISCIPLESHIP
Our Registers
September Worship Services

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From the Desk of the Incumbent . . .

Dear Friends,

Greetings in the name of our risen Lord!

Life as we know it and experience it is constantly changing. Nothing stays the same forever, and for the most part, that’s a good thing. Some of those changes we anticipate and look forward to, others we dread and even avoid if possible. Think about the changes that come with spring, a welcome sight especially after a long, cold and snowy winter. As a time of new birth, the plants are growing, the flowers are opening and the grass is getting greener. All healthy signs of changes in nature that we appreciate and watch with joy. On the other hand, very few people I know look forward to many of the changes that come about with age. Year after year, and sometimes even day after day, we can see and experience first hand the effects of growing older: aches and pains, memories that fail, eyes that can’t see clearly and ears that don’t always hear accurately. All of these changes and others that regularly happen to us and around us, whether positive or negative are a basic fact of life. As we reflect on how we deal with changes that are out of our control, we realize that we each do so in our own individual way. The ultimate question to figure out is how to celebrate the changes we look forward to, and how to deal constructively with those we’d rather not encounter in the first place.

The disciples knew what it was like to have a life changing experience as they too walked both the roads of suffering and joy. They were different through all that happened to them and their emotions between Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Ascension Day, and Pentecost. It all started when their friend and teacher was put on trial, mocked and beaten, nailed to a cross and ultimately as he died a painful, lonely death. Their loss was tremendous; their grief was so overwhelming. But then they heard from others that the tomb had been found empty, and that two of their companions had met up with a man they recognized as Jesus on the road to Emmeus. And Jesus even appeared to them, both individually and as a group, and on more than one occasion at that! Jesus spent what time he could with them. He made himself known to them, broke bread with them, and even showed them the proof that was sometimes necessary for them to believe. But, the time came for him to leave them yet again. He ascended back to his throne of glory only with the promise that he would return again to this earth to make things right once and for all. In the mean time, though, he said that he wouldn’t leave them to fend for themselves; he promised to send the gift of his Spirit. And on Pentecost, that’s exactly what he did, as they were gathered together watching, waiting and praying. There was no doubt, God was in their midst giving them the courage and conviction to go on witnessing and proclaiming the good news of God in Christ who died and rose again to bring hope, peace and wholeness to a desperate, unsettled and broken world. Throughout that whole experience, the disciples were changed in who they were, and in the faith that became alive in their hearts. And in the end, they used those life-altering experiences to bring honor and glory to God in such a way that never could have happened had they not walked the road and embraced the gift.

As you are reading this, we too have walked the spiritual road of suffering and joy from Good Friday to Pentecost. Has it been as faith altering for you and me as it was for those first disciples; have we been changed in a way that allows us to claim more of who we are as children of God, loved and redeemed by the grace of God. Or, are we going to try and go back to life as it was before. The story is such a familiar one, that there’s always the risk that it won’t affect us as it once did when we first heard it. But, I hope not because each time we enter into the story, there’s something more we can learn from it, some new truth that can be brought out into the light, some hope that is affirmed and opened up to grow within us. In our world of war, disease, violence, abuse and crime, we desperately need to hear a word of good news. It’s all too easy to give up and give in; it’s more difficult to hold on and trust in the light that comes out of darkness, the hope that comes out of despair and the healing that comes from brokenness. But, even as we face the pain and suffering of the cross, and celebrate the joy and promise of the resurrection, and receive our own Pentecost gift of the Spirit, we need to continually become more and more aware that God indeed is gracious and abundantly blesses us more than we can imagine or ask for.

The question is, though, what do we do with this life changing, faith enhancing experience of God? The disciples shared it, and used it in the ministry of witness and proclamation that God called them to. Are we going to do any less ourselves? Are we going to take the gift for granted, or put it to us in the ministries that God invites us into throughout our life journeys as individuals and as a church? The gift is priceless, so let’s share it in order that others may be blessed too, even as you and I are blessed.

My prayer for each of us is that we may always enter into the story of our faith anticipating that we will be changed. As we grow in our relationships with God through the crucified, risen and ascended Christ, and as we receive again and again the gift of God’s Spirit into our hearts and lives, may we accept the challenge with enthusiasm to not only be changed ourselves, but to allow God to change the world we live in though us. That’s what being a gospel people is all about! That’s what it means to be a resurrection people, empowered for ministry by the gift of the Holy Spirit.

May God continue to bless us as we live in this changing world. May we continually grow more and more into the faithful disciples that God calls us to be, transformed by the good news of the story of our faith.

Blessings today and always, Mark

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Staff changes at St. Mary’s

As we bid farewell to Ann Edwards as our parish secretary, we welcomed our new office administrator, John Martin. John brings with him a wealth of experience and knowledge and a commitment to St. Mary’s. John is a familiar face at St. Mary’s, but we welcome him none the less to this new position. It’s good to have you on board!

On June 1st, we welcomed our new associate priest, The Reverend Sheilagh Ashworth. Sheilagh’s gifts for ministry and preaching will enhance the team that is already developing here at St. Mary’s. We look forward to getting to know her better, and venturing further into the areas of ministry God is inviting us into.

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Use your leisure time well

The summer months are a time of rest, renewal and refreshment for many of us. If you are planning to be away with family or friends, find a church to attend on Sunday mornings, and continue to nurture yourself spiritually during your time away. It’s a good opportunity to see how things are done in other places, and even in other denominations.

As you go about what you are doing this summer, perhaps this prayer might be
useful to you:

O God, in the course of our busy lives we take this time for refreshment and peace.
Grant that we may so use our leisure to rebuild our bodies and renew our minds,
That our spirits may be opened to the goodness of your creation;
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

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"MERE" ANGLICAN CHRISTIANITY
A Family Ministries Perspective

I was reading C.S. Lewis again; Mere Christianity. It is the kind of book that a Christian needs to read at least once every few years and I was a little behind on this. Lewis speaks to the issue of the nature of the 'essential' or 'mere' Christianity and in doing so he helps us avoid being trapped in our own illusions, or dreams, or desires about what Christianity 'ought' to be like. Mere Christianity is about what Christianity is. Nothing more, nothing less.

I have been learning a lot about Anglicanism these last few months as I go through the process of discernment for my life's calling. I am asking myself a similar question that Lewis is: What is the essential Anglicanism…What is Mere Anglicanism? It is an interesting journey for me coming from my non-Churched Baptist conversion experience. It is all rather complicated at times.

Why does it matter really? I mean, these questions may never be answerable. Is it 'merely' a matter of taste? How one experiences God is a rather personal thing after all, sacred territory so to speak. Is this all needless theologizing; good only for the mind that has nothing better to do than meander aimlessly along darkened paths in intellectual self-absorption?

God Forbid!! Everything we do is theology. Everything we say is "Mere Christianity". Or is it? Which brings me to the point of it all: St. Mary's Anglican Church ministers to Families and Youth out of the richness and depth of Anglican Spirituality and so it should. We value tradition, reason, the Word of God, the creeds, and we use and value aids to worship like the Book of Alternative Services, the Book of Common Prayer, the Hymnal, and so on.

And so, as we make plans for the months ahead, The Family Ministry Team continues to seek out and explore ways to encourage Worship, Service, Celebration, and Learning…These are our 4 Key Principles out of which ministry can flourish. And we continue to do so in our context, as an Anglican expression of "Mere Christianity". We are continually amazed at the support and grace given us in Christ to carry out this task of ministry. But we need your help.

Continue to pray for us. Pray for our young people. Pray for each other so that what we do is always an expression of who we are. As C.S.Lewis writes, and I paraphrase, not everyone can call themselves "Christians". It is uniquely reserved for those "followers of Jesus". May we remember this in all our efforts. Some people call themselves Baptists, others Pentecostals, still others, Methodists, Anabaptists, Catholics, Presbyterians, Unitarians, spiritualists and so on. No matter at all really unless of course they call themselves "CHRISTIANS ; that is to say: "Followers of Jesus the Christ." Only then can we get at the essentials or "mere Christianity" and figure out just who we really are.

Our task then is clear: Like the earliest Christians we proclaim the risen saviour who is both Lord and Christ…This same Jesus of Nazareth! Then, we express our faith in this Christ and Lord as Anglicans. Aha…The Family Ministry Team working hard at Mere Anglican Christianity…Clive Staples Lewis would be proud!! Have a terrific summer everyone…be safe!!

Michael Barton

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Adult Christian Education at St. Mary’s

The past year has been a busy time for adult Christian Education. A particularly successful event was the Wednesday night Lenten Series, which drew a wonderful response from the people of our Parish and even attracted visitors from other churches in the area. Planning for the 2003/2004 year’s events are in the preliminary stage, but include many varied activities, aimed at furthering Christian education. Some of the events we hope to sponsor and/or present include:

1. Dinner with a Speaker – two to take place, one in the autumn and one during the winter. Dates to be confirmed, but possibly Nov. 12’03 and February ’04.
2. Mark Kinghan to present a discussion on the Psalms. Tentative Date is Oct. 8’03. Talk will follow a Candlelight Eucharist.
3. December 3’03 designated for an Advent Presentation and Candlelight Eucharist.
4. The following two Wednesday evenings in Advent –Candlelight Eucharist only.
5. An Evening on Same Sex Relationships and the Church’s response to that, is scheduled for mid- January, date to be confirmed.
6. A Book of Advent Reflections is being planned, for release just prior to Advent ’03.
7. Other events being considered – Games Night (Bridge, Euchre etc.) during the winter. An Outing to the Church of The Holy Trinity, Trinity Square, Toronto, in early December, to see their presentation of the Nativity Pageant, followed by dinner at a nearby restaurant.

Some of these activities are aimed at participation by families, as well as those intended for Adult and more mature Youth members of the Parish and community. We are hoping to encourage more inter-generational interest in the Committee’s activities during the coming year. Some (eg: the outing to Holy Trinity) would appeal to all age groups. Please note also that the Care and Study Groups will likely resume again in September, under the inspired leadership of Dorothy Parker, our Bible Study facilitator.

As the year progresses, we hope to provide other interesting activities for the advancement of Adult Christian Education at St. Mary’s. Information to follow, as plans become finalized. We look forward to an exciting new Year!

Donna Elnor

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Pennies* From Heaven

Hey guys we are starting a program in the youth to help raise money for the Habitat for Humanity Faith Build 2004. Have you ever wondered what you could buy with a penny? It doesn't seem like much. But we have a plan to put those pennies to work. What we are going to try to do is to get everybody at church to bring in at least one jar of pennies by Thanksgiving. (Our penny drive will go to next Easter, but we will do our first big count at Thanksgiving) So look in your drawers and pockets for all of those long lost pennies. Mark your calendars to remind yourself to bring in the pennies. Start saving because that one jar of pennies will help families in need.

We’re keeping labelled and decorated jars by the main office as you come in. If you need a jar, please take one! You’re also welcome to use your own jar and bring it in. If you have extra jars, please let us know, we’ll put them to work. If you fill it up, bring it back and we’ll find you a new jar! Want to help but running out of pennies? No problem! Could you pass along jars to friends and neighbours? Or put a jar in your business or a local business? We started handing out jars at Easter and we are currently up to 40lbs of pennies and the equivalent of 20lbs of pennies in from other coins and bills. We would like to have 100lbs of pennies by the end of the summer….

Emma and Lauren

*Although this is a penny drive, we have no objections to silver coloured coins, or even loonies, toonies or an occasional bill… (No need to covert them to pennies!)

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News from Youth Ministry at St. Mary’s

Over the past few months the youth and youth ministry team at St. Mary’s have been keeping busy. We had over 25 young people stay overnight for our Maundy Thursday Vigil. The Pancake Supper was a great success. Hang Time, our midweek program from grade 4-6, seems to be continually growing with over ten young people out each week.

Thank you to those who have donated various items to our youth program. It is greatly appreciated.

Our Youth Ministry Team is meeting at the beginning of June to plan out next year’s programs. One of the biggest things that will dictate the number and type of programs we can run is the number of volunteers we have to help out. We at St. Mary’s made a commitment to our youth ministry program by hiring a full time Director of Family Ministries. Now we need to back up this commitment with dedicated volunteers. Could we ask you a favour? Please prayerfully consider whether you might be able to join our ministry team next year.

Many times we’ve heard the complaint that groups always want more of your money, then they want your soul too. We’re not currently asking for your money! And we’ll leave your soul to God. However, an hour or two a week (or even a month) would go a very long way….

Everyone has different gifts and some may not fit with the youth ministry team, but many will. Would you be willing to help drive to youth events? Thankfully, many in our youth program don’t drive yet. Would you really like to do some baking and no one to bake for? Youth are always hungry! Do you like organizing crafts? Play guitar? Sing? Like playing basketball? Dodgeball? Like teaching? Playing drama games?

Most importantly, do you like being with young people? Want to make a real difference in someone’s life?

Please consider where your gifts may be used. If you have any questions, please talk to anyone on our youth ministry team. We’d be more than happy to hear from you!

Your Youth Ministry Team

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Donations are up!

The Stewardship committee would like to express our appreciation for the strong response that we have seen to the 2002 “Grow One Step” appeal. At the end of April 2003 donations are up 17% over the same period last year. This is wonderful progress and much needed as we continue to invest in ministry at St. Mary’s. We need your continued strong support.

There is a critical need for a continued flow of donations, especially over the summer months. Attendance is frequently lower over the summer, and the related donations also suffer. Unfortunately the expenses of the Church do not go on holidays, and we need your continued support through out the whole year. Please consider continuing your donations, even in your absence, by mail, by post dated cheque, or an easy and convenient method is to sign up for our Direct Debit program.

As many of you already know, St. Mary’s processes direct debit donations, that is rather than writing a cheque and putting it in an envelope each week, you sign up for direct debit and have a monthly donation taken directly from your bank account. This is an easy and convenient process, and we know that many of you pay bills in this same manner. Currently 40 parishioners are donating this way, so the person next to you who does not put anything in the plate is not being cheap, but is probably using direct debit!

If you are interested in donating this way, there is a form included with this issue of The Message. If you are not comfortable passing the plate, but would like some cards to use as a substitute for your envelopes, please make a note of that on the form, we will provide them to you.

Please complete the form, put it in the enclosed envelope, and place it on the collection plate next Sunday, drop it off at the office, or even mail it back, the envelope is already addressed. If you are already using direct debit, the same form will allow you to increase your monthly donation.

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This is our faith

The Bible:

1. What is the Bible?
   The bible, or Holy Scripture, is a library of books divided into the Old and New Testaments.
2. What is the Old Testament?
   The Old Testament consists of books written by people of the Old Covenant before the birth of Christ to show how God was at work in nature and in the history of Israel.
3. What is the New Testament?
   The New Testament consists of books written by the people of the New Covenant to set forth the life and teaching of Jesus and the Apostles, the growth of the early church, and the good news of the kingdom for all people.
4. Why does the church value the scriptures?
   Because the Holy Spirit inspired their human authors and through the scriptures God’s word continues to speak to the Church.
5. How do we best understand the Bible?
   We understand the meaning of the bible, the Church’s book, with the help of the Holy Spirit, who guides the people of God in interpretation and understanding.
6. What is the Apocrypha?
   It is a collection of books written by the people of the Old Covenant and sometimes read in church, but not used to establish doctrine.

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The Wardens Report

The excitement continues at St. Mary’s!

No sooner had we finished taking a breath after all the work that goes into getting ready for Vestry, but we were busy acting on the directions received.

Over the past few months we have been pleased to announce two new staff members for the parish. We first announced that Sheilagh Ashworth would be joining us on June 1 as our new half time Associate. This is a very exciting new step in our ministry and I know we all look forward with excitement. We are very pleased to welcome Sheilagh, her husband John David and their two children Madeleine and Sarah.

Our second announcement was that John Martin would become our Office Administrator on May 26. John is a longtime member of the parish and we are blessed to have him bring his considerable talents to this important role at St. Mary’s.

On April 27 we held a retirement party for Ann Edwards. This event was well attended and in addition to some lovely gifts, Ann received heart felt best wishes and thanks for her many years of service to St. Mary’s. Ann will be truly missed.

May 4 was the first of what I hope will be regular youth run services. This was a wonderful experience, an opportunity for variety of worship and an important step for us as a parish family to take, letting our younger members take a leadership role. The monthly “Sunday Night Praise” services continue to provide wonderful music and a great way to worship. If you have not had an opportunity to come out on a Sunday evening, please give it a try – I highly recommend it.

During Lent Debbie Dawe ran the First Communion program for a small group of enthusiastic young people. Debbie once again did a great job of making this important learning fun.

From a financial perspective (you knew it had to be coming!) 2003 is starting off on the right foot. For the first four months of the year donations are up 17% over the same period last year. Our expenses are on budget and we are running a small deficit, as is common at this time of year. We are pleased to see the increased donations, and want to stress that we need your continued support, as we embark on another year of growth, and the budget challenges that go with growth. We particularly need your support over the summer months as expenses continue, even when we are all away on vacation.

We can rightly look to our future ministry with confidence and hope. We have huge resources: people with all kinds of different talents, time, skills and energy, which are given so willingly in the service of the Gospel. We have the exciting challenge of building on our existing work and growing our ministry.

As always, we ask for your continued prayers and support.

Respectfully submitted by Mark Shorrocks, On behalf of the Wardens

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Ecumenical Ministry in Richmond Hill

Good news! A group of parishioners from St. Mary’s sat down recently with some members of Richmond Hill United Church and St. Matthew’s United Church to discuss how we might do some things together as a Christian presence in our community. One church can do things on their own, but the potential to be recognized and make a difference is increased as we do them together.

Things to look forward to are: a pulpit exchange on October 19th, an evening of Christmas Caroling through the streets on Friday December 19th, a “Longest Night” service on December 21st for those who struggle during the season of Christmas, and an ecumenical experience of “Progressive Worship and Dinner” on January 25th to mark the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

These events are in the initial planning stages. Please watch for further details in the fall, and support this new initiative in ministry in any way you can.

Thanks to Debbie Dawe, Derek Davidson and Alice Pegg who represented St. Mary’s at our first planning meeting.

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SARS and the Eucharist

As SARS affected so much of our lives, it also affected the church and how we do communion. However, that is not necessarily a bad thing. We have learned again how important it is to be conscious of germs and how they are transmitted. As such, we are taking the necessary precautions to be as responsible as possible.

We need to remember that the primary way that germs are shared between people is through our hands. This in turn affects the exchange of peace and how we receive the sacrament at the Eucharist. First, we would ask everyone to be conscious of other’s comfort level around shaking hands. Please do not be offended if others do not extend their hands during the peace, and instead offer a nod of the head or a verbal expression of the peace of Christ. What is most important is to respect one another’s preference during this part of our liturgy.

As well, in his directive about SARS, Archbishop Finlay strongly recommended that the use of intinction (dipping of the communion wafer into the wine in the chalice) not be continued. When the wafer is placed in our hands, and we touch it with our fingers, and then dip the wafer into the wine, any germs are then transmitted into the wine. At St. Mary’s, we would ask that everyone refrain from using intinction as they receive the Eucharist. If you do not wish to receive the wine from the common cup, please simply touch your hand to the chalice as it is offered to you. Receiving the Eucharist in one kind is sound theologically.

Thank you for your cooperation in this.

Mark

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From My Pew

It was February the week before last; and now it’s May. The intervening months have gurgled away like a pint of Guinness down a goat. The same goes for years. It feels as if it was only last fall that St. Mary’s agreed to sponsor another family from Afghanistan, but it wasn’t last fall. It was November of ’00, and a lot of Guinness and grief besides have gone down since then. Like what?

I can’t remember much beyond breakfast this morning except that Hamid Noorzad, his wife Geetie, their six-year-old son Farokh, and four-year-old daughter Samera (the family group we sponsored almost three years ago) arrived in Canada on a Pakistan Airways flight from Islamabad on Friday afternoon, April 11. I remember because I have the letter, reproduced in this issue of “The Message”, from Dr. G.S. Noorzad, Hamid’s uncle. (His gratitude and love for us is enduring, deep and heartfelt. When you are feeling short on hugs, go to him and simply say St. Mary’s sent you.)

Most of Hamid’s new Canadian cousins were at the airport to meet him and his family. Among the greeters were some of the thirteen family members that St. Mary’s has sponsored in the past: the Faiz family of six in the waning years of the twentieth century, and Dr. Assadullah’s family of seven (his wife, two sons, a daughter-in-law and two grandchildren) at the dawn of the twenty-first. They all are here in Canada (seventeen including the family that arrived on April 11) thanks to St. Mary’s intervention.

It is an intervention that began in May 1995, eight years ago when I was still young. The trigger was a letter from the Working Group on Refugee Resettlement, an agency with a salaried staff of two, funded by the Anglican Diocese of Toronto and the United Church of Canada. WGRR was inviting Joan Lane, then Chair of our Sponsorship Committee, to sponsor a family of six refugees from Afghanistan. St. Mary’s accepted that commitment and subsequent commitments to two more Noorzad family units.

WGRR is our regional advocate and information centre on behalf of convention refugees –people who are victims of genocidal wars and brutal persecution because of their religious or political affiliations. WGRR’s job is to beat the bushes among Anglican and United congregations in order to find sponsors for the most desperate cases and for refugees who have relatives in Canada. Dr. G.S. Noorzad, the writer of the accompanying letter, is the relative who found asylum in Canada with his wife, two daughters, and three sons in the early eighties. You have to be more than merely affluent to sponsor a relative yourself, so G.S. appealed to WGRR for help, and WGRR turned to us back in 1995. St. Mary’s can sign a sponsorship if the rector and wardens can be persuaded that the Outreach Committee has the cash (at least $20,000 or a credible plan for raising it) in order to underwrite, for one year, the cost of food, shelter and clothing of the sponsored individual or group once they get here. However, Immigration Canada will only accept our sponsorship with the approval of the Diocese of Toronto that is our guarantor. If we default on our commitment, the Diocese is legally bound to assume expenses.

In addition, we have sponsored a family of four, the Barrie family, from Sierra Leone. They arrived last year, and we are presently in the process of preparing a second sponsorship application for another refugee family from Sierra Leone. It’s a tedious process with a lot of form filling but it’s worth it. Dr. Noorzad’s letter says it all.

Patrick Trant

"April 21, 2003

Dear Mr. Pat,

I am writing this letter to "Thank you!" from the bottom of my heart for all your hardwork and dedication in helping to bring my family to Canada. The Noorzad family and I are extremely thankful for the warm and kind efforts of all the members of St. Mary’s Anglican Church who have helped us in so many ways. We are extremely appreciative because without your help Hamid Noorzad and his family would not have arrived safely in Canada. All the members of the Noorzad family, including the families of Dr. Assadullah, Dr. Ataullah are very happy to have been given the opportunity to see Hamid Noorzad and his family again. Without your help my family would not have been together today. We will always be grateful for your help for the rest of our lives.

Once again, thank you for taking your precious time and helping us.

Dr. G.S. Noorzad."

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Further Adventures While Growing Up in the Church

As I peruse the list of dates contained in the 35th Anniversary Booklet of St. Mark’s Rosslyn, I am still amazed at the audacity of our ‘building crew’. I am just as amazed at the support we received from the Deanery Clergy and parishioners and from the construction companies who provided so much of the raw materials without charge to keep the ‘building crew’ on its schedule. We were blest in 1956 with fair weather after the last snowfall, as we were blest with a hardy ‘crew’ who gave countless hours to the building in addition to their usual ‘workweek’. In addition to the usual women’s household duties there was a continuing flow of tasty pots of tea and goodies which came forth to keep up the strength of the working crew. A branch of the W.A. was formed. On April 10th the ladies held their first meeting. Their first supper was held in the Rosslyn Hall on May 21st. Their first tea was held at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Fort William on September 15th. On the 21st of May the W.A. hosted the Foundation Stone Banquet following the service, inn Rosslyn Hall. Over 100 were present including Archbishop Wright and eight of the Deanery Clergy. St. Paul’s Choir attended to lead the music during the Laying of the Cornerstone by the Archbishop.

The first services in the new Church were held Christmas Eve 1956, Evensong at 8 p.m. with a recorded attendance of 60, and Holy Eucharist at 11:30 p,m, with an attendance of 103 people. It should be here noted that with the exception of the digging of the Church basement and well by Mr. Doug Mayes. All the other work on the church building was done by the ‘building crew’ except for the plastering upstairs. Every Church family had a volunteer to help build the Church. Mr. Kenneth Vibert was responsible for the work on the Church Altar, Pulpit, Lectern and Prayer desks. The first loan from the Archbishop Wright Building Fund was given to St. Mark’s Rosslyn. It was for $4,000.00. The W.A. ladies were responsible for the furnishing of the kitchen in the Church basement, as well as for the Altar Linens, Altar hangings, rugs, in addition to all their regular W.A. activities. The Altar Light was the gift of Mr. Harold Tett, of Ranta & Tett, Architects.

Rogation Sunday, May 26th, 1957 was the date arranged for the Dedication of St. Mark’s with the Archbishop presiding at 3:00 p.m. As I mentioned earlier when the Diocesan arranged his schedule there was a feast of Church Services, one following often very closely on a previous one in the same immediate area. In addition to the Dedication a class of 14 candidates were presented for Confirmation. Once again the Organist and the Choir of St. Paul’s Fort William came for this important and momentous occasion. The time factor needed to be watched as the Archbishop was due at St. Thomas’s Fort William that same day. Needless to say the Church was full to overflowing.

I must make mention of two of the Lakehead Clergy in particular. By the time that we had arrived in the Mission the previous Archdeacon had moved from St. Paul’s Fort William. Shortly thereafter the new Rector arrived and in due course he and his wife came to pay us a visit in Murillo. Their visit was brief but pleasant. They left us with a pressing invitation to come to see them in Fort William.

In addition to other duties the Clergy were expected to take their turns on the television for religious programmes, usually early in the day. I usually ended up visiting the Hinchcliffe’s on broadcast mornings. We became close friends. They were just like elder brother and sister to Verna and myself. They had two children, Allyson and Christopher. As we are all aware living is not always a bed of roses. Allyson contracted an unusual malady from something in the garden at the rectory. She had to be taken to hospital in Toronto and subsequently died. At the same time we realized that we were to become parents. Dorothy had gone to Toronto with Allyson and remained there with her. This left the burden on husband Jim in a very busy Parish with a young son. When Jim left for Toronto I came in and stayed with Christopher at the Rectory. Needless to say it was an upsetting situation. Thankfully, all this happened before Verna was due to go into hospital for the baby. By the time this was about to occur, the Hinchcliffe’s had returned from their trip to the west coast. As you very well know hospital rules then and now have vastly altered. After having taken Verna in to the hospital which was directly opposite St. Paul’s, having tramped the hospital for hours on end, I walked over to the Rectory as Dorothy had directed me to do and went in and put my head down for some R & R. Early in the morning I revived and returned to the hospital to continue my perambulation. Sometime between 6:00 and 6:30 a.m. the nurse came down the hall with a bundle and said, Mr. Banting here is your son. He wasn’t even washed. Then she returned with my son. After some tears and a thankful prayer I returned to the Rectory to share the news and have some breakfast. Later I came back bearing a bouquet and lots of excitement to see my wife and son. So November 12 and 13 were memorable days in 1957.

More in the next installment……….

W.C.S.B.

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Outreach in Romania

As some of you have heard, at the end of July I am travelling to Romania. I will be staying with and helping Kathy Langston, who is from Toronto. Kathy and her work was recently in the Anglican newspaper. Kathy is working with abandoned children and her aim is to get some of the smallest out of the institutional hospitals/orphanages and give them the food, care and love they deserve. Even after a month in an institution babies show delays in development. Those who have spent a significant amount of their short lives in the hospitals can be malnourished, underdeveloped and don’t know what it is like to go outside!

Kathy’s goal is to care for about three children at a time, help them catch-up in health and development and find homes for them through adoption.

At the moment Kathy has two little girls two years of age and a seven-month-old baby girl named Andrea. Kathy saw Andrea at six months old and started the paperwork to allow her to foster Andrea. Andrea was only 7lbs. Over the next month as paperwork was filed and Andrea recovered from an infection, Kathy and two friends went three times a day to feed and care for Andrea at the hospital. After a month she was up to 8lbs.

At present, the greatest need for the baby is formula due to limited supplies and high costs. I’m hoping to be able to take some formula and baby cereals over to help out, if you would be able to help contribute, please talk to me. A little would go a long way.

Kathy also knows a local pastor running a soup kitchen and youth program for street children aged 8-14 (that’s our grade 3-8), so there is no shortage of places to help out. I’m excited to see how God may use me on my trip and will let you know how things go. For now, please keep baby Andrea, Kathy, the children in her care and the many more in the institutions in your prayers.

Lauren Hastie

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Liturgical Vestments of the Church (contd.)

Some general descriptions and usage:

The Alb. The alb is the principal vestment for all liturgical ministers lay or ordained. The word alb is from the Latin albus, which means white. In the early church when candidates were baptized, usually naked by full immersion, the going down into the water symbolized their death to sin and their coming up as new life in Christ. A white alb was placed on the newly baptized as a sign of their purity and new life. As such, any person participating in a liturgy is entitled to wear the alb as a sign of baptismal ministry and vocation. The old-style alb, in use up until the last century, and still used in some places, is a much fuller garment which is pulled over the head. It is collarless and has a v-neck, which is fastened by a drawstring or button. The Amice is a small rectangular piece of linen with tapes that is placed on top of the head before vesting and the tapes fastened around the torso. After putting on the alb, the amice is pulled down and becomes a collar that protects the vestments from perspiration and soiling around the neck. The modern alb has a collar and is usually fastened by a series of buttons or more commonly is double breasted and fastened with Velcro. It is a more fitted garment and is more properly known by the name “cassock-alb.” Whereas the old alb is worn over the cassock, the newer style is not. Either style may be girded by a cincture (a tasseled or knotted rope).

The Cassock and Surplice is simply a variation on the above and has been perhaps the most common vestment in Anglican usage. The Cassock, a long black robe either buttoned straight or double-breasted, is not a vestment as such but rather the street clothing of clergy from a time now past. The Surplice, from the Latin, superpellicum, is a development of the alb. It came into being in the colder northern European countries after the cassock became lined with fur for warmth. As such, the alb gradually took on a fuller, looser, poncho-like appearance. It is flowing garment with large sleeves and gathered around the neck. The alb or cassock and surplice are standard choir dress for lay people and deacons and priests. To this the deacon and priest may add the Tippet (to the surplice) or the stole, worn according to office (to either the alb or surplice). In the case of the Daily Office, as mentioned above, the tippet worn over the cassock and surplice is the proper sign of office, not the stole over the alb, nor the stole over the surplice. For a bishop the variation is as follows: The Rochet, a very full alb, almost a surplice; the Chimere, a sleeveless gown open at the front, similar to an academic gown, worn over the rochet; and the black tippet. A bishop may wear a purple cassock under the rochet. This is proper choir dress for a bishop. When he celebrates the Eucharist he dresses as any priest would with stole and chasuble or cope.

The Stole and Chasuble. The stole, as indicated above, is a sign of ordained ministry and may be worn by deacons, priests and bishops. Originally, the stole was little more than a napkin worn on the outside of everyday dress (as the robes of antiquity had no pockets). As time passed it became a symbol of authority in civic office and was eventually adopted by the clergy. In the western church, Deacons wear the stole from the left shoulder across to the right hip, priests may wear it straight or crossed at the breast, and the bishop always wears it straight and never crossed. In the case of the celebrant, it is worn under the chasuble, which is poncho-like oval-shaped garment that is the principal vestment of the celebrant. The chasuble is often of very fine brocade silk and ornamented with orphreys (bands of decorated fabric) and symbols of the church. The term chasuble is derived from the Latin, casula, meaning “little house,” and was standard dress outdoor dress in late antiquity. Like the stole it later became a sign of prominence and was adopted by the church for use by the presiding cleric at the Eucharist. Sometimes the chasuble will be worn by the celebrant throughout the liturgy or it may be donned only at the beginning of the Eucharist proper as a sign of the celebrant assuming a high-priestly ministry.

The Cope. The cope probably shares a common origin with the chasuble but has come to assume a different form. Unlike the chasuble, which is pulled over the head, the cope is cut away at the front like a cape and fastened at the neck by a morse. It retains the remnant of a hood, which survives simply as an oval piece of material overlaying the back of the shoulders. It is usually of sumptuous fabric such as silk brocade and can be variously decorated. Unlike the chasuble its use is more varied and not restricted to the celebrant. It may be worn by a bishop (over the rochet and stole, the chimere and tippet being part of the choir dress) who will also be wearing a mitre (the double-pointed headwear unique to the Episcopal office). The celebrant may wear the cope in place of the chasuble so long as a stole is worn underneath. The cope is typically used in processions and as such may be worn by a lay cantor (the person singing the litany) and not restricted to the clergy. In addition, an assisting priest may wear it when the bishop is presiding.

The Dalmatic. The dalmatic slightly resembles the chasuble and is worn by the deacon who assists at the liturgy. It is cut somewhat distinctively in that it has sleeves. The orphreys are often distinctive to the garment as well. Usually a dalmatic has two vertical pillar orphreys down the front that are joined by two shorter horizontal orphreys that form a sort of ladder-shape. The general rule of thumb is that when the celebrant wears the chasuble the deacon wears the dalmatic. However, in many places the dalmatic seems to be reserved for high festivals. While the stole may be worn under the dalmatic it is not required.

We do not have the space to cover all possible vestments and variations that one might find in use across the Anglican Church, however, it is hoped that this short overview will be useful in helping to clarify the usage of vestments in the Church.

By Daniel F. Graves

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SUNDAY NIGHT PRAISE: SEPTEMBER 28TH, 7:00 PM

Mark you calendars today and plan to join us for a new season of Celebration and Praise as we gather together and sing contemporary Christian songs of Praise.

LAST SUNDAY OF EVERY MONTH…..A TIME OF
REFRESHING OUR SOULS IN THE CHAPEL!!
THANK YOU

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The Harvest Ball

St. Mary’s Anglican Church proudly presents its first fundraiser dinner/dance and silent auction, The Harvest Ball, on Friday, October 3, 2003. Mark this date on your calendar and watch for further information on ticket sales and silent auction and raffle items. Table reservations for the dance will begin on June 22nd. The price is $65 per person that includes a fabulous full course meal and open bar at Premier Place, near Rutherford and Keele.

This dinner/dance was approved at our Vestry meeting in February as a parish event with a goal of raising $10,000. We need everyone’s support to make it work! Inquiries may be made to Liz Baer at 905-737-5702.

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Summer Services

A reminder that from July 6th to August 31st, we will have two services on Sunday mornings: 8:00 and 9:30. We will return to our normal schedule of services at 8:00, 9:00 and 10:30 on September 7th.

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WOMEN OF ST. MARY’S

There is going to be a Bazaar on November 8, 2003

Convenor: Lorna Giles
Co-Convenor: Janet Alderson

It’s time to get busy sewing, knitting, cooking etc. for this year’s Bazaar. If you need any information regarding the various tables, call the Convenors listed below:

Mr. Pegg (the Editor) thought it was time to give a plug for our Bazaar, which has been going since before I joined the Church over 34 years ago. We have always had a Bazaar famous for quality and workmanship. The luncheon has changed over the years, we no longer have the women of the parish make the sandwiches, although they still make the desserts served. We still have the men helping serve the luncheon and we now have young people help both with the serving and the clean-up. In the five or six times that I have convened the Bazaar there have been changes, except there has always been a wonderful reception with many of the parish women offering to help. It is sad that the women no longer feel they can just call and ask “what can I do to help”? We have a great time making the soup, setting up and selling on the big day.

I can remember when I was convenor of the Knitting Booth, there was an elderly man and wife who came every year with a list of children and grand-children, and they spent well over $200.00 just themselves. They maintained we had the best sweaters in Richmond Hill, they were stylish, well knit and would last.

Lena White’s “Gift Table” is fairly new (only about 5-6 years) and the newest is Beth Kinghan’s Deli Table – if last year was any indication get there first, the cabbage rolls went like the proverbial hot cakes. Vanessa Pius has convened the Bake Table for the last couple of years and it too is a quick sell-out.

The money collected goes a long way in helping St. Mary’s – since I became involved we have bought two sets of china, 150 new tea cups, the silver, 12 new platters for use whenever there is a large gathering, six to eight coffee urns, the 20 card tables, don’t know how many of the tables (most of them). We paid towards the dishwasher, the renovation of the kitchen and we are still buying things to make life in the kitchen easier for those working there.

We also bought the first computer the Church had and we contribute to the Rector’s discretionary fund to help those in need. We help groups in the neighbourhood, Hill House Hospice, Food Bank and The Diocesan ACW. We have helped Operation Catch-Up which is for children having trouble with their school work. We have over the years helped Yellow Brick House, Big Sisters, Rose of Sharon, Downtown Church Workers, Sisterhood (downtown) and Treasures and the Salvation army are the recipients of the left overs from our Rummage and Treasure sales.

We are not just a group of do-gooders but we are a group of DO-GOODERS.

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Kidnapped in Guatemala

And a leper came to him beseeching him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will, Be clean.”

Throughout the history of Christianity, missioning to the poor has often involved an element of risk. Christ himself was condemned and executed, because his preaching and healing constituted a threat to the power and authority of the Sanhedrin. The Lives of the Saints are full of stories of danger and personal sacrifice. Within an hour’s drive of Richmond Hill, the Jesuit Fathers Brebeuf and Lallemant, suffered a cruel martyrdom as a result of their efforts to preach and to heal among the Huron Nation.

The following account is part of the continuing story of the Hands of Hope mission in Guatemala. Our church’s Guatemalan Project, sponsored by designated donations of several generous parishioners, is providing assistance to this mission that built and operates a clinic that provides medical treatment to Mayan Indians in the mountain villages. The mission was founded and is operated by Gregory and Anita Giagnocavo, brother-in-law and sister of St Mary’s parishioner, Maggie Veltheer.

On the evening of March 16, 2003, Gregory went out to withdraw money from a local ATM. He did not return home that evening or the next morning. The following event is described in Gregory’s own words.

SECURITY OFFICE
US EMBASSY
GUATEMALA CITY
March 18, 2003

After I withdrew money from the ATM at 7:25 pm, two men followed me on a motorcycle. One man banged at the driver's side window. A second later the other man smashed the passenger window and entered the car aiming a gun at me. The window glass seemed literally to explode, with glass flying everywhere. He ordered me to return to the ATM machine and take out more money. I said that I didn't have my card, that the ATM machine ate it when I got the money out. He searched my jacket and took Q400 that he found. (A quetzal is worth about 18 cents) I had hidden the other Q600 and my card under the floor mat, in an indentation under the gas pedal. I sometimes do that for safety.

For some reason the kidnapper assumed that I was German. He said that they were going to hold me while they demanded a ransom from the German Embassy for "100,000". Later, when he asked for my passport, I told him that I was an American citizen. He said that they would ask the US Embassy for "100,000" ransom. I told him that the Embassy would never pay any money. He then told me that they would hold me until the morning and take me to a bank where I was to transfer "100,000" to their account. I told him that we don't have that much money, and that a transfer would have to be initiated from the USA. I could not make a transfer from Guatemala.

He seemed to believe me and asked how much money we have here in the country. I said we didn't have much. He said that they wanted my family to get them "100,000". He never said dollars or quetzals. I told him that we were missionaries, that we had a little clinic in the mountains and did not have much money. He seemed to think I was telling the truth and looked through the papers in the truck. He was in contact by cell phone with his accomplice who was following in the motorcycle.

Apparently the plan was that I would drive through the border at El Salvador with their other associate whom I am guessing lives in Pedro Alvarado, at the border. The kidnapper was upset when I told him that I don’t carry my passport in case it gets stolen. That frustrated their plan. This was certainly not the first carjacking they were involved.

About two kilometers outside of the town they took me far into a local field. They took my pants and shoes and tied me to a tree. I think the style is called "hogtied", where ankles, wrists and neck are tied together and any movement tightens around the neck. I could barely move. If I tried to sit down, my bindings choked me too tightly to breathe. Unfortunately, this reminded me of how they tie up people before they shoot them.. Oddly, at the time I don't think that I was that afraid of being killed.

I was tied up at around 30 minutes past midnight, with electric cable. I began chewing on the cable after they left. About thirteen hours later, at around 1 pm a few children passed near where I was tied. When they saw me tied up with no pants as though I were ready for lynching/execution they ran away. They returned about an hour later with their father, a farmer. The father brought with him a loaded rifle and pointed it at me, asking me questions. He refused to untie me because he said that he "doesn’t know what the position of the owner of the land would be, and maybe I deserve to be tied up". He told me that he would bring the police, but he wouldn't untie even the rope that was choking me around my neck.

I was very uncomfortable with the way he was treating me with that loaded rifle and I didn't have trust in the local police. The kidnappers had told me that the police are "their friends". As soon as he left I continued to chew the wire as furiously as I could and was able to get free from the tree, but still tied neck-to-hand. But at least I was able to get away.

I crawled and stumbled one-half km through fields, crawling under barbed wire to the highway following the distant sound of trucks. There was little traffic, and no one would give me a ride. I was obviously a foreigner, with no pants and no shoes, bloodied and had a cable tied around my neck and hands. I walked along the highway to a farm where the guardian gave me pants and something to drink and used wire cutters to cut the cable that was still around my neck and wrist. He had no phone or car. He told me where the police substation was. I said I didn't want to go to the local police because I didn't trust them. He agreed that they could be involved with the kidnappers.

He gave me Q10 to pay for a bus to the police station in Chiquimullia. Then he went on his bicycle looking for my pickup and found it not too far away. The kidnappers could not get far with the truck because they didn’t have the correct alarm code, which shuts the motor off and locks the electrical system. I had given him the wrong code earlier.

From what one of the kidnappers said, I am sure that at least one of the police officers cooperates with the robbers who steal cars and transfer them to El Salvador. What is strange is that (a) the police department there has no phone; only the prepaid cell phones each officer has, and (b) nobody asked me any "investigative" questions about the descriptions, names, license, etc. I guess they know that they won't be investigating anything in a meaningful way, and that they really don't have a chance to catch anyone, realistically speaking.

I returned to Guatemala City airport around 8 pm, via National Civil Police Kidnap Unit helicopter that the PNC Central Office sent to pick me up in the border town of Pedro Alvarado. Then they took me home in car with armed police officers, members of the "anti-kidnapping team.

I am in okay condition with only numerous cuts and scratches. I cannot move my hands much because my wrists had been tied so tight, and I can't walk well because I walked over a lot of tough terrain without shoes and badly burned the soles of my feet walking on the hot pavement..

The PNC team who came via helicopter for me was extremely professional and went very much out of their way for me (scary helicopter ride, though; lots of turbulence). One of the officers said that he was under orders to drive my pickup truck from San Pedro Alvarado back to the PNC station and to deliver it to my house in the morning. Outstanding service, in this instance.

God has shown Himself again to be faithful and true – and I was protected from what could have been a much worse situation. Please don’t worry about continuing danger. I will be getting a trained K-9 special guard dog for Anita to travel with, but we had decided on that a few weeks ago.

We are fine and will be fine, don’t worry.

Thanks for your prayers and support to Anita while she was coping with this. Anita felt she had to have the clinic open today, but she is quite shaky. Thankfully, some doctors from the USA are here this week and they will do the patient work, freeing Anita up a bit.

Blessings,

Gregory Giagnocavo

Postscript

On April 1, Anita heard popping sounds as she drove back from a mountain village. She suddenly realized that she was in the middle of a gunfight between armed passengers of a bus and a thief who had tried to rob them. She escaped unharmed.

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SERVANT DISCIPLESHIP

“Whoever would be the greatest among you must be your servant and whoever would be first among you must be your slave even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve “ Matthew 20: 26-28

The great paradox of the Christian faith is contained in these words of Jesus. The Master is also the servant. The Son of Man, the Son of God, the Creator and the Redeemer of the universe, whom we have worshipped and served as God, the King, became a human being not to be served by us but to serve us. God in Jesus is servant to us all.

In Matthew 25 Jesus said “ the Son of Man comes in His glory and all the angels with Him… then before Him He will gather all the nations and He will separate them one from another … and the King will say to those on His right hand ‘ inherit the kingdom… for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited mean, I was in prison and you came to me’”. When the righteous asked the Lord when did they do these things the Lord answered them “as you did it to the least of these my brethren you did it to me.” The Lord in assuming human flesh identifies each human being with Himself and He is telling us, I think, in this passage that if we truly want to follow Him we must strive to serve each human being we encounter as if we were serving the Lord Himself. To be disciples of the Lord Christ we must be servants of his brothers and sisters, all the human race, all the children of God

The health care and social support systems that exist in Canada were developed by servant disciples, men and women in Canadian society in the early and mid 20th century who were inspired by the “social gospel” to modify our society so that not only the rich, the powerful and the influential would benefit from the extraordinary resources that exist in our country but that all people could be equally served by our social institutions. There are servant leaders in every profession and occupation in this country. Among lawyers, judges, accountants, industrialists, politicians and tradesmen there can be found those whose primary drives and goals, whose overall motives, are not primarily the accumulation of their own wealth or security, but the building of better social institutions for the service of all. There are large numbers of men and women in all walks of life who devote time, energy and expertise in helping the poor, the hungry, the sick and the marginalized in our country. Whether they know it or not they are living the gospel faith.

But what about service in the rest of the world, besides our nation of Canada? Today there are 6 billion human beings living on earth. The world population has almost tripled in growth in the past 50 years. Despite this rapid population growth however, poverty, starvation, lack of clean water, poor sanitation, epidemic disease and lack of medical care have not improved for most of the people of the world. Most of the improvements in life expectancy and in standards of living have taken place in Western Europe and North America. In the rest of the world 10 percent of the population still own 90 percent of the wealth. The rest live in poverty.

The recognition of the spread and growth of epidemic poverty and starvation in the rapidly growing world population has led to reexamination of the role of Christians and Christian ministry in the world. Christians number 1 to 1.5 billion people, less than 25 percent of the world’s population. Most Christians, or at least 700- 800 million, live in North America and Europe in relative affluence and comfort in comparison to the rest of the world. Should the Christian church, the Body of Christ, be concerned about the lack of food, health care, sanitation and the lack of freedoms in the rest of the world? What do the scriptures tell us when we look for answers? In Isaiah 58:3-8, the Lord says that freeing the oppressed, sharing food with the hungry, sheltering the homeless, clothing the naked, is what the Lord requires of us. In Amos 5:21-24, the Lord says He despises our feasts, solemn assemblies, burnt offerings, singing and music, but then declares “let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an everlasting stream.” In these words the Lord God is saying that worship, tithing and hymn singing are not enough to satisfy the Lord, but that sharing what we have, all our gifts, our food, our homes, our wealth, our skills, our talents, our knowledge and our healing powers, in justice and righteousness, with those in need is what the Lord requires of us.

When in his short life on earth Jesus asked his disciples to follow him he was asking them to live the life he lived. The life he lived, and the life we must live if we attempt to follow him, was a life of complete service to the entire human race. In Matthew 25:19-20, Jesus commands his followers “go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

But can we make disciples of all nations and teach them to observe all that our Lord Christ has commanded us to do if we ourselves do not obey His commandments? We obey His commandments only when we serve his people. It is not only in preaching but through service that people are brought to the Lord as disciples. It is through the service that Jesus’ followers provide to all nations that they come to know of Christ. We preach the Gospel most effectively by living the Gospel and to live the Gospel we must see the face of Christ in every human being we encounter and serve these persons as if we were serving the Lord himself.

When now-a-days in the present turmoil of the world do we ever hear spoken the words of the Lord Christ: “Love your enemy. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who abuse you ” (Matthew 5:43-48; Luke 6:27)? It is very difficult in the struggle for survival, to give away what we have worked so hard to accumulate, and to share it with others. It is very hard, when our borders are invaded, our greatest buildings blown up and our brothers and sisters killed by terrorists, to forgive our enemies and bless those that hate us. But that is what the Lord requires us to do who believe in Him and seek to follow Him. The present time is possibly the greatest test of faith that the Lord has ever given us in human history, for never before have we human beings had such power to spread justice equality and freedom, while at the same time we have such power to destroy those who attack us. The human race is God’s creation not ours. The human race, the people of all nations, of all religions, are the people for whom the Lord became Man and lived among us and died for us. The people of all nations are the people the Lord claims as his own when he commanded us to make them His disciples.

We need to take leadership in ensuring that the political and corporate leaders, and the powerful armies of the Western World, act in the best interest of all human beings in the world, and not solely in the best interest of the citizens and the corporations of the Christian West. Only thus can we make disciples of all nations.

May Christ have mercy upon us.

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Our Registers

BAPTISMS
April 27, 2003.

Gabrielle Elizabeth Cole
Ethan John Hall
Alexander Robert Jones
Elya Marie Jones
Alexis Rebecca Nadasdi
Nicole Katherine Sluys

MARRIAGES
April 26, 2003.

Michael James Brioux and Fiona Joan Zoller
Charles Stanley Wilde and Jana Paszana

DEATHS

Matthew Telford Heron
Josephine Marion Agg
Evelyn Mercy Coleclough

FIRST COMMUNION
April 19, 2003.

Mark Potter
Craig Shorrocks
Nathan Smit

NEWCOMERS

Deji & Bola Osisanya
Bob & Julie Gibbons
Maureen Garvin

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September Worship Services

The Feast of St. Mary will be celebrated on Sunday, August 10th.

Homecoming will be on September 7th at our 10:30 service. During the liturgy, we will re-covenant with each other as we begin the fall season in our parish life. It is a natural time of coming together after the summer months. The children will play an important part in this intergenerational service. We are planning to have a storyteller as well as music provided by David White, a member of “The Dustkickers”. Plan to be there, sharing in this time of re-connecting through worship and a barbecue after church.

On September 15th, we will observe Holy Cross Day with baptisms at our 10:30 service.

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July 2, 2003

URL: http://www.saintmaryschurch.ca/message/14/2/index.html