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                                                                               October, 2005

Dear Friends,

      Perhaps it was the beginning of Sunday school that reminded me of the following story.  Long ago but not very far away a small child was asked to recite the Lord's Prayer.  She began: "Our Father who art in New Haven, how did you know my name?"  It was an honest mistake – like putting Round John Virgin into the Christmas story.  And it produced benign amusement in the minds of the grownups that were there.  But maybe the little girl had something.  God was in New Haven, and he did know her name.  Or at least this is something that it is right for us to imagine about God.  But, of course, God is also in Washington – and in Peoria and Jerusalem and Baghdad and Keokuk.  And we can imagine that he knows everyone's name.

      Strangely enough, to imagine that God can somehow be present everywhere and at all times depends on recognizing that he is outside every place and every time.  Human language breaks down.  But if God were only in New Haven and only when the child repeated her version of the Lord's Prayer, he could not be anywhere else at any other time.  We are not like that.  Indeed, I frankly confess I do not know all the names of the people at St. John's.  And it could be that none of us knows everyone's name.  What binds us together, however, is the idea that God does know all our names.

      We sense this best when we are traveling and attend a church where we are simultaneously strangers and yet welcomed as friends.  This experience was so important to a man of the second century called Abercius that he inscribed it on his tombstone, set up far in the east in what is now Turkey.  "My name is Abercius, a disciple of the pure Shepherd who feeds the flocks of sheep on mountains and plains, who has great, all-seeing eyes.  He sent me to Rome to behold a kingdom and to see a queen in golden sandals and robes.  A people I saw there who have a fine seal [baptism].  I also saw the plain of Syria and the cities and Nisibis, crossing east over the Euphrates.  Everywhere I had kinsmen, having Paul as my guardian.  I followed, and Faith everywhere led the way and served food everywhere, the Fish from the spring – immense, pure, which the pure Virgin caught and gave to her friends to eat for ever, with good wine, giving the cup with the loaf."

      There is one final point that occurs to me.  Granted that we are first bound together simply because God knows our names and not because we know one another's, this is probably only a beginning.  We do begin to learn one another's names in the various ways in which we belong to one another – in our daily lives and occupations, and in working together in the life of this parish.  In this second context I think of the people we need to thank who work together in the Sunday school, the choir, the plans for the Bazaar, the altar guild, the vestry, the outreach programs, and all the other ways in which the God who knows our names teaches us to know the names of one another.

                                                   ~ Rowan Greer

This Year’s Bazaar will be held on Saturday, October 28th from 10AM-2PM.

The Preview Party will be Friday, October 27th from 6:30PM-8:30PM.

Please mark you calendars now to be part of this important event in the life of the Parish.

Laura Daly and Chris Boshears will again be in charge of this year’s planning of the Bazaar. Please take a moment to review what our needs are for this year. The sign up sheet will be in back of the Church every Sunday starting in September. Thanks to all who have already agreed to help us again this year. We still need lots of help and look forward to adding new volunteers to the list.

Not to be pushy, but we would like to know as soon as possible if you are willing to help out. This really is a Parish event, and it is appropriate that each of us contribute by our presence as workers or attendees (inviting our friends) and by offering goods and services for the various booths.  This will allow us to organize the work in the most effective way. If you have any questions before you commit to helping, please call Laura (868-9526).

SPECIAL NEEDS

Silent Auction

Please consider donating valuable furnishings, decorative arts, china, silver, etc. in good condition (with a minimum value of $25). Also, we ask that you consider donating a service or use of a second home or apartment for a weekend. Please accompany all donations with your name, description of the item and suggested value (the Silent Auction Committee will assign minimum bids). This will help us to keep track of donations for our records and also for your tax-deductions. If you have any questions regarding a possible donation, please call Ann Burton (868-2003) to inform her of your intentions so she can stay on top of the inventory list for this all-important aspect of the Bazaar.

We continue to have great success with donated items that were not auctioned off but priced to buy. We will be doing this again this year. So, please bear this in mind when you are thinking of donating items for the Bazaar.

Donated items should be brought to the Parish House beginning October 8^th.  Call the Parish House to arrange for pick-up if they are too large for you to handle by yourself.

Lastly, we need volunteers to man the Silent Auction tables for both Friday’s Preview Party and Saturday.

Preview Party

We need helpers to get this party going, both in the kitchen and to serve. We will also need 3-4 bartenders.  We will also need volunteers to stuff envelopes to get the invitations in the mail on time. This would need to be done mid-September. More about the specific date later.

Larder

Based on last year’s success, we need baked goods, soups and chutneys. Single serving items or small packages of brownies etc. were excellent impulse purchases last year. Call Mary Schinke (355-8608) or Ann Hodgman (868-0583) if you will contribute goods to this booth.  We will need people to help Ann sell items at this booth on Friday and Saturday.

Winter Flowers

As in the past, we need lots of containers suitable for the forcing of bulbs. We encourage those wishing to help to bring the containers to the Parish House as soon as possible. This will give us ample time to get this ever-popular booth ready in time for the Bazaar. We will also need helpers to pot up the bulbs (date and time TBD).

We will also need one person on Friday and Saturday to oversee this booth.

Raffle

We need someone to oversee the selling of the tickets. Laura Daly will take care of the paperwork involved in running the raffle, but is desperate for someone to actually be in charge of getting tickets distributed and sold. Please call Laura (868-9526) if you are interested. Also, we need volunteers to sell the tickets in front of the Washington Market. Finally, we will need helpers to man the Raffle booth during the Bazaar both Friday and Saturday.

Christmas Crafts

We really need individuals to help make holiday crafts for this booth. We need knitters and those who would like to decorate Christmas ornaments. This booth is quite successful and can become even more so with a few extra helping hands. Call Laura (868-9526) if you are interested in helping.

Box Lunch

We need volunteers to prepare and serve lunch on Saturday.

Cheese

We 2-3 volunteers to man the table for both Friday and Saturday.

Set up and Clean up Crews

We need volunteers to help set up the Bazaar a few days before the event, clean up after the Preview Party on Friday nigh/Saturday morning and close down the Bazaar on Saturday afternoon. It would be wonderful if someone could volunteer to organize this.

We are looking forward to another successful and fun Bazaar. We thank you in advance for your time and effort in making the Bazaar the wonderful event that it always is.

Family Sunday ~  Family Sundays (when the young people of the Parish join us in the Church for the entire service) will take place on the 1^st and 29^th of October at the 10.00 am service.

Evensong ~  Evensong will be sung on Sunday, October 1^st at 5.00pm for the Commemoration of the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels.

Adult Forum ~ We are fortunate that the Reverend Rowan Greer has agreed again to lead the Autumn Adult Forum at Saint John’s.  The Forum begins on Sundays at 9.00am in the Parish House Library and allows those who have attended the 8.00am service to be in this gathering as well as those who will be attending the 10.00am service.  The Forum ends about five minutes of ten and coffee is available for those attending. This year’s Forum will use as a framework, The Oxford History of Christian Worship, which will provide a wonderfully informative and intriguing look at the manner in which the Church has come to worship as it does today.  Its history will be traced from its earliest roots in Judaism and The New Testament, through the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Reformation and more modern times.  This Forum is a wonderful opportunity to deepen your appreciation and understanding of what the liturgy is, represents, and offers.  This year’s Forum will be offered the weeks of September 17 – November 19.

We cordially invite you to attend these meetings. It is not essential that you attend all of them but certainly are urged to come to as many as possible. You are assured that your time will be time very well spent. We are graced to have as fine a teacher as Father Greer in our midst.

During the Rector’s Absence on Sabbatical ~  During the period September 1^st through December 1^st the Reverend Rowan Greer, assisted by the Reverends Randall Balmer and Susan McCone will oversee the services of Sunday.  The Reverends George Hall, Roger White and Susan McCone will preside at the 9.30 Eucharists on Wednesdays.  The Reverend Roger White will be taking emergency pastoral call from September 1^st through September 17^th; September 24^th through November 8^th; and November 18^th through December 1^st.  Roger may be reached at the Office of Saint Andrew’s Parish in Kent 927-3486.  During the periods September 18^th through September 23^rd and November 9^th through November 17^th The Reverend Susan McCone will be on emergency pastoral call.  Susan may be reached at 868-9741 or 212-759-1508.  Please note that, if any of these dates change, the proper emergency pastoral call number will be available on the answering machine at Saint John’s Office 868-2527.  Matters of day-to-day business should be directed to Maureen Griffin, Parish Administrator, at the office.  If necessary, you may contact the Wardens, Chris Boshears (868-9340) or Mary Schinke (355-8609).

Loaves and Fishes is in Need ~ For many years, Saint John’s has supplied food and food servers once a month at Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen in New Milford. Over those years, a considerable number of dedicated members of the Parish have overseen this work. Most recently, David Poole has held this post.  In order for us to continue to undertake this ministry to those in need practically at our doorstep, it would be a positive thing if a few additional members of the Parish stepped forward to offer time in this ministry. The commitment seems rather manageable…one Friday afternoon a month for about two and one-half hours transporting casseroles prepared by parishioners and stored in the Parish House refrigerator to the Richmond Center on Main Street in New Milford, warming them up, and helping serve them to those who visit the Center for a daily hot meal. Obviously, if two or three volunteers step forward, this commitment becomes quite modest and might be only required of each volunteer three or four times a year. This is a worthwhile ministry of this Parish to those in need.  If you are willing to explore the possibility of sharing in this effort, please call David Poole (354.8964).

Daylight Savings Time ~  A reminder to set your clocks back an hour before going to bed on Saturday , October 28^th.

Stewardship ~  We at St. John’s are truly privileged people.  Every Sunday we come to church, secure in the knowledge that we will find a beautiful place in which to worship, that we will hear beautiful music, that we will hear an inspiring sermon.  Those of us with children know that they will be educated in their faith by caring teachers. It is sometimes tempting to take this for granted, assuming that because these things are provided, we are entitled to enjoy them without assuming any responsibility for seeing that they continue.  I ask you to think about this. What is our role? Are we merely spectators at an interesting performance, and, if we are, have we paid for our ticket?

I hope that last sentence shocked you. The liturgy is not a performance. St. John’s is not a beautiful theatre in which talented actors and musicians perform for us. We are not asked to purchase a ticket.  We are asked to be partners in an on-going journey with Christ.  The official word for this is stewardship, but we are more than stewards, caretakers, we are the people of Christ whose mission it is to share in Christ’s work. We do this by participating in the life of the church as lectors, acolytes, Altar Guild members, Sunday School teachers, musicians, chalicists, coffee hour hosts, greeters, members of the vestry, members of the various committees that enhance parish life and reach out to others in the larger community. But another extremely important way we participate in Christ’s work is by helping to maintain the church financially, for St. John’s cannot truly fulfill its partnership with Christ if we do not share the financial burdens. When each one of us makes a commitment to support the work of the parish financially as well as to contribute in other ways, we will truly be participating in the liturgy – the work of the people. Please join me in pledging your financial support to St. John’s.

Our 2006 pledge goal is $269,500.  So far we have received $237,740 in 2006 pledges.  We need an additional $31,760 to meet our 2006 operating costs.

~ Joan Beattie

Stewardship Committee 

Saint John’s Church Vestry

Margaret Addicks, Asst. Treasurer

Joan Beattie, Secretary

Christopher Boshears, Warden

William Davidson

Russ Elgin

Holly Flor

J. Winston Fowlkes III, Treasurer

Camille Gillespie

Lisa Guida

Ann Hodgman

Liz O’Connor

David Poole

Mary Schinke, Warden

Alexander Shrady

Vestry News ~  At its regularly scheduled meeting of Sunday, September 17, 2006 the following received attention: 

-   The Rector opened the meeting with prayer.

-   Minutes of the August 20^th meeting were accepted as read.

-  Treasurer’s Report:  Mr. Fowlkes reported that the financial situation has not changed since August. Copies of the annual audit conducted by Charles Heaven & Co. are available in the office. The audit has been filed with the diocese.

-   Stewardship: An extended discussion of stewardship and ways to build membership and increase income occurred. Mrs. Schinke had attended the Diocesan Stewardship Conference on Saturday and said that the focus of stewardship should be an examination of God’s place in our lives and our response to God.   It was decided that a special vestry meeting to discuss stewardship should be held.

-   The meeting will take place on Sunday, October 1, after the 10:00 a.m. service. This date was later changed to Sunday, September 24, at the Schinkes’ home.

-   Outreach:  A woman who started a school in the Dominican Republic will be at St. John’s on Sunday, September 24, as a guest of the Outreach Committee.

-   New Business:  Mrs. Schinke read a letter from Fr. Ficks, thanking the vestry for the celebration on the Sunday before he left on his sabbatical.

-   Mr. Boshears spoke about the bazaar and said that the new approach to getting people involved is going well. He pointed out that the annual bazaar is a serious fund raising event at St. John’s.

The next meeting of the Vestry will be October 16, 2005.

Music Notes ~  This may come as something of a shock, but for once I actually have an idea of what I'm going to write about for the monthly Eagle.  Believe me, it surprises no one more than myself.

As you all know, the St. John's Choir has been blessed with an extremely talented and committed group of singers,  a particularly fortunate thing in our case, for whilst quality is high quantity is not.  A particularly critical situation has arisen this season in the alto section of our choir.  This is an unusual development, at least in my experience, for there is generally an abundance of altos in most choral groups, even when there is a scarcity of sopranos, tenors, and basses.  The 'intimate' size of our choir means that an enormous amount of pressure devolves upon each member to be present all the time, since even one or two absences can severely affect our ability to perform properly the repertoire we want to offer.  Nevertheless, we must accept the fact that occasional absences are inevitable, especially with people leading such active and complex lives.  Additionally we must take into account the effect of unforeseen illnesses that can affect any of us.   In a nutshell, we need a few more singers.

All of which brings me to the principal drift of this piece.  If there are any singers - not just altos! - amongst the readers of this newsletter who might be considering joining the choir, let me say that from our standpoint there has probably never been a better time to do so than now.  Whatever reservations you may have with regard to time commitment, I feel certain that we could work around them.  We all understand that everyone has many calls upon their time, and that their energies are pulled in many different directions.  But please bear in mind that at the St. John's Choir our middle name is Flexibility.  I ask most urgently that you consider becoming a part of our merry band of music makers.  Feel free at any time to talk to me about the possibility, especially if you have concerns about the time commitment issue.  Be assured that you will be most cordially welcome.

October is to be a month bookended by Evensongs.  The first, on the 1st, will be in observance of the Feast of St. Michael and All Angels; and the second, on the 29th, will be a celebration of All Saints.  The choir has been, and will continue to be, hard at work on the music for these important landmarks of the liturgical year, and we look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at both of these beautiful services.

And finally, I must make special note of the first concert of this season's St. John's Concert Series coming up on the 8th of October.  We are delighted to be welcoming back our good friend, and pianist extraordinaire, Tom Brown.  Most of you are already aware of Tom's superb artistry.  I've had a look at the program he'll be playing and can only say that it is the sort of program that, like the Maltese Falcon, dreams are made of:  Debussy's sumptuous Pour le Piano, four pieces by Brahms (opus 119), and Chopin's vast and glorious B minor Sonata.  For such music was the piano invented!  I urge all of you to make every effort to be there.

I think we may say that the '06/'07 season is well and truly under way.

Best wishes for a mild and colorful autumn.

Parish Register

Marriages

Sarah Elizabeth Logue and Frederick William Hoffman ~  September 16, 2006

Cassie Jean Ricard and Robert Eric Rottman ~  September 30, 2006