Invitations & Information Christmastide

December 2012 - January 2013

Dear Friends,Appeals to the “spirit of the season” and the “true meaning of Christmas” seem to be equally ubiquitous in the month of December; as people of faith, we wrestle a holiday that is both well-marketed and profoundly meaningful. Whether it’s the urging to shop more than you normally would or to spend more time praying and caring for the poor than you normally would, the idea sneaks in that the season is different from other times, that Christmas is an escape from the darker, drearier, more familiar reality we expect to inhabit in the rest of the year.

But the Good News of the Incarnation is much bigger than the proclamation of a holiday respite from sin or sorrow. The Good News of the Incarnation is not that God came among us for a time, or that God invites us to escape for a time. It is that God chooses to live here with us all the time. We don’t have to find our way to heaven to find God; God has found us here on earth. God is here with us, showing us glimpses of the kingdom wherever love, healing, and reconciliation are seen. And that is more than enough reason for joy, generosity, and thanksgiving, in this and every season of the year.

We are so glad to share in that celebration with you. Merry Christmas!

Coming Up at St. James’Mon. Dec. 24 Christmas Eve Christmas music at 4:30, 7:45, and 10:00 p.m.3:00 p.m. Children’s Christmas Eucharist5:00 p.m. Candlelight Lessons & Carols8:00 p.m. Festal Christmas Eve Eucharist10:30 p.m. Festal Christmas Eve Eucharist

new! Christmas Eve Holy EucharistWe’ve added a new service to our line-up this Christmas Eve. Join us for a candlelit evening service appropriate for all ages at 8:00 p.m. — bring a friend!

Tue. Dec. 25 Christmas Day 10:30 a.m. Festal Service of Holy Eucharist

Thu. Dec. 27 Pastoral Eucharist & Luncheon11:00 a.m. A seated Christmas service and luncheon with additional assistance and accomodation available.

Sun. Dec. 30 The First Sunday After ChristmasHoly Eucharist at 8:00, 10:30 a.m., and 6:00 p.m.

Tue. Jan. 1 The Feast of the Holy Name12:00 noon Service of Holy Eucharist

Sun. Jan. 6 The Feast of the EpiphanyFestive Holy Eucharists for Three Kings Day at 8:00, 9:10, 11:15 a.m., and 6:00 p.m.

Holy Eucharist Rite I · 8:00 - 8:35 a.m.A quiet service of Holy Communion in the Chapel.

Nursery Care · 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.A nurturing, toy-filled room for ages 0-2.

Toddler-Primary Class & Chapel · 9:05 - 11:00 a.m.Ages 2-5 gather for worship, education, and crafts.

Holy Eucharist Rite II · 9:10 - 10:10 a.m.A festive service appropriate for children and families.

First Steps · meet the Rector in the back of the church

Church School & Youth Group · 10:15 - 11:00 a.m.Formation for children and youth.

Coffee Hour · 10:15 - 10:30 a.m. · Downstairs

Adult Education Forum · 10:30 - 11:00 a.m.

Holy Eucharist Rite I · 11:15 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.A service deeply-rooted in the Anglican tradition.

First Steps · meet the Rector in the back of the church

Coffee Hour · 12:30 - 1:00 p.m. · 1st Floor

Bible Project Group · 4:30 - 5:30 p.m.

Fellowship · 5:30 - 6:00 p.m. · 1st Floor balcony

Candlelight Communion · 6:00 - 7:00 p.m.A contemplative Communion service.

Sundays (resuming Jan. 6)

• Playgroups for children resume Jan. 8 (M-F)Contact Vicki Hall to learn more and register.

We Love to Sing, Drama on Thursdays 4:00 p.m. Ages 4-6 are introduced to role play and improvisation that leads to acting out basic Bible stories. Kids 0-4 share the joy of singing (with a parent or caregiver). Re-sumes Jan. 10; contact Vicki Hall to learn more.

Three Kings Supper Sun. Jan. 6, 5:00 - 6:00 p.m. All ages are invited to join the 20s/30s group in the Kitchen before the 6 p.m. service for Puerto Rican food.

Family Bingo Night Fri. Jan. 11, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. An evening of fellowship and reaching out to our neigh-bors. Enjoy NY pizza, get to know other families, and make new friends! Contact Vicki Hall for more info.

20s/30s Brunch Sun. Jan. 20, 12:30 p.m. Join the St. Jamesians for brunch after the 11:15 a.m. service on the third Sunday of each month.

Unto Us a Child Sat. Jan 26. 10:00 a.m.A small group for anyone in the process of becoming parents — thinking about having or adopting a child, pregnant, or parents of young children. Brunch, reflec-tion on scripture, discussion, and prayer.

Epiphany - Three Kings Day Sun. Jan. 6Celebrate the visit of the Wise Men and the beginning of the Epiphany season with Festive Eucharists at 8:00, 9:10, 11:15 a.m., and 6:00 p.m.

Children’s Eucharist Sun. Jan. 13, 9:10 a.m.An inter-generational service with music led by choirs of children and adults. Sermon is addressed to our youngest parishioners.

Holy Eucharist Rite I Wednesdays, 8:00 a.m.Resumes Jan. 2. A 30-minute service in traditional lan-guage with a short sermon. The optional Bible Project reading group which follows will resume on Jan. 9 (all are invited).

• Children’s Choir Rehearsals resume Jan. 8 Contact Christopher Jennings to learn more.

• Canterbury Choir in the New YearThe principal adult choir at the 9:10 a.m. Eucharist is comprised primarily of volunteers. Contact Davis Wortman to learn more about volunteering!

Worship Education

Community Service

The Bible Project We’re reading the New Testament together, as a parish, week-by-week. Join us in reading Acts of the Apostles 1-14 over the holidays. We’ll discuss it beginning at the Adult Education Forum on Jan. 6 and in reading groups the week following. Learn more at stjames.org/thebibleproject.

Essential Christianity begins Sun. Jan. 27Join us for our next 6-week course in exploring Chris-tian faith. Parishioners, newcomers, and inquirers are all welcome. Visit stjames.org/essential-christianity for more information.

The Way at St. James’ begins Mon. Jan. 28A small group for those interested in talking and pray-ing about how we live out our faith in the world, and getting to know fellow parishioners. Visit stjames.org/the-way to learn more.

Thursdays for Families Thursdays, 4:45 p.m.Resumes Jan. 10. Mid-week worship, education, activi-ties and dinner, for ages 2-10 in a creative environment. Contact Vicki Hall to learn more.

Tuesday Lunch Program 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.Weekly lunch prepared and served by a group of volun-teers to approximately 90 homeless and hungry guests. (Resumes Jan. 8.) Contact strassner.anne@gmail.com. Dishwashing volunteers especially needed!

Shelter Meal Ministry Wednesdays, 9:50 a.m.Meet in the kitchen to prepare two simple meals for the shelter. For more informaiton, contact Phoebe Camp-bell at 212-288-3241 or phoebecampbell@me.com.

Sandy Relief Service Days Sat. Dec. 29, Jan. 12Sort donations, serve food, or clear houses and streets of debris. Meet at St. James’ at 8:15 a.m.; return by 5:30 p.m. Contact terrygrace@juno.com (or 212-439-6077) for more information. (16 yrs +)

Youth Mission Trip to Vermont, MLK weekend Learn about the Episcopal Church’s ministry in a low-income, rural area. Register by Jan. 7. Contact Bowie Snodgrass.

Youth Host Dinner Program Fri. Jan. 11, 5:30 p.m.Cook dinner, serve guests, and wash dishes at this seat-ed, three course meal for 90 homeless guests.

20s/30s Host Dinner Program Fri. Jan. 25, 5:30 p.m.

Holding one another’s joys, sorrows, and concerns before God in prayer is a spiritual practice that characterizes our life to-gether at St. James’. In our worship services, we pray each other’s prayers together. Outside of our time together, many parishioners make it part of their daily lives to pray the prayers of the par-ish community. You are invited to participate in your own way.

Thanks be to God… for the prayers, presence, gifts, and service of new members of St. James’ welcomed at our services last Sunday: Rachel, Stuart, Amelia, & Lucy Gayle; Cory, Kelly, & Willa Morton; Doug, Sarah, & Annabel Reid (9:10); Frances Beatty-Adler; Caroline & John Leahy (11:15); Mi-chael Darden & Gregory Wyche (6:00).…for the first anniversary of Tyger Wyche-Darden’s adoption… for the ministry of all the parishioners who make the Pastoral Eu-charist and luncheon possible, especially Joan Dunn and Katharine Fleming.

Your prayers are requested… for St. James’ and all of our ministries.… for all who are traveling this Christmas season.… for Paul Jablonski and Amy Paul as they prepare to be married at St. James’ on January 5.… for healing and wholeness for members and friends of the parish who are sick, sorrowful, or troubled: Donald, Henry, David & Anna Marie, Susan, Mary Jane, Edmund, Jon & Barbara, Charlene & Tony, Mary Cary, Mal, Gil, Elona, Mary, Carol, Lydia, Richard, Vera, Chris, Douglas, Cynthia, Jane, Ernie, Sally, Pam, Luis & Millie, Caroline & Michael, Stuart, Kathy, Susan, Wiley & Amanda, Skylar, Reine & Fe-licia, John & Heide, Fred, Karen & her family, Sylvia, Megan, Wal-terene, Patty, Seth, Ysanne, Chris, Carolyn, Mona, Adalyn, Angelica, Joyce Scott, Annie, George & Sue, Ashley, Ed & Terry, Bob, Janice, Loren & his family, Andrew, Emily, Cintra, Judy, Christian & Serena, David, Grady, Karan, Charlie, Althea, Will, Danny, Matthew, Eddie, Rosa, Lisa, Carol, Kara, Carole, Michael, Gary, Marion & her family, Abigail, Georgia, Alain, Stafford, Augusta & Joseph, Dottie & John, Elaine, Joe, James Edward, Joan, Harry, Mike, Ruth, Elizabeth, Mar-gie, Susan, Charlotte, Mary, Henry, Heiner, Jane, Jason, Doug, Mary-Ann, Thomas, Lisa, Rob & Rolee, Carmela & Ben, Ron, John & Ma-rie, Patro, Ryan, Jeanette, Frederick, Elisa, Crosby, Jody & Holly, Lois, Peter, Chuck, Gordon & Jean, Lynn, Julian, Roberta, Andrew, Lilly, Sarah, Barbara, Gi-Suk & Gahram, Elizabeth, April, Kathy, Nancy, Julie, Buzz, Lisa, Robin, Paula, Isabel, Anthia, Julie, Bettina, Phyllis, John, Jan, Rosemary, Matthew, Lawrence, Sandy, Elizabeth, Vivian & her family, Bob, Paige, Avi, Linda, Aaron, Katy, Barry, George, Car-ole, Sophie, David, Cookie, Barbara, Billy & his family, Holly, Ben, Richard, John, Emile, Jim, Kate, David, Matthew, Margie, Bob, Carl, Drew, Alice, Dave, Will, Elizabeth, Taylor, Rick, Inez, Deb.… for members and friends of the parish serving in the Armed Forces, in the Diplomatic Corps, and with the U.N.: Kit, Webster Wright III, David, Kurt, Tracy, Christian, Greg, Chad, Osse, Oliver, Nicholas, Jake, Mads, Kevin, Mike, Donnie, Dontae.

We commend to God’s never-failing care … members and friends of the parish who have died, including Gayle Perkins Atkins (whose funeral took place here on Wed. Dec. 19); Dick-ie McLaughlin; Roland Pease (a former parishioner who died in Massa-chusetts in November, for whom a funeral will take place here January 7 at 2 p.m.); Anne Traynor; Nancy Carter Echols Wilder (cousin of Dee Dee Scarborough); and Ray & Wendy.… all who have died in civil and military conflict throughout the world.… all those in whose loving memory the church is adorned this Christmas.

St. James’ Prayer List

Winterlude 2013be our guest!

wednesday, january 23 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.Save the date! In the quiet of January, celebrate

the light of the season with friends old and new. A

fun and festive evening with food and live music in

celebration of the ministries we share.

News & Notes• Church and parish house closings

The church and parish house will be closed Wed. Dec. 26 and Tue. Jan. 1. Visit stjames.org/calendar for complete information.

• Important stewardship information“we are the clay, and you are our potter…” — Isaiah 64:8 2012 Commitment gifts are accepted through Dec. 31. Please make your year-end gifts as soon as you are able; Jess Berry will be available in the stewardship of-fice until 3:00 p.m. on Dec. 31 to answer last minute questions. Online credit card, debit card, and e-check gifts made before midnight on Dec. 31 will appear on your 2012 contribution statement. 2013 weekly giving envelopes will be available outside Sunderland Hall beginning Dec. 30 for those who have requested or used envelopes in 2012.

Visit www.stjames.org/stewardship to make your year-end gift and learn more about transforma-tive stewardship of your whole life. Please contact Jess Berry for assistance in making a gift or fulfilling your 2012 Commitment or to request envelopes for 2013.

Have you explored stjames.org?There’s always something new to discover on St.

James’ website...

• Learn more about our ministries and life

together, including how you might get involved

in new areas.

• In the eCommons,read articles and essaysfrom

the Rector and St. James’ parishioners, clergy,

and lay staff. Sign up for our weekly eNews for

all the latest.

• Peruse our calendar and register or RSVP for

events and activities.

• Update your personal information.

st. james’ is an episcopal church, a member of the worldwide

anglican communion.

... and the Clergy & Lay Staff

The Rev. Brenda G. Husson, Rector Wolcott B. Dunham, Jr., Senior WardenWilliam P. H. Hoar, Junior Warden

Jonathan BaysPaul BitlerSarah G. CunninghamDenny DennistonKatharine FlemingFraser Hunter, Jr.

Patricia RansonHolly Heston RochellGordon SmithWaddell StillmanCampbell WhartonBrad Whitehurst

Merry Christmas from St. James’ Vestry Visit UsParish House HoursMon., Tue., Thu., Fri.

9:00 - 9:00 p.m.

Wednesdays9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

st. james’ church865 madison ave.

new york, ny 10021

To reach any of us during the week, or in case of pastoral emergency at any time, call 212-774-4200.

www.stjames.org

St. James’ Church is a

community that actively

shares the love of Jesus

Christ with each other,

our city, and the world.

The Rev. Craig Townsend Vicar

The Rev. William PeytonAssociate Rector

The Rev. Ryan FleenorLilly Fellow

The Rev. Carol AndersonPriest Associate

Grace BeachamParish Life & Community Festival

Zoraida BenitezHospitality

Jess BerryStewardship & Membership

Chetram BudhramMaintenance

Calvin ButlerMaintenance

Isabel ChelliHospitality

Chris DicklerCommunications

Rosa GentileAssistant to the Rector

Vicki HallChildren & Families

Monica HornedoReception

Christopher JenningsMusic for Children, Organist

John MilesFinance

Jean-Claude PelissierVerger, Superintendent

Emil RamirezMaintenance

Mercedes RosarioReception

John J. ScibiliaParish Manager

Bowie SnodgrassYouth & Young Adults

Pam StebbinsGrants Volunteer

Leeanna VargaMission & Service

Shontae WalkerNYIP Mission Intern

Davis WortmanDirector of Music, Organist

The Rev. Brenda HussonRector