this week in the life of the parish december 18 25,...
TRANSCRIPT
This Week In the Life of the Parish December 18-25, 2016 The Church Calendar can be accessed on the St. Matthew’s Website: http://stmattsaustin.org/About/resources.html Evening Prayer Daily at 5:15 pm in the Cauley Bell Tower Chapel
Pledge Campaign Report from the Business Manager
Pledges continue to roll in for the 2017 Stewardship campaign. Thus far, we have received 239 pledges for a total of $941,500. We typically see pledges continue to arrive through early January and we have already exceeded the number of pledges from last year. It is wonderful to see so many people investing in the future of St. Matthews.
If you haven’t had a chance to pledge yet, we could still use your help to fund some new initiatives in our life together. There are a few options for making a pledge. You can fill out a pledge card and place it in the offering, or mail it to the Church of-fice to the attention of the Business Manager. You can also send the Business Manager an email ([email protected]) with the
details. Thank you for your generosity and support. Submitted by Chris Schumacher
Soul of a Musician Christmas Party! Sunday, December 18 | 6:30 pm | Iron Cactus North
We invite you to our special two-hour Christmas celebration with the Matt Wilson Band, featuring Malia Grace, Robin Mordecai, Karol Ann Moore, Grace Pettis, and David Messier. Christmas carols and holiday music favorites, original music and fun covers from our great line-up! No Cover. All ages show, bring the kids. Easy, up-close parking.
Soul of a Musician is an outreach to musicians and to those who appreciate and respect their craft. We invite you to join us each Sunday evening at 6:30 pm—come early and gather with friends to enjoy food and drink—for lively music and conversation featuring independent artists from Austin and other parts. A link to the Soul Series can be found on St. Matt’s website, http://stmattsaustin.org/Music/4soul-of-a-musician-series.html) and on Facebook at Soul of a Musician Series. Submitted by Merrill Wade
Support St. Matthew’s by making a direct gift from your IRA. It’s easy, and now is the time.
On December 18, 2015, Congress made permanent Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD) a permanent part of the tax code. QCD gives (taxpayers/Americans) age 70½ or older the ability to make transfers up to $100,000 per year from Individ-ual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) to charitable organizations. Now you can use this tool to make a difference at St. Matthew’s at any time and save on your income tax.
If you are 70 ½ or older, you can make a contribution to St. Matthew’s from your IRA simply by instructing the plan administrator to make the transfer directly to St. Matthew’s. Your gift will not be (reported as) taxable income and will count toward your required minimum distribution (RMD). And, most important, your generous support will help sustain our work empowering our parish as we continue to find innovative ways to support our Church in the future. Please contact Chris Schumacher at [email protected] with any questions. Thank you. Submitted by Chris Schumacher
Last Sunday of Spiritual Formation Until January 8
Join Merrill and Christian for a last round of “Let’s Discuss Anything: Open Conversation” on Sunday, December 18, 9:15 am in the Youth Center Theological and Biblical questions: God’s will? Life after death? Meaning and purpose of human existence? angels? The inspiration of the Bible? the end of time? Questions?
This is the last Sunday for all Sunday School, including children and youth—we’ll be back on January 8. Submitted by Christian Hawley
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Christmas Day Hike with St Michael’s
At high noon on Christmas Day (following our 10:30 service), we will be heading over to St Michael’s Episcopal Church, 1500 North Capital of Texas Hwy 78746, for a hike and some fellowship. The trails between St Michael’s and St Stephen’s offer some great views, but be sure to wear good footwear. Hot cocoa or cold lemonade will be served (depending on which Texas Christmas shows up) after the hour-long hike. Submitted by Christian Hawley
Monday Noon Classes: For Advent: Called to Christmas, led by the Rev. John McMullen
With the stores pushing us to an earlier and earlier awareness of Christmas, we have a tendency to rush to the celebration of the birth of the Christ Child. During Advent, it is good to stop and consider how great our need is for that Child to be born in us. December 19 Called to Christmas What does this holy time really ask of us?
Submitted by Christian Hawley, Merrill Wade, and John McMullen
A DV EN T & C HR IS TMA S A T S T . M A TTHEW ’S
Advent and Christmas Worship at St. Matthew’s
Advent is a special time of year; time to slow down in anticipation of the Christ child’s birth. We invite you to join us at any of the following services and take part in the wonder and joy of the season. Please note that due to Christmas falling on a Sunday, there will be no 8 am service on Christmas morning. We will have a one service in the sanctuary at 10:30 am.
December 18 Fourth Sunday of Advent 10:30 am Holy Eucharist, Rite II, Sanctuary 10:30 am Family Eucharist, Huffman Hall 5:15 pm Contemplative Eucharist, B-14
December 24 Christmas Eve 4:00 pm Children’ Pageant and Holy Eucharist 8:00 pm Choral Concert; 8:30 Festival Choral Eucharist 11:00 pm Solemn Christmas Mass, with incense & candlelight
December 25 Christmas Day 10:30 am Holy Eucharist, Rite II 2:00 pm Brookdale No 5:15 pm Contemplative Service on Christmas Day
Interfaith Hospitality Network December 25 - January 1
Time is short and there are many demands on our time during the holidays, but think of how much harder it would be if you had no stable address or were reliant only on CapMetro. We are getting ready to welcome families from Foundation for the Homeless during Christmas week. St. Matthew's hosts 2-3 families, who are working through the stresses of homelessness, in our Youth Center. We need members to sign up for bringing dinners, come as evening hosts, sleep over at the church, help with set up and take down, and to donate various food and items for the week. Look for us in the Commons to see how just a tiny amount of time can help support these families. Even if you will not be in town or will not be able to help this cycle, please stop by the table anyway as we are refreshing our volunteer paperwork for everyone. You can also contact Amy Novak [email protected]/512-589-7309 or Lisa Ottenbacher [email protected]/512-461-7480. Submitted by Amy Novak
Brookdale Service Christmas Day 2:00 pm
Join us in bringing and receiving a little Christmas joy with the residents of the Spicewood Springs Brookdale assisted living community. This devoted and sweet congregation is really looking forward to our presence on Sunday, so bring your loved ones and share a little of the Christmas spirit with this community. We are always in need of readers and LEMs so this is great place to try it for the first time. Submitted by Christian Hawley
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Healing Service News
Healing service with Merrill and St Thomas. Bring your doubts and twins on Wednesday, December 21. Submitted by Christian Hawley
*Update* Active Faith Calendar: The Body of Christ in motion for the Kingdom.
Christmas Day Hike December 25 trails between St. Michael’s and St. Stephen’s school
Morning Prayer & Polar Bear Plunge January 1 Barton Springs
MLK Day March and Climb January 16 the streets of Austin, then the Austin Bouldering Project
Parish Campout February 18, 2017 Inks Lake
Spartan Race March 11, 2017 Hempstead, TX with Diocesan Team
Tough Mudder May 6, 2017 Smithville, TX
Contact Fr. Christian for more details on any events: [email protected]. Submitted by Christian Hawley
2017 Altar Flower Chart—Arrange to Dedicate Arrangements
The volunteers in the St. Matthew’s Flower Guild lovingly create an arrangement of flowers for the altar each week. The flowers are sponsored by members of the congregation, who recognize friends and loved ones on their special days, celebrate important events, or just give thanks!
The Flower Chart for 2017 is now posted on the bulletin board in the Commons. Look it over and pick a Sunday you’d like to make yours. There are plenty of dates open. Bless you! Submitted by Joyce Statz
Parish Survey Making an Impact
Two months ago, the vestry solicited your feedback assessing the needs of the parish. The focus of this survey was on Christian education and spiritual life. It was important for the vestry to give all of your responses the time and attention they deserved, so in our November 29 vestry meeting, we projected every comment on the wall and discussed your ideas. The feedback continues to be invaluable in planning for the future. Here are some of the themes we picked up on during our meeting:
1. The number of responses was a good indicator that you really care about our community. There were over 150 responses to the survey. From a polling perspective, this is an amazing turnout! Thanks for caring so deeply.
2. Honest and genuine communication came through loud in clear. The majority of comments were extremely positive, and the bulk of the negative comments were conveyed in a tenor of trying to improve our life together. Thanks for bringing the right spirit to this exercise.
3. We are taking concrete steps to address those issues which you all felt most strongly about in the survey. Foremost, we are now developing a plan to initiate a small group program starting in the first few months of 2017. You will receive an email on December 20, outlining the way forward with this initiative.
Although we won’t be able to take action on every comment and suggestion, we deeply appreciate your feedback, and every comment has affected us. Thanks for sharing in the visioning process for our community. Submitted by Matt Thompson and Christian Hawley on behalf of the vestry.
Church Offices Christmas Hours/Weekly Word Deadline
Church offices are closed on Monday, December 26, in observance of Christmas. Offices will reopen for regular hours on Tuesday, December 27, at 8:00 am. Church offices will also close on Monday, January 2, in observance of New Year’s Day; regular hours will resume on Tuesday, January 3, 2017.
In light of the holidays, please submit all articles for the December 31 Weekly Word to Christine ([email protected]) by 3:00 pm on Tuesday, December 21. Thanks! Submitted by Christine Havens
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Tuesday Night Bible Study
During Advent/Christmas, we will only be meeting on Nov. 29, Dec. 6, and 13th. Then break until January 3, 2017! That will let us participate in the many Advent activities at the church. Here’s our schedule of classes:
December 20 - January 1 Break for Advent No Meetings Date Room Study 1/3 B14 II Kings 11-13 1/10 YC II Kings 1/24 YC II Kings 1/31 YC II Kings
If you access the Weekly Word on your smart phones, note this link: www.//stmattsaustin.org/Worship/weekly-word.html. It will give you the Weekly Word and our readings in the article titled Tuesday Night Bible Study. If you’d like to be added to our Distribution List so you can follow along, please send an email to Laurie Brown, convener, at [email protected]. That way, you’ll know our focus. Or—just show up!! Submitted by Laurie Brown
Evening Prayer Time Change
Effective Sunday, December 11, the Evening Prayer start time is 5:15 pm. We invite you to join us! Submitted by Scott Murphy
Morning Prayer and Polar Bear Plunge Sunday, January 1 | 7:30 am | Barton Springs
Join Christine Havens for a prayerful and invigorating start to the new year! Morning prayer, followed by a plunge into Barton Springs. You only have to stay in for a moment—but then you have boasting rights that you’ve done a Polar Bear plunge! This is a New Year’s tradition for many families and friends. We’ll begin worship at 7:30 am. Bring warm clothing to change into! Submitted by Christine Havens
Volunteers Needed for Annual Meeting Parish Lunch Prep
We need volunteers to assist with food prep, serving, cooking, cleaning, and other duties for the St. Matthew's Day luncheon. Two-hour shifts are available on Saturday, January 14, between 10:00 am - 4:00 pm; Sunday, January 15, has two-hour shifts available between 10:00 am - 2:00 pm.
Saturday's food prep consists of chopping, mixing, and involves some dishwashing, too. We also need help with decorating, which usually happens at noon. Sunday's shifts involve cooking, serving, cleaning, and money collecting.
To volunteer, click on (or go to) this link: https://christinabelle.wufoo.com/forms/zab72770vs3pq4/.
The link will take you to a form to complete; once you click on the “Submit” button, you’ll receive a confirmation email with the day and time you’ve chosen. Jean Fuller will also receive an email letting her know that you’ve volunteered. Please email Jean ([email protected]) if you have any questions. Thank you! Submitted by Jean Fuller
Register Now for 2017 ECW Retreat
Please join us for our annual Women's Retreat on February 24-26. This is always a wonderful weekend with an inspiring message that will help energize your spirit. It is also the perfect time to get away with friends and other woman of the parish to form deeper bonds. From our amazing speaker, who will touch and motivate your heart, to having some alone time in the great outdoors . . . there is truly something for everyone. Check out the hike and bike trails, enjoy a midday nap or explore the winery next door. Whatever you choose, this weekend will be a great way to kick off the year.
There are registration forms on the Welcome tables in each of the services, which you can fill out and return to Mandy Hubbard or Alexis Bagshaw, or you can register online and pay by credit card at 2017 ECW Retreat Registration. Submitted by Mandy Hubbard
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Monthly Turquoise Table Lunch at Galaxy Cafe
We would love to see you at the next monthly Turquoise Table lunch. We meet at 11:30 at Galaxy Cafe on the first Friday of every month. This is a great opportunity to spend time with friends in the parish and to meet new ones. Upcoming Turquoise Table lunch dates:
January 6, 2017 February 3, 2017
Submitted by Mandy Hubbard
Endowment Committee Gift Recognition
The St. Matthew’s Endowment Committee thanks those members of our parish and our community who have given to the St. Matthew’s Permanent Endowment in the last quarter. Gifts can be given to the Endowment in honor of a friend, in memory of a loved one who has passed away, in celebration of a birth/birthday or in recognition of any significant accomplishment or sacrament. Endowment funds support existing parish related ministries as well as provide opportunities to grow new ministries at St. Matthew's. At this time, we recognize gifts given
To remember: Kelly & Patrick Blumhagen, John Burton, John Culver, Julia Hogan, and Mary-Lynn Polk
To celebrate: Bill & Leslie Kjellstrand’s 50th wedding anniversary, Leon & Kay Whitney’s 55th wedding anniversary
Submitted by Nicole Banister
Help Wanted!
St. Matt's needs a new liaison for the Boy Scouting program. This position serves as the Representative between our Church and the local Boy Scout council. The requirements are minimal, but the position is important to ensure our continued sup-port to our Scouts. Please contact Senior Warden Doug O'Connell ([email protected]) to discuss this opportunity to serve. Submitted by Doug O’Connell
The Usher Ministry Needs More Folks!
The usher staffing level is in decline and could lead to an usher “crisis,” because each of the four usher teams is losing mem-bers with no replacements. This can only be solved by parishioners taking heed and stepping forward to participate. “Joe the Other Guy” can’t do it anymore, it will only happen with affirmative action by the congregation.
The Usher Ministry performs a very important service to the parish, helping many of the functions of our worship services proceed smoothly. The lack of an adequate number of ushers jeopardizes this smoothness, leading to annoying distractions from the spiritual experience we desire when we participate in a St. Matthew’s service.
Ushers serve as sources of information (such as the orders of service), guides for traffic flow during communion, assisting those who have mobility impairments, collectors of our alms, etc. These duties are performed at all regular and special ser-vices. Because the ushers are organized into four rotating teams, each volunteer commits to only two hours of ushering each month, occasionally four hours - less than 40 hours per year.
Please help maintain the quality of our worship services by giving a Christmas gift to the congregation of a small amount of your time by becoming an usher. You will find it to be a very satisfying experience, and you will get to know your fellow parishioners even better.
To become an usher, or to get more information, see Larry Richards in the Commons after just about any Sunday morning service or e-mail him at [email protected] or call him at 512-345-4913. Submitted by Larry Richards
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Such generosity! Thank you on behalf of Caritas
Last Sunday we appealed to our wonderful congregation to help keep the Cooking for Caritas program alive in 2017. As always you all went above and beyond. Within 15 minutes of the 10:30 service being over, funds for the next 16 months were raised. Special thanks to the St. Matt’s Choir, Tissie Elliott & Gary McNeil, Martha & Louis Galie, Bill & Theresa Kahlke, Jane & Frank Lynn, Scott & Lori Murphy, Carol & Chip Webb, and a number of other generous folks for making the program possible.
Not only that, a significant load of non-perishable food items was brought to the Sunday services by everyone and more than $200 was contributed into the Caritas money box to purchase more food. Thank you, thank you. So blessed.
This week’s item for our St. Matt’s Children for Caritas Children program is kids’ cereals please.
For the rest of us, the Caritas Food Pantry could use:
Canned mixed vegetables or hearty vegetables such as carrots, yams, and spinach Hamburger Helper-type meals Canned soups, stews or pork & beans Canned ham Pasta sauce (in plastic containers) Dried pasta noodles Peanut butter Canned fruit
It is absolutely okay to bring other items too. Thank you for your continuing generosity. Submitted by Jane Baxter Lynn
Memorial Garden Construction News!
We have signed the contract with ATC Contractors for them to build the extension of the memorial Garden Wall and the Remembrance Wall. ATC is a highly-regarded stone masonry contractor and has, in fact, worked on our campus before. They did major repair work to the stone work on the sanctuary roof when the new roof was installed last year.
Included in the project is adding cement pavement in place of the gravel in the sanctuary courtyard between the sanctuary and the bell tower.
The timeline for the project is as follows:
The wood fence facing Steck Ave will be removed soon; the start of work was delayed by the bad weather.
The foundation work for both walls will begin after the New Year on January 9.
All cement work and the new paving in the courtyard will be completed by the end of January.
The Memorial Garden Wall and Remembrance Wall will be built during February.
The project will be completed at the end of March. This last month is for laying the pavers and making everything ready for Easter.
This will be a very exciting time!
Submitted by Chris Schumacher
Invitation: Breakfast & Guest Speakers, January 14, 2017 | 8:00 am | Huffman Hall
All women, men, and youth of the parish are invited to attend the December & January breakfast meetings, sponsored by the St. Matthew Chapter of the Brotherhood of Saint Andrew. Mark your calendars for these two speakers:
January 14: Tom Winn, author, will discuss his novel, "Uprooting the Kingdom," which is about transformative changes in a fictional family in first-century Judaea as they grapple with understanding the identity and mission of Jesus, a controversial teacher from Galilee. For your convenience, Tom will have copies of his book for sale.
So that food quantities and setup can be estimated, please RSVP by email, call, or text to Don Neely ([email protected], 512.507.5023) for December 10 and/or January 14. For additional information on the Men's Fellowship/Brotherhood of St. Andrew program visit: http://www.stmattsaustin.org/Serve/zministry-directory.html Submitted by Don Neely
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We invite you to attend the Annual Meeting of St. Matthew’s Parish in Huffman Hall, on Sunday morning, January 15, 2017. Merrill will call our Annual Meeting to order at 9:00 am sharp. We will present the ballot to elect six (6) new members to the Vestry, four (4) new members to the Endowment Committee, two (2) new members to the Memorial Garden Committee, and two alternates for the 2017 Diocesan Council (below you will find details about those elections). At 10:10 am, we will suspend or conclude the business meeting for our normal Celebration of the Holy Eucharist in the Sanc-tuary, which will be a combined service with the Family Service. After the Eucharist, we will gather for a lunch prepared by Chef Robert Mayberry and church volunteers. If we haven’t already, we will announce the election results and conclude any business if further work is needed.
If you’re interested in standing for election for the above-mentioned positions, please complete a Candidate Information Sheet (available in the office or through this link: 2017 Candidate Information Form) and return it to Communications Coordinator, Christine Havens at [email protected]. In order to be placed on the ballot in advance of the election, we ask all nominees to have their information to Christine no later than Wednesday, January 11, 2017. Otherwise, a nominee will have to be nominated from the floor during the Annual Meeting.
Elections at Annual Meeting, Sunday, January 15, 2017 at 9:00 am in Huffman Hall
Vestry
The Vestry is the official lay leadership team which works with the Rector to set the vision and mission of the church and oversees issues of stewardship, building and grounds and other critical decision-making. We will vote to elect five (5) Vestry members who will each serve a three year term and one (1) Vestry member who will serve a one year term.
-Those rotating off the Vestry at Annual Meeting in January, 2017: Lise Harding, Debbie Simons, Jim Michael, Doug O’Connell, Janice Watkins
-Terms expiring in January, 2018 Annual Meeting: Charlie Smith, Lisa Ottenbacher, Christian von Wupperfeld, Alison Street—Sandra Bravo resigned her term in early 2016 and we will elect a new Vestry person to serve the last year of her term.
-Terms expiring in January, 2019 Annual Meeting: Mark Strickland, Becky Casares, Anne Webster, Lisa Hobbs, Alexis Bagshaw
Diocesan Council Representatives
Each year St. Matthew’s is represented by four (4) delegates at Diocesan Council. The next diocesan Council will meet in Galveston on Thursday, Friday and Saturday – February 9-11, 2017. At this Annual Meeting, we elect two (2) persons who will serve as alternates in 2017 and as delegates in 2018 and 2019.
-Delegates to Diocesan Council, 2017: Mary Nell Frucella, Bill Kahlke, Susan Robertson and Vickie Blumhagen
-Delegates to Diocesan Council, 2018: Susan Robertson and Vickie Blumhagen
Memorial Garden Committee
Two (2) members will be elected at the 2017 Annual Meeting to serve on this committee which oversees the Billye Taegel Krystow Memorial Garden. The term of service is three years.
-Rotating off in January, 2017 Annual Meeting: Larry Richards, Barbara Williams
-Terms expiring in January, 2018 Annual Meeting: Stephen Biles, George Meihaus
-Terms expiring in January, 2019 Annual Meeting: Jack Eccles and George Worrell
Endowment Committee
Four (4) Endowment Committee members will be elected at the 2017 Annual Meeting, one will serve a two (2) year term and the others will serve full three (3) year terms. They are responsible for the oversight of our St. Matthew’s Permanent Endowment Fund, keeping watch for the future generations that will come to St. Matthew’s, and providing seed money via grants for mission and ministry in the parish and outside our walls.
-Rotating off in January, 2017 Annual Meeting: Chris Wilson, Dineen Majcher, Nicole Banister
-Terms expiring in January, 2018: Annual Meeting: Ann O’Connell, Ken Robertson, Caroline Cook
-Terms expiring in January, 2019: Annual Meeting: Frank Lambert and Suzanne Tappe
Cynthia Valliant resigned her term in 2016.
The Vestry has authorized that in the case where there are unexpired terms to be fulfilled in any of the four leadership groups referenced above, the names of all those elected to that leadership group will be placed in a container and the person whose name is drawn will serve the unexpired term. Submitted by the Rector of St. Matthew’s
Save the Date!! Annual Meeting with Parish Elections, and Parish Lunch Sunday, January 15, 2017 | 9:00 am | Huffman Hall
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Family Ministry News
Family Service Dates: December 18 Fourth Sunday of Advent December 24 Christmas Eve in Huffman Hall 4:00 pm Children’ Pageant and Holy Eucharist unless otherwise 8:00 pm Choral Concert; 8:30 Festival Choral Eucharist indicated 11:00 pm Solemn Christmas Mass, with incense & candlelight
December 25 Christmas Day 10:30 am, Combined Service, Sanctuary
Breakfast Club (Sunday School for children K - 12th grade)—Last Sunday!!
Building Faith, Brick by Brick Sundays, Huffman Hall 9:15 - 10:15 am through Sunday, December 18
A light breakfast will be served each Sunday. We are excited to offer this fun curriculum using Legos to help teach scripture and hope that your children will attend. For more information, please contact Susan Goodman, Family Minister at [email protected] or Travis Helms, Children & Youth Minister at [email protected].
THE MIX (3rd, 4th, and 5th Graders)….Family Friendly Event!
December is typically a celebratory month and we would like for you and your family to join us for our annual St. Matthew’s Soul of a Musician Christmas Concert at Iron Cactus. We invite your family to join us on Sunday, December 18, at 6:30 pm—invite friends and come early to enjoy food and drinks. Children of all ages are welcome. We hope to see you there.
Youth Group & Sr. High Bible Study—SOS has had a great year and a busy autumn! Remember that links to the follow-ing can be found on the Youth Ministry page on the St. Matt’s website: 1. Google calendar; (updated regularly); 2. youth acolyte, readers, parents’ snack rotas; and 3. acolyte customary and helpful videos.
Youth Ministry News
Regular Meetings
Sr. High Bible Study (Grades 9-12) SOS Program (Grades 6-12)
1st and 3rd Sundays, 4:00-5:30 pm in Youth Center. 2nd and 4th Sundays, 4:00-6:00 pm in Youth Center.
(Youth, TEXT “@stmatts” to “81010” to sign up for Remind texts for events).
Special Gatherings
Sun. 12/18 Soul of a Musician Christmas Show
Meet at Church at 5pm for food and a planning meeting for the new year, before car-
pooling to Soul of a Musician (show starts at 6:30). You won’t want to miss this amazing
annual tradition!
Submitted by Travis Helms
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In Our Prayers December 18–25, 2016 This list is read aloud at daily Evening Prayer (5:15 pm, Charlotte Cauley Gray Bell Tower Chapel)
and is included on the Intercessory Prayer Network.
Clergy: Justin of Canterbury; Archbishop; Michael, our Presiding Bishop; Andy, Dena, and Jeff, our Bishops; Merrill, Christian, Chuck, Jerry, Jim, Dorothy, Margaret, and Seth, our clergy; and Carrie, our seminarian.
Lay Leadership: the Staff, the Wardens, Treasurer and Vestry, the Endowment Committee and the Memorial Garden Committee, and all the other commissions and councils of the Vestry of St. Matthew’s.
Our Outreach Partners and Ministries: Kairos, Habitat for Humanity, El Buen Samaritano, Good Faith Ministry, MPAC, Job Support, Care for the Caregiver, Heifer Project, Casa Marianella, Caritas, Central Texa Food Bank, Trinity Center, Wom-en’s Story Book Project, Hope House, Honduras Good Works, Interfaith Action of Central Texas (IACT), Prayer Shawl Ministry, Threads of Love, Interfaith Hospitality Network, Daughters of the King, the Brotherhood of St. Andrew, Community of Hope, EfM, and the Episcopal Veterans Fellowship.
Our men and women in the Armed Forces and others who serve our country at home and overseas.
Our brothers and sisters in Christ who are actively being persecuted for your name, and all of God’s children who know suffering at the hands of war, disease, natural disaster, injustice, and oppression. Remembering especially the churches in Syria, Egypt, and Iraq, and the people of Afghanistan, Ukraine, and the Holy Land; the people of Aleppo; and all those around the world affected by terrorism and violence. We pray for all those communities affected by gun or other types of violence. We pray for the people of Cuba at this time of transition. We pray for all those affected by the wildfires in east-ern Tennessee and North Carolina. We pray for all those affected by the extreme cold and snow.
The students, families and staff of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Day School and other schools and seminaries: General Theological Seminary and Seminary of the Southwest.
Those on our prayer list:
Tom Hudson Alex Acosta Jane Bray Barbara Borden Larry Nichols
Jim Sparks Glen Ellis Colette Torres Mike Wilson Sue DuMond
Dorothy Keys Howard Murphy Jeffrey Seiler Virgie Seiler Nancy Richards
Suzanne Strocko David & Charliss Julie & family Camilla Garrett Bill Kjellstrand
Carolyn Huffman Mary Lou Henshaw Louise Waddill Liz O’Quin Sandra Bravo
Linda Allen Carolyn Bachofen Margaret Parker Dorothy Josie Dougherty
Jack McCullough Chloe Sanders Joanne & Tim Autumn Haywood Aaron
Stephanie Don Stoops Ken Robertson Joseph Arianna
Jill & Jack Karen Slade Donald Brennan John & Georgia Tabor
Laurie Golding Cher Dubbink Denise Reneau Susan Sommers Richard Gresham
Bert Hooper
Rev. Dorothy Robinson Mark Clifton & family Mike & Melissa Stokes
the Von Wupperfeld family Laurie Wells Matson Milo Nimori family
Ashton Ferguson & family Quenser/Johnson families family of Mike Sullivan
Laura Myers Doughty Bethany Billman Woody Ledenham
Nancy & Joe Satterfield Neely/Cooper family Jean & Doug Knudson
Kim Wetherille Barbara Wolf & family Reuben Lohkamp & family
the family of Brock Fleming Bruce Rohe & family the family of Harold Stevens
Those who have died:
Harold Stevens, husband of Rosie Stevens
Brock Fleming, son of James & Melissa
Altar Flowers Dedications
Altar flowers are given to the glory of God.
December Birthdays Update
December 25 Jim Sparks
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THE CHURCH OFFERS NURTURING AND EXPERIENCED CHILDCARE EVERY
SUNDAY MORNING
7:45 - 11:45 am in Huffman Nursery for children newborn - pre-K
Personal prayer teams are available during communion at the 10:30 ser-vice in the sanctuary. We have a prayer station on the west side in the gallery. All prayer requests and discussions are completely confidential.
Home delivery of communion is available if you are unable to come to church and would like Holy Communion brought to you on Sunday, please call the church office at 512-345-8314.
If you are unable to walk to the altar for holy communion today, please notify an usher and the communion elements will be brought to you where you are seated.
BE IN THE KNOW about parish events and news! You can subscribe to the St. Matthew’s email list by visiting our website at www.stmattsaustin.org and clicking the “Subscribe” button on our homepage.
All submissions, including prayer requests, for the Weekly Word must be re-ceived by the church office by Wednesday at noon in order to appear in the upcoming Sunday’s edition. Please send Weekly Word articles to Christine at [email protected] or [email protected]. Prayer requests, please send to Mickie at [email protected]
Church Office Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
If we can assist you in any way, please contact the Church Office.
Rector: The Rev. Merrill Wade Associate Rector: The Rev. Christian Hawley Rector Emeritus: The Rev. Charles Huffman Assisting Clergy: The Rev. Jerry Chapman, The Rev. Dorothy Robinson, The Rev. Jim Williams, The Rev. Margaret Waters The Rev. Seth Deleery Director of Music/Organist: Ms. Jean Farris Fuller Choral Director: Eric Johnson Family Minister: Susan Goodman Youth & Children’s Minister: Travis Helms Seniors’ Minister: Lucy Boyea Communications Coordinator: Christine Havens Administrative Assistants: Margaret Carpenter, morning Mickie Dunn, afternoon Our Vestry: Senior Warden, Doug O’Connell; Junior Warden, Lisa Ottenbacher; Lise Harding; Debbie Simons; Jim Michael; Janice Watkins; Charlie Smith; Alison Street; Matt Thompson; Alexis Bagshaw; Becky Casares; Lisa Hobbs; Barbara Haynes; Mark Strickland; Anne Webster; Treasurer, Jack Robertson St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church 8134 Mesa Drive Austin, TX 78759 Telephone (512) 345-8314 FAX (512) 346-2085 www.stmattsaustin.org Follow us: Facebook: St Matt’s Austin Twitter: @StMattsAustin
ST. MATTHEW’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH
Pursuant to Section 30.06, Penal Code (trespass by license holder with a concealed handgun), a person licensed under
Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code (handgun licensing law), may not enter this property with a concealed
handgun.
Pursuant to Section 30.07, Penal Code (trespass by license holder with an openly carried handgun), a person licensed
under Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code (handgun licensing law), may not enter this property with a handgun
that is carried openly.
Sermon | Sunday, December 11, 2016 The Rev. Merrill Wade “Wake UP”
http://tinyurl.com/zzk8zot
Readings for Sunday, December 25: Isaiah 52:7-10
Hebrews 1:1-4,(5-12) John 1:1-14 Psalm 98
Sunday, December 11: 7:00 am MP/Yoga, 7; 8:00 am HE I, 28; 10:30 am HE II Eucharist Sanctuary, 266; HE II Family Eucharist Huffman, 117;
5:15 pm Contemplative Eucharist, 6; 6:30 pm Soul of a Musician, 127; Total: 523
Wednesday, December 14: 7:00 am HE II, 5; 12:00 pm Service of Public Healing, 6; Total: 11
Vestry Persons of the Month for December: Janice Watkins & Mark Strickland