St. Thomas Tidings: December 28, 2023
Today is the Feast of the Holy Innocents. Here is the collect for the day: We remember today, O God, the slaughter of the holy innocents of Bethlehem by King Herod. Receive, we pray, into the arms of your mercy all innocent victims; and by your great might frustrate the designs of evil tyrants and establish your rule of justice, love, and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Tomorrow is the feast of our patron saint, Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury and Martyr (1170). Here is the collect for his feast day: O God, our strength and our salvation, you called your servant Thomas Becket to be a shepherd of your people and a defender of your church: Keep your household from all evil and raise up faithful pastors and leaders who are wise in the ways of the Gospel; through Jesus Christ, the shepherd of souls, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Offering Envelopes: The 2024 offering envelopes were delayed in shipping and will arrive mid-January. If you have leftover 2023 envelopes, you are welcome to use them and just write in the new date for the first few weeks in January. You are also welcome to use a regular envelope and write your pledge number and date on that. We’re sorry for the inconvenience.
Church Office Closures: The church office will be closed January 1-2. There will, however, be Morning and Evening Prayer on January 2. If you have a pastoral emergency, please call Mother Sharon’s cell phone. Otherwise we will pick up business as usual on January 3.
Mark Your Calendars: St. Gregory’s is having an Epiphany Lessons & Carols service on Saturday, January 6 at 4:00pm. This will be our only real chance to celebrate the Epiphany, since January 7 we will celebrate the Baptism of Jesus at both services. The service is free to all. St. Gregory’s requests reservations for dinner, where a freewill offering will be taken. Please email info@stgregoryschurch.com by January 1 if you plan to attend dinner.
Men’s Breakfast January 13: All men of the parish and any friends who identify as men are welcome to come to the Men’s Breakfast on Saturday, January 13. Meet at the Denny’s at South and Bellflower at 8:00am for food and fellowship.
Annual Meeting is February 4: As is our custom, we will have one service at 9:00am and then meet in Larkin Hall for our annual meeting. You are welcome to bring a potluck dish to share as we review 2023 and plan for 2024. We will elect new Bishop’s Committee members and our delegates and alternates to Diocesan Convention, and pass the 2024 budget. Please plan to attend this important part of our faith lives.
Service Reminder: All our services stay on our Facebook page so you can view them whenever it’s convenient for you. It’s always better to view a service later in the day than not at all! The link to the page for all our services is here: https://www.facebook.com/Saint-Thomas-of-Canterbury-Episcopal-Church-of-Long-Beach-CA-124554214274325
Share Our Services: Please feel free to share our Morning Prayer and Sunday services. The more people we reach, the better we do at evangelism. People are hungry for what we have to offer, and I encourage you to do your part to share our services with your friends and neighbors. Send them the link when you email them, invite them to join you on Facebook or in person… whatever way works best for you to share what we have to offer.
Episcopal News Updates: The email updates from the diocese are a great way to stay informed about what’s happening all over our six-county diocese. If you want to receive the Episcopal News, visit https://diocesela.org/episcopal-news/contact/ and enter your email address in the box provided.
In Case of Emergency: Notify your priests! With our combined ministry program comes additional coverage for pastoral emergencies. In the event of a hospital stay, illness, death in the family, or other pastoral emergency, please call Mother Sharon on her cell phone (562-833-3393) any day except Friday, her Sabbath day. Father Michael Fincher covers emergencies in both communities on Friday, just as Mother Sharon covers emergencies in both parishes on Monday, Father Michael’s Sabbath. Father Michael’s cell phone is 909-373-6478.