St. Thomas Tidings - January 26, 2023 Edition
Today we commemorate Titus and Timothy, Companions of St. Paul. Here is the collect for the day: Almighty God, who called Timothy and Titus to be evangelists and teachers, and made them strong to endure hardship: Strengthen us to stand fast in adversity, and to live godly and righteous lives in this present time, that with sure confidence we may look for our blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Candle Blessing January 29: February 2 is the Feast of the Presentation, also known as Candlemas. We celebrate the day when Jesus was presented in the temple and recognized by Simeon as “the light to enlighten the nations.” We won’t have a special service on February 2, but we will bless candles on January 29 during both services so you can bring the light of church into your homes.
Annual Meeting February 5: Our Annual Meeting is Sunday, February 5. We will accept the 2023 budget, elect two new members of the Bishop’s Committee, elect alternates to Diocesan Convention, and hear about what we did in 2022 and what is planned for 2023. As we have done before, we will have one service at 9am and then hold the meeting immediately afterwards, so the 8:00 congregation doesn’t need to come back for the meeting. We will have a potluck brunch, so please bring something to share as we meet. See you then!
Preliminary Grant Meeting: The Bishop’s Committee plans to submit several grants this year to help with our fundraising. On Wednesday, February 1, from 6-8PM, we are having a meeting to talk about researching and writing grants. Please contact Shelley Arnold (shelleyarnold1@aol.com) if you are interested in coming, so that we can provide a simple supper while talking. Note that coming to this meeting does not constitute a full commitment to the grant finding and writing process – it just means you are willing to help with ideas. Thanks for your interest in keeping St. Thomas going!
Check Out the Garden: Cathy Khoury has been working with Eureka Montessori to revitalize the garden beds in the back of the church. She and Petra have selected plants, and the preschoolers have helped to put them in the ground. We look forward to working with the preschool as they learn about gardening and enjoy the fruits of their labors. Thank you, Cathy, for getting the gardens going again!
Men’s Breakfast: All men of the parish and any friends who identify as men are welcome to come to the Men’s Breakfast on Saturday, February 11. Meet at the Denny’s at South and Bellflower at 8:00am for food and fellowship.
What Do Deacons Do?: Deacon Steve Alder will preach and talk about the diaconate at both services on Sunday, February 12. The deacons of the diocese are visiting communities throughout the diocese so we can all learn about what deacons do and how they are an integral part of our church life. Please give Deacon Steve a warm welcome and come prepared with questions about the diaconate and the vocation of a deacon.
Pancake Supper: Our Annual Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper is Tuesday, February 21, from 4-7pm. The Utzman and Riley families will provide pancakes with the option of adding fruit topping or bacon. You can either dine in or take your dinner to go. Reservation flyers with space for you to reserve your dinner and time will be in the narthex soon. We look forward to seeing you!
Lenten Book Study Begins March 1: Our Lenten book study, “When Did We See You?”, will look at theological writing in modern science fiction and fantasy books. The class will run Wednesday nights from March 1 through April 19 (except the Wednesday of Holy Week) from 6:30 to 8:00pm. We are asking for reservations so we know how many copies of readings to make. Look for more information in the February Canterbury Tales.
Day by Day: The February-April edition of Day by Day, the daily devotional booklet, has arrived and is available in the narthex. Please come pick one up if you enjoy using the booklet.
The New Website is Here!: We are proud to announce that our new website is up and running. Please bookmark the new URL: stthomascanterbury.org and use it from now on. More information about our site and its contents will appear in a separate email.
Are You Interested in Genealogy?: Questing Heirs, one of our newer community groups, invites us to visit their meetings and explore our heritage. They meet the third Sunday of every month at 2pm in Larkin Hall.
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 http://episcopalnews.ladiocese.org/ 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.