St. Thomas Tidings: November 16, 2023
Today we commemorate Margaret of Scotland, Queen (1093). Here is the collect for the day: O God, who called your servant Margaret to an earthly throne that she might advance your heavenly kingdom, and gave her zeal for your church and love for your people: Mercifully grant that we also may be fruitful in good works, and attain to the glorious crown of your saints; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Day by Day: The November-January 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 Holiday Fair is Almost Here!: Please come to our annual Craft Fair and Bake Sale this Saturday, November 18 from 9am-3pm (or until sold out). This is your chance to do some early holiday shopping while supporting our vendors and ministries. This year we not only have the usual baked goods and ornaments… we will be selling lunch AND we have two opportunity trees! Each tree has $300 in gift cards to local and national stores. We look forward to seeing you at the Fair.
Add Fair: If you are bringing items to sell, PLEASE price them before you bring them. That way no one is offended by prices that are too high or too low, and we have the best chance of selling everything we’ve made. Thanks for your help.
Pledge Card Blessing This Sunday: You should have received your letter from Stewardship Chair Sue Williams, along with a pledge card and return envelope. We are grateful for all gifts received and pledged to continue our work in the world. We will bless the pledge cards received on November 19 at both services, but if you need more time to pray about your 2024 pledge, please take the time you need. The Bishop’s Committee will draft the 2024 budget in December to present at our annual meeting.
Evensong at St. Gregory’s November 19: We are invited to join our St. Gregory’s siblings for a “Kirkin’ o’ the Tartan” Evensong at 4:00pm this Sunday, November 19. It will be a lovely service of prayer and music, including bagpipes, and everyone will have an opportunity to celebrate their heritage. A festive reception will follow.
Thanksgiving Eve Service – With Pie!: Our annual Thanksgiving Eve service is Wednesday, November 22, at 7:00pm. Our St. Gregory’s siblings will join us in giving thanks for what we have received. You are invited to bring a token of your Thanksgiving dinner to be blessed during the service. After the service we will enjoy pie and hot chocolate, courtesy of the Hospitality Committee. See you there!
Thanksgiving Closures: The church office will be closed November 23-24 in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. There will be no Morning or Evening Prayer on November 23.
Advent Wreath Lighting: As is our custom, we begin our Advent services with a brief ceremony where we light the Advent Wreath. If you would like to participate, please sign up in the narthex – there are still plenty of spaces available. Individuals and families are welcome to participate.
Long Beach Chorale Concerts: As you know, Long Beach Chorale has been using our sanctuary for rehearsals since August. “A Christmas Garland,” their holiday concerts, are also in our sanctuary on December 9 and 10 at 4:00pm. Tickets are available on their website https://longbeachchorale.org/tickets/ Full-price tickets are $40, but there are also student tickets for $15 and a “pay what you can” option so that no one is left out. Please take advantage of this opportunity to see Long Beach’s best volunteer choir in action.
Pledge Income: Our pledge income is down significantly from our projections at the beginning of the year. If you regularly give or pledge to St. Thomas, you should have received a third-quarter statement in your pledge drive envelope. If you are behind in this year’s pledge, please do your best to catch up by the end of the year, so that we don’t end the year with a deficit. Remember that Mother Sharon and the Bishop’s Committee are always available if you have any concerns or pastoral needs.
Prayer Tree: We are revamping our community prayer tree. A small and dedicated group of people prays for those on our prayer list and are alerted when new prayer needs arise. If you would like to be part of this praying network, please contact Jane Gordon-Topper.
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.