We are now on our summer service schedule, with one service at 9:30am. The regular service schedule will resume on Sunday, September 11th.
Today is the 4th Sunday of the month and the Outreach Offering will go to Not Bread Alone. Not Bread Alone prepares family-style meals in a nurturing environment. Every generation, from kids to seniors, is represented. It’s a place to relax, refuel, and connect with others in the community. Without Not Bread Alone, many of our neighbors would be eating in situations or locations that are anything but welcoming or pleasant. At Not Bread Alone everyone’s welcome at the table. If you write a check please make it payable to Grace Church and include “outreach” on the memo line. Thank you for any gift you are able to give to support this important local program.
Enriching Our Worship
For at least throughout the summer, we will be using the Episcopal Church’s Enriching our Worship liturgical resource. You will notice slight changes to some prayers, as well as a new Eucharistic prayer. Enriching Our Worship is an authorized supplement to our usual liturgical texts from the Book of Common Prayer. Some of you may be familiar with this resource from past uses at Grace Church. Following the class offered this Lent on Language & Liturgy, we are excited to have an opportunity to explore alternative liturgical language as a whole worshipping community.
Poem and Prayer – Over Zoom on Mondays, 12:15 p.m., Through Summer Season Start off your week with a poem by a contemporary poet and an invitation into prayer! Each week will feature a different poem that invites us into meditation together. Megan will offer a short reflection on the poem and spiritual questions it might open for us, before ushering us into a time of silent prayer and then shared conversation on the poem. This will be a 15-20 minute spiritual practice to add to your week over the summer months, from wherever you might be spending them! Zoom link will be sent out by email. Please email Megan at mmcdermott@gracechurchamherst.org with any questions. If you cannot make this time but would like recordings of the poems and reflections, please let her know.
June Community Conversation Board In honor of Pentecost (June 5th), this month’s conversation board is centered on the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is often seen as the most mysterious & ill-defined member of the Trinity. What images and stories help you to connect to the Holy Spirit? How, where, and when do you understand God’s Spirit as being present in the world? In you? Share your thoughts on these questions and more, throughout this month, at the bulletin board you can find in the Connector.
Save the Date
Volunteer Opportunities with Appalachian Trail Hikers This July Christ Trinity Church in Sheffield has invited congregations across our diocese to participate in their annual, summer ministry of hospitality to Appalachian trail hikers. At a large tent in Sheffield, we will help provide hikers with burgers, hot dogs, snacks, a charging station for electronics, friendly conversation, and a shady place to sit and relax! Grace has reserved Thursday, July 7th as our day to volunteer, from roughly 9:45 a.m. – 3 p.m. This is an opportunity fit for both youth & adults! The Western Mass. Young Adult Ministry Network (YAMN) will be volunteering on Saturday July 23rd. The Young Adult Ministry Network brings together young adults ages 18-40 from across the diocese for growth in faith and friendship. Email Megan at mmcdermott@gracechurchamherst.org to reserve your space on the Grace team and Megan or Will Harron (william.harron@gmail.com) to reserve a space on the YAMN team. Spaces are limited to about 6 people per team, so as not to overwhelm the hikers!
Haiti Ministry: Outfit a Child for School Throughout most of the pandemic and a year of severe social and economic disruption, our partner school in Haiti has stayed open and persisted in its mission. This is a remarkable achievement. It is already time to think ahead to the coming school year, when nearly 250 children will need uniforms, textbooks, and school supplies. Children grow, and clothes wear out when they are used every single day. Will you help them? Please consider a donation of $75 to outfit a child, $50 for a uniform, or $25 for each student’s textbooks and supplies. Rounding your donation up to $100 will help cover any exigencies – such as rising prices and more children who can’t afford other schools. When you give, you’ll also sustain Haitian small businesses in a cash-poor economy. Students, parents, teachers, and school leaders struggle against incredible odds for basic education. Please share your support. (You may use the “Give” button on the church webpage or write a check to Grace Episcopal Church with “Haiti Ministry” in the memo line.)