Dear St. Andrew’s family and friends,

For the past six years I have had the privilege of being the Senior Warden here at St. Andrew’s. We, as a small worshipping community, have been challenged and I truly believe have grown stronger. We have had the leadership of a strong, caring Vestry and Ministry Chairs, two incredible Junior Wardens, two treasurers, and we cannot forget our Search Committee and Regathering Team. And we cannot say enough about Albrecht and Renee, who have helped to keep us centered these past many years. I am so grateful for their time and talents as we now look forward to the future together. We have been blessed by their service.

We have moved through the unexpected departure of John Rumple, an interim priest, a world-wide pandemic, Zoom worship, more supply priests than I can count, and finally, last Palm Sunday, the incredible addition to our church family: The Reverend Doctor Jennifer Oldstone-Moore and her husband, Chris. Our best days are ahead.

There are challenges to face. The cost of supporting our ministries, our staff and our properties continues to rise, just like at home. In a couple of weeks, Dennis Knuth, our Treasurer, will be reviewing our 2023 budget with you and the following week we will meet as a congregation to elect three new Vestry members and delegates to next fall’s Diocesan Convention. We will also be offering the opportunity for you to volunteer for one of our ministry groups, join the Altar Guild, or to participate in our services by reading the lessons, leading the Prayers of the People, or serving as a Eucharistic Minister. It does indeed take the whole village to continue the work and missions of our congregation.

I want to share my sincere thanks to each of you for your generous support and patience. You are a giving and loving family that I have been blessed to walk beside.

Sue

Rich Tradition, Layered Meanings, Preparation:

The intentionality, careful consideration, and prayerfulness begins long before we gather for worship on Sundays. Many people have been have been busy. Renee oversees the production of the bulletin, which contains the prayers, scripture readings, hymns, intercessions, celebrations, and announcements that change sometimes day by day. She finds the right materials and prints and staples the bulletins. Albrecht chooses music that is appropriate to the liturgical season (no “alleluias” in Lent!) and to the particular Sunday. If you look at the lyrics of the hymns, you’ll see echoes of the collects and the scripture readings. The choir practices pieces ahead of time, and cantors make sure they will be able to lead the congregation. During the week, you’ll hear organ music pouring out of the sanctuary as Albrecht practices. Jen+ begins thinking about the message on Monday and lets it percolate during the week. The Altar Guild has washed, dried, ironed, polished, and reset the sanctuary, changing the frontals and paraments (the cloth decorations on the pulpit and the altar) if the liturgical season has changed. They set up the “stack” (you see it in the middle of the altar every Sunday–the paten, chalice, and their coverings) for Communion, make sure the flowers are fresh, beautiful, and seasonally appropriate. On Sunday itself, many people are in the sanctuary early: the choir with Albrecht, the altar guild, Rev Jen, the usher, the hosts for coffee hour, and Youth Formation teachers.

All of these preparations can enhance our worship, combining quiet and concentration with anticipation of people coming and the sanctuary and parish hall filling with people and anticipation. Parishioners come in, may light a candle or bless themselves with water, pick up a bulletin, and then kneel in prayer as a way of dedicating their attention to worship. Some may bow or genuflect (a kind of curtsy) toward the altar. Many mark their hymnal and check the ribbons in the BCP, perhaps taking a look at the scripture of the day. Many visit; others sit in quiet, relishing the sanctuary. These preparations remind us that our awareness and connection with the holy is in large part our preparation and awareness in the moment. There is no official rubric for this preparation, but lighting candles, blessing oneself with holy water, genuflecting to the altar and saying a prayer at the beginning of worship are ancient practices that you will find in Christian congregations the world over.

Choir : rehearsed hymns and anthems, Albrecht organ/prelude, postlude and choir

Acolytes: lit candle

Jen+

Tuesday 4:30 p.m. In-Person & 6:30 p.m. Zoom Bible Studies & Lenten Readings

For the Lenten reading, we will look at Marcus Borg and John Crossan’s The Last Week. This book details Jesus’ life from his triumphal ride into Jerusalem to the cross, and will be excellent preparation for the events of Holy Week.

Jen+

We have upgraded our Sunday worship online streaming option.

You will find our worship service being streamed from our Facebook Page or continue to go to St. Andrew’s website and be redirected from the link on the front page.

Rev. Jen has set her office drop-in day as Wednesday of each week from 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. for anyone who would like to stop in and visit. You are always invited to make an appointment for a time convenient for you. Also, she has chosen Mondays as her Sabbath day.

Sunday Morning In-Person Worship Service, February 12, led by Rev. Dr. Jennifer Oldstone-Moore, 10:15 a.m.

You can stream the service via St. Andrew’s Facebook Page. Click on this link to view the Live Stream. We will start the Live Stream at 10:10 a.m.

Click here for the service booklet for February 12.

FEBRUARY 21: CALLING ALL TALENT: SHROVE TUESDAY PANCAKE SUPPER

You are invited to at St. Andrew’s Talent Show and Pancake Supper on Shrove Tuesday, February 21. Pancakes and other pre-Lenten delicacies will be hot off the griddle by 5:30; we will begin the talent portion by 6:00. We welcome all manner and level of talent. Come plan an instrument, demonstrate your origami skills, and be ready to cheer on the other talents at St. Andrew’s.

TUESDAY BIBLE STUDIES – 4:30 P.M. IN HAMILTON HALL & 6:30 P.M. VIA ZOOM

Bible Studies continue on Tuesday afternoons at 4:30 in Hamilton Hall and evenings at 6:30 via Zoom at this link. On February 14 we will continue our deep dive into questions of salvation–and hell–that began with John 3:16. We will be reading Rob Bell’s Love Wins, chapters 1 and 2. After we finish Love Wins we will read C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce (Lewis’s rendering of what hell is–and isn’t). NOTE: No Tuesday Bible Studies on February 21.

ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICES: INVITING YOU TO OBSERVE A HOLY LENT

Ash Wednesday is on February 22. We will have services in the Sanctuary at 12:00 noon and 6:30 p.m.

NEW ZOOM LINK

The new link can be found on the St. Andrew’s website at the very bottom of the last page. Click on the icon to join as an attendee.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL YOUTH SUNDAY SCHOOL – VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

The youth are up to some fun. Join them by being an occasional volunteer! Once you have completed your Safe Church training, all you have to do is show up – Macie and Jen+ have everything prepared. The youth come into the sanctuary for the Peace.

BUDGET PRESENTATION FEBRUARY 19 AND ANNUAL PARISH MEETING FEBRUARY 26

In order to streamline the Annual Meeting on February 26, the Sunday before the Annual Meeting we will have a presentation immediately following the service on the 2023 St. Andrew’s budget. You are invited to come with your questions and comments. The Annual Meeting will be the following Sunday.

FUNERAL SERVICE FOR MAUREEN CARKEEK

Many of you have asked when we will hold the funeral for our beloved Maureen Carkeek. Rite of Christian Burial for Maureen will be celebrated on Saturday, May 27, at 4:00 p.m. at St. Andrew’s, with a reception to follow.

COMMUNION AT THE WATERS

Once a month Sunday services have resumed at The Waters. The next service will be this Sunday, February 12 at 2:00 – 2:45 p.m. If you’d like to help with this ministry in any way, please contact Rev. Jen or Renee. All are welcome to attend!

ON-GOING COVID PROTOCOL

We continue to respond to both our county’s current CDC designation and to the current variant. Masking is optional. Those who serve bread and wine will mask so that anyone who comes to the altar can feel secure. Decisions on COVID policy have moved from the Reconvening Committee to Rev. Jen and the Wardens.

We have heard that the daily reflections and scripture readings provided during Lent were appreciated. The meditations are written by persons from Gobin UMC and Beech Grove UMC. They will be in the newsletter each week and go from Wednesday to Tuesday, except for Sunday. Whether you enjoy these every day or as the Spirit moves you, may this resource continue to bring you spiritual food for the journey. Blessings!

Click here to view the readings and accompanying links.

Your prayers are asked for:

I would like to discuss our returning to communion by wine via the common cup.

Background: The Diocese of Indianapolis has stated that we may return to full communion (both bread and wine), but that receiving the wine can be by common cup only. Several parishioners have had questions about this. Here’s what I’d like you to know at this point.

• The Vestry voted and approved our new COVID guidelines recommended by the Regathering Committee.
• We might use the words “full communion” to indicate that we are finally back to both bread and wine, but it has ALWAYS been true that taking either one is a complete communion. You do not need both to fully commune.
• The choice is yours, Eucharist by Eucharist. You can decide to let the cup pass because you have a cold; if you are worried about others you can pass; you can wait until we return to intinction. Just cross your arms over your chest—or just shake your head and quietly demur.

Yours in health, restoration, liturgical engagement, and literature review,

Rev. Jen