The 184^th Annual Convention of The Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis took place this past Saturday, November 13 in Plainfield, on Zoom, and via Facebook Live. Thea Warren Simpson and I represented St. Andrew’s.

Next week, Thea will share the messages our guest speakers (the Rev. Kim Jackson, senator from Georgia and Episcopal priest, and Ms. Tina Tchen, esq., Chief of Staff to Michelle Obama and life-long Episcopalian) brought to us. I would like to share the action items of the convention.

Bishop Jennifer welcomed everyone to “the family reunion of the Diocese.” Indeed, it was a joy-filled celebration, all held within the context of a celebratory worship service. The proceedings opened with a New Orleans-style band playing “When the Saints Go Marching In” and the opening lines of the worship service, then we moved into the business of the day. Mid-day, the “worship” continued with the Bishop’s address and Holy Eucharist. The final blessing and dismissal were at the close of convention. It is remarkable how combining the business and worship into a single experience makes this time together as the family of Christ feel very special.

Resolutions at the 2021 Convention:

The 184^th Convention considered three resolutions. All were approved.

Cooperating Ministries (Resolutions 1 & 2)

In Indiana and across the world, our diocese had founded or partners with a wide range of ministries. (Click here: https://indydio.org/ministries/ministry-partnerships/) to learn more about our work. We call these ‘Cooperating Ministries.’ At this convention we welcomed two new cooperating ministries.

1. The first is St. Nicholas Early Learning Center (http://www.stnicholasel.org), a ministry to very young children founded by Trinity Episcopal Church, Indianapolis. Their goal is to provide childhood care and education in an intentionally diverse environment.
2. We also welcomed The Avenue Foundation, a public foundation, founded by St. Paul’s, Indianapolis, whose mission is to “address the racial wealth gap in Indianapolis by education, incubating, and investing in Black entrepreneurs, visionaries, artists, and faith communities in order to focus on racial equity through economic justice and community (re)development.”

Resolution 3: Encourage General Convention to Research and Document the Episcopal Church’s Role in Native American Residential Schools. This resolution, authored by our diocese, will come before General Convention, which meets in July 2022. It specifically calls for understanding if The Episcopal Church in Indiana had a role in the relocation or abuse of Native Americans here. The goal is to have a full understanding of our history regarding Indigenous peoples and to act for healing of these deeply felt wounds to our neighbors.

Coming together once a year, as a diocese, is a family reunion. At Saint Andrew’s we get a sense of that relationship when Bishop Jennifer visits, however, engaging with The Episcopal Church in central and southern Indiana as a gathered household is an experience that is inspiring, eye-opening, and fun! I am grateful for the many opportunities I have had to participate and I encourage everyone to spread your wings and be part of the wider church.

Blessings,

Terry Noble

SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING SINGING, MASKING, AND SEATING

As we gather in person for Sunday worship, please remember we still need to be protective of each other as the Delta Variant of the Covid virus continues to spread. The Delta Variant is many times more contagious and believed to be more dangerous, particularly to those who are not yet vaccinated, than earlier strains. Even those who are vaccinated may become infected and transmit the virus. To protect our communities until this subsides, the Diocese has suggested that you wear masks indoors regardless of vaccination status and take a congregational singing hiatus. During this time only one cantor and a small choir will be allowed. We also ask that you maintain social distancing. Please only sit in pews with prayer books and hymnals. Hopefully, one day soon, we will all be able to lift our voices in song. Many thanks to everyone for your patience.

THE GIVING TREE

It is hard to believe that the holidays are just around the corner. Once again St. Andrew’s will participate in the Giving Tree. Your generosity throughout the years has been outstanding. Putnam County children continue to benefit from your kind hearts. Each child receives three gifts; two articles of clothing and a toy. Gifts should not be wrapped. The Giving Tree program provides the gifts to the parent/guardian so that he/she can gift them to the children. Wrapping paper and tape are also given to the families so that they can wrap the gifts at home.

The deadline to return gifts to me is December 5th. The supply chain issues have necessitated early shopping so as soon as you have your gifts, please call me to plan a drop-off at 709 Toddson Drive. Cell Phone: 720-0105, Home Phone: 653-6734. If you do not wish to shop, Cathryn and I are happy to shop for you. You can send your checks to me or send them to the church and Renee will reimburse me.

Lastly, the link below is Sign Up Genius. It will take you to St. Andrew’s page to sign up for a child and gift you can choose to shop for this season.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c094ca9a922a1fc1-standrews

Thank you for your open hearts,

Gwen Morris

CHRISTMAS PAGEANT

We are excited to announce this year’s Christmas pageant “The Rest of the Story,” which will take place on Sunday, December 12th during the service!

Caroline and Albrecht will reach out to all parents of the cast members and will send additional information and schedule individual and group rehearsals. For questions about the Christmas pageant, please feel free to contact Caroline Good (cgood@depauw.edu) or Albrecht von Gaudecker (albrecht.von.gaudecker@gmail.com).

Thank you,

Albrecht von Gaudecker

Prayers and Reflections for this week

Sunday In-Person Morning Worship, November 21 led by The Rev. Kelsey Hutto-Ford

You can connect to the service via Zoom. Click on this link to connect. If you have not used Zoom before, you will be prompted to download Zoom, go ahead and do that. When you enter the meeting you should be able to see and hear others and others can see and hear you. If you come in a little late, please listen for a moment before speaking. In order to see everyone, go to Gallery view (upper right on PCs and upper left for Macintosh). When we get started everyone except the speaker will be muted. If you are reading or playing music, please be sure to unmute yourself.

If you are connecting via telephone dial 301-715-8592 and when prompted enter the Meeting ID: 847 8600 1703 and press #, then enter the password: pray and press # again.

Click here for the service booklet for November 21

Your prayers are asked for: