Parish Newsletter
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Pentecost
Sunday, May 27
Wear RED to Church!
What is Pentecost?
When you go to a fireworks show for an occasion such as 4th of July, New Year’s or Memorial Day, there is often a “grand finale” at the end. This big ending is usually very dramatic – loud and bright and bursting forth in incredible blazes and sparkles of shimmering color, grander and brighter and more amazing than anything that’s been seen earlier in the show. Pentecost is the magnificent, dazzling, amazing “finale” at the end of the Great Fifty Days of Easter. Pentecost, also called “Whitsunday,” is one of the most important Festivals of the Church year. In the early Church, all the way up through the Middle Ages, it was considered a much more important day than Christmas!
What happened on Pentecost? Why is the day so important? After the Resurrection of Jesus (Easter), the risen Jesus stayed with his disciples for forty days, teaching them, eating with them, and preparing them to continue his ministry in the world. On the fortieth day, he was taken up to heaven in glory, rising aloft in a cloud right before the disciples’ very eyes. This is known as the “Ascension.” Ten days later, when the disciples were all together praying, the Holy Spirit descended upon them. This was the Pentecost event. This was an awesome, amazing experience, as described in the Bible in the book of Acts. The narrator writes, “And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.” This was astonishing to the crowd around them, and the reactions varied from bewilderment to fear to sneering. But for the disciples, the experience was transformative.
For the disciples, the experience of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost was not just about being able to talk in other languages. It was an experience of empowerment, by God and with God’s very breath, to carry on the work of God in the world as they had witnessed in Jesus’ life, ministry, death and resurrection. Through the Spirit, the disciples were connected with God and Jesus in a new way, and this changed them forever. The Spirit gave the disciples the energy, courage, and passion that they needed to do Christ’s work in the world – to be the Body of Christ in the world, now that Jesus – body and all – had ascended into heaven in glory. The disciples’ hands became the hands of Christ as they reached out towards others, especially the poor, outcasts and downtrodden, with love. The disciples’ voices proclaimed the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who desperately needed to hear Good News, changing lives and giving hope where there had once only been despair. The disciples’ feet spread the message of the Gospel to the farthest reaches of the earth. The Holy Spirit sanctified and empowered the earliest disciples for this holy work on the day of Pentecost, and thus the Church was born and began to grow.
We are the disciples today. Pentecost is when we celebrate the Holy Spirit in our lives, how the Holy Spirit sanctifies us – sets us apart – for God’s holy work in the world, to carry out the ministry of Jesus Christ in real and concrete ways. We celebrate that through the Holy Spirit, we are connected with Christ and with one another with a bond that cannot be broken, a bond that transforms us, together, into the Body of Christ in the world today. We celebrate how the Holy Spirit gives us the hope, passion, courage, and firm peace deep within our souls that we need to follow Christ and be his disciples in today’s world, even in the face of hardship and difficulty. And we celebrate that, through the mysterious workings of the Holy Spirit, God’s loving presence is always with us. God, through the Holy Spirit, is always active in our lives, doing amazing things beyond what we can even imagine. We live and move and have our being in God. Christ dwells in us, and we in him. And the Holy Spirit fills us, upholds us, sustains us, transforms us and gives us what we need to trust in God’s love and to proclaim it not only with our lips, but in our lives.
–Reverend Amanda
Saturday Evening Worship Service
Every Saturday Evening at 5:00 PM.
This is a short (about 40 minutes long), simple and yet fun service of Holy Eucharist for people of all ages. It is for small children, not-so-small children, and grown-ups to worship together. Come and check it out – especially if Sunday morning worship is hard for you to get to!
Summer BBQ
& Pot Luck Picnic!
Sunday, June 3rd at 12:30 PM
At Brooksvale Farm
(Brooksvale Avenue, off Whitney Ave.)
Come and enjoy fellowship,
friends and food.
Bring a rug, chair and
any outdoor games.
For more information, or to help with grilling, set-up or clean-up, contact Helen Barajas at helenbarajas78@yahoo.com
Good news from one of our Abraham’s Tent guests!
Doug was one of the homeless men who stayed at Grace & St. Peter’s for a week back in January as part of the “Abraham’s Tent” program. Some of you may remember Doug – who is now going by the name “Do” – a man who enjoyed drawing beautiful pictures with oil pastels. Well, below you will see an announcement of an art show coming up with his work in it. And the picture that was chosen for all of the promotion materials for this show is a picture that “Do” drew while he was staying at Grace and St. Peter’s. I remember him hanging the drawing on the bulletin board downstairs so that he could look at it from a distance and see what in the picture needed more work, slight adjustments of shading and color. In addition to this, “Do” has found housing. When I talked with him, “Do” was extremely grateful to Grace and St. Peter’s for our help in making all of these things possible.
So, people of Grace & St. Peter’s, know that the things you do, your many ministries as the Body of Christ in the world today, are making a real difference in people’s lives!
–Reverend Amanda
The art show is from May 18 – July 13, 2012 at the Sumner McKnight Crosby Jr. Gallery at the Arts Council of Greater New Haven (70 Audubon St., 2nd Floor, New Haven). 203-772-2788
There is an Artist’s Reception on Thursday, May 17 from 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM.
Dinner for a Dollar
We serve a wholesome meal every Friday night
6:00 PM – 7:00 PM.
All are welcome. Suggested donation $1, but no one is turned away.
Can you believe it?
We are about to reach the one-year anniversary of Dinner for a Dollar at Grace & St. Peter’s. We opened this ministry to the public in June 2011.
THANK YOU to everyone in the congregation who has supported and helped, in so many ways, with this ministry! Since this is a continuous ministry, it needs continuous energy and support. In whatever way you can help, your presence is appreciated. We encourage you to come and be a part of it! You can help serve and help with clean-up, or you can come and simply sit with a guest and enjoy the food together, to offer warm hospitality with the warm, yummy meal. If you are thinking about cooking for “Dinner for a Dollar,” then take the word of those who have already done it – it is easy and lots of fun! Please contact Allison Batson at allycat379@aim.com or 203-691-5501 if you would like to be a part of this wonderful ministry!
Please Note:
Our service schedule will NOT change this summer. We will continue to hold three worship services:
Saturday at 5:00 PM
Sunday at 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM
Hamden Food Bank
Every Sunday, we collect non-perishable food items at Church for donation to the Hamden Food Bank. All non-perishable foods are gratefully accepted, but we have organized a “food of the month” to make it easier for you to donate. We have talked to the staff at the food bank to find out which foods to emphasize. This way, you don’t have to think or worry about what to donate. Simply add the “food of the month” to your grocery shopping list and bring it in on Sundays. We take care of transporting it to the Food Bank. May’s Food of the Month is cereal – nutritious (i.e. not overly sweetened) cereal is preferred.
