August 15th is the Feast of the Virgin Mary and St. Mary’s by the Sea is celebrating with a festival of flowers and Evensong with Bishop Knudsen at 5:30 PM.

Flower festivals are a tradition in Anglican churches and it is hoped that we launch a tradition here at St. Mary’s. The festival will run through Saturday, August 18th. Throughout the days there will be soft liturgical music playing in the backround to enhance the experience of this beautiful Vaughn designed church. It is hoped that every spot that lends itself to flowers will be filled with them.

If you have flowers in your garden and would like to donate some, or you enjoy flower arranging and would like to furnish an arrangement, please be in touch with Dorothy Clunan at 244-5645, or Kathy Suminsby at 276-5498, . Do plan to visit us for Evensong with the Bishop. We hope it will be a memorable experience for everyone.

Douglas Beck, Organist-Choirmaster, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Old Town, Alexandria, VA will perform on St. John’s historic 1885 organ. The program will include traditional, jazzy and blues tunes from recent centuries including one inspired by Sting. This is music that you will probably not hear on Sunday morning!

There is no charge, but there will be a free will offering. We hope you can join us for an evening of glorious organ music. For questions, please call Ted Bromage at 244-3227.

More information here

A friendly reminder…

TAIZÉ

ECUMENICAL PRAYER SERVICE

Friday, July 13, 6:00 p.m.

at

St. Saviour’s Episcopal Church, Bar Harbor (288-4215)

—– TAIZÉ  —–

ECUMENICAL PRAYER SERVICE

    Friday, March 30th — 7:00 p.m.    

St. Andrew Lutheran Church

175 Downeast Hwy., Ellsworth  (667-7641)

Taizé prayer song had its origins in an ecumenical monastic community in Taizé, France, and focuses on cultivating peace through prayer. This worship style bridges denominational and cultural barriers; it centers around a lyrical form of modern chant, traditional prayer, scripture and meditative silence.  Prayers of petition and intercession are also invited; all of which are woven together amid candlelight, emulating the beloved tradition of Taizé.  Taizé prayer services are open to everyone and last approximately 45 minutes to one hour.

“Singing is one of the most important forms of prayer. A few words sung over and over again reinforce the meditative quality of the prayer. They express a basic reality of faith that can quickly be grasped by the intellect, and that gradually penetrates the heart and the whole being.”   Brother Roger

************************

P.S. Thinking about holding a Taizé prayer service at your church?  There is a support team ready and willing to help with the planning and details. Materials are provided: candles, fabrics, song books and icons.  Reply by e-mail to AcadiaTaize@aol.com and someone will contact you.

Are any among you sick? They should call for the
elders of the church and have them pray over them,
anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord.
The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord
will raise them up; and anyone who has committed
sins will be forgiven. James 5:13-16 (NRSV)

In Scripture there are many accounts of Jesus
healing people. In John 14:12 he talks about his
followers doing the things he did and more. Jesus
loves us and wants us to be whole. He will help us
if we ask. We often need �Jesus with skin on� in
the form of our clergy and friends who will listen
and pray, and through the power of the Holy Spirit
can be channels of love and healing of body, mind
and spirit. This can help us be more the people God
created us to be.

For many years prayers for healing for individuals
have been an important ministry at Church of Our
Father in Hulls Cove. Year around special prayers
are offered after every worship service to those who
request them. As part of our regular weekly
Eucharist at 7:00 AM on Wednesdays, on the first
Wednesday of the month, we use the Healing
Liturgy from the Episcopal Book of Occasional
Services, and offer anointing with oil and laying on
of hands by clergy. In order to make this more
available to anybody, we have been offering
monthly evening services open to the public on
Thursdays at 6:30 PM, with Holy Eucharist. We
welcome anyone to be part of these services and
need your help to spread the word. The next ones
will be Wednesday, March 7th at 7:00 AM and
Thursday, March 22nd at 6:30 PM. Please call us
at 288-9010 if you have any questions, and do come
and join us.

In Jesus’ Name,
Bob and Fran Raymond
Church of our Father

…for Paul Rozeff…

A pandemic (from Greek παν pan all + δήμος demos people) is an epidemic (an outbreak of an infectious disease) that spreads across a large region, or even worldwide.

Several weeks ago Patsy Fogarty and I attended a gathering of the 5 local Episcopal churches at St. Mary’s winter chapel in NEH. At our earlier meeting this past fall we discussed ways our churches could make a difference in our communities at time of crisis. You’ve heard a bit about Pandemic, but what does that mean today, tomorrow or ??? Gretchen O’Grady of the Ellsworth chapter of the American Red Cross spoke to the group. Who will be the helpers and caregivers? It was eye-opening to learn it will be the individual and the family. You can we expect the National and State governments to limit or stop most travel. One sneezing session in an airplane holds the possibility of spreading the virus around the world. Schools may well be closed; commerce will be impacted in the extreme. Avoiding exposure is the best way to protect you and loved ones. The preparations you can make today probably won’t be possible to do when a pandemic is in progress. Gretchen handed out two papers that are invaluable in the planning process: Food and Water in an Emergency and Home Care for Pandemic Flu. For those not able to get them via their computers, we will have a few copies available, on request, in the Saint John church office in Southwest Harbor (244-3229). Please take the time to read, think, and act upon them as one of your New Year’s resolutions. If you have any questions, suggestions, or further thoughts on pandemic, please contact either Patsy (244-9410) or me

Ted Bromage (244-3227)

Advent is a special time for Province 1 Bishops. From November 27 through December 1, I join the Bishops of Province One (New England) for our annual Advent retreat. Some years we have taken the classical “get away and be still” experience. Other years, we have joined together on a service project (I framed windows during our last Habitat for Humanity project). This year, we go to New Orleans to work in the relief effort. We will live in dorms, cooking our own food, working long days in the still-devastated areas, sliding into sleeping bags for a night’s rest. I need your help in two ways: 1) Most importantly, support your bishops with prayer. 2) Secondly, purchase a gift card from Wal-Mart (amounts from $10 up are available) and mail it to me directly (143 State Street, Portland 04101). Gift cards help urgent needs for clothing, food and household items. I want to carry gift cards with me, to pass out as seems most helpful and prudent; I’ll put a small sticker on each card reading “With prayers from your sisters and brothers in the Diocese of Maine”. If you’d prefer, a donation to the Bishop’s Discretionary Fund (memo line: New Orleans) will be added to the check I plan to give them as we leave. Yours in Christ, + Chilton

Set aside some time on your busy calendars to attend the November Taizé Prayer Service at 4:30 pm on Sunday, November 19. It will be held at Church of Our Father this month. Please come - it’s the pause that will refresh!

Live the Taizé experience! Come as you are to “Silence of the Heart”, a Taizé Worship Workshop. Enjoy powerful presentations as well as prayer and worship with song, healing, and reconciliation. Open to all, the workshop will take place on Friday evening, November 3, and Saturday, November 4, at St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church in Camden. The fee is $30 for the weekend and includes all meals and the workshop. For info or to register: call 236-3680 or e-mail stthoscamden [at] adelphia [dot] net.