Volume 5 Issue 12 December 2016

Christmas Services Calendar highlights: Saturday, December 3 9 - 2: Holiday Fair Wednesday, December 7 & 14 6:30 pm: Supper 7 pm: Advent Program Saturday, December 10 5:00 pm: Handel’s Messiah Sunday, December 18 9:30: Children’s Pageant noon: Caroling Tuesday, December 20 7:00 pm: Vestry Meeting Wednesday, December 21 7:00 pm: Advent Taize Service

Inside this issue: Advent Taize Service

2

Youth Matters

3

Music in December

5

Handel’s Messiah

6

Holiday Fair

7

Treasurer’s Report

8

Summary of Vestry Meeting

8

Seen Around the Church

9

Practice Simplicity in Advent

10

Growing Together in God’s Love

Christmas Eve, Saturday 6 pm Eucharist 10 pm Eucharist Christmas Day, Sunday 10 am Eucharist

From Shariya

Ready your heart for the birth of joy Dear Friends in Christ, We are now in the season of Advent, and so, we begin what I hope will be for us all a slow and deliberate journey to Bethlehem. It is easy to succumb to a frenzied pace because of the multiple demands on our time and energy–and yet, it may be worth remembering that the primary claim upon our focus in this season is prayerful preparation for the arrival of the Christ. I encourage you to carve out little oases in your weekly round to ready your heart for the birth of joy. On the Sundays in Advent, the candles in our

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Warden’s Corner

Stewardship is an act of Evangelism Stewardship and evangelism are on my mind. Here at St. Andrews we are in the midst of stewardship “season”—even though we are encouraging parishioners to think of stewardship as a year-round, life-long part of their spiritual practice. And as for evangelism, it doesn’t have a season. In November I attended an “Evangelism Matters” conference in Dallas and witnessed how, under the leadership of our new Presiding Bishop, Michael Curry, evangelism is finding a place in the Episcopal Church. At the conference there was much conversation about today’s increasingly connected world, and the role played by organized religion and personal faith. I shared bread with an Australian who argued that God is competing with three other forces to influence thinking and behavior. Culture and custom, he said, are most influential: what others say and do provide models for us and shape us without our realizing it. Likewise money colors our thoughts and actions as we constantly evaluate the economic consequences our choices. Finally, laws both hem us in and protect us. From speed limits to statutes against theft and murder, plus civil laws regarding contracts we are (Continued on Page 8)

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(Shariya, from Page 1) Advent wreath serve as visible reminders that we draw nearer and nearer to the Nativity. And our celebrations of the Eucharist complete with Scripture and holy song call us to awe. On the Fourth Sunday of Advent at the 9:30 service, our youngest parishioners will proclaim Gospel tidings to us in the form of the children’s pageant. On the Wednesdays in Advent, our 10a.m. services provide a quiet circle of healing prayer and meditative worship. And on Wednesday evenings at 6:30p.m. our Advent study will allow pilgrims to journey with biblical ancestors who knew something about the art of anticipation. A lovely occasion of Taize worship will be offered on the evening of December 21. It is my hope that you will each participate in some, or all, of these Advent opportunities, so that as we approach the dusty outskirts of Bethlehem on Christmas Eve, we may truly welcome the Holy Child! We will rejoice in Christmas celebrations on December 24 at 6pm and 10pm–and on December 25 at 10am. May we each and all bask in the illumination of Jesus the Light of the World!

Shariya+

Taize for Advent Come prepare for the holiday season with Advent reflections and the soothing sound of Taize music. Wed, December 21 at 7 pm in the sanctuary

St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church Staff

Officers

Vestry

Rev. Shariya Molegoda, Rector [email protected] Barbara Gibbons, Parish Administrator [email protected] Grant Underwood, Music Director [email protected] Mary Merkle-Scotland, Youth Minister [email protected] Shelby Auletta, Church School Coordinator [email protected] David Mikus, Sexton [email protected]

Gary Naegel, Senior Warden [email protected] John Armstrong, Junior Warden [email protected] Cathy Golden, Treasurer [email protected] Louise Beecher, Clerk [email protected]

Mark Auletta Gary Cimmino Art Criddle Kristen Garnett Nancy Karas Colleen McHugh Olivia Nye Rebecca Rastetter

Anita Spear, Preschool Director [email protected]

Webmaster/Messenger editor: John Armstrong Photography: Carrie Albert, Sandy Butler, John Armstrong

Volume 5 Issue 12

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Youth Matters Here at St. Andrew’s Youth Events On Sunday, November 6, the middle school youth group packed 53 shoeboxes for children in need. They carefully selected toys, clothing, toiletries and school supplies, and prepared individual gift boxes for 27 boys and 26 girls. Each box contained a handwritten message from one of our youth group members. Once all our boxes were complete, we said a prayer for the children receiving our gifts. These boxes will be hand-delivered to an orphanage in Haiti. A missionary group known to Mary, will taking the boxes on their upcoming mission trip and personally hand them out. We are feeling very blessed. Thank you to everyone who helped MSYG make this happen. December events include cookie decorating on the 16th, caroling on the 18th, and hopefully attending a Live Nativity when dates become available. Stay tuned to Shutterfly for more information.

Sandy Good that multiplies...The Homeless Immersion experience that occurred in mid-October netted just under two hundred dollars from the Sunday morning panhandling in town. Church members at First Congregational church were touched by what they heard from their youth, and by the end of that Sunday’s service, there was $500 to send to Youth Continuum. Meanwhile, up the road at St. Andrew’s, our very own Evan Earle jumped in and quickly completed the grant application for the Madison Foundation. We have had a little luck with this group in past years and Evan boldly asked them for $500, or a minimum of matching funds ($200) to what the group raised asking for support around town. Stay tuned to find out how we fared. The Madison Foundation meets this week to decide. Say a prayer! A big thank you is due to all of those who contributed clothes, blankets and quilts, coats, hats and gloves, undergarments, money and toiletries. Between the churches, we were able to deliver an SUV full of these items to Youth Continuum on the Monday before Thanksgiving. They were so grateful. The Progressive Dinner on November 6 had a new twist this year, with youth arriving at St. Andrew’s to enjoy a delicious meal of baked ziti and salad after grazing on an appetizer of fried dumplings at North Madison Congregational Church (NMCC). Once the meal was complete, the group of high school students from St. Andrew’s, Shoreline Unitarian Universalist Society, NMCC and First Congregational Church stayed at their tables and listened while three members of the Stonewall Speakers each shared their story about life as a gay, lesbian or transgender person. Stonewall Speakers is an all-volunteer speaker's bureau comprised of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender people and their allies. According to their website, the speakers give their hearts, time and travel expenses to help eliminate hate and promote understanding. The three guests were engaging, articulate, passionate and honest. They spoke about their childhood, their challenges within and outside their own family of origin, and they shared openly about discrimination they have faced and sometimes must continue to fight against. David, an elderly gay man was a former Boy Scout, Eagle Scout and scout leader. He was over 50 when he realized he was gay (he is 90 now!) and was quickly booted off the local leadership council when he came out to the scouts. He was not reinstated until the BSA reversed their position on gays in leadership. Bob/Barbara spoke about his/her life as a video producer and the economic discrimination experienced on the job. The speakers then answered questions from the youth for about twenty minutes following their presentation. One of the speakers mentioned how their group is often not needed in certain schools because many schools already do an excellent job of protecting all students, raising much needed awareness and providing a forum for discussion and questions. A big shout out to the Stonewall Speakers for an informative and wonderfully engaging presentation! (more on next page)

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Ohh baby, it’s cold outside, but not in the Dominican Republic! The summer mission trip has launched - dates are July 1-9, 2017! A $500 deposit is due by January 30. This is a great experience for those who enjoy working as part of a team in a small group, playing with young children and who don’t mind a little heat. For more than twenty years, the Diocese of CT has sent a mission to the DR to help Santa Margarita parish in Santo Domingo run their summer vacation Bible school. St. Andrew’s has historically been a big part of making this mission happen. Let’s continue the tradition. Spanish speaking skills are helpful but not required. Youth group fun continues this Thursday evening, December 1, when HSYG comes together to bake and decorate Christmas cookies for the Tommy Fund, a group that helps young kids and teens with cancer enjoy a fun Christmas celebration. Thanks to Jordan and Jenn Ledyard for leading this project again this year! Yum! See you at 6:30PM in the church kitchen and get your artistic skills ready. Christmas Caroling - have you heard? Chef Mark is at it again! On Sunday, December 18, after the 9:30 service, hot soup and a sandwich will be available for your enjoyment and nourishment before we sing our hearts out at the nursing homes and rehab facilities in town. This is a multi-generational outing and is always a lot of fun. Bring your shaker and maracas, your A very special thank you to Jess Baycroft and Carrie Albert who have been hugely helpful in making high school youth group happen. We are a safe church and many (safe church) hands make light work! Are you an adult who is looking to help with our youth program? Join the fun! Sign up, show up, or just contact Mary for more info: [email protected]!

Mary Happening on Sunday On November 13 after Church School we made lovely Advent Wreaths. Thanks to all who participated and brought home your very own wreath! Please consider returning the small, green plastic candle holders after Advent. They can be reused. Unbelievably, they are $.75 each. I will place a bin in the church entry to collect them. Thank you in advance. Christmas Pageant! Come one, come all, O Come All Ye Faithful! On December 18 (Sunday a week before Christmas) at the 9:30 service our youth will put on the pageant: "The First Christmas." The pageant will become the first half of the worship service. We are in the process of figuring out rehearsal dates (there will only be a couple). One rehearsal will take place instead of church school on December 11. Please let Shelby know if your child is interested in participating. There are parts suitable for all interest levels and ages. We also need parent helpers too! There is a sign-up sheet on the NEW youth bulletin board in Farmer Hall or send an email to [email protected]. Please join in on the fun of this time-honored tradition.

Shelby

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Music at St. Andrew’s: December, 2016

As we watch and wait for Christ’s birth, we make music to anticipate and glorify his coming. This year, we do something slightly different at St. Andrew’s: we emphasize the joy in the anticipation of Advent just as much as the penitential part of the season. Therefore, get ready to sing some celebratory hymns and songs, such as “Fill My Cup,” “Soon and Very Soon,” “Prepare the Way, O Zion,” and more! Anthems for 9:30 am Service throughout December 2016 (non-exhaustive list J): Sunday, November 27 Sunday, December 4 Sunday, December 11 Sunday, December 18

Advent 1 Advent 2 Advent 3 Advent 4

“Advent Kyrie” “Ain’t It Grand!” “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus” “A Star Will Soon Shine”

S&CC Jr. Youth Choir Sr. Youth Choir S&CC

Opportunities to Sing In Sr. Youth Choir in 2017: Our vibrant, hardworking, and boisterous youth choir has boy and girl singers from grades 3-9 with a current active membership of 12. Youth choir rehearsal prioritizes hard work and there is a special emphasis on sight-reading so that singers will learn to become independent musicians. Small-group auditions and an optional meet-and-greet (and sing! J) with the current choir will be held in early January. No prior singing experience necessary. Email Grant Underwood if your child is interested in singing: [email protected]. Adults – Make Singing Your New Year’s (Ministerial) Resolution! There’s room for you in the Spirit & Chancel Choir. We have some wonderful musicians and singers who are ready to sing by your side. Rehearsals are for a little over 60 minutes on Thursday night. Email Grant if you’re interested: [email protected].

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Volume 5 Issue 12

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Fun for Everyone but We Need Your Help

Holiday Fair Rings in the Christmas Season! Fun, food, gifts, pictures with Santa, music, holiday decorations, did we say ‘food?—you will find all that and more at the Holiday Fair on Saturday, December 3rd. From 9 am to 2 pm that Saturday the Christmas spirit takes over at St. Andrew’s—Farmer Hall, preschool classrooms, the choir room, narthex, even the sanctuary. This happily anticipated festive event kicks off the holiday season every year for many Madison residents. Fair Chair Maira Rieger and the many volunteers on her fair team hope that every parish family will find a way to join the fun. Sign-up sheets are in the narthex. Baked goods and savory items delivered on Friday, December 2 are especially welcome. Helping hands to decorate and set up the day before and clean up afterward are also needed. Different rooms need different kinds of new or gently used items. Containers are set up in Farmer Hall and donations will be accepted through Dec 1. Thank you for the many nonperishable donations already received!

Attic Treasures Check your attic and dining room. We can use pieces of china, good glassware, silver, brass, wrought iron, antiques, serving dishes, and home décor items. Theme Baskets Groups within the church often choose their own theme and create a unique basket. Or individuals can donate one of their own choice. Contact Alice Hencir or Chris Abbott to donate a theme basket. Tickets for the finished baskets are sold the day of the fair. Bottle Shop Anything that you can put into a bottle or jar: coins, candy, jam, lotion,

Bake Shoppe Kitchen goodies are needed! Pies are the #1 seller, followed closely by cakes and Christmas Shoppe breads. Also, we welcome sugar-free and We sell gently used Christmas and holigluten-free alternatives. Savory items are day decorations — for the tree, the house, also welcome – soup, chili, etc. Each famand the table. ily is encouraged to donate at least one baked good. Donations should be Jewelry, etc… dropped off on the day before the fair on Clean out your jewelry boxes and closet Friday, December 2. shelves to donate necklaces, pins, earrings, scarves, belts, Cookie Walk hats, gloves, purses and This is a new offering this small luggage items. year. Shoppers will be able to select from a variNearly New Books We can use children’s books, cookbooks, ety of homemade cookies. Lots of bakers are needed to make cookbest sellers, fiction and non-fiction. But please, NO magazines or encyclopedias. ies in advance. wine. Kids love buying bottles as gifts for their brothers, sisters and parents.

Tiny Tree Decorating Contest Fun for families and individuals of all ages! Pick up a "tiny tree" in late November from Brenda Naegel during coffee hour and bring it back decorated the day before the fair. Trees will be displayed the day of the fair so fair-goers can vote for their favorite. Prizes will be awarded and decorated trees will be donated after the fair to homebound parishioners.

All-Day Café and Music Enjoy coffee and treats all morning — and fabulous homemade lunch specials, too! Live music and streamed music will add to the ambiance this year. Elfie Selfies Kids and adults will have a great time posing as an elf and posting their selfies online to share with friends and family.

Wreaths Crafts Room Children will have fun making various craft projects. Parents can Wreaths—freshest of the fresh—will be on sale all day. assist their children here. Face painting also available. Handmade Gifts Vendors will display hand-crafted jewelry and hats. Photos with Santa No appointment necessary —9 am to noon, digital files will be emailed out..

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Finance Committee Report and Financial Update Monthly Income

Year-To-Date

YTD Budget

Annual Budget

Total Pledges 4% from Endowment Supplement from Endowment Fund-Raisers Other Income Total Income

17,964 5,355

148,387 53,550

177,530 53,550

213,040 64,260

332 23,651

20,000 13,814 4,212 239,963

50,000 20,830 4,580 306,490

60,000 25,000 5,500 367,800

Expenses

26,426

255,929

312,180

374,606

Difference

-2,775

-15,966

-5,690

-6,806

October 2016

Summary of November Vestry Meeting Stewardship. The Stewardship Committee plans to raise the visibility of stewardship by erecting a “giving tree” in the Narthex that would gain a star every time a parishioner turns in an Estimate of Giving. Outreach. The Vestry chose to spend down the $750 that remained unspent from this year’s $4,000 Outreach budget by donating $250 each to the Madison and Guilford food banks, and the Clinton Food Pantry. The $3,225 already spent from the Outreach Fund had gone to scholarships to attend Camp Washington, to Habitat for Humanity, and to pay the cost of shipping to Haiti shoe boxes of donated items organized by the Middle School Youth Group. Defibrillator. The vestry vote to accept a parishioner’s donation of a defibrillator. The life-saving device will be mounted on the wall of Farmer Hall. Renting Out of Farmer Hall. Senior Warden Gary Naegel said he would look into what other venues in town are charging to rent facilities similar to St. Andrew’s recently renovated Farmer Hall. The church currently charges $100 to rent the hall for four hours. Introducing Shariya to Other Churches. A letter of introducing the Rev. Shariya Molegoda is being drafted and will be sent to the other clergy in the community. (Wardens’ Corner, from Page 1) surrounded by laws. And in the midst of all that stands faith, our deeply held personal convictions and conscience. All too often custom, money, law and faith conflict. And in today’s materialistic world faith may not prevail. The call of “Evangelism Matters” was for us Episcopalians to make our faith known, to remind the world that Christ calls us to love one another, to treat each other with dignity and respect. Only by sharing our faith can we restore faith as part of our culture and custom today. Stewardship is an act of evangelism. When we support St. Andrew’s, when we support the Episcopal Church in Connecticut, when we support The Episcopal Church, we are showing the world that we are committed to the importance of faith in our lives and in our culture.

Volume 5 Issue 12

Seen Around the Church

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The Messenger

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the monthly newsletter of:

St Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Madison, CT Phone: 203-245-2584 On the web: www.StAndrewsMadison.org Rev. Shariya Molegoda, Rector [email protected] Gary Naegel, Senior Warden [email protected] Barbara Gibbons, Parish Administrator [email protected] Grant Underwood, Music Director [email protected] Mary Merkle-Scotland, Youth Minister [email protected] Shelby Auletta, Church School Coordinator [email protected] David Mikus, Sexton [email protected] Anita Spear, Preschool Director [email protected]

Mailing Label

Come Worship with Us on Sundays Services at 8 and 9:30 Sunday School 10:15 - 11:00

Prepare for Advent, Practice Simplicity Copies of Practicing Simplicity with all your Heart, Soul, Strength, and Mind, a booklet published by Living Compass, can be picked up in the narthex. The booklet offers, for each Sunday in Advent, a reflection by clergy (Bishop Ian reflects on “Practicing Simplicity with All Your Strength” in week three). For each of the other days of the week there is one verse of scripture, followed by the editor’s reflection, followed by a space to add your own reflections. The guide encourages us, in this season of Advent, to live simply, slow down, and prepare for the true meaning of Christmas.

St. Andrew’s Church 232 Durham Road Madison, CT 06443