Tag Archives: Holy Week

This Sunday (March 29, 2015) at St. John’s

Posted on by

This Sunday is Palm Sunday and Passion Sunday.  In other words, we’ll be on an emotional roller coaster.  We start in the courtyard, weather permitting.  The snow has melted and the daffodils surrounding St. Francis are beautiful.  We’ll bless our palms and wave them in joyous procession into the church, which will be cleaned and spruced up on Saturday.  We remember Jesus’ coming to Jerusalem, greeted by shouting and supportive crowds.

But just that quickly, the adoration fades and we hear of Jesus’ last days:  his trial, torture and crucifixion.  We leave him buried in the tomb.

Yet, we keep going….  We celebrate the Eucharist, Christ with us.  We remember ourselves in the crowds of Palm Sunday and in the crowds of the crucifixion.  Even in the midst of the sobering and awful story, we cling to the hope and certain knowledge of resurrection and the love of God and of Jesus Christ.

Blessings as you finish your week!

Love, Rebecca+

Plan a Holy and Sacred week with these important opportunities:

Schedule for Holy Week and Easter Services – Monday, March 30 – Friday, April 3

Monday & Tuesday, March 30 & 31, 7pm, Evening Prayer
Wednesday, April 1, 7:00pm – Stations of the Cross
Thursday, April 2, 7:00pm – Maundy Thursday Service with Eucharist, Washing of the Feet, and Stripping of the Altar
Thursday, April 2, 8:30pm – Friday, April 3, 6:00am – Prayer Garden Vigil
Friday, April 3, 6:00am – Morning Prayer
Friday, April 3, 7:00pm – Good Friday with Adoration of the Cross
Saturday, April 4, 1:00-3:00pm – Holy Saturday and decorate the church
7:00pm, Easter Vigil followed by Champagne and Chocolate Reception
Sunday, April 5, 11:00am, Easter Day Celebration, followed by Easter Egg Hunt for the Children

Southeast Kentucky Ministerial Alliance (SEKMA) Holy Week Services.

Lunch will be served at 11:30am and the service will begin at 12:15pm, at the following locations each day: 

Monday, March 30-Corbin Presbyterian
Tuesday, March 31 – Christian Care Communities
Wednesday, April 1 – Sacred Heart Catholic
Thursday, April 2 – Grace on the Hill, Methodist
Friday, April 3 – First Baptist Church (Corbin)

Schedule: Rebecca will be at St. John’s through Holy Week.  Her Sabbath day will be Monday.  You can get a message to Rebecca by calling the church office at 606-528-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

Pot Luck Sunday:  This Sunday, following Holy Eucharist, is our monthly pot luck meal.  Bring your appetite and a desire for fellowship.  All are welcome so please join us for fellowship and good food!

Easter Flowers: Donations are being accepted until this Sunday for flowers to decorate the church for Easter.  Use the donation envelopes and indicate whether the donation is “in honor of/in memory” of a loved one or a special occasion.  Donations in any amount will be accepted.

Pray Through the Night (Maundy Thursday into Good Friday):  Sign-up for a 1-hour slot to come to the church and pray.  We will be holding vigil right after the Maundy Thursday service, approximately 8pm through 6am Friday morning.  Bruce Cory will be at the church the entire time.  Morning Prayer will follow at 6am

2015 Goals:  The Vestry is considering adopting 3-5 goals for 2015 to reflect our mission statement.  Ideas include sacristy renovation; support of LGBT people, possibly through a chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) or ongoing support of Union College’s Gay/Straight Alliance; Support for people dealing with addictions and their families; opening up the amphitheater and park to church bands; providing our parish hall to other religious groups; more ecumenical church services.  What do you think we should be doing to put our mission statement into action?

Make a Covenant with St. John’s:  God has made unconditional covenants with us that God will always be with us, always be our God.  Likewise, through our annual pledge, we state our promise and obligation to the mission and work of the people of St. John’s Episcopal Church.  Our mission and work not only includes our worship, Grow Appalachia, and family game nights, but also God’s work in our region through our Diocese and in our nation and world through The Episcopal Church and The Anglican Communion.  If you’d like to make a covenant with St. John’s through a pledge, please see Rebecca or Gay Nell Conley.

Christian Care Communities Eucharist:  Join Rebecca as she celebrates Holy Eucharist at Christian Care Communities.  Elmer Parlier will be playing the guitar.  The service begins at 2:30pm and is 30-45 minutes and the residents would appreciate your attendance.

Church Parlor Space: The Vestry is considering how best to use the space that is now our Parlor.  Various ideas have included using the space as a welcome and information place, where information is available about St. John’s, our various ministries, and our members.  Another idea is to have a prayer space with candles that can be lit for specific prayer intentions.  If you have comments or other ideas, please see a member of Vestry or Rebecca.  

Belk Charity Sales Day:  Belk department store will be running a Charity Sales Day on Saturday, May 2, 6am – 10am.  Buy tickets for $5.00 to get into this special sale.   The church keeps the money and you get $5.00 off an item for each ticket you have.  The church will be selling tickets at Belk on Friday afternoon, April 3.

This Sunday (April 20 – Easter) at St. John’s

Posted on by

Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. Acts 10:34-35

This Sunday is the highlight of our religious year.  Despite our attempts to silence Jesus and keep him in the tomb, he rises to live forever.  What a joy to hear the words of Peter:  God is not partial.  God is for everyone.  Any person who fears God and does what is right is acceptable to God.  Simple words and not always easy to live by.  Yet, blessed words, because we must only be the best God created us to be.  We don’t have to live up to what anyone else thinks.  God loves us all.

Blessings during this Holiest of Weeks….

Love, Rebecca

Easter Day Bulletin

Good Friday Service – Eucharist from the Reserve Sacrament and Adoration of the Cross, 7:00pm
Holy Saturday – 1:00pm
Decorate the Church for Easter – 1:00-3:00pm
Easter Vigil – 8:00pm; followed by Champagne and Chocolate reception
Easter Day
10:00am – Brunch – bring your favorite dish to Share; Godly Play for the children
11:00am – Service with Communion
Egg hunt after church

Rebecca’s Schedule: Next week, Rebecca will be in Corbin on Thursday, April 24, and her Sabbath day will be Friday, April 25.  You can reach to Rebecca by calling 859 -429-1659 or priest-in-charge@stjohnscorbin.org.

Flowers for the altar: The flowers on the Altar are given to the glory of God and to the memory of Mr. & Mrs. George M. Golden, Mrs. R. Hollifield George, Thomas R. Hollifield, Mrs Jacqueline Golden Cooper and Mr. & Mrs. Coy Hart by Mr & Mrs. Jerry Hollifield.  Easter flowers are also given in memory of John & Elizabeth by Sue Weedman, in memory of Robert & Mary Ann Myers by the Rev. Rebecca Myers, in memory of Keith Snider by the Swinford family, in memory of Anne & Lamar Jones and Pat & Cecil Davis by Anne Day and Jeff David, by Mrs. Thalia Harris and in memory of William R. & E. Irene Fink by Bruce W. Cory.

Easter Egg Hunt  There will be an Easter Egg Hunt for the children after the service on Easter.

Pot Luck Sunday:  Next Sunday, April 27, is our monthly pot luck.  Bring a dish or drink to share.  And all are welcome!  Plan to fellowship with each other.  

Adult Forum: Adult Forum will resume next week with a 7-week Easter series on Resurrection Living, using a Forward Movement pamphlet by Christine McSpaden.  Mary Swinford will lead the first session on Luke 24:5, Why do you look for the living among the dead?

St. George’s Day, Saturday, April 26, Cathedral Domain.  Mary Swinford will be confirmed at the 3pm service.  Spend the weekend or come for the day.  Reservations for overnight must be received by April 18.  Meals are included in the overnight stay or can be purchased separately if you are coming for the day.  You are also welcome to bring your own food and have a picnic on the grounds.  http://www.cathedraldomain.org/stgeorge2014.html

Belk Charity Sales Day:  The Belk Charity Sales Day will be Saturday, May 3rd from 6:00am to 10:00am.  Ticket may be purchased for $5 tickets from our ECW, which allow you entrance to the sale and $5 off your purchase.  We are trying to sell 100 tickets, which provides $500 for the church and tremendous savings for you!

We’re buying goats!  The Lazarus at the Gates Adult Forum study has prompted us to purchase goats through Episcopal Relief and Development for families in the Philippines.  Goats provide milk, cheese, and manure for farming.  Donations towards the $80 purchase of each goat can be made through the goat bank in the parish hall or in the offering plate clearly marked ERD goat project.

United Thank Offering (UTO) is a ministry of the Episcopal Church for the mission of the whole church. Our ingathering of your UTO offerings will be Sunday, May 11.  Remember to bring your offering that day AND to pick up another box for the fall ingathering.    

The meal of Love (Sermon) April 17, 2014

Posted on by

Sermon – April 17, 2014
The Rev. Rebecca S. Myers, CSW
St. John’s Episcopal Church, Corbin, KY
Maundy Thursday

I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.  John 13:34-35

My mother’s parents lived 300 miles away from us.  They came to visit us at least once or maybe twice throughout the year.  Once each year, usually in the summer, we’d travel to see them.  Sometimes we took the Greyhound bus, which was a LONG trip.  Other times we drove.  The standard dinner on the night we arrived was spaghetti with meatballs.  The sauce would have cooked all day.  How my grandmother never burnt that sauce, making it on an electric stove, I’ll never know.  I cheat and make it in a crockpot.  The sauce was very simple – tomatoes and tomato paste.  There weren’t a lot of spices, but there was a secret ingredient that was never written down in the recipe and that I learned only when I actually watched my grandmother make the sauce…it was baking soda – just a tiny bit to neutralize the acid in the sauce.

The meatballs were wonderful with parsley and romano cheese and a little egg in them.  They were individually fried in olive oil and added to the sauce.  The meal included additional freshly grated cheese, as well as a loaf of my grandfather’s homemade Italian bread, baked early in the morning.

The table would be set with a clean, white table cloth – can you imagine kids and spaghetti sauce and a clean white tablecloth?  My grandmother had the whitest whites you can imagine.

Spaghetti and meatballs was the dinner of love…the dinner of welcome.  That’s probably why my favorite thing to do on a Sunday evening when I’m in Lexington is go to Joe Bologna’s and get their “all you can eat” spaghetti.   It’s the closest I’ve found to the taste of my grandmother’s food.  It reminds me of her immense love for her family and her joy in seeing us and welcoming us to her home.  

This evening, we hear about Jesus taking a ritual, annual meal and giving it new meaning.  Jesus takes simple parts of the meal – bread and wine – elements included in the most basic of meals, and infuses new symbolism in them.  These elements represent the ultimate love of God for all people – Jesus’ body and blood…the very essence of life… given to save us…given out of deep love for us.  

Whenever we see these common elements, we are reminded of Jesus’ love for us.  When we gather together in Jesus’ name, bless and make these common elements holy, Jesus is present, binding us together into one.  

A document and teaching of the early church, possibly as early as 150 years after the death of Christ, says this:   As this broken bread was scattered upon the mountains and being gathered together became one, so may Thy Church be gathered together from the ends of the earth into Thy kingdom;(Didache 9.8, http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/didache-lightfoot.html)

The meal…this simple meal of bread and wine, has bound us and all those before us, to that first meal in that upper room in Jerusalem.  It binds us in community to each other and to Christ, just as it bound the disciples to Christ.  It reminds us that the everliving Christ is right here in our midst and nothing can separate us from the love of God.  It reminds us to be Christ to the world, to love one another like Christ has loved us, so all will know we are Jesus’ disciples.

Amen