Announcements for March 18

• Fish Fry is this Friday, March 23
  The Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s Lenten fish fry is Friday, March 23, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the undercroft. Tickets are $12 for adults; $5 for children; $30 maximum for a family. Take out meals will be available. All profits will benefit PADS. This year’s event will also feature jazz and blues entertainer, Smiley Tillman. Everyone is welcome. Bring your friends and neighbors! Sign up in church on Sunday or call the parish office by Tuesday, March 20, so we can get a head count.
  
  
• Vestry Meeting
  The vestry meets this Monday, March 19, beginning at 7:00 p.m. with Evening Prayer in the Church.
  
  
• Brunch Bunch This Sunday, March 18
  Everyone is invited to enjoy corned beef and cabbage at brunch bunch this Sunday, March 18, following the 10:00 a.m. service. Bring a side or dessert if you can, but most importantly, come!
  
  
• Little Hands – This Sunday afternoon, March 18
  All children of the parish (and friends) are invited to participate in the Little Hands outreach ministry. The next meeting is Sunday, March 18, from 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. We will set up rain barrels and do some outdoor clean up around the parish.
  
  
• A Plea for Yarn
  A plea for yarn donations for a group of elderly Japanese women from the tsunami ravaged fishing village of Shichigahamo, Japan. The yarn ministry group at St. John’s will be collecting yarn, new or partial skeins, knitting needles and crochet hooks for the next six weeks to send to the Yarn Alive Club in Japan. The article from the Wall Street Journal regarding the plea for yarn will be on display in the undercroft, along with a container for your donations through April 29th. For more information, please contact Mary Agnes Long or Sue O’Brien.
  
  
• Holy Family Organ Recital Next Sunday
  The Episcopal Church of the Holy Family will host a special organ recital next Sunday, March 25, at 3:30 p.m., followed by Choral Evensong, to honor the Annunciation of our Lord Jesus Christ to the Blessed Virgin Mary. All in attendance are invited to stay afterward for a casual potluck dinner in the Parish Hall. There is no charge, but goodwill offerings will be accepted. So, if you’ve never heard Holy Family’s magnificent pipe organ, why not give your ears this simple auditory treat.

Reflection for March 18

So we come to the central declaration, more central for Christian faith than even “The Word became flesh,” for that depends for its inexhaustible wealth of meaning on the actual mode of the incarnate Life. But here is the whole great truth. “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that everyone that believeth on him may not perish, but have eternal life.” This is the heart of the Gospel. Not “God is Love”—a precious truth but affirming no divine act for our redemption. “God so loved that he gave”; of course the words indicate cost to the Father’s heart. “He gave”; it was an act, not only a continuing mood of generosity; it was an act at a particular time and place (William Temple, Readings in St. John’s Gospel, commenting on John 3:16).

Announcements for March 11

• Parish Directories Available
  New, updated parish directories are available on the information tables.
  
  
• Daylight Saving Time Begins This Sunday
  Remember to set your clocks forward one hour this Sunday morning, March 11.
  
  
• Brunch Bunch Next Sunday, March 18
  Everyone is invited to enjoy corned beef and cabbage at brunch bunch next Sunday, March 18, following the 10:00 a.m. service. Bring a side or dessert if you can, but most importantly, come!
  
  
• Little Hands – March 18
  All children of the parish (and friends) are invited to participate in the Little Hands outreach ministry. The next meeting is Sunday, March 18, from 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. We will set up rain barrels and do some outdoor clean up around the parish.
  
  
• Catch Our Fish Fry!
  The Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s Lenten fish fry is Friday, March 23, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the undercroft. Tickets are $12 for adults; $5 for children; $30 maximum for a family. Tickets will be sold at the door, but please call the parish office by March 20th to reserve your spots. All profits will benefit PADS. This year’s event will also feature jazz and blues entertainer, Smiley Tillman. Everyone is welcome. Bring your friends and neighbors!
  
  
• Job Search Network Workshop
  The South Suburban InterFaith Job Search Network is hosting a special workshop next Tuesday, March 13, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at B'nai Yehuda Beth Shalom in Homewood. Entitled “From Hiring to Hired,” the program will be led by Faith Newman, Assistant Director of Human Resources at Olivet Nazarene University in Rolling Meadows. Admission is free and, if time allows, you can also have your individual resumes critiqued by an expert at no charge. The synagogue is located at 1424 183rd Street. For more details, call (708) 721-1219, or e-mail questions to Interfaithjobsearch@gmail.com. (Or corner St. John's liaison to the Interfaith Network, Rob McManamy.)
  
  
• St. Patrick’s Path – A Lenten Meditation
  Experience Celtic spirituality through the work and personality of its greatest advocate, St. Patrick. A quiet day hosted by the Episcopal Church of the Holy Family, Sauk Trail and Orchard in Park Forest, March 17, 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. The quiet day is facilitated by the Rev. Dr. David Moffett-Moore, pastor of St. Peter’s United Church of Christ, Frankfort, IL. Moffett-Moore is author of Life as Pilgrimage: A View from Celtic Spirituality. Suggested donation, which includes lunch, is $45. Email info@spiritchicago.org or call (708) 497-9699 to register.

Reflection for March 11

Looking into the faces of the great “masters of suspicion”—Freud, Marx and Nietzsche—[Paul] Ricoeur did not flinch. Yes, they were reductionists, denying the full range of power for religious symbols. But religion, said Ricoeur, urgently needs their furious efforts to “liquidate the idols.” Only through the most nihilistic and destructive criticism can people of faith be freed from idolatry to discover anew religious truth. “It may be,” said Ricoeur, “that extreme iconoclasm belongs to the
restoration of meaning” (Thomas G. Long, “Idol smasher,” Christian Century, March 7, 2012).

Announcements for March 4

• Parish Directories Available
  New, updated parish directories are available on the information tables.
  
  
• Catch Our Fish Fry!
  The Brotherhood of St. Andrew’s Lenten fish fry is Friday, March 23, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the undercroft. Tickets are $12 for adults; $5 for children; $30 maximum for a family. Tickets will be sold at the door, but please call the parish office by March 20th to reserve your spots. All profits will benefit PADS. This year’s event will also feature jazz and blues entertainer, Smiley Tillman. Everyone is welcome. Bring your friends and neighbors!
  
  
• Yarn Ministry
  We will meet this Monday, March 5th at 7:00 p.m. in the Guild Room at the church. If you are unable to attend the gatherings, we also welcome items you create at home. Our handy work is donated to a number of charities. All levels of experienced are welcome. If you would like to learn to knot, Sue O’Brien is willing to instruct. Yarn Ministry is not limited to just knitters, crocheters are also welcome. Hope to see you there.
  
  
• Lenten Study at St. John’s continues on Wednesday evenings
  Pastor Orr is offering a study course on Wednesday evenings during Lent again this year. This year’s topic is the Ten Commandments: Their Interpretation and Relevance in Contemporary Society. Classes take place in the church from 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. Each class will stand alone. Come to the whole series, or come whenever you can.
  
  
• Honoring Pastor Orr’s Ordination Anniversary
  Contributions in honor of Pastor Orr’s 20th ordination anniversary will be sent to her seminary, Virginia Seminary, to help rebuild the seminary chapel, destroyed by fire in October 2010. Contributions will be received in the undercroft or parish office through March 4.
  
  
• Faith in Films: Amish Grace on March 9
  The story of the strength of a community and their powerful commitment to forgiveness after a gunman kills five children in the Amish community of Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania. The film will be shown in the Guild Room, Friday, March 9, beginning at 7:00 p.m.

Reflection for March 4

An Exhortation
If we are to share rightly in the celebration of those holy Mysteries [the Holy Eucharist], and be nourished by that spiritual Food, we must remember the dignity of that holy Sacrament.... Examine your lives and conduct by the rule of God’s commandments, that you may perceive wherein you have offended in what you have done or left undone, whether in thought, word, or deed. And acknowledge your sins before Almighty God, with full purpose of amendment of life, being ready to make restitution for all injuries and wrongs done by you to others; and also being ready to forgive those who have offended you, in order that you yourselves may be forgiven. And then, being reconciled with one another, come to the banquet of that most heavenly Food (An Exhortation, Book of Common Prayer, p. 316-317).

Announcements for February 26

• New Mural in Children’s Worship
  This mural has recently been completed in the youth worship space. It reproduces the children’s stained glass window in the Prayer Corner (former baptistery) in the church. The text comes from Matthew 19:14 where Jesus says, Let the little children come to me, and forbid them not. The children will dedicate the mural next Sunday, March 4, during youth worship. Thank you to Tracie Moxley and Patti Pohrte for painting this wonderful gift to the children and the parish.
  
  
• Lenten Fish Fry Scheduled for March 23
  Mark your calendars for the traditional Friday evening Lenten fish fry, presented by the Brotherhood of St. Andrew. More details to follow.
  
  
• Chrism Day on March 3
  All people of the diocese are invited to join Bishop Lee on Saturday, March 3, at St. Paul and the Redeemer, 4945 Dorchester Ave, in Hyde Park for Chrism Day. The program begins at 9:00 a.m., followed by the Chrism Mass at 11:00 a.m.
  
  
• Lenten Study at St. John’s begins this Wednesday
  Pastor Orr will offer a study course on Wednesday evenings during Lent again this year. This year’s topic is the Ten Commandments: Their Interpretation and Relevance in Contemporary Society. Classes begin this Wednesday, February 29 and take place in the church from 7:00 – 8:30 p.m.
  
  
• Women’s Retreat
  It’s not too late to sign up for the Women’s Retreat! It is being held in Saugatuck, Michigan from March 2 – 4. Contact any of the Daughters of the King for more information or call Janet Irvine.
  
  
• Vestry Minutes Online
  Minutes from the December and January vestry meetings are now available online this newsblog. Click the label "Vestry Minutes."
  
  
• Celebrating Pastor Orr’s Ordination Anniversary
  Thank you to Susan Marquis, Cynthia Turnquest and everyone who contributed to a wonderful celebration of Pastor Orr’s 20th ordination anniversary last Sunday. Contributions in honor of this anniversary will be sent to Pastor Orr’s seminary, Virginia Seminary, to help rebuild the seminary chapel, destroyed by fire in October 2010. Contributions will be received in the undercroft or parish office through March 4.
  
  
• Lenten Quiet Day at Church of the Holy Family
  A Lenten Quiet Day will be held on Saturday, March 17, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at Church of the Holy Family, Orchard Drive and Sauk Trail, Park Forest. The Rev. Dr. David Moffett-Moor will be the conductor and will speak on Celtic Christianity as seen through the faith and practice of St. Patrick. Sponsored by The Spirituality Network of Chicago, the day will include meditations, time for silent reflection, small group sharing, and prayer. Lunch is included in the suggested donation of $45. (Scholarships are available.) To register, email info@SpiritChicago.org.