Treasurer’s Party• Fourth Sunday in Advent • Christmas Eve • Christmas Day

Treasurer’s Party

The evening of Tuesday, 18 December 2007, Diane and Greg Chase hosted the annual Treasurer’s Christmas Party at their lovely home. There were 16 people who made it down the hill to attend. This summary is not for the lucky 16. They know what a great time we had. This is for the rest of you who did not make it. Where to start? Well, the party was to be coffee and dessert. Be assured that the desert was sufficient that your Beadle and Deputy Beadle who came straight from work did not feel the need for dinner afterwards. Neither of the Chases drink coffee. In fact up until the party, they did not have a coffeemaker. Now they do and under the personal tutelage of Command Master Brewer Macauley and Father Acker, they may not like to drink coffee, but they can certainly make wonderful coffee, a special Christmas Blend was served and it was worthy of the feast.

There were several kinds of cakes, cookies and nuts, as well as other snacks. As to drinks, there was champagne, wine, various and sundry adult beverages and for the Beadles, two kinds of sparkling apple juice, plain – which is not so plain, and cranberry – apple which is really special.

Most of all there was a wonderful time had by all, we got to talk, visit and snack in a festive environment. We not only got to see Nelson, the Chase’s son who is working towards being an Orthodox priest, but spend time their daughter Ashley and her new husband Steven. We also met Greg’s guinea pigs.

All in all, a wonderful time.

Thank you Diane and Greg!

The Fourth Sunday in Advent

Today was the Fourth Sunday in Advent. The sunrise temperature Mount Olympus was a windy 51°F with a little more than mild winter Santa Ana. Down the hill at church, skies were clear, visibility unlimited, the wind calm and the temperature 60°F. With an incredibly beautiful day, we had 24 people present.

Father Acker’s Pre-Service Class – The Church Calendar
There are many calendars, some are familiar, others we follow without thought, some are important, some are not. Because today we distribute our parish calendars, we are going to discuss the Christian, Church or Liturgical Calendar.

The liturgical year, also known as the Christian year, consists of the cycle of liturgical seasons in Christian churches which determines when Feasts, Memorials, Commemorations, and Solemnities are to be observed and which portions of Scripture are to be read. Distinct liturgical colors appear in connection with different seasons of the liturgical year. The dates of the festivals vary somewhat between the Western (Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Protestant) churches and the Eastern Orthodox Churches, though the sequence and logic is the same. In both the East and the West, the dates of many feasts vary from year to year, though in almost all cases this is due to the variation in the date of Easter, and all other dates follow from that. The extent to which the fasts and festivals are celebrated also varies between churches.

The purpose of a liturgical year is to bring to the minds of believers the teachings of the Gospel ad the main events of Christian history in a certain order. It aims to orient our prayer in a particular direction and provide a channel, which is both objective and artistic. Each liturgical feast renews and in one sense or another actualizes an event from the past and brings immediacy to it. The liturgical year is an aid to our union with Christ.

The Book of Common Prayer has tables in the front of it to calculate the days of Movable and Immovable Feasts: together with the Days of Fasting and Abstinence, through the Whole Year.

The year has two cycles, that of Incarnation and that of Resurrection, Christmas and Easter. Christmas is an immovable feast, always celebrated on 25 December. Easter , the Resurrection is a movable feast from which all other movable feasts take their timing.

The church year divides up like this:

Time of the Incarnation
Advent Four Sundays of preparation for Christ’s coming
Christmas Twelve days of Jesus’ coming
Epiphany The revealing of Christ to the Gentiles

Time of the Resurrection
Lent Preparation for Christ’s saving work
Holy Week culminating in Easter Christ’s saving work
Pentecost and after Trinity Living a Christian life

During the year we celebrate the Heroes of the Church, days of remembrance of particular saints. These are Red Letter days, days where we celebrate:

Sundays – The weekly celebration of the resurrection, Easter every week
Holy Days
Major Saints

Our vestments and altar take their “styling cues” from the colors of the liturgical year:

White/Gold Festal for purity & light (non-martyrs)
Jan 1 Circumcision
Jan 6 Epiphany
Red Holy Spirit & Blood of the Martyrs
Jun 11 St Barnabas
Jun 24 St John Bpt
Purple Preparation for our King (penance & intercession)
Jun 10 1st BCP
Green Ordinary or Growing Time
Rest of Jun
Black Mourning (Good Friday, All Souls’, Burial)
Nov 2nd All Souls’ transferred to 3rd

Minor Saints with liturgical color for the day.

The season we are in right now, Advent, uses violet or purple.

Alice Acker read the Epistle for today, which came from Paul’s first letter to the Philippians, starting at the Fourth Verse of the Fourth Chapter.

Paul calls on us to “Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.” We are to lead the world to Christ by example, to “Let (y)our moderation be known unto all men.” In this Advent season, as always, “The Lord is at hand.” We are to worry about nothing, “but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” And in the words we find at the end of the Holy Communion Service, may “the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

The Gospel for today came from the Gospel according to Saint John, the First Chapter, beginning at the Nineteenth Verse. When the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? John the Baptist “confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias?

And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.

Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet? John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; he it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose.”

This is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet? John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; he it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose. These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Sermon - Today is only hell if you forget why you’re here.
The Jewish year is structured around three feasts: Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles. About the feast of Pentecost, (Penta – 50, 50 days after Passover) in the spring, John the Baptist was baptizing across the Jericho, near where the Allenby bridge links Israel to Jordan today. At the time, John was the center of attention in the area, the talk of the temple. No polished orator in puffy silver hair. Rather, a wild eyed fiery guy in a camel hide shirt, living on locusts. Approached by the religious “leaders” of the time, they asked sarcastically:

Who do you think you are? Silence
Are you the Messiah? I am not
Why are you doing this? Silence
Are you Elijah? I am not

Why Elijah?
Malachi 4: I will send before you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the father to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers. And if he doesn’t I will come and strike the land with a curse. THE END.

Elijah will appear first.

You’re not Elijah, then who do you think you are? Silence
The Prophet?

Dt18.15 Moses: After I’m gone one like me will arise & you’ll listen.
No!

So who are you? The voice of one crying in the wilderness…prepare the Lord’s way

If you are not the Messiah, Elijah, or the Prophet, why are you baptizing?

Baptism began with John; it was new. In Judaism there was ritual cleansing. Immersion for ceremonial cleansing. Baptism was more—it was a sign of repentance. John said, “I baptize you with water, but there standeth one among you…whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose.”

The question is, do you believe? If you believe God’s promise, if you believe Malichi, if you believe Moses, you see who is coming—God’s promised Messiah.

So, what are you looking for today? What are you looking for tomorrow? Can you see past the glitter, the endless Christmas Muzak, the commercial push for more and “better” gifts?

Can you see the ultimate gift? The gift that never stops giving. Can you see what God has given each of us? The Christ!

The Peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord

Come tomorrow night it is God’s gift to you we remember.

Chalice, Patten, and Ciborium
We blessed the new Chalice, Patten, and Ciborium given in loving memory of Katie Benjamin. The Chalice was consecrated by Bishop Richard Boyce earlier this month in Seattle to be ready for Christmas. Father Acker had been bringing the church to Katie for many years. While she could not make it to church, she loved the church, the body of believers, the body of Christ. As you take communion with bread from the Patten and wine from the Chalice, remember Katie. She remembers you.

Birthdays and Anniversaries
There were no reported anniversaries today. We joyously celebrated Fran Dexter’s 65th birthday today.

After Church Hospitality
Stephanie Boyd brought the goodies today; what a lovely selection: veggie plate, chocolate cookies, two kinds of nut cups and the best of all, white Christmas snowflake cookies, your Beadle’s favorite!

Sadly there are no pictures of the congregation sitting around enjoying the snacks because your Beadle was enjoying the snacks so much! We do have a picture of people hanging about the almost empty table, not willing to give up.

Command Master Chief Brewer Macauley handled the coffee on behalf of Tim’s House of Coffee. Today’s coffee was the special Christmas blend. Father Acker got up early enough to make his famous low carb lemonade, a sacrifice much appreciated by your Beadle.

Church Signs
Not only did Father Acker get up early enough to make the lemonade, he and Ben got up early enough to get our Christmas Eve Service signs up before the service. This was no small accomplishment, the square sign top is 15 feet of the ground. Thanks Ben and Father Acker!

New Nametags
We had no new nametags today.

People in our Prayers
If you are on our prayer list, or you have submitted a person for us to pray for, please update Father Acker in person, by telephone or e-mail. It helps to be able to pray specifically for these individuals including their specific needs; plus if they get better, it is good to give thanks!

Please note that on the green cards at church, you can ask that those to be prayed for have their names disseminated to the “prayer team”, those names will be said in church and appear here. Or, your can ask that the names and purpose be kept confidential, then only Father Acker will know to pray for them.

Travel
Ken is on travel this week.

Sick or in need of healing

Illness
Annie, Salvador (cancer), Betty, Marge, Fran (poison oak), Kathy, Richard, Christian, Trish, Marie, Wanda, Karen, Lois, Jennette, Linn, Gary, Delores, Anna, Ruth, Theresa, Melanie, Connie, Tom, Crystal, Thomas, Hadley, Diane, Norm, Gregory, Betty, Terri, Mary, Edward, Bert, Joseph, Jesusa (difficult pregnancy), Michele, Kevin, Bruce, Susanne

Guidance
Christiana, Alex, Breyana, Vie, Asha, Cory, Heather, Holly, Ken, Maruja, Stella, Shelly, William, Joe, Alexander, Jonathan, Phil, Sandy, Larraine, Brad, Brian, Cindi, Uni, Jennifer, Greg, Rick, Carol, Susan, Curtis, Stephen, Chris, Andrew, Alex

Homebound/Aged and Infirm

 Mary, Donna, Betty, Noko, Adelaide, Evelyn, Lorraine, Ellie

Armed Forces & Contractors
Tillman, Patrick, Justin, Evan, Jim, Jason, JR, Matt

Back Door Lending Library
We have some new Amazing Grace books of several flavors, in addition, there are still several sets of the Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis, as well as some background books on the series. There are plenty of sets, so don’t be shy. There are also Annotated Holy Communion Books. These books have the Prayer Book Holy Communion service on the left page and an explanation on the right page. They are a great way to learn about the service. Pick one up when you come in and use it for the service, if you like.

Personal 1928 Books of Common Prayer & Bibles
During his many travels and general rooting around, your Beadle has come across some very nice personal 1928 Prayer Books, including a couple with Hymnals attached and leather bound Bibles. If you would like one, please contact him directly.

Question that only you can ask
What would you like to know about our history, what we believe, what we do or how we operate? Father Acker is looking for material for the continuing education class and the Beadle is looking for Thought for the Day material. Help us help you. Please send your question to the Beadle so we all can get an answer. Just because you don’t know the answer to your question doesn’t mean you are the only one who doesn’t know. But, if you don’t ask, no one will know.

I’d like to get a different point across or announce something
If you have a different point of view, I would be happy to give you room to get your point across. While this publication is my perspective on events, I recognize not everyone may agree and that some people would like to express their own opinion.

If want to write an article or make an announcement, please forward your item to the Beadle (with a note as to whether or not you would like editing help) to the following address: thebeadle@mac.com.

Christmas Message from Peter J. Akinola
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life - John 3:16

Christmas is here again despite all covert and overt attempts to wish it away. The celebration in remembrance of the love of God in giving the Saviour to the world is so important, it cannot be wished away.

Though few human beings rejoiced at the birth of the baby Jesus, the Gospels tell about multitudes rejoicing in the heavens, about a bright star leading wise men to worship the new born king, and they also tell about the trouble his birth brought to those unwilling to have him as their Lord and King.

The incarnation is the divine condescension. The birth of Christ which we celebrate is the decisive divine intervention into human history. By it, history is measured and judged. Before the birth of Christ, all of history is categorized as era ‘Before Christ’ (BC) and since then, we have been in the era of ‘the year of Our Lord’ (anno domini, AD)

Today, multitudes of human beings join the angels to rejoice. Christians shining as light lead many to Christ and there still exists, great trouble among those who would not have Jesus. Efforts to turn Christmas into a mere holiday season continue unabated all around us. ‘Christmas Greetings’ are replaced with ‘Season Greetings’ as if it possible to have a Christmas without Christ. ‘BC’ and ‘AD’ are changed to ‘BCE’ (Before Common Era), and ‘CE’ (Common Era) all in an attempt to conceal the fact that Jesus came to save an erring world from sin and eternal condemnation.

The cross of Christ which is the main reason we boast (Gal. 6:14) remains a stumbling block and a symbol of offense to those unwilling to receive God’s free gift of salvation. (Romans 9: 33) Under the guise of political correctness, symbols of Christianity in our daily lives and history are being challenged and subtly removed. All these subtle and calculated attempts of the non-believing world to mislead the unsuspecting believers and make them deny Christ should not deter us from celebrating for we are confident the efforts are bound to fail. As we celebrate Jesus’ birth this year, let us be mindful of the activities of the first celebrants; the joyous angels who while celebrating proclaimed the Good News to the shepherds.

We should also be bold to proclaim to an increasingly secularized world, the good news of the Saviour-born. We call on all Christians in positions of authority and indeed all ministers of the Gospel to vigorously resist attempts to remove Christ from Christmas and His centrality and importance in human history. We should be vigilant and avoid being misguided and misled by their seemingly innocent and socially acceptable philosophy. In being politically correct, we should not join in denying Christ his rightful place. Let all of us unashamedly proclaim the news of the greatest gift of all, the love behind the gift and peace the gift brings to all. Jesus the Christ is our Saviour, Lord, King and the best gift ever given by God to humanity. (John 3:16)

May God incarnate, give you true joy as you celebrate Him this Christmas and throughout the coming year.

Every Blessing,

Signed

Peter J Akinola, CON, Archbishop, Metropolitan and Primate of all Nigeria


Christmas Eve

The weather on Christmas Eve was textbook Southern California, low 60°sF, clear and calm. It does not get any better than this. All this and the coming of the Lord! What more could you ask. With the almost perfect weather, we ended up with 20 people for the carols and service.

This seems a pretty low turnout, but several factors came into play. A number of our congregation do not drive at night, two families were working, several were sick. We wish everyone could have come. We had such a great time, we kind of feel guilty.

Christmas Carols
Father Acker and Jack Arnold (Ack & Jack) played Christmas carols on their guitars until our lovely organist Marianne arrived. Marianne had to work until just before the service, so she played for the last about one third of the carols.

It was really fun to get a chance to sing together, making a joyful noise unto the Lord!

Ben Lizak read the Epistle for the morning, which came from Paul’s letter Titus beginning in the Eleventh Verse of the Second Chapter. “The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.” Paul tells Titus to do what is right, trust is God and worry not. Quoting a later author, “Trust in God and Dread Naught.”


The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.

Tonight’s Gospel is the narrative of the Nativity from the Gospel according to Saint Luke, the Second Chapter, beginning at the First Verse.

And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judæa, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judæa, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David: ) to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Sermon
Tonight Father Acker talked about the meaning of Christmas according to Charlie Brown. After discussing the Gospel According to Starbucks, it was refreshing to know that unlike Starbucks, Charlie understood the meaning of Christmas. This may seem irreverent to you, it was not. It is a simple summary of the event and its true meaning. Charles M. Schulz, the man who wrote the comic strip was a practicing Christian.

A Charlie Brown Christmas
Charlie Brown finds himself depressed at Christmas time, searching for the true meaning of the holiday amidst the glitz and commercialism of the modern age. He finds his answer in the passage from Luke that we read as our Gospel:

"And there were in the same country shepherds, abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them! And they were sore afraid ... And the angel said unto them, "Fear not! For, behold, I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all my people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ, the Lord."
"And this shall be a sign unto you: Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." And suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude of the Heavenly Host praising God, and saying, "Glory to God in the Highest, and on Earth peace, and good will toward men."

"That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown." - Linus Van Pelt

Those of you who joined us for the sermon got a bit of humor and the sense of the moment, those of you who only read this will have to take the Beadle’s word for it, the sermon was well done and to the point. We by the grace of God are the beneficiaries of the Saviour, Christ the Lord!

After Church Hospitality
After announcing there would be no post service goodies at the Sunday service, Alice Acker broke down and brought chocolate chip cookies. If you have never had her chocolate chip cookies, take the Beadle’s word for it, they are horrible. Not to worry, your Beadle will dispose of them for you so you will not have to worry about it. On the other hand, if you are not incredibly gullible, you will recognize them for what they are, the best chocolate chip cookies on earth. Now, if she would just make them with butterscotch chips. Hmm.

New Nametags
At our Christmas Eve service, we finally got photographs for Wes and Hy Barrett, who have been married 45 years and have four children and three grandchildren. They join us from Pine Valley, California.

Christmas Day

Our Christmas Morning service was at Victoria Chapel. The 0930 service was originally scheduled for those who were uncomfortable driving at night, but drew those who awoke early. The weather was incredibly beautiful, there were only four present, but the service did not suffer for numbers.

Jack Arnold read the Epistle for Christmas Day, which came from the Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews, beginning at the First Verse of the First Chapter.

God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? And again, when he bringeth in the first-begotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: they shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; and as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.

The Gospel for today came from the Gospel according to Saint John, the First Chapter, beginning at the First Verse. This particular Gospel is known as the Last Gospel as it comes from the last Gospel to be written, that of St. John, and it brings the final Word of Jesus to us.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Christmas Sermon
The Christmas sermon was short and to the point. In the Book of Genesis at the beginning of the very first chapter, we read:

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

Jesus is that light that the darkness of this world needs to see what is about it. Without the everlasting and ever penetrating power of Jesus’ light we are in and will stay in everlasting darkness.

Imagine the power a single candle has in utter darkness. Now imagine the power of our Lord and Savior in the darkness of your life and those around you.

Christmas Point to Ponder
“If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer. But our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior.” Unknown

Christmas Dinner

The Alpine Ministerial Association sponsors a Christmas dinner at the Alpine Community Center at noon on Christmas day. The event is for those who have no “place” to go, no family to be with. It gives a sense of family to those who have none close by. The local Boy Scouts provide much of the “service”. This year Father Acker brought the Free Teen Guitar Class to provide music for Christmas Carol singing before the meal. Father Acker, Ashley Turner and Jack Arnold played a variety of songs.

The attendees sang along and loved the chance to see the kids and talk to new faces.

We had ten members of our congregation there in support of this event. If you were one of them, you know what it feels like to make a difference. Thank you. You also know what it feels like to have a great time.

Why are we here?
When you look around, see who is making a difference. Our little church, small as we are, is making a big difference in the world around us. But for the extraordinary effort of Father Acker, the kids would not be learning guitar; they would not be choosing church music to bring to Jam Session Night; they would not be getting up early to play carols for those with no “place” to go and no “one” to share with. We are very blessed to have Father Acker as our priest. He does not do all this himself, he would be the first to tell you . We are also blessed to have parishioners’ complete backing, some might say prodding, supporting the effort all the way. This is not a one man band, unless you understand who the MAN is. But, we all work together to make it happen. In this season of great joy, we thank you all for making it so.

Epistle Readers
We post the list of Epistle Readers in the Beadle’s Report each week so you can either plan your attendance or your pre-reading as the spirit so moves you.

Date Reader

30 December 2007 Alex Boyd
6 January 2008 Stephanie Boyd
13 January 2008 Greg Chase
20 January 2008 Ben Lizak
27 January 2008 Holly Lizak

The near future, as well as Next Sunday
Next Sunday is the First Sunday after Christmas and there is a lot going on in the next little bit. Next Sunday, Father Acker will be starting a new class series. Or, maybe he will talk a bit more about the liturgical year. You need to come to church to find out before the Beadle’s Report comes out.

12th Night Celebration
On Saturday, 5 January 2008, the 12th night of Christmas, we’ll have a burning of the greenery for the lighting of the Epiphany at Victoria House. Bring a piece of your dry Christmas greenery to add to the brazier (no more than 6 inches with the fire danger). If you don’t have any, we’ll have some extras. After the service we’ll have dessert and sherry to close our Christmas season and welcome Epiphanytide.

See you next week on Sunday!

Father Acker posts a .pdf version of the current Beadle’s Report on the church website:

http://alpineanglican.com/BeadleReports.htm

An alternative version of the Beadle’s Report a single photograph and simple text is available at:
http://thebeadle.blogspot.com/

or with one photograph per issue and colorful text at

http://web.mac.com/thebeadle/iWeb/BeadleBlog/Blog/Blog.html

All back issues of the Beadle’s Reports are available on request from:

thebeadle@mac.com