SUNDAY…
Rector’s Discretionary Fund, Sunday, December 20: Half the cash in our collection plate, and any designated checks, will go towards the Rector’s Discretionary Fund this day and on every third Sunday. This fund is a way to quietly help people with direct financial needs, in the parish and the wider community. Please give generously.
Christmas Pageant Practice, Sunday, Dec. 20, 11:30am: All Actors, Readers & Wranglers are invited to a practice session for our Christmas Eve pageant. We will order pizza to sustain our team, and will go no later than 12:30pm.
Come and help with the Greening of the Church! Sunday, December 20, after the 10am service: We will have fresh greenery, gifted by Jack and Ginny Dennis, and lovely poinsettias to place.
The Longest Night: A Liturgy of Light in the Midst of Darkness, Sunday, Dec. 20, 6pm. On December 20th, we will gather together out of the darkness of the season for a quiet, meditative worship service. Feel free to invite friends who might appreciate this time set apart to name the darkness in the world and in our lives, and prepare our hearts for the coming of the light of Christ. Contact Rev. Miranda at 238-2781 with any questions.
OPPORTUNITIES TO GIVE…
Kids for Kids: The children of St. Dunstan’s would like to raise enough money to buy a pair of goats for people in need around the world – a total of $160. Put your donation in the bank in the Gathering Area, or give online at donate.stdunstans.com!
Bring Christmas Cheer to St. Dunstan’s! Celebrate what’s important to you with a gift that helps us decorate for Christmas and honors a loved one or a special event. Please see the red Christmas Flowers sign-up sheet in the Gathering Area. Write “Christmas Flowers” on the memo line of your check or on the envelope containing cash. Suggested donation is $25.
THE WEEKS AHEAD…
Vestry nominations are open! Would you be interested in serving on our vestry, our church’s governing body? Is there someone else you think would be a great candidate? Job descriptions and a box for nominations are in the Gathering Area. Open nominations will run throughout December. We will be electing two new vestry members in January 2015. Wardens and Diocesan Convention deputies must be elected every year, so candidates for Junior and Senior Warden may also be nominated.
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services:
Family Service with Pageant, Thursday, December 24, 3pm
Festal Eucharist, Thursday, December 24, 9pm
Christmas Day, Friday, December 25, 10am
Calendar Notes:
- Miranda will be taking some time off after Christmas. Father John Rasmus will be available if anyone urgently needs to speak with a priest during Rev. Miranda’s absence.
- No Book Group on the 23rd. We’ll meet again on December 30th.
- No Watch Night service on December 31. Enjoy your New Year’s Eve!
- The church office will be closed December 24, 25 and December 31 and January 1st. Happy New Year to all!
Epiphany Service of Light, Thursday, January 7, 5:30pm: Join us as we share the story of the Wise Men who came to honor the infant Jesus, and of how the light of Christ has spread through time and space all the way to here & now! All are welcome. Talk to Rev. Miranda or Sharon Henes if you’d like to be a reader for this service.
Men’s Book Club, Saturday, January 9, 10am: “Crossing to Safety” by Wallace Stegner is the book this month. Tracing the lives, loves and aspiration of two couples who move between Vermont and Wisconsin, it is a work of quiet majesty, deep compassion, and powerful insights into the alchemy of friendship and marriage.
Due to the fact that the 2nd Wednesday in February will fall on Ash Wednesday, the Madison Area Julian Gathering will not meet in January or February. We will resume on March 9, 2016, at St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church, 6205 University Ave., Madison, WI, beginning at 7:15 P.M. All are welcome to join us for Still Prayer and conversation about Julian of Norwich, her life and writings.
Annual Parish Meeting, Sunday, January 24, 9am: Come to hear parish updates, including the 2016 budget, and help elect our parish leaders. All are welcome to attend!