THIS WEEK….
All-Ages Worship, “Cookie Church” Style, Sunday, Sept. 1, 10AM: Our 10am worship on September 1 will follow the structure of “Cookie Church,” our seasonal evening child-centered worship. Come get a taste of Cookie Church! Note: This will be more of a departure from normal Sunday worship than our regular monthly All-Ages Worship! Our 8am worship will follow our regular order of service.
Blessing of the Backpacks, Sunday, September 1: Students (and teachers!) of all ages are invited to bring backpacks, laptops, etc., to be blessed in this service, as we pray for our schools and universities. Blessed backpack tags will be available on Sunday, Sept. 8, as well.
Birthday and Anniversary blessings and Healing Prayers will be given this Sunday, September 1, as is our custom on the first Sunday of the month.
MOM Special Offering, Sunday, September 1: Next Sunday, half the cash in our offering plate and any designated checks will be given to Middleton Outreach Ministry’s food pantry. Here are the current top-ten, most needed items: canned chicken, shelf-stable milk, whole grains; salt, pepper, spices; laundry detergent; vanilla or other extracts; low sugar dried/canned fruits; cooking oil; honey; nuts. Thank you for your generous support!
Game Night at St. Dunstan’s, Friday, September 6, 6pm: Join us for an evening of games for all ages. Friends, partners, kids – all welcome. Bring a snack to share, or come as you are!
Financial Update: As of the end of July, our parish finances look good. Both income and expenses are running very close to budget, and income exceeds expenses. Look for a more detailed overview of our parish finances in September/October. Keeping the everyday finances of a church in good shape during a capital campaign can be a stretch; it says a lot for the generosity and commitment of this community of faith that we are on a solid financial footing.
COOKING FOR HEALING HOUSE: Volunteers Wanted! Imagine you have just delivered a baby and your family is homeless. The shelters are only open at night. You are on the street with your newborn and other children for 10 hours a day. You have no safe place for your newborn to sleep. Until recently, Dane County had no place for homeless families to recuperate after medical procedures. Healing House is a new facility that offers 8 beds for people in need of a safe place to heal and recover, with food, medical support, and case management onsite. Healing House residents need meals, and that’s where you come in! We are exploring whether St. Dunstan’s members would like to help with meals at Healing House. The commitment would be one week of dinners for 10-12 people, 3 – 4 times a year. We’re asked to send folks to Healing House to serve the meal three nights during the week, and to simply bring ready-to-serve meals for the rest of the week. Would you like to prepare a meal for Healing House, a few times a year? If you’re interested, please email Rev. Miranda or sign up on the interest sheet in the Gathering Area.
THE WEEKS AHEAD…
The Wednesday Morning Book Group is meeting off campus during construction. The location tends to vary. If you are not on the email list and would like to, please call or email Valerie McAuliffe. The group is currently reading The Second Mountain by David Brooks. You more than welcome.
Buildings & Grounds Meeting, Monday, August 12, 6 – 8pm: All interested folks are invited to Buildings & Grounds meetings (usually on first Mondays). We usually do small tasks around the building from 6 – 7, then meet to discuss needs & plans at 7pm.
Helpers Needed – Edgewood in the Community, Wednesday, September 25, 9:30am-2pm: Edgewood High School will be sending 20 students to St. Dunstan’s to do yard work as part of their community service. If you would like to work with a small group of students and help direct them, please talk to Rev. Miranda or email John Ertl . Thanks!
Guests Worshiping With Us, Sunday, September 8, 10am: Some participants in the Wisconsin Faith Voices for Justice Sacred Sites program will visit St. Dunstan’s on Sunday, September 8, during 10am worship. The Sacred Sites groups have been visiting faith communities all over Madison to increase interfaith understanding and connectedness; several St. Dunstan’s folks have been participating. Please help welcome our guests!
Madison-Area Julian Gathering, Wednesday, September 11, 2019, 1pm We welcome everyone who is interested in learning more about contemplative spirituality in the Christian tradition. We meet the second Wednesday of the month for a period of contemplative prayer, after which we discuss a reading from Julian of Norwich, a 14th Century English mystic who has been called “a theologian for our time.” We would love to have you join us. If you have questions, contact Susan Fiore, ObJN.
Saturday Book Club, September 28 at 10am: A Good American Family by David Maraniss. Elliott Maraniss, David’s father, a WWII veteran who had commanded an all-black company in the Pacific, was spied on by the FBI, named as a communist by an informant, called before the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1952, fired from his newspaper job, and blacklisted for five years. Yet he never lost faith in America and emerged on the other side with his family and optimism intact.
Green Habits Challenge Badge, July – September 2019: Part of our parish Creation Care Mission Statement invites us to pattern our daily lives as caretakers of Creation. Many of us are trying to make our daily habits “greener”, so let’s try together! Pick up a green leaflet under the big calendar in the Gathering Area or go to stdunstans.com/faith-practices/green-challenge-badge-summer-2019/ to see a list of eleven changes and challenges you could undertake. Complete five by the end of September to earn a badge!