Parish News
August 23, 2020
“Grace, mercy and peace be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ
the Father’s Son, in truth and love.” II John 3
Dear Friends,
I hope you are all doing well. There are several items I want to share with you this week…
Transitioning Back to In-Person Worship
Who, When, and Where
We are in the process of transitioning back to (somewhat) regular in-person worship. Tomorrow (August 23), there will be outdoor services are planned to be held in St. Brice’s back garden, at 9am and 11am, for any parishioners who want to come, whose surname begins with the letters A through L. As I write this, the weather forecast is for a “low” chance of showers, so we’re going to proceed. You might want to bring a comfortable chair. To be very safe, you might want to bring an umbrella!
On Sunday, August 30, there are outdoor services planned for 9am and 11am, for those whose surname begins with the letters M through Z. In the event of rain, these services will be cancelled. If skies look “iffy,” please contact the parish office or view the parish Facebook page.
These August outdoor services will be “Services of the Word” – not Holy Communion.
Alley Entrance (August); Prayer Books; Prayer Requests
As we will be checked when we arrive, please come to the garden for the August services through the alley which runs between King and Victoria Streets. Please observe safe physical distancing (2M; 6 feet).
We will not be handing out and taking back prayer books (the Book of Common Prayer and the Book of Alternative Services). In September and following, the liturgy will be displayed on the screen for the 11am services using PPT (PowerPoint) software. At this time, we will not be using PPT for the 9am services.
If you would like to borrow a prayer book, we will be lending copies to parishioners for their own use, from now until early January 2021. If you borrow a prayer book, please bring it with you when you come to Sunday services.
Many parishioners will recall that at the entrance to St. Brice’s, there is a prayer desk where we can list prayer requests – people we know who are sick, or who are travelling, etc. These prayer requests are incorporated into the Prayers of the People which are offered each Sunday. Now, instead of writing down prayer requests when we come, we will be asked if we have any prayer requests, when we arrive.
These are a few of the changes we are introducing this fall, to further reduce the chances of COVID-19 being spread as we gather together.
On-line Weekly Services
Since March 2020, the Deanery clergy have been offering weekly on-line services (thank you to Janet Parfitt for offering music). The last planned on-line service in this format will be Sunday, September 6.
We know that there will be some people who want to come together for worship; others are uncomfortable doing so at this time. We will continue to offer on-line services, but have not yet settled together on a format.
Option 1: Weekly diocesan services on rotation (Muskoka deanery one week, Temiskaming deanery the next…)
Option 2: Weekly deanery services on rotation within the deanery (St. Brice’s one week, Christ Church the next…)
Option 3: Video recording of St. Brice’s services
Option 4: St. Brice’s layreaders and me pre-recording a service.
I would like to see laity involved to a greater degree than has been the case.
I hope that we will be able to announce what we will be offering, by the end of this month.
Layreaders Conference
All laity will be welcome to participate in the on-line layreaders conference, which will be held the last weekend in September. Here are highlights of the proposed schedule:
Friday Evening
7:00PM Archbishop Anne Germond
7:30 PM Judy Paulsen, “Responding to the Gospel”
Saturday
9:30 On-line Worship
10:00 Jay Koyle: “Discerning One’s Gifts, then Break
11:15 Workshops:
A. “Funerals & Pastoral Care” Ven. Marie Loewen
B. “Prayer” Archbishop Anne Germond
12:00 Mid-Day Prayer & Lunch break
1:30 Workshops:
C. “Morning Prayer Liturgy” Ven. Glen Miller
D. “Preaching” Ven. Kelly Baetz
2:15 Closing
Please register by September 8, at carrieg2626@hotmail.com , or by leaving a message at the parish office. If you would like to participate but are uncertain about how to participate on-line, please register promptly to participate in the coaching.
Daily Bread Devotions
St. Brice’s recently received the new issues of Our Daily Bread devotions, in regular print and in large print. If you would like to receive a copy, please contact the parish office.
Message to the Local Church
God wants to communicate with us in all kinds of ways, and very often uses other people to get our attention. A parishioner had a word of encouragement to share with the congregation in this season. It can be found on the parish Facebook page.
Spiritual Development Committee
St. Brice’s Spiritual Development Committee will be meeting this coming Tuesday. If you have Agenda items, please contact the parish office promptly.
As St. Brice’s transitions back to its (somewhat) more regular rhythm, I will not be printing these weekly news updates as frequently. I intend to publish another one this coming weekend, but then will only produce more if we are affected by a “second wave” of the pandemic, or something else quite significant.
Thank you, and God bless,
Peter Armstrong