Wednesdays in May & June
“Exploring the Psalms”
MAY AND JUNE, 2023
“Exploring the Psalms” was the theme for St. Paul’s latest weekly study group that met in May and June.
Folks gathered in Taylor Hall Wednesday nights at six for an hour-long session led by Father Jim.
Good discussion and fellowship were on the menu (not to mention snacks, including Mother Dee’s home-baked carrot cake).
Classes were held in person and on Zoom with a comfy-sized group of 8 to 10 attending each week. It was a relaxed join-as-you-can schedule with a different psalm-related topic each week.
Topics included:
* Looking for where we find psalms.
* Learning about how psalms came to be.
* Discovering psalm structure and rhyme scheme.
* Moving through some favorite psalms “up close” and in “slow motion.”
“Exploring the Psalms” was just the latest clergy-led class offered this past year. Past topics have included an Advent series and a Lenten series.
More study groups are planned for 2023. Come join us!
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FEAST OF THE PENTECOST & 100 YEARS WONDERFUL!
SUNDAY, MAY 28, 2023
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This year’s Feast of the Pentecost Sunday service was extra special as we welcomed one of our church’s oldest and most beloved members, Jane, back for a visit to celebrate her recent 100th birthday.
Jane and her husband, Stan, were longtime members and supporters of St. Paul’s. In fact, Jane served several decades as our church secretary (yes, you read that right… decades). Her exemplary Gal-Friday business skills not only kept our office running like clockwork, but also, as one of our past priests described in good humor, “kept us ALL in line.” (Now, that had to be a tall order, Jane!)
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Following the service, we enjoyed delicious party food–chicken salad sandwiches, chips, fresh fruit, cookies, birthday cake—good conversation, a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday” (complete with birthday candles), and lots of laughs.
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Birthday blessings to you, Jane!
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The flowers were red and you’ll see some folks wearing red in these pictures. Why? Click here to learn more about Feast of the Pentecost (Whitsunday).
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Check out our Service Schedule page for information about weekly services. Come join us!
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ST. PAUL’S ANNUAL MEETING & POTLUCK
SUNDAY, JANUARY 22, 2023
The annual meeting and potluck followed our Sunday service. Congregants, vestry, officers, and two of our clergy, Mother Barbara and Mother Dolores, attended.
As always, the food was plentiful and delicious, hamburger BBQ, salads, fresh fruit, finger foods, desserts, desserts, and more desserts!
Where We’ve Been – 2022
Hard to believe it was only last spring that we returned to in-person services after a winter of Covid. Since then, we slowly returned to “normal,” hosting fellowship events, offering special services, and community outreach.
Today, we thanked our congregants and vestry for their support and announced our new vestry officers. We also celebrated our worship team: three priests, two lay worship leaders, and lay Eucharistic visitors. We are blessed!
The Work Ahead – 2023
Our challenge in 2023 will be to not only keep up what we started in 2022 but to step up fundraising that went on the back burner during Covid.
The first fundraiser to come back will be our quarterly sandwich sale—and of course, sales of Weis and Giant gift cards will continue full steam ahead. Other ideas were discussed too. Stay tuned!
LOOK FOR THESE AND MORE EVENTS TO COME IN 2023…
Francis Fest, First Responders Breakfast, Monthly Special Services (Healing), Sandwich Sales, Polka Mass, Lenten Study Series. And More!
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God Bless Us Everyone!
Wrapping up the Year at St. Paul’s
The days may have grown shorter and the temperatures may have dropped, but the Christmas Spirit remained high in December at St. Paul’s in Manheim.
Wednesday Advent Study
The lights in Taylor Hall burned bright Wednesday evenings as members and friends gathered for Advent Study–a four-part series of group discussions led by Mother Barbara and Father Jim.
We tried our hand at offering the in-person classes on Zoom too–a hybrid approach which presented some technical challenges.
Many thanks to our clergy for leading us, to our members who came out in person, and to our Zoomers for hanging in as we continue to learn how to improve the Zoom experience!
St. Paul’s Manheim Shared Special Saturday Services
with St. Luke’s in Mount Joy
Saturday, December 3rd – Members from St. Paul’s traveled to St. Luke’s to join them for their monthly Taize service (beautiful by candlelight).
What is Taize? Taize is worship filled with prayerful song, scripture and meditation. It’s known for its meditative character.
Saturday, December 17th – St. Paul’s hosted its third Healing Service followed by a light lunch.
Our healing service includes music, prayers for healing, and anointing with holy oil using prayers from the Prayer Book as well as other alternative services.
All are welcome. (Keep an eye on Upcoming Events in 2023 for future healing service dates.)
Supporting Our Community–
Every Little Bit Helps
St. Paul’s continued its ongoing mission to support the Manheim Central Food Pantry by adding our individual non-perishable donations to our grocery cart each Sunday. It all adds up! Manheim Food Pantry served 137 households and 366 individuals in November.
Santa’s Elves Pay a Visit!
It’s a long-standing tradition at St. Paul’s to provide a helping hand to a local family or two with holiday gifts to brighten Christmas morning—2022 was no exception.
When the St. Paul’s Christmas tree went up in the Gathering Room this December, it included special “ornaments,” each with a child’s wish list item for Christmas. By the week before Christmas, the ornaments had vanished and gifts had appeared, all wrapped and ready to be delivered before Christmas morning. (There were even a couple gifts for Mom and Dad.)
Thank you to St. Paul’s members and friends for your generosity this December and throughout this past year.
God bless us everyone!
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Thanksgiving Arrives Early at St. Paul’s….
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2022
This year, we decided to try our hands at preparing a pre-turkey day meal for our neighbors at Ferdinand Home.
Brent Fortney stepped in as Chef-in-Chief to roast two donated turkeys and whip up some gravy as well as some homemade pies. Stovetop stuffing and mashed potatoes rounded out the carbs.
Senior warden Pam Heisey and Mother Barbara Seras were on hand to provide kitchen help and good conversation.
Add some traditional Thanksgiving veggie dishes donated and prepped by Andy and Tenille–corn, sweet potatoes, and green bean casserole—and this afternoon before Thanksgiving ended with delivering a delicious pre-turkey day feast for our neighbors to enjoy.
Happy Thanksgiving from St. Paul’s!
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St. Paul’s Welcomes Manheim’s First Responders–Appreciation Breakfast
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2022
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
— Fred Rogers
St. Paul’s welcomed Manheim Borough’s first responders and their families for an appreciation breakfast on Saturday, October 29th.
Where would our community be without our first responders?
The breakfast was an outreach event started in years past by St. Paul’s members John and Lillian Michael. We were fortunate to be able to offer it again after a year off due to the pandemic.
This year, the event was catered by St. Paul’s congregants and friends of the church, who rolled out of bed and rolled up their sleeves, starting before dawn, to prepare and lay out a hearty breakfast buffet that included scrambled eggs, French toast, bacon, sausage, potatoes, sweet rolls, fruit, pastries, coffee, milk, and orange juice. Yum! (Taylor Hall smelled amazing, folks!)
Kitchen crew included Andy, Brenda, Christine, Gery, Jay, and Tenille. Servers, greeters and clean-up crew included the above as well as Jeremy, Pam, Pauline, Rev. Barbara, and Rev. Jim.
All together, including take-outs for the 911 staff who were on the job, we served just under 40 guests. (And that didn’t count our own crew, who enjoyed some delicious leftovers after last call.)
Well done, St. Paul’s volunteers!
And our heartfelt thanks to our local first responders.
Hope to see everyone again next year!
Check out our Service Schedule page for information about weekly services. Come join us!
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St. Paul’s Francis Fest – Blessing of the Animals
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2022
“May Almighty God bless you with a Compassionate heart and teach you to strive towards that Peaceable Kingdom where all creatures, great and small, know the abiding Presence of Christ’s Love.”
We were blessed with a cool, crisp, sunny autumn day for St. Paul’s second annual Francis Fest. Pets and their animal-loving humans gathered in the church yard at 1 p.m. for the Blessing of the Animals, which was led by our own Mother Barbara Seras and the Rev. Bradley Mattson, Rector of Hope Episcopal Church.
Several canine guests came out in “person” to be blessed. Several more feline “blessees” attended by photo (not a bad idea considering we had one “Great Escape/Great Chase” and safe recovery last year).
Of course, no canine gathering would be complete without treats. Hors d’oeuvres included chewy beef-flavored treats for the pups and animal crackers for their humans. Also, thanks to “Sound Man” A.J. Robbins, we added recorded music to the celebration this year.
Songs included “All Things Bright and Beautiful” and “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands.” We also remembered and named in prayer our beloved pets who have died.
Pet food and financial donations were accepted for the benefit of The Pet Pantry in Lancaster. Check out their website HERE.
Francis Fest is part of St. Paul’s celebration of the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi (October 4th). Saint Francis was a friar, deacon, mystic, and preacher in thirteenth century Italy. He is known for his love of animals and all creation. Learn more about Saint Francis here.
Check out our Service Schedule page for information about weekly services. Come join us!
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St. Paul’s Welcomes Friends from Home on Ferdinand
JUNE 12, 2022
Rev. Dolores Smith was celebrant for this Sunday’s Holy Eucharist, and our special guest Nicole Millburn delivered an inspiring message about how she sees God at work every day in her job as Director at Home on Ferdinand.
We were also glad to see so many members of the clergy and their spouses joining us in the pews, including Father Jim, Mother Gail Tomei, and Mother Barbara.
AND WHAT ABOUT THAT CHURCH BBQ?
It’s true, the morning of our church BBQ dawned cloudy with a forecast of rain, but did that “dampen” our spirits? Perish the thought!
We moved the festivities indoors. (That is, it was indoors for everyone but Tenille, who volunteered to work the grill so the rest of us could enjoy hamburgers and hotdogs in Taylor Hall. Thanks, Tenille!)
We were thankful for this day. It was a great time spent sharing delicious summer food and good conversation with our neighbors from Home on Ferdinand.
Home on Ferdinand is part of a local ministry that provides transitional housing and other resources to families and individuals in need. To learn more about Home on Ferdinand and what YOU can do to help or donate, visit their website HERE.
Check out our Service Schedule page for information about weekly services. Come join us!
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Alleluia!
Christ Is Risen!
APRIL 17, 2022
Mother Barbara was celebrant for this year’s Easter Sunday service, which began with the Lighting of the Paschal Candle and the Easter Proclamation.
Easter service included a sermon delivered by Mother Barbara, music, readings of lessons and the Gospel, and a responsive reading (renewal) of the Baptismal Covenant. We concluded with a celebration of the Holy Eucharist.
Coffee hour followed in Taylor Hall.
Ever wonder why we renew our Baptismal Vows at Easter? Take a look HERE.
Please see our Service Schedule page for information about weekly services. Come join us!
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Sunday of the Passion
Palm Sunday – April 10, 2022
St. Paul’s was pleased this year to welcome the Reverend Canon Chris Streeter as our guest Preacher and Celebrant.
Palm Sunday service began in the Gathering Room with the Blessing and Distribution of the Palms. Congregants then processed from the Gathering Room around the front of the building to enter the church.
The service included a reading of the Passion Gospel with members of the congregation participating, a sermon delivered by the Rev. Canon Chris Streeter, and Holy Communion.
After two years of preventive Covid measures, St. Paul’s was glad to return to hosting Coffee Hour following the service.
Please see our Service Schedule page for information about weekly services. Come join us!
