September 13, 2020

Dear Christ Church Parishioners,

Formation Hour begins this week! 

For adults, you may meet inside the Parish Hall where Father Dean Borgman will be presenting Christian Prophets & Bridgebuilders in a Time of Political and Social Polarization and Crisis.  This will also be broadcast on Facebook Live. 

For families with children & youth of all ages please join us outside in the courtyard where we will gather for opening remarks from Father Patrick and then break out into family pods, Middle School, and High School classes.

In-Person Worship is available Sunday, September 13 at 8:00 a.m. & 10:00 a.m. Please sign up to let us know that you will be on campus on Sunday. 

8:00 a.m. Rite I service offers an opportunity to worship INSIDE the Chapel.

9:00 a.m. Formation Hour inside the Parish Hall for adults. 

9:00 a.m. Formation Hour for Families with Children & Youth in the Courtyard for families.

10:00 a.m. Rite II service offers an opportunity to worship INSIDE the Church or OUTSIDE in the Courtyard or Parking Lot.  This service will also be STREAMED live on Facebook.

The bulletins can be found on our website (or click the service time above). If you’re planning on coming to campus, please print your own copy of the bulletin at home or bring a mobile device for electronic viewing.  (There will be a limited number of copies for parishioners without access to a printer or a device.)

Please keep the following people in your prayers this week: prayer list.  

On September 11, in memory of the fallen firefighters, police officers, and first responders who responded to their Last Alarm: O God, Supreme Lord of the universe and of all mankind, Who disposes all things in accord with Thy Divine Plan, heed our suppliant prayers in behalf of the brave first responders You have called forth from this world. May Your justice and mercy be extended to them in judgement so they may enjoy rest, peace, and happiness with you forever.

Pray for all those that lost their life on that day.
Pray for those that persecute you.
Pray for the babies that were born on that day; they were the light and the goodness of that day.

Future Forward for Haiti: Packathon 2020 is happening—in Huntley and Tom Skinner’s carport! We’ll pack in small, CDC-compliant groups this year, with sessions spread out over the entire month of October. If you are able, please consider joining us to make a big difference in the lives of the schoolchildren of St. Louis d’Ayiti, Haiti.  

Where: 9 Juniper St., Wenham MA

When: October 1 – 31

Who: Families and other “cluster” groups will register online for their own two-hour packing sessions. IMPORTANT: For groups of 1 – 5, please do not register online—contact Huntley Skinner directly to set up an appointment to pack. 

Details and registration: northshorepackathon.org

Readers & Writers Guild is meeting on Zoom September 18 at 7:00 p.m. Please contact Betsy Retallack for the Zoom link. [email protected]

New members are welcome to join Men’s LIFE Group on Zoom - Thursdays, 5:30 p.m.. Please contact Paul Mason for the link at [email protected]

Weekly Art Reflection: (image attached)

This is a wood engraving of the parting of the Red Sea by the German Romantic painter Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (1794-1872).  The standing figure just left of center is Moses, his right arm holding his staff, and his left arm pointing to the Egyptian soldiers and horses as they drown in the sea.  The most important figure in this story, however, is not Moses, but God.  He is represented by the pillar of cloud, seen just beyond Moses. It is God who has gone before his people, who has parted the sea, and who has led the people of Israel, in a great crowd to the right, relieved and grateful that, by his grace, they now stand on dry land.  This is one of 240 Biblical illustrations which comprise Schnorr’s book Der Bibel in Bildern (that is, The Bible in Pictures), published in 1860 as one volume comprising a series of 30 folios, each containing eight plates, which had been published over eight years beginning in October 1852.  Like many of Schnorr’s prints, this piece evokes the drama with which God moves in the lives of his people, calling us, too, to rejoice in the salvation which he offers.