January 17, The Second Sunday After Epiphany
Wednesday, January 13, 2016 at 10:32AM
COA Admin

 Daily Scripture Readings;  bookofcommonprayer.net/daily_office.php

See the different options.  There is full morning and evening prayer.  There is also the option of the readings only.  There is also an app for receiving the daily readings by email, or on a mobile device

 Sunday Scripture Readings:  bookofcommonprayer.net/lectionary.php

Set it for 1979 Contemporary, and the Bible version used in Church is Revised Standard Version

 

Anglican Rosary:  Saturday, January 16,  9:00 a.m

The Anglican Rosary devotional group meets Saturdays at 9:00 a.m. in the Church.  Everyone is welcome.

 Coffee Hour:  January & February 2016

It is time to sign up for helping to host Coffee hour for the next two months.  It is really quite easy.  Fr. Bob makes the coffee down stairs and brings up the air pots.  The coffee hour hosts bring snacks for people to share, and help with the clean up at the end.   Since we’re starting afresh we need volunteers for all the Sundays of January and February.   You can sign up at Church or email the Church office.

 Emmaus Road Resumes:  Monday, January 18, 7:00 p.m.

Emmaus Road will resume its reading of Marilynne Robinson’s book, The Giveness of Things, on Monday, January 10, in the Parish Hall Living Room.  Anyone is welcome to join in.  The book is readily available at Vroman’s in Pasadena.  We’ll announce the chapters next week.  Each essay is self contained, so people can jump in anytime. 

For Monday January 18, we will read chapter 3,  “Grace.”

 

The Financial Page

 Annual Giving 2016

There are a few more Annual Giving Pledges that have not yet come in.  Please, if you haven’t sent in an Annual Giving Pledge for 2016, fill out and return a pledge card to us as soon as you can. 

 If you can pledge what you did last year, or increase it, that will be a big help.  A parish our size depends financial support from all its members. 

 If you are new to the parish, or if you’ve not pledged before, please consider joining us in this way of supporting our parish.

 

Annual Parish Meeting for 2016

Sunday, January 24, 2016

 One Liturgy at 9:30 a.m.

 Annual Meeting Follows in the Parish Hall

Potluck Lunch Follows the Annual Meeting.

 

 

How Episcopal Parishes are organized and function

Moving toward the Annual Parish Meeting, this is a good time to review how Episcopal Parishes operate.

 The Organization of Episcopal Parishes

             The organization of an Episcopal parish works like this.  The organization rests on two supports.  One is the Office of the Rector, and the other is the Office of the Vestry.  What matters is the office itself, not who holds it. 

 The Office of the Rector

 Is responsible for and in charge of, the entire parish program and the use of the parish facilities.  Episcopal Canon Law refers to this as “having charge over the spiritual life of the parish.”  Canon Law imposes a number of things on the office of Rector, more than one person can really do.  For example the spiritual formation of children is imposed on the Rector, but so is the conduct of the Liturgy.  Since it’s not possible to be in two places at once, tasks imposed on the office of Rector must to be delegated and shared among the congregation. 

 The Office of the Vestry

 Is responsible for and in charge of the parish finances and what Episcopal Canon Law calls, “The parish’s corporate relationships to the world.”  The authority of both of these offices is independent of the other, and to a large degree independent of the parish with the exception of Vestry members being elected.  These two offices rest upon the governance structure of the entire Episcopal Church.

 A Collaborative Enterprise

             Of course everything works better when these independent offices and the congregation itself it work together.  At Church of the Angels, we operate in a collaborative manner with a high degree of trust in one another.  This collaborative culture makes possible the involvement of everyone and for new ideas to come forward and be tried. 

 What the Vestry does

             I like to say that “The Vestry cares for the infrastructure upon which the life of faith is lived.”  The Vestry takes care of the finances.  The Vestry and Rector collaborate on keeping the parish community involved and healthy with programs and events whose ultimate purpose is, as we say in our vision statement, Nourish Christ’s people from the riches of his grace and strengthen them to glorify God in this life and in the life to come.  This rests on a lot of mundane stuff ya gotta do, housework and the like.  It’s not very sexy most of the time.  The Vestry meets the Third Saturday of each month at 8:30 a.m. in the Parish Hall Living Room.  Any parishioner is welcome to attend.  Also the names of the Vestry members are published in the bulletin insert.  Please feel free to speak to any of them about your concerns or ideas. 

 How the Vestry is chosen

             In the Episcopal Church, the overwhelming majority of parishes elect Vestry members by acclamation that is, the Annual Meeting is asked to vote for a slate of candidates.  Large congregations may have a nominating committee to solicit candidates.  At COA the Vestry has traditionally functioned as the nominating committee and this goes back decades prior to my being Rector.  We seek to find people who can bring specific gifts and talents that we feel we need at particular times of the parish’s life.  For example, in the years we were doing the restoration of the Church, we sought people for the Vestry who had specific experience and expertise in engineering and construction.  We seek to maintain a balance of age, gender, recent, and long time members. 

 Officers of the Vestry

             The Vestry has officers as part of its structure.  These officers are:  The Parish Wardens, the Secretary, and the Treasurer.  The Secretary and Treasurer can be ex-officio or members of the Vestry.  Ken Ryan  is the Secretary and Leigh Torgerson is Treasurer and are  ex-officio. 

 The Parish Wardens.

             The task of the Wardens is to look after the Rector.  They look after the Rector’s well being.  They also serve to keep the Rector on that specifically Anglican trait called The Via Media, the middle way.  So should the Rector get it into his head to 1.  Jump off the Colorado Street Bridge, or 2, propose that the congregation pack up and move to Guyana to await the Second Coming on the next asteroid, the Wardens help him regain his equilibrium.

 Annual Meeting Reports

Every year we produce a report of all the activities in the Parish.  The leaders/facilitators of the various groups write a short description of what the group is and the what it did over the past year as well as invite parishioners to join in and participate.

 Fr. Bob collects these reports, formats them, and copies and emails out to the parish.  Requests have gone out for reports.  Please email them back to the Parish Office as soon as possible so they can be ready for the Annual Meeting.

For those of you who have sent them in, thank you very much.  All the others, please get them to me asap so I can get them out to the parish by next Wednesday.

 

 Annual Parish Meeting Potluck Lunch:  Sign Ups So Far

 Following the Annual Parish Meeting we will remain for a potluck lunch.  Please make a dish that can feed 5-7 people

 We only put out the Annual Meeting Potluck Sign Up last weekend prior to any announcement.  I will be out on the table outside Church this Sunday.  You can also sign up by emailing the Church Office.

 

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