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Our worship of God through Word and Sacrament is at the heart of our life together, and with the construction of our new nave, we will now be able to share in this worship as a family in one service instead of two. We have been looking forward to this day since we transitioned to two services back in September of 2016.

Around seven years ago, we at All Saints Anglican Church began to dream about what it might look like to develop our 10-acre property as an outgrowth of our mission “to share in the life of God for the life of the world.” And we did so by giving special attention to the two components of our mission: the inward or contemplative component, “sharing in the life of God,” and the outward or active component, “for the life of the world.”

Our bishop plans to retire in June of 2024. In a conventional diocese, the typical procedure would be for the diocese to elect someone to become a bishop coadjutor, that is, the one who would become our next diocesan bishop. However, we are not in a conventional diocese. Our diocese was originally formed to help our province, the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), fund a provincial position, the Dean of International Affairs. Bishop Bill Atwood has been serving in this role since 2009 while at the same time serving as the bishop of the International Diocese.

It’s really unbelievable. We hired Fr. Ben Williams as our Curate for Church Planting back in June of 2021 for a two-year season of discernment, during which time we planned to use those two years to explore together whether the Holy Spirit was leading us to pursue a mother- daughter, church-planting relationship. And yet even before these two years have ended, the Lord has rooted a small group of people, nurtured and grown them into a mission congregation, so that they are reaching others with no church home, bearing enough fruit so that there is now a critical mass to launch weekly services! Thanks be to God!

Is it a nave, a church, a Mission Abbey, or what? This isn’t just semantics. How we talk about what we’re doing on 212 McClellan Road is important. Using the right words and having a shared understanding of these words will only serve to galvanize our church’s mission. So then, what is it exactly that we are building?

The sequence of Commission-Ascension-Pentecost sets the scene not only for the entire book of Acts, but also for the entire life of the church. We are a people commissioned by Jesus Christ to bear witness to him. As the ascended Lord of all, we are a people committed to bringing the reign of Jesus in heaven to bear upon this earth. And then it’s Pentecost that makes this possible.

There’s no doubt about it: 2020 was a tough year! It was as if, beginning last March, we entered into a perpetual Lent, a dark and cold winter that never seemed to end. If you recall last year’s annual meeting, we heard from those of you who had participated in our Mission Abbey Pastorates, groups that were designed to capture the hopes and dreams of those ministry opportunities we envisioned for our Mission Abbey

Each year around this time, we take a few weeks to reflect upon all that God has given us individually and as a church. We do this for at least two reasons: to give thanks for the great benefits we have received at his hands, and to assess how we are stewarding these gifts in ways that are pleasing to God. Typically we give attention to these well-known alliterated areas of our lives—time, talents, and treasure—because stewardship is holistic; it pertains to everything in life. As we say in our liturgy, “All things come from you, O Lord.”

Christians in America today struggle to make sense of the relationship between politics and their faith. For some, these two issues are best kept at arms length. Faith isn't political and the church ought to stay out of politics. Nothing but trouble awaits us when Christians try to enter the political realm.

On the Day of Pentecost, May 31, we finally began the slow process of regathering as a church for corporate worship. For the next month or so, we are offering three said Morning Prayer services (no Eucharist) at 8:30, 9:45, and 11:00 a.m. So far, things have gone extremely well, as those who decided to regather have been diligent to observe our initial guidelines for regathering that were put in place.

For our fifteenth year as a church, 2019 was a big one! Much of our energy this year was given toward our Mission Abbey vision. As we dream about the church God would have us become, especially lived out on the 10 acres at 212 McClellan Road, we continue to be guided by our desire to be a people who share in the life of God for the life of the world. Developing a “Mission Abbey” is an outgrowth of that desire.

For the last few years, our bishop would make his annual episcopal visit to our church for confirmations around All Saints’ Day, and so we would include among our Fall Pastorates an Inquirers’ Pastorate for those interested in preparing for confirmation. But over the last couple of years, your clergy has realized that we need to “bulk up” our confirmation process by including more time for catechesis. So after speaking with our bishop, we have decided to change our confirmation process.

We are not building a Mission Abbey so that we can become something we have not already been, but so we can grow into more of what God has already created us to be. To say we hope to build a Mission Abbey is to say that our intention is to develop our property as an outgrowth of the mission we currently live out: “to share in the life of God for the life of the world.”

Can you believe it? All Saints turns fifteen next month! Fifteen years of forming a community who shares in the life of God for the life of the world. There is so much to look back on, so much to celebrate, so much to give God thanks for. In his grace, he has created a multi-generational family eager to house his Spirit’s presence, eager to welcome others into this joyful participation, and eager to follow Jesus in the Anglican Way. We are by no means a perfect church, but we do serve a perfect God, and he continues to deal generously and lovingly with this local family.

Stewardship is about all of life, which also includes how we each contribute to the life of All Saints with our time, talent, and treasure. All members and regular attendees received a letter asking you to prayerfully consider what you will pledge to All Saints in 2019 in terms of your time, talent, and treasure. We ask that you return these pledge forms and service sheets to the church on or before Sunday, November 18, which is our Pledge Ingathering Day. And since this pledge-based budget process is new for some of our people, below are some of the more frequently asked questions (FAQ) about how our system works.

To say we hope to build a “Mission Abbey” is to say that our intention is to develop our property as an outgrowth of our mission “to share in the life of God for the life of the world.” The word "abbey" suggests a community devoted to the contemplative tradition, spiritual formation...

The Vestry is thrilled to announce the formation and first participants of the Church Planting Catalyst Team! This team exists to help All Saints fulfill its Christian mission of planting churches by giving energy to and catalyzing church planting efforts. The team’s work will consist of prayer, study and assessment, recommendation, encouragement, and communication. Here are the members of its first class.

Over the last few months, the Vestry has been prayerfully exploring how to best proceed with the development of our property. Typically, churches form an oversight committee that bears the full responsibility of the project from start to finish. However, the more the Vestry investigated the kinds of skills and gifts that will be required along the way, the more they began to realize that a more flexible approach was needed.

Every church you’ve ever been a part of was once a church plant. And All Saints is no exception. Fourteen years ago, a group of thirty-plus people committed themselves to one another in the Anglican tradition, and a church was planted. Fourteen years later, miracle after miracle, God has grown this church to a place where we’re now making disciples of almost 300 people. Church planting and making disciples—they go together.

Beginning on February 18, All Saints will be participating in the 2018 Bishop's Well Project. For forty days during Lent, we are encouraging everyone to save their spare change to help save lives in Africa. At the end of the project, money collected will be sent to help dig wells for children and families in Africa who lack clean water.

If you happened to miss our Parish Forum on Wednesday, August 23, allow me to recap for you the high points of what was shared and discussed. The purpose of this forum was threefold: to inform the parish of the process by which we as a Vestry are moving forward in stewarding our growth; to call the church to make this pivotal season we share a matter of prayer; and to solicit the wisdom of the parish about the process and our priorities.

Yes, you’ve heard it correctly: All Saints was the largest church represented at the ACNA’s Provincial Assembly this past June! Absolutely incredible! But even more importantly, together we were exposed to and inspired by the missional impulse that is alive and well in the Anglican Communion worldwide. Anglicanism, at its best, strives to reach the world with the transforming love of Jesus Christ.

I find it hard to believe it’s been one year since we took the leap into two Sunday services. If you recall, this decision was the culmination of an eight-month-long process where we as a parish reconnected with our mission and rearticulated those aspects of our personality we wanted to stay alive to especially as our family continues to grow in number. As our Vestry facilitated this process, you played an integral role in helping us identify, articulate, and flesh out these defining aspects of our church.

Whether you’re new to the Anglican way or you’re familiar with it, exploring the richness of our liturgy and tradition is invaluable to our shared life with God. The way we practice our script when we gather each Sunday, that is, the way we worship, deeply forms us to be a people who then live out that script in and for the world the rest of the week. That’s why it’s important for us to stop from time to time and give attention to what we’re doing when worship together.

We’ve sounded the call for Lent, we’ve made preparations for its coming, and now, with Ash Wednesday on March 1, it is finally upon us. The Apostle Paul compares the Christian life to a race, one that demands preparation and training. He writes these words to the Corinthians: “Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; but punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified” (1 Cor 9:25

Since the start of the new year, the vestry has been exploring what it means to be good stewards of our ongoing growth. Above all, it means remaining faithful to our mission: to share in the life of God for the life of the world.

As God continues to bless All Saints with more people, no doubt you've felt our walls close in a bit tighter. Our church is full of life, but it's also feeling a bit cramped! Such growth is exciting to be a part of, but it does raise the question of how we are to be good stewards of it.

The story of All Saints is a story of God's provision, a story of the Holy Spirit working miracles in our midst. It was true twelve years ago; it remains true to this day. God has and continues to look with favor upon this wonderful parish.

As God continues to bless All Saints with more people, no doubt you've felt our walls close in a bit tighter. Our church is full of life, but it's also feeling a bit cramped! Such growth is exciting to be a part of, no doubt, but it can also raise some unsettling questions: How much longer can we all fit in here? How will this growth affect who we are as a church? Will I ever get to know these new faces?

Over the last few months, our church calendar has led us to anticipate and prepare for the coming of our King during Advent, and then to celebrate his humble arrival during Christmas, and then finally to gaze at the light of Jesus' kingdom ministry during Epiphany. But as each of the four accounts of the Gospel attest, something significant happens at some point during Jesus' ministry when he begins to turn his face toward Jerusalem and the looming fate that awaits him there: "When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem" (Luke 9:51). As the Gospel reveals, the path of life is through the cross.

Heavenly Father, captivate our imaginations once again with the glory of this story, that we might be known to the world to be captive to the one who was first made known to us in a manger, in whose name, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen

It's hard to believe that it's been over a year since Fr. Chuck Filiatreau retired as All Saints' first rector. We are incredibly blessed to have him and his wife, Gretchen, continue to be a part of our parish. As a way to honor his presence among us and in order to better communicate with our newer folks that our former rector still serves among us, we plan to give Fr. Chuck the official title of Rector Emeritus on Sunday, October 11. This will also be the first Sunday since his retirement that he'll preach God's Word to us. We hope that you can join us.

Even Harleys need a blessing! After church on Sunday, July 19, I had the privilege of gathering with a small group around the Harley of Ed Whiting and Ramona Sparks to ask for God's continued favor and protection over the motorcycle and its riders. This is but another reminder that we're in desperate need of God in the everyday moments of life. God can certainly be found in the riding of a Harley, and so acknowledge that together, and pray these words to God.

For the month of August, our lectionary takes us into the Bread of Life Discourse in John 6, which occurs immediately after the miraculous feeding of the five thousand. As we reflect upon the provoking words of Jesus in this passage each Sunday, we are not only prompted to move more eagerly toward him for our daily sustenance, but we also get to explore more deeply the wonders of the Eucharist.

Have you ever visited a manufacturing company? Maybe you've watched a few of those Made in America shows on the Travel Channel, the one where "Cliff" from Cheers (John Ratzenberger) visits various American manufacturers and takes the viewers on a mind-boggling tour showing step-by-step how everyday items are made. Cool stuff, but I promise you it's not nearly as cool as getting your own personal tour of such a place!

Driving along I-40 can be stressful due to all the semis blaring by you or worse

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth, the God who not only created and rules heaven and earth, but it is also committed to seeing his creation fully restored, reuniting all things in heaven and on earth.

The liturgical calendar tells the Christian story by marking certain moments and seasons that enable us to feel the rhythms of our salvation. Like any good story, it begins with conflict, a crisis in search of a resolution. We call this conflict Advent.

What is stewardship but an invitation to partner with the God of heaven and earth in his transforming work of world renewal. Think about that: God himself is beckoning you to join him, to give yourself to the healing of the world.

"But what about baptism?" This is a common question asked by those from the believer's baptism tradition who are curious and interested in moving toward Anglicanism. With all the appeal Anglicanism offers, this can easily become the primary issue one has to work through to finally make it down the Canterbury Trail. Here are a few thoughts on the matter that may help get you there.

Easter is the climax of the church calendar. With the resurrection of Jesus, his ministry and message are vindicated, death and evil are conquered, his royal identity confirmed, and new creation breaks forth to overshadow the old.

Holy Week is the last week of Lent leading up to the climax of the Christian year when we commemorate the resurrection of Jesus on Easter. There are many opportunities here at All Saints for your to prepare for and celebrate our risen Lord this Easter season.

Lent is that time of year specifically set aside for us to remember that we are both finite beings destined to die as well as sinful people longing for forgiveness. It is a time to remember.

For the Christian, gathering together for prayer is fitting. On the one hand, we are bringing our sickness and our depression and our pain altogether to one place, to groan with the rest the world trapped in its disease and death, waiting and hoping, in the spirit of Advent, that one day, surely, one day these conditions will finally change for good.

The liturgical calendar tells the Christian story by marking certain moments and seasons that enable us to feel the rhythms of our salvation. Like any good story, it begins with conflict, with a crisis in search of a resolution. Our story begins with Advent.

What do the sacraments have to do with the mission of the church? At first glance, very little. Sacraments are ritualistic, confined within the walls of a church building on any given Sunday morning. The mission of the church is what happens afterwards, as we “go forth into the world rejoicing in the power of the Spirit.” We gather for the sacraments; we are sent into the world for mission.

The word “sacrament” used to scare me. Funny what you assume when you know so little about something. I thought sacraments were sure proof that people...

As we prepare for the arrival of Easter, we reflect on the words of this hymn written by Walter Russell Bowie.

Our Spring Pastorates meet every other Wednesday evening from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. for five meetings beginning April 3. We have four groups available for adults this semester.

Welcome to All Saints Anglican Church's new-and-improved presence on this thing called the Internet! Have a look around, kick the tires, and let us know what you think.