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The Scoop
St. Luke's Episcopal Church Newsletter
Thoughts and Prayer
Dear Friends, 

If learning to be a priest in your first year comes during a pandemic, I can tell you that your learning curve will be steep and that your prayer life will be intensified. God has heard my late-night cries over bandwidth, my worries and wonderings about how to conduct a safe Eucharist, and my joyousness at a wonderful, ecumenical Blessing of the Animals.

God has also heard my many prayers of thanksgiving. Supported by a loving congregation and guided by a caring bishop, I can honestly say I’ve been strengthened to serve Christ’s Church. I've also found a "gift" in the pandemic: this time is making clear those things that matter most to us. Keeping one another safe and sharing our love for one another is foremost in our minds.

This is a clarifying time as well for the Church; a time we can ask ourselves what are we being asked to do right now as the body of Christ. My hope is that we'll continue to discern where God is calling us to serve and then play our part. As we enter “Stewardship Season,” I also hope we will think less about what St. Luke's needs to make its budget, and more about our deep gratitude for God’s abiding love. Knowing we are dearly loved frees us to be happy, to be inspired, to be willing to take risks and to share our love for all of God's world. 

It's been an odd year, yet our response has been anything other than odd. We are moving by faith, knowing we have a faithful God. Our stewardship in this crazy year is thus aptly named, Faith-Filled Generosity. Please be looking for a letter soon asking you to participate in the work God is doing through this parish. 

Gratefully yours, 
Polly
Worship
"...they have cast for themselves an image of a calf." Exodus 32
 

Sunday, October 11th 
Morning Prayer 10:15 a.m. 
The service will be live-streamed as well as in person. 

Download the bulletin for this Sunday, October 11 here.
Go to our website to find the link to our online service. 
 

Join us also online Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. for Evening Prayer via our Facebook page. You can find the evening prayer bulletin in the Notes Section of our Facebook page or by clicking here. 
Save The Date!
St. Luke's Feast Day
Sunday, October 18th
Holy Eucharist on the lawn, followed by box lunches.
 
St. Luke's Day is next Sunday and we hope you can join your parish family for a socially-distanced outdoor boxed lunch on the lawn after church. Please sign up for your $8 boxed lunch here.  Lunches include Chicken Salad Croissant Sandwiches, Chips, Fruit, Pickle, and dessert. Tea and other canned drinks are also provided. Families, we have PBJ's for your children "on the house," please let us know on the sign up sheet how many to prepare. 

Please bring your own chairs or picnic blankets and wear comfortable clothes. Masks are required except when eating at your seats. 
 
Blessing of the Animals Photos
What a terrific time we had at the Blessing of the Animals! 

Thank you to everyone who helped make this a success, especially Parker Edmiston for the Sno Cones and Richard and Marilyn Olcott for the popcorn. 

Thanks also to Lou for getting the doggie and cat treats kindly provided by Micky Jones at Rolling Pet and by Scottsboro Pet Care. 

Check out all the photos on our website!! 
Christian Education
Reading the Bible through the lens of conflict
Sunday mornings at 9:00 a.m. on ZOOM

JOIN IN ANY SUNDAY!
Padraig O Tuama is a poet, theologian, and public speaker. He founded Spirituality of Conflict, a project devoted to exploring conflict in the gospels with an aim toward informing participants' encounters with conflict in their lives. Where do we see conflict in the gospel? Lots of places. Not all conflict is bad. Violent conflict is bad. Explore this course with your St. Luke's family and see how managing conflict can inspire humanity to improve the human condition. 

Meeting ID: 876 6518 3316
Passcode: 92020
THE BISHOP IS COMING DECEMBER 13TH

Please mark your calendars for December 13th--we're not sure what this service will look like, but even if the coronavirus is worsening and we are online only, Bishop Curry plans to be here. 

Classes are beginning on Zoom, October 26th at 6:30 p.m. to prepare anyone for confirmation, baptism, reaffirmation or just to learn more about the Episcopal Church, its faith and tradition. We'll meet Monday nights 10/26 and 11/2, 11/16, and 11/30, with an in-person (socially distanced) gathering closer to Dec. 13th.

Please call the church office to let us know you're interested or email Polly. Young persons preparing for confirmation will go to Camp McDowell November 6-8 for a weekend retreat. 
 
Forward Day By Day

The new booklets are here! 
Forward Day by Day is a booklet of daily inspirational meditations reflecting on a specific Bible passage. 

Come by the office to pick up your free copy!
The Daily Office 
(Morning and Evening Prayer)

Participation in the Daily Office is at the heart of Anglican spirituality. It is the proper form of daily public worship in the church and may be led by either a clergy or lay person. 

On Wednesday evenings St. Luke's offers evening prayer live online and we'd love to have lay persons lead the service from your home or at the church if you prefer. The service calls us together to thank God for  the past day, and to pray that "this evening may be holy, good, and peaceful." Sharing these quiet prayers and readings from scripture builds and strengthens  the body of Christ. If you would like to take part in leading Evening Prayer please let Polly know. She will walk you through this wonderful lay ministry opportunity. 
 
Diocesan News

 

ECW Live-Streamed Video Fall Conference

Friday, October 23

12:00- 4:00

Invitation to the Table:  Finding Your Place

Midday Prayer Service with Homily by The Rt. Rev. Kee Sloan

Speaker: The Rt. Rev Glenda Curry

Workshop:

Spiritual Practices for Our Life in Christ led by Rev. Mary Catherine Akamatsu, Metagem Institute

The workshop will explore four types of spiritual practices as well as our tendency to prefer certain types of practices and how we can use our preferences for growth in our relationship with Christ.  We will use the Metagem Institutes’s Spirituality Types Practices Indicator (STPI)   A link to complete the assessment will be emailed and results provided to you at the workshop.

We will conclude with a short business meeting.  All are invited.  There is no charge for the conference.  Donations can be made to ECW programs by going to ECWGive. Please designate your gift to the ECW.

To register and receive all materials for the conference,  email Linda Kennedy.
Pastoral Care Note
Dear ones, If you are going into the hospital, have need of prayer or counsel, or have a family member unable to attend church or you are unable to attend, please contact The Rev. Polly Robb at 256-520-7211 or call the church office at 256-574-6216 and leave a message. 
 
Polly would also love to schedule a porch visit if you'd like. Just give her a call or send her an email. 
Altar Flowers
Thanks to all those who've signed up for our beautiful altar flowers!

We have the following weeks open for 2020.
October 11
November 1

Please call us at the church office to sign-up.
 Food Pantry News

Next Pantry is on November 7th!


Beautiful day for a Drive - Thru Pantry last Saturday! 

It's time to be thinking of Thanksgiving!! We need stuffing and cranberry sauce and sweet potatoes. We'd love to give out some turkeys too!! Please contact the church or Melody Reed if you have perishables to donate this month. We have space in the church freezer for them. You can place any canned goods you want to donate in the yellow topped bin. We love our pantry friends and neighbors! 
What's Happening at St. Luke's

 

Birthdays This Week:


Blake Collins          10/12               Elijah Reed        10/13

Watch over your children, Blake and Elijah, O Lord, as their days increase; bless and guide them wherever they may be.  Strengthen them when they stand; comfort them when discouraged or sorrowful; raise them up if they fall, and in their hearts, may your peace which passes understanding, abide all of the days of their lives; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
 
Our prayer list: 
Our parishioners: Brevy and Kathy Cannon, Sherry Holland, John Robinson, Danny Bridges, John Will White, Linda Wangbickler, Brett Bell, Tim Sanders, Bob Brown, and our parish loved ones and friends: Nancy Newton (friend of Stan Schmoller), Brad Yates (Bob Yates' brother), Mack Cox, Tommy Watts and family, Alan Davis (friend of Ann Moody), Jim Swords (friend of Stan Schmoller), Richard Caldwell, Carolyn and Wayne Staton (Tim Haston's mother and step-father), John Gerlach (Joe Gerlach's brother), Lannie Bryan (Melody Reed's dad), Mike Porter (Everett Reed's uncle), Cindy Crump (Jean Duke's sister), Jameson Wangbickler (son of Jim and Linda Wangbickler), Charlotte Talley (friend and neighbor of Stan Schmoller), and Cherri Baker (friend of Tim Sanders)
 

NINETEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST:
PROPER 23
Sunday, October 11


LORD, WE PRAY that your grace may always precede and follow us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.   Amen. 

The lectionary readings can be found here: 
 SCRIPTURE READINGS for SUNDAY,  October 11
 

First Lesson: Exodus 32:1-14
Psalm: 106:1-6, 19-23
Second Lesson: Philippians 4:1-9
The Gospel: Matthew 22:1-14
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