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Allhallowttide:
The Flame for Friday, November 4, 2022
This week begins Allhallowtide, a kind of Triduum, 3 days of commemoration that include All Hallows Eve/Halloween (October 31st), All Saints Day (November 1st), and All Souls Day, (November 2nd). While each day has a special focus, by transferring the feast to the following Sunday, we have a chance to celebrate them all together—saints, martyrs, and all the faithful departed.
This time last year, I was the supply priest for Trinity Cathedral in San Jose. There’s a dynamic Spanish speaking congregation there, and I had my first experience of celebrating the Day of the Dead, El Día de los Muertos, which also falls on the same two days, November 1 and 2. This feast began with the indigenous people of Mexico and Central America and includes Aztec rituals mixed with Roman Catholic traditions. One such tradition is the “ofrenda” (Spanish for “offering), an altar prepared in a church or the home with photographs of those who have died, along with things they loved. Tequila, Mezcal and Cerveza were prominent on the Trinity altar last year!

I was delighted that St. Aidan’s has a practice of creating an “Altar of Remembrance” for this feast. This Sunday you are invited to bring pictures of your departed loved ones and we will display them before the altar (just as we did with images of our pets for the feast of St. Francis). I don’t think we do Tequila on our altar here, but it is St. Aidan’s, so nothing would surprise me. I encourage those of you on Zoom to create a home altar. After we renew the baptismal covenant (sorry, I cannot sprinkle you with holy water on zoom—the iPads can’t take it), but we will take time for you to share names and photos with the rest of the congregation.

There are 2 more things I’m looking forward to this Sunday.

First, we will begin to share the common cup again! Janet Lohr has created a beautiful new stoneware chalice for us that will enable us to pour wine from the common cup into individual cups. We’ll have small paper cups for you to use, but you can also bring your own small cup if you prefer. We’ll take time before each service to discuss the customary for this new practice. After a long long time, we will now have communion in both kinds.  

Second, we are having a Festive Welcome Café / coffee hour this Sunday after the 10AM service for All Saints' Day. It’s a wonderful Sunday to come in person, celebrate the feast, and share fellowship over coffee and good food. I hope to see you.

Scot

 
ANNOUNCEMENTS

MORE THAN ENOUGH - Stewardship Reflection for November 6, 2022

Link:  Blessed are the Poor
Reflect upon a time where you made a judgment on a person or place when you had limited or incomplete information.
Questions for reflection:
•    Discuss your experience with explanations for poverty. What are your own explanations?
•    Do they need investigating?

Cameron is on Sabbatical
Cameron is on a long-planned sabbatical (August 1st – November 27th). While he is away, the Reverend Scot Sherman is serving in his stead, on a half-time basis.

This is a time of growth and opportunity for all of us-- for Cameron in this time of sabbatical, for St. Aidan’s as we make our way into to Vital + Thriving program, and for Scot as he walks more closely with St. Aidan’s on this journey.

Hybrid In-Person/Zoom Worship Continues This Week
This week our worship will continue to be hybrid, with both in person and Zoom platforms available. We encourage you to connect to with worship in whatever way is comfortable and feels safest for you.

As mask mandates increasingly lift in the Bay Area, and as COVID-19 moves in an endemic direction, we look forward to making masks optional for gatherings here at St. Aidan’s. While we are not yet ready to take this step for everyone, we are moving in that direction by inviting worship leaders who are fully vaccinated and boosted, and who feel comfortable doing so, to remove their masks when exercising that leadership in order to be more clearly heard. One exception to this shift is that worship leaders will remain masked while consecrating the elements at the altar. This modest step beyond our practice of the last several months is in accordance with diocesan guidance, the latest version of which can be found at: COVID-19 Health Guideline

HALLOWEEN COOKIES FOR THE SHOPPERS AND VOLUNTEERS  AT THE FOOD PANTRY
I would like to thank everyone who provided Halloween cookies for the Food Pantry: Kat Fritz, Catherine Sherman, Gary and Michael, Patricia Brown, Betty Carmack, Barbara Stevenson, Margaret Dyer-Chamberlain, Patricia Busk, Ann Edwards, Joellen Brothers, and Judy Bley. I would also like to thanks those who helped bag the cookies: Barbara Stevenson, Patricia Brown, Ann Edwards, Joellen Brothers, and Judy Bley.  We packed 150 bags in 60 minutes.  Great work! It was so great to see both services step up to the plate in true Saint Aidan’s style.

The shoppers and volunteers were so surprised to get the cookies.  There were giggles and joy and laughter. 

I invite you to stop by any Friday to meet the volunteers and shoppers.  The morning crew is here from 7:30-10:00 and the afternoon crew is here from 12:30-2:00.  The shoppers shop from 1:00-2:00. See what Saint Aidan’s food pantry is doing.  You might get inspired to volunteer once a month.

Rejoicing in God's Saints: A Daily Prayer Calendar for November
All Saints' Day falls on November 1 of each year.  On that date or on the first Sunday in November, many churches memorialize members and loved ones who have died the year prior.  In keeping with the spirit of All Saints' Day and of Thanksgiving, below you will find daily prompts to express gratitude to God for a now-departed saint who has influenced your life.
Calendar

Good News Gardens – next date: November 5 at 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM (note earlier time, just for Nov 5)
The upcoming dates until the end of 2022 are:  December 3. Please join us! Question?  Contact Deacon Margaret (Mdyerc@stanford.edu)

Festive Welcome Café for All Saints' Day / Advent 1, November 6
St. Aidan's will have a festive Welcome Café (aka Coffee Hour) following the 10:00 AM service on November 6 when we will be celebrating All Saints' Day / Advent 1. If you are able to attend in person, please plan to stay and join with other St. Aidanites as we celebrate together. This special event will be held outdoors (weather permitting) to ensure adequate air circulation and reasonable social distancing as we doff our masks to enjoy the coffee and food. 


Men's Group - Saturday, November 12, 9-10:30 am, via ZoomWe will connect for prayer, study and fellowship.  All men are cordially invited.  If you haven’t received connection information by November 10, contact Dave Frangquist (frangquist@acm.org).  Please note that the Men’s Group has switched to the second Saturday of the month this year.

St. Aidan's Women's Spirituality Group will meet via zoom Saturday, November 12th, at 10:30. As before, we will have time for both checking in and personal sharing as well as time for spiritual growth.  We are certainly open to  formats and approaches such as reflections on a poem, scripture,  narrative passage or another focus for our growth. We want our group to meet the needs and desires of those who participate.   If you want to join us, and we hope you will, please contact Elaine Mannon at elaine@mannon. com to get the information for signing into our meeting.

 
St. Aidan’s Gourmet Book Group - Next Date:  Monday, November 28, 7pm
We will continue to meet via zoom with LeeAnn DeSalles serving as our zoom master. She has set up a zoom link that will serve for all our meetings. If you would like help with zoom, please contact LeeAnn at leeanndesalles@comcast.net. If you would like to join the Book Group, please contact elaine@mannon.com.
  • Monday, November 28, 2022 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
    • Fierce Attachments – Vivian Gormick (181 pages) An unsparing,  deeply courageous memoir about the author’s lifelong battle with her widowed mother for independence.
Marjorie Wilkins Jones passed away on Monday, October 24, 2022. Her memorial service will be on November 16, 2022 at 11 am.

Natalie Lloyd
A memorial/celebration of life service will take place on December 4 at 2:30 pm at St. Aidan's.

Music on the Hill: Sunday, December 4, 2022 at 7:30 PM: Town Quartet with guest composer/ violinist Alisa Rose
Details to follow.

 Cards for Barbara Purcell
With the support of her children, our beloved long-time St. Aidanite Barbara Purcell has recently moved to the Sacramento area. Let’s send our love to her and her family in the form of cards. They can be addressed to her
            c/o Bill Purcell
        4341 Galewood Way
        Carmichael, CA 95608
Thank you in advance for your support!

Financial Summary:  For the period January thru September 2022, total operating income was $199,667 and total expenses were $213,994, for a budget deficit of $14,327.  Pledge payments totaled $133,272 compared to a budget of $142,139, for a shortfall of $8,867.  There was a net operating loss for the period of $135,484 after including year-to-date declines in market value of investments.  The endowment fund had lost $68,715 in value for the year.  Although investment losses are significant, they are mainly paper losses so far, and do not become real until we need to sell investments.  Keeping pledge payments up to date helps us avoid selling investments at a loss.  Dave Frangquist  treasurer@staidansf.org

Resources for Engaging in Anti-Racism, from Elena Wong
Thank you to Elena Wong for sharing this list of resources that were in turn shared with her through her membership in the Western Association for College Counseling:

Please send in your recipes for the COVID Connect Cookbook!
As shared in previous weeks, Peter Fairfield and Linnea Sweet are putting together the COVID Connect Cookbook. He's received several recipes thus far but would very much like more. He writes:

We are living through a time that will change our world in ways that we cannot yet begin to understand. We can hope that our shared vulnerability to this virus worldwide will help us see that all humanity is connected and that we must all work together. As we shelter in place, many of us are concerned with food. If we are not working, how will we afford it? If we cannot go out, how will we get it?

In our community of Saint Aidan’s, many are able to feed themselves and to help others get fed. More than that, we appreciate the food that we get and are finding new ways of making the sharing of food as enjoyable as possible.

The soup recipes that Cameron has been sharing have made our diet much more enjoyable and have given Linnea and I the inspiration to collect recipes from all the congregation and share them. We ask that everyone with a favorite recipe email it to us at peterlinnea@earthlink.net. We will collect and edit them into a cookbook which will be a lasting reminder of this strange and special time in all our lives.

We hope to be able to publish this cookbook in printed form and sell it to raise funds in support of Saint Aidan’s food ministries. We know you have been sharing food. Now please share your recipes!

 
Contemplative Prayer continues: Tuesday, Thursday, & Saturday from 9-10 AM via Zoom
Contemplative prayer continues during this time of sheltering in place, via Zoom. Contemplative Prayer is silent with the beginning and ending marked by a bell. You can practice meditation, silent prayer, journal, or otherwise enjoy the collective quiet. Thank you to Susan Spencer for offering to anchor this practice once again, especially the Saturday, during this time. Please feel free to reach out to the office for the Zoom access information: office@staidansf.org.

Morning Prayer continues: Mon, Wed, Fri at 7:30 AM via Zoom
We also continue to have Morning Prayer to help sustain and ground us, online/over the phone!  Please feel free to reach out to the office for the Zoom access information: office@staidansf.org.

Evening Prayer resumes: Wednesdays at 6:30 PM via Zoom
Our in-coming CDSP Seminarian Weston Morris has resumed the service. Evening Prayer usually lasts a half hour. Readings for the day often feature commemorations from the Episcopal Church’s calendar of saints, and the service includes a brief reflection time on the readings. Please feel free to reach out to the office for the Zoom access information: office@staidansf.org

To add an announcement to the weekly bulletin of the Flame, please send your edited text no later than 11:00 am Wednesday to office@staidansf.org
St. Aidan's Vestry
Elena Wong, Senior Warden
Nicole Miller, Junior Warden
Dave Frangquist, Clerk & Treasurer 
Christine Powell, Anne Edwards,
Michael Jennings, Jim Oerther  
           Anne Benninger, Kate Fritz, Elaina LeGault          
 
All Saints' Day / Advent 1
November 6, 2022

8AM Communion (Hybrid)
The Rev. Scot Sherman, Presider
The Rev. Margaret Dyer-Chamberlain, Preacher
Kate Fritz, Altar Guild

10 AM Communion (Hybrid)
The Rev. Scot Sherman, Presider
The Rev. Margaret Dyer-Chamberlain, Preacher
David Austin, Guest Music Minister
Anne Benninger, Lee Hammack, Michael Jennings, Jackie Lewey, Janet Lohr, Jim Oerther, Kateri Paul, George Slaiman, Barbara Stevenson, Jill Tollefson, & Rolf Tollefson, and perhaps you!, Choir
Peter Fairfield, Elaine Mannon, Lectors
N/A, Intercessor
Betty Carmack, In-Person Greeter
JoEllen Brothers, Zoom Greeter
Dave Frangquist, Sound/Liturgical DJ
CoCo Lin, Child Care
Janice Tichner-Leonard, Altar Guild
Barbara Stevenson, Bread Baker
 
Calendar for the week starting Friday, November 4, 2022
Friday,
November 4
Saturday,
November 5
Sunday,
November 6
Monday,
November 7
Tuesday,
November 8
Wednesday,
November 9
Thursday,
November 10
 
Morning Prayer (via Zoom), 7:30 AM
Food Pantry (at church), 1-2 PM
Contemplative Prayer (via Zoom), 9 AM
 
Holy Eucharist (Hybrid), 8 & 10 AM
 
Morning Prayer (via Zoom), 7:30 AM
 
Contemplative Prayer (via Zoom), 9 AM
 
Morning Prayer (via Zoom), 7:30 AM
Evening Prayer (via Zoom), 6:30 PM
Contemplative Prayer (via Zoom), 9 AM
Kaffeeklatsch (via Zoom), 3 PM
Our Prayers 
In Your Prayers, Please Remember:

In deep acknowledgment that St. Aidan’s is located within the unceded, ancestral land of the Yelamu tribe of the Ramaytush Ohlone people who have lived in vital relationship with this holy place for thousands of years.

 
In the Episcopal Church: Pray for Michael our Presiding Bishop; Marc our Bishop; the clergy of the Diocese; our Rector Cameron; our sabbatical priest, Scot, our assisting priests Don and Gary; our Deacons Margaret, and Mark; our Music Minister Barry; our Guest Music Minister David; our seminarian Weston; our postulant Lisa; our Childcare Provider CoCo.

In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer: Pray for The Church of England.

In the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer: Pray for All Saints', San Leandro; All Saints', San Francisco.

In our Parish Cycle of Prayer: Pray for Kairos Ministry.
 
For those with birthdays this coming week:  Janet, Joel.

For all striving for mental and emotional balance and wholeness, and for their families and friends.
 
For those who have asked for our prayers:
Barry K., Dawn, Elaina L., George J., Margaret T., Michael & Elaine J., Patrick M.,
 
For the ongoing work against intersecting forms of oppression, particularly racism; and in affirmation of human dignity;

For our work in the world: Habitat for Humanity on Amber Drive, the Friday Food Pantry, Diamond Diners.
 
For Oscar Grant, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Rayshard Brooks, Elijah McClain, Walter Wallace, Adam Toledo, Daunte Wright, and all whose lives have borne deep witness that Black Lives Matter, and that systemic racism, white supremacy, and police brutality must be eradicated.
                                                   
For our congregation as we embrace our call to be a sanctuary people, may we commit ourselves to prayer, education, and practices of sanctuary to support immigrants to this country and all people who are estranged, excluded, or threatened in 21st century America.
 
For all who are struggling in this time of pandemic, vulnerability, intensified injustice and division; for strength, support, and community across physical distances and for deepened engagement and commitment to our common life;

 For those who have recently died: Jean Amos, Marjorie Wilkins Jones, John Morrow, Natalie Lloyd, Sabra Sones, Eleanor Elliott, Joseph Potenti, Ellie McCarthy, Christine Ortiz.

Names of the living are printed by first name only unless otherwise requested. 
Living prayer request names will be kept on the prayer list for four weeks;
to keep someone on the list for longer, please notify the office.
To place a name on our prayer list, please contact the church office
 415-285-9540, ext. 3 or office@staidansf.org 


All Saints' Day / Advent 1
Daniel 7:1-3,15-18
Psalm 149
Ephesians 1:11-23
Luke 6:20-31

Website and Staff Email Addresses
Our website address is staidansf.org
The email address to reach Cameron, the Rector, is rector@staidansf.org
The email to reach Cary, the Parish Administrator, is office@staidansf.org
The  email to reach Barry, the Music Minister, is music@staidansf.org
The email to reach Dave, the Treasurer, is treasurer@staidansf.org
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Our mailing address is:
101 Gold Mine Drive 
San Francisco, CA 94131

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St. Aidan's Episcopal Church · 101 Gold Mine Dr · San Francisco, CA 94131-2538 · USA

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