Non Profit Org.U.S. POSTAGE

P A I DClinton, NY

Permit No. 24

St. James’ Episcopal Church9 Williams Street

Clinton, NY 13323

Deliver to Addressee or Current Occupant

January 2013

Newsletter

Christmas Pageant 2012

St. James’ Episcopal Church

NEWSLETTERJanuary 2013

St. James’ is a community where we come together in Christ to develop spiritually;find opportunities for outreach; receive comfort when in need; and engage in sacred

experiences through our liturgy, music, fellowship, and mutual ministry.”

St. James’ Episcopal Church9 Williams Street • Clinton, New York 13323 • 315-853-5359

www.stjamesclinton.org • office@stjamesclinton.org

REGULAR SERVICES: Saturday, 5:15pm • Sunday, 9:30am, nursery provided, Sunday School 9:30am

Church office hours: Mon: 5-9pm; Tues: 8-11pm; Wed: 8am-2pm; Thurs: 8-12am. Fri: Closed

Staff:Rector: The Rev. Timothy S. Reger

Minister of Music: Mr. Richard Lloyd • Children’s and Youth Ministries Director: Ms. Emily St. Clair-LeeSexton: Mr. Christopher Evans • Administrative Assistant: Ms. Allison Forbes

Vestry:vestry@stjamesclinton.org

Senior Warden: Karen Anderson • Junior Warden: Mike Baldwin Skip Beardsell • Cynthia Crossley • Bruce Evans • Patty Fox • Gordon Jones

Mark Linderman • Randy Pinto • Colleen Ring-Campbell • Art SpencerTreasurer: Jan Wilson • Assistant Treasurer: Blair Jones

Webmistress: Patricia JueNewsletter: Pat Evans

Leadership Group Chairs:Outreach: John Pick

Worship & Formation: Tim RegerProperty Management: Tim Reger, temp.

Finance Committee: Craig Heuss Investment Committee: Jim White

Communications Committee: Kathy Collett

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I have developed anew an interest in both the life and the writings of C.S. Lewis. Born in 1898, and died in 1963, Lewis studied at Oxford and went on to teach literature on the facul-ties of Oxford and Cambridge. He became a broadcaster during World War II, and was a very popular speaker. Lewis’ mother died when he was a boy. It was a loss that would indelibly mark the rest of his life. His father was very difficult and emotionally distant, likely contributing to what would become his depressive introverted character. Though raised a Christian, Lewis was swept up in the materialism and empiricism of his day: he was a self-proclaimed atheist until he was 33 years of age. There were two conversion processes in C.S. Lewis’ life, however: the first was a conversion to theism; the second, a con-version to Christianity. Though he had closed his mind to the possibility of a divine, intelligent force in the universe, people of faith whom he admired repeatedly challenged his thinking. At one point he resolved, “I will no longer close my mind to the possibility of a God.” When he said this, an overwhelming sense of presence overcame him, even to the point where the sense of this presence would distract him from his work. It was, he wrote, as if the hound of heaven caught up with him, and would not let him go. One evening, he fell to his knees, wept and prayed, announcing his belief in the reality and presence of God. Lewis writes that all of his life he had sporadic, but none-theless regular, inner promptings, almost as if he were longing for something but the object of his longing remained unclear. In hindsight, he saw that what he was longing for was joy and hap-piness. That joy and happiness escaped him as long as refused to look beyond the restricted possibilities necessary to maintain-ing his atheism. To accept God as the primary relationship in his life, to accept the responsibility to cultivate a oneness with his Creator, brought Lewis a newfound joy and happiness that had escaped him for over 30 years. The Great Commandment became Lewis’ way of life: Love God above all things, and love your neighbor as yourself. It took awhile for Lewis to integrate his virgin discoveries in to his life. One evening in 1931, he had a long conversation with friends late into the morning, about the role and place of Jesus Christ. The next day he went out for a motorcycle ride, and at the end of the ride he accepted the mystery of the Incarnation, and Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. He describes the experience as similar to lying in bed asleep, and suddenly becoming aware that you are awake. That was the experience for him: an awakening. Lewis believed that in the person of Jesus, the God of mystery, the Creator of all, entered human history to heal, to redeem, and to restore the human family. These conversion experiences changed Lewis dramatically. An introvert all of his life, he became an extrovert, reaching out and valuing all people as important and unique. A man who had been emotionally distant, intentionally embraced a kind of love directed and determined by will and decision, not

From the Rectorfeelings. But then he suffered the great loss of his wife, Joy. Emerging from a long period of despair and grief, he became profoundly hopeful. He began to see his grief was made more painful whenever he focused on himself and not God. He came to see suffering as something to be endured and accepted with patience and hope; and, if accepted, suffering could become a source of new life and elicit compassion from the people observing the suffering. The best response to suffering, Lewis felt, was surrender to God, who would work all things for the good of those whom he loved. Lewis experienced God’s love as a tender love, but, at times, also as the sternness of a loving par-ent. He grew to understand death as a friend and deliverer that releases the spirit for its real home. C.S. Lewis is a kind of everyman. Though extraordinarily bright and gifted, his journey is the journey of all of us. All of us have been born with this innate longing and need for God. Some ignore the longing. Some try a substitutionary approach by filling the longing with human or created things. Some attend to the exact nature of the longing, then experience the kind of conversion that Lewis experienced. Some of us occa-sionally pay attention to the longing, and deal with matters of faith and spirituality rather superficially. Most people around the world report praying in some way, yet more and more people are disconnected from organized reli-gions. The prevalence of prayer, which archeologists have traced back to the earliest of times, in caves, suggests that there almost seems to be a physical, genetic component to our connection with, and our need for, God. To use imagery from the prophet Isaiah, we walk in dark-ness when we are not deliberate and intentional about our relationship with God. When we are deliberate and intentional, we walk in light. The message of the angel to Mary and Joseph, and the shepherds—major themes of the Christmas season—

“Do not fear,” becomes the lifestyle of those who walk with a conscious relationship with God. Unfortunately, in our busyness-addicted world, our approach to God too often is that of the innkeeper: there is no room. No room for faith. No room for God. No room for oth-ers. No room for Spirit. No room for prayer. And we, in turn, are the ones who suffer because of this deprivation. As we move in to the season of Epiphany, we celebrate the many manifestations of God in our lives. God is always present, often unrecognized, in the very events and people in our lives. Through prayer and worship we need to develop eyes of faith that have regular God-sighting experiences. Epiphany invites us to a C.S. Lewis-like awakening: to the joy and fearlessness that God’s presence brings in to our lives. This spiritual awakening isn’t a goal or something to be achieved, but a way of life, not at all concerned with the out-come but primarily with our intention which provides the shape and flow to our lives. As we begin this new year, I encourage you to find and practice a spiritual discipline that has the possibility to open you to an awareness beyond what you ever thought possible. Is it possible that there really could be something so much better and beautiful?!

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Worship & FormationMemorial Gifts

The St. James altar guild was honored to be able to pur-chase a new white chasuble and stole recently. These vestments were used during our Christmas services, and will also be used during Easter. They were purchased from the St. James Memorial Fund in memory of Helen Seyse, a long time mem-ber of the altar guild and the first woman to serve on the St. James vestry. Memorial funds are used to purchase non-con-sumable items for worship. If you are interested in donating tothe memorial fund in memory of a loved one, or would like to see an item purchased to enhance our worship services, please feel free to talk our Rector, Tim, our wardens, or any member of the memorial fund committee (Cynthia Crossley, Wendy Weber, Mike Baldwin, or Patricia Jue). Other recent items purchased with Memorial Funds include a chalice and paten, and both the brass railings by the pulpit and the large Advent wreath frame made by Schwartz’s of Deansboro.

Flower Donations Fresh flowers on the altar honor God and add the beauty of our worship. People often use the occasion of an anniversary, celebration or memorial as an opportunity to provide flowers for the altar. To sign-up, use the flower book in the back of the church. (The 2013 pages are finally available!) If you live out of town or are otherwise unable to sign-up yourself, contact our administrative assistant at office@stjamesclinton.org or 315-853

-5359. Indicate dedication and desired date(s). Allie will confirm the date, and then you can arrange delivery by a local florist. For more information visit our website at www.stjamesclinton.org/altar-flowers.

Lenten Series:“Images of Jesus Through the Centuries”

This four-week series (Feb. 14, 21, 28; Mar. 7 @ 6 pm) will look at the many ways Jesus Christ has been represented in the visual arts, from the early church to modern times, and from painting to sculpture to film. We will raise questions about how artists have depicted Jesus’ humanity, divinity, and ethnicity. With hundreds of images and film clips to look at, we will have ample time for conversation and questions. Brent Plate will lead us through the sessions. He is a visit-ing associate professor of religious studies at Hamilton College, and has published several books on religion and the arts.

Special thanks to Bruce Evans and Gordon Jones as they conclude their 3 years of service to St. James as members of the Vestry. Thank you also to Skip Beardsell and Art Spencer for their valuable participation on the Vestry. This current Vestry will meet one more time on January 9th to finalize the budget to be presented at our annual meeting on January 20th. From a personal standpoint – I want to publicly thank everyone for your contributions to St. James. At the most recent Convention, Bishop Adams spoke about his vision for our Diocese. His hope for each of the Parishes was that wherever we were established, the town would not be able to imagine existing without us. I am here to tell you, I whole-heartedly believe that throughout our 150 years as a Church, we have indeed made such an impact on Clinton. Until I participated as a Vestry member I was not fully aware of just how great an impact that has been. Saint James provides a meeting place for many different groups in this village. Saint James’ Day School has allowed children to have a rich pre-school experience that is led by certified teachers, and your contributions to our col-lection plate have helped support many of those students’ education! Think about the number of couples who have been married here, and the number of people who have been bap-tized in our font. Think about how many families have been provided with food thanks to our contributions to the Country Pantry and Hope House. The list of ways St. James makes a dif-ference in this community is far too long for me to itemize. Each one of us attends St. James for our own individual reasons, but I would like to encourage everyone to attempt not only to attend St. James, but to support our Parish with your time, and talent and financial support. This is a wonderful place to worship, but it can only continue to be that if we shore up the 150 year old building, and reach out to our neighbors, and participate in the activities we sponsor. I have had the great pleasure of working with 4 fellow war-dens and 2 Rectors in my tenure as warden. I want to thank each of them for their dedication to St. James and for the gift of experiences we have shared. I have made some wonderful friendships because of my association with St. James. I have met some of the most generous folks I know. I have grown in my faith and as a person. I hope that 50 years from now, and 150 years from now, others will be saying the same thing. Thank you for the opportunity to serve, but I must admit - I am ready to step aside and let others take the lead. – Karen Anderson, outgoing Senior Warden

Vestry News

Thank you so much to those who helped with the Greens and Goodies Sale:Libby & Skip Beardsell, Chuck Horner, Ken Iles, Cindy Majka, Helen Dick, Pat Evans, Nancy Shaw,

Katherine Mowry, Chris & Patty Fox, Judy Snow, Karen Crawford, Judy Logan, Sandra Coe.And thanks to all the bakers! Sale proceeds will be put towards St. James’ stereo sound system.

- Holly Horner

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Thanks to everyone at St. James, our holiday giving sea-son was an extremely successful one. We were able to deliver 63 gifts to the House of the Good Shepherd and the Country Pantry making Christmas much merrier for the children and adults those two agencies service. Our thanks to everyone who participated in this tradition of giving. Outreach finished the year by making cash donations to Hope House, Country Pantry, Utica Rescue Mission and the ABC program. As 2012 comes to a close, my thanks to everyone who con-tributed to all of the great work we accomplished this past year. It will be hard to top in 2013, but with all of your help, the sky’s the limit!! – John Pick

Thanks to all for your financial support of St. James with your pledges and donations for 2012, and for your continued support for 2013. Your dollars make it possible for us to pay our rector and staff and maintain our facilities and programs. The vestry is in the process of finalizing the 2013 budget. You will be hearing more about it at the Annual Meeting on January 20th. You can expect to receive your 2012 year-end statements to early in February for your taxes. Please contact me or the office if you have any questions or concerns regarding your donations. – Jan Wilson

A group of around 20 St. James friends, including 12 Rite-13 youth members, walked to Ernie Randall’s house on Sunday evening, December 16, singing Christmas Carols as we walked.We then sang several Christmas Carols to Ernie, and to his dinner guests! We sang our way back onto Williams Street, and stopped at a number of houses, singing carols and wish-ing everyone Season’s Greetings! The rain and sleet at 7:00pm encouraged us to return to the parish hall, where we enjoyed hot chocolate, coffee, and cookies, prepared and served by Jan Wilson and Art Spencer. We will meet on January 13th and 27th and then start to meet on a weekly basis again in February. Looking ahead, please mark your calendars for tubing at Taberg on Jan. 21 and for Tues. evening, Feb. 12, for the Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper. The youth members are looking forward to preparing and serv-ing Pancakes and Sausage and other treats!

Treasurer’s Report

Outreach

Introduction to Centering Prayer:Engaging Deep Silence

February 7 - 8 • St. Margaret’s House, New HartfordThe retreat runs from 10am Thursday through 6pm Friday. The Rev. Bill Redfield, Rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Fayetteville, facilitates. For more information and to register go to www.http://cnyepiscopal.org/EventRegistration.aspx;: $80 includes overnight accommodations plus 5 meals.

Beginning Jan. 16 Helen Dick will offer a free month of Zumba classes in the Parish Hall on Wednesdays from 10-11:00am. Contact Helen for details: helen8dick4@gmail.com.

Christmas Eve Pageant Participants:Amy, Emma, & Mia Davis

Bruce, Sharon, Ryan, & Kylie EvansGordon, Charlotte, & Margaret Jones

Libby & Skip BeardsellErin Iles

Anna & Sofie RegerSamantha & Kaela Ellis

Sydney EvansAudra, Kaitlyn, & Gwendolyn Williams

Ben, Andrew, Jane, & Emily St. Clair-LeeKathryn Mowry

Camila Rodriguez-PlateSandra LoveBrian CollettRichard Lloyd

Thank you to everyone who helped with thePageant this year!

Rite 13

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday SaturdayJanuary 2013

Date Acolytes Nursery Lectors EucharisticMinisters Ushers/GreetersJanuary Server Schedule

Sat. Jan. 5 NO SERVICESun. Jan. 6 Emma Davis, Erin Iles & Audra Williams Pat Evans Skip Beardsell & Karen Anderson & Margaret Jones & Kaela Ellis Barbara Swetman Tom HebertSat. Jan. 12 Connor D’Angelo Joan Compson Dick Compson Matt & Wendy WeberSun. Jan. 13 Kylie Evans, Ben Lee Emma Davis & Mary O’Neill Alistair Campbell & Susan Bennett & & Sydney Evans Kaela Ellis Mary Lou Iles Don NeilSat. Jan. 19 Suzie Phillips Sharon Pick Chuck Kershner John & Sharon PickSun. Jan. 20 Charlotte Jones & Margaret & Charlotte Sharon Williams Kathy & Brian Randy Wilson & Anna Reger Jones & Amy Davis Collett Art SpencerSat. Jan. 26 Darby D’Angelo Patty Fox Chris Fox Patty FoxSun. Jan. 27 Nick Williams, Erin Iles Kaela Ellis & Pat Evans Art Spencer & Karen Anderson & & Margaret Jones Audra Williams Randy Wilson Mike BaldwinSat. Feb. 2 Darby D’Angelo Ted Johnson Matt Weber Janet JohnsonSun. Feb. 3 Audra Williams, Amy Davis Margaret Jones & Jackie Medina Karen Anderson & John & Cynthia & Emma Davis Ben Lee Gail Prentice Crossley

January Altar Guild: Sharon Pick & Blair Jones

Names at the bottom of each day indicate those for whom we pray. • Service lectionary readings can be found on our website.

30 31 1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13 14 15 16 17 18 19

20 21 22 23 24 25 26

27 28 29 30 31 1 2

9:30am Lessons & Carols 10:45am Pastoral Care 3:45pm Brownie Troop 7:30pm Adult Choir No 5:15pm Service 8 pm AA Mtg. 7pm Sacred Harp

9:30am Worship Service 12pm Lectionary Study Group 6:pm Epiphany Party 12pm Property Manage. 7:30pm Women’s 6pm Formation Mtg. Spirituality 8pm AA Mtg. 7pm Vestry Meeting 7:30pm Adult Choir 5:15pm Worship Service

9:30am Worship Service 9:30am Fiber Arts 10am Zumba class Guild 12pm Lectionary Study 7pm ABC Board Mtg. Group 6pm Rite 13 3:45pm Brownie Troop 7:30pm Adult Choir 5:15pm Worship Service 8pm AA Mtg . 9:30am Worship Service 10am Zumba class 10:45am Annual Mtg. 10:30am Handiworks Rite 13 tubing at Taberg Group 6:30pm MVDTC mtg. 12pm Lectionary Study 8pm AA Mtg Group 7:30pm Adult Choir 5:15pm Worship Service

9:30am Worship Service 10am Zumba class 11am Pastoral Care mtg. 12pm Lectionary Study Group . 8pm AA Mtg 3:45pm Brownie Troop 7:30pm Adult Choir 6pm Vestry Potluck 5:15pm Worship Service

>>> DeaDline for february newsletter: January 28 <<<

Conrad Dorn Dorene Dorn Don & Heather Drumm Helen Ford Diek Elliott Family John Ellis Family

Madeline Ellis Robert Ellison Family Randy Ericson Family Tom & Pat Evans Chris Evans Family Bruce & Sharon Evans

Ryan Evans Scott Evans D.Evans & Patricia Jue John & Mimi Fehlner Dick & Barbara Foster Chris & Patty Fox

Joan Frost Jennifer Fuller Mark Fuller Furlong Family Mike Garcia Family Roger & Jill Gates

Jennifer Geiger Gordon Hayes, Jr Family Tom & Jill Hebert John Hecklau Family Craig & Kathy Heuss Stacey Himmelburger