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Brothers and Sisters in Christ, In this Advent season of preparation and expectation, we reflect on all that we have to thank God for in our lives, and all the blessings of the year that is coming to a close. Looking back over newsletters of 2016, I can hardly believe the richness of life in the Spirit that God is pouring out into this congregation. I am also keenly aware that the very same Spirit will be just as vigorously pulling and pushing us forward into another year. Sometimes we will dance forward, sometimes we will gingerly step out with trepidation, and sometimes, yes, sometimes, we may move ahead only with great stubbornness and reluctance. All the while, we will never know what lies in store for us around the bend, but we will always prepare for whatever way God would have us follow. If evidence of God’s potential and work in our midst were not evident enough in the following pages, I will share with you briefly one more snapshot of God’s movement in our midst. Many of you have been following the developing relationship of our church with our brothers and sisters in the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti. I report to you wonderful news that just this week, Fr. Sam Owen and Fr. Nathanael Saint Pierre have made a trip to Haiti, as The New York Haiti Project has received a $15,000 grant to buy a grain mill in the community of Matel. With a source of income for that struggling community in place, further development and strengthening will not be far behind. May it be so in Haiti, and may it be so in our community as well. Yours in Christ,

Birthdays & Anniversaries

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Amazon.com 2

Xmas Worship 2

Food Pantry 3

RenewalWorks 4

Sock Drive 4

Examen Prayer 5

Warden’s Word 6

St. Nicholas 6

Non-Fundraiser 7

Deacon’s Corner 8

Altar Guild 8

Christmas Cards 9

Girls Friendly 10

Cemetery Life 10

Wilder Time 11

Loaves & Fishes 12

Renewal Chart 12

Chorale Concert 13

Convention 14

Altar Flowers 15

Silent Nights 17

Newsletter Numbers

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F r o m t h e R e c to r

In this issue:

A Newsletter of St. George’s Church, Newburgh December 2016

The angelus

Hark!

And mark your calendars for these upcoming events:

This Month:

12/1 St. George’s Christmas Card Sale Begins (p. 9) 12/5-9 Office Manager Out of the Office 12/7 Silent Night at St. George’s (p. 17) 12/11 St. Nicholas Day Collection for AFEDJ (p. 6) 12/14 Sr. Girls Friendly Society (p. 10) 12/14 Silent Night at St George’s (p. 17) 12/15 Non-Fundraiser Fundraiser and Christmas Card Sale End (p. 7) 12/18 The Greening of the Church (p. 8) 12/21 Silent Night at St. George’s (p. 17) 12/24 Christmas Eve Festive Choral Holy Eucharist by Candlelight (p.2) 12/25 Christmas Day Holy Eucharist with Hymns (p. 2) Coming Up: 1/7 De-Greening of the Church (p. 8)

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Upcoming Birthdays

12/1 Melania Fontanez

12/6 Kirk Dornton

12/6 Matthew Montoya

12/9 Robert Hess

12/10 Peg Trimble

12/15 Gail Ahearn

12/16 Andre Scott

12/17 Kristina Cousins

12/17 Sarah Cousins

12/18 Deborah Dresser

12/23 Susan Jurkovic

12/24 Beth Gilmore

12/24 Joseph Jurkovic

12/27 Elsie Kavanagh

12/27 Craig Zahn

12/29 Lana Scott

12/31 Barbara Orner

Upcoming Anniversaries

12/30 Andre & Lana Scott

LAST REMINDER Amazon.com Shoppers!

P lease keep St. George’s in mind if you will be making online purchases through Amazon.com. St. George’s

has an advertising account set up with Amazon so that we will receive a 4-10% share of any purchases that originate from our website. We have earned nearly $200 so far this year from this arrangement with Amazon. What do you need to do for St. George’s to automatically receive this portion of your Amazon purchases? Simple! 1) Go to St. George’s website: www.stgeorgesch.com 2) Click on the “Amazon” button located below our site

menu. (See left) This will send you to Amazon.com. 3) Make your purchases as normal. It’s as easy as that! Note: If you do not see the Amazon button on St. George’s website, please be certain that any ad-blocking features are turned off of your website browser.

Here’s the Amazon.com

Link!

CHRISTMAS WORSHIP AT

ST. GEORGE’S CHURCH

Christmas Eve: Candlelit Choral Holy Eucharist at 8pm, with special music beginning at 7:40pm

(note the later start time this year.)

Christmas Day:

Holy Eucharist with Hymns at 10am

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NEWS

L ast month, Sibby Tower from Epis-

copal Charities did a site visit of our food pantry. She brought a copy of our grant appli-cation and we dis-cussed our goals and concerns. Father Dustin came to meet Sibby and joined us in the John Brown Room. We then went into the Argenio Room where she viewed clients re-ceiving food and to meet the volunteers. A few days later she called me to ask a question. She wanted to know what I would do if the government reduced our grant. I mentioned some other sources that we have but thought I gave her the best answer when I said “we put our trust in the hands of the Lord.” On November 17th Horizons on Hudson stu-dents came to the pantry bringing food. Between 30 and 40 students in fourth and fifth grade brought bags of nonperishable food. Organized by Concetta Cracolici, Mala Hoffman and Kelly Garcia the enthu-siastic children placed the food on the tables. Esteban who is the vice president of 5th grade asked if we would accept donated clothing.

Chris Porpora from Heritage Middle School arranged for me to pick up more clothing. We are not only receiving an abundance of clothing but some with the tags on them. Chris told me some people actually went out and bought new.

On November 18th I went with Sue Preece to pick up food from the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority at Downstate QWL Building in Beacon. This has become a yearly event as stu-dents from neighbor-ing high schools col-lect canned goods. They are part of Pro-ject H.O.P.E. –Operation H.E.A.R.T. Leslie Hoff-man has spoken to me about Samantha from Girl Power. Samantha is part of BOA (Board of Activities) club from Orange County Community College. They col-

lected two boxes of nonperishable food for the pantry. Samantha is very excited about this project. She is pictured here with Father Dustin. November and December are the two months when the spirit of giving touches us more than any other

time of the year. It’s also a time for giving thanks. I am thankful for family and friends. I am thankful for Fa-ther Dustin and Deacon Vonnie. I am thankful for all the parishioners. I am thankful for all the young stu-dents from these organizations who become involved with giving. They are our future! Thank you to all who donated bags to Loaves & Fish-es. Hope you had a safe and Happy Thanksgiving. Al Nucifore Food Pantry Chair

A Mission of St. George’s Church, Newburgh

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Read-Pray-Connect in the season of

Advent

Advent greetings from your Renewal Works (RW) planning team! As we gathered in early Novem-ber to reflect and give thanks on that which was done and looked forward to our Advent “to do” list, we real-ized that the December Angelus, would publish some-what in the midst of our Renewal Works’ Advent sea-son preparations. But, much like our own spiritual de-velopment, the Renewal Works Advent activities have no hard and fast “start by” date and any one of the members of the Renewal Works team ( see names at end of article) would be happy to catch you up on the prayer practice and journal crafting workshops highlighted be-low. At the time this article was being penned, our Advent preparations had began in the form of a work-shop on St. Ignatius with a focus on a particular aspect of his spiritual exercises, called the Examen Prayer. About 20 parishioners joined with Father Dustin after the 10AM service on Sunday Nov 20th to learn and ac-tually take a first practice at this type of prayer. Beauti-fully simple prayer instruction cards were distributed and laid a gentle springboard for the preparation and participation in our Renewal Works’ Advent Practice of keeping a Spiritual Journal. On the first Sunday of Advent, Nov 27th , fol-lowing the 10AM service, children and adults were wel-comed to a hands-on workshop to design and assemble an Advent Spiritual Journal. The session facilitated by RW team member, Barbara Shelley, offered supplies to satisfy the most craft-ready participant, yet was gently designed to support those whose crafting skills lag far behind their spiritual development! Each workshop par-ticipant, adult or child, would leave with their own cus-tom Advent Spiritual Journal. Consider your handmade Spiritual Journal a companion for your Advent journey, with a blank (or lined) space to record daily spiritual reflections in what-ever way one is inspired and able. Workshop partici-pants were encouraged to think of journaling in the forms of coloring, collage and drawing along with writ-ing. In an otherwise busy, perhaps spiritually distracting commercial time of the year, we hope your Advent Journal encourages some moments of daily pause – of-fering an opportunity to experience an awareness of

gratitude for the unique and varied ways God’s presence is “renewing” our daily Advent life. Did you miss the Workshops? Need a quick re-view on the Examen Prayer? Want your own Advent Spiritual Journal? Please feel free to contact Father Dustin, Deacon Vonnie or any member of the Renewal Works Team. As always, we welcome your feedback on St. George’s Renewal Works’ programs and remain in-terested in any suggestions and new ideas. Submitted by Barbara Shelley on behalf of St. George’s Renewal Works

Team: Andrea Chester, Catherine Costello, Mary Barber, Alleyne Fraser,

Barbara Shelley, Margaret Sipple and The Rev. Dustin Trowbridge and The

Rev. Deacon Vonnie Hubbard

“Clothe the Naked” —Jesus

S t. George’s will once again be

collecting new white socks through the month of December for distribution to our homeless neighbors in Newburgh. Clean, dry, warm socks are incredibly precious possessions for those spending hours outdoors on their feet through the cold winter months. Please drop your donations in the marked cardboard box near the entrance to the church.

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A Look Back at Our Ignatian Spiritual Practice

Workshop for Advent

O n Sunday, November 20th, a group of parishion-ers and clergy gathered in the Argenio Room for

Fr. Dustin’s presentation on The Examen Prayer. This spiritual practice finds its roots in the teachings of the founder of the Jesuits, St. Ignatius of Loyola, who lived in Spain in the 16th century. As a part of our continued explorations of spiritual practices here as St. George’s within our on-going RenewalWorks programming, this technique of prayer provides a contrasting complement to the Cen-tering Prayer workshop we shared earlier in the fall at Holy Cross Monastery. When we pray the Examen Prayer, our minds and memories are highly active and engaged as we review the day, seeking out God’s presence in our lives, especially in ways that we may have missed the first time through the day. The pray-er can be modified to the practitioner’s needs, but will general follow 5 steps: 1) Open yourself to the presence and guidance of

God, as you enter the time of prayer. 2) Approach the memories of the day that has passed

with a sense of gratitude to God. 3) Review the day, seeking out “God Moments”

where, looking back, God’s presence seems espe-cially evident. Consider moments of particularly strong emotions and reflect more deeply on the source and meaning of your feelings. (The Emo-tions Wheel pictured to the right illustrates the connections and subtleties of our emotions.)

4) Focus on a particular memory and pray to God from that experience, lifting it up for your learn-ing, correction, or drawing closer to God.

5) Close your prayer time turning your focus to the day to come, seeking God’s guidance to grow from your practice.

For those of us who crave a more active, en-gaged, interactive spiritual practice, The Examen Prayer offers the mind as well as the heart much to work with. As we open ourselves for a season of Ad-vent Preparation, may such be the activity that rules our hearts in the midst of so very many distractions around us. Note: Full-size copies of the Prayer Card and Emo-tion Wheel pictured here are available by request from Fr. Dustin.

The Emotion Wheel

The Examen Prayer Card

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The rainbow is fading. Our dream is over. We must wake up now, and the dawn is chilly. (Bernstein, Kad-dish Symphony) Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received. (1 Peter)

I am feeling acutely in-between two places as I write this. Yes, it is getting chilly. The snow we had

recently, right after a day of sunny sixty degree weather, really threw me. The election still seems shocking and somewhat unreal. And my job has been very hard. I just came through several weeks of preparation for and going through a hospital accreditation survey. We were suc-cessful, but it was exhausting. After the survey, I am back to the daily frustration and grind of trying to place temporary doctors in all my vacancies and keep a hospital running with half the staff it used to have. Yet as we go into this season of thanksgiving and gift exchanging, I see that I have a lot to be thankful for. I have received many gifts. Our older daughter Kenne-dy is thriving in her sophomore year at Smith College. She came home this week, and brought two guests to Thanksgiving dinner, her boyfriend and a college friend. Trinity, having come off the triumph of her terrific acting in St. George’s cemetery plays, is pre-paring to apply for college herself. Our girls are growing up into beautiful young women. I have felt gifts growing inside me as well. Many times recently I have had a great feeling of flow during worship in church. At times I get the sense I am reading or singing without effort, as if it is just happening through me rather than me “doing” it. And the sense of being totally present in the action makes me feel like I am able to perform these things better than I ordinarily could. It feels a little magical. I have been playing piano for Thursday evening pray-er services at King of Kings Lutheran Church for the past several months. I volunteered to fill in when their pianist moved out of state, even though I had not regularly played piano in years and considered my skills to be shaky at best. I no longer thought I could play the piano much. Yet somehow, in these last few weeks, it is dawning on me that I actually am playing piano every week for an hour-long service. And last month I acted in a play, even though I haven’t acted in anything since high school!

Warden’s Word:

This all leads me to one conclusion. I know I can-not really do these things, or at least not on my own. I must be getting a lot of help from God. Maybe I’m starting to understand better what it means to have a gift. Yes, the singing, reading, playing, and acting are gifts from God. But it seems that “gift from God” doesn’t mean that God waved a magic wand when I was born, and -- Bing! Shazam! – I was able to do the things I’m doing now. It is an ongoing relationship – to-day, now -- where God is working, through me, to help me do things I did not think I could do. Stepping further out of my comfort zone and get-ting help to go there is a wonderful feeling. It is some-thing I could easily take for granted, because when it is happening it feels effortless. But I have to hold onto those moments, because the glow of their memories makes it easier to bear the chill of the weather, the political climate, or a difficult work situation. Maybe you’re also thinking about going deeper into an activity you have been doing. Maybe you are at-tracted to trying something new, but looked at someone else doing it and thought, “I could never do that.” It could be starting to exercise, or taking on a new role at work, pursuing a new hobby, or trying on a new ministry at church. Whatever that thing is, step out and give it a chance. You may be surprised at the gifts God will reveal in you. Mary Barber, Warden

O n Sunday, December 11th, St. George’s will be

recognizing the Feast Day of St. Nicholas with our annual collection for The American Friends of the Episcopal Dio-cese of Jerusalem. Designated envelopes will be available in the church, and all contribu-tions will directly benefit Epis-copal outreach and humanitar-ian aid to any in need in the Holy Land. Checks may be made out to “St. George’s Church,” with “St. Nicholas” in the memo line.

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N on-Fundraiser Fundraiser: This year, we are trying an experiment at St. George’s.

Rather than put on labor-intensive and costly fundraiser for our Operating Budget, we are holding a “Non-Fundraiser Fundraiser” which will finish on December 15th. Reflect on what you would otherwise expect to spend on raffle baskets, Cabaret tickets, silent auction items, and hours of pounding the pavement hawking pro-gram advertisements our laboring at a Yard Sale under the blistering sun in support of the Mother Church’s bot-tom line operations, and instead, simply substitute a donation to the Non-Event “Fundraiser” at your leisure. It’s a gift to your church, and a gift to yourself!

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S t. George’s Altar Guild reminds the people o St. George’s that “The Greening of the Church for

Christmastide” will take place following the 10am service on Sunday, December 18th this year. Come join in the decorating and fellowship with your friends at St. George’s! A reminder also that “The De-Greening of the Church” will be held on Saturday, January 7th at 10am. Please stop by to pitch in if you can. Decorating our beloved church is a joy to take part in, do please mark these dates on you calendar!

THE DEACON’S

CORNER

H uman Rights Day is observed every year on De-cember 10th. That’s the date the UN adopted the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The theme of 2016 is “Stand up for someone's rights! More infor-mation about the United Nations Declaration of Hu-man Rights http://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/ or like the UN on Facebook and follow them on Twitter. So many people are anxious and afraid about our future. The news and social media are full of re-ports of incidents of hate and messages of intoler-ance. Disrespect for basic human rights continues to be wide-spread in all parts of our nations, including our houses of worship. These messages prey on our fears. What can we do as just one church in one city to make a difference? Wherever we are, we must take a stand as Je-sus took a stand with the outsider, with the unclean, with the foreigner, we must be ready to stand. We must watch for an make a real difference. In the street, in school, at work, in public transport; in the voting booth, on social media. If we are followers of Jesus, this is a crucial time for us to live like it. We must be courageous. The time for this is now. If you believe you have been the victim or have witnessed a violation of some one else's human rights you can file a complaint. Discrimination be-cause of race, color, creed, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, military status, domestic violence victim status or arrest or conviction record, is illegal. You can contact the Re-gional Office of the New York State Division of Hu-man Rights in White Plains, NY at 914-989-3120. Or you can download a complaint form from their web-site at www.dhr.ny.gov and mail it to the regional of-

Human Rights

Day

fice that covers Orange County at: NYS Division of Human Rights, 7 – 11 South Broadway, Ste. 314, White Plains, New York 10601. Additionally, get involved locally. Support the work of The Orange County Human Rights Com-mission. The commission sponsors programs through the year to inform the community about human rights, including a Orange County-Wide Art Show for High School Students. The free exhibit is at SUNY Or-ange’s Newburgh Campus, Kaplan Hall and Mid-dletown Campus, Orange Hall Gallery on December 1 -18, 2016. There will be receptions on December 6th in Newburgh at 6 pm and December 4th at 1 pm in Middletown. (I went last year and the art was amaz-ing) If you would like more information on any of the topics, please feel free to ask me.

Deacon Vonnie

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W e have a selection of “St. George's Christmas Cards” available for purchase this year. They are printed on heavy-weight 60lb. cardstock with a glossy cover and blank matte interior, for writing your personalized

message. See below the 5 selections that are available. Please indicate to Fr. Dustin directly how many of which card(s) you would like (the card images are labeled for reference). They cost $2.50 each, which will include a card, a matching envelope, and a gold foil seal stamped with St. George's official emblem. Please don't delay, as supplies are limited. This opportunity will end on December 15th, or when supplies run out. Already sent out your cards for this season? Then purchase some now for next year!

FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY! ST. GEORGE’S CHURCH CHRISTMAS CARDS

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Senior Girls’

Friendly Society News

P erhaps I will re-read O. Henry's short story "The Gift of the Magi" this month. Now that it is Ad-

vent and Christmas is coming closer, this tale of gener-ous giving fits right in with my desire to savor the beautiful and good in literature and in life. Also, now that the "wilder" period of cemetery fundraising and work sessions has passed, the cemetery committee and I can rest peacefully (for a little while, at any rate ) and take pleasure in our avocations and also in knowing we have done something beautiful and good for St. George's Cemetery and, we hope, to the glory of God. We have gifted the cemetery by our actions and plot-ting. We began "A Wilder Time", two one-act comedic dramas by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and nov-elist, Thornton Wilder, to raise monies to maintain and improve our 7.4 acre sacred site on Washington Street. We also intended "A Wilder Time" to be a gift--- a gift for the greater Newburgh community and for all in-volved in the plays. We believed, with your aid, the assistance of a very talented cast and crew, a wise and experienced director, and with God's help, we would succeed, and we did. After the expense of licensing fees and scripts, the amount raised by "A Wilder Time" was slightly over $6200.00. (all other expenses were absorbed by committee members or were donated services) We ap-plaud all concerned. At the same time that "The Long Christmas Dinner" and "The Happy Journey" to Tren-ton and Camden" were being readied for the stage, ca-dets from the United States Military Academy at West Point were signing up to do battle with toppled tomb-stones within the cemetery's gates. Sixteen cadets along with a civilian from the community affairs office ar-rived at our cemetery early on the morning of Sunday, October 30. They were met by Bill Rose and members of Boy Scout Troop 195 of Plattekill, as well as adult volunteers that Bill had recruited to help. Although Bill is paid for landscaping/mowing services at St. George's Cemetery, that day he was acting as the unremunerat-ed supervisor/coordinator of all activities planned.

Cemetery LIFE

H appy December to you from the members of the Senior Girls' Friendly Society! Indeed, we are ex-

pecting this month to be happy for people near and far as Christmas arrives once more. As the Christmas at Sea program of the Seamen's Church Institute distributes gifts collected here at St. George's for the men and wom-en mariners away from home, we shall feel the blessing, too. When the children in their apartments at Project L.I.F.E. nearby on First Street, open their presents from the SGFS and from our Sunday School, there will be glad smiles here on Grand Street, as well. With joy, the SGFS will attend the Wednesday midday Eucharist on December 14 in beautiful St. Paul's Chapel. The wonderful Christ child in stained glass will smile into our hearts and hold us in His sweet sway. Then we travel along to the Temple Hill Tavern locat-ed at 171 Temple Hill Road in New Windsor for our 2016 Christmas luncheon, a merry celebration awaiting us, a happy ending to this year's program activities. (We thank Jean Herring for presenting part one of her talk on the Kruger Wildlife National Park in South Africa at our November meeting. It was both educational and in-sightful. We look forward to part two in the spring. Our next SGFS meeting will be held in March.) We all hope that our parish family and their families and friends and also strangers everywhere will find hope, peace, and happiness, and holy blessings in the Advent journey and the happy gift of Christmas Love. Catherine Costello, President

THANK YOU,

TROOP 195!

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Approximately 100 toppled tombstones were reset by the cadets and Bill's recruits including a massive white marble tombstone that the cadets managed to up-right by prodigious effort and force of will. Excited and genuine cheering could be heard reverberating throughout the cemetery at the accomplishment of that sought after feat, I have been told. Furthermore, I have learned that the first tombstone put up on that final Sunday of October bears the inscription, "God is Love". It is the tombstone of Judge William Fullerton. On the north side of Saint George's Church there is a stained glass window in his memory. Also, it is won-derful to report that many gravestones of veterans were put to rights. Remarks were made noting a dif-ference in the appearance of the cemetery when a small group of us gathered together at the entrance monument dedicated to the soldiers, sailors, and ma-rines of all wars for the annual prayer service for All the Saints conducted by Fr. Dustin on November 1. Fr. Wayne and I walked the perimeter of the ceme-tery in mid-November to scope out the areas in need of improved fencing and to get a general picture of its state overall. We commented on the beauty we found there. Our comments were echoed back to me several days before Thanksgiving when I chanced to meet a relative of a man buried in our cemetery just the day before this unexpected encounter. I was told, "The cemetery was beautiful." "Thank you". "The cemetery was beautiful ". As though in the surprise-ending mode of an O. Henry short story, it turns out that all along, the cemetery itself is the gift. The cemetery committee and I wish you the gift of a blessed Advent, a merry Christmas, and a happy life-giving discovery you never expected even in your "Wilder" moments. (Because there are so many people to thank for helping with our fall ceme-tery projects, I plan to list them in the January "Cemetery Life" article. It may be the length of an O. Henry short, but a worthy tale. Besides, there may not be much to report regarding the cemetery in the early winter, so watch next month's column for the names and you may also hear a story about the Advent wreath adventure that Fr. Wayne and I are undertaking on Sunday, December 4 at the cemetery following the coffee hour- or you could simply join us then). Catherine Costello President, Cemetery Committee

A Wilder Time Memories….

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RenewalWorks @ St. George’s

CONNECT. READ. PRAY.

Goals for 2016-2017

Develop and expand our practice of per-sonal prayer by attending an October Parish Retreat Day, and engage in a parish-wide Advent Spiritual Practice.

Participate in the reading of a spirit-ually-nurturing book as a shared Parish Lenten Spiritual Practice.

Come together, parishioners of all ages, to join in a Parish Day of Work and Service with a Fellowship Cook-Out Barbecue in May.

Going on Now!

Newburgh Loaves & Fishes, Inc.

Thank You All!!!!

T hank you all on behalf of Newburgh Loaves & Fishes 2016 Committee, volunteers and the more than 1000

disadvantaged families of the City of Newburgh, Thank You. Your support providing food and money was be-yond generous. St. George’s donated 52 bags of food and gave donations of $630 cash, including a special gift from Zachary, towards the $13,000 bill for the Turkeys! A special thank you to Alan Nucifore and Sue Preece for tending the food bags and getting them all to 1st Method-ist. It was an incredible day! I’ve been the chair for several years. Each year I chair this event is a unique experience for me. Each year has its own challenges. Some years its short supplies of turkey due to avian flu, other years it’s finding enough people to register folks at the food pantries. This year was no exception. I would like to share one story from this miracle we call Newburgh Loaves & Fishes. We order 12,000 pounds of turkey, that’s 5 pal-lets with 40 cases on each pallet. We arrange to get the turkeys on the Monday before Thanksgiving. The only way to move the turkeys from the seller to 1st Methodist, where we will give the food out the next day, is with a 26-foot truck rated to carry 14,000 pounds that has a lift gate rated for 3000 pounds. We have to rent this truck. A truck this size requires that the driver have a commercial driver license (CDL), not an easy person to find. We

found one but he just got a job and was working Monday. We found another volunteer, but she had to attend a funeral on Monday. We prayed and begged God for help. Late on Friday afternoon, I received a call about some guy who heard about the problem. This guy knew some other guy with a CDL and this other guy would meet me Monday at the truck rental place. It was so cold on Monday but off I went to meet the guy who knew a guy. I got to the rental place early, and didn’t see any big trucks. I went in to the office and asked about it. They had no truck for Loaves and Fishes. It was in Montgomery and couldn’t I just go there and get it!!!!! Panic set in. How are we going to get the turkeys, there will be a riot if we don’t get the promised turkeys. Peo-ple will be in line in the dark at 6:00 a.m. and no turkey. Lord Help Me, I prayed. Then a guy who knew the other guy walked into the truck rental of-fice asking for a “church lady” I said that’s me, I’m the church lady, but they have NO TRUCK! I looked at the guy’s name tag and I knew this guy too. He hung out with my son as kids. When he realized, who I was…Tommy’s mom, he told me not to worry. He would take care of every-thing. AND GOD DID. If you ever want to experience the miracle of God’s Bountiful Creation, Loaves & Fishes al-ways needs help! Deacon Vonnie

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T he Newburgh Symphonic Chorale’s pre-Christmas concert this year will feature the Midnight Mass for Christmas, or Messe de Minuit pour Noël, by the French Baroque composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643-1704).

In setting the five sections of the traditional Latin mass texts, Charpentier uses musical material drawn from then-popular Christmas carols. What results is, in the words of one scholar, “an excellent example of seventeenth century musical craftsmanship.” Charpentier maintains the flavor of the carols’ melodies and keeps instrumental timbres simple, dance-like, and delightful. Two flutes, strings and continuo will accompany the Chorale, both for the Mass and for the eight French carols that follow. No tickets required; a free-will offering will be taken.

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2016 Diocesan Convention

Update

T he clergy and wardens of St. George’s represent-ed our church at the recent diocesan convention

in Tarrytown. A lot happened in the two-day meet-ing, including electing representatives to different committees, and addresses by Bishop Dietsche, Bish-op Suffragen Shin, and Assistant Bishop Glasspool. Most notably, a major rewrite to the bylaws of the diocese, called the Canons, was discussed and ap-proved. The old Congregational Support plan is go-ing away, with “Missions” being replaced by a new term, “Congregations in Strategic Settings.” There was a lot of talk about what constitutes a viable church, and how churches need to evaluate their own viability and vitality on a regular basis and make ad-justments as needed.

St. George’s transitioned off of congregation-al support a few years ago and called our rector this year. We have seen signs of spiritual vitality, through new members joining our church and interest in spiritual practices offered in Renewal Works ef-forts. We also have outreach ministries, the Food Pantry, Girl Power, and Voices of Hope, that are healthy and growing. So the consideration of viabil-ity and vitality, though an ongoing challenge, was very affirming to where we are as a church now.

One specific change in the Canons will affect St. George’s directly. It has to do with the “12.5% cap” on annual increases to a church’s diocesan assessment, the apportioned share we pay the diocese each year for dioce-san operations, which includes supporting churches that need our help. The assessment is calculated as a portion of our operating budget, so that big churches pay a bigger share. The 12.5% cap has meant that if a church got a windfall from a large donation or surge of members, it would not have to suddenly face a huge increase in the assessment. The assessment could go up by a maximum of 12.5% from year to year regardless of how much a church’s operating budget went up. There was an unintended consequence of this rule for churches which had their assessment reduced or for-given because of a difficult year or set of circumstances. Even though the 12.5% cap was not supposed to apply to assessments that had been adjusted by the diocese, it did. To give an example of what this means, for a church with an assessment of $20,000 adjusted down to just $1,000 during the great recession, it could take decades before its assessment went back up to what it should have been, because by canon law the annual maximum increase was limited to 12.5%. At convention, the Canons were revised to re-move this loophole, and now the 12.5% cap only applies to churches that pay their full assessed share to the dio-cese. For St. George’s, which had its assessment cut in half at the time of the covenant with St. Thomas, this means we will have to transition from the adjusted dioce-san assessment we are paying of around $8,500, to a full assessment of around $16,500, and we will have to do it sooner than the six years it would take by going up only 12.5% each year. How soon is not certain. The diocese is not making any sudden changes in 2017, and will nego-tiate the road to paying full share individually with each church, for all the 60 churches with adjusted rates. As St. George’s vestry prepares the 2017 budget, we are considering trying to increase our assessment ear-lier than required by the diocese. Why? There are a few good reasons to take this step if we are able. First, it will show to the diocese that we are making efforts to do our part. Second, we receive much more from the diocese than what we pay in our share, through grants such as the furnace grant we received last year, and assistance to our three outreach missions. Third, it is in our own best inter-est to get moving in the right direction, so that when we have to make the jump to the full $16,500 or so, it won’t be as big of a leap. And fourth, the money we send to the diocese in our assessment goes to churches that would not be able to exist without our help, one of which, Buen Pas-tor up the road from us on Broadway, is serving people right in our own neighborhood. So, lots to think about coming out of the conven-tion this year. If you want to read more, there are materi-als from convention in the John Brown Room. Or you can ask Father Dustin, Deacon Vonnie, or our wardens Sue Preece or Mary Barber.

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S p o n s o r s h i p o f A l t a r F l o w e r s & S a n c t u a r y C a n d l e s

2017

To sponsor the Altar flowers in memory of departed loved ones or to celebrate a special occasion, simply fill out the reverse side of this sheet with as many dates as you wish to reserve. The flowers that you sponsor can be taken home to enjoy or put on a gravesite.

The sanctuary candle burns continuously throughout the week to remind us that the sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood in the form of consecrated bread and wine are reserved in the ambry at all times. Please fill out the appropriate boxes for the candle. Calculate the amount owed and submit your check payable to St. George’s Altar Guild before the date you reserve. Please feel free to use an additional sheet of paper if necessary.

P a s c h a l C a n d l e & T o r c h F l o w e r S p o n s o r s h i p

The Paschal Candle Flowers used throughout the year on various occasions and the flowers used on the torches for Easter Sunday are available for sponsorship either to memorialize loved ones or to celebrate a special occasion. Simply fill out the request and check which item you would like to sponsor. Then calculate the amount and submit with payment payable to St. George’s Altar Guild and send it to the office.

__________ Total # of Paschal Candle Flowers X $17 ea. =$___________

Four Easter Torches $20 =$___________

Total __________

Sponsored by:______________________________________

Address:___________________________________________

__________________________________________________

Paschal Candle Torches Date In Memory or celebration of

XXXXXXXXXX

XXXXXXXXXX

1/8/2017

Baptism of Our Lord

4/16/2017

Easter Day

XXXXXXXXXX

XXXXXXXXXX

5/28/2017

Pentecost

XXXXXXXXXX

XXXXXXXXXX

11/05/2017

All Saints Day

Please tear out this form and return to the parish office with your sponsorships filled in. Thank You!

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____ Total # of Flowers X $35 for two vases =$______

____ Total # of Sanctuary Candles X $5 each =$______

Sponsored by:

_________________________________

Address & Phone #:

_________________________________

_________________________________

_________________________________

Flowers Candles Date In Memory Or In Celebration Of:

1/01/17

1/08/17

1/15/17

1/22/17

1/29/17

2/05/17

2/12/17

2/19/17

2/26/17

Lent 3/05/17

Lent 3/12/17

Lent 3/19/17

Lent 3/26/17

Lent 4/02/17

Palm Sunday 4/09/17

4/16/17

4/23/17

4/30/17

5/07/17

5/14/17

5/21/17

5/28/17

6/04/17

6/11/17

6/18/17

6/25/17

7/02/17

7/09/17

7/16/17

7/23/17

7/30/17

8/06/17

8/13/17

8/20/17

8/27/17

9/03/17

9/10/17

9/17/17

9/24/17

10/01/17

10/08/17

Flowers Candles Date In Memory Or In Celebration

10/15/17

10/22/17

10/29/17

11/05/17

11/12/17

11/19/17

11/26/17

Advent 12/03/17

Advent 12/10/17

Advent 12/17/17

Advent 12/24/17

12/31/17

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F or many of us, the month of December is fraught with stress, pressure, obliga-tion, and tension. The expectations that we place upon ourselves are high, de-

pression mounts, and spirits are low, even in the midst of all the clanging tolls of "holiday cheer" surrounding us. St. George's is working to cast off the negativity of these darkest days of the year and reclaim the light and serenity at the heart of De-cember's Advent season by offering a weekly series of "Silent Nights."

On three Wednesdays of December—the 7th, 14th, and 21st—St. George’s will be opening its doors to the communi-ty for an informal evening of peace, quiet, and contemplation. The sanctuary of the church will be dimmed, silent, and illuminated with candlelight from 5-6:30pm each day, inviting the public to stop by for a moment to re-center and re-focus on the hope, potential, and love at the center of the Advent season. All are welcome to drop by the church at 105 Grand Street, Newburgh for a moment of restoration and peace. For more information, contact the parish office at (845) 561-5355.

Silent Nights at St. George’s Wednesdays in Advent December 7, 14, & 21 5-6:30pm

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Belong at St. George’s Church

Contact Us

St. George’s Church phone: 845.561.5355 105 Grand Street fax: 845.561.2443 Newburgh, NY 12550 stgeo105@verizon.net www.stgeorgesch.com Office hours: Tues.-Fri. 9am-1pm

The Angelus

The Angelus is the monthly newsletter of St. George’s Church, Newburgh, New York. Submissions of articles, parish announcements, and photographs are welcomed. Please email your submissions by the 24th of the month to: stgeo105@verizon.net.

a look at the numbers:

H ere, below, is your monthly update from our church records about Sunday worship attendance and offer-ings since our last newsletter, including the last Sunday of October. Average attendance for the month

of November was 76, a decrease of 12% from last year’s 86.

5 Octo 1 Nov 2 Nov 3 Nov 4 Nov

THIS YEAR (2016)

8am Attendance 15 15 18 17

10am Attendance 47 82 79 48 44

Total Attendance 62 97 79 66 61

Pledge & Plate Offerings $1954 $2614 $2261 $2480 $1749

Sundays School Attendance 6 13 9 8 1

LAST YEAR (2015) 1 Nov 2 Nov 3 Nov 4 Nov 5 Nov

8am Attendance 14 12 14

10am Attendance 102 110 44 82 51

Total Attendance 116 110 56 82 65

Pledge & Plate Offerings $2854 $2932 $1630 $1895 $1561

Sunday School Attendance 13 11 8 3 8

Sunday Worship

8am Holy Euchar ist Rite I (Spoken)

Sunday School: 9:45am (all ages)

10am Holy Eucharist Rite II (with Music)

Wednesday Worship 12:10 p.m. Holy Eucharist

(in the Chapel)

6:30pm Evening Prayer

(in the Chapel)