Newsletter

Sunday 31st July 2011 - Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

WELCOME to Holy Innocents—we hope you enjoy this time of prayer as we reflect on Scripture together and celebrate the Eucharist. After the 8am service breakfast is served and morning tea after the 10am service. At 10 am everything in the service will be screened on the walls. Sunday School will resume today

Collect for Seventh Sunday after Pentecost
O God, giver of life and health, Whose Son Jesus Christ has called us to hunger and thirst for justice: refresh us with Your grace, that we may not be weary in well-doing, for the sake of Him Who meets all our needs, Jesus Christ our Saviour; Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

TODAY’S READINGS
Readings Genesis 32:22—31 and Romans 9: 1—8 read by John F
GOSPEL Matthew 14: 13—21
Fr Ron’s Notes available at http://www.anglican-belair.blogspot.com/

PRAYERS FOR THE PEOPLE led by Sue D-T
We pray for those in need: Ron Teague, Peter Little, the Swaby family, Chris Contro, Yvonne Myers, Joy Campbell, Jenny Jeffrey, Dorothy Furnival, and others known to us,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Joy Campbell, Annabel William, Graham Pater, Andrew Little and Mary Cheeseman
HAPPY WEDDING ANNIVERSARY
YEAR’S MIND— Doreen Wrightson

PREPARATION FOR NEXT SUNDAY Holy Innocents’ Day
Readings Jeremiah 31: 15—29 and 1 John 1:5—3:2
GOSPEL Matthew 2: 13—18

REGULAR GROUPS AND BOOKINGS

PRAYER CIRCLE meets noon on the 2nd Tuesday each month at 36 Penno Parade North
BIBLE STUDY Wednesday at 10.00am at Pressley’s home
THURSDAY 9.30am Eucharist Parish Council in evening
SINGING GROUP Meets after the 10am service each Sunday. All singers welcome.

MOTHERS’ UNION Branch meets at 2.00pm on the third Thursday of the month in the Germein Room. All are welcome.

HELPLINE
Part of being a Christian community is the support offered to each other in times of need. We offer short-term delivery of food where needed, local transport, phone calls, visits and other types of assistance. Call Barb Capon 8278 3584 and Lucinda Hale 8278 8814.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS—
Holy Innocents’ Patronal Festival Sunday next Sunday.
Sunday School plans to have some artwork on display; families of the youngsters will be illustrating the old stories of Biblical innocents—and others of you may care to hang work alongside. Another request is for people to provide snaps of themselves when young—for others to guess who!
Greater clarity about the Food Festival for this day has emerged: Any expert on pavlovas is asked to get in touch with Mary Vandepeer please, Cuisine that day will come from Korea, Japan, India, South Africa and even England! Just make sure your name is on the list to be present if you are staying for the meal. LAST CALL!

Plans are being laid for a Parish Dinner on 23rd September, with the Archbishop coming to speak. This has to do with plans for the future of the parish, and all are asked to set aside this date. More details to come and pamphlets are available. Also see item in the forthcoming Parish Magazine.

POWERPOINT ROSTER –
Today Joy Campbell or Craig Deane
Next Sunday Barb Capon or Trevor Tregenza

READER- AND INTERCESSOR ROSTER
Next Sunday Reader Paul H Intercessor Mary V
Sunday after Reader Arndrae L Intercessor Warren

SANCTUARY ROSTER
Next week Flowers Sue D’T Brass Caroline & Sid Sweet
Cleaning Group 1

OTHER ITEMS …….
ST. JOHN’S GRAMMAR JUNIOR SCHOOL CELEBRATIONS
Chaplain Clare and students at St. John’s Junior School invite parishioners to the School Assembly in the Gillian Clampett Hall on Tuesday 9th August at 9.00am celebrating the 20th birthday of the School. Guest speakers and a cake will follow.
On Wednesday 10th August, 1.30pm a short service in the Chapel will be followed by Chapel tours and oral history sessions conducted by Year 4 students (where your assistance as interviewee may be required, please!) Please RSVP by email or phone on 8270 6445 or cbruce@stjohns.sa.edu.au

RONBLOG .... From today’s Old Testament Lesson

This cameo of the struggle between Jacob and the angel was yet another step in Jacob’s learning curve. The most interesting parts of this tale are first that it increased Jacob’s understanding of God, and second (to me it is far more significant) the ‘renaming’ of Jacob to ‘Israel,’ You have striven with God and with man and have prevailed.
This is a very revealing aspect of Hebrew Faith. You have striven - indicating that the emergence of the Hebrew Faith, right over its long history, has come as a result of the struggling search for reality. Is there any other way to go? It was not until this passage burst on my slow brain – many years ago now! – that the name ‘Israel’ means ‘you have striven with God and humans and have prevailed!’ That came to me with striking force for it sums up what really is required of any questioning believer: faith does not come drifting down on you like some sort of warm blanket, nor is it a matter of quietly accepting whatever is served up to you. It is a matter of struggling with the issues until you find your feet on firm ground. Struggle. Search. Even prove sometimes. As I often say to folk, faith is a choice a person makes on the basis of the evidence in front of them.
In that remarkable saga of Jacob, if you stop and think about it, the first struggle he had was with himself. Even in that long-past and somewhat unsophisticated time, it is hard to imagine that Jacob was unaware of his shortcomings, strengths and rather awful weaknesses. His clash with Esau opened some vast wounds, the results of which are still with us in the enmity continuing to be expressed between racial groups in the Middle East. Then there was the comeuppance he experienced with the father of his wives. It was a neat but nasty trick played upon him – and it cost him quite a percentage of his life span.
And the struggle was with God as well. The incident in last week’s OT Lesson and the realization that God was not bound by areas of influence like other gods. And the same God would have been at work in the man dealing with the manifold issues to be faced, as you experience yourself.
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People are advised that those planning to take part in the Parish Camp in November are advised to contact Jan Tregenza on 82789536 or direct to Normanville Jetty Caravan Park (Debbie) on 8558 2038 before the end of August. More detail in the forthcoming Parish Magazine.

The time-honoured ABM Lamington Drive is looming. The S A Auxiliary of the ABM invites us to order Lamingtons at $10.00 per dozen. A list has been placed in the parish hall, with a container for your payment. It helps if the payment is made at the time of ordering. Joan Durdin will forward the orders, and the lamingtons will be available on Friday 26 August. Don't forget that lamingtons last well in the freezer, if you don't want to indulge immediately.
Items for the Newsletter need to be sent to Fr. Ron at 8298 7160 or ronpkeynes@internode.on.net by Tuesday afternoon please …….