Retreat For Couples

The Romance of Our Hearts and Souls with God

For those of us that are in relationship, whether for eight days or 80 years, please plan to join us for a couples retreat. This is for any and all couples looking to broaden and deepen our relationship with Jesus and with each other. Come and spend a day in Lent to share some together time with Christ.

When: Saturday, March 3, 2012, from 9:00AM – 4:00PM

Where: St. James Parish House – come to the east Parish House doors and ring the bell on the left side of the door

What: Bring yourselves and open hearts; food and beverages will be provided

Cost: Suggested donation of $5 per person

Who: Minimum of five couples – bring your partner and have some fun as well as discussion and quiet time

How: Register with Donna Holmes in the parish office: stjamesmilwaukee@aol.com

We want to make this available for all, so if you need child care for the day, let us know and we will provide for that. And do not let the cost be an issue to not attend, either.  If you have any questions, please contact Dcn. Terry or Mtr. Lisa.

Haitian Coffee Sale

I am pleased to report that St. James parishioners supported the Haiti Project this year by purchasing $316.00 worth of wonderful “Singing Rooster” coffee. Anyone who has not picked up his or her coffee should see me after church on Sunday – we still have the coffee and I am still collecting payment.

Special to Haiti
The coffee project is special because it is part of helping Haitians help themselves and rebuild their agriculture, which has been damaged by both natural disasters and misguided political and economic meddling from outside Haiti. While we put on a coffee sale once a year, anyone reading this who wishes to organize a sale or just buy at least 12 bags of coffee can contact the coffee project directly via www.singingrooster.org. You will reach the very efficient Molly Nicaise, fill out the forms, send payment, and receive the coffee within 48 hours. Both the coffee and its distribution have improved since the beginning of this project!

The Singing Rooster coffee project is an offshoot of our larger efforts to partner with Haiti through the Episcopal Diocese. For almost 30 years, we have had a sponsor relationship with St. Marc’s Parish in Jeanette, Haiti. The parish runs a school and many Episcopalians sponsor children at the school. There are also working visits to Jeanette organized through our Diocese and the Diocese of Eau Claire. To learn more, to participate, or to contribute, please visit www.HaitiProject.org.

Rebuilding and Rejuvenation
This is a time of rebuilding and rejuvenation both in Haiti generally and at St. Marc’s in particular. It is two
years since the January 2010 earthquake. Haiti has a new president who says he is committed to economic
development, and St. Marc’s has a new Priest, Pere Wisnel. This is a very welcome development, and I hope everyone reading this will visit the Haiti Project website and become informed about and involved with this ministry of our Diocese.

Lucy Cooper

Fat Tuesday Celebration

I love breakfast food. I savor the syrup-collecting pockets in blueberry waffles and I jump at the opportunity to make French Toast with orange zest and cinnamon. But nothing is better than stack of hot, glorious pancakes! Fond memories of my childhood often include a Sunday afternoon with mom’s Bisquick pancakes, regular Aunt Jemima syrup, plenty of butter (good German roots on the Schnell side of the family!), sausage links, and a big glass of cold milk.

My love of pancakes gets me salivating over the pancake dinner on Shrove Tuesday, coming up on February 21. “Shrove” is a lesser-known English word meaning “to confess our sins and to do penance for them”. It’s appropriate that we enter into Lent on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday with the right mindset. At some point in history, human weakness dictated that a somber Lent should be preceded by indulgence; in other words, bring on festivities and rich food! Christians claimed they were just avoiding waste and “using it all up” before the fasting began. Right! This celebration led to Shrove Tuesday being better known by the name “Fat Tuesday” or “Mardi Gras” in French. Traditionally, meat, eggs, milk, and sugar were ingredients that people abstained from eating during Lent. Therefore, the meal most associated with Fat Tuesday is pancakes and sausage!

Let’s celebrate! We are going to have a Shrove Tuesday/Fat Tuesday Celebration at St. James Church on Tuesday, February 21st at 6:00PM. There will be eating, celebrating, and playing games in the Parish House downstairs (The Gathering space). All ages are welcome! Please consider signing up for the cooking crew or the cleaning crew, or donating a few dollars to offset the cost of the meal! This will be a joyous and delicious way to come together as a community and celebrate before the season of Lent begins.

Robert Wilson

Shine Your Light

The season of Epiphany lasts for seven Sundays this year. I write this year because the length of the season changes every year, as the date for Easter changes. In the season of Epiphany, light is everywhere in our worship: scripture, prayers, music. We celebrate during this season, because Jesus, the light of the world, has come into our midst.

Together, we sing about light,

“I want to walk as a child of the Light, 

I want to follow Jesus. 

God set the stars to give light to the world, 

the Star of my life is Jesus.”

 

Together we hear the words of the prophet Isaiah,

“Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord is upon you.”

How do you walk as a child of the light? How do you shine? How do we shine our light together?

A few years ago, I heard a great lecture on shining our lights. The teacher started out by handing us all a picture of a lighthouse. She said, “You are the lighthouse.”

What does a lighthouse do? A lighthouse is firmly planted on the shore, and shines light into a body of water. The light helps others to navigate, to see where there is safe passage or rocky terrain. The light may be a comfort in a storm or hope in the darkness. The lighthouse works best when on solid foundation, and when the light is shining through is not distorted (or blocked) by a soiled lamp. Those who maintain a lighthouse know the importance of keeping the lamp clean and the building on solid foundation.

So, if we are the lighthouse: How are we shining? What might be muddying up our lens? Are we firmly planted in Jesus?

In this season of Epiphany, let’s continue to shine the light of Christ brightly! Later this month, as we move
into the season of Lent (starting on Ash Wednesday, February 22), let’s examine our lens, and ask God to cleanse it so that others may see the light of Christ shining brightly through us. 

It is my great joy and privilege to shine my light with you,

The Rev. Lisa Saunders+