Dear Friends, 

How wonderful to rejoin All Saints my first full week back with Hymns in the Courtyard! I love that so many of you come to this joyful event: choir members and pew singers, children and young adults and retirees, members and friends of friends all joined together in song. This time there was a marked preference for the hymns in Lift Every Voice and Sing (LEVAS), and we ended with the All Saints’ anthem “Canticle of the Turning.” 

We sang for 90 minutes straight and left the evening lighter of heart, joyful, more connected to God and one another (I hope our neighbors felt the same). All the research that says singing together makes you feel happy and connected was proven on Wednesday night!

Even as I write about this joyful gathering I am aware of the unsettling and worrisome events in our everyday and civic life. Why go on about a hymn sing? Well, because I think what makes life meaningful, what thickens community bonds, and what gives us hope, is this very kind of connection, the simple joy of being together, singing in tune together.

Environmentalist and poet J. Drew Lanham’s new book Joy is the Justice We Give Ourselves captures some of this, especially in the poem of the same title. In it, Lanham braids together our history of struggle for racial and environmental justice and sings of how joy can be wrung even out of our hard history with both; he is honest about that hard history, the incomplete victory, and the need to keep singing our song: 

Joy is the justice

we give ourselves.

It is Maya’s bird

sung free past the prison bars,

holding spirits bound—

without due process,

without just cause.

(You can read the whole thing or listen to Lanham perform it.)

Let’s keep singing and deepening our ties and strengthening our spines and thickening our community here at All Saints and out in our neighborhoods and city and country trusting that joy and goodness, like the luxuriant green of spring and summer can, will, spread.

See you in church!

Faithfully, Suzanne+ 

Angels & Saints Joined

Hymns in the Courtyard on Wednesday Evening

Liturgical Minister Training - Summer 2024

Saturday, August 24 | 10:00am - 12:30pm

Training. Prayer. Reflection

A late Summertime gathering for All Liturgical Ministers and All interested in becoming Liturgical Ministers. Do you assist on Sunday mornings? Reading, praying, acolyting, chalice bearing, ushering, altar guilding? Would you like to assist but want to learn more before committing?

Questions? Please reach out to Suzanne, Colin, or Courtney.

Caregiver Connections

Monday, July 15 at 7:00pm

The next meeting of Caregiver Connections, our monthly support group for caregivers, will be held on Monday, July 15, at 7pm in the Reading Room. If you've thought about attending this group but haven't yet been able to make it, please join us. All are welcome. Reach out to Kelly McNees (kellymcnees@gmail.com) with any questions.

Connect (online) at All Saints this summer!

We invite you to join us on the All Saints Social Distance Collective Facebook page. 

Summer is a great time for All Saints members to find new ways to connect and get to know one another better. If you're planning an event and want to invite All Saints folks, you can post it on the Facebook page and/or send the information to edward@allsaintschicago.org for publication in e-news. 

Theology at the Annex:

Faith, Life, & Work

Wednesday, August 14 at 7:00pm

Come hear stories from All Saints parishioners about 

the impact of their faith on their professional and personal lives 

and have a chance to talk and connect with others about your own story.

Learn More HERE

Connecting Conversations

Saturday, August 10 from 9am - 11am

Join us for the third community conversation to get to know one another, share our hopes for our lives together at All Saints, and to dream about our future. Daycare provided.



If you missed the first two sessions and would like to participate in a shorter 3rd session, SIGN UP HERE.



All Saints volunteers at the Mobile Pantry

Saturday, August 10, 8:15-11:30am

Join us as we unload pallets of groceries from the Greater Chicago Food Depository, set up the pantry, and distribute groceries. This pantry operates rain or shine, so please come prepared for the weather. 

Volunteers of all ages are welcome (volunteers who are 17 y/o and under must be accompanied by an adult). It’s a terrific way to connect with other All Saints members and to support our neighbors in need. Contact Courtney if you want to know more.

You can sign up here. 

Please note: we can only bring 15 volunteers so please sign up early!



The Ravenswood Community Services (RCS) Board of Directors would like to thank you for your dedication to making sure our neighbors get the groceries they need.

No matter what volunteer role you play in RCS' operations, no matter which program you support or how often, you're invited!

Tuesday, July 23 between 6:00-9:00pm

O'Shaughnessy's (back room)

Do you volunteer and support Ravenswood Community Services? On Tuesdays? With the After School Pantry? Saturday Pantry? Cooking Team? With financial donations/contributions? Other behind-the-scenes way?

Stop by and let the Board say THANKS!

Ravenswood Community Services (RCS)

is looking for Tuesday Afternoon volunteers!

RCS is currently experiencing an historic increase in neighbors seeking assistance. If you've been thinking you might like to give volunteering with RCS a try, now would be a really great time. If you've tried volunteering in the past but were discouraged by full sign ups - please give us another shot! 

TUESDAYS:

Check out the new RCS Volunteer Hub!

This page will feature all available upcoming Tuesday volunteer opportunities with RCS. Bookmark it for easy access to available spots without searching through your inbox for newsletters!

We're also looking for volunteers who would like to join our Tuesday Delivery Crew.

Every Tuesday between 12:30-2pm volunteers unload A LOT OF FOOD from pallets on the sidewalk to the Parish Hall for distribution. You should feel comfortable lifting 30-50 lbs and going up and down stairs. Those interested should reach out to Parker at parker@ravenswoodcommunityservices.org

Missing Keys? Do these look familiar?

Did you leave your keys at church last Sunday, July 7? These were found in a pew. Please contact Edward if they are yours: edward@allsaintschicago.org

Facebook Livestream Team at the 11:00am Service

Audio: Megan Turnquist

Camera: Mark Piroch

www.allsaintschicago.org

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