St. Francis of Assisi Episcopal Church

Weekly E-Blast

April 4, 2024

This Week at St. Francis

Thursday, April 4

7:00 pm - AA Men’s Group

Sunday, April 7

8:00 am - Spoken Eucharist

9:00 am - Adult Formation

10:30 am - Eucharist, Live Eucharist on YouTube/Facebook

10:30 am - Sunday School

12:30 pm - Misa

5:00 pm - Taize

Monday, April 8

10:30 pm - Bell Choir Rehearsal

7:30 pm - AA

Tuesday, April 9

1:00 pm - Backpack Buddies Sorting

Wednesday, April 10

12:00 pm - Noon Eucharist

1:00 pm - Staff Meeting

1:00 pm - Backpack Buddies Packing

1:30 pm - Finance Committee Meeting

7:00 pm - Choir Rehearsal

7:30 pm - AA

Thursday, April 11

10:00 am - Book Group

1:00 pm - Threads of Love

5:30 pm - Guys and Gals Nite Out

7:00 pm - AA Men’s Group

Sunday, April 14

8:00 am - Spoken Eucharist

9:00 am - Adult Formation

10:30 am - Eucharist, Live Eucharist on YouTube/Facebook

10:30 am - Sunday School

12:30 pm - Misa

Ladies Lunch

Our next Ladies Lunch will be on Tuesday, April 16, at 11:45 am, at Backstop in Canby. A sign-up sheet is in the Information Center.

Questions? Contact Peggy Danford or Sandi Thompson.

Dinner Church

Our next gathering for Dinner Church will be April 28, at 5 pm in the Parish Hall. Father Brendan will make the main dish and we will have a potluck for sides, salads, and desserts. There is a sign-up sheet in the Information Center. We will have dinner, break bread, and celebrate the Eucharist.

Guys and Gals Nite Out

GALS NITE OUT - inviting all St. Francis Women

GUYS NITE OUT - inviting all St. Francis Men.

Second Thursday, April 11

Parkway Grille at the Hilton in Wilsonville

We'll start gathering at 5:00 for Happy Hour.  

We'll order food around 5:30 or so.  

Arrive as early as traffic allows.

Agenda: Get to know one another better. Go home happy having had a good time.

Facilitators: Doug Horton & Gary Thompson.  

Co-Sponsors: Don Nash & John Wisecaver

Lower Driveway

Please do not park in the lower driveway. This space is to be used for dropping off or picking up only. Thank you!

Adult Formation

Please join us beginning April 7 for Thanksgiving in Easter! We’ll look at a General Thanksgiving or two in the Book of Common Prayer and remind ourselves of our blessings. Look at page 836.

Adult Formation will have us looking at shame and shame resilience for three Sundays, beginning April 28. We all carry it, we all know it’s a burden and a waste of energy, so let’s work to understand how best to name it and overcome it. From long research by Brene Brown, we can trust that all we need for resilience is a little courage, community and self-compassion. If you’re interested, start the work early by taking a self-compassion inventory at www.selfcompassion.org; it’s free, fast and easy, and results are emailed back immediately. Join us Sundays at 9:15 to share coffee and good conversation!

Taizé Prayer at St. Francis

For a time of prayer, reflection, and peace, please join us for Taizé prayers at the Cross of San Daminano. 

The San Damiano Cross was one of a number of crosses painted with similar figures during the 12th century in Umbria. The purpose of an icon cross was to teach the meaning of the event depicted and thereby strengthen the faith of the people. Jesus Christ is represented both as wounded and strong.

Taizé Prayer is a simple, meditative form of worship, calling us to dwell deeply on Christ's presence around and within us. Mantra songs (like "Jesus, Remember Me"), prayerful silence, and short readings guide the focus of the prayer in a candle-lit environment.

Come at 5:00 pm for the service or 4:30 pm if you would like to sing through the chants prior to the serve. 

Our next Taizé Prayer service will be Sunday, April 7.

Palm Sunday Thank You

At the beginning of Easter Week, on Palm Sunday, the members of the Caring Ministry and friends delivered almost 80 beautiful small rose plants to those in our church family who serve as staff or who face times of uncertainty or challenges. We are grateful for the loving spirit of: Peggy Danford, Sandi and Gary Thompson, Joyce Skogen, Gina and Clair Wilkins, John Wisecaver, Claire and Jim Nail, Gay Kuykendall, Fr. Brendan, Gayle and Richard Martens, Dale Rushton, Nyla and Lance Emory, Lynne and Lyle Cerny, Linda Hammersley, Carole Baldwin, James and Mary Kirk, Carolynne Fairweather, and Apryl Garmon. Thank you all - you brought such joy, and of course, St. Francis love!

The Passion Play on Palm Sunday was read by the young people of our church - Adrianna Tasker, Carson Tasker, Hope Clifford, Tiernan Pfeil, Oliver Vaught, and Lanie Tasker. They did a beautiful job in their readings. Many thanks to Lynne Tucker for her valuable help with costuming.

Easter Thank You

With talented hands and love and joy in their hearts, enthusiastic members of our church family transformed flowers of many kinds - lilies, roses, gladiolas, mums, tulips, and greenery - into gorgeous bouquets to honor our glorious Easter day at St. Francis. Thank you to Debbi Kapp, Carole Biskar, Maureen Hamlin, Nancy Stephenson, Terri Hoffmann, Linda Nash, Linda Hammersley, Carole Baldwin, Karen Sablan, Lynne Cerny, Carolynne Fairweather, Peggy Danford, Rebecca Engen, Jeff Krausse, Gina Wilkins, Susy Mekarski, Barbara Bridge, Anne-Louise Sterry, Ellen Kaiser, Kate Macclellan, Marilyn Morgan, Joan McGinnis, and Judy Thomson, who worked on the sconces for several hours. A special thank you to Linda Nash for the amazingly beautiful altar bouquet, and another special thank you to Linda Nash and Ann Frazier for the Garden of Gethsemane - Easter Garden under the Joy window. Thank you to our early crew - Peggy,  Debbi, Carole, and Carole - for coming early, and helping with the organizing and set up. Thank you to Gay Kuykendall for bringing delicious goodies for us all. We want to thank Rob Chittenden for cutting the trees and setting them up.

A final thank you to Ed Burnside and Bob Sharp for their assistance in hanging the Easter ribbons from the chandeliers, and to Ed for extra help setting up and cleaning up after us. We apologize to anyone whose names were left out, but we certainly appreciated everyone!

We are always grateful to Fr. Brendan for his wonderful support and good cheer.

We were all touched by the beauty of Easter Saturday morning at St. Francis, and the flowers, our faith, and our new friends.

Thank you all,

Apryl and Jane

Easter Egg Hunt

The Easter Egg hunt was a rousing success, enjoyed by all ages, both participants and spectators.

Many thanks to Gaby Vaught and Linda Tasker for filling over 400 plastic eggs with candies, a Bible verse, and even some money! A special thank you to the young-at-heart group who met the challenge of hiding all these eggs in the East Memorial Garden: Dick and Jamie Dowdy, Oliver Meskell, Rosemary Meskell, and Adrianna Tasker. You are so appreciated!

Thank you all!

Jane Domagalski

Did You Know? - Episcopal Church Flag 

The Episcopal Church Flag stands in the corner of the Narthex by the front door. The explanation of the flag design is in an article in An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church edited by Don S. Armentrout and Robert Boak Slocum: “Episcopal Church Flag and Seal.” 

"On October 16, 1940, the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies adopted an official flag for the Episcopal Church. This was the 251st anniversary of the day the General Convention ratified the Constitution and Canons and adopted the Book of Common Prayer. It was designed by William M. Baldwin (d. 1942), a member of the Cathedral of the Incarnation, Long Island, New York. The symbolism of the flag has been explained as follows: The white field represents the purity of the Christian religion. The red cross represents the sacrifice of Jesus and the blood of the martyrs. The red cross on a white field is the Episcopal cross of Saint George, the patron saint of England, indicating our descent from the Church of England. The blue in the upper left-hand corner is the light blue of the sky, often used by artists for the color of the clothing of the Blessed Virgin. It is called Madonna blue and represents the human nature of our Lord, which he received from his mother. The nine white crosslets on the blue field represent the nine original dioceses of the Episcopal Church in America in 1789: Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Delaware and South Carolina. They are arranged in the form of a St. Andrew’s Cross to commemorate the fact that Samuel Seabury, the first American bishop, was consecrated in Aberdeen, Scotland, on November 14, 1784. The colors red, white and blue represent the United States and stand for the American branch of the Anglican Communion. The same design is incorporated in the Episcopal Church seal, which was also adopted by the 1940 General Convention. The seal and flag serve as emblems of the Episcopal Church. The design is seen on signs, publications, decals, letterheads, pins and many other places."

We are proud to display this meaningful symbol to remember that we have historical roots in the Church of England. 

Ministry Prayers – Children’s Ministry

Each week, in our Prayers of the People, we pray for a ministry here at St. Francis. This week, we pray for our Children’s Ministry. We at St. Francis are blessed by the presence of our young people, and by their joy, curiosity, and energy. The Children's Ministry involves: Nursey Care for ages 0-4, Sunday School for ages 5-11, and participation in the Sunday services as readers and acolytes. The young people also have participated in the All Saints' Day service, the Palm Sunday Passion Play, the Christmas Eve pageant, the Veteran's Day service, and the annual Easter Egg hunt. The support and encouragement of Fr. Brendan and the congregation is very much appreciated.

Are you interested in joining this Ministry? Contact Jane Domagalski for more information.