Stations of the Cross for Lent: Fridays, 12:10pm

Each Friday in Lent, .Fr. Donavan will open up the church to lead anyone who'd like to join him through the fourteen Stations of the Cross. If you've never walked through the Stations, this is your opportunity to spend each Friday in Lent enriching your soul with each Stations' powerful prayers, scripture readings, and physical movement through the church with Our Lord Jesus Christ. Make the Stations of the Cross a part of Lenten season of devotion this year.

20 Bible Passages Every Christian Should Know continues this Sunday!

Come join Fr. Donavan every Sunday in the Parish Hall this Lenten season, beginning at 9:30am, for a conversation about 20 important scripture passages from both the Old and New Testament that all followers of Jesus should at least have some reference to and understanding. Donavan will lead us from the Old Testament through the Gospels to the Epistles in the New Testament, from Genesis to the Revelation, with at least one stop in the Apocrypha! He will talk about the important meanings of verses you've probably heard quoted many times before, and he will take us into portions of Holy Scripture rarely or never read in our Sunday morning lectionary! Finally, Donavan will share a few verses that are very personal for him, before opening the floor to verses that might speak to you in your life and faith! Come dive deeper this Lent into the Bible and build up your knowledge and your faith in God's holy word!

Sunday Morning Lenten Book Study with Ranie continues this Sunday

Join us this Sunday for a book study in the Conference Room during the Sunday morning Formation Hour as we discuss The Night is Long but Light Comes in the Morning: Meditations for Racial Healing by Dr. Catherine Meeks. Dr. Meeks focuses on racial healing, but her meditations cover healing in general. She pursues healing through the faithful question: do we really want to be well? If you would like to purchase the book, they are available now for $20 in Ranie's office.

Young Adult Pub Theology is Monday, March 13th!

Calling anyone ages 22-39! Gather with us this Monday, March 13th at 6PM on the patio of Mellow Mushroom (2230 Cecil Ashburn Dr SE). We will be discussing sexual ethics through the lens of discipleship and faith! We look forward to seeing you there! If you have any questions please contact Ranie at associate@stthomashuntsville.org.

ST. THOMAS LENTEN SERIES CONTINUES MARCH 15th: A Lenten Sojourn through the Blues led by Fr. Donavan

EACH WEDNESDAY AT ST. THOMAS, through March 29th, join Fr. Donavan in the Parish Hall as he explores our Lenten sojourn through the music, feeling, and theology of the Blues. Performing live, as well as playing recordings from his own vast music collection, Fr. Donavan will explore the meaning of Lenten themes in our human life and Christian spirituality in the Blues in its many musical forms and styles. From the desert songs of Northern Africa and the Middle East to the "Keening" sounds of Ireland and Scotland, to traditional Appalachian ballads and banjo tunes of the Southern Mountains to the Delta Blues of Mississippi, we will LISTEN to Lent. Together we will build a new playlist for your Lenten pilgrimage as we discuss what these sounds, songs, and stories have to say to our human souls and to our Christian faith. 

Begin with a quiet, Taize worship service at 5:30pm in the church, followed by a Lenten supper of soup, salad, and bread at 6pm in the Parish Hall. Fr. Donavan will begin his program around 6:30pm, finishing with time for questions between 7 - 7:15pm. 

Come each Wednesday this Lent and hear live performances, historic recordings, and lively conversations, as we listen to the music of the soul and explore the deep connections between the many forms of the Blues and our Lenten journey into the Wilderness. 

The photo above is of the original Carter Family, A.P.. Sara, and Maybelle, the forerunners of American Country music and singers of the Blues.

BRING YOUR CHILDREN TO THE WEDNESDAY LENTEN SERIES!

Children are invited to explore Lent in their own Wednesday evening program led by one of their Sunday School teachers during Fr. Donavan's Lenten program.  We will begin with learning about the symbols of Lent and Jesus' forty days in the wilderness and conclude the series with a Holy Week primer.  This program will coincide with the adult offering every Wednesday evening in the Parish Hall!   

Contact the Children's Ministry Coordinator, Laura Beth Bestor (children@stthomashuntsville.org), if you have any questions.

St. Thomas Holy Week Seder Supper, Tuesday, April 4th

Seder is a serious and joyful event where the Passover story is retold. Looking to our Jewish roots, we tell the Exodus story, with its themes of power and mercy, bondage and freedom, hope and despair. This is much like the spiritual journey that we continue in our lives today. Observing the Seder reminds us, as modern day Christians, of the story of God and His people of which we are a part.

Seder is a service interspersed with a dinner (lamb, chicken, or vegetarian), which concludes as the meal ends. We follow the traditional Jewish Seder, remembering that at the Last Supper, Jesus celebrated Seder with his disciples.  

Here at St. Thomas, we will celebrate Seder on Tuesday, April 4 at 6 pm, in the Parish Hall. The meal will be provided for a donation of $10.00 per adult, $5 per child. We request reservations by Wednesday, March 29, as we need to order meat. Childcare and a meal will be provided for children. Sign-up online now HERE or via QR code below or in person in Information Hall on Sundays between services and after the 10:30am service.  

We also need volunteers to help set up the Parish Hall, prep the table food, and clean up. Sign-up sheets are on the Information Hall Bulletin Board.  Contact Mike or Laura Beth Bestor (malbb12@gmail.com) if you have any questions.  

WAYS TO GIVE THIS LENT: St. Thomas' Little Free Pantry

Our Little Free Pantry invites you into our community of giving during Lent. You may decide to collect a food item each day during Lent and return your offering on Sunday March 26. Or you can bring food items any Sunday during Lent. Place your food items in the little red wagon in Information Hall. Questions? Call Debbie Harriman at 256-509-6606

WAYS TO GIVE THIS LENT: St. Thomas Servants' Closet

St. Thomas is a long-time member of the Interfaith Mission Service (IMS), a consortium of local churches (and synagogues) devoted to addressing a wide range of community concerns. The Servants’ Closet at St. Thomas is returning this Lenten season as our response to the IMS commitment to “enhance member congregations’ abilities to meet human needs.” In this case, hunger. The Closet will collect shelf-stable food items and delivers them to St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, where they are distributed daily, by appointment, to families and individuals who are experiencing a food emergency and who call 211 (FoodLine) for assistance. The program is generous but not without oversight. FoodLine pantries worked hard to meet the exploding needs of newly laid-off workers during the pandemic. The pandemic may be over, but food insecurity is not.

To donate to the Servants’ Closet this Lent, reusable plastic bags with a list of suggested food items attached will be distributed on the first Sunday of each month. As your bags are returned to the Servants’ Closet, they will be delivered to St. Mark’s. 

A reminder that Servants’ Closet Sunday is the fourth Sunday will be in the Epistle in time for you to shop! Please email libbypotter@gmail.com or nmfisher10016@gmail.com with questions or concerns.

We need YOU to help us "Invite, Welcome, & Connect" new people to St. Thomas!

Invite, Welcome, Connect is a committee of our parish who Invites, Welcomes, and Connects newcomers in the St. Thomas community. Think back to when you first visited St. Thomas. What was it that brought you here and kept you coming back? How is St. Thomas different from other congregations? IWC is a creative group working to consider diverse ways in which to invite people seeking a church home into our space. Our committee also works with greeters, and ushers to identify visitors to our church to ensure they receive a warm welcome, and answer their questions. Members of the IWC Committee also help connect newcomers with other members and ministries of our parish based on their interests and gifts. We are looking for new members to help us show others what we already know and love about St. Thomas! If you are interested in this important ministry, reach out to Zach House at zhouselogistics@gmail.com or Ranie at associate@stthomashuntsville.org.

Clergy & Eucharistic Visitors will take the place of the Pandemic "At Home" Communion Kits for distribution of Holy Communion outside the church

The “at home communion kits,” which were made available as a option because of the COVID Pandemic from 2020 through the beginning of 2023, are now being discontinued to return to the rubrics of the Book of Common Prayer and the Canons of the Episcopal Church. Parishioners who are unable to attend the Holy Eucharist on Sundays are encouraged to contact the church office and request either a clergy member or one of St. Thomas' licensed Eucharistic Visitors to bring Holy Communion to them at home. They will be very happy to set up a regular visit schedule with you or to bring you Communion whenever you are sick.