St. Michael's Church, Litchfield, CT

If we are blind, your light continually shines
If we are deaf, you continue to speak to us persistently
If we pray, you are there, if we do not pray, you are there
In our sinfulness and in our righteousness you are there.
In our pain and in our joy, you are there
In our living and in our dying you are there
You are always there for us.

Levi Edward Parsons III, longtime St. Michael’s member, died on March 28, 2013 with his wife Margaret at his side.

Funeral services will be held at 11am on April 18 at the Rowe Funeral Home in Litchfield.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Wounded Warriers Project, 4899 Belford Road, Suite 300, Jacksonville, FL 32256.

To send an online condolence to the Parsons family, kindly visit www.rowefuneralhome.net.

God of all consolation,
grant to those who sorrow
the spirit of faith and courage,
that they may have the strength to meet the days to come
with steadfastness and patience;
not sorrowing without hope,
but trusting in your goodness;
through him who is the resurrection and the life,
Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Amen.

God of new beginnings,
We are walking into mystery.
We face the future, not knowing
what the days and months will bring us
or how we will respond.
Be Love in us as we journey.
May we welcome all who come our way.
Deepen our faith
Fill us with hope and abiding trust
that you dwell in us amidst our joys and sorrows.
Thank you for the treasure of our faith life
together at St. Michael’s.

Loving God of our past and future,
be with us here today
be with us always.
Amen.

On Wednesday, March 27, at 7:30pm, Evening Prayer at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church will be replaced by Tenebrae. The name is Latin for “shadows.” This is a lengthened form of Evening prayer which is constructed out of the night prayers of the medieval monastic tradition.

There are fifteen candles at the beginning of the service. As the service proceeds, the candles are extinguished one by one, and the lights in the church gradually dimmed. By the end of the service the church is totally dark, representing the light departing from the world when Jesus dies. There is a surprise at the end!

St. Michael’s Parish is located at 25 South Street (Rte 63-S) just off the Litchfield Green. All are welcome to the Tenebrae service. For details, please call the parish office at 860.567.9465.

In the name of Allah, the beneficent, the merciful. Praise be to the Lord of the Universe, who has created us and made us into tribes and nations, that we may know each other, not that we may despise each other. If the enemy incline towards peace, do thou also incline towards peace, and trust in God, for the Lord is one that heareth and knoweth all things. And the servant of God, Most Gracious, are those who walk on Earth in humility, and when we address them, we say “Peace.”

All are welcome to join St. Michael’s-Litchfield’s Prayer Shawl Guild gathering on Sunday, February 24, at 11:30am in the parish library at 25 South Street. Knitters and crocheters of all ages are welcome. Free yarn and needles are available and lunch will be provided.

Our newest member, Alice, is spreading the word at Brandywine and hopefully we soon will have several more ad hoc knitting members! If you want to join St. Michael’s Prayer Shawl Guild (we’re also currently making warm scarves for needy children), please join us on February 24th. If you prefer to knit at your own residence, please call Jo Ann at 860.567.4456 and I will deliver supplies to you.

We also appreciate donations of yarn and knitting or crocheting needles. These can be left in the back of the church at any time. Thank you for your support of this important ministry!

Visit us at this Sunday’s Ministries Fair at St. Michael’s, following the 10am service.

We cannot pray to You, O God,
to banish war,
for You have filled the world
with paths to peace,
if only we would take them.

We cannot pray to You
to end starvation,
for there is food enough for all,
if only we would share it.

We cannot merely pray
for prejudice to cease,
for we might see
the good in all
that lies before our eyes,
if only we would use them.

We cannot merely pray
“Root out despair,”
for the spark of hope
already waits within the human heart,
for us to fan it into flame.

We must not ask of You, O God,
to take the task that You
have given us.
We cannot shirk,
we cannot flee away,
Avoiding obligation for ever.

Therefore we pray, O God,
for wisdom and will, for courage
to do and to become,
not only to look on
with helpless yearning
as though we had no strength.

For Your sake and ours
speedily and soon, let it be:
that our land may be safe,
that our lives may be blessed.

Adapted from Rabbi Jack Riemer’s New Prayers for the High Holy Days, as it appears in Gates of Repentance, pp. 363-364

On February 2, some people think only of those furry critters that look for their shadows, like Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania. In fact, there is a bit more to the day than that.

February 2 is exactly halfway between the winter solstice and spring equinox, the astronomical midpoint. It is also Candlemas Day. In the Christian tradition, it is the day when a year’s supply of candles is blessed.

It was not held as a good omen if the day itself was bright and sunny, for that betokened snow and frost to continue for 6 more weeks. Whatever the groundhogs forecast for this Saturday, St. Michael’s is presenting a wonderful Candlemas Evensong – a liturgy of sung evening prayer that will warm your soul! Join us at 5pm for this brief service, followed by a reception in the community house.

God, we breathe with the universal forces of all creation. Grant us grace and balance, always trusting that you are there.

Our prayers are with Toni Kowalec and her family, who are mourning the loss of husband/father/friend Joseph A. Kowalec, Jr.

Visiting hours are at Rowe Funeral Home this Friday from 5-7pm and funeral services will be held at St. Michael’s-Litchfield this Saturday at 11am.

God, whose mercies cannot be numbered. Accept our prayers on behalf of thy servant Joseph, and grant him an entrance into the land of light and joy, in the fellowship of thy saints; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen