Thank you for your donations to our April 5th Sunday collection. A check for $832.00 has been sent to H.O.M.E. of Orland. Our next 5th Sunday will be in July – stay tuned.
St. Margaret’s, even though she is tucked away on a side-street, is noticed by passers-by, visitors, and residents of Belfast as a beautiful edifice. We are indeed blessed by the generosity of all those who contributed and who are still contributing to the building and maintenance of this holy and life-giving space.
When a sanctuary is blessed during its consecration, the Book of Common Prayer includes this beautiful prayer as part of the service:
“Lord Jesus Christ, make this a temple of your presence and a house of prayer. Be always near us when we seek you in this place. Draw us to you, when we come alone and when we come with others, to find comfort and wisdom, to be supported and strengthened, to rejoice and give thanks. May it be here, Lord Christ, that we are made one with you and with one another, so that our lives are sustained and sanctified for your service.” BCP p.568
During the service, the Bishop says, “Peace to all who enter here”.
Our church is a space of worship and meeting—a place where God’s grace meets us in our need, helping to strengthen, encourage, and comfort us for the whole of our lives. This grace is extended to all who enter, be they members or not.
Recently, we have been asking how God is calling us to let our building serve the wider Belfast community so that more and more people can experience God’s loving embrace.
You have heard us speak of the possibility of hosting a program called Family Promise. But, there are many ways we can use this building to spread God’s good news and blessings, and Family Promise is just one of them. In order to listen to each other and to the Holy Spirit as we discern a path forward, we will hold two parish meetings, one on July 13 and July 16.
July 13, 6-8 p.m., Potluck dinner and parish meeting July 16, 11-12:30 p.m., Parish Meeting
Sunday morning, June 4th, we had the opportunity to celebrate, appreciate and thank Linn Johnson who has been our faithful and devoted organist for over 30 years.
Our talented Kristin Frangoulis penned the following Ode to Linn.
ODE TO LINN Linnea’ Gunnarson Johnson a Swedish girl by name, Hailed from Yonkers, but in Belfast gained much fame. You can find her Sunday mornings atop the organ bench, Playing music at St Margaret’s like it was an easy cinch. She plays preludes, postludes, and hymns in between. At St. Margaret’s Linn is the Music Queen. Beethoven, Bach, Schuman, and Liszt, Haydn and Handel are fellows on her list. She makes these greats proud as her fingers grace the keys. Their notes she plays with passion, that helps us all to see, That the Holy Spirit is within, and loves us one and all, No matter if we stumble, no matter if we fall. On Easter Linn gets Louis to help her with his horn, To play “Christ Is Risen” as we all sing along. While working on the tulips, weeding on her shift, Ruth paused to hear Linn practice, a celestial music gift. A little bit of Linn’s history we shall now let spill. She went off to Rutgers and there she met her Bill. Eric and Chris, their two sons that make the family tree Had in turn four sons, Drew, Devon Brian, and Steve. In 1989, Linn and Bill moved here with their gifts, And joined St Margaret’s an Episcopalian church. Linn also played accompany for a music group, The Penobscot Bay Singers, a terrific choral troupe. Linn, we are happy you’ll stay with us, sitting in a pew. And keeping us all mindful of our music cues,
On Tuesday, May 30, we have arranged for a tour of the Belfast Transfer Station at 1 p.m. This will be an inside look at how the station operates and how we can help ensure that our efforts at recycling are worthwhile and helping to reduce our impact on landfills. The manager welcomes our questions, preferably submitted in advance. There is no limit on the numbers who may take part, but we would like to have some idea of how many may be interested. If you think you would like to come, please sign up on the sheet in the Parish House (near the bookcase with Creation Care reading materials). If possible, let’s plan to carpool from St. Margaret’s to the transfer station.
Mark your calendars! Throughout the year, GBAM hosts a monthly prayer in the tradition of Taizé in various locations in the Greater Belfast area. JUNE 6, 7PM: St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, 95 Court St. Belfast (6:30 Song Practice) JUNE 11, 5PM: Moose Point State Park. SUMMER MONTHS: Semi-weekly Taizé prayer at St. Margaret’s at 7 p.m., June 20, July 11, 18, 25, Aug 1 ,8, 15, 22, 30.
St. Margaret’s Book Group (an ad hoc group composed of any and all interested parties), will read and discuss Following Jesus in a Culture of Fear, Revised and Updated Edition, Choosing Trust over Safety in an Anxious Age.
“Fear has taken on an outsized role in our current cultural and political context. Manufactured threats are advanced with little to no evidence of danger, while real threats are exaggerated for self-interested gain. This steady diet of fear produces unhealthy moral lives, leading many Christians to focus more on the dangers we wish to avoid than the goods we wish to pursue. As a fearful people, we are tempted to make safety our highest good and to make virtues of suspicion, preemption, and accumulation. But this leaves the church ill-equipped to welcome the stranger, love the enemy, or give to those in need.
“This timely resource brings together cultural analysis and theological insight to explore a Christian response to the culture of fear. Laying out a path from fear to faithfulness, theologian Scott Bader-Saye explores practices that embody Jesus’s call to place our trust in him, inviting Christian communities to take the risks of hospitality, peacemaking, and generosity. This book has been revised throughout, updated to connect with today’s readers, and includes new discussion questions.”
Those interested in joining the discussion after the 9:30 service on June 11 can buy a discounted, (Standard church discount) book from Left Bank Books. We will meet once monthly over the summer to discuss this and other books. Even if you haven’t read the book, you are welcome to join us for the conversation. Our first gathering will be on June 11. Next book group dates TBD.
The WoSM’s will meet at their regular time (3rd Wednesday of the month at noon) on May 17th at noon for a brown bag lunch, discussion and to hear more about the local organization to help homeless or home insecure youth in the area – But Still I Am One. Neva Allen, the director will be joining us by Zoom, and another board member will be present, to answer questions and provide information. Everyone is welcome in person (including men!), or you may join using the Compline Zoom link in News from the Pews.
Belfast Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Dorothy Havey, left, and Belfast Parks and Recreation Director Norman Poirier, right, present Sharron Walsh, second from left, and Mary Rackmales with a $1,000 donation to their water bottle refilling station fund-raising campaign. The donation comes from Arts in the Park, an event co-hosted by the Chamber and Parks and Recreation.
WATER FILLING STATIONS HAVE BEEN ORDERED! We have raised over $16,000, enough to purchase the stations. While we wait for their manufacture and shipment to Belfast (arriving by mid-June), we will continue to raise the funds for installation. We thank everyone who has contributed and/or passed the word about this major effort. With just a bit more help, we can finish the job. Please take a few flyers/donation forms, available on the table at the rear of the church and in the parish house, (or this link to the flyer to print), to pass out to friends and neighbors.
The Creation Care Team has planned two events for parishioners over the next few weeks:
On Sunday, May 21, as part of Coffee Hour after the 9:30 service, we will show the recent PBS program, Chasing Carbon Zero, hosted by the PBS Science Correspondent, Miles O’Brien. Not only does he introduce some of the game-changing technologies that can bring us to that elusive target by 2050, about a quarter of the program was filmed in Maine.
On Tuesday, May 30, we have arranged for a tour of the Belfast Transfer Station at 1 p.m. This will be an inside look at how the station operates and how we can help ensure that our efforts at recycling are worthwhile and helping to reduce our impact on landfills. The manager welcomes our questions, preferably submitted in advance. There is no limit on the numbers who may take part, but we would like to have some idea of how many may be interested and will post a sign-up sheet in the parish house.
Finally, you should know about a public meeting taking place in Searsport on Saturday morning May 20. It will be an opportunity to hear at least one side of the controversy about using Searsport as the assembly point and launch station for ocean-based wind platforms.
On Sunday afternoon at 4PM on May 21 Bishop Brown is coming to celebrate Baptism, Confirmation and Reception with us during a service of Evening Prayer. There will be a simple reception following the service as we greet Magnolia Vandiver, (Baptism), Caleb Briggs, (Confirmation), and Chris Quigley, (Reception).
We are familiar with the service of Baptism, and even of Confirmation, but we do not often get to celebrate reception. Baptized persons who have been members of another Christian fellowship and who wish to be affiliated with the Episcopal Church may make a public affirmation of their faith and commitment to the responsibilities of their baptism in the presence of a bishop. The bishop lays hands on the candidate for reception and says, “We recognize you as a member of the one holy catholic and apostolic Church, and we receive you into the fellowship of this Communion” (BCP, p. 418). Candidates for reception normally have made a mature commitment in another Christian fellowship.
On Thursday, May 18 at 6PM we will celebrate the Feast of the Ascension. This feast is one of the major festivals in the church calendar, but since it always falls on a Thursday, (since it is always on the 40th day after Easter), we will never encounter it on a Sunday. So, we’ve added a Eucharist for that Thursday!
The Ascension marks the conclusion of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances. It is the final elevation of his human nature to divine glory and the near presence of God. What it means for us is that jesus is no longer bound by time and space. At the ascension, he becomes present to all humanity at all times and in all places, being no longer subject to the impossibility of being in two places at once. When Jesus stops showing up in bodily form, he is able to uphold his promise to be with us always.
