Mass Schedule – Week of Trinity XX (November 2, 2014)
03, All Souls
04, Feria (of the Octave)
05, Richard Hooker (of the Octave)
06, Feria (of the Octave)
07, Feria (of the Octave)
08, Anglican Worthies (of the Octave)
+ On any list of great English theologians, the name of Richard Hooker would appear at or near the top. His masterpiece is The Laws Of Ecclesiastical Polity. Its philosophical base is Aristotelian, with a strong emphasis on natural law eternally planted by God in creation. On this foundation, all positive laws of Church and State are developed from Scriptural revelation, ancient tradition, reason, and experience. The occasion of his writing was the demand of English Puritans for a reformation of Church government. Calvin had established in Geneva a system whereby each congregation was ruled by a commission comprising two-thirds laymen elected annually by the congregation and one-third clergy serving for life. The English Puritans (by arguments more curious than convincing) held that no church not so governed could claim to be Christian. Hooker replies to this assertion, but in the process he raises and considers fundamental questions about the authority and legitimacy of government (religious and secular), about the nature of law, and about various kinds of law, including the laws of physics as well as the laws of England. In the course of his book he sets forth the Anglican view of the Church, and the Anglican approach to the discovery of religious truth (the so-called Via Media, or middle road), and explains how this differs from the position of the Puritans, on the one hand, and the adherents of the Pope, on the other. He is very heavy reading, but well worth it. (He says, on the first page of Chapter I: “Those unto whom we shall seem tedious are in no wise injuried by us, seeing that it lies in their own hands to spare themselves the labor they are unwilling to endure.” This translates into modern English as: “If you can’t take the intellectual heat, get out of the kitchen. If you can’t stand a book that makes you think, go read the funny papers.”) The effect of the book has been considerable. Hooker greatly influenced John Locke, and (both directly and through Locke), American political philosophy in the late 1700s. Although Hooker is unsparing in his censure of what he believes to be the errors of Rome, his contemporary, Pope Clement VIII (died 1605), said of the book: “It has in it such seeds of eternity that it will abide until the last fire shall consume all learning.”
+ The next Monday morning Bible study will meet November 10, in the undercroft of the parish church. The class will continue a three week study titled “How the Bible Fits Together” is a brief overview of all 66 books with the goal of seeing how they are knit together through overarching themes. On Monday, November 17, the class will embark upon a study of “The Miracle of the Scarlet Thread” by Richard Booker. Booker’s book looks closely at the theme of the blood covenant which God made with Abraham and its fruition in Jesus Christ. It demonstrates in clear language how the Old and New Testaments tell one complete story. For further information contact Priscilla King at kingplk@gmail.com.
+ This coming Wednesday is Agape & Christian Education and I hope you all can come out as well as bring a friend. Thanks goes out to all our cooks, teachers, and helpers and especially to Jackie Jamison for her leadership in organizing and developing our Wednesday Agape. Jackie says, “Things will proceed similarly to last year with three classes led by the same teachers (Sr. Lynda for the preschoolers, me for the elementary kids, and Charlie for upper elementary and middle school). I want to encourage parents to encourage kids not to “age up” to Charlie’s class before fourth grade. Even though that class right now is small, if we let the age creep downward, it won’t serve its purpose as a place for older kids who do end up coming! All teachers please remember that class is over at 7:15!
Another thing that hasn’t changed is our need for a second adult volunteer in each of the three classrooms. I have made a schedule for the first two weeks (see below) that is just parents, and during that time we will recruit non-parent volunteers as well. Two changes are planned: First, we will have a member of the choir run the communal music time at the beginning of the children’s classes each week. I think the plan is for that time to sometimes include a short bit of musical instruction, and then learning a song together. And secondly, we will ring the church bell when the classes start at 6:30 so all kids will know when its time to head to class. Please tell your kids that the bell ringing means they need to be in Sr. Lynda’s classroom.
+ Daily mass is celebrated Monday through Saturday at 12:15 p.m. You and your family members are all remembered by name at the Altar of God every week. Please take an All Saints parish prayer list home with you & remember your fellow parishioners in your prayers.
+ All Saints Men’s Group will meet tomorrow, Tuesday, November 4 at 7:00 a.m. in the undercroft.
+ All Saints parishioner may obtain a Mass card from the Church office. A Mass card is a greeting card given to someone to inform him or her that a deceased loved one or friend was remembered and prayed for at a weekly Mass. It is a specifically Christian way to express one’s love. Call Julie McDermott at the Church office (434-979-2842) and she will help you fill out the form. The celebrant will sign the card and we will mail it from the Church to the family of the loved one.