Hi. Everybody. It’s a long one – the first four paragraphs alone are about this Sunday!
This Sunday, November 7, is All Saints Sunday. We are planning for an outdoor worship service. According to Weather.com (and we know the internet never lies), at 10 am on Sunday it will be partly cloudy with only a 2% chance of rain (57 degrees and 5 mph wind – bundle up!). Our usual set-up for remembering your saints – lining up for individual candles and placing them in a sand-filled cross – is not very practical distancing-wise and wind-wise. Instead, as you enter through the breezeway, you’re invited to light one of the votive candles that will be there on a table. Later in the service, after the Message, is the Blessing of the Saints when you will be invited to speak, whisper, or silently remember the names of those who have been saints to you.
Be sure you have set your clocks back an hour for Standard Time! On the other hand, if you’re an hour early, you can snag that prime spot right up front! Seriously, we did have some difficulty distancing last week because everyone was sitting toward the back. Now, I know how entertaining it is to see latecomers trying to quietly set up a metal folding chair inconspicuously in front of everybody, but please consider being bold and sit up front. Pastor Tim wears a face shield, so you’ll be spittle-free!
For Zoom Sunday School at 9 am, Kathleen will be recording the Christmas Pageant, so be sure to log in on time (or if you’re an hour early, go over your lines!). Zoom Coffee Chat and Zoom Communion are as usual at 9:15 and 9:30.
If you RSVP’d for it, remember that this Sunday the Jesus & Justice Collective presents Unsettling Truths about the Doctrine of Discovery with Mark Charles. It’s at 2-3.30 pm via Zoom (which you got the link for if you RSVP’d!)
Lots of construction going on at Holy Trinity these days. Arnold Kuhlmann and Roy Heaivilin have been working on running conduit and wiring under the floor of the sanctuary, and Saturday the Boy Scouts will be building a concrete pad for our garbage and organics bins. Soon, the Alameda County Water District will be drilling wells in our field to monitor the aquifer (if they strike oil, I’m loadin’ up the truck and moving to Beverly. Hills, that is.)
Next Saturday, Nov. 13, There will be a Holiday Boutique at Holy Trinity! A member of Christ the King contacted us in a bit of a bind. The venue she had booked to hold the boutique pulled out at the last minute. She asked if she could hold it here. Part of the proceeds goes to a nonprofit that helps place hard-to-place animals, so come by and help the animals and your Christmas list at the same time!
There are several special Sundays coming up: next Sunday the confirmands get confirmed, then it’s Christ the King/Thanksgiving Sunday, then it’s the first Sunday in Advent. And that’s even before all the Christmas stuff! Stay Tuned!
Oh, and I wanted you to know that I spelled “inconspicuously” correctly on the first try! It’s these little victories that keep me going…
Use your extra hour wisely this weekend (i.e. sleep).
– Keith
your friendly Parish Life Coordinator (i.e. Church Secretary)