Good day St. Paul's,

A lot can change in a week!! I'm sure many of you are already aware of the restrictions announced by the Province of Alberta last night. To comply with such restrictions, we will be returning to mandatory physical distancing for Sunday services. Please maintain a one pew buffer between yourself and other parishioners and, if in the same row, please keep at least 2 metres from those from other households. Passing the peace will once again be done as visually passing of the peace from your seats but we will continue to serve communion as we were the last few weeks. We were already masking and that will continue. Masks continue to be available for those without one.

Capacity is limited to 1/3 of our total fire capacity but we have remained consistently under the 1/3 limit throughout the last year and a half so we are not concerned about reaching capacity limits at this time. If we do get close to these new capacity limits, we may reintroduce pre-registration but we believe we will be okay for the time being.

Our 10AM Sunday service will also continue to be available online as a live-stream and Sunday's bulletin is attached here. To find our live-stream service, please visit our website and visit the Events tab and click on the “St. Paul’s Sunday Service” event to find links to our YouTube Channel.

As always, please read on for more announcements.

Sincerely,
RJ Chambers
Office Administrator, St. Paul's Anglican Church - Edmonton

Community Corner for Sunday, September 19
  • September 26, 2021 is Orange Shirt Day in recognition that Every Child Matters, referring especially to those impacted by residential schools. Please wear orange to church. September 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Please visit this list of 150 Acts of Reconciliation for ideas of how you can incorporate reconciliation into your life. http://activehistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/150acts-1.pdf
  • Our Fall Kick Off last weekend was a great success! Thank you to everyone who participated. We are very thankful we were able to host this event, as the new restrictions announced on Wednesday mean that we are postponing our block party to a winter or spring date.

Sunday, September 19 Music
Below are titles with links to this Sunday's music selections. To access the song on YouTube, just click on the title:
Come People of the Risen King
Speak, O Lord
Ancient Words
Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly
Liturgy: Holy Lord
Liturgy: The Lord's Prayer
Liturgy: Lamb of God
Unashamed
Say The Word
For the Beauty of the Earth

REACH Grant Featured Charity for September 19 – Hope Mission
Earlier this year we introduced this new internal grant, available to St Paul’s parishioners who volunteer their time and energy to charities in Edmonton. So far we have supported eight charities, and this week we feature HOPE MISSION, a charity that works in downtown Edmonton caring for impoverished and homeless men, women and children. A short video will be shown at the end of the service, and you can learn more at https://hopemission.com/. Please consider adding your own support, especially as they seek to complete fundraising for the new Herb Jamieson facility (almost there!) and prepare to serve Thanksgiving Dinner to many Edmontonians.

Block Party Postponed
Due to the Covid restrictions recently announced by the Province of Alberta, St. Paul's has decided to postpone the block party to later in the winter or the spring. We look forward to hosting this event at a future date without restrictions.

Kid’s Club is In-Session
Kids Club (previously "Children's Ministry" and "Sunday School”) is for kids in Kindergarten to Grade 6. We get together every Sunday morning during the service to talk together, learn stories from the Bible, and do crafts and activities. We also have a few fun events together throughout the year. More information to follow soon!

Youth is In-Session
Youth Group is for those in Grades 7 to 12. Led by our Youth Director, Abbi Harding, the youth meet most Sunday mornings during the service. There is a calendar already available for other activities that are planned for the upcoming year.

Leadership Training and Discipleship at Gull Lake Centre
Last week, Nathaniel Schurek shared about the Leadership Training and Discipleship program at Gull Lake Centre that he and his sister, Macreena Schurek, are taking part in. They are both grateful for the prayers, encouragement, and financial support they have received from St. Paul’s, and are still raising funds to cover the cost of their programs. For a detailed email on how to donate, please email Nathaniel or Macreena.

Support Wendell and Ratanak International – Ride for Refuge
As a team event, Wendell and his workplace have arranged for a group of cyclists to participate in Ride for Refuge on October 2. They will be raising funds for Ratanak International. Many at St. Paul’s are aware of the important work Ratanak is doing to free exploited Cambodians. If anyone would like to support this work, please visit Wendell’s team site and support any of the riders who have not yet achieved their fundraising targets: https://rideforrefuge.org/search?q=epcor+cycle+breakers

St. Paul’s is Recruiting Service Team Volunteers!!
If you are not currently part of a service team at St. Paul’s, it is a great way to get involved and get to know people. The service team members read the readings, take the offering, serve as greeters, and help with coffee cleanup the weeks they are scheduled (6-week rotation). We would love to add a person or two to a couple of the teams as we enter the new school year so if you would like to get involved in this way, please contact the office or talk to RJ any time you see him.