Staying Safe and Staying Connected
Good Morning Saint Stephen’s Church,
We continue our life of daily prayer. The Lord be with you!
Today’s Prayer
O God
John Cassian, 435
be all my love,
all my hope,
all my striving;
let my thoughts and words flow from you;
my daily life be in you,
and every breath I take be for you.
John Cassian was a Christian monk and theologian celebrated in both the Western and Eastern churches for his mystical writings. He is noted for his role in bringing the ideas and practices of Christian monasticism to the early medieval West. Originally from a historical region shared today by Romania and Bulgaria, John in his youth traveled to Bethlehem and lived in a hermitage for almost three years. Later in life while in Rome he accepted the invitation to found an Egyptian-style monastery in southern Gaul, near Marseilles. The Abbey of St. Victor was a complex of monasteries for both men and women, one of the first such institutes in the West, and served as a model for later monastic development.
Cassian’s achievements and writings influenced Benedict of Nursia, who incorporated many of the principles into his monastic rule, and recommended to his own monks that they read the works of Cassian. Considering that Benedict’s rule is followed by Benedictine, Cistercian, and Trappist monks, not to mention Benedict’s influence on Anglican spirituality, John Cassian’s thought still exercises influence over the spiritual lives of millions of Christians throughout the world.
From Our Prayers of the People
Today, let us pray:
For the just and proper use of your creation: for the victims of hunger, fear, injustice, and oppression.
For comfort and healing for all who are affected by the Coronavirus: for physicians, nurses, and all others who minister to the sick and the suffering, may God grant them wisdom and skill, sympathy and patience, and may God keep them healthy and safe.
For all essential workers: for police, firefighters, EMTs, postal workers, sanitation workers, grocery personnel, delivery and transport workers, and all who must report to work because what they do is essential for our well-being, health, and safety.
For those on the Parish Prayer Chain: Mary Frances, Jim, Eunice, Jane and Bruce.
For those who are homebound: Stephen, Pauline, Joan, Janet and Marilyn.
Our Government Leaders: Donald Trump, President of the United States; Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York State; Gary McCarthy, Mayor of Schenectady
Our Church Leaders: Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop, William Love, and Daniel Herzog our bishops; James and Dennie our priests; Pat our deacon and Allison our Lay Reader
Those who are imprisoned: those particularly vulnerable at this time, especially the women in the Schenectady County Jail.
For those in need of healing: Cindi, Mary Frances, Debbie, Joe, Matt and Lisa.
For all the blessings of this life.
For our dioceses in the Anglican Communion: New Jersey (The Episcopal Church), Amazon (Brazil), Jabalpur (North India)
For all who have died: especially Allison, Charles and Hiola.
For one another.
Something to share
The Spirit is quietly at work:
Bruce D. Prewer (and paraphrased by The Very Rev. Randolph Hollerith)
In those who take a stand against injustice
In the grace of folks who go the second mile
In the selfless service of those who care for others at the risk of their own safety
In the inner resources we discover in times of crisis
In the grace that enables us to admit when we are wrong
In the resilience of people who fight for the rights of others
In our ability to find joy in unexpected places
In refusing to let the greed of society take over our souls
In our ability to rise above past failures and put past hurts behind us
In our willingness to give thanks even through the hard times of life
“…works of piety and charity… are necessary in this present life for as long as inequality prevails. Their workings here would not be required were it not for the superabundant numbers of the poor, the needy, and the sick… As long as this inequity rages in the world, these good works will be necessary and valuable to anyone practicing them and they shall yield the reward of an everlasting inheritance to the man of good heart and concerned will.”
John Cassian
Reminders
If you have an update/news, a prayer or poem or something inspirational you would like us to share with the congregation, please send it to us. Please also send us any prayer requests. We will incorporate these into the Morning Prayers as best we can.
Prayerbook Parish Morning Prayer in Zoom – each morning. Join Dennie and me for an inter-active service of Morning Prayer at 9 am. Time to bring your prayer concerns will be provided. (contact me for the link: james.ross.mcd@gmail.com)
If you did not receive a phone call in the last few weeks from a member of the Vestry and you would like to be added to the communication list, please let me know (james.ross.mcd@gmail.com) and share with me the best telephone number(s) where we can reach you. We will add you to the list right away.
Our church campus is closed. All parish meetings and gatherings are canceled and postponed until further notice.
Our goal is for all of us to stay in touch and connected in this time of isolation.
Share this news, and spread some love, not the virus!
Irish Blessing
May the road rise up to meet you,
May the wind be at your back,
May the sun shine upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon soft upon your fields,
And until we meet again
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.
Be of good courage. We are in this together, and we will be together again soon. God bless you and may God be with us in the days ahead.
Peace,
James+