June 8, 2023

Whenever my mother had something important to tell me, she would have this "voice." She'd say, "Nick, I want to talk to you about something." And I knew at that moment that something important was about to be shared. 

Our "State of the Church" this Sunday at 11:30am in Hadley Hall is one of those moments. We have something(s) important to share with you, Epiphany. Joining me on Sunday will be our wardens, Nelia Newell and Darwin Keith-Lucas. Together, we will reflect upon the past year and look to the year ahead, with a clarified understanding about the challenges and opportunities we are being invited into as a parish. This time will be focused on us sharing, but more importantly, we want to have a space to dialogue together. We are a strong and vibrant parish right now. We continue to welcome newcomers and visitors and deepen our ministries of children, families, youth, and connecting the generations. Our music program is thriving, our worship is robust, our service to neighbors is steadfast. And, with this growth comes opportunity and responsibility. We do all of this together, and without you our life together would be diminished--we would not be who we are.

So, Epiphany, we want to talk to you about something. We want to talk about the next chapter in our life together, what we see emerging, and the challenges that are before us. We want to talk and listen together and be renewed as we close our program year.

I hope you can join us for this State of the Church on Sunday. Childcare for nursery-aged little ones will be available until 12:30pm and board games for older kids will be available in the library off the parish hall.

If you cannot be in person, you can view this State of the Church conversation by clicking here and joining on Zoom.

See you Sunday,

Rev. Nick

Join over 100 parishioners at this year's Parish Weekend Away, September 22-24, at the Barbara C. Harris Camp in Greenfield, New Hampshire.

Our Full-Day Saturday option includes a morning of workshop choices (like Guided Meditation, Nature Sketching, Bible Study, or Music), lunch, an afternoon in nature (with walks, canoeing, or a photography class), a happy hour reception, dinner, square dancing, games, and camp fire and compline. 

Or, come for the full weekend. We have one standard lodging space for an adult male available. We also have plenty of overnight space available in our "camper" category of accommodations. This means you will be placed in cabins which have bunk beds, electricity, heat, and bathrooms. Camper cabins are a little less cushy than lodge rooms (mainly in terms of the bunk beds) but are still a comfortable and only mildly-campy option. Camper cabins, because of their size, will have at least five people per cabin. Our retreat team will thoughtfully match up families or individuals to share these cabins. (Or, if you've got a large family, you might get your own!)

For more information, please visit our website. Please register HERE.

On the third Saturday of each month Epiphany serves food at St. Luke's in Chelsea for those experiencing food insecurity. We will be serving both breakfast and lunch on Saturday, June 17th. Sign up here.

Starting this October, Epiphany will launch Faith Circles — intentional, faith-based small groups that meet regularly to build deeper relationships with God and one another. A Faith Circle provides a safe, welcoming space for members to share their joys and struggles, to explore their faith and doubts, and to discover how and where God is present among us. If you are interested in joining a Faith Circle or would simply like to know more about them, please join us on Sunday, June 18 at 11:15 am in Hadley Hall. The nursery will be available until 12:30pm for those who would like to stay for the session.  

Janelle would like to invite you into an important time in her life and the life of our parish as she gets ordained as a priest here at Parish of the Epiphany on June 23 at 6:00 pm. All are welcome!

We are seeking an Office Administrator and Financial Administrator here at Epiphany. This work is able to be full-time or part-time depending upon the candidates. Please share these opportunities with any potential candidates and contact Rev. Nick for more information or conversation. Often, we engage the best candidates through word of mouth and we ask for your help in finding wonderful people to join our life together and a great staff team. See the position descriptions at https://3crowns.org/join-our-team. 

Despite the tremendous support we’ve received from the parish, and the many thousands of dollars we have raised, we’ve continued to have to report that ALS remains a horrible disease stubbornly resistant to cures and treatments. But we are happy to report that this year is different. ALS-Therapy Development Institute has announced a new drug, Tofersen, has successfully completed FDA approval and significantly slows the decline of respiratory function and strength and improves quality of life. More clinical trials are underway, so it seems a pipeline of hope is on the way.

But no reason for complacency! That’s why your favorite cycling group, Team Epiphany, is at it again. We’re hopping on our trusty two-wheelers to continue the fight against this horrible disease benefiting the ALS-TDI. They’ve changed the format this year, and we’ll be attempting various distances. During the weekend of June 24-25, your team will be looping around Durham, NH, completing distances between 30 and 200 miles. And so, once again, we ask for your support:

1. Please navigate to www.team-epiphany.org and make a pledge. We hope to break our record on fundraising. It will also show you who’s on the team and what they’ve signed up for. Sponsor your favorite rider or the team at large. It’s all good!
2. You could join the team. No, I’m not kidding. There are many ways to participate, both in person and virtually. We’d love to swell our ranks — https://tst.als.net/the-ride/participation-options/. Not a cyclist? Doesn’t matter, you can participate virtually walking, running, or doing any kind of exercise.
3. Pray for us. We will be training heavily between now and then. We’d especially like your prayers for the safety of all riders and volunteers on the weekend of June 24-25.

ALS has hit this parish hard over the years, and we ride in honor of our fallen friends, Steve Lewis and Rick Marks. Yet, we know there are lots of pressing needs in the world so we thank you in advance for considering supporting us.

In the meantime, stay safe and well and have a blessed Eastertide.
~ Team Epiphany