Advent 2022 begins a little earlier this year on NOVEMBER 27th.

These four Sundays before Christmas mark:

• A season of hope and longing for the world to be set to rights
• A season of preparation for the 12-day season of Christmas
• The beginning of a new church year that follows the life of Christ (we begin YEAR 'A' in our three-year reading cycle)

Advent is a season of serious spiritual work.
How will you do that this year?
What do you need to deepen your relationship with God?

I invite you to make church a priority in this time alongside your daily practice of prayer.  You might make use of a prayer app like "Pray as you Go" or "Daily Prayer", and we will also be setting out paper copies of an advent daily prayer book in the narthex.

As well, please make the following events a priority in your Advent spiritual process:

1. The four Sundays of Advent 10am as we light the Advent wreath (Online folks, why not have your own advent wreath at home to light?!)
2. 3 Advent Wednesdays Church Family Prayers on Zoom 7pm-7:30pm on (usual zoom link will be sent out weekly.  Dates are Nov 30th, Dec. 7th, 21st excluding the 14th for the L'Arche Pageant)
3. The L'Arche Christmas Pageant on the evening of December 14th (details TBA)
4. Sunday Service of Lessons and Carols, December 18th, 10am.  A festive service of 9 readings and responding music.  Please let rev. Jonathan or Megan know if you would like to read or offer music on that day.
5. Christmas Eve Service, 9pm Carols Sing, 9:30pm Candlelight Holy Communion.  Anyone want to organize some wine and goodies for after the service?
6. Christmas Day Service (also a Sunday!) details TBA
7. 12 Days of Christmas.  Jesus is born - let us celebrate and make these days special in our homes and families.
8. Twelfth Night Celebration. We close off our Christmas celebration with this ancient tradition.  Thursday January 5th, 5:30pm community potluck and Evening Prayer.  Yes, we will sing the song :)  Bring a main course or dessert or your leftover xmas treats.  Anyone want to make us a big pot of Wassail?
9. We celebrate the Epiphany in church that Sunday January 8th.

Music this Sunday is being lead by Aaron Parker and

Paul Fuelbrandt

Jeremiah 23:1-6

Luke 1:68-79

Colossians 1:11-20

Luke 23:33-43

Dear Friends
What do we do with ideas????
We had an idea. We talked about it. We shared it with
other people and listened to what they had to say. We asked for support, financial and practical. We
prayed about our idea and listened to the voice in our hearts. We agreed to make it work. And now we
have our beautiful Memorial Garden, a lovely place to remember our loved ones.
We had another idea. We talked about this too. We shared it with other people and listened to what
they had to say. We asked for support, financial and practical. We prayed about our idea and listened to
the voice in our hearts. We agreed to make it work. And now we have Faith our Children’s Ministry
Leader, and the St. A’s Kid’s program. We also have children worshipping with us on Sunday mornings
and often taking part in the services by reading and helping around the altar.
Where do ideas come from? Well, another word for ‘idea’ is ‘inspiration’ and inspiration originally
meant ‘the influence of a divine entity on a person.’ I think we would call this the Holy Spirit.
We also remember the words of St. Augustine of Hippo, echoed in our time by Desmond Tutu, ‘Without
God we cannot. Without us God will not.’ Because we have sought the will of God, and collaborated
with the work of God, to the Glory of God, we now have our Memorial Garden and our St. A’s Kids
Programme.
People of St. A’s, how did we collaborate with God? – How is this good stewardship?
• We provided enthusiasm, encouragement, and support.
• We acted on the ideas we were given.
• We have volunteered to do some of the work.
• We completed and returned those Estimate of Giving Forms, thus agreeing to finance these and
other projects and expenses of our church, local and national, and to pay the salaries of the people
such as our Rector and Bishop, who have, and will continue, to provide compassionate, effective
leadership.
• We remain cheerful and positive and continue to listen for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
• And for all of this we give thanks.
Thankyou again for participating in our Annual Financial Stewardship Programme. Your generosity and
willingness to become involved, will ensure that our parish can continue the work of Jesus, as we look
upon God’s world with compassion, and work for justice (Meaning economic fairness) and peace for all
God’s beloved children.
Please remember to attend the Parish AGM in January – that is stewardship too.
God bless and Happy New (Church) Year!
Val McCormack

Coffee is served downstairs after the service. We look forward to seeing you. 

We continue to look for volunteers to help with coffee time. Please sign the roster (a copy is posted on the bulletin board by the kitchen) or contact Loretta Howard. 

We serve coffee/tea/juice and a snack each Sunday after church. (The snack is provided by the weekly volunteers.)

Please contact Loretta Howard 
lmhoward@shaw.ca
780-466-9510

 Come and enjoy a relaxing time of conversation as we reflect together on excerpts from Alice Fryling’s wise and readable book "Aging Faithfully". We will also consider passages from other sources which, I trust, will add to the richness our conversation.

Thursday 1:30 - 2:45 p.m.  

As you may know, over the last year, a small steering group has been gathering input and developing a vision for the South side of our St. A's land along the theme of rewilding and developing outdoor sacred space.  The group is intentionally a mix of Sunday morning folk and neighbourhood folk (many connected with the community garden).

We were greatly aided by Rui, an architect who helped draw together some of the components that were arising and do up some presentation materials.

There will be a simple presentation of where we are, Sunday, November 20, after the 10am service.

We are also beginning to call out for help and build a community of support.  If you are drawn to the project, please let us know how you'd like to help on this google form: https://forms.gle/pMeoEFDXgUVTQfJo7

Watch for the monthly calendar

The Ven. Jordan Haynie Ware, Archdeacon for Justice, and the Disability Inclusion Team invite you to an inaugural conversation on accessibility and inclusion on Saturday, November 19, from 1 to 3 pm at Good Shepherd Anglican Church, 15495 Castle Downs Road in Edmonton. The conversation will be centered on a question: "What makes a church community accessible and inclusive?" We are inviting conversation, stories, experiences, and more questions to help shine a light and start the journey together to envision a more inclusive church. 

We welcome anyone who is interested in ensuring we provide welcoming spaces for worship, community and mission. This includes but is not exclusive to people with disabilities, seniors facing mobility or other inclusion and accessibility challenges and needs, caregivers, parents/guardians, families and allies. There will be light refreshments and children's activities.

For more information about the conversation and meeting, please contact Jennifer Stewart from the Inclusion Team at js.prayerworks@gmail.com

For more information about the Social Justice Committee and the Disability Inclusion Team, including how to join the team, please contact the Ven. Jordan Haynie Ware at rector@goodshepanglican.org

Safe Church training for Parish Safe Church Coordinators will take place on the following dates and times (length of session: 1.5 hours), on Zoom. Please sign up for one of the following sessions with Rev Armand Mercier at armand@christchurchedm.ca

• Tuesday, Nov. 22, 1 pm
• Monday, Nov. 28, 7 pm
• Tuesday, Nov. 29, 7 pm 

Do you know about Edmonton's L'Arche Community?

There are several L'Arche homes around Edmonton and Sherwood Park, but their Day Program and Offices reside in old Fulton School across the park from the church.

This year St. A's is deeply honoured to be hosting their yearly Christmas pageant, December 14th, 7pm in the sanctuary.

A little bit about L'Arche.  From their website: "Known by many as the Shalom Community, L’Arche Edmonton is a not-for-profit association. Formed in 1972, L’Arche Edmonton became the second L’Arche community in Canada. We have a rich history, and continue to respond to the changing needs of our members. Mutual relationships and trust in God are at the heart of our journey. We currently have six L’Arche houses in Edmonton and Sherwood Park and a Day Program where people with and without disabilities live together. We have a Community Centre located in Fulton place where our Day Program administration team work and our community gatherings take place.  We are a diverse and multicultural community, and we celebrate the unique gifts of each individual who chooses to live and work with us."

Please be welcome to join in this special evening with our friends.

Accessible and Inclusive Church - a Conversation - Saturday, November 19, 1 - 3 p.m., Good Shepherd Anglican Church

Office: 780-466-5532