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News & Events
Welcome to the news and notices pages of Christ Episcopal Church. Here you will find the most up-to-date information regarding our common life together as a community. This is also a place where members of the congregation can share important life events with the whole community.
Please click here for our parish events calendar.
Please click here for our parish eNewsletter.
The Rector's State of the Parish Address
from the annual meeting on Sunday, Jan. 22 is available here.
Lent begins on Wednesday of this coming week. At Christ Church we have a growing awareness of how God is calling us to be in right relationship with “this fragile earth, our island home.” As part of our practice of taking on new things for this Lenten season, our Carbon Fast Calendar provides small but significant ways we can for forty days reduce our carbon footprint and help heal the earth. My prayer is that you will engage in these important and holy practices the Carbon Fast Calendar guides us to this Lent, and then use them as a springboard for more on-going Creationcare practices in your life.
Click here for the Calendar.
A PDF brochure with the following information is available here.
Ash Wednesday, February 22
- 12:10 pm — Liturgy for Ash Wednesday, Imposition of Ashes and the Holy Eucharist in the Chapel.
- 5:30 pm — Children’s Ash Wednesday Service with the Holy Communion in the Chapel.
- 7:00 pm — Liturgy for Ash Wednesday, Imposition of Ashes and the Holy Eucharist in the main Church.
Lent OnLine
Join five Christ Church writers who will be offering daily daily meditations during the forty days of Lent. The meditations will be posted on the Christ Episcopal Church Facebook page. If you are not a Facbeook user, you can access the blog here.
We will be using the book, “A Practical Christianity” by the Rt. Rev. Jane Shaw who is the new Dean of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. You are invited to join the conversation with your own reflections on the daily readings or the daily meditations. The book is available from Amazon.com.
Embracing Emergence Christianity
A five week Lenten Adult study course in collaboration with St. Paul’s, Cleveland Heights.
We will be using the DVD series, “Embracing Emergence Christianity: Phyllis Tickle on the Church’s Next Rummage Sale” for our studies. Tickle is one of the leading theologians and commentators in the Episcopal Church today.
Join us on Wednesday evenings beginning February 29th – March 28th from 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm.
We begin each session with a simple Lenten meal followed by a presentation, discussion and end each evening with worship.
Locations:
Wednesday, February 29th — Christ Church
Wednesday, March 7th — Christ Church
Wednesday, March 14th — St. Paul’s
Wednesday, March 21st — St. Paul’s
Wednesday, March 28th — Christ Church
Lenten Retreat 2012
Saturday, March 3rd at the River’s Edge Retreat Center
on Rocky River Drive in Cleveland; 8:30 am to 4 pm.Join us for a quiet day of meditations, discussion, and prayer as we encounter the holiness of Lent.
The retreat will be led by the Rev. Melanie and the Rev. Peter. The day includes a continental breakfast and lunch and will cost $25.00 per person.
Scholarship assistance is available by speaking to the Rev. Peter.
Lenten Meditations Booklet
Pick up a free copy of Episcopal Relief and Development’s 2012 Lenten Meditations booklet on the table in the Great Hall. As the booklet says on the opening page, “it is our [ERD’s] hope that the Lenten Meditations will be a collective potpourri of healing, health, wholeness and the Holy that will enrich your daily prayer.
Shaker Simplicity and Global Sustainability: An Exploration of the Abrahamic Faiths
in Relationship to the Environment.
You are invited to join this seven week adult learning experience co-sponsored by Siegal College and the Shaker Heights Clergy Association in honor of the Centennial Celebration of Shaker Heights. Classes are Tuesdays, February 14 – March 27, 2012, 7:30 – 9:30 pm. Siegal College, 26500 Shaker Blvd., Beachwood, OH 44122.
Join us for an unusual and fascinating exploration of the “green” directives factored into each of the three Abrahamic faiths: Judaism, Christianity and Islam as they are paralleled to the simplicity to the Shakers who founded this beautiful community.
Join our instructors Rabbi Jeffrey Schein, Katie Ong-Landini, Iman Ramex Islambouli, Cathie Winans, the Rev. Roger Osgood and the Rev. Peter Faass among others, who will help us deepen our awareness of the three Abrahamic religious traditions commitment to global sustainability.
The cost is $72.00 per person. Scholarship assistance is available by contacting Rev. Peter. A brochure is available here.
Announcing "The CoffeeHouse" for youth grades 6-8.
In an effort to provide a fun and safe social event for the youth of Shaker Heights, a group of Shaker area churches and the Shaker Youth Center, are jointly hosting a 6th - 8th Grade CoffeeHouse event on the first Friday of each month: December 2 meeting will be here at Christ Church.
Space is limited, so we ask that the students register on-line.
In addition,all youth must have a parent complete and sign the permission form.
Each youth must also be signed in and signed out of the event by a responsible adult. One adult can bring a group of students, but he or she must sign in each one of them. There will be a registration table at the host church, and event coordinators will be available to answer questions about this procedure. A meal will be provided as part of the program.
Worship Assistants
Did you know that a copy of the current ROTA can be found on the Worship Page of the website? If you cannot find your copy, you can always refer to this website. Remember that it is your responsibility to arrange a substitute if you cannot be in church on a date when you have assigned duties. Here is the Fall 2011 schedule if you need it.
Art Journaling to Strengthen Selfhood
The Art Journaling Support Group that meets twice-monthly at Christ Church will continue meeting throughout the summer. The group is sponsored by NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Greater Cleveland and is led by parishioner Frances Lynn, Professional Counselor and art therapist. Members of Christ Church and the community who are living with a mental illness are invited to join the group at any time. They meet on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month, 6:30-8:30 pm, in the Good Shepherd Atrium (basement level). We use a combination of art making and journal writing to discover more about ourselves and support each other in our recovery. No artistic talent is needed! Registration is not required, there is no fee and supplies are provided. For more information, call Frances at 216-408-6465. Help spread the word to anyone who might be interested!
Book Exchange
Have you visited the Book Exchange Cart lately? It moved during the reconfiguring of the Great Hall in February. It is now located at the west end of the narthex (coat area at the back of the main church). You are welcome to donate a book you no longer want and take one or two off the cart. (It's quite full these days.) See Gorman Duffett if you have any questions.
Host a Home Eucharist
Christ Church is offering an opportunity for you to host a home Eucharist at your residence. The earliest Christians always worshipped in people’s homes before the era of church-centered worship. As part of the gathered communities worship in those days an agape meal, or love feast, was prepared and shared as part of the Eucharistic celebration.
We invite you to have and experience a home Eucharist at your house this year. You may invite fellow Christ Church friends, neighbors, friends, co-workers or whomever you feel would enjoy worshipping God and being with good people. Many people will be intrigued by the idea of gathering with Christians outside of the normal church building.
Your meal could be simple, (pizza and salad, a bar be que) or more elaborate, although we are not looking for a gourmet experience! Soups, salads, good breads, casseroles and an easy dessert would be perfect. You could even bake your own bread for the Eucharist – we have some good honey wheat recipes for Eucharistic bread that we can share. Some of you may even make your own wine to share for the celebration.
A program of some simple Bible study could be a part of the evening or a discussion on a current event and how our faith informs us about it. Or, no program is needed at all but just the opportunity to engage in good fellowship and conversation.
A signup sheet with available dates is located on the table in the Great Hall. Please confer with the Rector about a time and a program if you desire it. If there is a date that you would like to host that is not listed on the signup sheet, please consult with the Rector – other options are available.
Altar Flower Donations
We have several weeks in the coming month available for sign up. The cost is $75 per week and can be split between two donors. Flowers can be given in memory or honor of a loved one. A sign up sheet is on the board next to the office door and in this Flower PDF. It is best if you contact the parish administrator to formalize your request, especially any commemoration details.
Hospitality Ministry Needs Your Help
Please consider providing snacks for fellowship time following Sunday services. If you need suggestions on types of food and quantities, see Marion Dingus. A signup sheet is available in the Great Hall.
