This Week at the Church of the Redeemer

 St. Stephen’s Christmas Party

For the children of the St. Stephen’s After School Program

Friday, December 21^st, 2:30pm – 5:30pm

 We Need Redeemer Volunteers To Help With This Event!

 If you are interested in a rewarding volunteer experience at Christmas, please consider volunteering at the St. Stephen’s Christmas Party.  The party is for the children of the St. Stephen’s After School Program.   The party is organized, we have ordered the supplies (craft activities, cookie decorating etc…), we just need volunteers to help with the children at the party!  For many of these children, this will be the only festive occasion of their Christmas – so it is truly rewarding to volunteer at this event.  If you have high school or college aged children home, this is a wonderful volunteer activity that you can do together with them – and it is also fun!  If you can help or if you have questions, please contact Laura Patton 617-232-5175 or laurated@rcn.com.

Members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra

Concert Series II

Sunday, January 27, 2008

4:00 pm

Woodwind Quintet: Summer Music, Opus 31    Samuel Barber (1910-1981)

Quintet in E flat, K 452, for Piano, Oboe, Clarinet, Horn,                              

      and Bassoon                                 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

Trio for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano                     Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)

Piano Solo: The Wind                            Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813-1888)

Woodwind Quintet #1                                       Jacques Français (1775-1833)

 Advanced Tickets $20; Tickets at the Door $25; Students $10

 We wish to thank the Sponsors of this Concert Series,

without whose generous support this afternoon would not be possible.

Christmas Pageant

 Please encourage your children to join us for the Christmas Pageant. 

To participate, your child must be 4 years old and able to come to rehearsal

Saturday, December 15th.  See times below.

 DATES & TIMES TO REMEMBER:

 * 9:30 Sundays, Youth Choir practices all songs—all children welcome!

 December 9 –During Church School

Rehearsal for Speakers and Readers

 Saturday, December 15

8:30 am Speakers/Readers Rehearsal

9:00 – 11:30 am Everyone in Pageant Rehearsal

 Sunday, December 16th

9:30 am Youth Choir Rehearsal

10:15am Children gather in the undercroft

 If you are interested in helping on the 15^th and/or the 16^th, we will need help corralling the sheep/animals, the shepherds and general costume help.  Please contact : Maisie Pollard mpollard@bidmc.harvard.edu, (617) 731-8171 or Amy Luster, atluster@rcn.com, 617-734-6818.

Bible Study with the Rector

 The Radiant World:

Midweek Bible Studies for Ordinary Life

The Letter to the Hebrews is one of the most beautiful works of Western literature and among the most compelling books of the Bible.  It has influenced all the Church’s greatest thinkers, and gives an astonishingly rich portrayal of the work of Jesus Christ and its relation to human affairs.  Over coffee at the Rectory, we will explore the depth and power of this work, at the rate of about a chapter a week, showing its relation to other major texts of Scripture and classic sermons from Christian history, and mining it as a source of creative strength and encouragement for our own ordinary lives.  Come, spend some time with a few fellow pilgrims, and fill the rest of your week with the grace of the Lord in the power of the Spirit.

 Men’s Bible Study, Wednesdays, 7:00 am

Women’s Bible Study, Thursdays, 9: 00 am

Both meet at the Rectory, 381 Hammond Street.

On Thursday, December 20^th, please join us for a Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at 7:30 pm.  There will be a light supper at 6:30 pm in the parish hall.  Please sign up in the office hallway if you are planning to attend the dinner.

Pot Luck Luncheon and Forum on Pilgrim - Uganda

Sunday, December 9^th

following the 10:30 am service

We are delighted to host Calvin Echodu and Anthony Esenu, respectively the founder and managing director of Pilgrim-Uganda, at a potluck luncheon and forum following the 10:30 service on Sunday, December 9th.

Pilgrim is a non-denominational Christian NGO working for the evangelism and redevelopment in the eastern Teso region of Uganda, an area devastated by poverty and disease exacerbated by eighteen years of insurgent warfare.  Pilgrim was founded, and is staffed, by Ugandans, making it the only completely indigenous development agency in the country.  Their approach is holistic, and their current major ministries include:

·         a boarding school in Soroti for 470 children drawn from the IDP camps, many of whom are former child-soldiers and/or victims of sexual slavery

·         a resettlement program incorporating material assistance and techniques in high-yield sustainable agriculture, with the formation of empowered farmers' collectives that has already put hundreds of local families on the road to food-security

·         public health initiatives aimed at eliminating malaria, dysentery, and new infections of AIDS

·         a microenterprise unit in Kampala training poor women in small-business skills and helping them launch their own commercial enterprises

     As you may know from news reports, the Teso region is presently suffering dramatically from sudden and widespread flooding.  In this crisis, Pilgrim has committed $18,000 per month of its own limited operating budget for necessary humanitarian relief.  They are in the best possible position to deliver aid, enjoy excellent relationships with the government, and are completely non-partisan in their co-operation with other agencies.  As a result, they are co-ordinating relief efforts among many participating organizations, from World Vision to the Red Cross. 

In the meantime, you may be interested in visitng their website at pilgrim-uganda.org.  Hit the link to "videos" and you will be routed to four short films that give an overview of the ministries.  At the bottom right-hand corner of the home page, you will also find links to an analysis of the flood situation, a pictorial summary, and a powerpoint presentation on the current troubles.  

If your last name begins with A-L, please bring a main course.  If your last name begins with M-R, please bring a dessert.  If your last name begins with S-Z, please bring a salad.  Please sign up in the office hallway.