Congratulations to Dave Wood on his ordination to the minor order of Acolyte, the next step on the way to priesthood. It was wonderful to have him, Mtr. Sandy, and Fr. Michael at St. Mary of Grace Parish for Dave's ordination!
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Hello everyone - We are sad to write that Br. Robert Julian Dabrow (Frater Julian D) passed away unexpectedly on August 26 the Feast of the Transverberation of the Heart of St. Teresa of Jesus. He was a beloved member of the parish and we will miss him greatly. ____ O God of grace and glory, we remember before you this day our brother, Br. Robert Julian Dabrow. We thank you for giving him to us, his family and friends, to know and to love as a companion on our earthly pilgrimage. In your boundless compassion, console us who mourn. Give us faith to see in death the gate of eternal life, so that in quiet confidence we may continue our course on earth, until, by your call, we are reunited with those who have gone before; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. O God, who by the glorious resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ destroyed death, and brought life and immortality to light: Grant that your servant Br. Robert Julian Dabrow, being raised with him, may know the strength of his presence, and rejoice in his eternal glory; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. ****** I am Resurrection and I am Life, says the Lord. Whoever has faith in me shall have life, even though he die. And everyone who has life, and has committed himself to me in faith, shall not die for ever. As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives and that at the last he will stand upon the earth. After my awaking, he will raise me up; and in my body I shall see God. I myself shall see, and my eyes behold him who is my friend and not a stranger. For none of us has life in himself, and none becomes his own master when he dies. For if we have life, we are alive in the Lord, and if we die, we die in the Lord. So, then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's possession. This past Sunday, Bp. Tim, Mtr. Lyngine, and parishioner Michael DeMarco attended a rally in Media to stand against racism, white supremacy, and anti-Semitism in response to the violence by Nazi and KKK supporters in Charlottesville yesterday. Bp. Tim spoke briefly, as did a number of other people, including several clergy. Thank you the organizers and all who attended. This Sunday, we had a wonderful Mass and the formal "episcopal visitation" at which we blessed our new Font and renewed our baptismal vows. Then we had a very good discussion, over dinner, with the awesome people in our congregation about ministry, reviewing the past year and looking forward to the next year. It's really great to be ministering with this amazing group of people! Thank you!
An episcopal visitation is a bishop's official pastoral visit to a community of the Independent Catholic Christian Church. This is a time of shared prayer and reflection on the particular ministry of the community. During an episcopal visitation there is a session with the community at large. The purpose of this reflection session is to discern the community's hopes, dreams, and visions under the guidance of the Holy Spirit – and to prayerfully explore how the local community, clergy, and the jurisdiction at large and the bishop can work together to bring these into being. Operation Tuna Salad pictures! (Yes, it is a fun as it looks.) A special thanks to the Hunger Task Force of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Delaware County and Sue, the intrepid organizer of the evening. The tuna salad goes to feed 150 homeless individuals at the Life Center of Eastern Delaware County. Next month we'll meet again on September 8 at 6:30 p.m. for more tuna salad making. We wanted to share the prayers below tor those who have lost a loved one or know someone who has lost a loved one. If you would like Mass celebrated for a deceased loved one, please contact Bp. Tim or Mtr. Lyngine and we will be in touch.
For those who have died: Father of all, we pray to you for N., and for all those whom we love but see no longer. Grant to them eternal rest. Let light perpetual shine upon them. May his soul and the souls of all the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen. O God, whose mercies cannot be numbered: Accept our prayers on behalf of your servant N., and grant him an entrance into the land of light and joy, in the fellowship of your saints; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Father of all, we pray to you for those we love, but see no longer: Grant them your peace; let light perpetual shine upon them; and, in your loving wisdom and almighty power, work in them the good purpose of your perfect will; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. For those who mourn: Almighty God, Father of mercies and giver of comfort: Deal graciously, we pray, with all who mourn; that, casting all their care on you, they may know the consolation of your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Most merciful God, whose wisdom is beyond our understanding: Deal graciously with NN. in their grief. Surround them with your love, that they may not be overwhelmed by their loss, but have confidence in your goodness, and strength to meet the days to come; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Grant, O Lord, to all who are bereaved the spirit of faith and courage, that they may have strength to meet the days to come with steadfastness and patience; not sorrowing as those without hope, but in thankful remembrance of your great goodness, and in the joyful expectation of eternal life with those they love. And this we ask in the Name of Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen. *Prayers from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer We've been working on getting our technical skills up to speed and it's been paying off! We now are uploading Sunday Mass directly to our Facebook page as well as on our YouTube channel. We've also created a page under the "Mass" tab of our website with a listing of the available videos and a few notes about each. We invite you to worship with us through these videos. If you are ever in the Philadelphia/Northern Delaware area, please join us in person! The Independent Catholic Christian Church stands in solidarity with the trans community. We baptize trans people, we welcome trans people to the table to receive the Body and Blood of Christ, we ordain trans people, we marry trans people. Trans people baptize us, trans priests celebrate the Eucharist for us, trans bishops ordain us, trans priests absolve our sins and anoint us for the healing of our sickness. We are enriched by the gifts of those who are trans. We call on other parts of society to join us in this welcome, and call those who exclude trans people to repent of their sin of hatred and exclusion.
A long but WONDERFUL Sunday at church. First, we had a baptism and Mass, which Bp. Tim celebrated, for a delightful family with their extended family and friends. That was a really great experience. Then, after a luncheon with them, priest Lyngine celebrated the parish Mass and preached. Because today is the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Brother Robert Julian, who is a Carmelite of Mercy in the ICCC, chanted the Flos Carmeli, a traditional antiphon to the Blessed Virgin Mary sung by Carmelites. Then a fun dinner with parishioners. Finally, we had our third try at recording Sunday Mass and will post the recording once we have it uploaded.
This past Sunday, not only did we record one of our Masses for the first time, but we had car blessings! We knew that there was one new (red!) car in parish and were ready for that. But at the end of Mass, we were delighted and surprised to learn that there was another new car to bless. May these cars serve their owners well as they travel through the roads and highways in their daily lives to do all God has called them to do! First, blessing Car #1: And then it was time to bless Car #2!
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