St. Anne's Gate, July 27, 2013

Dear Friends, 

Greetings from St. Anne's Episcopal Church!  I hope you raised a glass to St. Anne herself yesterday, because July 26th is reserved in the Anglican calendar for the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The prayer appointed in the lectionary reads:

Almighty God, heavenly Father, we remember in thanksgiving this day the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary; and we pray that we all may be made one in the heavenly family of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

WORSHIP

We meet Sundays at 10am in Lackey Chapel, 105 University Drive, Conway, SC.  Click here for a map.

Please note that on Sunday, August 18 we will not meet at Lackey Chapel, but instead will participate in a joint worship service with the new Episcopal Church at Myrtle Beach. On that day we'll meet at Coastal Carolina University's Myrtle Beach Education Center on the Corner of Bypass 17 and 79th Avenue North Myrtle Beach.

MINISTRY

Our support for the new worship group in Myrtle Beach will likely provide more mission opportunities for our congregation. Not only are we assisting the Myrtle Beach church materially (just as churches such as St. Stephen's in Heathsville, VA assisted us when we were starting out), but it won't be long until we will have a sister congregation with whom we can collaborate on programs and outreach. If you are of a providential turn of mind, you might wonder if St. Anne's was blessed so completely upon formation (with people, resources, space, and joy) so that we might be in a position to help another parish in its early hours. It would appear, to paraphrase Mark Twain, that reports of the death of The Episcopal Church in South Carolina were greatly exaggerated.

The Summer Come-As-You are Bible Study has two more weeks left to go, but it's still not too late to join. We meet on Wednesdays at 7pm and study the readings for the following Sunday. This readings for our Wednesday, July 31 meeting are 

Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23
Psalm 49:1-11
Colossians 3:1-11
Luke 12:13-21

The Bible Study meets at 4649 Westwind Dr. in Carolina Forest, Myrtle Beach. Click here for a map.

ORGANIZATION

Your Mission Committee met on July 15, 2013 and July 21, 2013.  The minutes from all Mission Committee meetings are on the website at stanneconway.org

Our recent meetings have been predominately about next steps for our parish. Our growth has been gratifying and unexpected.  We want to be ready for the challenges ahead, but we want to preserve that which has brought us together in the first place:  A simple vision of worship and community that was, in the words of an eminent theologian, "indiscriminately inclusive." Through these discussions, we able to draft a mission statement that we believe captures St. Anne's in three sentences:

St. Anne’s Episcopal Church strives to be a joyous community that welcomes all people who seek to know Christ in their minds, hearts, and lives.

We gather together at God’s table, offering diverse gifts but of one spirit, becoming the body of Christ and gratefully receiving God’s grace.

We go out into a broken world, guided by scripture, tradition, and reason, honoring Christ’s command to serve others, believing that through God’s presence in our community, we can advance God’s kingdom in the world.

What do you think?

See you Sunday,

Dan Ennis

Senior Warden

7/9/13 Update

Dear Friends,

Greetings from St. Anne's Episcopal Church! Listening to the choir's lovely anthem last week, I was reminded of Garrison Keillor's description of Episcopalians: 

"I do believe this, people: Episcopalians -- who love to sing in four-part harmony -- are the sort of people you could call up when you're in deep distress. If you are dying, they will comfort you. If you are lonely, they'll talk to you. And if you are hungry, they'll give you tuna salad."

WORSHIP

We meet at 10am in Lackey Chapel on the campus of Coastal Carolina University.  Click here for a map.

A special worship opportunity is attached to this email.  Episcopalians from Trinity Myrtle Beach have been meeting as a worship group, and they've invited us St. Anne's folks to join them this Sunday at 4pm.  So come to St. Anne's at 10am, then go to Trinity-in-Exile at 4pm. Double the church, and there's not one among us that couldn't use the extra measure of grace, right? For directions and RSVP information see the attachment to this email.

MINISTRIES

Bible study continues at the home of Jeri Dubbs,  4946 Westwind Dr., Myrtle Beach SC (in Carolina Forest for all you locals). This is best reached via Gardner Lacy Road.  Map here. The truly lost can call Jeri for directions at 236-8136.  The truly, truly lost should click here.

This Bible study follows the lectionary, so readings can be found here (follow Track 2):

The readings for this week are:  Deuteronomy 30:9-14; Psalm 25:1-9; Colossians 1:1-14; Luke 10:25-37

ORGANIZATION

The Mission Committee meets on Monday, July 15.  Please send any questions/requests/complaints to this email or share your concerns with a member of the committee this Sunday. Minutes for each mission committee meeting are available on the parish website (http://stanneconway.org).

VISION

A couple of weeks ago, twenty-six bishops met in Charleston and learned about the successful reorganization of our diocese.  They wrote a letter commending our efforts, and closed with this message:

"Going forward, please know that we are of one mind in thanking God for your witness to the entire church that we indeed worship and serve a real, risen and living Lord. And, we would ask you to ever keep with you the words of the Apostle to the church in Ephesus: “Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.” Eph. 3:20-21"

See you Sunday,

Dan

7/2/2013

Dear St. Anne's Friends,

I write you on July 2nd, the actual day the declaration was adopted, thanks to that sometime Episcopalian (but mostly Deist) Thomas Jefferson. 

WORSHIP

We meet on Sundays at 10am in Lackey Chapel on the campus of Coastal Carolina University.  Directions can be found here.

I am pleased to report that a group from Trinity Myrtle Beach is organizing and they've invited us to join them at their July 14 Eucharist.  They will meet at 4pm at 302 Lafayette Road in Myrtle Beach.  Fr. Wilmot Merchant will be their celebrant. RSVP to Mary Lauer 272-6688.

MINISTRY

Bible study will not meet this week, but will resume on July 10.  We are following the lectionary (track 2).  Remember, this Bible study is designed for drop-ins, so please join us even if you missed the first couple of meetings. Jeri makes excellent lemonade. Directions here.

ORGANIZATION

Last week our loose offerings were sent to Episcopal Relief and Development.

The mission committee will meet on July 15.  Please let a mission committee member know if you have any topics you'd like to see addressed. 

VISION

"I have found that some people who sense themselves as outcasts feel that the only way they can participate in the life of the church is by making other people outcast."  --Edmond Lee Browning, Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church, 1985-1997

See you Sunday,

Dan Ennis