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Words from the Well January 2019
The Rt. Rev. Stephen T. Lane,
Bishop of Maine The Rev. John Allison, Rector
CHURCH OF OUR FATHER
PO Box 186 HULLS COVE, MAINE
04644 207-288-4849
__________________ ___________________________________
Over the next nine Sundays we will celebrate the season of Epiphany. While the Feast of the
Epiphany itself is celebrated on January 6th and is generally associated with the visit of the Magi
to the baby Jesus, bearing their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, the season of Epiphany con-
tinues the theme of God’s revelation through Christ. The length of the season of Epiphany varies
from year to year as it is dependent on the date of Easter, and the Gospel from which the readings
come varies from year to year as well. Last year we had six Sundays after the Feast of the Epiph-
any and Mark was our primary source; this year there are nine Sundays and all but one of our Gos-
pel readings will come from Luke. The Gospel readings for each of the eight Sundays after the
Feast of the Epiphany will focus on particular events in the life of Jesus that reveal him as the Son
of God, beginning on January 13 with Luke’s account of Jesus being baptized in the River Jordan
(3:15-17, 21-22). The Sundays that follow will draw from the Gospels according Luke and John and
will present a range of experiences that point us to an understanding of just who Jesus is. The season
culminates on March 3 with Luke’s account of the Transfiguration, in which Jesus ascends the mountain with
Peter, James, and John and is transfigured before their eyes (9:28-43).
As we reflect on these stories, it is important to consider how each reveals an aspect of God in Christ. More
specifically, we might consider how Epiphany invites us into a way of seeing, of recognizing God's incarnate
love here among us. In this season we are reminded again and again of God's presence among us, reminded that
as disciples, as followers, we are called to see God's image in the world around us, in one another. In our Baptis-
mal Vows we affirm that we will "seek and serve Christ in all persons." We say, yes, with God's help. I will.
But how? What gets in our way? It's certainly not always easy.
This word Epiphany is one of those distinctly theological terms that has taken on a common meaning that in
some ways is only a pale shadow of how we use it in the Church. In common usage, it means a sudden realiza-
tion, often of a mundane nature.
For me, coming from a faith background that didn't emphasize the liturgical seasons, that really didn't recog-
nize them at all, for much of my young life that's what I thought epiphany was. It wasn't until college, where I
was an English major, taking a class on James Joyce that I realized the deeper dimensions of the word. Ironi-
cally, it was through Joyce's use of the word that it began to reflect meaning outside of the church; ironic be-
cause, though Roman Catholic, Joyce had a very uneasy relationship with the church, and ironic because his
work, in a tangential way, had a great bearing on me finding my way back to the church. But his use of the word
epiphany was anything but trivial. Or perhaps a better way to put it is that for Joyce there were moments that
one could observe, some seemingly quite trivial in nature, that shone with a radiance that reflected some greater
truth. As a writer he believed his task was to illuminate those moments. He did that certainly in his novels and
short stories but also his journals were filled with such moments, epiphanies that he collected, seventy-one in
all. These were written snapshots of real-life events that pointed to something larger, something so powerful and
indicative of a higher reality, that they take on the character of a mystical vision.
Good art does that. It points us to something shining with beauty that is not always easily seen. That's what
poetry does. And most importantly, that’s what scripture does. It touches us deeply, points us to something be-
yond the page. We see it in the Psalms and in Jesus' parables, and in the accounts of his miracles. We are wit-
ness to it ourselves, witness to these shimmering moments, if, to paraphrase Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew, if
we have eyes to see and ears to hear. (cont’d page 2)
The Rev.
John Allison
2
(Rector, cont’d from page 1)
Jesus' Baptism, which we recognize on January 13, was such a moment. And not just the Baptism but the
very person of Jesus. That's what John the Baptist shows his followers; that is what he shows us. He points us
to Jesus.
The people who followed John were looking for the Messiah, the Christ. And we might say they had certain
expectations as to what that meant, expectations that Jesus often confounded, and that is part of the nature of
Epiphany--surprise, wonder. And therein lies one of the crucial differences between epiphany as depicted in
art, as conveyed through artifice, and Epiphany as experienced, experienced through Christ in particular. I
expect to be moved when I read James Joyce or when I look at a Rembrandt painting. In some ways we've been
trained to see those little epiphanies but it's not always so convenient when the epiphany is manifest in our
everyday experience.
Are we awake to God’s epiphany in Christ? Being awake was the theme of Advent as we prepared for the
coming of Christmas, of the Incarnation. Watch! Be alert! Every week the readings urged us again and again to
be watchful. And it's still worth asking, are we awake? Can we see Christ when he shows himself? It may not
always be what we expect, but are we ready anyway? Are we ready to find and serve Christ in all persons?
Those we least expect?
Fr. John+
A few photos of a very successful Christmas Fair!
Thank you to Mary McEnroe, Gail Leland, Marj Dahl,
Sue Olson, Joanne Sousa, ??????????????????????
3
Fr. John’s Regular Office Hours are: Tuesday, 11 am-2pm Wednesday, 9 am—Noon Thursday, Noon-2 pm Friday, Noon-2 pm and by Appointment Call 207-669-2033 E-mail : [email protected] Fr. John Will be out of the office Jan. 1-10 Mike Bullard may be reached at 266-5913 & @ [email protected], the Rev. Kathleen Killian at 669-2029,
CoOF Annual Meeting will be after 9 am service on Sunday, January 20 2019
Please send us your e-mail address if you would like to receive Father John’s Publication of a
“Weekly Update” Via [email protected] Available to view online at www.churchofourfather.org
or on our Facebook Page
Above: Sue Olson has been very, very busy baking
for the fair!
Left: Take a look at the church’s spectacular Christ-
mas Cactus in bloom!
4
Left: The stunning crèche in front
of our altar, welcoming Jesus, our
Christ!
Right: Our beautiful Altar with
the fill effect of the perfect deco-
rations of the flower guild, set-
ting off the crèche perfectly!
Left: Sunday, January 6, another
beautiful crèche — at the back of
the Sanctuary, complete with the 3
Kings welcoming our new Messiah!
5
Birthdays we Celebrate!
(Please let Muffet know if we may add yours)
1/6 Ann Zaslau 1/8 Amy Hodgson 1/11 Margie Sweet 1/22 Joel Linscott 1/25 Rachel Libitzki-McCabe 2/1 Nancy Salisbury 2/2 Ursula Heiniger 2/3 Fr. John Allison 2/5 David Dawson
Frank Gray (Please let Muffet know if we may add
Christmas Out Reach 2018 Thank you!
With a theme of providing Hope in the name of Jesus, the Christmas Outreach committee of 2018 thanks all who gave generously in providing gifts to chil-dren of the Emmaus Center and the men of the Mt View Development Facil-
ity. Gifts to the Fuel fund were also appreciated.
May the generosity of COOF continue into 2019.
Christmas Outreach committee Barbara Linscott, Nancy Salisbury, Nancy Lombardi, Jane Adams, Carol
Johnston, Mary McEnroe, Barbara Craighead, Gail Leland, Chris Krenicki, Brad
and Kate Berry
Saturday, January 19, there will be a “Walkabout” at Gracie
Theater on the Husson College Campus in Bangor from
1:30 to 4:30 pm. This will be your opportunity to meet and
hear the 5 candidates for Bishop of Maine. The event will
also be live-streamed by the Diocese from their website.
For more information, click <here> or check out their web-
site at http://bishopquest.episcopalmaine.org/. To carpool to
the event, contact our delegates: Larry Johnson, Marilyn
Kitler or Sue Olson.
December 30
Christmas 1
10 am
Holy Eucharist
With all 4 MDI
churches
31
Newsletter
articles and
photos for
January due
Annual
Reports due
January 1
Fr. John
away
2
8 am Holy
Eucharist &
Breakfast
Fr. John away
3
Fr. John away
4
Fr. John away
5
6
Epiphany
8 am & 10 am
Holy Eucharist
Fr. Chuck
Bradshaw
7
9 am FINAL
day for
Annual
Report
submissions!
8
Fr. John
away
1 pm
Men’s
Bible Study
St.
Saviour’s
9
8 am Holy
Eucharist &
Breakfast
Fr. John away
10
12-2 Fr. John
in
11
12-2 Fr. John
in
12
13 Epiphany 1
8 am & 10 am
Holy Eucharist
14 15
11 –2
Fr. John in
16
8 am Holy
Eucharist &
Breakfast
9-12 Fr. John in
17
12-2 Fr. John
in
18
Fr John at
Diocesan
Council
19
“Walkabout”
at Gracie
Theater on
Husson
College
Campus 1:30-
4:30
20
Epiphany 2
10 am
Holy Eucharist
Annual Meeting
21
Labors of
Love
Schedule for
February due
22
11 –2
Fr. John in
23
8 am Holy 8 am
Holy Eucharist &
Breakfast
9-12 Fr. John in
24
12-2 Fr. John
in
25
9:30 am
Acadia Senior
College here
12-2 Fr. John
MDI church
supper–
Schoolhouse
26
27
Epiphany 3
8 & 10 am
Holy Eucharist
28
Newsletter
articles and
photos for
February due
29
11 –2
Fr. John in
30 8 am Holy
Eucharist &
Breakfast
9-12 Fr. John in
31
12-2 Fr. John
in
Feb. 1
12-2 Fr. John
in
2
January 2019
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
Diocesan Cycle of Prayer
6 January ~ Epiphany
“Because of the mystery of the Word made flesh, you caused a new light to shine in our hearts.
Help us to be a light of peace to the world.” (Preface for Epiphany)
For the spread of the Gospel to all the world
13 January ~ Epiphany 1
For the candidates, members of the diocese, Transition Committee, and staff for next weekend’s
Walk-Abouts with candidates for the Tenth Bishop of Maine
20 January ~ Epiphany 2
For church leaders everywhere during this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, that they may
work together and promote unity among Christians
27 January ~ Epiphany 3
The congregations of
St. Andrew and St. John, Southwest Harbor
St. Saviour’s, Bar Harbor
Church of Our Father, Hulls Cove
For those who advocate for the poor, the lonely and the oppressed
Intercessory Prayer for our Friends, Family, Military,
Prison Ministry:
Pray for Isabel Cordova, Haji, Avila, Beth Kidder, Gina Farnsworth, Nancy Salisbury, Fr. Bob Raymond, Bill
Kirk, Stacey Austin, Donna Cardillo, Cindy, Roger Evans, Carl Hatch, Christina Heiniger, Ursula Heiniger,
Helen, Cameron Knable, Kim and Jean Lasater, Gary Lyons, Ronald Olson, Tony & Shawn Smoker, Bob Theri-
ault, Lloyd Woods, Anne Zaslau, the Ministry of Hospice and the Bar Harbor Food Pantry. Our Military: Pray
for those who serve in the armed forces, of the USA. Prison Ministry: Pray for peace in our prisons.
Sunday, 6 January 2019
Pray for the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia
The Most Revd Philip Richardson - Bishop of Taranaki and Primate
The Most Revd Don Tamihere - Pihopa o Aotearora and Primate
The Most Revd Fereimi Cama - Bishop of Polynesia and Primate
Sunday, 13 January 2019
Pray for the Anglican Church of Australia
The Most Revd Philip Leslie Freier - Archbishop of Melbourne & Primate of Australia
Sunday, 20 January 2019
Pray for the united Church of Bangladesh
The Most Revd Paul Shishir Sarker - Moderator, Church of Bangladesh & Bishop of Dhaka
Sunday, 27 January 2019
Pray for the Igreja Episcopal Anglicana do Brasil
The Most Revd Naudal Alves Gomes - Primate of Brazil & Bishop of Curitiba
Church of Our Father Holy Eucharist: Sunday 8 and
10 am
Wednesday 8 am
Words From The Well
IN THIS ISSUE P. 1 Fr John Allison P. 2-5 Around the campus P. 6-7 Calendar/Birthdays/Anniversaries/ Prayers
January 2019
CHURCH OF OUR FATHER
P.O. Box 186
HULLS COVE, MAINE 04644
Office—207-288-4849
www.churchofourfather.org
(GPS location: 91 State Hwy 3, Bar Harbor)