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Sunday Prayers
The parish of St. Paul's is called to prayer tomorrow morning at 10.30 a.m.. A short video and handout will be available tomorrow morning for those who wish to follow along: www.stpl.ca/services.html. A service is also conducted in Tamil. Please contact Fr. Milton Solomon directly: (solomon.milton@ymail.com). A Bible study and prayer meeting in Chinese is organized by Pastor Andrew and Kevin Zhang, Saturday evenings at 8.00 pm. To participate, contact Pastor Andrew: shenxunhong@gmail.com Sunday School every Sunday morning at 10 am Information about how to connect is available on the Church Calendar: www.stpl.ca/events.html Evening Prayer on Sundays via Zoom Evening Prayer is said every Sunday at 6 pm. Information about how to connect is available on the Church Calendar: www.stpl.ca/events.html Or, directly here: Computer link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/729301821?pwd=N29KK1JtTXp0RzVvcHZBMzN0ZXpDZz09 Telephone: 647-374-4685, OR 647-558-0588 Meeting ID: 729 301 821 Password: 010558 Annual Cemetery Memorial Service Next Week This week is the Annual Cemetery Memorial Service which will be made part of the Sunday recording. We give thanks for the Christian inheritance bequeathed to us by our ancestors at St. Paul’s. We give thanks for the faithful service of our Cemetery Committee: Colin Raines, director, Joe Sue-Ho and Clive Esty, members, and the faithful support of donors. If you wish to make a donation, contact one of the committee members or the church office. York-Scarborough Area Grant Our sincere thanks to Bishop Kevin Robertson, his secretary Sue Willoughby, and the applications committee for the York-Scarborough Area Grant for making this grant available. And in the parish, our thanks to George Coomarasamy for coordinating the application process. Joshua Jayakumar, Timothy, Jeyamanoharan, and Aliyah Knetsch were this year’s parish recipients. The Berthebell Moo & St. Paul’s Memorial Academic Scholarships and the St. Paul’s Memorial Music Scholarship Each year bursaries of $600 each are awarded to St. Paul’s youths who are High School graduates and are pursuing post-secondary education at a university, a community college or in an apprenticeship program. The number of bursaries awarded is decided upon receipt of applications. The Bursary Program is also open to students who have already enrolled in the university, college or an apprenticeship program. Additionally, bursaries of $600 are awarded to young people who are members of St. Paul’s and/or are involved in the St. Paul’s youth music program, who show promise in music and are pursuing musical studies. Dead line for both: August 31. The bursaries are awarded on Thanksgiving Sunday Forms available here: https://stpl.ca/applications-forms--reports.html Re-opening - September 13 The Archbishop for the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario and all Bishops in the Province (which includes Toronto), have instructed that churches will re-open for in-person services and programs in September. On Friday, Bishop Asbil announced that churches in Toronto will re-open September 13, in accordance with safety guidelines now being released. The Ecclesiastical Province has issued general guidelines. On June 30, the Diocese of Toronto offered specific safety guidelines for the re-opening. When we re-open, there will be a blend of in-person and online programs because there will still be a sizeable number who will not be participating in group activities, whether it be due to their own hesitation or strict orders from their families. And, as has been true all along, the situation remains dynamic. We’ll do our best to keep everyone updated. ACSA Food Bank Thanks to Jim Karygiannis for highlighting the needs of the Agincourt Community Services Food Bank. As always, St. Paul’s is eager to support ACSA. A monetary gift is the most practical and serves the exact needs of the food bank. Gifts can be given online: https://www.agincourtcommunityservices.com/donate S.P.Y. - St. Paul’s Youth - Friday Nights, 7 p.m. - Resuming in September Friday fellowships carry on. Information about how to connect is available on the Church Calendar: www.stpl.ca/events.html Morning Prayer - Now Daily The regular schedule of Morning Prayer according to the Book of Common Prayer meets Monday to Sunday at 7.30 a.m. and will continue throughout the summer. All are welcome and may participate by phone or internet. It's short, simple and quiet, but a proven path and one of the gems in the Anglican tradition. We follow the Book of Common Prayer, beginning on page 6. If you want to look ahead, the lessons from the Old and New Testaments, as well as the Psalm, are taken from The Daily Office Lectionary and can be found here: https://lectionary.anglican.ca/. Here’s the link: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/397231088 Here are the phone numbers and ID: 647-374 4685, or 647-558 0588; Meeting ID: 397 231 088 Looking for Work Slowly, businesses are opening and jobs are resuming, and while some of the employment projections are encouraging, we could also be looking at a lot of lost jobs. If you’re looking, or know someone who is, here’s the national job site: www.jobbank.ca Friday Night Bible Study - on Zoom The Friday night Bible studies on. On May 22, we began a study of the Book of Revelation, a book that is often avoided due to its coded language and many symbols. But here’s from the study guide we will follow: "In fact, Revelation offers one of the clearest and sharpest visions of God's ultimate purpose for the whole creation, and of the way in which the powerful forces of evil, at work in a thousand ways, can be and are being overthrown through the victory of Jesus the Messiah and the consequent costly victory of his followers." Paperback copies or electronic versions of the study guides can be purchased online at Amazon. Paperback: Revelation (N. T. Wright for Everyone Bible Study Guides) - Paperback Kindle: Revelation (N. T. Wright for Everyone Bible Study Guides) - Kindle For those interested, the commentary is also available: Revelation for Everyone The study resumes in September. Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/830877703 Telephone: 647-374 4685, or 647-558 0588; Meeting ID: 830 877 703 Church Calendar We have updated the online Church Calendar to list all the events that are available online - www.stpl.ca/events.html. It includes: *Sunday School every Sunday at 10 am, led by Leila and the teachers, with Rob and U3ia. *Regular Bible studies and prayer meetings in Chinese organized by Pastor Andrew and Kevin Zhang. To participate, contact Pastor Andrew: shenxunhong@gmail.com *A regular Bible study for the Tamil congregation by Zoom every Wednesday at 7.30 pm for a study of the Gospel of Luke. Pastor Vive is also helping with the study. Please contact Fr. Milton Solomon directly: (solomon.milton@ymail.com). *The regular Friday Night Small Group and Bible Study. *Morning Prayer, Monday to Sunday. The regular events are being listed on the online church Calendar, including the information about how to phone in or connect by internet. Extension of the Diocesan Jubilee - Month of June In light of the Covid-19 outbreak and the large financial strain on the parishes, Bishop Andrew Asbil announced a Jubilee through to the end of May. On Friday, May 22, it was announced that the Jubilee has been extended to include the month of June due to the help of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS), in place through to the end of August. During the Jubilee, parishes will not be required to pay their allotment to the Diocese or to pay the costs of clergy remuneration (stipend, housing and associated benefits). The extension of the Jubilee is closely related to the September 1st re-opening of the churches for in-person Sunday services. As mentioned above, guidelines are being released "for congregations to follow to ensure a safe return." The May 22 update from Bishop Asbil and Robert Saffrey (Executive Director) can be found here: www.toronto.anglican.ca/2020/05/22/letter-to-the-diocese-from-bishop-andrew-and-robert-saffrey/ The assistance from the diocese and federal government has relieved parishes of their diocesan assessments, clergy stipends and up to 75% of staff wages through to the end of June. The CEWS will continue until the end of August. For this assistance we give thanks, and for the faithfulness and generosity of the parish. It is important to remember that the situation is in a state of constant flux right now, one of the large unknowns being what we will face when and as the emergency measures are lifted. But these offers of support are of great assistance, and the support of the parish remains strong. Faithworks Easter Appeal This year’s campaign is a very special effort as a generous donor has offered a $100,000 matching challenge grant for all new and increased donations. That means for every dollar raised over last year’s amount, FaithWorks received an extra dollar. To date, our Easter Appeal has raised over $60,000 in new or increased donations. THANK YOU to all who have been so generous. However, we will only receive the Matching Challenge Grant of $100,000 if we raise the full $100,000 ourselves. We still have a ways to go. So please help us reach our goal by making your donation today at our web site www.faithworks.ca. It's easy to do! Brother’s and Sister’s Keepers If you are willing to be your brother’s or sister’s keeper by being in regular contact with one or two other persons from the parish, please contact the office or any of the clergy for more information. Have you moved? If you have moved recently, kindly notify the office of your new address, phone number and e-mail address. We appreciate your help. Gifts and Offerings The emergency measures and suspension of all church services and programs presents a large challenge to churches and charities dependent on regular gatherings and fundraising events. Your faithful support is as important now as it has ever been. Church Envelopes can be sent by mail. Members may wish to sign up for the Pre-Authorized Giving Program (contact the office). Or, gifts can be made online at our website through CanadaHelps here: www.stpl.ca/give.html Members who use online banking may now also make E-transfers (contact the office). Please note - the church office is closed and the deposit of gifts received is usually once every three to four weeks. One generation shall laud your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts. (Psalm 145:4) Thank You - through envelopes mailed in, through the Pre-Authorized Giving Program, and through CanadaHelps on the website, the parish has remained constant and faithful through the quarantine. Thank you. God bless you. Staying in Touch The clergy of St. Paul’s are all in the vicinity. If any one of us can be of service, don’t hesitate to call or write. Church website: www.stpl.ca Church phone: 416-499-1545 Church email: stpl@stpl.ca Fr. Dean Mercer: deanmercer@hotmail.com Rectory phone: 416-497-6352 Comments are closed.
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Archives
December 2023
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