NOVEMBER 2014 DATES TO REMEMBER November 2nd – 11:00 a.m. – All Saints’ Day observed with The Rev. Ron Hiester officiating. November 16th – 11:00 a.m. – The Praise and Glory Offering will be received. November 20th – 7:00 p.m. - The Men’s Club will meet in the Parish House. November 26th – 5:30 p.m. – Thanksgiving Eve Service November 30th – 9:30 a.m. – An Advent Breakfast will be served in the Parish House prior to the Worship Service. HELPERS DATE LAY READER CHALICE CRUCIFER November 2 Holy Eucharist Ginnie DuBose Laddie DuBose Laddie DuBose November 9 Holy Eucharist Dianne LeNoir Parley Crolley Parley Crolley November 16 Holy Eucharist Charlene Bruce Billy Bruce Billy Bruce November 23 Holy Eucharist Donna Fletcher Laddie DuBose Mike Hoge Mike Hoge November 26 Thanksgiving Eve Service Ginnie DuBose Parley Crolley Laddie DuBose Laddie DuBose November 30 First Sunday of Advent Ginnie DuBose Mike Hoge Steve LeNoir Mike Hoge All Saints’ Day (Observed) PRAYER REQUESTS Please remember in your thoughts and prayers the following members and friends of our Church and/or community: The Rev. Jim Bain, Elizabeth Boykin, Pudn Cantey, Henry Carrison III, Casey Casiano, Ruthie Coleman, Marie Crisco, Frances Fobes, Jeff Gunter, Jr., Eddie Hamilton, Bruce Jackson, Beverly Johnson, Betsy Josey, Carrie LeNoir, Barbara Ann Moree, Carolyn Sue Moree, Bill Rhodes, Frances Sanders, Debbie Tallant, David Todd, Disque Walker, and Dan Yarborough. We are truly thankful that Sarah Holmberg is doing well now, and she has appreciated everyone’s prayers. A MESSAGE FROM THE REV. RON HIESTER THANKSGIVING PAST AND PRESENT A few days ago, a commentator on television, lamented that we spend more time on celebrating Halloween and that we give lip service to Thanksgiving. Then we make a huge sprint to Christmas. Thanksgiving just gets lost in the shuffle. But don’t tell that to the grocery stores. One of the memories of my childhood and growing up in an agricultural setting was the HARVEST FESTIVAL at church. On this Sunday, the whole altar area was filled with baskets of potatoes, tomatoes, apples, and pumpkins. There were Mason Jars and Kerr Jars filled with beets, chow-chow, pickles, pickle relish, tomatoes, peaches and pears, and my favorite Sauerkraut. All of this bounty was an offering of Thanksgiving for a plentiful Harvest. This bounty was given to a Church Home for them to enjoy. Also, as part of the Harvest Service we sang these hymns, “We Gather Together” and “We Plough the Fields.” We still sing these favorites, and we probably know them by heart. It was always a good memory. GUESS WHAT HERE WE GO WITH THE PSALMS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Psalm 50:23 Those who bring thanksgiving as their sacrifice honor me; To those who go the right way, I will show the salvation of God. Psalm 69:30-31 I will praise the Name of God with a Song; I will magnify him with Thanksgiving. This will please YAHWEH more than an ox Or a bull with horns and hoofs. Blessing in this season for the gifts that God gives us. +Ron A MESSAGE FROM THE REV. PETE COOPER ALL SAINTS’ DAY This year we will celebrate All Saints’ on Sunday, November 2nd, since November 1st is Saturday. I once told a Sunday School Class that moving the celebration over a day was because of so many big college football games on the first-even quoted the Prayer Book and a Bible verse or two. You are right; I’ve only begun to suffer for that one. Our Lesser Feasts and Fasts says, “the desire of Christian people to celebrate the intercommunion of the living and the dead in the Body of Christ by a commemoration of those who, having professed faith in the living Christ, had entered into the presence of their Lord, and especially those who had crowned their profession of faith with heroic deaths was ancient in Christianity.” Therefore, All Saints’ Day is a Principal Feast of our Church year. One of the readings on that day is from Ecclesiasticus (44:1-10, 13-14) which begins, “Let us now praise famous men, and our fathers, in their generations. The Lord apportioned to them great glory, his majesty from the beginning.” The reading goes on to do just that-praise famous men and all their glorious deeds. But then the writer says, “But there were also men whose deeds have been forgotten along with their children.” Then comes the clincher, the writer goes on, “But these were men of mercy, whose righteous deeds have not been forgotten; their posterity will continue forever, and their glory will not be blotted out. Their bodies were buried in peace, and their name lives to all generations.” As tempted as I usually am to want to be considered like the first group of “famous men”, I usually remember that the older I get, the better I was. Therefore, I give thanks for all the second chances the Lord has granted me so that being in that second group will be a gift by the Grace of God. In 23 BCE, Horace said, “I have built a monument more lasting than bronze and higher than the royal palace of the pyramids. I shall not die, and a great part of me will live beyond death; I will keep growing, fresh with the memory of posterity.” How about that; a pagan poet who almost gets it! My prayer for all of us is that we will all be in that number “when the Saints go marching in” and remember that “there’s not any reason, no, not the least, why I shouldn’t be one too.” (Hymnal 293) Faithfully, Pete NOTES Adult Sunday School will be held each Sunday at 10 a.m. in the Parish House except on November 30th. Children’s Sunday School meets at 11 a.m. each Sunday. All Saints’ Day will be observed on Sunday, November 2rd. The service will be led by The Rev. Ron Hiester. If you have deceased loved ones for whom you would like prayers, please tell Ginnie DuBose before the Church service begins. A list for the names will be located in the Narthex of the Church. The Praise and Glory Offering will be received on Sunday, November 16th. This offering is a ministry of prayer and thanksgiving and the donations which can be made through the end of November will be used within the Diocese for a worthy cause. Beverly LeNoir leads us in this effort, and we appreciate all that she does. Please plan to attend the Thanksgiving Eve Service at 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, November 26th. This beautiful service will be led by The Rev. Pete Cooper and allows us to reflect on the many blessings our Lord has provided. In observance of the First Sunday of Advent, a breakfast will be served in the Parish House at 9:30 a.m., Sunday, November 30th. This breakfast is hosted by the Church. There is no charge and everyone is encouraged to attend. Congratulations to the Lyles Family on the birth of Woodrow (Woods) Cooper Lyles on October 8, 2014. Woods’ parents are Brandon and Lyles of Florence, and his proud grandparents are Pete and Blair Cooper. A special effort will be made during the month of November to collect non-perishable food items for The Harvest Hope Food Bank in Columbia. We have so much for which to be thankful, and there is such a need to help others. Charlene Bruce, Ginnie DuBose, and Dianne LeNoir served on the Altar Guild during the month of October. We thank Cleo Jackson for preparing the envelopes for the mailing of this newsletter. The following people are celebrating birthdays and anniversaries during the month of November: November Birthdays Laura Hoge Anzleigh LeNoir Bonnie Iseman Heather Trimnal Patricia A. Brown November Anniversaries Nov. 11 Nov. 12 Nov. 20 Nov. 20 Nov. 21 Boykin and Retta Sanders Nov. 29 Happy Birthday and Happy Anniversary to these special people. The Church’s website address is: www.churchoftheascensionhagoodsc.com. For November, John Holmberg has posted another inspiring photograph he took recently entitled, “The Reverend’s View.” The three beautiful stained-glass windows over the altar are pictured as seen by our ministers when they are facing the altar. Please view this website as the perspective is very moving. Upcoming Events The Church will be decorated for Christmas on December 21st following the Worship Service. More details will follow. The Christmas Eve Service will be held on December 24th at 5:30 p.m. Remember that Daylight Savings Time ends at 2 a.m. on November 2nd so turn your clocks back one hour on Saturday night.
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