St. Anna’s and COVID 19 – 3/29/20
PLEASE CONSIDER AN ADDITIONAL MONETARY DONATION AS WELL AS INSURING THAT YOUR PLEDGE OR TITH IS RECEIVED. YOU CAN DO THIS ON LINE OR BY MAIL. IT IS CRITICAL FOR CONTINUED OPERATIONS. Here is the link:
https://stannanola.org/donate/
A Brother Don Announcement:
April 2020 Food Pantry Shopping List
Please see list of items we are requesting for the April Food Distribution. If anyone that has access to the church you can place your donations on the tables right outside the Food Pantry. If you do not have access to the Church and alternative is to drop the donations off at our home. (540 Marigny, New Orleans, LA 70117 phone> 504-458-0510) I go to the church every morning to put donations away in the storage bins. Thank you very much for your help. Last month 117 bags were pack and distributed. We suspect the need for food will increase in the coming months. We need your help. Peace. -Br Don
Cases of bottled water. 40 in each case.
Individual Boxes Jiffy Mix
Cases/Flats Peanut Butter
Small Bottles Honey
Boxes Side Dishes (Hamburger Helper ……)
Boxes of Kirkland Baby Wipes (Soft Pack w/flip top lid)
Boxes Fruit Cups or Apple Sauce
Boxes Soft & Chewy Granola Bars (7 Grams Sugar)
1 lb Bags Rice
1lb Bags Dry Beans
Large Cases of Mac & Cheese
Bottles Spaghetti Sauce
Packages Spaghetti Noodles
Canned Soup
Boxes of assorted Oatmeal
Boxes of Crackers
Boxes of Kirkland Hygiene Baby Wipes
2nd Announcement – Prayer Requests for Sunday
Parishioners please send your prayer requests to Brother Don via email prior to Saturday evening at 6:00 pm if at all possible. Brother will submit a consolidated list of prayers to Fr Bill for our Sunday Mass each week.
5 LENT The Sunday Service Outline
On this Sunday you may access worship services at St. Anna’s via FaceBook Live Streaming:
https://www.facebook.com/St-Annas-Episcopal-Church-107525112618650
First Reading: Ezekiel 37:1-14 (The valley of dry bones)
Psalm: Psalm 130
Second Reading: Romans 8:6-11(The Spirit gives Life)
Gospel: John 11:1-45 (The Lazarus Story)
You may wish to pray the following during Mass this Sunday while you are at home. An appropriate time to pray this is during the distribution of the sacrament:
“My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love You above all things, and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot at this moment receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.”
Our COFFE HOUR EXPERIMENT another ZOOM INVITATION:
Last week was wonderful when maybe a dozen of us gathered. We chatted we saw each other and we visited. It was so healthy and so therapeutic. I know that some of these technologies can be a bit daunting so ask for help. We might be able to work with you in getting you plugged into this.
Tune in if you can.
William Terry is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Coffee Hour 2
Time: Mar 29, 2020 12:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 474 663 2892
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+13126266799,,4746632892# US (Chicago)
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+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
Meeting ID: 474 663 2892
OFFICE HOURS: Starting on Monday 30th and then every Monday and Wednesday thereafter Fr. Terry will be at St. Anna’s Church in the Afternoon for Spiritual Direction, Consultation, Hearing of Confessions, or just to visit. Here is the criteria. Here are the Conditions:
- It is by appointment only. Call the Church or email us. We will set it up.
- We will maintain safe distancing and have sanitizer present.
- If you have a fever or are sick let us know and Fr. Terry will call you. STAY HOME.
REMEMBER TO VOTE FOR ANNA’S PLACE at Gulf Coast Bank or contact Darryl Durham of Brianna Carr and they will do the rest. For more information on this go to www.annasplacenola.org
Our hoped for future plans for worship and meditation aids:
Prayer Time on FaceBook:
We are now offering Morning Prayer at 8:00 a.m.,, Noon Day Prayer, and Compline at 9:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Fr. Terry may announce an Evening meditation which will take place as announced at 6:00 p.m. We are so greatful to Deacon Buck, Br. Todd, Candidate Luigi, Br. Don, and Candidate Allison Reid for assisting us with this. In general it will follow the BCP (which you can down load by going to our FB page) and Br. Don will be using a Celtic Prayer Formula on Tuesdays and Thursday in the morning cycles.
If you have some competency in a video camera and some capability to film then upload our service(s) then please reach out to me. We need you.
Evensong and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament: Several of you have asked for this ancient form of worship. I had plans to do it with a small choir and limited assistants. However, I think it more important to stay at home for this very optional worship service. I too am disappointed and I promise that when things seem to settle down it will be one of the very first experiences that we will offer. That said, we offer Morning, Noon, and Compline Services. On occassion I will offer an evening meditation. The hours of our Live Stream FB worship services are Monday through Friday; Morning Prayer at 8 a.m. Noon Day Prayer; and Compline at 9:00 p.m.
Palm Sunday, Holy Week and Easter:
It is a certainty that we will still be in quarantine mode by the time Holy Week reaches us. Here are my thoughts. Keeping in mind best practices for health we will say Masses:
Palm Sunday– Mass will be via Live Stream including blessing of palms the liturgy of palms and then the Liturgy of the Word with Eucharist. A small select choir will sing but likely six feet apart (that should be interesting). The blessed Palms will be placed on the steps of the church for those that may want them. I WANT TO EMPASIZE that this is NOT A SERVICE THAT IS PHYSICALLY OPEN TO THE PUBLIC – Online access only.
Holy Wednesday (House Church) Mass at 6:30 pm
Maundy Thursday with a limited choir and symbolic foot washing (likely my wife) then stripping of the altar (again symbolic). HOWEVER, we will Live Stream “The Chapel of Repose” which will give you a chance to pray with Jesus the night through and to spend time with the Blessed Sacrament. The Chapel of Repose time will immediately follow the Maundy Thursday Liturgy and remain operable until about 8 a.m.
Good Friday Liturgy again limited choir and live stream.
Easter Sunday. We will do all that we can to offer a lovely Easter Service, limited choir and appropriate decorations as best as these times will allow.
It is frustrating and daunting but here we are and we are in this together.
Missions Update
In general our staff is working from home. But we will be checking for phone messages on a regular basis. Anna’s Place NOLA is on hiatus until things open up again. The Food Pantry remains operative and even more vital now than before.
FOOD PANTRY ETC.
We are so proud of the work of the Food Pantry Volunteers, Donors, and Logistics organizers. This is one of the “Essential Services” that the Governor lists. We are doing it very well and with all of the health precautions available to us. If you can’t be a physical part of this please continue in your prayers – PRAYER WORKS. Here is only a glimpse of what Br. Don and crew have accomplished in this past week:
That is 40 UNITS which we know will feed several households. It is critical work that we are doing. “WELL DONE GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT(S).”
STARTING THIS WEEK. We have placed a large receptacle in the doorway of our Parish House aka Maginnis House to receive canned goods to be used for our Food Pantry. Donate by drop off if you can.
A REFLECTION:
It was just fine for a day or two. It was interestingly challenging for even four or five days. As a Pastor “doing” church remotely is an anathema. Even the most introverted of this clerical tribe needs human response, human presence, it is why we exist – to conjoin our humanity with the presence of the Living God.
But now, I find myself sliding into the trenches a bit. Fear comes and goes. Concern comes and goes. Joy is a bit harder to lay hands on. Surviving is becoming a bit more of a thing. Just think only a couple of months ago saying “surviving is a thing” would have been laughable. Yet, here we are in various stages of processing what is going on all around us. Trying desperately to stay in touch. Trying so hard to stay calm or at least together in this pandemic. I am so very tired of the onslaught of what seems to be a never ending stream of bad news.
Some people thrive in crisis, I fancy myself as one of those types, yet I find myself adrift for parts of the day. It seems to take more energy to stay engaged and locked into doing the work before me. But I manage. Can we only imagine what it is like for hospital workers. I am very mindful of those adrenaline junkies ER staff, doctors, nurses, aids most are adrenaline junkies. Yet, just a few days ago a very dear friend who is an ER Doc said, “This is not the country I thought that I was born into” and “I may have to call you some night and ask for prayers.” The point is that the emotionally best equipped with us are struggling.
And yet. Yes, “and yet” Brother Don and his compadres are feeding the sick, the homeless, those in need. And yet, certain voices, musicians, are willing to sing a hymn or two in a remote service in order to bring some light into this present darkness. And yet people as they always have in our community are more often serving the needs of the whole in so many ways.
It was a bit more clear in Katrina because we could all gather and gut a house, stand in lines for food, or gather to listen to music – human proximity is what we had even when it was fresh. It is less clear but just as present today as it was then. Our community is offering what it can where it can to help the greater good. Indeed it is quiet, too quiet for most, and in that quiet I promise you the love of Christ remains and is present with us. We often talk about “the Desert experience” but rarely is that Desert forced upon us. But in that Desert we may find the depths of love and the deep human need to be together. This is not a forever thing. What we are learning is just how important our gathering, our fellowship, our sharing in personal and community terms is.
So, gather as we may, join the Coffee Hour if you can, text, video chat and all the other technologies. Call one another just to check in … we will remain connected until we can hug and kiss again.
FINAL NOTES:
Hal Judge was diagnosed with Cancer sometime back and has been undergoing rounds of Chemo. His most recent report was that he is responding very well to the treatment. Please everyone pray for Hal, Karen, and his family.
Mary K. Dodwell passed away this past week. The notices have been posted mostly on FB. The outpouring of love and affection mean a lot to the family.
Eric Rayford and wife Dakota are doing well as is their brand new baby son Elijah.
Anna’s Place NOLA continues to do its work and is staying in touch with the children. Next week we will post the names and ages of children and we encourage the CHURCH TO WRITE NOTES or CARDS to these children. Your cards or letters of encouragement can be sent to St. Annna’s via snail mail or by email. We will then insure that the kids get your letters of caring.
” For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Paul’s Letter to the Romans
My phone: (504) 473-0073
Email: fr.bill@stannanola.org
or
Call 504-947-2121 and leave a message.