Announcements: Week of Sunday, March 25th 2018
Congratulations!
Congratulations to Ethan James Ford, Logan Cold Ford, Camryn Addison Lore Montgomery, Eduardo Sebastian Robles, and Ashlynn Byrdie Shirley for completing this year's First Communion preparatory class. Today, joined by their families, they will celebrate their first Communion at the 9 am service.
Holy Week Schedule
Holy Week Worship: With Palm Sunday on Mar. 25, Holy Week begins. On Palm Sunday our usual 6pm worship service will take place within the context of the Christian Seder Meal, to be held in the great hall of the new building starting at 5pm, with a potluck meal included (please bring some food to share). On Monday through Thursday, the Holy Eucharist will be offered each evening at 7pm; the worship service on Maundy Thursday will include music for the occasion and will conclude with the stripping of the altar. The Gethsemane Watch prayer vigil will be held in the great hall of the new building, staring immediately after the stripping of the altar and concluding on Good Friday (Mar. 29) at 12noon, when our first Good Friday worship service begins. On Good Friday, we shall have Stations of the Cross with Holy Communion at 12noon and at 7pm. On Holy Saturday (Mar. 30), the Liturgy for Holy Saturday will be held at 8:30am, as the altar guild begins its preparations for our celebration of Easter. Please join us for these worship services, and invite others to join you.
Easter
Easter Sunday, Apr. 1: Our celebration of Easter begins with the sunrise service in the cemetery, starting at the special time of 6:30am. Our other morning services will remain in the historic church at the usual times, (9:00am and 11:15am), with the children's Easter Egg Hunt starting at 10:15am. On Easter Sunday the evening service of Holy Eucharist (this year including a baptism) will be held as usual, starting at 6:00pm. Please invite others to join you as you begin to observe this joyous season.
Capital Campaign For New Building: We have received an offer to help us reach our one-million-dollar goal for this capital campaign. Can you help us reach this major milestone? The offer is this: if we get within $5,000.00 of our goal by this campaign’s last day (Apr. 14), then this anonymous donor will make up the difference! You can make a tax-deductible gift regardless whether you have made a pledge for this campaign. As of 18 March, there are over $61,000 dollars pledged but not yet paid. Also, as of 18 March, we have received $866,987.61 from donors making pledges and $108,796.93 from donors who have not made a pledge but have contributed nonetheless, for a combined total of $975,784.54. We are so close to reaching our goal, and you can help us with your gift.
Morning Call: On this Sunday, March 18, we shall continue a new series on “Problems of Self-Deception” that may be helpful for your spiritual journey during this Lent and beyond. The starting-point for this series is the New Testament verse that we often hear during Lent: “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (I John 1:8). We meet in the great hall of the new building, starting around 10:20am. This series is available for everyone in high school and above.
Youth Group: On Sunday, Mar. 25, the youth group will meet at Regal Cinema in Fredericksburg, starting at 3:30pm, to watch the movie I Can Only Imagine. Please bring enough money to cover your ticket and any food or beverage that you want, and feel free to invite friends to join us.
Christian Seder Meal and Service - Palm Sunday: Sunday March 25th - 5:00 pm-8:00 pm Join us on Palm Sunday, for the Christian Seder Meal. Not only will we have a wonderful feast, but will also share in the rich history and celebration of the Seder. Please watch outside of the church for a sign up sheet and hope that you can join us. For more information contact Jean and Michael Golas.
Wednesday Bible Studies: On this Wednesday morning, Mar. 28 (10:30am--12:00noon), both of our clergy will lead together a new Wednesday morning series on "The Ten Commandments for Today." That series has met only once so far, so it is certainly not too late for you to join in. Father Morris's Wednesday evening Bible study on "The Devil in Disguise" has now concluded, and so there will be a one-week break in the evening meetings on Mar. 28 (for the Wednesday in Holy Week). Then on Apr. 4 (7:00pm--8:30pm), Father Rickenbaker will begin a new Wednesday evening series on the Book of Revelation. Both of these new Bible study series (Ten Commandments in the morning, Revelation in the evening) will meet in the downstairs conference room of the new building; you are encouraged to bring relatives, friends, and neighbors, and no previous experience in Bible study is needed.
Easter Egg Hunt: Empty plastic eggs are available in the entrance of the CFFB. We need eggs filled with wrapped candy or other treats (small toys, stickers etc...) for our annual Easter Egg Hunt on Easter Sunday at 10:15 am. Filled eggs can be dropped off at the church or Christian Ed. offices until Good Friday. If you are able to help hide eggs on Easter Sunday, please contact Kristen Morgan at christianed@aquiachurch.com
Save The Date: GOLF TOURNAMENT! The Aquia’s Table Golf Tournament will be held on the morning of Friday, May 11, at Augustine Golf Club in Stafford. Golfers are encouraged to start gathering groups of friends to play and support this major fundraiser for this life-giving ministry. This is an excellent opportunity to invite golfing friends from outside our membership to join us for a day of fun that supports a major service for our community. Opportunities for individual sponsorships and corporate sponsorships are available for showing your support. More details coming soon!
May Concert: Several of you will remember that Aquia Church hosted the Concert Choir & Jazz Band from Elizabethtown College five years ago. They will be traveling to Florida in May and would love to visit and perform at Aquia Church again. They would like to visit on Monday, May 21st. If you can volunteer as a host family for 2-4 students, to defray their lodging costs, please contact Kristen Morgan at christianed@aquiachurch.com as soon as possible. You would be asked to provide a place to sleep, breakfast, and then a ride back to church the next morning. Thank you!
Historic Church Renovation: The Vestry has recently voted to contract with Habalis Construction of Fredericksburg, a highly regarded firm with impressive credentials and extensive experience for work with historic properties, to begin a major renovation project in our historic church building. The box pews, pulpit, sounding board above the pulpit, and most other woodwork that you see will be repaired as needed and repainted. They plan to work section by section around the building, with as little disruption to our worship as possible; but on occasion, you may find that your favorite area is not available for sitting. Please pardon that temporary inconvenience. The total project, which should begin not long after Easter Sunday, is expected to take around six weeks for completion.
Episcopal Church Women: A great adventure awaits you! Forward Day by Day, a manual of daily Bible readings and devotions is inviting us to join them in the “Good Book Club”. Instead of the normal Daily Office and Revised Common Lectionary readings, they will give us a short snippet of Luke or Acts to read each day. If you would like to follow the daily readings, they are available on their website at: www.prayer.forwardmovement.org Available on the tall table in the sanctuary, the small guidebook, will guide you through Lent to Pentecost.
First Quarter Statements: If you would like a printed copy of your first quarter statement, contact Sue Selz (sue.selz@aquiachurch.com) or the church office. Otherwise, the next printed statement will be the 2nd quarter, (end of June).
