Dear friends,

It’s exciting to have launched into fall together! Fall was always my favorite season, and the one I missed most when I lived in California. I’ve been looking forward to it since I arrived last December.

My hope for us this season is that we’ll continue to grow into a sustainable rhythm of life together, as we navigate the ongoing challenges of COVID, as we enjoy the chance to reconnect as a community, and as we discover new capacities and adventures together.

There are a couple of things I want to draw your attention to:

We have a new podcast! You’ll find it at www.saintclareschurch.org/podcast/, or, from our home page, go to the Worship menu and choose Weekly Podcast. Thanks to John Goodell for his skill in putting it together, and of course, his musical reflections, which make it much more than a recording of a sermon. You can find it on our website for now, but it will become available on the major podcasting services soon. I hope it will be a way of extending our life together; that it will enable people who cannot make it every week to keep up with the rhythm of the church year and the currents of our life together, and that it will also allow us to share a piece of St. Clare’s with others in our lives who might need an encouraging word from the Spirit or a moment of reflection through music. Let John and I know what you think of this new experiment!

Two changes to our worship at 10:30, starting this Sunday:

  • We’ll be adding a small area for children up front, so that they can be closer to the altar and see the excitement up close if they wish! Please continue to welcome, smile at, wave at, and love the little ones in our midst (and their parents!) as they worship, as you already do! After all, we are all learning more fully how to worship God each week; kids just tend to remind us how that works.
  • The worship committee, after living into our way of sharing the wine, and particularly after observing how many people are partaking (more than we’d guessed) suggested that we try returning to pre-pandemic practice of sharing both bread and wine around the circle. If you do not wish to receive the wine for any reason, that is perfectly fine! You can just leave your mask on, and if you’d like, you can acknowledge the chalice reverently by touching it, bowing, or saying “Amen.” If you feel comfortable, you are invited to remain in the circle until everyone present has received, which was a tradition here before the pandemic.

With care,

Anne