Redeemer Family,
Good afternoon! I hope this finds you well. We have a number of special Sundays approaching through the Fall as we head towards the season of Advent and so I’d like to take a minute to give you a preview of what lies ahead. Take a look and mark your calendars appropriately.
Oct. 23—Lane Cowin’s First Sermon
Lane joined our staff on Sept. 1st as our Senior Director of Ministries. Her primary responsibilities include overseeing the majority of our ministry staff and providing shepherding care for parishioners in need. Because Lane is a gifted teacher and theologian, we are also inviting her to join the preaching rotation and anticipate her preaching a few times per year.
Sunday, October 23, will be her first sermon here amongst us and I’m taking the opportunity to note this because I know there are a few of you who may be unaccustomed to hearing a woman exposit scripture from the pulpit in a Sunday worship service. Some of us may celebrate this as a victory for women’s rights and others may fret over it as a departure from traditional, conservative polity. To both categories of folks, I would like to cheerfully communicate that both interpretations would be a mistake.
Redeemer remains, as it always has, unswervingly committed to the historic, orthodox faith found in the Bible, passed down through the church. This high view of both scripture and church leads us, at the very same time, to value the ministry leadership of women while celebrating the complementary, Image-of-God-Reflecting differences between men and women. This is a both/and situation, not an either/or situation.
If any of this is concerning or confusing, please come to me directly and let’s talk about it over coffee.
Nov. 6—Baptism Sunday
What a joy to welcome new people, young and old, into the family of God through the Sacrament of Baptism. If you or your child are not yet baptized and would like to be, you can register to be baptized here.
Nov. 13—Confirmation/New Members Sunday
And the very next Sunday, our Bishop, The Rt. Rev. John Guernsey, will be here with us to preach to us and to pray for new members! If you would like to become an official member of Redeemer, you can register here.
Nov. 20—Commissioning All Souls Anglican Church
It is with great joy (and also very natural heartache!) that we will commission The Rev. Danny Hindman and over 50+ Redeemer members to go forth to establish a new parish in the Manchester neighborhood South of the River - All Souls Anglican Church.
The hardest part of planting new churches is not raising the money, or determining strategy, or figuring out logistics, it’s saying goodbye to people we love! And so, to all of you who are preparing to depart Redeemer to plant All Souls, we want to say that we love you and will miss you! We are absolutely thrilled for what the Lord has in store for you in this new adventure and we are committed to praying for and supporting you every step of the way.
The Rev. Tuck Bartholomew, the Canon for Church Planting for our Diocese, will be present to help lead this service
Nov. 27—First Sunday of Advent / Redeemer turns Six!
With the beginning of a new church year, our little parish (now, not so little anymore) turns six years old! I can hardly believe it. Let’s celebrate this together!
Dec. 4—Tee Feyrer Preaches
As college students head into their final exams, we thought it would be appropriate to invite one of our college ministers, Tee Feyrer, to preach to them and to all of us. Thank you Tee!
Dec. 11—Parish Town Hall
This Sunday evening, 7-9pm, all adult members are invited to gather in the basement of 2715 Grove Ave. to hear a presentation of Redeemer’s Annual Report, to ask questions, and to gain clarity on our mission as a parish. This is always a highlight of the year, so please mark your calendars and RSVP here!
Dec. 18—Lewis Lovett Preaches
Church Planter-in-Residence #3, Lewis Lovett, will preach for us this Sunday. Lewis and his family are preparing to establish a new parish in Midlothian in the Spring of 2024. You can read more about their family and their plans here.
Dec. 24—Christmas Eve Lessons & Carols
It’s not too early to mark your calendars! We will have two identical Lessons & Carols services at 4pm and 6pm.
Dec. 25—Christmas Day
Continuing our (almost) six year campaign to Take-Back-Christmas, we resist the cultural trend of putting presents and nuclear family at the heart of Christmas, and instead practice putting Christ at the center of our celebrations by actually gathering for worship on Christmas Day. Join us!
In the Father’s love,
