We encourage each member of the church to meditate on a single scripture passage for the month of February.

​On March 5, we will share our reflections during Coffee Hour.

The Anti-Racism Commission invites congregations to join in reading The Land is Not Empty: Following Jesus in Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery during the months of January and February. (This book was released back in June 2022.)

Then join us for a discussion of the book the weekend of February 24-26 via ZOOM! Each day will build upon the previous day's conversation, but you can join as you are able. We hope to have a minimum of 5 laypersons from each congregation.

The Food Pantry is 9 - 11am on the following days:

24 January (4th Tuesday)
28 February (4th Tuesday)
28 March (4th Tuesday)
25 April (4th Tuesday)
23 May (4th Tuesday)
27 June (4th Tuesday)
25 July (4th Tuesday)
29 August (5th Tuesday)
26 September (4th Tuesday)
24 October (4th Tuesday)
28 November (4th Tuesday)
26 December (4th Tuesday)

10:30 - 11:30 am
​
17 January (3rd Tuesday)
21 February (3rd Tuesday)
20 March (3rd Monday)
17 April (3rd Monday)
15 May (3rd Monday)
20 June (3rd Tuesday)
17 July (3rd Monday)
21 August (3rd Monday)
18 September (3rd Monday)
16 October (3rd Monday)
20 November (3rd Monday)
18 December (3rd Monday)

God Willing and the People Consenting
The Right Reverend David Cappel Rice
Bishop of San Joaquin

Will Ordain
Alison Rose Montgomery Fischer 
Jessica Louise Harmon 
David D. Wooten (LT, CHC, USN) 
To the Sacred Order of Deacons

and

José Antonio Álvarez
to the Sacred Order of Priests 
In Christ’s One, Holy,
Catholic and Apostolic Church on
Saturday, the Twenty-First of January Two Thousand Twenty-Three at 
Ten O’clock in the Morning.

St. James Cathedral
4147 E. Dakota Ave.
Fresno, CA 93726

Your prayers and presence are requested
​
To RSVP: www.diosanjoaquin.org/deaconordination

Our Annual Meeting will be Sunday, January 22, after our 10 a.m. Eucharist. Elections will be held for two Diocesan Convention Delegates. Nominations will be received from the floor.

The Episcopal Diocese of San Joaquin is organized into three deaneries (geographic groups of congregations). St. Michael’s belongs to the Southern Deanery.

Delegates are elected from each parish of the deanery. In addition to Padre Jorge and Deacon Cathy, St. Michael’s has two lay delegates. The number of delegates is based on the average Sunday attendance of the parish. Delegate responsibilities include attending quarterly deanery meetings, the annual Diocesan Convention (this year, November 4-5), and participating in the community of St. Michael’s. Each delegate serves for one year and may be re-elected in subsequent years.

Qualifications
To be eligible for election as a Deanery Representative/Diocesan Convention Delegate one must be an adult communicant member of St. Michael’s in good standing and who has been confirmed.

• Adult – 16 years of age or over
• Communicant – received Holy Communion at least three times in the previous year
• Member – baptized (in water and the name of the Holy Trinity)
• In Good Standing – for the previous year has been faithful to corporate worship, unless for good cause prevented, and have been faithful in the working, praying, and giving for the spread of God’s Kingdom
• Confirmed – confirmed, received, or baptized as an adult, by a bishop of the Episcopal Church

Responsibilities

• Attend Deanery Meetings (no more than quarterly)
• Attend Pre-Convention Meeting (in 2023 the meeting will be October 14 via Zoom)
• Attend Diocesan Convention (in 2023 Convention will be November 10-11 at ECCO near Oakhurst, CA)
• Regular attendance and participation in the activities and life of St. Michael’s and the life of the Diocese.
• Listening to and dealing with the views of parishioners, especially their questions, suggestions, complaints, and compliments. Where appropriate, sharing these views with the priest-in-charge, staff, and bishop’s committee.
• Pray for the clergy, leaders, and people of the diocese and or our parish.
• Speak the truth in love for the upbuilding of the body of Christ in the church.

Our Annual Meeting will be Sunday, January 22, after our 10 a.m. Eucharist. Elections will be held for one Bishop’s Committee Member. Nominations will be received from the floor.

Qualifications
To be eligible to sit on the Bishop’s Committee one must be an adult communicant member of St. Michael’s in good standing. Bishop’s Committee members serve a three- year term.

• Adult – 16 years of age or over
• Communicant – received Holy Communion at least three times in the previous year
• Member – baptized (in water and the name of the Holy Trinity)
• In Good Standing – for the previous year has been faithful to corporate worship, unless for good cause prevented, and have been faithful in the working, praying, and giving for the spread of God’s Kingdom

Meetings. The BC meets monthly generally on the Fourth Sunday of the Month. January’s meeting will be on January 29 and February’s meeting will be on February 19.

​Duties
1. Fiscal Responsibility. The Bishop’s Committee provides financial oversight for the church, preparing an annual budget and filing a corporate report yearly. Bishop’s Committee members raise money for the church, pay salaries and bills and take care of all assets held by the church. Assets the church may have include endowments and trust funds. The Bishop’s Committee approves or recommends any salary increases and denies or approves any expenditures.
2. Property Management. Property management is another duty of the Bishop’s Committee; responsibilities include maintaining buildings, furnishings, and the surrounding property. If upgrades need to be made to physical property, the Bishop’s Committee decides what changes can be made and allocates funds to these changes. Property management includes the entire campus including the parking lot and solar array; all should be free of any hazards. The Bishop’s Committee also holds the duty of making sure that all property is insured.
3. Priest-in-Charge Assistance. The Priest-in-Charge doesn’t have time to handle oversight of the church alone. The Bishop’s Committee acts in partnership with the Priest-in-Charge. All work collectively and provide guidance to the Priest-in-Charge as needed.
4. Parishioner Recruitment and Enrichment. As a group of elected individuals, the Bishop’s Committee must seek ways to form community among parishioners. A Bishop’s Committee defines its own mission, goals, and values, depending on the variety of backgrounds among the Bishop’s Committee members. Celebrations, picnics, outings, and other events are organized and carried out by the bishop’s committee to build community within the church.
5. Community Outreach. Community outreach is vital to the spiritual growth of members in a parish; it may include raising money for a good cause, providing meals to homeless individuals, or cleaning up a local park. The Bishop’s Committee oversees any outreach efforts by members of the parish.

Note: At St. Michael’s distribution of the Eucharist will remain one kind (bread only) until spring.

​Today (Nov. 23) the Office of the Bishop announced two changes to our COVID protocols.

1. The Peace may be exchanged in whatever manner is comfortable for your congregation.
2. Beginning this Sunday (Advent 1), the chalice can be administered during Eucharist in one of two ways:

• Preferred option is for the lay minister/deacon to offer the chalice to the parishioner, they drink from the cup, and then the minister/deacon does the "twist & wipe" with the purificator.
• The priest takes the wafer, dips it into the chalice and then places the inticted wafer on the parishioner's tongue.

What we don't want is a bunch of fingers in the chalice!

We also advise that anyone who feels unwell to please stay home from church.  Tis the season for flu, COVID and RSV...so please take care.

You can hear from the bishop and watch a demonstration of the aforementioned distribution techniques here:
https://fb.watch/gZsh0mH059/

When I visited Israel a few years ago, one of the highlights was seeing a scale model of Jerusalem before the Temple was destroyed. This is probably what the city looked like during Jesus’ time. There, right in the center, was the Temple. When the guide started explaining how it was decorated, using some of the descriptions in our Gospel reading for today, I was struck with how the people of the day must have seen it, sitting on top of the hill in gleaming white stone with touches of gold. It really was spectacular, a fitting place for God to dwell.

Jesus foretold not only that this magnificent building would be razed to the ground, but that he, the earthly vessel of God, would be killed. As if that wasn’t enough, Jesus told his followers that they would also be persecuted, betrayed, and even put to death. They would be hated because of Jesus. This would be enough for even his most dedicated followers to wonder what they were getting themselves into.

At the end of the narrative, though, Jesus provides comfort for them. Not a hair of their heads will perish. Their physical bodies may be harmed and destroyed, but they will gain their souls. In this apocalyptic description of what they might expect in the near term, they see that there is still Good News as Jesus promised. Jesus is offering us abundant life, even in the direst circumstances, although it might not be the type of life we’re expecting.
​
It’s hard to think of abundance during times of economic instability, partisanship, and conflicts. But abundance is what Jesus has promised. Why not step out in faith this year in gratitude and pledge an extra percent of your income?

Questions For Reflection:
​When was a time when you were expecting the worst but were surprised by a pleasant outcome instead?
How might the words of Jesus in the Gospel reading give reassurance to us today when we face grim circumstances?

The 5 things you need to know this week.

​Food Drive to Benefit Our Food Pantry
Ridgecrest Presbyterian Church
will hold a food drive
at the North Albertsons (1301 N Norma St.)
on Saturday, November 12, 8 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

Thanksgiving Turkeys
All Souls' Food Pantry will be distributing turkeys
on Tuesday, November 22 for our Thanksgiving baskets.

Thanks to a wonderful donation of $1,000 we were able to
purchase 40 20-lb turkeys from Walmart at $1.49 per pound.

The Food Pantry needs 10 more turkeys (each under 15 pounds).

All the other markets in town have a 2-turkey limit at their discounted price. You can get a turkey at Stater Bros. for 69 cents per pound if you purchase $25 worth of groceries. The Pantry is looking for people who would be willing to shop there and donate a turkey (under 15 pounds) or we can reimburse you for the cost of the turkey.  

If you are interested in using the $25 worth of groceries for the pantry, the following is a list of items needed.

• Stove Top stuffing
• pumpkin pie filling
• pie crust
• green beans
• cream of mushroom soup
• fried onions for topping
• turkey gravy
• cranberry sauce
• butter or margarine
• potatoes
• onions

​Thank you for your generous donations.

​Join us for the Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost
(November 13) at 10 a.m. in our Sanctuary.
St. Michael's gathers this Sunday at 10 a.m. for Morning Prayer.

Download the Service Program from our website.

Coffee Hour & Bible Study will immediately follow the service.
Note: Padre Jorge fell ill this week. While he is feeling better, he will not be able to preside this Sunday, November 13. Please pray for his recovery.

O God of heavenly powers, by the might of your command you drive away from our bodies all sickness and all infirmity: Be present in your goodness with your servant Jorge, that his weakness may be banished and his strength restored; and that, his health being renewed, he may bless your holy Name;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

​Join Us on Thursdays for Evening Prayer
Join us Thursday for the Church's offering of Evening Prayer
as we continue to share in the life of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We gather Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom.
Access our Zoom meeting room by clicking HERE.
Meeting ID: 928 461 1047, Passcode: StMichael
Download the Service Program from our website.