The Church of the Good Shepherd

November 2008

Dear All:

One hundred years – not that old for a congregation, as these things go. Still, that’s 100 Christmas Eve services, over 1,000 vestry meetings, and at least 4,000 services of Holy Communion. But what does it mean? Why bother celebrating Good Shepherd’s first service in 1908, as we will on November 16? Four reasons, chiefly.   

First, in this way, we acknowledge that the past is important to us. The Episcopal Church is a historically rooted denomination. Living as we do in a period of rapid change, many people are looking for a religious home with some roots, traditions, and a history. Of course, the parish has changed and adapted a lot since those early years when the vestry had to install a fence to keep the cows out of the church yard. But through it all, there have been the constants of gathering at the Lord’s table to receive the bread and wine and at the font for waters of baptism.   

Second, we are honoring our elders and recognizing the debt we owe to them. They gave, worked, and poured their lives into this parish to insure that there would be a Christian presence on Forest Hill Avenue and 43^rd Street.     

Third, we gain a better understanding of our parish’s identity. Our identity is profoundly shaped by the congregation’s past. Of course, there is a delicate balance between honoring the past and being bound to it. It is the difference between the living tradition of the past and the dead traditions of the living.  

Fourth, it helps us to put our current situation in a larger perspective. It is humbling to think that in 2108, Good Shepherd will celebrate its bicentennial, God willing. What will the future congregation think about us and how we have used our unique opportunity? We are here a short time. May God help us to make the most of it: to raise children and grandchildren in the knowledge and love of the Lord; to lift up Christ so that people are drawn to him; to develop leadership for Good Shepherd’s future.      

So, let’s have a grand celebration – lets’ honor the past in such a way that we are strengthened for the present and given a vision for the future.    

Gratefully in Christ,

Ross

Diocese News

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Stewardship Sunday – November 23

As we approach Stewardship Sunday, we ask that you give prayerful consideration to your pledge for this coming year. Pledge cards were mailed last week. Please call the church office if you did not receive one, or pick one up in the narthex.

Vestry Nominations

The deadline for submitting nominations for the Vestry is Sunday, November 23. Names may be given to: Ben Lehman, Harriet Coalter, Bill Bennett, Stuart Fulcher, Barbara Kelley, Noah Rogers or Maggie Southwick.

Emailing the Newsletter

This issue of the Newsletter is being sent out electronically to our parishioners and will be mailed only to those families without email. If we do not have your email address, please send it to darlenespires.gsec@verizon.net. Copies of the newsletter are available in the library, and it is posted on our website.

Commemorative Service – November 16

The first Tuesday in October the ladies of Good Shepherd Episcopal Church gathered in the Parish hall to create hats in the style and spirit of their 1908 counterparts who worked so diligently to establish and furnish the classic English-Gothic sanctuary which sits on the corner of 43^rd and Forest Hill Avenue.  

An article printed in the Richmond Times Dispatch on November 15, 1908 stated: The church is now finished, and from now on will be occupied regularly. Much credit for this rapid movement is due to the Ladies Guild of the church, which has been indefatigable in its efforts, having not only furnished the church and arranged for the installation of a large pipe organ, but has assumed a large proportion of the church debt. The building is on one of the most desirable corner lots at Forest Hill about two squares from the street car line. It is of solid brick construction, sixty-four feet long, forty feet wide with a pitch of twenty-seven feet. Five granite steps lead to the vestibule over which is the steeple of square English- Gothic design, fifty feet high. This architectural style is, of course, carried out through the entire church. The interior, wainscoted and with heavy beamed ceiling is of antique oak, the simple decorations being the Gothic trefoil.

To celebrate our 100^th year, we will be holding a commemoration service November 16 with the same hymns and incorporating parts of the Book of Common Prayer service used in 1908. Keeping in the spirit of 1908, the ladies will be covering their heads as was the custom at that time.  Frances Van Heuveln, who recently celebrated her 95^th birthday, remembers when her mother and grandmother would never consider going to church without wearing a hat. Even when hats were going out of vogue, Frances remembers ladies putting doilies on their heads or flowers in their hair. “We missed our hats.” Frances remembers with a smile. Frances’ father, John A. Lundin, moved to south side in 1914 and transferred from St. James to the Church of the Good Shepherd. His jewelry store, Lundin’s Jewelry, was located on Broad Street and later in Stratford Hills.

For 100 years, Good Shepherd has been part of the Forest Hill community. Delegate Frank Hall will be presenting a certificate to the parish commemorating our 100 years of service. Come in your 1908 style attire or your 2008 attire. A reception will follow. It is an event for everyone in the Forest Hill community and everyone who has ever been part of the Good Shepherd church or school family. 

Good Shepherd History

On February 12, 1908, a group of residents in Forest Hill, met in the little school house on Forty-first Street to consider the organization of a new church. The Right Reverend A. M. Randolph, D.D., Bishop of the Diocese of Southern Virginia, presided over the meeting.

The Council of Southern Virginia approved the organization of an independent congregation in June of 1908 and the name “Church of the Good Shepherd” was adopted.

The new church was built on the corner of Forty-third and Forest Hill Avenue which was known at one time as River Road. The cornerstone was laid on June 25, 1908. The first service was held on November 15 of the same year.

Thirty-two persons became members of the Church of the Good Shepherd. Six transferred from Monumental Church, four from Holy Comforter, one from Christ Church, one from the Church of England and fifteen were confirmed by Bishop Randolph at the first service.

Good Shepherd is a copy of St. Luke’s Church [c1632]  in Smithfield,  Virginia.  Pocahontas was married in the Isle of Wight Church and  a documentary of her wedding was filmed some years ago at Good Shepherd.

UTO Offering

The United Thank Offering was collected on November 2, but donations will be accepted through November 16. The UTO is a ministry of the Episcopal Church which was started in 1889. All offerings are used to support grants for ministries at home and overseas as an outreach of the Episcopal Church. Prayers and offerings make it possible for the UTO mission to do many wonderful things.

Acolytes Guild

I am excited to say that the Acolytes of Good Shepherd Episcopal Church had a wonderful time at the Acolyte Festival. We got there on time, registered and took some nice photos. The Service of Holy Eucharist began at 10 am sharp. They all got to meet the Bishop of Washington DC and were given Holy Communion by his worship. Then the excitement moved up a notch: the procession of acolytes. Man I had serious goose bumps just seeing Good Shepherd’s Banner and our Acolyte Team with our banner raised high in the air processing down. And to add to it, it was the best looking one too; we had rave reviews about our design and colors. “Way To Go Good Shepherd’s Altar Guild”, you ladies rock. Then the Acolytes were excited to see the different churches displays and show their stuff: the flapping of the streamers, the different torches, the different colors of adorning robes and the swinging of the incense. Churches from as far away as Las Vegas came. They all had a ball. They gave gifts to the oldest Acolyte, get this, age ninety-two. Yes I said 92 years old and the youngest, age three. Each acolyte was awarded a medal for attending the Festival.

After the service we had lunch on the Cathedral Lawn and then we toured the Cathedral and its grounds. That was an amazing sight to see. The structure, the different carvings and the entire longevity of the construction process. We toured the top of the Cathedral overlooking the city and viewed from up above the State Capital, the White House and other monuments that could be seen from our position. The kids played in the Bishops Garden and they were a joyous bunch. We had lots of fun. We are planning on returning next year and will have stuff of our own to portray of what Good Shepherd’s Acolyte Team is made of. So long until our next visit. Feel free to view our photo collection on Good Shepherd’s web site.

                                                                                                   Yours cooperatively,                                                                                               

                             Ron Welshman, Acolyte Master                                                                                                           

Youth Group News  

The Youth Group had a great time bowling and making posters for our Food Drive too! We will be collecting food through November 16 to benefit the Central Virginia Food Bank. Please leave your donations in the Food Drive Boxes.

In December we will go Christmas shopping for those in need.

Look for our Youth Group Bulletin Board by the Choir Room for updates on our activities.

Choir News

Nov 9th - The choir will sing The Lord Will Come and Not be Slow and a new anthem, Seek to Serve by Lloyd Pfautsch

Nov 16th - 100th Anniversary Service! Our anthem will be Holy Art Thou set to Handel's Largo from Xerxes. This is the same anthem that was performed at Good Shepherd's first worship service!

Nov 23rd - Men's Chorale Sunday with Guest Organist Martha Mattison

Nov 30th - Advent begins

Upcoming Musical Dates  

Sunday, Dec 21st, 4:30 PM – Church Caroling

All parishioners are invited to join us. We will visit shut-ins and sing the familiar Christmas Carols, returning to church at approximately 6:00 PM for an informal supper.

Sunday, Jan 11th, 5:00 PM - Choral Evensong  Epiphany I followed by dinner in the parish hall.

Sunday, February 15th, 4:00 PM – Organ Recital

Allen Bean, our former Music Director performs an organ recital.

Friday, March 20th, 7:30 PM – Organ Recital

Crystal Jonkman, organist and choral director at  St Michael’s, presents an organ concert.

At this writing we are just beginning rehearsal of Advent and Christmas music. Now is a great time to consider joining the choir! We rehearse each Wednesday from 7:00 to 8:30 PM, and warm up on Sunday mornings at 9:00 AM prior to the service.

Women’s Bible Study

Women’s Bible Study: Just a reminder that the women of Good Shepherd are invited to participate in a monthly Bible Study on the third Thursday of the month. The Bible Study is based on Galatians 5:22, the fruit of the Spirit. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” NIV Galatians 5:22 “These virtues are to characterize the Christian life. If we are filled with the Spirit, we will exhibit the fruit of the Spirit.” Developing oneself to exhibit the fruit of the Spirit takes time. It is a lifelong process. (See Sproul, R.C. Essential Truths of the Christian Faith. 1992. 245-246.) We started the study in September focusing on Christian love. 

We met in October focusing on the virtue of joy. The books of Acts and Luke provide great examples of joy in the Christian life. “He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth….” Luke 1:14. “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven….” Luke 2:23. “Paul became the greatest example of one who could be sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; for he was convinced that his sufferings were God’s media for blessing and materials for thanksgiving by many.” (The Interpreter’s Bible, p. 567) “And we pray this in order that you may live…being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience and joyfully giving thanks to the Father….” Colossians 1:10-11.

According to one source referenced by one of our members, Paul chose fruit for his metaphor of Christian virtues because: (1) it grows as these virtues do, slowly over a life-time; (2) the kind of fruit that grows is a reflection of what is inside; and (3) in order to grow, it needs fertilizer. Another member left us with a follow-up assignment: use joy in our language, show joy in our actions and be joyful, reflecting on the joy of a Christian life.

We will study peace in the month of November. You may want to use the following format as a guide to get you started but please feel free to join us without feeling the need to use this format or even to speak up at the meeting. Listeners are encouraged to join us for Christian fellowship.

1.  What are some other Biblical passages on peace?

2.  What have Christian writers and theologians, said about peace as used in Galatians?

3.  What are some anecdotal stories of your experience or understanding of peace as a

      Christian virtue?

4.  Identify some hymns that focus on peace.

We hope you will join us for our next meeting on November 20 starting with a brown bag dinner at 6:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall and continuing with a discussion at 7:00 p.m. Join us for dinner, the discussion or both. The dates and topics of study for future months are listed below. Reminders and/or any changes to the dates will appear in the weekly bulletin. If you have questions you can email Vikki Curtis at vikkicurtis@trinityes.org or call her at 320-4131.

            November 20             Peace

            December 18              Patience

            January 15                  Kindness

            February 19                Goodness

            March 19                    Faithfulness

            April 16                       Gentleness

            May 21                                    Self-control

Freedom House Brunch

We give thanks this November for 25 years of Freedom House services to the homeless in our community. On Thanksgiving Day, November 27th, we will serve brunch to the 40 residents of the Community Shelter.  The menu will be egg casserole, French toast, sausage, cheese grits, fruit,

coffee and orange juice. We will meet in the church kitchen at 8:30 AM to assemble the meal. At 10:30 we will take the food to the community shelter at 12th and Hull Streets. After serving the meal we will spend some fellowship time with the residents. Please call Val Bowman at 232-7718 if you can help prepare or serve food, or would like to contribute towards the menu. 

Staff Vacations

Ross is on vacation November 27 through December 6; Jo-Ann Murphy will fill in for him.  Ann is away November 22 - 24 and Darlene is on vacation November 25 through December 2. Because of vacations, please note that the deadline for the December Newsletter is November 15.

Good Shepherd Website

Have you visited our website lately? Our Special Music Events were recently added to the Music Page. On the Home Page is a link to photographs taken at the Acolyte Festival. And if you forget the date of your worship assignment, the Worship Roster is posted every month. Thank you to Lea Emory who does a fantastic job of keeping it updated!

Communications

Gay Stokes has been busy behind the scenes working on ways to improve communication within the parish and throughout our community. Ads have been placed in the Westover Rag and she is exploring other venues to make ourselves known to our neighbors.

A new logo for Good Shepherd has been designed by Rob Larsen and will be used on all our printed materials; see the cover page. Thanks Rob!

Coming soon: a new bulletin board in the hallway near the Parish Hall. If you wish to post something, please contact Gay or Allison Starr.

Suzanne Reamy Writes

To my Good Shepherd Family:

Greetings from St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Powhatan, Va.! I miss all of you terribly and look forward to sharing in the liturgy with you once again in December. As the “aspirant” here I have been very busy. I am teaching a First Communion class at the end of October and have already delivered my first three homilies! I preach a short five minute homily at the Wednesday night Healing Service at 7:00 p.m. every other week. (Nov 12^th, and Nov 26^th are those remaining.)

On Christ the King Sunday, Nov. 23^rd, I will be preaching at all three services here. It is also Youth Service Sunday—so I will be leading the children in an original skit in lieu of the 9:00 sermon.

Things are going well here and I find the congregation to be a very faithful and loving community. I am, as ever, grateful for your support and prayers. I think of you often. May the Lord bless you and keep you.

Until I see you again--Much love, Suzanne

News of the Parish

We warmly welcome Francile Bilyeu and Melissa Rich to Good Shepherd.

Best wishes to Charles Johnson and Katherine Beach who were united in marriage on October 12^th in Corolla, NC. Charles is the son of Lucy and Charlie Johnson.

We remember long time member Martha Simmons who passed away on October 28. May she rest in peace.

Directory Updates

Francile Bilyeu         

230-6247                                                                                                                                             230                 

807 W 31^st Street

Richmond, VA  23225

fbilyeu@vcu.edu

Melissa Rich

(540) 903-7801

2000 Riverside Dr #6K

Richmond, VA  23225

Courtney & Jonathan Spencer

4200 Springhill Ave

Richmond, VA  23225

November Meetings & Events

9          Sun     9:30    Acolyte Commissioning

10        Mon    7:00    Vestry Meeting

16        Sun     9:30    Centennial Service

20        Thur    6:00    Women’s Dinner

                         7:00    Women’s Bible Study

23        Sun       9:30   Stewardship Sunday                                      Stewardship Breakfast

                                    Vestry Nominations Due

27        Thur    8:30    Freedom House Brunch

29        Sat       10:00   Acolyte Training

Upcoming Special Dates

December 14  Poinsettia Orders Due

December 21  Nativity Pageant

                        4:30 Christmas Caroling & Supper

December 24  7:30 Christmas Eve Music

                         8:00 Christmas Eve Service

January 6        Epiphany Service

January 11      Choral Evensong & Dinner

January 18      Annual Parish Meeting

February 13    Bishop Consecration

Poinsettia Orders

December 14^th is the deadline to order Christmas poinsettias. The plants are $15 each and checks should be made payable to the Good Shepherd Altar Guild and placed in the offering plate with the order form, or mailed to the church office.

St. Monica’s Guild

We are collecting items for Safe Harbor through November. Donations may be left in the box near the Sacristy. They are in need of the following items: Paper Towels, Toilet Tissue, Napkins, Facial Tissues, Soap, Body Wash, Shampoo, Hair Spray, Lotion, Powder, Detergent, Combs, Brushes, Hair Ribbons, Toothbrushes, Toothpaste, Razors, After Shave Lotion, Towels, Washcloths, Pillows, Dish Detergent, Laundry Detergent, Bleach, Light Bulbs, Disinfectant, Room Fresheners, Plastic Bags, Diapers, Women’s Underpants (XL) and Laundry Baskets. They also need non-perishable food items such as canned meats, soup, boxed meals, etc. 

Good Shepherd School Open House

On Thursday, November 6^th at 7:00 pm, the school will host an open house for prospective students and their parents. If you know of anyone who is interested in finding more about the school, please encourage them to attend. The school offers:

• Pre-K through 8th Grade

• Full-Day JK-5 Program

• Affordable Tuition

• Spanish for All Grades

• Homeschooler Resource Classes

• Before/After School Care

• Summer Camp and Childcare

Call 231-1452 or visit www.gses.org

Box Tops & Labels

The school is collecting box tops and Campbell Soup labels to raise money. Please cut out the Box Tops for Education icons and place them in the collection box in the church library. The school will receive 10 cents per box top. Listed below is a partial list of the products that qualify; a complete list is available at www.boxtops4education.com

Betty Crocker Desserts

General Mills Cereals

Nature Valley Cereals

Green Giant Frozen Vegetables

Pillsbury Frozen Rolls & Biscuits

Nature Valley Granola Products

Cottonelle Products

Hefty Products

Ziplock Bags

Yoplait Yogurt