TODAY, Mr. Jack Feyrer will be giving a presentation following the 10: 15AM service in the Parish Hall. All are welcome and encouraged to attend. The purpose of this presentation is to show the congregation how the proposed new parish hall would be funded and to answer any questions parishioners may have. So, please come to the presentation, your presence is encouraged and valued.

Next Sunday, March 14, following the 10:15 service, there will be an opportunity for the entire parish of St. Stephen's to gather and mark Fr. James' first year of sobriety. There will be a festive Coffee Hour to mark the occasion! A letter from Bishop William H. Love of Albany will be read. If you'd like to help out with this festive Coffee Hour, please contact Liz Varno.

Remember our Outreach Project to Haiti. Buy some soup; buy an herb! Last week, the Sunday school children assembled two dozen beautiful quart jars of Winter Bean Soup mix and sold all but four jars after the 10: 15 service. TODAY, those attending the 8:00 service will have a chance to buy ajar of soup mix. Price is $6.50. In a couple of weeks we will be selling pots of herbs. All proceeds will go to Partners in Health.

The CROP Hunger Walk recruiter's workshop will be held on Monday, March 15 at Emmanuel Frieden's Church, 218 Nott Terrace from 5:30- 7:00PM, with a guest presentation by Doug Anderson of Church World Service. A light vegetarian meal will be provided. If anyone is interested in attending, please see or call Eunice Chouffi or Richey Woodzell.

The Church Shop at St. Stephen's is now featuring:

St Patrick's Day greeting cards
Sun catchers
Jewelry

Also for Lent, we have crown of thoms, Last Supper crosses and plaques and many good devotional books. Stop in theParish Hall and see Marilyn Humphrey and Dawn Rizzo after both the 8:00 and 10: 15AM services.

Coffee Hour is an important time after church to gather for fellowship, conversation and the opportunity to make new friends and reconnect with old friends. Volunteers are needed to host on March 21 and April 4, which is Easter Day. If you feel called to host a Coffee Hour or need help finding out about the "How To's", please see the sign up sheet on the kitchen counter in the Parish Hall. Thank you.

Calendar Notes

Construction Meeting March 7th am

The Construction Meeting which was announced in the Messenger, will be held on March 7th, and NOT February 28th.   The meeting will be held after the 10:15 service.  The next day after Jack Feyrer gives his presentation, the Vestry will meet at 7:30pm to vote on whether or not to proceed with Phase 2 of the construction plans.  Anyone interested in learning about possible financing, and giving input to the Vestry, should plan to attend Jack's presentation on the 7th. Sr. Warden, Carol Merrill-Mazurek, shared with me that the Vestry will not have a specific finance arrangement to vote on, but they will vote on proceeding with the purchase of architectural construction plans.  The specific financial plan will be decided on later.   At the last Vestry Meeting, Jack Feyrer discussed 3 banks that could use the endowment as collateral for a mortgage.  If this alternative is eventually chosen, at the end of three years St. Stephen's would break even, but a Capital Campaign fund would still be needed to cover the interest expense.  Please consider attending the meeting on March 7th to participate in this work of love by everyone who has toiled over the declining parish hall, guarded our endowment fund, deliberated over architectural plans, or worshiped God together under the roof of St. Stephen's. 

Lenten Study

This Lent we will discuss the book, "The Last Week".  Top Jesus scholars Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan join together to reveal a radical and little-known Jesus. As both authors reacted to and responded to questions about Mel Gibson's blockbuster The Passion of the Christ, they discovered that many Christians are unclear on the details of events during the week leading up to Jesus's crucifixion.

Using the gospel of Mark as their guide, Borg and Crossan present a day-by-day account of Jesus's final week of life. They begin their story on Palm Sunday with two triumphal entries into Jerusalem. The first entry, that of Roman governor Pontius Pilate leading Roman soldiers into the city, symbolized military strength. The second heralded a new kind of moral hero who was praised by the people as he rode in on a humble donkey. The Jesus introduced by Borg and Crossan is this new moral hero, a more dangerous Jesus than the one enshrined in the church's traditional teachings.

The Last Week depicts Jesus giving up his life to protest power without justice and to condemn the rich who lack concern for the poor. In this vein, at the end of the week Jesus marches up Calvary, offering himself as a model for others to do the same when they are confronted by similar issues. Informed, challenged, and inspired, we not only meet the historical Jesus, but meet a new Jesus who engages us and invites us to follow him.

The study begins on Sunday, February 21st at 5:00 pm and continues through March 28th.

BUILDINGS and GROUNDS
Reid House

Renovation work continues.  The outside ramp was completed just before the first snow fall.  Work is now continuing on the inside.  We have passed each of the inspections by the city.  The final inspection won't occur until March and that will be an inspection for occupancy. 
 
Volunteers typically meet on Saturday mornings and Tuesday afternoons.  Just show up, or contact Austin Spang directly.

Inquirer's Classes
 
Inquirers' classes are intended to give prospective members an overview of how Episcopalians fit into the complex of protestant and catholic churches.  Discussion topics include the world-wide Anglican Church, the National Episcopal Church, our own Diocese of Albany, our own parish of St. Stephen's and the relationship among all four.  Discussion are candid and open.
 
This course is required of all adults who wish to be confirmed or received into the church, but is open to all members of the Parish Family.  Confirmation will take place at the Cathedral of All Saints' next fall.
 
All classes take place in the rector's study (next to the church) from January 31th through February 21st from noon - 1pm.  If you are interested, please call the office at 346-6241.

Sunday Morning Adult Education: The Question of God

The Question of God, is a course that deals with issues that preoccupy most thinking people today: What is happiness? How do we find meaning and purpose in our lives? How do we reconcile conflicting claims of love and sexuality? How do we cope with the problem of suffering and the inevitability of death? Based on a popular Harvard course taught by Dr. Armand Nicholi, author of The Question of God, the course illustrates the lives and insights of Sigmund Freud, a life-long critic of religious belief, and C.S. Lewis, a celebrated Oxford don, literary critic, and perhaps this century's most influential and popular proponent of faith based on reason.

The course will take place on Sunday mornings from 9am to 10am in the parish hall.  The rector will lead the discussions.

Christian Education Update

Sunday school continues each week and we hope that your children can join us. 

Kids' Chapel meets in the parish hall beginning at 10:15 each Sunday.  In February we will be starting our 5th unit on service.  We will be making Valentine cards, learning more about the Millennium Development Goals, and participating in an outreach project.

We finish Kids' Chapel at the Offertory.  At that time the kids go into church with their families.  Thank you to Dave Crates and Brian Riordon who helped to lead the 4th unit and to Richey Woodzell who is helping with the 5th unit.  If you would like to help with the 6th unit focusing on Lent, Holy Week and Easter (3/7 through 3/28), please let me know.
 
The intermediate group meets from 9:00-10:00 in the tower.  In the Episcopal Children's Curriculum, they are presently learning about the meaning in the Parables of the New Testament.  Once Lent begins, they will focus on the Eucharist.
 
7th through 12th grade group continues to meet in the basement each Sunday from 9:00-10:00.
 
If you have questions, please ask Laura Davis

Daughters of the King:

Our meeting dates are now established (again!) for the third Saturday of each month at the church, beginning at 9:30.

So, our next two meetings will be Dec. 19 and Jan. 16.

Nursery News 

  I am so pleased to announce that Britta Kilbourn has accepted the Nursery Care Provider position.  She begins serving in the nursery on September 13th during the 10:15 service.  The nursery will be "open" for care each Sunday during the 10:15 service through the beginning of June.

As always, if you are interested in helping in the nursery or if you are willing to substitute when Britta is absent, please let me know.  Having help always makes the nursery run smoothly which is so important for the littlest in our congregation. Please ask if you have any questions.  Thanks.
Laura Davis

Thursday Morning Bible Study 

Disciple Two - Into The Word Into the World Into The Word Into The World encourages persons to open themselves to hearing what God has to say to them through the Bible and to be guided into service in the world by Scripture and their study of it.

This thirty-two-week study selects specific portions of Scripture and delves deeper into them. Depth study of Scripture will be the work both of individual members and of the group in its weekly meeting. Equal attention is given to both the Old and New Testament with concentration on four books: Genesis, Exodus, Luke, and Acts (eight lessons on each book). Appropriate connections are made to other parts of Scripture both through reading and study assignments and through commentary in the study manual. Participants will read familiar passages, see them in fresh ways, and anticipate that God will speak through them. Classes are held on Thursdays from 10:45am to noon in the rector's office.