Passion Sunday

Jesus Takes Up His Cross

Dear Parish Family,

Tomorrow is Passion Sunday. The Passion of Our Lord Jesus
Christ has always been controversial. It separates Christianity from other major world religions because it is God-Incarnate who suffers this torture on behalf of all humanity.

St. Paul calls it a stumbling-block to those who cannot understand or accept this truth. Yet, it is reality that Jesus Christ has suffered, died and risen from the grave, washing us from sin and granting us life eternal.

Count on it!

Faithfully yours,
Fr. Rick Gregory

[Photo: Statue of Jesus Christ bearing the Cross, The Grotto (National Sanctuary of our Sorrowful Mother), Portland, Oregon, U.S.]

The Stations of the Cross

Good Friday
March 29, 7:30pm

The Stations of the Cross will be said on Good Friday at 7:30pm. All are welcome at this solemn service of prayer, meditation and Scripture.

Since ancient times Christians have relived the sufferings of Our Lord by following the Way of the Cross in Jerusalem, remembering the events leading up to the Crucifixion and beyond. In churches this tradition has been continued by depictions of the Stations of the Cross, with prayers, meditations and scripture readings popularized by St. Alphonsus de Ligouri. This video features the depictions of the traditional stations, with scripture readings (KJV) associated with each station, read by Alexander Scourby.

Upcoming ACW Meeting

Dear Ladies of St. Bartholomew’s,

We are planning an ACW** Meeting on Sunday, March 3rd following the Liturgy. We will elect new officers for 2024 and discuss outreach ideas. Please plan to attend.

** Every lady at St. Bartholomew’s is a member of the Anglican Churchwomen (ACW) of St. Bart’s.

Ash Wednesday Liturgy

Wednesday, February 14, 7:30 pm

St. Bartholomews will offer the Ash Wednesday Liturgy with the Imposition of Ashes at 7:30pm in the sanctuary.

On Ash Wednesday, we move reflectively into Lent as we are reminded with love and grace that we are dust, and to dust we shall return. 

Come, enter the season of Lent with us.

January 2024 Shepherd’s Staff

Fr. McGrath, military chaplain, celebrates Holy Communion “in the field.”

The Shepherd’s Staff, the provincial newsletter, is filled with news and photos from APCK parishes around the country. St. Bartholomew’s is well-represented in this issue. Here are a few of this month’s articles:

  • Fr. Rick Gregory’s Ordination to the Priesthood
  • A story about our dear Mary Ellen Feagin
  • News from Fr. Daniel McGrath (USMC Chaplain)
  • Sneak Peek at the Diocesan ACW’s latest project

Read the January Shepherd’s Staff →

Letter of Call for the Annual Synod

Delegates (Clergy and Laity) gather annually for the Diocesan Synod.

On January 6th (The Feast of the Epiphany), the Rev. Donald M. Ashman made the formal call for the thirty-third Synod of the Diocese of the Western States.

The Diocesan Synod will be held from April 16-20, 2024 at the Embassy Suites by Hilton in Walnut Creek (CA). The parishes of Saint Joseph of Arimathea in Berkeley and Saint Martin of Tours in Concord will support the planning and work of the Synod.

Fr. Rick’s weekly parish email and the Shepherd’s Staff provincial newsletter will report additional information as it becomes available. To subscribe to either publication, contact Fr. Rick at info@st-bartholomews.org.)

Read Bishop Ashman’s letter →

Stories from last year’s Synod →

Epiphany, the Feast of Lights

~ From an Epiphany sermon by the Most Rev. Robert S. Morse, Founding Archbishop of the Anglican Province of Christ the King

Today, the beginning of the Epiphany season, is often called the Feast of Lights. On this winter day when darkness comes early and night lingers late, Christians celebrate the Epiphany of Christ, when he revealed Himself in history as God Incarnate, God become man. St. John writes, That was the true light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by Him and the world knew Him not. He came into his own and his own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God.

What a mysterious moment this Epiphany of Christ is, God come among us as one of us. St. Paul writes, Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ. We must each experience our own epiphany.

I remember being a freshman in college, soon to be swept up into World War II, and rummaging through the library stacks of the university. It was one of my favorite sports. Raised to think that man would find his way through science, I came across a history book, a biography of a famous warrior and conqueror that agreed with the words of the Psalmist, “The Earth is the Lord’s and all that therein is.” I was struck for a moment with that truth. It was my first epiphany. It is perhaps why I stand here today, for “The Earth is the Lord’s and all that therein is.”The belief that God is the source of all is the beginning of faith and leads us to the Wise Men at the manger, where God became man, God Incarnate, God one of us, Epiphany.

[source: The Shepherd’s Staff, January 2022]

What is Twelfth Night?

Twelfth Night is a Christian festival that falls on January 5th, the last day of the 12 days of Christmas. In our Anglican liturgical calendar, Twelfth Night is also Epiphany Eve. Many of the customs surrounding Twelfth Night focus on the coming of the Three Kings and the transition from Christmastide to the Epiphany season.

Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry, (illuminated manuscript), c. 1410

Popular Twelfth Night customs include eating king cake, singing Christmas carols, chalking the door, having one’s house blessed, merry-making, and attending church services (external links).

[Adapted from “Twelfth Night (holiday)” on Wikipedia.]