Welcome to
The Church of St. Paul and Incarnation!
in the Heart of Jersey City
“In This Time of Uprooting”
In my early days of preaching, I often
struggled with the many agricultural images found in the Bible and especially
in the teaching of Jesus. Very much a “city person,” I know little about
farming or raising sheep or fishing. Over the years, as I’ve spent time
studying and reflecting on these passages, I’ve grown more comfortable with the
imagery and, most important, I’ve come to understand that it’s really not about
the seeds or the fish, not really about the weeds and the wheat. Instead, Jesus
uses these images to speak to all of us, even if we’ve never been on a farm,
even if we live among mostly asphalt and concrete.
Last week in church we heard what is
usually called the Parable of the Sower. Jesus offers the image of a seemingly
wasteful sower, spreading seeds all over the place, mostly in places
inhospitable to new life but also in the good soil where growth and abundance
have a fighting chance. This Sunday we will hear a kind of sequel, what’s
usually called the Parable of the Wheat and Weeds. Jesus offers the image of
“an enemy” planting weeds among the wheat and a landowner choosing to let the
wheat and the weeds grow up side by side, waiting until harvest time to save
the wheat and to burn the weeds.
These parables offer so much to think
about. What kind of soil are we? Do God’s gifts find a nurturing home in us or
are they choked and extinguished? Are we wheat or are we weeds? Or, more
likely, are we some mix of the two? Do we offer food to the world or do we take
so much for ourselves that we make it difficult or even impossible for others
to live full and healthy lives? And, at the end, how will we be judged?
While in church we are puzzling over
seeds and soil, wheat and weeds, some of our local artists have been working
with similar imagery to reflect on these months of pandemic and the recognition
that our old lives, our old way of doing things, is no more. We are stepping
into a new and unknown world. We have been uprooted.
I’m so glad that our Arts Council has
continued to meet and plan (via Zoom, of course) over these past few months.
And, I’m very proud and excited that our first virtual art show, “UpRooted,”
will open on Sunday afternoon at 4:00 on Zoom. As curator Amy Neufeld writes,
“We selected this theme because for most of us the pandemic has turned our
worlds topsy-turvy. We are all affected one way or another, some drastically
and others more subtly.” In order to encourage artists to reflect on this theme
as creatively as possible, they were randomly paired and then collaborated
together. The results are extraordinary and very much worth your time. I hope
you’ll join us. More details will be posted here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/317557062969953/
There is no doubt that we have been
uprooted, realizing the hard truth that many of the institutions, leaders, and
customs we have relied on in the past are now failing us in catastrophic ways.
Too often, our trust has been misplaced. Fortunately, getting uprooted is not
the end of our story. We are being replanted in much better soil. As I wrote
last week, New Jersey Together is taking an even bolder approach to address
some of the longstanding yet still shocking inequities in our state. All across
the country, people are rising up, refusing to tolerate indifference and
brutality from those in power. And in the church, having lost all of our
familiar ways of being together, we are being firmly replanted in the good soil
of prayer and scripture. In this time of uprooting, we have been reminded to
place our trust in God, who is the best soil of all.
Prayers:
Please
pray for all those on our parish prayer list, especially Jean, Andy, Angelo, Richard,
Kit, and Anthony.
Please
also remember in your prayers those who have died, and those who grieve their
loss:
Yusef
Mathis, who was shot and killed on Clerk Street.
All of
those who have died as a result of Covid -19.
Supporting Our Church:
We are
aware that, unfortunately, some parishioners have been laid off or furloughed
and others are in danger of losing their jobs. Please know that you are in our
prayers and we are here to help any way we can. In these extremely challenging
economic times, we are especially grateful to those of you who have been able
to keep up with your pledges. You can still mail checks to the church or you
can use online giving. Visit stpaulsjc.org and click on "Online Giving."
We also have a Venmo account. Call the office or email me for more information.
Worship Schedule:
Monday through Friday: "Church By Phone"
Morning
Prayer, 7:30
Noonday
Prayer, 12:00
Evening
Prayer, 5:30
Call: 201-433-4922 for more information.
Sunday at 10:00am
Join us
on Facebook Live for a celebration of Holy Eucharist
www.facebook.com/StPaulsJC
From the Diocese:
Read
The Voice Online for all the latest news, including a message from
Bishop Hughes about “training to be the church that God needs us to be,” a
check-in with the Bishop THIS Tuesday, July 21, Summer Regional Zoom calls
focusing on our mental health (our region meets on Thursday, July 30, at
6:00pm.)
BIG NEWS from
New Jersey Together:
Over
the last few months, faith and non-profit leaders from across New Jersey,
working with New Jersey Together, have been meeting to talk about this current
moment and the deep racial inequities we see across our state. New Jersey has some of the worst racial
disparities in the country…around wealth, prison population, and more.
On July
27th, we’ll lay the groundwork for action as 300+ people from across
the state come together virtually to ratify a non-partisan agenda focused on
racial equity and criminal justice. We’ll lay the groundwork for a virtual
action in August with 1000+ across the state.
We’re asking at least FIVE of
you from our congregation to be part of our team on July 27. All you need to do
is let Fr. Tom know and register at www.njtogether.org/july27.
North Porch at
Triangle Park Community Center
As many of
you know, North Porch offers diapers, formula, and other assistance to families
with infants and young children. Since the need continues to grow, North Porch
is asking for financial donations through a GoFundMe campaign. Please consider
supporting this beautiful ministry:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/north-porch-mom-amp-infant-program?utm_source=customer&utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link-tip&fbclid=IwAR2tibm9cDTU2k9BqFh-dtWMCn77qrsNaNBpNeMh7gcaW_M_reC03IdJpi4
DJ’s Free Market
Subscribe to
the DJ’s Newsletter to stay informed about this exciting new ministry led by
Deacon Jill:
Free Covid-19 Testing
Jersey City Together is co-sponsoring free Covid-19 testing.
Pre-registration is requested: njtogether.org/testing
Saturday, July 18, 11am-4pm, (Heavenly Temple Church, 15 MLK
Drive)
Tuesday – Thursday, July 21-23, 1pm-7pm (St. Aedan’s RC Church, in
Tuers Ave. parking lot behind church)
Help for Renters and Homeowners:
There
is help available for renters and homeowners suffering because of the pandemic.
One is the website for the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency: www.njhousing.gov. You can also call 1-800-NJ-HOUSE
(1-800-654-6873).
Helpful Resources:
State
of New Jersey Covid-19 Information Hub:
https://covid19.nj.gov
The
Diocese of Newark posts Covid-19 resources here:
https://dioceseofnewark.org/covid-19
You can
subscribe to diocesan newsletters here:
https://dioceseofnewark.org/subscribe
The
Episcopal Church has collected Covid-19 resources here:
https://episcopalchurch.org/concerning-covid19
"Habits
of Grace," weekly reflections from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry:
https://episcopalchurch.org/habits-of-grace
The
Church of England has some wonderful prayers and other materials here:
https://www.churchofengland.org/more/media-centre/coronavirus-covid-19-liturgy-and-prayer-resources
Fr. Tom's sermons can be found here:
http://tommurphe.blogspot.com