Self Examination and Repentance

​“I invite you, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word”

This prayer, from the Ash Wednesday service in the Book of Common Prayer, has
been offered by Sarah and Isaac while leading the Lenten Saturday series on
movement and meditation at St. PJ’s. The gatherings include yoga, meditation,
prayer, and scripture, all while circled on the new floor of our sanctuary. It offers a new perspective and a deeply moving experience in the sacred spaces of the Church.

“Self-examination” is also the next step for us to take on our transition journey as we seek a new Priest-in-Charge. Our Sunday Lenten series, “Episcopal Q&A” has provided folks who have any questions about the Episcopal Church or what it means to be Episcopalian, to have their questions answered, or at least discussed.

This Sunday we will change the focus from asking about the Church, to asking
about ourselves. The Diocese has provided us with a definition of a Parish in the
“new missional age”. This “new missional age” is now, when most parishes have a part-time Priest-in-charge, and so the members of the parish are called to take on many of the duties that were formerly the responsibility of a full-time Rector. The Diocese has also posed a series of questions. How are we living into this definition? What are our strengths and weaknesses? How do we see our new
Priest-in-Charge helping us to move forward?

Our completed “Parish Self-Study” will be provided to potential candidates for
Priest-in-Charge. We invite everyone to stay and take part in discussing the
questions and contributing to the answers. The full “definition of a parish” and
the exact questions will be printed out and inserted into the bulletin on Sunday. If you will not be attending on Sunday, you may access the full definition and
questions below, and forward your thoughts or answers to [email protected] or [email protected].

Our Saturday “Movement and Meditation” series meets at 3 pm in the sanctuary
and our Sunday “Episcopal Q&A” gathers right after the service. Both will
continue through Lent. Please join us.

Peace and Blessings,
Brian and Claire