The Blog
Palm Sunday- April 10th-8 am Rite I Service with Holy Eucharist and Blessing of the Palms
10 am Rite II Service with Holy Eucharist, Music, and Blessing of the Palms
Maundy Thursday- April 14th- at 7 pm with Holy Eucharist, Foot Washing, and Stripping of the Altar
Good Friday- April 15th- at 7 pm The Good Friday liturgy includes the full Passion Gospel, the Solemn Collects, and the Veneration of the Cross.
The Feast of the Resurrection: April 17th- at 8 am, a Rite I Service
10 am, Rite II Service Festive Holy Eucharist with Choir and Brass
2024 Annual Meeting
The 2024 Annual Meeting will be held at 9:00 between services on Sunday, February 25th in the Parish Hall. All members aged 16 and older are asked to be present for this once-a-year meeting. Who can vote? According to the Canons of the Episcopal Church, voting members are those who are: members of Christ Church and at least 16 years old, regular in worship, faithful in giving, and active in Parish ministry.
At the meeting, we’ll be electing two at-large Vestry members to 3-year terms, as well as four delegates to represent Christ Church as the fall Diocesan Convention. The 150th Annual Convention will return to a two-day format. It will be held Nov. 22–23 at the Roberts Centre in Wilmington, OH.
The Nominating Committee members are Kay Koeninger, Linda Mortensen, Brian Shelburne, Liz Wheeler, Denise Sharp, and ex officio, The Rev. Dr. Michelle Boomgaard.
Christmas Eve—Friday, December 24th at 7:15 PM
Christmas Eve will have a new look this year. Same shepherds, same star, same miracle of Jesus’ birth, just a different schedule than you may remember.
- At 3:00 PM we will join our friends at Oakwood Village for Holy Eucharist. The Carter family will provide music for this festive occasion.
- At 7:30 PM we will celebrate a festival Holy Eucharist Rite II. The service will be live-streamed for those unable to be present. Be sure to join the community by 7:15 for special music. Those that do not have a Facebook page can find the services on the Christ Church’s website
at www.christspringfield.org.
Annual Alternative Christmas Market
Plan to join us at Covenant Presbyterian Church at 201 North Limestone Street in Springfield, Ohio, which will host its Annual Alternative Christmas Market on Sunday, December 3rd, 2023, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. This is an ALTERNATIVE approach to commercial Christmas shopping while caring for our community. Shoppers talk to representatives from fifteen local and global organizations and fill out a shopping list of items like containers of laundry detergent or kitchen trash bags (for Christ Church Food Pantry. Items like these symbolize a monetary contribution to the organization, in the name of a loved one. While the shopper waits at Covenant’s food court, a personalized card is prepared for the recipient of the gift, describing the item that has been given in his or her name. All gifts purchased are tax deductible, but no names are put on any mailing list.
Making Provision for the Homeless: An Ingathering at Christ Church
“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing” (Matthew 25:35)
On Sunday, December 13th at 11am, Christ Church will host a very special outreach and fellowship event. Here’s the plan. First, bring your contribution to one of the initiatives listed below and drop it off at the East Entrance. Then, find a parking spot, roll down your windows, and listen to Christmas carols sung by socially distanced members of the choir. There will also be an opportunity to enjoy carefully prepared holiday cookies, and to share in a blessing of the donations and a prayer for all those in need.
In addition to offering an opportunity for in-person gathering, this event was organized by the outreach team to provide Christ Church with an opportunity to support several projects in our community that aim to address the escalating homelessness and food insecurity problem, which the Springfield City Commission has declared a public health crisis. Here are the ways you can give aid to those who are in great need.
- The Sock and Underwear Drive. IHN needs socks and undergarments for all genders and ages.
- Hygiene Products for Men and Women. IHN could use the whole gamut: soap, shampoo, toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, shaving gel, razors, tampons, sanitary pads (thinner ones), chap stick, and hand sanitizer.
- Toilet Paper for the Food Pantry. The Christ Church Food Pantry is back in business, but without much traffic in the church, the donations of toilet paper have fallen off. Your contributions can help Christ Church better serve the people who face challenges in addressing their basic needs.
- Donations. There are three good ways to direct a financial contribution.
- Cooler Packs. Because there is no more available shelter in our community, IHN would like to provide those who can’t be taken in with a cooler for food and a cold weather kit, which includes blankets for those living in cars. Each cooler pack costs $100, and IHN is aiming to have 100 to offer. (There are currently over 200 people on IHN’s waiting list.)
- The Christ Church Food Pantry. This congregation’s effort to address food insecurity can always use financial support.
- Second Harvest Food Bank. Second Harvest has seen more demand in 2020 than ever before, and direct contributions do the SHFB maximizes your food buying power.
Thanks for being part of a compassionate response to this rising need in our community and for contributing to the outdoor fellowship on December 13th.
A Musical, Artful Advent
Please join Canon Lee Anne Reat for Virtual Advent Mondays via Zoom from 7:30 to 8:30 pm.
December 21st from 7:30 to 8:30 pm
Professor Kay Koeninger of Sinclair College will present an interactive analysis of European artworks depicting judgment, including Johannes Vermeer’s Woman Holding a Balance, c. 1664, in the National Gallery of Art. Advent focuses not only on the first coming of Christ, but also the second coming, which is often associated with judgment.
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
To join the virtual Zoom please use the link below:
Meeting ID: 967 2274 3019
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Meeting ID: 967 2274 3019
The Wednesday Rite II in-person Service with Holy Eucharist is at noon in the Chapel on the second floor. If you are unable to attend, the service is live-streamed on Christ Church’s Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/christspringfield.org
There is a link to the online Book of Common Prayer is https://www.bcponline.org. The Chapel Service starts on page 355.
Once again, our friends in Springfield’s Promise Neighborhood are hosting a Christmas Store during the first week of December. Promise Neighborhood residents can visit the store and choose from gifts that have been donated by church folks and other community members. The Christmas Store accepts donations of NEW toys/gifts for babies through teenagers. This year our ingathering will be a drive-through, and we’ll also be accepting our annual donation of baby food for families in need this holiday season. Folks will be at the church to remove the toys and the baby food from your car and store them in the office from 11-Noon on the Saturdays listed below. We will then bless the gifts, take a photo for the December Clarion, and then turn them over to the Promise Neighborhood leadership.
Bring your donations to the parking lot near the church office on the following days:
- Saturday, November 21, 11-Noon