Hello parishioners! We have some changes to our weekend plans due to the predicted snowfall. Most notably, the Breakfast Run to NYC has been cancelled. Other programs scheduled for Sunday--Confirmation Class and Red Door Explorers--will likely also be cancelled, but I'll send an email about that on Sunday.

As for church, I'm firmly rooted in the belief that you never cancel church. Since I can walk over from my home, I'll be here whatever the weather brings. I'm also a firm believer in worshiping together, in person. 

This said ...

If this snowstorm truly materializes as predicted (and it seems it will), I'll be offering a livestream for those who can't make it in. I've even created the link (below), and will resend it via email and app notification on Sunday morning. Both services will go on as usual in person, but the 10:30 will be streamed as well. Whatever you decide, coming to church or staying home, please choose the safe option for you and your family! -Mo. Storm

Friday Morning Prayer Online, 9:00 am (on our Youtube channel)

Saturday Fordham Food Pantry 8:00 am (details below)

Sunday Services, 9:00 (only in-person) & 10:30 am (in-person and livestreamed)

Children's Church School During the 10:30 am Service (pending)

Coffee Hour after Both Services (simple!)

Confirmation Class 5:30 pm (pending)

Red Door Explorers (5th & 6th grade) 5:30 pm (pending)

All are welcome to help us pack 300+ grocery bags for the food insecure in the neighborhood of our partner parish, St. James Episcopal Church in Fordham. To be added to the email distribution list for this ministry (where you'll receive reminders and occasional updates), click the button below and we'll add you to our list. Thank you!

All are welcome to join us as we make a trip into the city to feed the homeless. This Sunday's run has been cancelled, but please join us for the next one on March 15. 

The Red Door Explorers, our 5th and 6th graders, meets 5x year for food, fellowship, and discussion about the Episcopal tradition and St. James. Led and taught by parents. Please join us! You can simply bring your 5th or 6th grader on one of the evenings, and/or register at the button below.

Spiritual Threads provides a space to reflect on our lives together. Bring whatever craft you're working on, or just come enjoy the conversation. Whether you knit, crochet, quilt, needlepoint, or just like being around people who do, we'll all explore our spirituality and develop new friendships.

Our Annual Meeting will be held Sunday February 1 (note date change), commencing during the sermon at the 10:30 am service and continuing afterward. Among the more important things that happen at this meeting are: voting in new vestry members, thanking our outgoing class, and reviewing the budget for 2025 and 2026. Don't miss it! All members are strongly encouraged to attend. 

The Ike Sturm Ensemble returns once again this year to celebrate the last hurrah before Lent! Featuring composer and director, Ike Sturm and his ensemble along with the Choir of St James will lead the 10:30 service in this uplifting service that will move your body and soul. Following the service is St James’ famous Mardi Gras coffee hour complete with King’s cake. Join us!

Free-will offering

Last Sunday, the last Sunday of the Christmas season, Mo. Storm preached on our duty to proclaim the love of God to the world, a theme not only for the season of Epiphany, but also Martin Luther King weekend. From the sermon:

Exactly one year before he was assassinated, Dr. King preached a sermon at Riverside Church in Manhattan. By that point, he was suffering from overwork and exhaustion, and almost didn’t accept the invitation. The occasion was a protest against the war in Vietnam, a cause he became involved with toward the end of his life. He did go. And in his sermon, he said he decided to participate because There comes a time when Silence is a form of betrayal.  

It astounds me that King, Martin Luther King, would think he’s in danger of not speaking out, of growing lax, someone who spent his whole life and ran himself into the ground speaking the truth and proclaiming the Gospel. He never let up on this high standard he set for himself to speak up, and out, boldly, and without fail.  

So the question for us today, posed both by our readings and by the life and teachings of the incredible man we honor this weekend: Where are we silent when we should be speaking? Are we proclaiming Christ, making him manifest in our world, to the fullest of our ability? And what does that mean in our time and place? 

Join us for a Q&A with the Director of Rural and Migrant Ministries, the Rev. Richard Witt, who will also be our guest preacher that day. Richard has many years of experience working with the migrant communities in our state -- a border state -- and has a wealth of stories to tell. St. James the Less has been a supporter of RMM for almost 10 years and are very excited to have Richard back with us!

Join us as our youth performs to support Rural and Migrant Ministries. A fun night of fellowship, music, and education with the youth groups from Rural and Migrant Ministries. This program will be hosted by St. James, in partnership with Hitchcock Presbyterian Church in Scarsdale. All welcome!

If your child (all ages welcome) would like to perform, please indicate that on this form and you'll be hearing from someone at the church. Grown up performers are welcome and needed, too! 

Mother Storm will be attending a retreat at Holy Cross Episcopal Monastery in West Park, New York (about 1.5 hours from Scarsdale) this June, and would love if parishioners from St. James joined her. The retreat is titled: "Falling Upward, Spirituality in the Second Half of Life," and you can find more information about it here.

The retreat is based on a book by the same title by Richard Rohr, and we will read the book together before going on retreat. If you are interested in signing up, let us know at the link below, and then proceed straight to the Holy Cross website (linked above) and register to secure a spot.  

You can view this Sunday's bulletin at the link below. Names of all readers, servers, and acolytes are always listed on the last page of the bulletin. Readings are also there for readers to view in advance.