VBS Kids Summer Camp | August 17 to 21
VBS Summer Camp will take place again this summer and will run August 17-21 from 9 AM to 2 PM.
Our theme this year: Jesus is the Light of the World. Camp is for children born 2015-2021. Registration is now open here. Please register early as space is limited.
Canada Day Water Project
On Canada Day, we will have a team of people handing out water and allowing people to use our washrooms. This is a great opportunity for us as a parish to show the love of Christ in a practical way. The Canadian Bible Society will also be joining us to hand out Bibles.
There will be three shifts: 10am-12pm, 12pm-2pm, and 2pm-4pm. We will need people to be inside keeping the washrooms clean and well stocked; and people outside serving water and connecting with the public. Ideally, we will have 5 people per shift: 3 outside, 2 inside. If you are interested in joining the team, please sign up below.
St P&P at Ballpark | June 21
Sunday, June 21 at 1 PM (Fathers’ Day)
The Subcommittee for the Preservation of Fun invites you to join us after Church on June 15th (Father's Day) for an outing to see the Ottawa Titans at the Ottawa Baseball Stadium. Games are played at the baseball stadium on Coventry Road. These events are fun for all ages (you don't need to be a baseball fan to enjoy the outing). There is a special code of RPCA26 to get a discount. Please click https://tickets.ottawatitans.com/ to purchase your ticket. We will be sitting in Section NN.
Choral Evensong Services | June 13
Our April service of Choral Evensong will be on Saturday, June 13, here at the church from 5 PM to 6 PM.
Choral Evensong is a traditional evening service of prayer, music, and scripture. It combines hymns, psalms, and anthems sung by our choir with readings from both the Old and New Testaments, creating a peaceful and reflective time of worship. The purpose of these services is to take time at the end of the busyness of our weeks for quiet reflection, helping us to pause, give thanks for the week that’s passed, and prepare our hearts for worship the next morning.
We hope you’ll join us at 5 PM on the second Saturday of each month for this beautiful, meditative experience. We look forward to sharing this sacred time with you!
Celebrate Let's Bike Month this June with St P&P Pedalers
June is Let's Bike Month and our parish has a team: St P&P Pedalers. You can join the team to keep track of your bike trips this month. Open to all ages, it's a fun way of seeing how many kilometres you cycle, how much gas and money you save, and how much greenhouse gas emissions you avoid (and possibly win a prize). For more information or to sign up below or contact our church office at adm
Parish Retreat | May 29-31
Our fourth annual parish retreat will take place on May 29 - 31 at Camp IAWAH.
This all-ages retreat has been a highlight for our church family, giving us the opportunity to worship, learn, play, eat, and laugh together in a beautiful setting, located only a 90-minute drive from the church, just outside of Westport, Ontario. While we encourage people to come for the whole weekend, there is also the option of only coming for the day on Saturday. There will be separate teaching and special activities for children during the teaching sessions.
There is also an opportunity to donate to a scholarship fund to offset the costs of those who are unable to afford the retreat registration fees. To contribute to the retreat scholarship fund, you can e-transfer funds (offering@peterpaulottawa.com) and indicate “Retreat Scholarship Fund” or you can donate cash or a cheque made out to St Peter & St Paul’s Anglican with “Retreat Scholarship Fund” written on the envelope and on the memo line of the cheque.
To apply for a scholarship, please select the scholarship amount (50% or 100%) that you would like to apply for when registering for the retreat. If you are applying for a scholarship, please choose ‘Pay in Person (cash or check)’ to complete the registration. Please wait for an email from the church office when the scholarship has been applied for BEFORE you pay the outstanding balance.
Please register by May 25.
Midweek Eucharist Service
Join us for our Midweek Eucharist Services on Wednesday at 12:15 PM. This is a spoken service and is a great way to spend some time in worship in the middle of your busy work week. Some of our major feast days (Saints' Days) are celebrated at these services. Everyone is welcome.
Parish Update
COLLECT FOR TRINITY SUNDAY
Almighty and everlasting God, you have given to us your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of your divine Majesty to worship the Unity: Keep us steadfast in this faith and worship, and bring us at last to see you in your one and eternal glory, O Father; who with the Son and the Holy Spirit live and reign, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
“In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him.” - Mark 1:35-36
Jesus retreated. Jesus, God incarnate, retreated to be with God. Jesus - humanity at our absolute best, when we are most at one with God - even Jesus needed quiet time alone with God. This tells us something about us that is easy to miss or dismiss as unrealistic in our frenetic world. We are made to rest in quietness and stillness.
We can and should, of course, experience communion with God in our work, play, and activity. But even when we do this well (which for me is admittedly rare), Jesus’ witness tells us that we are missing out on full communion with God so long as we don’t give ourselves even that small bit of quiet space for prayerful retreat.
Some of us are getting away to the parish retreat this weekend, and some of us are not, but whether or not you are attending, the invitation to retreat with Jesus is open to you. For all of us, attending the retreat or no, that the parish retreat is happening this weekend at all is a reminder for us to carve out a bit of time to get up, go out to a deserted place, and pray.
It doesn’t have to be a significant bit of time. In the same breath that Mark tells us that Jesus retreats to pray, he tells us that “Simon and his companions hunted for him,” a reality that I’m sure any parent of young children can identify with. Jesus probably didn’t get a lot of time alone to pray before those hunting for Him found Him and demanded His attention. The point is that just as His disciples were hunting for Jesus, Jesus was hunting for the Father. Even in those brief moments of hunting for the Father, Jesus found Him, and found His small, brief moment of quiet to pray.
Even just that brief moment of hunting for Jesus in the quiet is worth it. Take what time you can this weekend, wherever you are. Arrange what you need to get a few moments of quiet. Pay attention to your breathing, the Holy Spirit’s own breath ebbing and flowing in your lungs. Hunt for that still, small voice, or even just His quiet presence. Jesus is waiting for you, hiding in the thicket like a partridge under the cover of the quiet. Happy hunting!
UPCOMING EVENTS – Mark Your Calendars
May 29-31: Parish Retreat at Camp IAWAH.
May 31: Sunday service at 10:30 AM with Jr Church. (Streamed online)
June 13: Choral Evensong from 5 PM to 6 PM.
June 14: Sharing about The Artizo Institute and hospitality hour after Sunday service.
June 14: First Fruits Sunday in the Capital Campaign.
June 21: St P&P at the BallPark at 1 PM. See details below.
June 28: Hannah Willmann sharing about her ministry with IVCF after Sunday service.
July 1: Canada Day Water Project from 10 AM to 4 PM in 2 hour shifts. Volunteer to serve here.
Parking at Church
We are blessed to be part of a lively parish that has multiple ministries taking place throughout the week. We all contribute to the smooth functioning of the church when we remember that both the staff parking lot and the Metcalfe alleyway are reserved for staff and ministry leaders who are on duty and have been invited to park there. If you have not been invited to park on site or you are not serving or on duty, please park on the street or the paid parking lot next to our church. If you are serving at a church event and need to park at the church, please contact the church office at admin@peterpaulottawa.com or at 613-235-1636 during office hours (Tuesdays to Thursdays from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM).
Choral Evensong - Saturday, June 13 at 5 PM
Our next service of Evensong will be on Saturday, June 13, from 5 PM to 6 PM in the sanctuary. This will be our last Evensong before we break for summer, so come soak in prayer, scripture and choral music for the last time before autumn.
St P&P at the BallPark - Sunday, June 21 at 1 PM
The Subcommittee for the Preservation of Fun invites you to join us after Church on June 21 (Father's Day) for an outing to see the Ottawa Titans at the Ottawa Baseball Stadium. Games are played at the baseball stadium on Coventry Road. These events are fun for all ages (you don't need to be a baseball fan to enjoy the outing). There is a special code of RPCA26 to get a discount. Please click https://tickets.ottawatitans.com/ to purchase your ticket. We will be sitting in Section NN. Talk to Kris Nanda if you have any questions.
Celebrate Let's Bike Month this June with St P&P Pedalers
June is Let's Bike Month and our parish has a team: St P&P Pedalers. You can join the team to keep track of your bike trips this month. Open to all ages, it's a fun way of seeing how many kilometres you cycle, how much gas and money you save, and how much greenhouse gas emissions you avoid (and possibly win a prize). For more information or to sign up https://app.letsbike.ca/t/69f7a983e2684, or contact the church office at admin@peterpaulottawa.com.
Canada Day Water Project - Wednesday, July 1 at 10 AM
On Canada Day, we will have a team of people handing out water and allowing people to use our washrooms. This is a great opportunity for us as a parish to show the love of Christ in a practical way. There will be three shifts: 10 AM-12 PM, 12 PM-2 PM, and 2 PM-4 PM. We will need people to be inside keeping the washrooms clean and well stocked; and people outside serving water and connecting with the public. Ideally, we will have 5 people per shift: 3 outside, 2 inside. If you are interested in joining the team, please sign up using this form.
Looking for Sandwich Makers, Soup Makers, and Friday Night Volunteers
Our church runs a weekly drop-in on Friday evenings from 7 PM to 9 PM called A Place To Go. This ministry gives us the opportunity to provide Christian hospitality to our neighbours in Centretown and it provides a place for food, fellowship, community, and prayer for those who may not have anywhere else to go.
We depend on a large number of volunteers to make this ministry happen. A team of about seven volunteers (different ones each week) including a team leader prepares Stiller Hall, the drinks, and the food for serving. We pray together before opening the doors at 7 PM and then serve our guests. We have a lot of fun and get plenty of exercise! We also spend time in the kitchen washing dishes, running them through the sanitizer and putting them away.
In addition to our in-person volunteers, we rely on a team of soup makers and sandwich makers. Our sandwich makers make four loaves of sandwiches at home and then drop them off at the church once a month. Sometimes sandwich makers who live close to one other will bring one another’s sandwiches. Those making sandwiches can submit grocery receipts to the church for reimbursement.
A Place To Go is in need of people who are willing to make sandwiches once a month, make a large batch of soup once a month, and who are willing to volunteer at the church from 6 PM to 9:30 PM once a month.
If you would like to learn more about A Place To Go or volunteering, please click here or speak with Pastor Michelle.
Meals Ministry
Do you like to cook or buy and deliver meals? Our Meal Train Ministry is looking for people to cook and deliver meals. Providing meals is a practical way of supporting others during a challenging time. It is a real blessing to receive a meal following surgery or recovering from an illness. It is also a wonderful gift to young families after the birth of a new baby. If you are interested in joining the team or learning more about this ministry, please email Carolyn Vanderheide at carolynvanderheide@gmail.com
CHILDREN’S MINISTRIES
Our Nursery will be open but not staffed this week as many of our volunteers are attending the Parish retreat. Parents will need to accompany their baby or child should they choose to use the Nursery space. We will resume our program next Sunday.
All Jr Church children will gather together as one group this week. Our all-in lesson will take some time to review the church calendar. Every Sunday has a colour - green or white or purple or red. Trinity Sunday marks the beginning of the season of green. The great green growing season. All year long we have heard the stories of how God the Father loved us so much that He sent Jesus to save us. Last week we heard how the Holy Spirit came down on all of God’s people. In this great green growing season of Trinity, we continue to grow in our understanding and love of God. The Holy Spirit helps us every day to love God and love others just as Jesus did. He is the third person of the Trinity. He lives in all those who have faith as our helper, guide and teacher. Together the Father and the Son and the Spirit are ONE God. Carolyn and Teri are with our group this week.
Registration Forms
Junior Church registration for the 2025/2026 school year can be found here. Junior Church is for children born between 2014-2021.
Nursery registration for Nursery can be found here. Nursery is for children born between 2022-2026.
Playgroup on Wednesday Mornings
Playgroup is at 10 AM on Wednesdays and is for parents and caregivers of children up to the age of 5. This has become an important time of connecting during a season of life that can be isolating. All are welcome!
VBS Summer Camp - August 17 to 21
VBS Summer Camp will take place again this summer and will run August 17-21 from 9 AM to 2 PM. Our theme this year: Jesus is the Light of the World. Camp is for children born 2015-2021.
Registration is now open here. Please register early as space is limited.
Online Thursday morning Bible Study - Thursdays at 10:45 AM to 12:00 PM
The Thursday morning Bible Study is studying the Book of 1 Peter. We meet online via Zoom every Thursday from 10:45 AM to 12 PM. If you are interested in joining, please contact the church office at admin@peterpaulottawa.com
Online Morning Prayer Monday - Saturday at 8 AM
Join us every morning (Monday - Saturday) at 8 AM to take part in Morning Prayer over Zoom. We gather virtually for about a half hour to worship the Lord, read Scripture, pray, and enjoy Christian fellowship. It is a wonderful way to begin the day. We use the 2019 Book of Common Prayer as our guide, but you do not need to own a prayer book to participate; all the words are on the screen. If you are interested in joining, please contact the church office at admin@peterpaulottawa.com
Hospitality Team
Thinking you would like to volunteer somewhere, but are afraid of making a regular commitment? The Hospitality Team may be for you!
The Hospitality Team hosts Hospitality Hours after church, receptions, potlucks, and other parish events in Stiller Hall. You are welcome to join us once a year, once in a blue moon, or every time we host an event. You are welcome even if baking is not your thing. You can set out dishes, plate cookies, put jugs of water in the fridge, bring dirty dishes into the kitchen, help load or unload the dishwasher –there are lots of different things to do. You will receive an email when there is an upcoming event and you can respond or ignore, depending on your availability. Join the team by signing up here.
CHURCH RESOURCES
Church Office: The church office is open from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM Tuesdays through Thursdays. You can reach the office by phone at 613-235-1636 or by email at admin@peterpaulottawa.com.
Worship: We gather together for worship at 10:30 AM on Sundays, both in-person at the church and online on our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/StPandPOttawa/)
Please use the Worship Guide to follow along with the service. You can join us in person at 152 Metcalfe Street.
Parking: There is a paid lot directly behind the church on Gloucester Street that offers all-day parking at a flat rate on Sundays. For street parking, please check posted signs and pay stations.
Online: Check out our Facebook page for livestreams of our services, audio recordings of our sermons, and other news and posts. You can listen to our Parish podcast and sermons on your favourite podcast app by searching for “peterpaulottawa” and subscribing. And there is also our Website where you can listen to our sermons and podcasts, sign up for events, and read an extended cut of the weekly parish update.