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, contact Kris Nanda at kkhnanda@hotmail.com.
SPP Photo Directory | June 12 to 14, 17 to 18
June 12 (Thu) to 14 (Sat), 17 (Tue) to 18 (Wed)
To celebrate St Peter & St Paul's Anglican Church's 140th anniversary, we are doing a Photo Directory! The photographers will be on site from Thursday, June 12 to Saturday, June 14 and again on Tuesday, June 17 to Wednesday, June 18. Schedule your portrait session below. When you sign-up, please include your e-mail address, and you will receive an appointment confirmation along with an appointment reminder.
We are looking for volunteers to help sign people in as they come to have their photos taken. We will need 2 volunteers for each time slot. If you are interested in being volunteer greeters, please sign up below.
St P&P at Ballpark | June 15
Sunday, June 15 at 1 PM (Fathers’ Day)
The Subcommittee for the Preservation of Fun and the Brothers of St Peter & St. Paul’s invite you to come out to see the Ottawa Titans baseball team at 1 PM. Games are played at the baseball stadium on Coventry Road – conveniently located off the Vanier Parkway exit from the Queensway or a short walk from the Tremblay LRT Station. These events are fun for all ages (you don't need to be a baseball fan to enjoy the outing)
Please click here to purchase your ticket. We will be sitting in Section NN lower, rows C-E, seats 11-20 - they are great seats – use the code RPCA25 or FATHERSDAY25 to get a special discounted price of $11 (plus tax)
Women’s Potluck Breakfast | June 14
One of our most popular annual events – Women’s Potluck Breakfast and Pool Party at Laurie’s at St Albert – will be taking place on Saturday, June 14. We will organize carpooling for the drive out to St. Albert.
The location has indoor and outdoor seating, an outdoor pool, and access to a river with kayaks. The women of the parish are invited to attend and are asked to bring a dish to share.
Choral Evensong Services
Our next Choral Evensong service will take place on Saturday, June 7 at 5 PM. Please note that there will be no Evensong service in May.
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 first Saturday of each month for this beautiful, meditative experience. We look forward to sharing this sacred time with you!
Mid-Week Eucharist Service
Join us for our Midweek Eucharist Services on Wednesdays at 12:15 PM.
Sunday Service Online
We invite you to join us online as we live-stream our services on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/StPandPOttawa/
Click to access the Worship Guide to follow along with the service.
Parish Update
THE COLLECT FOR THE SUNDAY AFTER THE ASCENSION
O God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.
When I was a kid, I felt that Jesus’ Ascension into heaven was bad news, or at best, my least favourite part of the Gospel story. The Ascension, in my thinking, was when Jesus left us behind. “I will not leave you as orphans,” and, “Behold I am with you always, even unto the end of the age,” rang hollow in my ears. It seemed that my only hope for joy was the bodily presence of Jesus to make things right; without that, I felt my life was pointless and doomed to a hopeless, lifelong struggle with sin.
Praise God that I discovered that this is not, in fact, what the Ascension of Jesus means. Jesus promises that it is good for us that He ascends. In fact, the Ascension is the crowning event of the Gospel story; without it, there is no Gospel.
That’s a big statement, so let me explain. We often reduce the Gospel only to the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus. And, of course, these too are essential to the Gospel. But when Jesus preaches the Gospel in His earthly ministry, He doesn’t say, “I’m going to die for your sins so if you believe in me you can go to heaven when you die.” No, what He says is, “Repent, the Kingdom of God is at hand.” The Gospel is about Jesus establishing His gracious reign in the world He made, and by His reign, He puts all things to right. The Ascension is nothing other than the ultimate point of the whole Gospel, where King Jesus is seated on the throne of the Kingdom of God and begins His work, here and now, to restore and redeem. As King, He sends the Holy Spirit to His subjects, so that they have access to the royal treasury, giving us all we need for a life of righteousness, hope, and joy here and now until He descends His throne again to finally and fully reveal His Kingdom and make all things new.
I often compare Jesus’ earthly life versus His ascended life to the light of a laser pointer. His earthly life is like when you shine a laser directly on the ground. It gives light, yes, but only to what it shines on directly. In Jesus’ earthly life, He healed people, casted out demons, brought comfort and hope, yes, but for every one person He healed, there were millions of others elsewhere in the world left in darkness. However, if you shine a laser pointer into a certain kind of prism, it diffuses the light so that it actually gives light to the whole room. When Jesus ascended, “He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things” (Eph 4:10). Jesus didn’t go away at the Ascension, no; Jesus ascended so as to fill all things. He is more immediately present to you and to me than He ever could have been in his previous earthly ministry. King Jesus is seated on the throne, ruling and working to reveal His Kingdom at your very elbow - no, in your very heart!
Because of the Ascension, this life is not just a waiting period, trying (and failing) to resist sin until either we die or Jesus appears. No, because of the Ascension, this life is a raucous, joyous adventure of embodying and revealing His gracious reign here and now by the power of the Holy Spirit and with King Jesus at our side. That deserves another round of alleluias indeed!
UPCOMING EVENTS – Mark Your Calendars
June 1: Sunday service with Junior Church and Nursery at 10:30 AM. (Streamed online)
June 4: Midweek Eucharist at 12:15 PM (Every Wednesday)
June 7: Choral Evensong at 5 PM
June 12-14, 17-18: St P&P 140th Anniversary Photo Directory Photo appointments. Register here.
June 14: Women’s Breakfast and Pool Party in St Albert. Register here.
June 15: St P&P at the Ball Park at 1 PM. For details, click here.
Choral Evensong: Next service at 5 PM on Saturday, June 7
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.
St P&P 140th Anniversary Photo Directory
To celebrate St Peter & St Paul's Anglican Church's 140th anniversary, we are creating a Photo Directory! The photographers will be on site from Thursday, June 12 to Saturday, June 14 and again on Tuesday, June 17 to Wednesday, June 18. When you sign-up, please include your e-mail address, and you will receive an appointment confirmation along with an appointment reminder. Reserve Photo Appointment here.
We are looking for volunteers to help sign people in as they come to have their photos taken. We will need 2 volunteers for each time slot. If you are interested in being volunteer greeters, please sign up here.
Women’s Breakfast in St Albert on June 14
One of our most popular annual events – Women’s Potluck Breakfast and Pool Party at Laurie’s – will be taking place on Saturday, June 14 at 10 AM. We will organize carpooling for the drive out to Laurie’s home in St. Albert – details coming next week.
Laurie’s home has indoor and outdoor seating, an outdoor pool, and access to a river with kayaks. The women of the parish are invited to attend and are asked to bring a dish to share. Register here.
St P&P at the Ball Park - Sunday June 15 at 1 PM
The Subcommittee for the Preservation of Fun and the Brothers of St P&P’s invite you to come out to see the Ottawa Titans baseball team at 1 PM. 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) Please click here to purchase your ticket. We will be sitting in Section NN lower, rows C-E, seats 11-20 - they are great seats. Use the code RPCA25 or FATHERSDAY25 to get a special discounted price of $11 (plus tax) For more information, please click here or contact Kris Nanda.
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 here or contact Kris Nanda at kkhnanda@hotmail.com.
CHILDREN’S MINISTRIES
As this weekend is the Annual Parish Retreat at Camp Iawah, There will be no Jr Church program this Sunday. The Nursery space will be open but not staffed. A gentle reminder that our nursery space is for children aged 0-4 only. If you need to take your older children out of the service at any time please use the Library.
PLAYGROUP
Our final Playgroup gathering will be on June 3 from 9:30 AM to 11:30 AM. We pray for a safe and happy summer break for our Playgroup families.
St P&P’s Merchandise
You may have noticed the youth and youth group team sporting new “SPP Youth” t-shirts over the past few months, and a number of you have expressed interest in having one of your own. Your wishes have been granted! We will have t-shirts and hats for sale at the retreat this weekend. Each item is $25 and all proceeds will go to a charity of the youth’s choosing. You may pay using e-transfer; see Pastor Harman to get your St P&P merch!
Please help us support the Centretown Community Food Centre!
Bring in non-perishable food items on Sunday mornings. For more information, click here.
ONLINE MORNING PRAYER Online Mondays - Saturdays at 8 AM
Everyone is invited to join us on Zoom daily for Morning Prayer. Morning Prayer is a great way to start your day with prayer, Scripture, and Christian fellowship. For details, please contact the office admin@peterpaulottawa.com
Thursday Morning Bible Study Online at 10:45 AM
The Thursday morning Bible study meets at 10:45 AM and ends at noon. We meet on Zoom and all are welcome! For details, please contact the office admin@peterpaulottawa.com
Rickwood Fund Application Update
Our church has been blessed with a memorial funding source, the Nora Green Rickwood Memorial Life Long Learning Fund, that provides funds to the church each year to encourage learning, growth, and leadership among the clergy and laity. The application cutoff dates will be March 1 and September 1. To apply for a grant from the Rickwood Fund, contact the office admin@peterpaulottawa.com or call 613-235-1636.
Short-Term Mission Fund
At St Peter & St Paul’s there is an Outreach Partners Committee that administers funds for various outreach initiatives. Part of the funding available has been designated for short-term missions and special requests. Money is available to help pay the costs for someone engaged in a relevant event or mission activity. If you are interested in finding out more about this, please contact the office via email: admin@peterpaulottawa.com or phone (613-235-1636).
Volunteer Opportunities for Food Makers, Servers, and Cleaning-uppers
The Hospitality Team is a great way to serve at the church in a low-commitment volunteer position. Even those who can only help out once or twice a year are welcome to join the team. For more information or to sign up, click here.
For those looking for more of a regular commitment, our church runs a weekly drop-in on Friday evenings from 7 PM to 9 PM called A Place To Go. We have volunteers who make the soup and sandwiches once a month and volunteers who purchase the other groceries needed from the supermarket. We also have volunteers who spend one Friday night a month at the church serving those who gather. If you would like to learn more about A Place To Go or volunteering, please click 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, pay stations, and keep up to date on winter parking bans here.
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.