As friends and followers of Jesus, we know that welcome is close to the heart of God. In God's infinite grace, we are welcomed as we are, through the waters of baptism, to find our place in the Body of Christ and the Kingdom of God - God's beloved community - a new and alternate way of relating to one another, bound together not by flesh and blood, but through hope and faith in Christ's death and resurrection - through hope and faith that love will always win.
To be sure, the Good News of God's welcome isn't a popular message in a world that glorifies power, all too often elevated through the rejection, exclusion, and division of and amongst our fellow human beings. In the Gospel of Luke, we find that Jesus himself endured disdain from the religious leaders, who grumbled, saying, "this man welcomes sinners and eats with them" (Luke 15:2). Perhaps Jesus was the original mind behind the modern meme: It's time to build a bigger table, not a higher fence. In Christ, no one is excluded. With Jesus, nothing is off the table. Join us at Grace Church this fall as we celebrate the welcome we've all received in Christ, as we seek to "build a bigger table" while bringing new and difficult topics to the fore. |
Save the Dates:
Monday, September 18 at 6pm - Beer and Hymns
Grace has been invited to gather at Oddstory Brewery downtown for an informal hymn sing and beverages with Northminster Presbyterian and First Christian Church
Sunday, November 5 at 5:30 pm - All Saints' Evensong
A traditional English choral service featuring hymns, anthems, and canticles celebrating the Saints of God in our community and in our lives, past and present. Learn more about All Saints' Day here.
December 3 - 5:00 pm Advent Lessons and Carols, Followed By St. Nicholas Night Dinner and Children's Program
Advent Lessons and Carols is a traditional service of nine readings, each followed by a musical selection. The readings and music tell the whole of the salvation story up to the Incarnation and Nativity of Jesus Christ. This is an ideal way to quieten our hearts and mark the Advent Season. Learn more about Lessons and Carols here.
Grace has been invited to gather at Oddstory Brewery downtown for an informal hymn sing and beverages with Northminster Presbyterian and First Christian Church
Sunday, November 5 at 5:30 pm - All Saints' Evensong
A traditional English choral service featuring hymns, anthems, and canticles celebrating the Saints of God in our community and in our lives, past and present. Learn more about All Saints' Day here.
December 3 - 5:00 pm Advent Lessons and Carols, Followed By St. Nicholas Night Dinner and Children's Program
Advent Lessons and Carols is a traditional service of nine readings, each followed by a musical selection. The readings and music tell the whole of the salvation story up to the Incarnation and Nativity of Jesus Christ. This is an ideal way to quieten our hearts and mark the Advent Season. Learn more about Lessons and Carols here.
STEWARDSHIP
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"Come and See"
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Upcoming Family Sundays
- September 10 - Including a Special Blessing for the New Sunday School Year
- October 8 - St Francis Day Animal Blessing and Outdoor Service - Bring your pet(s) as well as dog or cat food to donate to those in need at Metropolitan Ministries!
- November 12
- December 10
Godly Play Returns to Grace
An Interactive, Montessori-based approach to children's Christian Formation.
For Preschool through Grade 2 During the 10:45 Service, except for 2nd Sunday Family Sundays.
For Preschool through Grade 2 During the 10:45 Service, except for 2nd Sunday Family Sundays.
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November 12
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Every year in September, people enter their names for the formation of new Supper Clubs. Each Club has around 8 to 10 members whomeet throughout the year for meals together. Each Club forms its own practices and expectations, but most Clubs meet once a month and meals are done on a potluck basis. Both long-term members and new members to Grace have built great fellowship and friendship through participation in one or more Supper Clubs.
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KEY DATES AT-A-GLANCE
September 2017
Sunday, September 10: Rally Day, "Come-and-see" Family Sunday
- 9:30 Christian Formation Programs Resume
- 9:30 Preschool and Elementary Parents' Open House in the Undercroft
- Children's Sermon During both services
- 12pm Annual Parish Picnic and Ministry Fair on the Lawn
- 5pm ChattEY at St. Martin's (Meet at Grace at 4:45)
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Joining God, Remaking Church, Changing the World by Alan J. Roxburgh.
- 9:30 Breakfast Banquet and All-Parish Stewardship Forum Part I in the Undercroft
- No Regular Adult Formation
- 4pm Brainerd by Grace Community Gardens Mandatory Meeting
- 5pm EYC Youth Group, 6:30 Evening Worship
- 6 - 8pm Beer and Hymns at Oddstory Brewery with Northminster Presbyterian and First Christian
- 7pm Joseph Campbell Roundtable
- 6:30pm Outreach Meeting
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Joining God, Remaking Church, Changing the World by Alan J. Roxburgh.
- 9:30 Breakfast Banquet and All-Parish Stewardship Forum Part II in the Undercroft
- No Regular Adult Formation
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Joining God, Remaking Church, Changing the World by Alan J. Roxburgh.
October 2017
Sunday, October 1: "Commitment Sunday"
- 9:30 Christian Formation
- 5pm EYC Youth Group, 6:30 Evening Worship
- 5-7pm at Grace: Bobbie Crow Memorial Gallery Dedication w/Civic Arts League
- 8:00 First Service in the Church
- No Christian Formation
- 10:45 Outdoor Service in the Courtyard - Bring your pets!
- After Church: Grace at Chattanooga PRIDE
- 9:30 Christian Formation
- 5pm ChattEY at Grace
- 7pm Joseph Campbell Roundtable
- 6:30pm Outreach Meeting
- 10am - 3pm Fall Grounds Workday
- 7pm Grace Speaks 10th Anniversary Keynote with Rachel Held Evans, Reception Following
- 9:30 All-Parish Forum with Rachel Held Evans in the Undercroft
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Radical Welcome: Embracing God, the Other, and the Spirit of Transformation by Stephanie Spellers
- 11am Halloween Carnival at the Brainerd Market
- 9:30 Christian Formation
- 5pm EYC Youth Group, 6:30 Evening Worship
November 2017
Thursday, November 2
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Radical Welcome: Embracing God, the Other, and the Spirit of Transformation by Stephanie Spellers
- 9:30 Christian Formation
- 5:30 Choral Evensong for the Feast of All Saints, Reception Following
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Radical Welcome: Embracing God, the Other, and the Spirit of Transformation by Stephanie Spellers
- 9:30 All-Parish Forum with Bridge Refugees in the Undercroft
- Children's Sermon at Both Services
- 5pm ChattEY at St. Timothy's Signal Mountain (Meet at Grace at 4:30)
- 9:30 Christian Formation
- 5pm EYC Youth Group, 6:30 Evening Worship
- 6:30pm Outreach Meeting
- 7pm Joesph Campbell Roundtable
- 6pm Annual Thanksgiving Worship and Soup Supper
- 9:30 Christian Formation
December 2017
Saturday, December 2
- The Ordination and Consecration of Brian Cole, Bishop-Elect of East Tennessee at Church of the Ascension, Knoxville
- 9:30 Christian Formation
- 5pm Advent Lessons and Carols
- 6:15pm St. Nicholas Night Dinner and Children's Program
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Beginnings and Endings (And What Happens in Between) by Maggi Dawn
- The Annual Bizarre Bizarre Sponsored by the Brainerd Market
- 9:30 Christian Formation
- Children's Sermon at both services
- 5pm ChattEY at Southside Abbey (Meet at Grace at 4:45)
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Beginnings and Endings (And What Happens in Between) by Maggi Dawn
- Annual Children's Christmas Pageant During 10:45 Service
- 9:30 Christian Formation
- 5pm EYC Youth Group, 6:30 Evening Worship
- 7pm Joseph Campbell Solstice and Storytelling Event
- 6pm Potluck Grace Studies Book Review: Beginnings and Endings (And What Happens in Between) by Maggi Dawn
- 10am Morning Prayer (Advent IV)
- No Christian Formation Programs
- 5pm Christmas Eve Family Service
- 10:30pm Musical Prelude
- 11:00pm The Christ Mass
- Services at 8:00 and 10:45
- No Christian Formation