St. James Sentinel 23:25

FORWARD MOVEMENT - Acts 2:24. But God raised him up, having freed him from death, because it was impossible for him to be held in its power.

When I think about God incarnate being within the clutches of death and yet unable to be held permanently there, I think about Samson. He deceived his enemy by telling her that he could be bound by fresh bowstrings, or new ropes, or a tight braid. And once he found himself bound by those things, he broke free from his bonds and went about his business. Jesus’s enemy deceived himself into thinking that God could be bound by the bowstrings of creaturely death. The ropes tied around him were unspeakably awful, but ultimately the braids were no more capable of holding Jesus than the Philistines’ cords were of holding Samson. To admit Jesus into the realm of death was to sign over the title to him and watch him do an extreme makeover, home edition. To seek to bind Jesus to death just like all other humans was something that the devil ultimately could not resist. Unlike Samson though, Jesus’s deception and self-liberation were not for the purpose of his own gratification, but for ours. Source Forward Day by Day

THANK YOU HELPING HANDS - Thank you all for your dedication, faithfulness, flexibility, and support during the past three years. It has been an adventure and God’s presence has surely been with us as we “bobbed and weaved” and “dropped back and punted” through all of the challenges and changes necessitated by the pandemic and construction. Although construction continues in the Nave, we can “play in the kitchen", use part of the Parish Hall for serving/eating, and resume the food and fellowship part of our ministry. After the church construction is complete this fall, we should be able to use as much of the Parish Hall as our numbers require. This is very exciting news and will be welcomed by our clients and volunteers alike. Many of us have sorely missed the connection and community we formed and will be glad to have some extra time to visit with our clients and each other. Also exciting is the addition of two new volunteers, Elizabeth Hagler and Hannah Morav, who joined us on June 3 and are looking forward to our coming events. If you know of people who would be interested in learning more about Helping Hands, please encourage them to visit on a distribution day. We’ll celebrate Independence Day on July 1 and Labor Day, September 26, with the traditional hot dogs and fixings. As we move forward, we will be reinstating the Soup, Sandwich, etc. sign up list and recipes for folks who want to be a part of the ministry on a more limited basis. Later this summer, we’ll remind parents and students that volunteering with Helping Hands is a great way to meet the community service requirement in some local schools. Many thanks for all you do for St James and Helping Hands.

JUSTICE KNOX - On Monday night, June 12th, nearly 30 St. James parishioners gathered with hundreds of other Justice Knox Network Members at New Hope Missionary Baptist Church to celebrate victories of our Justice Knox Nehemiah Action Assembly which was held in April. There was much to celebrate: 1200+ people interested in a more just community attended the Nehemiah Action. Mayor Kincannon,

several Knoxville City Council members, and one Knox County Commissioner also attended. Knoxville Mayor Kincannon responded with a hearty "Yes!" to the asks that were made of her at the Action. Since then, Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs has met with a large delegation of Justice Knox leaders to discuss how to best address the ongoing and growing homelessness in our area. The Justice Knox Investment Drive which supports our 2 full-time organizers and the training of clergy and team leaders was kicked off by each faith community gathering with its attendees and folks committing their annual investment in this work. Our St. James investment goal this year is $9,000. Collectively, those in attendance pledged $3,800. Team Leaders Butch & Carol Yates, Mark Reddaway, and Margaret Bickley will be following up with those Network Members who were unable to attend to add their investment pledges to the tally. Justice Knox continues to be one of the easiest and most effective ways to fulfill part of the commandment given in Micah 6:8
"to do justice, love mercy, and to walk humbly with God." We worship God by attending weekly Sunday worship services. Our parish provides mercy services through our Doorstep Ministry, Helping Hands,
and our clergy discretionary fund. Justice work, as demonstrated by Nehemiah when he gathered a great assembly before the officials in power, requires our being gathered with a large number of organized people who have justice on their mind and hearts. If you have questions and/or want to be involved in this ministry, please contact Fr. John Mark or one of our Justice Knox Team Leaders.

LOCAL NEEDS - Compassion Coalition, of which St. James is an active member, is transforming our city. It represents the body of Christ working together in unity to serve the greatest needs. These local needs have been identified by Compassion Coalition . . .

A young man who has aged out of foster care recently obtained employment and needs black button-up shirts (Large). If you can help or have KARM cards, please contact mikayla@compassioncoalition.org or (865) 251-1591 x 260.

A family of 8 (6 children) needs toiletry items such as baby lotion, baby wash, toilet paper, laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent, toothpaste, baby wipes, size 4 diapers, and trash bags. If you can help please contact jessica.lawson@mcnabb.org.

A mom in Knox County with some physical limitations needs assistance with moving some of her belongings from a storage unit to her new apartment. If you can help contact alison.ward@mcnabb.org.

PRIDE MASS 2023 UPDATE - Pride Mass will take place on Sunday, June 25 at Episcopal Church of the Good Samaritan, (425 N. Cedar Bluff Rd, Knoxville). Preceding the service, beginning at 3:30 pm, a Reconciling Panel Discussion will feature a conversation about the Rainbow Initiative: LGBTQ+ Refugee and Immigrant resettlement in the U.S. The panel members will include Episcopal Bishop Brian Cole, Ms. Allison Duvall of Episcopal Migration Ministries, a representative of the U.S. State Department, Ms. Sinêad Love of Church of the Good Samaritan, and a representative of Bridge Refugee Services. Our local refugee resettlement organization, Bridge Refugee Services, partners with Episcopal Migration Ministries in this vital effort. Pride Mass will begin at 5 pm in the nave of Good Samaritan. The Rt. Rev. Kevin Strickland, Bishop of the Southeastern Synod of the ELCA, is our preacher. The Rev. John Tirro, of St. John’s Lutheran, will gather musicians for a community ensemble for the service. Our collection will go to the local efforts of the Rainbow Initiative. We’re honored to have ecumenical clergy participants from the ELCA, PCUSA, and UMC churches as well!  A reception with a table fair will follow in the parish hall. NOTE TO SINGERS: If you’d like to sing in the pick-up choir for Pride Mass, a short rehearsal will take place in the Good Samaritan Nave at 4:00pm before the service. For more information, a shareable video invitation can be found at: https://vimeo.com/user12765540

ALTAR FLOWERS - It is a St. James tradition to place flowers or greenery on the altar in honor of, or in thanksgiving for, loved ones. Altar flowers are needed for Aug 20, Sep 10, Sep 17, & 24, Oct 1, 8, 15, 22, & 29. Please contact Linda Goins for information  lgoins@stjamesknox.org or 865-523-5687.

KROGER DONATIONS - The Kroger Co. Family of Stores is committed to bringing hope and help to the local neighborhoods we call home. Our stores are on a mission to not just part of, but to help create a stronger community. We recognize that every community has unique causes that need support. Thank you for being such an important organization in our community. We encourage you to ask your supporters to link their Community Rewards Card to St. James Episcopal Church. Community Rewards is easy to use. The more your supporters shop with us, the more money St. James will earn! We are committed to carefully protecting our customer's personal information. In order to meet their expectation of privacy, we have adopted a simple policy to never share a customer's personal information. Our privacy policy applies to Community Rewards participation as well. During the 3-month period of March 2 - May 29, 13 households were responsible for a Kroger total donation of $38.18 to St. James.