Monthly Archives: November 2024

O Come Emmanuel

Posted on 28/11/2024 | Leave a comment

From Father Iain, All Saints Chiang Mai

Join us as we celebrate Advent Sunday!

CHRISTMAS SNACKS POTLUCK THIS SUNDAY
Dear Friends,

This Sunday is Advent Sunday – the first day of the Church year! It is a day when we anticipate the coming of Jesus at Christmas and begin to prepare our hearts for the Christ-Child! Christmas is about then and it is about now: the coming of Christ in Bethlehem two thousand years ago, and the coming of Christ into our hearts, and into our world, today.

The most famous Advent hymn is O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, it is a prayer for the coming of Jesus. The coming of Jesus is needed even more in this world of growing conflict in the Middle East and elsewhere!

Last year I added a verse to the Advent hymn which is a prayer for Palestine:

O come, O come, O Saviour of mine
And ransom captive Palestine
O bring thy peace, set all men free
Who dwell betwixt the River and the Sea.

This year I have adapted the first verse as a prayer for Israel:

O come, O come, Emmanuel
Bring peace to warring Israel
That fights in righteous anger and fear
Until the Son of God appear.

The chorus is a prayer also:

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, And set all people free.

As we approach Christmas, we pray for peace and reconciliation between all people.

The scripture readings for this Sunday will be Jeremiah 33:14-16, 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13, and Luke 21:25-36, and we will be singing the hymns O Come, O come Emmanuel; Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus; and Joy to the World!

Use this link to join on Zoom on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
Meeting ID: 548 801 501

Video of Last Sunday’s Service!

Video of last Sunday’s service for the Transgender Day of Remembrance is available on the All Saints YouTube channel!

Events Coming Up

Saturday 30th November: Vicarage Christmas Tree Decorating
Sunday 1st December: Advent Sunday & Gingerbread Tea Party
Saturday 14th December: Festival of Christmas Carols
Tuesday 24th December: Midnight Mass
Wednesday 25th December: Christmas Morning Eucharist
Christmas Lunch at the Vicarage
Saturday 28th December: Christmas at the Youth Charity Foundation

Vicarage Decoration – This Saturday!

Eleven people joined the decorating party on Tuesday and we put up the five Christmas trees. Pizza was provided!

You are now invited this Saturday, 30th November, at 6 p.m. to join the Youth Charity Foundation children in decorating the vicarage Christmas trees.

This Sunday – Advent Sunday – Barbara’s Gingerbread Tea Party

Making gingerbreads at Barbara’s

This Sunday, 1st December, our service will be followed by decorating the church and then a Christmas snack potluck lunch and Gingerbread Tea Party at Barbara’s home. Bring savory snacks to share!

The Hangman

Barbara writes:

Father Iain I forgot to tell the church about the reprise of our Gate Theater thrilling courtroom drama where the audience decides the verdict. It’s this week weds to sat. Nov 27-30. Can you help me spread the word to the All Saints gang? Hope you can make it!

It’s a story of a woman who fought for her life and safety by breaking the law. Very relevant to today!

Please mention that Erin, a new All Saints friend who came to church Sunday and who read the US and Mexico transgender names, is also in the play. She and I are jury members!!! I hope church members can come to support her too!

The All Saints Festival of Christmas Carols

Saturday 14th December. 7:00 p.m.
Thammapratheep Church, Thanuspong Road (Next to Expat Auto)

Volunteers are needed for setting up, ushering, catering, etc.

Christmas Lunch – 25th December

Every year we share Christmas lunch together at the vicarage – nobody need be alone! Please sign up to indicate how many people are coming and also to say what you can bring.

All Saints Book Group

Book Group is back from hiatus! We meet on Tuesday afternoons. Time and location TBD. Contact Christa if you would like to join us as we continue our journey together through the book, Living Resistance.

Chili Night returns next Week!

Every Tuesday everyone in Chiang Mai is invited to Chili Night in the Vicarage. Chili con Carne, rice, chips, ice-cream, and drinks are provided. Just come along! (But let me know in advance if you can!) All are welcome. Food is served at 6 p.m.

Please make a donation on THB 100 per person!

Weekly Offering to All Saints

You can still donate in person or online – and now you can us our QR code!. Thank you for your support and love for All Saints and all we are trying to do together. God has shown that he is mighty and we are in his hands!
God bless you,

Father Iain

Transgender Day of Remembrance!

Posted on 22/11/2024 | Leave a comment

From Father Iain, All Saints Chiang Mai

Join us as we mark this important day!

Dear Friends,

This week we will mark the Transgender Day of Remembrance, and then next week the church year begins again with Advent Sunday!

The Transgender Day of Remembrance is an important day as we need to be reminded that being trans, or indeed gay, can sometimes be a death sentence. Happily, though, this is not usually the case and most trans people live as fulfilled and happy lives as everybody else – possibly even more fulfilled because they are able to be their true selves.

There are several trans or nonbinary people at All Saints – though you may not know who they are – the important thing is that all people feel welcome and nobody feels that they have to fit in to that particular “box”. God has created a wonderful and diverse world and we should rejoice in all that God has made!

The bible readings for this Sunday will be Jeremiah 23:1-6, Galatians 3:23-29, and John 18.33–37, and we will be singing the hymns Stand up stand up for Jesus; Lord, we make this cry for freedom; Beauty for Brokenness; and Let Us Build a House!

Use this link to join on Zoom on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
Meeting ID: 548 801 501

Video of Last Sunday’s Ordination Service!

Video of last Sunday’s service is available on the All Saints YouTube channel!

Ordinations at All Saints

Congratulations to our new priests: Father Gene and Mother Pauli!

Events Coming Up

Tuesday 26th December: Vicarage Christmas Decoration Party
Saturday 30th November: Vicarage Christmas Tree Decorating
Sunday 1st December: Advent Sunday & Gingerbread Tea Party
Saturday 14th December: Festival of Christmas Carols
Tuesday 24th December: Midnight Mass
Wednesday 25th December: Christmas Morning Eucharist
Christmas Lunch at the Vicarage
Saturday 28th December: Christmas at the Youth Charity Foundation

Transgender Day of Remembrance

This Sunday, 24th November, we will mark the Transgender Day of Remembrance in our morning worship at All Saints! This is a very moving service when we remember those who in the last year have been killed for being trans.

Our new priests will be leading the service, with Mother Pauli preaching and Father Gene presiding at the Eucharist.

Church Council Meeting

There will be a Church Council meeting following this Sunday’s service.

Vicarage Decoration

You are invited to join the decorating party on Tuesday 26th December at 5 p.m. We will be putting up the five Christmas trees and installing all the lights. Pizza will be provided! No Chili Night this week!

Then again you are invited on Saturday 30th November at 6 p.m. to join the Youth Charity Foundation children in decorating the vicarage Christmas trees.

Advent Sunday – Barbara’s Gingerbread Tea Party

Making gingerbreads at Barbara’s

On Sunday 1st December our service will be followed by decorating the church
and then a Christmas snack potluck lunch and Gingerbread Tea Party at Barbara’s home.

The All Saints Festival of Christmas Carols

Saturday 14th December. 7:00 p.m.
Thammapratheep Church, Thanuspong Road (Next to Expat Auto)

Volunteers are needed for setting up, ushering, catering, etc.

All Saints Book Group

No Chili Night this Week!

No Chili Night this week – instead come to decorate the vicarage for Christmas!

Weekly Offering to All Saints

You can still donate in person or online – and now you can us our QR code!. Thank you for your support and love for All Saints and all we are trying to do together. God has shown that he is mighty and we are in his hands!

God bless you,

Father Iain

Ordinations!

Posted on 14/11/2024 | Leave a comment

From Father Iain, All Saints Chiang Mai

Join us for the ordinations of Christa and Gene!

POTLUCK THIS SUNDAY

Dear Friends,

This Sunday, I will have the great joy of ordaining our two deacons, Rev. Dr. Christa Crawford and Rev. Dr. Gene Bourquin, to the priesthood. Both are highly qualified individuals in their academic achievements, personal qualities, and spiritual lives. They will see a continuity in their current ministries, but also a new beginning in their journeys of faith and service to God and God’s people.

There is an old church tradition of taking a new name at important spiritual junctures, such as baptism, confirmation, or ordination, and this is also a tradition in Thai Buddhist culture. In Christian tradition people may chose the name of a saint or that of a godly role-model. They may retain their old name for everyday use but be known as Sister This or Father That, in their ministry life.

Gene has chosen to be simply known as Father Gene, but Christa has chosen the name Mother Pauli as she seeks to reflect the life and ministry of the Episcopal priest and civil rights advocate, Pauli Murray. Pauli Murray was the first African-American woman to be ordained as a priest in The Episcopal Church. You can read about Pauli Murray’s fascinating life here! Christa will still be known as Christa in everyday life!

I will also now be known as Bishop Alex – when Mark was the only additional priest at All Saints, the use of the term bishop seemed inappropriate, but as there will now be four of us I will use the term in formal situations. I have chosen the name Alex as it is non-gendered. (You can use they/them pronouns for me, but I will still happily accept he/him or indeed she/her.) You can call me Alex or Iain.

Ordination is about service not power. A priest is a leader, but even more a servant of the people of God. As Christians, we all seek to serve one another, and as priests Christa and Gene will seek to minister and be of service to all. Gene will continue to reach out to and advocate for those with disabilities, and Christa will continue to minister to those within and damaged by the conservative evangelical part of the church. Both will reach out to the marginalized. Together we will seek to minister through word and sacrament, and lead through action and example.

The bible readings for this Ordination Sunday will be Isaiah 58:6-9, Acts 8:26-40, and Luke 4:14-21, and we will be singing the hymns The Church’s One Foundation; I, the Lord of Sea and Sky; Rise up Women; and Lift High the Cross!

Use this link to join on Zoom on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
Meeting ID: 548 801 501

Video of Last Sunday’s Remembrance Sunday Service!

Video of last Sunday’s service is available on the All Saints YouTube channel!

Events Coming Up

Sunday 17th November: Christa’s and Gene’s Ordination Service
Sunday 24th November: Transgender Day of Remembrance
Sunday 1st December: Advent Sunday
Saturday 14th December: Festival of Christmas Carols
Tuesday 24th December: Midnight Mass
Wednesday 25th December: Christmas Morning Eucharist

Potluck this Sunday!

There will be a potluck lunch following this Sunday’s service. This will give a chance to talk to and congratulate Father Gene and Mother Pauli following their ordinations.

Bring food to share – all are welcome!

Transgender Day of Remembrance

On Sunday 24th November, we will mark the Transgender Day of Remembrance in our morning worship at All Saints! This is a very moving service when we remember those who in the last year have been killed for being trans.

Our new priests will be leading the service, with Mother Pauli preaching and Father Gene presiding at the Eucharist.

Church Council Meeting

There will be a church council meeting on Sunday 24th November following the morning service.

All Saints Book Group

Book Group is back from hiatus! We meet on Tuesday afternoons, starting 19 November. Time and location TBD. Contact Christa if you would like to join us as we continue our journey together through the book, Living Resistance.

Chili Night Continues!

Chili Night next Tuesday

Every Tuesday everyone in Chiang Mai is invited to Chili Night in the Vicarage. Chili con Carne, rice, chips, ice-cream, and drinks are provided. Just come along! (But let me know in advance if you can!) All are welcome. Food is served at 6 p.m.

Please make a donation on THB 100 per person!

Weekly Offering to All Saints

You can still donate in person or online – and now you can us our QR code!. Thank you for your support and love for All Saints and all we are trying to do together. God has shown that he is mighty and we are in his hands!

God bless you,

Father Iain

Lest We Forget!

Posted on 14/11/2024 | 1 comment

From Father Iain, All Saints Chiang Mai

Last Year’s Remembrance Sunday Service

Worship back in the church again this Sunday!

Dear Friends,

This week we mark Remembrance Day on Monday11th November, and Remembrance Sunday the previous day. The ceremony at the Foreign Cemetery has had to be cancelled this year due to the devastation of the recent floods, but we will observe Remembrance Sunday at All Saints as usual.

Remembrance Day began as Armistice Day to mark the end of the First World War on the 11th November 1918 at 11 a.m. UK time. (Midday Central European Time.) Since then a minutes silence has been held each year on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. At the end of the Second World War this became two minutes silence to commemorate the dead of the two world-wide conflicts. It has now become a time to remember all those killed in all subsequent wars and armed conflicts around the world, and to redouble our efforts to work for peace!

From the very beginning the two phrases associated with Remembrance Day are “Lest we forget” and “Never Again!” In the light of the on-going conflicts in Ukraine, Myanmar, and the Holy Land, these words have never been so apt. We pray for the end of hostilities and a just and lasting peace for all.

The bible readings for this Remembrance Sunday will be Isaiah 2:3-4, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, and Luke 21:5-19, and we will be singing the hymns O God our help in Ages Past, Abide with Me, Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus, and The Day Thou gavest Lord is Ended!

Use this link to join on Zoom on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
Meeting ID: 548 801 501

Video of Last Sunday’s Service!

Video of last Sunday’s service back at All Saints is available on the All Saints YouTube channel!

Assembling the Chairs

Thanks to all who came last Friday to assemble the new chairs – a big group meant that the job was done quickly!

The new chairs – ready for last Sunday’s Service!

Events Coming Up

Sunday 10th November: Remembrance Sunday
Sunday 17th November: Christa’s and Gene’s Ordination Service
Sunday 24th November: Transgender Day of Remembrance
Sunday 1st December: Advent Sunday
Saturday 14th December: Festival of Christmas Carols
Tuesday 24th December: Midnight Mass
Wednesday 25th December: Christmas Morning Eucharist

Gene’s and Christa’s Ordination Service

On Sunday 17th November we will have the joy of joining in the service of ordination to the priesthood of our deacons Christa Crawford and Gene Bourquin. This will take place as part of our regular Sunday service.

The service will be followed by a potluck at the vicarage!

Transgender Day of Remembrance

All Saints Flood Appeal

The Church as we found it on the morning of Monday 9th October!

You can still donate if you haven’t already done so.

If you have a Thai bank account you can transfer THB 760 (or an amount of your choosing) by scanning the QR code.

The payment is into the old church account which is in my name, but I do not have access to this account. The account can only be accessed with the authorization of two Church Council members and is fully secure.

Alternatively you can transfer money directly to the All Saints Foundation Bank Account as follows:
เราคือผู้เชี่ยวชาญด้านการเดินทางไปทุกประเทศทั่วโลก - ช่องทางการชำระเงิน
Bank: Kasikorn Bank
Account Name: All Saints Foundation
Account Number: 170-3-79007-7
SWIFT code: KASITHBK

Or if you are in the UK you can send your donation via the All Saints Chiang Mai Mission account:

Charity Finance Group | Co-operative Bank
Bank: The Coop Bank
Name: All Saints Chiang Mai Mission
Sort Code: 089299
Account Number: 65877142

You can also donate using your debit/credit card via my UK PayPal Account! (But this incurs higher charges!)

Donate by PayPal to the IainBaxterMinistry UK account.

PayPal for Payment Pages – Trust Payments
Donate via PayPal here!

All Saints Book Group