Announcements
Service Livestreams
We are now livestreaming our services on YouTube! Join us live during all services straight through our website at https://stjohnssylva.org/watch-live/
Thank you to everyone who subscribed! We met our goal of 50 subscribers.
Thank you to everyone who has returned their pledge cards already! Pledge cards have been mailed and should be arriving in your mailboxes soon, if they have not already. If yours hasn’t arrived yet, or you would prefer to complete one online, pledge cards are also available in the Narthex and on our website.
Our goal this year is to receive 50 pledge cards by November 1.
We currently are at 14 returned cards.
Every pledge helps us plan for the year ahead and continue the ministries, outreach, and community connections that make St. John’s what it is.
A pledge card is not a contract or a binding commitment. It is simply a way to let the Vestry and the parish know what we can anticipate receiving in the coming year so that we can budget responsibly and plan for the work ahead. We understand that circumstances can change, and we are grateful for every pledge card returned, regardless of the amount.
Completed pledge cards can be returned in any of the following ways:
- In the collection box in the Narthex
- In the box in the Parish Hall
- In the folder outside the office door
- By mail to St. John’s
ECW Jumble Sale
ECW will be collecting items for the Jumble Sale on three consecutive Sundays: October 18th, October 25th, and November 1st. This Anglican version of the Yard Sale will be held from 10 am to 1 pm on Saturday, November 7th. We are accepting linens, small appliances, houseware items, kitchen items, hand tools, Christmas/holiday décor, and miscellaneous items, but NO CLOTHES. Donors will receive tags in advance on which to write a suggested price for the item. If donors want their items returned if not sold, they should mark an X on the back of the price tag. All unsold items must be picked up on the following Sunday (November 8th) after the sale, as remaining merchandise will be transported to Good Will on Monday, November 9th. We might be able to accept large items, but special arrangements will be made for drop-off and pick-up. Thanks very much for your donations! This is ECW’s major fundraiser to benefit local nonprofits and our church needs!
Serving This Week
Altar Guild: Jane Eastman and Dru Russell
Crucifer: Cyndie Faircloth-Smith
Ushers: Stephen Loper and Rex Tunze
Oblation Bearers: MaryK & Joe Buranosky
Readers: Joe Noecker (1st Lesson), Helen Jones (2nd Lesson), Johanna Price Vinyard (Prayers of the People)
Vestry on Duty: Stephen Loper and MaryK Buranosky
Acolyte: Johanna Price Vinyard
Stream Team: Aeryn Knight
Children’s Church: Beth Jones and Paige Madison
Coffee Hour: Marion El Bayadi and Karen Tharp
Would you like to volunteer? Sign up to host Coffee Hour using the dry-erase board in the Parish Hall. For everything else, please email Cyndie at fairclothsmithc@yahoo.com. Thank you!
Upcoming Events
Check out the full event details for each by clicking the event banner.
Click here to view the full event calendar.
Upcoming Community Events
Readings for this Sunday: October 18, 2026
The First Lesson
Exodus 33:12-23
Moses said to the Lord, “See, you have said to me, ‘Bring up this people’; but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’ Now if I have found favor in your sight, show me your ways, so that I may know you and find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people.” He said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” And he said to him, “If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people, unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people, from every people on the face of the earth.”
The Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing that you have asked; for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.” Moses said, “Show me your glory, I pray.” And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you the name, ‘The Lord’; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live.” And the Lord continued, “See, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock; and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by; then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen.”
The Psalm
Psalm 99
Dominus regnavit
1 The Lord is King;
let the people tremble; *
he is enthroned upon the cherubim;
let the earth shake.
2 The Lord is great in Zion; *
he is high above all peoples.
3 Let them confess his Name, which is great and awesome; *
he is the Holy One.
4 “O mighty King, lover of justice,
you have established equity; *
you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.”
5 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God
and fall down before his footstool; *
he is the Holy One.
6 Moses and Aaron among his priests,
and Samuel among those who call upon his Name, *
they called upon the Lord, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud; *
they kept his testimonies and the decree that he gave them.
8 O Lord our God, you answered them indeed; *
you were a God who forgave them,
yet punished them for their evil deeds.
9 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God
and worship him upon his holy hill; *
for the Lord our God is the Holy One.
The Epistle
1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
Grace to you and peace.
We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he has chosen you, because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has become known, so that we have no need to speak about it. For the people of those regions report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead– Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath that is coming.
The Gospel
Matthew 22:15-22
The Pharisees went and plotted to entrap Jesus in what he said. So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” They answered, “The emperor’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away.
Vestry Update
Thank you to everyone who has submitted a 2027 pledge card! Our goal is 50 commitments by November 1 to help prepare the 2027 budget.
Good news!
- Rectory: Painting is complete.
- Code Purple/Shelter from the Storm: Work continues, and the Vestry has approved offering space for this project.
- Rhoda Room: Repurposing is planned after the ECW Jumble Sale.
The extra pulpit is in the Rhoda Room. If interested in giving it a new home, contact the Senior Warden at maranfar@frontier.com.
Finally, St. John’s is moving forward with obtaining an AED. Watch for updates on upcoming training opportunities.
Thank you for your continued support of St. John’s!
(Some features, including events and readings are best viewed on the website. Pardon our dust as we continue our work in progress!)
The new site—and this newsletter—are still works in progress, and we’d love your thoughts as we continue shaping them. If you have suggestions, notice something that isn’t working quite right, or simply want to share ideas, please reach out to Aeryn Knight at arcolton16@gmail.com. Your feedback helps us create tools that truly serve our community.
We’re glad you’re here, and we can’t wait for you to explore what’s new at St. John’s.