The twelve days of Christmas finish with the Feast of the Epiphany which we celebrate on 6th January. Why 12 days of Christmas? They are simply the number of days between the 25th December and 6th January. The carol which goes with the days has many interpretations, most of which have very little to do with Jesus, but the origin of it seems to be to teach about what the gift of Jesus has brought to us, the ‘true love’ being God and the gifts being things of the faith. For example, the partridge is Jesus, the 5 rings the Pentateuch and 10 lords 10 commandments. The word epiphany means a great revelation. The Feast of the Epiphany is the revelation or revealing of the Son of God to the gentiles. It celebrates the coming of these wise men from the east who travelled to find the child that their studies revealed was born to be King of the Jews. Understanding that the unusual star they had seen might be a sign, they come looking for the child. The point of the celebration is in the fulfilling of prophecy as Isaiah 60 tells us that nations and kings will come to the light which dawns from God and they will bring gold and frankincense and will proclaim and praise the Lord. (Isaiah 60:3-6) This revealing of the Lord to those who are not Jewish is about bringing the nations to know the Lord and worship him along with the Jewish people. The wise men are the first of many gentiles to worship Jesus. They leave to go back to their homeland with the good news of Jesus’ birth on their lips and pave the way for the light to go out into every nation to call all people to worship him. From the moment the Lord chose them, Israel was always a nation set apart. This was not so they could be the only ones saved, but so that they could be the means of bringing the entire world to know that God exists and loves his creation, and that the one true God wants to save all people from their sins. Through Israel God the Father set the scene for the birth, life and death of Jesus, his resurrection and the gift of Holy Spirit. We celebrate now because this news is now ours. This Saviour is for everyone, and we are the ones now charged with carrying the light of Jesus to all nations.
Janice
This Week:
| SUNDAY: | Holy Communion, 8.45am |
| Family Service, 10.30am | |
| MONDAY: | Prayer Group, St Marks, 9.15am |
| Contact: Janice | |
| Bible Study Group, St Mark’s, 4.00pm (On Hold Till Advised) | |
| Contact Kevin (0438 234 457) | |
| TUESDAY: | Zoom Prayer Meeting, 1.30pm (On Hold Till Advised) |
| Contact John (0421 426 156) | |
| Zoom Bible Study Group, 7.00pm (On Hold Till Advised) | |
| Contact: Graeme (0490 664 843) | |
| WEDNESDAY: | Holy Communion Service – 10.00am |
| Bible Study Group St Mark’s,11.00am (On Hold Till Advised) | |
| “Women of the Bible” Contact Kevin (0438 234 457) | |
| Cuppa, Craft & Chat Group. (On Hold Till Advised) | |
| Contact Robyn (0409 425 044) | |
| THURSDAY: | Men’s Coffee & Chat, Blackthorn Café, 10.00am (On Hold Till Advised) |
| Contact Steve (0437 984 679), Keith T (0413 319 327) | |
| or Kevin (0493 234 457) | |
| FRIDAY: | Janice’s DAY OFF |
| NEXT SUNDAY: | Holy Communion, 8.45am (Advent 1) |
| Family Service, 10.30am |
Regular Worship Times
| SUNDAY: | 8.45am | Holy Communion |
| 10.30am | Family Worship with Children’s Ministry | |
| (Holy Communion – 1st Sundays) | ||
| 6.00pm | Healing Service – 1st Sundays | |
| WEDNESDAY: | 10.00am | Holy Communion |
Parish Contact Details
| Monitored contact points | 0493 280 691 |
| contact@stmarksdromana.org.au | |
| Parish Web Addresses | www.stmarksdromana.org.au |
| Facebook page | https://www.facebook.com/stmarksdromana |
| Pastoral Care Coordinators | Kevin and Anne Cranwell (0438 234 457 Kevin) |
Notices:
Scripture Union Beach Mission…
The SUFM McCrae team will be joining us for our 10.30am service and they invite us to join them for their service on the beach at McCrae at 4.00pm Sunday 6th January.
PHILHARMONIA COLOGNE CONCERT AT ST MARK’S…
Bookings are now open for the Philharmonia Cologne concert at St Mark’s on Wednesday 15th January 2025 at 7.00pm (Not 8.00pm).
Tickets are only available through: www.trybooking.com?CXATM (not through the Information Centre). If you wish to book but have difficulty accessing the website, please see Janice.
Fellowship Meals in January…
Everyone is welcome to come along to the January Sunday Family Meals at 6pm with their own meal and drink.
Meals will be hosted at the homes of:
12 January – Cheryl and Graeme
19 January – Janice
This Week’s Prayer Focus
In our country and the world:
- For everyone suffering after the horrendous floods in Spain & Portugal.
- For all women in Afghanistan now banned from hearing each others voices.
- For those facing homelessness, hardship, anguish and despair amid rising costs.
- For all in Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine and Myanmar.
- For families affected by violence.
- For those affected by natural disasters in around the world.
- For King Charles III, the UK and the Commonwealth.
- For peace and unity in countries around the World.
- For aid agencies such as “Save the Children”, Oxfam, CARE, UNICEF, World Vision.
In our community:
- For teachers and students.
- For doctors, nurses, paramedics, Coast Guard, the CFA & SES.
- For local community outreach groups such as the Dromana Community House and “Food for All”.
In our Diocese and beyond:
- For Archbishop Geoffrey Smith’s ministry as Primate of Australia.
- For Archbishop Philip Freier’s ministry in the Diocese of Melbourne.
- For the ministry of Bishop Paul Barker in the Jumbunna Region and Archdeacon Rev’d Sam Bleby, in the Frankston Archdeanery.
- In our Deanery, we pray for the parish of Holy Trinity Hastings and their Vicar, Rev’d Tim Anderson.
- For the work of the Church Missionary Society and Wei-Han the Victorian Director.
- For Anna Radkovic our CMS Link Missionary in Watamu, Kenya.
- For Christian churches around the world to be free to worship and be witnesses of the love of God as shown through the coming of His Son.
In our Parish:
- For our leadership and ministry teams.
- For Rev’d Janice O’Gorman.
- For the finances of our Parish.
- For our Parish, its people and those we reach out to every week.
- For the success of the new Family and Children’s Ministry.
- For the next Alpha program, the leaders and all who will attend.
- For the 9am at home prayer time for the Parish, Dromana & Mornington Peninsula.
- For our Op Shop staff and all who visit each week.
- For all members of the newly elected Parish Council.
- For Hope25. That the Good News of Jesus will be known in the community of Dromana.
- For Richard and Alyson McNeill at the loss of their daughter Sallie, Nikki, Jason, Bernadette & family, Annie, Noel and family, Joan R & family, Rhiannon, Richard, Pat, Lorna & Peter, Keith S, Harry, Jen, Mike, Chloe, Ted, Monica, Jessica, Audrey, Backy, Fred, Robert, Jan, David, Guy.
