The peace is also a sign of reconciliation. In the early church if you were unwilling to exchange the peace with anyone in good standing with the congregation you were not allowed to receive communion (Matt. 5:23-24).

There is an ancient connection between the prayers of the people and the peace. It is easier to see that connection on the occasions that we omit the confession of sin. Those who are assembled pray for the gift of God’s peace to the whole church and to the whole world, and for people everywhere according to their need, so they share that peace with each other.

As you can see the peace we exchanged is described as many wonderful things from the expression of love and joy to one another to the sharing of the peace first given to us through the love and sacrifice of the risen Christ.

At no time was the peace described as a social time to catch up with our friends whom we have not seen in a while. It is not a time to exchange phone numbers or news of an event or any of the many other misuses of this time.

Please remember the peace is a sacred time deeply rooted in the beginnings of the church and our belief in Christ. I ask that you consider responding during the peace in one of many appropriate ways. Eye contact with hand shakes, hugs and the words, “Peace” or “God’s Peace” or “The Peace of the Lord”. Please make sure to offer the peace to those you do not know around you, which will include any visitors. Please consider only exchanging peace with those who are in your section and not those on the other side of the church.

We are quickly approaching the season of Lent. Starting with the first Sunday of Lent, February 26th, and running through the entire season of Lent, we will observe a silent peace. You are still encouraged to shake hands and offer hugs, while exchanging the peace, but to do so in silence. Exchanging the peace this way gives us an opportunity to share the peace of God and reflect on what it is we are doing when we share and receive the offer of God’s peace. I am interested in hearing your responses to what I have shared about the exchange of the peace. I am also interested in you sharing with me how you experienced the silent peace during the Lenten season. I pray this was a helpful blog article. I look forward to your feedback.

May God’s Peace Be with You,

Father Reggie+
Bibliography

Galley, Howard E. The Ceremonies of the Eucharist: A Guide to Celebration. Cowley Productions; Cambridge, Mass. 1989.

Flancher, Arlene and Wilson, Barbara S. ed. The Episcopal Handbook. Augsburg Fortress; Philadelphia, PA 19106. Church Publishing; New York, NY 10016. 2008

Welcome to St. James’ new website! Please take some time to browse around and experience our new site. Our website designer, Karen Barry, along with parishioners Michael Clark Madison, Karen Hartwell, Ora Houston, Pat Braithwaite, and Walter Bell worked tirelessly to create a website that represents our heritage and who we are today. The color scheme mimics the color of the church while the wood texture that surrounds the site represents the front doors of the church. The unique angle of the banner follows the roofline of our church. You will also find a link to our new You Tube channel, “stjamesaustin,” that contain movie clips of the interviews that Walter Bell and Karen Hartwell have done of our elder members telling us what they love about St. James’ Church. Michael Clark Madison and Ora Houston have added their talents by writing copy for our new site. Most of the pictures for the website, of course, were taken by Pat Braithwaite, with contributions by Erin Peloquin and a few others.

The site will eventually include a webpage for every service with descriptions and you tube videos that capture the ethos of that service. Several sections of the site will be available in both English and español. The site contains a few new features, including a link to the Rector’s blog, a link to the St. James’ Facebook page, a link to our new online monthly newsletter and e-news, a link to our youth group page (coming soon), a link to our music page, a link to upcoming events and events this week, and a link to our wonderful school, St. James’ Episcopal School.

We will have several staff members who will be trained on how to update the new site, so we will have multiple people with the ability to update the site anytime we need it. Our new site can be expanded and modified to accommodate our needs, growth and imaginations. I hope you enjoy and appreciate the hard work and time that was put into our new site. I look forward to your feedback. Our goal is to have the most dynamic site in the diocese. We want the people who visit our site to experience just a taste of who we are and whom we believe God is calling us to be.

God’s Peace Be With You,

The Rev. Reginald Payne-Wiens+