Dear Friends,

I invite you to join me, and Episcopalians around the world, in a common endeavor as we enter into the season of Lent.  The Good Book Club (not to be confused with our own Theological Book Club!)  is an invitation to all Episcopalians to join in reading the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts during Lent-Easter 2018. (The actual start date is this Sunday, February 11).

Forward Movement (which among other things, publishes the Day by Day devotional booklets) is providing a a schedule and various ways to support our daily reading. We will have a printed schedule of the daily readings here at church on Sunday. By Ash Wednesday, we will also have calendars for those who wish (somewhat like the Advent calendar I design) with each day’s assigned reading.  In addition, you can download an app which will provide you with the daily reading as.  During Lent and Easter, you can subscribe to Forward Movement’s email devotions, and receive them that way as well.

Here at church, I will be offering a half hour summary and discussion of each week’s reading on Sunday mornings from 9-9:30. For those in the choir or other Sunday ministries, I am also happy to plan another time during the week to gather and reflect on the readings – just let me know if you are interested.

Why has Luke-Acts been chosen? Here is an explanation from Forward Movement:

“We love sequels, and Luke-Acts provides a wonderful two-part narrative. Luke tells the wondrous story of Jesus’ birth, ministry, teaching, death, and resurrection. Acts picks up where Luke leaves off and tells the story of the earliest disciples through the lens of Peter and Paul and the real star of the show — the Holy Spirit. Written by the same author, the books are accessible, and the story is a page-turner!”

We actually start this Sunday, February 11, before the beginning of Lent. We will have the list of daily readings at church on Sunday. You can also find them, and other resources, such as the app for phones and tablets, at the Forward Movement website: Forward Movement

I am excited by the idea of all of us taking this journey together. Please consider making this daily reading of scripture one of your Lenten disciplines.