The Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields

Field Notes

For Pastoral Care 

Call 215-247-7466 and leave a message. If you are experiencing a pastoral emergency

text or call the Rev. Dr. Mary Barber at (845) 527-9545.

Have you had an address, email, or phone number update?

Send us your update here.

Field Notes submission requests must be emailed by Tuesday at noon to ndiskan@stmartinec.org.

This email is best viewed as a webpage. Click here to make sure you don't miss anything!

Sunday, August 30, 2026

Guest Preacher: Eugenie Dieck

8:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist (Spoken)

9:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist for Children, Youth, & Families

Under the Tent

10:30 a.m. Holy Eucharist with Music

Also via livestream here

Followed by Worship Reflections (in person only)

This Sunday's Readings

Exodus 3:1-15 | Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45c | Romans 12:9-21 | Matthew 16:21-28

Rector's Note

Two brief but fierce rain storms have happened since my last Field Notes column. We continue to have water, dampness, and a musty smell in the basement of the Parish House. 

I  have made the decision that until we can get a better handle on these conditions and improve them, groups will not be down in that space. This affects our music program the most -- children’s choir, handbell choir, and adult choir robing and music folders. We are getting all the supplies for these groups upstairs to be stored elsewhere, and cleaning the robes for the start of the new season. We are taking out items that got wet from water coming in and throwing them out. 

Buildings and Grounds committee continues to work on solutions to keep water out of the basement. Our roofer is looking at the whole building -- gutters, drains, the chimney -- and will work on getting any problems fixed. As I mentioned last week, we will work on the window well covers. We are putting in some simple fixes like sandbags to areas where the grading is off. Continue reading here.

Features

Farewell Celebration & Purse Gift for the Rev. Luke Selles

Sunday, September 27th

Rev. Luke's last Sunday at St. Martin's will be Sept 27. They will preach and preside, and we will celebrate them and all they have done for and with our community with a festive coffee hour after the 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. services! If you would like to contribute to a purse gift for Rev. Luke, please click here. Click the drop down menu and select "Purse Gifts".

Realm Is Now Live!

St. Martin's has officially moved to our new church record-keeping software, Realm. With Realm, we’ll have more ways to communicate and connect as a church. Realm will make it easier for members of ministries to communicate with each other, parishioners to track their giving, and parishioners to securely access an online directory. All parishioners should have received an email from Realm with a link to access their online profile and opt-in to the online Directory. If you did not receive this email (it may have gone to spam), please alert our Director of Administration, Lorie Hershey: lhershey@stmartinec.org.

You're Invited: The Wedding of Mac Prell & Nigel Law!

Next Saturday, Sept. 5th

11:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary

Parishioners Mac Prell and Nigel Law are getting married at

St. Martin's on Saturday, September 5th! All are welcome to witness and to celebrate! A reception in the Parish Hall will follow the service.

Save the Date: First Meeting of Wellspring's Spiritual Classics Book Group

Saturday, October 3rd, at 2:30 p.m.

Our new Spiritual Classics book group will hold its inaugural meeting on Oct. 3rd at the home of parishioner Lorie Simmons in Mt. Airy. We will discuss Henri J. M. Nouwen's book, The Return of the Prodigal Son, A Story of Homecoming. After the discussion we will decide what titles to read next and when and where to meet in the future! Please contact Lorie Simmons with any questions and for the exact address: loriesimmons@comcast.net.

Snapshots

Thank you to Sallie Brooke for providing these gorgeous hydrangeas for our August 16th altar flowers!

If you would like to donate flowers from your garden for an upcoming service, please contact Flower Guild co-chairs Kim Kopple (kkopple@vet.upenn.edu) or Dani Reed (reed@monell.org).

Parishioners Wendy and Carolyn work with Lorie Hershey, Director of Administration, and Noor Diskan, Director of Communications, to set up their new Realm accounts!

Children, Youth, & Families

A Faithful Journey: Preparing for Confirmation, Reception, and Reaffirmation

This fall, St. Martin's will offer confirmation classes for youth and adults. All seekers, age 12 and over, are welcome to join us between the 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. service for five Sundays: Sept. 20th and 27th; Oct. 11th and 18th; and Nov. 8th. If you are interested in making a public confirmation or reaffirmation of your baptismal vows or being received into the Episcopal Church at the end of this course, please fill out this form. All are welcome to join for one or all of the five parish-wide sessions and the additional opportunities even if you are unsure about being confirmed/received. Click here for more details.

Diocesan Youth Wild Adventure at Valley Forge

This Sunday, August 30th

4:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Washington Memorial Chapel 

2000 Valley Forge Park Road, King of Prussia, PA 19406

Get ready for a fun evening of adventure, music, food, and fellowship to kick off your fall! Youth and their family members from across the diocese are invited to join us for our Diocesan Youth Wild Adventure at Valley Forge National Historical Park on 8/30 from 4 pm - 6:30 p.m. Enjoy live music, wilderness walks, hands-on craft projects like nature mandalas, dinner, and outdoor worship under the open sky that will inspire you for the coming school year. The Rev. Dr. Charles Lattimore Howard will be our homilist. To register, go to this link.

A Beverage with the Director of Music & Arts 

As we look ahead to the start of the new program year, I warmly invite all members of St. Martin's for a one-on-one catch-up over a beverage of your choice to connect and discuss your hopes and wishes for our music and arts ministries this program year and beyond.

Meetings are available Monday through Thursday, ideally between noon and 7:00 p.m. (though I am happy to be flexible around work commitments, etc.) and will take place at the church or a mutually convenient local spot.

Please email me directly (twhiting@stmartinec.org) to schedule a time/location, and let them know your beverage preference!

Cantate Domino! — Tyrone Whiting, Director of Music & Arts 

Summer Sunday Musicians

Thank you to everyone who has volunteered to offer music this Summer. Upcoming Sundays will feature the following musicians:

Aug 30: Aaron Scarberry, Bassoon & Carolyn Green, Recorders

Sep 6: B'roke Ensemble, St. Martin's Amateur Baroque Ensemble

Take Action

St Martin’s Successful Guatemala Scholarship Drive

Muchas Gracias, Saint Martin’s parishioners, for your support through the pledge drive for the 2027 San Juan Apostol Scholarship Fund and the Totonicapán Scholarship Fund. Sixty-eight pledges totaling $18,110 were received for the Guatemala Student Scholarship Drive in the month of June. This year we exceeded our goal of $15,000! Without your help, these students would not be able to go to school. Your support opens the door to a better future for them and provides hope to their families and communities.

So far $10,245 in pledged funds have been received. Pledges may be paid via the St Martin’s website or via the plate. If pledges are paid via the online payment option, please use the “Guatemala Scholarship” choice in the drop-down box, when paying the pledge. If a check is provided via the collection plate, please write “Guatemala Scholarship” in the memo section of your check. 



Pledges are kindly due by September 30th. Donations are accepted even if you did not have the opportunity to pledge during the scholarship drive. Thank you to everyone who supports this wonderful mission!

Sermon

The Rev. Dr. Mary Barber

August 23, 2026

Now a new king arose over Egypt, who didn’t know Joseph. Many generations had passed since Joseph had been sent to Egypt in enslavement after his brothers sold him. Many generations had passed since the famine, since Joseph had saved all of Egypt from starvation. Many generations had passed since Joseph’s brothers had reconciled with him and come to settle in Egypt with Joseph, as special guests of Pharaoh. Continue reading here.

Coming Up

Adult Forum Returns Next Month - Topic Suggestions Wanted!

Adult forum will resume in September at its usual time and place: 7 p.m. Wednesdays in the Houston Room. The hunt for program ideas is on. Is there a parish ministry or initiative you'd like to learn more about? Are you doing something neat in your life that you're eager to share with the parish? Is there a writer, artist, thinker, activist, doer or leader in our Philadelphia community you think we should invite? Any trends in spirituality or theology that await exploration? If any such great ideas for a forum are rattling around in your brain, please send them to Chris Satullo at csatullo@gmail.com or 610-828-6935.  Note: Forums should be as interactive as possible, with no more than 40 minutes for presentation, leaving at least 20 for Q and A.



Do you want to help with Adult Forum? Can you help run a Zoom call or set up a powerpoint? Please reach out to Tyrone Whiting, as we are looking for additional volunteer tech. helpers for the many events that happen on campus.

Seasonal Writing Retreat

Saturdays (bi-weekly) from 9:30-11 a.m. in Hilary House

Upcoming Session: August 29th

A quiet time to listen, reflect, create and share

Come and share time with others as we listen to poems/reflections/prayers that reflect the liturgical season we are in. After some time in silence, we write as the spirit guides us and the share our writing without judgement or critique. Find community, respite and inspiration as we move through challenging times. All are welcome. Come for one session or come often. For information contact Joanne Conway, joanneconway86@gmail.com

Exploring Spirituality with Wellspring: An Afternoon Retreat

Saturday, September 26th

Lunch (12-1 p.m.) followed by three hour-long sessions (1-4 p.m.)

 There are many ways to encounter the Spirit. Come experience with us three approaches to spirituality:

•  through the signs and symbols of the liturgy;
•  through the teachings of the spiritual scientist, Rudolf Steiner, founder of Waldorf education;
•  through praying the Psalms.

No cost. Stay tuned for more details!

Wednesday Noon Eucharist

Mary Chapel

Wellspring Worship Reflections

After the 10:30 a.m. service

Houston Room

Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACA)

Thursdays 7-8:30 p.m. (Library)

Al Anon

Sundays 6-7 p.m. (Houston Room)

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)

1 - Tuesdays 8-9 p.m. (Houston Room)

2 - Thursdays 7-8 p.m. (Houston Room)

3 - Fridays 7-8 p.m. (Houston Room)

4 - Sundays 8-9 p.m. (Houston Room)