JANUARY 2019 • Volume 21, Number 1
Meet the Prophets: 2 Christ Revealed: 8 I got to hold the elements!: 9 Thankfulness and Praise: 10
FROM
In this issue: Music Ministry ...................... 7 Youth Ministry....................... 8 Family Ministry .................... 9 Our Church Life .................10 Page Turners.......................12 Great Commission..............13 Calendar of Events.............14 Photo Album........................15
Sunday Services: 7:30 a.m. Holy Eucharist, Rite 1 9:00 a.m. Family-friendly Communion Service with Music 10:00 a.m. Christian Education for Children, Youth, and Adults 11:00 a.m. Choral Eucharist, Rite 2 6:00 p.m. Holy Eucharist, Rite 2 Visit us on-line at www.cecsa.org
Front cover photo by Susanna Kitayama Back cover photo by Amy Case Editor Gretchen Duggan
2
Prophet Motive: An Introduction Author’s Note: This is the first essay in a series I will offer on the Hebrew prophets. Kay asked me to write this series, and, as she is both my muse and editor, I dedicate every line to her.
W
ith a thud, he slapped the Signet Classic edition of King Lear atop PATRICK GAHAN my desk. This Rector was followed patrickg@cecsa.org by a chain of thuds beside and behind me, as the unkempt, unsmiling, altogether hoary professor snaked his way through the class. He said not a word until he returned to the front of the room, and then he growled, “Read this tonight, and perhaps we’ll have something to talk about tomorrow.” Then, like a Dickens apparition, he departed. I silently shuffled out of the classroom with the other twenty or so befuddled students. The seminary had called a retired, eccentric, and apparently intractable professor to teach us Moral Theology. I was expecting something cutting edge by Stanley Hauerwas of Duke University or a classical text such as Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica or the Anglican Richard Hooker’s Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity. Even a dense Teutonic tome would have given me more assurance than a night spent with Shakespeare’s most depressing regent – Lear.
Lear vexes the reader from the first lines when he naively resigns his kingship until the end of the play when his once formidable kingdom is rent in pieces by opposing forces, forces unleashed by Lear’s vanity and hubris. Lear, although a king, seeks love and meaning, for the two most often go together. Yet, like humanity before and after him, he seeks them in wrong places, amongst the wrong people, and for the wrong reasons. Lear’s descent begins as soon as the curtain rises on the stage. Wishing to retire from public office, he decides to divide his kingdom equally amongst his three daughters. His price is that each one professes her fealty and illimitable love for him. Predictably, his two calculating daughters, Goneril and Regan, fawn over their father with impassioned acclamations. Lear’s favorite daughter, Cordelia, refuses to play the sycophant, for she reasons her father should surely know of her devotion to him due to her actions and words over the course of their years together. Reason has no hold on the doddering king; thus, Cordelia’s share of the kingdom is given to her two conniving and loveless sisters. The king and the kingdom spiral downward with only the pen of Shakespeare to arrest their fall. Enter the Prophets
Looking back those thirty years or more, I realize the recalcitrant, antique professor did not expect his gaggle of novitiates to get Lear then – but only now as we have increased in age and experienced the uncharted vicissitudes of life and ministry. The professor knew what we did not. The ivy-clad Gothic stone church, filled with welladjusted, beneficent, wholly attentive, committed people only exists in novels and dreams. People show up in church the way they show up in our families, broken, frustrating, discomfiting, vain, exhausting, heartbroken, and in perpetual need of saving. Shakespeare knew the truth and Lear spoke it for him.
Like Shakespeare, the Hebrew prophets enter the life of Israel as the kingdoms are spiraling down into dissolution. I use the plural “kingdoms,” because the prophets take the stage only after David’s short lived, glorious dominion is torn in two. But I get ahead of myself. Let’s first review the history of Israel in a broad sweep. Garnering our best evidence from Biblical texts and modern archaeology, the Israelites settle in Canaan under Joshua and the cadre of Judges, who follow the bellicose leader, between 1400 and 1200 BC. Within two hundred years of the Judges, the tribal confederation proves ineffective, and the people clamor to establish a monarchy like the mighty historic
From Our Rector... and militarily aggressive empires that the prophets’ caustic denunciations beneath their feet – quite literally. Once surround Israel on all sides. Simply once their glorious kingdoms are in the leaders and intelligentsia of the stated, those empires include Egypt and economic, civic, and religious freefall. southern kingdom in 587 BC are exiled Philistia to the southwest, Phoenicia from Judah to Babylon (the second Writing the Bible and the Hittites to the north, Assyria Mesopotamian kingdom that arises after and Babylon to the northeast, as well Assyria), the scribes work feverishly as the lesser realms of the Amalekites, Allow me one more digression before to compile the contents of the Torah Ammonites, Moabites, and Edomites. we dash headlong into our examination as well as the rantings of prophets, In approximately 1000 BC, which we will study. Why David rises from obscurity do they work so zealously to kingship, Jerusalem is to record these stories established as the capital, and prophecies? Because and Israel enters its brief without the legacy of the golden era. Solomon, land and the glory of the David’s son, ascends Israel’s Jerusalem Temple, the throne in 970 BC, cleverly Hebrews feared their amasses alliances with witness would be erased neighboring nations, and forever from human consolidates monarchical history. power. Yet after his death in 931 BC, the kingdom splits Before the exile, however, into north and south. The one Judean king’s literary northern kingdom retains witness rises above all the name “Israel,” and its others. Josiah, who in 640 capital will eventually be BC took the throne of Judah established in Samaria, and ruled for 31 years, whereas the southern ordered the history of kingdom undertakes the Israel be written. Besieged name “Judah,” and sets relentlessly by behemoth its capital in Jerusalem. Assyria, Josiah insisted (This terminology can be that a record be compiled King Lear and Cordelia, Act IV, Scene 7, Benjamin West, 1793, Folger Shakespeare Library confusing due to the fact of how and why God’s that “Israel” continues to people ended up on the describe the entire Hebrew precipice of annihilation. nation and people.) Most Bible readers of the prophets. All Biblical writing is The result is what Biblical scholars are surprised to learn that the northern borne out of struggle. Paul writes to term the Deuteronomistic History, kingdom, Israel, advances economically the various churches he plants in Asia which includes the first editions of the and globally well beyond that of the Minor and Greece as they struggle to books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, south. The north claimed much more define their faith, make community, 1 & 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings. All but arable land and is situated along the and survive the onslaughts of the Deuteronomy make up the Former busy trade routes of the ancient near brutally obstructive culture. The Gospel Prophets in the Hebrew Bible. The writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, repeated message resounding across east. follow suit and rehearse the Jesus the pages of this intricate history is that Both kingdoms, however, enjoy story to admonish and reinforce the Israel and Judah fall because they have nearly 200 years of relative peace foundations of their respective faith turned away from exclusive worship and economic growth as the major communities faced with the same of God, Yahweh, who rescued them kingdoms around them sort out challenges as Paul’s. Revelation is from slavery in Egypt and bequeathed internal and regional disputes. written at the first century’s end to them the land of Canaan. In that, the Furthermore, the Bronze Age Collapse, seven churches succumbing to the Deuteronomistic Historian echoes the whose climate changes, famine, and pressures of the pagan administrations. message of the prophets, whose voices invasions hit the great urban kingdoms Likewise, the Old Testament writings fill the streets and homes and palaces of the Mediterranean beginning in 1177 are largely composed as Israel teeters with their unsettling pronouncements. BC, saw its effects endure for 400 more on the shoals of total dissolution. years. When Tiglath Pileser III ascends That is not to say the various writers Why the Prophets? the Assyrian throne in 745 BC, the of the Old Testament manufactured fearsome Mesopotamian force awakens the stories. No, many of the sagas These pronouncements are propelled and peace in Canaan will be known of the Old Testament predated the by the dramatic degradation of Israel’s no more. Into the frenzied fear of this written language needed to record religious, economic, and civic life in uncertain era, the inimical Hebrew them. The stories were passed on orally four primary areas. First, as I have prophets emerge. Israel and Judah, from generation to generation, which already mentioned, the devotion like Lear, are only prepared to hear sufficed until the land was pulled out to Yahweh was increasingly being
3
From Our Rector... diluted and syncretized with other religions. With increased multinational commerce and cross-cultural alliances, singular devotion to Yahweh casts Israel as far too provincial. As early as the 10th century BC, Solomon’s court overtly incorporates devotion to foreign deities into their worship of Yahweh (1 Kings 11:3-4). Second, burgeoning prosperity spurs Israel to entrust its future in its newfound military might and numerous alliances instead of depending on Yahweh for its protection and well-being. In effect, Israel declares itself autonomous from Yahweh. Third, again associated with its economic expansion, wealthy landowners extend their holdings, thereby subjugating large numbers of the population. Being a worker of the land is no longer an honorable estate, as it was in Israel’s early history. The rural populous becomes increasingly like indentured servants, bereft of freedom, rights, and opportunity. The prophets denounce both the northern and southern kingdoms for their systematic diminishment of this expanding proletariat. Fourth, the rise of Assyria in northern Mesopotamia, which eventually recovers after the shattering Bronze Age Collapse, put both Israel and Judah under strangulating military and economic distress. Rather than evoking humility from the leading citizens, the anxiety incites them to increasingly bad behavior.1 Incited by these four disintegrating factors, the prophets erupt first in Israel and then in Judah. During the 65 years of Assyrian siege, Amos (763-750 BC)2 and Hosea (755-715 BC) prophesy in the north, while Isaiah (740-686 BC) and Micah (737-690 BC) contend with the south. Israel’s capital, Samaria, is decimated by the Assyrians in 721 BC and thereafter the northern kingdom disappears. The prophets refuse to yield, and a succession of them prophesy in Judah until Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar is ramming the very gates of Jerusalem in 587 BC. Habakkuk (630-605 BC), Zephaniah (640-609 BC), and Jeremiah (627-587 BC) are all included in that number with Ezekiel (593-570 BC) actually joining his fellow Israelites in exile. When Babylon falls, as all earthly empires do, Israel receives 1 Gerhard Von Rad, The Message of the Prophets (New York: Harper & Row, 1967), 9-11. 2 Dates reflect years of active prophesying.
4
a new overlord in the person of Cyrus of Persia (600-530 BC). He allows a large entourage of Jews to return home to Judah. The prophets active during this season of restoration are Haggai (520 BC), Zechariah (520-518), and finally, Malachi (533 BC), whose book anchors the end of the Old Testament. Who Are the Prophets? Learning about the Hebrew prophets is one thing; actually reading their words is quite another. Expecting to soar on eagle’s wings with Isaiah (40:31) or relish the new heart promised by Jeremiah (31:33), the prophets confront us more often with the gritty, unattractive, earthy reality resulting from the asperities of life and the march of humanity’s sin. We imagine the prophets will escort us onto a voyage of the inner reaches of our mind, to the higher peaks of our psychology, and into the depths of our soul. The poets we meet in the prophets, however, are not Wordsworth, Byron or Browning. “Instead of showing us the way through the mansions of the mind,” declares Abraham Heschel (1907-1972), the timeless Polish-American rabbinical scholar, “the prophets take us to the slums. The world is a proud place, full of beauty, but the prophets are scandalized, and rave as if the whole world were a slum.”3 Heschel goes on to say that God is actually “raging” through the words of the prophets, and they give God’s voice to the silent, despondent poor, whose lives are pillaged by those who have much but crave more. Amos, who will be the focus of my next essay, rails against those well-to-do in Israel, the northern kingdom, whose avarice knows no bounds. Out of respect for Eugene Peterson, who died on October 22 of this past year, yet not before he gave lovers of the Bible so much, I will use his powerful Message translationinterpretation of the prophets’ words:
go out and have a good time?” Who give little and take much, and never do an honest day’s work. You exploit the poor, using them— and then, when they’re used up, you discard them. Amos 8:4-6 (Message) These dispatches from the prophets were hard for the ancients to bear and equally hard for us, for their bare words pierce the polite pretensions of our middle-class lives. Nevertheless, these Hebrew prophets were not primarily messengers, but rather ones who were overwhelmed by the presence of God. What is truly real for the prophet is God and his kingdom. Humanity, transfixed as we are on our grand kingdoms, are as transient as the grass on which we walk so proudly. Isaiah, the prophet of whom Jesus makes so much, stands in the presence of God to receive this truth, which is as raw for us as it was for those in ancient Judah: A voice says, ‘Shout!’ I said, ‘What shall I shout?’ ‘These people are nothing but grass, their love fragile as wildflowers. The grass withers, the wildflowers fade, if GOD so much as puffs on them.
Listen to this, you who walk all over the weak, you who treat poor people as less than nothing, Who say, “When’s my next paycheck coming so I can go out and live it up? How long till the weekend when I can 3 Abraham Heschel, The Prophets (New York: Harper & Row, 1955), 3. Much of my understanding of the prophets comes from this illustrious scholar, whose love of the Old Testament surpasses that of any I have studied through the years.
Isaiah Window, Bishop’s Chapel at CEC
From our Rector... Aren’t these people just so much grass? True, the grass withers and the wildflowers fade, but our God’s Word stands firm and forever.’ Isaiah 40:6-8 (Message)
the prophet is in the Presence his words reveal.”5 Jeremiah, for instance, does not mince or soften his words. As if he is speaking from God’s throne room in heaven he bellows:
Those of us who quickly pronounce that “Jesus Christ desires a personal relationship with us,” should hearken to the revelations of the prophets, for they supply the content of what it means to remain in a relationship with God. Disturbing as these revelations are, they lucidly demonstrate the inverted religious math we assume. We imagine reality begins with us, which is the deadly backward reasoning that has brought us to this place of injustice and anthropocentric faith. Heschel contradicts us and invites us to open the books of the prophets. “In the Bible the realness of God came first, and the task was how to live in a way compatible with His presence. Man’s coexistence with God determines the course of history… the prophet’s word is a scream in the night. While the world is at ease and asleep, the prophet feels the blast from heaven.”4
by those with civic, economic, and religious power. Furthermore, the prophets are disgusted with humanity’s outward shows of philanthropy and piety, knowing full well these are ruses to cover up hearts that are far from God and, therefore, disinterested in the plight of the suffering. No prophet can rest with the knowledge of systematic injustice and sin weighing on his heart. Heschel claims “The prophet is sleepless and grave. The frankincense of charity fails to sweeten cruelties. Pomp, the scent of piety, mixed with ruthlessness, is sickening to him who is sleepless and grave. Perhaps the prophet knew more about the secret obscenity of sheer unfairness, about unnoticed malignancy of established patterns of indifference, than men whose knowledge depends solely on intelligence and observation.”6 Overwhelmed with the pain of his neighbors, the prophet not only decries the injustice but embodies it, as well. Both Micah and Isaiah walk the streets of Jerusalem stark naked in order to “lay bare” the sin of Judah and the defenselessness of the poor (Micah 1:8; Isaiah 20:2-4). Hosea, prophet to the northern kingdom, will endure the harshest pain and isolation, for God orders him to marry a prostitute in order to embody the unfaithfulness of Israel:
The Hebrew word for “prophet” – nabi – is illuminating just by its definition. The word means to “bubble forth as from a fountain.” The prophet is not in the business of dispensing fortunes or weaving poems or necessarily calling the people to renewed orthodoxy. Because the prophet inhabits the domain of the real, the presence of God, he broadcasts what is really real to the people to whom he is sent and calls them out of the false lives they have fabricated for themselves. In fact, through the prophet, God becomes present to His people, and that can be altogether shocking. To this Heschel adds, “The words the prophet utters are not offered as souvenirs. His speech to the people is not a reminiscence, a report, hearsay. The prophet not only conveys; he reveals. He almost does unto others what God does to him. In speaking, the prophet reveals God. This is the marvel of the prophet’s work: in his words, the invisible God becomes audible. He does not prove or argue. The thought he has to convey is more than language can contain. Divine power bursts in the words. The authority of
Although the prophets speak from the presence of God, they do not concern themselves with the esoteric or abstract. The Hebrew prophets are consumed with the everyday life in Israel and Judah, and the evil that has been visited on the poor and weak
The Hebrew prophets are not devoid of hope. In fact, through their words and the divine message that inhabits them, they become mighty cataracts of reconciliation roiling from God to man. Those who dismiss the prophets as tersely caustic and unreasonable in their exigent demands to repent, grossly underestimate the content and gravity of humanity’s sin. We have lived for so long as if we were our own creator
4 Heschel, 16.
5 Heschel, 22.
6 Heschel, 9.
Ezekiel Window, Bishop’s Chapel at CEC
The word of the Lord came to me saying, ‘Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem: “Stand in shock, heavens, at what you see! Throw up your hands in disbelief— this can’t be!” God’s Decree. “My people have committed a compound sin: they’ve walked out on me, the fountain of fresh flowing waters, and then dug cisterns— cisterns that leak, cisterns that are no better than sieves.’” Jeremiah 2:12-13 (Message)
The first time God spoke to Hosea he said, “Find a whore and marry her. Make this whore the mother of your children. And here’s why: This whole country has become a whorehouse, unfaithful to me, God.” Hosea did it. He picked Gomer daughter of Diblaim. She got pregnant and gave him a son. Hosea 1:2-3 (Message) The Next to the Final Act
5
From our Rector... and therefore, the arbiters of right and wrong, that we have rationalized personal and systematic behaviors that are not merely unseemly, but, in some cases, an abomination to the holy, grace-full God revealed in the Bible. The prophets remind us that we need saving, and that salvation will only come from the One who made us and loves us beyond our faults and fickle love for Him. How does God save us according to the prophets? With a heart transplant. The One who created us, recreates us. This hope is best borne out by the great prophet to the exiles, Ezekiel:
out both of the Earl’s eyes. Now blind, disconsolate, and destitute himself, the Earl asks a stranger to help him commit suicide. Because he is blind, he does not realize the stranger is none other than his son Edgar. The Earl asks to be taken to the cliffs of Dover so that he may jump to his death. Edgar, instead, takes him to a slight rise, where the Earl leaps, swoons, and faints. When Gloucester shortly awakens, he is astonished and
Yahweh speaking through Ezekiel to the exiles declared, ‘For here’s what I’m going to do: I’m going to take you out of these countries, gather you from all over, and bring you back to your own land. I’ll pour pure water over you and scrub you clean. I’ll give you a new heart, put a new spirit in you. I’ll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that’s God-willed, not self-willed. I’ll put my Spirit in you and make it possible for you to do what I tell you and live by my commands. You’ll once again live in the land I gave your ancestors. You’ll be my people! I’ll be your God!’ Ezekiel 36:26-28 (Message) Hope fills the final words of the prophets, and so it does in Lear. As in all of Shakespeare’s plays, another story parallels the main one. Lear’s terrible breach with his devoted daughter Cordelia is reflected in the pitiable Earl of Gloucester’s break with his equally admirable son, Edgar. Because Gloucester, regardless of his other myopic failings, remains resolutely devoted to Lear and seeks to rescue him from privation and homelessness, the forces unleashed by the actions of Lear’s two inconstant daughters gouge
“Thy life’s a miracle. Speak yet again” (IV, vi, 55).7 Shakespeare, bearing the witness of the procession of the great prophetic writers before him, knows redemption is possible even as the foundation of your kingdom, your world, your way of life, crumbles beneath you. “Life is a miracle,” and those who realize it is a bequest from God, know that hope rises from the ash heap of dissolution. Notice, too, that this magnificent scene of reconciliation in Lear comes in Act 4 in a play with five acts. This is not the end of the story. The prophets we study over the next months, regardless of their fierce words of judgment, know that they are living and speaking in Act 4. A prophet will arise after them who will herald the One for whom all human history yearns: John, called “the Baptizer,” was preaching in the desert country of Judea. His message was simple and austere, like his desert surroundings: “Change your life. God’s kingdom is here.” John and his message were authorized by Isaiah’s prophecy: Thunder in the desert! Prepare for God’s arrival! Make the road smooth and straight! Matthew 3:1-3; Isaiah 40:3 (Message)
St. John the Baptist from the Isenheim Altarpiece, 1512-1516, Matthias Grünewald
distraught that he is still alive, so when Edgar approaches him to help, his father commands, “Away and let me die” (IV, vi, 48). To this, Edgar responds with what may be the great tragedy’s most memorable line:
John’s words hit our ears with a shuttering thud. We’re not at the end of our story, but at its beginning. And that’s the miracle of it. Your brother,
Patrick U 7 Wendell Berry, Life Is A Miracle: An Essay Against Modern Superstition (Washington, DC: Counterpoint, 2000), 3-9. I am indebted to the great modern agrarian man of letters, Wendell Berry, who has likely read King Lear more times that I have read Isaiah!
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever. – Isaiah 40:8 6
MINISTRY Keep Singing
S
uicide. Cancer. Bad behavior. I endured all three over the course of one week. Life is replete with valleys. In my JOSH BENNINGER case, it was having Director of Music a colleague take and Worship his own life, being joshb@cecsa.org told a friend is dying of cancer, and dealing with my preteen daughter’s emotional outbursts. But no matter how low or exhausted I may be, I always look forward to quality time with the choir. Over the last four years as your music director, I have learned a critical fact that must be celebrated. Singing in the choir creates supernatural, healing, and transcending experiences. Whether you use the term magical or supernatural, the emotions generated by singing with a group of friends for the glory of God is nothing short of mysterious and wonderful. When the chorus swells with phrases such as, “I am resurrection and I am life,” or “Let not your hearts be troubled,” feelings pour out that are difficult to put a name to. And when you, the listener, feel it too, then together we take delight in a brief glimpse beyond the veil into that heavenly kingdom where there is no more pain, sadness, or suffering. Anne Morris, who died last year, was a faithful worshiper at the 9 a.m. service. Even as her memory was steadily declining towards the end, I fondly recall the many times she stopped me after a service to tell me, “Thank you for the beautiful hymns. Just keep singing.” Lifting our voices to the Lord is powerful and should not be underestimated, especially when it comes to the healing nature of singing.
that occurs during a choir rehearsal. Singing is not the only enjoyable aspect of being in the choir. In fact, creating music is probably only 70% of what we do. The choir is no different from any other small group in the church. We pray for each other. We share stories and devotionals. We love on each other. We may enter into a Thursday evening choir rehearsal worn down by the daily stress of life, but we always exit a rehearsal feeling re-energized. In addition to the therapeutic nature of choral singing, with 52 weeks in the year, there are plenty of opportunities that can give rise to the inexpressible. Training to run a marathon and choral preparation for a big event like Lessons and Carols share at least one thing in common: they both manifest strong feelings of accomplishment once the goal is achieved. A marathon requires many months to adequately prepare. Likewise, rehearsing the choir for special worship services throughout the year deserves many weeks of preparation also. A first-time marathoner once confessed to me that after he crossed
the finish line, an overwhelming feeling of transcendence washed over him. He reached the peak, and words failed to capture the moment. Writing on behalf of the choir, I can tell you that this same sensation wraps us like a warm blanket every time we sing the final note of the final hymn at Lessons and Carols, Good Friday, or All Saints’ Sunday. Singing in a sacred space gives rise to a multitude of powerful emotions and spiritual encounters. For some people it is magical and healing. For others it is possible to eclipse or transcend any other comparable life experience. As for me, it is all three, each and every week. I thank God every day that this talented and amazing choir adopted me into their family. I may have a bad week here or there, but singing with them is far better than anything a band aid or a doctor can remedy. So keep singing! Your brother in Christ,
Josh Benninger
At the close of a tiring or emotionally taxing day, nothing beats the healing
7
MINISTRY Christ Revealed Through Our Youth
I
t is almost impossible to believe we are halfway through the school year. It seems like yesterday the dedicated adults on our AMY CASE youth team were Youth Minister meeting to make amycase@gmail.com plans for our fall Bible study in the Carriage House, training acolytes, and brainstorming fun activities to bring our youth in relationship with each other, their church, and God. And now, here we are in January and the season of Epiphany! One of my responsibilities with our confirmation class of 21 incredible 7th and 8th graders, was teaching them the seasons of the church calendar. This has given me the opportunity to revisit the origin of Epiphany and what it means today. As many of you know, Epiphany was the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles, and the word “epiphany” means “to show forth, make known or reveal.” As Christians, we celebrate the physical birth of Jesus during Christmas, but Epiphany allows us to take the next step and celebrate the divine revelation in Jesus to the world.1 As
I
contemplated
the
profound
1 “Epiphany Through the Eyes of Children” www. buildfaith.org
meaning behind the season of Epiphany, I was reminded of the countless times I have seen this truth, the revelation of Christ’s love and grace in the world, in the words and actions of our own youth at Christ Church. In December, the youth participated in laying wreaths at the graves of our veterans at Fort Sam Houston. Teenagers and their younger siblings and families walked five miles across the vast expanse of the cemetery to pay respect and say prayers over our servicemen and women. Then, one day later, an astonishing number of our youth participated in our Lessons and Carols service – setting aside hours of time from their busy lives for rehearsals and performances to share their Godgiven gifts with our parish. And with Christmas just two days away, our Daughters of Christ Church took their talents on the road – caroling to the elderly and spreading cheer to those who desperately need it.
I watch our youth interacting with each other in the Carriage House on Sundays and in confirmation class, helping and caring for each other, sharing personal experiences, and engaging in genuine fellowship with one another. And I know for most of these junior high and high school students, this is just the tip of the iceberg. These are kids who are doing equally good work and bearing rich fruit at their schools, on their sports teams, with their siblings at home, at their part-time jobs, and with strangers who they just happen to run into in their daily lives. The Feast of Epiphany proclaims the good news that Jesus revealed to all humanity – God’s unlimited love that is extended to all. Epiphany is celebrated throughout the world in many different ways, ranging from fireworks, to parades, to exchanging gifts, and in some countries, even swimming in icy waters.2 I see it celebrated in the people at Christ Church and, especially in our youth, in the way they go about living their lives every day. Justin Lindstrom, our Associate Rector, texted me today, “These are great kids. So thankful for all our youth. So willing to help and serve when they can. They have busy lives, but church is an important part of their lives.” I couldn’t agree more. Christ is revealed to us everyday and in so many ways, and I thank God for the youth at Christ Church who answer God’s call to make Christ known in their world.
Amy 2 “What is Epiphany” www.sharefaith.com
8
MINISTRY
Why We Do What We Do - Children’s Communion Class
E
very now and then a child does or says something that creates in me an epiphany – a quietly exciting moment of revelation that comes upon HALLETA us here as we HEINRICH minister to Director of children, and as Family Ministries they in return halletah@cecsa.org minister to us. One of our little boys came to me as we were walking to Chapel after our Family Advent Event recently and was excited in a very reverent way. He couldn’t wait to tell me, “I got to hold the elements today!” He had helped his Dad usher that Sunday, while his brother helped his Mom and me set up the Advent Event. I asked him, “What were the elements?” He answered, “The wine and the bread.” I asked him what the elements meant, and he replied “Jesus.” Yes, he knew that the Risen Life of Jesus was in those elements. He knew, as a kindergartener, that those earthly elements were sacred through the power of the Holy Spirit. He was very sure in his faith and trust that through Christ, we have His life within us as we hold out our hands
each Sunday to receive Him. He was so excited that he wanted to share this Good News with the other children in Chapel that day. He did, and they listened. It was an awesome moment. I told the children how blessed we are to have this opportunity to go up to the altar each Sunday to receive the Life and Love of Christ. I didn’t have that as a child, but I am so grateful I have it now. Each year we offer a Children’s Communion Class in order to enrich our Children’s Communion experience. As you can tell from the story I just shared, our children are more than ready to receive this instruction. The class is open to first graders and older. The only requirement for receiving Communion is Baptism, so many of our children have been receiving for a long time, while for many it will be a firsttime experience at the class conclusion. The class is a basic course in our faith as we discern the importance of this most sacred experience of receiving Jesus. We answer such questions as “Who is Jesus?” “What Is Holy Communion?” “How do we celebrate Communion?” “How do we prepare our hearts to receive Holy Communion” and “Who are we as Christian Community?” We look for answers to these questions in the Bible and in our liturgy found
Confessions
I
know this is counter cultural in our high-tech age, but I love meetings! I miss meetings! I miss the brainstorming of ideas, honing down a plan, and sharing life stories with people face to face. It’s community building. I’m tired of emailing and texting and leaving voice mails that may never be listened to. I realized this recently when I had the joy of working with some of our parents on the Christmas Pageant. They helped in costuming our children in such an organized fashion. I was impressed. They repaired props while we shared life stories. One of our moms beautifully decorated the church and others pitched in. I stayed late to help this committed mom and really respect her commitment. I witnessed
of a
in the Book of Common Prayer. We include presentations from Levels I and II of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Christian Formation to reinforce our understanding. At the end of the course, we participate in a day-long Communion Retreat at the church where in the morning we spend a quiet time in the church journaling in our Communion Journals in front of our beautiful stained glass windows, learning the proper ways to receive Communion and reflecting on the words said as we receive, and composing the Prayers of the People for the next day. In the afternoon, we create items which will be used the next day: Communion stoles, a Baptismal Candle to remind us of the Light of Christ we received at Baptism, and a cross to wear. The class culminates the next day in a Communion Celebration where the children are honored in the 11 a.m. service. They are drawn close to the Altar to witness the priest’s preparation of the Eucharist and even help them. This is a positively impactful and inspirational experience for the children and all who witness it. The children are definitely ready for it, and that’s why we do what we do in offering them an enriching Communion preparation.
Baby Boomer: I Love Meetings!
and complemented a crew of parents who lovingly served at the Christmas Pageant Reception. I got to look them in the eyes and personally thank them. I love these people. I love this church. I’m a technologically backward Baby Boomer, but I want the more personal, relational opportunities presented in face to face meetings. I gave up meetings a while back when I was paring down responsibilities during my illness. I knew a lot of people were too busy to meet anyway, so no great loss. But I’m very healthy now and have been “Lone Rangering” it too much over the last few years. Ministry can be lonely without relationships. I plan to reinstate Children’s Ministry Team Meetings for the good of the church and
me. If you would be interested in being part of Children’s Ministry Leadership Team specializing in Sunday School, Children’s Worship, Christian Parenting Classes or anything else you can think of, please contact me at the church. I promise that we won’t meet more than once every two or three months, but our meetings will be fun, fruitful, and relationship building. I also promise you will not be alone. You will always have my support and others to team up with you. Love,
Halleta
PS You don’t have to be a parent of young children to be part of the Children’s Ministry Team – just love Jesus, love kids, and love fun meetings.
9
Songs
O
JUSTIN LINDSTROM Associate Rector for Community Formation justinl@cecsa.org
ne of my favorite hymns of all time and especially during Epiphany is “Songs of Thankfulness and Praise.” I love the words, the theme, and the message…
Songs of thankfulness and praise, Jesus, Lord to thee we raise, Manifested by the star to the sages from afar; Branch of royal David’s stem in thy birth at Bethlehem; Anthems be to thee addressed, God in man made manifest. Manifest at Jordan’s stream, Prophet, Priest, and King supreme; And at Cana, wedding-guest, in thy Godhead manifest Manifest in power divine, changing water into wine; Anthems be to thee addressed, God in man made manifest. Manifest in making whole palsied limbs and fainting soul; Manifest in valiant fight, quelling all the devil’s might; Manifest in gracious will, ever bringing good from ill; Anthems be to thee addressed, God in man made manifest. Manifest on mountain height, shining in resplendent light, Where disciples filled with awe thy transfigured glory saw. When from there thou leddest them steadfast to Jerusalem Cross and Easter Day attest God in man made manifest. Epiphany is the liturgical season that follows Christmas and is before Lent. It is a season when we celebrate the manifestation of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. It is a season that we discover how Jesus is the light that overcomes darkness, the love that overcomes fear, the joy that overcomes sorrow.
10
of
Thankfulness
and
Praise
I believe that the most important question we can ask ourselves during Epiphany is: How is Jesus manifest in my life? In my discipleship? In my church? In my ministry? In my family? In my work? And the list goes on… How is God, as Jesus, Lord and Savior, manifest everywhere and in everyone? It is through relationships! Think about it. Ponder in your heart how God shows up as love, grace, peace, joy, and light in all the situations listed above, in the music lyrics above, and in every aspect of your life. It is in the relationships we have. It is in how we treat each other. It is in how we care for one another.
will people have to wait in line. As they arrive, they can enter a comfortable space, sit down at a table, and be served a meal. We can sit at the table with our folks and hear their stories, discover their sorrows, and celebrate their joys. God is and will be manifest in how we treat those for whom we are called to serve. Living into our Baptismal Covenant more fully…to treat everyone with dignity and respect…and to live more deeply in the commandment of Jesus…to love one another…will manifest God in our hearts and minds, our souls and relationships. And we will be forever transformed and so will the people we serve. May it be so.
Another question I have been pondering is: How is God going to be manifest in the new Outreach Campus, the Pavilion, the Center, the Park? And again, I have come to the conclusion that it is through relationships. We will continue to give out groceries, hot meals, clothing, toiletries, haircuts, and more. But what will make the difference is the relationships we forge and deepen due to the space we have created. No longer
I sing songs of thankfulness and praise to God for you and your service to others. Your love that is shown to our neighbors is unmatched. Thank you!! In God’s Peace,
Justin+
Our Church Life...
Smoke Alarms Save Lives
P
When the smoke alarm sounds, get outside and stay outside. Go to your outside meeting place.
ut smoke alarms in your home to keep your family safe! Smoke rises, so put smoke alarms on ceilings or high on walls.
Some people, especially children and older adults, may need help to wake up. Make sure someone will wake them if the smoke alarm sounds.
Install smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each bedroom (or one in a common hall) and on every level of the home. Larger homes may need more alarms.
Call the fire department from a cellphone or a neighbor’s phone. Stay outside until the fire department says it’s safe to go back inside.
Test alarms at least once a month by pushing the test button.
For more information go to: usfa.fema.gov/prevention/outreach/ smoke_alarms
Label each new battery with the battery installation date. Replace all smoke alarms when they are 10 years old or if they do not sound when tested. Look at the back of the alarm for the date of manufacture.
Make an escape plan so everyone knows how to get out fast. Practice a fire drill once or twice per year.
Christ Church Community
of
Hope: Creating Community Committed
“T
phone call, or note. He sets the standard for clergy pastoral care. With the help of Carol Miller, the Pastoral Care Administrator, no one is forgotten.
One of our parishioners was a skilled golfer and had a fulfilling career in education. Now in her 90s, she lives in an assisted living home. Her children live far away and do not visit often. She has outlived most of her friends and is easily forgotten. Ten years ago she took the Alpha Course at Christ Church and made a connection with God she never knew before. Alpha friends brought her to church until it was no longer manageable. However, she is not forgotten. Christ Church Community of Hope Lay Chaplains visit regularly. She looks forward to their visits and is encouraged by their faithfulness.
Benedictine Spirituality is the foundation of the Community of Hope as it provides a model for disciplined prayer and Christian community that keeps God’s Grace flowing in and through the care giver. We will learn how to use the Book of Common Prayer for personal devotions as well as a resource for ministry tools. Practical skills will be taught including Listening Skills, Grief: Coping With Loss, and Care for the Caregiver.
he Community of Hope’s mission is to help create Christian communities of volunteer lay chaplains united in prayer; shaped by Benedictine spirituality; and equipped for and serving in pastoral care ministries.”
The rector of Christ Church, Patrick Gahan, does not want anyone to fall through the cracks. He is insistent that every member who is sick, in hospital, care home, or shut-in be touched at least twice a month with a visit,
Ongoing support is provided in small groups called the Circle of Care. Meeting for prayer and support, members share their experience and wisdom with each other. They pray for those they are visiting and are encouraged to continue to be a blessing.
to
Care
The next Community of Hope training class will begin Wednesday, January 16. It will cover 12 modules that will equip you to understand how you can identify and use the gifts God has given you in pastoral care ministry. Commissioning this class will be at the 11 a.m. service, Sunday, April 7. Care to know more? To sign up or for questions, please contact the Rev. Eric Fenton, at 210-887-0067 or efenton1@ mac.com, or Carol Miller at the church, 210-736-3132 or carolm@cecsa.org.
11
Our Church Life..
PAGE TURNERS – From
L
uce, an intelligent, yet brooding woman, runs from the pain of her past to oversee a long-abandoned resort in the North Carolina mountains. Her treasured solitude is dashed when her young, non-communicative, niece and nephew are put into her care by state officials. Her sister, the children’s mother, has been murdered. While the murderer searches the Appalachians in order to destroy the children as the only witnesses to his grisly crime, Luce’s long-forgotten childhood suitor enters her life and the children’s. Characteristic of Charles Frazier, the plot of his novel is as unique as its setting in the highlands of North Carolina. The author of the celebrated novel, Cold Mountain, Frazier has woven another masterpiece of prose in Nightwoods. His use of language is so arresting that Kay, reading the novel first, exclaimed to me repeatedly, “Frazier just writes so well that I have to stop and admire his sentences.” That Terry Waite has written a book entitled Solitude should surprise no one. Serving as an envoy for the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1987 in order to secure the release of four hostages, Waite was taken prisoner himself. He was held captive for five years, with four of them spent in solitary confinement. Almost offhandedly in the book, he breaks off to report a chapter of his long captivity spent underground, where he lost all sense of day and night. “I was eating my breakfast at 3 AM, unaware of the actual time.” What confounds the reader about Terry Waite is that 26 years later he is not repelled by the prospect of solitude but
12
the
Rector’s Book Stack
drawn to it. He professes a need for it. His latest book is his trek across the globe in search of places of solitude and the people who choose to inhabit them. He slowly crisscrosses the globe from Russia to Australia to Chicago to Utah. Solitude can be found in the middle of a teeming city as much as in the middle of the Aboriginal outback. Quite telling, Waite ends his journey at a Hospice in his native England. The solitude of death is one we will all share. In The Givenness of Things, Marilynne Robinson goes from Shakespeare to John Wycliffe to Karl Barth to Dietrich Bonhoeffer to Martin Luther King to Cecil B. DeMille to St. John to St. Mark to St. Paul with such alacrity and dexterity that I had to continually close the book of essays and marvel at her breadth of knowledge and her eloquence in representing their thought. I found that I could not read her compositions once tucked into bed, for her writing demands deeper thought than I could muster whilst propped upon my pillows. Like many modern readers, I was drawn to Robinson through her Pulitzer Prize novel, Gilead, which is the most honest and probing look at the life of a Christian pastor that I have read. Robinson followed that novel with two other equally compelling books, which are centered on the same theme – Home and Lila. I had no idea Robinson wrote essays until I stumbled on four volumes of hers and quickly bought them all. With all that, Robinson had another surprise in store for me. She is a steadfast fan of John Calvin. She, in fact, considers Calvin the great mind of the Reformation. For one, she is drawn to Calvin’s high Christology, in which Robinson resolutely declares that in Jesus Christ the world encountered the fullness of the Holy Trinity in the flesh. Robinson applauds Calvin’s high view
of humanity, as well. She contends the incarnate Christ radically elevates the role of man. By all means, read her essays…just don’t try to do so in bed! Leonardo da Vinci, without question one of the greatest, creative minds of all time – ranking alongside Einstein and Galileo, yet looming above Steve Jobs, and Newton – had one problem: He began far more projects than he finished. Arguably, the Mona Lisa and the Last Supper are the most penetrating paintings in history. The two certainly provided the fulcrum for the procession of Renaissance artists who would follow. However, Leonardo left scores of paintings unfinished and many that he promised were never begun. His tendency to move on to another project before finishing the one at hand was not due to laziness, but rather his insatiable curiosity. This fact is the drumbeat of Walter Isaacson’s comprehensive biography of the towering polymath Leonardo da Vinci. Isaacson, a Tulane professor and chronicler of other seminal minds such as Benjamin Franklin, Einstein, Steve Jobs, and Kissinger, wrote his biography of Leonardo primarily from the great master’s collection of notebooks, numbering 7,200 pages in all. In the notebooks, we meet the true genius of Leonardo. Dissecting well over thirty cadavers, he described the accurate working of human heart valves 400 years before modern cardiology. Examining the striations of fossils along the hills and dales in his native Italy, he professed tenets of evolution 300 years before Darwin. Leonardo’s most famous line in his notebooks reads, “Describe the tongue of the woodpecker,” which led those who followed him to marvel how that tongue allows woodpeckers to absorb over twenty times the cranial impact that would instantly kill a
Our Church Life...
Book Stack Cont’d.... human. For fun, Leonardo sketched some 500 flying machines, mainly for entertainment at festivals in Milan and Florence, but his vision for human flight surpassed any of his age or of the ages succeeding him. All the while, Leonardo painted in fits and starts with a growing understanding of how the human body actually operates and emotions are
expressed. The Mona Lisa stares back at the thousands of voyeurs at the Louvre as if to say, “I am a (brush) stroke of genius.” For that, there is no argument. Leonardo, still writing in his notebooks after a stroke left him partially paralyzed, was attempting to decipher a geometry conundrum which had long puzzled him. Then, at the bottom of
his four drawings, he wrote, “The soup is getting cold.” With that unadorned, prosaic line, Leonardo left his work, but not before raising our vision of humanity to heights unknown before and rarely after.
SOCIETY
Getting Ready
I
recently received a letter from a doctor who had once treated me. The opening sentence of this letter stated, “I AM NOT RETIRING!” As a member of his patient list, he was informing me that he was changing and narrowing his practice. What he went on to say has echoed with me since the moment I read it: “A very good friend gave me a book last year, Essentialism, by Greg McKeown. I have poured over it repeatedly. It has inspired me during this time in my life where I have realized more clearly that I have too many ‘irons in the fire’. While many of the author’s points resonated with me, he shared one that was impactful. He emphasized that anyone can say ‘no’ to bad things. The hard thing is saying ‘no’ to good things in order to say ‘yes’ to the best things. This perspective is my goal, moving forward.” I had to ask myself what I had said yes to that was either bad or simply good, not best. Let the paring away begin! My doctor has now streamlined his practice to free up time to be able to teach, to
to
Go
speak professionally, and to devote more time to a program for families caught up in the chaos of addiction.
join us. The date for the seminar will be published as soon as it is set. A year ago, my hat maker friend died. She had been married to the president of United Artists and was an actress herself. She traveled in the poshest circles throughout Europe and dined with royalty. Yet despite being one of the most creative and intellectual souls I have known, she died without a will. She had been ill for three years with lung cancer, fought like crazy, but obviously denied her mortality. Her sons have incurred a tremendous debt to establish heirship and to settle her estate.
My schedule needs freeing as well. We have planned another “Are You Ready to Go” seminar, and as in the past, we have added elements to it that you will find helpful. I have wanted to do this for at least six months, but other things got in the way. We are committed and will get it done within the first quarter of 2019. With every legacy gift pledged to the church and the discussions that surround them, we learn more about what our congregation and others need in the way of information about this vital ministry. We hope that you will participate and encourage friends to
We want to bring all the elements together for you to ensure that your final journey does not leave such a littered trail behind it. That Last Will and Testament is just the beginning! Let us help you organize all of your vital information and show you the easiest way to establish a legacy for our most precious church! Your participation paves the road for the future of Christ Episcopal Church.
Ferne Burney 13
OF EVENTS January 1:
New Year’s Day Church offices are closed
January 2:
Financial Peace University begins, 6:30 p.m.
January 4 - 6:
Sr. High Mid-Winter at Camp Capers
January 5:
Sidewalk Saturday (every Saturday), 8 a.m., Outreach Campus New Playground opens
January 6:
Epiphany Sunday Children’s Epiphany Celebration, 10 a.m., FMC Spring Sunday School resumes, 10 a.m.
Christ Church Staff: The Rev. Patrick Gahan, Rector patrickg@cecsa.org The Rev. Scott Kitayama, Associate Rector, scottk@cecsa.org The Rev. Brien Koehler, Associate Rector for Mission and Formation, brienk@cecsa.org
January 9:
Wednesday Evening Discipleship Studies resume, 6:30 p.m.
The Rev. Justin Lindstrom, Associate Rector for Community Formation, justinl@cecsa.org
January 11 - 13:
Jr. High Mid-Winter at Camp Capers
Carol Miller, Pastoral Care Administrator, carolm@cecsa.org
January 13:
The Well Guest Speaker - Bishop Frey, 10 a.m., Room 246 The Well Brunch at the Pearl Food Hall, 11 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Halleta Heinrich, Director of Family Ministry, halletah@cecsa.org
January 16:
Community of Hope class begins, 6 p.m.
Lily Fenton, Nursery Director lilyf@cecsa.org
January 18:
The Well Game Night, off campus, 6:30 p.m.
January 18 - 20:
Elementary Mid-Winter at Camp Capers
Amy Case, Youth Minister amycase@gmail.com
January 20:
Noisy Offering Christ Church 2.0 begins, 10 a.m., Conference Room Third Sunday Lunch Bunch at Order Up, 12:30 p.m.
Susan Lindstrom, Assistant Youth Minister, susanl@cecsa.org Joshua Benninger, Music Minister & Organist, joshb@cecsa.org
January 21:
Life After Loss begins, 12:30 p.m., Conference Room
January 27:
Confirmand & Mentor Breakfast, 9 a.m., Parish Hall Annual Parish Meeting, 10 a.m.
February 1 - 2:
“Equipped” DWTX Outreach Retreat for Youth, Carriage House
Robert Hanley, Parish Administrator parishadmin@cecsa.org
February 9:
The Well outing to Rodeo Fairgrounds, 1 p.m.
Darla Nelson, Office Manager darlan@cecsa.org
February 10:
Children’s Communion Class Parent Orientation, 10 a.m.
February 13:
The Well Guest Speakers - Jim & Ruth Berg, 10 a.m., Room 246 The Well Brunch, off campus
February 12:
5 Love Languages Dinner, 6 p.m., Parish Hall
February 14:
Valentine’s Day
February 17:
Noisy Offering Third Sunday Lunch Bunch at Order Up, 12:30 p.m.
February 21 - 23: Diocesan Council in McAllen March 1:
Ellison Scholarship Applications due
March 1 - 3:
Happening #142, TBD
March 3:
Jazz Mass, 11 a.m., Sanctuary Gumbo Lunch, 12:30 p.m., Parish Hall
14
Charissa Fenton, Director of Children’s Music & Receptionist charissaf@cecsa.org
Donna Franco, Financial Manager donnaf@cecsa.org Gretchen Comuzzi Duggan, Director of Communications, gretchend@cecsa.org Monica Elliott, Executive Assistant to the Rector, monicae@cecsa.org Elizabeth Martinez, Kitchen Manager elizabethm@cecsa.org Robert Vallejo, Facilities Manager robertv@cecsa.org Rudy Segovia, Hospitality Manager rudys@cecsa.org Joe Garcia, Sexton joeg@cecsa.org
ALBUM
15
Christ Episcopal Church 510 Belknap Place San Antonio, TX 78212 www.cecsa.org
The Message (USPS 471-710) is published bi-monthly by Christ Episcopal Church, 510 Belknap Place, San Antonio, TX 78212. Periodical postage paid in San Antonio, TX. Postmaster: Please send address changes to Christ Episcopal Church, 510 Belknap Place, San Antonio, TX 78212. Volume 21, Number 1.
One of our CEC kids placing a wreath at Ft. Sam Houston Cemetery.