Who We Are

December 2009 Epistle

Download the December issue of our newsletter: The Epistle, December 2009

Inside this issue:

• God in Our Lives by The Rev. Wallace Adams-Riley
• Advent Zone: Proceed with Caution by The Rev. Kate Jenkins
• Love & Ribbons Row by Mary Kay Huss, Jr. Warden
• Photo: Beautiful Baptisms
• Seeking to Know God by Roger Whitfield
• Things I've Learned Along the Way by Lindsay Pruitt

and much, much more! Download the PDF to read the full issue.

On the Cover:

The Presence & Action of God in Our Lives

As of the First Sunday in Advent, a new year in the life of the Church year is underway.  We begin this year, as we do every year in the life of the Church, by getting ready for Christmas.  Of course, however, what it means for the Church to get ready for Christmas is not the same thing as what it means for the culture to get ready for Christmas.  Indeed, Advent is one of those times when we are perhaps most aware of a certain dissonance between the Church’s calendar and the secular calendar.  All of which presents us with as good a time as any to consider the following: Why do we have a Church calendar?

On the simplest level, the Church calendar is a way to memorialize, in an orderly and regular way, the events of the life of Christ, from expectancy through birth, through life and ministry, suffering and death, and, finally, through to the Resurrection and the Ascension.  However, memorializing the life of Christ is only the beginning.

Through the course of the Church year, with all of its seasons and fast days and feast days, we are not only remembering, honoring, and celebrating what happened in the earthly life of Jesus, two millennia ago, we are meanwhile, hoping that, through reflection on the life of Christ, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we would become yet more deeply attuned to the presence and action of God in our own lives now.  Yes, the Church year is about the life of Christ that was, but the Church year is also about the life of Christ that is:

    O holy Child of Bethlehem,
    descend to us, we pray;
    cast out our sin, and enter in,
    be born in us today.
    We hear the Christmas angels
    the great glad tidings tell;
    o come to us, abide with us,
    our Lord Emmanuel!

What this means, then, is that every Advent and Christmas, we the Church ask God to help us know yet more fully what it means to prepare to receive God into our lives, and what it means for God to be incarnated, manifested, born, into our midst, in very real ways: as Bishop Brooks wrote, “be born in us today.”

Of course Jesus was born in Bethlehem only once; however, if the Gospel means anything to us, then the divine dynamics of Jesus’ life must play out in our own lives.  That is, the rhythms of Jesus’ life must become the rhythms of our lives.  And this is equally true for us as a parish as it is for us as individuals.

Through this Advent we are indeed preparing for Christ to be born anew in us.  We are pregnant with expectation and hope.  Our Such Great Heights visioning process recently concluded; and thoughtful, conscientious work is underway to make sure that our shared discernment bears the fruit for which we have worked and prayed.  And, meanwhile, a search committee is doing important work in preparation for the calling of a new Minister of Music sometime in coming weeks.  And, simultaneously, God is at work in countless other ways in our lives, both as individuals and as a community of faith, bringing in a birth, a new hope.

Again, the coming of Advent and Christmas reminds us once more of, yes, the Christ that was, but, as importantly, Advent and Christmas remind us of the Christ that is, today, in our lives, mine and yours.

Thanks be to God,
your brother in Christ,

Wallace+

Cover photo: Group photo from the 2009 Women's Retreat to the Outer Banks, NC in October. Photo by Leslie Choplin

Advent Zone, Proceed with Caution

by the Rev. Kate Jenkins, Associate Rector

Almost ten years into the twenty-first century, and our lives have never been faster. The rise of information technology, initially created to make our lives easier, has increased both the speed of communication and the expectation of productivity. Never before have human beings been able to hurtle themselves though space at such speed. Never before have we been able to send the written word thousands of miles in a matter of seconds. Never have we accomplished more, and yet never has peace of mind been further from the human experience. We are becoming so accustomed to the increased pace of our lives that our minds race even when we find a quiet moment.

We brag about how busy our lives are; “2 bizee,” “busy mom” our license plates proclaim. We equate busyness with productivity, with liveliness, even with success. Few people would identify busyness as a “sin” but I think a good case could be made to do just that; for busyness allows us to run from ourselves, and from God.

In a nation where speed is a valued commodity, Advent comes like an unwanted stepchild. The word advent means “coming.” The four Sundays of Advent are always the four Sundays before Christmas Day. Advent ushers in the beginning of the Christian year. Advent is all about waiting for Christ to come. Advent is a season of waiting.

But who wants to wait today? Whenever we are forced to wait, it means the service must be poor, that there must be some sort of problem. Waiting is a sign of failure. The faster something is produced, the better for our convenience. No one wants to wait in a traffic jam. No one wants to wait when someone is late. No one wants to wait.

The Best Things in Life...

Yet even today, we cannot deny that most things of true value take time to come. I waited nine months for my children to be born. One doesn’t expect to walk into a fine restaurant and find dinner on the table. Waiting, perhaps over some good wine, is part of the older, wiser expectation of quality. Somewhere in the recesses of our memory, we remember that the best food takes time to prepare.

Everything of value in our human existence takes time. From the birth of a child to the fostering of relationships, from the acquisition of knowledge to the development of skills, most truly valued things take time to develop. That is why the highest educational degrees take the most time to earn. It is the investment of time itself, just as much as the accumulated knowledge, that makes the degree valued and respected.

... Are Worth Waiting For

And why should we not expect to wait for the coming of Christ? Is not the Incarnation the most cherished, most anticipated of events for all Christians? Of course we are asked to wait. Our waiting is a sign of our love for Christ, our value of his presence. God asks us to wait because we need to learn the importance of not being instantly gratified. God asks us to wait because we must realize that God exists in a time far beyond the scope of our understanding. In our waiting, God molds us in the Divine image. In our waiting, God is asking us to deepen our love for Christ. In our waiting, God is asking us to enter into one of the most profound stages of love. God asks us to wait because the Beloved is worth it.  

Love & Ribbons Row

by Mary Kay Huss & Kimberly Allen

In November, NBC12 reporter Sunni Blevins reported about the spirit of caring at Project Homeless Connect:

“With everything from medical and dental care to free haircuts to help with housing and employment services under one roof, Ronald had one word to describe this event. “It’s a miracle -- a real, true miracle.”

Parishioners Susan Brooks, Lynn Evans, Molly Fretwell, Gail James, Mary Fran Lowe, and Andy Nea were among the nearly 800 volunteers who made Project Homeless Connect such a success.

Whenever connections are made, the miracle of love is on display. Also, on Advent, St. Paul’s  launched “Ribbons Row” on Sunday mornings. Located along the wall as you enter the parish house, Ribbons Row is the place to shop for all good causes as we remember our friends and loved ones this Christmas, sharing the miracles of love and generosity.

Among those served through Ribbons Row shopping this year are: students at Woodville Elementary School; kids in Mwitikira, Tanzania; Thursday guests at the Walk-In Lunch; Boy Scouts Troop 400; and charities focused on women and children that are supported by the Episcopal Church Women.

Beautiful Baptisms

 

On November 1, 2009, All Saints’ Day, Will, Audrey, and Emma were baptized at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Pictured are babies Will and Audrey with (left to right) Philip Gilbert, Lori Smith, Tim Baird, Anne Dobson, Sheila Mandt, and Chris Hilbert. Photo courtesy of Anne Dobson.

Small Group Bible Study: Seeking to Know God

by Roger Whitfield (.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address))

W.C. Fields, when asked what he was doing reading the Bible, said, “looking for loopholes.” Most of us are not that agile and clever and either ignore the Bible or focus on passages that appeal to our point of view or way of life. Although many of us do it, it is perhaps a mistake to think we will find guidelines for living - sort of a “when here, do this” kind of thing - because most of what is contained in the Bible are stories of writers’ encounters with God and their attempts to describe them. Thus, one might say a more reasonable outcome from reading the Bible is that God can become revealed to us.

Professor Phyllis Pleasants, a Wednesday evening speaker, made the following observation: she said that young people these days are cutting through the fog surrounding organized religion by asking two questions: 

1.) “Do you know God?” and
2.) “If so, what difference does it make?” 

Getting to Know God

The simplicity is startling and the questions are profound. However, you must answer the first before answering the second. You may think you know God through, for example, watching the sun rise, participating in the Eucharist, marrying your sweetheart, visiting a dying friend, living in a rural African village and so on; but let me suggest that there is a more direct way that has sustained seekers over the ages.  It is – again startling in its simplicity – becoming familiar with the Bible.

Each Sunday morning a small group of us get together and try to do that. Every now and again we take a shot at the second question. We intend to be ready for these kids and invite you to do so, too.

Things I’ve Learned Along the Way

by Lindsay Pruitt (.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address))

One of the seminary classes I am taking this semester is called “Sabbath Keeping.” Sabbath Keeping involves doing nothing. This is not a typo; I do mean nothing. Yes, we have to read books and write a short paper, but during this four hour class the rule is “You cannot be productive.” I am not going to deny the concept was and still is difficult to grasp. The first day of class I was going over in my mind the list of things I have to do after this class. Then, there was the anxiety over how much stuff I have to do and how I was wasting my time. That is how Sabbath Keeping was for me the first couple of weeks.

Then something happened during one of those class meetings. It was after our morning prayer, during a timeframe of doing “nothing.” I was lying down about to take a nap, looking outside when I noticed the colorful green leaves. They were a variety of different shades of green, and I did not have my glasses on, so the leaves took the form of a Monet painting.

How Will God Sing to You?

After a few minutes of admiring the beauty and thinking about God’s amazing creation; I heard God whisper, “Have I not created you to be more beautiful than these leaves?”  Immediately, I remembered a passage from Zephaniah 3:17 “The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” Note that this passage does not say “God will love you if you do this, that and all of the above.” Maybe it is not about the energy we place in work, family, church, etc.; maybe it is about growing in a love God has for us no matter how much we do or don’t do. How will God sing over you today?

Tips for a Simpler Advent and Christmas »

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