January 2018 message

JANUARY 2018 • Volume 20, Number 1

We Three Kings...

Worship: 2 Singing a New Song: 5 New Year’s Resolutions: 8 VESTRY NOMINEES: 10 What is Patrick Reading Now?: 12 Photo Album: 15

FROM

In this issue: Music Ministry ...................... 5 Family Ministry..................... 6 Youth Ministry ...................... 8 Our Church Life ................... 9 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

Cover photos by Susanna Kitayama Editor Gretchen Duggan

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Worship This is Patrick’s fourth epistolary essay in this series about the Christian ministry.

D

ear Alex,

You state in your letter that it happened on a Thursday, Maundy Thursday, to PATRICK GAHAN Rector be clear. That patrickg@cecsa.org night, you say, you felt more like a participant in worship instead of a spectator. I appreciate your vivid remembrance of that night: My grandmother was visiting from Atlanta and would stay through Easter. The Sunday before at church you announced that we were changing the Maundy Thursday worship to include foot washing. As a self-conscious thirteen-year-old, the notion of washing another’s stinky, sweaty feet sounded abhorrent. Mom was on the vestry that year and felt we needed to support you; so off we went. Adding to my discontent was Mother’s insistence that I take care of Gramma.

What happened next completely crumbled my defenses, for Gramma now knelt down in front of me, untied and pulled off my Converse Chuck Taylor’s, and gently washed my clammy feet. The very moment the water touched my toes I began to sob, so much so that my mother leapt up unshod from the adjacent chair to ask me what was the matter.

I could not answer. I only knew that some heretofore-unknown portal had opened up between heaven and me. For the first time in my life, I was at worship.

I recall the service starting in the usual way – with singing, praying, reading, and preaching – when all at once the service made a strange turn. Expecting the first words of the Creed, I heard instead, ‘The Lord Jesus, after he had supped with his disciples, said to them, “Do you know what I, your Lord and Master, have done to you? I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done.’”

Before I could muster an objection, we all lined up along the red-carpeted aisle to take our turn washing one another’s feet. I knelt down in front of Gramma, gingerly pulled off her stately black pumps, and washed one of her gnarled, purple-veined feet and then the second. Other than making a homemade Mother’s Day card for her in kindergarten, it was the first direct act of kindness I had directed to her.

The Last Supper Window

From Our Rector...

Alex, the stark, unguarded honesty of your recollection sparks my own experience. At some point, mature Christians must go from being voyeurs to being actors in worship. Until that time, we busy ourselves with learning about God but not experiencing, nor loving Him. To be honest, I was much older than you when I finally went from attending services to actually worshipping God. I was a senior journalism student at the University of Alabama, when I was sent to investigate a strange religious phenomenon in the tame and predictable religious landscape of Birmingham. A formerly sleepy congregation, housed in a non-descript red brick building in a working-class neighborhood, was suddenly “standingroom only” every time they opened the doors on Sunday or Wednesday night.

Would-be attendees were spilling out onto the shoulder of busy Centerpoint Parkway. Curious, my Senior Reporting Class professor insisted that I go take a look at Huffman Assembly of God. The cantankerous, chain-smoking, sailor-talking prof was not the least bit interested in the fact that I was an uptight, proper knife and fork, umbrella-toting Episcopalian. Thus, on an overcast, frigid Sunday morning in late November, I took my place in the long queue to enter the double steel and glass doors for the 11 AM worship.

Lunchtime would come and go before I exited those same doors.

With the very first notes issuing from the piano, I realized I was in a strange land. 1975 predated rock bands at worship. For their part, Huffman Assembly did not need drums, electric guitars, and tambourines to get the people on their feet, waving their hands heavenward, and closing their eyes in rhapsodic prayer. Bill and Gloria Gaither’s standards were enough. So much for A Mighty Fortress is Our God or Crown Him with Many Crowns, this God was in the building!

I cannot recall a single syllable of the sermon, nor do I remember the content of the prayers. What I do recollect is the almost measurable awareness of Jesus’ presence. I say “Jesus” because his name was invoked repeatedly, not as an aloof deity but as an attendant

neighbor.

Sometime around 2 PM, we were dismissed. Most were already chatting expectantly about the 6 PM service as we departed. I found myself both exhausted and exhilarated at the same time. While I did not wish to continue in that intense charismatic expression of worship, I did want my Anglican expression to open the same door of transcendence. Worship, I learned on that day, is not to regard God as some venerated object as if on display in the Louvre, but to risk an immediate, unguarded audience with Him. On Sunday mornings, we should expect to step into a portal leading to an encounter with the Infinite, instead of reluctantly stepping away from the Cowboy’s pre-game show.

Worship, when considered in that light, is the linchpin of the Ten Commandments. God bellows from Mt. Sinai that we must worship only Him, forsake all inadequate images and notions of Him, and not glibly utter His Name in empty gestures (Exodus 20:15). Careening down the smoky crag, God next demands that the people set aside the seventh day as holy to the Lord (Exodus 20:8-11). Rather than being a demand from a hyper-vain deity, the Lord is commanding Israel, the people He freed from slavery in Egypt, to relish their unique relationship with Him, by intentionally sequestering time to enter into His presence. Furthermore, God deems that Israel drop all other demands on that one day, so that they may be repeatedly unshackled to worship Him. Here I should note that when Moses first approaches Pharaoh, he beseeches him, ‘Let my people go so that they may worship me in the wilderness’ (Exodus 5:1). No mention is made of Israel departing permanently.

The point is clear, we will never be truly free until we worship the One in whose image we are made.

Keeping Sabbath, remaining free, was no easy matter then or today.

Recount in the ancient world that only Israel received a divine injunction to rest one full day from the arduous routines of work. The rest of their world experienced one day just the same as any other, perpetuating a life of endless drudgery. Israel alone lit the

candles on Friday night to begin the Sabbath rest. Most of us can relate to the weary exhaustion that befalls us on Friday night. How welcome it is to step away, not only from toil, but also from sameness. Worship completes our rest, for our encounter with God reminds us who we are, whose we are, and gives meaning to the six days that follow.

With Jesus’ resurrection, Christians transferred the Sabbath to Sunday because when Jesus burst forth from the tomb, he made the way for us to rest now and forever in God. This, you see, is the second Exodus. Christ leads us from our incarcerating slavery of sin and death to the shore of life lived in intimate, everlasting communion with God. That’s why Jesus emphatically declares to his inquisitors, ‘If the Son makes you free, you are free indeed’ (John 6:36). On Sundays, we stand like Israel before the God who frees us from a meaningless, dead-end, vanilla life.

That is the door that opened for you on Maundy Thursday, Alex. That, too, is the reason hundreds lined up outside the doors of Huffman Assembly’s brick edifice. In effect, we learn as we mature in Christ that it is not enough to say we are free, we must, Sunday by Sunday, joyously reclaim that freedom.

Let’s be honest, neither our own expectation of worship, nor our execution of it are high enough. In this post-modern world, we have masqueraded illumination, sensation, and calls for justice as worship. We have constructed churches that look more like arenas and lecture halls than tabernacles. We have displaced chancels with stages, and, in the mainline denominations, we have demanded civil action in the face of the onerous, dark machinations that surround us.

To be clear, Biblical illumination is vital in the life of a Christian, and yet we can explicate scripture all day long without worshipping. Artful sensory worship is essential, but we can whip people into a fevered rush without approaching God’s presence. We can call for justice, cry for justice, demand that it flow down “like an ever rolling stream” upon our hamlet, city, or nation, yet never bring a syllable of that cry before the throne of God (Amos 5:24). The Church is not a polling station, classroom, transcendental meditation society, or

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From Our Rector... a concert hall. The Church is the body of Christ, which has no life at all if the Head is cut off!

Therefore, Sunday worship is not one task amongst many for the Church. It is the central task around which all the other tasks – teaching, healing, pastoral care, fellowship, outreach, community action, and mission work – all revolve.

Without unencumbered communion with God, we are hardly different from the Kiwanis or the local community action committee.

How do we begin to really worship on Sundays? The Fourth Commandment insists, set aside the day. Clay, our oldest son, offered some very solid advice on this score. As an academic dean of a storied school, Clay has several hundred people of all ages vying for his attention each day, not to mention he has a wife of ten years, and three children ranging in age from seven-years-old to four months.

At the same time, Clay is a faithful Christian and a serious churchman.

Therefore, he sets aside time early on three weekday mornings to answer the deluge of electronic communication he receives. He does not compromise the Sabbath by answering emails or texts.

Clay realizes that he cannot be in close concert with God, his family, or his brother and sister Christians if he keeps one foot cemented in the world on that day. Jesus said, ‘You cannot serve God and mammon’ (Matthew 6:24), which is far more than an injunction against greed. Jesus knew that we cannot really live as divided selves. We cannot be enrapt with the Lord who delivered us, while dancing around the Golden Calf (Exodus 32:1-20). The Lord demands our undivided attention on Sundays. If not, we run the risk of displacing God while we actually worship ourselves.

The question remains, how do we clergy lead our people into transcendent worship? For Episcopalians the answer is literally in black and white. The pages of the Prayer Book give us the blueprint for worship that orients us to adore and praise God, who loves us and delivers us from death. Note how the Holy Eucharist begins with the following familiar, yet imminently powerful exhortation:

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Blessed be God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

And blessed be his kingdom now and forever.

The words leave no doubt as to the reason we have assembled on Sunday morning. We are together in order to praise God. All that follows, the Bible readings, prayers, songs, and sharing are combined to enjoin our lively praise and adoring love of the Lord. Clergy must ensure that nothing obstructs, obscures, or obfuscates the people’s communion with God on Sunday mornings. Every preacher knows how easy it is to call the people to collective action, but ignore the One who enables us to act in the first place. How easy it is to theorize about the ultimate purposes of God, yet not beseech Him to reveal Himself. How nifty it may be to add upbeat hymnody, which evokes nothing of God’s transcendence. How often we preach by venerating ourselves over God. No task of the clergy approaches the gravity of preparing and leading worship.

Again, the words of our eldest resonate with me. Welcoming fifty well-wishers into his home after his daughter Annie’s baptism, he mused for his guest, “the first lines of the Westminster Catechism asks, “What is the chief end of man?” To which it answers, “The chief end of man is to love God and enjoy Him forever.”

Clay went on, “I understand and believe this, and I enjoy God the most in your presence.” Our son is right, of course.

Our most profound experience of God is in the presence of others who also love Him. Together we are the Church, living, walking around evidence of God’s transformative love.

On this accord, G.K. Chesterton quipped that the world is divided into two kinds of people: those who see trees wave wildly in the wind and say that the movement of the trees is making the wind, and those who see the same sight and say the wind is moving the trees. In our present skeptical world, many people declare the former: that the trees are making the wind.1 They discard the power of anything they cannot see, and by doing so, they risk 1 Michael L. Lindvall, A Geography of God: Louisville, Westminster John Knox Press, 2007, 43.

missing life altogether. We do not want to miss the rush of the Spirit, so we step away from lesser commitments and entertainments, still our anxious obsessions, and open our hearts, in full confidence that God will show up to greet our worship.

Michael Lindvall, long serving Pastor of Brick Presbyterian Church in New York City, candidly expresses the essential content of our spiritual worship: Worship is nothing less than trying to set the order of creation aright. The creature owns her creaturehood.

Honest confession is spoken. Praise is offered. The worshipper surrenders his pretense to be a god; all turn in adoration to the One who is God. In this dramatic enactment of the fundamental ‘rightness’ of things lies transformation and restoration.

Life edges into proper balance… We no longer imagine we have to be in control of everything. Worship is no less than weekly practice at not being God.2 I cannot recall my first year as an ordained person without wincing a good deal. I was serving as a very green associate in a large Episcopal parish in northeast Texas, and by the end of our four well-attended worship services on Sunday, I was whipped, no better than a zombie. When I confessed this to my boss the rector, who had served churches for two and half decades, he responded, “Pat, Sunday is not a workday. It’s the celebration.” I stared back at him in abject disbelief. Now, as I approach my thirtieth anniversary of ordination, I realize he is right.

Sunday is when we gather with those who have become our family. Sunday is the time of encounter with the living God. Sunday is the day we look past ourselves and worship. Sunday is when we admit the weight of the world is not on our shoulders. Sunday is the celebration.

Your brother,

Patrick U 2 Ibid, 62-63

MINISTRY Make All Things New Oh sing to the Lord a new song; Sing to the Lord, all the earth!

I JOSH BENNINGER Director of Music and Worship joshb@cecsa.org

–Psalm 96:1

n the spirit of making things new, I have decided to devote my energy towards the creation of new music for the church to sing. Specifically, my goal is to compose new hymns every two months, present them here in this magazine, and sing them together as a

congregation. For my first installment, I dove right in and crafted a five-verse hymn that gives praise and glory for the birth of Christ, his death and resurrection, his ascension, and his coming again at the end of days.

You may download and listen to a one-verse sample of the music here: https://tinyurl.com/yazfh9w2

Josh Benninger

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MINISTRY

Holiday Reflections: Honoring Christ

O

K! It’s December 12, and we just finished the Christmas Pageant two days ago. Now it’s time for me to look back and reflect and see what I HALLETA have learned from HEINRICH the whirlwind Director of of activities for Family Ministries which Children’s halletah@cecsa.org and Family Ministry was responsible. Needless to say, I am relieved. The pressure is off, even though it’s always a blessing to lead here at Christ Church. I can plan for my own family Christmas now. Fun! I believe the most important lesson I learned from being in charge of the three major events recently—the Karen Vaughn Event “World Changers,” the Family Advent Event, and our “Clown of God” Christmas Pageant—came from a profound statement made by Karen Vaughn, “We need to honor the lives of those who have given their lives for us with our own lives.” This pretty much states what the focus of our lives as Christians should be.

Karen was speaking specifically about her son, Aaron, and other heroes like him who have given their lives in war in an effort to protect our freedoms, faith, and country. This statement can be expanded to Jesus who gave his life for us—God choosing to come to Earth, born as a little baby, accepting death on a cross—all out of love for us. We

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with our

need to honor Christ with our lives.

We are His Body here on earth, and he calls us to represent Him with our lives lived in His honor. Jesus defines the ultimate love, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lays down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) Jesus is our friend who laid down his life for us.

Let’s honor this love with our lives!

In Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Level II, we have a timeline entitled “The History of the Kingdom of God.” Toward the end of that timeline is a “blank page.” This is the part of God’s Kingdom for which we are responsible.

“What are we going to write on that blank page in order to help fulfill God’s Kingdom?”

What are we going to write on that blank page in order to help fulfill God’s Kingdom? What are we going to do with our lives to honor the One who gave His life for us? What are we going to do with our lives to honor all those who came before us, to honor their sacrifices given out of love?

That brings us to the Family Advent Event and the Christmas Pageant. What did I learn from these experiences? I learned that the Body of Christ here at Christ Church loves to gather together with all ages, and have community and opportunities to express their faith in a tangible way. How beautiful it is to see all these many families building their

Lives

Advent Wreaths together and lighting the first candle of their wreaths as a body, celebrating the coming of the true Light into the world.

What did I learn from the Christmas Pageant? I was reminded once again that no matter how organized my plans (and I do try!), God is in control.

Our numbers of children and young families are growing, which is a great blessing, but can appear chaotic from the audience’s view. But what beautiful chaos it is as memories are built in the minds of our children of their church as an accepting, joyful place. No child is ever turned away from being in our pageant! First time visitors or children who come to church one time a year on this particular Sunday are welcomed with open arms, following the command of Christ “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these.” (Matthew 19:14). Our pageants are like a little glimpse of Heaven – chaos and all!

My prayer for this new year is that we can honor Christ and all those Saints who have come before us with our lives, out of gratitude for the great love which they have given! Let us gather as a Church Family often, reaching out to each other and our community as the Body of Christ. And finally, let us accept with trust and joy that God, who loves us as His children, is in control.

Love in Christ,

Halleta

Family Ministry...

Let

us break bread together on our knees...

A

ll children in first and second grade are invited to participate in this year’s Children’s Communion Class.

Older children who have not ever participated in this class are welcome to participate also. The class is designed to enrich each child’s Communion experience and educate them about this important sacrament. The class is not a requirement in order for the child to receive Holy Communion. The only requirement in order to receive Communion is Baptism.

A Parent Orientation, including a schedule of lessons and opportunities to help in the class and at the Communion Retreat, will be held Sunday, February 4, at 10 AM in Children’s Chapel on the second floor of the FMC. Communion Class will be led by Children’s Ministry Director Halleta Heinrich and parents of children in the class. The Communion classes will begin Sunday, February 11, during the Sunday School hour from 10 – 10:50 am in FMC rooms 205 and 206. The class will conclude on Sunday,

April 15 with a Communion Celebration S e r v i c e honoring the children.

A Communion Retreat will be held at Christ Church on Saturday, April 14 from 10 AM3:00 PM as a preparation for the Communion Celebration the following day. There will be class breaks on Spring Break Sundays and Easter Sunday.

Please contact Halleta Heinrich at halletah@cecsa.org or phone her at church at 210-736-3132 with questions or concerns. Friends of Christ Church children are welcomed to be part of this class.

Children’s Communion Class Begins Sunday, February 11 Parent Orientation Sunday, February 4 Communion Celebration Sunday, April 15

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MINISTRY A Glance Back

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017 has been a HUGE success for the Christ Episcopal Church Youth Ministry.

In the past year, we have had separate retreats for both junior GAVIN ROGERS high and high Youth Minister school students, gavinr@cecsa.org started Planet 56 for our 5th & 6th graders, gone on three summer mission trips (St. Louis, New York City, and Guatemala), held numerous local service projects (including collecting over 500 toys for the Inner City Christmas Toy Store), and increased our yearly Sunday School attendance! Rob and I can say with confidence that the youth program is getting stronger and healthier than it has been in the last decade. Thank you to our amazing students and parents!

We can’t wait to kick off 2018 with our next two events: 1) Girls Night Out on February 11 and 2) Guys Night Out on February 18! Keep your calendars open. This year we will go on a Poverty Simulation with Mission Waco (March

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and a

Look Ahead

23-25), return to Guatemala for our international mission trip (June 18 – July 1; college and high school) and go to Los Angeles, California for our annual Soul Train trip (July 12-19; for rising 6th-12th Graders). Check out www.cecsa.org/youth for up to date information!

Each new year millions of people make New Year’s Resolutions. This year I will make the following resolutions as your youth minister: 1. Keep the Gospel first, share it at every event.

2. Read through the Bible every year continually.

3. Love students the way God loves students.

4. Be who God created me to be, not what Christians say I should be.

5. Help students see the importance of missions and understand the Great Commission.

6. Pray, and choose 6-12 students whom I can train to be leaders within our group.

7. Recruit reliable people to help reach youth with the Gospel.

8. Stay updated and current with what is going on in students’ lives and in the world.

9. Stay focused on what really matters.

10. Never give up, run the race with endurance.

Here are some fun New Year Resolutions Tips for our students for 2018: 1. Read more scripture and go deeper into God’s Word.

2. Learn something new.

3. Become a better friend and family member.

4. Support a cause and volunteer in the community.

5. Be a role model to someone younger than you.

6. Manage stress and pray more.

7. Get moving and enjoy the outdoors.

8. Don’t use your smartphone as much and focus on human relationships.

9. Improve your GPA and grades. (you’re welcome parents!)

10. Go on a CEC Youth Trip in 2018!

Happy New Year!

Gavin

From

H

appy New Year! The kitchen ministry is gearing up for a new year of events. The Wednesday evening program is starting on January 10. Stop by for a delicious dinner or to serve dinner at 6 PM every Wednesday until March 21, 2018.

If you have time on Tuesday mornings and love to bake cookies, sign up to volunteer. We’ll be baking starting on Tuesday, January 16 until Tuesday, April 24. Contact Mary Reynolds at mereynolds2001@yahoo.com.

the

Mark your calendars for Gumbo!

Sunday, February 11 in the Parish Hall following the 11 AM service. We will celebrate Mardi Gras with some cajun style cooking. Volunteers are needed to help with decorating the Parish Hall tables, serving lunch, and cleaning up. Please contact Elizabeth Martinez at elizabethm@cecsa.org or Mary Reynolds to sign up.

Elizabeth Don’t let this happen again

Preserving

A

re you good at organizing papers? Do you like photographs?

Interested in history, writing or office administration? Want to use your artistic talent to create exhibits for the Heritage Room? Do you want to know more about Christ Church? Are you looking for something to do for an hour? If you answered “yes” to any of the above, you are an ideal volunteer for the Archives Committee.

If you want to help once a week, once

Kitchen

our

☞

History

a month or once a year we can use you. Whether you sort bulletins, file correspondence or set up displays for the Heritage Room, you will be helping preserve the important history of Christ Church. Cataloging the many photographs we have will take a team effort, so watch for an announcement about the next “Photo ID Day,” when you can come to help identify people and events.

In addition to volunteers for specific tasks, the Committee is in search of

Life After Loss Wednesday, Jan 24 - Feb. 28, 2018 Conference Room 12:30- 2:00 If you have lost a loved one this past year: 1. Know that you will never be the same again, but you can survive and even go beyond just surviving.

2. Remember to take one moment or one day at a time.

3. Do not be afraid to cry. Tears are healing.

4. Letting go does not mean forgetting.

5. Know there are support groups that can be helpful.

Please call Carol Miller, 736-3132 if you are interested in attending our support group here at Christ Church, facilitated by Celeste Miller from Porter Loring Family Care Services.

someone interested in helping with the administrative aspects of the Archives program for the upcoming year. No experience is required, but organizational skills are a plus.

If you would like to volunteer for any Archives activity, or if you want more information, please contact Lauren Blackwell at 210-545-9159 or cecarchives@cecsa.org. Please let her know what you are interested in doing and how often you might be able to help.

Community

of

Hope

set to

Begin

A

new Community of Hope training class begins January 20 and will meet from 8:30 AM - 12:30 PM every other Saturday for six weeks.

Come join us as we learn together the many ways we can share our talents that God has so graciously given us. In turn, we will use them to better equip ourselves to serve His people in need.

At the beginning of each class, Rev. Eric Fenton teaches us about the many treasures found in the Book of Common Prayer and how to use it as a resource for ministry tools as well as for personal devotion. Very interesting!

We look forward to you joining our next wonderful class of Community of Hope at Christ Church. Come receive a blessing as you share this time with us in January.

Call Carol Miller to reserve your place. 210-736-3132.

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Our Church Life...

Meet

the

Slate

of

2018 Vestry Nominees

O

n January 28 at 10 AM we will meet for the Annual Parish Meeting in the Sanctuary. At this vitally important meeting, we will hear an update on plans for the campus, receive ministry and financial reports and elect four new members to the vestry for 2018. All parishioners 16-years and older are encouraged to attend the meeting.

Please prayerfully consider which of the following candidates you will vote for in the vestry election.

Barbara Black

Bob Broadnax

Building positive relationships has been at the heart of most things I have done in my life. Christ Church has played a pivotal role in my embracing this philosophy.

Having been baptized, confirmed, and married here, Christ Church has helped me develop important relationships, and God continues to be at the center of them all.

The relationship of which I am most proud is the one between CEC and James Madison Elementary. As the Principal at Madison, I was simply looking for a few mentors to help some of my struggling students. But God had a much bigger plan, and in the seven years of this partnership, I could not have imagined all the ways He has worked through this parish to have an impact on the lives of so many families.

If I were to be elected to the Vestry, my focus would continue to be in Outreach, especially as it pertains to nurturing and growing our involvement with the families of James Madison and with the community surrounding the church.

My contributions at the church include having been a Sunday School and Vacation Bible School teacher. I currently serve as an Altar Guild member, Lay Eucharistic Minister and Lector.

I am humbled by this nomination and would be honored to serve.

Pam and I began attending Christ Church in 1986, just as we moved here from Houston.

We are both life-long Episcopalians. Pam’s father even designed and was a co-founder of St. William Laud Episcopal church in Pittsburg, Tx.

I am the owner of five La-Z-Boy retail furniture stores, with three here in San Antonio, one in Corpus Christi, and another in McAllen. I have owned the company for 19 years and spent the previous 20 years traveling as the manufacturer’s representative for La-Z-Boy.

Joe Dawson

I was born in San Antonio and joined Christ Church in the mid 60’s after college and a tour in the Air Force as a pilot. After marrying and having two daughters, our girls were baptized, raised and married in our church.

By education I am an engineer. I formed a company that grew to employ over 100 individuals. By owning my own business, I developed skills in management, budgeting and fiscal control. After 35 years I sold my business and today I am retired.

In my forty years at Christ Church, I taught children’s Sunday School, consulted on various church acoustic and mechanical issues, participate in the ushering effort including being head usher, and was chair of Good Samaritan Center. Currently I am on the board of the Commission on Church Buildings for the diocese, participate in the tutoring program at James Madison Elementary since its inception, and occasionally work in the Columbarium Garden for Karen, my wife.

Karen and I love our church for many reasons, but especially because of its philosophy of increasing outreach both to our neighbors, our community, and those beyond. This effort allows us to strive toward the model of life Jesus left for us. It would be an honor for me to serve on the vestry of a church that has as one of its goals serving others.

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With four children attending Sunday school classes at the time, we decided that we would try to give to the church by becoming Sunday school teachers for 12 years. I also served as a head usher for 10 years and am now on the reading rotation of the Prayers of the People.

All three of my daughters have been married in this church, and all four of my children, along with their spouses, are members. We are blessed beyond belief! If selected, I would be honored to serve God’s church. I am humbled to have been nominated.

Thomas Duesing After visiting nearly every Episcopal church in the St. Louis area, my wife Carrie and I were prepared for another thorough search when we moved back to San Antonio in 2012. We started with Christ Church because it was within walking distance, and immediately we knew we had found our spiritual home. Since then, I have served in the choir, at both the 9:00 and 11:00 services, as a lay reader and as a lay eucharistic minister at Christ Church. Carrie and I are also founding members of The Well, our community for 2040 year olds.

My vision for Christ Church is a warm and welcoming faith-based community that supports its members as strongly as it supports its surrounding community.

A life-long Episcopalian, I was baptized, confirmed and married to Carrie at St. Mark’s in downtown San Antonio. Professionally, I’m a Product Manager at Rackspace, overseeing a product portfolio used by thousands of customers around the world. Carrie, our nearly two-year-old son Milo, and I are happy to call Monte Vista home. If elected, I would be honored to serve this congregation on the Vestry.

Our Church Life...

Annual General Meeting of the Parish Sunday, January 28, 2018 at 10 am Who can vote at Parish Meetings?

• • •

Any adult member (16 years and older) of record who has: received communion at Christ Church at least three times in the previous year, attended regularly, and who has been faithful in working, praying and giving for the growth of the Kingdom of God through our mission

Sudie Holshouser I moved to San Antonio with my husband Charles Holshouser in 1973. He began a residency at BAMC. We attended Christ Episcopal Church during the three years he was in the training program. We were away from San Antonio from 1975 to 1979 then returned to Christ Episcopal Church. We have two sons Will and Carl Holshouser. Both were baptized and confirmed at CEC. I helped with Sunday School, the Christmas Pageant, and served as Pageant Chairman.

Both boys loved the children’s choir and participated in the annual musical. I helped with scenery, costumes etc.

I am a professional kindergarten teacher. I developed a fine arts program for young children and still teach that program part time at the Acorn - A School for Young Children.

In 2000 I joined Community of Hope’s first training class . I became a Lay Minister under the Umbrella of Community of Hope. I have served as an Administrator of Community of Hope continually since 2000. Christ Episcopal Church is our church home. Charles’ grandparents were founders of the church. We love the church and are excited to be a part of the growth that God has so generously given our church. I want to be a part of the team that helps further God’s work.

Robert Rogers I have been inspired by the people of Christ Episcopal Church since the Fall of 1972.

Now retired, I am honored to be asked to run for the vestry.

My future wife, Dinah, introduced me to this church. We were married by The Rev. John MacNaughton. Our children, Rachel and Charlie, were raised in the warmth of this church.

My wife and I believe strongly in service to others. My involvement at Christ Church includes: teaching Sunday School, E.Y.C. adult leadership, Habitat for Humanity Diocesan Committee membership, Habitat for Humanity fence and floor crew member, ushering and Food Pantry.

This church is a strong and vibrant community in the service of God. I intend to continue to expand my involvement in you, my church family. You are my inspiration.

Darrell Jones

My wife Holly and I are very excited to be part of the Christ Church family. I grew up in a military family before joining the Air Force myself and serving 34 years. I attended many different on-base and offbase churches. Soon after retiring to San Antonio, we were invited to visit Christ Church and immediately knew we had found a home.

Holly and I have two boys, Taylor is a Captain in the Air Force and Stuart works in information technology in Austin. My mother-in-law, Alice Carson, is also a big part of our family as she recently moved to San Antonio and lives right around the corner.

Holly, Alice and I all serve as Sunday morning greeters and I volunteer as an usher and usher captain. Most recently, I served as a speaker for the 2017 Stewardship Campaign.

In my post-military life, I have recently joined Blue Skies of Texas, a continuing care retirement community on the west side of San Antonio, as the President/CEO and I teach post-graduate students in public management.

Everyone feels welcome at Christ Church. It is a vibrant community serving Christ and serving others. After moving so often, it is wonderful to have a permanent church home.

Earl Stanley

My wife Suzanne and I have been members of Christ Church since 2013.

We were initially brought to the church through the deaths of several friends.

During these difficult times, the spirit of love and life expressed by the entire church immediately impressed us. We knew this is where we needed to be.

We have attended regularly and have been reaffirmed in the Episcopal Church.

I have been active on the Ministry Council and Men’s fellowship. I continue to serve as Lay Eucharistic Minister and as a church greeter.

We have three children and five grandchildren who attend with us when in town. Now retired, I was a pediatric orthopedic surgeon for 35 years. Additionally, I taught medical students, residents and orthopedists locally and internationally.

I participated as a member on a medical outreach team to Honduras for 10 years, going annually to assist local physicians in providing orthopedic care. I was elected and served on the board of that organization. Locally, I have served on or chaired committees at San Antonio’s hospitals for children. I was on faculty as Associate Professor. I also served in the United Stated Marine Corps during the Vietnam era.

I am excited about continued participation in the Christ Church ministry in any capacity but particularly as a member of the vestry.

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Our Church Life..

PAGE TURNERS – From

I

n the year before I was born, Patrick Leigh Fermor wrote his only novel, The Violins of Saint-Jacques. By that time, Fermor was already legendary in the west. At age 18, he set off to walk across the broad sweep of Europe, beginning in the Hook of Holland, a port town opening to the Black Sea, and traversed all the way to Istanbul, the bridge between Europe and Asia. This most famous travelogue was published as A Time of Gifts, which I reviewed for this magazine several months ago. Fermor’s poetic observations gave the west one last look at Europe before the ravages of WWII and its disassembly under the Soviets. Fermor is most known, however, for his heroic exploits during the war. Impersonating a Greek shepherd for over two years, Fermor captured one of Germany’s eminent generals in 1944, a crushing blow for the already staggering Third Reich.

With that rousing prologue, I must now lament that Fermor did not ply his considerable talents to write more fiction. The Violins of Saint-Jacques is nearly a perfect novella. The story begins with a chance meeting between a gentleman English traveler (of course!), who meets an elderly and somewhat mysterious French artist on a Mediterranean island. A painting he spies in her home depicting a volcanic Caribbean island intrigues the traveler.

The lady responds by telling him the story of a fateful Shrove Tuesday night on that island when everything in her life dramatically changes. The book captivated me, such that I completed it in two sittings. I was eager to send it to LTC Bob Bell, who also appreciates Fermor, but Kay snatched it first!

The last time Mark Adams last slept in a tent was 1978, when his father came home with an imitation teepee from Sears. Now he was contemplating an exhaustive, multi-

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the

Rector’s Book Stack

leg, high altitude excursion into the Peruvian Andes. With that beginning on pages 1 and 2, I was hooked into reading the next 300 pages of Turn Right at Machu Picchu: Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time, by Mark Adams. George Healy, whose reading discipline far outdistances my own, gave me the book with the curt injunction, “This is a good one.”

Mark sets off to Peru with his indomitable Australian guide, John Leivers, to retrace the four early 20th century expeditions of Hiram Bingham.

Many believe the Indiana Jones character is based on this rakishly handsome, outlandishly ambitious Yale professor, who first sets out into the jungle and alpine wilderness of Peru in 1911.

Bingham so captured the imagination of his age that National Geographic changed from a stodgy, rarefied journal for academics to the robust, absorbing periodical it is today. In fact, the unique cover of the magazine was prompted

by Bingham’s second expedition.

Much of Bingham’s work has been discredited over the years. However, by the end of Adams and Leiver’s exhaustive treks, they realize how valuable Bingham was to first bring the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu into the modern imagination, thereby protecting the sights for posterity and enchanting us with the brief 100 year Andean empire of the Incas (14381532) that stretched 2,500 miles from Ecuador to Chile.

The Bookseller’s Tale was a gift of my latenight insomnia.

In truth, I am not an overly enthusiastic Kindle aficionado; however, in order not to disturb my slumbering, bonetired, RN wife, I find the device best for 2 AM reading. Combing through Amazon Prime’s free books, I found this well-crafted, historically astute saga by Ann Swinfen, most recently of Scotland.

The account, set in 14th century Oxford, is propelled by a tragic mystery, but at the same time, brings the storied,

medieval city to life. The protagonist, Nicholas Elyot, a well-educated bookseller and scrivener, is recently widowed due to the Black Death that ravaged Europe from 1346-1353, in which fully half of Europe perished.

Elyot’s tenderness demonstrated to his two young, precocious children, to his hovering, opinionated older sister, and to the assorted assembly of academics, add levity and realism to the volume. I should also add that all of us bibliophiles will find the book irresistible, for the painstaking, handwritten and carefully illustrated book preparation of Elyot’s day is absorbing.

As Kay was packing up a Christmas package for our nephew Andrew, I asked if I could throw in a book.

Andrew, age 33, has been asking a lot of questions about the Christian faith, and I have felt unequal to the task during our fleeting phone conversations. So I decided to send him Beginning with God, by James Sire. This is one of the best books for adults interested in the Christian faith because it starts from the perspective of the individual and the needs we have for identity, purpose, and direction.

Never patronizing or overly “churchy,” Sire depicts our faith in a way that is almost beguiling.

Now to be totally honest, I had not read the book before choosing it for Andrew.

Hearing my mother’s voice resounding in my ear, “You never give a person a book you have not read yourself,” I asked Kay to hold up while I read the volume on Saturday morning. Finishing it a little after 3 PM, I was left with the thought, “Was this book for my nephew, or was God really sending it to me?”

A Hero of France is the first Alan Furst novel that I have read that takes place during World War II. The other three or four I’ve read take place in various parts of Europe during the

Our Church Life...

Nazis rise to power. This story erupts in the middle of occupied France in 1941. The “hero” is a Frenchman known only by his code name, “Mathieu”. He is calculating, intelligent, amorous, and exceedingly brave. His job is to rescue British pilots and navigators who have crashed on Axis soil and smuggle them back to Britain, so that they may fly again. As with all of Furst’s novels, the historical context is accurate and illustrative, in order that the uncertain outcome of World War II comes into focus for the modern reader. The results in 1941 were far from certain.

Vive la France!

A Geography of God: Exploring the Christian Journey, by Michael Lindvall has been my morning inspiration book for the past month. I generally choose

a Christian book or a Bible commentary to inspire me for prayer in the early hours.

Because Kay heads to work some mornings at 4:50, the reading needs to be stirring! This slim volume was mailed to me by my son Clay and his wife Sara, and I have studied every page two times or more. Lindvall, a long-serving Presbyterian pastor, hits on most every aspect of our Christian pilgrimage – conversion, transformation, family life, career, prayer, the nature of God, and, of course the Bible. In fact, on the Bible Lindvall wisely states: ‘The Bible is not so much a book about God in general as it is a book

about God and you…. I read Patrick O’Brien’s epic series of twenty novels set largely on ships of the British navy during the Napoleonic Wars. Halfway through, I started to find that the speech and manners, assumptions and viewpoints of two hundred years ago started to sound “right” in a way they had not when I read the first pages. Likewise, in reading Scripture you find yourself drawn imaginatively into what is at first a strange and unfamiliar world.’

Lindvall describes the strange world I wish to increasingly inhabit. I thank God for sage guides.

Patrick

SOCIETY

How Silently,

the

Wonderous Gift

She slipped into Sunday worship, took her place, prayed, sang, trod up to the communion rail, and greeted her friends. I cannot recall her ever asking my assistance on a single matter, but I can recount the numerous times she warmly greeted me on the sidewalk after the 11 o’clock. What I did not know these past five years is that Ann very quietly wrote out scrupulous plans to remember our church in her will.

How silently, how silently, The wondrous gift is given, So God imparts to human hearts, The Blessings of his heaven.

Phillips Brooks

O

n the first week of Advent, with not a trace of fanfare or ostentation, we received a generous gift for the endowment from Ann Murphy’s estate. Discovering the magnanimous gift within a nondescript business envelope, I shook my head and declared to myself, “That’s Ann.” Some of you may not have known Ann.

Perhaps it is the rush of the Christmas season, perhaps it is the solemnity of my house as I write these words in the darkness of early morning, more likely, however, it is the third verse of O Little Town of Bethlehem playing non-stop in my head — how silently, how silently, the wondrous gift is given…

I have always felt a certain kinship with the author of the lyrics, Phillips Brooks, who was an Episcopal priest himself. His need for quiet led him to the Holy Land in 1865, so that he could claim a respite from the grueling war that splintered our young land and destroyed a generation of its promising men. Visiting the quaint, dusty village of

is

Given

Bethlehem one day, Brooks was moved to write the poem that would become the lyrics of this beloved Yuletide standard. (I have added a portion of his original script above.)

In quiet contemplation Ann made a decision to bless her church well into the future, much like Brooks bequeathed his hymn to the church for the generations following him. How silently, how silently, the wondrous gift is given.

Like Brooks and Ann, dare to enter a quiet space in this new year. Carefully make plans to bless our parish in the years that follow your life, so that your generosity will rise like a song and bless those saints you and I will not know this side of Paradise.

Your brother,

Patrick + manuscript picture - By Phillips Brooks - Benson, Louis F. Studies of Familiar Hymns. Philadelphia: The Westminster Press. 1903. Page 3., Public Domain, https://commons. wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7256782

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OF EVENTS January 1:

New Year’s Day - church offices are closed

January 4:

The Well Postcard Writing Party, off campus, 6:30 PM

January 6: Epiphany

Christ Church Staff: The Rev. Patrick Gahan, Rector patrickg@cecsa.org

January 7:

Children’s Epiphany Celebration, Children’s Chapel, 10 AM Drama and Faith, 10 AM in the Library

January 10:

Wednesday Night Discipleship Studies resume, 6:30 PM

January 11:

Church-wide Swing Dance Night, Parish Hall, 7 PM

January 13:

Soup Ministry Cooking Day, Kitchen, 9 - 11 AM

January 14:

Soup Ministry Packing Day, Kitchen, 10 AM Guatemala Mission Trip info meeting, Carriage House, 12:30 PM

January 20:

Community of Hope class begins, 8:30 AM

January 21:

Celebration of Ruth Berg’s Music Ministry, 9 & 11 AM

January 24:

Life After Loss, 6-week course, Conference Room, 12:30 PM

January 27:

The Well Board Game Night - Battle of the Sexes

January 28:

Annual General Meeting of the Parish, 10 AM

February 1:

Women’s Bible Study begins, 10 AM

Joshua Benninger, Music Minister & Organist, joshb@cecsa.org

February 3:

CCF Western Heritage Parade and Cattle Drive, 8 AM

February 4:

Communion Class Parent Orientation, FMC Chapel, 10 AM

Ruth Berg, Director of Children’s Music, ruthb@cecsa.org

February 11:

Children’s Communion Class begins, 10 AM FMC 205 & 206 Jazz Mass, 11 AM Gumbo Lunch, Parish Hall, 12:30 PM Youth Girls’ Night Out

February 13:

Shrove Tuesday Pancake Dinners, off campus The Well - Casting Crowns Concert at the Rodeo, 7:30 PM

February 14:

Valentine’s Day Ash Wednesday, Services at 7 AM, 12 PM and 6 PM

The Rev. Scott Kitayama, Associate Rector, scottk@cecsa.org The Rev. Brien Koehler, Associate Rector for Mission and Formation, brienk@cecsa.org The Rev. Rob Harris, Associate Rector for Community Formation, robh@cecsa.org Carol Miller, Pastoral Care Administrator, carolm@cecsa.org Halleta Heinrich, Director of Family Ministry, halletah@cecsa.org Lily Fenton, Nursery Director lilyf@cecsa.org Gavin Rogers, Youth Minister gavinr@cecsa.org

Robert Hanley, Parish Administrator parishadmin@cecsa.org Darla Nelson, Office Manager darlan@cecsa.org Donna Franco, Financial Manager donnas@cecsa.org Gretchen Comuzzi Duggan, Director of Communications, gretchend@cecsa.org

February 16 - 17: Mastersingers Retreat, 4:30 PM

Anna Jewell, Executive Assistant to the Rector, annaj@cecsa.org

February 18:

The Well “Calibre” at the Rodeo, 7:30 PM Rise Against Hunger outreach project, Parish Hall, 12:30 PM

Elizabeth Martinez, Kitchen Manager elizabethm@cecsa.org

February 25:

Youth Guys Night Out

Robert Vallejo, Facilities Manager robertv@cecsa.org

March 2:

Ellison Scholarship application deadline

To have your CEC event (on or off campus) added to the Church Calendar please submit a CEC EVENT SCHEDULING FORM to the church receptionist.

All church related activities, events, meetings, etc. MUST have a CEC EVENT SCHEDULING FORM submitted to the church receptionist, Donnis Carpenter. EVEN events that take place offcampus must be submitted in order to be added to the church’s master calendar. Submission forms can be found on the Lucite racks outside the reception office.

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Rudy Segovia, Hospitality Manager rudys@cecsa.org Joe Garcia, Sexton joeg@cecsa.org

ALBUM

15

Little Clowns from the Clown of God Christmas Pageant

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 20, Number 1.

Periodical Postage PAID San Antonio, TX Christ Episcopal Church 510 Belknap Place San Antonio, TX 78212 www.cecsa.org