September 2014 message

September 2014 • Volume 16, Number 5

Climbing high to soar with eagles under our beautiful oak trees at Rally Day 2014

Worship: The Foundational Discipline: 2 Consecration Sunday: 5 Bible Study for Youth: 6 How Many Tables?: 9 Strategic Planning Meeting: 13 From the Rector’s Book Stack: 14

FROM

In this issue: Music Ministry ...................... 6 Youth Ministry ...................... 6 Outreach ............................... 7 Our Church Life ................... 8 Family Ministry...................10 Patoral Care.........................12 Planned Giving....................13 Page Turners.......................14 Calendar of Events ............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

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Worship: The Foundational Discipline

I

was a latecomer to worship.

I was fourteen before I regularly a t t e n d e d Sunday morning celebrations.

I can count on both hands the PATRICK GAHAN Rector number of times patrickg@cecsa.org I sat through Sunday School, and on those occasions, I was probably spending the night with a Baptist friend (Alabama Baptists take their Sunday School very seriously!). I did not know what the acronym EYC even stood for until I led a group in my early twenties.

The first time I served as an acolyte, I was a college junior. Only once did I go off to Church camp, and that was only because the Rector of the parish thought I merited a vacation. He was, you see, also my boss.

So when Saint Augustine admits in his Confessions, “I came to love you late,” I know how that happens. I was “late” showing my love for God, too.

I suppose I have my own set of excuses.

Mother was embarrassed to march the four of us miserably appareled children down the red-carpeted aisle of All Saints’ Church. Besides being an hourly wage earner in low-end retail, Sunday was her only day to seek sweet slumber.

Mother was bone-tired and skeletonskinny during my growing-up years.

I did have at least a passing acquaintance with this “Jesus” my Baptist and Pentecostal pals got so worked up about. Before my twin brother and sister were born, my mother and Aunt Florence would sometimes pack me up and take me to Grace Church, the Episcopal parish where I was baptized.

Towering over the altar was the first Jesus I was to encounter face-to-face.

His cheeks were drawn, his body gaunt, and brown, limp, unwashed hair sat on his shoulders. The most distinctive aspects of this Jesus were the gaping wounds gouged through the palms of

his hands and the soles of his feet. This Jesus might be in charge, I thought, but the victory did not come easily. Your first Jesus stays with you, I think.

Beginning at age eleven, it is true that I did not worship, but I most assuredly was present at the Church most every daylight hour of the weekend. “Mister” Taylor Abbot, the straight-backed, nononsense, long-serving rector of All Saints’ Church, called me to serve as the “Sunday Sexton” for the whopping wage of $1.00 per hour. As that was 50 cents more than I was making at the local golf course, I jumped at the opportunity.

On Saturdays, I would work with the Sexton, the acerbic, coal-black, fiercely pious George Pickens. I cut the grass, raked all the pine straw and leaves, cleaned the gutters, changed the light bulbs in the nave’s vaulted ceiling, swept the web of walkways, trimmed the shrubs, and did every perilous or distasteful chore George Pickens ordered.

At lunch, I was required to sit on a high stool beside him in the kitchen, as he slurped his alien-colored, split pea soup and read to me from his giant Scofield Bible. Job and Amos were his favorites. Never do I recall hearing him read a single syllable from the Gospels. George Pickens’s attitude was that pre-teen boys needed the threat of judgment and the fires of hell much more than they merited the comfort of the Beatitudes and the riddles of the parables. I was his project, and no one – not even my mother – was prouder than George Pickens twenty-three years later when I was ordained in the nave of that church.

George Pickens had the day-off on Sundays so that he could spend the day at the New Ebenezer Baptist Tabernacle.

My job was to arrive at the church at 5:30 AM, chase all the hobos out of the pews (no one ever imagined that there would come a day when we locked the front doors of the church!), prepare the giant percolator coffee urn, put out two-hundred china cups and saucers, open the nursery, change all seven day

From Our Rector... school rooms to their Sunday School configuration, and prepare myself for the 500 or so souls that would begin arriving at 6:45.

While I was setting up the Sunday School rooms in the undercroft, the 7 AM celebration would be whispered down the hallways to me. I would stop dead in my tracks when the congregation “bewailed their manifold sins and wickedness and most justly deserved God’s wrath and indignation.”

If those people kneeling upstairs were “bewailing” their shortcomings, where did that leave the heathen holding the broom downstairs?

At 9 AM, it was sung Morning Prayer the first three Sundays of the month.

The canticles thundered down the undercroft, such that I can still sing from memory the Venite, Jubilate, Benedictus, and a bit of the Te Deum from the 1928 Prayer Book. At 10 AM, Mrs. Ebaugh, the founder and headmistress of the day school as well as the founder and superintendent of the Sunday School, rang the bell for class. Never did I spy a parent risk the fury of Mrs. Ebaugh by sprinting with her child to the parking lot before the conclusion of Sunday School.

“At 10 AM, Mrs. Ebaugh, ....superintendent of the Sunday School, rang the bell for class. Never did I spy a parent risk the fury of Mrs. Ebaugh by sprinting with her child to the parking lot before the conclusion of Sunday School.”

The Coffee Hour was in full swing by 11 AM, holding many in Ebaugh Hall until well after noon, but not those racing to Britling’s Cafeteria to beat the Methodists and Presbyterians, (No selfrespecting Southern Baptist would dare get in line before 12:30!). The worst part

of my job began once the last person departed for home. I had to clean all the cups – being careful to remove every centimeter of lipstick, empty the ashtrays, sweep the floor; mop it, and clean the kitchen. Heaven help me if George Pickens found a single ash or crumb upon his early arrival Monday morning. All of the Sunday School rooms had to be swept, trash emptied, and put back into their day school configuration. The nursery had to be straightened and scrubbed for the pre-school children. In truth, I feared Mrs. Ebaugh more than Job, Amos, and George Pickens combined!

By my calculations, I opened All Saints’ Church 182 Sundays in a row before the biggest change of my life occurred.

I was invited to attend Saint Andrew’s School in Sewanee, Tennessee. No one was more surprised than I when Father Franklin Martin, the venerable headmaster of that school, issued two terse words to my mother, “Send him.”

At Coffee Hour on my last Sunday, Mr. Abbot said, “Well done, young man,” and marched away to his next chore.

George Pickens did not come, but left me a note on the kitchen counter commanding me to “avoid parties.” I could never get through to him that I was attending an all boys’ school. Mrs. Ebaugh handed me an envelope with $150 in it, the most money that I had ever seen in one place.

Saint Andrew’s spelled absolute freedom for me. While many of the boys felt interned in that highly structured, antiquated school, I felt the cool wind of freedom flowing across my face. I did not have to keep a job on the weekends; so I could play athletics. If the truth be known, you could either play athletics at Saint Andrew’s or work afternoons on the Maintenance Crew. That presented a fairly easy choice for most of us. A rather Spartan, but a functional room was provided along with three meals per day, and one hundred and fifteen boys with whom to be friends. By far, the most liberating aspect of my four years there was that Saint Andrew’s provided a level playing field, with no social stratification. The monks, priests, nuns, teachers, and coaches cared about what you could do – not about your last

name or your neighborhood. Unbound from the chains of “polite” southern conventions, I was able to soar.

At the same time, I actually joined the worship of the Episcopal Church of which I had mainly been a voyeur.

“The monks, priests, nuns, teachers, and coaches cared about what you could do – not about your last name or your neighborhood. Unbound . from the chains of “polite” southern conventions, I was able to soar.”

Worship was the priority of our weekly schedule at Saint Andrew’s. We began the week on Sundays at 11 AM, with an ornate, sung Holy Eucharist. As a fourteen year-old, it was like being invited to an Italian opera with all its choreographed movement and singing.

We were not allowed to eat even a crust of bread before the Eucharist, so we arrived empty and ravenous. The host and sweet port wine awakened my tongue when, at last, I received at the altar, and the choir languidly sang the lines inspired by Isaiah, “Let all mortal flesh keep silence.”

Mondays we celebrated solemn Morning Prayer. Tuesday Evenings we held solemn Evening Prayer. Thursday evenings, before dinner, we celebrated sung Evening Prayer -- Evensong, where each week Father Martin insisted we sing the stark verse, “The Peace of God it is no peace but strife sown in the sod, yet brothers pray but for one thing – the marvelous peace of God, the marvelous peace of God!” Our headmaster wanted to make sure we boys knew what we were getting into with this God of ours.

If we were looking for “easy street,” we had best follow another. Fridays, we hastily offered Noonday Prayers, with an occasional intercession that we “grind our adversaries on the football field into dust” – metaphorically speaking, of course.

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From Our Rector...

In four long school years the round of worship never changed except during Holy Week, when we spent the seven days on our knees. Maundy Thursday was the apex of our Holy Week experience. Because the disciples fell asleep that fateful night at Gethsemane, the monks thought it imperative that we would stay awake all night in prayer.

Led by Ethel Louise Simmonds, the Lady Chapel was transformed into a garden, replete with Dogwood branches, azaleas, crocus, forsythia, and any other early blooming, fragrant plant. Here we would take turns kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament, with the older boys taking the later times. On Good Friday, we were all bone tired as we dreamily walked the fourteen Stations of the Cross around the 250 acres of the campus. The Easter celebration began at 10 PM on Saturday night. The cadence of the liturgy lapsed from time to time into Latin, while candles and incense burned, smoke swirled, and the drama of our redemption was rehearsed from Genesis to Romans. Well after midnight, we would make our way to the refectory for sweet Easter treats.

Writing these lines, I realize that my profound love and need for worship began at that small struggling school atop the Tennessee Cumberland Plateau. True, I do credit InterVarsity and Campus Crusade for Christ with my hunger for the Gospel and my devotion to the Bible. Yet it is the rhythm of the worship that I experienced from age 14-18 that has never left me. I can still see the disconsolate face of my Campus Crusade mentor when I told him just three blocks from where I live now that I would seek ordination in the Episcopal Church. You would have thought that I had decided to become a Hindu swami. He could not grasp that my understanding of God and of myself in God was so strongly mediated through the beauty, mystery, and demands of Anglican worship. For reasons I cannot quite articulate, worship propels my life in Christ, is foundational to my faith walk, and is the cornerstone of my identity.

Looking way back in the Bible, Moses helps my self-understanding in this matter. When he first approaches

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Pharaoh, he demands, “Let my people go that they may worship God in the wilderness” (Exodus 7:16). God sent Moses to the Egyptian king with exactly those words (Exodus 3:12), and the message is clear, we cannot really be free until we decide whom we will spend our lives worshipping. The world panders a freedom of unrestraint, of worshiping your-self. Take that course for thirty days or thirty years, and see how free you really are by the end of it all. It is rather like eating junk food for an entire weekend and waking up on Monday morning sick at your stomach.

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“...I realize that my profound love and need for worship began at that small struggling school atop the Tennessee Cumberland Plateau.”

Of course, Pharaoh, like Caesar after him, considered himself divine and demanded that he be worshipped. In the same way, the nation hearkens us to worship it, but the nation cannot save us, even though many of us put far more of our time, energy, and faith into the state than in the living God, who created all things – including every nation. People of antiquity could not conceive of a world without the empires of Egypt, Babylon or Rome, but they only live now in artifacts and pages of history books.

We are also tempted to worship the economy, but the fact that it is now “global” does not make that temptation new either. Moses and Joshua continually adjure Israel to not follow the Baals and Asterahs once they enter the Promised Land. The allure of these fertility gods powerfully drew Israel with their orgiastic worship. More than that, however, is the fact that rich, fertile, productive ground means economic prosperity – like successfully playing the margins of the stock market or sealing a land deal in West Texas. Prosperity can become our god, but it ultimately brings only a shallow

freedom. Like the Prodigal Son, we are the life of the party until the money runs out or the friends thin out (Luke 15:14-16).

Worship is far more than giving an occasional nod to our creator. It is a fundamental reorientation of life. When the Roman Empire was collapsing, a young man set out to the wilderness to live the residue of his days in quiet obedience to God – away from the crumbling dynasty and the splintering moral order that accompanied Rome’s decline. Others were immediately attracted to the man, so that he felt compelled to develop a highly ordered and balanced community centered upon fidelity to God, rather than a devotion to self, the nation, or the economy.

The man’s name was Benedict, and his enterprise was as radical in the sixth century as it is today.

The hub of Benedict’s radically ordered community was the Opus Dei, “the work of God,” whose principal discipline was worship. In Benedict’s monasteries and convents, the monks and nuns farmed, cooked, built, taught, cleaned, wrote, read, and worked so that the community could be entirely self-sufficient and generous to the stranger or sufferer.

However, woven throughout the hours of each day were seven occasions for worship. These prayer times were not auxiliary to their work, but central to them. Worship was foundational to every other task they undertook.

Benedict’s injunction to lead a life of regular, ordered worship proceeded from the poetry of the Psalmist: Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous ordinances.

Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.

Psalm 119:164-165 We can “stumble” even when engaged in work or enterprises that began with the noblest or holiest intentions. The monks who had a hand in educating me at Saint Andrew’s School knew this, and while they zealously strove to train and mold all 115 of us hapless boys, they centered their lives – not on us – but on the regular worship of the

From Our Rector...

Lord, who brought us to them. Imagine how the perception and direction of our own lives would change if we nurtured our children, romanced our spouse, orchestrated our business, cared for our household, and pursued our recreation all from the foundation of worship – instead of making worship a paltry appendage to those former things. We would finally experience life in balance.

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“Our Episcopal way of life is one in which worship is intentionally woven into the everyday routine fabric of life, whether we are working, caring for our family, or away on holiday.”

Episcopalians are the inheritors of Benedict’s radical way of life. Some may find that laughable, in that our denomination is often associated with a supercilious, blueblood Christianity reminiscent of Henry James and Downton Abbey. Such an association is an aberration. When Thomas Cranmer, Richard Hooker, Elizabeth I and others began fashioning this reformed expression of the Christian faith, it was with an eye to making the balanced, ordered life of the monastery and convent available to every one of us. Cranmer, and Luther, for that matter, thought it farcical that in the Middle Ages the life into which most people were called – the married, family life – was considered inferior to the devotional life of the monastery.

Thus, the Book of Common Prayer, first penned in 1549, opens with Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer, thereby bookending ordinary persons’ days in

personal or corporate worship. Our Episcopal way of life is one in which worship is intentionally woven into the everyday routine fabric of life, whether we are working, caring for our family, or away on holiday.

Cranmer’s overall philosophy of worship is illustrated, not so much in his explanations, but in the prayers he wrote for weekday and Sunday worship.

Cranmer’s 1549 prayer offered at the end of Morning Prayer, has been retained in our 1979 book: Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought us in safety to this new day: Preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

And again at the conclusion of the liturgy for Evening Prayer, our current book has kept – nearly word for word – Cranmer’s evocative prayer: Most holy God, the source of all good desires, all right judgments, and all just works: Give to us, your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, so that our minds may be fixed on the doing of your will, and that we, being delivered from the fear of all enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through the mercies of Christ Jesus our Savior. Amen.

Both prayers beseech God to assist us to not avoid our daily life in the world, but to keep us safe and free of sin as we enter into our daily pursuits. Following that course, our lives “may be fixed on the doing of God’s will” and not our own. If worship becomes foundational for us, rather than auxiliary, we will rise to that nobler purpose where true joy

Consecration Sunday October 26

can be found.

Perhaps Cranmer’s most famous prayer is offered at Holy Eucharist, just before the gifts of bread and wine are distributed. This Prayer of Humble Access acknowledges our unworthiness in the face of a Holy God, yet also declares our absolute dependence on God’s grace: We do not presume to come to this thy Table, O merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in thy manifold and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under thy Table. But thou art the same Lord whose property is always to have mercy…

We do not worship God to assuage his vanity. We worship to keep us in right relationship with Him, so that we accept our role as creature to Creator.

Also, we worship to keep us in right relationship to the world, so that we are not absorbed by its demands or seduced by its fleeting promises.

Finally, we worship to keep us in right relationship with ourselves, so that we unseat ourselves from the throne of our lives and submit to the One who made us and holds our future.

While writing those lines, I suddenly remembered another hymn Father Martin insisted we boys sing every Thursday night at Evensong. The hymn is dedicated to Saint Andrew, our patron, but I believe it was the third verse that our calculating headmaster wanted us to absorb: Jesus calls us from the worship Of the vain world’s golden store, From each Idol that would keep us, Saying, ‘Christian love me more.’

Your brother,

Patrick U

Join us for worship and celebration following: 7:30 AM service and refreshments 9 AM service and Brunch in the Parish Hall 11 AM service and Luncheon in the Parish Hall 6 PM service and refreshments 5

MINISTRY Sing

to the

Lord

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

ith school back in session and vacationing families returning to town and to the church, the topic for a Music Director’s column would normally be a call to the upcoming music programs, concerts, special worship services and volunteer opportunities. But since this is my first column as Interim Music Director, it seems more appropriate to first speak to our new relationship. I wish to say, Thank you, Wow! and Look at what’s ahead.

Thank you for calling me as your interim music director.

What a great privilege to serve this part of Christ’s body at the center of everything that is music; whether it is leading the 9 AM worship with Bob Shoaf’s beautiful jazz chords, or leading you in praise and song with the organ and choir in the loft. I count it an awesome privilege and honor.

Wow! What a fine heritage of music that exists in this church: From Ruth Berg’s steadfast leadership of the youth choirs, to the many volunteers that help keep me from getting buried in the music scores and the logistics of running the largest

MINISTRY

The Tao

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CLARK NILES Director of Youth Ministry clarkn@cecsa.org

f you have seen Christ Church’s Fall Youth Calendar you will notice group Bible studies every week for our teens.

While this is an exciting addition to our line-up for the year, you might be asking why the change? Or why haven’t we been doing small group

of

a

NEW Song...

and best music program in the diocese. I am also amazed at the graciousness of so many kind, courteous, and faithful people who have offered such warm words of support and encouragement to my new ministry. Only at Christ Church can this be considered normal or business as usual, and I can assure you that I will continue this tradition of musical excellence.

Look at what’s ahead. Before I finish, I want to make sure you know about a couple of upcoming dates. The adult choir will lead us in a special All Saints Evensong/Eucharist on November 2 at 6 PM. The contemporary and frequently jazzy undertones of Herbert Howell’s music will be featured, and our esteemed and virtuosic artist-in-residence organist, Madolyn Fallis, will accompany the choir. Secondly, the annual tradition and beautiful music of the Festival of Lessons and Carols will fill the church nave on December 14, with youth and adult choirs and members of the San Antonio Symphony. It is going to be such a great finish to the year, and I hope you all are as excited as I am.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Josh Benninger

Youth Bible Study

always telling our youth that our time is our life.

Yet, over the years there are some things that have remained the same - the need for connection to others and connection to God. A viable and passionate faith for teens is almost always built and sustained on three solid pillars as I see it:

Bible studies?

A deep connection to a faith community. If it is healthy, youth can find support, nurture, fellowship, and a challenge to live and love with accountability.

In my 4o plus years of involvement with teen ministry, I can tell you many things have changed. There are so many new communication conduits, while sports and extra-curricular activities, not to mention school work, vie for so much more of a teenager’s time. I am

Consistent study of the Scriptures.

Youth find their way in this life by encountering “The Way” in the scriptures. Is this Jesus that is revealed in the scriptures really “The Way, The Truth, and The Life”? Without coming to know and embracing Jesus as

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Lord and savior of our lives, it would appear, as some would say, “Game over”! Being in the Word seems to fill us up, but consistency here is crucial in order for God to change us from the inside out with the help of The Spirit’s guidance.

The challenge to go forth and put it in practice. While being discipled, Youth are encouraged to go forth and make a difference in this world by loving those God puts in our path.

It is really not that complicated, but it is also not that easy to do for it requires our very life, or our most precious commodity - our time.

I can’t tell you how excited I am that we have a group of teens that have expressed the desire to meet together around the study of scripture, and to grow and walk together in Christ. WOW!

COMMUNITY

Reaching Out

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ince 2000 our parish has hosted Respite Care of San Antonio in our Family Ministry Center for their daycare program serving loving families who need help in caring for their special needs children. We are now bringing some of the children who live full-time in the Respite Care homes to our 9:00 service and Sunday School.

These children have a sibling with special needs, and have been removed from the care of their parents.

This crew of happy, well groomed, beautifully dressed, impeccably mannered and inquisitive children can’t wait for Sunday to arrive each week so they can come ‘learn about Jesus’ at our church! We pick them up, walk to Christ Church and worship with children who are soaking up our Anglican ways, experiencing physical manifestation of Jesus by taking communion, and memorizing prayers as we consistently repeat the most beautiful liturgy ever written. Then, it is off to Sunday School where the fun begins to unlock the truth of scripture. Lisa Galloway presents the Gospel to our younger children in the most gifted, Spirit infused, and creative ways. One little girl in Lisa’s

to

Respite Care

class, while working on her burning bush work of art, sighed and said, “I just love coming to this place.”

Another classroom of Bible instruction excellence is located on the third floor of our Family Ministry Center teaching grades 3-5. One Sunday we were watching a movie about Moses.

At the point where Moses was leading his people out of Egypt, two girls next to me whispered, “Where is he taking them?” I whispered, “The Promised Land.” They quickly asked, “What is the Promised Land?” Great question! I told them that the Promised Land was a wonderful place God set aside for His chosen people, the Israelites. It was a beautiful place with plenty of food for them to eat, a safe place to sleep, and an amazing place to live. One precious little girl instantly replied, “Just like our house!” She was referring to the Najim House-Respite Care where she and the other children live.

We are blessed to be a part of Respite Care of San Antonio’s mission to protect and care for special needs children. The children who live at Respite Care are difficult to place into permanent foster care, leaving them as our neighbors for

Youth Bible Studies SUNDAYS 3 - 4 PM : Junior High Bible Studies for Boys and Girls SUNDAYS 5 - 6 PM: Senior High Bible Studies for Boys and Girls Clark will lead the Boys studies while Youth Interns Tobin Simpson and Suzanna Frey will meet with the girls. All studies will take place off-campus in members’ homes. Talk to Clark, Suzanna or Tobin for more information.

Join us

long periods of time. It is God’s call on our parish to be mission minded in all places God calls us. Even before Patrick arrived, he told me that his vision for our church was to be a light on the hill of Monte Vista, reaching out with the Gospel to all people, especially those in our own neighborhood. He then gave me the keys of the church (for about a nanosecond) to give to him in his installation service. The words I delivered, as prescribed in our Prayer Book were, “Patrick, receive these keys, and let the doors of this place be open to all people.” And, the congregation said, “Amen.” We have actively opened our doors to all who come. The children feel at home in our sanctuary. They are participating in the service by bringing the communion vessels to the altar, helping with the noisy offering, and following the liturgy with great care.

Thank you for loving these children as they worship alongside you. We all feel your warmth, acceptance and love.

If you are interested in being a part of this mission, contact Mary Ellen Archer for details at memarcher@me.com.

Mary Ellen Archer

October 31 from 5 - 7 PM in the CEC Parking lot as we

Trunk or Treat with the neighborhood kids!

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The Christ Church Bible Study

verb vərb/

a word used to describe an action, state, or occurrence.

O

and

Preaching Series

Late Pentecost 2014: Faith is a verb!

ur Christian faith is more about what we do than what we feel. When we submit to Christ, his grace begins to change the way we live. The ordinary dealings and actions of our lives become extraordinary testimonies to the power of faith.

October 5 Proper 22 (A) MT 21:33-46 …those who produce fruits of the kingdom

Produce: We participate in Kingdom life when we produce fruit that blesses others.

October 12 Proper 23 (A) MT 22:1-14 Many are called, but few are chosen

Respond: We did not first choose Christ, but he chose us. Our part is to respond.

October 19 Proper 24 (A) MT 22:15-22 Give to God the things that are God’s

Give: We give back to Him who gave us everything we treasure.

October 26 Proper 25 (A) MT 22:34-46 Love God with all your heart Love: In the Kingdom, we love God above all other loves. and soul November 2 All Saints’ (A) MT 5:1-12 He taught them with these words...

Learn: Disciples of Christ spend a lifetime learning the peculiar ways of the Kingdom.

November 9 Proper 27 (A) MT 25:1-13 Keep awake, for you don’t know the hour!

Wake Up: Those in Christ wake up to his call day and night.

November 16

Proper 28 (A)

MT 25:14-30

November 23

Christ the King MT 25:31-46

Invest: Disciples of Christ are unafraid to He invested his talents... fully invest their lives in the Kingdom of God. Do for the least of these...

Do: In the Kingdom, we do for the least able before we take care of the strongest.

Thursday Women’s Bible Study Resumes October 2

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or decades the women of Christ Church have gathered to study and discuss God’s Word, and have some lovely fellowship, too! We return to this time honored tradition on Thursday, October 2 for our Fall 2014 series of studying the lectionary scripture with Patrick’s Spirit filled weekly lessons.

Information, lessons, and registration cards will be mailed out after Labor Day, and registration cards are due September 19. Registration will also be available online on the Bible Study Page under Women’s Bible Study. Your leader will call you the week of September 21 to give you more information about the first day of class.

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Womens’ Bible Study Calendar: September 19 Registration due October 2 First day of class November 13 Last day of class for

Fall Semester January 8 First day of Spring semester April 16 Last day of Spring semester Please join us! We have all ages, all levels of Biblical knowledge, a common love of God’s True Word, and desire to apply it to our daily lives. Email Mary Ellen Archer at memarcher@me.com for more information.

Charm is deceptive, beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

Proverbs 31:30

Our Church Life...

Not Just One, But TWO TABLES

this

Fall!

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ur Wednesday Evening Program is being transformed under the leadership of Rev. Rob Harris.

Do you hunger to know your fellow church members better?

Are you starved for relationship with one another and with God? Then come to our table, our Two Tables.

Two Tables is our new Wednesday Night Gathering. We will meet for the Liturgy of Table I and break bread together. We will then transition to Table II (The Lord’s Table). The children will be invited to join the Kid’s Table for their lesson.

Each week we will engage in Table Talk focused on the evening’s presentation which will include: engaging videos on relevant topics, dynamic speakers, and personal testimonies. We will offer our Table Prayers together and celebrate Eucharist together, like a family, around the family table. Join us for Two Tables from 5:30 - 7 PM and make Wednesdays feel like home.

TWO TABLES FALL 2014 SCHEDULE Sep. 17 Matthew 18:21-25 Criminal Love Remembered for Your Sin Sep. 24 Matthew 20:1-16 Grace is Not Attractive Oct. 1 Matthew 21:33-46 Something to Die For Oct. 8 Matthew 22:1-14 Faithfulness Oct. 15 Matthew 22:15-22 What belongs to God? Oct. 22 Matthew 22:34-46 The Greatest Commandment Oct. 29 Matthew 23:1-12 Practicing Humility Nov. 5 John 17:18-23 So I Send You Nov. 12 Matthew 25:31-40 You Visited Me Nov. 19 John 16:7-15 Give them Jesus THANKSGIVING BREAK Dec. 3 Luke 14:12-14 We Need Each Other Dec. 10 John 1:6-8,19-28 Hope and Imagination Dec. 17 John 20:24-29 Losing My Faith

Adult Formation Has Something Preschool Bible Sunday October 5

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reschool Bible Sunday, a Sunday honoring parents and their two through four-year-old children, will be held Sunday, October 5 during the Sunday School hour from 10 – 10:50 AM in FMC room 204 followed by a special presentation during the 11 AM service. Kathy Timberlake, Director of Christian Education for the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas, will lead a class for parents that will help them support the faith formation of their little ones. Participants in this class will be presented with a copy of The Jesus Storybook Bible during the 11 AM service as an aid to bringing their children up in the Christian faith.

Some important and challenging issues for parents of preschoolers will be discussed in the class.

for

Everyone

Christian Parenting Class “Tough Guys and Drama Queens” How Not To Get Blindsided By Your Child’s Teen Years

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e are excited to offer a new Christian parenting class, “Tough Guys and Drama Queens” by Mark Gregston for parents of teens and preteens beginning Sunday, September 14 in the FMC Theater Room 302. This will be a wonderful follow up to Mark Gregstons’ visit to Christ Church on September 9 and 10. “Tough Guys and Drama Queens” is Mark Gregston’s latest parenting offering designed to prepare and support parents of preteens and teens as their children face the challenges of adolescence. Facilitating the class will be our new priest (and former Youth Minister) Rob Harris, and parents of teens, Nancy and Mark Wright, Cindy and Charles Huey, Amy and Chad Case and Catherine Easley.

this

Fall

Each class session will include a DVD message from Mark Gregston and a follow up group discussion where community building and support among parents can take place. A Parent’s Guide will be available to class members during the first class session. All parents and grandparents of preteens, teens, and even younger children are encouraged to come to this class. It’s never too early to prepare for adolescence!

The course will include nine sessions and is scheduled to end before the Thanksgiving holidays. Topics will include: What’s So Different About Today’s Culture; Why Traditional Parenting No Longer Works; A New Model for Parenting Teens; Stop Controlling, Start Trusting; Adding Clear Boundaries; Subtract Strictness; Seeing Conflict as a Precursor to Change; and Taking a Regular Break.

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MINISTRY Our Hope

is in the

Lord

Those who Hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Isaiah 40:31

and

We Are Soaring!

toughest questions in learning the Bible’s smartest answers with “Grapple”, a preteen curriculum designed to support our kids as they “grapple” with the challenges of early adolescence.

W

e are reviving a great Sunday School program for our younger HALLETA children and bringing on two new HEINRICH programs for our older children this Director of fall. Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Family Ministries Level I and II will be offered this fall for halletah@cecsa.org our preschool three-year-olds through kindergarteners and Level II for our first and second-graders.

Our third-graders will experience “The Story” which enables them to get through all the greatest stories of the Bible in one year. Fourth and fifth-graders will find answers to their

Entering

Fall

this

These Christian formation experiences were chosen carefully for our children as the best we can offer them at the different stages of their childhood in providing the hope of Jesus Christ as presented in God’s Word. Our prayer is that our children grow strong in their faith, be lifted up by the Holy Spirit through good and bad times, and walk and run life’s journey to completion with perseverance fueled by the knowledge of the love of Christ. Isaiah 40:31 will be our theme scripture verse of the year, held up before the children in Sunday School classes and Children’s Chapel all year.

Halleta

the

Sheepfold Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Level II for First and Second-Graders Lead Teacher – Halleta Heinrich

C

Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Level I for 3-year-olds to Kindergarteners Lead Teachers – Carmen Lewenthal and Carol Locke

C

atechesis of the Good Shepherd Level I can be described as a loving sheepfold where our youngest children are fed spiritually each Sunday in an environment created just for them. Jesus and the Bible are central to the teachings whose centerpiece is Jesus’ declaration in the Gospel of John that he is “The Good Shepherd” who loves each of the children unconditionally. The Atrium classroom contains “hands on” materials and presentations that include: the Historical Life of Jesus, the Parables of Jesus, the Geography of the Holy Land, and the Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion.

Also within the Atrium are a Prayer Table Gathering Center, an Art Center, and Practical Life Center where children learn to take care of their class setting and gain fine motor skills that build confidence and independence. The kids love it and will be so happy to be in this special place.

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atechesis of the Good Shepherd Level II can be described as a busy Vineyard where children learn to abide in Christ and work together as a community as the branches of the True Vine – Jesus Christ. The declaration by Jesus that he is the “True Vine and we are the branches” taught in the Gospel of John is the cornerstone of Level II Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. The children are involved in large group presentations and projects, meeting their need to socialize and build connection and community. The foundation of the unconditional love of Jesus the Good Shepherd that was built at the preschool age is built upon with expanded teachings from Level I and additional teachings. The big picture of God’s plan of salvation through Christ is presented early in the year and referred to often as a large interactive timeline.

Centers of learning also include: the Books of the Bible, the Historical Life of Jesus, the Parables of Jesus, the Geography of the Holy Land including a three dimensional map of Jerusalem, the Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion, an Art Center, and a Prayer Table Gathering Area.

Family Ministry...

Grappling

The Greatest Story Ever Told The Story for Kids – Discovering the Bible from Beginning to End for Third Graders Lead Teachers – Catherine Markette and Stephen Archer

T

hird grade is the perfect age to delve into the Bible very thoroughly from beginning to end. The Story for Kids is a curriculum created to help children learn the most important stories in the Bible in story form. Each child in the class will receive a copy of The Story for Kids to take home and one for the class. There are thirty-one lessons in The Story beginning with creation in Genesis to the second coming of Christ in Revelations. Bible study and related activities that support each part of The Story will take place every Sunday. The Story was developed at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio by Max Lucado and Head Pastor Randy Frazee as a way to connect God’s story in the Bible in one continuous thread pointing to Christ from the beginning to end.

“I Sing Children’s All Saints Celebration Sunday, November 2 10 AM in FMC Children’s Chapel

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e will celebrate all the Saints in Heaven and on Earth this All Saints Sunday, November 2, in Children’s Chapel at the beginning of the Sunday School hour. All children’s Sunday School classes will gather in Chapel to Sing A Song of the Saints, learn the true

a

Song

with

Big Issues

Grapple – Preteens Toughest Questions & The Bible’s Smartest Answers for Fourth and Fifth Graders Lead Teacher and Class Coordinator – Julie Zacher Teaching Team – Peter Zacher, Sarah and Chris Kardys, Jennifer and John Colglazier, Laura and Michael Heinrich, and Linda and Joey Satel

G

rapple is a preteen Bible based curriculum designed specifically to help fourth and fifth-graders “grapple” with the challenges of pre-adolescence. Unit topics fit into three categories – Relationships, Faith, and Choices. This fall’s units are entitled: “You’re Not My Friend” – Relationships; “Who Is God?” - Faith Questions; and “What Do I Do When the Pressure Is On?” – Choices. All of the lessons are grounded in God’s Word as the class seeks to find answers to questions relevant to the lives of preteens. Bible study and discussion, community building activities and games, video clips, and prayer are all part of each lesson.

of the

Saints

of

God...”

Christian meaning of Halloween, and realize what it means to be a Saint. We couldn’t celebrate All Saints without our Happy and Sad Jack-o-Lanterns, so I have invited them to come. Kids can wear their Halloween costumes one more time and show them off. No scary ones, please! Each child will receive an All Saints treat. * Our first and second grade parents will host this celebration.

“Jolly Old St. Nicholas...”

Children’s Christmas Pageant “Santa’s Favorite Story” Song Practice Will Begin In October Pageant Will Be Presented By the Children of Christ Church Sunday, December 7

I

bet you can guess what Santa’s favorite story is! He is a true Saint of God, so his favorite story is the story of the first Christmas – the birth of Jesus.

Our children will present “Santa’s Favorite Story” on Sunday, December 7 during the 11 AM service in the church. This year’s Christmas Pageant is inspired by the children’s classic book “Santa’s Favorite Story” written

by Hisako Aoki and illustrated by Ivan Gantschev. All the children of Christ Church will joyfully tell the story in song.

Each Sunday School class will play a special role in the pageant: 2 and 3-yearolds will be the Sheep; 4 and 5-year-olds and kindergarteners will be the Animals of the Manger; first and second-grade girls will be Christmas Angels; first and second-grade boys will be Stars; thirdgraders will be Santa’s Helpers; fourthgraders will be Shepherds; and fifthgraders will be the stars of the pageant – Nativity Characters. Song practice for the pageant will begin in October with each family receiving a practice DVD to help get you in the Christmas mood early! *Fourth and fifth grade parents will host this event.

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CARE

Community

“The 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.”

H

ave you ever wanted to help someone but didn’t know how? Did you ever want to comfort someone but didn’t know what to say? Have you ever wondered how you could show the love of Christ to people in need? Have you ever wondered how you could serve God with the gifts he has given you?

I only saw her once a month. She was among a list of shut-ins who could no

of

Hope

longer make it to church. Yes, she had family who checked on her, but confined to bed in a nursing home she could no longer get out and see friends and do all the things she loved. Christ Church had been so important to her and she served in many volunteer roles over the years. When I visited, she wanted to hear all the news and especially about the children and what they were doing.

She was interested in everything and a prayer warrior you could trust to follow through with heartfelt intercessions.

My monthly visits with communion was something she looked forward to with joy and that joy overflowed back to me. There were other committed lay pastors who visited her. At least once a week, someone came by to offer encouragement and prayer. The gift was returned many times as everyone said they got more out of their visit than what they brought. It was no burden, no sacrifice, only joy. But isn’t that what we should be about? If you are doing God’s work, then it will not be a burden. It will energize you and give you the satisfaction of knowing that you are where God wants you.

The Christ Church Community of Hope has been equipping lay pastoral caregivers for about 14 years. Mary Parker and Ann McClanahan pioneered this ministry. Here we recognize the

Rally Day 2014

12

strength of a caring community that is revealed as ordinary people reach out in Christ’s love to their friends and neighbors in need. Lay pastoral caregivers include hospital visitors, nursing home visitors, lay eucharistic visitors, caregivers for the elderly and those who walk alongside friends in sickness, grief or personal crisis.

I have recently retired and returned to our home in San Antonio. Janet and I are happy to be back at Christ Church. In a sense we feel like we never left and that our daughters, Lily and Charissa kept our pew warm. The Rev. Patrick Gahan has invited me to resume a ministry that I loved when previously on staff. I will be working with Carol Miller and the leadership of The Community of Hope as clergy advisor. So we shall begin again with this wonderful ministry.

Care to know more? Everyone who has been trained by the Community of Hope and anyone interested in pastoral care ministry is invited to attend an organizational meeting Sunday, October 12 in the parish hall after the 11 AM service.

God bless you.

The Rev. Eric Fenton

SOCIETY

Gift Giving - A Fine Southern Tradition or remember the hospitality of the Lord’s house that I share with other parishioners, or even sometimes by myself, with a gift? I guess that is why it was not really even a decision when I was revising my estate plans to configure to Texas laws upon my move to San Antonio about a year ago. I have always planned to present the Lord with my (HIS) gifts upon my demise. Some may call that “boom-a-rang” gifting.

I

love to give gifts…. especially when I find the perfect gift and can wrap and present it in a way that says, “I care and this was so fun”. I was always taught to bring a hostess gift when you are invited to someone’s house for dinner or are staying at a friend’s house for the weekend.

So why wouldn’t I honor the Lord’s Supper that I partake in every Sunday

In full disclosure… Christ Church is not the only church that is being remembered in my estate planning.

The church in Arlington, VA where I was confirmed, served as an officer in the Youth Group and played the role of the “Devil” in the church play is also being remembered. Those years were formative, especially as I was preparing to fly the coop and head to college. The standards/morals that I would take with me were formed there. Another church that has played a critical role in my Christian development was the church I recently left in Kansas City. There I served on the Vestry during our 100th birthday celebration and the campaign to renovate/restore the church building

Planning

I

for

to its former beauty and safety. I hope no church has to dip into the principal of their endowment to fix a leaking roof or re-lead the stained glass windows so they won’t come crashing down…. we had to do that and it was a very tough decision with much controversy.

That brings me to Christ Church. Yes….

I have decided that Christ Church will be remembered in my will. I recognize that I am a fairly new member, but I look at Christ Church as my next chapter …my future if you will. I do not want this congregation to have to make some of the tough financial decisions that my prior church had to make. I want Christ Church to be about giving back to the community… however you define community…. local or global.

That is why Christ Church is being remembered in my estate planning.

I want future generations to be able to help the community and fulfill the mission of the church and not to have to worry about maintenance, leaky roofs, and broken stained glass windows.

Karen Von Der Bruegge

Christ Church’s Future

Saturday, October 11 9 AM - 12 PM

n a real way we are all here today because of the vision of so many over the last century who, informed by the Spirit, have made good decisions for this church. Vision is about leadership. Our experience in 2010 proves that leadership makes all the difference. Leadership led us to Patrick.

To that end your Vestry has embarked on a strategic planning process that will result in a hard copy plan early next year. We thought it so critical that we have an advisor to oversee the process. We conducted two workshops this summer where we came up with drafts of both our core values and our mission.

On Saturday, October 11, from 9 AM to 12 PM in the Parish Hall we have scheduled a parish-wide workshop. This is your opportunity to tell us what your church should look

like in the next five and ten years. Of course, how it looks in the next five and ten years will ripple through to how it looks in the next twenty-five.

If you have a vision for the children’s and youth program, if you have ideas about community outreach, if you have a direction for the Thunderbird Apartments, this is your chance to speak. These workshops are lively, creative, and challenging. For those of you who cannot attend, a survey will be sent out following the workshop.

Christ Church has been a great church for over a century.

With your help it will remain great into the next. Please be there.

John Boyce

Chairman, Strategic Planning

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Our Church Life..

PAGE TURNERS – From

the

Rector’s Book Stack

he has given me a roadmap with which to better grasp this substantial and challenging Hebrew text. Goldingay quotes Martin Luther on the very first page of his book in order to warn the reader that this will be a winding, uphill trek at times: “The prophets,” said Luther, “have a queer way of talking, like people who, instead of proceeding in an orderly manner, ramble off from one thing to the next, so that you cannot make head or tail of them.”

P

relude to Philosophy: An Introduction for Christians, by Mark W. Foreman. My friend Doug Daniel developed a fever for a better understanding of philosophy, and I have caught a little of the bug, too. The New Testament is drenched in ancient philosophy. Take the opening lines of John, for instance, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The word for Word – logos – originated 500 years before John, the Gospel writer, was even born. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus (535-475 BC) coined the term to mean “principle,” “ground”, or “reason.” Thus, we should not be afraid of philosophy, but revel in it. Foreman quotes Plato, “Philosophy begins in wonder.” That’s where I want to begin, too.

The Theology of the Book of Isaiah, by John Goldingay, has put me through my paces for many mornings the past few weeks. I have long wanted to study the long and meandering book of Isaiah, as the prophet’s works and words figure so greatly in the New Testament. Often Isaiah is noted as the “Fifth Gospel.”

Goldingay, who was Scott Kitayama’s Old Testament professor at Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, California, is well-versed in his subject matter, and

14

Kingdom of Shadows, by Alan Furst, is my latest of the Furst pre-World War II novels. The story centers on the suave Hungarian émigré to Paris, Nicholas Morath. He is a smooth operator in the mold of James Bond. However, what I most appreciated about the novel were the snapshots of Hungary, Romania, and, of course, France in 1938 through 1939. I should add a postscript here that this has not been my favorite Furst novel. I do not know if he was trying to be overly artistic or if he was just in a hurry while composing this one. You be the judge.

Before the Frost, by Henning Mankell, is a book I stole from my sister-in-law’s bookshelf when I was in Birmingham a few weeks ago. If you are a detective novel buff, you already know that the protagonist of Mankell’s book is the sulky and cerebral Kurt Wallender.

This is the ninth book in the Wallendar series, but the first in which the Swedish detective teams up with his equally headstrong daughter, Linda. I was drawn in from the first page – the first paragraph, really – for the heinous crimes are performed by an off-the-rails “Christian” cult. Move over Jim Jones!

Do not avoid the Wallender thrillers just because they are translations from the Swedish. The prose is exceptionally clear and highly readable…just a bit spooky at times!

Less Doing, More Living, by Ari Meisel is a 123 page self-help book of a different stripe. Sent to me by my dear friend, the Rev. Jennifer Booke-Davidson, Esq., it offers help in streamlining and improving your work and home

life through computer and smart phone applications. (Yes, I hear your astonishment that I would read such a thing, as I won’t even join Facebook.) I have put into use several applications that have greatly assisted me. One is Scanner Pro. This free application lets me take photos of all my receipts and save them to “the cloud” – eliminating reams of paper from my life. My favorite is Evernote. It is like having a coordinated file-cabinet in your pocket. On the lighter end of things, I have appreciated catalogchoice.org.

This computer software, developed by environmentalists, allows you to stop the endless number of catalogs sent to your address and thereby save TREES! So far, Catalog Choice has saved 910,744 fully grown trees (Kay and I have saved 1); C.C. has saved 379,341,345 pounds of greenhouse gases (Kay and I have saved 175); C.C. has saved 134,471,254 pounds of solid waste (Kay and I – 63); and finally, C.C. has saved 913,583,456 gallons of water (Kay and I – 422)…

Besides, I did not need that Victoria’s Secret catalog anyway!

John Wayne: The Legend and the Man is a pictorial treasure trove for anyone who loves “the Duke.” Bob Carter secured a copy of the book for me, and it sits regally in my office – as it should. In all honesty, what makes this book so endearing are the heartfelt remembrances offered by Martin Scorsese, Maureen O’Hara, Ron Howard, and – believe it or not – Ronald Reagan!

We called him Duke, and he was every bit the giant off the screen he was on. Everything about him—his stature, his style, his convictions— conveyed enduring strength, and no one who observed his struggle in those final days could doubt that the strength was real.

Ronald Reagan, 40th President of the United States Your brother,

Patrick U

OF EVENTS September 14: Fall Sunday School Begins, 10 AM

Middle School Girls Bible Study, 3 - 4 PM at Marcia Archer’s House

High School Bible Study 5 - 6 PM at Mary Ellen Archer’s House September 17: Two Tables Wednesday Nights at CEC begin, 5:15 - 7 PM September 19 - 21:

Youth Ministry Architects visit

September 21: Middle School (MS) Bible Study, 3 - 4 PM, off-campus

High School (HS) Bible Study, 5 - 6 PM, off-campus September 24: Two Tables, 5:15 - 7 PM in the Parish Hall

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

September 26-28: Family Camp at Camp Capers

The Rev. Rob Harris, Assistant Rector for Community Formation, robh@ cecsa.org

September 28: Dedication of the Ben Benitez Cross after 11 AM service

100th Birthday Projects Open House 8:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Carol Miller, Pastoral Care Administrator, carolm@cecsa.org

October 1:

Two Tables, 5:15 - 7 PM in the Parish Hall

Halleta Heinrich, Director of Family Ministry, halletah@cecsa.org

October 2:

Women’s Thursday Morning Bible Study begins, 10 AM Patrick’s 60th Birthday Celebration, 4:30 - 7 PM, 143 Park Hill Dr

October 3 - 5: DWTX Middle School Retreat at Church of Reconciliation

Clark Niles, Director of Youth Ministry clarkniles82@gmail.com

October 4:

Archbishop Orombi to lead workshop at CEC

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

October 5:

1st Consecration Sunday Speakers - Phyllis & Jamie Browning Pre-school Bible Sunday MS Bible Study, 3 - 4 PM; HS Bible Study, 5 - 6 PM, off-campus

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

October 8:

Two Tables, 5:15 - 7 PM in the Parish Hall

Robert Hanley, Parish Administrator robert@hanleypmservices.com

October 11:

Strategic Planning Event for the entire Parish, 9 AM - 12 PM

October 12:

2nd Consecration Sunday Speakers - Tricia & Patrick Tobin Community of Hope Organizational Meeting, after 11 AM service MS Bible Study, 3 - 4 PM; HS Bible Study 5 - 6 PM, off-campus

October 15:

Two Tables, 5:15 - 7 PM in the Parish Hall

October 19:

3rd Consecration Sunday Speakers - Laura Nell & Trace Burton MS Bible Study, 3 - 4 PM; HS Bible Study, 5 - 6 PM, off-campus

October 22:

Two Tables, 5:15 - 7 PM in the Parish Hall

October 25:

Election of Bishop Coadjutor at TMI

October 26:

Consecration Sunday - No Sunday School MS Bible Study, 3 - 4 PM; HS Bible Study 5 - 6 PM, off-campus

October 29:

Two Tables, 5:15 - 7 PM in the Parish Hall

October 31:

Trunk or Treat, 5 - 7 PM in the Parking Lot

November 2:

All Saints’ Sunday Children’s All Saints Celebration MS Bible Study, 3 - 4 PM; HS Bible Study 5 - 6 PM, off-campus

Darla Nelson, Office Manager darlan@cecsa.org Donna Shreve, Financial Manager donnas@cecsa.org Gretchen Comuzzi Duggan, Director of Communications, gretchend@cecsa.org Anna Jewell, Executive Assistant to the Rector, annaj@cecsa.org Donnis Carpenter, Receptionist donnisc@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

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Mayor Ivy Taylor receiving a blessing on her visit to Christ Church in August.

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 16, Number 5.

E P I S C O PA L Christ Episcopal Church 510 Belknap Place San Antonio, TX 78212 www.cecsa.org

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