Parishioners of St. Paul’s, San Antonio, along with invited guests, gathered this summer in homes for House Eucharists to strengthen their community.
the
Church
See page 6.
News
September / October 2015 The newspaper of the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas
Inside this issue
7 The diocesan Christian Education Committee offers resources for the changing face of Christian formation. See page 4.
Remembering Glo Kehl, Good Samaritan Community Services
8 9 10
Bowden’s Feast Day Celebrated for the First Time
Two Churches Break Barriers in Beeville
ABODE Home Open, a Haven for End-of-Life Care
in
The
News
News and Features 2 On the Bishop’s Mind: Awesome Words 4 Meet Them Where They Are: The Changes
in Christian Education, Resources Available
6 House Eucharists Emphasize Community 6 Camps’ 2015 Program Numbers 7 Remembering Glo Kehl 8 Bowden’s Feast Day Celebrated 9 Two Churches Break Barriers 10 ABODE Home Open In Every
Issue
3 From the Editor 11 Around the Circuit 12 Calendar Cover photo by Elizabeth Landry.
the Church News is published four times a year by the Dept. of Communication, Diocese of West Texas of the Protestant Episcopal Church P. O. Box 6885 San Antonio, Texas 78209 Editor: Laura Shaver Laura.Shaver@dwtx.org Deadline for news and advertising is the 15th of the month preceding publication. Periodicals Postage paid at San Antonio, TX and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Church News P.O. Box 6885 San Antonio, TX 78209
Volume 72 Number 4 September/October 2015 USPS 661-790 The Diocese of West TX is a family of 26,000+ members in 88 congregations across 60 counties and 69,000 square miles in South Central Texas. Bishop of West Texas: The Rt. Rev. Gary R. Lillibridge Bishop Coadjutor: The Rt. Rev. David M. Reed The Bishop Jones Center 111 Torcido Dr. San Antonio, Texas 78209 Telephone: 210/888-8245387. FAX: 210-824-2164 general.mail@dwtx.org www.dwtx.org
Communication Department Staff: Marjorie George: editor, Reflections Magazine and ReflectionsOnline Laura Shaver: communications officer
2
www.dwtx.org
On the Bishop’s Mind The Rt. Rev. David Reed Bishop Coadjutor of the Diocese
Awesome Words
A
s a parish priest, I spent a lot of time teaching, preaching, and talking about the vital importance of Christian education and formation (using such varied pastoral skills as whining, bribery, entertainments, guilt, peer pressure, and cajolery). Results were, let’s say, consistently less than I hoped for. So, now, let me tell you a story. A few months ago, I travelled to a wedding. It was in a nice, clean barn--an event center-- in a cow pasture (with real cows!). Several old friends were there, and as often happens, we reverted to the behavior of 16 year olds. The pastor was a kind and gracious man, who had a significant impact on the lives and faith of the young couple. During the prayers and in his homily, all of which was pretty free-form, he described enthusiastically the barn (“amazing”), the evening (“awesome”), the aroma of the food (“incredible”), the couple (“amazing and awesome”), and God (“our incredibly awesome Daddy”). Afterward, several of us were standing outside the barn, watching where we stepped, being polite and demure. Then, someone (and I promise it wasn’t me) says, “So if all that is awesome and amazing, how am I supposed to talk about mountains or the Grand Canyon? Or God?” Well, if you’ve hung around 16-year-old guys, you know how the conversation went from there. We had a great time. You might think that I’m going to ramble on about less-than-liturgical weddings or the slang of young adults, but I’m not. (Anyone whose descriptive language comes from the 70s and 80s should never look down upon the ways today’s young people speak.) What that evening got me thinking about was important words: big, bold, challenging, subversive, thought-provoking, and strengthening words. Yes, and even awesome and amazing words. And it got me thinking how many of these words are part of the language of the Christian faith, used to describe both eternal mystery and intimate presence; ultimate meaning and daily decisions, and everything else that truly matters in life. As the Church we’ve been called to be stewards of a great many things, not least of which is the language we use to worship God and to talk about our faith in Jesus. To forget, or never learn, the words by which we come to know the Word-made-flesh is an awful loss for a people called to be awe-filled and caught up in the life of our awesome God. Just as babies learn to speak only by hearing others speak, so, too, those who don’t know the words and stories of our faith can learn them only from church people who know the story and can tell of God’s glory revealed in Jesus Christ.
So here’s a little exercise to test your language skills: Think of five big, powerful words of our faith. (Grace...awe...sin... salvation...forgiveness...etc.) Now, write them down and, quickly, write a short, working definition of each. If you get stumped, ask your priest about them. If you fill a 3x5 card or a whole page, go to Sunday School and share them... And then listen as others talk about the words and help you see how much bigger the words are than you imagined. Either way, go to Sunday school, or a Bible study, or a gathering in Christian fellowship and practice the language of the kingdom to which you belong. A few years ago, I offered to go anywhere in the diocese to help people start a Bible study. I heard from, let’s see, nobody. Because I don’t mind being a fool for the Christ of Christian formation, I’ll make the same offer now. Or invite me to come have a conversation with you about the life-transforming language of our faith. That would be, literally, amazingly awesome.
From the editor Laura Shaver
Forever Formation
E
verything I need to know in life I learned in Kindergarten. Not really, but I’ve seen that phrase on a few different posters. The posters go on to list what you do learn in Kindergarten: how to play fair, how to play nice, how to listen to your teacher and do your work, how to walk in a straight line and use your manners, etc. I suspect much of our social formation also comes in Kindergarten. I do not specifically remember that school year, but I am fully aware of the growth that occurs and will occur as my older son, Casey, is now in his Kindergarten year.
The Beginning of the Good News, a study on the Gospel of Mark At Diocesan Council in February, Bishop Lillibridge asked the diocese to study the Gospel of Mark this year. A diocesan-wide study is now available on our Christian formation blogsite at: http://christianformation-dwtx.org. This study is especially appropriate for congregations and small groups; each session offers several thought-provoking questions that will generate group conversation. However, individuals will also benefit from this study. The sessions are topic-focused with passages drawn from Mark. Each session also includes reflections - in written and audio format - from lay persons and clergy from around the diocese. These reflections make good study openers. You can find The Beginning of the Good News by clicking on the Bible Studies tab at the top of the home page.
I think this year will form not only him, but also my husband and me as new school-age parents. Though Casey and our family have been blessed by a wonderful Episcopal preschool education, it was quite a big step to enter the big elementary campus on the first day of Kindergarten and begin to watch him learn the ropes and acclimate to all the “new.” As a child, formation – in all aspects – never ceases. As an adult, I believe we can choose to continue to grow – emotionally, mentally, spiritually – or not. This year, I will continue to be formed emotionally, I know that for sure, as I watch Casey continue to develop his independence and make small and large achievements in his continual formation. Perhaps everything I need to know in life I learned from Jesus’ teaching on the great commandment. When asked what this was, Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And the Church News
a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:36-40). This I carry in my heart, as I try each day to walk in Jesus’ footsteps and reach out to those neighbors of mine in love, as Jesus did. But to do this fully, I need to continue to be spiritually formed, to be spiritually fed, by learning more about Jesus and his ability to love and his ability to preach the truth of the Gospel. My spiritual formation comes from church and worship, from mom’s or women’s Bible studies, from daily devotionals, from sharing Bible stories and lessons with my children, and from dear, spiritually-grounded friends, who in their testimonies, teach me new things about our Lord and Savior and encourage me in my walk with Christ. In my longing to give encouragement to my husband, to my children, to my family and friends, and to others with whom I become an acquaintance, I realize the need for spiritual formation no matter my age. And the more I receive, the more the fire burns within me to learn more. Just as Casey is encouraged by sight-word celebrations, bubble gum parties, praise from his teacher, and being chosen as the “helping hand” for the day, I, too, am encouraged by new understanding of the Gospels, new prayers, and Christian fellowship. I am encouraged to thrive in it and reach beyond myself and share it.
September/October 2015
3
Featured News
Meet Them Where They Are:
the changes in Christian education and resources available by Laura Shaver
I
n a society that continues to culturally and socially expand, often at an overwhelming rate, it is no wonder that the Church – and the ministries of the Church – are caught in the whirlwind. One such vital ministry, Christian education and formation, has changed drastically over the past couple of decades. And this is in all churches: big, small, program, resource, mega-size, and across denominations. Priests and staff members are having to decide how best to reach their congregants – children, youth, young and older adults – to spiritually feed them outside of worship services. Kathy Timberlake, who serves as the Christian Education Consultant for the diocese, said she continually hears the same concerns voiced: “How do we (the Church) help parents see the value in attending Sunday school? We can’t even find enough Sunday school teachers to help. Many parents just want to drop off their children in a Sunday school class and pick them up afterward. “My gifts and passions are to help struggling churches re-design their Christian education programs for children, youth, and family ministry. I love Jesus, and I love children, and I love to see the two intersect amidst a church family,” said Timberlake.
“It is important to study and learn about Jesus so we can follow him, act like him, and lead by his example. And we can all learn through spiritual formation, whether that be in Sunday school, weekly Bible studies, mom’s groups, youth groups, or Godly Play.” - Sarah Kates
4
www.dwtx.org
The Christian Education Committee, of which Timberlake is a member, exists to serve as a resource for churches within our diocese. Timberlake, in her role as Christian Education Consultant, is also ready and willing to travel to diocesan churches to monitor their programs and offer suggestions for growth and stability. The committee members and its chairman are appointed by the diocesan bishop, and each serve a three-year term. The committee consists of both lay and clergy members, and it is responsible for providing Christian education resources, helpful information, and actual face-to-face interaction within our churches. Sarah Kates, the Director of Children, Youth, and Family Ministries at St. David’s, San Antonio, was recently appointed the new chair of the committee. This summer the committee divided the list of all the churches in the diocese with plans to contact them to receive feedback on the following questions: • What does your church do well in terms of Christian education? • What is your greatest struggle or need in regard to Christian education? • If you could ask for anything for your church’s formation program, what would that be?
The plan is to collect answers and build a resource packet to be shared diocesanwide, so all churches may come into communication with each other and share information and curriculum. The Changing Face of Sunday School “Sunday school is a hot topic in the world of Christian education because the Church is changing,” said Kates. “We have to make church on a Sunday excellent because many families and other people could be doing many other things on their one day off, their Sabbath, such as resting, picnicking with their children, just being together. We need to make it worthwhile and meet their desires, not be distracting with program and ministry needs.” At St. David’s, the decision was made last fall to not offer children’s Sunday school anymore during the Christian formation hour between Sunday services. They were experiencing a regular attendance of two children, one being the teacher’s child. “Christian formation is always important and always in the forefront of our minds,” said Kates, “even if this doesn’t include Sunday school.” St. David’s began to offer Godly Play for children four years old through the second grade and Children’s Chapel for grades three
through five during the latter church service. The children come to church with their parents and are escorted out to their own programs after an opening prayer. They return during the Passing of the Peace, in time to receive Communion with their parents.
parenting, marriage enrichment, Bible studies and devotional books, and excellent methods to coordinate Sunday school for adults. The diocese’s own Adult Christian Formation Initiative, featuring Bible and special studies, is available at christianformation-dwtx.org.
“We found this would work after we surveyed our families and implemented the change,” said Kates. Families want their children to take part in Christian formation, but they have a hard time making that Sunday school hour on Sundays, after long weeks of work and school and increasing athletic and extracurricular activities taking over their Saturdays.” The numbers in attendance have risen to an average of 15 children in Godly Play and 12 in Children’s Chapel.
“God calls us to study and learn more about his son, and you can only gain so much knowledge from worship,” said Kates. “It is important to study and learn about Jesus so we can follow him, act like him, and lead by his example. And we can all learn through spiritual formation, whether that be in Sunday school, weekly Bible studies, mom’s groups, youth groups, or Godly Play.”
“There has been a huge shift within the last decade in children’s and youth ministry programs to include the title of ‘Family Ministry,’” said Timberlake. “In all denominations there is an urgency for parents to take back the spiritual responsibility and training in their children.”
“As Christian education leaders, we need to find ways to meet the need of helping all to be formed in Christ,” said Kates. The question is how do you reach each age group: through the church’s website, Facebook, by giving a book, sending home church notes in school backpacks, or by recommending spiritual blogs? “We just need people to know we are here and ready to answer their questions.”
And, of course, Christian education is not only for children but for all ages and stages of life. There are tons of resources online and through the diocesan Christian Education Committee that can help to lead a formation hour or gathering, such as videos on
Christian formation is also pivotal for teens who deal constantly with the changing culture and ideas coming at them through the Internet, social media, television, parents, and peers. And teenagers love and need community. “This is the cherry on top for
them – to get to learn about Jesus among their peers,” said Kates. “They love to serve, since they are finally at an age when they can offer their own resources, such as skills and transportation,” said Kates. “They might not always understand their desire to give back, but it exists in them. If we can take these small lessons from service projects and lead them to go out and spread joy all to God’s glory, then we are doing our job. “Adults are never too old to learn what God’s story is and what his story is for them,” said Kates. “There is always a new avenue to take God’s message into the world and give back to him in various ways.” Kates gave an example of John Jockusch, a parishioner at St. David’s, who is 98 years old and still comes to church to be fed and goes out and shares it with his community. Jockusch attends the 8:00 a.m. service and the 9:15 Christian formation hour. He then takes church to residents at Brookdale, an assisted living facility, and Mission Road, a fulltime residence for those that are intellectually challenged or living with other developmental disabilities. “As Christian education leaders, we are passionate about meeting people where they are,” said Kates, “and making sure they know that God loves them, and the pd. adv. church is ready to meet them more than halfway to make sure they know that.” To reach the Christian Education resources that are available through the diocese, contact Kathy Timberlake at kathy.timberlake@ dwtx.org or Sarah Kates at sarahk@ saintdavids.net. If you are ready to facilitate your own Bible study, check out the studies found at http://christianformation-dwtx. org or contact Marjorie George for more details at marjorie.george@ dwtx.org.
the Church News
September/October 2015
5
Featured News
House Eucharists Emphasize Community | by Laura Shaver
D
esiring a way for parishioners to experience community outside of worship on Sunday mornings, the Rev. Brad Landry, rector of St. Paul’s, San Antonio, introduced House Eucharists this summer. Held once a month on a Wednesday evening, each Eucharist was hosted by a chosen church member. “Because of the formality on a Sunday morning, I wanted us to come together and experience being the church outside of our building. And the sacraments are remarkably portable,” said Landry. The idea, which Landry adopted from St. Andrew’s in Birmingham, Alabama, where Landry served during seminary, was well received among St. Paul’s parishioners. Around 20 to 30 people came to each of the three homes in June, July, August, and each week friends and neighbors were invited to join. At each House Eucharist this summer, someone outside of the St. Paul’s community came to receive the sacraments. “People seem to feel more comfortable inviting friends to their home for church as compared to church on a Sunday,” said Landry. In July, the host invited more than four new people to come. “When was the last time this many friends were invited on a given Sunday,” asked Landry.
“There are parishioners that can’t stay for the coffee hour on Sundays and parishioners that can not make the week-day services, so casually meeting in someone’s home provides the time to get to know one another,” said Eloise Sewell, who hosted the House Eucharist in July. “By hosting, I was spiritually filled and blessed, as were those that attended.” Even with the Eucharist in a more informal setting, there was an emphasis on the beauty of the celebration at each gathering. The host was in charge of preparing the altar – his or her dinner table – and adorning it with nice dishes to serve the sacraments, such as dishes reserved for family holidays. The tables were covered in linens, and fresh flowers were also placed on the altar. The host baked the bread to be served, and the host also chose the wine. “It was like the early church with air-conditioning,” said Landry. A simple liturgy was followed at the beginning of each gathering. Prayers of the People were offered, followed by the offertory and the Eucharist. The Passing of the Peace was held till after the sacraments were received to allow the sense of thanksgiving and conversation to flow into dinner. St. Paul’s provided the main dish for each House Eucharist, and side dishes were potluck. “These were not a replacement for Sunday morning,” said Landry, “but they gave us an intimate and simple experience of the Eucharist. It has been fun to experiment, and it has been a good expression for our community.”
Photo by Elizabeth Landry.
St. Paul’s will offer two more House Eucharists this year, one in September and one in October. For more information, you may contact the church office at 210-226-0345.
Fresh flowers, candles, and linens adorned the homemade altars at each House Eucharist.
6
www.dwtx.org
Family Camp on Mustang Island.
2015 Camp Program Numbers Camp Capers • 1,300 total campers in 9 sessions • 157 youth during the Good Samaritan Community Services camp session • 165 campers at the three Traveling Day Camps (Harlingen, Corpus Christi, Victoria)
Mustang Island Family Camp • 853 total in 12 sessions, including 4 Wounded Warrior families and 3 families from Magdalena House, San Antonio
Colorado Adventure Program at Duncan Park • 16 (2 week-long sessions) Wounded Warrior Family Camp • 2 adults (1 week-long session) Base Camp • 29 youth (3 week-long sessions) Base and Backpack Camps • 5 college students (1 week-long session) Backpack Camp
Remembering Glo Kehl by Bette Boyd and Kathleen Judson Dove
B
orn in 1922, in St. Louis, Missouri, Gloria Ruth Hebberger, “Glo,” developed a passion for social service ministries shared by the community of Christ Church Cathedral, where her family worshipped. In her teens, she taught swimming to disadvantaged children in housing projects located near the cathedral. After marrying the Rev. Christian H. Kehl in 1941, Glo continued her work with at-risk youth in a rural residential facility in New York. She expanded on her experience after World War II while working with European immigrants in a small mining town in Pennsylvania. Christian Kehl served as an assistant to the Rev. Everett Jones in Waco, Texas, and then as rector of Church of the Advent in Alice. After Jones became bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas, the Kehls and their two children relocated to San Antonio. In 1952, Christian Kehl became vicar and then rector of St. George, San Antonio. Glo Kehl was introduced to Good Samaritan in 1958, when she began volunteering while raising a family and maintaining her involvement with her church and diocese. She was hired in 1962 by then-CEO Connie Swander as a part-time youth worker where she worked with girls’ groups. Kehl described her experience as well as that of others, when she said, “Once you spend some time at the center, something happens and you get caught, absolutely hooked.” By 1964 she was hired full-time and eventually served as Assistant to the Director, Executive Director, and as President of the agency. Glo’s leadership extended beyond the Good Samaritan neighborhood, San Antonio, and the Diocese of West Texas. She was the first female deputy from the diocese to be seated at The Episcopal Church’s General Convention in 1970 and actively represented her diocese and agency at the national level through the National Urban Caucus.
“She always showed the depth of her devotion to her faith and to her commitment to the service of her flock in the neighborhood,” said longtime friend Lewis Tarver, Jr. “Their wounds became hers, their losses became hers, and she shared their worries and joys as a good neighbor, and a very, very Good Samaritan.”
“Glo always showed the depth of her devotion to her faith and to her commitment to the service of her flock in the neighborhood.” - Lewis Tarver, Jr.
Glo received the Bar Foundation Peacemaker Award in 1995 for the work she did in securing a peace treaty among the five most violent gangs on San Antonio’s west side. Her view on working with gangs was not that they should be destroyed entirely, but that activity should be maintained and directed away from violence, keeping the bonds that are often formed within a gang intact. In 1996, to further recognize and celebrate the 33-year servant ministry of Glo, the Board of Directors of Good Samaritan Community Services established The Glo Kehl Servant Ministry Fund “to be used to meet the special needs of the people of the neighborhood of the Good Samaritan Center in the manner by which Glo Kehl demonstrated her love of the Lord Jesus Christ and her commitment to his ministry.” “My mother wasn’t a lecturer, she was ‘in action’,” said daughter Barbara “Babs” Kehl-Fairchild. “The things I learned from her I learned by watching her live, actively and lovingly and compassionately. She did believe that if, indeed you felt you were in a bad place or ‘suffering,’ the best course of action was to turn that suffering into compassion for others—she did that eloquently at Good Sam.”
Glo died in July after living for eight years with Alzheimer’s, and despite her condition, she continued to give to others by stitching exquisite needlework canvases for family and friends. As Tarver said, “Her life was full of love, fun and adventure, great family, great friends… Her mark on the neighborhood, the center, the community, and on all of us is indelible and a joyful gift.” To contact Glo’s family please email Babs Kehl-Fairchild at babspeter@sbcglobal.net. The Good Samaritan Center was established in 1951 by the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas. It has grown to become a private, nonprofit 501(c)3 organization and United Way agency that provides comprehensive services to more than 4,000 individuals and 1,800 families in seven locations around South Texas. Good Samaritan Community Services actively serves as a place of change, reaching out to support thousands of people working to improve their lives and to overcome the challenges of poverty.
the Church News
September/October 2015
7
Photo submitted by Babs Kehl-Fairchild.
Bette Boyd and Kathleen Judson Dove are employees at Good Samaritan Community Services in San Antonio, where Glo Kehl served as an Executive Director.
Featured News
Bowden’s Feast Day Celebrated for the First Time by Laura Shaver
A
joyful crowd gathered at Christ Church, San Antonio, on Tuesday evening, August 18, to commemorate the feast day of Artemisia Bowden for the first time. At the 78th General Convention of The Episcopal Church, held this summer in Salt Lake City, Bowden surpassed all criteria set forth and is now listed among the saints in “Holy Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints.” The Rev. Tony Regist, one of the founding members of the Union of Black Episcopalians Artemisia Bowden Chapter in the Diocese of West Texas, raised his hands high and proclaimed, “Thank you, God, for Artemisia Bowden.” Representatives from St. Philip’s College and St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, San Antonio, where Bowden was a faithful member, stood in celebration of the occasion. Bishop Steptoe Johnston, bishop of the missionary district of Western Texas (later the Diocese of West Texas in 1904), called Dr. Bowden to San Antonio from North Carolina in 1902 to take over the fledgling St. Philip’s Day School, a ministry of the church that had a vision of educating emancipated black girls in sewing and cooking. “She wore a red ribbon around her arm for recognition and bought a one-way ticket from Atlanta to San Antonio,” said Regist. “When Bowden arrived, God’s providential hand was upon us all,” said Dr. Adena Williams Loston, president of St. Philip’s College. “She accepted her calling to transform a provincial day school to a grammar school and magnified it exponentially.” By 1927, Bowden guided the school to junior college status, and in 1942, St. Philip’s Junior College joined with San Antonio Junior College to constitute the San Antonio Union Junior College District, later renamed the Alamo Community College District. “Bowden was known as the ‘savior of St. Philip’s’ and is now a saint, and the first saint from West Texas,” said Loston. St. Philip’s College now serves over 20,000 students. But during the years of the Great Depression, Bowden sacrificed with determination to keep the school open. 8
www.dwtx.org
Bowden spent a few years working for free and recruiting family members to teach classes without pay. She sought to raise funds for the school in any way she could. Clara Etta Williams, one of Bowden’s first students in the school’s nursing program, and a 50-plus-year member of St. Philip’s Church, remembered her mother always baking in the kitchen, longing to help Dr. Bowden.
“Bowden was known as the ‘savior of St. Philip’s and is now a saint, and the first saint from West Texas.” - Dr. Adena Williams Loston
Williams said “Dr. Bowden did not just know you by name, she really knew you. She cared for us, and I am thrilled she is being honored in this way.” Williams, who completed the first two years of college at St. Philip’s in 1946, could not find a school to finish her nursing degree or a hospital to complete her clinical training because San Antonio was still a segregated city. “Bowden shook the bushes, and started the nursing program at St. Philip’s with 12 students.” When Bowden was hospitalized later in her life at Santa Rosa Hospital in San Antonio, Williams was pulled from her regular shift to be Bowden’s personal nurse. “I was proud to show her the fruits of her labor. She was a savior to me, and I could not have become the nurse or the woman I am today if I had not been blessed by her.” Williams joined Loston and other college representatives, along with the Rt. Rev. David Reed, bishop coadjutor of the diocese, at the altar of Christ Church for the unveiling and presentation of the engraved plaques depicting Bowden as a “Holy Woman.” Plaques were given to both the college and the Diocese of West Texas.
As Reed helped hand the college’s plaque to Loston, he said, “We are grateful to Dr. Loston for upholding the passion of Artemisia Bowden. She is an educator with a passionate heart that resembles Bowden’s.” Loston gave a brief address on Bowden’s ministry and said she was accepting the school’s plaque on behalf of the entire college community. “We pledge to continue her journey with our dedication and our commitment to transform the lives of our students.” Regist, who emphasized the amount of prayer and hard work of many individuals to raise Bowden to saint’s status, said God used his servant, Bishop Johnston, to plant a seed, and Bowden watered that seed for 52 years. Quoting Bowden, he said, “It takes faith to have courage and courage to have faith.” Susan Johnson, historiographer of the diocese, along with the diocesan Historical Commission, did years of research to submit Bowden’s name for saint status to the 77th General Convention of The Episcopal Church in 2012. However, the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music declined her name that year because the calendar was full. But with more work and more prayer, Bowden’s name was resubmitted in 2015, and she surpassed the criteria set forth for inclusion among the saints. Continued on next page.
Two Churches Break Barriers by Bill Clough
Bill Clough is a reporter at the Bee-Picayune and can be reached at beepic@mySouTex.com. This article was published by the Beeville Publishing Company on August 21.
I
n age, they are two years apart. Both are ordained Christians.
Yet, they represent opposite ends of both the racial and the denominational spectrum. One, whose congregation is white, drives a black SUV; the other, whose congregation is black, drives a white sedan. Each Sunday, the Rev. Clayton Elder, rector of St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, and the Rev. Eric Tarver, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist, conduct services at churches that are only threequarters of a mile apart. Last Sunday, they began to close those gaps with an unprecedented ecumenical outreach — a joint service that has those who participated saying it was long overdue. Joint congregants attended services first at St. Philip’s and then at Bethlehem Baptist. It was a first for both. The St. Philip’s membership is predominantly white; Bethlehem’s is predominantly black. “This was the culmination of a conversation I had a year ago with Eric,” Elder explains. “We both agreed we needed to do something to bring our two churches closer together. This community certainly needed it.” Elder stressed the planning for the services occurred long before the outbreak of heightened racial tension nationwide.
The Episcopal service was at 9:30 a.m.; the Baptist service was at 11 a.m. Tarver, in liturgical robes, preached to the Episcopal congregation and his choir sang the service hymns; Elder preached to the Baptists. Elder says 90 percent of his congregation attended the 9:30 a.m. service then sat with the congregation at Bethlehem Baptist. “That was almost unheard of,” Tarver says. “I’ve never seen that happening before. It was a spirit-filled Sunday.” “We felt we had to do something to break down the denominational barriers in this community and the racial barriers,” Elder explains. Members of both congregations say they were impressed with the services. “I think our congregation now sees something that they don’t want to miss anymore,” Elder says. Speaking for both congregations, he says, “There are some who didn’t even know where the other churches were. “Everybody felt welcomed, loved and affirmed as Christians in Christ. And they feel the need not to lose that. That’s a victory in and of itself.” “This could be a springboard for other churches to follow,” Tarver says.
For the first time in his career, Rev. Eric Tarver, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist, delivers a sermon August 16 at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church.
“It was an emotional moment for me,” he admits, “because, never in my life, had I been asked to drink from the same chalice of any priest.” In the Anglican communion, individual wafers are given to the communicants, but they sip wine from a common vessel. The two ministers plan similar services at least once a year. “But, neither of us is going to wear robes,” Elder says. “Someone said, ‘this is like opening a door,’” he says. “Now, it’s our job to put our foot in that door and keep it open.”
“It was a big change in me,” he adds, particularly when, at the Episcopal service, Elder invited Tarver to help celebrate Holy Communion.
The following is the collect designated for Bowden’s feast day, August 18: O God, by your Holy Spirit, you give gifts to your people so that they might faithfully serve your Church and the world: We give you praise for the gifts of perseverance, teaching and wisdom made manifest in your servant, Artemisia Bowden, whom you called far from home for the sake of educating the daughters and granddaughters of former slaves in Texas. We thank you for blessing and prospering her life’s work, and pray that, following her example, we may be ever mindful of the call to serve where you send us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. the Church News
September/October 2015
9
Photo by Richard Young.
Bowden, continued.
Around the circuit
ABODE Home Open, A Haven for Contemplative, End-of-Life Care
A
BODE Contemplative Care for the Dying opened its home on Post Oak Lane in San Antonio in December 2014. Since then, ABODE has welcomed seven guests, providing gracious end-of-life care at no cost to the guests. ABODE Contemplative Care for the Dying is the creation of Edwin Sasek, founder and board president and a member of Reconciliation, San Antonio, who dreamed of a home like ABODE for more than 20 years, while working in hospice care. The home can serve up to three guests at one time, is largely staffed by volunteers, and relies on donations and grants to fulfill its annual operating budget. The first guest that entered the ABODE home was a man in his mid-30s who lived with his parents due to cerebral palsy. At a doctor’s visit, he was diagnosed with stage four metastatic cancer and was admitted to a hospital. The ABODE home welcomed him in when he was unable to return home. The volunteers that facilitate care in the home worked with his mother and his hospice staff to learn how to best take care of him. The man’s father, in a turmoil of grief, sat alone in the Quiet Room of the home. After some time, Jane Marie Young, executive director of ABODE, encouraged him to join his wife and son in the man’s room. A few moments later, the man took his last breath.
Photos submitted by Edwin Sasek.
His life was remembered around the dining room table with family and friends who shared a warm, freshly baked pie with a spirit of acceptance, forgiveness, and deep love, along with tears and laughter.
Volunteers, who largely staff ABODE, are trained to bring a spiritual, contemplative practice to the home.
10
www.dwtx.org
Such is the atmosphere in the ABODE home, where the volunteers care for the guests with a spiritual, contemplative practice. From the beginning, volunteers have worked well with hospice staff, relying on each other for instruction and support and developing a mutual trust and closeness as stories of personal loss are sometimes shared. “The spiritual contemplative training for the volunteers focuses on accepting each moment as it arises,” said Edwin Sasek, founder and board president of ABODE. The volunteers are trained to be aware of the feelings, attitudes, and thoughts that might distract them from being completely present to the guest’s needs. In the beginning, the volunteers said it took courage for them to admit that they were nervous or scared. They also said the contemplative training allowed them to accept their own emotions in order to be present to the guest’s needs. To be present might require focusing on one’s own breath, engaging in prayer, taking a few moments of solitude, or talking to a colleague.
If you would like to help ABODE raise the rest of the needed money for repairs, please visit https://rallyup.com/abode-fix-it-fund. Or, donations can be mailed to ABODE at P.O. Box 47640, San Antonio, TX 47640. As insurance money is received, those donations to ABODE for repair will revert to operating expenses or other needs that help provide care to our guests and the community.
“The spiritual contemplative practice is to find an individual’s unique ways to connect to our spiritual source during challenging times. In doing so, we develop compassion for ourselves which we can then extend to others,” said Sasek.
The ABODE Home is a program of ABODE Contemplative Care for the Dying and is devoted to helping the most needy people in the community receive compassionate, loving care as they face the end of life. ABODE is grounded in prayer and trusts in the guidance of the Spirit. There are many ways to volunteer and help — guest care, home care, gardening, cooking, administrative help, speaker’s bureau. If interested please contact Jane Marie Young for more information at 210-967-9891 or jmyoung@abodehome.org.
Plumbing Repairs Underway This summer, the ABODE home suffered a plumbing disaster that required the home to close its doors, as major water damage occurred throughout the property. After a water pump failed, engineers and master plumbers found that much of the pipe beneath the home lacked the proper pitch to drain the home. Both the pump and the pipe are being replaced. Repairs, which began in mid September, are estimated to cost $100,000, and ABODE has raised half of that amount. While insurance may cover some of the remaining $50,000, Sasek said the board does not want to wait for months of negotiation. “We want to return to serve our guests at their end of life.”
The Mother’s Day Offering benefits the Department of World Mission and honors mothers and other influential women in our lives. In addition to the honorees listed in the July/August issue, the following was also part of the offering: St. Matthias, Devine Roberta Walters In memory of Mary Roberta Hundley
Around the circuit
“Viking Patrol Day” in Boerne
B
oerne Mayor Mike Schultz declared July 21, 2015, “Viking Patrol Day” at the Abendkonzerte outdoor concert in downtown Boerne (held several times per summer). The declaration was in honor of 100 percent Boy Scout Troop #1920 who all earned the rank of the members of the of Eagle Scout this summer. Photo by Griz Adams, Viking Patrol in Troop assistant scoutmaster. #1920 earning the rank of Eagle Scout, and was announced to the enthusiastic crowd in attendance that evening. Troop #1920 is sponsored in part by the Men’s Fellowship of St. Helena’s, Boerne. Boy Scout troops comprise multiple groups of boys organized as “patrols,” each with a unique patrol name and uniform patch. Typically, a patrol of scouts will stay together six to seven years as they progress through the scouting program. The national average for Boy Scouts earning the rank of Eagle Scout in 2014 was six percent, making a complete patrol of ten to earn the rank quite rare. Seven out of ten of the Viking patrol scouts are members of St. Helena’s, one of whom conducted his Eagle Scout project to improve the campus of St. Helena’s.
Summary of apportionments through August 31, 2015.
Troop #1920 is chartered by St. Helena’s, Boerne. Seven of the ten Vikings were able to attend the event in their honor. Pictured left to right are: Bo Rudloff, Colson Schwope, Sean Tarver, Jack Adams, Cale Etter, Xander Horwath, and Andrew Snyder. Not pictured: Ross Richardson, Carter Wittschiebe, and Colten Lindley.
St. Stephen’s, Wimberley, will sponsor A Walk of Remembrance and Gratitude on Thursday, October 22, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. In New Orleans tradition, “the First Line” will remember the loss of life and property due to the significant flooding that took place over Memorial Day weekend with local clergy members and the tossing of flowers on the Blanco River at 6:00 (Rio Bonito Resort, 13401 RR 12). “The Second Line” will celebrate the Wimberley Strong with the Storyville Stompers Brass Band from New Orleans. Participants will march from Rio Bonito to Art on 12’s parking lot (13811 RR 12) for jazz music, food trucks, and fellowship with friends. This event is co-sponsored by the Wimberley Arts and Cultural Alliance and will kick off the Wimberley Music and Arts Festival on Friday-Sunday, October 23-25. For more information, contact St. Stephen’s at 512-847-9956. the Church News
September/October 2015
11
Episcopal Diocese of West Texas P. O. Box 6885 San Antonio, TX 78209 www.dwtx.org Send address changes to The Church News, P.O. Box 6885, San Antonio, TX 78209
the
Church News
calendar of events
Diocesan events October
Cursillo Cursillo #269 will be held at Mustang Island Conference Center, Thursday-Sunday, October 1-4. The rector for the weekend is Heather Marks, and the spiritual director is the Rev. John Fritts. To register online, visit www.dwtx.org/events. College Missions Trivia Night College Missions is hosting its first Trivia Night Fundraiser on Friday, October 2, at 7:00 p.m. at St. David’s, San Antonio. It’s going to be a night of laughing and competition with trivia questions, a silent auction, and great appetizers. Every table is a team, and each team can pick their team name, theme, and even wear jerseys, if they want. Here are the important fundraising details as you think about putting a team together: each table is $500 and each team can have up to 10 members. All proceeds go to the annual fund for College Missions, which specifically goes to cover the ELI internship program and our oncampus mission work. To register, visit www.dwtx.org/college-missions. Fall Women’s Gathering The annual Fall Women’s Gathering will be held at Camp Capers, Friday-Sunday, October 9-11. Sponsored by the Commission for Women’s Ministry, this is a weekend of time for talking and listening, worship, good fellowship, wonderful food, great music, as well as rest and spiritual refreshment, all with God-graced women. This weekend the focus will be on relationships - in families, among friends, between colleagues. Kelley Kimble of Christian Unity Ministries will be a presenter; she is also a member of St. Philip’s, Uvalde, and a family court judge. Her expertise is in building Christ-centered relationships
based on five particular principles. She will be accompanied by the Rev. Jennifer BrookeDavidson, vicar of St. Elizabeth’s, Buda, a church with a mission to be a “community transformed by compassion and forgiveness.” Register online through the link above. Cabin fee is $165; Lodge double occupancy is $210, and both prices include the gathering registration fee. Register online at www.dwtx.org/events. Spiritual Retreat in Recovery The 106th Spiritual Retreat in Recovery will be held Friday-Sunday, October 9-11, at Mustang Island Conference Center. This is the first time the retreat will be held on Mustang Island. Spiritual leaders for the weekend are the Revs. Scott Brown and Ripp Hardaway. Online registration is open through September 30. Cost for the retreat is $195 per person, double occupancy, and the fee needs to be paid for registration to be complete. A daily commuter rate of $75 (total) is also an option. Register at www.dwtx.org/events. Sunday Night Live Sunday Night Live will meet on Sunday, October 18, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the new outdoor pavilion at the Bishop Jones Center. All highschoolers are invited to come for worship, games, small groups, and more at this collegestudent-led gathering. Dinner will be provided. For more information, contact Allie Melancon at samelancon@gmail.com. Alumni Camp at Camp Capers Join fellow campers for the first Alumni Camp at Camp Capers, Friday-Sunday, October 23-25. Come, remember the camaraderie of camp together, and experience it anew. Stay overnight or come out for the festivities during the day on Saturday. Cost: Full weekend - $150, Commuter Rate - $60. For more information, www.dwtx.org/events.
Bishop’s Golf Classic The annual Bishop’s Golf Classic, benefiting the Camps Scholarship Fund, will be held Friday, October 30, at the Canyon Springs Golf Course in San Antonio. Each year the proceeds grow, with $40,000 raised in 2014 to help send children, youth, adults, and families to the diocesan camping programs. The individual entry fee is $150, with sponsorship opportunities, as well as donation opportunities. See the registration form (link online) for all the details, or register online at www.dwtx.org/events. Diocesan events: www.dwtx.org/events Church events: www.dwtx.org/church-events
The Diocese of West Texas Online
www.dwtx.org/blog
Read ministry stories from our churches in between issues of The Church News. The blog also features current news, national news, and diocesan ministry updates.
ReflectionsOnline
The diocesan spiritual formation blog, ReflectionsOnline offers weekly reflections and resources for your spiritual journey. www.reflections-dwtx.org “Episcopal Diocese of West Texas Bishop Jones Center” @DioceseWestTX