FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE Volume 65 Number 12
FEBRUARY 2015
The Episcopal Church of Saint Michael Pacific View Drive at Marguerite
Corona del Mar
California 92625
...From the Desk of the Rector
BELOVEDS IN CHRIST, “Many great ideas and suggestions were presented for increasing revenue, community awareness, and attendance.” So wrote Karlene Miller in her fine minutes of our 47th Annual Parish Meeting. Sharing perspectives and opinions about how our Christian community can do more-and-more of God’s will better-and-better seems to me to be the purpose of Annual Parish Meetings here at Saint Michael & All Angels, and I trust this is what our 48th Annual Parish Meeting time together, 11:30am until no later than 1pm. on SOUPer Bowl Sunday, February 1, 2015, will bring. Yes, we will do necessary business. Annual Parish Reports, including our Program & Budget for 2015, will be accepted. We will elect new Vestry members and Delegates and Alternates to Diocesan Convention. This year we have a special challenge as our Diocese has asked us to have a thirteenmember Vestry. Our 2014 Vestry pondered possibilities for this new position of leadership and concluded that the best course of action is to elect a creative person who “thinks ‘outside the box’” and let that person create this 13th position with the 2015 Vestry. I am excited that Louise Stover has accepted this challenge. Anne Warmington has agreed to succeed Melinda Rader leading our Evangelism ministries. Teri Corbet has asked many parishioners to succeed her with our Fellowship Vestry position, but as of this writing that place on our ballot remains blank. Also open are two spots for Alternate Delegates to Diocesan Convention; this is an easy way to learn more about what our being an “Episcopal Church” means from those currently involved (Richard Zevnik, Rebecca Welch, Murry McClaren, Lynn Headley, Steve Dulson, Norris Battin, The Rev’d Dr. Barbara Stewart and me). Please prayerfully consider candidates for our Fellowship Vestry position and those of Alternate Delegates to Convention, talk with them, then speak with me our one of our Wardens, Myrna Ireland and Don Sheetz. Among the great ideas coming to our 48th Annual Parish Meeting are: having a state-of-the-art web site; the possibility of a pre-school here being explored by a group including Jim Palda, Susan Caldwell, Anne Conover, Melinda Rader, Barbara Black, Corinne and Louise Stover, and Myrna Ireland; a search underway to offer our property as a dispatch center to wireless providers in addition to Verizon (from whom we received $20,500 in 2014); replacing some of our grass areas with more drought resistant plantings to save water and maintenance expenses; revitalizing E-Script participation for increasing revenue; talking with caterers about renting our commercial kitchen facilities; leasing property, when we are not using it, to another faith community such as our successfully hosting our Armenian Apostolic brothers and sisters; discovering synergies of professional services with other congregations to
(continued on page 3)
& All Angels
949.644.0463
www.stmikescdm.org
ASH WEDNESDAY WORSHIP FEBRUARY 18
Worship services at 7:30am, noon and at 7:30pm with music A COLLECT FOR ASH WEDNESDAY
IN THE COMING MONTHS
Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and make in us new and hearts, thatMONTHS we, worthily IN contrite THE COMING lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wickedness, may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. LENTEN SERIES 2015 “Vocation & Calling” Phil Johnson - 2/25 The Rev’d Lisa Rotchford- 3/4 Stephen Caldwell - 3/11 The Rev’d Brad Karelius - 3/18 The Rev’d Lynn Jay - 3/25 The Evening’s Program Evening Prayer - 5:30pm Sponsored Soup Supper - 6pm Presentation & Discussion - 7pm Compline - 8pm
Annual Parish Meeting Sunday February 1, 2014 11:30 am All Angels’ Court
FAITH: LO SERVING BUILDING OUR F AITH: L OVING CHRIST AND SER VING OUR COMMUNITY
FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE
CONTRIBUTIONSWERE MADETO THE RECTOR’S DISCRETIONARY FUND most recently by Jack & Marilyn Towner with gratitude, by Tom & Kati Mowat Nicholson and Jim & Carole Leavelle Palda in thanksgiving for The Celebration and Blessing of their marriages.These funds extend our Parish’s mission of outreach, providing for such needs as can be helped by financial assistance.
* * * SHROVE TUESDAY PANCAKE SUPPER: Celebrate Fat Tuesday on March 17th from 6:00-8:00 p.m. in All Angels’ Court, with a pancake supper presented by the Youth Group! If you want a night off from cooking and dishwashing or are looking for a datenight with the kids or grandkids, then this evening is for you! Questions? Please contact Louise Stover at lstover@volt.com.
* * * A REMINDER FROM YOUR SMAA COMMUNICATIONS TEAM. You have several options to publicize your ministry or event throughout the SMAA community: this newsletter, our Facebook Page (facebook.com/ SMAACDM) the weekly Sunday bulletin, the spoken word at announcement time or even an email to our “electronic parishioners.” Contact Norris Battin for the newsletter and Facebook, Susan Beechner for the bulletin and email, and Fr. Haynes for announcements (nbattin@gmail.com, sbeechner@stmikescdm.org; phaynes@stmikescdm.org.) FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE is a publication of Saint Michael & All Angels Episcopal Church, Corona del Mar, CA. Copy deadline is the second Wednesday of the month. We welcome letters and articles. Editor: Susan Beechner 949.644.0463
FEBRUARY 2015
PLEASE CHECK THE FORWARD MOVEMENT DISPLAY RACK ON THE WALL IN MICHAEL'S ROOM. Pick up a pamphlet or two to share with family and friends. A donation box is provided. "Praying the Anglican Rosary" was written by Sister Dorothea, a member of the Society of the Transfiguration. Perhaps some of you did not know that there is such a thing as an "Anglican Rosary." This pamphlet explains the ancient use of knots or beads to help us pray. It details how a rosary may be used in one's prayer life. The rosary version discussed in this pamphlet is relatively new and was developed by an Episcopal prayer community in Texas in the 1980s. Use this pamphlet as an instruction guide in the use of a rosary. Suggested prayer examples are given. There are no prescribed prayers for the Anglican Rosary. You are free to pray what is in your heart. More pamphlets can be ordered. Please see Susan Caldwell.
* * * ANNUAL GARY HALL RETREATAT CAMP STEVENS: May 8-10, 2015 Gary Hall is the Dean of Washington National Cathedral and formerly a priest in our diocese. Our parish is planning to participate in the retreat and details will follow shortly.
ANNIVERSARIES FEBRUARY Birthdays 2nd - Sharon Perry 6th - Pauline Benjamin Myrna Ireland Libby Keating 10th - Dina Mead 11th - Robin McDowell 18th - Michael Robertson 19th - John Ireland 21st - Dottie Cole 23rd - Wally Paulson 24th - Sally McCulloch 26th - Julianne Powell 27th - Donald Alser 28th - Mike Draffin Baptisms 13th - Joseph Benjamin Pauline Benjamin 14th - Amanda Corbet 16th - Gracemarie Dell Angelo Doug Little 24th - Peter Haynes+ Maria Solomon Weddings 16th - Victor & Olive Rumbellow 26th - Terry & Catherine Lee
Sundays at Nine Davis Library
St. Mike’s Facebook Page
February 1st Teri Corbet Abraham’s Children
facebook.com/ SMAACDM
February 8th Teri Corbet Abraham’s Children
“Like” us! Read us every day for latest parish news, diocesan, TEC and AC updates, personal devotions, sacred music.
LEST WE FORGET: There have been 4,491 American military casualties in Iraq and 2,356 in Afghanistan and other locations. "Lord hear our prayers for those who are dead and for those who mourn."
2
THE VESTRY Senior Warden.............................Myrna Ireland mireland6@sbcglobal.net....................949.759.1509 Junior Warden.............................Donald Sheetz donald.sheetz@gmail.com..................949.720.0700 Christian Education.....................Barbara Black bbblack56@sroadrunner.com...............949.640.7989 Clerk of the Vestry........................Karlene Miller karlenemiller@gmail.com...................949.336.6215
Building and Grounds...............Tom Nicholson tom@nicholsoncompanies.com......................949.872.9067 Communications...........................Clyde Dodge [clydedodge@cox.net.......................949.375.1530 Evangelism.................................Melinda Rader melinda.rader2244@gmail.com..........949.230.3644 Fellowship......................................Teri Corbet hbangel49@msn.com.......................714.932.6979
Finance......................................Julie Jenkins jdfritz@aol.com.............................949.640.0134 Mission...............................Barbara Stewart+ barbarastewart001@gmail.com.........714.979.7449 Stewardship.............................Matthew Shaw mattjshaw@yahoo.com..................949.645.4942 Worship...The Very Rev’d Canon Peter D. Haynes phaynes@stmikescdm.org...........949.644.0463x11
FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE
(Continued from page 1 ) reduce our costs. Please, come to our Annual Parish Meeting to share your perspectives and opinions for increasing attendance, revenue, community awareness and service, and how you will help make your ideas become our realities. February 1st is SOUPer Bowl Sunday. In 2014 we collected $500.50 and allocated it to Share Our Selves. We have collected similar amounts in past years and given those collections to other local ministries such as Loaves and Fishes. Our purpose is to respond to Matthew 25:40 where Jesus says, “Inasmuch as you do good with your sisters and brothers in need, you do so to me!” Yes, February 1st is Super Bowl Sunday, and our Annual Parish Meeting will be over in plenty of time for us to get to pre-game parties. But on February 1, 2015, let us pray: “Lord, even as we enjoy the Super Bowl football game, help us be mindful of those who are without a bowl of soup to eat” and bring $5.00 for our SOUPer bowl of Caring. Our 48th Annual Parish Meeting will be 11:30am – (no later than) 1pm. on February 1, 2015. Our 50th Annual Parish Meeting will be held at the beginning of 2017. Might we begin now to plan celebrations of Saint Michael & All Angels’ 50th anniversary?
Yours, In Christ,
FEBRUARY 2015
SUZANNE GUTHRIE TO LEAD WOMEN'S RETREAT FOR ORANGE COUNTY DEANERIES By The Rev’d Mary Trainor
T
he Rev’d Suzanne Guthrie, writer, retreat leader and Episcopal priest, will be the keynote speaker at the annual Women’s Spiritual Retreat for Deaneries IX and X on Saturday, February 28. The retreat is scheduled from 9:15am to 3 pm at St. Joseph’s Episcopal Church, 8300 Valley View Street, Buena Park. Registration opens at 8:30am. A $20 registration fee covers morning snacks and lunch. The day also features individual workshops on yoga, labyrinth, Anglican rosary, and care for the caregiver. Each session is limited to 20 people. The Cathedral bookstore also will be on site and will have some of Guthrie’s books available. Bishop Suffragan Diane Bruce will be present for the retreat and preside and celebrate at the closing Eucharist. The retreat is sponsored by St. Joseph’s and St. Stephen’s, Whittier, as part of their shared ministry. Registration and fee deadline is Sunday, February 8. To confirm attendance, please email Louise Stover, Lstover@alum.pomona.edu. Be sure to indicate your No. 1 priority for an individual session, and a second choice. Guthrie’s talk is titled “Nourished for a time and times and half a time,” language borrowed from Revelation. She describes the presentation thus: “Let's take time together to talk about time! "We'll talk about the lack of time in our lives, wasting time and the mere filling of time, what makes us feel alive and what makes us feel half-alive. We'll talk about the time-traveling properties of prayer and the reclaiming of sacred time. We'll laugh, talk, learn together, and enjoy each other.” Guthrie has served the church as a pastor, children's priest and Christian Education consultant, as well as a college and university chaplain. She likes “pretending” Bible stories with adults and children and adding large swaths of fabric to sermons. She curates the weekly “Soulwork Toward Sunday: Self-Guided Retreat.”
PLANNING AHEAD FOR LAST RITES An informal gathering sponsored by Saint Michael’s Senior Ministry Sunday. February 22, in Michael’s Room following the 10am Worship Service
Pilgrimage to the Holy Land December 26, 2015 - January 5, 2016 Join Lutheran Bishop Guy Erwin and tour organizer The Rev’d Canon Jim Newman in the Holy Land. Sites include Bethlehem, Nazareth and Jerusalem, the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, the Jordan River, and the mysterious stone city of Petra. Space is limited: send in reservation form and deposit as soon as possible. Eleven days, departing from Los Angeles on Saturday, Dec. 26, 2015, and returning on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016. The cost from Los Angeles is $4148. For more information contact Newman at 310.391.5522, 888.802.6722 (toll-free) or stbedesla@yahoo.com.
With information - Questions & Answers about the importance of filling out one of our Statement of Intent for Last Rites Forms, and your options in planning a Celebration of Life Service here, and all about Saint Michael’s Memorial Garden, The Garden of the Good Shepherd. Materials and information will be given out following 8am worship, at a table outside the church. Questions? Please call Murry McClaren.
3
FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE SAINT MICHAEL & ALL ANGELS EPISCOPAL CHURCH A CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY OF THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION
Our mission is to seek and share Jesus Christ as spiritual food for life’s journey.
3233 Pacific View Drive Corona del Mar, CA 92625 949.644.0463 949.644.9247 FAX www.stmikescdm.org The Very Rev’d Canon
Peter D. Haynes, Rector [phaynes@stmikescdm.org] Susan Caldwell Director of Christian Education [scaldwell@stmikescdm.org] Ray Urwin, D.M.A. Minister of Music [rurwin@stmikescdm.org] The Rev’d Fennie Chang, Ph.D., Canterbury Irvine The Rev’d Canon Ray Flemming Assisting Priest The Rev’d Barbara Stewart, Ph.D., Assisting Priest Susan Beechner, Parish Secretary [sbeechner@stmikescdm.org] Donnie Lewis, Bookkeeper [dlewis@stmikescdm.org]
WORSHIP SCHEDULE Sunday Holy Eucharist at 8 & 10am Nursery Care from 9:30-11:30am Sunday School 10am Adult Education 9am Wednesday Holy Eucharist with Prayers for Healing-12 noon ABOUT SAINT MICHAEL & ALL ANGELS, CORONA DEL MAR We are a Christian Community of the Anglican Communion who come to hear God’s word and receive and share the Lord Jesus Christ. Our purpose is to have Christ live in us in order that in Christ we may live faithful and productive Christian lives. Our commitment to the Gospel is evangelical; our liturgical tradition, catholic; our theology orthodox but open to thought, reflection, and spiritual endeavor. We care about the world and strive to serve Christ in it.
FEBRUARY 2015
CHRISTIAN EDUCATION
Susan Caldwell
For the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable. Romans 11:29
O
n Ash Wednesday, February 18th, the season of Lent will begin. We can look forward to our Lenten Supper series that runs from February through March. The topic of this season’s Lenten Supper series is, “Vocation and Calling”. As we go through the season of introspection as would a catechumen, or as the Ignatius practice calls for an Examen of Consciousness, we can ask ourselves, what we are doing on this planet, “this fragile earth our island home.” (BCP 370) In the first question of the Westminster “Shorter Catechism of Faith,” there is the question, “What is the chief end of a human being?” The answer the document architects resolved together was “to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.” Their scripture readiness comes from I Corinthians 10:31: “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” And Romans 11:36: “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” Once entering into heavenly glory all the decisions will be made, but until that time we have a lot of choices to make. How and where will we spend our time, talents and treasure? Living in Orange County takes balance. The beauty and opportunity of the location is indisputable. So our next decision to be made will be: how do we get along and what use do we make of our time and talents? Scripture speaks to this again in Romans 12. “For as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; he who teaches, in his teaching; he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who contributes, in liberality; he who gives aid, with zeal; he who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.” This scripture reading in some ways is like our modern day (continued on page 5)
4
PRAYERS HEALING Judy Norm Andrew Don John Patricia Bob Mary Betty Brad Joanna Sally & George GUIDANCE Sue Mitzi Harry Kathleen Nancy Esther Doug Patricia THANKSGIVING - for our Parish Church in this month of our 48th Annual Meeting; - in loving memory of Catherine Loucks and Valerie Card
Call Esther McNamee for prayer requests 949.640.1749
LIFE LINE SCREENING: Scheduled for Friday, February 27th, in All Angels’ Court, this preventive health screening offers five screenings that scan for potential health problems related to blocked arteries, abdominal aortic aneurysms, hardening of the arteries in the legs, atrial fibrilltion, and bone density. All 5 screenings take 60-90 minutes to complete. For more information and to learn about the discount offered, please see the pink flyers avbailable in Michael’s Room and the Parish Office. Our parish subscribes to the online learning program “Church Next.” If you are interested, please contact Melinda Rader who will give you access details.
FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE
FINANCIAL REPORT: It was recommended by the Finance Committee and approved by the Vestry, that paper statements of your donations be sent out only two times a year rather than four times. You will receive one after September 30th to let you know where you stand on your Pledge Commitment, and one after December 31st to show you the prior year’s amounts to use for tax purposes. If you want statements more often, please contct our Bookkeeper, Donie Lewis. This will be quite a savings in time and postage. Please keep us informed as to your wishes.
* * * LOAVES AND FISHES: This month we will collect new and gently-used blankets. Monetary donations are always welcome, too. Checks should be made payable to Saint Michael & All Angels, with Loaves and Fishes on the memo line. (Tax ID #95-2123746)
* * * THE LAST PICTURE SHOW: St. Mike’s movie night concludes its season on February 12th at 7pm with a showing of “Shallow Hal”, a comedy staring Gwyneth Paltrow, Jack Black and Jason Alexander. No admission charge, plus popcorn and soda!
* * * PLEASE REMEMBER . . . Saint Michael & All Angels has a Parish Emergency Fund, funded by parishioners and available to parishioners facing financial emergencies and needing economic assistance. Requests should be directed to our rector or any member of our Vestry. If you are able to contribute, all gifts are welcome!
* * * PLEDGE ENVELOPES: If you would like pledge envelopes for 2015, please leave a message for our bookkeeper, Donnie Lewis, 949.644.0463, ext. 15. For those of you who have already requested pledge envelopes, they are available in Michael’s Room in alphabetical order.
FEBRUARY 2015 5
LENT MADNESS: THE BELOVED LENTEN SAINTLY-SMACKDOWN - WHO WILL WIN THE GOLDEN HALO?
L
ent Madness, a spiritual roundballlike exercise from Episcopal publisher Forward Movement begins March 6th. It pits 32 saints in a "holy smackdown" for the prize of the golden halo and when you sign up, you will help decide the winner. Minister of Christian Education Susan Caldwell will lead Saint Michael & All Angels through the season. (Did you know she was a point guard in high school?) A booklet containing all the participants’ names and short saintly biographies is on sale for $2.00. Hurry while supplies last! They’ve available in Susan’s office. The saintly web site where you will vote for your favorite saint is here: www.lentmadness.org, and each pairing remains open for 24 hours. The most informative stat-filled Facebook page is here: www.facebook.com/lentmadness. It's beginning to look a lot like Lent, everywhere you go, so take a look at the giant, sports-style bracket poster in Michael’s Room (to be posted soon) and follow your favorite saint’s progress on the chart. Lent Madness began in 2010 as the brainchild of the Rev. Tim Schenck. In seeking a fun, engaging way for people to learn about the men and women comprising the Church’s Calendar of Saints, Tim came up with this unique Lenten devotion. Combining his love of sports with his passion for the lives of the saints, Lent Madness was born on his blog “Clergy Confidential.” The format is straightforward: 32 saints are placed into a tournament-like single elimination bracket. Each pairing remains open for a set period of time and people vote for their favorite saint. Sixteen saints make it to the Round of the Saintly Sixteen; eight advance to the Round of the Elate Eight; four make it to the Faithful Four; two to the Championship; and the winner is awarded the coveted Golden Halo. The first round consists of basic biographical information about each of the 32 saints. Things get a bit more interesting in the subsequent rounds as we offer quotes and quirks, explore legends, and even move into the area of saintly kitsch. So cast your vote each day at Lentmadness.org., and follow your favorite.
Susan Caldwell continued from page 4 personality tests. What category do you fall into? Leadership? Hospitality? Teaching? Prophecy? Prophecy, I think has a kinship with clarity. We saw the gift of clarity demonstrated when Jim Palda closed the Friends of Music Forum after the Lesson and Carols Epiphany with his summation and clarification of what was truly needed in the future. It was then everyone present breathed a sigh of relief and thought, “Thank God for Jim Palda! He just said in one minute what it has taken us forty minutes to figure out.” Each person is given by God a certain skill set and certain disposition for a life’s work. It can be for the betterment of society; that is why we have jobs. But it can also be for the betterment of the Church and the building up of the Body of Christ. This year, in 2015, it would be good to take stock and think and ask yourself, “What ways am I most contributing to health and life of Saint Michael’s? Am I being who God meant me to be to the fullest capacity?” Start by asking the question, “What do I like to do?” and “What am I good at?” And if you sift and search and can’t think of anything, then do the next best thing, which is to jump right in and volunteer! Take a risk and start the learning curve today. In Adult Christian Education, there are many areas to get involved in our existing programs of Bible Study, Sunday School, Women’s Fellowship, Men’s Study and The Bible Challenge. And if you don’t like this bill of fare, then plan to attend the Adult Christian Education Committee meetings that convene every 2nd Sunday in the Conference Room at 11:30am. It is at this particular meeting and in this Committee that we discuss up-andcoming events in the parish. This is a wonderful place to see where programs of ministry begin and end. Want to make a change? Be the change. Be the change and catalyst for seeing a new ministry from start to finish. Join the Adult Christian Education Committee. There is also the area of service where one can participate in a Sunday rotation and help in Sunday School classrooms. A 30-40 minute commitment is all that we ask! Once a month! (continued on page 6)
FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE
MUSIC NOTES
RAY URWIN
Minister of Music
On Silence
S
ome of you know that I served as Director of Music at the Episcopal Cathedral in Wilmington, Delaware during the 1980’s. Their newsletter was published every two weeks, and I shared an alternating column with the Canon Theologian. Here, slightly updated, is one of the articles I wrote. It was later reprinted in several national and denominational church and music journals. . One of my fondest memories of St. John’s will always be that of seeing Howard Casseday early every Sunday morning, praying on his knees in the silence and darkness of the sanctuary. Though there was no alternative, I always felt guilty disturbing his quiet time with my warming up, arranging the balcony, etc. But he never seemed disturbed by it - he seemed at a higher level at those times. Canon Shackleton’s comment in his January article, that he missed silence and a chance for meditation at our Christmas Eve late service, struck a responsive chord with me, as did Dean Hohlt’s moving remarks at the recent service for Harold Jefferson, on the need for more silence and contemplation in our hyperactive, hyper-noisy world. The topic of silence seems to be in the air these days around St. John’s. In scientific terms there may be no such thing as total silence, at least on earth, perhaps even in space. In his “Harmony of the Worlds” the astronomer Johannes Kepler, known for his deduction of the Three Laws of Planetary Motion, theorized that each of the six known planets sang certain notes of the musical scale, creating a cosmic “harmony of the spheres” perceived intuitively by the brain rather than by the ear (he even wrote down the music they sang!). There have been attempts to experience total silence in soundproof chambers, but one still hears one’s own heartbeat, breathing, blood rushing in the ears, etc. Silence, either as part of a work of art or as a choice not to create more art, may be a conscious artistic decision, as explored in Susan Sontag’s article “The Aesthetics of Silence.” One of the most
FEBRUARY 2015
powerful measures in Handel’s Messiah is the measure of silence preceding the two final Amens: astounding in its own time, its effect is more diluted today because of our familiarity with it. The 20th century French composer Olivier Messiaen wrote many measures of silence into his music (especially in his later works, as he grew older), intended for religious contemplation. Silence also figures in the Bible and our hymnal. There is “a time for keeping silent, a time for speaking…” (Ecclesiastes 3:7); “The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him” (Habbakuk 2:20); “Be still then, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46: 10); “Be silent in the presence of the Lord God, for the day of the Lord is at hand” (Zephaniah 1: 7). There is a curious sentence in Revelation 8, “there was silence in heaven for about half an hour,” with a footnote in the Jerusalem Bible that it is meant as a silence of awe, that “the ‘coming of Yahweh’ is preceded by silence in the prophetic writings.” And in all four Gospels Jesus’ reply to certain questions from both Herod and Pilate, was - silence (Mt. 27: 14; Mk. 5: 5; Lk. 23: 89; Jn. 19: 9). In our Hymnal the 19th century Quaker poet John Greenleaf Whittier speaks in beautiful images: “the silence of eternity, interpreted by love;” “ thy still dews of quietness;” “the beauty of thy peace;” the “still, small voice of calm (Hymns 652 and 653). One of the best loved Christmas carols is “Silent Night,” ‘Silent’ is not quite accurate - a better translation of the German “stille” would have been “calm,” “peaceful,” “quiet,” or perhaps “still.” Silence has always been of major importance in the worship of the Quakers, and in more recent times the mainline denominations have rediscovered the beauty and importance of liturgical silence, one of the most authentic of Christian traditions, from the early desert fathers and the Cistercian (Trappist) monastic order through St. Teresa, St. John of the Cross, Thomas a Kempis, to Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Thomas Merton, Morton Kelsey and others in our own time. A writer in “The Living Church” (June 22, 1986) states that liturgical silence “is given a premier place in the liturgies of our Book of Common Prayer. Such emphasis is a wonderful Continued on page 8
6
Susan Caldwell continued from page 5
Please consider these areas where you can get involved this year. Altar Guild Acolytes Nursery Care Children’s Sunday School Godly Play Middle School Formation Classes High School J2A and Community Service Hours Confirmation Women’s Fellowship Men’s Study Group The Bible Challenge Worship Buildings and Grounds Mission Evangelism Choir Finance Communications Office Help Publicity and Outreach These are just a few of the many areas at Saint Michael’s that you can use your special personality and gifts that God has given you to enrich the Church. And when you love His Church, you give glory to His Name. If you have any questions and or would like to further explore more the Lenten practice of living a more abundant life for the health and wellbeing of our Parish, please contact me, or seek out a Vestry person for your inquiry. Don’t delay! A highly functioning parish is dependent on many members, not just one. We are the Body of Christ! Susan Caldwell, Director of Christian Education, 949.644.0463 Ext. 12. scaldwell@stmikescdm.org.
* * * IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SPONSOR the Sanctuary Light or Altar Flowers in memory of a loved one or in thanksgiving for a birthday, anniversary, or other special event, please sign up on the board in the Parish Center and indicate the person or occasion to be remembered. The suggested donation for flowers is $35, the sanctuary light is $15. Please mark your check for the Altar Guild.
FEBRUARY 2015 Sunday
Monday
Tuesday Wednesday
Thursday
Sat., Feb. 28th
IN THE COMING WEEKS
IN THE COMING MONTHS
Sun., Feb. 1st SOUPer Bowl EACH WEEK Annual Parish Meeting, 11:30 a.m., AAC Vestry Meeting immediately following Holy Eucharist at 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. Thurs., Feb. 5th Staff Meeting, 9:30-11:30 a.m., DL Nursery care from 9:30-11:30 a.m. Sat., Feb. 7th Citizens’ Climate Lobby, 9:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m., DL Sundays-at-Nine, DL Sunday School at 10:00 a.m. Sun., Feb. 8th Adult Christian Education Commission, 11:30 a.m., CR Godly Play, children 4-11, Yellow Room J2A Youth Group, 10:00 a.m., Corner Room Formation, 5th-8th grade, Green Room Wed., Feb. 11th Noonday Prayers J2A Youth Group, high school, Corner Room Deadline for March 2015 For the Love of Mike 2nd & 4th Sundays Senior Ministry, 2:00 p.m., CR Whiz Kids, 1:45-2:45 p.m., AAC (not 2/16) Fri., Feb. 13th St. Mike’s Movie Night, 7:00 p.m., DL Volleyball, 3:30-6:30 p.m., AAC Sun., Feb. 15th Worship Commission, 11:30 a.m., CR St. Mike’s Basketball, 7:00-9:00 p.m., AAC Mon., Feb. 16th Office closed for Presidents’ Day Tues., Feb. 17th Shrove Tuesday - Pancake Supper, 6:00-8:00 p.m. AAC Whiz Kids, 9:00-5:00 p.m., AAC (not 2/17) Wed., Feb. 18th Ash Wednesday - First Day of Lent Basketball, 5:00-8:00 p.m., AAC (not 2/17) Worship at 7:00 a.m., 12 noon, 7:30 p.m. with Music AA meeting, 7:00-8:00 a.m., SW Sun. Feb. 22nd First Sunday in Lent; The Great Litany Yoga class, 9:00-10:00 a.m., NW The Bible Challenge, 7:30 a.m., DL Whiz Kids, 9:00-5:00 p.m., AAC (not 2/18) J2A Youth Group, 10:00 a.m., Corner Room Holy Eucharist with Prayers for Healing, Noon (not 2/11) Tues., Feb. 24th Women’s Fellowship, 7:00 p.m., Bianchi’s Home Basketball, 5:00-8:00 p.m., AAC (not 2/18-2/25) Volleyball, 8:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m., AAC Spyglass Hill Homeowners Board, 6:00-9:00 p.m., CR Wed., Feb. 25th Wednesday Lenten Evening Suppers begin, MR Men’s Group, 7:30-9:00 a.m., DL 5:30 p.m. Evening Prayer, Sanctuary Whiz Kids, 12 noon-5:00 p.m., AAC (not 2/19) 6:00 p.m. Simple Soup Supper followed by program AA Big Book Study, noon-1:00 p.m., SW 7:30 p.m. Concludes with Compline Basketball, 5:00-8:00 p.m., AAC Parish Choir Rehearsal, 7:00-8:30 p.m. Fri., Feb. 27th Rosemarie Goodbody CoL/BoD Life Line Health Screening, AAC Altar Guild Meeting, 9:00 a.m., CR
Friday
Yoga class, 9:00-10:00 a.m., NW Whiz Kids, 9:00 a.m.-12 noon, AAC (not 2/20) Basketball, 3:00-4:00, 5:00-8:00 p.m., AAC AA meeting, 7:00-10:00 p.m., SW
SW - South Wing YR - Yellow Room, AAC RR - Red Room, AAC
Basketball, 8:00-10:00 a.m., 10:00-5:00 p.m., AAC ( DL - Davis Library NW - North Wing GR - Blue Room, AAC
Saturday
Meeting Rooms: AAC - All Angels’ Court MR - Michael’s Room CR - Conference Room
Sun., Mar. 1st Lenton Choral Evensong, 4:00 p.m., Sanctuary Sun., Mar. 8th DAYLIGHT SAVING BEGINS - SPRING AHEAD Tues., Mar. 17th Polling Place here at Saint Michael’s Wed., Mar. 25th Final Lenten Evening Program Sun., Mar. 29th Palm Sunday Mar. 29th-Apr. 6th Holy Week Sun. Apr. 7th Easter Day
Calendar of Ev ents At Saint Mic hael & All Ang els Events Michael Angels
S T. M I C H A E L & A L L A N G E L S W O U L D L I K E T O T H A N K T H E S E B U S I N E S S E S F O R M A K I N G O U R N E W S L E T T E R P O S S I B L E
R epResentation Y ou C an t Rust Donald Sheetz Broker
CA BRE: 01268002
James B. Hair, D.D.S. Restorative & Cosmetic Dentistry
THE HEARTHSTONE Fireplace Fixtures
3800 E. Coast Hwy., Suite 2 Corona Del Mar, CA 92625 (949) 675-1146 Fax (949) 675-3491
Piano Instruction by Jennifer Hassett
673-7065 2711 East Coast Highway
Parishioner 30 Years
Private at-home or studio piano programs for all levels 949.374.0323 jhassett@inbflat.com
UNLIMITED PLUMBING CO.
Call Me 949.720.0700 www.newportfineproperties.com
Complete Plumbing Service 9 855‐6000 4 9 363‐5556
Sunflower Gardens Life Enriching Memory Care
Lic. #618320
Lance McRoberts • Resident Care Tailored to the Needs of the Residents • Long Term Stays-Short Term Stays & Day Respite Services Offered Need Help? • Daily Social-Engaging Activities Call Bob • Day Respite and 24 Respite Services • Beautiful Park Like Grounds "The Handyman"
No job too big or too small
You are welcome to come and visit
For More Information Please call (714) 641-0959 3730 S. Greenville St. • South Coast Metro
949-350-4260 Over 24 years experience References available
Quality Home Care You Can Trust®
Owned & Managed by Judy Brady Saint Michael’s Parishioner for 35 Years • Personal Care, Bathing, Dressing • Medication Reminders • Respite for Families • Errands & Appointments • Doctor Visits • Light Housekeeping • Meal Preparation P • Companionship • And More ST. MICHAEL AND ALL ANGELS EPISC / 68
www.cmpublications.com
Call Today for a Free In-Home Assesment
949.650.2550
Our services are always confidential. 881 Dover Dr. Ste. 300 • Newport Beach www.assistinghands.com/newport-beach
For advertising information, please call (951) 776-0601
FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE
AN ARMY CHAPLAIN, FIRST TESTED BY WAR, FINDS HIS FAITH RENEWED by Jotn Burnett
A
s an Army chaplain in Iraq, David Peters administered last rites and grieved with survivors. And when he came home, he says, he "fell apart emotionally and spiritually." David Peters' life was supposed to be one continuous arc of piety and service. But for the U.S. Army chaplain, it's ended up a more circuitous route. Peters lost the very faith he was supposed to embody for his soldiers — but has also found his way back. Peters grew up in a fundamentalist evangelical church in Pennsylvania, served as youth minister and then went to war in Baghdad as a chaplain in the U.S. Army in 2005. At the age of 30, he was serving as a chaplain for the 62nd Engineer Combat Battalion, a unit that built guard towers and repaired roads. "So they were operating all around Baghdad, at night, in the streets, in the neighborhoods — and it really exposed [them] to an incredible amount of danger," he says. Peters' duties included administering last rites, grieving with survivors and listening to soldiers lament their broken marriages back home. And after 12 months in a combat zone, it was time for Peters to go home. But when he arrived back in Texas, Peters realized that he had changed. "I found that going to war was really pretty easy and it was kind of exciting, and there was a lot of energy around it," he says. "But when I came home, I really fell apart emotionally and spiritually." He had symptoms of PTSD, and his own marriage had shattered while he was away at war. His homecoming was not unusual, it turns out. Former Army Capt. Kurt Stein, the signal officer in the engineering battalion, grew close to Peters in Iraq. "The real crisis," he says, "is when we were deployed, we were always told, 'When you guys get back, December 2006, all your problems are gonna be over. You're gonna be a hero, your families are going to be glad to see you.'
FEBRUARY 2015 7
"For David and for a lot of us, that just wasn't the case." Peters says it was his lifelong relationship with God that suffered the most. In fact, the God he had taken with him to Iraq — the benevolent deity who loves everyone and rewards the faithful — that concept of God died along with a whole bunch of brave soldiers, he says. He had a hard time even going to church anymore. "The church was asking me to confess my sins, when I felt like God had done far worse things than I've ever done," he says. Like "standing by and not really doing much for the world that's full of war and conflict and despair, loss. "I looked at my own life and I felt that way. I'd just gotten divorced. I was just really angry at God for disappearing on me when I needed him most." Peters wound up working as a chaplain in the amputee ward at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., meeting with veterans whose troubles seemed to dwarf his own. He also worked in the psych ward, where, he says, "There was a thin line between the patients and me." Outside of work, his life had imploded. Newly single, he dated a succession of women because, he says, sometimes they "can take the pain away." His younger sister, Sarah, visited him in D.C. and noticed a dramatic change. "He was drinking a lot. I just remember him being very angry at people — just things that were so out of character for him," she says. Last year, Tactical 16, a small veteranowned press, published a slim, anguished memoir that Peters wrote about his journey. In the book, “Death Letter: God, Sex and War”, he writes, "I went into the business of religion to understand death." Since the book came out, he's gotten emails from others — "Army chaplains who have experienced real transition like I did when they came home," he says. "And yet, they were religious people — they weren't allowed to have problems." And so, Peters had to start over. Because he was divorced, he had to leave the Bible Fellowship Church that had endorsed him as a military chaplain. He eventually found a home and became ordained in the Episcopal Church. He also remarried; next month, he and his new wife are expecting a child.
"To start over, to start a new marriage, to start a new job, to start in a new church — all those things took a great deal of, just, patience," Peters says. The trauma of war and divorce deepened his spiritual self, in such a way that he can now connect, as a priest and chaplain, with others who are living through a dark night of the soul. Now 39, Peters is on the staff at Grace Episcopal Church in Georgetown, Texas, outside of Austin. He still serves as a chaplain in the Army Reserve up the highway at Fort Hood. And he's started a weekly veterans' ministry in Austin that meets to talk, drink coffee and pray for one another. -- From National Public Radio, January 6, 2015
Patient Trust Above all, trust in the slow work of God. We are quite naturally impatient in everything to reach the end without delay. We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new. And yet it is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability—and that it may take a very long time. And so I think it is with you; your ideas mature gradually— let them grow, let them shape themselves, without undue haste. Don’t try to force them on, as though you could be today what time (that is to say, grace and circumstances acting on your own good will) will make of you tomorrow. Only God could say what this new spirit gradually forming within you will be. Give Our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete. —Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, SJ excerpted from “Hearts on Fire” Quoted in “A Pastoral Letter to the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland” by The Rt. Rev. Eugene Taylor Sutton.
FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE
Music Notes continued from page 6 inclusion…” In our prayer book silence is optional after each lesson reading, and is included in all forms of the Prayers of the People (in Form 2 the people participate silently throughout). There is mandatory silence in both the ordination and consecration services and the Ash Wednesday liturgy, and on Good Friday the ministers are asked to enter the sanctuary in silence. There is a silence as well at the climax of the Eucharist, the Breaking of the Bread (“A period of silence is kept”). In his book “The Divine Formula,” Erik Routley criticizes those of us who plan worship services for yielding too often to the temptation to “over-program” both the service and the worshippers, for neglecting to leave room for individual space and contemplation. Routley was a hymnologist, professor, composer, author, and both a minister and musician, and I agree with him that the Church’s musicians are just as guilty - or perhaps more so - of this than the clergy. One of the great spiritual influences in my life has been the
FEBRUARY 2015
Trappist monk Thomas Merton; he was probably the most unmonkish monk of all time, google him for an interesting read! In fact, I named my hymn tune for “Surely it is God who saves me” (679) in honor of him (more on all that in a future article). In his book “Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander,” Merton wrote of his frustration and inability to worship in an excessively noisy, ostentatious, over-programmed Easter Day Mass at his monastery in Kentucky, in which the fancy liturgy had for him overshadowed the point of the whole undertaking. Merton was one of the greatest spiritual writers of the last century, and one of the greatest of all time. One can see that in the following passage, in which like many great writers he uses surprisingly few words yet conjures up a stunningly beautiful mental picture of the scene. Here is his beautiful comment on the Mass, one of my personal all-time favorite quotes: “The spring outside seemed much more sacred. Easter afternoon I went to the lake and sat in silence looking at the green buds, the wind skimming the utterly silent surface of the water, a muskrat slowly paddling to the other
side. Peace and meaning. Sweet spring air. One could breathe. The alleluias came back by themselves.” Silence does make many people nervous or impatient if it goes on long, and these days it can be difficult to get some. But most of us could probably use a little more of it in our lives; perhaps a little more in church services would also be appropriate (especially as we enter the season of Lent), without neglecting the basically doxological, celebratory mood of the Prayer Book (especially Rite 2) and the Hymnal. One of Merton’s many other books is titled “Contemplation in a World of Action”; we need both contemplation and action, both quiet time and opportunities to “make a joyful noise,” in our lives and our worship. Both are essential. And who knows, perhaps in a listening, centered silence we may encounter that “still, small voice of calm,” experience that “peace of God, which passes all understanding,” and in St. Francis’ words, be made “instruments” of that peace.
FOR THE LLO OVE OF MIKE Saint Michael & All Angels Episcopal Church A Christian Community of the Anglican Communion 3233 Pacific View Drive Corona del Mar, CA 92625
8
Return Service Requested
Inside the February Issue: Page 1: Our Annual Meeting Page 5: Music Notes --- Silence Page 7: P atient TTrust rust Patient
Remember Parish Pray for and R emember our P arish Emergency FFund und