july 2010 trinity topics newsletter, trinity toledo episcopal church

8/8/2019 July 2010 Trinity Topics Newsletter, Trinity Toledo Episcopal Church

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Trinity TopicsThe Newsletter of Trinity Episcopal Church in Toledo, Ohio

JULY2

010

Robert Lentz

We will

stand with

those in need

the poor,

the sick,

the

friendless,

theMarginalized


2/16

2

liturgy

&e

vents

22

Summertime,and the worship

is easy.Join us at 10:00 on the Plazaon the first Sunday of the month

JuneSeptember

Trinity Episcopal Church

trinitytoledo.org 419.243.1231

PROGRESSIVE INCLUSIVE CREATIVE DOWNTOWN TOLEDO

SUNDAY, JULY 4 PROPER 9

2 Kings 5:1-14; Galatians 6:1-6), 7-17); Luke 10:1-11, 16-2010a Parish Eucharist


Amos 7:7-17; Colossians 1:1-14; Luke 10:25-3710a Parish Eucharist

SUNDAY, JULY 18 PROPER 11Amos 8:1-12; Colossians 1:15-28; Luke 10:38-42

10a Parish Eucharist


Hosea 1:2-10; Colossians 2:6-15 (16-19); Luke 11:1-1310a Parish Eucharist

SUNDAY, AUGUST 1 PROPER 13

Hosea 11:1-11; Colossians 3:1-11; Luke 12:13-2110a Parish Eucharist

SUNDAY, AUGUST 8 PROPER 14

Isaiah 1:1, 10-20; Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16; Luke 12:32-4010a Parish Eucharist

When Jesus prayed,Forgive us our trespasses

as we forgive those whotrespass against us,what do you think

He meant?


3/16

We are now in our second round of having prayerpartners in the parish. When we ask someone to prayfor us, especially about a specific situation, we inviteGod into the situation, and we trust another person tohold us in Gods presence when we cannot do it byourselves. This has opened up some deep conversa-

tions about what prayer is, how to pray, what to pray,and what it does. Most conversations have been alongthe lines of, I know its not about going to God with awish list, or with a name it, claim it kind of faith, butIve been surprised at the results. Whats going on?

Whats happening is that were seeing God more.Let me give an example. Lets say a child is going tobackpack through Europe this summer, and theparents are worried about their child traveling alone.One could see God at work whether the child went byhimself and had a wonderful time, whether a friend

went with him, whether he met a group over there andtraveled with them, or even if the child went byhimself, got beat up and mugged and wound uprecuperating in a hospital in the Czech Republic. Godis present in all the outcomes, including the hospital.

We at Trinity are waking up. We may not get whatwe thought we wanted in prayer, but that is not thepoint of prayer to begin with. The point of prayer is tobe aware of God in all times.

I need to be reminded of this again and again, and

I am grateful for all that you teach me. One of the mostpowerful faith-giving times for me in this parish wasthroughout David Nelsons journey through cancer.David taught me how to pray again.He was aware of Gods presence in themoment no matter the outcome. Everyvisit, every phone call was shotthrough with Gods presence. A fewdays before he died, he was seeingsomething we could not see andproclaiming, Its so big, so vast. Itsextraordinary--we have no words for

it, narrating what he could see in thatmoment that we could not. Of coursethere were days when faith wasextraordinarily difficult. But he knewthat healing happened whether hereceived a miraculous cure or whetherhe died. Either way, he knew that death would nothave the last word.

My prayer life still has many, many wants. Ipray every day for the oil to quit flowing, for thecountless engineers to stop the flow, for the lifeunder the sea and along the shoreline to bespared. I do not know if or when that willhappen. But the prayer also comes back, telling

me to be awake to my own addiction to oil. Ipray for someone to be cured of cancer, but Godis present even if the cancer is still there. MayGod continue to open our eyes to every Yes, toevery I am here, that God offers.

Years ago, I was part of a Buddhist-Christiandialog in a Christian monastery in New York.During that time, I learned the following verse:

Let me respectfully remind you,Life and Death are of Supreme Importance.Time swiftly passes by and opportunity is lost.

Let us strive to awaken,awaken!Take heed, do not squander your life.

Regardless of religion, this may well beGods prayer for all of us.

LiddyLiddyLiddyLiddy

3

Waking up to the Presence of God

fromtherect

or


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4

July 5 ................. ....... Ronald HeiderJuly 6 ................. ....... Aaron Crawford July 8 ................. ....... Bonnie Boes July 9 ................. ....... Ken BrownJuly 10 ................ ...... Scott DiblingJuly 12 ................ ...... Frank Cooper........................ .......... Chris Windnagle

July 15 ............... ....... Adrian KidneyJuly 16 ............. ..... Christopher Nitz July 17 ............... ....... Chuck AboodJuly 19 ............... ....... Ric ArcherJuly 23 ............. .....Cloe Rick

July 24 ............... ....... Kristy SchusterJuly 25 ................ ...... Jennifer SieboldJuly 29 ............... ....... Marjorie McIntosh

If your July birthday isnt listed here, thatmeans Trinity doesnt have a record of it.Contact the office by phone (419.243.1231) oremail (trinity@ trinitytoledo.org) to add yourspecial day to the membership database, so wecan celebrate it with you!

Birthday Blessings

cong

regation

/world

Summer evenings spent outside with friends,sharing good food and good conversationwhocould resist a Sunday School like that?

Its a new, laid-back approach to adult formation.Were gathering on the second Wednesday of eachmonth (July 14 and August 11) at 6:30pm at the homeof Cathy and Brian Johns inSylvania for a potluck mealand Bible study. No ad-vance reading is required.Youre encouraged to bringyour Bible and a favoritesummer dish to pass, buteven if you cant cook,come anyway for the dinner and discussion. Wellfinish no later than 8:30pm.

The July 14th session will be on the Acts of theApostles. And in August? As Jesus said, come andsee.

Adult Formation, Summer Edition

Coffee Hour Hospitality

Coffee hour is a time to relax and

talk after church and get to knowfolks who are new. There will al-ways be coffee, but the rest is up toyou.

It doesn't have to be fancy--cookies,chips and salsa, some cut up veggies or

fresh fruit. Grab a friend and pick a date the signup sheet is on the curved wall as you enter the nave.

Pastoral Fare

Needs in our community can arise veryquickly, and we want hands and heartsready to respond.

The Inreach/Pastoral Care

committee is organizingsupport for parishmembers who need a

little pastoral fare.Illness, the birth of a

child, or other stresses can keep you frompreparing a healthy meal, and the committeewants to offer help in these situations. Weregathering recipes for fast, easy and nutritiouscasseroles. We also plan to have someprepared dishes in the Trinity freezer thatcan be available on short notice.

We need people who are willing to cookor deliver the food. Or, if you cant help inthose ways, donations to help with foodcosts are also welcome.

Talk to vestry members Jennifer Siebold,Solveig Barnes or Peggy Heider to volunteerfor this important ministry.

Website Updates

Were always interested in making sure that theTrinity website contains current and accurate infor-mation.

If you see something atwww.trinitytoledo.orgthatneeds to be updated or couldbe more user-friendly, con-tact Jason Rahe and let himknow. Hes working hard to

keep the website fresh, and is always open to sug-gestions.


5/16

July 4th on the Plaza

Come celebrate July 4th and get the best seat intown for Toledos fireworks! My Brother's Place willbe open on this Sunday evening, serving special treatsfrom 7:00-9:30pm.

Or bring your own food and drinks, dishes toshare, and folding chairs up to the plaza any time after7:00pm. Grills will be available. The city firework dis-play is scheduled to start at 10:15pm.

MEMBER MATTERS

Sara and Todd Alcroft welcomed their son AndrewLogan into the world on June 1. All are doing well.

Gordon McIntosh entered new life on Thursday, June3. May Gordon and all the saints, through the mercy ofGod, rest in peace.

Congratulations to one more 2010 graduate:- Michael Nelson,Master of Music Composition

5

Budget Update

The financial health of our community is a sharedresponsibility, and we welcome your questions or com-ments. Contact Jane Bueche, Parish Accountant, [email protected].

2010 Budget

MayYTDActual Difference

Revenue

Plate Offering 2,626 34

Pledge Payments 44,558 (16,395)

Combined InvestmentIncome 82,550 (18,284)

Other Operating Income 2 (415)

Total Revenues 129,736 (35,059)

Expenditures

Personnel 84,299 2,332

Buildings & Grounds 70,492 7,008

Total Expenditures 206,390 16,932

MayYTDBudget

2,592

60,953

100,834

417

164,795

81,967

63,484

189,458

Operations 9,730 8,961 (769)

Diocesan Assessment 16,779 27,600 10,821

Local Outreach 1,925 2,373 448

Programs 11,407 9,286 (2,121)

Loan Interest Payment 4,167 3,380 (787)

Net Surplus/(Deficit) (24,663) (76,654) (51,991)

Hunger Doesn't Take a Vacation

Remember the Feed YourNeighbor basket as you shopfor groceries this summer.

Make it a habit to purchase anitem (or two or three!) for theparish food basket every timeyou shop. The need for foodincreases in the summer whenschool breakfast and lunch pro-grams are not available.

An even easier way to helpwrite a check to Trin-ity and note Feed Your Neighbor on the memo line.

Have a Little Faith on July 18

What if everyone in the Trinity community readthe same book this summer, and then all thosereaders got together to talk about it? That's the ideabehind One Book, One Trinity.

The book selected for our sum-

mer read is Mitch Alboms newesttitle, Have a Little Faith. Its ameaningful book but not a difficultone; perfect for reading on theplane, at the beach, or on the backdeck. The public library has lots ofcopies, or you can buy it from yourfavorite bookseller. Read it with anopen heart, and then add your ideas to the bookdiscussion on Sunday, July 18, right after church.

Welcome to the Family!On August 29, well be

welcoming new members intothe church through baptism.If you are interested in bap-tism for yourself or your child,contact the church office.


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outreac

hings

6

Emanuel Childrens HomeNursery Suffers a Death

The staff, volunteers and children ofEmanuel Childrens Home ask for yourprayers as they mourn the death of one ofthe four infants who arrived in February.

Carlos was only two weeks old when hearrived at Emanuels new nursery with histwin sister, Carla. The Childrens Home washis best chance for surviving his lack ofprenatal care and his early malnourishment.He was slowly gaining weight and appearedto be on the road to recovery. Carlos re-ceived care from one of San Pedro Sulasfinest pediatricians. He was diagnosed witha heart condition, and was expected to havesurgery as soon as his body could withstand

the operation. But in mid-June he developedpneumonia and was admitted to the hospi-tal, where he entered new life on June 24.

May Carlitos and all the tiny saints,through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Back to School Backpacks forStewart Academy

During July and August well be filling backpackswith school supplies for the new school year at Stew-art Academy for Girls. Our help will be even moreimportant this year as the Stewart students welcome

the girls from the now-closed Martin Luther King, Jr.Elementary to their new home at Stewart.

Outreach will provide backpacks in late July,along with a list of recommended school supplieswith which to fill the bags. In August well collectand bless the filled packs and deliver them to Stew-art as the school year begins.

School Clothes for TPS Kids

Churches are again needed to help low-incomefamilies in the Toledo Public School district secureproper school clothing for their children. TPS nowhas a dress code similar to the previous uniform re-quirement, but financial assistance is no longer avail-able. Toledo Area Ministries (TAM) is helping coordi-nate this sewing project, which is organized by theSylvania United Church of Christ.

There are several ways to help: Cut out, label, and package kits of skirts and

jumpers to be distributed to church membersto sew. This is happening on two Thursdays,July 15 and 22, from 9:00 to noon at the Sylva-nia UCC, 7240 Erie St., Sylvania

Sew at home. Kits will be available from TAM

on/after Sunday, July 25. Last years patternsare being used again; its easy sewing.

Donate washable fabric in navy blue, tan,brown, gray, or khaki.

Donate money to pay for supplies (Payable to:Uniform Project, Sylvania UCC).

Ellen Bowers from Sylvania UCC (419.882.2436 [email protected]) can provide more details.

Episcopal Relief & DevelopmentSupports Gulf Coast Residents

In the wake of the massive oil leak in the Gulf of

Mexico, Episcopal Relief & Development is workingclosely with the Diocese of Louisiana to assist thosesuffering most direct impact. As the disaster unfolds,ER-D will also provide support to the Dioceses ofMississippi and the Central Gulf Coast, which arecurrently conducting needs assessments in areasdamaged by the oil spill.

Heres how you can help today:1. Pray for people impacted by the oil leak.2. Give to ER-Ds USA Disaster Response Fund bycalling 800.334.7626, ext. 5129, or visiting www.

er-d.org.3. Send encouraging notes or cards to affectedresidents. Mail to: Oil Spill Card Initiative, P.O.Box 5026, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-5026.


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7

Small Group Prayers: Next-to-New

Almighty God, as we serve our custom-ers, including the homeless, destitute,needy in both material things and thosebroken in spirit, let us remember theyare brothers and sisters in need and besympathetic, helpful and make their days

a little more cheerful. Give us that abilityin your name. Amen.

My mother was stoic, never admitting pain, grief, happiness, or any other emotion. She wasa great woman who lived in the moment, and many people admired her. But as her daugh-ter I had a hard time feeling close to her, and was never sure where I fit in.

During the last couple of years, we did become closer. She turned 100 in the summer of

2009, and we had a wonderful celebration. We visited her in Rhode Island a few monthslater, and when we got home, my heart knew that I must rush back to Rhode Island to bewith her. I made arrangements and was back on a plane the next day.

I arrived at the airport and was driven to my mothers apartment. From there, the experience was surreal. Mymom was in great pain and was crying--this was the woman who never cried! She called my name, reached for myhand and held it tightly, and did not let go.

All the tears she needed to shed were coming now. I felt a lifetimes worth of love pass between us. When shedied later that night, her eyes were the clearest, most beautiful blue I had even seen. God gave me the urge to goback, the strength to be with her, and gave us both the time to connect. I will always be grateful.

Shortly after she died I felt terribly alone. My brother had his wife, my daughter had her husband, but Liddy wouldnot be here until the next day. But when she called and explained the outpouring of love and prayers and supportfrom everyone at Trinity during and after that mornings service, I felt like another hole had been filled in me. Iknew again that God was there.

~Barbara Clarke

God Moment

Got a God moment?Has there been a time recently when you noticed the presence of God in your life? If youre willing to share a brief Godmoment with the Trinity community, youre invited to submit several paragraphs (no more than half a page, up to 300 words,subject to editing for clarity) to [email protected].

Get a new prayer partneron Sunday, July 25th

Prayer Changes ThingsPrayer Changes Us

In February and early March of this year, Ifound myself praying intensely and frequentlyfor a friend who is a Dominican sister. Lastweekend I went to visit her. When I told herabout feeling called to pray for her a lot in Feb-ruary and March, she told me during that timeher sister had brain surgery for a tumor and isnow gradually recovering; her brother wasdiagnosed with stage IV colon cancer and isnow in remission; and she was elected to gen-eral assembly, which met for 2 weeks to envi-sion the goals for the order in the U.S. for thenext 6 years. I'm glad I prayed, and grateful tofind out why I (surely among many others)had been called to pray.

~Lois Nelson


8/16

I am a failure at prayer. Whenpeople ask me about my prayer life, Ifeel like a bulimic must feel when peo-ple ask about her favorite dish. Mymind starts scrambling for ways to

hide my problem. I start talking aboutother things I do that I hope will makeme sound like a godly person. I try tosay admiring things about prayer sothere can be no doubt about how im-portant I think it is. I ask the other per-son to tell me about her prayer life,hoping she will not notice that I havechanged the subject.

I would rather show someone mycheckbook stubs than talk about my

prayer life. I would rather confess thatI am a rotten godmother, that I strug-gle with my weight, that I fear I amoverly fond of Bombay Sapphire ginmartinis than confess that I am aprayer-weakling. To say I love Godbut I do not pray much is like saying Ilove life but I do not breathe much.The only way I have found to survivemy shame is to come at the problemfrom both sides, exploring two dis-tinct possibilities: 1) that prayer is

more than my idea of prayer and 2)that some of what I actually do in mylife may constitute genuine prayer.

Two monks have been great helpsto me in these explorations. The first isBrother David Steindl-Rast, an Aus-trian Benedictine who joined a monas-tery in New York while I was still in

diapers. Years later he wrote a bookcalled Gratefulness, The Heart of Prayer,which Henri Nouwen required in hiscourses at Yale Divinity School.Unlike many of the books I read in

seminary, this one was not compli-cated. Even Brother David said that itcould be summarized in two words:Wake up!

This was the firstinkling I had that prayermight mean somethingmore than getting down onmy knees, either in publicor in private, to addressGod in a way that was re-

spectful enough, focused enough,unselfish and theologically correctenough to merit God giving up sometime to listen. By then I had studiedthe Catechism in the back of the Bookof Common Prayer, discovering thatthere were seven different kinds ofprayers: adoration, praise, thanksgiv-ing, penitence, oblation, intercession,and petition. My difficulty was that Icould not keep them straight.

When I prayed for people I lovedwho were sick, was that intercessionor petition? When I thanked God for

the beauty of the earth, was thatpraise or thanksgiving?... The cate-gories in the prayer book were forsharpening my intention, not forwinning Gods attention. Howthen should I pray? When I frettedover people I knew who were introuble, so that my worry for themfollowed me around all day like ahungry dog, was that prayer?When I cooked dinner for peoplewho had plenty to eat at home,thinking about them while Ichopped the turnip greens and

mashed the sweet potatoes, was thatprayer? When I went outside aftereveryone had gone to bed andmoaned at the moon because I couldnot come up with the right words to

say what was in my heart, was thatprayer?

Brother David was the first personto tell me that prayer is not the same

thing as prayers. Prayers are impor-tant, he said. Saying psalms in themorning is a good way to head intothe day more prayerfully. So is going

to church, where I can add my voiceto those of a whole congregation aim-ing to woo Gods ears with their an-cient, beautiful cadences. Still, prayeris more than saying set prayers at settimes. Prayer, according to BrotherDavid, is waking up to the presence ofGod no matter where I am or what Iam doing. When I am fully alert towhatever or whoever is right in frontof me, when I am electrically aware ofthe tremendous gift of being alive,

when I am able to give myself whollyto the moment I am in, then I am inprayer. Prayer is happening, and it isnot necessarily something that I amdoing. God is happening, and I amlucky enough to know that I am inThe Midst.

When Brother David said thateven biting into a tomato can be akind of prayer, he had me. Anyonewho recognizes the sacramental valueof a homegrown tomato sandwich canbe my spiritual director. He also gaveme the bridge to my other monk,Nicholas Herman, who lived morethan three hundred years ago inFrance Better known as BrotherLawrence, he left a cache of notes andletters behind that his abbot, Joseph deBeaufort, published after his deathin a volume called The Practice of the

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Prayer: The Practice of Being Present to Godby Barbara Brown Taylor

Prayer is something that is alwayshappening, like a radio wave thatcarries music through the airwhether I tune in to it or not.


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Presence of God, which has become aspiritual classic.

This is ironic, since Brother Law-rence readily admitted that books onthe spiritual life served only to con-fuse him. He was also no good at setprayers. While he dutifully completed

the three hours of prayer and medita-tion required of the monks in his or-der each day, he confessed that after-ward he could not have said what ithad all been about. Instead, he re-solved to give himself wholly to Godno matter what he was doing, andout of love for Him to renounce every-thing that was not Himself.

Fortunately for the monks heserved, this did not mean renouncing

the pancakes that he made for them,the wine he bought for them, or theshoes he cobbled for them. Havingresolved to do all of these things andmore while keeping his attention fo-cused lovingly on God, Brother Law-rence discovered such joy that inorder to restrain it and keep from re-vealing it, I am forced into childishactions that appear more like madnessthan devotion. If he dared use theterm, he said, he would call this state

of joy being nursed by God, for theindescribable sweetness that he ex-perienced at Gods breast.

If I am attached to both of thesemonks, it is because neither of themneeds me to be a monk too. It is finewith them for me to teach school, goto the grocery store, clean the cat litterpan, and do the laundry. It is fine withthem for me to know far more spiri-tual methods than I use, and to say theLords Prayer without really thinkingabout every word. It is even fine withthem for me to think I am a failure atprayer as long as I go on nudging atGods breast, letting the smell of thatsweet milk lead me deeper into theordinary activities of my every day.

When I look up from feeding theoutside dogs to see the full moon com-

ing up through the bare trees like thewide iris of Gods own eyewhen Ifeel the beam of it enter my busy heartstraight through the zipper of myfleece jacket and fill me full of lightIam in prayer. When I spend all after-noon chopping onions, stewing toma-toes, and setting the dining room table

with every piece of silver I own for asupper of soup and bread withfriends, I am in prayer. When I am sosick that I cannot do anything but liein bed with a jar of Vicks Vaporuband a blister pack of cold pills lostsomewhere in the sheets, with all thetime in the world to remember whomI love and why, I am in prayer.

There are real things I can do, bothin my body and in my mind, to putmyself in the presence of God. God isnot obliged to show up, but if Goddoes, then I will be ready. At the sametime, I am aware that prayer is more

than something I do. The longer Ipractice prayer, the more I think it issomething that is always happening,like a radio wave that carries musicthrough the air whether I tune in to itor not....

Since I am a failure at prayer, Ikeep an altar in my room. It is reallyan old vanity made of rosewood, withfancy scrollwork around the oval mir-ror and a small stack of drawers oneither side. At worst, I think of it as apiece of furniture that I offer God as asubstitute for my prayers. At best, Ithink of it as a portal that stays openwhether I go through it or not. I keepsome icons on it, and a lot of candles.When people ask me to pray for them,I write their names on slips of paperand put them in a small brass box thatsits in front of two paintings, one of

Jesus and one of his mother. AlthoughMary is looking lovingly in her sonsdirection, she occupies her own space,which I like.

Most nights the altar just sitsthere, holding all of those pictures,wicks, and names. Then comes a night

when I am in deep need, deep fear,deep thanks, or deep wanteither formyself or for someone I loveand Ilight every candle on the altar... Light-ing them all generally requires at leastten kitchen matches, and even then Iburn myself getting to the last of them.When I am through, I sit back on myheels and try to take it all in. The mir-

ror behind the candles doubles theirglow. The icons catch the light,pitching it back and forth. I can see

my reflection through the flames,though only dimly, since the mirroris an old one that has lost much ofits shine.

Prayer overtakes me there. I amutterly swamped by the presence ofthe Holy. I would bend my head tothe ground if I could take my eyes offthe beauty. As it is, I do not evenknow for sure if I am breathing. Thealtar is giving me more life than I

know how to ask for. I can no longertell the difference between need, fear,thanks, and want. In this light, I seehow they are all facets of the samesparkler. I see how they are all faces ofthe same love. This answer to myprayer is so far beyond my doing thatI cannot find the words to forswearmy own input.

All I did was light the candles.Did God find me or did I find God?

Hush. The time for words is past.

~fromAn Altar in the World byBarbara Brown Taylor

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Prayer is waking up to the

presence of God no matterwhere I am or what I amdoing.


10/16

Like most Christians, I don't payattention to missives from church lead-ers. This week, however, dueling pas-

toral letters issued for Pentecost fromRowan Williams, the AnglicanArchbishop of Canterbury, andKatharine Jefferts Schori, the PresidingBishop of the Episcopal Church, caughtmy attention--because one so rarelywitnesses a first-class theologicalsmack down between tea-drinkingAnglican primates.

Unless you've been sleeping in acave, you are probably aware that theEpiscopal Church (of which I am amember) has been arguing about therole of LGBT persons in the church.Along with the Anglican Church ofCanada, the Episcopal Church hasopened itself toward full inclusion ofgay and lesbian Christians. Here inNorth America, this has caused somedefections (fewer than at first pre-dicted), some legal suits (most havebeen settled in favor of the EpiscopalChurch), monetary fallout (hard toseparate from general economic down-

turn), and bad feelings (which, sadlyenough, remain). But what is mostsurprising--and I regularly hear thisfrom bishops, clergy, and congrega-tional lay leaders--is that things aremuch less tense in the EpiscopalChurch now than they have been inrecent years. Folks are moving ahead

in their local parishes doing the sorts ofthings that Episcopalians are prettygood at doing--creating beautiful wor-ship, praying together, and feedinghungry people.

Despite that fact that the Episcopa-lians are bumpily journeying into arenewed future, some other Anglicans-

-mostly in Africa--are pretty mad thatwe've included our gay and lesbianfriends and relatives in our churches.Large communities of Anglicans in

places like Uganda (the same Ugandathat recently tried to pass a death-penalty law for gay people) and Ma-lawi (the same Malawi that recentlysentenced a gay couple who wanted tomarry to 14 years hard labor) are seri-ously unhappy with American Episco-

palians and Canadian Anglicans.

And this leads us to the Pentecostpastoral letters.

While (somewhat ironically) at-tending a conference in Washington,DC entitled "Building Bridges," Rowan

Williams sentout his Pente-cost letter toA n g l i c a n s

worldwidewhich, aftersaying a lot ofnice thingsabout mis-

sions and diversity, pulls rank and pro-claims that he's going to kick people offimportant committees whose nationalchurches have violated a controversialdocument called the Anglican Cove-

nant. This includes the Canadians(who let gay Christians get married)and the Americans (who recently or-

dained a lesbian bishop in Los Ange-les) and some Africans (who ordainedsome Americans who were splittingchurches in places like Virginia andPennsylvania).

In response, Katharine JeffertsSchori essentially, but in a nice sort ofAnglican way, accused Williams ofbeing a theological dictator--or, as shesays in understated fashion, "Unitarycontrol does not characterize Anglican-ism." For non-Anglicans, trust me,those are fightin' words.

This is not a conservative/liberalargument (both Rowan Williams andKatharine Jefferts Schori are theologi-cally liberal). This is a fight betweenrival versions of Anglicanism--a quar-rel extending to the beginning of Angli-canism that has replayed itself periodi-cally through the centuries down toour own time.

Rowan Williams' letter articulates"top-down Anglicanism," a version ofthe faith that is hierarchical, bishop-centered, concerned with organiza-tional control, and authoritarian. It isan old vision that vests the identity ofthe church in a chain of authority in thehands of ecclesiastical guardians whoagree on "a coherent Anglican identity"and then enforce the boundaries of thatidentity through legal means. Thisversion of Anglicanism stretches back

through the Middle Ages and relates tosimilar forms of Christianity as foundin Roman Catholicism and some formsof Eastern Orthodoxy.

Katharine Jefferts Schori's letterspeaks for "bottom-up Anglicanism," aversion of the faith that is democratic,parish-based, mission-oriented, and(even) revolutionary. It is also an old

10

Rowan Williams and Katharine Jefferts Schori:Anglican Smack-Downby Diana Butler Bass

This is not a conservative/liberal argument(both Rowan Williams and Katharine Jef-ferts Schori are theologically liberal). Its afight between rival versions of Anglicanism.


11/16

vision, one that vests the identity of thechurch in local communities of Angli-cans at prayer, who adapt their way oflife and liturgy according to the needsof Christian mission. This version ofAnglicanism is rooted in both the an-cient Celtic traditions of English Chris-tianity and the missionary work of St.

Augustine of Canterbury circa 600.

As history unfolded, different cul-tures have picked up on one or theother of these two streams--for exam-ple, the British church remains primar-ily hierarchical (even referring to theirbishops as "My Lord Bishop"); whilethe American church is primarilydemocratic ("God alone is theLord"). The Ugandan church is au-thoritarian; while the South African

church is revolutionary. The Angli-cans in Sydney, Australia areboundary-oriented and commun-ally closed; while most other Anglicansin Australia are liturgically-orientedand open (the Anglicans in Darwin,Australia are so open that their cathe-dral doesn't even have walls).

At its best, Anglicanism managesthe polarities between these tensions--often creating locally innovative ex-

pressions of a church that is both hier-archical and democratic, bishop andparish centered, bounded and liturgi-cally open at the same time. Over thecenturies, this has been called the An-glican art of comprehension, or the viamedia (the "middle way").

But once every few hundred years,the tensions explode. This is one ofthose times.

The argument isn't reallyabout gay and lesbian peoplenor is it about, as some peopleclaim, the Bible or orthodoxy.

Rather, the argument reprisesthe oldest conflict within An-glicanism--What kind of An-glicans are we to be? How dowe relate to the world andculture around us? And veryspecifically now: What kindof Anglicans are we to be in the 21st

century? And how do we relate to theplurality of cultures in which we findourselves?

Set in this frame, this isn't just anAnglican argument. Roman Catholics,Orthodox Christians, Protestants of allsorts, Jews, Buddhists, and Muslimsare having the same arguments within

their varying traditions and cultures.What kind of religious faith are we topractice in the 21stcentury? And howdo we relate to the plurality of cul-tures in which we each find our-selves?

For what it is worth, the river ofhistory does not seem to be on theside of hierarchical church control;rather, history seems to be moving ina the direction of what Thomas Fried-man might call "flat church." Thetides are pulling most ecclesiasticalboats toward bottom-up versions offaith. Hierarchical church control is,

as Harvey Cox argues in his book TheFuture of Faith, a "rearguard attempt tostem a more sweeping tidal change"toward a new experiential, inclusive,and liberationist view of God and faith.

Despite their smack down, I think

that Rowan Williams andKatharine Jefferts Schori might

actually agree on the funda-mental questions of identity,mission, and 21st centurychange. I also suspect thatRowan Williams would se-

cretly find the "sweeping tidalchange" more spiritually inter-esting than trying to keep theAnglican institutional shipafloat in the waters. But hethinks that he's in charge--andhe'll be captain of his Titanicuntil the last.

As for me, I kinda like thisAmerican Episcopal river raft.Better for navigating strong currents.

~ Diana Butler Bass holds a Ph.D. inAmerican religious history from

Duke University. Her latest book isthe highly acclaimedA Peoples

History of Christianity.

From http://blog.beliefnet.com/christianityfortherestofus/

(Cartoons from www.slapupsidethehead.com)

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The river of history does notseem to be on the side of

hierarchical church control.

For the Archbishop of Canterbury'sPentecost letter, see www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/2876

For the Presiding Bishops Pentecostletter, see www.episcopalchurch.org/ 79425_122615_ENG_HTM.htm


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If you had to support your family on $3 a day or less,but had the opportunity to cross a border illegally to

raise your living standard, would you migrate?

The unusual alliance among Evan-gelicals, Catholics and Protestantspushing Congress and the Obama ad-

ministration for comprehensive immi-gration reform has social-science re-searchers scratching their heads.

The cause of immigration reformhas given rise to one of the broadestalliances of religious groups ever as-sembled in our history it cuts acrossleft and right, it cuts across denomina-tions and traditions, it cuts across theo-logical orientations, said E.J. DionneJr., a senior fellow at the Brookings In-

stitution, a nonprofit think tank.

Brookings held a two-part panelevent, "Religious Activism and the De-bate over Immigration Reform," on June 15. With an introduction by So-journers President and CEO Jim Wallis,the event addressed the questions:Why are religious groups so united onthe question of immigration reform?

How has their activism affected thedebate on Capitol Hill? And what doesthis tell us about the role of faith in af-fecting debates over policy and build-

ing political coalitions?

Participants included Presiding

Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori; theRev. Samuel Rodriguez, an Evangelicaland president of the National HispanicChristian Leadership Conference; andKevin Appleby, director of migrationpolicy and public affairs for the U.S.Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The interfaith Christian alliance,experts and panelists agree, has playedan important role in keeping immigra-tion reform on Congress's 2010 agenda

in an increasingly polarized politicalenvironment and an important mid-term election year.

Based on his interfaith participationin meetings with elected leaders andadministration officials, where leadersrepresenting the National Associationof Evangelicals and the National Coun-cil of Churches uncharacteristicallyhave stood side-by-side, Wallis said, "Ifthere is any constituency that can breakthis issue out of the fray, it would bebipartisan pressure on both sides fromthe faith community."

In his opening remarks, he de-scribed the nation's approach to immi-gration as a decades-long "bipartisanfailure" in which two signs have hungat the border: "No Trespass" and "HelpWanted." Those signs, he said, haveplaced a vulnerable population at risk.Because of them, the faith communityhas responded clearly by saying that

enforcement without reform is cruel,enforcement without compassion isimmoral, enforcement [that] breaks upfamilies is unacceptable to us, enforce-

ment that makes Christian ministryillegal and the Arizona law makesChristian ministry illegal and pastors

feel that and know that, and have said,'We will disobey these laws.' Andwhen that happens, you have a force tobe reckoned with.

In April, Arizona passed the na-tion's toughest immigration law, aimedat identifying and deporting illegalimmigrants. Scheduled to become ef-fective July 29, the law mobilized thereligious community, and some civiland human rights organizations organ-

ized a state boycott.

The presiding bishop called Ari-zona's immigration law "the most re-cent expression of our national politicalfailure."

"The current crisis of immigrationpolicy in these United States stems pri-marily from economic and resourceimbalances and an exodus from poorernations unable to sustain adequate op-portunities for growing populations,"Jefferts Schori said. "That imbalance iscomplicated by violence (both terror-ism and the drug trade) as well as cur-rently reduced employment opportuni-ties within the United States."

Jefferts Schori talked about the Epis-copal Church's history of involvementwith refugees and migrants, datingback to the 1940s advent of EpiscopalMigration Ministries, and the church'srepeated calls, rooted in theology, for

comprehensive and fair immigrationreform.

"That theology begins in the biblical

Protestants, Evangelicals and Catholics form atypical allianceon immigration reformFrom the Episcopal News Service


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charge to love God and to love onesneighbor as oneself," she said. "Thealien or foreigner is among theneighbors to be regarded with loveand justice. Hebrew Scripture repeat-edly directs the faithful to 'care for thealien and sojourner in your midst,'"she said. You shall love

the stranger, for you werealso a stranger in the landof Egypt [Deuteronomy10:19]. That sense of hav-ing the shared experienceof migration and being aforeigner opens us up tothe shared reality of allhumanity and motivatesus to find all sorts of part-ners who also understandthat shared reality. It is a

central way in which thereligious motivation en-gages the political.

"Theological responses to issues ofmigration are also based in Jesus'mandate to care for the 'least of these' the hungry, thirsty, homeless, sick,unemployed, oppressed and impris-oned, she said. "Anyone experienc-ing those realities is alienated from thestate of healed and whole reality that

we speak of as the kingdom of God that ancient prophetic vision of aworld of justice and peace often calledshalom. Those who experience suchalienation are also migrants, sojourn-ers in search of healing and whole-ness."

(Most recently in July 2009, theEpiscopal Church's General Conven-tion passed Resolution B006, whichcalled for an end to local enforcementof immigration law and a return ofsuch enforcement to federal agencies.In 2006, the convention passed Reso-

lution A017,

committing thechurch to wel-come strangers"as a matter ofChristian re-sponsibility, toadvocate fortheir well-beingand protectionand to urge itsmembers to re-sist legislation

and actionswhich violateour fundamen-

tal beliefs as Christians.)

Appleby spoke about the RomanCatholic Churchs long immigranthistory. When explaining the church'sinvolvement in immigration issues, hesaid, he often reminds church mem-bers that Jesus was both an immigrantand a migrant. "[I]n Catholic teaching,

in the face of the migrant, we see theface of Christ, and so we need to wel-come him," Appleby said, adding thatimmigrants are inherent in the Catho-lic Church's identity in the UnitedStates.

During the question-and-answer times following this panel,the fact that popular sentiment inAmerica favors the Arizona lawby 60 percent and the "view fromthe pew" diverges somewhatfrom that of religious leadership,across denominations, was dis-

cussed.

The answers, the panelistsagreed, lie somewhere within lackof education, fear and messagedelivery.

Appleby said he viewedAmericans' support for the Ari-zona law as showing their frustra-tion with the nation's immigrationpolicy. "Congress has not stepped

up to the plate on the issue andneeds to do so, and people arefrustrated," Appleby said. Thechurch must do a better job ofeducating people, especially thosein the middle who may be am-bivalent, on the issue, he added.

Rodriguez asked: "How can anation founded on Judeo-Christian values support slavery,and how did we tolerate segregation

for so long?" Arizona, Wallis said, isnow to Hispanic clergy what Selma,Alabama, was to African-Americanclergy in the 1960s.

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Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so move

every human heart and especially the hearts of the people of

this land, that barriers which divide us may crumble, suspicionsdisappear, and hatreds cease; that our divisions being healed, we

may live in justice and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.Book of Common Prayer, pg. 823


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Last month, an encounter betweenMichelle Obama and a Latina child in asuburban Maryland school broughtinto sharp relief one of the most press-ing issues surrounding U.S. immigra-tion policy: the effect that the currentbroken system is having and hashad for a long time on the youngchildren of immigrants.

The second-grade girl seemed towant confirmation or perhaps it wasrefutation of something shed heardher mother say: Barack Obama is tak-ing everybody away that doesnt havepapers. In typical miss-the-main-pointfashion, the media focused more on the

First Ladys response (she handled theawkward situation admirably) than onthe heartbreaking reality exposed bythis little girls question.

For several months I helped teachSunday School and provide child carein a small Latino congregation in NorthCarolina. For the most part, the kidswere like all kids everywhere ener-getic, mischievous, manipulative, fullof joy. But once in awhile too often,

as I think about it one of the childrenwould reveal something of the fear thatthey and their families regularly ex-perienced. They would almost alwaysdo this in a casual, disinterested sort ofway perhaps as a defense mecha-nism or maybe because theyd beentrained to be stoic in the face of diffi-culty.

Most of what these kids revealedabout their stressed-out lives was thattheir parents lived in fear of the police.Once, an ICE agent came to the churchoffice (where I worked and where theLatino congregation met on Sundayevenings) looking for informationabout the Latino pastor. The fear thesefamilies lived in was not unfounded; itwas a daily burden and one that theirchildren were learning to bear withthem. (It turns out that these kids wereunlike most of their Anglo peers in an

important way: they were not carefree).

Arizona politicians, feeling embold-ened by the positive public response totheir recent actions on immigration

crackdown, will soon introduce legisla-tion that would deny birth certificatesto children born in the state. The billssponsor, Russell Pearce, is not con-cerned about violating the Constitution(which grants citizenship to anyoneborn in the U.S.) because the greaterissue, according to Pearce, is that the14th amendment has been hijackedby illegal immigrants. They use it as awedge, Pearce says in a recent Timemagazine article. This is an orches-

trated effort by them to come here andhave children to gain access to the greatwelfare state weve created.

Facts dont seem to matter much inthe current public debate about immi-gration, so Pearces inflammatoryrhetoric will do its intended work hewill convince a lot of people to sign onto his anchor baby bill, making thecitizenship process so difficult that ille-gal immigrants [will] pull up anchor

and leave.

Never mind that undocumentedimmigrants are not eligible for publicaid programs like welfare, foodstamps, public housing, or Medicaid.Never mind that the majority of un-documented workers have Social Secu-rity, Medicare, and income taxes de-ducted from their payroll (even thoughthey are ineligible for any Social Secu-rity or Medicare benefits and for almostall of the federal and state governmentbenefits funded by income taxes).

It seems that fear is all over thisissue: immigrants living in fear, Ameri-cans living in fear. Some of the fear isjustified; most of it isnt.

But for Christians who care aboutthis issue and the people affected by it,the way of Jesus offers a way out of the

fear. Perfect love casts out all pho-bos (1 John 4:18). Jesus, who as an im-migrant child fled with his family fromthe authorities, calms our phobiasabout strangers by coming to us as one- by being present in those whofrighten and unsettle us, in the de-spised and rejected among us.

The children of immigrants put ahuman face on this contentious issue,but it is not a face that should engenderpity or sentimentality. In the gospels,when Jesus takes a little child in hisarms and says whoever welcomesone such child in my name welcomes

me, he is not waxing romantic aboutthe innocence of children. He is sayingsomething about the subversive natureof the kingdom of God: that the firstwill be last; that the lowly will be liftedup; that the powerless will receivepower; that the status quo will be dis-rupted.

He is saying that immigrants children and parents and whole fami-lies are to be loved, not feared. Lovecasts out fear. This is the way of Jesus,the way of love, and when we dare towalk it, the kingdom of God is near.

Debra Dean Murphy is assistantprofessor of religion at West VirginiaWesleyan College.

http://blog.sojo.net

Immigration, Children, and the Way of Jesusby Debra Dean Murphy


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Every once in a while I get an aha moment and I cantturn my mind off, thus preventing me from a good nightssleep. Last nights aha moment came as I was reflectingon the issue of comprehensive immigration reform.

The tendency of faith leaders advocating for a compas-sionate approach to immigrants is to appeal to the numer-ous be kind to strangers texts in theHebrew Scriptures. The problem withthis approach is that it elicits a univer-sal response from the other side, Yes,but those were legal immigrants. Imtalking about illegal immigrants. Sinceillegal immigrants are lawbreakers,they shouldnt have any rights. And ifyou think they should, youre just an-other godless liberal seeking to under-

mine the moral fabric of Americaetc., etc.

It occurred to me that one of the most famous and be-loved women in the entire Bible was an illegal immi-grant. Her name was Ruth.

Im not making this up. Deuteronomy 23:3 is clear, AnAmmonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of theLord; even to the tenth generation none of his descendantsshall enter the assembly of the Lord forever. If youre stillnot convinced that descendants of Moab were ordered to

be excluded from the congregation of Israel, take a look atverse 6, which says, You shall not seek their peace nor

their prosperity alltheir days forever.

With this in mind,isnt it strange thatthe hero in thestory of Ruth is

Boaz, a man that showed kindness to a Moabite woman?We look at the story today and know intuitively that Boazwas a hero, but we often forget that Boaz could have very

well been considered a villain to the religious leaders of hisday. After all, they might have said, the law forbids peoplelike Ruth from being included in Israeli society and theywould have been right.

Kind of strange, isnt it? God writes a law and then com-mends people for breaking it? I can think of two other ex-amples where this strange paradox occurs.

One example is Joseph, the husband of Mary.Once Joseph discovered that his wife was pregnantwith an illegitimate child, the Law of Moses saidthat Mary should have been stoned (Deuteronomy22:20-21). Isnt it a little odd then that the HolySpirit, speaking through Matthew, calls Joseph ajust man because he wanted to put her away se-

cretly? (Matthew 1:19) Orhow about when Jesus com-mended David for doingwhat was unlawful hisword, not mine on theSabbath because of a press-ing human need? (Mark2:25-26)

Yes, were supposed to

respect the law, and Im notsaying that undocumentedimmigrants are right to

break into the United States illegally (I happen tobelieve that nations do have a right to protect theirborders); but there comes a time when we have toask the question of how much should respect forthe law determine a Christians response to thosethat suffer from economic forces beyond their con-trol? Lets not forget that it was famine and death(read: economic hardship) that compelled Ruth tomigrate with her mother-in-law Naomi. The same story

could be told millions of times over today.

If God commended people for breaking Gods ownlaws because of compassion for their fellow human beings,what might God think of people today that challenge hu-man laws for reasons of compassion? Think about it.

http://blog.sojo.net

Ruth was a Moabite Illegal Immigrantby Aaron Taylor

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God commended peoplefor breaking Gods ownlaws out of compassion.


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Trinity Episcopal ChurchOne Trinity Plaza Toledo, Ohio 43604-1585

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Becky Roth, EditorEmail: [email protected] deadline: 20th of the month

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servicesSUNDAYS 10:00 am, Holy Eucharist

HOLY DAYS as announced

prayersRemember those for whom our prayers have been requested: Alexis Bueche-Hall, Hank Coyle, Herb Landis, Susan Lowrey, Julie Napier, Siobhan Patterson, NancyPaulas; the children and staff of Emanuel Childrens Home, especially David and Estrella;the vestry; the Church Health Team; those on death row, including William Garner, whois scheduled to be executed by the state of Ohio on July 13; all victims of war andviolence; our ministry with CaterMe; Cedar Hills Camp & Conference Center, as itenters its 16th season of camp and 50th year of serving the diocesan family.

In thanksgiving for the birth of Andrew Logan Alcroft, son of Todd & Sara Alcroft.

Prayers for those who have died: Gordon McIntosh (Marjorie McIntosh), Carlos

Josue Osequera Lopez Trochez (the Emanuel Childrens Home family)

*vision & missionTrinity is called to be a progressive, inclusive, creative urban faith community. We will practice radical hospitality.

We will be engaged in the life of our city.

We will stand with those in need: the poor, the sick, the friendless, the marginalized.

We will actively invite all to experience and celebrate Gods living presence.

We will journey together toward a Christ-centered life, pursuing personal ministries

that connect us to God, to one another, and to the world around us.

july 2010 trinity topics newsletter, trinity toledo episcopal church

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