November 2015 message

November 2015 • Volume 17, Number 6

Two Tables Blessing of the Pets in honor of St. Francis

Advent Dreams: 2 Getting to Know Rob: 4 CEC Youth Players Production: 9 The Year of the Women: 11 From the Rector’s Book Stack: 13 Fall Photo Album: 15

FROM

Dreaming

In this issue:

This is first in a series of ten essays that Patrick will write on the lesser-known stained-glass windows in the nave of Christ Church.

Meet Our Clergy ................... 4 Music Ministry....................... 6

I

was living the dream, albeit a very bad one.

Youth Ministry ...................... 6 Family Ministry .................... 8 Our Church Life ................... 9 Strategic Planning..............12 Great Commission..............12 Page Turners.......................13 Calendar of Events.............14

Sunday Services: 7:30 a.m.

Holy Eucharist, Rite 1 9:00 a.m.

Family-friendly Communion Service with Music 10:00 a.m.

Christian Education for Children, Youth, and Adults 11:00 a.m.

Choral Eucharist, Rite 2 6:00 p.m.

Holy Eucharist, Rite 2 Visit us on-line at www.cecsa.org

Front cover photo by Gretchen Duggan Back cover photo by Halleta Heinrich

2

PATRICK GAHAN Rector patrickg@cecsa.org

The economy had sunk precipitously in the Deep South that summer I graduated

from high school. I could not garner my customary job as a laborer on a construction crew, employment that allowed for hard physical work and variety amidst the fresh outdoors. The job I eventually landed did not.

After a week of inquiries, d e a d - e n d s , and groveling, I signed on at Rohn-Vulcan, a metal fabrication company that constructed galvanized TV towers, when the world still needed such things.

The workday at the factory was agonizingly predictable.

For eight straight hours, I wrestled with the same, monstrous, greasy, hot, and loud fabricating machine in a dark, airless, Quonset hut building. The irony of the work is that it was utterly mindless, and yet it demanded my rapt attention, lest the behemoth machine wolf down one of my fingers or worse. Monday through Friday, we worked from 7 AM to 3:30 PM and on Saturday’s from 7 AM to 12 Noon. Even when I was away from the factory, I could not escape it. The galvanized grease from the machinery

and materials was impossible to wash off of my body and clothes. The silvery gray pigment and sour smell accompanied me right out of the shower, on dates with Kay, and into the bed at night. This ever-pervasive, dreary existence was an indomitable catalyst propelling me into college.

Most of the men at Rohn-Vulcan had endured the suffocating tedium for well over two decades.

My ninety days amongst them was like a summer vacation in hell. Yet while on assignment in the worst part of the factory, the paint shed, I received the call that would conclusively change my life.

Only Dante could have predicted the acrid perdition of the notorious paint shed. While the factory could easily heat to temperatures of well over 100 degrees in August, the paint shed would often measure 120 degrees during the same time.

Furthermore, the reeking chemical smell of the enamel would set your lungs afire.

On that particular afternoon, I had been taking 12foot, searing hot galvanized cylinders off the conveyer belt and placing them in cardboard boxes for shipping. Soaked from “stem to stern” with sweat, nauseous from the smell and the heat, and my back rebelling against the repeated unnatural movements, I suddenly had a dream.

I heard a call. The message was short and clear, “You will serve Me.” Up to

From Our Rector... that point, I had never experienced an ounce of an epiphany. To be absolutely forthright, at eighteen, I maintained a big, bold billboard across my life to put God on notice – “NO TRESPASSING!” Sadly, my life was solely fueled with highoctane testosterone, which determined

“Joseph had been awakened by God’s call to shepherd the Christ child for the residue of his life..” the holy trinity of ambitions, 1. Girls; 2.

Football; 3. Girls, in that order. I only petitioned God to conjure up dates for me on Friday nights, manufacture a hundred yards of pass receptions on Saturday afternoons, and deliver a case of influenza to my Trigonometry teacher on Monday mornings. The fact that God would actually want something from me was, at the same time, mystifying and terrifying. Surely He had not sunk so low in His talent pool to summon the ego-centric, narcissistic, and utterly selfish rising college freshman, who was mindlessly plodding away on the paint line in a dank Pinson, Alabama factory.

Nevertheless, I drove home that afternoon to tell my mom that God had called. Most telling is that she also thought God had reached the wrong number. I conceded, however, that the Lord had decided I was to be a physician, for that was about the only useful thing I figured God-lovers did – heal people. Mother then reminded me that I had never demonstrated an iota of aptitude for science. Flummoxed, I spent the next two weeks trying to talk myself out of the fact God had called me to be a priest, and subsequently spent the next ten years running away from the call. “Lord, make me a soldier, a football coach, a journalist – make me anything but a pastor in a church.” Now it was God who wasn’t listening, and the bad dream persisted.

Joseph wakes up in a bad dream, too.

He wasn’t toiling in some b-grade factory, but he was laboring in the backwoods town of Nazareth, the brunt

of first century Middle-Eastern Aggie jokes. “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (JN 1:46). At last, Joseph is on the brink of breaking the tedium of his life in his approaching marriage to the fair young maiden Mary. Then he learns that she is not so fair and certainly not a maiden. He had been cold-cocked cuckolded due to some Galilean hanky-panky. Joseph awoke in a bad dream, and if things couldn’t get any worse, God commands him “not to fear but take Mary for his wife…”(MT 1:20). His plans to quietly run away had been dashed. Joseph had been awakened by God’s call to shepherd the Christ child for the residue of his life.

to his appeals, to grow cold to his advances is to slowly wither, so that our life resembles a single raisin left on a dinner plate. As Gertrude Stein (18741946) starkly commented in her 1946 novella, Brewsie and Willie, “You’ll be old and you never lived, and you feel kind of silly to lay down and die and to never have lived, to have been a job chaser and never have lived.”1

Secondly, I must add that God calls every Christian to some higher purpose.

Ordained people, such as myself, act merely as pointers, signposts, and sticky notes that remind us that no matter what occupation we fill, it can be transformed into vocation. In We can catch a glimpse of Joseph’s other words, what “occupies” most of awakening every Sunday as we make our waking hours can be converted our way into the nave at Christ Church by God into that new version of selfto worship. The window right beside understanding and practice He “calls” the front left pew is the Annunciation us to (vocare = to call). About the same Window. Mary takes center stage panel, time I was slogging away in that factory, looking regal, resplendent, and entirely the sub-dean of the National Cathedral at peace, as Gabriel lays the news on wrote, “Every work from unskilled labor her that she will be a fourteen year- to research science can be God’s will for old, unmarried pregnant girl, running a person. The dream is recovered every around in year during a village this Advent “Every work from unskilled labor to w h e r e season, the research science can be God’s will there are season that no secrets. that for a person. The dream is recovered declares “I am the God was once L o r d ’ s a schoolboy, every year during this Advent servant,” a carpenter, season, the season that declares s h e a doctor, a submits, that God was once a schoolboy, a teacher, and a “may it be preacher. His carpenter, a doctor, a teacher, and a children are with me as you have preacher. His children are meant to meant to work said” (LK joyously, work joyously, not to drag out their not to drag 1:38). Just underneath out their days in some occupational trap.” t h a t days in some centerpiece occupational pane of stained glass is the diminutive trap.” one of Joseph being roused from his dream. Understated or not, God’s call Not one of us was uniquely fashioned to Joseph resonates with most every by God to muddle through our days Christian. We imagined our life was in uninspired drudgery. If the truth be headed one way, when God steps in and known, you and I are the dreams God changes its course. has been dreaming. If we don’t yet accept that, it is high time we wake up!

Lest I make God’s call sound like drudgery, I must quickly declare that Your brother, no adventure in life compares to one Patrick U lived in obedience to His plan. To ignore God’s entreaty, to become deaf 1 Gertrude Stein, Brewsie and Willie (New York, Random House: 1946)

3

MEET

An Interview

with

Rob Harris

Last year in the spring issues of The Message, we presented interviews with Patrick Gahan and Scott Kitayama where we gained insight into their views on faith. In our continuing quest to get to know more about the clergy serving our parish, we present an interview with our newest clergyman, Rob Harris.

Tutu and was confirmed by Bishop Maurice Benitez. Can anything good happen in Silsbee? Surprisingly, the answer is yes!

Editor: Tell us about your childhood and about the faith life of your family.

Rob Harris: Faith and faithfulness has always meant a lot to my family.

I come from a long line of Southern Baptists and my family are the only Episcopalians in the bunch. My family decided to make the move from their Baptist roots when one day an ad in the paper struck their eye: “Come to St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. I am Claude Payne, the Rector, and I will meet you at the front door.” My parents decided to give it a try. Lo and behold, Reverend Payne met them at the front door but what met them inside made all the difference. The quiet reverence of the sanctuary was a big change from the gregarious nature of the Baptist congregation. The mystery that settled over that sacred space and the order with which the service flowed caused them to fall in love. I was baptized by Reverend Payne at St. Mark’s Church (he later became Bishop of the Diocese of Texas) in Beaumont, but I was raised in a small Southeast Texas town, Silsbee, Texas, and it was there that my formative years took place. It was at St. John’s that I received First Communion from no other than Bishop Desmond

4

St. John’s Episcopal Church in Silsbee was a small mission church of about 30 souls per Sunday when my family joined in the mid 1970’s. I grew up at St. John’s serving as an acolyte most every Sunday. I attended Sunday School most every Sunday as well and often it was just the priest and me reading the Good News Bible. It seemed our family was there every time the doors opened.

My father was a lay reader, a vestry member, a stewardship chairman, diocesan council delegate, and so much more. My mother served on the Altar Guild. My father also helped to form the first interdenominational food bank in Silsbee, the Christian Care Center. I remember scraping paint on that old house that would serve as the outreach center. I remember days spent at the church on parish-wide work days. I remember ice cream socials on the lawn and singing in the choir at Midnight Mass on Christmas. My time at St. John’s was an intimate time in which I learned what it meant to be a community of faith.

Faith and commitment to faithfulness was always a hallmark of my family.

Editor: When and how did you come to faith in Jesus Christ? How did your new faith change your life?

Rob Harris: I was drawn to Jesus as a child, but fell away from my faith in my High School years and on into my early twenties. I was drawn into a lifestyle of excess and indulgence that lasted for at least ten years. These are the “Dark Ages” of my journey. This was a time of separation. I separated myself from my family, my old friends, any positive influence, and most importantly my God. This was not simply a time of pushing things away, but a true period of open rebellion. I waged a war on all

that was good in my life and derided faith as, at best, a ludicrous fantasy and, at worst, a life sucking slavery.

But, praise God, I finally hit the bottom of the barrel. It was after an especially grueling two days that I hid under the covers and had a dream that has impacted my life ever since. I dreamed that I was sitting in bed and loved ones were bringing me presents. I responded to each gift with screams and profanity, throwing the gifts back at my loved ones who ran out in fear. After many of these encounters, the room filled with smoke and the crucified Christ appeared in the fog. He reached out his nail stamped hands to me, looking deeply into my heart with his sad but inviting eyes. As he reached out further to me I woke up and immediately knelt by my bed in prayer. I have not been the same since. This began my journey of reconciliation within myself, with my family, and with my God. Editor: What drew you to The Episcopal Church and what later drew you into the ordained ministry?

Rob Harris: I grew up in The Episcopal Church and have never considered departing from the Anglican tradition. I think I have been drawn to the ordained ministry throughout my entire life, even from my mother’s womb. I was adopted at birth from an Episcopal adoption agency. Because of my birth through our denomination, my parents gave the Episcopal church a chance. I often say my parents were my first act of denominational evangelism and I did the work straight from the womb!

By the time I was five years old, I had memorized the Prayer Book and I remember one Sunday the priest exclaiming, “I wish everyone could respond with as much gusto as young Rob Harris!” Worship became an important part of my life. I was drawn to the liturgy.

Our Clergy..

Editor: How has your faith in Christ affected your family life and you in particular?

An example of this would be the occasion of receiving my first BB gun one Christmas. I shot cans, tree stumps, leaves off trees, and the like.

But that got boring over time. I decided I was going to go after some live game so I shot a little bird from one of our sprawling oak trees. I immediately felt remorse wash over me. I retrieved that little bird and placed him in a match box. I got the cincture from my bathrobe and draped it around my neck like a stole, opened my prayer book and performed the burial rite for that little blue jay. It was my first “priestly” act.

After my sojourn in “hedonism,” I was drawn back to the liturgy again. I speak not only of the prayers we say on Sunday, but to a way of living that puts flesh on the liturgy. My journey has been one of darkness and light; death and resurrection; separation and reconciliation; and the pilgrimage from brokenness to blessing. These are the movements of the liturgy. These are the mysteries that take place in the Divine Liturgy with which we join with heaven each Sunday. I feel that my life has been an outward and visible sign (a grace) of the sacrament. What better way to use what I’ve been given, but to live a life of sacramental obedience to God as a servant in his church. A priest is to be a symbol of God’s forgiveness for the world in Christ Jesus and that divine grace is the gift that I have to show forth from my life.

Rob Harris: My wife, Kelly, and I met on a Vocare weekend at the Diocese of Texas’ camping center, Camp Allen, around 1997.

Vocare is a retreat weekend much like Cursillo and Happening, but for college-age students.

She was at Texas A&M and I was at Lamar University at the time. We were friends for some time, but grew closer as the years of staffing Vocares drew on. We dated for some time, and during that period, Kelly applied for Holy Orders in the Diocese of West Texas. She speedily made it through the many interviews and “interrogations” that take place on that journey and was finally at the last step…and I proposed. The bishop encouraged her to live into her calling as a spouse for a while before continuing and she finally decided that she was not called to Holy Orders but to a specialized ministry of Counseling.

On September 8, 2011, we got married at Camp Allen, by Bishop Leo Alard, Suffragan Bishop of Texas, and it has been a wild, loving ride. Needless to say, our shared faith in Jesus Christ, has always been crucial.

Kelly and I are partners in ministry in every sense of the word and made a commitment when we decided to raise children that they too would be

nourished within the community of faith.

My faith in Christ Jesus is what sustains me. My faith has borne me through the trials of identity crisis, depression, anxiety, broken relationships and the rest. My faith has always drawn me to the promise of Scripture that “when I am weak and call upon the Lord, I will be made strong.” Hebrews says that “faith is belief in things not seen” and that is true. But, on my faith journey, I have seen: a foretaste of the glory of the Lord, the healing balm of the Lord, and the call of the Lord who bids us all, “Follow me.” I try every day to answer that call. Of course, some days I do a better job than others. Nevertheless, my faith teaches me that even in the depths of despair and failure, my Lord waits with me as surely as he does in gladness and that has affected me greatly. Because it is not about me, but life is about how well I lean upon Him. It’s a “practice of the presence of God” as Brother Lawrence describes. I have found that when you practice that… the affect is always resurrection and blessing…and that is very effective.

5

MINISTRY Anticipation “Choral music is not one of life’s frills. It’s something that goes to the very heart of our humanity, our sense of community, and our souls. You express, when you sing, your soul in song. And when you get together with a group of other singers, it becomes more than the sum of the parts. All of those people are pouring out their hearts and souls in perfect harmony, which is kind of an emblem for what we need in this world, when so much of the world is at odds with itself…that just to express, in symbolic terms, what it’s like when human beings are in harmony. That’s a lesson for our times and for all time. I profoundly believe that” – John Rutter

A

d v e n t JOSH BENNINGER is swiftly Director of Music approaching, and Worship and with this joshb@cecsa.org comes the anticipation of Christmas, and of course, Lessons and Carols! The first Festival of Lessons Carols was performed in 1918 at King’s College. It is traditionally performed as a Christmas Eve service. The lessons and music move devotionally from the season of Advent into Christmastide.

On December 13, at both the 9 AM and 11 AM services, members of the San Antonio Symphony, Christ Episcopal Church adult and children’s choirs and guests will perform the following selections at the 2015 Advent Service of Lessons and Carols: “Lo! How a rose e’er blooming” by Hugo Distler (Adult Quartet) “Behold” by David Kauffman

“How will we know him”

by Charlotte Algozin (Mastersingers) “Christmas Night” by John Rutter “Sure On This Shining Night”

by Morten Lauridsen “This Christmastide”

by Donald Fraser From Handel’s Messiah: “Rejoice greatly” “For unto us a child is born” “Hallelujah” If you have not yet experienced the grandeur and majesty of this worship service, then please make it a priority to be here. The only regret you will have is if you don’t go!

Parish Christmas Dinner Prior to Lessons and Carols, the adult choir will sing a few songs and lead us all in our favorite Christmas carols at the Parish Christmas Dinner on December 9 at 6:00 PM.

Josh Benninger

MINISTRY

Confirmation: Are

C

onfirmation is a sacrament of the church in which the baptized renew their baptismal vows. Further, in the Confirmation Rite, the bishop lays hands on the candidate and prays that God’s Holy Spirit will descend upon them in a tangible and powerful way (see Acts 9).

As is true of all the seven sacraments of the church, the “doing” of the ritual is not nearly as important as the “being.”

We recognize sacraments as “outward and visible signs of an inward spiritual grace.” As such, in a Rite of Confirmation we ritualize that which has already begun in the heart of the seeker.

Therefore, Confirmation is not something to be entered into

6

you

READY?

lightly or unadvisedly. It is not the ritual that saves, but the heart called and prepared by God. Confirmation requires a big commitment, not only of your spirit but also of your time. Attendance in classes and participation in the retreat is mandatory. Any absences must be excused by Rob Harris.

If you are ready to undertake this holy journey, contact Rob Harris at robh@cecsaorg. Confirmation classes begin January 10 and run through April 3. Additionally, a Confirmation Retreat will be held on April 8-9. The date for Confirmation this Spring is April 10.

Rob Harris

Youth Ministry...

Serving Christ

I

t has been a great honor to accept the call as the Minister to Youth at Christ Episcopal Church and serve alongside each one of you as we GAVIN ROGERS look to transform Youth Minister this community gavinr@cecsa.org and the lives of families and students living in San Antonio. I believe that we stand at the brink of transformation for the youth program at Christ Church, but I know that we all play a role in helping lead the movement of spreading the peace and love of God to our youth and families.

What a joy it has been to get to know your students on Sunday mornings, at lunch, Sunday Fundays, and various sporting events around San Antonio.

Please know that we are here for your students in all aspects of their lives. If there is a special event your student is participating in, please feel free to invite us so we can come support and

and

Your Kids

encourage them! Below check out our photos from our last Sunday Funday event at the South Texas Corn Maize.

We had a blast getting lost in the corn‌ but we all made it back safely!

Over the last month Rob Harris, the Renovation Team and I have focused on building a strong foundation for our youth program so we can consistently build a stronger youth group. I have recently formed a Youth Ministry Advisory Team of parents and volunteers to help guide our program into the next stage of growth.

Recently, Father Patrick and I finalized the call of Ms. Lena Bozzo as our new Assistant Youth Minister. Lena will be a very engaging youth minister (especially to our girls!) and will make a huge spiritual impact on the lives of our students. She will be graduating from Colorado State University this fall and will begin working with our church just before Christmas!

With our team in place, we are in a good position to make great improvements in the years to come. Please take a look at our final year-long calendar for the

Welcome to Lena, our new Youth Ministry Assistant youth department. We know you have seen previous copies floating around so please keep this calendar and plan to attend any of the events we offer! For up-to-the-date information, please visit us at www.cecsa.org/youth. We are here to serve you and your family.

Gavin

7

MINISTRY Y’all Come

on

Down

the

Bethlehem Trail

T

he children of Christ Church will be presenting ‘The Bethlehem Trail’ Christmas Pageant Sunday, December 6 as their Advent/ Christmas Gift to HALLETA Jesus and their HEINRICH church family Director of during the 11 AM Family Ministries service.

As usual, halletah@cecsa.org the nativity story from the Gospel of Luke will be central to the pageant, but our surrounding setting will be taken from the story

by Louis A. Towson “The Bethlehem Trail.” In “The Bethlehem Trail,” Cowboys gather around the campfire at Christmas recounting in their own fashion the story of the first Christmas.

A few of our favorite Cowboys will be narrating the pageant, so you don’t

Time

to

and Second Graders will be Cowboy Stars and Cowgirl Angels.

Third Graders will be Cowgirls and Cowboys.

Fourth Graders will be Wranglers shepherding all the animals.

Cowboys (above), Cowboy Stars and Cowgirl Angels (below) from the 2011 production. want to miss!

Our Fifth Graders will be the stars of the pageant playing the Nativity characters.

Preschoolers will play Manger Animals including Texas Longhorns. First

Sing

T

he Junior Daughters of the King will go Christmas Caroling on Saturday, December 12th! Yes, that is the same day as the Lessons and Carols dress rehearsal. I did that on purpose. When the dress rehearsal is over, we will have lunch and our Christmas party at the church.

Please bring 2 dozen cookies. We will put the cookies together on plates and we will give those plates to the people we visit. After we have finished “partying,” we will visit some of the elderly in our church and sing Christmas Carols to them. Many of you have said that this is your favorite event of the year and I would have to agree.

All girls 3rd grade through high school are welcome to join the Junior Daughters.

Please let me know if you can come or not. If you have any questions, please feel free to call/text me at (210) 383-5236, or email me at lily.celtic@gmail.com.

Lily Fenton

8

Get your western gear together to wear to the pageant on December 6.

A Texas Style Reception for the parish honoring our Christmas Pageant Stars will follow the 11 AM service.

Halleta

The Children will collect the “Bibles for our Troops” envelopes at the pageant on Sunday, December 6 at 11 AM. For just $5 a Bible will be sent to one of our troops for Christmas.

SAMMinistries Dinner

O ur annual SAMMinistries Christmas Dinner will be held on Sunday, December 6 from 5-7 PM in the Parish Hall. As you may know, SAMMinistries provides transitional housing and support to families in need. We hope you will consider shepherding a SAMMinistry family, buying Christmas gifts or making a donation.

If you have any questions, please contact Laura Heinrich at 210-3152288 or lauraandkatetoo@aol.com; Catherine Markette at 210-2609399 or cmarkette@satx.rr.com; or Julie Zacher at 210-396-6615 or jmzacher@sbcglobal.net.

“The Reform

of

Food Pantry Christmas Lunch

T

he Hospitality Food Pantry will be holding its 15th Annual Christmas Luncheon on Saturday, December 5, 2015, from 11 AM – 1 PM in the Parish Hall.

Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

Luke 14:12-14.

We are inviting Christ Church parishioners to join us in volunteering to serve our guests and to provide holiday home-baked desserts such as cookies, brownies etc…, and to assist with various crafts for the children. Parishioners are encouraged to sit down with our guests and enjoy a meal with them. Come and be blessed!

For information, please call Tina Honsaker at 859-5062 or Rita Millwater at 534-7042.

Emma Lisa Scrimp”- A Dramatic Family Advent Event Sam Roark, Luz Peche, Eloise Flannery, Jesus Peche, Halen White, Andrew Barton, Gavin Rogers, and Dave Pate.

Halleta is planning for audience members to be treated to Christmas cookies, punch and coffee.

Karla Clayton Pollock CEC PLAYERS Director

(***Still photos and video taping WILL be allowed during the performance, so parents...... bring your cameras!!!!!)

T

he play “The Reform of Emma Lisa Scrimp,” a delightful modern take-off of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” has been chosen for this year’s CEC ADVENT production featuring the young people of this wonderful Parish to entertain us, fill us with the spirit of Christmas, and give our newly formed CEC YOUTH PLAYERS group an opportunity to demonstrate their acting talents!

The performance is scheduled for December 20, 2015 at 10 AM in the Parish Hall. All regular Sunday School classes will break so that everyone may attend the performance. Plan to support our energetic young cast: Olivia Barton, Emma Barton, Alyssa Currier, Lauren White, Olivia Wymer, Will Flannery, Don Flannery, Bob Kaiser,

The cast from the 2014 production of “A Christmas Carol”

9

Our Church Life...

The Christ Church Bible Study

and

Preaching Series

Advent - Epiphany 2015-2016: Becoming People of God

C

hristians are BECOMING the people of God because God BECAME one of us!

In the months of October – December our little family of five has birthdays. Abigail’s celebration is in October; Kelly, Caroline, and Jake (our English bulldog) have birthdays in November; and the anniversary of my birth takes place right in the heart of Advent, on December 20th. As these birthday months arrive each year, Kelly and I tend to get a bit nostalgic as we look at old photos of our kids. They grow up so fast! From infants to little girls and boys, they are all truly BECOMING something far greater and more mysterious as the years progress.

The Gospel of John states that, “…the word BECAME flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). This is a fundamental doctrine of Christianity: that God became a human that we might BECOME like God. This statement is not as controversial as it may at first appear. Why did God come in Christ Jesus but that we might be delivered from the bondage of our sins and thereby BECOME as God (e.g. full of love, full of truth, without sin.) The COMNG of Christ is not a tepid occurrence but a radical, messy, and reality-altering event. It changes the whole game and, without his coming then in the manger and his COMING again at the final consummation of his creation, we would never mature beyond infants. But with Christ we have the opportunity to grow into “…the full measure of the blessing of Christ” (Romans 15:29).

10

In this season of Advent and Christmas let us examine just what we are BECOMING. Are we just crying infants, revolting teenagers, adolescent adults, or are we maturing into that dream to which God calls us? Christ BECAME a man that we might BECOME like him. Let’s make that a priority this season!

Blessings,

Rob W

Sunday, November 29

Advent 1

Luke 21:25-36

Christians stay ALERT.

Sunday, December 6

Advent 2

Luke 3:1-6

Christians SPEAK UP.

Sunday, December 13

Advent 3

Luke 3:7-18

Christians BEAR FRUIT.

Sunday, December 20

Advent 4

Luke 1:39-45 (46-55) Christians MAGNIFY the Lord.

Sunday, December 27

Christmas 1

John 1:1-18

Christians RECEIVE and BELIEVE

Sunday, January 3

Christmas 2

Luke 2:41-52

Christians SEEK.

Sunday, January 10

Epiphany 1

Luke 3:15-17, 21-22 Christians EXPECT God to act.

Sunday, January 17

Epiphany 2

John 2:1-11

Christians DO what Jesus says.

Our Church Life...

2016 will be the Year of the Women Purpose: To encourage women in all seasons of life to connect with each other and develop their relationship with God as passionate followers of Christ Goals: • To build relationships among the women • To encourage involvement of every woman • To be united together in Christ through fellowship, spiritual growth and service

T

he plan outlined above heralds the birth and launches 2016 as the year of Christ Church Women (CCW), a new but old organization at Christ Episcopal Church, one which combines many of the events and services of these earlier groups into one larger group for women of all ages and interests. In our

parish there are currently 567 women ranging in age from 21-100+. Christ Church Women will provide a venue for all of us to get to know one another, praying, studying, working and serving the parish as a cohesive unit of many ages, gifts and talents. In short, many good things have been done, are being done, and will be done when CCW joins all of us together.

Park. Guest Speaker Marsha Martin, who will be speaking on an old West African proverb, “One Finger Cannot gather Pebbles,” has been a missionary and teacher in Africa and inner cities in the United States. She is currently a linguist and translator of Scripture into the four language groups of Uganda, an undertaking which will be published in 2016.

Our first event, the Christ Church Women’s Fall Fiesta at La Fonda on November 3 was a great success. There were over 100 ladies of all ages mixing and mingling over yummy appetizers.

Plan to join us for upcoming events.

Wednesday, January 6: CCW Luncheon Launch at 11:30 AM in the Parish Hall.

Patrick will present Guest Speaker Mary Parmer, a nationally known motivational speaker, who will address the gathering on church hospitality and creating an effective welcome for visitors and new members of the parish.

Calendar

of

Events – Save

the

Dates!

Thursday, December 3: Christmas Coffee Fireside Chat, 10 AM at Kay Bashara’s, 111 Parklane Drive, Olmos

Thursday, April 7: Spring Tea at the home of Liecie Hollis, 720 Ivy Lane.

11

Master Facilities Planning

I

n the September Message, I focused on the one page “Vision Document” (which can be found on page 2 of the full Strategic Plan*) and mentioned that various goals and objectives flowed from that statement. To be specific there are six: Youth, Christian Formation, Pastoral Care, Ministries, Foundational, and Master Facilities Planning (pages 5-12 of the Strategic Plan). In each Message, I will feature one of these areas.

In this issue I want to focus on Master Facilities Planning.

Its stated goal is to “Develop a Facilities Plan to optimize facilities supporting the Core Values and Strategic Priorities” (page 12) found in the Vision Document. To that end, the Master Facilities Planning subcommittee, chaired by Vernon Torgeson, solicited bids from several architectural/planning firms and made recommendations to the Vestry. In its September meeting, the Vestry selected the firm of RVK as architects and Pape-Dawson Engineers as civil engineering consultants.

RVK will prepare a master plan for the use of our entire facilities (including the Thunderbird apartments) in a variety of areas: youth, children, future expansion, outreach, and so forth. By interviewing various “stakeholders” – that is, representatives of ministries, members of the Vestry, and staff – the firm will help us to help them outline our needs.

This approach is quite common for churches.

After gathering this information, RVK will use its vast experience to translate those needs into a detailed plan of concrete recommendations (and alternatives) for the Vestry to ponder. RVK expects to have its proposals to us by the end of the year. Stay tuned.

John Boyce

Chairman, Strategic Planning * To access the Strategic Plan go to: http://www.cecsa.org/ about/ and click on the “Strategic Plan” button on the lower right of the page.

SOCIETY

A Lasting Impression

B

first days in the Church as one where the pastor exuded amplified joy and extended unconcealed love to her and to all children. The lasting impression I wish to make on them is that God and the Christian fellowship of adults who surround them at Christ Church cherish them beyond all measure. If that is the impression we make, the children’s internal compasses will always lead them back into the “everlasting arms” of Christ and his Church, no matter how far afield they wander.

udding second grade artist, Maddie Hunt, daughter of Maggie Riley, drew this portrait of me during evening worship on All Saints’ Day. I don’t have to guess what impression I’ve made on this seven-year-old. I’m somewhere between a roundish Friar Tuck and a googly-eyed Cookie Monster. What I lack in physical allure, however, I seem to make up for in personal warmth.

Maddie draws me with an expansive smile, whose corners point perfectly east and west to my exaggerated ears.

The days following All Saints’ mark an ideal time for all of us to take an earnest and honest personal inventory.

What kind of lasting impression will we leave with those who have loved us and depended on us? Once we depart for the other side of the “veil,” we hope those who have journeyed with us will recall our warmth, sincerity, and generosity.

But are we leaving any measurable imprints on their lives and the larger life of the parish we have shared?

Of course, that is how I want Maddie to think of me. I want her to recall her

Let’s remember that when we die, our faithful giving to the ministry, mission,

12

and upkeep of the parish dies with us.

Don’t imagine for a moment that the “distance” is easily made up by others.

Thus, if you have not already done so, I urge you to make provision for Christ Church in your will and testamentary giving. You and I will join others if we do so. In just the past six months, $459,000 has either been given or pledged to the Christ Church Endowment for our Buildings and Grounds. (Now you know another reason why my smile is so BIG!) Recall that we are trying to raise $3 million dollars for the Buildings and Grounds endowment over the next few years. If we are successful, the longterm maintenance and enhancement of our beautiful campus will never be in jeopardy. Recall, too, that if you wish to go ahead and make a gift to this fund, a family of Christ Church will match your gift dollar-for-dollar up to $100,000.

After all, it is never too late to make a lasting impression.

Your brother,

Patrick U

Our Church Life..

PAGE TURNERS – From

A

Time of Gifts, by Patrick Leigh Fermor is a book that I have sipped and savored for over two months. The book is Fermor’s travelogue of his trek on foot through Europe in 1933, when he was only eighteen. He begins in the “Hook of Holland” and sets out to walk all the way to Constantinople.

So much of what the young man sees, the glittering remnants of monarchial Europe, the towering vaults of medieval cathedrals, the expansive monasteries, the agrarian villages would no longer exist when he finally published his book in 1977. To that point, I learned about the book through an online course I took this summer from Yale University on late medieval history.

Three things I should note about this book. Fermor is best known for his World War II heroics impersonating a Greek shepherd for weeks and hiding in caves until he could capture an important Nazi General and deliver him into the hands of the allies in 1942.

Secondly, do not attempt to read this book without a dictionary next to you.

Fermor uses the most extensive and evocative language I have ever enjoyed.

Thirdly, do not rush the reading of this book. Read it as you would an epic poem, for, in a way, that is what it is.

If you love Europe and the noble world of which we still catch glimpses, read this book.

The New Parish: How Neighborhood Churches Are Transforming Mission, Discipleship, and Community, by Paul Sparks, Tim Soerens, and Dwight Friesen is a book that has both captivated me and challenged me.

the

Rector’s Book Stack

These three very able Christian pastors assert, without apology or reservation, that the future of the church is not through its expansive reach but by being measurably present in the community where it is set. “Faithful presence” is what is needed from the parish today, declares the authors, and only that will dispel the destructive fragmentation all around us. The church must be a living sign to its community that God has not forgotten them and that He has plans for them personally and collectively. The authors challenge us to demonstrably exhibit the love of Christ right where the church-house is set: If love is not manifest concretely, toward real people and situations, it risks becoming just an ideology.

It risks turning into a moral code, a sentimental notion or, worse yet, a vision that co-opts actual presence. Living this way you become malformed by malpractice.

If you dare to read Follow the River,

by James Alexander Thom, give up your notions of Rambo, James Bond, and Dirty Harry as tough, because Mary Ingles is, without a doubt, the toughest of them all! Thom carefully chronicles the grueling, almost superhuman odyssey of Mary Ingles to return home.

In 1755, Mary was taken captive by Shawnee Indians at her pioneer home in present day Blacksburg, VA. Forced to watch the execution of adults and children, Mary and her two young sons were tortuously marched deep into the western wilderness. Mary was nine months pregnant at the time.

Finally escaping her captors, Mary travels on foot across some of the most inhospitable landscape in the eastern United States, surviving on walnuts, roots, paw-paws, and worms.

She becomes so malnourished along the way that her molars fall out each time she tries to gnaw on a root or nut.

Complicating the titanic trek is the growing madness of her companion, an older German woman, who begins to hungrily pursue Mary as her prey.

Of all people, petite, lady-like Gretchen

Duggan loaned me this book saying it was her favorite during her twenties. (I hazard to guess what she read in her thirties!) Seriously, this is a fine book and a window into the real world of our forebears in this land.

Parents and grandparents, if you read just one book this year to help you raise godly, moral, virtuous children, read If Aristotle’s Kid Had an iPod: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Parents,

by Conor Gallagher. Youth Pastor Gavin Rogers gave this book, among others, to all adults attending the Youth Ministry Celebration Dinner that was held on September 28. I took the volume home and was captivated after reading the first page. The author creatively entertains the reader, while at the same time, teaches the essential core truths proceeding from Aristotle (384-322 BC). As so much of the deeper Christian moral vision is informed by Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, this book is a rare treat and our children will be the beneficiaries.

An example of Gallagher’s enticing creativity is hallmarked in the introduction to the twelfth chapter of his volume, “The Cardinal Virtues: Opening and Closing the Door to Happiness: What do the ancient fable of the Ants and the Grasshopper, the Godgiven right to pizza delivery, the Mai Lai Massacre in Vietnam, and a sex scandal involving the greatest sports star of our time have to do with happiness? Everything, really.

See what I mean? Who would not read on? I did, and I clearly know the difference between “justice” and “rights,” why “prudence” is essential for true “courage,” and why “seeking pleasure and avoiding pain” is a recipe for a life of despair. I know our grandsons will benefit from my reading of this text. What about your children and grands?

Your brother,

Patrick U 13

OF EVENTS November 15: Musical Offerings Concert: Something for Everyone, 3 PM

Christ Church Staff:

November 18: Two Tables speaker - Anne Marie Sheffield on Prayer and

Miracles, 5:30 -7 PM

The Rev. Patrick Gahan, Rector patrickg@cecsa.org

November 22: 12 x 12 Outreach - Thanksgiving at St. Jude’s

The Rev. Scott Kitayama, Associate Rector, scottk@cecsa.org

November 26: Thanksgiving Day - Church Offices Closed November 27: Church Offices Closed

The Rev. Brien Koehler, Associate Rector for Mission and Formation, brienk@cecsa.org

November 29: Advent 1

YouthCarist in the Carriage House, 11 AM

Family pictures taken for Pictorial Directory

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

December 2:

Two Tables speaker - Dr. Duane Miller on the Bible in 15 Minutes, 5:30 - 7 PM

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

December 3:

Christ Church Women’s Christmas Coffee, 10 AM

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

December 5:

Christmas Pageant Practice 10 - 12 in the Sanctuary Food Pantry Christmas Luncheon 11 - 1

Lilly Fenton, Nursery Director lillyf@cecsa.org

December 6:

Advent 2 Rock-n-Roll Marathon - watch for street closures Children’s Christmas Pageant 11 AM SAMM Christmas Dinner

Gavin Rogers, Youth Minister gavinr@cecsa.org

December 9:

Parish Christmas Dinner 6 PM

December 13: Advent 3

Lessons & Carols 9 & 11 AM December 20: Advent 4 CEC Players Production: The Reform of Emma Lisa Scrimp, 10 AM

Deadline to register for Youth Confirmation in the spring December 24: Christmas Eve Services at 3, 5, 8 and 10 PM

Church Offices close at noon December 25: Christmas Day

Blessing of the Toys 10 AM

Church Offices closed December 31: New Year’s Eve

Church Offices close at noon

Joshua Benninger, Music Minister & Organist joshb@cecsa.org Ruth Berg, Director of Children’s Music, ruthb@cecsa.org Robert Hanley, Parish Administrator robert@hanleypmservices.com Darla Nelson, Office Manager darlan@cecsa.org Donna Shreve, Financial Manager donnas@cecsa.org Gretchen Comuzzi Duggan, Director of Communications, gretchend@cecsa.org Anna Jewell, Executive Assistant to the Rector, annaj@cecsa.org

January 1:

New Years Day - Church Offices Closed

Donnis Carpenter, Receptionist donnisc@cecsa.org

January 3:

Epiphany Sunday

Elizabeth Martinez, Kitchen Manager elizabethm@cecsa.org

January 6:

Christ Church Women’s Luncheon Feast Day of the Epiphany

Robert Vallejo, Facilities Manager robertv@cecsa.org

January 10:

Baptism of Christ Confirmation Classes begin

Rudy Segovia, Hospitality Manager rudys@cecsa.org

January 24:

Annual General Meeting of the Parish

Joe Garcia, Sexton joeg@cecsa.org

14

Our Church Life...

Annual Parish Christmas Dinner Wed., December 9 6 - 7 PM in the Parish Hall

Volunteers are needed to prep, serve, set-up and clean-up. To help contact Logan Ames at lbames@sbcglobal.net or Fern Burney at 734-2445 or ferneburney@hotmail.com

Trunk or Treat

Check the TV screen behind the ladies at the CCW’s Fall Fiesta

Fun on Halloween

15

Our Sunday School children are collecting money for “Bibles for our Troops� to send Bibles as Christmas presents to our men and women currently deployed in the US Armed Services.

The Message (USPS 471-710) is published bi-monthly by Christ Episcopal Church, 510 Belknap Place, San Antonio, TX 78212. Periodical postage paid in San Antonio, TX. Postmaster: Please send address changes to Christ Episcopal Church, 510 Belknap Place, San Antonio, TX 78212. Volume 17, Number 6.

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

Periodical Postage PAID San Antonio, TX