The Weekly 07/07/13

All Saints’

The Weekly WWW.ALLSAINTSCARMEL.ORG

Seventh Sunday after Pentecost • July 7, 2013

Sent Out in the Power of the Spirit

By The Rev. Rick Matters After arriving from England, little Alice Sibley travelled by covered wagon with her family until they could go no further. Many years later, I sat on my immigrant greatgrandmother Alice’s lap. If I had asked, she would have told me that God had sent her to this country.

Jesus sends us out, as he did the seventy in today’s Gospel.

Knowing that God continuously sends us radically transforms the purpose of our trip, even when it is only to the grocery store. With each sending, the Spirit invites us to align our will to God’s will.

The theme from a few weeks ago, of being gathered in the power of the Spirit, complements today’s message. For we participate in a dance of love by being gathered into a community of people who are forgiven, healed, renewed, inspired, and then sent out into the world. Like the seventy, we return to the community of Christians to be reminded of who we are.

Scripture Lessons Today Isaiah 66:10-14 Psalm 66:1-8 Galatians 6:(1-6), 7-16 Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

Scripture Lessons for Next Week Isaiah 66:10-14 Psalm 66:1-8 Galatians 6:1-16 Luke 10:1-11, 16-20

Recommendation:

Carmel Bach Festival

By The Rev. Rick Matters

I encourage you to enjoy the beautiful music of the many Carmel Bach Festival concerts, especially those being held at All Saints’. The beauty of the music will draw you closer to God; simultaneously you can practice the ministry of hospitality by welcoming others to All Saints’. Between concerts you might even be able to greet some of the musicians as they attend countless rehearsals on campus.

Your hospitality might inspire the concert-goers and musicians to attend services at All Saints’, so plan to welcome them at the liturgy of your choice. At each 10:30 a.m. service in July, festival musicians will add their musical offering to the glory of Christ. You can also welcome the Bach to the Future children who will sing at 10:30 a.m. on the last two Sundays of the month.

All Saints’ • The Weekly

We are Among the Seventy

By Robin Denney

Jesus sent the seventy out two-by-two to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. They went without preparations for their journey, like lambs into the midst of wolves, but they came back rejoicing. We might find ourselves reading passages like this with some trepidation. What if Jesus calls us to do something equally uncomfortable? To give your life completely into God’s hands is a scary thing to do. The important thing is that we are not sent alone. We are sent in the power of the Spirit who guides and strengthens us, and we are sent with our fellow sisters and brothers in Christ. The seventy did not cast out demons and cure the sick because they believed in themselves, they experienced miracles working in them, because they went where they were called and they allowed the power of the Spirit to work through them. We too are sent into the world around us every day by Jesus, to be his hands in the world, and in the power of the Spirit, we shall return rejoicing!

Power and Vulnerability

By Robin Denney

When Jesus sent the seventy out before him into the towns and villages, he told them to make no preparation for their journey, but to rely on the hospitality of others. They carried with them the power of Christ, a power beyond anything the people in the towns and villages had ever experienced. If they had also come with their own tent and provisions for their stay, how could they ever have entered into relationship with the people? The power that they carried required them to make themselves vulnerable so that the people could draw close and glimpse the kingdom.

Relationship requires us to be vulnerable with each other, and to realize that no matter what the power dynamic is between us, we have something to learn from the other person. As the seventy returned to Jesus, they came with joy because they had been changed, not only by the power of the Spirit working in them, but by their relationships with the people in whom they saw the Spirit moving.

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Highlighted Events and Meetings JULY 6-12

Middle School Sierra Service Project

JULY 13

Pastoral Training Sessions

JULY 9

Building and Grounds meeting

JULY 13-19

Sr. High Sierra Service Project

JULY 15-19

Bach to the Future, Session I

JULY 16

Finance meeting

JULY 17

Foundation Trust Fund meeting

JULY 17

Friends of St. Benedict

JULY 22-26

Bach to the Future, Session II

JULY 26

I-Help Dinner at All Saints’

JULY 29AUGUST 4

All Saints’ Camp out at Santa Lucia

AUGUST 3

All Saints’ Annual Picnic at Santa Lucia

All Saints’ • The Weekly

Friends of St. Benedict July 17

Our aim is to integrate the wisdom of monastic life and spiritual theology into our everyday lives as Christians. We meet the third Wednesday of every month, and all are welcome.

For more information about the Friends of St. Benedict, please contact Claudia Ward by calling 831-373-5069.

A Pastoral Letter from Bishop Mary Gray-Reeves

By Bishop Mary Gray-Reeves July 3, 2013 Dear friends, Now that it is legal, clergy in the diocese of El Camino Real have permission to officiate at same-sex marriages. They have been informed, and we have discussed over recent months, that they may sign the license in the State of California by virtue of their status as clergy. Other dioceses have also interpreted previous general convention language of exercising “generous pastoral response” in states where same-sex marriage is legal, as having the freedom to officiate at the marriage for a same-sex couple, just as they would a heterosexual couple.

At clergy conference, we reached verbal consensus to include words to the effect that the marriage is performed on behalf of the state. Many clergy expressed their desire to include words to this effect for heterosexual couples as well in order to respect that while in the eyes of the state all marriages are equal, the church has not yet reached this conclusion as a whole; while at the same time wishing to express the equality with which samesex couples are regarded by so many of us.

As we know, General Convention recently approved a blessing rite to be used for same-sex couples, and as noted in my most recent customary (which is online), we will adhere to that resolution when performing same-sex blessings. There is detailed information in the customary regarding blessings. It should be noted that the requirements for same-sex couples are the same as that of heterosexual couples.

I rejoice with our clergy and congregations who will choose this honor, officiating at marriages and blessings for couples who have waited so long as legal marriage for all couples now begins.

May your relationship with them, and your service to them as pastor and celebrant - and as the family of Christ - be holy and good!

+Mary

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Announcements Evensong, a traditional Anglican service of music, prayer, and reflection, will be offered today at 5:30 p.m.

Tuesday: The All Saints’ Book Group will meet at 6:00 p.m. in the library.

For more information, contact Sherry Shollenbarger at sschollenbarger@yahoo. com.

Food Pantry—We need cans of soup and ramen noodles in individual packs.

We gave out 40 bags of food in May, and Epiphany distributed 475!

National Episcopal Cursillo Conference 2013—Register by July 14 at a reduced rate for the annual conference, held this year in Chicago, October 24–27. More information is available at http://www. nationalepiscopalcursillo.org/how_to_ register.htm.

Thursday: Healthy Saints hike—Join Mother Cynthia for a hike at Big Sur’s Limekiln State Park on Thursday, July 11. Please RSVP to Mother Cynthia at cms614@me.com.

All Saints’ Episcopal Parish Ninth and Dolores PO Box 1296 Carmel, CA 93921 Phone: 831-624-3883 Fax: 831-624-1459 www.allsaintscarmel.org

Wednesday: Bible study from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m. in Grant Hall.

Parish picnic at Santa Lucia: The annual parish picnic in Big Sur will be held this year on Saturday, August 3, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Games and activities will complement the potluck lunch at noon, with a barbecued main dish provided.

The parish campout will be held at our Santa Lucia campground from July 29 to August 5, with the regular Sunday Eucharist offered at Santa Lucia at 11:00 a.m.

Episcopal Church Women—On Saturday, August 17, the diocesan ECW presents Our Gifts & Joy from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at St. Paul’s, Salinas. For more information, contact Diane Lovelace at 408-263-8945 or DiLovelace@aol.com.

Names added to the parish prayer list will remain on the list for one month. If you wish to have the name(s) remain on the list after that time, please add them again or call the office (624-3883).

Interfaith Outreach of Carmel’s Joining Hands Benefit Shop is in need of volunteers to work a few hours a week.

To learn more about Joining Hands, talk to Sofia Osborne or Nancy Jones after church, or contact Sofia at 620-2147 or osbornesofia@gmail.com. All Saints’ is a founding member of IOC. Counter needed—Counters are those who each week count all the monies received by the church and deposit the receipts in our bank account. To be a counter, you need to be available on Mondays from about 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Please contact Mike at 831-620-0638 if you would be willing to join the team.

Thanks!

Sunday handout deadline—To be included in next Sunday’s handout, your announcement must be submitted by 4:00 p.m. on the preceding Wednesday. Contact Andrea Matters at andreamatters@gmail.com or 624-3090.