Inspire: Discovery

INSPIRE

D I S C OV E R Y

a m a g a z i n e f o r t h e s t. p h i l i p t h e d e a c o n c o m m u n i t y

Saying Grace • The Unbroken Thread: An Interview with Sohrab Ahmari • Branching Out • Discover Mental Health Connect • Learn by Doing: Recipes from the Deacon Diners spring 2022

i

IN EVERY ISSUE 3 Editor’s Letter

4 Scripture Connection

5 V A C AT I O N B I B L E S C H O O L AT

Read, Watch, Listen

S T. P H I L I P T H E D E A C O N

June 13-16 // Grades pre-K-4th Registration at spdlc.org/register

6 Ref lections on Faith

Easter Worship at St. Philip the Deacon First Light of Easter Saturday, April 16, 5:30 pm Easter Worship with Holy Communion Sunday, April 17, 8:15, 9:45, & 11:15 am

HE I S RI S E N . HE IS RIS E N INDE E D. A L L E LUI A !

HE IS RIS E N . HE IS RIS E N INDE E D. A L L E LUI A !

8 Devoted Living

24 Modern Day Pilgrims

33 Out & About

34 Giving Thanks

35 Calendar of Events

36 Familiar Faces

INSPIRE

1

St. Philip the Deacon

F E AT U R E A R T I C L E S

I M AG I N E

EXPERIMENT

E XP LORE

10

16

26

Branching Out

The Unbroken Thread: An Interview with Sohrab Ahmari

Coming Home, Again

12 Resilience in the Wilderness

20 Rediscovering Faith and Science

14 Discover Mental Health Connect

22 But What About Galileo?

28 Learn by Doing: Recipes from the Deacon Diners Cookbook

2

INSPIRE

Vol. 4, Issue 3, Spring 2022 Published by St. Philip the Deacon Lutheran Church 17205 County Road 6 Plymouth, MN 55447 (763) 475-7100 editor in chief

Tim Westermeyer m a n ag i n g e d i t o r

Amanda Berger design

Malley Design s ta f f w r i t e r s

Cheryl Mathison, Kate Sterner contributors

Rachel Arends, Jack Churchill

Public conversations where faith comes to life.

2021-2022 SCHEDULE

The Faith & Life Lectures are open and welcoming public forums where members of the Twin Cities community can hear nationally known speakers ref lect on how Christian faith intersects with different dimensions of everyday life. We invite you to join us for the 2021-2022 series of lectures.

SO H R A B A H M A R I

March 17, 2022 M AT T B I R K

May 5, 2022 All events scheduled will be offered both in-person and via livestream. All lectures begin at 7 p.m. Free and open to the public. www.faith-and-life.org

website

spdlc.org/inspire email editorial

aberger@spdlc.org o n t h e c ov e r

Photo by Adam Gonzales ©2022 St. Philip the Deacon Lutheran Church. All rights reserved.

submissions

Do you have an idea for a story or love to write? Contact our managing editor with your submission, but please keep in mind the following guidelines: (A) Your article may be edited for length and content. (B) Articles must fit in the larger themes of our publication and reflect the mission of St. Philip the Deacon. (C) All submissions will be reviewed by our editorial staff to determine the suitability for our publication.

While we would love to include all submissions, space and cost limit our ability to do that.

Submissions will not be returned.

INSPIRE

3

St. Philip the Deacon

Analyze

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Within weeks, I’d come to realize that I loved spending time with the kids, talking about God, worshipping together, sharing in service projects. I remember vividly a conversation with the associate pastor who said, “You’re very good at this, and in fact we’d love to hire you for this position, but I actually think that maybe you should consider going to seminary.” As soon as he said it, I knew he was right … which led me down another rabbit hole of questions and research. But as I looked at the data before me, I knew.

Report Question In 2003, I lived in Peoria, Illinois, sharing an apartment with my sister, wondering what exactly it was that I was supposed to be doing with my life. I had graduated from university, was working as an office manager/optician for an optometrist and doing community theater in the evenings.

Somehow, I sensed that there was something more, but I wasn’t sure what. Grad school? Law school? Neither felt right.

What is my purpose in this world?

Research Wandering the aisles of Barnes & Noble, I picked up a book called Girl Meets God

by Lauren Winner. I bought it. I f lew through it and my takeaway was that prayer was not just asking, but listening, paying attention and discovering how God was speaking into my life. I remember very clearly, upon closing the cover, that I was meant to pray without directions or parameters, just complete openness to what God has in store.

I kid you not, the next morning I woke from a dream with the glowing red words “YOUTH MINISTRY” imprinted on my brain. What?! It for sure felt like a message, something I was supposed

to pay attention to, but I didn’t know anything about youth ministry apart from being in youth group growing up.

Hypothesis Two days later, I received an email from the pastor at the church I had been attending.

“Our youth director is relocating in two weeks for her husband’s job. We need a few volunteers who can help lead senior high Sunday school and help with a few events.” I could do that.

I could help and maybe, in the meantime, start to figure out if this nudge from God was for real or was in my imagination.

Test So, I said yes. My first event was a 30-Hour Famine—I didn’t have to participate, but just come for a little while, meet some of the youth. It was a fun night and I ended up staying for most of the 30 hours. I started teaching Sunday school. We went sledding, we had a spaghetti dinner, we had a movie night, then there was Youth Sunday. I was spending more and more time at church with the youth. Soon, I was pretty much in charge of youth ministry—they even started calling me their interim youth director.

That was it—how I came to ministry, called by God, affirmed by the church, taught in seminary, tried in the field and nearly 20 years later I still can’t imagine doing anything else with my life besides working in the church.

Not all of us experience such clear callings or immediate answers. But I firmly believe that the meaning of life is to discover God at work in the world and to join our lives to that work. Experimenting with our gifts, exploring each day as an opportunity to share the Gospel, imagining the ways in which God calls and equips each of us.

Our world is a marvelously created place, with more to discover than possible in one hundred lifetimes. In our “Discovery” issue, may you find evidence of God’s movement in the world, stories of others’ encounters with the Divine, and opportunities to get curious about where God shows up in your world.

4

SPD BOO K CLU B Book club will meet both in-person and virtually at 7 p.m. Find the Zoom link in our most recent e-newsletter or by contacting social@spdlc.org.

MARCH 15

The Unbroken Thread by Sohrab Ahmari. Discussion led by Tim Westermeyer.

APRIL 19

Learning to Pray by James Martin. Discussion led by Valerie Strand Patterson.

SCRIPTURE CONNECTION SAYING GRACE

BY C H E R Y L M AT H I S O N

An August 2020 survey conducted by General Mills showed that one of the silver linings of the pandemic may be Americans’ new-found time around the table. Instead of consuming fast food in the car on the way to a practice, rehearsal, meeting or event, or eating in shifts, people found themselves at home at the table.

Research has long shown that the benefits of family mealtime are many. The Search Institute reports those benefits to be especially significant for children and adolescents resulting in less risky behavior, healthier eating patterns and stronger relationships with family members.

Mealtime at the table is one pandemic practice worth working hard to protect and maintain. To be sure, events and activities have already creeped in and around the dinner hour, but that doesn’t mean we let go of the joy of a leisurely mealtime, at least not entirely. Once or twice a week is better than not at all.

In the same way that mealtime has benefits, so also, saying grace has benefits.

Practicing gratitude has been linked with stronger personal relationships, higher self-esteem, greater life satisfaction, and most importantly, it connects us with God our provider.

The foreword to One Hundred Graces, a collection of table prayers from around the world, puts it like this, “Saying grace is an ancient and vital tradition the world over. To begin with, it proves a space, a moment of stillness in which to relinquish the activities of the day and allow the mind to settle. Then, as we acknowledge the source of our nourishment, we are filled with astonishment at the generosity of the Creator.”

As you take your meals, whether alone or with others, begin with a pause; settle into stillness and give thanks to the Lord. You may find that trying some new table prayers enriches your expressions of gratitude. Below you will find Martin Luther’s blessing at mealtimes along with recommendations for a couple of collections of table graces.

M A R T I N L U T H E R ’ S TA B L E P R AY E R

As a part of the Catechism, Martin Luther provided two prayers for mealtime: one to be spoken before the meal and the other after. Notice how each begins with a psalm verse.

M AY 1 7

Reader Recommendations Bring your favorite book of the last year to share with the group. Discussion led by Trisha Ragner.

Before the Meal The eyes of all look to You, O Lord, and You give them their food at the proper time.

You open Your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. Lord God, heavenly Father, bless us and these Your gifts which we receive from Your bountiful goodness, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Returning Thanks After the Meal Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.

His love endures forever. We thank You, Lord God, heavenly Father, for all Your benefits, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.

RESOURCES FOR TABLE GRACES

Prayer Cards: Table Blessings by Talk Points.

Like a deck of cards—one side has a grace and the other includes scripture and a prompt for reflection or discussion.

One Hundred Graces by Marcia and Jack Kelly. This collection of table graces comes from a variety of religious traditions from all over the world.

Unending Grace: Mealtime Prayers for Every Day of the Year by David Hauk.

Dated devotions feature a new table prayer for each day of the year.

INSPIRE

5

St. Philip the Deacon

Read D E VOT I O N S

Faith & Life

By Mary Oliver. Compiled by the award-winning poet in reverse chronological order, this collection of Oliver’s “best of ” is beautiful and prayerful. Recurring themes

in her poetry are nature, beauty and God—a perfect accompaniment to the springtime world waking up around us.

LECTURE SERIES T H U R S D AY, M AY 5 7 PM

Matt Birk is a former American football center, drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the sixth round of the 1998 NFL Draft, and later played for the Baltimore Ravens. Birk is an All-Pro, six-time Pro Bowl selection, and a Super Bowl champion.

Birk established the HIKE Foundation in 2002, which seeks to “impact the lives of at-risk children by providing interactive programs and resources needed to guide a child through the key educational transitions between elementary, middle, high school and college.” The foundation launched “Ready, Set, Read!” in select Baltimore area public schools in the fall of 2010. The program works with about 100,000 Baltimore students on improving their reading skills through an incentive-based system. Join us for Birk’s conversation Faith & Achievement: Lessons from a Life in Football.

The Faith & Life Lecture Series is free and open to the public.

All are welcome!

Watch G R A N TC H E S T E R Amazon Prime Video. Local police and parish priest team up in this mystery series to solve crime in postWWII England. Becoming close friends, they discover

that life in the village of Grantchester is much more exciting than might first be perceived. Recommended by our facilities manager Jason Putnam.

Listen BRAIDING S W E E TG R A S S

By Robin Wall Kimmerer.

Indigenous author, botanist and professor of planet ecology, Kimmerer’s knowledge of wild and beautiful things is combined with Indigenous storytelling

and heritage for a look at what it means to be a human interwoven with all of creation and our relationship and responsibility to the rest of the world.

6

BY TIM WESTERME YER

If I asked you to pl ay a word associ ation ga me, and said “Discov ery,” w h at would you say?

Maybe Archimedes and his “Eureka!” moment when he discovered density, or Isaac Newton’s discovery of gravity.

Perhaps Marie Curie’s discovery of radiation, or Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin.

I am guessing that one popular and frequent response would be “Christopher Columbus and his discovery of the New World.” And, if I pressed that a bit and asked a further question: “Was there anything else Columbus discovered or proved when he arrived on the shores of what we now call North America?” what would you say?

You would likely respond that, thanks to his dangerous voyage, Columbus proved that the world was round.

That response would be understandable. And it would also be wrong.

As historian of science Lawrence Principe writes, we can blame two 19th century writers—Andrew Dickson White and John William Draper—for “the idea that before Columbus people thought that the world was f lat.” And they weren’t just a little bit off. As Principe writes “the fact is that the sphericity of the Earth was well established by the fifth century BC by the Greeks, and a good measure of its circumference made by the third century BC. And these facts were never forgotten in learned Western Culture.”

I hear you saying: Wait? What? Why would they have done that? And how could they get it so wrong?

courageous scientist, heroically working to prove the truth that the world was round in the face of the backwards and ignorant church leaders who were convinced it was f lat.

You can read more about the intersection of faith and science—and the intentionally misleading and deeply f lawed work of White and Draper—in a couple of articles that appear in this issue. My point here is that when it comes to cultural assumptions about the role of faith in our collective history, we should always check the facts.

We live in a skeptical world, and this skepticism often directs itself at issues of faith. And far too often, we Christians freely accept the cultural assumptions that paint Christianity as backwards, primitive and opposed to science. The false narrative about Columbus “proving” the world is round is just one particularly egregious example of this.

In one of my favorite essays by C.S. Lewis, he suggests that perhaps we should be a bit more open-minded—“agnostic” is the word he uses—about things that “everyone knows to be true.” He writes: “Agnosticism is, in a sense, what I am preaching. I do not wish to reduce the sceptical element in your minds. I am only suggesting that it need not be reserved exclusively for the New Testament and the Creeds.” Instead, he concludes, “Try doubting something else.”

When you do, you may just discover this faith that we confess holds something precious and beautiful: namely, the Truth.

Searchingly,

Well, the short version is—as former Faith & Life speaker James Hannam writes—that White and Draper wanted to “prove that science and religion are locked in eternal conf lict.” They wanted to paint Columbus as the brave and

INSPIRE

7

St. Philip the Deacon

M E D I TAT I O N

“My hope is that the description of God’s love in my life will give you the freedom and the courage to discover … God’s love in yours.”

HENRI NOUWEN

8

DE VOTED LI V ING

Praying the Psalms

BY AMANDA BERGER

INSPIRE

9

St. Philip the Deacon

The Book of Psalms was written between the ninth and fifth centuries B.C. and used as the worship book of the Jewish people.

Until recently, I never really considered that the Book of Psalms was the very book of worship that Jesus used to pray. The Psalms form the backbone of our liturgy and our hymns—they are literally the prayers of the people of God.

T

hey are our training ground, the place where we learn the vocabulary for living in this beautiful and brutal world. The Psalms give us a language—and permission—for all the emotions that we experience in our lives.

In them we pray with others throughout Christian history, in a way that is both intensely personal and deeply communal.

Eugene Peterson, author of The Message, spent a lifetime praying the Psalms, and believed that if you read a psalm each day it would change your life: the way you prayed, the way you worshipped, the way you interact with all of God’s creation.

Digging deep into Psalms takes us to places that we may not want to go—fear, anger, frustration—but also brings us to faithful confidence that God is who God says he is. Consider the following ideas as you pray your way through the Psalms:

Psalms give us a vocabulary. So many of us have been told that it’s not okay to

get angry, to be bold, to be sad, to ask for what we need or want. There have maybe even been times in our lives when we’ve been told our delight or our hope or our joy is also not welcome. The world can be intolerant of the very feelings that make us human. Not so the Psalms. The Psalms give us a language that is the opposite—we get anger, joy, lament, frustration, wonder and even curses, which show us that God has the capacity to welcome and hear all our emotions. Not just the parts that are fit for the world to see, but all of it: the good, bad and ugly.

The Psalms are both personal and communal. We can use Psalms as our personal prayer book, but they are also meant to be read or sung aloud, with other people. Many of the psalms are written for a call and response reading, alternating lines or verses. There is a call and then an answer. It ref lects both the way we call to God and wait for God’s reply, and the ways in which our faith community both asks and answers on our behalf throughout our lives.

The Psalms are poetry. Poetry is not purely a way to make writing fancy or difficult to understand. Instead, it is meant to convey in the smallest number of words the truth and beauty of our human experience. Each word is packed with meaning, chosen for a reason. This language helps us to feel seen—real and vulnerable before God. Psalms allow us to talk directly to God. Psalms is one of the few books of the Bible where the author is talking directly to God. The psalmist does not hold back either—there is anger and hurt, loss and heartache. There’s even cursing and talk of enemies, which can be hard for us to reconcile with our Christian directives to love our enemies. It is argued that apathy is really the most dangerous emotion and there is no apathy in the psalms. The psalmist is freeing his most toxic thoughts and releasing them into God’s hands.

Praying the psalms allows us to release our darkest thoughts, so that they don’t come out of us in more hurtful ways.

The Book of Psalms can be a powerful way to learn more about ourselves. As you read Psalms, notice how you react to certain phrases or emotions. Get curious about your reaction and allow God to use that reaction as a tool for growth and discovery.

If you would like to dig deeper into the study of the Psalms, we recommend the following: Open and Unafraid by W. David O. Taylor or Praying with the Psalms by Eugene Peterson. For a visual journey through Psalms, consider Book of Psalms from Alabaster Co. (pictured).

You pray the psalms, and the psalms pray you …

10

Branching Out

WORDS & PHOTOS

BY JACK CHURCHILL

T r e e s . C a n you i m ag i n e a wor l d w it hou t t r e e s? They are so beautiful and with such variety in size, leaf form, bark, deciduous versus evergreen, fall colors, etc. They have several purposes as well. They provide shade, prevent erosion, clothe our avenues and parks, and convert carbon dioxide into the oxygen we breathe. Trees can live for hundreds of years and are forgiving and perseverant. Think of the storms, droughts and lightning strikes they’ve survived. They stand there in silent resolve as the world changes and convulses around them, promising, “Things will be okay. We’ll be here when things get better.” I believe they notice their surroundings and participate in the world.

Peter Wohlleben, a German forester who lives in a rustic cabin near Hümmel, Germany, wrote a wonderful book titled The Hidden Life of Trees. He describes trees, not as disconnected loners competing for space, sunlight, water and nutrients but as a community formed into a kinship network of relationships and alliances—friendships almost. He calls this his “wood-wide web.” They are far more alert, social, sophisticated and intelligent than typically thought. They communicate through an underground matrix where the hairlike root tips of trees join the ground’s fungal filaments providing a huge what Wohlleben calls “mycorrhizal network”—a symbiotic relationship between trees and fungi. One teaspoon of forest soil can contain miles of fungi.

INSPIRE

11

St. Philip the Deacon

In this mutuality, trees share water and nutrients and send distress signals regarding drought and insect attacks that can alter their behavior. They also can detect scents called pheromones through their leaves and even have a sense of taste! When a deer bites a branch, defending chemicals are sent out that make the leaves taste bad. Some trees may also emit and detect sounds—a crackling noise in their roots. Trees communicate (even sometimes across species—cedar to maple or hemlock to fir) mainly through stress, but what do trees say to each other when content, I wonder?

On our trip to South Carolina, we found an old plantation-turned-monastery called Mepkin Abbey near Moncks Corner. The live oaks there were magnificent—all, in my imagination, whispering to each other. It was a serenely quiet place.

Spiritual really. As we wandered through this ethereal retreat, imagine the awe and wonder as we came across a sculpture of Jesus on the cross carved out of one immense fallen trunk of a live oak. In an already spiritual place, this confirmed my thought of just how similar we at St. Philip are to a grove of trees and how Christ dwells within us all.

Suzanne Simard of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver uses the term “mother tree” to describe the largest and oldest in the forest which has the most fungal connections.

These mother trees exchange sugar to help small saplings survive—suckling its youngsters, so to speak. Two old adjacent oaks are old friends, not adversaries, sharing sunlight, not competing for it. When one dies the other often dies shortly thereafter because they depend upon one another. Once, as Wohlleben walked through his woods, he came across a huge tree stump. The tree had been felled 400-plus years earlier, but its stump was still green. There was only one explanation—the surrounding trees were keeping this old, revered matriarch on life support by pumping sugar into it.

We, the people of SPD and Christians worldwide, are woven together as the body of Christ.

We, like the trees, have our differences in our character, our appearances, and our purposes.

We too watch as the world changes around us.

And we persevere. We also have a commonality—our intertwined roots so to speak—in our belief in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We, together, believe that on our own we can never be as righteous as God requires.

We, together, believe that God, through his Son, knows this. We, together, believe that through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, God offers his perfect righteousness to us. That perfect righteousness of Christ becomes ours. This sets us free.

“The live oaks there were magnificent— all, in my imagination, whispering to each other.”

Trees, in essence, help their neighbors in the best interest of a stable forest community. In this spirit, there’s a wholeness, a harmony for one purpose. Now, I’m not saying trees are like the Ents from Lord of the Rings, but whether there’s a conscious intentionality or not is irrelevant—it exists.

My wife, Lori, and I were in South Carolina this past October—home of the southern live oak, Quercus virginiana. Ever y where you go there, these huge, aged beauties line the avenues and drives up to rice plantation mansions. T hey drip with Spanish moss as their heav y horizontal branches extend from 10-foot-wide trunks. T hey are quite a sight, especially when the early morning sunlight glimmers through the hanging moss.

Romans 12:4-5, “Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” Let it be so.

12

RESILIENCE IN THE WILDERNESS

BY R ACHEL ARENDS

A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

Rachel courageously shares her story with you knowing that others have struggled with something similar— long-term illness, cancer diagnosis, mental health challenges, as well as caring for children or aging parents.

Rachel’s story is unique, but also representative of struggles that many in our community go through each day. Know that you are in our prayers and that you are not alone. —AB

T

he wilderness has been a familiar place for most of us in the past two-plus years. As a collective human race, we have navigated great fear, worry, stress, frustration, grief and disappointment. We have also experienced great love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. In my own personal wilderness, each of these emotions has been felt in powerful, challenging and hope-filled ways.

In January 2020, I was in the best shape of my life: physical, mental, emotional, spiritual. I was ready to run the Dopey Challenge at Disney World, covering 48.6 miles of magic in four days. My little corner of the world seemed to be such a pleasant place, and I felt happy and content.

This place of confidence collapsed on January 14, 2020. Two days after I had

completed the Dopey Challenge and was feeling fantastic, I came down with a horrible virus. I was in a hotel room with a high fever and unable to do anything but sleep. I managed to f ly home, but I continued to sleep for 12-17 hours a day.

Emergency room and doctors’ visits offered little explanation as to what was happening. It hurt to breathe, feeling like I could not catch my breath. My body felt heavy. My world became foggy, confusing and scary—a wilderness. For the next two months, survival was all that mattered: sleep, food, air.

During these months the world was met with a pandemic, facing shutdowns, masks, online everything, civil unrest, and an overwhelmed health system. In my own personal journey, things seemed to get better as I was able to stay awake for longer periods of time, eat food regularly, and eventually run again. Spring and summer of 2020 were times when my

INSPIRE

13

St. Philip the Deacon

body was still fighting low-grade fevers, severe brain fog and extreme exhaustion, but I was able to return to many of the things I loved—as long as I was six feet away from other people. Then in July, my ankle mysteriously swelled up. There were no answers or explanations and I ended up in a boot for several weeks. I also began to battle anxiety and depression. The struggle felt heavy, lonely and exhausting; and I found myself back in the unwelcome wilderness I thought I had started to conquer.

In November 2020, the world crashed in on me. My ankle was a bit better, as was my mental health, but suddenly with a vengeance, I had a relapse that would put me in the thickest wilderness thus far. My previous symptoms returned along with numerous others: higher daily fevers, shortness of breath, chest tightness and pressure, extreme fatigue, sore throat, thrush, loss of voice, body aches, dizziness, nausea, brain fog, increased heart rate, and a deep and dry continuous cough. Cooking, showering, laundry and grocery shopping would push me over the edge and send my body into a state of pure exhaustion, lasting a couple of days.

Though this time was filled with many negatives and challenges, there were also many moments filled with joy, peace, hope and love. Messages from friends, a meal or groceries delivered to my door, and the continuous stream of comments on my Facebook posts brought reassurance.

My friends and family were the voices in my wilderness that pulled me through the darkest times. I believe the care and love I received (and continue to receive) came from God through these people.

Gratitude for these little acts carried me through this unending wilderness.

Throughout 2021, I continued my search for healing for my body and mind.

Brain fog and other symptoms made this nearly impossible. I wrote down everything, made lists for my doctors, set timers and reminders, and asked family and friends to check in on me. I continued to suffer and new symptoms occurred. With the push from some friends, I started a GoFundMe page to help with the overwhelming cost of care. Having the financial burden lifted a bit was helpful for my stress level, ultimately assisting in my healing.

Writing this at the end of 2021, I can see how far I have come since this all By the start of 2021, my calendar was started. I still see numerous specialists, packed with appointments: speech and endure tests and procedures, and am breathing therapy, cardiopulmonary gearing up to start yet another multiple therapy, and specialists including month therapy for my ankle. My doctors ENT, pulmonology, are learning and infectious disease, making discoveries MY FRIENDS AND and allergy. It took that help me and F A M I LY W E R E every ounce of energy others like me. I THE VOICES IN I had to make it to continue to help them MY WILDERNESS the appointments in any way possible so T H AT P U L L E D M E and do what was they can help others. I THROUGH THE expected. Each day find longer moments DARKEST TIMES. required a long nap of light and hope for healing and basic functioning. Days each day. Trusting in the promise that were filled with fear, anxiety, worry, I have leaned on since I was a teenager, pain and confusion. Winter and spring I remember, “Do not be grieved, for the remained steady in this cycle. The slow joy of the Lord is your strength ” (Neheand frustrating progress, or lack thereof, miah 8:10b). God has put joy in each was disheartening. Since this type of day. Look for that little spark, savor that post-viral syndrome is new to the world, moment, and remember there is a way answers were hard to find. through the wilderness.

14

Discover Mental Health Connect

BY AMANDA BERGER

A

s a part of our most recent capital appeals campaign, St. Philip the Deacon has partnered with Mental Health Connect, a Minnesota-based organization that helps people navigate the mental health care system. Providing resources, support and education, Mental Health Connect collaborates with various faith communities

to raise awareness and promote access to much needed mental health services—close to home, in our own community.

Vicki Elliott is the director of Mental Health Connect. She was gracious enough to sit down with me and talk about how partnering with Mental Health Connect (MHC) will impact St. Philip the Deacon and the Plymouth/Wayzata community for the good.

INSPIRE

15

St. Philip the Deacon

WHAT DOES PARTNERSHIP WITH MENTAL HEALTH CONNECT LOOK LIKE? If you could sum up partnership with MHC in one word, that would be collaboration.

Collaboration with church staff, with volunteers and with Mental Health Connect.

“We ask congregations to designate at least two volunteers, known as ambassadors, from their community—no special training or education necessary—but who have a passion for wanting to help people and to learn more about mental health,” said Elliott. “Then those ambassadors come to the monthly meetings; they get to hear the speakers offered and they capture those resources that we’re handing out there.” Then she went on to explain that these ambassadors, in turn, share what they are learning with the broader community through roundtables, newsletters or emails or one-on-one conversations. In essence, they are creating a mental health ministry through learning and sharing.

These monthly workshops, held virtually, are not just open to the designated volunteers—anyone interested in the topic can attend. “For instance, if we have a topic that is about youth, we really encourage those ambassadors to invite their youth leaders or youth ministry volunteers because they’re going to want to hear about what is going on with youth right now and what can we do to help them,” said Elliott. As the ambassadors and congregations learn more about different topics in mental health, they become a greater asset to the community, able to respond, support and advocate for more mental health care and great access to resources.

WHAT RESOURCES DOES MENTAL HEALTH CONNECT HAVE FOR INDIVIDUALS? Navigating the mental health care system is daunting, especially for an individual or family in crisis. Another resource of Mental Health Connect is their hotline (see sidebar) where callers are connected to a Navigator. These volunteers have

extensive personal experience navigating the mental health system and can help connect people with the care they need.

For example, a family calling in crisis due to substance abuse can receive resources, recommendations or the navigator will even take the time to call on their behalf, arranging for in-patient treatment or helping to get their name on a waiting list. “Maybe you’ve called around for months and you’ve heard ‘No, no, we don’t do that.’ At Mental Health Connect, we’re going to say we do that, and yes, we’re going to help you. Our navigators have experienced the frustrations of the system and can empathize with that person who’s calling,” said Elliott.

Mental Health Connect works hard to help remove barriers to receiving the help that people need. Whether that’s co-pays and insurance, how to make an appointment or even helping people know the parking situation at a doctor’s office, MHC’s navigators can tell the caller what to expect, what will happen when they arrive and get them the help they are looking for.

BEING MADE WHOLE, TOGETHER One of the things that Elliott stressed in her conversation was that we ALL have mental health—just as we all need regular blood pressure checks and preventative testing, we all need to care for our mental health. “We really encourage people to think about mental health as just ‘health,’” said Elliott. “If you were diagnosed with cancer, you would not have any problem telling people. We would share our story of cancer so that we could know we weren’t alone, find help and support, and allow others to walk with and pray for us. We want the same thing for mental health.”

Mental health is a part of who we are as humans and it has its seasons of health and unhealth, just like any other aspect of our bodies. There is nothing to be ashamed of and when we share our stories, we give one another freedom to live openly and honestly.

“Some people are really, really good about caring for their mental health. They go to therapy, they’re doing self-care things … then there’s other people that are really struggling with it. So we want to make sure that we’re covering the whole spectrum,” said Elliott. “I think, eventually, that we will get to a point where people go in for an annual checkup for their mental health, just like they do for their body.”

VOLUNTEERS WANTED St. Philip the Deacon is looking for those who want to help people and are passionate about mental health to volunteer as ambassadors as we begin our partnership with Mental Health Connect. To find out more information and get connected, contact Pastor Westermeyer or Cindy Carlson.

If you or someone you know needs help or you are looking for resources, you can connect with one of the navigators at Mental Health Connect by: Call Text Em ail

612.312.3377 612.312.3377 navigator@ mhconnect.org

Or visit their website to learn more. mhconnect.org

16

AN INTERVIEW WITH SOHRAB AHMARI

BY TIM WESTERMEYER

Sohrab Ahmari is an Iranian immigrant to the United States, and an adult convert to Christianity.

A law school graduate who ended up becoming a journalist, he has served as the op-ed editor of the New York Post, a columnist for First Things, and a contributing editor of the Catholic Herald. Previously, he served as a columnist and editor with The Wall Street Journal opinion pages in New York and London, and as senior writer at Commentary. His writing has also appeared in The New York Times, The Times Literary Supplement, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Spectator, Dissent and America. He is a Visiting Fellow at Franciscan University. We are pleased to host him as part of this season’s Faith & Life series on March 17, 2022. He corresponded with Pastor Tim Westermeyer for this interview last December.

INSPIRE

17

St. Philip the Deacon

Your family immigrated to the United States when you were a young boy.

To start, can you say a bit about your upbringing in Tehran? I was born into a liberal, secular, middle-class family that had supported the 1979 Islamic Revolution—and instantly come to regret it.

Throughout my childhood in Iran, I inhabited two worlds: one the world behind our closed doors, where I was surrounded by Western movies, books, culture and ideas; and another outside, where the West was denounced, and Islamic norms were enforced on pain of f logging or worse.

When did you and your family move to America? What was that transition like? My mother and I immigrated to the United States just before Thanksgiving Day 1998. I was about to turn 14.

The transition was shocking, because I expected America to be a “liberated,” “rational” (read: secular) place. But at least at the beginning, when we landed in the heartland, that’s not the America I encountered. Rather, I found myself in one of those remnant pockets of faith, communitarianism and the Protestant ethic. I rebelled against it almost instantly, much as I had done against Islamic rule in the old country.

You’re trained as a lawyer, but your profession has really been as a journalist. Did you initially intend to prac-

tice as a lawyer, or was law school an intentional step toward your writing career? I enrolled in law school fully intending to practice law. I even completed a summer associateship at a “Big Law” firm during my second year. But all along, I was placing freelance pieces in various mainstream publications—initially about the Middle East, but gradually expanding to a wider range of issues and ideas. By my third year, I was addicted to seeing my own byline in print; and so when The Wall Street Journal editorial page offered to hire me, I chose to do that, instead of studying for the bar. So I have a law degree, but I never practiced.

You converted to Christianity in 2016, correct? And if I’m not mistaken, you were an atheist prior to that? Recognizing that it would be impossible to fully capture the events that led up to that conversion in a few words, could you say a bit about how that happened, and what led you away from atheism toward Christianity? Without “spoiling” a story I told at great length in my spiritual memoir, From Fire, by Water, my conscience played the decisive role.

The existence of this interior voice that urged me to do good, and reproached me when I failed, pointed to the existence of an objective moral law inscribed in the universe—and seemingly in my own heart. Why was that? Answering that

question ultimately led me to ascent to a personal God—the same moral proof C.S. Lewis offers in Mere Christianity, though I hadn’t read his book at the time and didn’t know it had a formal name. From there, a combination of readings (the Bible, Pope Benedict’s Jesus of Nazareth trilogy) and a couple of mysterious and providential encounters with the Mass led me to ascent to the claims of the Christian religion and specifically Catholic Christianity. The whole process took nearly two decades, so I’m really abridging it here!

Related to the above question, I believe a specific church—the Brompton Oratory in London—played a significant part in that conversion.

Could you say a few words about that?

The year was 2016, I was 31, and my wife and I were living in London at the time, where I helped edit the European opinion pages of the Journal. At the time, I’d decided I wanted to become a Christian but was struggling to decide which denomination to join. A Mass at the Oratory, known for

18

“

Our reigning ideology—and the material (economic) conditions it legitimates—push us toward what Lewis called ‘chronological snobbery,’ the bias that whatever is newest is also truest and best.”

its beautiful, traditional liturgies, finally made me consummate a romance with Catholicism first kindled in my mid-20s.

Your most recent book—The Unbroken Thread: Discovering the Wisdom of Tradition in an Age of Chaos—celebrates the way that truth is passed down over time through tradition. And yet, culturally, we often seem to be wary or suspicious of tradition. The caricature of tradition seems to be that it is old and outdated and out of step with all that is current and modern and fashionable—that, in fact, we should be “freed” from the constraints of tradition. Would you say that’s a fair summary of where we find ourselves culturally? If so, why is that caricature wrong? It’s an accurate picture. Our reigning ideology—and the material (economic) conditions it legitimates—push us toward what Lewis called “chronological snobbery,” the bias that whatever is newest is also truest and best. It’s something I had to overcome in

my own faith journey, and now as a father, I have to struggle to inculcate a different way in my kids, over against a culture and an economic order that prizes novelty for its own sake and, yes, sneers at the claims of tradition and traditional authority.

Related to the above, I’m reminded of a quote about tradition from the composer Gustav Mahler, who said, “Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire.” How do you respond to that? To extend the Mahler idea: This is why I resist the label “traditional-ist.” Adding the “-ist” or “-ism” suffix already suggests that what you are championing is already dead and in need of revival. A confident tradition or set of traditions doesn’t need an “-ism.” It’s something vital and irrepressible.

One of the individuals you use to frame up your recent book is a priest and martyr of WWII named Maximilian Kolbe—someone who most people probably haven’t heard of. Can you

INSPIRE

19

St. Philip the Deacon

especially over the past two or so years.

But on the whole, we are actually intensely disciplined by our supposedly noncoercive society. It’s just that we are ordered toward ideas that promote disorder.

say a bit about him and why he plays such an important role not only in your book, but also in your life, since you named one of your sons after him?

Maximilian Kolbe was a Polish Franciscan friar who was canonized in 1982 by Pope St. John Paul II for his martyrdom of charity during World War II. In 1941, having been sent to Auschwitz by the German for his anti-Nazi activities, Kolbe chose to die of starvation in place of another condemned man, a married father. I named my son after him, because once I heard the story of his martyrdom, I couldn’t get it out of my head. And my book The Unbroken Thread is born of my anxieties over how our culture of individualism and self-gratification would render his namesake’s sacrifice at Auschwitz illegible for my son.

The subtitle of your book notes that we live in what you call an “age of chaos.” How, as Christians, would you say that we can live in a way that brings order to this chaos? Well, I have to admit the choice of “chaos” there is one of those things that came about in part as a result of the publisher’s strong, err, input!

Here’s certainly what I don’t mean. By “chaos,” I don’t mean to say that we live in an anarchic state. Yes, there’s been a good amount of anarchy on our streets,

We are told to believe things about sex and gender, for example, that are at odds with reality—not just the teachings of Genesis.

We are constantly promised freedom in the form of economic and cultural deregulation; but in practice, this often merely leaves us at the mercy of private, rather than governmental, tyrants. This is a consistent theme throughout the book: that the loss of various natural and traditional barriers has paradoxically made us less, not more, free.

The theme of this issue is “Discovery.” How would you reflect on that concept or idea as it relates to the life of faith—or, for that matter, to tradition? Tradition means what’s handed down, and I insist throughout The Unbroken Thread that this handed-down status—their received status—makes tradition’s claims no less true than those we discover using more experimental truth procedures, above all, natural science.

More than that, I draw on St. Thomas to show that there is no conflict between the claims of science (what we can discover

using our senses and instruments) and the claims of faith (what God has disclosed to us in revelation and continues to disclose to each of us through the medium of our individual consciences). Christians and other orthodox believers needn’t be made anxious by the discoveries of modern science. Not one bit. The unity of truth means that apparent conflicts between the two are only opportunities for reason and revelation to mutually enrich each other.

We’re delighted to be hosting you for our Faith & Life series on Thursday, March 17, to discuss “Faith & Freedom: Finding Joy in Duty.” If people come to that event, what can they expect to hear? I’m delighted to have been asked to address the Faith & Life series. In my talk, I will be sharing some more details about my own faith journey, and making a case for the classical and Christian account of freedom—freedom as self-limitation—over and against our modern conception, which says freedom is just about maximizing choice and overcoming limits. But because I’m a journalist, rather than a philosopher or theologian, I will be making the case in an accessible way, using historical narratives and biographical stories, which I hope will make them enjoyable. There will be not a little humor, too!

20

REDISCOVERING FAITH AND SCIENCE One of the soap boxes I tend to get worked up and excited about is the relationship between faith and science. This relationship is misunderstood in profound and important ways in our culture. And this misunderstanding, in turn, ends up being a significant—but unnecessary—barrier to faith for many people.

Why unnecessary? Well, for most of Christianity’s history, there simply hasn’t been any significant conf lict between faith and science. The reverse is true. For its 2,000-year history, Christianity has supported the development of the scientific method, and has been open to scientific discoveries.

So why do most people today believe the false narrative that science and religion are in conf lict? Well, it turns out there is a very specific answer to that question. The “conf lict” or “warfare” theory is the direct result of two authors who lived in the 1800s. As historian Lawrence Principe writes: “The origins of the warfare thesis lie in the late 19th century, specifically in the work of two men—John William Draper and Andrew Dickson White.” In 1874, Draper wrote A History of the Conflict Between Religion and Science, and in 1896, White published A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom. Before this, according to Wikipedia, “no one had pitted ‘science’ against ‘religion’ or vice versa in writing.”

BY TIM WESTERMEYER

These books sounded like they were well-researched and reliable, but, as Principe writes: “No serious historians of science or of the science-religion issue today maintain the warfare thesis.” Principe explains that “these men had specific political purposes in mind when arguing their case, and the historical foundations of their work are unreliable.”

INSPIRE

21

St. Philip the Deacon

Unreliable is putting it kindly. Principe goes on to call Draper’s work “some of the worst historical writing you are ever likely to come across. Historical facts are confected, causes and chronologies twisted to the author’s purpose. ... And instances, quite a few of them, where Draper claims a historical writer said something in fact 180 degrees away from what he actually claimed.” Principe concludes his ref lections on Draper by saying: This is “the book that started the conf lict myth. Take a sense of humor and/or a stiff drink with this dated bit of melodrama.”

Even so, Draper and White did their damage, and their legacy remains with us today. There isn’t space here to undo all of the myths and lies their work spawned, but following are a few items that might serve as entry points to thinking about the relationship of faith and science more accurately and more helpfully. If some of these may sound like the opposite of what you have been taught, you can blame White and Draper for that.

01.

Genesis Freed People to Explore the World Scientifically

Genesis and the stories of creation in the first few chapters of that book are often used by atheists to mock Christians and underscore our supposedly primitive and prescientific worldview.

But as biblical interpreters for millennia have acknowledged and recognized, the Genesis stories about creation were never intended to be “scientific” accounts of creation—any more than Shakespeare’s “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” is intended to be a poem about meteorology. Instead, Genesis was written to communicate other kinds of truth, including the truth that created things—the sun, the moon, the stars, the creatures of sea and land—are not gods and do not deserve our worship (which was a common view at the time Genesis was written).

Instead, as the authors of Genesis argued, we should worship the God who created all these things. While this may not seem like a big deal, this posture freed Christians to study the world around us, rather than be afraid or fearful of it, and helped to create an outlook toward the natural world which eventually developed into the natural sciences.

02.

Western Universities were Established by the Christian Church

The first universities in the west were all church institutions.

Bologna. Oxford. Salamanca.

Paris. Cambridge. Padua. And all of them existed to seek the truth—including the truth of the world around us. Before it was called science, the study of natural philosophy—which included the study of nature and the physical universe—was affirmed, encouraged and supported at these universities.

It is almost impossible to overstate or exaggerate the number of Christians who have made major scientific discoveries.

Many of these scientists were abbesses, monks and priests who were encouraged in their work by the Church. This list would include, for example, lesser known names like Hildegard of Bingen, a Benedictine abbess from the 12th century who is considered to be the founder of natural philosophy in Germany, and Robert Grosseteste, the 12th century Bishop of Lincoln in England, who is considered the founder of scientific thought at Oxford. It would also include more well-known names like astronomers Johannes Kepler and Galileo Galilei (really—see pg. 22); mathematician Blaise Pascal; discoverer of gravity Sir Isaac Newton; the father of modern chemistry, Antoine Lavoisier; Gregor Mendel, an Augustinian abbot known as the father of modern genetics; Louis Pasteur, the chemist and microbiologist who discovered pasteurization; botanist and inventor George Washington Carver; and—in the 20th and 21st centuries—Georges Lemaître, a Roman Catholic priest who first proposed the Big Bang theory, and Francis Collins, the former head of the Human Genome Project and the National Institutes of Health.

03.

The History of Science is Filled with Christians

The point isn’t that a person needs to be Christian to be a scientist.

The point is that you simply cannot tell the story of science and its major discoveries without the countless Christians who make up some of its most important and significant historical characters.

It needs to be pointed out that Science and the Scientific Method—developing hypotheses, carrying out experiments or making empirical observations to test those hypotheses, and then evaluating and confirming these experiments and observations—is something very different from Scientism. Scientism, which often masquerades as science, is actually a philosophy or worldview which presumes—without any proof—that the material or physical world encompasses all of existence and represents all of truth. Someone professing scientism might say, for example, that “the only kind of truth is empirical truth.” The profound irony, of course, is that this statement itself cannot be proved empirically—it is, instead, a declaration made on faith.

04.

A Word about Scientism

Science and the scientific method are important parts of our lives today. And rightly so. Science has given us incredible gifts, for which we give thanks. To the degree Christians sometimes feel defensive about these gifts, we really shouldn’t. Instead, we should go the other direction. We should give thanks not only for the gifts science has given us—but also for the historical truth that, far from blocking or stopping scientific progress, Christianity has, over the centuries, been science’s friend and ally.

22

T

B U T W H AT A B O U T GALILEO?

BY TIM WESTERMEYER

The story of Galileo Galilei, who lived from 1564-1642, is what most people think of as the example par excellence of the conflict between faith and science. The truth of the Galileo affair, though, is that it had less to do with science or scientific proof than with a conflict of personalities—for which Galileo was largely responsible.

o start with, a number of people before Galileo had proposed a heliocentric view of the universe, without any challenge from the church. For example, the Catholic Bishop Nicholas of Cusa, who lived in the 15th century—more than a century before Galileo—made philosophical claims that anticipated Galileo’s heliocentric views. Similarly, the Danish Lutheran Tycho Brahe, about 20 years younger than Galileo, believed the planets (although not the earth) orbited the sun, and the moon orbited the earth. Nicolaus Copernicus, who gives the Copernican theory its name, and who died about two decades before Galileo was born, formulated a model of the universe that placed the sun at its center. And in 1596—about 14 years before Galileo began publishing his own works about the subject—Johannes Kepler built on Copernicus’ work, publicly supporting this heliocentric understanding.

The obvious question is: If all of these other scientists were proposing heliocen-

INSPIRE

23

St. Philip the Deacon

trism without difficulty, what happened to Galileo? Well, Galileo got himself into trouble not because he was continuing to promote theories that people had already been working on for decades, but because he also presumed to make pronouncements about theology and the interpretation of Scripture—and did this during a time when the Catholic Church was particularly cautious about the question of biblical interpretation due to the ongoing and lingering fallout from the Reformation.

In addition to this overstepping of bounds on the part of Galileo, it is also a historical fact that Galileo was, honestly, not very likeable. His arrogance and pridefulness ensured he would make enemies in high places. This disinclined some of these enemies to be very sympathetic toward him and his teachings.

It’s important to note, too, that—without taking anything away from Galileo’s brilliance and genius, or the genius of these other early astronomers—none of them

were able to prove their theories. The scientific instruments and theories simply weren’t yet available to them. As one author writes, “Direct evidence supporting heliocentrism had to wait for the emergence of Newtonian mechanics in the late 17th century, the observation of the stellar aberration of light by James Bradley in the 18th century, the analysis of orbital motions of binary stars

by William Herschel in the 19th century, and the accurate measurement of the stellar parallax in the 19th century.”

Had he been able to prove his theories with actual observations and evidence, the Catholic Church would very likely have supported Galileo’s findings. As Cardinal Bellarmine—an important player in the whole affair—famously wrote, in words that underscore the importance and power of scientific evidence: “If there were

a true demonstration that the sun is at the center of the world ... then one would have to proceed with great care in explaining the Scriptures that appear contrary, and say rather that we do not understand them [the Scriptures] than what is demonstrated is false.” In other words, Bellarmine was saying: If you can show us the evidence, we’ll believe you—and, more than that, we’ll admit that, as a church, we don’t correctly understand a Scripture passage that seems to contradict that scientific evidence.

While Galileo remained a faithful Christian for his whole life, to the degree this episode reinforced the false assumption that faith and science have always been at odds, the Galileo affair has had a lasting—and unfortunate—legacy. Even so, in the long history of science and Christian faith, it is important to note that the complicated and contentious Galileo affair is the exception, rather than the rule.

24

NOT WHERE YOU GO, BUT WHO YOU TRAVEL WITH

BY AMANDA BERGER

INSPIRE

St. Philip the Deacon

F

or years, a group of friends at St. Philip the Deacon has dined and traveled together. They’ve been to the far corners of the world—from France to South Africa, Italy to New Zealand and Australia— covering the globe as they explored different cuisines and cultures. This past September, however, there was one major difference as they set out on a trip to Spain and Portugal: they would be traveling without their dear friend Joan Floren for the first time.

WB and Marilyn Larson, George and Diane Waldow, and Dave and Joan Floren had traveled for years with Dave Iverson, from A Cook’s Tour travel company out of Seattle. Focused on exploring food and wine as well as popular tourist destinations, these travelers had collected not only passport stamps, but also an abundance of memories. They weren’t entirely sure what it would feel like to be missing one of their group.

“My impression of the entire trip is that it was anything but sad or bleak. Instead, it was thoroughly enjoyable,” said Dave Floren.

“I came home with no regrets and a lot of very pleasant memories … it’s a ringing testament to the kindness, support and companionship that comes from traveling with close friends. They’re fun, interesting and very experienced travelers who never failed to look out for me. It was a real blessing to be with them.”

With friends like these, their trips often include side trips and unexpected explorations. “WB is famous for the phrase, ‘Well, since we’re here, why don’t we …’” joked Marilyn Larson of her husband. And this trip was no exception. Adding on their own destinations of Madrid and Barcelona to an itinerary already full with stops in Porto, Lisbon, Sintra, Cordoba, Seville and Andalusia, their three-week trip included days spent touring wineries, enjoying cooking classes, markets and shops, as well as visiting mosques and cathedrals, most notably La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

La Sagrada Familia was clearly one of the most memorable stops on their trip. “It’s breathtaking—that was my God moment, it was the most beautiful cathedral I’ve ever seen,” said Diane Waldow. The cathedral, designed and begun by Antoni Gaudí in 1882, is still under construction today. WB Larson added, “Our guide had us walk in, looking down, and he led us to a certain place. Then he said, ‘Now, lift your eyes up!’ As we opened our eyes, we saw this absolutely glorious expanse of white light, the only decoration is the altar. You look left and right, and the colored windows bathe the white walls in the most beautiful color. There’s no picture or story in the windows, except the story of creation and light.” For Floren, this was also one of the most remarkable moments; “Despite the throngs of tourists you cannot help but get the feeling this is a holy space. The colors through the stained glass hang in the air like angels and the columns soar to heights that surely must reach the heavens.”

25

While La Sagrada Familia was food for the spirit, it would be a mistake not to mention the food for the body experienced on this trip. All the participants commented on the wonderful, fresh seafood. They enjoyed touring wineries in the Douro Valley of Portugal. They took cooking classes where they made Paella, Pasteis De Bacalhau (cod fritters) and other Spanish and Portuguese specialties. They ate suckling pig, local gazpacho and abundant seafood.

Many people shy away from traveling with tours and guides, but the Waldows, Larsons and Floren believe that it is worth it—especially on a small tour like this one where they weren’t the only participants, but it was intimate enough to get to know others and make new friends. “It’s our tour guide’s connections with local guides that allows so much more depth to our trips,” said George Waldow. WB Larson echoed that sentiment, “It’s so easy to go see something and not take the tour, but with a good guide you see and learn so much more. Take the tour.”

Dave Floren’s parting advice was this, “If you are going to travel for the first time without someone you loved dearly, be sure to travel with good friends. It will be good for your soul.”

26

COMING HOME, AGAIN

BY AMANDA BERGER

INSPIRE

27

St. Philip the Deacon

Although worship may feel like one of the most consistent parts of our life together at St. Philip the Deacon, especially with its predictable pattern and familiar hymns, it is one of the areas in which we put the most time and effort into crafting something that represents our faith community. As we emerged from the most constraining parts of pandemic life, SPD leadership considered what it meant to be back in person for worship.

It became clear that it was time to let some things go, like our Monday night service, but also time to reinvigorate and create additional opportunities to gather.

So, we welcomed back our Saturday 5:30 p.m. service, which looks very much like it always has with flute accompaniment and Holy Communion each week. Sunday at 11 a.m., however, felt like it needed a refresh.

So, when we hired our new assistant music director, Kraig Windschitl, creating a new vibe for “contemporary” worship became one of his first assignments.

Contemporary worship can mean a lot of things—and it has over the years at St. Philip the Deacon. At its most basic, though, it means a departure from the traditional form of pipe organ and choral singing. Not necessarily something driven by smoke and lights and music like you’d hear on contemporary Christian radio, but rather something that matches who we are as people worshipping God in this moment in time, today.

(So, at SPD, we could legitimately call our traditional service contemporary as well— because it also describes who we are today.)

However, providing a different feel from our traditional services, the 11 a.m. Sunday morning service offers a new band with a piano-driven sound. Windschitl provides leadership and keyboard, and is joined

by Hope Quinn (vocals), Chris Paulson (guitar/vocals), Kameron Markworth (bass) and David Shmalenberger (percussion).

Together, this group of talented and versatile musicians produces a sound that is energetic and upbeat.

This new service has also allowed Chris Paulson, who grew up at St. Philip the Deacon and whose parents are members, to share his musical talents in a leadership capacity. Paulson said, “I had a great formative experience at SPD, but even more importantly, this place is important to my family. This is the place they call home, and it’s really special to reconnect with the family side of worship.” This family feeling carries over into the feel of the service— while it is definitely different from the more traditional services, it’s not such a stretch to find your fit within it.

connect with people. This is very meaningful for people to be together and we are helping them be together,” said Shmalenberger. “I’m humbled by that.”

“There’s more familiar in this service than different,” said Windschitl. “We use a liturgy, we use familiar Lutheran hymns … we just give them a different feel with our instrumentation.” Paulson echoed that feeling, “There’s so much music history here. In many ways, music started in the church and there are many branches from there, but there’s something musically satisfying about Lutheran hymns. They’re very communal.” And this group of adaptable musicians believes in the communal element of worship and worship leadership.

“Trying something new can be exciting,” said Quinn. “But the way I pictured coming into this, as a contemporary service was 2021, 2020 hits. Even when I go to a service like that and I think, ‘I don’t know this.’ But then we’ll be in rehearsal, and I’ll be like, ‘Oh, this is so familiar, I remember this from how I grew up.’ [This service] has this really beautiful balance of contemporary—mostly from these musicians—but then sticking to songs that everyone knows, that are familiar.” Even if you don’t know this particular musical setting or version, the words are familiar, and they feel like home.

Each of these musicians plays music in other places—jazz clubs, musical theater, teaching at area colleges—but there’s something special about providing leadership for worship. Windschitl named it as a calling.

Bassist Markworth said, “There is a humility to working with other talented people—that you can just share a look and know that you’re on the same page.” There’s more to worship leadership than just showing up with your instrument and playing a few songs. “When we do this, people come up to us and are very appreciative, but it goes beyond that. You

We know that getting out of your comfort zone can be challenging, but we strongly encourage everyone to give this new worship service a try. Trying a new pattern for worship can be like walking a familiar route backwards—a lot of it feels familiar, but it also invites us to witness it with a heart open to seeing or hearing something from a new perspective.

Whether you’ve worshipped at SPD for years or are new to our faith community, know that the band has been expecting you.

There is a place for you, here.

28

LE ARN BY DOING

RECIPES AND PHOTOGRAPHY

BY AMANDA BERGER

INSPIRE

29

St. Philip the Deacon

Discovering new recipes is one of the joys of being a cook.

Diving into the recently published Deacon Diners Cookbook provided the opportunity to explore hundreds (over 420!) recipes from their decades of cooking and dining together. I was a little intimidated—the menus were diverse and explored a more gourmet approach than I typically do as a home cook. But, as I delved into each section of the cookbook, I found many recipes that I was excited to try. All of the Deacon Diners recipes are company worthy, but I decided to focus on three main courses, which were both weeknight and family friendly.

CHICKEN BREAST IN

M Y CRITERIA FOR

PHYLLO PASTRY

W E E K N I G H T/ FA M I LYF R I E N D LY C O O K I N G :

► A simple, short list of ingredients ► Quick cooking time ► OR prep-ahead options and hands-off cooking.

Enjoy the fruits of my own experiments and a taste of the Deacon Diners. I have edited these recipes in minor ways from how they were originally printed, but only as a means of simplifying for a quicker meal.

The cookbook is available at church for $25 or by mail with a check for $30 (S&H included. Checks should be written out to “Interfaith Outreach.”).

Deacon Diners Cookbooks 15705 16th Ave. N. Plymouth, MN 55447

Serves: 8 1 cup Mayonnaise 2/3 cup chopped Green Onions 3 ½ tbsp Lemon Juice 1 clove Garlic, minced ¾ tsp dried Tarragon 4 boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts, cut in half (to create thin cutlets) or 8 thin cut Chicken Breasts Salt & Pepper 16 sheets frozen Phyllo Pastry, thawed according to manufacturer’s instructions Butter-f lavored cooking spray 3 ½ tbsp grated Parmesan Cheese Preheat oven to 350°. In a medium bowl, combine mayonnaise, green onions, lemon juice, garlic and tarragon. Stir until blended and set aside. Salt and pepper both sides of each chicken breast.

Make sure that your phyllo pastry is completely thawed—usually about 3 hours or overnight in the fridge. Place a piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap on your counter, to keep the pastry from sticking. Then, lay out one sheet of pastry

and spray evenly with the butter-f lavored cooking spray. Lay another phyllo sheet on top of the first and coat with cooking spray.

Use about 3 tbsp of the mayonnaise mixture to coat one of the chicken breasts.

Then, lay the chicken breast in the corner of the phyllo pastry, far enough in that you can fold the corner toward the center and cover the top of the chicken breast.

After you fold in the corner, fold in each side toward the middle. Then, continue to roll the chicken breast in the phyllo until it is completely wrapped up in a little bundle—very much like a burrito.

Place the bundle on an ungreased 15x9 jelly roll pan. Repeat the process with the remaining chicken breasts.

After all the bundles have been placed on the pan, spray the tops with the cooking spray and sprinkle with the grated parmesan cheese.

Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and bundles are golden brown.

30

GOAN CHICKEN CURRY

A classic Indian curry, from Goa, is usually made with skinless, but bone-in chicken.

Boneless, skinless chicken makes it less messy to eat, without sacrificing too much flavor. I think this recipe is even better the next day when the flavors have had more time to meld. In fact, you can make each part of this recipe ahead of time for a quicker prep. Serve with basmati rice and don’t skip the Date-Lemon Chutney— that’s the best part! Serves: 4-6 2 large boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts, cut into 1 ½” pieces 4-5 boneless, skinless Chicken Thighs, cut into 1 ½” pieces 3 tbsp minced Garlic 1 piece of Ginger, minced 1 Lemon, juiced 6 tbsp desiccated Coconut Xacuti Masala (see recipe below) 3 Onions, chopped 1 ½ tsp Salt 1 tsp Turmeric 4 tbsp Ghee (or butter) 2 ½ cups Water In a bowl or Ziploc bag, combine chicken, garlic, ginger and 1 tbsp lemon juice.

Toss to combine, and then set aside to marinate.

In a small skillet, dry toast the coconut until it is lightly browned and fragrant.

Allow to cool and grind with the Xacuti Masala. Set aside.

In a large skillet or Dutch oven, melt the ghee. Then add the onions, sautéing until softened and golden. Add the masala mixture and stir to combine, frying for

another 2 minutes. Add the marinated chicken, turmeric and salt, stirring to thoroughly combine. Allow to cook for 4-5 minutes, then add the water and cover.

Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat and continue to simmer until the chicken is tender, and sauce has thickened, about one hour. Squeeze remaining lemon juice over the curry before serving.

X ACUTI M A SA L A

6 Kashmiri Dry Chilis, seeded 3 tsp Coriander seeds ½ tsp Cumin seeds 1 tsp Fenugreek seeds 2 tsp Poppy seeds 5 green Cardamom pods, shelled 6 whole Cloves 1 piece of Cinnamon To make the masala: Combine all of the spices in a dry skillet and toast for a few minutes, until fragrant. Allow to cool.

Grind all spices together (either with a mortar and pestle, or in a spice grinder).

This makes roughly 4 tablespoons, the correct amount for the Goan Chicken Curry. Double or triple to make a larger batch, which you can store in an airtight container for additional preparations.

N o t e: I get it—the spices in this recipe are a commitment. If you would like to try this recipe, but aren’t ready to invest in all the spices, contact Amanda at aberger@ spdlc.org and I’ll prep the spices for you to pick up at SPD. (I buy these in bulk, and always have them at my home—I’d love to share!)

D AT E - L E M O N C H U T N E Y

9 oz pitted Dates 3 tbsp desiccated Coconut  tbsp fresh Lemon Juice (about two lemons) 2 tbsp fresh Ginger, minced ½ tsp ground Fennel seeds ½ tsp ground Coriander ¼ cup chopped Parsley ½ tsp Salt Finely chop the dates. Combine the dates with the rest of the ingredients and let sit at least half an hour. If too thick, add more lemon juice (this will be a thick chutney, not runny like salsa). Serve with the Goan Chicken, providing a sweet, tart accompaniment for the spicy chicken curry.

INSPIRE

31

St. Philip the Deacon

“No one is born a great cook.

One learns by doing.”

JULIA CHILD

32

SP ICY P E ACH - GL A ZED PORK CHOPS

I halved this recipe from the original to better fit my family with less leftovers.

This is a super quick-cooking meal, which I served with mashed sweet potatoes and steamed green beans. Serves: 4 1 cup Peach Preserves 1 ½ tbsp Worcestershire Sauce ½ tsp Chili Paste 4 boneless Pork Chops, rinsed and patted dry 1 tsp ground Ginger A dash of ground Cinnamon ½ tsp Salt ¼ tsp Pepper 2 tbsp Olive Oil ½ cup White Wine

In a small bowl, mix peach preserves, Worcestershire sauce and chili paste. Set aside. In another small bowl, combine ginger, cinnamon, salt and pepper and stir to combine. Sprinkle each pork chop with the ginger mixture on both sides.

In a skillet over medium heat, heat the olive oil. When hot, add the pork chops, searing on one side for about 2 minutes, then f lipping to the other side for another 2 minutes. Remove pork chops from the pan and set aside.

Add the white wine to the skillet to deglaze, using a spatula to scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

Add the peach preserves mixture and stir to combine. Place the pork chops back into the pan, f lipping to coat with the sauce.

Cook for about 9 more minutes or until done, f lipping once in the middle.

Remove from heat and allow to rest for a couple of minutes. Serve with additional sauce drizzled over the top.

INSPIRE

33

St. Philip the Deacon

OUT & ABOUT During this school year, 2021-2022, our senior high youth (known as KOIN) have placed an emphasis on service.

Throughout the year they’ve participated in several projects either to uplift and encourage their own friends or to provide support for area organizations, including Interfaith Outreach, the Humane Society and Sleep Out.

34

GIVING THANKS Each year, SPD’s Christmas ministries support 10 area shelters and food shelves, representing more than 1,200 recipients. We are so grateful to all of you, our members and friends, for your incredible generosity that allows us to bring more Christmas joy to so many individuals and families. Our mission partners include: Anishinabe Wakiagan, Unity Place, Messiah Lutheran, Community Bridge, Home Free Shelter and Mission Lodge.

10

1200

O R G A N I Z AT I O N S

RECIPIENTS

“

We at Messiah want to send our deepest thanks for your very generous donation of 700 books to be given along with Christmas food basket distribution … Can’t you picture all the little children asking to have their book read ‘just one more time’ and the older ones polishing their reading skills in such a fun way?” MESSIAH LUTHER AN CHURCH

“

Your and the church’s generosity has had an immense impact on our team, and we could not have had a successful holiday season without you!

Please thank your entire congregation on our behalf for volunteering this Thanksgiving and Christmas! Many blessings to you all!” COMMUNIT Y BRIDGE

“

I was one of the recipients of Christmas gifts from your church.

I was staying at Mission Lodge at the time.

God blessed me and I am now home with my family. Your gifts were a true blessing and much appreciated.” A . YOUNG, MISSION LODGE

“

We are so thankful for your donation … your gift impacts our school in ways even we can’t always see!

Every day we seek to serve God by sharing the message of salvation through Jesus.

You play an important role in our daily school ministry.” SAR AH JS WIPPICH,

PRINCIPAL , TRINIT Y FIRST LUTHER AN SCHOOL

“

Thank you for the gifts that were collected for Home Free. Each year we are blown away by your generosity.

Thank you for remembering the families at Home Free.” HOME FREE SHELTER

INSPIRE

35

St. Philip the Deacon

S AT U R D AY A N D S U N D AY MARCH

19-20 FOOD DRIVE FOR I N T E R FA I T H O U T R E A C H

SPRING CALENDAR

March 19, 9–11 a.m., March 20, 8 a.m.–Noon Help support our neighbors by dropping off goods for the Interfaith Outreach food shelf. Donations will be accepted at Door A, in the upper parking lot.

S AT U R D AY APRIL

23

BIBLE ART JOURNALING

B E G I N S W E D N E S D AY, M A R C H 9

10 a.m.–2 p.m. Join Pastor Mathison to explore scripture through art and creativity. All are welcome and no experience necessary. Cost is $7 per person; bring your own lunch. Register at spdlc.org/register.

LENTEN WORSHIP

Join us for mid-week worship featuring the Holden Evening Prayer at 7 p.m. Our theme for Lent is based on Adam Hamilton’s book, 24 Hours That Changed the World. Meets each Wednesday through April 6.

A P R I L 1 9 , 2 6 , M AY 3 , 1 0

F R I D AY

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

M AY

6:30 p.m. Pastor Cheryl Mathison will present a fourweek Bible study walking through the Gospel of Mark.

Register at spdlc.org

13

S AT U R D AY, A P R I L 3 0 FIRST COMMUNION TR AINING

T WINS NIGHT OUT

9 a.m. Trisha Ragner provides instruction for those wishing to receive First Communion. This workshop is for children and their parents or guardians in grades 2 – 5 to learn about the origins and meaning of Communion as well as the process for receiving Communion. Registration required. Communion received May 7 at 5:30 p.m.

7:10 p.m. Minnesota Twins vs. Cleveland Guardians Come for a night out at Target Field with your friends from SPD. Details about cost, transportation and registration can be found at spdlc.org/register.

36

FA M I L I A R FA C E S MOE HAGESTUEN

or have direct access to a lake later in life. I have often imagined having my family and friends gathered around our campfire just enjoying the Minnesota air, the lake, the stars—all while listening to the loons.

4.

Moe Hagestuen joined our staff to support our Financial Administrator, Cheryl Sjaarda, and has learned from Sjaarda for the past four years. Hagestuen had been preparing to transition to the role of Financial Administrator following Sjaarda’s retirement in February of 2022. Hagestuen’s grateful heart and attention to detail make her a natural fit in this important role. more so, I take very seriously the trust that has been graciously given so that I can fill this role and help see God’s work in action.

2.

1.

Describe when you knew you’d be going into ministry. To be completely honest, I didn’t know. I was just in the right place at the right time. It truly was and continues to be a “God thing.” I was walking down the hall at SPD and Pastor Tim happened to catch me and asked a question. The next thing I knew I was in the Finance Office having a screening interview. After that initial conversation with the Finance Administrator, Cheryl Sjaarda, I was intrigued, excited and extremely interested in a possible new path. Four years later, I still shake my head at the wonder of it all. I feel blessed and honored every day to have worked with her and be part of the amazing environment at SPD. Even

What’s one thing that people would be surprised to know about you? The day after I graduated from college and had no clear idea what I wanted to do with my life, I packed up and moved to Montana and worked on a dude ranch. It was the most transforming time of my life. I met the most amazing people, learned so much about myself and discovered what true hard work really was. The owners of the ranch became like a second family to me.

3.

What are three things on your lifetime to-do list?

First, being at the age I am, our three beautiful children—along with my parents—are on top of my to-do list. I hope and pray for them all to find happiness with themselves and their life journey as well as find a safe, loved and joy-filled adult and aging adult life. Second, I would love to travel back to Belgium and re-visit that region of the world. Our family spent some time there and it was an amazing and life-changing experience for us all. Third, I’d love to enjoy the best that Minnesota has to offer and eventually either live on

How do you take care of yourself—spiritually, emotionally and physically—so that you stay healthy in ministry? Spiritually, I feel revived and renewed each Sunday when we attend worship here at SPD. I am filled up by the liturgy, moved by the music and energized by the fellowship. Emotionally, I surround myself with people like my amazing husband and friends that help keep me stay focused on the joy and excitement of life and what truly matters.

With a husband that commutes for his job to another city, I rely on my friends and extended family and they have been my emotional rocks and I couldn’t be more blessed by their support. Physically, I love to walk. My sweet golden retriever, Bergen, is a great listener to all my musings. Additionally, more recently I have been doing a bit of yoga with Amanda. Something I NEVER imagined my busy body and mind being able to do. But … so far so good!

Turns out relaxing is easy if you allow yourself the chance to do it!

5.

What are you passionate about right now? Right now, I’m passionate about making sure my three beautiful kids (21, 19 and 17) are happy and prepared for their launch into their own adult worlds to create their futures. All three of them are on amazing but very different paths, and creating space for them to learn, grow and navigate our crazy world is daunting. I pray daily for guidance on how to show them love and encouragement, hoping they will feel like they can do anything but also remember they are not invincible. I hope they have learned empathy, kindness and to remember that the world is not here for them, but quite the opposite.

They are here for the world and to help make it a better place. I am passionate about my family and I am blessed to call them mine.

Yoga as a devotional practice connects us to God and to ourselves as God’s creation. Improve balance, flexibility and strength as you grow in faith. Each of our yoga classes includes movement, prayer and scripture as we seek to connect more deeply with our bodies and with God.

YOGA AT SPD Mat-based classes for all levels with Amanda Berger IN-PERSON

Thursdays at 9 a.m.

Men’s Yoga, Thursdays at 6:30 p.m.

V IR TUA L

Mondays at 6:30 p.m. on Zoom Saturdays at 8 a.m. on Zoom

Chair yoga classes for all levels with Kathy Hagedorn IN-PERSON

Mondays at 11:30 a.m.

Thursdays at 11:30 a.m.

For more information contact Amanda at aberger@spdlc.org or Kathy at khagedorn@spdlc.org. Current class schedules and special events are noted in our weekly SPD e-newsletter.

17205 County Road 6 Plymouth, MN 55447

“Such amazing mysteries are found within every miracle that nearly everyone seems to miss. Those with no discernment can never really discover the deep and glorious secrets hidden in your ways.”

PSALM 92:6 ( T H E P A S S I O N T R A N S L AT I O N )

V I S I T U S O N L I N E AT S P D L C .O R G