2018 Easter issue of The Lion's Tale

The

Lion’s Tale The Seasonal Magazine of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church

Easter 2018

They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us rom the entrance to the tomb?”

When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back.

–Mark 16:3-4

Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church

15 Pearl Street • Mystic, CT 06355 • (860) 572-9549 • stmarksmystic.org

Rolling Away the Stone A Sermon Preached on Easter Sunday by the Rev. Adam Thomas

Good morning. I am so glad to be worshiping with you on this Easter morning. And I’m so glad that I got to read the last eight verses of Mark’s Gospel a minute ago because they hold some good news I never noticed before this week. Unlike the other accounts of the Gospel, Mark focuses entirely on the women’s walk to the tomb and their conversation with the young man in the white robe. The Risen Christ doesn’t actually appear in these verses, and we’re left in that unsettling moment when the women run off and don’t tell anybody because they’re afraid. Of course, they must have said something eventually or else this story wouldn’t have made it into the Gospel.

Saint Mark’s episcopal church 15 Pearl Street Mystic, CT 06355 (860) 572-9549 stmarksmystic.org Ministers All members of the congregation The Rev. Adam Thomas, Rector David Tubbs, Music Director Madeline Wilson, Parish Admin Ken Knott, Senior Warden Bruce Vandal, Junior Warden Eric Bookmiller, Clerk Bob Ness, Treasurer Vestry Craig Koehler Lisa Noonan Sarah McDermott Nicholas Bolt Beth Cloutier Dan Hall Judith Roure Ken McBride Erika Roberts Kim Carlson Kurt Cramer John Kennedy

I can imagine Mary and Mary and Salome recounting their story to the disciples later on. “We got up early that morning and bought some spices to anoint his body. We had no idea how we were going to move the stone, but we went anyway, and when we got there –” “Wait a minute,” one of the disciples will say. Maybe Philip because he was pretty practical. “You bought spices and went to his tomb even though you had no way to move the stone?”

Mary and Mary and Salome will look at each other and laugh. “We wondered who might move the stone for us, but we didn’t let that keep us from going.”

I love Mary and Mary and Salome so much because they did not let that fairly massive detail deter them from trying to serve their Lord. They lived out an old brainstorming technique: you start by listing every idea you can think of without listing why they won’t work. During the brainstorm, you don’t focus on the obstacles an idea presents or else the idea with never become robust enough to overcome the obstacles.

The probability the stone was going to be there was near 100%. But if those three tenacious women let that obstacle stand in their way, they never would have gone to the tomb. They never would have met that young man in the white robe. They never would have been the first witnesses to the resurrection. They expected the stone to be there. They expected to fail in their work of anointing Jesus’ crucified body. But they go anyway.

Mother Teresa once said, “God did not call me to be successful. God called me to be faithful.” In other words, God’s call on our lives has very little to do with results and everything to do with relationships. For that’s what faithfulness is. Faith is the glue that binds all healthy relationships together. Think about it. When one member of a couple thinks the other might be committing adultery, what’s the adjective we use? Unfaithful.

Or a more positive example: we use the term “faithful” to talk about our dogs, right? Our faithful companions.

When Mary and Mary and Salome go to the tomb, they demonstrate their faith – not because they think they stone will be gone, but because they still desire to be in relationship with Jesus, even if it means a last act of mournful preparation of his body. They do not expect to be successful. (And if you think about it, in the end, they’re not successful in their plan to anoint his body.) They are not successful, but they remain faithful, despite the presence or absence of the stone.

This faithful witness of Mary and Mary and Salome heartens me this Easter morning. For all too often I get caught up in the priorities of this world, priorities that stress success over all else. I worry about the number of people sitting in the pews of this church. I worry about the sales of my books.

I worry about the number of views my websites receive. But such worries are really just ego trips that distract me from my true calling. Worldly success has nothing to do with the truth in which God calls us to participate. The number of people in the pews is nothing compared to the relationships they develop with God and with each other. My book sales are nothing compared to the reality that if I don’t write, I will cease to be a functional human being and all my relationships will suffer. Success is measured in statistics. Faith is measured in relationships.

And in the ultimate act of faith, Jesus Christ rose from the dead in order to keep his promise to be in relationship with us. St. Paul says, “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels,

nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That’s our faith. That’s what we celebrate today.

There’s no way to be a successful Christian. We can only be faithful ones. In this day and age when all the markers of the success-driven world are declining for the North American Church, Mary and Mary and Salome show us a different way. Like them, we have obstacles in our paths, stones that we cannot move by ourselves. These stones exist in the wider Church and in the world. These stones are everything that keep people from entering deep, meaningful, and reconciling relationships with one another across all spectrums of difference.

And these stones could keep us from acting on our faith. We could roll over and go back to sleep. But those three amazing women got up. And they went to the tomb. And that stone was rolled aside. If we don’t rise in faith, we’ll never know if our stones could also roll away. It’s utter foolishness what Mary and Mary and Salome did that Sunday morning so long ago. At least if you think in terms of success.

But in terms of faith, it was the only activity that could have made a lick of sense to them.

This Eastertide, I wonder what stones you see in your path or in the path of this world. Are those stones keeping you from rising? What would it be like if you got up anyway? What would it be like if you went to that place where the stone is? That’s where we will meet the Risen Christ. Christ will reach out a hand, drawing us deeper and deeper into faith-filled relationship, and say, “Here. Help me roll this stone away.”

“The Holy Women at the Tomb” by William-Adolphe Bouguereau

Living Locally, Joining God in the Neighborhood

By Bev Olsen

Recently, as part of the leadership team in the Southeastern Region of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut (ECCT) I was privileged to meet with a team of folks at St. John’s in Essex, who are trying to live out the mission and vision of Living Local, Joining God, an experiment in a different way of living out our faith and a different way of being church in a changing world. This experiment finds much of its roots in Alen Roxburgh’s work Joining God, Remaking Church, Changing the World: The New Shape of the Church in Our Time. The focus is faith in the community, outside our church doors and in our neighborhoods.

God is out there, already ahead of us, out in our neighborhoods.

The Team at St John’s has been meeting monthly for about a year. They began first with Dwelling in the Word, focusing on the scripture from Luke 10:112, which begins: “After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go.” Dwelling in the Word begins with one person reading the passage aloud to the group, and then allowing some silence to unfold as people let the words have their impact. Next folks listen to one other, hearing what one another has heard as important in the passage.

Then, the group comes back together to share what they had learned from one another, and the group grapples with the passage together. The team at St. John’s spent almost a year on this passage, gleaning God’s message for them.

And they started thinking about “our neighborhood.” What is God up to in our neighborhood? In pairs, they went for walks around neighborhood.

They listened, made observations, and they noticed things. In taking this simple step the group seemed to see their world anew, and to see it differently. In talking to neighbors on their sidewalks and in their shops, they intentionally saw their space as a space where they will find God. The group described these walks as “amazing awakenings,” as “experiencing

streets in a different way.” They described the practice as a practice in listening. The walks produced a lot of interesting stories. The people they encountered – in the gift shop, the post office, on the street – wanted to talk (one exception). In Ivoryton, they visited the theater. From the outside that day, it looked like nothing was going on, but inside, a ton of activity was going on.

This group spent time understanding what “neighborhood” meant. The group told us that little of this was done intentionally, but rather they followed the natural unfolding of their conversations and their explorations and their walks. The conversations developed as they discovered where people were gathering (at the Walmart, the dog park) and as they asked, “Where is God in this place?”

One parish in each region is piloting this program; however, this group describes this experiment as “more of a process and a way of being, not a program. We become different people because we listen.” Because of this there is a sense that there’s no map, no blueprint, no real goal. The group kind of makes it up as it goes, and they are absolutely good with this. Wherever we are becomes our neighborhood, and, just by being out there, we are doing what we are called to do.

We asked the team how they viewed their own lives as Christians differently now? They described that it changed their Christianity into to a way of being.

Their Christian faith is not just something they say they believe, but it is something they do; they find that they take what the believe and do something with them. They also found that their faith was not about them, but about “someone we are going to discover in an interesting way we don’t expect.”

This group is sharing their stories with their parish, with those of us on the leadership team, with the other church teams who are learning to live into their Christian faith out in the world in a new way.

The group was very, very deliberate in claiming and explaining that this is not a program; it is a way of being a Christian in a world and community that is increasingly not Christian.

Proclaiming

By Maggy Gilbert

When I gave birth to my first child I was terrified!

How could I possibly raise this child to feel good about herself, to be a confident child who could grow into her potential? I was a scared, young mom of 25 who grew up in a dysfunctional household. I turned to an unknown God and cried out: HELP ME PLEASE!

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look at me and burst into tears. I came out from behind the counter and led her to the nearby couch.

Reluctantly, she sat down and she apologized for bursting into tears. We sat together as she took the God heard my plea and a neighbor, Dorothy, showed time to try to collect herself. She was concerned up at my door and offered her help with my baby. about my being away from the counter, but I knew Gratefully accepting, we grew to become good that I was right where I was supposed to be. As she friends. She became my spiritual mother when she tried to collect herself, she revealed her story: she told me about a loving God who didn’t condemn was greatly worried about a test she’d just taken and but loved me unconditionally. She proclaimed the her doctor hadn’t called back yet. I listened while she Good News to me, and I wanted what she had. voiced her concerns. When she was finished, I asked if she was a praying woman. She said yes but whom Dorothy took me to her Evangelical Church where do you pray to? I said Jesus and she smiled and said I became a born again believer. I dove into Bible studies and began working through my deep-seated yes, please, let’s pray. So, we held hands and prayed there in the bookstore for God to anger. My confidence grew as my relieve her anxieties and worries and faith grew. I needed that solid I’ve found that by being for God’s love to cover and support foundation to stand on, and it was open to Spirit’s promptings her during this time of unknowing. so easy to view the world in black I’ve been blessed with many Returning to the front counter, and white instead of the confusing encounters of true spiritual I apologized to my co-worker for grays. leaving my post, but she said, “No, sharing moments.

And so began my proclaiming years: you were doing great customer I’d literally turn to the person in line service.” behind me and ask if they knew Jesus as their Lord From those baby Christian days, I have learned the and Savior. I smile now at my enthusiasm and the power of proclamation is silent presence. I have love of my new-found faith and the love I felt from learned that this is not of my own doing but my God. willingness to be used by God. In doing my prison However, I believe God has continued to grow ministry, the most profound thing I do is listen to my faith and has channeled my enthusiasm for the women’s stories. Acknowledging their pain and doing God’s will as proclamation into living God’s frustrations, I bring dignity to their existence simply will as faith in action. Instead of looking for an by listening to them. This has a profound impact opportunity to corner someone and drive the on the inmates. They’re not used to being heard, Four Spiritual Laws at them, I now look for the really heard. As a result, they become more open and opportunity to be present to the people around me. vulnerable. It’s this vulnerability that allows God to In this way, I proclaim my faith through my love of heal their wounds.

God, and, amazingly, opportunities open up before I believe my actions speak much louder than me. whatever I could possible proclaim with my words.

I’ve found that by being open to Spirit’s promptings I have learned that I can bless those around me by I’ve been blessed with many encounters of true being present to them. The cashier in the grocery spiritual sharing moments. One that still astounds store, the bank teller, and the person sitting next to me is when I was working at the bookstore. I was at me in church are all opportunities to be Christ in the front counter and a woman came in, took one the world.

Music as Prayer, Part One

by David Tubbs, Director of Music

Have you been listening to or been making music and had an experience that could not adequately be explained? That has happened to me. Not too long ago during a concert, the orchestra reached a point in a piece where I felt as if I had experienced the divine presence. It felt like my inner being was in tune with the music of the spheres. Tears came to my eyes, but they were not sad tears. I could tell you that all the instruments were in tune, that they were all playing the right notes. I could speak of the players’ technique and that they were together rhythmically. I could talk about the form of the piece, the tone color, the melodic movement and phrasing, the harmony and texture, the expressive qualities such as the mood, style, dynamics and tempi. I could discuss the qualities of the conductor.

I could try to explain the experience I had by saying things such as “wow, fantastic, wonderful, inspiring.” But none of these words or explanations can adequately describe the feeling I had.

Music has been described in many ways. Some describe music in purely logical, sensory, sonic terms. But that does not address the reactions one experiences from the music while developing meaning from it. Nor does it explain the varied reactions people have to different pieces and styles of music.

In experiencing music, the whole becomes larger than its parts. Often society, it seems, separates reason and the empirical from the emotional and spiritual, and empiricism and reason are often trusted while emotions are not. However, this divides us in our personhood. This attitude has progressed to the point where reason tends to suppress our emotions. For example, children are often judged by grades and SAT scores and material success rather than by the more important aspects of character and relationships. At any rate, to believe that there is only one way to understand reality, or that it is the highest way, is not adequate.

I feel, however, that a more balanced understanding is beginning to come into view. If something needs

to be fixed, you will need science. If you want to express the wonder of creation, the dictionary will not help. However, if an expression of wholeness is desired, both science and art, particularly, music are needed. Plato said, “The universe is not only ‘rational,’ it is musical.” There is too much wonder and beauty to be experienced to be limited to just one way of knowing and being.

Because music is based in the primal sensory experience of life and experienced through many ways of knowing, we find the reverberations of music in our language: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

things described as harmonious or discordant the tempo of life the need to improvise something finely tuned marching to a different drummer getting the rhythm of an activity describing how the beat goes on a voice that pipes up a well-orchestrated undertaking striking the right note the fevered pitch of an argument a conflict resolved gadgets with every bell and whistle events presented with much fanfare things really humming along an idea that resonates drumming up business calling good news “music to my ears” jazzing up a party being in or out of tune with your surroundings the tone of a meeting speech that is melodic or slurred being instrumental in bringing in business.

In our words we recognize the music that threads through our lives.

And furthermore, as Plato also said “Musical harmony lies at the very heart of the cosmos.” The psalms echo this Greek idea that music imbues the very fabric of creation; Psalm 19 claims that music was created by the Heavenly spheres as they circled the Earth.

The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.

Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge.

There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.

The resulting belief was that humans gain harmony with the spheres and with the order of creation through making music. Clement of Alexandria concurs with this belief: “the divine harmony is the creator of Christian unity; consequently, music from human lips was said to express and create unity and concord among Christians.” Martin Luther, fourteen hundred years later, also agreed: “Anyone who loves music is of good stuff, and whosoever is

harmonically composed delights in harmony, which makes me much distrust the symmetry of those heads which declaim against all church music.”

Then, two centuries later, Haydn set “The Heavens Are Telling the Glory of God” to music in his oratorio The Creation.

This idea – the creation as music – has lasted many centuries, not because of the unfolding scientific discoveries of the universe, but due to the deepseated desire within the human heart to acquire harmony within ourselves, with each other, with nature and all of creation. This desire will not abate, but will continue to exist. Words by themselves, however, will not fulfill our desire for wholeness and harmony; our souls cry out for the harmony of music.

2018 Prison Forum Addiction: What Can We Do About It?

Saturday, April 28, 2018, Check-in begins at 8:30 AM. Christ Church Cathedral Parish House, Hartford Keynote Speaker will be Deputy Warden Sandra Violette, from the Department of Correction’s Addiction Services Unit. She has been the Deputy Warden of Health and Addiction Services for the past year, and has begun to bring Medicated Assisted treatment to several different areas within Corrections. There will be panel discussions with formerly-incarcerated men and women and their families. “Self-care & support, and support for loved ones” will be the topic of a panel discussion by organizations that support families in Connecticut.

Beverages and snacks will be offered throughout the Forum and a box lunch will be served, all included in your $10 registration fee. Please direct questions or trouble with registration to Ellen Adams (deaconellen98@yahoo.com). Sign up today at faitthbehindbars2018.eventbrite.com.

St. Luc’s, Mercery

MAEC, Rotary, and St. Luc, Haiti

Following his visit to St. Mark’s in February, Father Sonley met with the teachers at St. Luc’s to discuss the school, the students, the partnership program and the future. At the end St. Mark’s, Mystic of this meeting, the teachers had coalesced on one need: the need for books. The students of Haiti have a required list of specific books to use in their studies; however, the student or the school needs to provide these texts. Many of the students at St. Luc’s do not have these books and the school’s stock of books has diminished through attrition, old age, and ill repair. From a compiled list of needs, the total cost for filling this need is $7,191.

We give thanks to the Mystic Area Ecumenical Council who has donated $3,000 towards this cost and the local Rotary Club who has donated the cost of building shelves to house the books, about $800. We continue to look into further partnerships with local churches and organizations.

EPISCOPAL CHURCH IN CONNECTICUT SOUTHEAST REGION CONVOCATION PARTICIPATING IN GOD’S MISSION Saturday, April 21 from 9am – 1pm at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Niantic All are welcome!

What is a Convocation?

A gathering, an assembly…it shares the same root word as church.

Both our Bishops, Ian and Laura, will be there to help us focus on “What is a Parish in this New Missional Age?” This is a great opportunity to reflect on parish life in ECCTSE. We’ll spend a little time discussing our common life together in the region as well.

The link for the Eventbrite registration is https://bit.ly/2Im5UpN

EPISCOPAL ______101 with Fr. Adam

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