May 18, 2013

 

Dear Folks ~

 

1.  Last weekend:  The Gospel allowed us to eavesdrop on Jesus as he prayed during the Last Supper.  And his prayer was not one of concern for himself and his immanent betrayal and suffering, but his concern was for his followers – including us.  And he prayed, “That they may all be one.”  Unity was his concern.  And as Christians denominations often witness more to disunity than to unity, we pray that we as a Cathedral parish may grow in unity within among ourselves and among the congregations serv-ing Fond du Lac.  It is what Jesus prayed for!

 

2.  On Monday:  We held a Memorial Service for Kay Searl Berkby.  Kindly keep Kay and her family in your prayers. 

 

This presents an opportunity to remind you of two things:

 

o      If you have special requests for your funeral, please file them with us here at the Cathedral, with the funeral home of your choosing (if you are pre-planning), and with your executor (and other family members).  It’s a tremendous help and comfort to all if your wishes are known so they can be honored.  Do know that I am glad to sit down with you at your con-venience to discuss and record your wishes concerning visitation, service, and burial.

 

o      Direction is given on page 445 of The Book of Common Prayer that:  “The Minister of the Congregation is directed to instruct the people, from time to time, about the duty . . . of all persons to make wills, while they are in health, arranging for the disposal of their temporal goods, not neglecting, if they are able, to leave bequests for religious and charitable uses.”  As a result, we do encourage you to “Remember the Cathedral in your will or trust document.”  We’ll be forever grateful. 

 

3.  Tuesday:  At this month’s Chapter Meeting, we decided on a “branding slogan” which will appear on the weekly bulletin, monthly newsletter, our stationary, and all printed items:  “St. Paul’s Cathedral, on the corner of Division and Sophia, where Faith and Service meet.”  This branding slogan is now in the hands of a small committee to expand into a new Mission Statement for us.  May the Holy Spirit guide us beyond words – to do what the Lord would have us do in service to our brothers and sisters, and to the greater honor and glory of God. 

 

In terms of additional outreach endeavors, the Chapter discussed our being poised to reach out to those who will move into the 46-unit senior housing being built directly across the river from us.  And we also discussed our relationship with the River Park Neighbor-hood (formerly the Hamilton District):  An outdoor Eucharist, a summer ice cream social, and/or a monthly or quarterly Saturday breakfast for parents and children are all under consideration.

 

4.  Wednesday:  Nominations for Bishop of Fond du Lac closed.  The Standing Committee is in charge of this process.  Over 30 nominations were received.  Interviews, prayer, and discernment will result in a slate of candidates to be announced in mid-August.  To keep posted, go to diofdl.org, and click on Bishop Search.  And, yes, I will keep you posted through these E-pistles as well.

 

We are all urged to pray “For the Election of a Bishop” with the prayer found in our Prayer Book on page 818:  Almighty God, giver of every good gift: Look graciously on your Church, and so guide the minds of those who shall choose a bishop for this Diocese, that we may receive a faithful pastor, who will care for your people and equip us for our ministries; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

 

5.  Thursday:  The Fondy Food Pantry hosted its annual Volunteer Appreciation Night.  It was an evening of absolute positive energy!  The Pantry is celebrating its 40th year of service to the community.  70 of its volunteers attended the celebration. 

 

Ray Hintz is one of Fondy Food’s original and much loved volunteers.  The Fondy Food Board determined that, beginning this year, a Ray Hintz Volunteer Award will be given annually.  This year two awards were presented, one to the Cathedral’s own Lloyd Chapman for his exceptional service to both the Fondy Food Pantry and to its Food for Thought program.  Congratulations, Lloyd!

 

FYI:  We have fifteen parishioners involved as volunteers with Fondy Food, and an equal number with Broken Bread.  Anyone wishing to volunteer with either program: talk to Terry (904-7026).

 

6.  Friday:  The Cathedral once again participated in Fond du Lac’s monthly “Art Walk.”  Downtown businesses stay open late; each hosts an artist, and often a musician as well.  This month, we hosted Lee McClendon IV who presented his photog-raphy of images taken “Around the World.” 

 

The typical reaction of a first time visitor on entering the Cathedral is, “Wow!”  In addition to viewing the work of our featured artist, we also offer mini-tours of the Cathedral, answer questions, and invite folks to consider worshiping with us some future weekend.

 

7.  Saturday:  We hosted a meeting of the Trustees of the Diocese of Fond du Lac.  The trustees are made up of a dozen clergy and lay folks who “serve as an entity of the diocese to assist in managing property and investments.”  The trustees meet several times each year, and travel from congregation to congregation for their meetings.  This time it was the Cathedral’s opportunity to host them.

 

In hosting their meeting, we were given an opportunity to share with them our “branding” efforts, and some of our more recent “faith” and “service” endeavors. 

 

8.  This weekend:  The Church celebrates the Feast of Pentecost, the 50th day after Easter.  The word “Pentecost” comes from the Greek word Pentekoste, which means “the 50th day.”  Pentecost refers to the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples after Jesus’ ascension into heaven.

 

In early times – when baptisms were performed in rivers, streams, and lakes – the water was warmer on Pentecost than on Easter, so Easter’s baptisms were often delayed until Pentecost, and the day became known as Whitsunday (White Sunday) because of the white garments worn by the newly baptized.

 

This afternoon we are all invited to an Ecumenical Pentecost Gathering at 3pm at Ascension Lutheran Church, 901 Cty. Tk. V.

 

9.  Wednesday, Friday and Saturday of this coming week are our quarterly Ember Days.  These are days we set aside to pray “For those to be ordained,” “For the choice of fit persons for the ministry,” and “For all Christians in their vocation” (BCP 256)  While it’s always good to pray these prayers, with our Bishop Search in progress, perhaps this is yet another opportunity to fervently pray for God’s blessing and the Holy Spirit’s guidance on the process leading to the election of our next bishop.

 

Pentecost Blessings

~Fr. Brian