TRINITY TIDINGS 100 Harwood, Lebanon, MO

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1 TRINITY TIDINGS 100 Harwood, Lebanon, MO Father Jerry Miller, Priest-in-Charge August 2, 2018, Volume 6, Issue 4 From Behind the Altar Every year on August 15, the Episcopal Church celebrates the feast of Saint Mary the Virgin, the Mother of Our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Roman Catholic Church this feast is called the Assumption of Saint Mary, and in the Orthodox Churches the feast is referred to as Mary s Dormition (falling asleep). The Roman Catholic doctrine of the Assumption was not formulated officially until 1950 and asserts that Mary was assumed body and soul into heaven at the time of her death. However, the belief that Mary was taken to heaven to be with God in a special way is many centuries old. The Anglican way of dealing with ancient beliefs is to recognize them and not go out of the way to over define them. 1

2 The prayer for the feast of Saint Mary the Virgin, the Mother of Our Lord Jesus Christ in our Book of Common Prayer typifies the Anglican way by stating the ancient belief without being overly specific: O God, you have taken to yourself the blessed Virgin Mary, mother of your incarnate Son: Grant that we, who have been redeemed by his blood, may share with her the glory of your eternal kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. The introduction of the feast in the volume Lesser Feasts and Fasts is a perfect example of how the Episcopal Church understands Mary s Feast Day: The honor paid to Mary, the Mother of Jesus Christ, goes back to the earliest days of the Church. Two Gospels tell of the manner of Christ s birth, and the familiar Christmas story testifies to the Church s conviction that he was born of a virgin. In Luke s Gospel, we catch a brief glimpse of Jesus upbringing at Nazareth, when the child was wholly in the care of his mother and his foster-father, Joseph. During Jesus ministry in Galilee, we learn that Mary was often with the other women who followed Jesus and ministered to his needs. At Calvary, she was among the little band of disciples who kept watch at the cross. After the resurrection, she was to be found with the Twelve in the upper room, watching and praying until the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost. Mary was the person closest to Jesus in his most impressionable years, and the words of the Magnificat, as well as her humble acceptance of the divine will, bear more than an accidental resemblance to the Lord s Prayer and the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount. Later devotion has claimed many things for Mary, which cannot be proved from Holy Scripture. What we can believe is that one who stood in so intimate a relationship with the incarnate Son of God on earth must, of all the human race, have the place of highest honor in the eternal life of God. A paraphrase of an ancient Greek hymn expresses this belief in very familiar words: O higher than the cherubim, more glorious than the seraphim, lead their praises, alleluia. When I came to Trinity in 2012, a very modern rendering of Mary and Jesus (Madonna and Child) was setting on top of the curio cabinet at the front of the church. Once it was decided to move the curio cabinet to the parish hall, I moved the Madonna to the back of the church and placed a blue votive light in front of it to call attention to it. The Madonna and Child serves as a visible symbol of the Incarnation (God coming into the world through the flesh of a human mother). In the future, I hope that very modern Madonna can be replaced with something more traditional and suited to Trinity s worship space. In the meantime, I want everyone to have a better understanding of how the Episcopal Church deals with ancient beliefs about the Mother of Our Lord. Peace, Father Miller Youth News August is here which means the start of school must be coming for us all along with more youth events with the Diocese after a full summer including Camp WEMO, General Convention, and Missionpalooza. 2

3 First up this fall will be a Happening August at Grace & Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City. This weekend retreat for and led by high school youth is a great way to dig deeper into your faith. November 2-4 brings the Diocesan Youth Gathering to Christ Church, Springfield. This event runs concurrently with Diocesan Convention and is open to youth in grades Be on the lookout for more Southern Youth Network events to be added to the calendar in the near future. As always, if you have any questions please let me know! Amanda Perschall Crosslines Ministry News Thanks to everyone who contributed to the food pantry at Crosslines. In June, 67 items were donated. In July, 60 food items were delivered to Crosslines. It is really great to see Trinity Episcopal Church in the board report every month for donations. For August the food need is pancake mix. August is also the back to school undie and sock drive for school aged children. The major need would be for size 2 through size 8 but all sizes are needed through high school age. Those receiving socks and underwear are from preschool through high school. Last year 591 children were recipients of the socks and underwear. Some did not receive socks because they ran out. The packages are taken apart so each child receives 3 sets if I remember correctly. Please be generous. Many of us no longer have school aged children at home so a good way to buy would be 3 sets of socks and undies for the children we used to buy school clothes or MORE. These items will be distributed through September and into October. Operation Roundup through Laclede Electric purchases shoes as teachers and counselors see a child in need. Peggy Graydon Project 360 Information Thank you so much for your wonderful response to our volunteer Request! There is a list of volunteers and a list of dates on the bulletin board. Please sign up for a date if you have a preference. It isn t too late to sign up, so please do so if the spirit moves you. You will receive a copy of the Project 360 Guidelines. Martha Walters, Kathleen Stretton, Dennis Stockstill Trinity Reference Library News We are featuring the following: Saints, Signs and Symbols: The Symbolic Language of Christian Art, 3 rd Edition, by Hilarie and James Cornwell. A short guide suitable for all ages. Sacred Symbols, by Lydia Hess (a companion coloring book) This coloring book is not just for children! You may enjoy it yourself or with a child or grandchild. Materials for coloring are included for you to use. Please sign and date the page in the coloring book that you and/or your child learn about color. That way, others may see who has participated in this interactive project. Please check out and enjoy this fun learning activity. Check out, learn from and enjoy one of these books soon! Kathleen Stretton 3

4 Sacred Site of Abrahamic Religions הר סיני Hebrew: Mountain" or "Mount Moses"; Har Sinai; also known as "Mount Horeb"), a mountain in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. Mt. Sinai is mentioned many times in the Book of Exodus in the Torah, the Bible, and the Qur 'an. This is where Moses received the Ten Commandments and the location of the Tomb of Abraham in the Cave of the Patriarchs. References to many local sites appear in the history of the Jewish people and the Abrahamic sacred texts. David Daniels In the Spotlight Most Abrahamic religions view as a sacred site Mount Sinai (Arabic: Mūsá; Jabal جبل موسى Ṭūr Sīnā, or طور سیناء Egyptian Arabic: Gabal Musa, lit. "Moses' How well do you know your fellow Trinity Church members? Featured in this newsletter, is the latest in a series of articles to help you get to know the people with whom you worship. Each issue will feature a different member of our congregation. In this issue, Bill Danek is in the spotlight. Here is his story in his own words. I was born June 8, 1938, to Bill and Wilma Danek in Lincoln, Nebraska. I had one Brother, Ron. I graduated from University of Nebraska in June 4

5 1960 and was commissioned second lieutenant in the Marine Corp. I served in the Marines until August of 1966 and was honorably discharged at the rank of Captain. I married Julie Dalling on October 9, 1959 and we welcomed our son, Scott on September 21, Our daughter Christa was born January 19, We were blessed with five grandchildren, Scott Danek, Jr., Reed Danek, Joshua James, Luke James and Haley James. I started working as a salesman in 1963 and started my own copier business in Springfield, MO. in I later merged with a larger company and became National Sales Manager in Jefferson City. We moved to St. Louis in family." I impress upon them that they are our future. Julie Stroup and I are very proud of them. Articles for the Newsletter Articles for the Trinity Tidings Newsletter may be ed to Bonnie Daniels, editor at bonnieraydaniels@centurylink.net. If you do not have access, we will also accept paper submissions Julie and I bought Page Printing and Office Supply in March of 1976 and made our home in Lebanon. That same year, we joined Trinity. Julie served as the organist for many years. I have served on the Bishop s Committee for several terms and was Senior Warden for three years. Julie passed away September 3, 2010, and is greatly missed by her family and friends. I served as Board President of Special Olympics for several years and was involved in the passage of Senate Bill 40 for the developmentally disabled. Julie was also very active in the community and was the first women president of the Chamber of Commerce and also the first women elected to the Ambassadors. Due to circulation problems, I had a leg amputated in 2009, but have tried to remain active. I had planned on fishing, hunting and golfing after retirement but that changed after my surgery. My son and grandson will take me fishing on occasion so that is one of my fun times. I tried to proclaim myself to be "Crappie King" but Martha Walters put an end to that. I currently enjoy working with the youth of Trinity. We went several years without children and we now have a very loyal group of young people who add a great deal to our "Church 5