June We have passed Memorial Day and have officially entered summer. Our young people have returned from university

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1 1 The VOLUME Three, ISSUE 11 June 2018 the newsletter of St. Alban s Anglican Parish Why? A Medita on for June hath no bi erness, says Scripture, and his company no tediousness, but joy and gladness. (Wis. 8:16) Inside this issue: Meditation for June Notes on a Retreat Vestry Minutes Treasurer s Report Plant Sale Parish News Recommended Reading 1, We have passed Memorial Day and have officially entered summer. Our young people have returned from university bearing gi s of laundry. Our younger people probably are staring out school windows in an cipa on of the last bell of the year. Do they s ll chant no more papers, no more books, as they run into summer. So it is on the Feast of Corpus Chris (May 31st), I found myself asking one of the Why? ques ons just a er Ma ns. In fact, it was a big, why Why go to church? I was thinking about it in terms of evangelism and outreach. It is of utmost importance to our apologe c, that is how we defend our faith and invite others to it. Ladies of St. Alban s Calendar for June Jamaican Dinner About Us We too enter a period of relaxa on in secular and lay life. Families an cipate vaca ons, cookouts, summer ac vi es and, perhaps, just kicking back. Posi on papers and spreadsheets give way to beach novels and other summer Is it a need for social gathering? No. What one friend likes to call the animal clubs do this. Elks, Moose, Eagles, Owls all provide a measure of society. So too so other clubs, groups, hereditary socie es and such. reading that fall gently unread from the hand as one lazes in the lawn chair or hammock. How about friendships? Perhaps, in part. But, the church is filled with sinners, hypocrites, and just some down In the church, we enter what I like to call Long Green, the stretch of me we call Trinity de. We deck the right difficult people. The prospect of instant friendship probably should not be in the pantheon of reasons. Church in summer green, and embark on a period of reflec on on conduct of the Chris an life. Our Lec onary draws us into a series of lessons on the Chris an life and thesis, that process of believers becoming ever more Christ like as they fulfill their calling. I suppose there could be food. A er all, ACC does stand for Anglicans Can Cook, doesn t it? However good the Jamaican Dinner and our grilled delicacies at the annual picnic, the Church really doesn t make it as a dining club. For every plate of curry or sizzling hamburg This is a me for rest, quietness and reflec on. Man naturally loves the society of his fellow man; but what can er, there are several coffee hour meals which might not meet the standard of haute cuisine. be found more beau ful than me spent in the society of God? His conversa on But what about Bible study, father? I ve been a member of many

2 2 great Bible study groups over my life that meet in houses. Good comments, knowledgeable par cipants, and lively discussion unhampered by clergy interrup ons. Comfy chairs and all of that, and perhaps pizza or sandwiches to take care of the food bit. Prayer? I can do that anywhere. Charity? There are lots of soup kitchens and other projects that are secular. Preaching? Well, there are e vangelists of all flavors on cable, internet and even the radio. There is a response for just about every aspect of church life that one can rely on to never darken the door of a parish. So, why church? Why go to church? The ini al answer is all of the above. All of these things can be found in one place, one holy place, along with beau ful music and liturgy. But there is a something other. There is a something mysterious, an otherness that draws us into the life of the church, which is, a er all, the Mys cal Body of Christ. It is communio. It is the kni ng together of the faithful in the sacrament of Bap sm where one is literally engra ed into the Body of the Church. It is the Sacrament of Confirma on, where the members of that body are more perfectly bound to the Body and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. They are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed, quickened and strengthened with the Sevenfold gi s of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, for tude, piety, knowledge, counsel and fear of the Lord. But it is in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, the source and summit of our communion that we are truly drawn together and the big Why? is answered. We are drawn into the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist. We believe this because Jesus tells us this is true in the Bible: I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. (John 6:48 56). This miracle of God s presence to us at every Mass is the truest testament to Christ s love for us and His desire for each of us to have a personal rela onship with Him. It is the most personal rela onship. It unites us to Him and to one another in a profound and mys cal way. It is the answer to the big Why? So, as we are in the Octave of Corpus Chris, and as we take our moments of rest, relaxa on and returning throughout the summer, I invite us to ponder these ques ons for reflec on: What is my a tude towards the Real Presence in the Eucharist? Why is the Eucharist a memorial of Christ's Passion? Why celebrate the feast of Corpus Chris? What are the fruits of Your redemp on? How might I experience these fruits in myself? What will I do to improve my knowledge and love of this wonderful Sacrament? How do I share my knowledge of the Sacrament with others who may ask me, Why? Why go to Church? And now, let us keep this prayer for the next month. Gracious and merciful God, in a wonderful sacrament you have given us a memorial of the passion of your Son Jesus Christ; grant that we who receive these sacred mysteries may grow up into him in all things un l we come to your eternal joy; through our Saviour Jesus Christ who is lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God now and forever. Amen. Trinity de blessings. Canon Nalls

3 June 2018 St. Simeon s Skete Notes on a Retreat As many of you know, I spent just over a week in May on spiritual retreat at St. Simeon s Skete in Taylorsville, Kentucky. The Skete is home to Grace Church and the Nazareth House Apostolate. With St. Simeon, the God receiver, as patron and with Grace Church, the Skete seeks to prac ce the ideals found in our Rule, The Thousand Day Nazareth. In simplicity and poverty, the Skete embraces the struggle of the inner life through the prac ce of the Prayer Rope. As noted from its website (h p:// the Skete s parent NHA, began long before the establishment of the Skete and was forged in a worn torn Sierra Leone. The humanitarian work in that na on became a center of energy, expenditures and focus. The humanitarian aid work that was accomplished was an outpouring of the prayer life and ministry of Grace Church merged with NHA and its supporters. The work of Nazareth House in Sierra Leone and throughout the world is prayer linking man and God in all situa ons be it need, turmoil, healing, grief, joy, glory or thanksgiving. The NHA prayer ministrypraying the Light of the Name into the darkness has lead to some amazing results and many miracles. The path has always remained the same. The soul of the apostolate lies less in the belief that they have something to contribute but in the simple willingness to be used by God. Their goal has always been to establish houses of prayer, quiet unassuming homes of prayer, infiltra ng the darkness silently and unassumingly whether in a village hut in Africa, an Adobe in the desert, an apartment in Chicago or in the Skete. As these resident forces pray, the outcome of their prayer is shown as Christ grows in their lives Christ working as the leaven in the dough. Certainly, that is my own experience over days spent in prayer, fellowship, and pilgrimage along the northern and southern Rosary trails they have established with visits to shrines, rural parish churches, abbeys and arch abbeys, and an inspiring community built holy site known as Our Lady of Valley Hill. The pilgrimage, par cularly at Valley Hill, was transdenomina onal, yet always Catholic and rooted in the ancient tradi ons of the church. This allowed for a spiritual refresher, if you will; and extensive wri ng and other work long delayed in the daily bustle of parochial ministry. In addi on to taking on retreatants, the regular work of the allied parish Grace Church, publishing, and the other ministries, the Skete sends a daily medita on on the 1928 Lec onary passages, along with the appointed Psalms and readings for the day. Apart from great inspira onal readings and photographs, these e mails enable those of us weary of prayer book juggling as we say Morning and Evening Prayer to print out the readings and have them at hand. It is, as they say, be er and more convenient than sliced bread, and helps avoid distrac on. You can receive this resource by ge ng on their e mail rou ng. Before doing so, I encourage you to make a contribu on great or small to the Skete. The links to do all of this are below. Blessings, Canon Nalls The direct PayPal link to benefit the Skete paypal.me/nazhousegrace And here is the address to join the group daily readings and gree ngs. vicki@nazarethhouseap.org or, for both in one place, go to Chapel at St. Simeon s Skete 3

4 4 Treasurer s Report May 2018 The Vestry is thankful for faithful giving and urges con nued commitment to pledges. Detailed accoun ng reports are available. HIGHLIGHTS General Offerings for May were below budget by $2,557 but year to date are above budget by $1,035. Certain other income including Building Fund, Building Fund Reserve and Outreach are ahead of budget. Overall income is $8,351 above budget. Expenses year to date are at budget. Administra on, maintenance, and miscellaneous expense are below budget. U li es remain above budget by $526. At end May cash on hand is $42,251 of which $9,668 is restricted. Restricted funds include $987 in Food Bank Reserve (five months), $5,199 in Building Fund Reserve, and $3,177 in Memorial Reserve. The mortgage balance is $46,320. Bryant Cook beams while showing his Honor Roll certificate. Saint Alban is the first recorded Bri sh Chris an martyr. His day is observed on June 22nd. The Plant Sale held May 5 was successful in selling all the plants offered. Those working the sale were Bernard Riley, Jean Bugg, Jeff Barlow and Eunice Green.

5 The Verger GOINGS ON ABOUT THE PARISH W H C S! for prayer requests to be offered here at St. Alban s. If your request is for a par cular individual, please use only their first name unless you have specific permission to use a full name.. We would not want to violate anyone s privacy or cause embarrassment in offering our prayers for them. Finally, if there is no longer a need for an inten on, please feel free to mark it through. Look for the new book in the next few days. 5 Welcome home to all of our parish young people who have been away at college. We hope that Thomas Darby, Tori Farmer, and Catherine Unger all had a great year at university, and hope that you have a wonderful summer with your families. Your parish family looks forward to seeing you and hearing about your experiences in the last year. J 17 th The parish picnic will take place Sunday, June 17 th following the 11:00 a.m. service. As is usual, St. Alban s will provide hamburgers and hot dogs. A sign up sheet is in the parish hall to bring various dishes and to volunteer as a grill master and/or cleanup person. Join us and bring friends to this fun a ernoon of fellowship, games and music. D S The Synod of the Diocese of the Mid Atlan c States will begin with the blessing of the oils and a Mass on Thursday, June 21 st at 5:00 p.m. The Synod will commence the following day at 9:00 a.m. Delegates need to have their registra on forms in to the Diocesan Secretary no later than June 7. Reduced rate accommoda ons may s ll be available. Please pray for the delegates and all who will travel to Northern Virginia and pray as well for a successful synod. P P L The parish prayer list, currently on the bulle n board to the le of the door to the parish hall, has become sca ered and disorganized. As our prayer inten ons are a very serious ma er, we don t want to miss a request or leave anyone out. We will be replacing the current list with a notebook W W R Summer reading a/k/a beach books are a staple this me of year. Why not add a spiritual classic to your summer list? There are a number great books to inspire and encourage that the Rector is reading. Merton, Thomas. Thoughts In Solitude. Though ul and eloquent, as mely (or meless) now as when it was originally published in 1956, Thoughts in Solitude addresses the pleasure of a solitary life, as well as the necessity for quiet reflec on in an age when so li le is private. Thomas Merton writes: "When society is made up of men who know no interior solitude it can no longer be held together by love: and consequently it is held together by a violent and abusive authority. But when men are violently deprived of the solitude and freedom which are their due, the society in which they live becomes putrid, it festers with servility, resentment and hate." Thoughts in Solitude stands alongside The Seven Storey Mountain as one of Merton's most enduring and popular works. Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk, is perhaps the foremost spiritual thinker of the twen eth century. His diaries, social commentary, and spiritual wri ngs con nue to be widely read a er his un mely death in 1968.

6 June 2018 Sparks, Jack, Fr., Victory in the Unseen Warfare, Father Jack Sparks has masterfully adapted the material from this highly treasured monastic work specifically for today's lay Christian living in the midst of a modern world. The result is a profound but highly practical resource for those who seek to strive with all their might against the enemies of our souls the world, the flesh, and the devil. Study questions at the end of each chapter facilitate individual or small group study. Two other books in the "Unseen Warfare" series Virtue in the Unseen Warfare, and Prayer in the Unseen Warfare are complementary in content, but do not overlap. These can be read separately or as a set. 6 through. Rather, it is a great selec on of Scripture, medita ons and prayers to match to personal situa ons at a par cular me. Fr. Mark Thibodeaux, S.J., walks the reader through many aspects of life that we all will encounter at some me in our lives. He helps with stories that make all these situa ons very human and normal to all of us. I use the book o en as a reference. Typically Jesuit in wisdom and style. I recommend for anyone that is walking through the struggles and challenges of every day living. Do have a Bible handy for the Scriptural references and readings, unless you are a fan of modern language transla ons. Thibodeaux, Mark, Fr. God, I Have Issues: 50 Ways to Pray No Ma er How You Feel This is not really a book to be read LOSA will meet after the 11:00 a.m. service on June 10. There are a number of items to discuss and events that need planning.

7 The Verger June SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT TRINITY I MP at 8:30 Adult ed at 9:30 Mass 11:00 Evensong 6 pm Noon-Holy Eucharist / 7 8 SACRED HEART OF JESUS 9 10 TRINITY II Eucharist at 8:30 Adult ed at 9:30 Mass 11:00 Evensong 6 pm LOSA meeting 11 S. BARNABUS Noon-Holy Eucharist / :30p 17 TRINITY III MP at 8:30 Adult ed at 9:30 Mass 11:00 Evensong 6 pm Parish Picnic Noon-Holy Eucharist / S. ALBAN TRINITY IV Eucharist at 8:30 Adult ed at 9:30 Mass 11:00 Evensong 6 pm Noon-Holy Eucharist / S. PETER 30 Jamaican Dinner JUNE BIRTHDAYS Inez Frayser 04 Joyce Nexsen 12 Martha Rogers 14 Hilda Braswell 18 Elizabeth Nalls Hospitality Assignments The following groups are assigned for coffee hours. June 3- Altar Guild/Ladies June Ushers/Lay readers June Parish/Vestry June Men's Club/Choir

8 June, The Jamaican Association Presents MENU Cocktail Beef Patties; Tropical Fruit Jerk Chicken, Curry Chicken, Cabbage Salad and Rice & Peas Jamaican Rum Cake and much more tropical surprises. Charge Donations welcome Held at St. Alban s A.C. Church, 4006 Hermitage Road, Richmond, VA

9 The Verger 9 ST ALBAN S ANGLICAN CATHOLIC CHURCH VESTRY MINUTES Sunday, April 8, 2018 Present: Fr. Charles Nalls, Ed Darby, Terry Smelley, June Alleyne, Gail Hekman, John Bugg, Jeff Barlow, John Hekman Treasurer, Eunice Green Clerk Opening Prayers: Fr. Nalls called the mee ng to order with prayer. Approval of the Agenda: Gail Hekman made the mo on to approve the agenda, seconded by Jeff Barlow and approved by all. Approval of the February Minutes: Tabled un l next mee ng Treasurer s Report: Financial Report for March 2018 The Vestry is thankful for faithful giving and urge con nued commitment to pledges for General Offerings year to date con nue under budget at nega ve $1,624 to date. Certain other income Restricted Outreach, Building Fund, and Restricted Building Fund Reserve are ahead of budget. Overall income was $6,011 above budget. Year to date expenses are slightly below budget. Liability Insurance and U li es are above budget. Without announcement, The City of Richmond has increased u lity rates this year 9.7% across the board, to include Storm water fees. U lizes are the Parish most impac ve expense apart from salaries. DMAS receives $660 per month from St. Alban s for clergy health insurance yet has had to reduce insurance clergy payments by 25% or $145 per month. Vestry approved payment of this monthly amount to the Rector commencing in March At end March, cash on hand is $41,105 of which $10,655 is restricted including: $5,674 in the Building Reserve account, $1,167 in the Food Bank account, $3,177 in the Memorial account,, $605 in the Outreach account, and $35 in the Kenya School account. The mortgage balance is $48,736. Treasurer s Endorsement John Hekman endorses Jeff Barlow as the next Treasurers as of next January Ed Darby made the mo on to select Jeff Barlow as the next Treasurers as of January 2019, seconded by Gail Hekman and approved by all. Ed Darby made the mo on to endorse John Hekman as the Treasurer for 2017, retroac ve to January. The mo on was seconded by Jeff Barlow and approved by all. Jr. Warden Report: The Jr. Warden sends his thank you to everyone who helped with the last clean up day. Need to replace the light bulbs. The Jr. Warden reports that the group The Society for Crea ve Anachronism that meets in Smith s Hall on Tuesday evenings, is leaving trash in the trashcans; not a ending to their children while in the building, resul ng in the children running all over the church; and seemingly damaging the floor in Smith Hall. Gail reported that she contacted the previous church where this group met and that their response was not posi ve. She also discovered that they were paying $500 per year to use the previous church. John Bugg made the mo on that The Society for Crea ve Anachronism group be asked to leave. The mo on was seconded by Jeff Barlow and approved by all. John Bugg made the mo on that the Vestry develop a process to have a member of the Vestry be the sponsor of any group that requests to use the Parish facili es, seconded by Jeff Barlow and approved by all Discussion to the mo on The Junior Warden will re ins gate his use of the a ached Church Use Form and process to record groups approved to use the Parish facili es and to document insurance and sponsors for liability purposes. Sr. Warden s Report: Presented an Anglican Missal to the Vestry that Fr. Frank Blair donated to St. Alban s Rector s Charge Report: A endance was appallingly low during the Holy Week services Will ask the Cadets to find another place to meet. Fr Nalls will be taking me off star ng May 5th. The ACC Mission that Fr Hakpon started in Richmond is s ll open. Fr Nalls is interviewing with other Parishes, doesn t an cipate leaving but before purchasing a house he needs to see what other posi ons are out there. Old Business: New Business: Plant Sale on May 5th Altar Guild is accep ng dona ons for altar linens. From the Floor Adjournment: Ed Darby made the mo on to adjourn the mee ng, seconded by John Bugg and approved by all. Benedic on: Fr Nalls ended the mee ng with prayers.

10 June St. Alban's is a traditional Anglican parish located Richmond, Virginia. St. Alban's is committed to Christianity as a way of life. Faithfulness to the ancient faith, reverence in worship, love for God and each other and holiness in life are the hallmarks of the parish. If you are seeking a church home, we invite you to become a part of our growing parish family! We will embrace you, pray for you, and encourage you as we strive together to attain the kingdom of heaven. BRING A FRIEND TO CHURCH SUNDAY Every Sunday is "Bring a Friend to Church" Sunday. Let's each try to remember to invite our friends to share our parish 's life in Christ. Founded in Richmond, on St Alban s Day. Worship Schedule Sundays Sunday 8:30am 9:30am Holy Eucharist (1st and 3rd, 5th) (2nd and 4th) Sunday 9:30am 10:30pm Adult Study and Sunday School Sunday 11:00 am 12 Noon Holy Eucharist (music) Sunday 6:00pm 7:00pm Choral Evensong Wednesdays Wednesday 12:00 Noon 12:45 Holy Eucharist and Healing Service Daily Monday Saturday 8:00am 8:25am Matins (Chanted ) Holy Days Like us on Facebook: Follow us on Twitter: St. Alban s Anglican Parish 4006 Hermitage Road Richmond, Virginia Phone: Fax: E mail: stalbansacc@gmail.com WEBSITE:.