O Father, Where Art Thou Tim Hunt

Transcription

1 501 E Wallace Ave, Coeur d Alene, Id O Father, Where Art Thou Tim Hunt In 2000, the Coen Brothers of movie making fame made O Brother Where Art Thou, which starred George Clooney. Set in Mississippi in the 1930 s, it features three escaped convicts in search of treasure. Now the title really has nothing to do with this column created to celebrate the New Year. But I am sure many of us are already thinking about finding a priest to follow Father Pat when he leaves St. Luke s to become Bishop of Eastern Oregon right after Easter. A priest, after all, is very important to those of us in the Anglican tradition and the coming of the New Year is nicely symbolic of where we will be going. On the American frontier, reformed churches such as the Methodists, Presbyterians, and Congregationalists thrived in the interior of our country. The high churches Roman Catholic, Episcopal, Orthodox were mainly concentrated on the sea boards and for a very good reason. Reformed churches select their pastors in a very different manner from the Episcopal Church. A Methodist church can simply choose a competent and learned person from their ranks and elect that person pastor and, if necessary, ordain him or her locally. I had a brother in law who was ordained that way by a single local Baptist Church; he assembled a group of about half a dozen nearby pastors who examined his doctrine and then ordained him that very afternoon. He was a Bible College graduate but need not have been. (continued on page 2)

2 (continued from page 1) In the Episcopal Church, our priests are ordained by Bishops and the requirements for ordination are quite stringent. We have followed the ordination, in recent years, of Bob Runkle and Glenda Empsall as Deacons and we know how demanding that process is. We also lived through the ordinations of Father Dave Marshall, who is priest in charge at St. John s in Chula Vista, California, and Holladay Sanderson, who is Rector of All Saints Episcopal Church in Boise. The ordination process is complex, tedious, expensive, and lengthy. Can you see why the reformed churches had an advantage on the frontier? They simply formed a congregation, elected someone pastor, and to heck with all of the rigamarole of bishops and so forth. And so, as we embark on this new phase in our development, we ought not to think the process will consume only a few months; more than likely, it will take a minimum of a year and a half starting after Easter. The best description of the process that I found on line was from the New York Diocese. I enjoyed reading it and suspect some readers of this column will, too: May God lift up his countenance upon us in the New Year as we prayerfully and humbly consider finding and recruiting a new priest for St. Luke s in Coeur d Alene.

3 Sat 2 nd Sun 3 rd 9:00 a.m. Daughters of the King mtg 5:30 p.m. Holy Eucharist I 7:00 p.m. Young People of AA 8:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist I 9:00 a.m. The Jordan 10:00 a.m. Painting with a Friend 1:00 p.m. Blankets for Kids Fri 8 th Office Closed 4:30 p.m. 12-Step Convention Sat 9 th 5:30 p.m. Evening Prayer II 7:00 p.m. Young People of AA 9:15 a.m. The Family Well Mon 4 th Tues 5 th Wed 6 th 10:30 a.m. Holy Eucharist II 9:30 p.m. Prayer Shawl 3:30 p.m. EfM 5:00 p.m. Steering Committee mtg 6:00 p.m. St. Luke s Men s mtg 3:30 p.m. Girl Scouts 5:00 p.m. PFLAG mtg 5:30 p.m. Men s AA mtg 9:00 a.m. CDPO-Final mtg 10:30 a.m. Newsletter Assembly Team 10:30 a.m. Prayer Chain 4:30 p.m. Bell Choir Rehearsal 7:00 p.m. Chancel Choir Rehearsal Policy for hanging items on the walls. If you want to hang something (anything) on the walls in any of rooms throughout the upstairs facility it will require prior approval from the Parish Administrator s office. There are to be NO nail or pin holes in the walls. The bulletin boards are to remain uncovered as well. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the church office

4 Prayer Requests Deployed Military Personnel Don Albee, Maggie Ann McLachlan Ryan Hubbard, Colonel Bruce K. Neeley Birthdays 01/05 Tom L 01/05 Dorothy S 01/08 Mike D 01/09 Patti P Anniversary of Death January 2 nd & 3 rd Second Sunday of Christmas Jeremiah 31:7-14 Psalm 84 Ephesians 1:3-6, 15-19a Matthew 2: /03 Adolf Duff Harstad 01/06 Lee Yates 01/06 Katharine Skelton 0/06 Sylvia Yates 01/08 Frank Buhler For the Diocese Gracious and generous God, source of wisdom and goodness, guide us on our journey, we pray, as we search for our next bishop. We thank you for the ministry of Jim, our bishop and shepherd these past fifteen years. Energize us for our mission, which is your mission. Strengthen us by your Spirit to be a people of hope, hospitality and compassion. Make us grateful for our past and eager for our future. In our discernment, help us to listen to one another and to you. Hopeful and thankful, we pray this in the name of Jesus your son and our Lord. Amen Healing & Support Joe S. Jr, Steve H, Curt C, Brian S, Dave O, Howard M, Joe M, Jason C, Chelsea, Violet H, Evelyn C, Sandy D, Mike M, Connie P, Cheryl, Victoria B, Bob H, Elizabeth, Manny F, Lori T, Glenn C, Peggy, Elaina Mc, Pearl H, Nolan R, Debbie K, Jean Mc,Virgil H, Eloise S, Bobbi, Chad, Becky L, Dianne H, Jack & Ann O, Norman Mc, Tava C, Vick K, Jack S, Emily H, Tony I, John P, Jim H, Joanne R, Morgan C, Marion B, Lynn R, Betsy G, Milli L, Marianne E, Barbara C, Roland A

5 Getting To Know...Rebekah Hendricks Greetings, St. Luke s parishioners. I am so happy I found you! I moved to the Inland Northwest last year and currently reside in Plummer, Idaho. I am the District Music Specialist for the Plummer-Worley School District. I always wanted to work with Native Americans and my students at Lakeside Schools are mostly with the Coeur d Alene Tribe. I have lived and worked as a professional singer/soloist in New York City where I had the pleasure of singing at St. Bartholomew s Episcopal Church, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I also toured nationally while singing with several professional choirs including the Norman Luboff Choir, Choral Arts Society of Philadelphia, and Bel Canto Singers of York. My last residence was in York, Pennsylvania where I was Director of Music at Yorkshire UMC, and I taught elementary, middle, and high school music at Lincoln Charter Schools. My heart has always been with the beauty of the liturgy and strong musical traditions of the Episcopal Church. It s good to be home. Rebekah is now singing in the St. Luke s choir and she is a very talented addition. We welcome Rebekah to our church family.

6 Sign-Up Now!! Be sure to check the bulletin board in the parish hall for the coffee hour and altar flower sign-up sheets Lots of dates available. Any questions, contact Gwen Letson or Jo Clifford Room Reservations If your ministry or group has yet to reserve your space for 2016 please do so ASAP. Space is being reserved on a first come, first serve, basis. Lots of times and locations are already reserved. Please complete the Event Information Request and turn it into the office. A reminder that you can make your pledge to the HVAC campaign. Pledges available in the office. Final payment needs to be received by June 1, Dinner Circles One of St. Luke s most entertaining activities is the Dinner Circles, in which groups of about eight people get together for once-a-month potluck meals. They re a fun way to get to know new people or become reacquainted with folks you already know. Sign-ups for the next round for January, February, and March are now under way. Sign up in the Parish Hall or contact Farley Green, at egangreen@roadrunner.com or , by January 8.