News of The Church of the Holy Comforter in the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia Richmond, August 2018 Road to Recovery and HoCo helps Church Work Day, Saturday, August 4th, 9am-noon A Message from Hilary Rosalie Spott has passed away Guest preachers in August Another Year, Another Neighborhood Fun Night Outreach Ministry Notes General Convention wrap-up: Following the Way of Jesus HoCo Kids & Parents Pizza Pool Party! 2018 Vacation Bible School Six Months in an English Country Parish (Part 4) The Back Page Vacation Bible School 2018 More pictures and story on Pages 8 and 9
Road to Recovery and HoCo helps By Bruce MacAlister, Editor Holy Comforter s latest outreach ministry is financial support to the the VCU Rams for Recovery program. It was featured in a June 27th edition of Style Weekly. Parishioner Denise Carl began working with this addiction recovery group in 2015 and realized this might be a good new outreach ministry for Holy Comforter to get involved with. She met with the Outreach Ministry that enthusiastically supported it and allocated annual funds to it. Denise wrote an article about it in the April 2018 issue of the Messenger. The Style Weekly article focuses on the work of Professor John Freyer and his creation of the Coffee Bike and his Free Ice Water programs to engage students and start a conversation for those who Photo Style Weekly might need a recovery program. His Coffee Bike program has been successful enough that it has been replicated at three other universities. The direct link for Holy Comforter is that our $2,500 annual contribution is specifically for coffee. In addiction recovery programs they drink lots of coffee! You can read the article on-line at styleweekly/ road-to-recovery/. Church Work Day, Saturday, August 4th, 9am-noon By Norm Marshall & Shawn Sthreshley, Holy Comforter Vestry, Bricks & Mortar Division They say it takes a village, and we d like our village to lend a helping hand on Saturday, August 4th, from 9am to noon. Specific areas of the church need some more love and care, and to utilize those of you with a willing spirit and who are able to offer time and effort that morning, we ve already come up with a plan to make our building and grounds an even more attractive and usable space for our worship, formation, fellowship, outreach, and, well, fun! This is an opportunity for stewardship, as our labor will save money and prevent future property and maintenance costs. If you re able to come please remember to bring your work gloves, and please send an e-mail note to one of us at norm.marshall@gmail.com or shawn.sthreshley@gmail.com. We need a Sawzall, a radial grinder, a wheelbarrow, a sledgehammer, and hedge trimmers for some of the projects. Let us know in your e-mail note if you can bring one of those. News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 2
A Message from Hilary + Dear Friends and Companions in Ministry, Vacation Bible School 2018 fulfilled all of my hopes for what such a program can be. A devoted team of adults provided meals, aspects of the program, and gave of themselves in a beautiful way to support our children. We knew that our goal was to share God s love with the children and help them know how special and loved they are. More than instilling any great theological truth or piece of Biblical knowledge, we hoped to give each child a good experience of church and Christian community. Often, it was a four-year-old who gave me great insight into the heart of God through his or her smile, laughter, and words. Thanks to all who made this possible, which is everyone who has been supporting Holy Comforter in any way, and especially those who showed up and cared throughout the week. A huge thank you to our 2018 VBS director, Martha Richardson. As we begin August, we give thanks for ministry with and by children as we consider our VBS program. Children are also on my mind because we have a brand-new program for families with children our outings now happening in the second Saturday of the month. Our first outing was a trip to the park and in August we will have a pool party. In August, we are also starting to prepare to go back to school. During the entire month August, we can pray for children, teachers, and parents as we anticipate going back to school. On Sunday, August 26, during the 10:00 am service, we will Bless the Backpacks, as we have in past years. I love offering these prayers for children and adults going back to school, as well as teachers, administrators, support people, and parents. I invite all going back to school to bring a backpack or other item used to support learning or teaching to be blessed. Also in August, please consider supporting our Neighborhood Night Out on Tuesday, August 7, starting at 6:00 p.m. Once again, Holy Comforter will host our neighbors to celebrate our local neighborhood community. This is a great way to connect with our neighbors and help them to know who we are. There are prizes for adults and every child who attends, music, and a cookout. Look for more information at church. I hope the rest of your summer is great. Wishing you every blessing, Hilary+ Last year blessing of the back packs. News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 3
Rosalie Spott has passed away By Bruce MacAlister with contributions from her niece Bambi Richardson On Sunday mornings Rosalie and her sister Margaret took the bus west to the city line at Staples Mill and walked over to Monument Ave. to attend Holy Comforter. They worshiped in the parish hall. The Cary Montague room had very comfortable folding pews and a stage at the east end for the services, plays, and other HoCo activities. Holy Comforter started on Grove Avenue in the Fan District as a spin-off from Saint Andrew s in Oregon Hill that her family attended until this parish was started. After World War II with St. James s and St. Andrew s so close by, the leadership decided to move the parish to the far west end, the western city limits. That was, and still is, Staples Mill Road. The two sisters who would be Rosalie Spott and Margaret Johnson grew up at HoCo. As an adult Rosalie worked as a keypunch operator and became a unit manager for Home Beneficial. (See one of HoCo s gray-haired computer geeks to find out what keypunch operators did.) At Holy Comforter she was a Sunday school teacher and led the Aletha women s Sunday school class. She married Oscar Spott, one of those church leaders who moved the church. Oscar had much to do with the design of the church building with its interior beauty and fine acoustics. Over the decades Rosalie was a keeper of the HoCo story and an advisor to successive younger leaders. Even after her move to Westminster- Canterbury, she attended her parish as much as possible. She died on June 24th with a memorial service on June 29th. She was born in 1930. In her sermon, rector Hilary Smith remembered Rosalie with: Created in God s image, Rosalie showed us something of God, of what is divine, through her life and her love the love she had for all of you, her family, her friends, for many. She reflected an image of God s desire for connection in the ways she connected with people and fostered community. She was there. She showed up. She showed up in many lives some of the comments shared with me about Rosalie include she was a brave angel; I admired her spirit; one of HoCo s bedrocks; she kept FFW going; she shared history with us; a strong leader; a lovely smile; familiar in the pews; sweet; loving; thoughtful; giving; dedicated church member; an angel on earth; wonderful human being; supportive of youth; truly a lovely lady; the best. Guest preachers in August On August 12 the Rev John Maxwell Kerr will preach and preside at the Sunday morning Eucharist. He was born in Scotland and educated in England and Canada. He was a research scientist and university and college lecturer with degrees from Toronto, Leeds and Nottingham Universities. He was a Research Fellow of Merton College, Oxford. John Kerr was ordained priest 40 years ago in Oxford Diocese in the Church of England and is a life member and was second Warden of the Society of Ordained Scientists. He is a qualified Spiritual Director and currently serves as Bishop s News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 4
Vicar of St Luke s Episcopal Church, Blackstone, VA. He is married to Sue Sinnamon, a minister in the Unitarian Universalist Church in Richmond. We welcome back Katherine Ferguson on Sunday August 19 as our preacher. Katherine graduated from our Deacon School in July and, God willing, will be ordained on September 29. Katherine will be the first transgender person to be ordained in the Diocese of Virginia. Reported by Hilary Smith Another Year, Another Neighborhood Fun Night By Bonnie Atwood Plan now to have a great time at the annual National Night Out on Tuesday, August 7. We ll gather about 6 p.m. for food, fun, and door prizes. We want a great turnout to greet our City and County Police and Fire Officials who do so much for us. We ll also invite our representatives of various government offices. It s wonderful to meet them one on one and show our civic interest. This event is sponsored by the Monumental-Wythe Neighborhood Watch, together with Holy Comforter Church. It is not strictly a church function, but is, rather, a chance for all of us to meet and mingle. The church will provide food and drinks. Bring a side dish or dessert if you like. You might also want to bring your favorite lawn chair. Pets and kids of all ages are included. Plan on a hot night, and we ll have lots of cold water for all. Everybody likes a chance at our fabulous door prizes, and we have special drawings for the little ones. Be sure to check in at the welcome table which will be set up on Monumental Street. That s the only way you can get your free tickets to take a chance on our prizes. You see your family and friends every day, right? This is a chance to meet some new folks. Please spread your groups around the tables so you can make some new friends. This is rain or shine. In case of rain, we ll move inside. We want to thank in advance all the helpers: the greeters, the cooks, the clean up crew, and the local merchants who donate prizes. We ll end at dark. If you can stay to pitch in for cleanup, that will be a wonderful help. Show your church neighborhood spirit and come out for this wonderful event. We ll see you there! Outreach Ministry Notes At its July 19th meeting, the leaders of Outreach discussed and voted on these. CARITAS will be from December 29 to January 5, later than our usual week, and will be families this time. Joe Klenzmann suggests this means more opportunities for the families with their children to participate since they will be on school holiday. The Ministry decided to send $500 to the Richmond Peace Education Center to support three school students, showing them how to be peacemakers where there is bullying and such at school. ACTS, the organization that Holy Comforter uses to arrange support for those in sudden financial need, held a meeting for church representatives covering the challenges faced by the community. Evictions are a really big issue in Virginia and especially in Richmond. Judy Harris, HoCo s representative, will write an article for the September Messenger covering the gathering. Discussion of ways HoCo can engage and support the sanctuary movement continues. If you feel called to do more, contact Phoebe Winter, Outreach Chair. Reported by Bruce MacAlister News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 5
General Convention wrapup: Following the Way of Jesus By Episcopal News Service staff Responding to Presiding Bishop Michael Curry s call to Follow the Way of Jesus, deputies and bishops at the 79th General Convention of the Episcopal Church, meeting July 5-13 in Austin, Texas, acted on a record number of resolutions on key issues such as immigration, prayer book revision, Israel-Palestine, and readmitting the Episcopal Church of Cuba as a diocese. Convention also passed a $134 million budget that reflects for a further three years the presiding bishop s priorities of evangelism, racial reconciliation and creation care. Meanwhile, the legislative processes were overseen by a resident roost of avian observers, one of which adopted a social media presence to bring a steady flow of light-feathered moments to convention amid the often-intense and passionate debates on the key issues before the church. Outside the legislative chambers, several events brought together bishops, deputies and visitors to mingle, socialize, pray, worship and advocate, with a public witness against gun violence and another outside an immigrant detention center challenging the actions of the U.S. government in its enforcement of immigration policies. A revival service at Austin s Palmer Events Center on July 7 drew a crowd of more than 2,500 people who listened to Presiding Bishop Michael Curry s rousing sermon about how God is love and gives life. In his opening sermon on July 5, Curry challenged every Episcopalian to embrace the Way of Love: Practices for a Jesus-centered life as a way to help the church enter into a new era of spiritual growth. $134 million budget adopted Convention adopted a $133.8 million 2019-2021 budget that reflects the presiding bishop s priorities of evangelism, racial reconciliation and justice, and creation care. The priorities have been referred to as the three pillars of the Episcopal branch of the Jesus Movement. Full access to trial-use marriage rites Convention agreed in passing Resolution B012 on July 13 to give all Episcopalians the ability to be married by their priests in their home churches. New plan for liturgical and prayer book revision Convention adopted a plan for liturgical and prayer book revision that sets the stage for the creation of new liturgical texts to respond to the needs of Episcopalians across the church while continuing to use the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. General Convention also adopted a resolution that allows all congregations in the Episcopal Church to use optional, expansivelanguage versions of three Rite II Eucharistic prayers in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. Resolution D078 provides alternative language for Prayer A, Prayer B and Prayer D. The changes are available for trial use until the completion of the next comprehensive revision of the Book of Common Prayer. [Other parts of the Rite II service are also changed to offer expansive language; we will be able to start using these changes on January 1, 2019 or sooner if given permission by our diocesan bishop. Hilary Smith, Rector.] Responding to the voices and stories of women The voices and stories of women played a significant role in the workings of the 79th General Convention, from a liturgy where bishops offered laments and confession for the church s role in sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse to Resolution D087 that allows deputies to bring infant children on the floor of the House of Deputies to feed them. Acting on immigration If there was one issue that defied any expectation of controversy at the 79th General Convention, it was immigration. Resolution C033 puts the church on record as respecting the dignity of immigrants and outlines how public policy should reflect that belief; A178 takes a forceful stand against family separations and treatment of immigrant parents and children; and C009, titled Becoming a Sanctuary Church, encourages Episcopalians and congregations to reach out to and support immigrants facing deportation, News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 6
including by providing physical sanctuary if they choose. One of the defining moments of this General Convention was the prayer vigil held July 8 outside the T. Don Hutto Residential Center, an immigrant detention facility little more than a half-hour outside of Austin. A massive gathering of more than a thousand Episcopalians prayed and sang in support of immigrant parents and children who had been separated. Challenging injustices in Israeli-Palestinian conflict General Convention wrapped up its consideration of resolutions relating to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict with mixed results due largely to the House of Bishops unwillingness to take many of the bolder steps urged by the House of Deputies. Welcome back, Cuba Convention voted to admit, or readmit, the Episcopal Church of Cuba as a diocese by passing Resolution A238. The Diocese of Cuba is set to join Province II, which includes dioceses from New York and New Jersey in the United States, Haiti and the Virgin Islands. Compensation for deputies president Convention agreed to a plan to pay the president of the House of Deputies for the work of the office. HoCo Kids & Parents Pizza Pool Party! What & Why? A pool party for kids & their parents to celebrate sun, fun, friends, & splashing! When? Saturday, August 11th, from 10am-12noon Where? Carol & Deb s home (7901 Surreywood Drive, North Chesterfield 23235) Click this for directions: Click this for a map: How? Please make sure to bring sunscreen, towels, snacks, water, and any required flotation jackets/puddle-jumpers for your child. We ll provide the pizza for lunch!! News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 7
2018 Vacation Bible School By Martha Richardson Vacation Bible School was July 15-19 this year, and 12 children from our community attended with over 20 adult volunteers participating. The theme this year was Shipwrecked: Rescued by Jesus. Each night we began with dinner in the parish hall provided by the church. Then we continued the fun at our make-believe deserted island in the sanctuary, complete with ocean, beach, palm trees, and a large cardboard shipwreck. The nightly themes taught that God is with us always, when we worry, struggle, are scared, or feel powerless. Each evening the kids were excited to share their God sightings, which were represented by sticker patches they used to patch up our shipwrecked cardboard boat. The enthusiasm and joy the children brought every night was contagious and it was a special time for all involved. Thank you to all the volunteers for the gift of your time! News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 8
News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 9
Six Months in an English Country Parish (Part 4) By Laura Hunt Poets in Country Churches One of my favorite things about English churches is how many of them are associated with great English poets. Every week I visited another village and paid homage to another writer. On a misty February day, I drove to Montgomery in Wales to see the castle where George Herbert was born, and the elaborate tombs of his parents in the parish church. Herbert was a great 17th-century Metaphysical poet, several of whose poems are in our Hymnal, particularly, Come, my Way, my Truth, my Life. far from the culture, music, and intellectual pleasures that he loved in London. He was noted for his unfailing care for his parishioners, walking miles to bring communion to the sick, providing food and clothing to the poor, and using his own money to rebuild the church. Of course, the poet most associated with The Mayor of Ludlow (note his mayoral chain), the rector of St. Laurence s Church, and the president of the Housman Society leading a commemoration on the anniversary of Housman s death, April 30. The Tomb of Herbert s parents in Montgomery Although Herbert came from an aristocratic family and was groomed for a prominent political career, he renounced his secular ambitions to serve as an Anglican priest in a tiny rural parish Shropshire is A. E. Housman, whose first volume of verse, A Shropshire Lad, has remained popular since its publication in 1896, its poems set to music by Ralph Vaughan Williams and John Ireland. I attended a conference on English Song held in Ludlow, which included performances, lectures such as British Landscape as Spiritual Force, and a festive Choral evensong. St. Laurence s Church, Ludlow News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 10
The background image is St. Nicholas s, Montgomery, where Herbert was baptized and his parents large tomb lies. Housman is buried in the churchyard of St. Laurence s Church at Ludlow, and on the anniversary of his death, a commemorative service was held by the rector, the mayor (wearing his silver chain of office), and the chairman of the Housman Society. A small group of Housman admirers gathered to thank God for providing England with such a great heritage of poetry and song. My happiest day in England was actually spent in Herefordshire, the county south of Shropshire. Here at the small church of St. Mary s, Credenhill, I attended a conference on Thomas Traherne, who had served as rector during the English Civil War in the 17th century. Traherne s extraordinary theology, particularly during Puritan rule, involved a joyous love of God and nature. Filled with boundless joy and wonder, he experienced an intimate relationship with God and spoke of the divine residing within the human soul. Unknown in his lifetime, forgotten for 200 years afterwards, Traherne was rediscovered when a scholar rescued an anonymous manuscript from a book stall on a London street. As a result, Traherne s Centuries of Meditation was first published in the early 20th Century. Two famous scholars spoke at the Conference. One was Malcolm Guite, a poet, priest and scholar, who signed his book for me: Faith, Hope, and Poetry: Theology and the Poetic Imagination. The other speaker, Ann Wroe, I knew because she had written a splendid book on Shelley. Astonishingly, when I entered the church and waited in a pew for the opening service, she sat down beside me, and we talked of Shelley. But then others arrived who knew her well, and I moved to the pew behind so she could speak with her friends. Yet it was a blessing and a marvelous beginning to this special day. The current rector had composed a sermon based on notes Traherne had left behind, so we really felt that the poet was preaching to us. The Collect for Traherne s feast day in the Anglican Calendar of Saints begins, St. Mary s, Credenhill Creator of wonder and majesty, who didst inspire thy poet Thomas Traherne with mystical insight to see thy glory in the natural world, help us to know thee in thy creation. The lovely stained glass from Hereford Cathedral shows Traherne bathed in divine light. News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 11
Church of the Holy Comforter, Richmond a parish in the Diocese of Virginia under the Episcopal Church in the USA which is part of the worldwide Anglican Communion Monument Avenue at Staples Mill Road web - www.hoco.org; e-mail - office@hoco.org; phone 804-355-3251; fax 804-355-0049 Coming Events at the Church of the Holy Comforter See the Hoco web site calendar page for detailed calendar and rota Sundays, 8:45am, Adult Formation, Hayward Parlor Sundays, 10am, Choral Eucharist Sundays, about 10:15am, Children s Chapel, starts in the Church, moves to Parish House Children s Chapel Third Sundays, 4:30pm, Story Time Food Pantry Hours: First and third Saturdays, 11:00am to noon First and third Tuesdays, 5:30 to 6:30pm Side By Side & Vet Shelter Meal Preparation Fourth Thursdays, 4pm Side by Side, 5pm Vet Shelter Editing of the Messenger is done by Bruce MacAlister, the layout by George Collier. The September Messenger will be available Sunday, August 26th, 2018. The deadline for that edition is Friday, August 17th, 2018 (but earlier submission is encouraged). Please send your submissions to editor@hoco.org A full color (and much more attractive) version of the Messenger is available on our web site - www.hoco.org Hoco Birthdays for the month of July / August: July: Evan Herr, 2nd; Darlene Klenzmann, 2nd; Mary Davis, 5th; Robert Hanayik, 5th; Miriam Berry, 6th; Judith O Brien, 6th; Kathleen Rose, 7th; Joani Hayman, 10th; George Lowry, 10th; Marie McGranahan-Turner, 13th; Helena Geipel, 17th; David James, 17th; Julie Edwards, 18th; Courtenay Schwartz, 18th; Roberta Cline, 19th; Joan Vaughan, 19th; Richard Rose, 23rd; Garnett Christoph, 25th; Dorcas Douthit, 27th; Joan Prest, 27th; Benjamin Raymond, 27th; Casey Falterman, 28th; Angela Palmer, 30th August: Maria Gullickson, 4th; Cameron Hunt, 6th; Prudence Milligan, 6th; Nancy Deane, 8th; Gayle Turner, 11th; Mary Thorpe, 12th; Andy Schwartz, 15th; Robert Evans, 16th; Patricia May, 20th; Helen Reese, 26th News of the Church of the Holy Comforter - Richmond, Virginia - 12