St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church, Atlanta, Georgia

 

August 2006
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Contents

The Future is Bright

 

It has been almost seven weeks since the surprising election of Katharine Jefferts Schori to be the next presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, the first woman in history to hold that position.

Most people I know rejoiced in Bishop Jefferts Schori’s election, but that joy was not universal. Her election, combined with General Convention’s refusal to apologize or repent for its decision three years ago to allow the Rev. Gene Robinson, an openly gay man, to be consecrated as bishop of New Hampshire, infuriated many of the church’s more conservative members.

Predictions of the dire consequences of General Convention’s actions were immediate. The Living Church, an independent weekly Episcopal newsmagazine, opined that, “During the week after General Convention, we began to see what appears to be the unraveling of the Episcopal Church.”

Indeed, vestries of several congregations across the country have voted to leave the denomination. Bishops and other leaders of eight dioceses ( Fort Worth, Dallas, Central Florida, Pittsburgh, Albany, NY, South Carolina, Springfield, Ill., San Joaquin, Calif., and Quincy, Ill. ) have announced that they will not recognize the new presiding bishop’s authority.

Many conservative leaders in the Anglican Communion, churches throughout the world with roots in the Church of England, were also quick to denounce our convention’s actions. Some, most notably Peter Akinola, the archbishop of Nigeria, have demanded that the Episcopal Church be expelled from the communion.

It is easy to read all of these events and believe that the Episcopal Church is unraveling, or coming apart at the seams.

But despite all the anxiety and dire predictions, I have never been prouder to be an Episcopalian or more excited about the future of our church.

In my lifetime, the Episcopal Church has stood at the forefront of the fights for rights for African Americans, for women, and now for gay and lesbian people. At each juncture there have been those who have accused the church of abandoning the faith.

I would respond that these are the times that we, as a church, have been most faithful, most true to Christ’s call to us.

We know from scripture and from history that prophetic voices are not always appreciated. So yes, there may be a split in the denomination or realignments in the Anglican Communion.

But even if those things happen, the Episcopal Church that we know and love will remain, and I believe, will thrive.

We will continue to be a church that believes in the authority of scripture, while acknowledging that those ancient words can accrue new meaning over time.

We will continue to be a church that believes in the importance of tradition, while recognizing that the living God is always doing new things in the world.

We will continue to be a church that respects our God-given ability to reason, while still living in awe of the mystery of God.

We will continue to be a church that struggles to be faithful to God’s call to work for justice, and to show God’s love to all God’s people.

And perhaps most importantly, in a world that seems increasingly to demand that life be divided into simplistic black and white, we will continue to be a church that embraces the complexities and ambiguities of life in all of its glorious colors, including its many shades of gray.

Thanks be to God!

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Announcements

 

Our Fall Schedule
Begins on Sunday, September 10

Join us in the Parish Hall at 9:30 a.m.
for The Ministry Fair and
Sunday School Open House
Holy Eucharist at 8:30 and 10:30 a.m.

 

 

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Within Our Walls

 

SUE HUFF will be ordained Deacon on August 6, at 5 p.m. at the Cathedral of St. Philip. All are invited to the ceremony and reception afterward.

This month we say a sad goodbye to several members of our parish family.

MICHELLE SEARCY has received a promotion that requires her to move outside of the Washington D.C. area. Michelle has taught the high school Sunday School, has worked faithfully with our youth, and been active in diocesan youth events. We will miss you, Michelle!

Moving to Maryland this month are MATT TAYLOR AND KIERAN CANNISTRA AND THEIR CHILDREN, JOSIE MAE, MAGGIE, BABE AND COOPER. In addition to populating our Sunday School classes, Matt has served as a member of the vestry, and worked with the grounds and Christian Education, and Kieran has served as our web master (which she has graciously offered to continue from afar) and been involved in the Companions in Christ class. They, too, will be sorely missed.

We wish Michelle and all the Taylor-Cannistra family God speed. And please stay in touch.

Part of St. Dunstan's charm is its beautiful landscape, and recently a new Grounds Fund was created for funding special grounds improvement projects. You'll hear more about the Grounds Fund in the near future, but if you have questions now, please see Peachy Horne, Chairperson of the Grounds Committee.
~Tonia Hopkins

Thanks to DANNY WOODARD for agreeing to serve on the vestry. Danny joins the vestry this month and will serve through May 2008.

Thanks to the hard work of KEITH LATIMORE, WAYNE LORD, AND GEOFF WALKER, the basement has been cleared of all extraneous and mysterious items. Now we are able to store things from the upstairs storage areas that had to be cleared out for our new kitchen.

I would like to express appreciation to the handy worker bees who helped me empty the kitchen, the adjacent storage room, and some of the Sunday School classrooms. Kudos to PAT BERMAN, PRISCILLA DAVIS, JEANNE TAYLOR, KEITH LATIMORE, TRICIA TEMPLETON, MAGGIE HARNEY, ELLEN GALLOW, AND JAMES MILLIKAN’S WONDERFUL CREW. I could never have done it without them!
~Nancy Knight Latimore, Fellowship Chair

BONNIE AND GLENN LAFITTE will offer a program of songs for soprano and piano by Ralph Vaughan Williams as the prelude music for our August 6 Eucharist. Glenn (the brother of Bruce Lafitte) and his wife Bonnie have performed extensively together throughout the United States and Central America. PLEASE JOIN US EARLY at 9:45a.m. on Sunday, August 6, for this rare and special musical offering!

 

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From the Christian Formation Director

 

 

Where Might the "Yes" Take You?

Last year, at about this time, I received a phone call from a vestry member at Church of the Epiphany where I was a parishioner. I was asked if I would consider teaching Sunday school. My initial reaction was that I didn’t want to add anything else to my busy schedule. But as I thought about the request I realized that, in spite of my initial reservations, I was somewhat intrigued. And I also felt that it was probably “my turn” to do this task for my church. So, in the end, I overcame my initial reluctance and said “yes”.

When I said “yes”, I had no idea that I would enjoy teaching Sunday school…a lot! I had no idea that I would discover that a Sunday school classroom was a place where my passions for teaching and theology would meet (and it is amazing how much Bible and theology one can learn from teaching Sunday school!). Nor did I have any idea how very fond I would become of my students and co-teachers. But what I really didn’t have any idea about was that, many months down the road, all of these experiences would prompt me to apply for the position of Director of Religious Education at St. Dunstan’s!

As I think about this past year I find myself thinking how God’s call to us is rarely clear and dramatic. In my own case, I believe it came in the form of a gentle but persistent feeling that it was “my turn” to help out with the Sunday school at Epiphany. I also find myself thinking that God’s call to us is not so much about what God wants from us but for us. That is, it’s not just about what God wants us to give, it’s also about what God would like to give to us. (I suspect that from God’s perspective there is no distinction between these two.) What we experience as ‘effort’ or ‘challenge’ is all part of God leading us into new life.

So, now it is my turn to ask…Would you please consider teaching Sunday school? I know that time commitments is a real issue in all of our lives, and yet I truly believe that the relationship forged between student and teacher is one of the most important things that happens in Sunday school. To maximize consistency for the students and flexibility for the teachers, this year in the pre-k/kindergarten and elementary classes, teachers will work in teams. In the pre-k/kindergarten class, which will continue to use Godly Play, we need at least one more teacher. In the elementary class, which will use a very ‘teacher-friendly’ curriculum, All Things New, we also need one more teacher. Training (not too long, pithy) will be provided for teachers working with both of these curriculums. Intrigued, yet have questions or concerns? Please give me a call; I’d be happy to give you more information. We also need folks who are willing to serve as nursery helpers and substitute teachers, as well as folks to be involved with middle and high school students during non-Sunday morning activities and outings.

Thanks so much for prayerfully considering being part of this important ministry. I am really looking forward to working with you to create a religious education experience for the children and youth of St. Dunstan’s that is loving, rich in meaning, and fun!

Yours
Ellen

 

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From the Organist and Choirmaster

 

A Word of Thanks ...

Dear Members of my St. Dunstan Parish Family,

I cannot begin to thank each and every one of you enough for all the kindness, love, and generosity you have shown Peter and me since our arrival here one year ago, in August 2005.

From the hospitality of inviting us into your homes, to simple words of thanks and greeting on Sunday morning, each of you has contributed immeasurably to our transition into the life of the St. Dunstan Parish Family. This is truly a loving, thriving House of God in the strongest sense. It is indeed an honor and a blessing to have become part of your tradition.

Again, many thanks, and I look forward to many years of continued service and shared ministry with you.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Faithfully,
Steve Furches
Organist and Choirmaster
404-266-1018

 

Special Program

BONNIE AND GLENN LAFITTE will offer a program of songs for soprano and piano by Ralph Vaughan Williams as the prelude music for our August 6 Eucharist. Glenn (the brother of Bruce Lafitte) and his wife Bonnie have performed extensively together throughout the United States and Central America. PLEASE JOIN US EARLY at 9:45AM on Sunday, August 6, for this rare and special musical offering!

 

FALL ADULT CHOIR SCHEDULE RESUMES THIS MONTH

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 23
7:00-9:15PM St. Dunstan Adult Choir Rehearsal

Please consider joining one of the St. Dunstan Choirs. New members are always welcome in all groups.

 

 

For more information, please contact

STEVE FURCHES
Organist and Choirmaster
404-266-1018

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Speaking Out for Outreach

 

Opportunities for Outreach

Next meeting to be held 27 August.
~ By Josh Taylor

Welcome to Nancy Dillon, who will be our Vestry Outreach person for this next year.

At our next meeting, August 27, after the 10:30 service, we have scheduled a meeting to discuss some of our opportunities for Outreach for this year and next year. We will schedule another meeting on September 17 to follow up on what we do not cover on August 27. If any of these interest you, or if you have an interest not covered by our current list below, please join us for the next meeting or let Nancy Dillon know.

  1. Woody Bartlett spoke eloquently on July 23rd about how we can do our part for the environment, and urged us to see "An Inconvenient Truth" ( special showing the first week in October at St Dunstan's ) . To learn more about outreach opportunities, involvement with Georgia Interfaith Power & Light, we will need a volunteer coordinator.
  2. Habitat - when do we want to plan our next build, and whom do we want as a partner ?
  3. Buckhead Christian Ministry - Elise Macintyre has volunteered to be our liaison with BCM, and she will update us on some of the areas where they have a need for volunteers.
  4. RRISA (our partner in the Katrina relief effort) has expressed a desire to have us involved in other refugee resettlement efforts.
  5. Holy Comforter, and St. Thomas Manor/St. Therese House, Inc. update (Greg Blount, Barbara Bradshaw).
  6. Priscilla Davis reports, “The Center for Positive Aging is an interesting organization that has a need for volunteers. They do meals on wheels for shut-in seniors, but they also have many other programs to help people keep a positive, creative outlook as they age. They are not asking for money at this point but for involvement. It may be that some of our parishioners would be interested in this as a hands-on ministry.” See: http://centerforpositiveaging.org/
  7. Other updates:
  8. Budget for outreach: we do have more 2006 money to allocate, about $11,000.

 

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Mary & Martha's Place
2006 Fall Calendar

 

The Interior Journey:
Compassion, Desire and Hope-Filled Fear

 

Thursday Programs

September 7 – Pursuing the Interior Journey, An Introduction. This class will introduce the ideas that we will address throughout the fall as we consider the function of desire and fear, and how they lead us to and keep us from a compassionate life. There will be a brief introduction to Barbara Brown Taylor’s book, Leaving Church. Leader: The Rev. Rebecca Parker, Program Developer at Mary & Martha's Place.

September 21 – Church and Leaving Church as a Part of the Interior Journey. Living the authentic life requires waking up and consenting to move from an old identity to a new one. There will be further discussion of Barbara Brown Taylor’s book, Leaving Church. Leaders: The Rev. Tricia Templeton, Rector at St. Dunstan’s Church and The Rev. Maggie Harney, Executive Director of Mary & Martha's Place.

October 5 –The Descent of Inanna: Myth and Surrendering False Identity. In the ancient Sumerian myth, Inanna, the Goddess of Heaven and Earth, descends to the underworld. Along the way, Inanna must pass through seven gates, and at each gate she must remove a piece of her royal regalia. We will examine the gates in our lives through which we must pass and the parts of our identity that we must surrender. Leader: The Rev. Maggie Harney, Executive Director of Mary & Martha's Place.

October 19 –Fear and the Shambhala Tradition. Different traditions have much to teach us about working with fear. In this session, we will look at the teachings from the Shambhala Buddhist tradition about fear and fearlessness. Leader: Valerie Morvan, Director of the Shambhala Center .

November 2 –Fear and the Christian Tradition. The Christian tradition has many stories about people who are afraid and yet overcome their fears to follow Jesus. In this session we will consider what the Christian stories and history have to tell about living with hope-filled fear. Leader: The Rev. Lynnsay Buehler, Director of The Julian of Norwich Center at St. Bede’s Church.

November 16 –Fear as Our Teacher. This class will help participants to reflect on the call from the wisdom teachers of the classical myths, Buddhism and Christianity that we have explored in the previous classes. Leader: Barbara Dolan Meinert, certified spiritual director and retreat leader.

November 30 –“The grace of lying fallow…” – Desires, plans, expectations run like wild horses in the culture’s version of Christmas while the rhythms of nature and the liturgical year are calling us to “fallow time”. We will explore our fears and desires at this season and God’s call to us to Be Not Afraid. Leader: Lalor Cadley, certified spiritual director and writer.

All classes are held at St. Dunstan’s Church at 4393 Garmon Rd., Atlanta, GA, 30327, 404-239-9382. Call or e-mail us for directions. Visit us on the web at: http://www.maryandmarthasplace.com.

All classes are Thursdays from 11:15 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., except September 7 when we begin at 11:00 a.m. The cost of these programs is $20/class or $120/series.

 

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Passages

Our sympathy to the family of Nat Land. Nat died on July 1st.

 

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Deadline for articles for the September Bellows is August 15.
Please email your articles or leave them in Kim Branch’s
mailbox in the church office.

 

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Our Summer Schedule


Sundays

Holy Eucharist at 8:30 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.

 

Our fall schedule begins on Sunday, September 10.

 

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2006-2007 Vestry

Wayne Lord—Senior Warden
Richard Stansbury—Junior Warden
Nancy Dillon
 
Susan Elliott
Tonia Hopkins
 
Nancy Knight Latimore
Bob Longino
 
Jeanne Taylor
Danny Woodard

 

Our Staff

The Rev. Patricia Templeton, Rector
The Rev. Maggie Harney, Priest Associate
Ellen Gallow, Director of Christian Education
Stephen L. Furches, Organist-Choirmaster
Kim Branch, Parish Administrator
Daria Jones, Treasurer

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Contact Us | ©2005 St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church, Atlanta, GA