March 2009
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A Holy Lent

When you walk into church this first Sunday in March, you will be able to tell at a glance that the season has changed. The green altar hangings will be replaced with starker burlap and purple. Instead of colorful and cheerful flowers there will be simple and subdued arrangements. The gleaming silver chalice and patens will be replaced with earthenware pottery. The processional cross and cross above the altar will be draped in purple cloth.

The service will have changes, too. This Sunday, instead of a processional hymn, the service will begin with the Great Litany, a long (five pages!) penitential intercessory prayer. The opening sentences and service music change, becoming more somber. No alleluias cross the lips of good Episcopalians again until the Easter Vigil.

All of these changes signal that we are in the season of Lent, the 40 days of penitence and preparation before the joyous feast of Easter. (Actually there are 46 days between Ash Wednesday and Easter. The extra six days are Sundays, which are officially not part of Lent because Sundays are always celebrations of the resurrection. That is why the Sunday bulletins will say “the first Sunday in Lent,” rather than “the first Sunday of Lent.”)

These visible signs are reminders that we are in a season set apart, a season that the prayer book instructs us is a time of “self-examination and repentance; of prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and of reading and meditating on God’s holy Word.”

There is no magic right way to observe Lent; although I strongly suggest that making a commitment to attend church each Sunday in the season is a good place to begin.

A reflection on Lent I read recently suggests two different approaches to the season.

“How do you observe Lent?” asks writer Jenny Ladefoged. “I believe there are two distinct ways of observing this holy season. If you are orderly, make lists, and have a neat office or home you do it one way. If you put stuff down anywhere, and juggle five tasks at once, then Lent becomes something else.

“We tend either to add things to life in Lent or take them away, go to mid-week services or not eat dessert, read an extra holy book or not go to movies. The orderly person ticks off a list of deeds; giving up something is a once and all decision. No smoking, no desserts, no alcohol in Lent. I can remember that first taste of wine at Easter Sunday brunch,” she writes.

“The other type of person just hopes that their Lent is bringing them closer to God. Sure they attend mid-week services, and read and pray, but Lent is more a holistic experience. No fighting with husband, or being kind to a co-worker is a continuous struggle; there’s no ticking off of lists here. For me, I find that being intentional about my relationship with God and God’s other children – for at least 40 days a year – is more meaningful.”

The intent of Lent is not to tick things off a Lenten “to do” list, although that kind of discipline may be helpful in reaching the larger goal of becoming closer to God, and to restoring relationships with God, ourselves, and one another.

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Announcements

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A Lenten Prayer

God, my Friend,
I offer You each moment of this day:
whatever comes—the unexpected challenges,
diversions from my plans,
the need-filled glance,
the expectations and complaints,
the being taken for granted,
the slights and sleights-of-hand.
I’d be grateful if You could keep me aware of my pesky
habits, like . . .
And, between us, perhaps we can enliven the spirits of
those I live and work with, like . . .
Whatever else befalls,
I trust we can cope with it,
together.

Amen

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Lent at St. Dunstan's

Adult Education

Acclaimed Jesus and New Testament scholar John Dominic Crossan will lecture at St. Dunstan’s this month. Once again, we are partnering with St. Bede’s Episcopal Church to bring an internationally known speaker during Lent. The series will begin Friday night, March 13, at St. Bede’s with sessions on The World and Life of Jesus and continue Saturday morning at St. Dunstan’s with sessions on the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. Friday night begins with dinner at 6 p.m. (reservations required) and lecture at 7 p.m. Saturday’s session begins with a continental breakfast at 9:30 and lecture at 10 a.m. Sign up sheets are in the narthex.

Crossan’s belief is that we will only get the theology of the 21 st century right if we get the history of the first century right. His work examines the past not merely as ancient history, but as a contemporary model, warning, and challenge for today.

Adult Sunday School

Our series on the psalms and contemporary poetry continues March 1 with Maggie Harney and March 8 with guest speaker Tom Lombardo, a poet and editor of the anthology After Shocks: The Poetry of Recovery for Life Shattering Events. The volume includes poems from more than 100 poets from around the world on topics such as grief, war, exile, addiction, and divorce.

March 15, 22, 29 – The Road to Calvary. We will spend these weeks looking at the last week of Jesus’ life, from his triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to his death on the cross, using the book The Last Week by Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan.

Worship

Midweek Eucharists — Join us for the celebration of the Eucharist at noon on Wednesdays, followed by a simple lunch (soup, bread, and fruit) served by members of Episcopal Church Women. Or join us on Wednesday evenings for the Eucharist at 6 p.m., followed by a pot luck supper.

Stations of the Cross — The Stations of the Cross (also knows as the Via Dolorosa) is an ancient rite depicting the final hours of Jesus’ earthly life. The stations help us to participate in Jesus’ suffering by making a prayer pilgrimage to the places he walked on his way to the cross. Stations made by St. Dunstan’s parishioners and friends have been put up on the grounds of the church.

The path begins in the Beech Grove and ends in the garden between the sanctuary and parish hall. Booklets with prayers for the station are in a waterproof container on the back porch. Come join a group praying the stations after church on Sundays or come walk the stations during the week.

There is a Stations of the Cross on our website also.

Service to Others

Mosquito Nets for Tanzania — Once again we will be collecting money during Lent for mosquito nets and medical supplies for our brothers and sisters in Tanzania. The St. Dunstan’s Medical Fund at Msalata Theological School provides mosquito nets and medicine for malaria and other illnesses to students at the school, their families and surrounding villagers. The money we send also pays for a nurse to come to the school an hour a day (for 90 cents a day).Get a “mite box” at church and collect your change (and dollars) during Lent.

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Episcopal Church Women

St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church Women (ECW) will meet again on Wednesday, April 22 nd at 10:30 AM.   Craig Withers, representing the Carter Center, will discuss its global humanitarian work.  ECW meetings conclude with a delicious lunch.  We welcome all friends of the parish to share this great morning of worship, learning, and fellowship with St. Dunstan’s ECW.

The ECW program year will conclude Wednesday, May 20th with a CPR demonstration and practice session at 10:30 AM in the parish hall.  St. Dunstan’s invites all interested men and women to participate.  The Sandy Springs Fire Department will provide the CPR instruction.  Bring a salad to share for lunch and any pass-along plants that you’d like to swap.

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From the Treasurer

January, 2009

With the delivery of the annual financial report to the vestry this month, Nancy Elliott has relinquished the treasurer's responsibilities to me. My accountant expressed sympathy without knowing anything about the church. Should I be worried? At any rate, when you run into Nancy, please express your appreciation for the job she has done over the last couple of years. I am taking over a set of books in good order, and she has been very giving of her time in bringing me up to speed on the particulars of the job. ~Dick Harris

January is always a disappointing month to report, but this was not a particularly disappointing January.  Expenses and Income here are reversed so you can visually see the subtraction.  At least it's easier for me that way.  We spent more than we took in.

January is not usually a great income month as people return slowly to normal after the holiday season.  And a higher than normal electric bill together with our liability insurance installment pushed expenses up.  However, understand that monthly budget expenses are 1/12 of our annual budgeted expenses, with no attempt made to anticipate known large expenses such as insurance, so at this point this is not worrisome.  But it does illustrate why we keep a substantial cash reserve.  As Nancy wrote last month, our operating cash (i.e., roughly, what is in the checking account) was almost three months anticipated expenses.  So we are now down from about twelve weeks cash to about ten.

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Our condolences to Richard, Marilyn, and Ethan Stansbury on the death of Richard’s brother-in-law Kim Gambrill.

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