The Episcopal Church of the Mediator » Jeremy http://blog.episcopalmediator.org Putting Faith Into Action. Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:46:40 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 A Message from the Rector — July 2009 http://blog.episcopalmediator.org/http:/blog.episcopalmediator.org/a-message-from-the-rector-july-mediarite-2009 http://blog.episcopalmediator.org/http:/blog.episcopalmediator.org/a-message-from-the-rector-july-mediarite-2009 #comments Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:43:50 +0000 Jeremy http://blog.episcopalmediator.org/?p=21 “i thank You God for most this amazing
day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of skies; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite, which is yes”
–ee cummings

Dear Friends,
I often think of the this first verse of ee cummings’ poem as I walk through West Park to church, looking up at the leaping greenly spirits of trees. (Unfortunately, we haven’t seen too much blue true dream of skies this June.) With summer upon us, I’m feeling a little greenly myself.

The season after Pentecost is the “green” season in the Church, with the vestments reflecting the color of life. This summer we have decided to go green in other ways as well. On one Sunday each month, June 28, July 26, and August 23, we will have “green Sundays” at the church. This means that we will have no printed bulletins and I will announce the page numbers for the prayers and hymns during the service. We will also be more green at coffee hour, with people invited to bring in their mugs from home for their coffee. Members of our parish who are particularly knowledgeable and concerned about ecology will have information for us about how we can do a better job of caring for our world.

This electronic newsletter is another way of going green. In our Communications and Evangelism Commission, we are exploring ways that we can be better stewards of our resources and environment, by using email, Church Post (those “This weekend at Mediator” pages you get on Fridays), our website, and other means to keep members informed without using so much paper. Our goal is not to exclude anybody who is not internet savvy, but to communicate more effectively with the media that our parishioners use regular.

I hope that this summer will be a greenly time of re-creation for you. I also hope that you will join us at church for worship and for exploring the stewardship of creation on our green Sundays.

Faithfully,
Rev. Maria Tjeltveit

]]> http://blog.episcopalmediator.org/http:/blog.episcopalmediator.org/a-message-from-the-rector-july-mediarite-2009 /feed 0 ‘Faith Talk’ by Judy Dulis http://blog.episcopalmediator.org/http:/blog.episcopalmediator.org/faith-talk-by-judy-dulis http://blog.episcopalmediator.org/http:/blog.episcopalmediator.org/faith-talk-by-judy-dulis #comments Fri, 17 Apr 2009 14:30:19 +0000 Jeremy http://blog.episcopalmediator.org/?p=5 I am standing in the checkout line at the grocery store. The woman in front of me is in need of a “price check” not to mention she has more items than the allowed “10 or less.” I can feel my blood pressure rising; I have never been good at waiting and my intolerance level is rapidly climbing. I turn to the stranger in the line behind me and say, “You’d think by now I would realize when I ask God to give me patience He will inevitably put me in these situations, but I will always fail miserably.” The woman replies, “I am fortunate to be blessed with the patience of Job.” Thus begins our twominute conversation about God and His timing. We leave the store, probably never to cross paths again, yet I feel we have shared something of whom we are and where we are spiritually. I had a similar experience waiting for my car at the dealer. I noticed a woman reading a spiritual book I had recently finished. I said to her, “I hope you’re enjoying that as much as I did.” Her eyes lit up and for the next 45 minutes we talked about our God, how He uses us, the importance of letting Him into our lives and much more. We were sorry when our cars were ready. As it turns out she lives in the alley behind Mediator and invited me to sit on her porch at the next West Park concert.

I am always pleasantly surprised when I strike up “My Faith” conversations with total strangers. Most seem willing if not eager to share their faith experiences. How can we incorporate “showing our faith colors” to each other in our daily life? (That was one of the questions discussed at our vestry retreat in February and the reason for this writing. How can we grow and express ourselves spiritually, individually and as a church “How do we find ways to encourage each other to speak about our faith?”) Invite someone to church? Pray for someone? I think we need to do more than that. If we are to be witnesses for Christ, shouldn’t we be talking about Him? It is my view that until we make “Faith Talk” a routine part of our everyday conversation, we may be overlooking our most valuable gifts, the opportunity to share our faith with someone else. It is as easy as talking to a stranger. Share your faith with someone today.

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