This year our Sunday School kids and families are creating a set of Stations of the Cross will be hung around the church in the next week.  The practice of praying the “stations” grew out of the early church practice of walking the Via Dolorosa, or Way of the Cross, in Jerusalem, as a way of remembering the final footsteps of Christ. …

Tabernacling is the practice of setting aside and creating sacred space in your home or office.  Do you have such a space already?  I have a few different ones in various places, but below is a picture of the little altar I made on my desk at church.  If you don’t have one, I encourage you to try it out!  Whether it’s…

I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word. These words are from the Invitation to the Observance of a holy Lent in the Ash Wednesday service.  Usually, and for good reason, we focus on penitence,…

Last Sunday in my sermon I gave some homework – and a few folks have followed up with me either to share their thoughts or ask me for the assignment again!  Part of what I shared in the sermon was a reflection on the Vestry retreat last weekend and our belief it’s time to begin the work of discerning our core values…

Next week we will gather to feast on Shrove Tuesday, closing the night by burning last years’ palms to make the ashes we will use to mark our mortality the following evening on Ash Wednesday, which will mark our entrance into the holy season of Lent. Lent is a time when we are invited into self-examination, repentance, and works of mercy.  It…

Go in peace to love and serve God and neighbor Last week in Part 1: Being Fed, I wrote about the phrase “behold what you are; become of what you receive” which is said as part of the invitation to receive communion every week. This week I’d like to look at the words that send us out into the world at the…

Behold what you are; become what you receive. Every week, after we’ve said the Great Amen and consecrated the bread and the wine, these are the words I say when we lift the bread and wine and extend the invitation that all who seek Christ are welcome at God’s table. It is an adaptation of a phrase from a sermon by St.…

Please plan to stay – or arrive early – this Sunday to attend our Annual Meeting at 9:30 a.m. in the sanctuary.  Two essential pieces of work we will do are electing new Vestry members and announcing our next Senior Warden, and reviewing the 2016 financials and accepting the 2017 budget.  In addition there will be presentations on upcoming projects at St.…

This Sunday at the beginning of both services we will bless a new Paschal candle stand.  The current stand, a lovely gift from the Wolcott family years ago, has, through normal wear and use, suffered some damage.  The main pole has developed a tilt which makes it unstable when the tall Paschal candle is being used.  We were able to use it…

I wrote last month about what CREDO is, a clergy wellness conference developed by the Church Pension Fund.  In short, it is a time to unplug and spend time reflecting on the health and balance in four key area:  spiritual life, finances, physical health, and vocational path.  And so it was that I spent a week on retreat, learning and discerning, and…