Music at St. Dunstan's

Although St. Dunstan's is not a huge church, we have an abundance of talent in many areas, not the least of these being music.

Under the excellent leadership of our Parish Musician, Dr. Tom Gibbs, parishioners at St. Dunstan's are treated to a wide variety of music, ranging from vocal performances by our Adult and Youth Choirs to instrumental performances, both by invited guests and as well as performances from our own parishioners.

An example of this was Alexander playing the oboe last Sunday.  His Voluntary was the Meditation on Lobe den Herron by Charles Callahan.  If you've got a hymnal handy, it's Hymn 390, Praise to the Lord, the Almighty.

You can hear Alexander's performance here.

Due to the terrible incidents last week, many preachers wrote and delivered sermons which caused us all to think about our situation and asked us to consider what we, as Christians, can do about it.

Read what Tricia had to say in her sermon, which is on our website.

Back to music.  Sad to say, but our anthem was very appropriate for the incidents last week.

The words are found in Hymn 572.

Listen to the choir performing Tom's arrangement here.

Remembering Orlando

This morning, Maggie preached a powerful sermon about Orlando. You can read the text of the sermon on our website.

After the Nicene Creed, we prayed A Litany for the Orlando Massacre in place of our normal Prayers of the People.


A LITANY FOR THE ORLANDO MASSACRE

O God, in whose image all people are made,
Have mercy on us.

O Jesus, healer and lover of all souls,
Have mercy on us.

O Holy Spirit, source of courage and hope,
Have mercy on us.

Holy Trinity, divine community, gather us as one,
Have mercy on us.

We weep as Rachel for her children,
Hear our prayer.

We weep for the innocent victims of Orlando and everywhere,
Hear our prayer.

We weep for the perpetrators of violence and hate,
Hear our prayer.

We weep over our country and our world as Jesus wept over
Jerusalem,
Hear our prayer.

We pray healing for those wounded in body or spirit,
Hear our prayer.

We long for mercy and truth to make a home with each other
where righteousness and peace embrace,
Hear our prayer.

Help us to end a culture of violence and the fetish of guns,
We fervently pray, O God.

Inspire our earthly rulers to break open old arguments and act for
the common good,
We fervently pray, O God.

Lead us in examining our own consciences for the remnants of
prejudice and hate within us,
We fervently pray, O God.

Give your LGBT children the confidence of their equal dignity
with every other human being,
We fervently pray, O God.

Keep us from acting out of our fear to brand others as enemies,
We fervently pray, O God.

Protect our brothers and sisters of Islam, that they may live in the
peace which is their true proclamation,
We fervently pray, O God

Surround us with your loving arms, draw us together across lines
of religion, sexual orientation, and all those many ways we
separate ourselves from one another,
We fervently pray, O God.

Inspire us to act in ways that bring all people closer to your
promised reign of peace,
We fervently pray, O God.

For the dead we pray,
Lord have mercy.
For the wounded we pray,
Christ have mercy.
For a transformed world we pray,
Lord have mercy.

Let us pray.
O God of deep compassion and abounding mercy, in whose trust is
our perfect peace: Draw near to us in this time of anguish, anxiety
and anger, receive the dead into your eternal care, comfort those
who mourn, strengthen those who are wounded or in despair, turn
our anger into the conviction to act, channel our passion to end our
dependence on violence for our sense of security, and lead us all to
greater trust in you and in your image found in the entire human
family; through Jesus the Christ, who with you and the Holy Spirit
lives and reigns among us and eternally. Amen.


The Rev. Michael W. Hopkins, copyright © 2016, adapted,
Epiphany Esources, 67 E. Main St., Hornell, NY 14843
www.EpiphanyEsources.com

The Blessing of New Drivers

This morning at St. Dunstan's was special as we celebrated a new liturgy for New Drivers and their Parents.

Here is the liturgy Tricia wrote:

Gracious God, when the people of Israel traveled through the wilderness you went before them, guiding them and providing them safe passage. We ask this day that you be with these your children
who are taking on the new responsibility of driving. Help them to make wise choices as they navigate the roads ahead. Give them steady hands, focused minds, and an awareness of what is around
them. Take away all temptations and distractions that may prevent them from driving responsibly. Guide them and keep them safe on all their journeys. In Christ’s name, we pray. Amen.

To the new drivers:
Learning to drive is one of life’s greatest rites of passage. It is a big step on the journey to adulthood. Scripture is clear that privileges and blessings also come with responsibility.

In the presence of God and this community, do you promise to take this responsibility seriously, obeying the law, driving with patience and self control, and always wearing your seat belt?
   I will, with God’s help.

Do you promise to refrain from behaviors which distract you or impair your driving, including texting and drinking, and from riding with drivers who engage in those behaviors?
   I will, with God’s help.

Do you promise to call for help if you are in a situation in which you should not drive, or are with others with whom you shouldn’t ride?
   I will, with God’s help.

To the parents:
Teaching a child to drive is also a great responsibility.

Do you promise to be a good example to these new drivers, to teach them with patience and good humor, and to come to their aid if they are in a situation in which they should not drive, or with
others with whom they shouldn’t ride?
   I will, with God’s help.

Each new driver receives a blessing.

More photos can be seen here and you can listen to the liturgy here.

The Prodigal Son

For those who follow the lectionary, the Gospel for the Fourth Sunday in Lent (in a couple of weeks, March 6th this year) will be the parable of the prodigal son.

Many of us are familiar with this parable, but for Lent this year, the Christian Education Committee at St. Dunstan's invited all members to come together to experience the story and to reflect, with others in the community, on the meaning of the story for ourselves, our families, the church, and the world.

During the Sunday School hour this week, parishioners got to watch an entertaining skit and then participated in thought-provoking dialogue.

Here are some pictures from Sunday's fun event:

The older son is not pleased with all the attention

being heaped upon the "prodigal daughter."

Lively discussion after the performance of the parable.

For more pictures, visit the album in St. Dunstan's Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1015990885113174.1073741840.104382762940662&type=1&l=47ea21a77f

St. Dunstan's choir works hard under the nurturing tutelage of Dr. Tom Gibbs, our Parish Musician. That hard work paid off this past Sunday as the choir performed O, pray for the peace of Jerusalem by Herbert Howells for the Offertory Anthem.

You can hear it here:
https://app.box.com/s/gfg04x4f2buofqtroj008142xuxrm6xa

Were you at St. Dunstan's on Sunday? Any thoughts?

Nov. 8 Music and Flowers

Although Sunday morning was pretty dreary outside, it was very different inside at St. Dunstan's.

To start off, we had a guest preacher, Laura Bryant, who shared a very insightful sermon with us.

Our anthem, Locus iste: This place was made by God, was very moving. The choir is very dedicated, and continually matures under the direction of Parish Musician, Dr. Thomas Gibbs.  Tom introduces the choir, and thus, the congregation, to various composers and styles.  What may be overlooked is that some of the compositions are actually Tom's own.  Such was the case this past Sunday with Locus iste.

Refrain:  Locus iste [This place] was made by God priceless, a holy place.
This is the house of God, the gate of heav'n, the court of God. Refrain.
Behold the tabernacle of God is with God's people; God will dwell them. Refrain.
At you altars even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a place she may lay her young. Refrain.

You can listen to it here:
https://app.box.com/s/xriiu9rrlrhl07mtnpzx7jr6onp08sy1


The floral arrangement was, usual, beautiful. Floral arrangements are sometimes taken for granted, but St. Dunstan's is very blessed to have talented and committed members on its Flower Guild.




Arrangements from previous Sundays (as well as other pictures of Parish Life) can be viewed at St. Dunstan's Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/StDunstansATL/photos_stream

Flying Pig Barbeque, Blessing of the Animals

Lotsa fun yesterday...

So, a hardy crew, led by Geoff Walker, showed up before the sun came up to smoke pork butts and chicken for St. Dunstan's annual Flying Pig Barbeque.

In attendance were Geoff (obviously), new parishioner, Lee Cline, Joseph Henry Monti, Steve and Connor Mark, former parishioner Danny Woodward, and Geoff's son, Wells.

First order of the day is to generate coals in the fire barrel, then prepare the butts for smoking.

Once the meat's on the grill, then we chill, and marinade and flip the butts every so often.

While the meat is smoking, the 8:30 service is held next to the smoking pit.

When the butts are done, it's time to put the chicken on.

A chopping crew arrives in the afternoon.

Unfortunately, the photographer was wiped out and didn't get pictures of the actual dinner, but lots of folks showed up for good food, good music, and good fellowship.

For more pictures of the Flying Pig Barbecue, check out our Facebook album.

This Sunday, we're looking forward to the Blessing of the Animals in the Beech Grove.

Bring your furred, feathered or finned friends to the Beech Grove for this special service at 10:45. No Sunday School this day.

This and That, Salt Lake City edition

(from Tricia's "This and That" email to St. Dunstan's. Tricia is currently in Salt Lake City serving as a deputy representing the Diocese of Atlanta at the Episcopal Church's General Convention.)

Dear friends,

"Let the whole world see and know that things which were cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new."

These words are from one of my favorite prayers in our prayer book. We are certainly seeing them come to life this week.

In last Sunday's sermon I shared my deep feelings of despair and hopelessness in the wake of the Charleston massacre, feelings that I know were shared by many of you. That sermon was really a pep talk to myself, a reminder that we must not give in to the evil we deplore, a reminder that even in our darkest days God is with us, a reminder that we must continue to do the good that we can do, even when it feels like we are throwing pebbles at a giant.

I could never have predicted on that day the events of this week, events which show the truth of the words of this prayer.

This week we have seen the Confederate flag, a symbol of hatred and racism and the worst evil of this country, being brought down, a sign that black lives do matter.

This week we have seen the Supreme Court uphold the Affordable Care Act, making health insurance available to millions of people, a sign that poor lives matter.

This morning we have seen the Supreme Court decree that same sex marriage is legal all across our nation, a sign that gay lives matter.

Things which had been cast down are being raised up, indeed.

I deeply believe that all of this is the work of the Spirit, God's resounding word that the evil of Charleston, the evil of racism and injustice and idolatry of weapons is not the final word. And we rejoice.

As we rejoice, we must remember there is still work to be done. But we face the work with renewed hope and vigor, rejoicing in the power of the Spirit. Alleluia, alleluia!

Thanks be to God.

Tricia

Grant Us Wisdom, Grant Us Courage

Like most of you, I was deeply saddened by the news of the shootings in Charleston last week.

And, like some of you, I missed church yesterday because I was out of town this past weekend for a family event. Because I was missed church, I also missed Tricia's sermon on recent events.

Luckily for us though, Tricia has shared the text of sermon, which can be found here:
https://app.box.com/s/bxid3uhxvi2yc3l5wjf5iw8l0gsy0sfl

As is the norm for Tricia, she shares some pretty powerful ideas in her sermon.

What do you think?

March From Selma to Montgomery, AL

From our rector, Tricia Templeton:

I leave tomorrow for Alabama and on Saturday morning will begin the march from Selma to Montgomery, retracing the heroes of the Civil Rights movement took 50 years ago. We arrive in Montgomery on Wednesday. Five days, 54 miles. The National Park Service is sponsoring this "Walking Classroom," and has arranged for us to meet with those on the original march and those involved in struggles for Civil Rights today along the way. Several have asked how they can support us on the way. Here's one way. I have written this litany that I will pray every morning before we begin. I invite you to pray it with me throughout the walk.

Litany for Selma

Gracious God, as we set out on this pilgrimage make us ever mindful of those who have walked this way before us, remembering their courage, strength and dignity in the fight for justice.
We are walking on holy ground.

We remember the countless number of African Americans who were martyred in the battle for Civil Rights, including Jimmie Lee Jackson, the Rev. George Lee, Lamar Smith, Medgar Evers, and James Chaney.
We are walking on holy ground.

We remember those of other races and creeds who died answering the call to work for justice for all God’s people, including the Rev. James Reeb, Viola Liuzzo, Jonathan Daniels, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner.
We are walking on holy ground.

We give thanks for the progress that has been made in the past 50 years, but pray for the strength and wisdom to resist those in our own day who devise new obstacles to the ballot box.
Lord, hear our prayer.

We remember those who are still denied their Civil Rights, including our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters who can not marry the people they love.
Lord, hear our prayer.

We remember those who are marginalized by poverty, by their immigration status, by the color of their skin or their religion. May we never grow weary in the fight for justice for all God’s people.
Lord, hear our prayer.

Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on til victory is won.

The Apple Tree Carol

We had a special treat yesterday for our Offertory Anthem. It was The Apple Tree Carol composed by our Parish Musician, Tom Gibbs, and beautifully performed by Susan Hauser, soprano, and Steve Hauser, soprano saxophone.

                                       The Apple Tree Carol

The tree of life my soul hath seen, laden with fruit and always green.
The trees of nature fruitless be compar'd with Christ the apple tree.

His beauty doth all things excel: by faith I know but cannot tell
the glory which I now can see in Jesus Christ the apple tree.

For happiness I long have sought, and pleasure dearly I have bought:
I miss'd of all: but now I see 'tis found in Christ the apple tree.

I'm weary with my former toil. Here I will sit and rest awhile.
Under the shadow I will be of Jesus Christ the apple tree.
                                                                           (18th century, anonymous)

Note from the composer: "I think of this text as fitting for almost any time of the liturgical year. Our parish is fortunate to have a sensitive, expressive soprano soloist, and also a fine soprano saxophone player who is equally sensitive and expressive. As the piece progresses, the two soloists exchange melodic ideas, and the organ provides harmonic underpinning and occasionally also takes part in the melodic exchanges. At the crucial dramatic moment of the text, however, the organ drops out and leaves the two soloists on their own."

You can listen to it here:
https://app.box.com/s/tcv53k8x7cuuf712njn5xzu4m36yeu0c

This year, Easter is on ...

Do you know when Easter is this year?  Sure, you can Google it, but what did people do before computers and Google?

Excerpted from Tricia's email to the parish:

The 12 days of Christmas have come and gone, and we are now in the season of Epiphany, known as the season of light. The church calendar is set each year around two dates, those of Christmas and Easter. Christmas, of course, has the same date every year, and we can find the first Sunday of Advent (the beginning of the church year) by backing up the four Sundays before Christmas. Easter is a bit trickier. The official explanation is that Easter is always the Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox on March 21. Got that? The earliest day that Easter can be is March 22; the latest is April 25. The date of Easter is important because from it the rest of the church calendar is set. Back up 40 days from Easter (excluding Sundays) and you will know the date of Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. Go forward 40 days and you get the feast of the Ascension. Go 50 days from Easter and you get the feast of Pentecost, the beginning of the longest season of the church year, that lasts until Advent.


There may be astronomers among us who can tell the date of Easter by looking at the stars and keeping track of the phases of the moon, but most let someone else do the calculations and rely on the calendars to tell us when this holy day is. (Or you can check the chart on page 880 in the prayer book that tells you the date of Easter through the year 2089). But in the church’s early days calendars were a luxury afforded only the privileged few. So it became a liturgical practice that every year the first Sunday after Epiphany (the January 6 celebration of the arrival of the wise men), a cantor would give the “Easter proclamation,” announcing in a chant the date of Easter and corresponding liturgical dates of the year. Of course these days we have that information literally at our finger tips. But Tom and I thought it would be interesting and fun to do the Easter proclamation. So come to church Sunday and find out when Easter will be this year. I already know, but I’m not going to spoil the surprise.

So, after all that, you can still go to Google to find out when Easter is this year.  But in the tradition which Tricia mentioned, you can listen to the Easter Proclamation.

Listen to Cantor John Morgan tell us about Easter and the rest of the church year:
https://app.box.com/s/sihkj673bu7muyk3nxxg

So now you know.

Led by a Star

If you weren't able to make it to church this past Sunday, we missed you and hope to see you soon.

Sunday was actually the Second Sunday of Christmas, but we celebrated Epiphany a couple of days early.

As we entered the nave, many of us (including the choir) saw photos in the pews and the choir stall. A fellow choir member leaned over and asked if I had any idea what it was. I had to admit that although it appeared to be an abstract painting, I had no idea what it was.

What do you think?

All was made clear when Tricia began her sermon. Here's the short version as posted by Tricia on Facebook:

An Epiphany offering. My favorite painting of the three kings does not hang in a museum or grace the pages of any art book. It hangs in our house and was painted by my mother. She didn’t start out to do a painting of the magi. Joe and I had asked her to do an abstract painting. But as she painted the forms began to emerge. Can you see them? Three kings, on horseback, not camels (as some of the earliest depiction of the magi showed).
They ride out of the mist with intensity, the horses galloping, the kings leaning forward in their saddles, determined to get to their destination as quickly as possible.
I love that the kings emerged from my mother’s canvas without warning, and I love that when she realized it she allowed them to continue, following their lead, not knowing where they would take her, having faith she would end up in the right place.
That in itself is the essence of this story.
The wise men set out, following a star, not knowing where it would take them or what they would find.
But they trusted that God would lead them where they needed to go, even if it wasn’t anywhere they could have predicted.
May we have the courage to do the same.

The complete text of Tricia's sermon can be found here.

As always, you can find past sermons here:

http://www.stdunstan.net/sermons.htm

Advent Lessons and Carols, Dec. 14

Be sure to mark your calendars for next Sunday, December 14, 4 p.m., for our annual service of Lessons and Carols for Advent. Using scripture readings, prayers, hymns, and anthems, we take time to reflect on the important themes of Advent: marveling at the grace of God coming to humankind in the child Jesus; preparing for God to come to us now; looking in expectation for the time when the Kingdom of God comes fully to the whole world.

One of the pieces sung last year was "Where Is This Stupendous Stranger."
https://app.box.com/s/p4sss3z6cg9a9styk21t

Other pieces from last year can be found here:
https://app.box.com/s/anuw8q2wgzw3ks5fsn1a

Many new pieces will be performed this year on the 14th. We hope to see you there!

For All the Saints

While children (and many adults!) look forward to Halloween, at church we look forward to All Saints' Day.  This past weekend, we celebrated Halloween on Friday and All Saints' Day on Saturday.  Therefore Sunday became All Saint' Sunday.

At St. Dunstan's, the choir works hard under the tutelage of Tom Gibbs.  We are often fortunate to have musicians from both within and outside the church perform with the choir. This past Sunday, we enjoyed hearing violinist Martha Woodruff, who just happens to be one of the daughters of parishioner Priscilla Davis.

The Voluntary before the service was Sonata III: Adagio by George Frideric Handel.
https://app.box.com/s/1z565f5drgeim4975oug

Our opening hymn was "For all the saints, who from their labors rest," sung lustily by the congregation, followed shortly thereafter with "I sing a song of the saints of God" as the sequence hymn.

As expected, Tricia's sermon was about All Saints, but was more special this year as St. Dunstan's celebrates its 50th Anniversary.  We heard some fun tidbits about the early days of St. Dunstan's, including the origins of our first communion set.
https://app.box.com/s/lt8lusg0u7pojp32hzst

The Offertory Anthem was "How Bright These Glorious Spirits" by Richard Slater. Martha added a beautiful dimension to the piece as she accompanied the choir.
https://app.box.com/s/bbbewoodxg92nmajj7nb

I don't know how many people are conscious of the music during the Communion (at St. Dunstan's or any other church). It's primarily background music because, of course, the focus is the Eucharist taking place at the altar. Because the Gospel was Matthew 5:1-12, also known as The Beatitudes, the anthem at communion was Hymn 560, sung a capella by the choir.
https://app.box.com/s/w33tp8wpyi9vrfkc7v0m

As he is often wont to do, Tom wrote a descant for the exit procession, "Ye watchers and ye holy ones," which the sopranos performed beautifully.
https://app.box.com/s/nztkq7d9ayfx9wqcpvco

Our last musical treat for the day was another Voluntary by Martha, accompanied by Tom on the piano, Arioso (frm Cantata No. 156) by Johann Sebastian Bach.
https://app.box.com/s/155kc6eux4u2zv8qpgox

From Egypt to Ferguson

I've written before about the lectionary and how I like the idea that all Episcopalians listen to the same lessons on any given Sunday wherever they may be.

This past Sunday, the Old Testament lesson was Exodus 1:8-2:10, which started out with the oppression of the Israelites in Egypt.

In her sermon, Tricia repeated the first few lines from the lesson.  She then went on to compare the situation long ago in Egypt to the current state of affairs in Ferguson, Missouri.

Many at St. Dunstan's were moved listening to her sermon that morning, and I am sure you will be moved as well by reading it here.

Remember, you can always find past sermons by going to St. Dunstan's website.

Music This Past Sunday

Although we're still in our summer season, you wouldn't know it by what's going on at St. Dunstan's.

This past Sunday, Elizabeth Wong Mark and Steve Hauser played a Voluntary before the 10:00 service.  It was a Meditation on Salve Regina (a prayer to Mary), by Jacques Berthier.


Our Old Testament lesson was Genesis 32:22-31, where Jacob wrestles with God.

Our friend, the Rev. Kim Jackson, preached while Tricia is on vacation. In her sermon, Kim tied in the Old Testament Lesson and the Gospel, Matthew 14:13-21, familiar to many as the feeding of the five thousand.

The theme continued with the Offertory Anthem, Come, O thou Traveler Unknown.
Candler, a Scottish traditional melody, arr. Thomas Gibbs

Come, O thou traveler unknown, whom still I hold, but cannot see;
my company before is gone, and I am left alone with thee:
with thee all night I mean to stay and wrestle till the break of day;
with thee all night I mean to stay and wrestle till the break of day.

My strength is gone, my nature dies, I sink beneath thy weighty hand,
faint to revive, and fall to rise, I fall and yet by faith I stand.
I stand and will not let thee go till I thy name, thy nature know.
I stand and will not let thee go till I thy name, thy nature know.

I know thee, Savior, who thou art, Jesus, the feeble sinner's friend,
nor wilt thou with the night depart, but stay and love me to the end.
Thy mercies never shall remove, thy nature and thy name is Love!
Thy mercies never shall remove, thy nature and thy name is Love!

'Tis Love, 'tis Love; thou diedst for me! I hear thy whisper in my heart;
the morning breaks, the shadows flee; pure universal love thou art.
To me, to all, thy mercies move; thy nature and thy name is Love.
To me, to all, thy mercies move; thy nature and thy name is Love.

(from Wrestling Jacob, by Charles Wesley)

You can listen to both pieces here.

Sam Casseday in Recital

Starting on a half-sized cello tuned in fourths instead of fifths, Sam Casseday played his first notes on a makeshift double bass at the age of five. Sam began studying with his father, and now a rising third year student at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, he studies with Edgar Meyer and Hal Robinson. Sam is a two-time winner of the Jacksonville Symphony Youth Orchestra’s Young Artist Competition, and subsequently he appeared as a soloist with the Jacksonville Symphony.


In 2011, Sam was one of three finalists for the American String Teachers’ Association solo competition in the high school division. He has been featured on NPR’s From the Top and was a finalist in the show’s “Big Break” national solo competition. 

Sam has attended the Aspen Music Festival the past two summers, and is an alumnus of the Brevard Music Center and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. As a chamber musician Sam has performed with the internationally-renowned Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players in New York City, including a performance of Hoffmeister’s Solo Bass Quartet No. 3.

Sam is the grandson of parishioner Priscilla Davis.

As part of St. Dunstan's 50th Anniversary Celebration, Sam will perform Sunday afternoon, October 5, at 3:00 at the church, 4393 Garmon Road NW, Atlanta 30327  A reception will follow.

Be sure to mark your calendars and plan to attend.

Remembering with Gratitude

In her sermon this past Sunday, Tricia remembered “the Philadelphia 11,” the first women ordained as priests in the Episcopal Church. It was an act of ecclesiastical disobedience and courage for the women, and the bishops who ordained them, since women’s ordination had not yet been approved by the church’s governing body, the General Convention.

This was our opening Collect for the service:
Set us free, O God, from every bond of prejudice and fear; that, honoring the courage of the Philadelphia 11, the first women priests in this country, and the bishops who ordained them, we may always seek to widen the circle of God's love and see the image of God reflected in all people.  Amen.

You can read the text of her sermon here.

If you'd rather hear her preach, click here for a link to the audio file.  You can listen to the sermon online or download it if you prefer.

Visit our website for Tricia's past sermons:
http://www.stdunstan.net/sermons.htm

St. Dunstan's Response to the Current Humanitarian Crisis

Our Rector, Tricia Templeton, regularly sends out an email, which she calls "This and That," about information of interest to our parish.  Here is the text of her email from last week:

Dear friends,

At last night’s vestry meeting we spent a good deal of time discussing the humanitarian crisis occurring on our nation’s southern borders. Charis Bowling, who is our parish representative to the Episcopal aid organization Episcopal Relief and Development, shared information about relief efforts there. St. John’s Episcopal church in McAllen, Texas, is very involved in helping with the flood of unaccompanied minors seeking refuge. This morning I talked at length to St. John’s rector, Jim Nelson, about the situation and how he and his parishioners are responding. I’d like to share some of that conversation with you.

St. John’s mission statement is: “We seek to be a sanctuary for equipping people to deal with the issues of life in an atmosphere of love, security, and support. We find our sanctuary in Jesus.”

In recent weeks St. John’s has been called to live out this mission statement in ways they could not have imagined. Life in a border town means that people crossing into Texas from Mexico is a daily occurrence. But what is happening now is well beyond the normal situation. Jim says that about 150 people a day, many of them unaccompanied minors from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, are seeking refuge in McAllen alone. Other border towns are facing similar situations.

The response of the mayor and people of McAllen to this humanitarian crisis has been heroic. A coalition of churches and religious organizations have joined together to  respond. Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church is set up as the reception center, providing shelter and showers.  “They can get rest, get clean, get clothing and toys for the children,” Jim says. It takes about 100 volunteers a day to run this center, doing everything from processing those who arrive to cleaning showers. Many of St. John’s parishioners are volunteering there. Others are volunteering with the Salvation Army, which is preparing meals for the refugees.

The goal is for people to stay in the reception center for only a few days. Children who are with adults who have relatives in this country are given bus fare to go to the relatives’ homes. Unaccompanied children are taken to federal detention centers, which are spread around the country. As Jim says, “detention center” sounds harsh, but the goal is to have the children in a safe place where they can be cared for. He notes that children traveling alone are vulnerable to all kinds of danger.

In addition to volunteering at the center and preparing meals, St. John’s has also taken on the task of providing hygiene and nutrition packages to give to each refugee as they leave to travel to relatives or a detention center. The packages, containing food, soap, shampoo, tooth paste and brush, Tylenol and other necessities, are assembled at the church, then taken to Sacred Heart.

I asked Jim what kind of emotional and spiritual effect this situation has had on him and his parishioners. “It’s a very complicated issue,” he replied. “If you don’t live in a border town it’s very hard to understand our realities here. I have parishioners who are ranchers who have found bodies on their property, or who have had their fences cut and all their cattle escape. I have parishioners who are border patrol agents who have been attacked. There are innocent people coming through, but there are also drug cartels moving drugs through. It can be very dangerous. It’s easy to turn your eyes from it or to get absolutely fatigued by the enormity of the situation. That is our normal, constant situation living here.

“But this is beyond the normal. Our normal mission has changed. Christ has put these people in front of us. Whether we’re conservative or liberal doesn’t matter. Whatever we think about immigration policies doesn’t matter. These are children. They’re here. And we need to take care of them. It’s like we are base in a game of tag. You can’t stay on base forever, but when you’re there you are safe.”

St. John’s and the other churches in McAllen are in this for the long haul. They expect this crisis to continue for at least another nine months, and they are committed to continue their help and support.

Last night, our vestry voted to send $1,000 to St. John’s to help them be the body of Christ to people seeking refuge. For the next several Sundays we will also be taking up a special collection to send to McAllen. If you would like to help please make a check out to St. Dunstan’s and mark it for border disaster relief. I know many of you are traveling and may not be in church the next few weeks. If you’d still like to help you can mail us a check.

It’s beginning to feel to me like our theme for the summer is caring for “the least of these,” particularly children in crisis or need. Throughout the month we will continue to collect school supplies for the children of Path Academy, the charter middle school in Brookhaven whose students are immigrants, refugees, and the poorest of the poor. The pile of supplies in the narthex is growing, but more is needed. When you are out and about please remember to pick up some school supplies.

And finally, Hotel St. Dunstan’s will be open for business the week of August 10. Right now we expect that 11 guests, four adults and seven children, will be spending the week with us. As always, we need volunteers to set up rooms, provide and serve meals, and spend the night. You can sign up at our website, www.stdunstan.net.

I realize there are a lot of requests for help here. I am so grateful to be part of a congregation that understands that we are called to serve our brothers and sisters and that in welcoming or helping “the least of these” we are serving Christ.

Peace and blessings to you all,

Tricia