stbarts10606

I have a date New Year's Eve.... I didn't have one, then decided to see if any help was needed uptown. As it turns out, I could be of service. Bishop C. Roskam will be celebrating the Eucharist at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and no Deacon was on the slate. So I got a call back today. Sure. Be there at 10:15.

Lots of people have traditions for New Year's Eve. When we were young, my sister and I would go to my Grandmother's rented home, sit in front of the fire, fighting to stay awake long enough to raise a toast of ginger ale as the ball fell in Times Square. In later years I spent it sometimes quite alone and sometimes in the company of my beloved: one year quietly in a convent, another in Times Square myself, another at a big dance/bash at a hotel in New Jersey, another doing
western line dancing in a bar on Long Island. The year before I was ordained, I spent it with friends at the Eucharist at the Cathedral.

This year I will be Deacon at the Eucharist..... doing what a deacon does: assembling, proclaiming, distributing, dismissing. This year I will ask for the prayers of those gathered... and beyond... to be with those devestated by the indescribably destruction which erupted in the Indian Ocean on Sunday... for anyone in need or trouble... for the sick and suffering...for the lonely, discouraged. depressed and forgotten...for those grapling with addiction...for the unemployed...for children, families, the elderly....for a longing and striving for peace within and without...for those in public trust... and I will ask for thanksgivings - because even in this mix, there is a ray of light, a hint of kindness, sometimes a showering of affection and always the abiding love of God....

I have a date this New Year's Eve.... and it may be my best date ever.....

I wish you one and all a rewarding evening.... and blessings and peace for the New Year----- pass it on!

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Friends,

As you well know, the death toll is climbing due to the horrible
natural disaster that has hit Asia and the East Coast of Africa.
Disease may take the lives of thousands more.

The diocese of New York and Episcopal Relief and Development are
there. Like Catholic Charities and Oxfam, they help people of all
sorts who need safe places.

And they need your help.

From the Church of South India, Bishop Thomas Samuel of the Diocese of
Madhya Kerala, sent the following message to Oregon Bishop Johncy Itty
[also from the Church of South India]:

"It is with deep distress and immense grief that I share with you the
terrible tragedy that has hit the coastal regions of Tamil-Nadu,
Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Sri Lanka. The magnitude of the disaster is
difficult to comprehend mainly becasuse of its unexpected nature and
also because of lack of exact statistics. The figure of the death toll
in South
India has gone up to 15,000. This tragedy has suddenly made us not
only challenged into rising up to the situation but also made us
realize our insufficiency and vulnerability.

"The worst-hit Alappuzha and Kollam are in Madhya Kerala Diocese where
thousands were rendered homeless and many were reported missing. Many
in these areas
were caught and crushed and washed away before they even knew what was
happening. There is no electricity and borewells put for drinking
water supply were also
destroyed. This is the worst national disaster in recent history
because it is affecting so many heavily populated coastal areas. We
could have epidemics within a few days unless we get health systems up
and running.

"Our diocesan pastors and leaders have rushed to the disaster areas
with food, clothing, medicine etc. Our focus is on supply of drinking
water, food and clothing. Sanitation is a big problem. Many camps have
been set up to accommodate thousands of homeless people.

"We would greatly appreciate if you would kindly extend your generous
support to the relief work. Please do remember us in your prayers."

How you can help:

First, a check can be made to The Episcopal Diocese of New York and
mark it RELIEF FOR MADRAS, and send the check to Carol O'Neale at the
diocesan offices [you
can bring it to church on Sunday and we'll mail them out Monday]

You can also donate to the Emergency Relief Fund under "Ways to Give."
Donations can be mailed to Episcopal Relief and Development, c/o
Emergency Relief Fund, PO Box 12043, Newark, NJ 07101.

You can also donate online:

Episcopal Relief and Development

You can also bring this check to church on Sunday for ERD instead.

You may also bring a check for St. Barts and we will donate it to the
Diocese of Madras directly - mark it "diocese of Madras" in the memo.

Rs 200 [about $5] will cover expenses for food, bed sheets,
mattresses, medicines and utensils.
CASA has pledged its solidarity with an initial contribution of Rs 200,000. The Church of South India Synod has sent a check for Rs 500,000. We are thankful for their support. Any individual, organization or agencies interested in contributing
donations in cash or kind are requested to contact the following
addresses:

The Bishop in Madras
CSI Diocese of Madras
227 Cathedral Road
Chennai 600 086

Your contributions may be sent to
The Hon. Treasurer
Madras Diocese
CSITA Madras Diocesan
Foreign Exchange Regulation Act
Account No. 24550

Indian Overseas Bank
5, Arunachalam Street
Chintadripet
Chennai 600 002
SWIFT CODE - IOB A I N BB 001

Currently, they are not looking for clothes, shoes,
blankets, or water - India has the economy to produce
all these things. Money is what is necessary.

Thank you. Email me at

gawaind@gmail.com

if you have any questions.

Peace,
Fr. Gawain

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http://terd.org/

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I preached at Trinity Lutheran after the 9:00 service
today - there were about 40 people there. They did a
nice Carols and lessons service, combined with the
Eucharist.

After, two of the people shared with me their ideas
about having a combined Lutheran / Episcopal church.

I had a chance to visit Nan, Mary, and Jean [who is
not a member but someone I've been visiting regularly]
today. I called Marion and Helen also. Today, I'll
probably see my brother.

Blessings to everyone.



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In June, NPR obtained photos of a U.S.-run detention center in Iraq
They aren’t images of humiliation or torture
There aren’t dogs or naked and frightened men;

They show Americans soldiers and Iraqi prisoners smiling together.

The images come from Camp Bucca in southern Iraq.

The images generally have Maj. Stacy Garrity, an Army reservist who became known as "the angel of Camp Bucca."

Garrity processed detainees.
When someone came in, she was there. When they left, she was there.
She met the families of the detainees; she was the one who found interpreters.
She was the one who worked with the red cross.

In the photographs, there is one of her with and Iraqi flag given her by the detainees.

There is another of a woven tapestry with an American Flag and a Iraqi flag, crossed in peace.

They are photos of hope.

Scriptures are our photographs of God’s life. They create images for us. They help us remember what’s been before. They give us a glimpse of the truth.

Garrity set up a post office system;
She found soccer balls for detainees.
She found ways to let families know who was detained.
She was well loved by those prisoners, who gave her cards and gifts
Upon her departure.

These images are so different than the ones of cruelty and violence around us. Not that those other photos are any less true. We know that life is miserable for many.

But there is another picture of a young magnanimous, optimistic, caring woman, building relationships, sharing herself.

It’s a bit odd – and it should be. A young blonde reservist, making friends with all these Iraqis. It’s much different than the photos of soldiers being scared of Iraqi children and of Iraqi children being scared of our soldiers.

These photographs are images of magnanimity and selflessness;
Just as this story is a photograph of God’s magnanimity and selflessness towards us.

I think that we’re probably much more comfortable with Santa than Jesus.
But I can understand why St. Nick was so popular;
He saved women from prostitution;
He saved sailors from storms;
He fed the poor through gifts to them;
He even resurrected three theological students to life after they had been murdered,
salted away for future consumption by a homicidal butcher.

Nicholas became the saint for not merely children, but also of the unjustly imprisoned, scholars,, brewers, brides, and perfumiers.

I don't know if these stories are true; but these too, are distant photographs of generosity and magnanimity in violent times.

I can hear the hunger for photographs of hope, of good ness. But then we are suspicious.
We know how much of the world is guided by frauds,
by people who aren't really up to the task;
of people who secretly wonder if they'll be discovered;
by people who keep their lives that are secret and hidden.
We need redemption from such mendacity.

We seek an honest and compelling spirituality.

We know however, that not all spiritualities will lead us properly. There is a kind of spirituality that is selfish in its desire for satiety and security.

It is a weak armor in this world.

Our modern spirituality is generally about assurance; about being comfortable and feeling good.

But there is an alternate spirituality;
A faith of being responsible to other persons and to God.

One spirituality allows us to reduce ourselves to consumers or spectators,
Where our religion is a fashion accessory for our lives of endless consumption.

But another religious understands how, in the brutality in the world,
God still gives us Himself.

We need this God who became a human;

If all we have is a privatised religion,
A religion that is inimical to community or political life and
A religion hitched to no cause but a narrow, deadening, solipsism.

We who believe in society and community and solidarity,
We should stand up for this gospel
Of a Religion that find God offering himself to humanity.

If we were to take photographs of the story the scripture tells,

We'd see a huddled family in a barn;
It would be night, and thus a bit cold;
The faces of the people would be strangers to you;
It wouldn't avoid the everyday tragedies we face, and paint them neatly;

If we were to take photos of our own culture,
We’d see how our choices debilitates our ability to think wisely;
We’d understand how we’ve become reduced to
consumers of things made by others;
watching other people play sports and have fun.

But in our photographs,
We are convicted: if the incarnation can happen here, in this small corner of the empire
it can happen anywhere.
If down-and-out shepherds witness the holy birth, why not you?
If God can bring peace for one moment in Palestine, in South Africa, in Ireland,
between the states, he can do so in Iraq;
he can do so with small children;
he can bring peace in your lives, to you.

Our story is that this child is something cosmic,
the universal word,
the natural order, where the atoms,
the cells and the alphabet of human consciousness
become redeemed and part of God's life.
This is the true light that enlightens everyone, coming into the world.

It is in these photographs, we must give up our fictions about our purity or our innocence;
And yet still find a reason to believe.

Perhaps, before we knew God, we had been thinking too small.
We'd become self-involved;
eager for our own success;
striving for unattainable goals;
we know our selves by our greed and selfishness;
So God sends his son and asks, lets see what humanity can do.
That's what major Garrity asked - what can I do?
Perhaps these small relationships will bring a bit of peace in this hostile land.
She didn't pretend that peace was easy;
she didn't ignore the torture and the violence around her.
She witnessed, and she offered her heart.
It's a lot like what God has done for all humanity;
not that there aren't photographs of violence and cruelty in the world;
but he's given us other memories, other stories,
other dreams for us to cultivate,
other foundations for our hope,
the dreams of and about Jesus Christ.

And every year when we return to our photo album,
We find these photos of a struggling family, in whom the Good news has been born.

Our Jesus reveals the world for what it is,
asking us to be generous to one another and to ourselves.

In spite of our selfishness, Love prevails.
And its vehicle is our hope.
It's power, is our courage;
and its source, God's grace, anew.
Amen, Love is born today.
Alleluia.
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We have moved from Advent to the precipice and now nearly to the summit of Christmas... a journey of ups, downs, winding paths, distractions, valleys, crags. We have been looking out and up, our neck crooked in expectation. We are about to arrive at a mystical, miraculous place where all that we have know will meet the embodiment of all there is to know. It's exciting. At a profound level, it is awesome (in the 'back in the day' sense of the word).

What a marvel reconciliation is. Starting a-new, a-fresh. Anne of Green Gables comes to mind.... Anne was notorious for stumbling into one fix or another, yet she comforted herself with the idea that each day was fresh with no mistakes in it.... and if she made a mistake well, at least it was a different one each time.....

What a miracle it is when we, in our heart of hearts, can reconcile our own humanity and our spark of divinity.... there's the kernel of peace.

Peace given to us, peace we can pass on in the way we behave, in the care we take, in the continuing reconciliation we can encourage.

May Jesus, the Christ, bless us, every one!
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At St. Bartholomew's Church:

Character over corruption
Meaning above money
Integrity over Pride
Sabbath above Stress
In the service of Christ's love

In our church

We teach resilience
We practice charity
We exemplify integrity
We expect accountability
We shield joy
We reveal breathing space in the midst of chaos

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Time Dollars - a site that computes one time dollar = one hour. Lots of interesting consequences.

And the Episcopalians for Global Reconciliation - site that encourages global awareness.

Check them out!
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We had a wonderful festive party the other evening. Art B. won the $5000 prize, and two other parishioners won as well. Second prize was won by a friend of Catherine's in California. Terra, Steve B.'s daugher drew the first prize.

next year we'll have more places for kids; and even include a bit of a talent show in it.

Today I spent reading Let the Children Come by Brant Baker - a book on children's sermons, as well as trying to make sure the pageant would come off without a hitch. I'll also be working on the bulletins a lot this week, and ensuring that Christmas Eve is the celebration it should properly be.

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Advent... we wait. After all is said and done, at this point in time, what are we waiting for? We know the story. The Messiah, long awaited (and still expected) by the Jewish peoples. According to our tradition, we believe the savior was Jesus. He came.

Yet liturgically we go through the cycle again - of waiting, birth, life, learning, testing, betrayal, trial, death and resurrection. I for one think it's a good idea to get back to basics at this time of year. My own biological rhythm slows down to a crawl anyway, so that aids in the intospection.

Who do I wait for? I think it's actually reversed: God is waiting for me to dust off the welcome mat a-new.
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