4526 Albany Post Road, Hyde Park NY 12538 T 845-229-2820 F 845-229-5293

W www.stjameshydepark.org E stjamesoffice@stjameshydepark.org at https://www.facebook.com/groups/22692330307

St. James’ E-pistle Date of Sunday Service: March 10, 2019

First Sunday in Lent

Pulpit Notes

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

I was struck by the words of the bidding prayer on Ash Wednesday.

“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.”

They remind me that this season is meant for self-examination and repentance. Moreover, they remind us that we have the tools at hand to accomplish this: prayer, fasting (yes, that really does mean refraining from food for a period of time), and reading and meditating on God’s word (by this, I understand both scripture and other holy writings. Perhaps you could have your discipline include dialing and prayerful reading of our Lenten Meditations).

But as we went through the day, my thoughts travelled to other forms of confession that we use in the church, because repentance starts with acknowledging our faults. In particular, I have been thinking of the confession in Rite I because it gets to the emotional heart of things.

In the midst of the confession, we say,

We do earnestly repent, and are heartily sorry for these our misdoings; the remembrance of them is grievous unto us, the burden of them is intolerable.

As I read that — and say it out loud — I keep hearing the words, “the burden of them is intolerable.” And I think, yes, I have had times in my life when things I have done (or not done) have weighed so heavily on my heard that it really is intolerable. It takes a lot, but when it reaches that point, I really need the assurance of God’s love, and that there is hope for making things right.

There is one other confession that I was thinking about this Ash Wednesday. It’s not in our prayer book but rather in an alternate liturgy (authorized by the Episcopal Church for occasional use) called Enriching Our Worship. In its confession, we are asked to think beyond simply the things we do as individuals but those things we do as a society. In short, we’re asked to think of systemic sin.

We have denied your goodness in each other, in ourselves, and in the world you have created. We repent of the evil that enslaves us, the evil we have done, and the evil done on our behalf.

Those words, “and the evil done on our behalf” haunt me. Next week, Saturday, March 16, I am co-leading a retreat on the Year of Apology for the Reparations Committee. All are invited to spend a day considering what apology in the context of the slavery era means. We will address how back in the slavery era, this great sin was perpetuated by all of society, including those who never owned slaves. We’ll draw a connection between that and the current abuse of workers around the world

who make our cheap consumer goods possible. Those are the sorts of evil done on our behalf. And we’re called to repent.

Speaking of the Retreat on Apology (see flyer below), I encourage you to register and attend. It will give a sense of not only how we can apologize for the sin of slavery 160 years ago but how we can more effectively apologize in all areas of our lives. What could be more Lenten?

This Lent, take time to meditate on the confessions and their true value to us a spiritual beings. Consider why we sometimes need to honestly admit our wrongs, to work at righting them, and to trust in the power of forgiveness and reconciliation.

Grace and Peace,

Chuck +

NOTICE: Worship Continues in the Parish Hall.

CHURCH WORK UPDATE: This week, I have heard nothing from the abatement company so far. I have reached out to them and hope to have more information soon.

Thought for your week:

“Lent is that feeling of opening the doors of the church on Ash Wednesday and emerging a conspicuous Christian willfully bearing the imposition, and striving to live the faith for both ourselves and others.”

— Benjamin Sparks Kesling (in A College Lent)

Worship This Week:

Tuesday 6:30 PM Evening Prayer (at the Chapel)

Wednesday 10 AM Morning Prayer (Wilks Room)

Thursday 11 AM Bible Study

Sunday 8 AM Eucharist Rite I

10 AM Eucharist Rite II

If You Have anything to add to the Epistle, please contact either Fr. Chuck, Dyan in the Office, or Brian Rance. Thanks!

Announcements

Lenten Coffee Hour:

While we are in the Parish Hall, it is impossible to have the Lenten Breakfasts. However, Coffee Hour hosts for this week decided that they ought to host Coffee Hour BETWEEN SERVICES at the time the Lenten Breakfast would normally take place. Preparing Coffee Hour doesn’t require nearly the same disruption (or table settings) that breakfast does. We appreciate this thoughtfulness and effort.

Inquirers Class:

Our next Inquirers Class is Tuesday March 12, 7:00 PM

As always, everyone is welcome! Our next session will be “SCRIPTURE 2 — The Old Testament.”

EVENING PRAYER

will still be Tuesday at 6:30 PM at the chapel.

Men’s Breakfast Date Change:

Due to the Apology Retreat on March 16, the Men’s Breakfast has been moved up one week to March 9. Same time, same place!

St. James’ Concert, March 15.

Please come enjoy an hour of wonderful woodwind quintet and piano music on Friday, March 15 at St. James. Including our own Russell Urban-Mead (clarinet) and Hyde Parkers John Knight (bassoon) and Laurie Woolever (piano), the music begins at 7:30, and will take place in our church or parish hall (to be determined). There will be a freewill offering for the church furnace fund. The classical music numbers planned include a mix of brisk and sweet compositions by Bernstein, Reicha, Fuhrmeister, Piazzolla, and Blumer. This promises to be a wonderful evening of music at St. James. Please come!

Mark Your Calendars: “I Want My Church to Grow”

Saturday, April 6 at 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM

St. Paul’s Church, 161 Mansion Street, Poughkeepsie

This special training event is for:

• Laypeople and clergy who want to grow a vital church

• Those who want to join God in doing a new thing

• Leadership teams working on evangelism, church growth, spiritual development

Includes Workshops on:

• Evangelism 101: Using Community Organizing Tools for Church Growth

• We Need More Money: Best Practices for Your Stewardship Campaign

Remembering Shrove Tuesday

What a fun time we had eating breakfast for dinner, then covering that breakfast with candy, whipped cream, and icing! Mostly, though, it was about being together as a family, cleaning out the cupboards as we prepared for Lent.

March 2019

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

3 Unction

4 Office Closed

5 6:00 Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper

6 6:30 AM - Ash Wednesday Liturgy 7:30-9:30 AM - Ashes to Go 10:00 AM Ash Wednesday Liturgy 7:00 PM - Ash Wednesday Liturgy

7 11 AM Bible Study

3:30 - Reading Adventures

7:00 Fireside Chat

8 FREE PRAYER FRIDAY

9 8 AM Men’s Breakfast

10 TIME CHANGE! LEAP FORWARD!

11 Office Closed

12 6:30 Evening Prayer 7:00 Inquirers

13 10 AM Morning Prayer 2:00 PM. Hyde Park Assisted Living Eucharist

14 11 AM Bible Study

3:30 - Reading Adventures

15 FREE PRAYER FRIDAY 7:00 PM Concert!

16 APOLOGY Retreat

17

18 Office Closed

19

7 PM Vestry

20 10 AM Morning Prayer 6:30 PM Outreach Meeting

21 11 AM Bible Study

3:30 - Reading Adventures

22 FREE PRAYER FRIDAY

23

24 Boy Scout Sunday

25 Office Closed

26 6:30 Evening Prayer 7:00 Inquirers

27 10 AM Morning Prayer

28 11 AM Bible Study

3:30 - Reading Adventures

FREE PRAYER FRIDAY

Sundays: Holy Eucharist Rite I is at 8:00 AM

Holy Eucharist Rite II (with music) is at 10:00 AM. Sunday School and nursery are available at 10:00 AM. Between Service Classes on Sundays are from 9:15 to 9:45 in the Wilks Room.

Diocesan Cycle of Prayer:

Please pray for these diocesan ministries this week. If you want to check out the entire year’s calendar for intercession, it’s simple to find - go to https://www.dioceseny.org/administration/for-clergy/liturgical-and-sacramental/diocesan-calendar-of-intercession/

10 Episcopal Relief & Development 11 St. Gregory’s Church, Woodstock 12 St. Paul’s Church, Pleasant Valley 13 Episcopal Delegates to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women 14 The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop, and the Episcopal Church’s House of Bishops 15 Assisting Bishops of the Diocese 16 Diocesan Committee to Elect a Bishop

Please keep the following people in your prayers:

Ashley, Joe Baldwin, John Bohlmann, Helen Braun, Linkin Ewalt, Loretta Falzarano (sister of Donna Beyer), Heather Francese, Kathy Ganim, Karla Givison (Deb Belding's sister), John and Gloria Golden, Robert Guariglia, Dalton K., Edie Kline, Ashley Konyn, Tedi Kramer, Hope Jennings, Rosemary Leuken, Joanne Lynn, Jim Lynn (Carol Bender’s brother - facing surgery)., Doris Mack, Margaret, Andrew Mendelson, Beth and Ginero Milano, Lillian Peralta, Mary Bowers Peters (stroke), Grace Plass, Deborah Porach, John Robinson, Rob Robinson, Jason Rodino (serving in Afghanistan), John Ross, Hank Schroeder, James Sheeky, Naomi Sleight, Carl Smith, Marguerite Spratt, Janice Syedullah, Tracy, Georgia Verven, Candace Vincent, Cassidy Way, Cliff Wells and Shawn Wheeler.

Schedules

A Note about Schedules: The names you see below are those listed on their respective schedules. There are often times when, due to sickness or travel, substitutes are asked to fill in or trade positions. This will probably NOT be reflected in the lists below—so, if there is an inconsistency between what you see here and what you see on Sunday, that is all right.

Birthdays (this past week):

William Rance and Richard Wager

Birthdays (this coming week):

Faith Kinne, Carl Needy, Russell Urban-Mead, Richard Kuralt and Susan Dingee

Acolytes: March 10: Riley Hall and Amelia McNamara

March 17: Bill Fenwick and Jack Canez

Altar Guild: March 10: Team III

March 17: Team III

8 a.m. Readers: March 10: Lucille Ogden and Irene Kipp

March 17: Debbie Belding and Lynn Koch

10 a.m. Readers: March 10: Wilma Tully and Justin Bohlmann

March 17: Jim Oppenheimer-Crawford and Barbara Slegel

Ushers: March 10: Nancy Montero and Anna-Marie Pitcher

March 17: Andy Hall and Tonya Hall

Pledge Clerks: March 10: Doug Belding and Judy Douglass

March 17: Tanya Hall and Anna Marie Pitcher

Parish Cycle of Prayer: March 10: Tom, Maggie and Amelia McNamara

March 17: Gabby Mercado, Isabelle Mercado

Coffee Hour Hosts: March 10: Jodi Triola and Mike Fenwick

March 17: Deirdre Mae Micker, Wendy and Russell Urban-Mead

This Week’s Lectionary

Deuteronomy 26:1-11 Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16 Romans 10:8b-13 Luke 4:1-13

This Week’s Hymns

Processional: 142 - Lord who through these 40 days Sequence: 150 - 40 Days and 40 Nights Offertory: “Let Us Return to the Lord” Communion: 301 - Bread of the World in Mercy Broken Recessional: 143 - The Glory of these 40 Days

Last Week’s Sermon

Sermon Preached on Last Sunday after the Epiphany

“Transfiguration by Example”

Did you know that this same story in the gospel, the Transfiguration, is always read on last Sunday of Epiphany? Regardless which gospel, Matthew, Mark, or like today, Luke, it’s always the Transfiguration. It’s in all of the gospels except John, of course, because John goes his own way in pretty much everything. But if it’s in three, it’s important. So, what makes it so important, and why do we read it on this day without fail?

Well, normally we talk about how this leads into the dark days of Lent and the cruel march toward Jerusalem and the cross. We talk about how Jesus uses the Transfiguration to prepare the disciples, to reveal just who he is so they can trust what he’s about to do even if it seems self-defeating.

It’s often said — I have said — that this glimpse into the divine, the real nature of the Christ, would offer much needed sustenance in the hard days, weeks, months, and years to come.

All this is true.

But I would like to propose another purpose for the Transfiguration.

This new purpose isn’t really new. Rather, it builds on the fact that everything Jesus did, especially alone with his disciples, was a lesson. More than a lesson, it was training. How often did he say he expected them to do the things that he did and greater? Jesus led by example, he modeled the life he called his disciples to, not so that they would marvel at his glory but so they would follow in his footsteps.

This was true from healing the sick to feeding the hungry to bringing people to God to telling mountains to throw themselves into the sea. Jesus always expect his disciples to do as he did.

Could the Transfiguration be another such training moment?

To answer this, we need to be clear what is going on with the Transfiguration. As we already said, it’s not long before they go down to Jerusalem and the passion — the timing is intentional for sure.

But it’s more than just proof of Jesus’ glory and sustenance for the disciples in hard times. The Transfiguration is a sign that Jesus is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets. After all, who’s

with him on the mountain? Moses and Elijah. Moses as the embodiment of the law, and Elijah the quintessential prophet.

Everything that THEY did, Jesus embraces and seeks to live out fully.

The Law tells us that God loves us and calls us to love each other. The Prophets tell us that calling the people back to relationship with God is an essential but never ending task.

So... if we are to follow Jesus in the Transfiguration — in a way, being Transfigured ourselves — we are also to embody the fulfillment of the law and the prophets. That is, we are called to love God and neighbor — AND to call people back when they fall away. To cry out for justice when it is abandoned — just as the prophets did.

It is only in so doing, loving, proclaiming, calling, that people can see God in us.

And make no mistake — that’s what the Transfiguration is all about. The disciples saw God in Jesus, glowing, shining, different. That’s what Jesus asks of us — that people see God through and in us.

Funny thing is, when we embody these things in our own lives, we ARE transfigured. We’re changed. We’re different.

I’ve seen this in parishioners in moments when they perfectly embody God’s love. Yes, there is a glow of sorts, and it is almost tangible. I wish we could record it and show the world.

But we can no more bottle an experience of being like that than the disciples could keep Moses and Elijah a little longer by building them booths. We are transfigured, but then it’s back down to the hard work of picking up our crosses and following.

I know this has been kind of an ethereal, pie-in-the-sky kind of sermon, but you know how to make it more real. As we prepare to enter Lent, imagine yourself on that mountain, imagine yourself shining. Imagine yourself glowing — if only from the sugar of Shrove Tuesday. Imagine yourself surrounded by the bright stars of our faith, of the law of love and the call to return.

Then go out there — you can use Ash Wednesday as a starting point — and love people... If you see someone in need, reach out to them. If you see someone despondent, comfort them. If you see an injustice, speak out.

I just saw a meme this morning that says, “The mark of an effective church is not how many people come but how many people who live differently as a result of having been there.”

When you are transfigured, you live differently. Let people see how you are different — let them see your transfiguration. Amen.

A WORD ABOUT RECORDED SERMONS:

Most weeks, I upload a recorded copy of the sermon onto my Facebook page as well as St. James’ YouTube channel. I have not yet figured out how to upload them to the St. James’ Facebook page but am working on it. You can also listen to sermons by going to YouTube (www.youtube.com) and searching for “St. James Episcopal Church, Hyde Park, NY”. There, you will not only find sermons, but also videos of the Fireside Chats and other videos of interest. You can subscribe to that page, and then when new content is uploaded, you will receive a notification.

SERMON VALUATION FORM

It is not necessary to take notes during the sermon. Rather, you can take some time afterwards to recollect the sermon and its effect on you. Give yourself a few minutes for each of the questions. If you choose to share this with the preacher, it can be a powerful aid to better preaching - but this is not a form to be handed to the preacher and forgotten. It is an aid for you, so you can speak directly with the preacher and answer follow-up questions. 1. WHAT ARE YOU STILL HEARING? That is, without evaluating it, what are the words or phrases from the sermon that are still echoing in your ears? Are there any “ear worms”? 2. WHERE MIGHT THIS BE LEADING? As a listener, where does this sermon lead you? What does it invite you to? What are the next steps in your faith that might arise from this sermon? 3. HOW DOES THIS SERMON “PLAY”? That is, how is it organized or ordered? What steps has the preacher taken you through? What structure did you notice in this sermon? What has it asked you to do? 4. HOW MIGHT THIS SERMON “GROW”? That is, what suggestions would you have to hone the message of this sermon, to make it more engaging, inspiring, logical, fleshed out... No sermon is ever entirely done; its themes will be revisited over time. What would help the next time be more compelling?