St. Thomas the Apostle eNewsletter

eNews

20 May 2011

Greetings!

St. Thomas the Apostle is an Episcopal Parish in the Anglo-Catholic tradition. We are called by God to be a holy place where love is found, where all are named and where hearts are freed to change the world.

St. Thomas has a great respect for both the rich liturgical heritage of the church and for living the message of social justice proclaimed by Jesus Christ. Whether you are young or old, gay or straight, single, married or in a relationship, female or male, poor or wealthy, you are welcome at St. Thomas just as you are...a child of God and an inheritor of God's grace.

Videos available

The most recent video is available at the Parish You Tube Channel:

110515 Easter IV Sermon.mov

St. Bede - May 25

Bede, also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede, was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth. Bede's monastery had access to a superb library which included works by Eusebius and Orosius among many others.

He is well known as an author and scholar, and his most famous work, Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (The Ecclesiastical History of the English People) gained him the title "The Father of English History". In 1899, Bede was made a Doctor of the Church by Leo XIII, a position of theological significance; he is the only native of Great Britain to achieve this designation (Anselm of Canterbury, also a Doctor of the Church, was originally from Italy). Bede was moreover a skilled linguist and translator, and his work with the Latin and Greek writings of the early Church Fathers contributed significantly to English Christianity, making the writings much more accessible to his fellow Anglo-Saxons.

His scholarship and importance to Catholicism were recognised in 1899 when he was declared a Doctor of the Church, and was declared a sanctus in 1935. He is the only Englishman named a Doctor of the Church. He is also the only Englishman in Dante's Paradise (Paradiso X.130), mentioned among theologians and doctors of the church in the same canto as Isidore of Seville and the Scot Richard of St. Victor.

He is venerated in both the Anglican and Roman Catholic Church, with a feast day of 25 May.

Adapted from www.wikipedia.org

Seminary: Year 1 by Steve Demuth

Steve DeMuth Well, the academic year is fast coming to a close and I'm feeling mixed emotions. From the very start of seminary, there were feelings of elation for new beginnings; there were feelings of loss for leaving behind my partner and the loving and nurturing community that is St. Thomas the Apostle. I was bequeathed a particularly high Christology and sense of Christ as hospitable Lord and intimate friend. Anglo-Catholicism taught me to love the daily ebb and flow of regular prayer and intentional liturgy. Gathering each day for Morning and Evening Prayer and Eucharist, this new family, the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, faculty, students and their families, and those of the Graduate Theological Union, began to work their way into my heart.

This work was somewhat uncomfortable. More than once I've held a belief, or better yet, a judgment, that has since been shattered. When I got to know the community, live with them, pray, eat, and worship with them, previous assumptions fell apart. It is hard for me to dismiss someone's thinking and piety, however different it may be, when I have shared the same bread and cup. We have come together for celebration, prayed together through anxiety and pain (including mid-terms), and have wrestled with dogma and doctrine. We have looked and found the face of Christ in one another.

One of the important lessons I have learned is the value of being wrong. I enjoy being right. When I am wrong I feel awkward and embarrassed. I had assumed that being wrong meant that there was something wrong with me. There is, on the contrary, something good about being wrong. Journalist and author, Kathryn Schulz, reminds us that twelve hundred years before Descartes said his famous line, "I think, therefore I am", St. Augustine wrote, "Fallor ergo sum," which translated means, "I err, therefore I am." Being wrong helps me to grow in empathy, optimism and courage, and to see where change is needed. It is this capacity to learn when something does not go as I planned that helps me to grow. This makes room for metanoia, the changing of one's mind, in that I'm able to embrace thoughts beyond my present limitations and thought patterns. That, for me, is what seminary education is all about.

I'm looking forward to coming back to Los Angeles at the end of the week. Your support and prayers have made a difference in my life and I'm grateful to each and everyone of you. There is nothing like home and being in the midst of the parish and people I love.

Steve DeMuth

EDITORS NOTE: Next week Steve DeMuth writes about his experience. Both Shireen and Steve are Seminarians under the auspices of St. Thomas the Apostle. We regularly ask them to keep the Parish up-to-date on their experiences and are most grateful that they have done so!

The cost of seminary and the cost of books is funded in large part by the Seminarians themselves. Please consider donating to the St. Thomas Seminarian Scholarship fund which is split equally between active Seminarians. Contributions can be made by check or via PayPal at the St. Thomas website.

Diocesean Sunday May 22

Sunday, May 22 is Diocesan Sunday -- Join the celebration and help build community in three easy steps: (1.) Are you on Facebook? If so, please search and "like" the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles; (2.) Please watch for more information about the "Digital Diocese" communication initiative; flyers will be available in next week in all congregations; (3.) Please save the date of Sept. 10, 2011, for the "OneLight" evening interfaith vigil at L.A. City Hall marking the 10th anniversary of 9/11. More is online at www.ladiocese.org. Thank you.

Pentecost theme for Pride

All are welcome Sunday, June 12, the Feast of Pentecost, when the diocesan Program Group on LGBT Ministries gathers for its annual street Eucharist before marching in the Christopher Street West Parade in West Hollywood. A Pentecost theme is planned for the 9 a.m. liturgy, marching unit, and t-shirts, which may be purchased in advance. To find the gathering place on the parade route, visit the information booths on Santa Monica Boulevard at Crescent Heights Boulevard on June 12. For t-shirt sales or more information, contact Canon Randy Kimmler, rkimmler@ladiocese.org, 213.482.2040, ext. 223.

Guibord Center Programs

101 Series
Sunday June 5th, 2011 2:15 PM to 4:15 PM
Sunday June 19th, 2011 2:15 PM to 4:15 PM
Sunday July 10th, 2011 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Sunday July 24th, 2011 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM

Please Join the Guibord Center as we learn of the following traditions from the inside out - from the heart: Sikhism, Buddhism, Indigenous Spirituality, and Hinduism.

Our presenters for this series are members of the Advisory Council to The Guibord Center. Each name links to their photo and biography for additional information.

Sikhism 101
Sunday June 5th: Led by Ravinder Singh Khalsa, Khalsa Peace Corps and Narinjan Singh Khalsa, Executive Director, California Sikh Council

Buddhism 101
Sunday, June 19th: Led by Venerable Miao Hsi, Fo Guang Shan Hsi Lai Temple

Indigenous Spirituality 101
Sunday, July 10th: Led by Cindi Moar Alvitre, Tongva Community Leader

Hinduism 101
Sunday, July 24th: Led by Swami Saradevananda, Vedanta Society of Southern California

All classes are open to everyone and free of charge. They will be held at St. John's Episcopal Cathedral, 514 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles, 90007

Treasurer's Report

Gifts received as of April 30, 2011

$116,363.83

Ministries funded as of April 30, 2011

$128,051.72

Balance as of April 30, 2011:

($9,687.89)

Minutes from the March meeting available

Note from the Treasurer:

Many thanks to so many Parishioners who have been able to bring their pledges current. At the end of March, 2011 the annual shortfall was projected at $40,000 - at the end of April the shortfall projection for the remainder or 2011 is $30,0000. While still large, this is a move in the right direction!

Your Vestry began discussions at its May meeting about possible ways to bridge the shortfall. Many ideas are being considered to raise additional revenue and to fulfill existing pledge commitments. The Vestry also discussed a number of potential changes to the 2011 budget that the Parish approved to determine how we fund our ministries with fewer dollars. Any reduction of a budget item is being carefully considered for its impact on all areas of Parish life.

Difficult and painful choices must be made for the Vestry to fulfill its fiduciary responsibility in the event that the shortfall projection remains significant.

The Vestry will revisit the choices at its June 15 meeting. Our prayer and hope is that the gifts and generosity that were the basis of the approved budget will be brought current and no cuts will be needed.

Thank you for your support. Please feel free to contact me directly should you have any questions.

Craig Coogan

In This Issue

Video Sermon available

St. Bede

Seminary: Year 1 by Steve Demuth

Diocesean Sunday

Pentecost theme for Pride

Ministry Fair

OLW meets

Movie Night

Mother Knows Best

ePrayer

Quick Links

Easter V

Celebrant (8am & 10:30am)

The Rev. Ian Elliott Davies

Sermon

The Rev. Ian Elliott Davies

Deacon

The Rev. Walter S. Johnson

Organist-in-Residence

John West

Prelude
Suite For a Musical Clock
George Frederich Handel

1. Prelude
2. Air
3. A Voluntary on a Flight of Angels
4. Sonata for bells
5. Minuet
6. Gigue

The Musical Clock was built by Charles Clay in the early reign of George I of England and became the sensation of London. Its musical sound was created by bells and a miniature automatic pipe organ. Handel wrote at least 2 sets of these Suites for the instrument

Postlude
Carillon Sortie
Henri Mulet