June Learning Opportunity: Christian Reconciliation
By Blair Pogue

 

Reconciliation is a critical Christian spiritual practice, and part of St. Matthew's Way of Jesus. This Lent we have spoken a lot about race and the need for racial reconciliation, but what does Christian reconciliation worthy of the name look like, and what does it ask of us?

 

In their book, Reconciling All Things: A Christian Vision for Justice, Peace, and Healing, Emmanuel Katongole, a Catholic priest from Uganda, and Chris Rice, an American Protestant who grew up in South Korea and inner city Jackson, Mississippi, encourage and challenge us to go deeper in our understanding and practice of Christian reconciliation. Katangole and Rice are the founding co-directors of the Center for Reconciliation at Duke Divinity School.

 

On four consecutive Sundays in June (7, 14, 21, and 28) everyone interested is invited to join me in the church Library from 11 am - noon for a discussion of Reconciling All Things. On June 7 we will discuss the introduction, and chapters 1 & 2. You can either purchase a book from me during coffee hour ($12 each), or you can order one directly from Amazon. Please let me know if you plan to attend at rector@stmatthewsmn.org.

2 Baptisms this Sunday!

  

Elizabeth Dekovich


This Sunday, May 17th at the 10:30am service,  we will baptize Elizabeth Dekovich, daughter of St. Matthew's parishioners Steve and Diana. 

 

Steve Dekovich writes - "We live in the South Lake Como neighborhood of St. Paul with our two daughters, Elizabeth and Sydney, as well as two dogs and a cat.  Diana is a veterinarian who works at an animal hospital in Bloomington, and I am a lawyer who works for a judge in the federal court in Minneapolis.  We have been attending St. Matthew's since the fall of 2013, which is when we moved to Minnesota from Washington, D.C."     

 

Diana writes - "Elizabeth's nickname is ZaZa.  She seems to be a mostly calm and quietly observant baby, though our impression of her is colored by our experience with our older daughter, Sydney, who has been rather dramatic from the get go.  That's not to say she is passive - she finds her fair share of trouble.  Within a day of learning to crawl, she was trying to climb stairs, and anytime we forget the baby gate and turn away, we'll find her attempting to summit the staircase.  She's also fascinated with the dog's water bowl, fond of chewing on stuff (wood in particular) and laughing at her big sister's antics."

 

Zechariah Lee

  

Also this Sunday, we will baptize Zechariah Lee, son of Bernon and Connie Lee and brother of Mattya. The Lee family lives in Falcon Heights and Zechariah is part of the J2A youth group (Journey to Adulthood) at St. Matthew's. He attends Irondale High School in New Brighton and his academic interests are in math, science and economics. 
 
Bernon Lee writes - "Zechariah has a a passion for social justice and a compassion for the underdog/victimized in society (he found the slaying of Egypt's firstborn in the Exodus narrative deeply disturbing!!). Of late, he's been expressing a desire to understand the 'privileges' that accrue to certain groups in society and their impact in public policy and law enforcement: culled from a combination of conversations overheard and of material covered in social studies, I suspect. Beyond this, he enjoys perusing magazines that survey the quality of products, especially cars, and listening to Jazz and Blues. He's also very adept at putting things together. He's taken over assembling furniture and electronic components in our household.  Zechariah plays the piano and the violin. Lately, he's joined a friend in his side-business of lawnmower service and repair.  In Sunday School, he appreciates greatly the work of his teachers, especially in their treatment of historical issues pertaining to Christianity and the church."



All Parish Celebration and Potluck
By Terese Lewis

This Sunday, May 17, we'll celebrate another year of learning together with a parish potluck and thank our Sunday school teachers for sharing their time and friendship with our children and youth.   The potluck will take place following the 10:30am service. Please bring a main dish or a side dish to share; hot dogs and dessert will be provided.  

 

I've seen the movement of God's Holy Spirit in a number of ways this year as we have learned together. There has been great energy in the Way of Jesus Workshops for students in Grade 1 through 5, where students have learned 24 key Bible stories exploring eight Christian practices we've identified at St. Matthew's as ways to follow Jesus together (story, prayer, simplicity, discernment, reconciliation, hospitality, generosity, and gratitude). Students have responded through art, drama, and LEGO modeling. We've found that allowing children to choose which workshop they'd most like to learn in has opened up participation and unleashed much creativity! As the year has gone on, it has been great to see kids choose to check out other workshops and stretch themselves - our introverted artists took a risk in the drama room and even some of our diehard LEGO fanatics checked out the art workshop for a change! I appreciate the flexibility of teachers who have been happy to see new faces in their classrooms and roll with whatever each morning brings.  

 

Our youth groups have ventured into some new territory this year as well. Our 6th & 7th-grade students found courage in numbers and attended two weekend retreats aimed at deepening relationships and preparing them for Teens Encounter Christ (TEC) retreats in high school.   Our new Journey to Adulthood (J2A) pilgrims in 8th & 9th grade have committed to one another and have begun exploring ideas for their pilgrimage that are rooted in their passion for social justice. And our 10th-12th graders, the DragonSporks, have proven that there is life after J2A, connecting regularly on Sunday mornings over board games and Nutella. They'll use their pie sale proceeds to go on a final retreat together this summer.   

 

Many thanks to Charlotte Miller for assisting this year, and to all of our classroom teachers:

Godly Play (PreK-K): Joan Abbas, Laurie Beyer-Kropuenske, Lis Christenson, Joan Hershbell

Way of Jesus Workshops (Grades 1-5): Kim Glienke, Jennifer Landers, Ann Nerland, Katie Lowry, Sarah Larsen, Paul Kiehne

Re:form (Grades 6 & 7): Bernon Lee & Dwight Zscheile

Journey to Adulthood (Grades 8 & 9): Maclore Christensen & Erik Johnson

DragonSporks (Grades 10 - 12): Benjamin Johnson

Assisting & Substitute Teachers: Charlotte Miller, Cara Bailey, Martha Hotchkiss, Marcia Roepke

 

Thank you to all the adults who have helped with the Christian formation of our children and youth this year. So many have helped behind the scenes -- bringing craft supplies, washing dishes, driving carpools for retreats, wrangling angels and critters for the Living Creche, trying out new things during Living Faith, encouraging parents and teachers, and taking time to connect with kids and helping them feel welcome and valued at St. Matthew's.  

Faith Forum this Sunday with Katrina Vandenberg

This Sunday at 9:15am, Katrina Vandenberg will be guiding an informal conversation about her most recent book of poems, The Alphabet Not Unlike the World, and the role that art plays in helping us access the sacred in our lives; she'll also lead a no-pressure writing exercise for anyone who wishes to try it. 

 

The conversation has its roots in a keynote talk she recently gave for "Illumination: the 2015 Sacred Arts Festival at the University of St. Thomas." The poems in Alphabet were inspired, in part, by the St. John's Bible - the first Bible to be done entirely by hand since Gutenberg - and pages of the St. John's Bible, along with those of other illuminated manuscripts, were part of the visual art show that accompanied her reading and talk.

 

She writes: "As a young person, I came to writing most of all as a form of escapism. I have continued to write as an adult for the opposite reason: writing helps me part through the noise and chaos of my daily life in order to access something that is more real. I'm interested in the ways that writing doesn't just help us remember our lives, or share memories. Writing mindfully can actually help us change the ways we see the past, and help us to better understand and forgive others, and ourselves."

Pentecost  

Pentecost Readers Needed Sunday, May 24

We have a special Pentecost tradition at St. Matthew's.  We try to create the sound, confusion and amazement that people might have experienced on the first Pentecost by listening to members of our congregation speaking simultaneously in multiple languages during the first reading.  While the designated reader speaks in English, members read the text (Acts 2:2-21) in other languages.

Do you speak a second language? We would love to have as many parishioners take part in this tradition as possible. We can direct you to a website where you can download the reading in your preferred language.  Please become a part of this tradition by contacting Linda Lopez.
Looking Ahead: Calendar Highlights
  • May 17: Faith Forum at 9:15am with Katrina Vandenberg
  • May 17: Last Day of Sunday School, All Parish Celebration & Potluck, 11:45am in the parish hall - please bring a dish to share
  • May 20: Cook's Night Out, 6:00pm at Surly Brewing Co.
  • May 24: Loaves and Fishes at the Dorothy Day Center in St. Paul, 2:00pm
  • May 24: Move to Summer Schedule: One Service on Sunday at 9:30am Pentecost Sunday - Wear Red! The Rev. Toua Vang will celebrate.
  • June 4: "Reconciling All Things"  11:00am in the library
  • June 13: Novel Faith, Yann Martel's Life of Pi, 6:30pm in the library

Remember: We Move to One Service at 9:30am May 24


Calling All Graduates: Do you have a graduate in the family this Spring? We would love to include a celebratory listing of all graduates from high school, college and graduate school. Send us the details! 

Please share your news and photos with us: tidings@stmatthewsmn.org 

Visit our website for the prayer list, calendar and sermons