- Parishioners met for discussion with Don Samuels after the service last Sunday.               
Project Home Report
By Elaine Tarone, Aug. 8, 2016

In his sermon last Sunday, Don Samuels spoke to us about the importance of caring enough to simply be, walk alongside, and listen to, our neighbors who live in poverty. In a discussion after that sermon, some of us talked about how overwhelming and painful it is to open ourselves up in that way ... to go out of our normal lives to experience the pain and chaos and tension in which our neighbors in poverty too often live. But it is in 'being with' our neighbors in that way, Samuels said, that we become ready for God to act in our midst in ways we can't even imagine.

I am thinking of those words today as I write the second report for Tidings on this August's Project Home; this Interfaith Action program houses homeless children and their caregivers in St. Matthew's where they sleep overnight and interact in the evening with volunteers from our congregation and others in the community. I thought I'd write in this report about one slice of Project Home life - what happened this morning.

This morning, Pastor Dan Anderson and his wife Lisa, who had volunteered to stay overnight at St. Matthew's, and I had a chance to get to know some of those Project Home guests a little better. Last night was average - chaotic and stressful, as the families were set up to sleep with their kids in close quarters in the social hall, with family units separated only by cardboard dividers and with children who ebbed and flowed in and out of those spaces as they played; there was tension, competition for goods, children and a 3-month old baby occasionally crying or yelling, exhausted parents trying to keep order, and occasional short periods of calm. After "lights out" at 9, it took some teens two hours of talking to finally go to sleep. 

The next morning, as usual, was calm. But the bus that normally picks up the families at 6:15am did not arrive until 7:45 - an hour and a half late - a catastrophe for the working parents who had to explain later why they were late to work. But Dan, Lisa and I had a chance to listen and get to know some of the parents and children while the community was quiet - still waking up. Between 7 and 7:45, a group of children played a (surprisingly!) cooperative and happy game of hopscotch our volunteers had created on the sidewalk, while we listened to some waiting parents talk about their lives. A major theme was how difficult it was for middle class people to understand lives lived in poverty in their own city.
  •  A mom talked about the day her husband got their girl to school late and the school reported the parents, who then had to go to court to talk to a judge. The husband, who had had a difficult childhood in foster homes, went to court angry and confrontational so the mom had been terrified the judge would take their daughter away from them. I reflected that nothing like this ever happened to me when my kids were late to school.
  •  A mom talked about being lectured about responsible parenting of her asthmatic daughter by a health care worker who clearly had no idea what it might be like to raise an asthmatic child in a homeless shelter. "They don't understand what our lives are like; they should walk in our shoes sometime," one said. I said, "There's a book by Mark Twain called the Prince and the Pauper, about how a prince and a poor boy switched places to find out what each other's lives were like." The mom replied, "I always did like Mark Twain."
  •  Finally, one of the moms talked about a friend of hers who was on a Dale Street overpass earlier this week with other passers-by when a young woman climbed the chain link fence and got ready to jump into the freeway, because "My mama don't love me." The friend and many other people from different races and walks of life reached through the chain link and held onto the would-be jumper's clothes, arms and legs. When she let go of the fence, they held her tight until the police arrived to cut through the chain links and pull her to safety. The mom said her friend reported that being caught up in this event had changed the whole way she looked at life. I thought of Don Samuels' words: we need to become ready for God to act in our midst in ways we can't even imagine.
Thank you to all the volunteers from St. Matthew's who have spent time, sometimes overwhelming and stressful time, to be with, respect, and support these homeless families from our community. You are making a difference, often without seeing it. Thank you.

The Mechanics of Giving
By Dan White 

After we make the decision to give, to be generous and to grow in our relationship with God, the minor matter of how exactly to share our time, treasure or talents presents itself.  Of course the pledge is the way we communicate our intention to give during the year.  It is often the most visible reminder to us of our commitment to St. Matthew's.  It permits the church to plan and budget. A strong majority of St. Matthew's members pledge. The pledge can be fulfilled a number of ways, most of them are outlined below.  We will examine the mechanics of giving our treasure here. 

Cash in the offering on Sunday - a classic form of giving, is always in good taste.  In fact we have budgeted $12,000 in Open Plate offerings for the Sunday morning service and $3,000 for the Sunday evening service in our 2016 budget.  All gifts from non-pledgers that are not designated are counted as Open Plate.  If you wish to put your name on a slip of paper and enclose it with the cash in an envelope we will record the offering as part of your pledge, rather than as Open Plate offering.  No gift from a pledger would be counted as Open Plate as long as it is identified by the name of the giver. 

Checks - also great in the offering or can be mailed to the parish office.  Since a check always has your name on it we will also record it as part of your pledge if you have pledged.  Here's a thought - sometimes, depending on your checking account, it is cheaper for the bank to arrange direct drafts from your account than it is for you to write a check.  You may wish to do some comparison shopping.

The City - has several methods of receiving our pledges and gifts.  You can set up your annual pledge or make special offerings on The City.  Go to the tab marked "Giving" and you will see you can set up pledge payments using either debit or credit cards.  All credit and debit cards take a percentage of your gift, so you may wish to investigate how much if you are using this type of payment (3-5%).  The fees differ by type of card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express etc.)  If you set up automated clearing house (ACH) transfer through your bank the fees are much, much less. The City is a great place to make special gifts since a special offering designation may already exist on the web page. 

Direct transfer from banks accounts - we have a number of parishioners who have a designated dollar amount transferred to St. Matthew's from their bank accounts each month.

Stock transfers - Stock can be moved directly from your brokerage account to St. Matthew's brokerage account with no fuss or muss.  Please email or call the parish office for particulars.

Company match - we have some parishioners who are able to take advantage or employer match for charitable contributions.  If you think your employer might have such a program, check it out!

At St. Matthew's, we are all about finding new ways to give. If we have not mentioned a way that you would like to give then let's talk!
Dan White
 (952) 457-8660 and danielawhite1124@gmail.com  
Gun Violence: A Way Forward 
By Vicki McKenna

My 13 year-old granddaughter knew one of the children killed at Sandy Hook.  She considers gun violence prevention to be the top social issue in our country.  I agree.

Two weeks ago, many St. Matthew's parishioners and I attended a moving multi-faith service at Lutheran Church of the Redeemer.  Don Samuels gave a powerful and motivating sermon with an important call to action.  This is the time.

Sunday evening, Bob Hardman and I participated in an important meeting of Protect Minnesota - the only independent state-based organization devoted to gun violence prevention in Minnesota.  We learned about the history of the organization and ways in which we can act to bring change.  One key point is that we are focused on gun violence prevention - not gun control.  Here are some specific actions that we at St. Matthew's can take, either as a parish or as individuals.
  • Sign a petition asking state legislators to support one of two bills to require universal background checks.  The petitions will be available at coffee hour no later than the end of August.
  • Participate in "door hanging" in districts where the member of Congress has not supported legislation supporting gun violence prevention.  
    Thursday, August 11, 4 - 6 pm
    Sunday, August 14, 10 am - 6 pm
    Thursday, August 18, 4 - 6 pm
    Sunday, August 21, 10 am - 6 pm
  • Attend one of two interfaith services to end gun violence
    Sunday, August 14, 6:30, St. Mark's Episcopal Church
    Sunday, August 28, 6:30, St. David's Episcopal Church
  • Attend and promote "The Concert Across America to End Gun Violence" on Sunday, September 25, 3 pm - 7 pm, International Market Square
The statistics regarding gun violence are staggering.  One that we should all be aware of is that 82% of all gun deaths in Minnesota are suicides, which occur disproportionately in suburban and rural counties and are overwhelmingly white. 
 
If you are interested in learning more about how you can participate in these activities, please contact me, Vicki McKenna. To learn more about Protect Minnesota and the ways you can participate, go to the website, www.protectmn.org.
- Aria Christenson at the Catedral de Leon, Nicaragua                             

Where in the world are you? 
 
-Bob & Mary Ann Evander in Salzburg, Austria
- Blair Pogue and her Dad, Bill in Durango, CO
- The Nerland family at the cabin in Mercer, WI
- Jim & Vickie Woodcock viewed the Falkirk Wheel in central Scotland.
- Sam & Laurie Beyer-Kropuenske in Lake Vermillion, MN
- Claire & Sam Beyer-Kropuenske - Long Island, New York.


St. Matthew's parishioners are moving about this summer, traveling near and wide.    Send us the details at Tidings -- pictures from ALL ages are welcome.... we will publish another batch on September 4 if we receive enough submissions!
Calendar Highlights 
 
August 21: Compline + Conversation at the Monkmeyer/Quednau home, 6:30pm
August 28: Loaves and Fishes at the Dorothy Day Center, St. Paul
August 30: Bethel Church Connection Fair 
September 11: Return to Sunday worship at 10:30am and 5:30pm AND All Ages Celebratory Gathering at 9:00am.
 
Please share your news and photos with us: tidings@stmatthewsmn.org 

Visit our website for the prayer list, calendar and sermons