The Sunrise ...at Episcopal Church of the Resurrection Starkville, Mississippi March, 2004 Dear Brothers and Sisters, February 20 and 21st your Vestry and many ministry chairs participated in our annual planning retreat. The Vestry decided I would facilitate this year's retreat because we felt last year's consultant did not sufficiently address areas targeted by the Vestry, the Vestry had already identified topics for this retreat, this year's budget did not include the cost of an outside consultant, and I have previously led organization vision retreats. We began our retreat focusing on the mission of the Church."The mission of the Church is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ (BCP pg. 855)." "The Church is the only institution that exists for those who are not its members (William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury)." "The sole purpose of the Church is to reveal Christ to those who are seeking and to making them into little Christs (Anglican theologian C. S. Lewis)." "Making disciples is not a program of the Church, it is the Church (source unknown)." Using a metaphor offered by one of my seminary professors, we discussed the mission of a mountain expedition as reaching the top of the mountain (and to return alive). To accomplish this mission a mountain expedition must establish an adequate base camp to house necessary supplies and offer protection from the elements, first aid, a place to acclimate to the altitude and recover after the strenuous climb. Without an adequate base camp, the mission is sure to end disastrously. Applying this metaphor to parishes, far too many parishes and parishioners think the mission is to build the base camp. Instead of living into its mission, too many focus only on the building and what it takes to keep the current parishioners satisfied. More than anything else, failure to live into its mission has caused the decline of mainline denominations. To successfully live into the mission of the Church, a parish must maintain the proper balance of focus on the mission and preparation and care of its members. To accomplish this balance the following roles of a parish were discussed: Invite the unchurched into the Church and proclaim the Good News to a hurting world. Welcome the stranger with radical hospitality. Include newer members in the mission and expand the role of the laity. Nurture those who are hurting, have special needs, or need support as they carry on the mission of the Church. Transform those who enter the Church into imitators of Christ. Send those transformed into the world to invite the unchurched and to proclaim the Good News. Because we risk alienating newcomers if we fail in welcoming and including and we need to include more of our current membership in the mission, we focused much of our retreat time on improving our welcoming, including, and nurturing. To better assess how we currently perform in these areas, we invited four individuals who recently have begun attending Resurrection and one individual who attended a couple of months and decided to worship elsewhere. They shared with us what they were seeking in a church, why they visited here, what they found, and how they thought they could have been better welcomed and included. In future newsletters, I will outline the actions identified to make Resurrection to be more welcoming, inclusive and nurturing. Another emphasis of the retreat was to expand our leadership base by identifying the major parish activities that occur during the year and designate someone to coordinate these activities. Elsewhere in this newsletter, I have outlined these activities and the coordinators.   Christ's Peace, NEWS & EVENTS March, 2004 Newsletter Oh, Jonah! Sunday evening, March 7, at 6:00 p.m., the First Presbyterian Children's Choir and members of Resurrections Children Choir will present the musical Oh, Jonah! in the Parish Hall. The musical is a great story, has wonderful tunes and is well performed. The program lasts approximately 30 minutes. Please attend this program to support our children, to learn the story of Jonah and to be well entertained. Diocesan Youth and Young Adult Events at Camp Bratton-Green Spring Break Retreat - March 14-18 This retreat will offer participants an experience of Benedictine spirituality, combining work on the camp, music, worship, periods of silence and prayer with games and fun. The theme is Honesty and Music. This event is open to all high school students. New Beginnings #9- March 19-21 This powerful retreat for young people in the 7th to 9th grades focuses on relationships: with friends, parents, siblings, and with God. It is a joyful and fun weekend, building community and allowing these young people to take a new look at their lives and faith. Vocare #32 - March 26-28 Vocare is a weekend retreat for young adults which is led by other young adults and which allows participants to examine God's call to them in vocations, in relationships and in spiritual journey. Vocare is open to all young adults age 19-29. Senior D.O.Y. - April 2-4 / Junior D.O.Y. - May 7-9 D.O.Y. weekends, planned and run by the D.O.Y. Council, combine examination of a spiritual theme with fellowship, music, big games, and a ton of fun. Senior weekends are for grades 9-12; junior weekends for grades 6-8. Adult EYC sponsors are welcome to come with their group. Applications to all of the above events are available through your parish office or on the diocesan website (dioms.org). For more information, please contact the Rev. Canon Chuck Culpepper, 601-948-5954, kculpep@aol.com Peter's Rock Mass Choir concert to benefit Apostles's House on March 6 The Peter's Rock Mass Choir will perform a Benefit Concert for Habitat for Humanity's Apostles' House, Saturday March 6 at 6:00 pm at First United Methodist Church. The offering from this concert will be donated to the Apostles' House project. Come join the fun and fellowship as Starkville churches join together to celebrate the beginning of this exciting project. Construction of the Habitat Apostles' House begins March 8th and will continue through mid-late April. Many area churches are participating and they are being paired so that all get to know new people and make new friendships as they tackle various duties together. All skill levels, including non-construction help (such as making lunches and dinners for workers) are needed. If you have any questions, contact David Foote at 320-4777 or by email at foote@ra.msstate.edu. 2004 - 2005 Events and Coordinators As noted in this newsletter's opening article, a portion of the annual retreat focused on the major events which occur at Resurrection and the need to have someone designated to coordinate these events. Our goal was twofold: not to overwhelm anyone by expecting them to coordinate all parish social events and to have as many parishioners as possible involved in offering these events. Listed below are the events which will be occurring at Resurrection. The names are persons who were at the retreat who agreed to take the leadership for these events. This means either that they will serve as the coordinator for the event or will coordinate the event. It is far too easy to attend these events and never realize the group effort it takes to offer them. For every event Resurrection offers, help is needed in publicizing, setting up, decorating, food preparation, serving, and clean up. Please consider helping with at least one of these events during the year and notify the designated person how you would like to help. Date Event Coordinator/Contact March Bishop's Visit Tom Coleman April Easter Egg Hunt Ginny Powell with Kim Noffsinger June Pentecost Pool Party Linda Cox July Vacation Bible School James McCormick July/August Parish Cookout Kathy Brandon September Parish Opportunities Day Peyton Passons October Stewardship Ingathering & Silent Auction Beth-Bill Batson October St. Frances Blessing of the Animals Bill Livingston & EYC December Lessons and Carols Leanne Fazio January 2005 Annual Parish Meeting Tom Catchart February 2005 Shrove Tuesday Red Beans & Rice Linda Cox If you would like to provide food for the reception for the Bishop's visit on March 14, please contact James McCormick at 324-3863 or email him at kazoo@netdoor.com Come Saturday, April 3, to help make palm crosses for use on Palm Sunday-call the parish office for details. Palmer Home for Children Offers Easter Lilies Palmer Home for Children is offering Easter Lilies to help you celebrate the beauty and joy of the Resurrection. Single stem plants, 18"-20" tall, with three to five blooms, are available for $10 each. They can be delivered to your door free of charge with a minimum order of 5 plants to one location. All proceeds go directly to benefit the children of Palmer Home. Orders are filled on a first come, first served basis. Order forms are available in the Narthex or the parish office, or you may order by phone at 662-328-5704. Orders can be faxed to 662-328-5250. Lenten Activities The Christian calendar offers an annual rhythm based on the life of Jesus which not only focuses on different aspects of Jesus' life and ministry but call us into a rhythm which supports and nurtures us in our Christian journey. For centuries, Christians have been encouraged to use Lent as time for deeper spiritual discipline and reflection. Such intense disciplines may difficult for many of us to follow year round, but during the "40 days" of Lent, we can be more focused with such disciplines. Through such disciplines we seek to hear the ways God calls us to transformation and we gain more awareness of what we are offered through the crucifixion and resurrection. Please consider some of the activities Resurrection offers to you as means for Lenten disciplines. In this newsletter, you will find the monthly calendar and list of activities during Lent. Described below is the focus of some of these events. Home Communions The Church began not in cathedrals or church buildings, but gathering in the homes of the faithful. These home communions offer opportunities to celebrate the Eucharist in less formal, more intimate settings. Please make a point to attend a home communion that is close to you. Invite friends and neighbors as this offers non-Episcopalians an opportunity to experience the beauty of our liturgy on a weekday and gathered with those they know. We begin at 7:00 p.m., with a 20 minute Eucharist and end with light refreshments. Lenten Study Experience Scripture as prayer and meditation, not as study. Fr. Bill will lead a meditation using one of the readings for the upcoming Sunday. The meditations will include various forms of praying and meditating on Scripture. Doing so opens up the texts in ways we have not experienced them before. For those who would like to learn more about this form of prayer, Martin Smith's The Word Is Very Near You is an excellent resource but reading the book is not a requirement for participation. Each meditation will be independent, so if you are not able to attend all Wednesdays, you can still participate. Stations of the Cross The devotion known as the Way (or Stations) of the Cross is an adaptation of a custom observed by pilgrims to Jerusalem: the offering of prayer at a series of places in that city traditionally associated with our Lord's passion and death. This is an excellent form of Lenten discipline to prepare us as the Passion of Jesus approaches and provides a deeper understanding and appreciation of the crucifixion and what we gain through the resurrection. This meditation is observed by processing as a group from one "station" to the next in the Nave and lasts about 20 - 30 minutes. March Birthdays Jan Rhodes 3 Gracie Cox 4 James (Slick) Ables 5 Steve Wilkerson 5 Douglas Crawford 6 Keith Baca 12 Tracy Stebbins 13 Young Kerby 15 C. VanLandingham 16 Reed Green 22 Caroline Brandon 24 Marsha Williams 26 Honey Johnston 27 Gretchen Simmons 28 Susie Owings 29 Mary Switzer 30 Claire Potts 30