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A creative and helpful time ... [From Bishop Paul] My thanks go to all who prepared, presented, and attended the Diocesan Training Day. It was a creative and helpful time. Canon Kitch asked us to value our gifts, the things that make our hearts sing, and there were many such moments. Thanks also go to St. Stephen's for hosting us and to Canon Laubach, whose rendition of the Sinfonia from Cantata 29 in that room and on that instrument was unforgettable. I hope your lives and ministries were enriched! Blessings, +Paul

What makes your heart sing? ... Canon Anne Kitch's sermon for Diocesan Training Day. Read it here. 

Join an Episcopal Church online Bible study ... The Episcopal Church invites online visitors into a Bible study by posting comments and thoughts on each week’s Sunday readings from the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL). The complete weekly readings are posted along with study questions and reader comments here. ENS Weekly bulletin inserts for May 9 outline this service and invite all church members and others to join in the online discussion. Inserts available in English and Spanish here.

Dorothy Height, a leader of the African-American and women’s rights movements who was considered both the grande dame of the civil rights era and its unsung heroine, died a week ago Tuesday in Washington. She was 98. Her funeral takes place today, Thursday April 29, at the National Cathedral, 10:00 a.m. President Obama will give the eulogy. The service will be streamed online from the Cathedral homepage. More here.

Eleanor Magnuson, widow of The Rev. Fred Magnuson, has died. Her funeral will take place at St. Alban's, Sinking Spring, on Monday, May 3, at 11 a.m. Please keep Eleanor and her family in your prayers. May her soul rest in peace and may light perpetual shine upon her.

Oscar Rankin, father of Canon Elizabeth Geitz, died during the morning of April 28. May he rest in peace and may light perpetual shine upon him. Find the obituary here. Author of Fireweed Evangelism, Canon Geitz is licensed to officiate in our diocese and has a home in Shohola.

The Grace Montessori School annual scholarship auction benefit will take place this evening [Thursday, April 29], at the Allentown Brew Works, 812 W. Hamilton Street, Allenown (Hamilton Room). Great hors d’oeuvres (enough for a meal), complimentary glass of wine or beer, cash bar, jazz music, pick-a-prize auction, live auction, and 50/50 raffle winner drawing! The best place to park is the lot behind the school, across the street from the Brew Works. Enter on 8th Street. Free after 6 p.m. GMS was founded in 1992 for children of Grace Church's food bank clients. The mission to provide excellent education for economically disadvantaged kids remains at the heart of the GMS program which has grown from serving 7 children to 120 students this year. All proceeds from this major fundraiser go to the scholarship fund that allows about 40 children to attend GMS with financial assistance. Contact the school office at 610-435-4060 for raffle tickets ($5 each/ 4 for $20) and event tickets ($20 per person). Walk-ins welcome. An outreach of Grace Episcopal Church, Grace Montessori School is a not-for-profit, urban school and childcare center, licensed by the Department of Public Welfare and registered as a private, non-public school with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Sermon for Diocesan Training Day by Canon Anne Kitch

What makes your heart sing?
by Canon Anne E. Kitch
St. Stephen’s Pro-Cathedral, Wilkes-Barre, PA
April 24, 2010
I Peter 4:7-11
Matthew 16:24-27

What makes your heart sing?

I have a friend whose gift is hospitality. She and her husband happen to run a retreat center, and you would expect such a place to be hospitable. But what Wendy and Jon offer is something more than welcome and comfort. It is grace and respite for travelers and strangers, imbued with a vision of what a redeemed world might look like. Theirs is a hospitality grounded in a holy desire for God’s justice, unrelenting in it’s endeavor to continually grow and deepen, and embodying a love of God’s creation and the people who inhabit it. This makes what they offer extraordinary.

I am convinced that Wendy’s gift for hospitality is part of her spiritual formation. But the fact that she wields it so exquisitely is a matter of honed skills, learned leadership, and hard work. She navigates all the intricacies of providing for her guests with a sense of humor, a deep love for God, and the seeming effortlessness that comes from being extremely well prepared. No guest ever knows the behind-the-scenes work that goes into every detail. This is her gift. And because she employs her gift gracefully, she deeply embodies the love of Christ and that spreads to others just as abundantly as her hospitality. Like a good steward of the manifold grace of God, she serves others with the gift she has received.

This is the ministry to which we are each called. Not to run a retreat center, or offer exquisite hospitality, or work behind the scenes. But to recognize and use our gifts with love, and in doing so, to glorify Christ. This is the exhortation found in the First Letter of Peter, “Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.”

So, who are the ministers of the church? This is not a trick question. The answer is right in front of you…and to your right and to your left and behind you. You will also find the answer on page 855 in the Book of Common Prayer. Our catechism tells us the ministers of the Church are lay persons, bishops, priests, and deacons. And what is the ministry of the laity? That too is readily accessible, not just because you can look it up in the BCP, but also because it is evident here today. First and foremost, the ministry of lay persons (and bishops, and priests, and deacons) is to represent Christ and his Church. After this, each order has some distinct work. Lay persons are to 1) bear witness to Christ wherever they may be, 2) according to the gifts given them carry on Christ’s work of reconciliation in the world, and 3) to take their place in the life, worship and governance of the Church.

According to the gifts given you. This phrase tells us at least three things: we each have been given gifts, we do not all posses the same gifts, our gifts are meant for Christ’s work of reconciliation. How do you know what your gifts are? Well, what makes your heart sing? Debra Farrington, Episcopal author, once taught me that one way to recognize your gifts is to distinguish them from skills. A skill is something we learn to do well. We may receive satisfaction from using that skill, but it doesn’t necessarily make our day. But a gift is given. When we employ our gifts they energize us and bring us joy. So what are your gifts? Well…what makes your heart sing, and brings you joy in the doing and energy in the making? Teaching? Parenting? Exercising administrative oversight? Budgeting resources? Creating? Healing?

I believe using the gifts God has given us to serve others is the goal of lifelong Christian formation. You may have come here today to be informed. I hope that has happened and continues to happen this afternoon. But you are also being formed in your faith life today. The people you encounter, the worship we share, the gifts offered and received can effect changes in you that deepen your connection to God.

“Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.” We base our life in Christ on the assumption that God has showered grace upon grace upon us. With this grace, we are to serve one another. Not out of a sense of burden, not out of an attitude of limited resources, but with our gifts. The Christian response to service is not one of burden, but one of joy. Having freely received the grace of God, our response is to sing with our hearts, use our gifts, become our best.

We can easily be led astray into seeing the cross of Christ as a burden to be endured. But it is not that. It is the way of life—joyful life, gifted life. This is perhaps what lifelong Christian formation is: to replace in our understanding the burden of the cross with the grace of the cross. Use your gifts, lift up your hearts to God, and let them sing!

perhaps you came here today to be informed

            and that may happen

                        especially if you approach what is offered with an open mind

            what you may not realize is that you are also being formed

                        especially if you open your soul

that is not to say you are each here like a lump of clay waiting for some epert ot make you tinot something

you get to do the making

we are neither blank slates waiting to be written on

            nor empty vessels waiting to be filled

                        we never were

from the moment we were born

            we were complete

                        completely human

                                    fully created in God’s image

the moment we were reborn by water and the spirit in baptism

            we were complete

                        completely Christisn

                                    and gifted

Festive Evensong at Mediator Allentown, May 2

On May 2, the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Mediator’s Choir will sing a Festival Choral Evensong at 4:00 p.m. The service music, Preces and Responses, is by the English composer, John  Barnard, born in 1948,  and the canticles, Magnificat and Nunc dimittis are sung to settings by Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924). The opening Introit was composed by the American composer, David Gerig who was born in 1948 in Wooster, Ohio and now teaches at the University of New Mexico.
 
The Anthem at the Offertory, a long time favorite of the Choir, is Edgar Bainton’s setting of the text from the book of Revelation, “And I saw a new heaven”. The Revelation passage is included in the Epistle Lesson for the day. Bainton was born in London in 1880, the son of a Congregational minister. He won an open scholarship to the Royal College of Music to study theory with Walford Davies and in 1899 he received a scholarship to study composition with Stanford. He wrote extensively in all areas of musical performance including three symphonies and other orchestral music, chamber music and a great deal of choral and vocal music both sacred and secular. “And I saw a new heaven” is his most well known sacred choral composition. In 1933 he emigrated to Australia where he taught at the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music where he founded an opera company and also founded the New South Wales Symphony later to become the Sydney Symphony. He died on December 8, 1956 at Point Piper, New South Wales.
 
2010 is the 100th anniversary of the birth of the noted American composer, Samuel Barber. He was born March 9, 1910 in West Chester, Pennsylvania and died on January 23, 1981. He is best known to the general public by his orchestral piece, Adagio for Strings, composed in 1935 and premiered in 1938 by the NBC Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Arturo Toscanini. Originally written as the slow movement of his String Quartet, Opus 11 it has been transcribed for several musical media including an organ transcription by the organist/composer William Strickland a friend of Barber’s. Mr. Miller will play the Strickland organ transcription of the Adagio as the concluding voluntary.

 A gala reception will follow the Evensong in Commons Room.

Pray For...

Pray for our young men and women who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for their families … James R. Patton, 23; Charlie C. Antonio, 28; Robert J. Barrett, 20; John K. Laborde, 53; Christopher D. Worrell, 35; Ronald A. Kubik, 21; Jason A. Santora, 25;  ... for the fallen heroes also of our coalition partners, and for the citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan who have died, unnamed and unknown to us, and for those who mourn ... and for an end to this endless war.

Culled from various web pages, including:
U.S. Department of Defense news releases
In Remembrance, at legacy.com
Honor the Fallen, from Military Times
U.S. and Coalition Casualties, at CNN.com

Choral Evensong and mini-concert

[From Mark Laubach, St. Stephen's Pro-Cathedral, Wilkes-Barre]

posted by Kat Lehman

Choral Evensong and mini-concert
This coming Sunday, May 2nd, St. Stephen's Episcopal Pro-Cathedral in Wilkes-Barre will be pleased to host a service of Choral Evensong for the Fifth Sunday of Easter at 5 p.m., immediately followed by a 30-minute choral concert presented by the Chamber Singers of Marywood University in Scranton.

Evensong will be sung by the Choir of St. Stephen's under the direction of Canon Mark Laubach, Organist and Choirmaster. Officiant for the service will be the Reverend Daniel C. Gunn, Rector of St. Stephen's. Music for the service will include the following ...

Organ Voluntary:   Feierlicher Einzug   -   Richard Strauss, arr. by Max Reger
Hymn, "The day of resurrection"  (tune: Ellacombe)
Hymn, "Christ, mighty Savior"   (tune: Innisfree Farm)
Psalm 84, Anglican chant by C. Hubert H. Parry
Evening Canticles in F, by George Dyson
Anthem, O God, why hast thou cast us out, by Henry Purcell (sung by the Marywood University Chamber Singers)
Anthem, The Lord is my Shepherd, by Howard Goodall (theme music for The Vicar of Dibley, sung by St. Stephen's Choir)
Hymn, "This joyful Eastertide"   (tune: Vruechteni)
Organ Voluntary:   Toccata in C, BWV 564  -  J. S. Bach  (played by Christopher Prestia, Organ Scholar)

St. Stephen's is truly privileged to present a brief program by the Marywood University Chamber Singers, conducted by Dr. Rick Hoffenberg, Associate Professor and Director of Choral Music at Marywood. This exciting and varied program will include the following works selected from repertoire to be sung for the group's forthcoming tour of Northern and Southern California.

Missa Brevis, by Richard Rodney Bennett
Water Night, by Eric Whitacre
I cannot dance, O Lord, by Aaron Jay Kernis
All the things you are, by Jerome Kern, arranged by Ward Swingle
'Round Midnight, by Thelonious Monk, arranged by Rick Hoffenberg

Different hymns, different tunes

Stephen Prothero, a professor of religion at Boston University, has written a new book saying that there are differences in the world's major religions, that we cannot harmonize or homogenize them, and to try to do so is both naive and, very possibly, dangerous.

Here is an excerpt from The Boston Globe:

At least since the first petals of the counterculture bloomed across Europe and the United States in the 1960s, it has been fashionable to affirm that all religions are beautiful and all are true. This claim, which reaches back to “All Religions Are One” (1795) by the English poet, printmaker, and prophet William Blake, is as odd as it is intriguing. No one argues that different economic systems or political regimes are one and the same. Capitalism and socialism are so self-evidently at odds that their differences hardly bear mentioning. The same goes for democracy and monarchy. Yet scholars continue to claim that religious rivals such as Hinduism and Islam, Judaism and Christianity are, by some miracle of the imagination, both essentially the same and basically good.

This view resounds in the echo chamber of popular culture, not least on the “Oprah Winfrey Show” and in Elizabeth Gilbert’s bestseller, “Eat Pray Love,” where the world’s religions are described as rivers emptying into the ocean of God. Karen Armstrong, author of “A History of God,” has made a career out of emphasizing the commonalities of religion while eliding their differences. Even the Dalai Lama, who should know better, has gotten into the act, claiming that “all major religious traditions carry basically the same message....”

...This is a lovely sentiment but it is untrue, disrespectful, and dangerous.

The gods of Hinduism are not the same as the orishas of Yoruba religion or the immortals of Daoism. To pretend that they are is to refuse to take seriously the beliefs and practices of ordinary religious folk who for centuries have had no problem distinguishing the Nicene Creed of Christianity from the Four Noble Truths of Buddhism from the Shahadah of Islam. It is also to lose sight of the unique beauty of each of the world’s religions.

But this lumping of the world’s religions into one megareligion is not just false and condescending, it is also a threat. How can we make sense of the ongoing conflict in Kashmir if we pretend that Hinduism and Islam are one and the same? Or of the impasse in the Middle East, if we pretend that there are no fundamental disagreements between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam...?

What the world’s religions share is not so much a finish line as a starting point. And where they begin is with this simple observation: Something is wrong with the world.

The title of his book says that "God is not one." More accurately, his point is that all religions are not fundamentally the same.

Read the rest here.

His book, God is Not One:  The Eight Rival Religions That Run the World--and Why Their Differences Matter may be found here.

--posted by Andrew Gerns

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An open letter to Latino Episcopalians in Arizona ... [From Bishop Kirk Smith] My Dear Spanish-Speaking Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Today is a sad day in the struggle to see all God's people treated in a humane and compassionate manner. I had hoped that our Governor and law-makers would listen to their consciences and not be swayed by the voices of bigotry and racism. With the Governor's signing of SB 1070, it seems that for now the advocates of fear and hatred have won over those of charity and love. Arizona claims to be a Golden Rule State. We have not lived up to that claim. Read it all here. [H/T to Andrew Gerns]

Beating the Bounds ...  [By Andrew Gerns] There is an old ritual called “beating the bounds” where the members of a parish go out and mark the boundaries of a parish in a city or village. The idea is not just territorial, but pastoral. When the community “beats the bounds” they are saying that they are in some way responsible to God for the people inside those boundaries. Every now and then, God shows us just what that means. [Posted at Episcopal Cafe by Jim Naughton. Read all of this moving, pastoral reflection by Andrew Gerns here.]

An article about Patrick Malloy's talk at VTS as part of "The Prayer Book at 30" series appeared in the April 4 issue of The Living Church, and is available here. "We are closer now to what Cranmer had intended; in 1979 it seems that what Cranmer wanted to have happen actually happened," Malloy said.

The Institution of Father Scott Allen as rector of St. Andrew's Allentown will take place on Thursday May 20 at 7:30 p.m. St. Andrew's, on the border of Allentown/Bethlehem is at 1900 Pennsylvania Avenue, Allentown. Father Allen advises us that even your GPS may be confused.

Eleanor Magnuson, widow of The Rev. Fred Magnuson, has died. Details regarding her funeral are not yet available. Please keep Eleanor and her family in your prayers. May her soul rest in peace and may light perpetual shine upon her.

The Grace Montessori School annual scholarship auction benefit will take place on Thursday, April 29, at the Allentown Brew Works, 812 W. Hamilton Street, Allenown (Hamilton Room). Great hors d’oeuvres (enough for a meal), complimentary glass of wine or beer, cash bar, jazz music, pick-a-prize auction, live auction, and 50/50 raffle winner drawing! The best place to park is the lot behind the school, across the street from the Brew Works. Enter on 8th Street. Free after 6 p.m. GMS was founded in 1992 for children of Grace Church's food bank clients. The mission to provide excellent education for economically disadvantaged kids remains at the heart of the GMS program which has grown from serving 7 children to 120 students this year. All proceeds from this major fundraiser go to the scholarship fund that allows about 40 children to attend GMS with financial assistance. Contact the school office at 610-435-4060 for raffle tickets ($5 each/ 4 for $20) and event tickets ($20 per person). Walk-ins welcome. An outreach of Grace Episcopal Church, Grace Montessori School is a not-for-profit, urban school and childcare center, licensed by the Department of Public Welfare and registered as a private, non-public school with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Two sides of the same coin

Evangelical pastor and editor of Christianity Today's companion publication Leadership Journal, Skye Jenthani, says that the new breed of atheists and modern American evangelicals, even though they are frequently at odds, may have more in common than they'd like to admit.

Jenthani writes in the Huffington Post

I can't help but see the irony. It appears some New Atheists are incorporating the very traits they've often condemned about evangelicals -- intolerance, dogmatism, and now even the church's penchant for schism. It seems anything can be turned into a religion, even anti-religion.

But evangelicals should take no delight in pointing out the speck in the atheists' eye while a log remains firmly lodged in our own.

The common criticism levied on atheists by evangelicals is that they are prideful -- seeking to live "above God" with no regard for his existence or instructions. Atheists, the argument says, have given up on a theistic universe in favor of a humanist one -- a world in which purpose and truth are fluidly defined by the individual or at best one's community. As a result, some Christians view atheists as adrift, lost, and susceptible to all kinds of error and evil. The solution, say these evangelicals, is to embrace a life "under God" by submitting to his ways.

This "over God" versus "under God" split is what has led to a great many cultural conflicts about same-sex marriage, abortion, stem cell research, public display of religious symbols, prayer in school, and even last month's decision by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to retain "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance despite arguments from atheists that it violates the First Amendment.

But in their attempts to conform the United States' law and society to God's commands, these culturally crusading evangelicals have exchanged the Gospel of Jesus Christ for a Gospel of Morality. And in the process many of my evangelical sisters and brothers find themselves guilty of the very sin they peg on atheists -- seeking a position of authority above God. Let me explain with a few examples.

Read the rest here.

--posted by Andrew Gerns

Patrick Stewart on violence against women

Another Star Trek captain, but with a far more serious message. H/T to Simple Massing Priest. His talk is in the English context, and while the monetary figures are different, the incidences of violence towards women, and among men in military service, etc. are largely the same in this country.

--posted by Andrew Gerns

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Today is Earth Day (Isn't every day?) ... We give you thanks, most gracious God, for the beauty of earth and sky and sea; for he richness of mountains, plains and rivers; for the songs of birds and the loveliness of flowers. We praise you for these good gifts, and pray that we may safeguard them for our posterity. Grant that we may continue to grow in our grateful enjoyment of your abundant creation, to the honor and glory of your Name now and for ever. Amen. [Book of Common Prayer, p. 840, For the Beauty of the Earth]

Listen to Three Dog Night's classic rock song Three Dog Night: Joy to the World with the lyric "Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea." Imagine all the other gifts of God in the plant and animal kingdom that give you pleasure and fill your heart with joy ... or ... Set up a wonder table in your home or classroom. Make it a place where people can display wonders of the nature world they have found — actual examples or photographs of them. [H/T to Fred and MaryAnn Brussatt. You may find additional suggestions at their Spirituality&Practice site. H/T also to Peter Carey, reporting at Episcopal Cafe where you will find other links.]

May Diocesan Life ... Download it here.

Are you aware that you may donate online to diocesan funds or to your parish? At the DioBeth website, click on "Donate Now" to the right on the homepage. There you will be able to make a one-time or recurring donations. Should you choose to do so, especially for recurring donations, you will be able to create a profile which will enable you to set up/manage your donations and track your donation history.

Diocesan ECW annual meeting ... May 12 at Kirby House, Mountaintop, 9:30 to 3:00. Guest speaker:  The Rev. Ronald Royce Miller who will discuss Messages – Obvious and Obscure – in Christian Art Throughout the Ages. Marlene Hartshorne advises that the address to send reservations has changed. Do not send to Martha Fox. Please send to Catherine Jeffery, 1839 Ulster Road, Allentown, PA 18109, Phone: 610-868-6682. Contact Catherine for more info. Cost is $12.00. Registration deadline is April 28.

At the requiem for Viola Ellison ... A homily by Archdeacon Stringfellow at St. Thomas Church, NYC, Wednesday, April 21. Read it here.

Tribute to St. Mark's/St. John's Jim Thorpe and Father John Wagner from a Jewish visitor

December 31, 2008

The Episcopal Parish of St. Mark and St. John
ATTN: The Reverend John Wagner, Priest-in-Charge
21 Race Street
Jim Thorpe, PA 18229

Dear Reverend Wagner:

Let me first wish you a very Happy New Year. You do not know me, but I met you Christmas Eve at your beautiful church in Jim Thorpe. I was visiting my girlfriend’s grandmother and attended worship service with her family in the evening; a unique feat for me. I am not Episcopal; I am not Roman Catholic; I am not Catholic; I am not even a Christian. I am Jewish. This was the first Episcopal worship I had ever attended with my Roman Catholic girlfriend (whose mother is Episcopal) – and I have never felt neither more welcomed nor more comfortable in a religious service.

Pray For...

Pray for our young men and women who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for their families … Michael D. Jankiewicz, 23; Joseph T. Caron, 21; Randolph A. Sigley, 28; Michael K. Ingram Jr., 23; ... for the fallen heroes also of our coalition partners, and for the citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan who have died, unnamed and unknown to us, and for those who mourn ... and for an end to this endless war.

Culled from various web pages, including:
U.S. Department of Defense news releases
In Remembrance, at legacy.com
Honor the Fallen, from Military Times
U.S. and Coalition Casualties, at CNN.com

May Diocesan Life

posted by Kat Lehman

Hot off the press (actually it REALLY goes to the presses tomorrow; I was able to see the proofs at the printer on Tuesday when I went there for a tour). Here is the latest edition of Diocesan Life. The file size is 2.9 MB.

Download May_2010_DiocesanLifeSMALL

At the Requiem for Viola Ellison

At the Requiem for Viola Ellison
by Archdeacon Howard Stringfellow
St. Thomas Church in New York City
21 April 2010

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

We have traveled various distances to gather in Vi’s parish church to give thanks to God for every remembrance we have of her, to pray to God for her, and to say and to hear that our Lord Jesus Christ opens the door to his Father’s house where many mansions, many rooms, have been prepared for those who put their trust in him.

Over the years I’ve known people who know how to work. And I’ve known people who know how to play. Vi was neither one. She did not have to work to live, and neither did she live to play. Better than most anyone I’ve known, she knew how to live. Parts of her program were studies of the piano and the French language. She liked very much to arrange flowers for the altar at a nearer parish, All Saints, on 60^th Street. But friends and conversation, I think, were more important and essential to her way of life.

I remember quite clearly my introduction to her a few feet from where I stand. She was leaning over the piscina in the sacristy washing a chalice after the early Eucharist on a Sunday morning in 1984. And when the Verger mentioned my name, before she looked up, I saw her smile. To my view, she has never stopped smiling.

After Carolyne and I married, Vi invited us to dinner, and that began a round of parties, and gatherings, and visits that continued steadily until rather recently. She welcomed and included us with many of her friends, and with them we learned how much she understood people’s dispositions, if not their inexplicable eccentricities, and how skillfully and charitably she made her way around those very human shortcomings. Doormen, housekeepers, maîtres d’hôtel, and her care-givers were as much a part of her friends and conversation, and concern, as friends in Rhode Island, or in Saratoga, or in Arkansas, or in North Carolina, or on Cape Cod. Vi put herself on the level of all of these friends gracefully and gently, and in most instances, as she did so, she performed an act of humility.

I recall one lunch during a summer when she defined herself with clarity. She said that many people are not able to tell the truth, or, rather, she said, many people are fearful of living with the consequences of telling the truth. The road she had determined to travel was the road whereon she took responsibility for her words and her actions. This self-definition I admired and loved about her.

When her years of playing tennis and swimming no longer kept away the consequences of time, and when her reliance upon her friends and care-givers made war with her flinty independence, she had to compromise with standards she had set for herself. We saw her most often when she was at her best while others learned how difficult her circumstances were for her to endure.

At last, though, ten days from her ninetieth birthday, her time came. With the ministrations of her priest very recently received and with her very close and very dear friend on the way, she relied a little more on the Lord who redeemed her. I recall she once said that she had to come to New York to learn that there were saints not named in the Bible. But she knew, however, all that she needed to know. She knew, as she had read in her daily devotions for many years, that under the Lord Almighty’s throne his saints have dwelt secure: sufficient is his arm alone, and our defence is sure. Amen.

Organist and Choir Director Position Available

[ADVERTISEMENT] GOOD SHEPHERD & ST JOHN'S  MILFORD
 
                   SEEKING ORGANIST and CHOIR DIRECTOR.
 
This is the opportunity to work with an eighteen strong choir, playing a two year old 25 rank SCHANTZ Pipe organ. Milford is the cultural centre of the Tri-State Area, attracting classical musicians from all three states and the five boroughs. Music festivals, concerts and the arts abound. Population expands in the summer. This is a part-time position paying $10,000, ideal as a second job or for retiree. Contact the office at: office@goodshepherdmilford.org  or 570-296-8123.

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About the newSpin newsletter ... Written at least weekly (often twice a week) by Bill Lewellis, the newsletter appears as a post within the newSpin blog, but newsletter and blog are not identical. The newsletter currently goes to some 1,000 email addresses. Comments may be addressed to Bill. The views expressed, seemingly implied, or inferred in items or links contained in the newsletter or the blog do not represent the official view of the Diocese of Bethlehem unless expressed by or forwarded from the Bishop or the Archdeacon as an official communication.

Celebrate the season of Easter with the Episcopal Church by joining an online Bible study group ... The Episcopal Church invites online visitors into a Bible study by posting comments and thoughts on each week’s Sunday readings from the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL). The complete weekly readings are posted along with study questions and reader comments here. 

Now will you read the fine print? ... If your dog won't play with you, automatic doors won't open for you, or you are missing your reflection in the mirror, it could be that either you sold your soul to your best friend for five bucks or you did not read the fine print on that software you just downloaded. Read more from Andrew Gerns here.

Entering into the reality of Easter ...[A reflection on the Easter Season, by Bishop Paul] Mary's grief and wrong assumptions were not answered by an argument, but by a relationship, by that voice that knew her. You can't argue about whether or not Easter is true any more than you can argue about whether or not you can swim – you have to get into the water. Except for the extraordinarily small number of people who have overwhelming mystical experiences, the only way most of us find out if the risen Christ is not only alive but present and available is to try to live with him every day for fifty days, to participate in his life through prayer, acts of love, and participation in the life of his body the Church. Watch and listen for signs of a new reality; practice assuming that death does not rule. And listen for Jesus’ voice. At the Easter celebration we debate nothing – we do invite people into community as we go to meet him." [Bishop Paul's column from the April issue of Diocesan Life. Read more here.]

Diocesan Training for Ministry ... Saturday, April 24, Wilkes-Barre. Schedule and workshop descriptions here. Registration deadline is today, April 19. Register online here. "Vestry 101," the morning workshop taught by Bishop Paul, is essential for new wardens and new members of the vestry. It is also recommended strongly for people new to the Episcopal Church. Participants will look at canons, models, strategies, and resources to assist the elected leaders of parishes.

Dive In: A Day Exploring Baptism ... Saturday, May 8. St. Luke's Scranton. What does it mean to be baptized and to live a baptized life? How can you nurture your life in Christ? How can your congregation live more deeply into baptismal ministry? This day of Christian Formation will offer resources for parents, Christian educators, clergy, and anyone seeking a deeper life in Christ. More info here.

Forward Life Planning Workshop ... May 22, St. Luke's Scranton, with Charles Cesaretti, Diana Marshall and Charlie Barebo. More info here.

Now will you read the fine print?

If your dog won't play with you, automatic doors won't open for you, or you are missing your reflection in the mirror, it could be that either you sold your soul to your best friend for five bucks or you did not read the fine print on that software you just downloaded.

FoxNews.com reports that a computer game software developer in Great Britain put a clause in the fine print of their user agreement that, unless the user opted out, granted the "non transferable option to claim, for now and for ever more, your immortal soul." They did this partly as an April Fool's Day prank and partly to prove a point: everyone should read the fine print on those user agreements and most people do not.

The retailer, British firm GameStation, added the "immortal soul clause" to the contract signed before making any online purchases earlier this month. It states that customers grant the company the right to claim their soul.

"By placing an order via this Web site on the first day of the fourth month of the year 2010 Anno Domini, you agree to grant Us a non transferable option to claim, for now and for ever more, your immortal soul. Should We wish to exercise this option, you agree to surrender your immortal soul, and any claim you may have on it, within 5 (five) working days of receiving written notification from gamesation.co.uk or one of its duly authorised minions."

GameStation's form also points out that "we reserve the right to serve such notice in 6 (six) foot high letters of fire, however we can accept no liability for any loss or damage caused by such an act. If you a) do not believe you have an immortal soul, b) have already given it to another party, or c) do not wish to grant Us such a license, please click the link below to nullify this sub-clause and proceed with your transaction."

The terms of service were updated on April Fool's Day as a gag, but the retailer did so to make a very real point: No one reads the online terms and conditions of shopping, and companies are free to insert whatever language they want into the documents.

The company says it would not be enforcing the ownership rights, and planned to e-mail customers nullifying any claim on their soul.

--posted by Andrew Gerns

newSpin 100415

Diocesan Training for Ministry ... Saturday, April 24, Wilkes-Barre. Schedule and workshop descriptions here. Register online here.

Dive In: A Day Exploring Baptism ... Saturday, May 8. St. Luke's Scranton. What does it mean to be baptized and to live a baptized life? How can you nurture your life in Christ? How can your congregation live more deeply into baptismal ministry? This day of Christian Formation will offer resources for parents, Christian educators, clergy, and anyone seeking a deeper life in Christ. More info here.

Forward Life Planning Workshop ... May 22, St. Luke's Scranton, with Charles Cesaretti, Diana Marshall and Charlie Barebo. More info here.

Musical meditations for two disasters ... [From Bishop Paul] We are called to prayer this week by the deaths of coal miners in WVA and 97 Polish government leaders in western Russia. If you want to set aside time to meditate and pray on these tragedies, you might want to go over to Amazon or the iTunes store and download Krzysztof Penderecki's Polish Requiem. The Warsaw version is the most current of the three recordings (the Requiem was expanded over the years, only completed in 2005).  Many sections were originally dedicated to the memory of individuals or groups. One section was dedicated to the memory of the original Katyn massacre, another to the uprising in Warsaw ghetto. For me, the piece comes to mind for two reasons. It evolved over two decades, beginning with a simple piece commissioned by Solidarity in memory of deceased workers, making the connection with miners. It is also by a Pole (living in CT since the late 60s, however), although it does follow the traditional Latin requiem texts, adding only a popular Polish hymn for an Offertorium. The style of the music is not unlike Leonard Bernstein's serious pieces on religious themes, and is quite captivating. It runs about an hour, and like Penderecki's St Luke Passion, is well worth hearing as we meditate and pray. Blessings, +Paul [PS: Amazon's mp3s run on anything, including iPods and computers, while the iTunes version has digital rights management techology built in.] 

Rebuilt home in New Orleans

From: Calvin Adams <frcalvin@aol.com>
Date: April 7, 2010 3:54:54 PM EDT
To: Kimberly ROWLES <kimberly.rowles@gmail.com>, Kimberly ROWLES <youth@stgabriels.us>
Subject: Fwd: Davallier Home in New Orleans

Begin forwarded message:

From: EDOLA Rebuild <rebuild@edola.org>
Date: April 7, 2010 11:42:08 AM EDT
To: EDOLA Rebuild <edolarebuild@gmail.com>
Subject: Davallier Home in New Orleans

Hello All!

Greetings from New Orleans!  We are writing to inform you that the Davallier home in Gentilly has been finished.  We have had this house in the works since way back in 2008, and we first started gutting in March 2009.  Since then, we have put in hundreds of volunteer hours to restore this beautiful home for the Davallier family.  They will soon be packing up and moving in from Little Rock, Arkansas and arriving later this week, and they are incredibly excited to see the finished product.  Pictures of the home in various phases of the rebuild process are available here:  http://picasaweb.google.com/edolarebuild/MsDavallierSHouse#.

We are incredibly grateful to all of your for the help you have thus far provided, but we can still always use more help!  We are still trying to work out the logistics of getting their belongings back to New Orleans from Little Rock, which is a rather pricey prospect, and we could certainly use a little extra financial assistance to help us get them back.  Also, we are always in need of donations to help us fund the rebuilding process for our current homes.  If you would be willing to help us out with monetary or material donations, please e-mail Liz Carrier at lcarrier@edola.org.  Remember, every little bit counts, and we graciously accept donations of all sizes.  

We sincerely and whole-heartedly thank all of the volunteer groups and individuals who volunteered their time, patience, energy, and knowledge to help make this incredible work possible, including:

Western Michigan University
St. Luke’s Atlanta
St. Peter by the Lake, Denver, NC
Chris Griffin and Ryan Lawlor
St. Michael’s, Milton, MA
Building the Beloved Community Seminarian Course
Slippery Rock University
St. John’s Lafayette Square
Diocese of Southwest Virginia
James Madison University Ultimate Frisbee Team
Sandy Sullivan
Diocese of Western Michigan
St. Mark’s Cathedral, Seattle, WA
St. John’s Hampton, VA
St. Paul's Delray Beach, FL
All Saints Chicago
James Durcin
Zanny Carlson
Diocese of Bethlehem
Our Savior Elmhurst, IL
St John’s, Tampa, FL
St John's, Lynchburg, VA
University of Oklahoma
Grinnell College students and alumni
Teach for America - Greater New Orleans
Kenny Gillis, Julie Sundermann, Jane O’Brien, Dane Niderost, Steph Cox, Spencer Green, Anne Valauri, Van Kenyon, Hannah Sagin, Alice Revenig, Laura Mason-Marshall
Finally, we wish to thank the crew chiefs who took charge of this project: Mary Bess Dubose and Ollie Casson-Gary.  Without their tireless efforts, we never would have been able to get the Davalliers back in their home, and we are all very grateful to them!

We thank you again for your generosity and hope to see each of you back down here in New Orleans in the very near future!

Sincerely,

The Episcopal Community Services Rebuild Team

P.S.  If you were a group leader for your New Orleans trip, please forward this e-mail to any of your group members who may not have been on the recipient list!

Forward Life Planning Workshop, May 22

[From Charlie Barebo] The Forward Life Planning Workshop, presented by Charles Cesaretti, Diana Marshall and Charlie Barebo, will be held on Saturday, May 22 at St. Luke's, Scranton. Although sponsored by the congregations in the Northern Tier, this workshop is open to all congregations in the Diocese of Bethlehem. Please note that registration and luncheon are free.  However, for planning please call Ely Valentin, 610-691-5655 x 222, or email evalentin@diobeth.org. The program has both pastoral (PB, pg. 445), as well as institutional implications, since many of our congregations have benefited through the planned gifts of former parishioners to the parish's Endowment Fund. Download the pdf file below.

Download Forward Life Planning.pdf