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October/November 2015 OPEN DOOR How we dream, together Where is Jesus Leading Us? Family Talk Page 10 Page 20 Page 22 Saint John’s Music Camp, August 2015
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October/November 2015
OPEN DOOR
How we dream, together Where is Jesus Leading Us? Family Talk Page 10 Page 20 Page 22
Saint John’s Music Camp, August 2015
Highlights
12Called to ORDER AND RENEWAL
10How WE DREAM, TOGETHER
7ALL THINGS NEW
20Where is jesus leading us?
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family Talk
Giving Trees
STAFF & VESTRY
cLeRGYThe Right Reverend Robert O’NeillBishop of Colorado
The Reverend Liz Costello, Curate
The Reverend Canon Jadon Hartsuff
The Reverend Canon Robert HendricksonSub-Dean
The Reverend Canon Charles LaFond
The Very Reverend Dr. Patrick MalloyInterim Dean
The Reverend Canon Elizabeth Marie Melchionna
For more information about our search for our next Dean, please visit sjcathedral.org/DeanSearch.
SeNIOR STAFFKim McPhersonDirector of Religious Education
Mike OrrDirector of Communications
Stephen TappeOrganist and Director of Music
Tara WilliamsDirector of Finance and Administration
VeSTRYLarry Kueter, Senior WardenAshley Bracken, Junior WardenAndrew Britton, TreasurerDavid Abbott, Clerk
Class of 2018Andrew Britton, Jane Schumaker, Ned Rule
Class of 2017David Abbott, Tamra d’Estrée,Jack Denman, Mike McCall
Class of 2016David Ball, Jen Courtney-Keyse,Suni Devitt, Anna Pendleton
Phone: 303.831.7115Email: [email protected]
1350 Washington StreetDenver, CO 80203
From the Interim Dean: TRANSITION AND CHANGEDear Sisters and Brothers,
When a friend of mine learned that Bishop O’Neill had called me to serve as Interim Dean at Saint John’s, he wondered aloud why, of all our cathedrals, the one in Denver attracts so much attention. Between May 31, when I was installed,
and July 4, when I officially took up residence, I spent only half my time working at Saint John’s. The rest was occupied with wrapping up my life in New York City. Yet even in this brief time on the ground in Denver, I have begun to get a sense of what makes Saint John’s stand out.
Unlike many of our cathedrals, which house only tiny congregations, Saint John’s is home to a large and vibrant parish. On a very large scale and in exemplary ways, it does what every good parish does: provides for the formation of children and adults, reaches out in service to the wider community, nourishes supportive and challenging relationships, proclaims to those who will listen that Jesus is Lord, and, above all, ensures that God is worshipped in the beauty of holiness and the holiness of beauty.
At the same time, Saint John’s is more than a large parish. It is the Bishop’s church, the place of his cathedra, the chair from which he presides over the life of the Episcopal Church in Colorado. Saint John’s, then, is the home church for all Colorado Episcopalians. It is at Saint John’s where they come home to be with their Bishop. In the Episcopal Church of Colorado, the relationship between the Bishop and the Bishop’s cathedral church is quite real, as I can attest after only a month as Interim Dean. This is not so for every Cathedral. Our bishop cares deeply for Saint John’s and for our future flourishing. He is especially invested in supporting us as we move through this time of transition and change.
The transition already underway will last up to 18 months. Some members of the congregation have told me that this seems like an overlong process. I respond by explaining that the work of calling a dean is a more important, and more complex, task than the usual candidate search. Since you called Peter Eaton as your previous dean, at the beginning of the 21st century, Saint John’s, the Church itself, and the world have all changed in profound ways. More than this, change is now a rapid and continuous thing. Remember what Denver was like, and the world itself, in 2002, when
your last Dean arrived, and you will realize Saint John’s faces a new day, with all the possibilities that new days bring.
The Cathedral must therefore embrace what anyone or any institution undertakes when making a life-altering decision: the Cathedral must take a hard look at itself, in its current state and in its current context. It is as if the Cathedral is undertaking a long retreat. During this retreat, it is fervently hoped Saint John’s will see and hear what God is calling it to be and to become. Then it will be ready to call a new Dean.
A spiritual retreat is almost always a time when a person becomes aware of a paradox: that she is on the one hand deeply beloved of God but on the other is far from attaining the fullness of life to which God calls her. Almost always, a proper retreat brings both comfort and something like remorse. I suspect we may therefore feel both thankful and tested over the next year or more. We will discover how life at Saint John’s is full of God’s presence and power, how we have at times embraced and expressed God’s life, and how at times, we have been blind, indifferent, or even resistant to what God has offered us. A spiritual retreat possesses much the same dynamic as Lent, when we remember the grace God poured into us at Baptism, when we remember that we have at times not accepted or cherished the tremendous gift God constantly give us, and when we repent and commit to live a better way. Then Easter comes, and we begin again, aware of who God has made us to be and committed afresh to living the life God imagines for us.
As Interim Dean, my role is neither to maintain the status quo at Saint John’s nor to recreate the place in my image. My role is to facilitate the overall life of the community as all of us—in family groups, in friendship circles, in committees and working groups, and individually—do the work of a retreat or of a well-lived Lent: to give thanks for graces given, to rejoice in graces used, to repent for graces squandered, and to set the stage for the next era in the life of the Cathedral, planning in concrete ways for the future. This transition will be a time to nurture hope and plan for important work: that the grace abounding at Saint John’s will find fertile ground and grow into a strong and fruitful plant that will bear a harvest for God in a world that we cannot yet imagine.
Yours fraternally,
Highlights
WORSHIP & FALL FORMATION GROUPS
WeeKDAY WORSHIPSaint John’s Cathedral is
committed to a daily life of prayer and worship. Pausing to pray at fixed hours of the day is an ancient spiritual practice, and Episcopalians have long been especially devoted to what are called the “Daily Offices of Morning and Evening Prayer,” thus establishing a pattern of beginning and ending each day by turning to God in prayer.
In addition to Morning and Evening Prayer, join us any weekday at 5:30 pm in Saint Martin’s Chapel for Holy Eucharist. There is also a Eucharist on Wednesdays at 7:00 am. This is an intimate time of prayer, reflection, and focus on the Eucharist, using the Book of Common Prayer. Consider attending these weekday services as part of your regular prayer life and a way to become more familiar with how the Book of Common Prayer is used in our prayer life and common worship.
Saint Martin’s Chapel Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays8:30 am - Morning Prayer
5:00 pm - Evening Prayer
5:30 pm - The Holy Eucharist
Wednesdays7:00 am - The Holy Eucharist
8:30 am - Morning Prayer
5:00 pm - Evening Prayer
5:30 pm - The Holy Eucharist
8:30 pm - Compline
Fridays8:30 am - Morning Prayer
SUNDAY MORNING DeAN’S FORUM10:15 am in Dagwell Hall
All Christians look to the Scriptures for insight into the nature and action of God and for guidance about how to faithfully respond. The Bible, however, is only one of the many sources to which Christians refer. Most also look to the writings of great theologians, especially those of the early Church, and to the decisions of the early Councils. Some give significant weight to the decisions of their hierarchy. Others accord great status to the writings of their founders or reformers. Lutherans, for example, hold the works of Martin Luther in singular esteem. We Anglicans turn especially to the Book of Common Prayer. Just as a Presbyterian is likely to ask, “What did John Calvin write about it?” an Anglican might inquire, “What can we learn about it from the Prayer Book?”
The Dean’s Forum will examine how to “read” common prayer: the event and the Book. We will cover such topics as: the liturgical year, the daily office, liturgical space, the effect of Baptism on a person and on the Church, the structure of the Eucharist, the nature of Christ’s real presence in the Bread and Wine, the pastoral offices in the Prayer Book, and how all of this has evolved and continues to evolve.
WeDNeSDAY MORNING FORMATION GROUP7:45 am in the Library
On Wednesday mornings between Holy Eucharist and Morning Prayer, a small group open to all gathers in the Library with one of the Cathedral clergy for conversation about the Bible. No commitment or registration is necessary, just join in!
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We off er many educational and spiritual activities on Sunday and during the week; mornings, afternoons, and evenings. We are centered around prayer and worship. In addition to our central worship, classes, groups, and programs help us to grow together and respond in the world with love, compassion, and respect. We seek to live as a true “Community in Christ,” transformed and empowered through our individual formation and our work together.
WeDNeSDAY NIGHTS/cATHeDRAL NITeCathedral Nite off ers a wide range
of opportunities for worship, fellowship, and formation. Join us every week or every once in a while for whichever opportunities fi t you.
5:00 pm - Evening Prayer
5:30 pm - Holy Eucharist
6:15 pm - Dinner
7:00 pm - Classes
8:30 pm - Compline
Catechumenate Led by Father Jadon Hartsuff and Mother Elizabeth Marie Melchionna.
September through April, in Dagwell Hall.
Catechumenate is an intensive program on Wednesday nights for adults who are considering Baptism or Confi rmation and/or those who wish to reexamine their Baptismal vows and learn more about Christian faith in general and the Episcopal tradition and way of thinking. More information is available on the following page.
Prayer and Action Led by Father Robert Hendrickson and Ed Watson.
September 30 through November 11, in Room 107.
How does prayer help us to live out lives of social justice for the sake of Jesus? In these sessions we will explore this questions and discern together how the language of prayer speaks to us in the modern day. We will explore what it means to listen for God’s call in prayer, and what it means to respond to that call and live lives of prayerful action, centered on the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Living Stones: Church Architecture Yesterday & TodayLed by Father Patrick Malloy.
September 30 through November 11, in Saint Francis Chapel.
Most visitors to Saint John’s are struck fi rst of all by the beauty of the building. Like many churches, the Cathedral makes a signifi cant statement about the people who built it and we who have inherited it. The structures in which Christians worship have evolved over the millennia in their shape, style, arrangement, and furnishings. Where we worship both expresses what we believe and infl uences our beliefs and behaviors. We will explore the history of Christian architecture, paying special attention to how believers and liturgical spaces interact and mutual shape one another. We will focus especially on the coherence and lack of coherence between the buildings we have inherited, the way we currently use them, and our understandings of God and the world.
SUNDAY NIGHTS Dialogue After Dark begins September 20, at 7:15 pm in Memorial Hall, following our Sunday evening service of worship, The Wilderness.
For many, sermons are monologues. At The Wilderness, we ruminate on scripture together, bringing our thoughts and questions about the evening’s scripture readings into dialogue with others around a simple meal.
For more information or questions about Formation Groups at Saint John’s, please contact Father Jadon Hartsuff at [email protected].
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by Father Jadon Hartsuff
For many years at Saint John’s, newer members of the Cathedral community, along with others who want to look
at their lives of faith anew, have set aside their Wednesday evenings for one program year to gather into a community of learning, conversation, and fellowship called the Catechumenate (kat-eh-QUE-men-et). This kind of gathering is as old as Christianity itself and was, at fi rst, the primary way the Church grew and individuals came to know Christ. Today the Cathedral’s program fulfi lls a wide variety of needs and desires: of adults preparing for Baptism or exploring the particulars of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican tradition; of those preparing for Confi rmation; of those already Confi rmed who would like to renew their commitments through Reception or Reaffi rmation; and of those embarking upon a season of inquiry not knowing for sure where an intentional period of refl ection and learning will take them. All who are seeking a closer connection with God and who want to explore the tradition of the Church in community are welcome.
The word catechumenate comes from the Greek words “kata” and “ekhos,” meaning, respectively, “down” and “sound.”
Catechumens (those participating in the Catechumenate) are in a decidedly receptive mode—being formed by a community of believers; hearing the traditions of the church from those who received them before. Participating in the Catechumenate is not only one individual’s act of exploration but it is also, as in a marathon, an act of the community’s continuation—of participating in the great echo of Christian faith and tradition begun millennia ago.
Whether you are already certain about an intention to be baptized, confi rmed, or received into the Episcopal Church, or you are simply interested in discerning how God is calling you to be in relationship with the Church at large or the Cathedral in particular—please do consider taking part in this special journey. Join us for the Catechumenate on Wednesday nights. If you are unsure, come and try it out for a few weeks. Regular attendance is desired, though commitments to complete the program will not be expected until late November.
Learn more online at sjcathedral.org/Catechumenate.
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Sunday, October 18, 2015Saint Luke, whose feast is observed on October 18, is known in the Christian tradition as having been the fi rst Christian physician, and as such is the patron saint of healthcare professionals. This year in our community, we honor the ministry of Saint Luke and of healthcare providers and caregivers in a diff erent way, appealing both to those inside our community and serving those in the Capital Hill neighborhood. Pastoral care and faith in action includes the realm of our health and wellness.
Blessing of Healthcare Professionals & CaregiversWe will bless Healthcare Professionals and Caregivers at each of our services: 8:00, 9:00, 11:15 am, and 6:00 pm. Come and have your hands anointed for the work of healing you do.
Blood DriveWe will also host a blood drive with Bonfi ls Blood Center from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm in Room 200 in honor of the many parishioners who have received the life-giving gift of blood. Please register at sjcathedral.org/giveblood.
Health ScreeningsWe will also work with Inner City Health Center for blood pressure, BMI, cholesterol, diabetes, and pulse ox screenings are available with registered nurse consultation from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm in Saint Francis Chapel.
Healthcare Professionals NeededIf you are a licensed healthcare professional, we invite you to participate in the Feast of Saint Luke as we provide opportunities for health and wellness to the Denver community. If you are available to assist with healthcare screenings, please contact Mother Elizabeth Marie Melchionna at [email protected].
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Quiz Time:14th & Clarkson is:
A) A half block from surefi re parking when you can already see the processional gathering out front.
B) Less than two minutes from the Argonaut when you’re jonesing for some Merlot.
C) A new opportunity to participate in a fun, caring community at your church home.
Trick question. All are correct but today let’s talk about ‘C.’
14th & Clarkson is a new social group at Saint John’s for people who’ve turned a corner in their lives.
14th& Clarkson represents the many people at Saint John’s Cathedral who fi t in between the already established “20s and 30s” group and the senior group SOAR. However, this group is welcoming and inclusive to all and is open to anyone of any age, marital status or orientation with a sincere desire to participate.
14th & Clarkson members remain active and engaged by their own routines but want to broaden their association with others who share similar interests – such as participating in a series of fun events and activities! On a monthly basis, the group will sponsor game nights, visit museums and art shows, attend concerts and plays, explore new restaurants and pubs – in other words, we will explore all that Denver has to offer but might not have the wherewithal to do if left to our own devices.
Having Saint John’s as a home base for our group is a great opportunity for people to foster new and deeper friendships with other members of the Cathedral community, providing a certain level of familiarity and ease other social organizations might lack. Feel free to join us solo or with a partner.
14th & Clarkson will meet regularly on the third Friday of the month.
View group locations and meeting times at sjcathedral.org/14thandClarkson.
In the Book of Revelation, we hear about the coming of a new and glorious heaven on earth.
Revelation’s author writes, “And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new. For these words are trustworthy and true” (Rev. 21.5). This passage of the Scriptures stood out so much to those who created The Saint John’s Bible that the artists gave it a special, calligraphic treatment.
We are the body that carries forward God’s mission in the world. We both behold how Jesus has made all things new, and we continue together to enter that newness of life. We are in a particular season of newness and tenderness in our common life. We have begun a process of particularly thoughtful refl ection, listening, and discernment as we settle into this space of transition in our leadership. This space off ers us the chance to genuinely try something new as we share in the ministry of Saint John’s Cathedral.
You might have noticed something new in the ways in which we speak about ministry. At the end of August we hosted Exploration Sunday. The Cathedral was fi lled with colorful tape paths that one could follow to learn more about the theological framework for diff erent areas of our Christian life: Being God’s Stewards, Faith in Action, Connection and Belonging, Formation for All Ages, and Worship and Prayer. The community was then invited into a period of discernment before the Invitation to Participation, held in mid-September. You were invited to
serve as a Ministry Partner (notice the new term—not as a volunteer) at the Invitation to Participation. It takes all of us, together, to be the church that carries out God’s mission in the world. It takes all of us, together, to bring about this newness of God’s kingdom in this particular moment in time and this particular place. Whether you worship in the pews, attend the Dean’s Form, participate in a Service Saturday, staff the Welcome Center, take the Holy Eucharist to those who cannot worship with us, or commit to praying for the needs and concerns of the community, your Ministry Partnership transforms this community.
As we approach the new liturgical year in Advent, I invite you to seriously examine the ways in which you exercise your ministry. What are those habits, actions, and practices that are life-giving to you? What are those that no longer bring you joy or drain energy from you? How might you, as we make things new together, let go of those practices that no longer enliven your relationship with God? And how might you explore and take a step into a new, potentially life-giving Ministry Partnership?
See, I Am Making All Things New (Marginal Treatment), Donald Jackson, Copyright 2011, The Saint John’s Bible, Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
All Things Newby Mother Elizabeth Marie Melchionna
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Sunday, October 4, 3:00 pm
In the spirit of Saint Francis, bring your feathered, furry, multi-legged, scaly, and other best friends and companions for a celebration and blessing. Pets are welcome to sit with you in the pews. Donations of pet food for less fortunate pets will be welcomed! There will be a reception on the West Lawn following the service with treats for all.
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DREAMTOGETHER
2015
CONFERENCE
“When my grandchild’s grandchild hunts eggs on the Cathedral lawn 50 years from now,
what will Saint John’s look like?”
The Saint John’s Dream Together Conferences. Leaving our legacy one conversation at a time.
October 17, 2015.
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by Father Charles LaFond
Please come to the Dream Together Conference on Saturday, October 17, at Saint Johns.
Set four hours aside for a morning session from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm or an afternoon session from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. Just four hours. Go. Right now. Put down this newsletter, and go to your calendar, right now, and mark out four hours on October 17 to be with other members of the congregation as we gather—this family of ours—to dream together and to express our longings for the Cathedral out loud, to and among ourselves. This year it is important to do this work especially. We need to make a good choice—together. You can register online at sjcathedral.org/DreamTogether.
We are trying to be faithful Christians today—and also to be good ancestors to the church to come. We are learning new skills in communication. We are re-ordering how we live together. We are listening to each other express our longings for the future—of our Cathedral and its mission, and of the Church herself. But we need to be in the room. We need to be at those tables. We need to be looking at and listening to one another.
Everything the Cathedral is—a place of connection, mystery, and holiness—is what people say they want, crave, and need every day. But we must meet together—all of us—as a family, if we are to help the Cathedral offer connection, mystery, and holiness to the world. And the Dream Together Conference is how we begin this work.
When Jesus gathered his disciples in Galilee, life was different. When churches were built as medieval fortresses against invading Vikings, life was different. Life was different in 1861, when a few newcomers founded an Episcopal outpost called Saint John’s Church in the Wilderness. When our first cathedral opened its doors, in 1881, life was different. And in 1911, when our second cathedral was built, life was different. Life was different in the 1950s, when our mission was defined.
But we never change; we need God because we are made to need Him. We need human connection because without connection, we wither away. We need to help each other because others first helped us. We have all faced life storms and gotten washed overboard into rough seas, needing rescue, needing warmth, food, and nurture. We need churches. Our city needs churches. And Denver needs this church, in this new day. Our job is to imagine our church’s unfolding work in this new day—faithful to Jesus—faithful to the mission Jesus came to establish and the Kingdom Jesus came to unveil.
Churches can lose their way. My understanding of this changed forever when I read the following parable. May the parable so move you that you mark your calendars, come to the Dream Together Conference on October 17, and dream with us about our mission in this city, in this age, in this faithful family.
Everything the Cathedral is—a place of connection, mystery, and holiness—is what people say they want, crave, and need every day. But we must meet together—all of us—as a family, if we are to help the Cathedral offer connection, mystery, and holiness to the world.
HOW WE DREAM, TOGETHER
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by Dr. Theodore O. Wedel
On a dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks often occur there was once a crude little life-saving station. The building was just a hut, and there was only one boat, but the few devoted members kept a constant watch over the sea and, with no thought for themselves, went out day and night searching tirelessly for the lost. Some of those who were saved and various others in the surrounding area wanted to become associated with the station and gave their time and money and effort to support its work. New boats were bought and new crews trained. The little life-saving station grew.
Some of the members of the life-saving station were unhappy that the building was so crude and poorly equipped. They felt that a more comfortable place should be provided as the first refuge of those saved from the sea. They replaced the emergency cots with beds and put better furniture in the enlarged building.
Now the life-saving station became a popular gathering place for its members, and they decorated it beautifully because they used it as a sort of club. Fewer members were now interested in going to sea on life-saving missions, so they hired lifeboat crews to do this work. The life-saving motif still prevailed in the club’s decorations, and there was a liturgical lifeboat in the room where the club held its initiations. About this time, a large ship wrecked off the coast, and the hired crews brought in boatloads of cold, wet, and half-drowned people. They were dirty and sick. The beautiful new club was in chaos. So the property committee immediately had a shower house built outside the club where victims of shipwrecks could be cleaned up before coming inside.
At the next meeting, there was a split among the club membership. Most of the members wanted to stop the club’s life-saving activities as being unpleasant and a hindrance to the normal social life of the club. Some members insisted that life-saving was their primary purpose and pointed out that they were still called a lifesaving station. But they were finally voted down and told that if they wanted to save the lives of all the various kinds of people who were shipwrecked in those waters, then they could begin their own life-saving station. So they did.
As the years went by, the new station experienced the same changes that had occurred in the old. It evolved into a club, and yet another life-saving station was founded. History continued to repeat itself, and if you visit that seacoast today, you will find a number of exclusive clubs along that shore. Shipwrecks are frequent in those waters, but most of the people drown.
Dr. Theodore O. Wedel was a former canon of the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. Ordained as an Epis-copal priest in 1931, he served for a time as president of the Episcopal Church’s House of Deputies. He penned this parable in 1953.
PARAblE Of THE lifE-sAvinG sTATiOn
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But beware of this about callings: they may not lead us where we intended to go or even where we want to go. If we choose to follow, we may have to be willing to let go of the life we already planned and accept whatever is waiting for us. And if the calling is true, though we may not have gone where we intended, we will surely end up where we need to be.
by Father Jadon Hartsuff
Since the very beginning of the Christian movement, we have been called to follow Jesus as disciples in ordered community. Jesus calls and orders each and every one of us—individually and collectively.
Some of this ordering is part of our Jewish heritage. The Hebrew people had long identified priests, for example, to maintain and serve the temple. By the time of Jesus, there were also rabbis who were teachers and leaders of particular movements and ways of interpreting religious law. These distinct roles were not unique to Hebrew culture but are, arguably, universal. Certainly the ancient Roman culture, in which Christianity first emerged, was also highly ordered.
The word ‘order’ may seem to compete with the idea that God is always making things new. When we order ourselves and our common life, aren’t we limiting the Spirit of renewal? Or, does order aid and support renewal—providing a trellis for new shoots of inspiration to cling to until they take root and grow strong? I think order can do both—in more helpful and less helpful ways. We can be too ordered. We can be unwilling to let new shoots emerge, and we value conformity at the expense of inspiration. On the other hand, we might be so ruled by inspiration and renewal that we never grow to maturity. Wild, sprawling, unsupported vines may never grow or produce a harvest.
One trellis for our life in community is the ordering of ourselves as laypeople, deacons, priests, and bishops. Each order is necessary, interdependent, and distinct. And while this ordering is very much rooted in our individual and collective lives of prayer, it is also practical—another classic expression of the Anglican blending and balancing of scripture, tradition, and reason. We don’t really decide, individually, to become a layperson, a deacon, a priest, or a bishop, and yet there are definite decisions that we all make. We decide to be baptized or to baptize our children. We decide to make an adult commitment to Christ and the Church at Confirmation. And the community is involved in all of these decisions—with prayer, encouragement, teaching, and promises of ongoing support. The same is true for ordination. It is a long process, guided by prayer, with myriad individual and communal learnings and decisions along the way.
We have among us a variety of people serving in or transitioning among the orders of ministry. Some are firmly planted in a particular order, some are transitioning from one order to another, and some are testing a sense of calling to do so. One mark of a thriving Christian community is a robust pipeline of people in every order and in between—and by that measure Saint John’s is thriving indeed.
But discerning our response to God’s will for our life—discerning our calling—is not only about ordained ministry or even our individual ministry. While every one of us has a true vocation (from the Latin vocare, ‘to call’), so are we called collectively, as a Cathedral community.
As you think about Saint John’s more broadly and your life of faith here, I invite you to think about this spectrum of order and renewal. Is your relationship to this community too structured, or not structured enough? How about our common life? Where might we need a better trellis and where might we need to free some of our shoots to grow in new or different ways? How are we being called to respond to God’s will individually, and as a community?
Called to Order and Renewal
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Tim DunbarPostulant for the Vocational Diaconate from Saint John’s Cathedral. Currently serving as an Intern at Church of the Ascension in Denver and completing other diocesan preparation for ordination.
“My journey of discernment began in St. Martin’s Chapel during the 7:00 am Wednesday mass when a woman came up to me (after observing me as an acolyte) after the service and said, “You ought to think about becoming a priest.” I was scared, but the call to pursue ordained ministry kept coming up at different times and from different people. To me, responding to that call and entering the process of discernment is about allowing the larger church community to affirm its claim on your life - that the people around you see gifts in you and sense God’s call - and it is up to you to listen and respond...”
Terri ColburnPostulant for the Priesthood from SJC. Graduated from Iliff Theological Seminary in 2007. Currently serving as a full-time hospice chaplain and completing other diocesan preparation for ordination.
“My discernment process has really been a life-long journey to a future about which much is still unknown. The “Episcopal piece” of this journey has been rich, sometimes very difficult, sometimes very joy-filled, and always very compelling. I loved my discernment committee. Our times together were precious to me and I cherish each person who participated. I love the openness to the working of God that the process has encouraged, and at my age I am startled to discover that God is still working deep transformation in my spirit.”
Luke ChallisPostulant for the Priesthood from SJC. Currently studying at Berkeley Divinity School at Yale and serving as an Intern at Christ Church in Bethany, Connecticut.
“During my experience as a hospital chaplain intern this past summer, I was able to weave and incorporate the large theological themes I’ve studied in seminary into a very practical and integrated theological context. To meet people where they are during their most sorrowful and trying times has been life-changing and humbling and has revealed new understanding of God’s grace and presence in the liminal places of life. To walk alongside the sick and suffering is part and parcel to our faith life as Christians. To witness and be part of these times with families and patients has been a profound gift.”
Katherine FlahiveAspirant for the Priesthood from Saint Andrew’s Denver. Currently studying at Illiff Theological Seminary and serving as an Intern here at the Cathedral.
“In pondering and exploring my life journey and evolving sense of call, I have been energized and driven by a process of spiritual integration that is both profound (deeply in touch with God) and also amazingly broad. My vocation path might look like a haphazard zigzag to some, from one kind of caregiving to another, but I have come to see, with the help of others, how it follows a pattern of moving towards greater depth and intensity - from pediatric nursing to high risk maternal nursing, massage therapy to Trauma Touch Therapy, and from spiritual direction to exploring a vocation in ordained ministry.”
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All Saints’ Day EucharistSaturday, October 31 at 11:30 am� e Daughters of the King of the Diocese of Colorado will hold their annual conference at the Cathedral.
All Saints’ SundaySunday, November 1 at 8:00, 9:00, 11:15 am, & 6:00 pm � e WildernessPlease join us as we celebrate through worship the Communion of Saints. Holy Baptism at the 9:00 and 11:15 am services.
All Souls’ RequiemSunday, November 1 at 3:00 pm� is year, we are featuring Fauré’s Requiem with chamber orchestra and combined choirs of Saint John’s Cathedral and Saint Andrew’s Episcopal Church.
If you have names of loved ones to remember, please submit remembrances online at sjcathedral.org/Necrology.
Important Instructions for Submitting NamesPlease ensure that you submit the full name of the person you want remembered. We cannot use initials, titles or other abbreviations. If we cannot identify the person adequately, we may not be able to include that name on the list. Please also ensure that we can contact you if we have any questions about a name.
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MUSIC CAMP
GETTING READY FOR MUSIC
by Lyn Loewi
The Music Department held its Music Camp in August for kids ages 5-11. With a focus on singing in a choir setting, the camp introduced music fundamentals, lessons on violin and piano, a daily show-and-tell of musical instruments, and active listening to music.
Remembering Music Camp
“I’ve got shoes, you’ve got shoes
All God’s chillun got shoes
When I get to Heaven, gonna put on my shoes
Gonna walk all over God’s Heaven”
Our theme song for summer music camp was a spiritual sung by slaves with little or no possessions. The song gives a glimpse of Heaven—where all God’s children have enough.
It was perhaps the favorite song of the week, except for the Puerto Rican Sanctus with a lively dance rhythm. “Who knows where this song is from?” I asked. A 5-yr old answered with confi dence, “It’s a salsa from Puerto Rico. I’ve been dancing the salsa since I was in Kindergarten.”
Camp is a little like a wholesome meal. Disguised vegetables include lessons on the violin and piano, concepts in healthy vocal production, instrumental show and tell (jaws dropped when the bagpiper entered the room playing Highland Cathedral), a little Latin, and songs that are good enough musically and theologically to get stuck in their memories for a long time.
Thanks to outstanding teachers, seven youth assistants, and parent volunteers Nina Graczyk and Julie Fifer, we enjoyed a week of smooth sailing.
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Are you interested in singing again in a choir? The Cathedral’s Choirs perform repertoire across several centuries on a weekly basis. Fall rehearsals start August 20. Enjoy the camaraderie, fi ne-tune those vocal cords, and join the choir.
ADULT CHOIRS
Saint John’s Parish Choir and Saint John’s Cathedral Choir are semi-professional ensembles for adults and advanced youth. These are both auditioned choirs. The Parish Choir provides music for the 9:00 am Sunday Eucharist and occasional Diocesan services; the Cathedral Choir provides music for the 11:15 am Eucharist, Evensong, and other special occasions throughout the year. The Choir is some 35 voices strong. If you have experience singing in choirs, can read music well, and are willing to commit to the choir schedule, please consider joining one of these groups. All volunteers start out in the Parish Choir and begin singing all the hymns and service music; based on individual ability, newcomers are gradually “folded in” to the choir, singing more complex material as familiarity with the repertoire and sight reading skills allow.
CHILDREN & YOUTH CHOIRS
The Saint Cecilia Girl Choir and Saint Nicolas Boy Choir are choirs for choristers fourth grade and up. The Saint David Choir is for children ages 5 through fi rst grade. These choirs sing weekly at the 9:00 am Sunday service during the school year (Saint David Choir sings once a month). Through a structured program affi liated with the Royal School of Church Music in America, the choir program provides instruction in the basics of music theory, performance and history.
Please contact Stephen Tappe at 303.577.7727 or [email protected] for more information or visit sjcathedral.org/Music.
C A T H E D R A L
C H O I R S
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M U S I C A T N O O N
E V E N S O N G
Bach, Beethoven, Shostakovich. The 2015-16 concert season focuses on the repertoire of these titan composers. From the unaccompanied cello suites, violin partitas, to the towering St. John’s Passion, the works of J.S. Bach stand above all. Beethoven composed his ten violin sonatas between 1798 and 1812, one of the most important body of work for violin and piano in the literature. These selected sonatas are explored in depth by Jeri Jorgensen and pianist Cullen Bryant over three concerts throughout the season. Dimitri Shostakovich wrote fi fteen string quartets that document his creative life over a period of more than three and a half decades, from his early thirties to his fi nal year of existence. In the spring of 2016, the Colorado Chamber Players tackle quartet nos. 3, 7, and 11.
St. Martin’s Chamber ChoirFriday, October 9, 7:30 pm
Dorothy Papadakos, OrganDr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Silent FilmFriday, October 30, 7:30 pm
Jeri Jorgensen, Violin &Cullen Bryant, PianoBeethoven SonatasFriday, November 13, 7:30 pm
Yi Chen Feng, PianoVirginia Waring International Piano Competition WinnerFriday, November 20, 7:30 pm
Trio CordillerasTuesday, October 13
Brian Hanly, Violin, &William David, PianoTuesday, November 10
These free Pre-Evensong programs run 2:30 to 2:55 pm on the third Sunday of the month, from September to May. These concerts are a prelude to Evensong, a 45-minute service in the English Cathedral tradition, rich in choral music, sung by the Cathedral Choir.
Tamara Goldstein, PianoSunday, October 18
Evans Choir, University of DenverSunday, November 15
Additional concert information can be found online at sjcathedral.org/Concerts
F R I D A Y C O N C E R T S
M U S I C A T S A I N T J O H N ’ S
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NETWORK CAFESaturday, October 24, 8:45 to 12:00 pm Come and practice the ministry of presence and being with at the Network Café. The Network Café, “is not a soup kitchen, a food bank or social services, or a crash pad.” Rather they are about “building long-term redemptive relationships…Christians being friendly” with people who are experiencing homelessness. Registration is limited to people who are at least eighteen years old and to six people. Meet at the Network Café at: 1402 Pearl Street, Denver. Sign up now at sjcathedral.org/DayofService.
PROJECT ANGEL HEARTSaturday, November 7, 10:45 am to 3:00 pm Come and learn more about this community partner that makes meals for people with life-threatening illnesses. At this day of service, we will tour Project Angel Heart, decorate meal bags, and deliver meals. This inter-generational service opportunity is perfect for families as well as individuals. Meet at 4950 Washington Street, Denver. Sign up now at sjcathedral.org/DayofService.
GIVING TREE CHRISTMAS ORNAMENT DECORATINGSaturday, November 14, 9:00 am to 12:00 pm Come and make Christmas tags for the Giving Tree. This family-friendly day of service is perfect for those who enjoy crafts. Meet at Saint John’s Cathedral in Room 107.
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Transition is a time of unknowns. Life in the unknown is an uncomfortable place. The future is unclear. Confusion surrounds us. The known
is deconstructed. Questions fi ll the air: Where are we going? Who are we? Why can we not see the road ahead of us? Who is going to lead Saint John’s?
Did you feel anxiety well up inside you as you read those questions? I do every time. Take a breath. Release the anxiety to God. Lean into the present.
Our natural instincts during this time drive us to make every attempt to fi x “it” and create certainty. We want to speed through this process to give ourselves much needed comfort. We want to bring quick predictability to our lives at the expense of the spiritual growth lying ahead of us as a community.
Since February, the Vestry has worked diligently to move us through a process of fi nding a new Dean. We have been meeting, talking, and planning to form committees and create momentum toward the goal of calling our new pastor.
Through this process, the Vestry formed four search committees. Each committee has been tasked with a specifi c part of the Dean search. More than 60 people accepted an invitation to serve in various roles on these committees. The committees have been commissioned and blessed by the church, and in late August, they were oriented to the search process by the Reverend Canon Lou Blanchard, the Canon Missioner at the Diocese. Each committee is focused on helping Saint John’s fi nd our tenth Dean.
This process creates a long list of tactics, projects, and strategies to move us to the fi nish line. The nagging question, however, underlying this entire project is: Are we following Jesus?
One could say that the answer to this question is “yes” based on the great excitement which fi lled Dagwell Hall in August as the Search Committees were oriented to the search process. This excitement followed the meeting as all four committees met in impromptu
gatherings to begin forming as groups, outlining their work, and making plans for the future. The sight of this unprompted and unplanned time refl ected the passion and dedication of our congregation to the great work ahead of us.
We will complete our man-made process. That’s the easy part. To fulfi ll Jesus’ call to each of us in this time of life in the unknown, however, we must spend time prayerfully contemplating who we are as a faith community and who we long to be. Our real work at this moment is to acknowledge the reality of the present, and to listen to the call of Jesus.
In the coming months, you will have multiple opportunities to refl ect on what Jesus is saying to you about our life together. The Search Profi le Committee is planning a series of listening sessions to harvest your refl ections, and on October 17 the Cathedral will host the second Dream Together Conference. Members of the Search Profi le Committee will take your refl ections and weave them into the portrait of this church that will be the Cathedral Profi le.
The Cathedral Profi le will be a snapshot of who we are as a congregation. This document will share our identity with the world, and how we serve Christ in this community. It will be an honest assessment of our strengths, our weaknesses, and the qualities we need in our next pastor.
At this end of this process, Saint John’s Cathedral will call its tenth Dean. At the Dean’s installation, we will celebrate our new ministry together. The celebration will not be about the person who is the Dean, but will be about our service to Christ in the City of Denver and throughout the Episcopal Church in Colorado. The celebration will be about a rediscovery of our mission, and the amazing opportunity we have to bring that mission to the world.
Until that day, we can live in the space of the unknown with joy and excitement knowing that Jesus is leading us. Are you listening for His call?
WHERE IS JESUS LEADING US?by Ashley Bracken, Junior Warden
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Search Profile CommitteeThe Search Profile Committee is responsible for producing the Cathedral Profile, a document describing the life Saint John’s Cathedral, our ministries, our people, our history and our future.
Mary Ellen Williams, Co-ChairSusan Chenier, Co-ChairDavid Abbott, VestryDavid Ball, VestryAnna Pendleton, VestryTim Dunbar, Ex OfficioDavid Barr, Committee MemberScott Barker, Committee MemberTimmy Case, Committee MemberKathleen DeMars, Committee MemberEverett Engstrom, Committee MemberBarbara Gillett, Committee MemberPatti Howell, Committee MemberAnn Jones, Committee MemberMary Laird Stewart, Committee MemberTyler Mahan, Committee MemberBill Murane, Committee MemberLillian Montez de Oca, Committee MemberMark Queirolo, Committee MemberAngie Thompson, Committee MemberMike Orr, ScribeKris Stoever, Scribe
Search Interview CommitteeThe Search Interview Committee is responsible for reviewing all clergy candidates who apply to be Dean. This committee will receive and process all resumes, conduct all interviews, decide which candidates to bring to Denver for onsite interviews, and make a recommendation to the Vestry about which candidates the Vestry should consider as the next Dean.
Jay Swope, Co-ChairDiane Barrett, Co-ChairAshley Bracken, VestryMike McCall, VestryLarry Kueter, Ex OfficioLise Barbour, Committee MemberJim East, Committee MemberJack Finlaw, Committee MemberHeidi Harris, Committee MemberJohn Lake, Committee MemberCarolyn McCormick, Committee MemberMichael Vente, Committee MemberThom Williams, Committee Member
Search Hospitality CommitteeThe Search Hospitality Committee is responsible for making all travel arrangements for any clergy candidate and his or her family who is brought to Denver for an onsite interview. This committee will also coordinate and plan the clergy candidate’s itinerary including all interviews, social events, Cathedral tours, and city tours.
Sandy Mazarakis, Co-ChairBrad Case, Co-ChairJack Denman, VestryLeo Carosella, Committee MemberMichael Cawthra, Committee MemberMargaret Cawthra, Committee MemberRoz Greene, Committee MemberAbby Humphrey, Committee MemberBill Humphrey, Committee MemberChina Kent, Committee MemberMike Koechner, Committee MemberLaurie MacArthur, Committee MemberWilliam McMechen, Committee MemberLinda Paysinger, Committee MemberSusi Tattersall, Committee Member
Search Integration CommitteeThe Search Integration Committee is responsible for integrating the new Dean into the community of Saint John’s. This committee will assist with the planning of the installation of the new Dean [delete comma] and will serve as a resource for the Interim Dean and the new Dean regarding institutional knowledge, Cathedral history, and the community of Denver.
Tom Stoever, Co-ChairCarolyn Daniels, Co-ChairTamra d’Estrée, VestryJen Courtney-Keyse, VestrySue Abbott, Committee MemberJulie Fletcher, Committee MemberNewt Klusmire, Committee MemberPamela Kniss, Committee MemberCarol Miller, Committee MemberBeth Springer, Committee Member
For more information about the Dean Search process, please visit sjcathedral.org/DeanSearch.
“In this interim time between Deans, we will not get very far if we go in search of the pastor or set out to pre-pare for the pastor [or] the shepherd who will rescue us, perhaps from ourselves or from our past or from what-ever we think we need to be saved from. Because that shepherd we already have in the Lord Jesus. . . . And so the question above all questions we need to be asking ourselves in the months ahead—these months of transi-tion, these months toward a new Dean—is ‘Where is Jesus leading us?’” —Father Patrick Malloy, July 19, 2015
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by Father Charles LaFond
You must have had the experience—I know I have—of shrinking back.
It happens between people all the time. One arrives at a dinner party only to see that one person whose kind invitation last week went unacknowledged. Things were busy and there was that funeral and it was tax season and you forgot to respond to the invitation. It was lovely—handmade even, with colorful paper and a personal note saying how much the friend was looking forward to seeing you. And you forgot to respond. It was last month. You hadn’t spoken since, and there she was, across the room beside the tray of shrimp cocktail. Oh, darn, you say to yourself, she has seen me (strained smile, gentle wave), but she turned away. Did she see me? Is she angry? No way of knowing. One knows only that the relationship is strained.
It happens between people all the time. Remember the days when we were young? Remember when we all tumbled into houses together sharing a house and dividing up the rent? Or remember traveling with friends when we all stayed up late and laughed hard? Remember when the bill came and we were all poor? Remember the guy who never really paid his part? Never calculated a tip? Do you remember the strain in the relationship when the rent came due and Jack was short? Again. And he was eating food others had put in the fridge? A robust, fresh relationship becomes strained. Warmth of friendship cools. Strained smiles. Avoidance. Watching TV in two different rooms, alone.
It happens between people all the time. In a family it happens. The one member who will not participate in the chores? They live in the house. They benefit from its shelter in a storm. They use its glasses for sodas and leave them on sidetables. On the floor. Socks are left by the bed. They promise to sweep the kitchen floor, but then they don’t. Or if they do, the broom never quite gets all the corners, or the hall from the kitchen. Strained smiles. Anxiety for an hour, when the chore would have taken five minutes. Needless suffering.
Rehearsed speeches: “She is part of this family! We do our chores! Why does she live by different . . . ”
It happens between people all the time. In friendships it happens. In families it happens. Strain. Resentment. Hurt. Withholding.
But what also happens is joy, self-giving, release. That too can happen, and does happen, in a friendship and in a family and in a church: Joy, self-giving, release.
An annoyance we’re to endure—that’s how we frame the annual pledge campaign. Like the roll of my eyes when I turn on Colorado Public Radio to hear the programming laced with two people talking about giving. I gave! I did! Why do I have to listen to that when I gave early?
Why? Because we are a family. On public radio, we are a family of listeners. We are a family of art-lovers at the museum. At Saint John’s we are a family that worships, prays, believes, serves, gives. Receives.
The annual pledge campaign is not a ‘necessary evil’ that makes us wince until it is over. The annual pledge campaign is an invitation to relationship. It is a training ground. It raises money for the mission of our church. In a perfect world, we would be so thrilled with what God has given to us and so thrilled with what our church does in the world, that we would all pledge so munificently on the second day of the campaign that it would be shut down and we could get on with our mission. But it’s not a perfect world. Wonderful, yes, but not perfect.
So we train. We train in being faithful, as Mary and John were faithful at the foot of the cross. We train in supporting ministry, as the women of Luke’s gospel supported Jesus’ ministry, generously. We train in relaxing our grip on the money we have, just as the Israelites accepted unwelcome temple exile and began to face each other instead of facing the curtain, behind which God was veiled. Or so they imagined. We train ourselves, like athletes, giving away what we have to others; giving as the widow gave her mite;
Family Talk.
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giving as the lovers from Song of Songs gave to each other; giving as Jesus gave the fi shes and loaves; giving as Mary and John gave at the foot of the cross. Giving as Jesus gave, on the cross, pouring out His life so we might live, abundantly. Giving, as the apostles gave, in the age of martyrdom.
The stewardship campaign is not about $1,200 or $600 or $150 or $4,500 on a card, sent in after weeks of my unseemly and incessant begging. The stewardship campaign at Saint John’s is about joyful relationships—among professed Christians who do their part.
You may not know that the average pledge in the Episcopal Church is $2,800.
The members at Saint John’s are like any other Episcopalian. Yet they give an average of $1,800. They need to give more. Yet every year the Saint John’s pledges come in well below what they should be.
My pledge is 10 percent of my income. Why? Not because I am holy (although I aspire to be holy). I pledge (and give) because I want unstrained relationships with the people with whom I work and worship at Saint John’s. I pledge (and give) because I want an unstrained relationship with God, who gave me all I have and who I know expects a portion returned. I pledge (and give) because I am training, like an athlete, in the exercise of self-giving and self-off ering to do my part in this family we call church.
It happens between people all the time. They give, joyfully, enthusiastically. Not because they are paying their membership dues but because they are training, like athletes, to be in community, with each other and with their God. Pledging (and giving) is not a logistical act with spiritual implications. It is a spiritual act with logistical implications. Make your pledge now at
sjcathedral.org/pledge.
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HOUSING MINISTRYWHI: The Women’s Homeless Initiative (WHI) has, for the past three years, offered overnight refuge to homeless women. This partnership among faith communities, WHI, and CHUM proavides shelter for twenty women, 365 days out of the year. As a Monday night host site, Saint John’s Cathedral shelters women on alternating months. This overnight- housing mission has transformed the lives of the guests and of the lay volunteers. To volunteer, please email Sue Abbott at [email protected].
Community Partners:Housing Ministry’s Community Partners include: Habitat for Humanity, the Saint Francis Center, and Urban Peak. Throughout the year, the Cathedral devotes a day of service, to one of these Community Partners. The purpose of the Day of Service is to provide parishioners with the opportunity to be introduced to our Community Partners and discern if it is a place that they’d like to pursue serving in the future. Community Partner Liaisons:
• Habitat for Humanity: Kristi Pounds, [email protected]• Saint Francis Center: Vicky Buffington, [email protected]• Urban Peak: Ashley Bracken, [email protected]
SeASONAL GIVINGThree giving opportunities include the Loaves & Fishes, the Giving Tree, and Gifts for Life. Loaves and Fishes is an enactment of the feeding of the 5,000, where God’s abundance and grace overflows the baskets. Through the month of July, parishioners collect food stuffs requested by Metro Caring Hunger Relief Center. The Giving Tree provides gifts for people in need over the holidays. Community partners provide gift lists to a volunteer coordinator who ensures that each gift-need tag is placed on a tree. Gifts for people in need are collected mid-November thru mid-December. On the final drop-off date, parishioners gather to organize and deliver gifts to community partners who distribute the gifts. Also during Advent, parishioners can participate in an alternative gift market. Episcopal Relief and Development’s Gifts for Life offers parishioners the opportunity to purchase gifts that fight poverty, hunger, and disease worldwide in honor of someone’s name. To learn about how to get involved in this service opportunity, click here. Seasonal Giving Leaders:
• Loaves and Fishes: Beverly Brown, [email protected]• Giving Tree: Ed Watson, [email protected] • ERD Gifts for Life: Ed Watson, [email protected]
• Member of ERD Board of Directors: Tom Stoever, [email protected]
FAIT
H IN AcTION
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HUNGeR ReLIeFCathedral Cooperative of Gardeners (CCG): CCG is powered by 20-plus gardener- missioners who plant, tend, and deliver freshly harvested produce throughout the growing season. Partnering with Grow Local Colorado, CCG members tend and harvest the food gardens at the Governor’s Mansion and help with DUG community gardens across the street. They are host- site coordinators for a CSA (Community-Supported Agriculture), delivering unclaimed shares weekly to Metro Caring. On Sundays, they collect parishioner- grown produce for Monday delivery to Metro Caring For more information, email Perry Beaton at [email protected].
Bee Keeping: Because honeybees are excellent partners in hunger-relief, Hunger Relief will also assist with the Saint John’s beehive ministry. For more information please contact Ed Watson at [email protected].
Cathedral Learning Garden is a partnership between Saint John’s Cathedral, Metro Caring, and Denver Urban Gardens (DUG). This community garden with a specialized mission, the Cathedral Learning Garden (CLG) has goals: (1) to alleviate local hunger and malnourishment, and (2) to provide guest gardeners with key neighborhood connections, irrigated garden beds, and economic opportunity for self-sufficiency. This hunger relief project is still being planned, and could use your support, if you are interested in learning more about it, please be in touch with Mother Liz Costello at [email protected] or Kris Stoever at [email protected].
Community Partners:Hunger Relief Ministry Partners include: Metro Caring, Project Angel Heart, Grant Farms, and Denver Urban Gardens. Throughout the year, the Cathedral devotes a day of service, to one of these Community Partners. The purpose of the Day of Service is to provide parishioners with the opportunity to be introduced to our Community Partners and discern if it is a place that they’d like to pursue serving in the future. Community Partner Liaisons:
• Metro Caring and Denver Urban Gardens: Kris Stoever, [email protected].• Project Angel Heart: Fred Applehans, [email protected].• Governor’s Mansion and Grant Farms: Perry Beaton, [email protected].
FAIT
H IN AcTIONAT SAINT JOHN’S
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The Giving Trees:Following in the Footsteps of Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas, or Saint Nikolaos of Myra (modern-day Turkey), was a 4th-century bishop, later named a saint. According to tradition, he shared
his wealth with poor children, secretly leaving them gifts, such as coins in the shoes left outside for him. He later became the model for North America’s Santa Claus, whose name evolved from mispronunciations of the Dutch Sinterklaas. While we may associate Santa Claus with a secular holiday, he is modeled after Saint Nicholas, known for his care of poor children and celebrated in the Episcopal Church calendar on December 6. This Advent, we continue to follow in the footsteps of Saint Nicholas through the Giving Tree. The Giving Tree is our way of caring for poor children and for their families during the holiday season. At the November Day of Service, families will have the opportunity to create ornaments for the Giving Trees. This Day of Service is scheduled on Saturday, November 14, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm in Room 107.
Please register online at sjcathedral.org/DayofService.
To join in following in the steps of Saint Nicholas, we are invited to participate in the annual Giving Tree. On Saturday, November 28, we will hang the ornaments on the Christmas trees to prepare for the kick-off scheduled for the first Sunday of Advent, November 29. The Giving Trees will be displayed in the Cathedral, the Welcome Center, and in Dagwell Hall. You are invited to take ornaments home and attach the ornaments to gifts when you drop them off. Gifts can be dropped off at the Cathedral on Sundays by placing the gift under the Giving Tree in the Cathedral. During the week, please ask a Welcome Center volunteer where to drop off your gift. Each ornament indicates a drop-off date and agency. If you would like to help deliver gifts on December 13, at our next Day of Service, please register online at sjcathedral.org/DayofService. For any additional questions, feel free to contact Ed Watson at [email protected].
by Mother Liz Costello
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Giving TreesEach year, Saint John’s Cathedral collects gifts and cash donations for selected agencies that we support and serve. Please select an ornament tag that describes a gift or gift-card request from the Giving Trees with the drop-off date (some agencies need the gifts sooner than others). The color-coded ornaments signify the agency to receive the gifts. In addition to color-coded ornaments, envelopes will be available on the trees to accept cash donations to help purchase additional gifts (or gifts that do not get selected).
The following agencies are identified by color-coded ornaments on the Giving Trees:
Brown ornaments: The Delores Project provides safe, comfortable overnight shelter and services to unaccompanied women who are homeless and have limited resources.
Yellow ornaments: Urban Peak assists young people in overcoming homelessness and other real-life challenges.
Purple ornaments: CHARG Resource Center improves the quality of life for mentally ill persons through advocacy, peer support, and recreation.
Red ornaments: SafeHouse Denver serves victims of domestic violence and their children through both an emergency shelter and a nonresidential Counseling and Advocacy Center.
Orange ornaments: Sudanese Community Church is a special congregation hosted by Saint John’s.
White ornaments: Family HomeStead exists to house homeless families and end homelessness for individual families in their program in Metro Denver. It is the only Metro Denver agency to provide both emergency and transitional housing in individual units, as well as supportive case management, exclusively to homeless families with children.
Green ornaments: EarthLinks provides a work program for people who are homeless and low-income to learn skills and create earth-friendly products that sustain the people and the planet.
Pink ornaments: Women’s Homeless Initiative (WHI) meets at Saint John’s Cathedral every other month on every Monday night. WHI provides overnight shelter for 22 women who are homeless.
Blue ornaments: Family Promise provides shelter, meals, and support services to homeless families in the Denver area.
Behind the agencies are people. Your gifts will go directly to the people served by these agencies. Thank you in advance for your generosity.
Welcome to Family Ministries at Saint John’sIt’s often hard for families to fi gure out how to bring faith into their lives at home in a way that feels comfortable and relevant. But it’s something that our children need more than ever as they grow up in a culture that seems largely disconnected from God. It’s important for them to know what their families hold to be true and good and for them to take part in spiritual practices that will guide and sustain them. We learn together how to follow Jesus. And perhaps we adults—even more than our children—need to learn to slow down and make some time for God.
How do you fi nd what will work for your family? We have several resources in place already, and will off er more in the weeks and months to come. One way is to help your children apply the story from Godly Play to their everyday lives. The take-home pages we provide each week (also on the website) will help parents review the story and fi nd questions to help get the conversation started.
Another way is to read the Family Life eNewsletter, where we will highlight a resource or give a message. The resources are designed to be used whenever your family has some time together. One child actually brought a candle to the dinner table to announce: “Our family needs some Sabbath time! “ We all do. And so, we’ll provide resources for holy conversations, prayers and spiritual practices you can try. Look for them in the Family Life eNewsletter, or on the website at sjcathedral.org/Parents.
Nursery CareOur nursery is a cheerful, safe and welcoming environment for our very youngest members, staff ed by professional caregivers as well as volunteers. All are trained to ensure your child’s stay is safe in every way. Please check the website for more information or contact Kim McPherson at [email protected].
Sundays 8:30 am - 12:45, ages 0-3 5:30 - 7:30 pm for The Wilderness, any age
Wednesdays 4:00 - 9:00 pm, all ages
3: Children and Families Potluck. 4:30 to 7:30 pm at the Herndon-Paré home. Join with other families to get to know one another and share great food. RSVP at sjcathedral.org/potluck.
4: Kids Pledge, Too! Kickoff . 10:15 am, Saint Francis Chapel. Come to fi nd out how your child can begin a practice of helping to make the mission of Saint John’s possible.
11: Safeguarding God’s Children. 1:00 to 4:30 pm in Room 200. For parents, Adult Acolytes, Lay Eucharistic Visitors, Teachers, Youth Leaders, Nursery Volunteers, and other adults of Saint John’s! More info and RSVP at sjcathedral.org/Parents.
23-25: Quest: Fall Youth Retreat. For youth in grades 6 to 12. A spiritual retreat where youth will refl ect on topics like prayer, service, and fellowship through small group discussion, hands on learning, engaging speakers, games, and arts and crafts. Register at sjcathedral.org/Quest.
30: Youth Pre-Halloween Event. We’ll grab some food and head to the Cathedral to watch Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, accompanied by the Kimball organ to bring to life this early horror fi lm.
1: Parents Come to Class Day. Parents are invited to accompany their children to Godly Play or SOWhAT to share the experience, understand our formation in more depth, and to learn about ‘bringing it home.’
18: Stewardship Celebration. The Nursery is open and children of all ages are welcome.
22: Advent Preparation for all ages. 4:15 to 6:00 pm. Come to make an Advent wreath for your home and discover ways to fi nd meaning in this busy season of getting ready for the coming of the Christ child. RSVP at sjcathedral.org/AdventPrep.
29: Thanksgiving Break. No classes on this day.
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Wednesday Christian Formation for Children4:15 – 5:10 pm, Room 103, for Ages 4 - 9, Wednesdays. If you missed Sunday’s class, or if your child is a chorister and would like to come on Wednesdays, this time slot is perfect for you! Our Director of Religious Education, Kim McPherson, shares stories, wonders with the children, and invites them to respond to the stories of our tradition through play, art, and other experiences.
Sunday Christian Formation for Children
Sundays at 9:00 am, Ages 3 & up, Saint Francis Chapel, 2nd Floor.Children are engaged during the first part of the service (the Liturgy of the Word) in very child-friendly fashion, including lesson, prayers, confession and music. Parents may drop off children or remain in Chapel with them. Chapel-goers join their families in the Cathedral in time for Communion, and enter the front of the Cathedral on the East side. Children and parents are invited to come forward at Communion to sit on the carpet.
Sundays at 10:15 am, Ages 3 - 3rd Grade.In Godly Play, we create a safe and beautiful space where children are deeply respected as they see, hear, and wonder about stories from the Bible or another part of our Episcopal tradition. Using hands-on materials and wondering questions to reflect on the story together, children then choose from a variety of materials—story materials, art supplies, building materials, books, silence materials—to make their own creative responses, and to help make the stories truly their own. Prayers and a feast (snack) round out the session.
• 3-4 year olds: Preschool Godly Play, Room 101• K-1st Grades: Godly Play Class, Room 103• 2nd-3rd Grades: Godly Play for Older Kids, Room 202
Sundays at 10:15 am, 4th - 5th Grade, Room 204, 2nd Floor.SOWhAT stands for: Stories, Outreach, Wonder, Arts, & Theology. At this age, children are ready for more…more insight, more activities, and more sophisticated art projects. Now that the Bible stories learned in Godly Play are part of their experience, they can delve more deeply. This year, SOWhAT will work with the creation story, delving into the mystery and meaning contained in each of the “days” from our Episcopal perspective, a complementary approach that honors both science and theology. This class will deeply engage in wondering, finding meaning, and reaching out to people in need.
Sunday Formation for YouthSundays at 10:15 am.Our mission is to help our youth build a community of love and trust. This is a place where teens can engage their faith in relevant ways, find ways to be the hands of Christ in the world, and have fun doing it together! After the 9:00 am service, Middle School Youth (grades 6-8) gather in Room 300 for refreshments, conversation, and activities all built around the theme of creating a ‘rule of life’ for themselves — ways to live the very best life possible. We encourage questions and conversation in a trusting atmosphere, and we offer other extended-time faith-building opportunities too: retreats, mission trips, and Cathedral Camp.
Sundays at 10:15 am.Senior Youth (9-12th grades) gather for weekly teaching with Father Jadon and other adult leaders in Room 200. The atmosphere is conversational, fun, and encourages teens to confirm both what they believe and what they struggle with as they encounter the challenges of living lives of faith. Participation in these Sunday morning gatherings also prepare youth for Confirmation at the Easter Vigil in the spring. These weekly meetings complement a number of seasonal “away days” that allow for even greater depth of community and spiritual growth. For more information about our High School programming or Confirmation, please contact [email protected].
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