St. Nicholas Episcopal Church The Crier Inside this issue: Fresh Vegetables for Free 2 Food Donations 2 SOSDOK 2 In your prayers... 2 Finances 3 COVID 19 Updates 3 Prayer Requests 3 Virtual Services 3 Community Needs 3 Food & Rent Assistance 3 September Birthdays & Anniversaries 4 Circle of Care Teams 4 ECMN News 4 Habits of Grace with Bishop Curry 4 The Rector Reads…. 4 Missional Cohort … 5 Multicultural Faith Comm 5 The People of God are…. 5 Vestry Minutes 6 Vestry Members 7 VEAP Corner 8 Service Times VIRTUAL SERVICES DURING PANDEMIC Latino Service Saturday 6:00 pm On Facebook English Service Sunday 10:30 am on Zoom Compline On Facebook Monday-Saturday 7:30pam Rector’s Remarks September 2020 Volume 70, Issue 9 Dear Faithful, Be present, O merciful God, and pro- tect us through the hours of this night, so that we who are wearied by the changes and chances of this life may rest in your eternal changeless- ness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer, page 133) As we continue to enjoy beautiful summer days, I am also aware of a slight early morning nip in the air, and that youth in Minnesota are making plans to return to school. Fall is heading our way. God prom- ises that our lives will constantly change, and God promises new life. I love this prayer (above) from our Compline service because it reminds me that only God, and God’s stead- fast presence and love does NOT change. We may feel that this pan- demic time is a dark night of the soul, but God promises new life through Jesus Christ. As we continue to shelter in place, and minimize our activities and ex- posure to large public gatherings, we are likely wondering when we will be returning to our church buildings. In last week meeting with our Bishop, Craig Loya, he informed us that return- ing to our buildings will not happen soon. He has given us certain benchmarks and we, as a state, are not even close to reaching those benchmarks. For more infor- mation, please follow this link: https:// episcopalmn.org/covid19- response In the meantime, we carry on as a people of God (the church) without our buildings. We continue to live into the life that Jesus models for us by lov- ing our neighbor as ourselves, and by doing the good work to create God’s Beloved Community here in our midst. I continue to pray with and for your health and safety during this time of pandemic. God is with you and gives you strength and courage to carry on. Enjoy the beautiful summer days! Grace and Peace, Rev. Julie
Transcript
St. Nicholas Episcopal Church
The
Crier
Inside this issue:
Fresh Vegetables for Free 2
Food Donations 2
SOSDOK 2
In your prayers... 2
Finances 3
COVID 19 Updates 3
Prayer Requests 3
Virtual Services 3
Community Needs 3
Food & Rent Assistance 3
September Birthdays & Anniversaries
4
Circle of Care Teams 4
ECMN News 4
Habits of Grace with Bishop Curry
4
The Rector Reads…. 4
Missional Cohort … 5
Multicultural Faith Comm 5
The People of God are…. 5
Vestry Minutes 6
Vestry Members 7
VEAP Corner 8
Service Times
VIRTUAL SERVICES
DURING PANDEMIC
Latino Service
Saturday 6:00 pm
On Facebook
English Service
Sunday 10:30 am
on Zoom
Compline
On Facebook
Monday-Saturday 7:30pam
Rector’s Remarks
September 2020 Volume 70, Issue 9
Dear Faithful,
Be present, O merciful God, and pro-tect us through the hours of this night, so that we who are wearied by the changes and chances of this life may rest in your eternal changeless-ness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer, page 133)
As we continue to enjoy beautiful summer days, I am also aware of a slight early morning nip in the air, and that youth in Minnesota are making plans to return to school. Fall is heading our way. God prom-ises that our lives will constantly change, and God promises new life. I love this prayer (above) from our Compline service because it reminds me that only God, and God’s stead-fast presence and love does NOT change. We may feel that this pan-demic time is a dark night of the soul, but God promises new life through Jesus Christ.
As we continue to shelter in place, and minimize our activities and ex-
posure to large public gatherings, we are likely wondering when we will be returning to our church buildings. In last week meeting with our Bishop, Craig Loya, he informed us that return-
ing to our buildings will not happen soon. He has given us certain benchmarks and we, as a state, are not even close to reaching those benchmarks. For more infor-mation, please follow this link: https://episcopalmn.org/covid19-response
In the meantime, we carry on as a people of God (the church) without our buildings. We continue to live into the life that Jesus models for us by lov-ing our neighbor as ourselves, and by doing the good work to create God’s Beloved Community here in our midst.
I continue to pray with and for your health and safety during this time of pandemic. God is with you and gives you strength and courage to carry on.
Reba & Johnny Khodai Mike & Helen Mudgett Michael Anderson
Maria Ramono La Familia Carretero
Linares Natividad Vildozola Rojas Shelby Rojas La Familia Benitez La Familia Aguirre Brandon Betty, Patty, Tom Bruce & Jill Joshua Miller
Jill Aicher Mary Bolen Fran Merriman Kathy Gasser Cheyanne Davidson Kerry Banks Patty Bringle Richard Miller Bruce Husbands Perce Cody Charlie & Patty Engrem Very Rt. Craig Loya, Bishop of
Minnesota Dan & Ruth, and Cheyanna &
Mariah Flaherty
Donna, Kristin, Jeff & Livia Marilyn Iverson Sally Parsons Jean H. Baby Oliver Tesersk Karen Bessler Ashley Delameter & her partner,
Helen and Helen’s parents, Faina & Jeff
All affected by the Covid 19 virus & those working on a solution.
Respect for the dignity of every human life
Our Latino brothers & sisters The men & women of our armed forces
Fresh Vegetables for Free
Springs of Shalom Chapter of Daughters of the King
(SOSDOK)
Meets at 10 a.m. on the 1st Monday of each month (except when it’s a holiday, then meeting moves to the
2nd Monday)
NEXT MEETING NO MEETING
until further notice
In partnership with St. John the Evangelist who purchases produce from local immi-grant farmers and gives them away to food shelves and other churches, St. Nicholas will receive a load of vegetables each Saturday and give them away at 2:00 at the church. We ask that you pull up in your car and we will place the bag in your car. We currently have two youth that are helping to sort the vegetables into bags. If you are interested in volunteering, con-tact Rev. Julie.
Food Donations
Nativity Episcopal Church in Burnsville and the Youth and Young Adult Program at St. John the Evangelist collected food that St. Nicholas gave away to those in our community experiencing food scar-city. If you would like to donate food, here is a list of most requested items.
2-5 pounds of rice
4 pounds of dry beans (black or pinto)
1 large container of oatmeal
pasta
1-2 jars of pasta sauce
2 cans of chicken
2 cans of tuna
4 cans of tomatoes (diced or sauce)
2 can of green chilies
2 cans of Enchilada sauce
1 pkg raisins
1 large package tortillas (corn)
1 bottle of cooking oil (vegetable oil)
Thank you to
Cyara and
Cindy for
sorting the
donated food!
Page 3
Prayer Requests
Barb McConnell is collecting prayer requests from our com-munity. You can call her at (952) 500-2363 or send her an e-mail at [email protected]. Prayer requests must be sent to Barb by Noon on Friday to be included in the weekly prayer list. If she receives it after that, it will go on the following week’s list.
Please know that Rev. Julie prays for you daily. Please pray for all God’s Beloved children that we may work together to care for the ill, the vulnerable, the lonely, and all those suffering from the loss of jobs.
Virtual Services
St. Nicholas Pledges and Plate Offering
Our faith community gratefully relies on your pledges and plate offerings to keep our building open, pay salaries, and offer programs. If you are able, please mail check to the church while we are waiting out the COVID-19 virus. St. Nicholas,
7227 Penn Avenue, Richfield, MN 55423. If you have any questions about your pledge or how to continue your support of St. Nicholas, please contact Steve Slocum at (952) 545-8884.
Morning Prayer on Sundays Please join your St. Nicholas faith community in Sunday Morning Prayer at 10:30 am on Zoom. Rev. Julie sends out the Zoom link each week along with the readings, a reflec-tion and prayers. Morning Prayer begins on page 75 in The Book of Common Prayer.
Compline Every Evening
Please join Rev. Julie for Compline on our St. Nicholas Facebook page each evening at 7:30. Compline begins on page 127 of The Book of Common Prayer.
Need a Prayer Book? As we moved our services online, may of us have discovered that our Book of Common Prayer is not current. If you’d like a current one, please let Sharon and Dick know and they may be able to drop one at your house (612-708-1322).
COVID19 Updates
Please let me know if you are in need of groceries or need an errand run. Our St. Nicholas faith community may be able to assist with that. Families from our Saturday service are beginning to experience economic hardship as they lose employment to do the COVID19 pandemic. Neptali and I are collecting monetary and food donations to assist with rent and groceries. Episcopal churches in the Twin Cities have generously donated to this fund.
The latest from the Bishop’s Office concerning the re-opening of churches is found in this link: https://episcopalmn.org/ECMN%20Faith%20Communities%20Phases%20of%20Re-Gathering%206.23.20.pdf
Community Needs
Families from our Saturday service continue to experi-ence economic hardship as they lose employment due to the COVID19 pandemic. Thank you to our St. Nicholas community for generously supporting our Latino fami-lies. Padre Neptali and Rev. Julie continue to collect monetary and food donations to assist with rent and groceries. If you would like to donate food, paper prod-ucts and baby diapers, please contact Padre Neptali at [email protected] or 651-295-7481. If you would like to make a monetary donation please make out your check to St. Nicholas Episcopal Church with Rector Dis-cretionary Fund in the memo line. Mail checks to the church: 7227 Penn Avenue, Richfield, MN 55423.
Food & Rent Assistance Fund
September birthdays 2 Terry Houle 15 Richard Miller 4 Doris Ritter 22 Becky Knoblach 12 Pam Banks 25 Gayle Ticen 13 Ann Bottolene
September anniversaries 10 Nancy & Don Rowley 12 Hema Gouindaraju & Jonathan Pandiaraj
Bishop Michael Curry Each week, our Presiding Bishop Michael Curry is offer-ing a brief meditation that he is calling “Habits of Grace.” To join him, you can use this link. https://episcopalchurch.org/posts/publicaffairs/habits-grace-april-13-2020-invitation-you-presiding-bishop-curry
Episcopal News To learn about everything that is happening in the Episco-pal Church in Minnesota visit: https://episcopalmn.org
To learn about the events in our national Episcopal Church, visit: https://episcopalchurch.org
Circle of Care Teams During this pandemic, we have created Circle of Care
Teams. Each Team has a leader that will contact each of
his/her team each week. This is a way for us to stay in
touch and be connected during this time of physical dis-
tancing.
In our Christian tradition, our ability to gather for wor-
ship and fellowship is a basic tenet of our faith. We are
a communal church that gathers each week to share the
sacred meal of Holy Communion. I am deeply missing
that holy time spent together praying and worshiping.
When it is not possible to physically be together, making
phone calls and sharing our stories with each other is a
great way to be in touch. If you haven’t already received
a call, please expect a call in the near future. Here is a
list of questions that your Care Team leader may ask.
Do you need someone to get groceries for you?
Do you need help with childcare or eldercare?
Do you need money to pay for food or rent?
Do you have any other needs that are not being met that we could help with?
Do you have any spiritual needs that you would like us to pray for?
And, as always, please call me if you’d like to talk or pray
over the phone. My cell phone is 651-253-7379.
Peace to you! Julie
The Rector Reads (and watches films)…
In an effort to educate myself about our pandemic of racism, I have read the following books and watched the following films. I would encourage you ask your inde-pendent bookstore for book suggestions, and I’d be happy to recommend a book or two.
How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi This book explores the potential elimination of racism through the creation of antiracist policies. It is a thought provoking book that forces one to rethink racism from many cultural lenses, and challenges one to examine his/her own racism shaped by hundreds of years of racist ideology.
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin Written in 1963, this book contains two essays written by Baldwin, and despite the lapse in time, could have been written in 2020. Baldwin describes racism as he experi-enced it, and his story jarred me to confront the reality that we have not made much progress in eliminating racism.
The Cross and the Lynching Tree by James H. Cone This book explores the intersection of Jesus’ cross and the lynching tree in the history of African American reality and our American racist ideology. The cross despite a tool of cruel murder represents new life in the form of Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. The lynching tree was also a tool of cruel and unjust murder. Cone examines the power of new life in Jesus hung on a tree with that of the resiliency of the black body surviving during our dark history of lynching.
13th is a 2016 documentary film directed by Ava DuVernay that exposes the intersection between race, justice, and mass incarceration in the United States.
I Am Not Your Negro is a 2016 documentary directed by Raoul Peck. It follows the life of James Baldwin as written in one of his unfinished manuscripts. Baldwin speaks of racism, and discusses memories of the civil rights move-ment and its leaders.
It is an honor that Rev. Julie and our St. Nicholas commu-nity have been chosen to participate in the 2020-21 Mis-sional Cohort for Episcopal Leaders. Our new Bishop, Craig Loya, recommended that Rev. Julie participate in the Missional Cohort to better understand the complexi-ties and challenges of our changing church in America. This program is fully funded by a Hamilton and Mildred Kellogg Trust grant given to Luther Seminary. The pro-gram is lead by Episcopal priests,The Rev. Blair Pogue (St. Matthew’s in St. Paul), and The Rev. Dwight Zschiele (Luther Seminary Professor). Rev. Julie will be doing some research so she may be asking a lot of questions of you. If you are willing to be a conversation partner in this process, let Rev. Julie know.
This excerpt describes the Missional Cohort. It is from this link: https://faithlead.luthersem.edu/communities/episcopal-cohort/
Leaders in the church face massive challenges on two fronts. Leaders are challenged with understanding a plural-ist culture that no longer supports Christian identity and practice, and leading faith communities through processes of learning, adaptation and innovation in mission.
Meaningful engagement with complex challenges like these functions best in communities of peers who mutu-ally encourage, support, challenge and deepen one an-other, while being held accountable to a disciplined struc-ture of action and reflection under the guidance of experi-enced mentors and coaches.
The Missional Leadership Cohort is a structured learning community that offers teaching, mentorship and account-ability for church leaders in partnership with committed peers and faculty and staff. It offers the promise of inten-sive, transformational leadership development for a mis-sionary church with flexibility and accommodation for the demands facing full-time, working priests.
Saint Nicholas is part of a network of multicultural faith community in Minnesota. Our community includes European Americans, African and East Indian immi-grants, Native Americans, and Latino families. Other Episcopal communities consist of Hmong, Karen (Ka’Ren), African immigrants, Caribbean immigrants, Af-rican Americans, and Native Americans. We are blessed with rich, interesting, and diverse cultures from which
we can learn. In order to garner support and resources for multicultural faith communities, members of these churches are meet-ing weekly to learn from each other, talk about their needs, and advocate for equitable inclusion in the dioce-san budget. If you would like to participate in these dis-cussions, please let Rev. Julie know.
Multicultural Faith Communities
Below is an excerpt from an article written by Sandi Villarreal that ap-peared in Sojourner’s on March 9, 2012. Despite the fact that it was writ-ten 8 years ago, the content is relevant to our current state of not gather-ing in our church buildings. It continues to be a challenge to navigate Zoom, phone calls, and Facebook Live, and at the same time, I am in-credibly grateful for this technology that allows us to connect.
As always, we define “the church” as the people of God. So we do not need to be gathered in a building to be the church. Another arti-cle I read spoke of the church as people that care for God’s people. We continue to do this with weekly phone calls, feeding the hungry, and caring for the most vulnerable in our midst. Carry on and con-tinue to do work as people of God who create “the church” here on earth and in our community.
To read the full article, follow this link: https://sojo.net/articles/gods-church-not-building
When the New Testament mentions “the church,” it is talking about the people—the body of Christ—who received the Holy Spirit and are sent to tell the Gospel.
The Greek word ekklesia refers to “the gathered ones,” or believers
called into community with God. The book of Acts ascribes emotions and actions to the church. “Great fear seized the whole church” (Acts 5:11) and “the church sent them on their way” (Acts 15:3). When you look at it this way, you’re not “going to church”—you are the church.
Christians, of course, know this. But our Americanized idea of success—even success in membership—equaled bigger sanctuaries, sound booths, daycare centers and multi-million dollar building projects. Churches became communities in and of themselves—in the commu-nity, but not with the community.
When we follow a biblical model, we can see that little time was spent worrying about where to meet and what accoutrements would attract the right kind of crowd. Disciples met in public squares and people’s homes to evangelize and fellowship with other believers. They were out in the community, forming relationships, and being the church.
I believe there is a call to return to the roots of Christianity. Especially in this time of economic instability, what need have we for fancy buildings and expensive programming? The word of God is just as true in my living room or in a coffee shop as it is in a 1,000-seat sanctuary.
While it’s certainly difficult to see great houses of worship fall to the brokenness of the world, we can be confident that it won’t affect the presence and impact of God’s ekklesia.
Present via Zoom: Rev. Julie Luna, Steve and Sunny Slocum, Barb McConnell, Sharon Mills (towards the end), Kathy Cummings, Keira Stevens, Ann Bottolone
Financial Report- Steve received the All-in-one report, sent edits, received a new report before meeting but noticed still some errors be-tween last month and this month so didn’t think we should approve. He’s been having a hard time editing and said there’s still some “bugs to work out”. He sent Rich an email to get the last financial report he produced to use as a baseline to compare to. Julie motioned that we get things squared away before voting to approve. Maybe do it by email vote or next meeting?
Services- Guidelines from Bishop were sent out regarding meeting outdoors. Would have to figure out how to do (ie: 15 people max, need volunteers, weather could change, members would need to bring chairs, how would we include Spanish ser-vice, do Eucharist etc.). Lots of things to consider including that we have an older congregation, health conditions, Spanish service members more likely to be exposed. Sunny brought up that it sounds like a lot of work and that we all enjoy the Zoom services. She brought up possibly doing a drive-by Eucharist. Barb mentioned she’s spoken to members on her call list and no one seems interested and many don’t want to leave the house. Kathy brought up possibly using a radio transmitter and could broadcast over a radio station while people sit in cars listening. Ann liked the idea of a pos-sible drive-by Eucharist but still a lot of things to consider and Steve mentioned that if people not leaving house a lot might still not come. Julie unfortunately can’t actually consecrate over Zoom, but Sunny brought up that maybe we could have a “representative Eucharist” where people bring a drink and have a piece of bread and Julie blesses via Zoom. Will still consider, Julie will talk to Neptali and get his feedback. If we did a drive-by Eucharist it wouldn’t be on a Sunday so that people who couldn’t come could still have church service via Zoom.
Approval of June minutes- Kathy motioned to approve, Barb seconded, and it was unanimously approved.
Clergy Reports- Julie said she feels like it’s a constant Groundhog’s day. Compline’s and services are going well. Still collecting gift cards and donations for Spanish service members, working with Neptali, and helping Sunny and Steve with things. Julie talked about the grief over giving up the way things were, and knowing that things won’t be normal for a long time. We can reflect on what are our losses and let go of that and finding a way to move forward. We need to acknowledge what we’re grieving and take this as an opportunity. She has been thinking and praying for everyone. Sunny mentioned the, “Book of Joy” by the Dalai Llama and how we can look at adversity as an opportunity and look for joy. Julie mentioned that even though it's hard not seeing everyone in person, but it has been nice to see Maggie as well as the Spanish ser-vice members etc, and in a way almost feels more inclusive. Kathy brought up her concern for those with no access to the internet. It’s still nice checking in with them via phone call to know we still care.
New business-
Tom got rid of a hornet’s nest. Will discuss lawn mower findings.
PPP loan- Steve moved $1,100 from PPP to checking for utilities 4/28-5/10. Only feels comfortable doing utilities for now, salaries
Page 7
are harder and would love some help. Said it’s been taking a lot of time, sometimes all day. Sunny suggested he talk to Paul. Steve was able to find a QuickBooks update for $40/mo. All in one having issues extracting info so they had rec-ommended he upgrade to the $70/mo. plan. Steve approved since it will save time and since All-in-one charges us by the hour, they will spend less time having to pull up the data. Currently they’re starting in the middle so he needs Rich’s help as a baseline.
Printer- Steve found out that a black and white new printer will cost more than what maintaining our current one is. Will send proposals from Josh at Metro Sales. We all agreed to let Steve handle the printer stuff and make the best decision based on the info he gathers.
Latino fund- Still getting donations. Julie wrote a grant proposal to the national Episcopal church to help with direct assistance for Covid. Takes about 1 month to find out if we are approved. Neptali had quite a few at El Santo Nino get it, a few from Saturday service, but everyone who has is better.
St John’s Evangelical in St Paul partners with Hmong farmers and has been donating a load of produce every Saturday. Cindy and Cyara have been helping bag and pass out to members. Very nice since they are donating to us for free.
Lawn mower- Sunny discussed the mower coming after 8/2. Paul and Dave continue to do the mowing. She asked if we could talk to Neptali and see if anyone from the Saturday service (teenagers/young adults) would be able to help out and take a week so not always on Paul and Dave. Julie will check with Neptali. Sunny also mentioned that maybe we don’t have to mow every week, but could go every 2 weeks?
Keys- Tom changed the locks. Julie met with him 2 weeks ago. Currently Julie, Neptali, the Fire Department, Tom, Craig and Steve have a new key. We will re-evaluate once we open up more. Steve said we should give one to the elevator com-pany. Barb said Tom has been trying to contact them several times but they haven’t called back. Safe church training planned in August. Julie will get more information on the dates offered online. She said it needs to be every 3 years so she will check with Matthew about the list who has previously taken.
Julie Vacation- Going to visit friends from Hayward 7/22-8/2. She will have someone cover the 8/2 service. She is looking forward to a little break.
Spirit, and empowered to do God’s work in the world
saint-nicks.org
& Facebook
Volunteers Enlisted
to Assist People
Meeting Basic Needs.
Building Stronger Communities.
Serving: Bloomington, Edina,
Richfield and the portion of
south Minneapolis that is west
of Cedar Avenue and south of
50th Street.
Here are our biggest needs
9600 Aldrich Avenie Sout
Bloomington, MN 55420
952.888.9616
veap.org
Since the pandemic hit in March, operations at VEAP have dramatically shifted. We quickly transitioned to a drive-up food model system in order to limit the number of people in our building and moved all of our social services support to over-the-phone/email communication. To date, VEAP has experienced a 25% increase in demand for food and a 10-fold increase in those needing help paying their rent. With the end of the federal unemployment benefit boost, we expect these numbers to steadily rise.
As Minnesota moves into the cooler months of the year and with COVID-19 still an ever-present reality, VEAP is seeking your support. Outside of food and financial donations, there are many other ways to advance our mission. Below is a round-up of our greatest needs at this time:
• Household paper products (especially paper towels and toilet paper) and household/personal care items (laundry soap, shampoo, disinfectant wipes, hand/body soaps, face masks, sanitizer & vinyl gloves). Many of our visitors receive SNAP benefits to purchase food when they’re not using
VEAP’s Pantry and unfortunately, SNAP cannot be used to purchase these basic need items. They always fly off our shelves and are consistently in high demand. To donate these products, please visit Door 4 behind our building anytime Monday – Friday from 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. No need to make an appointment.
• Cloth masks. VEAP counts on the support of 3,500 volunteers a year and we require all individuals within our facility to wear a mask. Many of our drive-up food visitors also request these face coverings. We are welcoming homemade, cloth masks at Door 2 of our building (Staff and Volunteer entrance) any time during regular business hours.
• Cold weather outdoor items. Come fall, we will be needing hand warmers and gloves for our volunteers, outdoor heaters for use in our tent, road pylons, comfortable chairs for exit/intake area volunteers and light throw blankets. We expect to utilize our drive-up model through at least the end of September and will need to keep our volunteers warm during their shifts. Please donate these items at Door 2 of our building.
