Ihad the joy of being in Nice, France for Carnival one year. Unlike the Mardi Gras of New Orleans, in the south of France it is a celebration for the whole family. Children from the ages of 8 to 88 walk the streets with a can of silly string in hand, ready to spray any unsuspecting victim. The streets are lined with people who have had enough sugar to bounce off the walls, and who await eagerly for the parades that fill the streets. People with multi-colored masks and ornately designed costumes, some walking on stilts, others being driven on top of a float, fill the streets, and are around every corner you turn. At night, everything lights up and the confetti that had piled up during the day now glows in the dark, and it looks like you are walking in a wonderland.

Yet, Carnival is a day of preparation. All of the energy subsides when the city goes to sleep, and as the sun rises the next day, the citizens of Nice and their guests wake-up with all the shenanigans “out of their system,” and are ready to begin a day-long fast on Ash Wednesday. The transition from Carnival to Ash Wednesday is seamless; it has clearly been perfected over the centuries. The extent of the partying the day before just emphasizes all the more the solemnity of Ash Wednesday. Almost as if the spirituality of Ash Wednesday could not be fully felt if it wasn’t held in such contrast to all that Carnival had been.

In Nice, Carnival is clearly preparation for Ash Wednesday and the season of Lent.

This year Ash Wednesday is February 25th, making Mardi Gras February 24th. I encourage you to think of a way to mark Lent as different from your normal day-to-day life. Much like a New Year’s resolution asks you to make a goal for yourself, Lent asks you to prepare for Easter, so that your relationship with God might grow into what you want it to be as we approach this most holy of days.

Your Lenten practice does not need to make your life so different that it is no longer recognizable to you, your days don’t need the same contrast that Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday have, but any change that you make, even if it’s only noticeable to you, will make a difference. By changing your routine, you become more aware of what you are doing (or what you are not doing). This awareness points out how much of our lives we live out of habit. By not simply living out of habit, we have the ability to experience much of what life has to offer, but what we might have never noticed before. By letting our habits go, we have the opportunity to see and reflect upon what God is doing in our lives. This insight is the gift that comes from our Lenten practice.

Traditionally, people have been told to “give something up” for Lent. Instead, I prefer to “take something on.” Sometimes it will be a special Bible study, or a daily walk. Often I’ll borrow a good idea that I hear from someone else (so be sure to share your ideas!). Whatever it is that I decide to do, I spend my Mardi Gras planning ahead, making sure that I am prepared to begin my Lenten practice the next day. My Mardi Gras may not look like the Carnival in the south of France, but I promise you, it is time equally well spent.

As you celebrate Mardi Gras and participate in Ash Wednesday, I hope that your days are blessed, and that your preparations for Lent allow for the coming forty days to be a time of awareness, renewal, and connection to God; all of which, I pray, make Easter all the more meaningful for you.

Your Sister in Christ,

Martha+

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What will you do to prepare for Christmas?

Do you enjoy putting lights around your house? Do you invite family members and friends to come and decorate the tree with you? Do you make a thermos of hot cocoa and go watch the Christmas Boat Parade? Do you spend time thinking about what would be the perfect gifts for the people you love?

I love to do all of these things, as well, but I also like to do something more.

Advent is a time of preparing for the coming of Christ. So while the things I described above are fun preparations for our celebration of Christmas, they don’t necessarily prepare us for Jesus’ birth. At least not for me. And I like Advent to be a time for spiritual growth. I may dedicate more time in my day for prayer, add a daily walk to my schedule, or read a daily meditation of one sort or another. But last year something new caught my eye: Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan had a new book out called The First Christmas: What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus’ Birth. So while it was a more academic spiritual discipline than I was used to, I decided to read it over the course of Advent to get not only my heart, but also my mind, ready for Christmas.

Most of their comments on the stories of Jesus’ birth were things I already knew: that the Annunciation came to Mary in Luke, but in Matthew, Joseph was told what to do in a dream, and that in Luke, shepherds were the first to seek out the Messiah, whereas in Matthew, Jesus is adored by the Wise Men from afar.

Yet, Borg and Crossan challenged me to think deeper—how do the differences, and the similarities, between these two Gospels affect who I understand Jesus to be, and how does that understanding impact my preparations for Christmas?

For starters, since Matthew and Luke tell different parts of the same story, it shows me that the things they share in common must have been very important to them. They both are clear that Jesus fulfills the words of the Prophets (see Amos 9:11, Isaiah 16:5, Jeremiah 33:15); the Messiah was to be a descendent of David.

Yet, the Prophets not only attest to the Messiah bring a descendent of David, they also proclaim the power and justice of the one who is to come. So if I am going to believe that Jesus is the new David, born in Bethlehem, I must also take seriously the decree that he will come in power and righteousness.

But Matthew and Luke do not start their Gospel stories with a grown Jesus (as Mark does) or with a theological Jesus (as John does), but with a baby. So serious reflection on the birth of Christ must take seriously the power of a baby to bring peace, justice, righteousness and love to the world.

Then Borg and Crossan challenged me to look at the differences between the Gospels of Luke and Matthew and realize the necessity of maintaining the relationship between Matthew, Joseph, and the Wise Men as different but equal to the relationship between Luke, Mary, and the shepherds. Because Matthew, by speaking of Joseph, underscores Jesus’ being Jewish, yet by drawing in the Wise Men, Matthew shows how Jesus was born to be adored by all people, because Jesus was sent to be the Messiah of all people. And Luke, by noting what a massive role Mary played in this story, shows the way in which God was working in the world—through those with little to no power (such as a woman). And that Jesus was sent not only for a specific group of people, but for all people, even the outcasts, as shepherds were in Jesus’ day.

So you can see that Advent last year was for me a time of serious study and reflection. Such that I am still pondering it all a year later. This December I will find a new way to use Advent as a time to prepare for Christmas; but whatever I do will build upon last year, since I am still looking forward to the Messiah, the babe of Bethlehem, who comes in power with justice and righteousness, to his people and to all the world, with humility and in partnership with the powerless and outcasts.

What will you do to prepare for Christmas?
Advent Blessings,

Martha+

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A lot of people are going to be talking to you about November 4th as October rolls into November. I’m sure that the first four days of this month will be filled with heated debate, excessive media coverage, and the occasional “let’s just agree to disagree.”

But instead of talking with you about November 4th, I’d like us to think about the 5th.

But before we do that, let me take a step back and start not from a political place, but from a place we all know and love: worship. I hope it goes without saying that I love our worship together. I love our singing, the sharing of the Word of God, our communal and individual confession and prayers, and I love when we break bread together. In our time together, I believe that God is praised. And I hope that you do, too. So if someone asked me to choose my favorite part of the service, I do not believe that I could. However, ever since I was a little girl, I have always found a unique joy in one thing in particular: the passing of the peace.

As a small child, there was little distinction in my mind between the way adults acted during the passing of the peace, and the way they acted at family reunions; there was an abundance of hugging, smiling, and even the occasional kiss on the cheek (which inevitably ended up leaving little pink marks on my cheek from where my grandma’s lipstick stuck to my face). In short, there was a real and palpable feeling of love.

For me, passing the peace lives out the Biblical appeal to “greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ” (1 Peter 5:14).

But it is also much more than that; it is a theological stance that we all take, each and every time that we share the peace. And the theological stance is this: however different we are, however much we may disagree on various things, in whatever way that divisions could exist between us, we will put those things down because they are not as important to us as the fact that we are one in the Body of Christ. So you see, passing the peace is no small thing. Nor has it ever been. Which is why liturgists, way back when, placed it before the breaking of the bread. When we come to the table together, we come having made peace, that is, reassuring each other of our place in each other’s lives, a place of oneness in Christ.

Which brings me back to November 5th. As I recall from the last two elections, the day after the election had more animosity in it than all the days leading up to the election. People were hurt; almost everyone, in some way or another, had one or more of their hopes crushed. And when people are hurt and mourning, they are not at their best. Simple conversations had more potential for division than they would have had otherwise. Yet we, on November 5th, have an opportunity to lean on all those times when we stood firm in our theology of oneness, and offer another way of approaching the day. We can be the peacemakers that Jesus loves so much. It is a great gift that we have been given—the ability to witness to a way of living that is not built upon what makes us different, but what makes us the same.

Saint Paul’s words ring true every day, but if you’re only going to start your day with them once, start your day on November 5th with these words:

Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

Romans 12:10-18U

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October 2008

A round the world a child under the age of 5 dies every three seconds due to hunger, thirst, or preventable disease.

Eight thousand people die each day from HIV/AIDS.

The atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki killed more than 220,000 people in 1945. Most of them were civilians.

Someone asked me recently if I believed in the devil. Knowing the facts that are listed above and many more like them, I replied, “How could I not?” That there is evil in the world is, to me, indisputable. And when considering the presence of evil, the image of the devil, or that which is working against God, always comes to mind.

The devil takes many shapes and sizes in the Bible. There’s the infamous snake which is “more crafty than any other wild animal” who convinced Eve to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (Genesis 3:1-6) and the great tormentor of the Book of Job (Job 1:6-12). There’s the tempter who tried to trick Jesus while he was in the dessert for forty days (Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-13) and the evil spirit that entered into Judas and caused him to betray Jesus (Luke 22:3). In the Epistles, the devil is predominantly seen as a schemer who will set a trap to lead people away from God (and thereby to death); the devil is therefore the anti-God. [See Ephesians 6:11, 1 Timothy 3:7, 2 Timothy 2:26, Hebrews 2:14, and James 3:5] And, of course, there is the devil that we are the most familiar with in this parish: the dragon who is defeated by Michael the Archangel (Revelation 12:9).

So when I was asked if I believe in the devil, I had to think through some questions that all of this brings to mind: is the devil a being? Or is the devil a spirit which enters others (a snake, a dragon, Judas, me)? How do I see the devil in our world? How do I make sense of that which is clearly not of God? I think that these are questions that people have wrestled with since the dawn of time. And that I am probably not going to figure them out in my life, let alone in this article.

Yet, that doesn’t mean that I don’t believe that there are forces that work against the will of God in this world. Because that I do believe, even if I don’t entirely understand these forces.

And I know that I don’t have to completely understand that which works against God to reject it. In my baptismal covenant, I promised to renounce Satan and all the spiritual forces of wickedness that rebel against God. And I do my best to keep that promise.

The children who suffer and die needlessly, the thousands of people who live with any number of incurable diseases and those who love them, those who suffer the ramifications of war and all violence, these are God’s beloved. The pain that they know in this life is, to me, evil. This is where the devil is made known.

And evil is not always on such a grand scale; it pops up in the form of selfishness, pride, and apathy. All of which I know intimately. Yet, by my baptism I am called to reject these things and constantly work against evil in the way I live and in the world around me.

This month there are two such opportunities: the CROP walk on October 26th and the Youth Group’s fundraising for the 30 Hour Famine (a lock-in which will take place Nov. 7-8, and during which the youth will go without eating). Both the CROP walk and the 30 Hour Famine are created to fundraise on behalf of the hungry in our world and to draw us out of ourselves and give us the chance to be the people we know God is calling us to be. If you would like more information on either of these, please let me know. I would love to talk about you more about this.

Peace,

Martha

August 2008

I f someone came up to you and asked “What is Church?” how would you
respond?

The Book of Common Prayer defines church as “the community of the New Covenant” (page 854). It then goes on to explain that in the Bible the Church is explained as “the Body of which Jesus Christ is the Head and of which all baptized persons are members.” Yet, sometimes it’s easier to explain what something is by explaining what something does, and so the Book of Common Prayer also adds that “the mission of the Church is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ…as it prays and worships, proclaims the Gospel, and promotes justice, peace, and love.”

But these words are not necessarily on the tips of our tongues, so I wonder, if someone asked you what Church is, what would you say?

It’s actually quite a difficult question; while the Catechism (in the back of The Book of Common Prayer) can succinctly define the Church as “the community of the New Covenant,” this can mean different things to different people. For some, church will always be the weekly Sabbath time on Sunday mornings. And that is true, for that is part of what the Church does. For others, church has more to do with being God’s person in the world, which is also true and part of what it means to be “of the New Covenant.” For some church is thought of as more local and intimate, for others church is seen as universal and all-encompassing. Both of these understandings work to promote “justice, peace, and love,” and so both are, in fact, the church. For me, I have always been drawn to the “community” of church; I have always loved being part of a “parish family,” and it is in this community that I have best come to know the love of God.

This summer the Saint Michael and All Angels Youth Group will be creating a film to answer the question, “What is Church?” They have a small digital camcorder and have already interviewed some of the greatest theologians of our congregation—the Sunday School kids.

My underlying hope in asking them to do this is to give them an opportunity to articulate this part of their faith. It is very difficult to define God or to describe the divine-human relationship, so starting with a question about something more concrete, tangible, palpable, like the church, is a good place to begin the exercise of articulating one’s faith.

Since asking them to create this film, I’ve done a lot of thinking myself about what I believe church to be. So in a way, I have benefited from their experience!

I’m sharing this with you for two reasons: first, it’s been a while since we’ve all been in Confirmation Class, so it’s good to review these things time and again; and secondly, because the Youth Group might come to you at some point this summer and ask you what you believe the church to be. Please take their question to heart and answer honestly and thoughtfully; we all learn from each other, and so your response will help them on their journey. And don’t forget to ask them what they, also, believe the church to be; they, too, have much wisdom. Together, as we wrestle with this question and all of the questions of faith, we will be living and thinking as God’s community, and as such, being the church.

If, when they finish what promises to be a very informative film, you would like to see what they’ve created, please let me know. I, for one, am excited to see what they come up with. Because, knowing our Youth Group, it will be amazing.

I hope that all of your summers wind down well, and that if you’ve been away on vacation, that you will come back relaxed and refreshed.

Your Sister in Christ,

Martha+

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JUNE 2008

Last month the Friends of Music program First Sundays at Five was a time
dedicated to the wonderful music makers of our great parish. There is an enormous amount of talent in our parish, which I already knew, but I was still blown away; it was a blessing to see so many people’s gifts, all in one day.

Wanting very much to contribute, but knowing that I would pale in comparison to all of the people with real talent, I chatted with Tim about how I might participate and have something worthwhile to contribute. The idea came up that not only should I sing, but that I should do a duet with Peter!

Somehow I already knew that Peter’s favorite musical is “Annie Get Your Gun” (don’t ask me how I knew, I’m just good at remembering random factoids—it comes in handy when playing Trivial Pursuit!), so the choice became obvious; I sent Peter an email asking him if he would like to sing “Anything you can do, I can do better” with me. Peter got so excited that not only did he want to do the duet, he re-wrote the lyrics so that instead of being a song about a shooting contest, it became a contest about being the faster prayer, sweeter singer, and who looked better in vestments.

And it was hysterical!

I think that part of what made the audience laugh so hard was that the “performance” was completely unexpected. In hindsight, this struck me as kind of sad; why should two grown people singing a silly song be so far removed from all of our experiences as to catch everyone off-guard?

Last month I shared with you my thoughts on the spiritual practice of keeping the Sabbath. This month I would like to share my thoughts on the spiritual practice of Play.

I wonder at what point in our lives we decided that unless we were “professionals,” we could no longer sing, dance, act, run in the waves, or make others laugh so hard that they doubled over.

These things (singing, dancing, playing, laughing) are all things that we use to respond to the feeling of joy. Joy is one of the words that we use often at Christmas and Easter, because Christmas and Easter are times when we remember God’s unconditional love, and when thinking about this powerful, all-encompassing love, our hearts become overrun with joy. And so, if playing (in all of its many, many forms) is a response to joy, and we are joyful when we reflect upon the immense grace and love of God, we, as adults, should play a lot more at Christmas and Easter and not leave all the present-opening, egg-finding joy to the children.

And not just at Christmas and Easter! Hopefully part of our daily spiritual discipline is to give thanks for God’s grace and love. And so, part of our daily spiritual journey involves the feeling of joy. And since play is a wonderful response to the joy we feel, it seems to me that part of our common life and personal spiritual practice should be play.

By incorporating play into our lives more frequently, we praise God with our joy. By playing more with our loved ones, our inner child immerges and grows. This inner child is called by God to be nourished:

“Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’” Matthew 19:13-14

Yet, my writing about “play” is making “play” seem like a topic that can be argued in a logic class; instead, I hope that you will disregard my essay-like argument and believe for yourself that play is good for us and good for our relationship with God. Now that it’s summer, I imagine that there is a child in your life who is out of school and who would love to spend some time with you, and, furthermore, this child could be your guide for the spiritual practice of play.

And so, I hope that you will stop what you’re doing and go play! If you need to borrow a joke to get you started, you can use my favorite one…

Q: What do you call cheese that doesn’t belong to you?
A: Nacho Cheese!

God's Peace,

Martha

May 2008

“Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God…For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and consecrated it.” Exodus 20:8-11

“Then Jesus said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the Sabbath.’” Mark 2:27

I had a spiritual director while I was in seminary who taught me about Sabbath.

I grew up in the Church, so I was familiar with the Ten Commandments, and yet, somehow, the meaning and value of Sabbath did not make much sense in my life until I was so over-worked and exhausted that when my spiritual director asked me about my prayer life, I said half-flip, “Who has time for a prayer life?” This, as you can imagine, did not go over well with my spiritual director. And so we began spending much time contemplating Sabbath.

The first thing that my spiritual director reminded me was that keeping Sabbath is a commandment. From God. It can’t be taken lightly, nor can it be seen as an option. It cannot be something to do only when it’s convenient. It made God’s Top Ten List along with “do not kill” and “do not steal” so it should be thought of as important to us, as well.

Yet, the second thing that my spiritual director taught me, which I believe is as important as her first lesson, was that Sabbath keeping is not just another thing on our to-do list. It is not an obligation or a drag; it is an opportunity to live life to the fullest. We are being continually invited to step out of the rat race of our world and to spend a little time with God. We were not created for the sake of Sabbath, it was made as a gift for us.

One misconception that I had back in those days was that Sabbath had to be a whole-day event. A very significant part of why I wasn’t “keeping” Sabbath was because I didn’t think it was realistic. Who can take an entire day and do nothing? My spiritual director and I explored this concern and decided that five minutes when I am completely devoted to listening to the voice of God is significantly better than an entire day spent distracted because I’m stressed out about the other things that I “should” be doing. Not only am I infinitely more refreshed after five good minutes with God, but I also feel more connected, more whole.

This isn’t to say that taking an entire day for Sabbath isn’t a wonderful thing; it’s just not the pattern that has ended up being the most beneficial for my life. But I really respect people who do keep a more traditional Sabbath.

Quite possibly the biggest hurdle that I had to get over was the idea that Sabbath time was “doing nothing.” We live in a culture that is continually pushing us to “do more.” Sometimes this is good for us (makes us better students, better employees, and hopefully better people), but it is also bad for us (there are 20% more heart attacks on Monday mornings than any other time of the week). This culture has little appreciation for rest and relaxation, and almost no respect for “doing nothing.”

And so those of us who equate Sabbath with “doing nothing” will find that maintaining a Sabbath practice will go against every fiber of our being. Instead, I have learned, Sabbath isn’t “doing nothing,” but it’s not about being productive, either. Sabbath time is that time which feeds the soul.

When was the last time that you fed your soul?

There are two events coming up which I want to invite you to think and pray about doing:

Saint Mike’s goes to the Angels: Friday, May 30th, 7pm

All Parish Retreat: Friday, July 11th-Sunday, July 13th, Santa Barbara

These are both times that you’ll be able to step away from your normal routine, times with which you can connect with others and hopefully with God, as well. (All prayer counts, even “please let us win.”)

If you cannot come to either event, I hope that you will spend some other time for Sabbath in the near future. Maybe take a walk by the ocean. Maybe read a book of poetry. Maybe just sit on your sofa and drink a cup of tea. But spend some time relaxing, clearing your mind, letting go of the day, and thanking God for the ability to release, and for knowing that God is there.

It may be the most worthwhile thing that you do all day.

And if you have a Sabbath practice that has been feeding your soul, I hope that you will share it with me; we are all on this journey together.

May the Peace of God be always with you,

Martha+

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April 2008

I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?

Isaiah 43:19

T hose of us who were able to go to the Diocesan Convention in 2006 were
blessed to spend the two days hearing from Phyllis Tickle, the founding editor of the Religion Department of Publishers Weekly.

Phyllis came to share her thoughts on the newest movement in the church: the Emerging Church. She presented the Emerging Church to us as the “new Reformation,” a movement which, she believes, will become more popular than mainline Protestantism, Catholicism, and Evangelicals combined within the next generation.

She is, by no means, the only person who believes this; the Emerging Church is, in fact, growing quickly, with “parishes” springing up in all major cities, and even in sparsely populated locations. And its effect on the larger church is becoming more and more evident.

What is the Emerging Church?

Tickle defined the Emerging Church as a growing movement which tries to combine orthopraxy (the “right” practice) and orthodoxy (the “right” belief). Orthopraxy would be, for example, the way that Episcopalians follow the Book of Common Prayer because it is the tradition that was handed down to us (among other reasons); orthodoxy would be, for example, like the Southern Baptist insistence that members of the denomination adhere to certain theological statements and beliefs.

The Emerging Church hopes to take the best from all the different denominations (the beauty of worship, the study of Scripture, the desire to become a disciple of Christ), without taking on any of the perceived negative aspects of many denominations (the politics, the extremism).

The Emerging Church differentiates itself from “non-denominational” church, though, in that Emerging congregations tend to be more liberal, that is they believe in progressive revelation (that God still speaks through Scripture, ergo Scripture cannot be interpreted one way for all time, or taken literally). Yet, the Emerging Church understands itself to be very Biblical and holds itself accountable to the Word.

Additionally, the Emerging Church is different from modern day churches in that the actual worship space, the sanctuary, is not as important as the people, and is never called “the church” (the people ARE the church), and so many Emerging Churches meet in coffee shops, old warehouses, abandoned churches, and jazz clubs. In this way, the Emerging Church is considered “post-modern.” Because they meet “out in the community” the Emerging Church has been able to reach out to people who have never been to a church, or people who grew up religious but have since left the church.

Because the Emerging Church is “out in the community” and filled with people who are not attached to one denomination or another, the services do not any one denominational structure and tend to be comprised of the gifts of the people congregated: songs might be composed by the musician, prayers might be written by a local poet. However, any member of the Emerging Church would be quick to add that the movement hopes to return to the traditions of the earliest Christian communities; ancient disciplines done with the spiritual needs of a contemporary society in mind.
Why am I bringing this up? That is a good question. I do believe that God does new things: in our lives, in our world, and in the church. I think that anything that stays the same endlessly becomes stagnant, and will eventually attract flies and then die.

And so I challenge us all to think about the ways in which God is doing new things in our lives and at Saint Michael & All Angels. We certainly don’t have to be an Emerging Church to do new things. Yet, I believe that we, as Episcopalians, have a lot to learn from the Emerging Church.

How do we bring our gifts to the church family and share them with our world? Do we make ourselves accessible to people who would otherwise never find us? And are we inviting once they come? How are we understand our call as Christians in this world when our culture is shifting so very much? These are all good questions, but I’m sure that you can think of some that are even better. And all of these questions are worth our time to think through.

I’m also bringing this up because I’m hopeful for the future of our church and am interested in its wellbeing, so I’m thinking about what direction we are heading and how that direction could be to the glory of God. If you are interested in talking about this more with me, I hope that you will let me know.U

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MARCH 2008

Holy Week is the most holy of all the weeks of the church year; yet, if I’m completely honest with myself, I have not always treated the week as holy, per se. There have been years where I was “too busy” to engage in the Holy Week story. Yet, the Holy Weeks which have been the most spiritual and the most moving were the weeks when I was intentional about my participation in Holy Week, and didn’t just wait passively for the week to pass.

At one point while I was growing up, someone that I looked up to told me that his favorite Sunday of the whole church year was Palm Sunday. Thinking that Palm Sunday was not nearly as cool as Easter, I asked “why?” “Because,” I was told, “on Palm Sunday we hear the whole Gospel.” He went on to explain that on Palm Sunday, we not only hear about Jesus’ triumphant arrival to Jerusalem, but we also recall Jesus’ death on the cross. Yet, my mentor pointed out, when we come to the Eucharist we hear about Jesus’ resurrection and ascension and then not only remember the Good News of the Gospel but participate in the Good News of the Gospel when we partake of the Body and Blood. We are then given new life to go be God’s people in the world, and promised new life when this one is over. Meditating on the Death, Resurrection and Ascension all in one Sunday, he said, was something that he looked forward to every year.

I have never participated in the Palm Sunday service the same way since.

And then there was the year that I joined the monks who lived in the same town as me (in Cambridge, MA) for Maundy Thursday. We washed each other’s feet, reflected on the great commandment, and remembered the Last Supper, as the Maundy Thursday liturgy prompted us; but then, one of the brothers read Mark 14:32-42: Jesus leads Peter, James, and John to Gethsemane to pray with him, and despite Jesus’ pleading with them three times to stay awake with him in his time of need, all three times Peter, James, and John fall asleep. With the words of Jesus hanging in the air, the brothers and a few guests stayed up the entire night, sitting where we had sat back down after having our feet washed; it was hard to stay awake that whole night, Jesus was right: “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Mark 14:38) As I left the monastery that morning, I watched the sun rise over the city of Boston, and realized that I wanted to go home and go to bed, so that in truth, I wasn’t any different from the disciples.

I have never understood Maundy Thursday the same way since.

I’ve shared this story with you before, but I’ll speak of it briefly again; the Good Friday where I joined in the Stations of the Cross which walked through all of Paris, picking up hundreds of people along the way was one of the most moving days of my life. Yet, when we finished with the Stations of the Cross, we all went our separate ways, and I went on with the rest of my day. This hadn’t been an option for Jesus; his was a pain that I will never understand.

I have never taken Good Friday for granted since.

And Easter—holiest of holy days—I know that I have spent my fair share of Easters looking for the hidden eggs and eating chocolate bunnies, or worried that the meal I had put together was not going to come out as I wanted it to. I have had the opportunity to live in the joy that Easter morning brings, and have chosen to do other things. And so this Easter, despite the business it brings and a constant fear that I’m going to mess up in the service, I’m going to focus on the Easter story, so that when I say “Alleluia!” I truly mean it. Easter means too much for me to do anything less.

I invite you to join me in participating in Holy Week and intentionally connecting to each day, each step of the journey. Because I hope for you, too, Easter means too much to do anything less.

Wishing you blessings for your journey,

Last month I saw Jesus Christ Superstar while it was at OCPAC. Jesus Christ Superstar is one of my mom’s favorite musicals, so before I even really knew what it was, I knew all the words to all the songs and had seen the movie many times. Yet no matter how familiar I thought I was with it, truly, Jesus Christ Superstar was more moving on stage then I ever thought it could be.

In particular, there was one scene that caught my attention in a way that it never had before: The Last Supper. It’s the first scene of the second act, and it opens with first Jesus and then the Apostles entering the room and congregating around the table in the middle of the room. All the while the Apostles are singing, “Always hoped that I’d be an Apostle; knew that I would make it if I tried. Then when we retire we can write the Gospel so they’ll still talk about us when we die.” Then Jesus, noting how little they are considering Him, sings, “For all you care, this wine could be my blood. For all you care, this bread could be my body. Yes, this is my blood you drink, this is my body you eat. If you would remember me when you eat and drink.”

It paints a selfish picture of the Apostles and a cynical picture of Jesus, neither of which are things I want to imagine, but it does raise a good question: How often do we lose focus and forget about Jesus; and more importantly: How, then, does God respond?

Lent, as we all know, is a time of preparation for Easter. A time to reflect upon those things for which we are truly sorry, and a time to ask ourselves how we can let go of the things that keep us from God. Commonly people will take on a “Lenten Discipline” during this time; some people “give something up” and others will take on new practices, such as daily readings of the Bible.

Yet, do our Lenten disciplines, or any of the things we do at any point in the year, actually distract us from seeing Jesus in our midst?

I don’t mean to sound as cynical as Jesus in the Last Supper scene, and please know that I am asking this of myself first and foremost. When I give up ice cream for Lent, for example, do I think of myself as a martyr every time I walk past Baskin Robbins, or, each time I think about my sacrifice of ice cream do I remind myself that my sacrifice is nothing compared with the sacrifice of Christ? When I take on daily walks as my Lenten Discipline, do I think of that time as time to chat on my cell phone? Or, do I use that time for prayer?

As I said before, we have two questions before us: How do we spend our Lent growing closer to God? and How does God respond? The first question is up to us to answer, but for the second question, I turn to a greater authority than I: the Bible. In the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32), we see two brothers, one who leaves the father and one who stays with the father always. The first son, the Prodigal Son, returns to more love than he thought he deserved, more love than he ever thought imaginable. The second son, feeling that he’s somehow not as special as his brother, is reassured by the father that all that belongs to the father belongs to him, too.

If we spend this Lent using every waking moment focused on Jesus, God will love us with a greater love than we can even imagine. If, however, we forget and become selfish (like the Apostles in Jesus Christ Superstar), the Bible tells us that we are still loved beyond our wildest dreams. Either way we are always loved by God, and we are promised that Jesus is with us always: “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the ages.” (Matthew 28:20)

I pray that this Lent can be for all of us a time of renewal in our journeys of faith and a time of growing in our relationship with God. And, I pray, that if we get distracted during Lent, that we know that we are forgiven and can catch back up with God, who is already waiting for us.

So that on Easter we may all feel love greater than anything we ever thought possible.

Blessings for your journey.U

May 23, 1993.

That date will stick in my mind, I imagine, until the day that I die. That was the date that the Youth Group ended at the parish where I grew up.

I grew up going to Emmanuel Episcopal in LaGrange, IL. While I was a child, there was an energetic and growing Youth Group, which I always looked forward to joining one day. When I finally made it to Junior High, I was over the moon and became as involved as I was allowed to become. I made best friends with the Senior High boys who thought it was cute to teach me to be a pool shark (which I was, because back in the day, I was pretty talented!), and I was always asking the Senior High girls about fashion and how to wear my hair. To me, Emmanuel’s Youth Group was a place of care, fellowship, and a spiritual home.

But then at the end of 1992, the Vestry decided for financial reasons not to renew the Youth Minister’s contract when it was up the following May. Her name was Sue, and she had become a mentor to many of us (so much so that she was one of my Presenters for my Ordination last year), so we spent much of the spring of 1993 saying our good-byes. Her last day was May 23rd; all the 40-50 members of the Youth Group gathered that afternoon, many of whom I would never see again.

I imagine that the Vestry at Emmanuel thought that a volunteer would step forward to run the Youth Group, but no one did; by the start of my freshman year of High School, there was no Youth Group at Emmanuel anymore.

So you can understand why it is so very important to me that Saint Michael & All Angels has a dynamic and loving Youth Group—we always want the next generation to have what we didn’t have.

For the past year and a half, I’ve had great help from Courtney Falde and Amanda Corbet who were my Assistant Youth Ministers. However, Courtney has now shifted gears and is running Family Ministries (very well!), and Amanda needs to step down as my Assistant so that she can focus on her studies more (very important!). And so, I am in need of some other adult members of our parish to help make our Youth Group a success.

Many people think that they are not qualified to work with the Youth Group, but truly there are only two requirements:

1) That you love God
2) That you love people

If you have those two things, everything else can be learned. And what I don’t think many people realize is that working with the Youth is so much fun and extremely rewarding; the Youth are more of a blessing to me than I’m sure I could ever be to them.

I encourage all of you to prayerfully consider being a volunteer Youth Minister. I am more than willing to answer any questions that you might have about the time commitment (anywhere from one to eight hours a month), teenage culture (I’ll introduce you to myspace.com and iPods), and what you would need to do (love the youth), or any other questions that you might have.

I have been so amazed at the way that you care for each other. Now I’m encouraging you to share that love with the teen-aged part of the Body of Christ in our midst.

If you are interested, or if you think that you might possibly be interested, please let me know! I would love to hear from you.U

Mayra was assigned a different “big sister” after I moved to the east coast, and we eventually lost touch. However, while we were still in (infrequent) communication, I learned that she became pregnant while she was in High School. This was a complete shock to me, since I still envisioned her as twelve or thirteen; yet, it must have been an infinitely larger shock for Mayra.

Mayra wasn’t married, and hadn’t planned on becoming pregnant. And she was so young…

Much like (the blessed virgin) Mary.

I have to confess, I often picture Mary’s pregnancy as idyllic. But in reality, Christ’s coming into the world must have been startling to Mary, to say the least. After the angel Gabriel came to Mary and introduced himself, he said, “Do not be afraid, Mary,” and then continued to reassure her by saying, “for you have found favor with God.” (Luke 1:30) Gabriel would not have said “Do not be afraid” if Mary hadn’t been. Yet, Mary finds peace with her pregnancy when she is with her cousin Elizabeth, and says famously, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (Luke 1:46-47) And poor Joseph! He comes home one day to find his fiancée is pregnant! He’s then, also, told by an angel to “not be afraid,” rather, to “take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived to her is from the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 1:20) And just after the two of them have probably thought that the worst is over, their child has been born healthy, despite being born in a manger, another angel appears to Joseph in a dream and calls him to flee to Egypt to save the child and the mother from imminent death (Matthew 2:13). Truly, the birth of Christ turned Mary and Joseph’s lives up-side-down.

Now, I don’t mean to put a damper on your holiday celebrations. On the contrary, I hope that you’ll think about Advent and Christmas this year in a new way, which will inspire new celebrations!

The story of Advent and Christmas is not a story of “same ol’, same ol.” It is the story of God doing something completely unexpected, breaking open the monotony of human life and giving Joy to the World in an entirely unpredictable way. Yet, the story of Advent and Christmas is not just a story from 2,000 years ago; as Christians, we believe that God comes into our lives, as God entered into Mary and Joseph’s, and gives Joy in new and unexpected ways.

This Advent and Christmas, as you are trimming the tree with ornaments that each bring back a memory and singing carols that you’ve known since ichildhood, I encourage you to step back from the traditions, and think about the new things that God is doing in your life. How often does God catch you unaware? And, like Mary and Joseph, do you follow?

Like I said, Mayra and I have sadly lost touch, but the last time that I saw her, I spent the day with her and her son, Sammy. I have never, in all my born days, seen two people more in love. If ever there were joy in this world, I saw it on that afternoon.

Advent isn’t about expectations, it’s about blowing those expectations out of the water.

Merry Christmas!

One of my favorite professors in Divinity School was a man by the name
of John Collins. He’s an amazing man; originally from Ireland, schooled at the Divinity School at Notre Dame, he has the entire Old Testament memorized.

I know this because he taught all of his classes with a mug of coffee that said “John” in big letters in one hand, an open Bible which he never looked at in the other. And so while most people feel that the Bible should be read from the King James Bible in an Elizabethan British accent, I feel very strongly that the Bible should be recited from the NRSV, in an Irish accent.

When it comes to studying the Old Testament, John literally wrote the book. You can probably find it at any Barnes & Noble, or on the bookshelf of anyone who’s graduated from Divinity School in the last few years. The thing that I love most about John’s book is that he tells the story of the people and communities from whom came the Old Testament in such a way that I was captured by their experience, wanted to know more about their world, and grew in my faith through learning about their experience of God.

At one point in the year John told us a little bit about the research that went into his book; he mentioned how much the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls influenced his work and the work of countless others. Since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947, hundreds of hours have gone into gleaning information from them about “Second Temple Judaism” (the time when Jesus was alive), and millions of people have been captivated by the story of the people who wrote and store them.

I am one of those people; it amazes me that a small group of people who fled Roman occupation near the time of Jesus meticulously wrote the Hebrew Bible and stored them so well in clay jars that 2000 years later the scrolls can still be studied. I can only imagine the love, attention to detail and painstaking efforts to safely protect and preserve these scrolls that this community had.

And so I am very excited that this month we will have both Dale Loepp and Michael Phelps coming to share with us about the Dead Sea Scrolls during Sundays-at-Nine, because I know that both of them are equally enthralled by the Dead Sea Scrolls. Please look at the Sundays-at-Nine part of the Love of Mike for information about their visits to Saint Michael’s.

And, of course, I am really looking forward to our all-parish trip to see the Dead Sea Scrolls at the San Diego Natural History Museum on Sunday, November 18th. We’ll be leaving from church, right after the 10 o’clock service, and will return by 6:30pm. Lunch will be provided, as well. Tickets are only $45 (for lunch, the bus ride, and admission to the exhibit and museum), and are selling quickly, so if you’re interested, please let me know as quickly as possible. It would be great to be able to go together!

Looking forward to much,

This month the Youth Group will be pondering the age old question of good
and evil.

Good—easy to discuss.
Evil—not so much.

My first memory of the distinction between good and evil is from pre-school. I went to a conservative Christian school, where Halloween was barely accepted, and probably would have been dismissed entirely if there hadn’t been so many unhappy three and four-year olds to contend with. A letter went to all of the parents saying that children could come to school in costume on Halloween ONLY IF their costumes were not of something evil, e.g. a devil, a skeleton, a witch, a ghost, etc., basically all of the costumes that I’ve now come to associate with Halloween. My gracious mother made me a Pocahontas costume that year, and I was, if I may say so, darn cute. But I remember thinking to myself, “why can’t I be a witch if I want to be?”

What is it about certain things that deem them evil? Where do we draw that line?

This past spring a number of parishioners went to see Wicked at the Pantages Theatre. This is the story of the “Wicked Witch” before Dorothy came to Oz; in this story we are shown how the witch, Alphaba, went from being a ridiculed young woman, to a social justice advocate, to a powerful and feared underground activist. Wicked shows how it is not an individual who is evil; rather, the real evil is the society which allows for evil things to happen.

The famous Rabbi Abraham Heschel, who fled from Warsaw in 1939 to come and teach in the United States, wrote infrequently about his thoughts on the Holocaust; however, when he did, he extrapolated on the Prophets: “morally speaking, there is no limit to the concern one must feel for the suffering of human beings, that indifference to evil is worse then evil itself, that in a free society, some are guilty, but all are responsible.”

So for Heschel the things that we deem evil are those things which make us indifferent to the plights of others, and our indifference makes us part of that evil.

I know what you’re thinking: “Gosh Martha, this is a little heavy. Can you switch over to talking about Good now?” I was just about to…

When I say that God is all-powerful, part of that, to me, is God’s ability to make Good out of any and all Evil. This does not negate that there is evil, rather, that there is no evil from which God cannot bring forth good. No matter how indifferent I may be, how ignorant, or even callous, God always has the power to draw the good out from me, to give me grace to mend my heart, and a willingness to care about and for others. God will never look at me, or any of us, and say that there is no hope for good.

Those things which we were not allowed to wear as costumes in Pre-school, because they were thought of as too evil, are all, in one way or another, associated with death. In so much of our culture, death is the ultimate evil. We are saddened when we hear of the poorest of children in the world being sick, but when they die, that is evil to us. Death is what we fear the most, and so death becomes that which we want the least to do with, and we deem it “evil.”

Yet, you and I both know that even the worst that we can imagine, even death, has no power compared to God’s power; if death is the worst evil, then God’s Good, made known to us in the Resurrection of Christ, over-powers all that we can conceive of that is evil. God can bring Good out of any evil.

Can God make good out of my little wannabe-witch heart? I dare say so.

Happy Halloween,

Martha +

Tiller-John and Zack will be Confirmed and Justin Palmer will be Received into the Episcopal Church when Bishop Anderson is with us to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the laying of the cornerstone on Saint Michael’s Day (September 30th). The reason why Justin will be Received and not Confirmed is because he has already been Confirmed in the Roman Catholic Church, and much like Baptism and Ordination, Confirmation is a sacrament that can only be done once.

In an interesting turn of events, Peter and I were sharing at the last Vestry meeting that after their Confirmation/Reception, Justin, Zack, and Tiller John would be eligible to be on the Vestry, since it is customary in the Episcopal Church that Vestry members be Confirmed or Received into the church, and three of our wonderful leaders raised their hands and confessed that they had never been Received into the church!

So… Mark Peterson, our Senior Warden, Lynn Headley, and Mike Ortt will all also be Received into the Episcopal Church on September 30th. (I can attest to their gifts and to what a blessing that they have been to this parish, but since they weren’t in my Confirmation class, I cannot attest to their knowledge of Church History, Liturgy, Theology, Scripture and Ethics. You may want to quiz them when you see them next!)

All in all, it will certainly be a celebratory day!

I hope that you will join me in keeping these six wonderful people in your prayers during this time leading up to their Confirmation/Reception into the Church. And may we all be blessed by participating in this holy and joyous day!
In His Service,

Martha

But every once in a while, I itch to upset the status quo…

So this month, I would like to talk about sports.

In Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians (chapter 9, verses 24-26), Paul writes this about athleticism and the Christian life: “Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air.” Paul compares the dedication of an athlete to the dedication and self-control that all Christians must have in order to live a life that is ever-striving to be Christ-like.

It is from this verse (and others like it, both in the New and Old Testament) that we have Ascetic Theology: living a life that is “training” to be like Christ.

Ascetics often also quote Jesus for their understanding of Ascetic Theology: “If any man would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.” (Mk. 8:34) This quote highlights the two components of ascetic theology well: there is both self-denial, and following Jesus. Self-denial can include fasting (like people do during Lent), giving up earthly possessions, tithing to Church, and in extreme cases, self-denial can look like the monk from The DaVinci Code. Yet, all of these practices, when done alone, fall short of Jesus’ commandment; the goal of asceticism is missed entirely if one focuses on self-denial, and not on the benefits of the self-denial, namely, the ability to strive to be more like Jesus.

Which brings me back to Paul: much like an athlete, the Christian life is one of not only working hard with much dedication, but also a life of trying to be more loving and compassionate, like Jesus. And as Martin Luther was always quick to remind us, we do not try to be Christ-like because we believe this will somehow earn us our salvation, but rather because we want to live the life that God has already called us to live.

You are probably thinking: why is Martha talking about Ascetic Theology this month? Good question. Sports are on my mind this month, because I’m already getting excited about the All-Parish Trip to an Angels game on Friday, September 21st! And while I was thinking about the Angels (and the Yankees, as well, as I’m oft to do), I was reminded of their dedication to the life that they have chosen and impressed by their willingness to sacrifice for this goal. I think that Paul hit the nail on this head when he made the connection between being an athlete and being a Christian; there is a lot in common.

You are all invited to the All Parish Trip to an Angels game on Friday, September 21st, which will be a great time (and I promise not to talk about Ascetic Theology!). Tickets are available for purchase through me and are $29/each (scholarships are available). The Angels will be playing the Seattle Mariners, and the game begins at 7pm. If you’d like to carpool, we will meet in the church parking lot at 5:30 and then carpool to the stadium.

I hope to see you there!

Running the Race,

Martha+

M y goodness! In Tim’s column, Sharps and Flats, last month, Tim asked
me a number of probing questions. I will do my best to answer them!
I’ll start with the easiest question to answer: my favorite ice cream flavor is Baskin Robbins’ “Pink Bubblegum.”

It’s been my favorite flavor for as longas I can remember, and I have yet to meet an ice cream that can top it!

Next I will tackle what I want to talk about the most: what I like about Saint
Michael’s. This would have to be, no question, the people. Everyone here is
so wonderful! Not every parish welcomes their new clergy into the community
right away, and not only was I welcomed, but I was made to feel like part of
the family. I have been exceedingly blessed.

Yet, Tim also asked what my biggest challenge here is, and I would say that
I don’t know that everyone is welcomed as much as I was welcomed, which
makes me kind of sad, because this parish has so much to offer, and I’m not
sure what to do about that. This parish is just on the cusp between being
“family-sized” (where everyone knows everyone else) and “program-sized”
(where much of our ministry is done Monday through Saturday, and where
not everyone can be involved in all the many programs); and so, we are all
very involved, and all care very much about one another (because we take the
best of both categories).

However, to a new person, coming to worship, or some other event, for the first time, we could come across as such a cohesivegroup as to be slightly intimidating. And so while we are very hospitable, we may have to go even farther than being hospitable, and become intentionallyinclusive of new people.

This is not something that I’m especially good at,and so it’s a challenge for me, personally, and, I think, for our parish family.

But, if that’s my biggest challenge, then clearly things are going well!
Tim also asked about my most successful accomplishment and my hopes
for the future. I think that they are one and the same, actually. My greatest
accomplishment has been becoming more comfortable (and hopefully better)
at leading worship and preaching, yet, at the same time, I feel like I have a
long way to go. Again, I have been blessed by being in this community
through all of your support and feedback; much of my growth should be
attributed to this parish and all that I’ve learned from all of you.

Tim also asked me about Canterbury Irvine and my musical preferences,
but I will have to answer those another time—thanks for the ideas for future
articles, Tim!

But I will answer this: my favorite hymn is #686, “Come Thou Fount of
Every Blessing.” Once, when I was struggling with things in my life, and
when I felt the farthest from God that I’ve ever felt, I went to church and we
sang that hymn. Suddenly, the words seemed so real to me, and spoke such
truth, that I was moved to tears.

Ever since, every time I sing or hear that hymn, I am immediately reminded of that feeling, of being washed over by the love of God, and I am at peace. So it goes without saying that #686 would be my favorite hymn.

Finally, it sounds as though Tim is going to Taizé next summer and inviting
others to join him—COUNT ME IN!!! I am looking forward to it already.
I pray that all of your summers are going well!

Martha

June 2007

Some of you may think that this fact is outrageous, I know that the Youth
Group does, but I have never been to Disneyland. Which seems especially outrageous, considering that I’ve lived in southern California for almost a year now! So, the situation clearly needs to be resolved, and thanks to the organizing efforts of Courtney (Corbet) Falde, there will be an All-Parish trip to Disneyland on June 2nd. I am really looking forward to it!

I also want to thank Courtney was being our new leader for Family Ministries. She has many ideas and is very excited about working with the many fabulous families with children here at Saint Michael & All Angels. If you would like to work with Courtney in planning events for this ministry, I’m sure that she would love to hear from you.

This summer, for me, will be a time of preparing for the up-coming academic year (while wearing my new Mickey Mouse ears, if I can get away with it). Where Youth Group is concerned, I am hoping to involve the Youth Group parents as much in the planning as possible; therefore I’m going to lead a conversation about plans for the Youth Group for the ’07-’08 school year on June 10th after the 10am service, in the conference room. All are warmly welcome to attend, and parents are strongly encouraged to come!

Also, looking ahead to next year, one thing that I’ve always wanted to do is visit Taizé, in France; so maybe next summer is the time for me to go. You probably all already know this, but when I first found out that Tim Getz has visited Taizé, I asked him everything about it; I even asked him about the food! If you don’t mind, I’m going to use this opportunity to ask Tim a question, or two:

Tim, have you thought about going back to Taizé? What would you think about going next summer? Maybe taking a few Saint Michael & All Angels-ians with us? Tell me a little bit more about your experience. What did you love about your time there?

And while I’m asking you questions, I’ve always wondered, what’s your favorite hymn? And what I really want to know is this: what is your favorite hymn to hear and what is your favorite hymn to play? If they’re not the same hymn, why is that? Who do you think is the most inspiring hymn writer of all time? Why? What have they written? Have you ever written a hymn? Are they very difficult to write?

What do you think about contemporary worship music? Are you familiar with it? Where is it most popular? Why do you think that is?

You’ve worked at Saint Michael & All Angels for a number of years, what kind of changes have you seen, and what’s stayed the same this whole time? What are the greatest challenges to your job, and what are the greatest rewards? What advice do you have for someone who is a novice in ministry?

I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank you for all that you do: the choir is always fantastic, and you arrange for us to have such wonderful music, especially at Christmas and Easter! Thank you for all of your leadership with the Friends of Music, the musicians that you bring in are always simply amazing. And thank you for your work with the Children’s Choir; I can’t tell you how much it meant to me to have them sing at my first Eucharist in January.

Thank you, everyone, for letting me ask those few questions. We’ll see what he says next month!

Peace,

Martha

May 2007

Many of you have very sweetly asked about how the Campus Ministry at
UC-Irvine is going, so I thought that this month, I would write about the Campus Ministry, to give you a sense of the other half of my ministry here, in Orange County.

Episcopal Campus Ministries around the country are often called “Canterbury,” in order to tie us all back to our Anglican roots at Canterbury Cathedral. And so, the Episcopal Campus Ministry at UC-Irvine is called simply Canterbury Irvine.

Canterbury Irvine has been at UCI since the University’s inception, as part of the Interfaith Center, a building on campus that houses groups from many different faiths on campus, including the Catholic student groups and the Hillel (Jewish) Center, as well as is a meeting place for many other groups, such as the Muslim Student Union and the UCI Chapter of the Latter Day Saints. You’ll notice, though, the Canterbury Irvine is the only Protestant group on campus. There is a Methodist group that meets off campus, and many non-denominational groups, but Canterbury Irvine is the only mainline Protestant group on campus.

Therefore, while the bulk of our group’s members are Episcopal/Anglican, we do have members from other backgrounds. One of our most active members, Adam, a grad student in Political Science, is Lutheran, and often adds a much-needed perspective to our conversations over dinner. Also, our members are not all students; one person who comes regularly is a professor in Genetics. This professor, Moyra, is also from South Africa, which is great because she is a constant reminder that we are an Anglican Campus Ministry, as well.

One student, Kathy, not only comes to our weekly gatherings, but has also taken advantage of two conferences that Canterbury Irvine has offered: she went with me in January to an ecumenical, national conference for college students to reflect on the Theology of Change, while examining the many, many causes of the Katrina devastation in New Orleans, (money for her to attend this conference was donated by the Saint Michael & All Angels Mission Commission, for this we thank you!), as well as a conference for Episcopal students that was held in Santa Barbara the last weekend of March. It is great to have students attend these conferences, in part, because it helps students remember that even though Canterbury Irvine is small, Christian college students are many and are amazing!

There are many more Canterbury Irvine members that I would like to tell you about, because I’m so honored to have gotten to know all of them, but it would be better if you were to come and see us in action! We have Bible Study every Wednesday night at 9pm, Eucharist every Thursday at 5pm, which is always followed by dinner, and other events from time to time. For example, we had a great Quiet Day the first Saturday of Lent and a Stations of the Cross on Good Friday that led us all around campus. We meet in the Interfaith Center, which is a very old trailer located between the Middle Earth dorms and the Engineering buildings; the Interfaith Center is building #319 on a campus map. You are more than welcome to come to any and every gathering!

If you would like to help with Canterbury Irvine, first and foremost, we always need prayers! Also, if any of our great chefs out there ever want to prepare the Thursday night supper, that would be a huge help to me (and, I’m sure, very yummy!). Canterbury Irvine is funded by the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles and by local parishes, and we have money to “do the basics,” but if ever you would like to donate funding, or come and visit the Interfaith Center and see if there’s something that you think could improve the space, donations are always welcome!
Other than preparing for Bible studies and weekly Eucharist and dinner, I spend most of my time in pastoral conversations with students, faculty, and staff. I spend a lot of time reminding people of the importance of Sabbath, as well as give them a safe place to vent, when the stress becomes too much for them. I am very blessed to have such a rewarding ministry.

Last, in order for Canterbury to truly become a ministry of the parishes of Orange County (which is what it needs to be in order to be a thriving campus ministry), part of my job requires that I travel to other parishes and share with them the joys and concerns of Canterbury Irvine, and invite them to be an active part of this ministry. Therefore, I will be visiting many parishes this month, so if you don’t see me for a number of Sundays in a row, I hope that you know you remain in my thoughts and prayers, and I will be back for Pentecost!

Thank you for your support of me and of Canterbury Irvine! God bless.

Martha

April 2007

I love the Easter Vigil service; it is my favorite service of the entire year.

To explain why, I have to back up a step and say that I love Easter. I love that we take time out of our busy lives to remember that even though the world would like to convince us otherwise, miracles happen. On Easter we remind ourselves that God, the creator of all that we see and know, can step around the laws of nature, and can bring life where the world sees only death. Not only that God can do this, but that God did do this, can God continue to bring life from death today.

In Church, on Sunday mornings, the Easter season is where we find some of my favorite Bible stories: “Doubting Thomas” and the conversion of Paul. In both cases, one with doubt and sadness, the other with persecution and violence, the Risen Christ is able to bring light and hope, to change that person’s heart, and to bring new life to two people that Christ loved. A miracle, if ever there was one.

And so, I love the season of Easter: the newness of life and hope that comes with Easter.

I love the Easter Vigil service because we celebrate this new life and hope by living into Jesus’ death changed into the new life of the Risen Christ. The Easter Vigil starts in shadows, so that we might remember Christ’s lifeless body in the dark tomb, but then the Paschal (from the word Passover) Candle is lit, reminding us that God has given a new light to the world in Jesus Christ’s resurrection. In the service we remember some of the many, many accounts of God’s saving action in the world, and then we remind ourselves that God’s saving action is not a thing of the past, but rather happens in our time and in our place through renewing our Baptismal vows; we remind ourselves that we have been made part of the Body of Christ by baptism, so that we, too, have died and arisen with Christ. God is saving us now, and God will save us at the last.

If you have never come, or if you haven’t come in a while, I very much invite you to attend the Easter Vigil this year. And I haven’t even told you the best part, yet…

After re-telling, re-living, and remembering Christ’s death and glorious resurrection, there is an air in the sanctuary that is holy and unquestionably filled with the Holy Spirit. It is in this spirit that we first say, most joyfully and triumphantly, “ALLELUIA!”

I always try to stay “professional” during this service, but try as I may, I’m sure that this first Alleluia will bring a big smile to my face, dimples and all. And I hope that it fills you with joy as well.

Alleluia! Christ is risen!

The Lord is Risen indeed. Alleluia!

In Christ,

Martha +

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March 2007

M any think of Lent as a time to “give up something,” to be penitent, to eat fish on Fridays, or to take on special religious exercises. Some have made the connection between Jesus’ forty days in the desert, Moses’ leading of the children of Israel for forty years in the wilderness, and the forty days of Lent. Others understand that Lent is a time of preparation for Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and especially Easter. But few people see the time of Lent as a time of pilgrimage.

I know that I never did. I always used to give up chocolate, soda, ice cream, or some other thing that I loved until I was about fourteen and I realized that if I gave up something that I loved, I wouldn’t be able to have it for my birthday, which always falls in the middle of Lent; and so by fifteen, I started taking on spiritual practices of one sort or another.

In college it clicked that all these things I was supposed to be doing were supposed to be in preparation for Easter. I never fully made the connection, however, of HOW these things would prepare me for Easter.

Then one year, a friend pointed out to me that these forty days were like Moses following the call of God, and leading his people to the Promise Land. Like when the Holy Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert for forty days in preparation for what was soon ahead of him. My friend told me that I, too, had an opportunity to spend forty days reflecting on where God was calling me and what Easter really meant in my life.

Starting from this question of what Easter meant in my life, I was able to re-think my Lenten disciplines, so that they gave me the chance to reflect, instead of being one more thing on my to-do list.

In March of 2005 a friend from seminary and I went to England for Spring Break. Originally, we thought about going because we found affordable plane tickets in the fall, but that same fall we took “Anglican History and Theology,” and as we studied, we kept a running list of all the places that were mentioned in our readings and in class. The week that we were abroad in March, we visited each place; each town and each parish came alive to us, as we remembered the stories from there, and how that shaped who we are as Christians and Anglicans, all these many years later. Our final stop was Canterbury Cathedral
.
Walking through the centuries old gate and looking up at Canterbury Cathedral, I knew that I was approaching something very holy. The Cathedral has been the center of the Church of England since 597, when Archbishop Augustine was sent by the Pope to the people of England. It became one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in the middle ages after Thomas Becket was murdered there in 1220. And there my friend and I were, in 2005, suddenly aware of the unimaginable multitude of believers who had preceded us.

The meaning of Easter became very clear to me then: just as I had followed those many pilgrims to Canterbury, so would I later follow them into God’s Heavenly Kingdom one day. My friend and I were not just pilgrims that March, this whole life of ours is a pilgrimage, where the final holy place where we are called is Heaven. And so I decided that any Lenten Discipline I would ever have from then on would remind me of this fact: Lent is a pilgrimage to Easter the same way that life is a pilgrimage to God.

This Lent, what will your pilgrimage be? Will you follow Christ’s footsteps and participate in the Stations of the Cross? Will you spend time with family and friends, and those who remind you of the grace and love of God? Will you set aside time to reflect on what Easter means to you? Will you engage in the world in a new way, looking for God’s life and work in the world?

I pray that this Lent we all find a way to prepare for Easter; to give something up, or take something on, or whatever it is that reminds us that we are pilgrims in this world, always being called towards the love of God; a love so deep, so broad, so high that it would come into our world, into our lives, and destroy all that comes between us and God.

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February 2007

A s many of you may know, I started 2007 in New Orleans, in my capacity
as Chaplain at UCI. A student and I attended a conference for Christian college students, which draws people from all over the country; this year’s theme was “Deltas of Change,” and we discussed faith in the wake of Katrina. It was a great conference! The student that I went with and I both had a wonderful time, and we were both very moved by the experience.

One of the most moving experiences was a bus tour that showed us the damage that Katrina did to the beautiful city of New Orleans. Driving through the ninth ward of New Orleans is like driving through a ghost town. Even though it’s been a year and a half since Katrina hit and the levee broke, most of the windows are still boarded, and there are no people to be seen anywhere. In fact, not all of the houses are there; the water knocked some of the houses clear off their foundation, and all that remains is the concrete stairs that go up to what used to be a front door. The houses that do remain, though, have a sign spray-painted on them, a sign that was left by the police and army members who went through the homes, as soon as the water subsided enough; the sign tells who inspected the house, when, and at the bottom of the sign, if any bodies were found. Driving through the ninth ward, the devastation is over-whelming, and just when you think you’ve seen the worst, you drive past a house where the bottom of the sign reads “one.”

The entire bus gasped as we drove past that house. The weight of the tragedy became real to us in that moment, and we would all be forever changed.

When we returned from the bus tour, our reflection on the day was led by Katrina survivors, who were all strong, dedicated, and faithful people. They had stories about neighbors overcoming panic that fateful day to save one another, and volunteers who have been flooding the city ever since, who have kept them from being overwhelmed, and from ever feeling alone. It’s through these many examples of love, they told us, that they have known that God is ever-present and ever-gracious.

Every year, at the start of Lent, I reflect back on the year and thank God for the many experiences that have strengthened my faith. This year, one of those experiences will be my time in New Orleans. I may not have done much more than listen and learn (the college students did relief work, but the Chaplains did not), but I am a different person now, because I went. I am most aware of this change when I pray; I can visualize people and places, now, and pray for the Katrina survivors in a different and more profound way. Also, I find, I can pray for all who have lived through other similar tragedies with more detail and with more care.

Lent starts with Ash Wednesday, which is February 21st this year. We will have an Ash Wednesday service at 7:00am, noon, and 7:30pm. Also, we will have a Lenten Program each Wednesday in Lent, as follows:

5:30 pm Evening Prayer
6:00 pm Stations of the Cross
6:30 pm Soup Supper
7:00 pm Shape of the Future: Searching for Peace and Justice in the Holy Land

I invite you to participate in the Lenten Program, as well to take a look back at this past year and reflect on the things that have strengthened your faith, your prayer life, and your relationship with God. And in this Lenten time of preparation, to give thanks for the love of God made known to us in the life, death, and resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ.

January 2007

I cannot believe that it is January of 2007. I have been talking about January
of 2007 for years now, maybe, in some way, my whole life. And now it’s here. After all these years of prayer, study, and filing the appropriate papers, this is the month when I will be ordained an Episcopal Priest.

These last few years for me have been both very challenging and very up-lifting. There were classes that really pushed me, and there were times when I thought to myself, “can I really do this?” Yet, at the same time, I knew that there were people who really believed in me, and were praying for me the whole time.

In particular, members from the parishes where I had been a part of one ministry or another at some time in my life would call, send a note, or sometimes send cookies, and it would remind me that I was not in this process towards ordination alone. Rather, the call to the priesthood depends on the discernment and commitment of a community. And I was very blessed to have such a faithful and loving community to be on this journey with me.

I believe that if the journey towards ordination is a community endeavor, then so must the priesthood be, as well; which is why I am so joyful to be a part of the Saint Michael & All Angels parish family. I believe this is a parish where I will be challenged, yet supported, and where I can learn how to best be a companion and servant on your spiritual journey.

And I feel so blessed to have this ministry.

What other job would allow me in my capacity as Chaplain to join with other Campus Ministries from around the country to clean the city of New Orleans at the start of the month, and end my month by leading a group of people in throwing the biggest party of the year for the youth of the Diocese of Los Angeles (the Bishop’s Ball)? What other job would allow me to look at all of your beautiful faces as you all come forward for the Eucharist week after week? What other job can combine this much fun, meaningful social work, and the Holy? Truly, I have been blessed.

I wanted to share all of these thoughts with you so that you know how special this month is for me, and how honored I am to be able to share it with all of you. For those of you who can come to the ordination, it will be on Saturday, January 6th at St. Johns, Los.Angeles at 10am—there is a carpool sign-up sheet in Saint Michael’s Room. For those of you who can’t come, please know that you will be there in spirit, and as part of the community that has called me; for that I will be forever grateful.

I want to extend a special “thank you” to the few folks from Saint Michael & All Angels who will be in the ordination: Peter will be one of my Presenters, Larry Spang will be the Banner Bearer for our parish, and Ellis and Peggy Jordan will be Oblation Bearers. Thank you so much!

The first time that I will celebrate the Eucharist will be the morning of Sunday, January 14th. It will be a joyous morning, and I am so pleased to be able to share it with all of you. Our guest preacher that morning will be Fr. Tim Hallett, the Rector at Saint John the Divine, Champaign, IL, and the Chaplain to the University of Illinois (where I went to college). These past ten years, he has been a mentor to me, a friend, and an inspiration. I hope that you will all enjoy his company as much as I do.

January 2007. I am so glad that it is here. And I am so glad that I am here with you.

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DECEMBER 2006

Growing up in the Chicagoland area, there was only one place worth being at this time of year: North Michigan Avenue. The barren trees of the “magnificent mile” were all covered in white, twinkling Christmas lights, and the buildings echoed the clip-clopped sound of horses, which pulled carriages, some filled with families and some pulling young lovers, up and down the street; as a child, I didn’t know what magnificent meant, but I knew magic when I felt it. And no place was more desirable than F.A.O. Schwarz.

F.A.O. Schwarz had a three-story toy metropolis that drew the children in from all corners of the mid-west. I remember playing on the massive key-board in the hallway of the second floor, just like Tom Hanks did in “Big,” until I was hurried along by one parent or another. There wasn’t any Barbie that I could imagine that they didn’t have in stock, and the stuffed animals that were bigger than me made the whole place feel Alice’s wonderland.

My family also celebrated St. Nicholas’ Day on December 6th, mostly because I had learned about the opportunity to get candy in my shoe (which sounded really cool at the time), at school one day. My mom would always find something fun to put in the shoe, something besides candy, something like glitter lip-gloss (or, last St. Nicholas’ Day it was Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans); and I would take my new treasure to school and show-off to my friends that morning.

These are all really great memories, and I wouldn’t give any of them up for all the gold in the world, but looking back, there was very little connection for me between gifts and the birth of Christ. And I have a feeling that I’m not the only one.
It makes sense to me that people might exchange presents on Epiphany, in memory of the gifts that the Wise Men brought Jesus; and it makes sense to be that people might exchange gifts on Saint Nicholas’ Day, because he was known to give financial gifts to those who were in financial distress. But why gifts on Christmas morning?

On Christmas morning we celebrate the Incarnation of our God, that is, we marvel at the mystery of the Word made Flesh, and praise God for the miracle of Jesus’ birth. Through Jesus’ birth we learn that our relationship with God is not distant, but rather, that God wants to have an intimate, profound relationship with humankind, that is, with you and with me.

Through Jesus we also learn that our relationships with one another are a blessed gift to be treasured. If Jesus came to be one of us, then there is clearly great value in being with us, and we can learn from this that we should not take being in families, relationships with friends, or being in community for granted. Rather, we should see each relationship as a sacred and blessed gift from God.

So, no, there might not be a direct connection between Christmas morning and present-giving, other than the fact that once the connection was thought of, it caught on like wildfire; but that doesn’t mean that we can’t understand, among ourselves, that when we do give a gift to another person, we do this kind act because we value very deeply that person, and our relationship with that person, and we do this on Christmas because we are reminded on that day just how special relationships with others are—so special, in fact, that God became incarnate so that we might grow in relationship with God.

I think it would be great if Hallmark made a card that said “Merry Christmas! I am sending you this card because I have learned through the Incarnate Christ that my relationship with you is a special gift from God, and I treasure our relationship very much.” But I know that this probably wouldn’t sell very well (it’s kind of wordy). However, that doesn’t mean that when I say “Merry Christmas” to the ones I love, that I can’t be thinking the rest to myself.

Merry Christmas,

Martha

THE BISHOP’S BALL IS COMING!!!

Saint Michael & All Angels has the honor this year of hosting the Annual Diocese of Los Angeles Bishop’s Ball. This is very exciting!!!

What is the Bishop’s Ball? The Bishop’s Ball is an annual party, thrown by a parish, for the youth of the entire Diocese of Los Angeles. There can be anywhere from 350 to 500 youth in attendance, and there is always a Bishop ready to dance!

When is the Bishop’s Ball? The Bishop’s Ball will be Saturday, January 27th, 2007 at 8pm here at Saint Michael’s.

What makes Bishop’s Ball a success? YOUR PARTICIPATION!!! Bishop’s Ball is designed to be an offering from an entire parish to the rest of the Diocese. Therefore, it takes an entire parish to make it a success. I think we are up to the challenge.

To throw a party of this size, we need teams of people to tackle these components:
1. Decorations (this includes “creating an ambiance” as well as set-up and clean-up)
2. Food & Beverage (we’ll have a lot of hungry mouths to feed!)
3. Entertainment (we’ll need a DJ, as well as a game room)
4. Hospitality (we want others to feel welcome and we want the youth to stay safe)

Please consider where your gifts might be best used for Bishop’s Ball and contact me, I’ll put you in touch with the point-person for your team. The teams will arrange their own times to meet, and will meet as needed.

Many of you are very talented in these areas (decorating, food, entertainment, and hospitality); please prayerfully consider how you can share your gifts and become a part of this exciting event!

Please let me know if you have any questions, and where you might want to become involved. I look forward to hearing from you soon!

In Christ,

Martha

OCTOBER 2006

The first time that the thought of becoming a priest crossed my mind, I was ten years old.

I was an acolyte that particular morning, and while carrying the bread, I tripped and fell, and I spilled the wafers all over the floor. As I’m sure that you can imagine, I was mortified; my face went so red that I could feel the heat of it.

My priest instructed me to pick up the pieces and bring them to him, which I did dutifully. At the end of the service my priest pulled me aside and said, “You know what? I’ve only ever known one other person in my whole life to spill the bread, and that was me.” In my ten-year-old mind, this, to me, was a sign that I would be a priest, too.

Years later, this story has come to be an example to me of how God can redeem any situation, and the Holy Spirit can move through any medium.

By the time that I was in High School, I was very active in Diocesan and National Youth events (there was no youth group at the parish where I grew up), and by my senior year of high school, being a priest was a definite career possibility for me. One day at dinner, I told my mom and my grandmother (who lived with me and my mom) that I wanted to be a priest, and my grandmother, who is a very traditional Anglican from England, told me that women could not be priests, and that furthermore, the topic of my being a priest was not up for discussion, ever. (However, I hope that when you meet my Grandmother in January, when she is here for my ordination and my first Eucharist, that you will be nice to her, because she has since changed her mind and is very proud of me.)

So I lived my life for five to six years, wanting to be a priest but never really knowing if it was the right thing to do, or not. Which, in all honesty, is a question of faith: am I understanding the call of God, or do I have no idea what God sounds like?

Since then, I have been blessed by the multitude of people in my life who have recognized gifts of spiritual leadership, and who have believed in me.
But I am one of the lucky ones. There remain to this day, parishes, Bishops, and Dioceses who still will not consider ordaining women. And in the worldwide Anglican Communion, the majority of Provinces still do not ordain women.
Yet, now, following in the tradition of firsts (first female priest in the Anglican Communion: the Rev. Florence Li Tim Oi of Hong Kong, 1944; first female bishop in the Anglican Communion: the Rt. Rev. Barbara Harris of Boston, MA, 1989), there is a first female presiding bishop-elect in the Anglican Communion: the Rt. Rev. Katharine Jefferts-Schori, Bishop of Nevada.

I was in the room of the House of Deputies when it was announced that Bishop Jefferts-Schori was whom the bishops elected to be their leader; it was an amazing place to be at that moment.

I heard someone say, “You can almost hear the sound of a glass ceiling shattering.”
Bishop Jefferts-Schori will be installed as the presiding bishop on Saturday, Nov. 4th in the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. at 11 am.
The service will be telecast over the internet. I, for one, wouldn’t miss this service for the world.

And so, I warmly invite all of you to watch this service with me.The Women’s Discovery Group is going to host the telecast (on a large screen) right here at Saint Michael & All Angels at 8am on Nov. 4th, followed by a reception by the Daughters of the King. And we will be inviting other Episcopal congregations to watch this momentous event with us. It will be a wonderful celebration!

I know that by writing about an event in November in the October “Love of Mike” I’m jumping the gun a little bit, but I also realize that there are some of us who are not as excited about Bishop Jefferts-Schori’s installation as I am, so I’m hoping that within this next month, and well after November, that we will all be in conversation about what this change in the church means to us, and how we can all remain in community and love each other as Christ called us to do, even if we’re not always in agreement.

So, please, never hesitate to share your thoughts with me, I’m eager to hear them.

In Christ,

Martha (the bread-spiller)

SEPTEMBER 2006

Truth be told, I have always looked forward to the start of school. Part of the reason was that I always liked school, but mostly, I looked forward to the start of school because it meant that I got to go shopping for new clothes.

Now that I’m no longer in school, this season will have a new meaning for my life, and there will be different reasons to be excited. And there are, I have found, reasons to be excited.

First, I will have the honor of working with the Acolytes of Saint Michael & All Angels. I was an acolyte growing up, and I loved it! In fact, it was while I was an acolyte one morning when I was ten that the idea of becoming a priest first came to me. So my hope is to be able to share a little of my love for being an acolyte with our acolytes.

The acolytes for the 10 o’clock service will be having a training/lock-in on Friday, September 15th to Saturday, September 16th. (Acolytes, please check your mailboxes for more information.) This event can only be a success with good adult chaperones, so please let me know if you are interested in being a chaperone for our acolytes’ lock-in.
If you are not already an acolyte, but are considering becoming one, please let me know! We can always use more good acolytes!

Also, I am very excited about the Youth Group this year! We’re going to have our big kick-off on Sunday, September 10th at 5pm. We’ll meet in the Davis Library to talk about what we want to do this next year, and then around 6pm we’ll head down to the beach for a yummy grilled supper. (Thanks, Cliff Corbet, for being our Grill Master!) We’ll be back to the church by 7:30. All Junior and Senior High students are welcome!
The next Youth Group activity will be face painting at the Saint Michael & All Angels Festival on Sunday, September 24th. Stay tuned for our plans in October
.
Last but certainly not least, there will be a new Bible Study starting on Wednesday, September 27th at 7pm in the Davis Library. This Bible Study will be geared towards the parents of the children in the Sunday School program, but as with every ministry at our church, everyone is invited. We will be looking at Bible stories about the child-parent relationship, and talking about how the stories from the Bible speak to our lives today. Refreshments will be served, and baby-sitting will be provided. We will plan on meeting every other week, and we will always end promptly at 8pm.

So, as you can see, there are many reasons to be excited these days! But old habits die hard, so if you see me at the mall, you’ll know why.

Yours in Christ,

Martha

AUGUST 2006

Greetings,Saint Michael & All Angels!

My name is The Reverend Martha Korienek, and I am very excited to be starting as your new Assistant Rector.

From my conversations with Peter, your parish sounds like the perfect community for my first call; I hope to grow and learn here, and become a companion and support for your faith journey.

I grew up in La Grange, IL, which is a suburb of Chicago, and went to college at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I graduated in 2001 with my B.A. in French Education (yep, I speak French!), and after graduation I participated in the Episcopal Urban Intern Program, which is housed by Holy Faith Episcopal Church in Inglewood. (Please check out www.euip.org for more information on that program.) It’s at that time that I fell in love with Southern California, and started the ordination process in this Diocese.

I’ve just graduated from the Yale Divinity School, and was ordained a Deacon on June 3rd. My gifts include Christian Education (of all ages), preaching, and working with the youth. I love to read, hang out at the beach, and travel. (And I’m a secret Yankees fan, but—Shhh!—don’t tell anyone.)

But that is enough about me, let’s talk about you—I’m really looking forward to meeting and getting to know all of you in the near future!

Yours in Christ,

Martha