7 from Kevin - Sep 2021
Kevin Jeske-Polyak • September 2, 2021
- It is St. James' mission to feed and tend God's sheep. We welcome neighbors with all kinds of physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Being located downtown, our grounds frequently provide brief respite for some of our most destitute neighbors. As a result, cleanup and disposal of discarded clothing, litter, and other paraphernalia is a constant challenge quietly performed by Rick B and Jill R.
- Some of our Doorstep Ministry volunteers (Patty C, Susan A, Pam S, Susan & Boyce D, and Drew J-P) are currently updating phone numbers and website addresses for hundreds of local resources offering food pantries, clothing & nonfood pantries, transportation & emergency housing assistance, rent, mortgage & utility assistance, substance abuse, mental health & medical assistance; disability resources; legal assistance; vocational rehabilitation, and more.
- John Mark, RJ, and Drew J-P have simplified the production of live stream feeds and video recordings of our Sunday Services by installing and configuring a remote controlled video camera. The A/V (audio/visual) Ministry is also delighted to welcome Linda F as the newest member of their team.
- Ashley B is working very hard to plan and direct a very special musical program to take place during our weeklong celebration of Neighbor Day during the second week of October (Oct 10 - Oct 16). Hopefully, this will be a live in-person event at St. James that will feature a unique combination of storytelling and inspiring musical performances.
- Arrangements for funerals and memorials must be handled with a special devotion to being attentive to the ceremonial details and comforting ways we provide compassion to every family member. Marilyn C and Stacy H are working closely with DOK members, Patricia H and Victoria H, to establish formal protocols based on the already well-established traditions that have been practiced at St. James for many years.
- Rick B & Butch Y have been very focused on coordinating the work of professional contractors hired to replace our failed water heater, install new ceiling tiles, and replace the damaged cabinets in the kitchen. They have also been busy identifying and removing clutter and physical obstructions wherever they exist around the church.
- REALM is the online platform that helps our members become engaged with one another, our groups, and our ministries through well-planned pathways. The starting place are the profiles in our member database. This month, John Mark, RJ, Marilyn & Hoyt C, Linda G, Rick B, Drew J-P are helping to update our database by reviewing records of apparently "inactive" members.
Thanks to everyone for becoming engaged in our mission at St. James at whatever level they are able, including all effort that is noticed and so much more that may be less noticed. Rest assured, nothing is unnoticed by God and St. James is stronger because of everyone's combined effort.
Friends and Neighbors, This Sunday is Mother's Day and also Good Shepherd Sunday. Both celebrations have been shaped and changed over the years. Good Shepherd Sunday got the name as we do read the passage from John 10 about Jesus the Good Shepherd, and Mother's Day has roots going back to Mothering Sunday in England. The establishment of Mother's Day in the United States was motivated by the recognition of the work of Ann Reeves Jarvis, Julia Ward Howe, and Anna M. Jarvis. These women worked for sanitary health care for soldiers and were advocates for peace during the Civil War. They imagined a union of mothers who would call for peace because mothers knew so deeply the loss of their children to war. Mothering and shepherding call for similar qualities of protection and care.
We continue celebrating Easter as we move into a month full of celebrations and transitions. I am looking forward to just hanging out with folks this Saturday night at our spaghetti dinner. You can find details about that in this email. Please mark your calendars for the annual Justice Knox Celebration on May 19 from 6:30 PM- 8:30 PM at First Presbyterian Church. We will have dinner and share stories about the next steps. You will also be asked to consider making an investment in the work of Justice Knox. I hope that you will consider giving to this important ministry.
Alleluia. Christ is risen. We celebrated the resurrection with so much joy this past Sunday. The Easter feast continues for 50 days. Thank you to everyone who made Holy Week and Easter Sunday so special. You helped people feel welcomed to this place where we proclaim the welcoming love of Christ in word, deed, song, Easter egg hunts, and something good to eat. We welcome others because we have known the love of Christ and want to share it.
Friends and Neighbors, As we journey through Holy Week, I encourage you to pause and consider those events that lead us to the joyful celebration of Easter. May that also be reflected in our lives. We walk through hard things and know that God is with us. We hold to the hope that nothing can separate us from the love of God.
Friends and Neighbors, As the weather teases us with warm days followed by chilly ones, we enter Holy Week. You have probably heard me encouraging folks to experience the journey to the cross and the grave so we might celebrate the resurrection with that insight. God has shared this human experience and is with us in the darkness and the light. Our liturgies of Holy Week take us on that journey with Jesus and remind us that God is indeed with us on our own journeys.