October 26, 2023 | VOLUME 35, ISSUE 40

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Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost

October 29, 2023

SCRIPTURE READINGS

Leviticus 19:1-2,15-18

Psalm 1

1 Thessalonians 2:1-8

Matthew 22:34-46

Preacher: The Reverend Jennifer Wagner Pavia

Saturday, October 28, 3:00 PM: Dean Pace Memorial Service in Sanctuary; followed by Reception in Garden

Sunday, October 29, 7:00 PM: "Chamber Music at St. Bede's" concert featuring music of Beethoven, Bocherini & violinist Kirstin Fife in Sanctuary

Sunday, November 5: Daylight Savings Time ends

Monday, November 6, 6:45 PM: Sisters of Bede

Sunday, November 12, 1:30 PM-- Grassroots Neighbors

Bible and Breakfast

Tuesdays | 9:30 AM

Luther Hall & Zoom

Dinner Church with Eucharist

Wednesdays | 6:30 PM

Luther Hall

WEDNESDAY DINNER CHURCH: YOU'RE INVITED

By Kathy Russell

Those who know me know that I love traveling in England (and Wales and Scotland).  In my younger days, I used to travel by myself.  I would find a base in London and take day trips by train to interesting locations all over the country.  When planning these trips, one of the criteria was whether there was a cathedral or other large church that had a daily Evensong service.  Following these guidelines, I have visited Durham in the North, Chichester in the South, Salisbury in the West, and Canterbury in the East.  In the middle, there is London (Westminster Abbey and St. Paul’s Cathedral), Windsor (St. George’s Chapel in the castle), and several colleges in Oxford and Cambridge (King’s College among them).

What is it about the Evensong service that makes it so appealing to me that I seek it out on my travels?  First off, it is soaked with English heritage.  It’s a service that has existed since the Reformation and takes place in beautiful buildings which, for the most part, predate the Reformation.  Second, the music is absolutely top-notch.  These churches are associated with choir schools and some of them, like the choir of King’s College, Cambridge, are world famous. 

In addition, the service is designed to be a calming end-of-the day experience, away from the business of the rest of our lives.  As a traveler, I welcome the opportunity to take a deep breath.  I make a special effort to queue well before the service to try to get a seat in the choir stalls.  Being right next to or behind the choir adds something special.

What exactly is Evensong?  At the time of the Reformation, when the Church of England was formed, the old monastic hours were eliminated.  Some were combined and reconfigured to form new services for the new Church.  Evensong was a combination of Vespers and Compline.  The service is almost entirely music, with the choir singing most if not all the parts.  There may or may not be congregational hymns.  The spoken version of this service is Evening Prayer.

The order of service for Evensong varies a bit from place to place but contains the same elements pretty much everywhere.  These elements are described in this article from the Cathedral Music Trust, www.cathedralmusictrust.org.uk/CMT/CMT/Discover/Evensong-Unwrapped.aspx

So that brings us to the United States and St. Bede’s Episcopal Church in particular.  We do not have a daily Evensong service, but we offer about three such services every year.  We do not have a centuries-old building, but the remodeling of the church has created a space that is intimate and welcoming.  Our choir is not world-famous.  I like to think of it as small but mighty.  The service includes most of the elements of the Church of England service, but it is tweaked a bit in accordance with the Episcopal Church’s Book of Common Prayer. And our service matches the services across the pond when it comes to a sense of calm–a chance to take a deep breath before the busyness of the coming week.

I and the other members of the St. Bede’s choir invite you to join us on Sunday, Nov. 5, at 4 p.m. for our Fall Evensong.

FOOD, FAITH, FELLOWSHIP

On Wednesday, October 11, Reverend Jennifer hosted our first Dinner Church at St. Bede’s. It was a unique and lovely worship experience that combined a simple communion service, meaningful conversation, and spiritual reflection with a shared meal. The gathering felt like a loving family where some people shared about personal struggles where they ended up encountering the presence of God. The response was one of empathy, wonderment and support.

Our Dinner Church is open to all (including friends and dogs, as you see in the photo above) and offers a chance to closely connect with others and be spiritually fed while enjoying a tasty meal. Some people brought comfort food to share but this is not at all required. The only requirement is to come hungry for food, faith, and fellowship! Dinner Church will be taking place on Wednesday evenings at St. Bede’s through November 22, and we hope you will be inspired to join us! 

The St. Bede's Mission Committee would like to announce its fall/holiday project--and it's all about shoes! We will be collecting new and gently-used shoes -- and cash to acquire more shoes. Our advisors at the Salvation Army, where we will donate the shoes (their Santa Monica site sponsors a monthly service day, much like Neighbors 4 Neighbors used to do), have the following asks/advice:

The greatest need is for adult shoes. (Another notable need is for long/big sizes for men.) 

The shoes can be sneakers, hiking boots, and walking shoes-- as long as they are "comfortable for everyday wear." 

We will have a box in the Narthex to collect the shoes for folks who want to shop in stores --or shop their closet.

Please stay tuned for more details! Questions? Please ask any member of the Mission Committee.

Many of our congregation are already aware of this, but for those who may not be, we wanted to let you know that our dear friend and sister, Canon Annette Graw, is transferring back to St. Cross, Hermosa Beach. The reason is simple: Annette lives in the South Bay, where she is a leading realtor, and she has been finding the commute an increasing burden.

It’s hard to overstate everything that Annette has contributed to our parish, as well as to the Diocese and wider church. Here at St. Bede’s, Annette founded the Friends of Music and played a key role in working with Frank to organize those events, including fund-raising, publishing the printed programs and hosting the wine and cheese receptions. She was also very much involved in creating the Sisters of Bede, and the venue events concept.

She has been a Vestry Member, Clerk and Senior Warden — the latter during the period that the reconfiguration of the sanctuary space was being planned. Annette has also been much involved with liturgy as a worship team leader, and helping coordinate special services, especially the Great Vigil of Easter and the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass. Annette has long been an Associate of the Order of the Holy Cross, a monastic order which used to occupy the Mount Calvary house near Santa Barbara, where we held our annual parish retreats before the building burned to the ground in the 2008 Tea Fire, leaving only the tall iron cross in the garden still standing.

In the early 2000s, Annette studied for and completed a Master’s of Theology degree at Loyola Marymount University. Most of our parishioners will know her in her role as a licensed lay preacher, whose sermons have always been very well-researched and interesting.

Beyond St. Bede’s, she has served as President of Deanery 3 (midtown and westside) and was an elected board member of the Corporation of the Diocese, which oversees financial, legal and real estate issues for the Diocese, including the sale of church properties. She has been an Assistant Secretary of Diocesan Convention, with responsibility for the keeping of minutes, and was appointed an Honorary Canon of the Cathedral in 2007 by the late Bishop J. Jon Bruno.

The good news is that we will still see Annette, as she has indicated that she will continue to attend our musical offerings. In the meantime, we wish her Godspeed in making the transition back to St. Cross, without the pressure of dealing with the 405 freeway every Sunday! Au revoir, dear Annette.

We thank Rea Crane for the beautiful fall decor in our Sanctuary.

Perhaps you've noticed how beautifully our church is decorated throughout the various seasons. That is due to the artistry and inspiration of our Head Sacristan, Rea Crane, who we acknowledge and THANK for her many years of dedication. Being a member of the Altar Guild is a true calling and a devotion to the greater glory of God. To care for the sacred vessels, the bread and the wine, the delicate linens and hangings, the candles and flowers is a true ministry. In preparing our Sanctuary with loving reverence, we seek to “worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.”

The St. Bede’s Altar Guild is having a meeting this Sunday, October 22, after the 10:00 AM service. If you are curious, would like to learn more or sense a calling to this beautiful and creative ministry, please join our meeting and/or let Reverend Jennifer know of your interest.

I slept and dreamt that life was joy.

I awoke and saw that life was service.

I acted and behold, service was joy.

--Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941)

Heavenly Father, bless the work of our Altar Guild.

Give us loving hearts and reverent hands

in the care of holy things.

Grant that we may work

without haste and offer our service

at your Altar with quiet mind and humble spirit,

so that we may come into closer communion

with you, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Visit the St. Bede's website and at the top of every page, look for the "Donate" button. When you click on the "Donate" button, you will be transported to St. Bede's Vanco eGiving and Payment Process Site.

Vanco is an industry leader in online payments. More than 40,000 churches, faith-based groups, nonprofits, schools, and educational organizations trust Vanco to securely complete transactions every day. Vanco complies with PCI Level 1 standards, the highest security standard in the payment processing industry.

You are invited to set up one-time or recurring gifts using credit, debit, or bank transfer on Vanco's secure payment processing platform. Giving online through the Vanco site saves time and the hassle of remembering to bring your offering. In addition, you decrease the expense incurred by St. Bede’s from handling and processing checks and cash.

St. John the Divine hosts vigil for unhoused and asylum-seekers in New York as migrant crisis worsens

By Shireen Korkzan

[Episcopal News Service] New York City is facing a humanitarian crisis as more than 130,000 migrants have arrived since spring 2022. The city is legally obligated to give beds to anyone in need; however, migrants are housed alongside the city’s homeless, and its shelters are overcapacity.

“The city has been hollowing out our shelter and homeless service systems for decades and hoping that New Yorkers wouldn’t notice that the care of those most vulnerable has really suffered,” said Eva Suarez, canon for community engagement at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in Manhattan. “Now that we are needing those systems to step up at this time of crisis, the city’s not able to.”

In response to the worsening migrant and housing crises, St. John the Divine hosted an outdoor public prayer vigil Oct. 25 for “all unhoused in our city,” including asylum-seekers and migrants. More than 60 representatives from faith groups, churches and nonprofit organizations attended the vigil, according to Isadora Wilkenfeld, the cathedral’s communications director.

New York Bishop Andrew Dietsche, Bishop Coadjutor Matthew Heyd, Suffragan Bishop Allen Shin and retired Suffragan Bishop Catherine Roskam spoke at the vigil. Faith leaders representing other religions, including Hinduism, Islam and Judaism, also spoke.

“The idea was that people who might not have felt comfortable taking a political stance could be welcome at a vigil where we talk about this issue from an ethical angle,” Suarez said.

READ MORE HERE

Presiding bishop returns from surgery, chairs Executive Council meeting confronting violence, division, change

By David Paulsen

[Episcopal News Service] Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, recovering from a Sept. 20 surgery, returned as chair of Executive Council on Oct. 25 at its meeting this week, after missing its last meeting in June. In his opening remarks, he said that he was “profoundly grateful” for the overwhelming support and prayers from across the church and beyond.

“Thank you is hardly an adequate word, but please receive it in the full spirit: Thank you,” Curry said in the Zoom meeting, which was livestreamed publicly on YouTube.

In the month since his surgery to remove an adrenal gland and a non-cancerous attached mass, “I don’t think that I have ever been prayed for more,” the presiding bishop said. Curry then expanded on the theme of prayer and its importance in a world torn by violence and division – and within an Episcopal Church undergoing profound changes of decline and rebirth.

“Even as we speak, there is conflict, division and great suffering in Israel and Gaza, in Sudan and in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Ukraine, Armenia and Haiti,” he said. “Prayer matters and makes a difference. We must pray, for wisdom and moral courage, for world leaders, so that violence does not beget more violence.

“Because violence does not work and violence will not bring about a just and sustainable and enduring peace — shalom, salaam — violence will not get us there.”

READ MORE HERE

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