Rush, rush, rush. Too often that is the pace of my day. I have to do this; I have to be there; I have to finish this- all of it right now. Rush, rush, rush- until something or someone slows us to a halt. That happened to me on Monday.

I was late to walk Bentley, the dog. A block away from the apartment, I deemed the speed limit on May Street was way too slow for me. Impatiently I sped up, went half a block, and then saw the birds in the middle of the street. Full stop. A flock of ibis was food-pecking on the street. Our line of cars was stalled for what seemed five minutes. I was amazed. What is going on here? Bentley would have to wait. It gets better.

Finally I got Bentley leashed and out the door onto Riverside Avenue. And there they were. This time it was a large flock feeding on the grass and a larger flock perched on the ledge of the San Juline. Bentley barked furiously, an Amazon truck growled by, a motorcycle blared past and another dog-walker went around the birds. I just watched and waited for their flurry of flight. The flock-seemingly undisturbed- pecked away. The traffic never stopped. Neighbor John and I took iPhone pictures. This was just too strange. And it was just what I needed.

Author Richard Rohr wrote that “our deep desire is to be caught by genuine astonishment that rearranges everything.” The ibis-sighting might just be for me a glimpse of that rearranging. I pray so. It took a flock of birds to slow me down, then bring me to a halt so I could just be still and watch.

I’m thinking this is what Lent is all about. We need moments of astonishment to slowly bring us to stillness. So we can watch, see and feel where our faith can lead us--perhaps astonishment at a “God-thing” that might begin to rearrange parts of us to change us deep inside. It takes at least the forty days of Lent.

The blaring whoosh of the world’s “growling trucks and blaring motorcycles” won’t stop. But we can. Set aside time to be still for a bit. Look for “God’s flock thing” on the streets of your life. And dare I say, peck away. Lent is just beginning.

~Rev. Gee Alexander

As you prepare to come to worship services on Sunday morning, please be aware that several downtown Jacksonville streets will be closed as crews prepare for the implosion of The Berkman II. Traffic for both morning services will be affected.

Beginning at 7 a.m., Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) will enforce an "exclusion zone" that includes several blocks. The Berkman II implosion is scheduled for 10 a.m.

Adams Street will be the northern border of the exclusion zone. The exclusion zone extends south into the St. Johns River and includes the marinas.

Market Street will be the western border of the zone, which extends past the Maxwell House facility.

This Sunday, at the Cathedral Bookstore, Eman Ziyadat will have several selections of Arabic foods she prepared available for purchase. Included in the fare will be: Baklava, stuffed grape leaves, shawarma, spinach bread, beef bread, Baba ganoush, and hummus. 

If members of the St. John's Cathedral community would like other specific Arabic cuisine on subsequent Sundays at the Bookstore, Eman says she's open to requests.

Throughout the 40 days of Lent, you are invited to practice something new, to give up something old. Use these days to strengthen and refresh your faith, dig deeper, reach higher. Click here to see our menu of offerings and find a way to engage and renew.

Explore how lifestyle medicine can contribute to your well-being with facilitator Paige Hakiminan.

The season of Lent is quickly approaching. It’s time to re-up our commitment to caring for Creation through the discipline of a Plastic Fast. What is this? The practice of a Plastic Fast is using the Lenten season to very intentionally think about our daily use of one-time plastics. And then, to take action to change our daily behavior!

This daily discipline is not easily done at a time when one-time-use plastics are proliferating everywhere we look! Some plastics are easy to avoid, like balloons, which are disastrous for the environment and for marine wildlife. We can simply refuse to ever purchase balloons. Other items, like plastic food packaging at the grocery store, are difficult or impossible to avoid. It takes intention, commitment, and creativity to minimize our use of plastics. So, this year we are asking for YOUR creative thoughts and ideas so we can share them to help each other be good stewards of Creation.

The Civic Orchestra of Jacksonville is back after a long break due to COVID-19. We look forward to hosting this talented group of musicians in our cathedral nave. More information and program notes to come.

The Big Red Bus returns to Market Street outside St. John's Cathedral on Sunday, March 13 from 8 a.m. until 10 a.m. Blood donors receive a $20 eGift card, a OneBlood T-shirt, and a wellness check-up including blood pressure, temperature, iron count, and cholesterol screening.

Appointments are encouraged, so please visit Here and use sponsor code 30785.

Cathedral Family,

We are teaming up with Church of the Good Shepherd and Christ Church Ponte Vedra to support Strides for Pride, a 5K fundraiser for JASMYN. This is a family-friendly event, and there is even a Pooches for Pride contest if you’d like to register your fur baby. We invite you to join us in this wonderful opportunity to show Love at the Core as a Cathedral family!

JASMYN is a nationally recognized, Riverside-based, non-profit providing emergency housing, meals, showers, mental health counseling, peer support, HIV testing, and case management to LGBTQ+ youth ages 13-29.

Please consider volunteering for this critical ministry. If you have any questions regarding groceries, please call or e-mail Lynn Doiron or phone 904-703-0847. For questions, or if interested in funding or providing a meal, please e-mail Brooks Moore or phone 904-382-8981.

St. John's Cathedral offers many ways to get involved. Take a class. Join a Bible study or book discussion. See the complete list of offerings here.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel to see content as we add it!

The St. Johns Cathedral “Lay Weeders,” the group that keeps the Cathedral grounds well-groomed and blooming, is having its spring workday Saturday, March 26, from 8 - 11 a.m. One task this year is to prepare our shrubbery to enable the pest control company (that will be fumigating the Cathedral for termites) to be able to get to the windows and doors that will need to be taped shut.

Shrubs below windows must be trimmed back so workers can access those work areas. Anyone interested in helping with this task and/or other landscaping tasks should email Julia Stark at juliastark@bellsouth.net or phone 904-563-0349. A lunch will be provided.