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| News from St. Mark's Episcopal Church |
March 2010 |
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 Letter from John de Beer
Dear Friends,
This year, I find the repentance to which we are all called in Lent to be especially welcome. The world seems full of so much anger and anxiety; we have lost our way and we need to find a new direction. I hear this sense of disease from people of all ages, from those who have lived for many decades on this earth and look with alarm on what is happening in the world today, from the young adults I am coming to know through my Diocesan work and from our own confirmation candidates at St. Mark's.
Repentance means to turn around, to begin again, to trust that God is doing a new thing and that God calls each one of us to play our part. To live as part of this new creation is to know that we are chosen and loved, and therefore free to choose to love in return; to love God with all our hearts and to love our neighbors as ourselves. To live in the old creation is to fear that we will be neither chosen nor loved, so we have to try as hard as we can to earn our place, to justify our own existence. This is how much of the secular world sees Christianity; a religion where people try to be (or pretend to be) as good as they can, in order to be rewarded in the next life. This is the exact opposite of the Good News that turned Paul's life around; "In Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them." (2 Cor. 5:19) It is neither necessary nor possible for me to justify my existence; that has already been done. |
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The mission of the church is to restore unity with one another and with God in Christ (Book of Common Prayer, page 855). Because I am a member of Christ's body, already reconciled to God, I am free to respond to God's call to share in the community of reconciliation. The more I understand God's story, the more I see how often I am disconnected from that story, telling myself some made up story from the world around me or my own invention. Repentance is the wonderful gift of telling the truth about my life, letting the truth set me free to receive God's forgiveness.
I invite you to make time this month to let the love of God set you free. Hear are some specific suggestions.
· Set aside five minutes each day for prayer. You may use the "Daily Devotions" in the Prayer Book, beginning on page 137, pray in silence, write in a journal, or simply pray the Lord's prayer. If you already pray daily, consider adding 5 minutes to your prayer time.
· Come and worship each Sunday and let the Gospel story become your story. During Lent we enter the sanctuary in silence and listen for God in the quiet before the opening hymn.
· Come if you can to the "Rediscovering Values" programs after the Sunday service. We are seeking to find again the values which lead to real life, for ourselves, our children and our grandchildren.
Together let us turn from anger and anxiety to the love that longs to set us free.
Peace
John de Beer |
Rediscovering Values
St. Mark's Lenten Program, 2010
Most of us, whatever our age, could use some help in living so that we bring joy to our lives and the lives of those we love. There are ancient values in our Christian heritage that can guide our contemporary lives to the fullness of life which Jesus promises. This Lent we are drawing on our growing ability to share our questions and our wisdom with one another in an atmosphere of mutual respect. Our goal is to root the adults and the children of this parish more firmly in the values that lead to fullness of life. If you have not already, please consider joining us for one of the remaining session. See John de Beer or Shirley Estrella if you are interested.
March 7 From "It's all about me" to "Better together"
March 14 Growing our souls - from birth to death
March 21 Choices make changes
Timetable
10:15 Opening discussion at the tables
(Junior choir meets upstairs, children do art projects downstairs. A fellowship table is available for those who prefer unstructured conversation)
10:45 Presentation
11:00 Brunch and table discussion
(Junior choir members come downstairs. Children may eat at their own tables or with their parents.)
11:35 Wrap up in whole group
11:45 Closing prayer |
 From the Senior Warden
The Lenten Program this year is called " Rediscovering Values". GREED IS GOOD......ENOUGH IS ENOUGH was the first session and I am sharing my presentation with you.
Greed is good......I don't ever remember hearing that statement and believing it. However, looking back at my life, I can remember when it did feel really good. As an only child growing up in a one parent home, I usually got whatever I wanted that my poor mother could afford. She would do anything and everything for me and I took advantage of it. Very early in my life I discovered that she felt she needed to give me anything I wanted so I would feel loved. But did I feel loved by getting what I wanted......no because they were all material things......just stuff and a lot of stuff just becomes a burden. You have to take care of stuff. You have to find a place to put it. In some instances you have to dust it. Of course some stuff is necessary in this life. But too much or greed is not good and when we realize that and we start to weed out and maybe recycle what we really do not need, then we become free of the hold that the stuff has on us.
As most of you know, I love to quilt. I started sewing when I was about 10 years old. It was what a young girl was expected to do in those days. Be domesticated, sewing, cooking, so some day she would get married and have babies and live in a house with a white picket fence. Yes, I did all of that and had all of that. But greed took over and I found myself with 24 boxes of fabric in my attic which I had collected over the years. These were not small boxes, they were what was called "tomato boxes" because tomatoes were packed in them for transport to the super markets. I lived in Framingham near a store that specialized in fabrics. I was like a little kid in a candy store every time I went there. I would get paid on Friday and would plan to visit this store every week to see what was on sale. Most of the time I purchased the sale fabric even if I didn't need it. I would rationalize my purchase by thinking that some day I will use it. It gave me great satisfaction to get this bargain fabric. What did I do with it? It went into another box which was stored in the attic until I finally collected the 24 boxes. As the years went by and I moved to Burlington, growing a family and working did not leave me much time to sew but I kept the boxes in the attic until one day I realized I didn't like most of the fabric I had collected. They were mostly synthetics, not natural fibers and now I was into the natural fibers like cotton and wool. Also I was thrilled to find out that the store in Framingham, known as Fabric Place was opening a store in Woburn. So, what did I do with the 24 boxes? I gave most of it away and started collecting cotton and wool. Again, a collection of stuff I didn't need. However, this time I found a way to put my greed for fabric to good use. I started quilting with Christine Peterson and Emily Howser and making quilts for Wrap a Smile, an organization that sent quilts to children in third world countries who were undergoing cleft palate operations. By doing this I would be able to use up my "stash" of fabric as we call it and make a difference in the world by giving a quilt to comfort a child who didn't have "stuff".
I must admit, I still have a few boxes of fabric and I still like to shop at Joanne's Fabrics and travel to Maine to shop at Marden's but I feel I am more in control at this point and have a purpose.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH when the stuff took over my life, my space.. my time away from family and friends and also my money. Do we really need the biggest TV in the store? I don't. Do we really need to have more stuff than our neighbors? What kind of a game are we playing when the material things in life become the reason for living? What are our values? Hopefully during this Lent we will rediscover our true values in life and live a more productive life, being free of greed and letting God direct us to what is most important which is not the stuff of life but our relationships with others; loving our neighbors as our self. We need to be able to take action and not just say those words. Eventually, all the stuff will be gone and what difference will that make?
When you say you want something, is that really the case? Do you really need it? Are we going to let the TV commercials tell us what we need and how to live? As I previously mentioned, I had the white picket fence around the house. I hated that fence because I had to keep painting it to keep it white. I discovered that there are a lot of things I badly wanted and when I got them I really didn't enjoy them for very long and then I had to find a new "want". I had to have what others had and more. I live a much simpler life now and I am much happier. I look around my house and don't see a lot of stuff. I am grateful for a roof over my head, a warm home, food in the refrigerator and enough money to pay all my bills. I really don't have any wants for stuff at this time of my life and what I find is more important is relationships. People are hurting and if I can help ease that hurt, I feel the day has been a good one.
So the questions I leave you with are
WHAT DO YOU WANT? WHY?
WHAT DO YOU NEED? WHY?
WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO LIVE WITHOUT? WHY?
WHAT DO YOU HAVE THAT YOU NEED TO GET RID OF?
Let's change the "Greed is Good to Enough is Enough " and rediscover the true values in life.
Peace,
Shirley Estrella |
 Weather Closing Information
This seems to be a snowy winter so far. We have had two stormy Sundays. To find out if there is a church service on a stormy Sunday you can do any of the following: Phone the church at 781-272-1586 to hear a recorded phone message. E-mails will be sent if time permits. Listen/watch WBZ News Radio 1030 AM and WBZ-TV channel 5 Website will be updated at www.stmarksburlington.org. If you question whether or not to attend church on a stormy Sunday, please consider your safety first above all else.
Shirley |
 Easter Flowers If you would like to include names of your loved ones in the Easter Bulletin please complete the form on the back pew in the church. If you cannot make it to church but would like names to be included, you can call Senada, our Parish Administrator, Monday or Wednesday morning at 781-272-1586. Remember to specify is this is in Memory of, in Celebration of, or in Thanksgiving for. A donation is not required, but if you do choose to give, the money will be used to help pay for the flowers with which we adorn our church on Easter Day. |
Women's Group Activities
March Women's Group Fieldtrip
On Sunday, March 28th we will be attending the Burlington High School Musical - Titanic the Musical. The play begins at 2:00 PM. All the women of St. Mark's are invited to attend. The cost of the tickets is $15.00 for adults and $10.00 for seniors. A sign up sheet will be posted in the Narthex.
Tickets have to be paid in advance as they must be ordered. Anyone interested in attending must sign up. Please give your payment to Linda, Kelley, Judy Gustafson or Rosemarie Tieri.
If anyone has any questions or is in need of transportation, please feel free to contact:
Linda Kelley at 781-883-8972 or email at ljkelley@rcn.com or
Rosemarie Tieri at 781-272-1558 or email rozeetea@yahoo.com
Judy Gustafson at 781-229-2688 or email at judester52@comcast.net |
Choir Notes
Music During Lent
You will notice that during Lent our service music ("Lord, Have Mercy", "Holy, Holy, Holy" and "Lamb of God") is from Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing. They should sound familiar since they are the same settings that we sang during Advent. These newer tunes will give us a different perspective on the words, and since Lent is a longer season than Advent, we will have more time to become familiar with these settings. On Easter Sunday we will return to the service music in our blue hymnals. In the meantime, I welcome your thoughts on these settings.
The Youth Choir will be singing on Story Sunday, as well as two other Sundays in March including Palm Sunday. On Story Sunday we will be teaching the congregation a new song, "Longing for Light", with its themes of reaching out to those who are in need of food, shelter and more light in their lives.
Looking Ahead: Choir Schedule Changes During Holy Week
Since we will be having our Maundy Thursday service on April 1st, there will be a slight change in the timing of the Adult Choir rehearsal. We will rehearse immediately following the 7:30pm service.
Because the choirs work so hard during the weeks leading up to Easter, we will take the week of Easter off. That means there will be no Youth Choir rehearsal after the Easter service, and no Adult choir rehearsal on the Thursday after Easter. Our regular schedule will resume on Thursday, April 8th.
Preview of Music for Holy Week and Easter
As he has in past years, Adam Dohanian will join us to add his artistry to our Easter music. He will be playing trumpet for our Processional, our Recessional, the Postlude and the Adult Choir's anthem. Most recently Adam joined us for our Christmas services and did a wonderful job, so we are pleased to welcome him back to St. Mark's.
And as always, we will be graced by the talents of Bruce Burrell on flute and clarinet throughout Lent, and during our Easter service. We are so lucky to have him with us!
During Holy Week, our faithful Adult Choir will be singing for the evening services on both Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. On Easter they will return to sing a celebratory and uplifting anthem during the Offertory, featuring Bruce Burrell playing a descant on flute and Adam adding trumpet flourishes.
On Easter our Youth Choir will be singing a joyful and energetic anthem, "Mary Told the Good News" by John D. Horman. Allison Cassidy and Jenna Lamourine will be featured as soloists, and Bruce Burrell will be enhancing the singing with his flute.
I am grateful to our choir members for their efforts to enhance our services during Lent and Easter.
Susan Dearborn
Organist and Choir Director |
 Notes from EDS
The Thursday service at St. John's chapel is the student Eucharist. Responsibilities are assigned by year. First year students read and serve as Eucharistic Minister. Second year students write the prayers of the people. Third year students preach, and in general set the direction of the Eucharist. Everyone involved, plus the Dean who acts as faculty advisor, meets the week before to select music and in general plan the service together.
Because there are so few of us, I ended up writing prayers as well as being Lector/Eucharistic Minister in my first year. This year we had some preaching slots open, and as a result I will be preaching for the first time at St. John's on Maundy Thursday. This is a tough audience - every one in it is a fellow professional and all of them are to some degree judging you. Because I'm not officially in my third year yet I'll get a bit of a free pass, but still - I'm nervous! I'm glad that I'm also preaching at St. Mark's that night, as preparing for my time with you will help keep me grounded, keep me from obsessing too much about my debut at St. John's.
We are going to add footwashing to the liturgy, which we apparently haven't done at St. John's for awhile. It astounds me that only a few years ago I went all 'deer in the headlights' at the idea of having my feet washed, and now the footwashing has become one of the most important ceremonies of the church year for me, to the point where I asked to include it at St. John's.
For me, washing each other's feet the way we do at St. Mark's, grounds me in what it means to love one another. Love isn't just thinking good thoughts. Love is caring for each other in every way, including physically. It's a fully mutual act. Washing another's feet enacts the love and care and service I extend to others. Having my own feet washed enacts accepting the love and care and service that others extend to me.
It's the accepting that's hard for me. To quote my father, I'm independent as a hog on ice (now there's an image!). I would rather do almost anything than ask for help, or even accept offers of help if they are extended to me. And yet, I am coming to realize that in its way, accepting care, accepting love, accepting service, is as, if not more, grace-filled than loving, caring, and serving.
I have come to believe that the people of St. Mark's will help others in our community in just about every way imaginable. Are you as ready to accept help? I hope that you'll think about this during March. I also hope that you will consider, perhaps for the first time, participating in the footwashing on Maundy Thursday, as we enact the love that we have for one another in this very direct and personal way.
Catherine Owens |
Usher Schedule
Mar 7 CAROL HODGKINS
DENNIS HODGKINS
Mar 14 MARK LAMOURINE
NELSON HOLT
Mar 21 BRIAN CULLINAN
RICK BLANEY
Mar 21 DON HOWSER
BOB PATTISON
April 4 CAROL HODGKINS
Easter DENNIS HODGKINS
April 11 GREG DOOLEY
BOB JANKOWSKI
April 18 MARK LAMOURINE
NELSON HOLT
April 25 BRIAN CULLINAN RICK BLANEY |
St. Mark's Schedule
Holy Eucharist and Church School both begin at 9:00 am on Sunday. Church School children join the congregation at the peace. After service we have coffee hour in the parish hall.
On the first Sunday of the month Sunday School combines with our regular service for a special Story service.
The Youth Choir rehearses after service on Sunday. The Adult Choir rehearses on Thursday at
7:30 pm.
The Youth Group meets on the first and third Sundays after the service.
Confirmation class meets on the second and fourth Sundays after service. Any youth from 8th grade and up is invited, even if you've already been confirmed!
Vestry meets at 7:00 pm in the Choir Room on the second Monday. Vestry meetings are open to all, unless otherwise announced.
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