Welcome
Dear Friends,
Worship expresses the “worth-ship” or worthiness of God. God is worshipped in praise, preaching, and prayer; God is worshipped in the taking, blessing, and sharing of the bread and wine of Holy Communion. Ministry to the hungry, the lonely, and all in any trouble or need is a form of worship, too. In fact, the ministry of the Church flows naturally from our worship services – in lives lived in praise of God, in lives which proclaim the love of God as sermons in action, in lives of prayer – in the bringing of ourselves to the altar, being blessed there, and then being sent forth to share in the riches of God’s grace in the world. The life and ministry of St. Bartholomew’s are centered in the worship of God.
The Rector's Corner - Locating the Intersection
It is May 8. I'm sitting near anarrow, winding 12 acre lake in the piney woods of Loranger,Louisiana, north of Lake Pontchartrain, 90 minutes from New Orleans and 90 minutes from Baton Rouge. I'm one of 31 Episcopal priests from all over the country who are participating in a week long conference concerned with issues in four areas: vocation, spirituality, health, and personal finances. At the moment, I'm focused on vocation.
Of course, "vocation" means "calling." Many of you have heard me quote Fred Buechner who says something like this: ‘your vocation is where your deep yearning and the world's deep needs intersect.’ That has always resonated with me. This morning in chapel, another intersection that illuminates vocation was suggested by Fr. Stephen Holmgren in his meditation. He cited the late Walker Percy's last novel which is set in this area. There are numerous fire observation towers set above the pines of Louisiana. If an observer spots smoke, its direction from an observation tower is forwarded. A sighting device allows the observer to state precisely along what degree line, of the 360 degrees surrounding the observation point, the fire was sighted. It is necessary to obtain a degree line from a second observation point in order to locate the fire. To get to the fire, firefighters have to know where the two lines of sight from two observations points intersect. Stephen likened this to each of us present taking the readings necessary to visit where, at this point in our lives and ministries, the line from our hearts and the line from the call of Jesus intersect.
Of Special Note
A.N.E.W. Seed Planted at St. Bartholomew's
By The Rev. Fred Thayer
A number of parishioners and visitors to St. Bartholomew’s have asked for a less formal worship experience. This experience would include less formal music, a less formal sermon, clergy not vested formally and worship in a new environment. Beginning on Sunday, July 12 at 5:00 pm and continuing through August 30, St. Bartholomew’s will offer A New Experience of Worship.
Named ANEW by Dr. Bill Eichorn, Minister of Music and the Arts, the latest addition to St. Bartholomew’s worship schedule will offer worshipers of all ages a new worship experience. The service will begin in the transformed Youth Room and then move outdoors on the Youth Patio for blessing and sharing of bread and wine.Children and infants are most welcome to be present.
