Dick and Nancy Bartoes, long-time parishioners at Buck Mountain, celebrated their 56th anniversary yesterday. I asked them to come up to the front of the church at our announcement time, in recognition of this very special milestone. Dick said to the congregation, "I just feel so blessed to have had this woman as my wife for 56 years." Nancy said, "I'd like to say the same to you." What a beautiful thing to witness!
Dick told me that he and Nancy have decided to donate their piano to the church for use in the sanctuary. This is great news, as we don't have one currently, and the piano in our office/education space is in pretty rough shape. As a long-time pianist, I am excited to anticipate how we non-organists in the congregation might contribute to worship. (I love the sound of organs, but they scare me as a musician. The pedals ... weird! And what's with those stop things???)
Another beautiful Sunday with spirited, Spirit-filled worship and a joyful sense of community. I couldn't ask for more.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Friday, June 27, 2008
Hot
I took the canine princesses on a walk this morning at 9:00, figuring it was still early enough not to be killer hot. I was wrong. It was seriously hot. I'd taken along a plastic bag to pick up garbage along the side of this beautiful, little-traveled country lane, and by the time I'd bent over to retrieve trash once or twice, I realized I was getting trembly and light-headed. (This was midway through the 1.5 mile journey.) The poor canine princesses were seriously hot in their double-layer fur coats. I have a neat canvas contraption, a folding bowl, that I bring for them. I can unfold it, fill it with water, and give them a drink. That, and taking plenty of rest breaks, gets us through.
The heat this morning made me think of my dear father, who worked outside most of his life. Like me, he was "hot-blooded," meaning he tended toward the warm end of the spectrum no matter what the weather or circumstances. He perspired a lot (as I do). He really felt the heat, especially when he walked in it for miles a day as a meter reader for what is now Dominion Power. But he never complained about it. When I complained about it, he'd say,
"Come on now, kid, it's a beautiful day. It's summer. It's SUPPOSED to be hot."
Leaving aside the question of how much global warming is affecting our summer weather (for the moment), I have to say I think my father had something there. It IS supposed to be hot here at this time of year. It was part of Daddy's spiritual practice, though he wouldn't have called it that, to look positively on the weather. It was a matter of gratitude. God gave us the weather -- appreciate it!
We fretted about moving from Wyoming because we loved the weather there. It literally never once in five years got anywhere near as hot there as it was here today. And I know there are two, maybe two-and-a-half more months of this hot-humid thing ahead. Can I retrain myself to think positively about heat and humidity?
One thing I have noticed here: We are out in the country, so there are breezes I never felt when we lived in Alexandria. There are also lots of beautiful scents on the breeze, scents of wildflowers and grasses and trees. Now that I get up earlier in the day, I'm also beginning to understand that the summer is more tolerable if you get your serious outside time in way before 9:00 a.m. (I was running late today.)
Okay, Lord. In my ongoing effort to be a good steward of all you give me, I am going to cultivate gratitude for the weather -- including "hazy, hot, and humid." As the sweat rolls down my face, I will try to remember to say "thank you."
And I do sincerely thank you, Lord, that historic Buck Mountain Episcopal Church is air conditioned!
The heat this morning made me think of my dear father, who worked outside most of his life. Like me, he was "hot-blooded," meaning he tended toward the warm end of the spectrum no matter what the weather or circumstances. He perspired a lot (as I do). He really felt the heat, especially when he walked in it for miles a day as a meter reader for what is now Dominion Power. But he never complained about it. When I complained about it, he'd say,
"Come on now, kid, it's a beautiful day. It's summer. It's SUPPOSED to be hot."
Leaving aside the question of how much global warming is affecting our summer weather (for the moment), I have to say I think my father had something there. It IS supposed to be hot here at this time of year. It was part of Daddy's spiritual practice, though he wouldn't have called it that, to look positively on the weather. It was a matter of gratitude. God gave us the weather -- appreciate it!
We fretted about moving from Wyoming because we loved the weather there. It literally never once in five years got anywhere near as hot there as it was here today. And I know there are two, maybe two-and-a-half more months of this hot-humid thing ahead. Can I retrain myself to think positively about heat and humidity?
One thing I have noticed here: We are out in the country, so there are breezes I never felt when we lived in Alexandria. There are also lots of beautiful scents on the breeze, scents of wildflowers and grasses and trees. Now that I get up earlier in the day, I'm also beginning to understand that the summer is more tolerable if you get your serious outside time in way before 9:00 a.m. (I was running late today.)
Okay, Lord. In my ongoing effort to be a good steward of all you give me, I am going to cultivate gratitude for the weather -- including "hazy, hot, and humid." As the sweat rolls down my face, I will try to remember to say "thank you."
And I do sincerely thank you, Lord, that historic Buck Mountain Episcopal Church is air conditioned!
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Gearing Up for the 4th
Okay, let me admit right from the start that I'm not a big 4th of July person. I haven't been since childhood, when I greatly enjoyed the fireworks we could have at home (mostly sparklers). Group expressions of patriotism make me nervous, with the exception of singing a patriotic hymn or two in church on appropriate occasions.
But this year -- this year is different.
This year, Buck Mountain Episcopal Church is hosting a big 4th of July event. We are giving away free hot dogs and drinks on the church grounds for all who come to watch the Earlysville 4th of July Parade. Now lest you think we will be overwhelmed with crowds, the Earlysville Parade is apparently a modest one. Indeed, when our Senior Warden, Geoffrey Mattocks, called the sponsoring neighborhood association to inquire about the church having a float in the parade, he was told that there never are floats in the parade, just the Fire Department, tractors, and antique cars.
Ha! This year there WILL be a float -- ours!
Said float will consist of our Senior Warden's flat-bed trailer pulled by a tractor, rigged up with boards to make the sides safely high, loaded with hay bales, atop which children will perch. The children of the church (under the guidance of two adult artists, Lucia Bakewell and Marla McNamara) created placards depicting the church's work in the world; these will be affixed to the sides of the trailer. The kids will have fun stuff to throw from the float.
While some of us grill hot dogs and pour drinks, others will provide tours of the historic church building and our really beautiful memorial garden. This will be a great opportunity to welcome our neighbors and raise our visibility.
I sent out press releases and public service announcements yesterday. Let's hope this is the first of many creative BMEC hospitality events!
But this year -- this year is different.
This year, Buck Mountain Episcopal Church is hosting a big 4th of July event. We are giving away free hot dogs and drinks on the church grounds for all who come to watch the Earlysville 4th of July Parade. Now lest you think we will be overwhelmed with crowds, the Earlysville Parade is apparently a modest one. Indeed, when our Senior Warden, Geoffrey Mattocks, called the sponsoring neighborhood association to inquire about the church having a float in the parade, he was told that there never are floats in the parade, just the Fire Department, tractors, and antique cars.
Ha! This year there WILL be a float -- ours!
Said float will consist of our Senior Warden's flat-bed trailer pulled by a tractor, rigged up with boards to make the sides safely high, loaded with hay bales, atop which children will perch. The children of the church (under the guidance of two adult artists, Lucia Bakewell and Marla McNamara) created placards depicting the church's work in the world; these will be affixed to the sides of the trailer. The kids will have fun stuff to throw from the float.
While some of us grill hot dogs and pour drinks, others will provide tours of the historic church building and our really beautiful memorial garden. This will be a great opportunity to welcome our neighbors and raise our visibility.
I sent out press releases and public service announcements yesterday. Let's hope this is the first of many creative BMEC hospitality events!
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Sis & Bro-in-Law Are Here!
Not here at our house. Here and about to move into their new house, a brand-new house they built as their retirement/dream home. It's just a few miles from us. We went to see them and the house today. It's a beautiful house with a wonderful porch overlooking a little valley. Janet and Larry were exhausted from the part of the move-in they did today, but they're looking forward to a new life in a new place, after living their entire lives in Alexandria, Virginia.
It took guts to make this move, and I'm so glad they did. They plan to attend Buck Mountain Church. In fact, Larry (the former business owner and promotional whiz) plans to help me recruit members and is threatening to be my "manager." Now why I would need a manager, I cannot guess .... But if that means he helps me bring new people into the fold, I'm all for it!
It took guts to make this move, and I'm so glad they did. They plan to attend Buck Mountain Church. In fact, Larry (the former business owner and promotional whiz) plans to help me recruit members and is threatening to be my "manager." Now why I would need a manager, I cannot guess .... But if that means he helps me bring new people into the fold, I'm all for it!
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Abundance
Last night our Adult Christian Education committee met. I learned that we have been overwhelmed with gifts in this department: Art professor Marian Roberts has agreed to present a two- to three-week series (with slides) on the Christianization of Britain; the Rev. Janet McDonald has offered to present a four-week series on Anglican writer Dorothy L. Sayers, with the class possibly culminating in the production of a play! These are both scheduled for this fall.
Not only that, but our Deacon, the Rev. Anne Hunter, will return from Maine (where she spends half her year) in the fall, and she will do a presentation on the vocational diaconate.
AND there is a possibility that we will start an Education for Ministry group this fall.
For a small-ish parish, this certainly seems like an abundance of good things! I'm grateful.
Not only that, but our Deacon, the Rev. Anne Hunter, will return from Maine (where she spends half her year) in the fall, and she will do a presentation on the vocational diaconate.
AND there is a possibility that we will start an Education for Ministry group this fall.
For a small-ish parish, this certainly seems like an abundance of good things! I'm grateful.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Yeah Baby!
Tonight I had the great pleasure of visiting with a family in the parish who have joined recently. I don't want to share their names for privacy reasons, but I do want to report on some statements made by their wonderful kindergarten-aged son.
"I don't really like the church part, Reverend Connie," he said. [He means coming in from Sunday school for worship and Communion.] "I just like to go to Sunday school," he said.
(I'm thinking how I never liked Sunday school, only the church part!)
While giving me a tour of the vegetable garden, this young man pointed to a wild onion and solemnly said, "You don't want to eat those. They can kill you!"
And maybe my favorite comment of the evening, because of its honesty: "You know why I don't like the Communion part? The wafers taste bad."
A child's view is so different: I wouldn't have thought about how the wafers taste as a reason to enjoy or not enjoy Communion, but he's right, they don't really taste very good. Of course, they don't need to taste good in order to accomplish their purpose, but if we really do understand the Eucharist as a family meal, maybe we ought to think about taste and texture. Maybe that's why some churches use really great homemade bread, though I have to admit that distributing it is much more unwieldy than distributing those neat little wafers.
My young friend and I ended the evening by sharing a vigorous little dance of joy and glee while we shouted, "Yeah, baby!" I invited this young man to do the same in church, but he said he'd let me do it by myself. (Not any time in the foreseeable future ....)
"I don't really like the church part, Reverend Connie," he said. [He means coming in from Sunday school for worship and Communion.] "I just like to go to Sunday school," he said.
(I'm thinking how I never liked Sunday school, only the church part!)
While giving me a tour of the vegetable garden, this young man pointed to a wild onion and solemnly said, "You don't want to eat those. They can kill you!"
And maybe my favorite comment of the evening, because of its honesty: "You know why I don't like the Communion part? The wafers taste bad."
A child's view is so different: I wouldn't have thought about how the wafers taste as a reason to enjoy or not enjoy Communion, but he's right, they don't really taste very good. Of course, they don't need to taste good in order to accomplish their purpose, but if we really do understand the Eucharist as a family meal, maybe we ought to think about taste and texture. Maybe that's why some churches use really great homemade bread, though I have to admit that distributing it is much more unwieldy than distributing those neat little wafers.
My young friend and I ended the evening by sharing a vigorous little dance of joy and glee while we shouted, "Yeah, baby!" I invited this young man to do the same in church, but he said he'd let me do it by myself. (Not any time in the foreseeable future ....)
Monday, June 16, 2008
Mudhouse Moment
Got a triple nonfat latte today from the Mudhouse counter in our local Exxon gourmet gas station. The young woman who manages the coffee outlet strikes me as profoundly spiritual, intelligent, and thoughtful. She has waxed rhapsodic about why she loves this work -- "the art, the science, the people."
She asked me how my weekend had gone. I told her it was busy as I'm a pastor. "That's funny," she said. "You remind me of a youth pastor I knew once. Did you ever know Name Name?" I said I didn't, and hoped that I was reflecting some positive aspect of that person.
"That would be hard, because there really wasn't much positive about her," she said. "It was all about making herself feel better. It's like that a lot with ministers. They seem to think they are little angelic beings who are better than the rest of us."
I said something like, "That must have been hard, having a youth pastor like that."
She said, "It wasn't hard, it was kind of sad -- for her."
We discussed the fallibility of ministers a bit longer (me admitting fully to my own). Then, referring to what she perceives as hypocrisy in the church, she said, "That's why I choose not to enmesh with religion."
Well, girl, I understand. Been there, felt that, chose that. Came back after 15 years of that to be so fully enmeshed in religion that I could fairly be accused of being a Church Lady.
Now I don't need to save this young woman's sparkly, beautiful soul. But I do wonder: How do we communicate our faith in a way that speaks to her concerns? And if not at this point in her life, how about a little later?
And so begin the musings of the Vicar of Earlysville on the Buck Mountain Blog.
She asked me how my weekend had gone. I told her it was busy as I'm a pastor. "That's funny," she said. "You remind me of a youth pastor I knew once. Did you ever know Name Name?" I said I didn't, and hoped that I was reflecting some positive aspect of that person.
"That would be hard, because there really wasn't much positive about her," she said. "It was all about making herself feel better. It's like that a lot with ministers. They seem to think they are little angelic beings who are better than the rest of us."
I said something like, "That must have been hard, having a youth pastor like that."
She said, "It wasn't hard, it was kind of sad -- for her."
We discussed the fallibility of ministers a bit longer (me admitting fully to my own). Then, referring to what she perceives as hypocrisy in the church, she said, "That's why I choose not to enmesh with religion."
Well, girl, I understand. Been there, felt that, chose that. Came back after 15 years of that to be so fully enmeshed in religion that I could fairly be accused of being a Church Lady.
Now I don't need to save this young woman's sparkly, beautiful soul. But I do wonder: How do we communicate our faith in a way that speaks to her concerns? And if not at this point in her life, how about a little later?
And so begin the musings of the Vicar of Earlysville on the Buck Mountain Blog.
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