The Body of Christ and a Building
June 28, 2009
“‘Church’ is the Christian community, the body of Christ – the church building is there to stop the church (the Christian community) from getting wet and cold when it gathers. 
” ~ Rev. Bosco Peters, What is a Christian at Liturgy
Liturgy Lesson for St. Peter the Apostle: Prince of the Apostles
June 26, 2009
St. Peter—called the Prince of the Apostles—is someone whose life and personality are well painted in the Gospels, Acts, St. Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians, and tradition. He is the “everyman” of the Faith—full of faults, but equally full of heart. When Jesus called him to His service, he was a man known for his fiery temperament and was, most likely, quick with his fists. Born in Bethsaida, a village near Lake Tiberias, he was working in his family fishing business when his brother Andrew introduced him to the young rabbi from out of town—Jesus. In St. Luke, this first meeting with the Lord resulted in a huge draught of fish he captured when Jesus directed him to let his nets down in an unlikely spot—giving us the first glimpse into this man’s nature, when he begged Jesus to “depart from him” after the miraculous catch—owing to St Peter’s conviction of his own ungodly lifestyle in the face of God made man. However, Jesus diffused Peter’s insecurity, by simply saying not to fear—hesitate or dread—because from then on, he would capture men alive. St. Peter believed Him and acted immediately, leaving his business to follow Jesus, and was immediately part of His inner circle, and usually spoke for all the disciples—but most notably at Caesarea Philippi, when he made history’s first confession of Jesus as Messiah—prompting the Lord to establish that confession as the rock the Church would be built upon. St. Peter’s high point in confession contrasts with his low ebb—when his courage failed him, and he denied Jesus three times—as the Lord predicted—and then modeled repentance for us all in bitter tears—because the Lord forgave him, restoring him to leadership of the early Church, preaching history’s greatest sermon, saving 3000 on the spot, and being so full of the Holy Ghost that He healed the sick that Peter’s shadow passed over. He served the Church, according to tradition, for 31 years after the Resurrection, when he died, far from home, in Rome, insisting on crucifixion upside down—because he was not worthy of dying the same way Jesus did. His lesson for us, then, is simple—follow when we’re called, repent hard when we need to, and work with all our heart where the Lord plants us.
Four Years of Growth in Faith by Anne Pargeter
June 24, 2009
It seems hard to believe that it was four years ago that we first attended a service at All Saints. Much has changed since then, both in our family and in the parish.
One of the hardest things about our move to San Antonio was leaving behind our faith home. We had been very happy and spiritually fulfilled at the Anglican Church we attended in Tulsa, OK. It was also called All Saints and used the 1928 Book of Common Prayer. I was active with its women’s group and Stephen had been both People’s and Rector’s Warden. Where and how, we wondered, would we ever be able to find another church home that suited us so well? Then, in the phonebook, we found another All Saints Anglican Church that used the 1928 Book of Common Prayer. It seemed like the answer to our prayers.
We visited the church before we attended our first service and were warmly greeted by a smiling, grey-haired gentleman with a hearty laugh and a folksy manner. He introduced us to the priest, who had been at the church for only a short time. Stephen and I decided we liked what we saw enough to attend a service.
After the service, we agreed that the liturgy was similar to what we had known in Tulsa. We were somewhat embarrassed and confused when we said, “Thanks be to God” after the Epistle reading and no one else did, but we were willing to adapt to slight differences in style (and we continued to silently say “Thanks be to God” after the reading). We also wondered why two Sundays out of the month were Morning Prayer services with no Communion offered, but since the early service always offered Communion, we simply attended that service only. During the week, there did not seem to be much happening at the church other than a Wednesday prayer service and a women’s group that met monthly. We began to think perhaps this church was not the one for us after all.
Then, gradually the character of the parish began to change. Soon both Sunday services offered Communion each week. Slowly, we began to hear a quiet murmur of “Thanks be to God” from others in the parish, and finally everyone was saying it with feeling. A more informal music and fellowship service, Koinonia, was offered on Sunday evenings. Gradually more changes were seen and felt. Friendly greeters were at every service to welcome regular members and visitors with a warm smile and a hello. Next came Bible study opportunities during the week and the Salt and Light class to instruct new members from other faith backgrounds in what it means to be Anglican and to provide a refresher course for all parishioners.
Both Stephen and I have grown spiritually since joining All Saints, and we have seen God work in the lives of others in the parish. Again and again we have heard people speak of the warmth they felt from their first visit to the church. It is this warmth and sense of family that everyone at All Saints is so anxious to maintain as the congregation grows because it is part of what sets our church aside from many of the other faith communities in the area.
With all of these changes, the one thing that kept us coming back to All Saints even when we were unsure of our welcome has not changed. The liturgy is still traditional and the basis of all the teaching at All Saints is the Bible. God’s Holy Word truly is the foundation of everything that happens at our church, whether it is on Sunday mornings, Wednesday evenings, or on a Saturday work day. Everything is done in God’s service.
For us, the changes All Saints has undergone in the past four years have helped to make it the faith home we thought we might not find once we moved. God has truly shown us that communities of faith can be found everywhere if we are prepared to open ourselves to them and follow His leading.
ACNA Assembly
June 22, 2009
The Inaugural Assembly of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) will take place in Bedford, Texas June 22-25, 2009.
ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who by thy Holy Spirit didst preside in the Council of the blessed Apostles, and hast promised, through thy Son Jesus Christ, to be with thy Church to the end of the world; We beseech thee to be with the Council of thy Church assembling this week in thy Name and Presence. Save it from all error, ignorance, pride, and prejudice; and of thy great mercy vouchsafe, we beseech thee, so to direct, sanctify, and govern it in its work, by the mighty power of the Holy Ghost, that the comfortable Gospel of Christ may be truly preached, truly received, and truly followed, in all places, to the breaking down the kingdom of sin, Satan, and death; till at length the whole of thy dispersed sheep, being gathered into one fold, shall become partakers of everlasting life; through the merits and death of Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.
CAM Food Needs
June 22, 2009
All Saints supports the Christian Assistance Ministry (CAM), which its Web site describes as
an ecumenical, non-profit charitable corporation that provides immediate, temporary assistance to individuals in crisis situations & enables those in need to move toward independence.
According to the San Antonio Food Bank, CAM is the second largest food distribution agency in Bexar County. The need for food goes up in the summer, and CAM is currently distributing more than 100 bags of groceries per day to hungry folks in our community.
You can help by taking your food donations to CAM, 110 McCullough, Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. or at the CAM Satellite, 5084 DeZavala, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m
CAM needs the following food items:
- CANNED VEGETABLES (14-15 oz. Cans): Green Beans, Tomatoes, Corn, Carrots, Mixed Vegetables, etc.
- CANNED MEATS: Tuna, Spam, Stew, etc.
- CANNED FRUITS (14-15 oz. Cans): Fruit Cocktail, Peaches, Pears, Pineapple, Apricots, Applesauce (25 oz.), etc.
- CANNED SOUPS (10¾-15 oz. Cans): Chicken Noodle, Potato, Tomato, Cream of Mushroom, Vegetable, Etc.
- PASTA: Macaroni & Cheese, Spaghetti, Noodles, etc.
- BREAKFAST FOOD (18 oz.): Cereals, Oatmeal
- MISCELLANEOUS: Peanut Butter (18 oz.), Jelly/Jam
- BEANS & JUICE *For Sack Lunches*: Pop-top can Pork & Beans (8 oz.), Pop-top can Orange Juice (6 oz.), Fruit Cup
“Whatever you did for one of the least of these my brothers of mine you did it for me. ~ Matthew 25:40(NIV)
Liturgy Lesson for St. John Baptist: The Christmas of Summer
June 20, 2009
Today, we commemorate St. John Baptist, and, in contrast to many of the saints’ days, we observe his nativity (birth) rather than his death. Called in some places the “Christmas of Summer,” this event celebrates a miracle birth involving a supernatural and miraculous intervention by God in the pregnancy and birth. St. John Baptist was the last and greatest of the prophets and was both our Lord’s cousin and His herald, as documented in the early chapters of SS. Luke and Matthew. He was the first to proclaim the Lamb of God and actually ministered Baptism to our Lord, an act of humility on Jesus’ part, and certainly an awesome and highly emotional act of obedience on St. John’s. St. John said, speaking of the coming ministry of the Messiah words we can live our devotional lives by: “He must increase, but I must decrease.” St. Augustine renders a strikingly mystical interpretation of these words when he notes that beginning with the celebration of the Nativity of St. John Baptist, the days actually decrease in length, whereas, beginning with the Nativity of Our Lord, they lengthen. This is the lesson on this day, then—He must increase, and we diminish—for the Christian, this means invoking and assimilating Christ’s nature, more and more, in favor of our own fallen selves—lives changed by His Presence!
The Unadulterated Gospel
June 18, 2009
“So long as the gospel of Christ is maintained without adulteration, it if found sufficient for every valuable purpose; but when the wisdom of man is permitted to add to the perfect work of God, a wide door is opened for innumerable mischiefs.” ~ John Newton, A Review of Ecclesiastical History
Read Any Good Books Lately?
June 16, 2009
All Saints Anglican Church now has an online bookstore powered by Amazon.com. Bookmark the bookstore or access it through the Shop tab on the menu above.
The inventory of the bookstore is still being built, and we need our parishioners’ help to add to the inventory. Everyone is invited to visit the site as well as the main Amazon.com (which can be accessed from the All Saints bookstore) and to submit recommendations of books and other products the store should carry. You may submit your recommendations on the form below.
The recommended books do not have to fit within the current categories, and the books don’t have to be specifically Christian, though they must be consistent with our beliefs and values.
Parishioners can also use Listmania, an Amazon program, to create lists of books they like. Individuals can create their own lists or simply submit suggestions for books to include. We plan to add reviews and solicit submissions—of either full reviews or just recommendations with a sentence or two on why the person recommends that book. We will post them in the currently-empty blog category of Book Reviews.
Anne Pargeter is also interested in starting an All Saints book club and invites anyone—male or female—who would be interested in being part of this group to contact her at epistle@allsaintsanglican.net. The group would probably meet one evening a month in Ballard Hall. Reviews of the books read by the group could also be included in future issues of the Epistle as well as linked from the Web site to the bookstore.
Everyone is also encouraged to order books and other products through the All Saints Anglican Church Bookstore powered by Amazon.com because for every order placed through the store, All Saints receives a referral fee. Parishioners can enrich their lives with good books and enrich All Saints’ treasury at the same time.
Some of Our Parishioners
June 15, 2009
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- Alice Goodwin
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- Cavanaugh Family
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- Charles Miller
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- Dan Brown
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- Dawn Andrade
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- Dunlap Family
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- Forbes Family
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- Goodenough Family
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- Goodman Family
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- Heather McIntosh
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- Hilliard Family
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- Linda Snow
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- Martha George
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- McLaughlin Family
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- Morgan Family
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- Pargeter Family
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- Robert Blake
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- Robyn Tate
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- Taylor Hoyt
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- Vance Family
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- Weaver Family
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- Woodworth Family
Photos are copyright Pratt Photography—used with permission. Photos may not be copied or distributed.
Liturgy Lesson for Saint Barnabas: Work of the People
June 13, 2009
Saints’ Days, such as St. Barnabas, honor the first martyrs, those most connected with our Lord in establishing His Church, and in honor of all our faithful departed. We should study their Godly lives—especially their commitment to God’s Kingdom—and ask God to help us follow their examples. Saints’ days date to at least the 2nd century, growing from ancient Christians meeting at martyrs’ graves on their death anniversaries to celebrate and praise God for their heroic lives in our one great Heavenly parokia, or parish—God’s family. St. Barnabas was a Levite—a Jewish priest who became a Christian and one of the 70 evangelists in St. Luke X.1. The most striking thing about him was his commitment to prayer, characterized by a retreat he and St. Paul had at Antioch, where they ministered to the Lord and fasted. Here, the word “ministered” means celebrated the liturgy and the Holy Mysteries of the Eucharist daily. In the midst of this, the Holy Ghost directed the Church to separate (make holy—ordain) Barnabas and Paul for the work He had for them. As a result of focused prayer, then their work began ministry for both men and yielded the Church we know today. The huge lesson, then, is the great mission of the Church Militant stems from the liturgy (people’s work) of prayer and worship—not wishing, planning, scheming, or manipulating. May we, then be people of prayer and liturgy—to a great harvest in God’s vineyard!
