In Church News:

Public Broadcasting System news reporter and sometime anchor of PBS’s NewsHour, Episcopalian Ray Suarez preached the sermon at the July 11 General Convention eucharist; in his homily he focused on the Episcopal Church’s tradition of hospitality. Read Mr. Suarez’s sermon here; this is a .PDF file requiring Adobe Reader or Preview to view.

Find other news of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion at Episcopal Life Online.

The July issue of St. Paul’s Epistle, our monthly newsletter, is available on line as a .PDF file readable with Abobe Reader by PC users and with Preview by Mac users.

On the Calendar of Saints - St. Drostan:

Today is a feria on the Episcopal Church’s calendar. Yesterday, the Scottish Episcopal Church commemorated the early Celtic saint and founder of monasteries, St. Drostan of Deer.

The history of St. Drostan is not quite clear. He seems to have been a Celtic monk living in Scotland, in the sixth century A.D. His name appears at a few different places, and his life story seems to be a mixture of the lives of two different legendary monks. He was also known as St Drust, Trust, Throstan, Tristan, or Drostán mac Coscreig of Deer.

In one version of his life, he was the son of a royal family, and became the pupil of St. Columba or Columcille. Together they landed at Aberdour in Aberdeenshire around 575 A.D. They founded a monastery near there in Deer in the Pictish area of Scotland. St. Columba eventually gave the town to Drostan when he left for Iona. According to legend Drostan shed tears (Deara in Gaelic) as they departed, which inspired Columcille to name the town Dear from then on.

Drostan later became the abbot of Dalquhongale (Holywood), and eventually chose to become a hermit at Glenesk until his death. This is where the miracles ascribed to him took place, such as restoring sight to a priest. Drostan’s remains were buried in the old abbey in Deer, around 606 A.D. This abbey fell into disuse and decay; in the early 13th Century it was rebuilt as a Cistercian foundation.

A different account says he was the son of the prince of Demetia (the Demetae), now part of South Wales. He became a monk, perhaps to escape his family, and travelled to Aberdour around 520 A.D. He had three followers, Saint Colm (or Colman), Saint Medan, and Saint Fergus.

In yet another version, St. Columba was St. Drostan’s uncle.

His name is associated with monastic foundations not only in Deer, but Aberdeen, Aberdour, Richiemay, Aberlour, and Insch.

The Breviary of Aberdeen apparently celebrates his feast on 15 December, but according to other calendars, July 11 or 12 is the day to honor St. Drostan.

A prayer for today:

The following prayer for commemoration of St. Drostan is adapted from the Postcommunion Prayer for celebration of a monastic in Exciting Holiness - 2007:

Merciful God, who gave such grace to your servant Drostan of Deer, that he served you with singleness of heart and loved you above all things: help us who commemorate his memory today to forsake all that holds us back from following Christ and to grow into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

In Church News:

The Deputies and Bishops of the Diocese of Ohio attending the 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church in Anaheim, California, are keeping up a daily blog about their activities, impressions, and experiences at the Convention. Read their blog here..

Find other news of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion at Episcopal Life Online.

The July issue of St. Paul’s Epistle, our monthly newsletter, is available on line as a .PDF file readable with Abobe Reader by PC users and with Preview by Mac users.

On the Liturgical Calendar - 6th Sunday after Pentecost:

Today is the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost. The Gospel lesson appointed in the Revised Common Lectionary (Proper 10, Year B) for today relates the story of the beheading of John the Baptizer. As related by Mark the story is:

Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it.” And he solemnly swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.” She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the baptizer.” Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. (Mark 6:21-28)

Presbyterian Pastor Joanna Adams, in a meditation on this story entitled A Terrible Text, comments:

Those who follow Jesus in any age must never become carried away with the naive notion that faithfulness to God will ever be easy. The road is rocky. Resistance is real, as is the fecklessness of many who are entrusted with political power and who are threatened by any authority other than their own. It is not that they are all bad or all good. It is that when things get tight, expediency and people-pleasing usually carry the day.

And, of course, there is the capacity for evil that can flourish in any human heart, regardless of outward beauty or grace. There is also the ferocity of wounded pride and the wish for revenge. These are too real.(Read Pastor Adams’ entire comment here.)

A prayer for today:

The collect for this Sunday is found in The Book of Common Prayer - 1979:

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

In Church News:

English composer Henry Purcell and Frances Perkins, first female U.S. Cabinet member, are among some new 100 names included in Holy Women, Holy Men, a revision of Lesser Feasts and Fasts that is on its way for consideration by the House of Bishops. Read about it here.

Find other news of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion at Episcopal Life Online.

The July issue of St. Paul’s Epistle, our monthly newsletter, is available on line as a .PDF file readable with Abobe Reader by PC users and with Preview by Mac users.

On the Calendar of Saints - St. Benedict:

Today we commemorate St. Benedict of Nursia, one of the founding fathers of the Western monastic tradition. The Order of St. Benedict, St. John’s Abbey, Collegeville, Minnesota, a Roman Catholic expression of Benedictine monasticism, includes a brief biography of St. Benedict written by Abbot Primate Jerome Theisen OSB. The following notes are taken from than biography:

Saint Benedict was not the founder of Christian monasticism, since he lived two and a half to three centuries after its beginnings in Egypt, Palestine, and Asia Minor. He became a monk as a young man and thereafter learned the tradition by associating with monks and reading the monastic literature. He was caught up in the monastic movement but ended by channeling the stream into new and fruitful ways. This is evident in the Rule which he wrote for monasteries and which was and is still used in many monasteries and convents around the world.

Benedict is viewed as a monastic leader, not a scholar. Still he probably read Latin rather well, an ability that gave him access to the works of Cassian and other monastic writings, both rules and sayings. The Rule is the sole known example of Benedict’s writing, but it manifests his genius to crystallize the best of the monastic tradition and to pass it on to the European West. (Read the longer biography here.)

…

A prayer for today:

The following prayer for commemoration of St. Benedict is found in Lesser Feasts and Fasts - 2006:

Almighty and everlasting God, your precepts are the wisdom of a loving Father: Give us grace, following the teaching and example of your servant Benedict, to walk with loving and willing hearts in the school of the Lord’s service; let your ears be open to our prayers; and prosper with your blessing the work of our hands; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

In Church News:

The Order of the Daughters of the King (DOK), a devotional society for women within the Episcopal Church, at its recent triennial national meeting, rejected by-law changes which some saw “as an effort to remove the order from the Episcopal Church (TEC).” In other actions, the DOK established a fund for the support of junior chapters for girls ages 7-21. Read about the DOK meeting here.

Find other news of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion at Episcopal Life Online.

The July issue of St. Paul’s Epistle, our monthly newsletter, is available on line as a .PDF file readable with Abobe Reader by PC users and with Preview by Mac users.

On the Calendar of Saints - Nabor & Felix:

Today is a feria on the calendar of the Episcopal Church. This coming Sunday (July 12), on the general catholic calendar, be the feast of to little known saints, Nabor and Felix. Since their commemoration will be supplanted by Sunday, we will remember them here today. The following information about them comes from Wikipedia:

Saints Nabor and Felix were martyred under the reign of Diocletian in 303. A tomb in Milan is believed to contain their remains, or relics.

In the apocryphal Acts of Saints Nabor and Felix (which are imitated from the Acts of other martyrs (such as those of Saint Firmus and Saint Rusticus), the two are said to be Roman soldiers serving under Maximian. They were condemned in Milan and executed by beheading in Lodi.

Saint Ambrose translated their relics from their place of interment outside the walls of Milan. A church was built over their new tomb, as recorded by Saint Paulinus of Nola in his life of Saint Ambrose. Tradition states that Savina of Milan was martyred while praying at the tomb of Nabor and Felix.

When Frederick Barbarossa captured Milan in 1158, he gave some of the relics of Saints Felix and Nabor to Rainald of Dassel, archbishop of Cologne, who brought them to his episcopal see. The relics associated with Felix and Nabor are situated in a chapel in Cologne Cathedral. Nabor and Felix are depicted on the 1181 Shrine of the Three Kings by Nicholas of Verdun in Cologne Cathedral.

As well as being recognized as saints of the Roman Catholic Church, to be honored on 12 July, they were included in the General Roman Calendar from the twelfth to the twentieth century for commemoration wherever the Roman Rite was celebrated.

A prayer for today:

A collect for commemoration of a martyr is found in The Book of Common Prayer - 1979 and may be used for Nabor and Felix as follows:

Almighty God, by whose grace and power your holy martyrs Nabor and Felix triumphed over suffering and was faithful even to death: Grant us, who now remember him in thanksgiving, to be so faithful in our witness to you in this world, that we may receive with him the crown of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

I am going to combine two days into one post.

On Wednesday the 8th we took a day off to let all of the kids and adults do something together as our work projects keep us seperated most of the day.

We chose to go to Bristol, TN and visit the Bristol Caverns. The cavern itself is about 180 feet in depth and a mile and a half long. I think we all enjoyed it even though there were some pretty steep climbs to do inside. See the photos for pictures.

After we got out of the cavern we went to Kingsport, TN and had an early dinner of good old southern barbecue, fried pickles, okra, ribs, pulled pork, killer deserts and much more. All with 7 different sauces to apply, we ate a ton and left very full.

In the evening we went back and had a kickball game, the kids are too good, most adults were slow, couldn’t catch and were lucky if we could get a foot on the ball. We played til dark and had a great time.

All of the kids got to operate the drill and power screw driver today and all of them have mastered the paintbrush. It was more humid today and as I write this it is thundering and pouring rain outside, the first rain of the week. Tomorrow is forecast to be 90+ with humidity, yeah!

For dinner tonight we had spaghetti with garlic bread and cake for desert. FYI, the leading cereal in the morning is Lucky Charms followed by Cheerios.

I think spiritually everyone is learning many lessons and we do a reflection process every evening to put some focus on ourselves and our faith. We pray every morning and before every meal.

Click here to view updated pictures

Click here to view more pictures

In Church News:

Read about the daily business and events at the 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church by subscribing to the Convention Daily, a .PDF newsletter. Click here to go to the subscription page.

Find other news of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion at Episcopal Life Online.

The July issue of St. Paul’s Epistle, our monthly newsletter, is available on line as a .PDF file readable with Abobe Reader by PC users and with Preview by Mac users.

On the Calendar of Saints - St. Everildis:

Today is a feria on the calendar of the Episcopal Church. This is the traditional date of commemoration of an obscure English saint, Everildis of Everingham. She was a Saxon saint of the 7th Century who founded a convent at Everingham, in the English county of the East Riding of Yorkshire. (She is also known as Everild, Everilda, or Averil.)

She was converted to Christianity by Saint Birinus, along with King Cynegils of Wessex, in 635. Her legend states that she was of the Wessex nobility. She fled from home to become a nun, and was joined by Saints Bega and Wuldreda. Saint Wilfrid of York made them all nuns at a place called the Bishop’s Farm, later known as Everildisham. This place has been identified with present-day Everingham.

Everild is said to have gathered a large community, eventually numbering 980 women, and trained them in Christian perfection through her example and continual encouragement. All traces of her convent have disappeared, and traditions have not preserved the memory of its site. Medieval martyrologies mention her, and the calendars of York and Northumbria assign July 9 as her feast day.

There is an Anglican parish church dedicated to St. Everilda in Everingham today.

A prayer for today:

The following is the prayer suggested in the Church of England’s Exciting Holiness for commemoration of a religious (nun or monk):

Almighty God, by whose grace Saint Everildis, kindled with the fire of your love, became a burning and a shining light in the Church: inflame us with the same spirit of discipline and love, that we may ever walk before you as children of light; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

• Build a wheelchair ramp
• Convert a partially built bathroom to a closet
• Build a wall to seal off the closet
• Strip and finish the living room floor
• Scrape and paint the porch
• Scrape and paint porch furniture
• Clean up and landscape as we feel appropriate

The kids and adults had assigned work teams and did a great job of focusing on their assignments and I am very proud of them for the intensity of effort they are bringing to the work.

We had a chance to visit with the homeowner who came down from her temporary home to see us and the work. Her name is Beverly Barnette, she is 58 years old and has 11 siblings, most of whom live within a half-mile of her home. She suffers from many physical ailments and is on permanent oxygen. She teared up frequently as our group spent time with her. I think the real purpose of our visit wasn’t the work but to bring joy and grace and hope to her that God is always nearby.

Most of the crew wrapped up around 4 pm (dinner is at 4:30) but a couple of us stayed to finish anchoring a post in concrete before we left for dinner. After dinner a small crew went back to the home to do more work and one carload went to visit Little Falls and some even went swimming.

Sorry these posts are delayed, access to technology is challenging. All are well physically, maybe a little sunburn or bug bites are happening but nothing catastrophic.

I am also keeping my photos up to date from the trip.

Click Here to View the Photos

In Church News:

The 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church starts in Anaheim, California, today; the live streaming GC Media Hub is up and running. Register to access videos, twitter, live chat, etc. here.

Find other news of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion at Episcopal Life Online.

The July issue of St. Paul’s Epistle, our monthly newsletter, is available on line as a .PDF file readable with Abobe Reader by PC users and with Preview by Mac users.

On the Calendar of Saints - St. Kilian:

Today is a feria on the calendar of the Episcopal Church. In the Church of Ireland, a saint of the Diocese of Kilmore, St. Kilian, is commemorated. Kilian, originally from the town of Cavan in County Cavan, was a missionary to Franconia and rebuilt the Church in Baden and Bavaria. Many pre-Reformation cathedrals in Germany and Austria were dedicated in honor of Kilian, pre-eminent among them being that at Würzburg, where he was murdered with two companions.

According to medieval records, he was distinguished from his youth for his piety and love of study, and embraced the monastic life. He is said to have become a monk in the celebrated monastery of Hy and was later elevated to abbot of this monastery. The records also indicated that Kilian was raised to the purple before leaving his native land; this would have been in accordance with the custom then prevailing in the Irish Church, which consecrated bishops assigned to no particular diocese, but who acted as district bishops or traveling missionary bishops.

In 686 he traveled to Rome where he was received by Pope Conon and given missionary faculties for Thuringia and Franconia. (Some writers suggest that it was during this visit to Rome, rather than in Ireland, that he received episcopal ordination). He converted Duke Gozbert of Würzburg to Christianity, and then explained to him that his marriage with Geilana, his brother’s widow, was unlawful under church canon. He secured the duke’s promise to separate from her. As a result, Geilana plotted vengeance and caused him and his two companions to be secretly murdered in the absence of the duke, their corpses being immediately buried at the scene of the crime together with the sacred vessels, vestments, and holy writings. This is believed to have happened on July 8, 689.

A prayer for today:

The following is the collect for St. Kilian’s commemoration is suggested in Exciting Holiness - 2007:

God, you called missionaries from Ireland with Saint Kilian to take the message of the gospel to Franconia and Bavaria; Grant that the church may draw strength from their examples, and never lack zeal to proclaim your love when the going is difficult: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

In Church News:

Episcopal Church Women (ECW) members hope to Grow in Grace at their 46th triennial meeting, which runs July 8-17, concurrently with the 76th General Convention, in Anaheim, California. Read about it in this news article.

Find other news of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion at Episcopal Life Online.

The July issue of St. Paul’s Epistle, our monthly newsletter, is available on line as a .PDF file readable with Abobe Reader by PC users and with Preview by Mac users.

On the Calendar of Saints - St. Palladius:

Today is a feria on the calendar of the Episcopal Church. In the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Fifth Century missionary St. Palladius is commemorated. Exciting Holiness - 2007 tells :

According to tradition, Palladius, a deacon of Rome but probably a native of Gaul, urged Pope Celestine to send Bishop Germanus of Auxerre to the British Isles to combat the Pelagian heresy. He was himself sent as bishop, two years later in 431, to continue this work. He landed in Ireland before the beginning of Patrick’s mission. He appears to have been expelled from Ireland after a short time. He continued his work in Scotland, where his name is linked with Airthrey near Stirling, with which Serf, possibly a disciple of his, is also associated, and also with Fordoun in the Mearns, where he is said to have died. He is thought to have been the teacher of Ternan.

…

(Wikipedia has short article offering additional facts about Palladius here.)

A prayer for today:

The following is the collect for St. Palladius’s commemoration is suggested in Exciting Holiness:

Almight God, the light of the faithful and shepherd of souls, who set your servant Palladius to be a bishop in the Church, to feed your sheep by the word of Christ and to guide them by good example: give us grace to keep the faith of the Church and to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

We were assigned a house upon which to build a wheelchair ramp. It took us a good two hours to decide on the design to use because of the nature of the landscape around the home (very steep slope away from the foundation). The kids and adults in the meantime did a great job of landscape cleanup prepping for the lab and removing carpeting and tile from inside the house.

Ray and Lou took off about Noon in pursuit of more supplies for the ramp, unfortunately the nearest lumber store is a Home Depot about an hour away. They arrived back at the work site at about 3 pm, we unloaded the truck and spent the next good chunk of time planning our next days work.

We arrived back at headquarters at 4 pm for a 4:30 dinner of hotdogs, beans and desert. We had kitchen cleanup duty today so after dinner was cleaned up Mary and a good sized crew headed off to the local swimming hole.

The weather was perfect today, warm in the sun, cool in the shade. Most everybody survived just fine despite several bug bites and stings. We had the chance to visit with many family members of the woman whose home we are working on. There are about 10 family members homes clustered in a half-mile or so.

I did get some of my photos uploaded (slow computers, slow connection) tonight.

Click Here to View the Photos