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A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
12/23/2009
By Hart, Robert
Dear Friends:
The music is chosen, the service leaflets printed, the church decorated, the choir rehearsed, and the crucifer has practised. Christmas will come. As families and as individuals, as expectant and happy, as lonely and heartbroken we will gather before the Christmas Creche and around the Table of the Lord. We will sing God's praises and celebrate the birth of the Incarnate Word. We will recall in scripture, song and ceremony that God is with us in Jesus Christ. The Church is community, the community of the One who heals and redeems our lives by being born as one of us. I look forward to this moment and to being with you. Christmas is the world's loveliest and greatest festival. May we as we gather do so with thankful hearts and a renewed commitment to the work of Christ's healing love and redeeming goodness.
Christmas Eve Masses: 5: 30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. Christmas Day Mass: 9:30 a.m.
Merry Christmas,
Bob Hart, Interim Rector
Advent Reflections
11/25/2009
By Hart, Robert
Santa Claus will arrive on Thanksgiving morning bringing up the rear of Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade signalling the start of the holiday shopping season. In Church, three days later, the season of Advent will begin with hardly a hint of Christmas and certainly no mention of Santa. It's like living in parallel universes. Bright lights and cheery music fill the stores and spill out into the streets. Our churches meanwhile are adorned with purple or sarum blue and the music is far more solemn and reflective. "Home for the holidays" makes a stark contrast up against "Lo, he comes with clouds descending."
The difference between the American cultural experience of the pre-Christmas season and the Church's universal keeping of Advent has long been remarked upon. It's a tension that's hard to keep. Nonetheless I've increasingly felt over the years that the Spirit of Advent is a welcome antidote to the "holiday spirit." I try to live in Advent. There's a deeper magic abroad than that of Frosty the Snowman and Rudoph the Rednosed Reindeer.
We pray on the first Sunday of Advent, "Almighty God, give us grace that we cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility..." That claim that Jesus, the Christ, the eternal Word of God, came to us as one of us gives both our observance of Advent and the frantic world of holiday parties and shopping for gifts their real meaning. The holiday lights and the candles of the Advent wreath were born of the same source, the advent of the Light of the World. This is the deep magic of God, restoring the dignity of our human nature. The One who shared our humanity made it possible for us to share the divine life.
The beauty of Advent keeps us focused on God's presence in our world through the incarnate Son, Jesus. It also radiates outward and gives our secular celebrations a greater depth of meaning. May all the blessings of Advent be with you and yours as we approach the celebration of Christmas.
Faithfully,
Bob Hart, Interim Rector
Telling Our Story
10/22/2009
By Hart, Robert
What is the story of Christ Church, Dearborn? Like any other community that's been around for a long time and pulled together to accomplish the mission of God, we have a story to tell. A lot depends though on what we choose to tell and how we envision our present and future. Like any other Episcopal parish we could tell a tale of those who didn't like the new Prayer Book, changes in the Hymnal 1982, or the issues surrounding human sexuality. No doubt, that's a part of our story. But there is a very creative and exciting story that waits to be told about this parish church.
Diana Butler Bass in her book, The Practicing Congregation, writes: "What if the story was about imaginative congregations reaching back to their native stories, drawing out practices known to their ancestors, and finding new ways of being faithful in a fragmented, detraditionalized world? What difference would that story make inyour own ministry, your congregation, in your diocese...?" It makes a difference what story we tell and how we tell it. It makes a difference to our own sense of confidence and effectiveness. And it makes a difference to those who are seeking a place to call their spiritual home.
As I participated in the benefit concert for the Detroit Coalition for Temporary Shelters, I realized what a concerted effort of organization and volunteer hours had gone into making that such an entertaining and diverse means of raising money for those in our area who are homeless. It was such a great event and it happened without fanfare or fuss. Christ Church has a story to tell about how its commited members take ownership of their common life. Whether its planning for youth ministry or dealing with the finances, people step forward and work together.
In the coming weeks the parishioners of Christ Church will participate in a process of strategic planning and envisioning our future. We call this the Charette process. This is our opportunity to recall our "native stories" and draw on the Christian practices that have nourished us. It is an occasion when we can brainstorm a bit and find new ways to an effective witness in the Dearborn area. In recalling our story we can begin to reenvision our story. Be a part of telling the story of God which is the story of Christ Church, Dearborn.
Bob Hart, Interim Rector
Comments not allowed for this entry.
A Place that Offers Life
07/24/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
A Place that Offers Life
This will be my last blog on this web site, since I am moving on to Emmanuel Church, Webster Groves, MO. As I write, I need to say that I am deeply grateful for the time I have been given to serve with the people of Christ Church as leaders of a Christian community in Dearborn and Metropolitan Detroit.
When I started this blog, someone reminded me that all “blogs” were meant to be a “web logs” of what people found interesting and provocative on the "world wide web”. So in my final blog I thought it appropriate to share with you something that I found that speaks to me of the vitality of Christ Church, Dearborn.
Christ Church is a place that “offers life”. That is why I have stayed here almost 16 years!! The article below is one more reminder of why this community has so much to offer the people of this region. This article articulates why our community’s encounter with the living God, and our commitment to living lives of hope and joy together, are so important to sustain in the years to come.
It has been an honor to serve Christ with you in this community. It will also be a joy for me to watch from afar as you to continue to "offer that life" to others.
Peace,
Daniel
A Place that Offers Life
by Daniel P. Smith , Mary K. Sellon
"Finances are tight, and our numbers are dwindling. The congregation is looking to me to turn things around. So is my denomination—that's exactly what I was told when I was appointed here. And, frankly, that's my expectation too. Isn't that my job?" says a pastor of a congregation that has been experiencing decline for many years, voicing the belief of many congregations, denominations, and pastors that when a congregation is declining, it is the pastor's job to fix it.
Here's the hard truth. If you're a layperson in a congregation that's experiencing decline, whether the congregation thrives is ultimately up to you and the other members. Your pastor can teach, guide, lead, support, inspire, even cajole. But in the end, congregational health is a function of how people in the congregation relate to one another, to God, and to their community. A congregation is a microcosm of the greater church, a local embodiment of the body of Christ. In John's Gospel, Jesus says, "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). We believe this is one of the primary messages that a healthy congregation embodies for its members and its surrounding community.
A congregation that is truly being church brings people into a loving, life-giving relationship with God and others that is transformational. This is the nature of the kin-dom of God, where covenant relationships model the best aspects of family. People find hope. They experience belonging; they extend and receive forgiveness. They discover a sense of purpose and direction. They learn to live with appreciation and joy no matter what the circumstances. Although a pastor can preach and teach this message, the message has power only to the extent that the people in the congregation live it and practice it with one another. Practicing loving, life-giving relationships transforms congregation members. Witnessing such benefits draws others who want something similar for themselves and their families.
Businesses are based on the premise of offering something of value—goods or services—to a customer in exchange for money. Successful businesses "give value for money." Gimmicks and fancy features may bring people through the door, but people won't buy unless they believe they'll receive something of worth. And they'll return and recommend the business to others only if they receive something of value. Congregations are not businesses, yet they can fall into a similar trap of thinking that it's the features and the gimmicks that people want. A congregation's greatest asset, the unique gift it offers, is the people who make up the congregation and the possibilities for transformation they embody.
When we talk about congregational renewal, we mean a renewal of the people's ability to notice and experience God in their midst, a renewal of the congregation's desire to partner with God in achieving God's aims for the world. The term renewal implies that the congregation knew how to do this at one time and that the work is a reclaiming of a lost skill. We find that's not always the case. Some congregations we've worked with have no memory of ever having been a church that talked openly about God and matters of faith. The people have no memory of the congregation's ever having had an evangelistic bent. However, we have yet to encounter a congregation that, when asked to recall moments when its church was really "being church," couldn't name sacred moments when God seemed present and people found healing and hope.
The church-growth movement is often blamed for leading congregations down the path of thinking that bigger is better and that increased numbers equal health and growth. That movement did, however, help raise the question of how to measure congregational health. If the measure is not dollars in the bank or people in the pews, what is it? We hear congregations and pastors wrestling with questions that weren't on the table twenty years ago. "What's the fundamental purpose of church? What difference is a congregation supposed to make in the lives of its members and in its surrounding community? What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus? What does it mean to be spiritual? What difference do spiritual practices make?"
These challenging questions are the foundation of renewal, the building blocks of a new future. They are not, however, the point at which most congregations start. Fear of having to close the church or to reduce the services offered to members typically prompts a congregation's desire for renewal: "We need to do something now, if we're going to still be open a decade from now." This desire to avoid death drives many renewal efforts, and it certainly provides energy. But if the congregation itself doesn't ultimately trade its fear of death for a longing for life, the efforts will end as soon as the danger has passed.
The aim of renewal is not a bigger building or high-tech worship or a slew of professional programs but a new way of looking at church, the work of a congregation, and what it has to offer the world. Congregational renewal is a renewal of the people's understanding of their relationship with God, their relationship with their community, and their calling. In the most fundamental sense, congregational renewal happens through "people renewal." What's renewed in congregational renewal is the people's understanding of their relationship with God, their relationship with their community, and their sense of calling.
No pastor, no program, no resource can make renewal happen. On the other hand, almost any pastor, program, or resource can help renewal unfold when the people of a congregation deeply desire a new and better life and are willing to do what it takes to get there. The hard part can be developing that desire. As long as life together is satisfactory, there is little impetus for change.
Over and over we hear congregations wishing that the people in the community would become active in their church. What drives that desire is revealed in their response to the question "Why?" Any time a significant number of people answer, "To keep our programs running and our doors open," we know that the congregation is in trouble. It has moved to the point at which the people beyond its doors are valued primarily for what they can bring to the church. People in the community are seen as the congregation's salvation, rather than the other way around.
Attempting to lure the new population group, the congregational leaders add programs and make changes they imagine will appeal to the people. Surprised and frustrated when their changes show little result, they redouble their efforts to find the right program. This work is misdirected. The congregation is not declining because the community around it has changed, or even primarily because the church's form of ministry and worship feels foreign to those in the neighborhood. The real and deeper issue is that the congregation has lost connection with a Christian church's basic mission: helping people experience God and connect with the gospel message of life and hope.
Declining congregations have lost connection with the Christian church's basic mission of helping people experience God and live the gospel message of life and hope.
Without this sense of mission to keep the congregation focused beyond the doors of the church, the congregation turns inward and loses connection with its community. Before others will turn to a congregation as a life-giving resource in their lives, the congregation has to be a place that offers life. When traveling by plane, passengers are reminded that in the event of an emergency they should put on their own oxygen masks before helping others. In congregational renewal, a congregation reminds itself of and intentionally engages in the basic practices of Christianity. It realigns itself with the basic outward-focused mission of church.
From Anaheim
07/12/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
Well, we are half way through - more to come and much more focused than we were 5 days ago.
During our prayers at the opening of the Sunday afternoon session, the Rev. Frank Wade shared these words:
"Lord, you have taught us that love without truth is sentimentality, and that truth without love is brutality.
So draw our hearts and minds to you that we may know your truth in love and so serve your Church and all of your people."
Good stuff.
Look below for some good links on the happenings here at the 76th General Convention of the Episcopal Church.
Peace!
Landing in Anahiem
07/08/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
Well, the Deputation from the Diocese of Michigan has landed!! We are in Anahiem for General Convention.
Today, Tuesday July 7th, we have been mostly getting to know the place we will be in for almost 2 weeks, beginning our work on legislation, and greetings old friends.
We have a blog that you can look in on:
http://michigandeputation.wordpress.com/
Other places on the web that I can suggest to you for ideas and news are:
http://anglicanfuture.blogspot.com/
http://www.chicagoconsultation.org/
http://www.dfms.org/episcopal_life.htm
http://www.episcopalcafe.com/lead/
I don't plan to enter a lot on our site, when so many others are offering their insights. But I will try to stay in touch.
Peace
dan
A Prayer during Worldviews
06/25/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
A Prayer during Worldviews
I came across a prayer given at the World Council of Churches gathering in Vancouver in 1983. It was apropos to stumble on because this week we are hosting the Eighth Annual Worldviews Seminar which Christ Church co-sponsors with the University of Michigan – Dearborn and others. This gathering is a five and a half day, experienced based seminar designed to introduce people to the beliefs and practices of several of the world’s religions, through presentations and “site visits.” Over the years, the lives of many of our participants have been transformed as they learn the concepts, vocabulary and practices of various religions and grow to be able to engage in intelligent dialogue with members of them.
Anyway a portion of the prayer I came across is entitled God’s Love for All People:
Eternal God whose image lies in the hearts of all people,
We live among peoples whose ways are different from ours,
whose faiths are foreign to us,
whose tongues are unintelligible to us.
Help us to remember that you love all people with your great love,
that all religion is an attempt to respond to you,
that the yearnings of other hearts are much like our own
and are known to you…
The rich diversity of this world is a wonderful thing to behold!
Peace
06/16/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
So it is Tuesday, June 16th and Christ Church is holding its Summer Arts Camp this week. I am at my desk, and a few minutes ago a group children, giggling noisily, walked by my office door, peeking in as they passed. I peeked back...
Then I opened this email, from Story People, a "daily" I get... I thought I would share it!!
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| Here's the Story of the Day: |
| Chaos Theory (Boxed Book Set #1712) |
| I'm beginning to think peace is something we made up to keep us from being satisfied with all this luscious chaos |
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A Blog Delayed
06/03/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
A Blog Delayed
Sorry for the "gap" in postings... It has been a busy time in the life of our parish and things like my announcement to accept a position of leadership at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in St. Louis MO have interfered with my entries... But the Blog must go on!!
SO -- I have this entry... and another "saved up". Both are links to Episcopal Cafe' stuff again. Hardly original. But both SOLID.
This first one comes from a chorus in Bruce Springsteen's song "Land Of Hope And Dreams" .
For Springsteen fans, you can see a video of it on Episcopal Cafe's web site and You Tube HERE.
If the music doesn't fit your style, look at the lyrics...
The refrain from this song by Springsteen is a wonderful image of what Christian Community can be. It expresses all of what we have hoped for, for thousands of years... the Kingdom of God - a place - a world - a journey with the people around us... A train of hope and dreams...
"This train
Carries saints and sinners
This train
Carries losers and winners
This Train
Carries whores and gamblers
This Train
Carries lost souls
This Train
Dreams will not be thwarted
This Train
Faith will be rewarded
This Train
Hear the steel wheels singin'
This Train
Bells of freedom ringin'
This Train
Carries broken-hearted
This Train
Thieves and sweet souls departed
This Train
Carries fools and kings
This Train
All aboard
This Train
Dreams will not be thwarted
This Train
Faith will be rewarded
This Train
Hear the steel wheels singin'
This Train."
More from me will come in a bit... for a bit...
Tweeting the Lord
05/19/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
Tweeting the Lord
Ship of Fools recently held a very interesting competition for re-writing the Lord's Prayer for the mobile phone, using just 160 characters or less. It was judged for Ship of Fools by the Churches' Broadcasting Conference.
FYI - The traditional version of the Lord's Prayer is 372 characters long, so whittling it down to 160 characters meant cutting the prayer by more than half but without losing anything important.
Third Place: Rev. Stephen E. Moore, Bellevue, Washington, USA (WOO HOO!! Go Vicar of all Bellevue!). Here's what he wrote:
God@heaven.org, You rule, up and down. We need grub and a break. Will pass it on. Keep us focused. You totally rule, long term. Amen. Second place: Steve Seymour, Bristol, England:
r pa in evan, respect 2 u, may u rain ear as in evan. giv us r needs, 4giv rsin as we 4giv r nmes. resq us from the evil 1. 4 ur always the most xlent dude. yo
THE WINNER – out of a strong field of over 100 entries, Matthew Campbell, a history student at York University, came up with the winning entry, which is...
In 1st place: Matthew Campbell, York, England
dad@hvn,ur spshl.we want wot u want&urth2b like hvn.giv us food&4giv r sins lyk we 4giv uvaz.don't test us!save us!bcos we kno ur boss,ur tuf&ur cool 4 eva!ok?
Resurrection after Easter Day
05/05/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
We are in the Season of Easter - the Fifty Days after the Day of Resurrection.
There is a poem that wonderfully expands what Jesus' resurrection means in these spring days which is by Erich Fried and called, "What it is."
What is it? What does Resurrection mean to you? Beyond Easter Day, how do you embrace the meaning of Resurrection... and embrace it in your life? For me, it is all about God's Love for us and all of creation! And that is worth embracing!!
What do you think it is?
"What it is"
What it is
It is nonsense
says Reason
It is what it is
says Love
It is misfortune
says Calculation
it is nothing but pain
says Fear
It is hopeless
says Insight
It is what it is
says Love
It is ridiculous
says Pride
It is frivolous
says Prudence
It is impossible
says Experience
It is what it is
says Love.
Erich Fried (1921-1988)
(Original in German)
The Presiding Bishop's Word about Hard Times
04/29/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
You may have seen this in Episcopal Life. But I thought it was worth posting here on our web site.
You can find the whole article HERE.
What I want to know is whether she speaks to your heart?
Blessings in hard times: Look for abundance amidst scarcityBy Katharine Jefferts Schori, April 28, 2009
How do we cope in tough economic times? How do we nurture an enduring sense of hope in ourselves and in those around us?
Start with gratitude for what you are and have. Begin with the simple (!) task of listing the blessings in your life – shelter, family, friends, skills and your breath. Include your hungers: for relationship, greater depth in those relationships, the desire to be of service and to give to others out of your blessings.
Look at the opportunities in your life that are the result of what others call a downturn….
Naming a sense of scarcity or shortfall also can be a motivation toward gratitude, for knowing our own dependence – on God and on others – is the root of the spiritual journey.
Reframe your perspective – look for abundance where the world sees scarcity – and discover a renewed sense of connection to, and love for, God and neighbor.
For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us. -- Romans 12:4-6
Bono on Easter from the NYTimes
04/21/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
When I got finished reading Bono's editorial in the New York Time's Week in Review on Sunday April 19th, I thought how wonderful it was to have this world renowned musician and advocate for the Millennium Development Goals talk about his faith, his spiritual journey and social engagement so powerfully.
What do you think?
Below is a section of his editorial and HERE is the link:
It’s 2009. Do You Know Where Your Soul Is?
I am a long way from the warm breeze of voices I heard a week ago on Easter Sunday.
“Glorify your name,” the island women sang, as they swayed in a cut sandstone church. I was overwhelmed by a riot of color, an emotional swell that carried me to sea.
Christianity, it turns out, has a rhythm — and it crescendos this time of year. The rumba of Carnival gives way to the slow march of Lent, then to the staccato hymnals of the Easter parade. From revelry to reverie...
... I come to lowly church halls and lofty cathedrals for what purpose? I search the Scriptures to what end? To check my head? My heart? No, my soul. For me these meditations are like a plumb line dropped by a master builder — to see if the walls are straight or crooked. I check my emotional life with music, my intellectual life with writing, but religion is where I soul-search....
...Strangely, as we file out of the small stone church into the cruel sun, I think of Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, whose now combined fortune is dedicated to the fight against extreme poverty. Agnostics both, I believe. I think of Nelson Mandela, who has spent his life upholding the rights of others. A spiritual man — no doubt. Religious? I’m told he would not describe himself that way.
Not all soul music comes from the church.
Easter Connections
04/11/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
Ian Fraiser has been a member of the Iona community in Scotland since 1941 - A community that challenges each other on the meaning of the Christian faith for every place and time. I came across these lyrics to a hymn he wrote as I was preparing my Easter sermon. Don't be surprised if they show up on a Sunday morning during the Easter Season.
How do they resonate with you and your experience of Resurrection?
Ian Fraiser, Deep in the heart of God
From “Eggs and Ashes”
Deep in the heart of God there lurks
A mischief making note,
A gurgle of suppressed delight
A chuckle in the throat.
Deep in the heart of God there lies
A reservoir of pain,
A cross-marked agony of love
Filled and refilled again.
God of our laughter and our tears,
Transcending human thought,
You share our fun in life, our fears,
- By incarnation brought:
Father of Jesus Christ, the clown,
Whose Spirit gives us breath,
Hear us, who look to crown our merriment, our death.
You can also find our Presiding Bishop, The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori's Easter Message HERE in the languages of our Province - English, Spanish and French; and, the Archbishop of Canterbury's Easter Day sermon can be found HERE
Good Friday - Noon
04/10/2009
By Appleyard, Dan
One of the readings that we will hear at our Good Friday service tonight is from an ancient Byzantine liturgy:
A dread and marvelous mystery we see come to pass this day.
He whom none may touch is seized;
He who looses Adam from the curse is bound.
He who tries our hearts and inner thoughts is unjustly brought to trial.
He who closed the abyss is shut in prison.
He before whom the powers of heaven stand with trembling, stands before Pilate;
the Creator is struck by the hand of a creature.
He who comes to judge the living and the dead is condemned to the cross;
the Destroyer of hell is enclosed in a tomb.
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