From Anne …
“In Christ we are neither male nor female, Jew nor Greek, slave nor free,” Paul tells us, “but we are all one.” These are pretty amazing words, words that sweep away all the distinctions of gender, nationality, religion, class and economic status. Paul named the greatest defining characteristics of his culture in this triad. If we want to get the full effect of Paul’s audacious claim we can name some of the distinctions that matter according to our own culture: the distinction between male or female would probably still make it to the top three; and we could add rich or poor, gay or straight, undocumented worker or came-over-on-the-Mayflower, old or young, DC or Northern Virginia. The list could be very long if we wanted. Cultural distinctions are alive and well and multiplying like crazy today.
Which is one reason we embrace Black History Month at St. Luke’s. Black History Month helps us remember that as the church we are called to recognize, remember and lift up the many distinctions in our midst. We could go the opposite route and just ignore our differences, but a) it would be boring and b) our differences – where we have come from, our roots, how we see the world, are an aspect of the many gifts that we bring to one another when we come together as a congregation. Black History Month – which we will celebrate this month primarily through our music – reminds us that we need above all to be attentive and embracing of the differences we bring when we gather on Sunday mornings or work in the ministry of St. Luke’s during the week. Among the many blessing bestowed on St. Luke’s, one of the greatest is all our differences.
We lift up our differences by encouraging everyone to get on the map in the Wesley Room, so we can all see the places we have come from and the places we carry in our hearts.
We lift up our differences by singing hymns with a generous spirit – the very same hymn that one person is rolling her eyes over and another may be bored by has great power and meaning for someone else. So we sing each other’s songs.
We lift up our differences by caring enough to hear each other’s stories. And we lift up our differences by trusting enough to share our stories with each other.
We are all our differences, and yet we are also more, which takes us back to Paul’s words. With everything we bring, we become one body, still differentiated just as the human body is differentiated, according to our gifts; but one body, nevertheless. And the body that we are becoming is the body of Christ.
So we begin with one of Paul’s audacious claims and end with another. Imagine – us, the body of Christ. It’s a humbling and awesome thought. Let it take us toward Ash Wednesday and the season of Lent. Our differences are one aspect of the great beauty that God is creating among us here at St. Luke’s, as we become the body of Christ.
February Schedule of Events
1 Holy Communion
Grate Patrol offering & meal making
Christian Education Team meeting 3:30
3 Grate Patrol 7 pm
4 Shelter Steering Committee 7:00 pm
8 Leadership Planning Meeting 12:30-2:00
15 Our turn with Shelter dinner
16 Presidents’ Day – Office closed
22 Transfiguration Sunday
Church Council 12:30-3:00
23 Permanent Endowment Committee 7:30
25 Ash Wednesday service 7:30 pm 29 1st Sunday in Lent
Lenten Bible Study begins 9:45 am
Grate Patrol meal-making during coffee hour
baby shower for Beth and DJ Sworobuk during coffee hour
and coming up in March….
Sunday afternoon concert series all month
2 Grate Patrol 7 pm
Holy Communion
Grate Patrol offering
Grate Patrol Offering on February 1st
Our monthly Grate Patrol Offering supports the purchase of groceries and supplies to make 150 bag suppers for people living on the street.
Our next Grate Patrol night is Tuesday, February 3rd. Sign up in the Wesley Room or email the church to be part of that night’s Grate Patrol team ( 7-9 pm; meet at the church).
Two Grate Patrol Meal-Making Days in Feb!
The happy assembly line will assemble twice this month, on February 1st and then again on February 29th (the Sunday before the first Tuesday in March). Novices are especially urged to come on the line, as you will have some new ideas about how to put together bag meals for one hundred and fifty people in a short time, which is always a topic of great interest to everybody making the meals.
Thanks to Janelle Rynes for purchasing the Grate Patrol supplies for this month. We now have four experienced buyers/buyer teams: Julie James, Leslye Wooley and Derek Willis, Adam Briddell, and Janelle.
If you have any questions about how grate patrol works please get in touch with the Grate Patrol coordinator, Julie James. juliejamesemail@yahoo.com
Welcome new members
On January 25th St. Luke’s received these members: Chris McKinney, Arianne Perkins, Sarah Sanders, and Don Scroggin. On February 1st St. Luke’s receives Jeff King, Faith Lewis, Candice Morgan and Eliza Wharton. Welcome to all.
Leadership Planning Meeting February 8th
Members of church council, the outreach, education, and worship ministry committees, and all coordinators: we need your input on Sunday, February 8th, after coffee hour to get all our services, meetings, parties, concerts, etc. on one master schedule so that we can see and plan for the next 18 months. This will not be a retreat-type meeting where people are coming up with ideas. The ideas we have already! This will be an exercise to get all our dates up on one calendar. We need your dates! Please be there.
When it snows…
When it snows during the week we follow DCPS closings, or just call the church to hear a message. When it snows on Sunday we always have church for those who can be here.
It’s Showering Babies!
Where do they come from?? Having successfully welcomed little Eilidh Elizabeth Pierpont (daughter of Kim and Robbie) into the world, we next prepare to welcome the soon-to-arrive child of Beth and DJ Sworobuk. We will celebrate with – what else? a baby shower, on Sunday, February 29th, after or before the Grate Patrol meal-making during coffee hour.
Church Council Report
The new Church Council convened as a group for the first time after Sunday services on January 25th. Kate Ransom-Silliman, Karen Cox, D.J. Sworobuk and Rev. Anne Yarbrough were unanimously commended for overseeing the corner property sale, which was finalized on January 23, 2004. The Renovation Committee reported that our architect will meet with the relevant DC government agencies on February 5th after which permits will be secured in time for construction to begin around the end of April or early May. Renovation plans will be presented to the entire congregation prior to final consideration by the Council. Improved security measures implemented since the theft of the January 4th offering were also reviewed. A formal proposal to hire a “head usher/sextant” will be drawn up and considered by the Council (via email) before the next meeting on Sunday, February 22nd. The church policy on large charitable giving (in excess of $500) will be re-examined at the next Council meeting, as well as the total annual budget for this category ($2,000). It was also reported that our January giving was at an all time high.
Music Notes
We have begun a new year and I am really excited about what the music program will add to this wonderful time in the life of Saint Luke's. February is Black History Month and we will feature two outstanding African-American vocalists, Judy Bennett (Feb. 15) and Cayenne Johnson (Feb. 22). Our Ash Wednesday service, which is on February 29th) will incorporate the meditative music and prayer of the Taize Community, an ecumenical monastic order in France. In March, I will be giving several piano concerts to show off our new piano-a 1958 Baldwin 6'4 rebuilt by Piano Craft in Gaithersburg, Md. Look forward to a musical 2004!
--Deke Polifka
Rain, rain, go away…at least don’t leak in the Sanctuary
Good news! After interviewing multiple roofers, we’ve signed a contract with James Walls Contracting, Co., Inc. to begin repairs on the gutters and roof. The repairs to the sanctuary roof and gutters will start immediately, weather permitting, and the slate replacement will follow in the spring. Along with the repairs, the new roofers will help us determine a schedule for phasing the replacement of the roof over the next few years.
--Shalom Mulkey
Thank You From the Shelter
On behalf of everyone associated with St. Luke’s Shelter, I want to thank the members of the St. Luke’s congregation for being so generous to the St. Luke’s Shelter over the holidays. Please know that your gifts to the men helped make this year’s holiday season at the Shelter particularly special!
When we first opened the St. Luke’s Shelter on Christmas Day, 1991, we thought it would be a “temporary fix” until the City could provide the kinds of resources and comprehensive programs that would really address the root causes of homelessness and get people back on their feet. Many of us didn’t understand the complex nature of homelessness and that it often takes more than putting a roof over one’s head. Hopefully, our small program reflects what we’ve learned; at St. Luke’s we are still providing a safe, secure environment for 6 men, but along with a host of supportive services such as help with job searches, computer and literacy skill-building, counseling, and housing. To date, we are still one of the few Ward 3 men’s shelters open year-round and believe our program has made a difference.
The bottom line, however, is that your support keeps us in business! Without it, the St. Luke’s Shelter would not have been able to serve more than 300 men we have helped since the beginning. Again, our deepest thanks to you for your continued generosity and all our best wishes for a happy and healthy 2004.
--June Kress
Next Step Kitchen will be having its first official fundraiser at Mr. Days in Clarendon on Thursday February 5th at 5:30! This is a Happy Hour/Networking event put on by our great friends Potomac Meeting Planners International. (NSK is the Charity of the year for PMPI). Cost is $20 in advance (visit pmpi.org) or $25 at the door and includes beer, wine, and appetizers from SoBe Seafood. Thursdays are a great night for Happy Hour, why not spend yours helping out your community! (Who knows, maybe the Groundhog will even give us some good news that week!) Hope to see you there!
--Susan Keenan
Concert to Benefit Homeless
Several local a cappella singing groups will perform Saturday, February 21, 2004, to benefit organizations that serve homeless men and women in our area. The 12th annual Sing Our for Shelter (SOS) concert is sponsored by the Augmented Eight (DC-area performers for more than 50 years) and will include performances by Venus D Minor, BlueLine and the Princeton Tigertones. The concert begins at 8 p.m. at the Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church at 3401 Nebraska Ave. N.W. Tickets are available at the door and are $25 per person, $15 for students and $50 for patrons and preferred seating. There is no charge for children under 12. All proceeds will go to Christ House, the Community Council for the Homeless at Friendship Place, and to Metropolitan Memorial's Metropolitan House. Please contact Derek Willis if you have any
questions. derek@thescoop.org
Tuesday night study group. This small informal group offers spiritual focus and support. Meets 7:30-8:30 in Anne’s office (enter by the office door).
Wednesday evening prayer. A quiet time of sharing and prayer. Every Wednesday in the Chapel at 7:30 pm.
Shelter Dinner Opportunity February 15th
A group of church members and friends provides dinner for the Shelter residents on the third Sunday of every month. If you’d like to be a part of this enjoyable and rewarding experience, contact Nikki Parker or Cory Scott at nicoleparker555@hotmail.com and scott@urbanretail.com
Ash Wednesday February 25th
Our Ash Wednesday service will begin at 7:30 pm in the sanctuary on February 25th. This will be a service of meditation, music and prayer, with imposition of ashes. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, the season of preparation for Easter.
Lenten Study Begins February 29 at 9:45 am
We will have a Lenten Bible study every Sunday before Easter, beginning on February 29th. This study will focus on the story of God’s grace in the Old Testament. God’s grace does run through the Old Testament as well as the New! We will study the stories of Adam and Eve, Elijah, Daniel, Ruth and Jonah. If you feel a little at sea about the Old Testament, this is a good way to get your feet wet. This group begins at 9:45 am and concludes at 10:30.
February Birthdays
2nd Frances Fort
22nd Rosalyn Zulu
28th Sara Horton
Happy birthday to all!
Pictures Needed for the New Directory!
If you have been contacted because we need your picture, please email, send or drop off your updated picture for the new directory. We will also have someone taking pictures after church on February 1st and 8th. The goal: a new 2004 Church Directory on February 15th! Don’t miss out! Especially as we grow, it’s important to have everybody’s picture in the church directory.
Joys and concerns
For Joyce Wagner, recovering from a heart attack, and for Derrick, Mike, Nick, Julia, Marc and Matthew
The joy of snow and Ripley at church with his friend Conrad Sworobuk
Cherise Williams shared her joy at being back at St. Luke’s and into the new semester at Georgetown
Clint Riley gave thanks that his 94 year old grandfather is in good health and working in his farm
Richard Pyle shared the joy of the birth of Kim and Robbie’s daughter Eilidh Elizabeth Pierpont, on January 16th
Prayer for Darryl Smith and his family as they grieve the loss of Darryl’s aunt in Florida
Prayer for Carmen Rottenberg and her family as they grieve the death of Carmen’s grandfather, Don Hoeck, in Michigan
Continued prayer for the people of Haiti and especially the children and workers at Wings of Hope Orphanage
Continued prayer for those who are homeless in a time of extreme cold
For Karen Westergaard’s sister and Karen’s family in Omaha
For Kaou and Sonia Kassambara’s newborn nephew Alpha, receiving care for kidney disease in Geneva
For peace and for members of the military, for contract employees, and for the people of Iraq
For Beth and DJ, whose baby is due in early March
For Carrie and Bob, whose baby is due in May
For our Volunteers in Mission team as it prepares for the trip to Cuba in August 2004
For the community of St. Luke’s Shelter.
For those living with HIV/AIDS
For our members who are unable to attend because of their health: Margaret Roberts, Jeanne Goss, Vernon Thomas, Lucille Dade, and Dorothy Bowers.
Yoga on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings at church. Contact Beth (bethsworobuk@aol.com) for more information.
Coffee Hour Hosts for February
1 Nancy Smyrnas
8
15
22
29
Thanks to all who have signed up to host coffee hour this month. The sign-up sheet is posted in the Wesley Room, or you can just contact the church office if you’d like to host next month. If you’ve never hosted and want guidance, Nancy Smyrnas will help you. Just give her a call ahead of time at 202-365-0084 (evenings/Saturdays).
Scripture Texts for February
1 Luke 4:21-30
8 Luke 5: 1-11
15 Luke 6: 17-26
22 Transfiguration Sunday Luke 9:28-36
25 Ash Wednesday Psalm 51: 1-17, Matthew 6:1-6,16-21
29 1st Sunday in Lent Deuteronomy 26:1-11; Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16; Luke 4: 1-13
The scripture texts for Epiphany and the Sundays after Epiphany emphasize the many ways God shows forth, from the spectacular to the humble. Transfiguration Sunday lifts up the transforming power of God. On Ash Wednesday we remember our human frailty and place ourselves more securely within God’s Kingdom which is both present and eternal. The Lenten texts carry us through the broad sweep of salvation history toward Easter.
Put yourself on the map. We now have a map on the wall in the Wesley Room so that we can see where everyone is from and also the places we all keep in our hearts. Please add your places during coffee hour today.
Missed Church on Sunday?
You can still keep up with the latest prayer concerns and church events by checking the church web site, www.saintlukesmethodist.org. The Weekly Messenger appears there each week to help you stay in touch with your church family. And thanks to Derek Willis the site is always up to date and easy to navigate.