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The Ambassador

The Newsletter of 
St. Matthias' 
Episcopal Church 

Minocqua, Wisconsin


Whoever you are, wherever you find yourself on the journey
of faith, we welcome you.
 
JULY
2016
 

Mark Your
Calendars


 

July 19 - 7:00 PM 

Interfaith Discussion

with David Carlson

(at Ascension Lutheran) 

 

July 21 - 6:00 PM

3rd Thursday Evensong

& Potluck

 

July 24 - 11:00 AM 

Caring for Clergy Discussion 

with Matthew Payne 

 

August 14 - 11:00 AM

Commission on Congregational Vitality

 

Serving?

 

Please remember to check the server list on the bulletin board at church (or click here to see the latest monthly schedule online).

 

Also, if you are going to switch dates with someone, please inform both Bill Kane and Michael Tautges at the Church Office.  Thank you!

 

Ambassador Archives

 

Want to read a recent issue of the Ambassador?  Just click on the links below.  (older archives can be found on our website)
April Ambassador
May Ambassador
June Ambassador
From the Rector

Dear Beloved Community at St. Matthias,

July has been a joyful month already and we are only half way through! What a wonderful summer together we are having here in the Northwoods. Beyond visits from families and friends, members of St. Matthias' have also enjoyed celebrations for the fourth of July with St. Francis Eagle River, the beautiful and joy filled wedding of two much beloved members, Isaiah and McHale, the blessing of having our Bishop, Matt Gunter preach and celebrate on his annual meeting, and the fun of sharing music at the final Northwoods Hymn Festival. No one can ever say we don't know how to have fun at this Episcopal Church!
 
One thing about celebrations and events, they require the hands, hearts, and smiles of many helpers. Events and celebrations that go smoothly also require dedicated organizational gifts of the Holy Spirit. I want to take a moment to thank all of the helpers and the organizers, especially our awesome Senior Warden, Chris Clark and our equally awesome Sexton, Bill Kane, and their band of merry assistants (too many to list here) who say YES when Chris calls. Many of you don't even need a call, you approach her or Bill and say, how can we help? Blessings to all of you for what the bishop kept saying with delight is "such good energy here." Yes, we do have good energy here at St. Matthias'. I believe our joy comes from loving one another as Christ loves us - how wonderful to be in a place where those are not just words, but the reality of our faith journey! Thank you, Chris and Bill and all who come together to do the cooking, decorating, altar setting, hall sweeping, and the incredible, almost always laughing, kitchen team who cleans up after all of us who do the eating. You are AWESOME!
 
Another group who deserves recognition are our hard working liturgical teams, our fantastic, dedicated office administrator who painstakingly attends to the oft-changing bulletins, calendar, visitors and event coordinator's questions, our gifted choir, our music directors Bob and Marcia and our acolytes, readers, healing team, ushers and greeters who help everyone who worships here feel that this is a Holy place where all are welcome - I am so very blessed by your gifts and loving presence to one another, and all who enter here. Thank you!
 
Now, onto house news, as many have kindly asked about how my home purchase and move have been going, I thought this would be a great way to share. First and foremost, let me share that with the generous gift of the time and counsel of Kay Tait and Jim Tait, I have a home! There are thank yous here too for help with my sort of drawn-out move! Thank you so very much to Ron Glowac and Al Prisk who each organized groups of hearty fellows to do some strenuous physical labor carrying boxes and furniture between Hazelhurst and Woodruff on the hot days surrounding the 4th of July weekend, and huge thanks for Gene Degner and his magical Thrift Shop Truck that holds a home full. Big thanks to a couple of you who came out on both days!! Thank you to the very kind group of women who dedicated themselves to the often confusing task of packing another person's belongings. To all of you who came to help me pack the week before you were my angels on that day (and angels to the guys who had at least half of my belongings in boxes before they came!).
 
All this to say, I am in my home, and it already feels like a home. As soon as I unpack, everyone will be invited over for an open house/many thanksgivings party and official House Blessing, though it has already been blessed by your kindness.

Erin +
Caring for Clergy

You are invited to a 45-minute presentation, "Caring for Clergy," following the 10:00 service on Sunday, July 24th. This presentation will help our church community to better care for clergy. Discover the similarities and differences of clergy and laity roles in ministry. Learn about ways the First Amendment impacts the employment relationship of the church and priest, and hear some practical suggestions of how you can support the Rector and live into our purpose of spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We hope you'll join presenter Matthew Payne, Lay Canon for Administration of the Diocese of Fond du Lac, for a lively presentation with time for discussion and questions. Canon Payne will also preach at both 8:00 and 10:00.
Parish Updates

New Weather Vane

Many thanks to Jim Walker and Turi St ΓΈlen for the beautiful weather vane that sits atop our Lych Gate. This lovely piece is a gift to St. Matthias' in thanksgiving for Father Wallace's 25 years of service - an awesome tribute to Edgar and to St. Matthias'! Thanks, Jim and Turi!

Soup Fundraiser for Frederick Place 

St. Matthias' was approached by the Frederick Place Executive Director as a possible site for a Soup and Salad fundraising event in the Fall. The idea was discussed at the St. Francis Project meeting on June 12th, and enthusiastically embraced. Several team members agreed to form a committee to work with Frederick Place staff to organize the event. An organizational meeting has been scheduled for 11:30 AM on Sunday July 24th. The NATH Board members do most of the work, while St Matthias provides the kitchen and dining space and desserts. A tentative date for the event has been established for September 18th following Mass. Expect to hear more details in the coming month.


Relay for Life 

Relay for Life Northern Lights will be on July 29-30 at Lakeland High School -- did you know that St. Matthias' has a team forming for this event? You can join our team by adding your name (or just make a donation) by following this link. Donations can also be dropped by the office (checks should be made out to American Cancer Society with Relay for Life, St. Matthias' Team in the memo). Team members are most welcome! You don't need to walk the whole time, come out for an hour, the opening ceremony, or just to say hi and encourage those of us who are walking!

The American Cancer Society is putting your donation dollars to work now, investing in groundbreaking cancer research and providing free information and services to cancer patients and their caregivers. With your help, we aren't just fighting one type of cancer we're fighting for every birthday threatened by every cancer, in your community and everyone else's. You are fueling our progress to end this disease!

Commission on Congregational Vitality

After the service on Sunday, August 14th, members of our diocesan Commission on Congregational Vitality will meet with our congregation. They are meeting with every congregation in the diocese, and we have chosen this date in hopes that many of our summer residents will join in the discussion. This will be a wonderful opportunity for us to assess our strengths and weaknesses, to learn more about the ministries and activities of other churches, and to share what we do, in hopes of assisting other parishes. We will begin right after the service and will finish by 2:30. Your input is important so please make plans now to attend!

Women of Matthias

Women of Matthias (WOM) is a group of women who are interested in sharing our commitment to keep spirituality alive in our lives, sharing in discussions over topics that relate to us, reflecting on issues that concern our relationships with others and the world, praying together, and also enjoying a warm cup of coffee and conversation with other women. We meet every 2nd Thursday at 8:30 in the library September through May, at which time one of us presents the issue to be discussed. Each month is a separate subject connected to a main theme as most of us cannot be there every time. We welcome anyone who wishes to join us, whenever it is possible to be there. Please contact Marcia Wisner-Holt if you are interested, at marcia.wisner@gmail.com.
Discussion with David Carlson

Dr. David Carlson, professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Franklin College, will be speaking at Ascension Lutheran Church (7937 Highway 51 South, Minocqua) on Tuesday, July 19th, at 7:00pm. He is the founder of Shoulder to Shoulder in Interfaith Witness, a movement begun in 2012 that is committed to grieving and publically witnessing whenever religion is abused for violent purposes.

Dr. Carlson authored Peace Be with You: Monastic Wisdom for a Terror-Filled World which was selected as one of the Best Books of 2011 by Library Journal in the category of Spiritual Living.

The subtitle of his most recent work, The Healing Power of Spiritual Friendships, will be the topic of our conversation at this gathering. He will focus on how encountering and dialoging with other religions can strengthen our own faith journeys. Specifically, he will focus on:

1.  The family relationship of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
2.  Lord, teach us to pray: Learning from how people of other religions pray
3.  The role of interfaith understanding in increasing God-consciousness in our lives
4.  Our common mandates to be compassionate and to forgive

What could be more timely "in such a time as this?" Please come and share in this important discussion so that we can learn all that we can to help us build bridges instead of walls!
Touchstones:  A Fond Goodbye
Written by Diane Diederich
   
For several years I have had the pleasure of putting on paper various thoughts and topics that have come to mind......
 
Many of you the readers have been generous with writing back that they have been touched by my words!
 
But, nothing lasts forever. About two years ago I realized that I was having difficulty with my speech and memory, and when I tired of my smart-aleck sons-in-law trying to guess what I wanted to say, I saw a doctor. The result was diagnosed as something called PPA (don't you love acronyms?). The long of mine is: Primary Progressive Aphasia. My speech has been comprised and my memory has been affected.
 
Soooooo, instead of writing Touchstones, I'll find myself with more time for my many other passions.
 
As Pooh's friend, Tigger and I always said, T.T.F.N. (Ta Ta For Now)

Diane
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