March 17, 2025

Beloved,

In preparing for Synod 2024, I asked this question of our Ecumenical Catholic Communion communities:



As I shared in my State of Communion presentation on Friday evening of Synod, my heart was very moved and encouraged to learn about all the ways our Communities are reaching out to others.   A special display was created in the Chapel (which was located in the lower level of Longs Peak Lodge) so everyone could read, learn and get ideas from each other over the days we were gathered.

I realize not everyone had the opportunity to view and read these during Synod so we decided to create a series of Newsletters to offer to all the opportunity  to learn more about the wonderful work being done within our Communion.   

It is a joy to highlight the goodness happening

in our Ecumenical Catholic Communion

and I encourage you to read,

to learn,

and to connect with one another

about continuing this important work

in our Communities.

If your Community did not have the opportunity to answer this question before Synod, please feel free to do so now. You can email your response to Carolyn Sue Cecil at admin@ecumenicalcatholics.net), so our sharing and growth can continue!

Pax & Amor

Bishop Paul "Pablo" Burson, M.Div., L.P.C.

Presiding Bishop, ECC

BishopPaul@ecumenicalcatholics.net

This week, in our ECC Service and Ministry Outreach Series, 

we will feature the wonderful ministries

happening at:

Benedictines of Holy Wisdom

and



Guardian Angels Catholic Community

Tempe, Arizona



The Benedictines of Holy Wisdom has 13 members. They live from the east to the west coast and somewhere in between. Three live in Poland. Each member has regular jobs or is retired.

Members in the Community are involved in parish ministry, provide caregiving for people in their local communities, host AA meetings, offer retreats, and lead regular prayer using zoom. 

Some provide therapy to adults or offer mental health to youth with behavioral issues. Ecumenical work and ministry such as preaching and leading worship services in other churches, interfacing with other clergy to address human issues and needs, and being involved in working in homeless shelters and community kitchens is widespread across the Order. 

Chapter 52 of the Rule of Benedict on offering hospitality toward strangers and the disenfranchised is the basis of our work and ministry with folks who live in the areas of the Benedictine members.

Benedictines of Holy Wisdom who attended Synod 2022, St. Louis, Missouri.

Founded in 2004

The founding members of Guardian Angels Catholic Community [GA] formed the community as an independent Catholic community in the summer of 2004. GA became a member community of the ECC on 8/28/2010. GA moved to its current location on the Campus of Community Christian Church Tempe/Disciples of Christ about 15 years ago. The two communities have partnered in worship and service activities through the years. GA has a long history of social engagement, service, and ministry/outreach because the community is grounded in bringing Jesus' message of love to life.

Tempe Interfaith Fellowship (TIF)

The late Reverend Sue Ringler, GA's former pastor, inspired the GA members to embrace a charism of working towards justice, equity, and equality, especially for those with the least resources in the community of Tempe, AZ. To that end, GA was one of the first faith communities to join a few other faith communities in Tempe, AZ, to create what is now known as Tempe Interfaith Fellowship [TIF].

One impetus for TIF forming was to learn what unmet needs each community encountered daily in their locales and what resources existed. Yesterday afternoon, TIF members, including two GA members and me, met with the mayor, city manager, and other municipal leaders to discuss the City's philosophy and approach to addressing the increasing presence of the chronically unsheltered. Hopefully, this is the first step of many for increased collaboration between TIF and the City. 

I-HELP

In 2007, Sue, GA, other pastors and their communities joined the Tempe Community Action Agency [TCAA] to form the I-HELP program. I-HELP provides overnight sleeping space, evening meals, shower and laundry services, intensive case management and resource navigation to assist up to 40 participants at a time in resolving barriers to end their period of homelessness.

For 365 days a year, one church a night opens its space for participants (some of whom may be employed but remain unsheltered) to have a safe place to sleep, and the church, another organization, or an individual provides the dinner and a sack breakfast for 40 people.

As a result of the significant growth of our food pantry and some other initiatives, the GA Leadership Council serves as a back-up community dinner provider to the CCC team that provides meals when CCC houses I-Help participants.

The Longest Night of the Year Memorial Service

In 2008, Sue also initiated Tempe's longest night of the year memorial service on 12/21 to remember those persons living on the street who had died during the previous 12 months. GA and other people who work with individuals living in chronic homelessness continue holding this annual memorial.

The Arizona Faith Network

In 2009, GA joined the Arizona Faith Network, eventually leading to the SW Region of the ECC becoming a member of this interfaith network. Rev Kate Lehman of St Teresa of Ávila Catholic Community ECC in NW Phoenix currently represents the region at AFN meetings.

The Little Pantry

About 2015, the GA initiated The Little Pantry. A formal food pantry was not in anyone's mind's eye in the beginning. It basically started with one person - Sue - giving a sandwich and bottle of water to a hungry individual who showed up at the church office. Soon, GA was distributing about 50 lunches a month. Eventually, GA's host church partnered with GA to create The Little Pantry.

Over the past 9 years, the pantry's operations have expanded. Starting with one hour one weekday each week, the pantry has grown to one hour 7 days a week/365 days a year.

Before the pandemic, the pantry was open for one hour from Monday through Saturday. The pantry keepers (volunteer church members) distributed about 350-400 lunches monthly, along with clothing, hygiene products and shoes.

In the 4 years before the COVID lockdown, GA held an annual Holy Thursday Foot Clinic for those living on the streets. About 100 people could come for foot care delivered by parishioners under the guidance of nurses and receive a new pair of socks and shoes, a hot breakfast, and a brown bag lunch. 

During the pandemic, the foot clinic was discontinued, but the distribution of shoes and socks, clothing, hygiene products, blankets, water, etc.. Lunch distribution rose to 1200-1300 lunches per month.

Our host community manages the pantry weekly on M, T, and W. GA manages the pantry on Thur, F, St and S. Thus, the Sunday pantry hour runs concurrently with our Mass. We invite the pantry guests to join us for Mass as they feel comfortable. Some come into the Sanctuary for about 10 minutes, while others stay for most of the Mass.

Since the end of the pandemic, lunch distribution numbers have hovered between 1380 -1580, exceeding 1650 one month.

For September 2024, we anticipate exceeding 1650 lunches and possibly reaching 1700. 

A mobile medical clinic recently began coming to the pantry one morning a week to provide preventative health care and some primary care intervention. GA and CCC members have financed and provided the volunteers for The Little Pantry.

 In the past year, The Little Pantry has received unsolicited financial contributions from a local foundation and various neighbors of the CCC Campus. These contributions have given the Pantry 6 months worth of operating expenses.

Women4Women Tempe [W4W]

As the pantry expanded, a GA pantry keeper and longtime Tempe resident became increasingly aware of a significant unmet need that women living in homelessness and in profound poverty face monthly: the lack of period products. So 7 years ago, she founded the non-profit Women4Women Tempe, focused solely on securing and distributing period products to adolescents and adult women at no charge.

W4W keeps The Little Pantry stocked with period bags containing enough pads, tampons, mini-pads, and wipes to provide for a woman's need for 7 - 10 days. During CY 2023, W4W distributed 300K + bags to homeless shelters, crisis shelters, DV shelters, schools, churches and more to meet this need. 

Children's Ministry

This past Lent 2024, GA launched a children's ministry in collaboration with several families with children who began attending Mass in January 2024. For every Mass, GA provides an interactive worship bulletin and a coloring sheet based on one of the Sunday Scripture passages geared for elementary age children.

Based on input from the parents, GA now offers learning opportunities for our youngest worshippers on the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Sundays of the month during the Liturgy of the Word. The 1st and 5th Sundays are lectionary or curriculum Good Shepherd-based learning.

The parents requested the 2nd Sunday be an offering called "Matters of the Heart." During this time, GA community members present on topics near and dear to their hearts. To date, the children have learned about St Francis, Juneteenth, and Hispanic Heritage Month, among other things. The families requested no pull-out Children's Ministry on the 3rd Sunday for a break.

The Mass on the 4th Sunday has become known as the Children's Mass. The children and/or their parent/caregiver proclaim the Sunday Scriptures, including the Gospel. They also lead the congregation in the Prayer of the Faithful. The presiding pastor facilitates an interactive homily with the children.

The families and one children's ministry leader have already begun Advent/Christmas planning.

The children and their parents/caregivers have participated in pantry service projects such as making PB&J sandwiches and coloring the brown lunch bags with positive messages/images. 

Collaboration with CCC

In addition to The Little Pantry, GA and CCC, our host Disciples of Christ church together design and create the Sanctuary environment for the seasons of the liturgical year. This past year, the two communities held a joint Pentecost Sunday service.

GA members often join CCC volunteers for the campus' quarterly "work day." GA typically takes the responsibility for deep cleaning and organizing the Sanctuary.

Worship and Engagement

GA members gather for Mass at 9 am Sunday. Typically following the Children's Mass on the 4th Sunday of the month, community members gather for some service activity for The Little Pantry and/or W4W. 

On Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and at least one Saturday a quarter, GA members supply, cook, and serve a hot breakfast for and distribute lunch to go to any guests of the pantry 830am - 10am.

For the past 14 years as of this coming Advent, a small group of members have gathered for worship and Scripture reading/reflection. From Advent 2010 to the 5th week of Lent prior to the COVID lockdown, these members gathered in the Sanctuary for 7am Mass on Wednesdays. With the COVID lockdown, the group has continued to meet virtually at 7am on Wednesdays, but the gathering has evolved to sharing prayer petitions and listening to and discussing the lectionary scriptures for the day. 

GA distributes a weekly e-newsletter called The GA Pause to 75 people, averaging a 62% open rate and 20% click rate. Beyond that, GA is not the most advanced in using social media and technology. GA has an unused YouTube channel and Instagram account. GA also has a FaceBook page where we post the weekly GA Pause, and that's about it. 

Considering these high-tech social media driven times, GA has a simple, almost rudimentary website. One would think this lack of presence is a detriment, well, maybe. Yet people joining us for the first time often report they find us via an internet search for "progressive catholic churches" and our website.

Those who know us from other people frequently say, "I've been wanting to come, but life gets in the way." We tell people they are always welcome because, "Once you cross the Sanctuary threshold, our community considers you a Guardian Angel, whether you come only this one time, three times a year, monthly or weekly." 

Who makes up GA today in 2024?

As of September 2024, about 35-38 adults plus 5-9 children gather in person for 9am Sunday Mass, joined by 8-12 adults and one child who worship virtually with the community.

Of the people who worship virtually, four live outside AZ (CA, CT, MO, and CO). We've been known to say, "If everyone showed up on the same day for Mass, we'd probably have 55-60 people in the Sanctuary!

A year ago, GA skewed toward a mostly non-people of color 55+ age group with a few members who openly identify with the LGBTQI+ family and/or as people of color. Now, the community ranges in age from infants to elders, with several members who openly identify with the LGBTQI+ family. The number of people of color attending Mass has increased this past year, which correlates with the younger people who have joined GA. 

Several of our members are retirees who engage in extensive volunteer work. Our non-retirees work in various careers, from sound and audio design for event venues to construction workers, landscapers, admins, and professional fields. Some also attend college.

One parent of young children recently graduated from dental school and returned to St. Vincent de Paul to work in the SVdP dental clinic after working at SVdP as a social worker for several years before returning to dental school. Another parent is a pediatrician who, with her doctor husband and their children, worked in a local healthcare clinic in Nambia for a year. She currently practices at a local FQHC (federally qualified health clinic) associated with a family shelter and serves those without insurance or Medicaid. 

Another parent is an engineer who transitioned into environmental engineering and green energy production due to his commitment to fighting the impact of climate change. One member is a former social worker who returned to law school and has worked in public interest law for 35+ years. She has been the lead counsel using the law to achieve significant reforms in Arizona governmental systems that serve the most vulnerable in the community. One retiree has worked with migrants seeking asylum, often opening her home to them as they wait to relocate to other locations in the US. 

We have an ESL teacher, former elementary school teachers, a college professor/psychologist, a hospice chaplain, a mental health clinician, and a retired mechanical engineer who volunteers to tutor students and works with the school's robotic team at a high school in a low-income area in Central Phoenix. Then we have B and John Phelps, founding members of the ECC Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The list could go on. 

The common denominator among this community of

Guardian Angels

is their passion to create a society of equity,

equality,

and justice for all.

This passion seems to arise

from their drive and commitment

to bring Jesus' message of love into the world

and

serve as the Guardian Angels of Christ's love. 



Synod 2024:  Our Family Photo Album:

https://conta.cc/4ethWMF



Synod 2024: Links to all of our Amazing Speakers and Presentations:

https://conta.cc/4hkiibb