From the Dean’s Desk
The Church’s new liturgical year begins in Advent, but our programmatic year falls much more along the lines of the academic school year. We are quickly coming to the end of the summer season and are working at putting together an exciting year of offerings that will challenge your thinking, help you grow spiritually, and help you explore deeply our Episcopal/Anglican tradition. Highlights for the coming year will include a reading of Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer using materials that were part of a study by the United Thank Offering (UTO); How We Learn To Be Brave: Decisive Moments in Life and Faith by Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde; a course for the curious on Discovering Christianity (for believers and non-believers alike!); a study on the sixteenth-century mystic Teresa of Avila, and more! My hope and prayer is that there is something that speaks to everyone and will help deepen your life of faith and walk with Jesus.
- Dean Rebecca
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First Tuesday - Sept. 1, 7:00
Not only is Sept. 1 the first day of the month, but it’s also the First Tuesday of the month. Grab your favorite beverage, and sit back and enjoy some chit chat with old and new friends at the SPC Zoom Coffee Hour.
One never knows what topic will come up. Join in with the Zoom link at the end of this email anytime between 7:00 and 7:45 pm when there is no particular agenda. Compline begins at 7:45 and we adjourn by 8:00.
SPC Zoom Link
Meeting ID: 716 855 0900 Password: 4cathedral
By Phone: 929-205-6099 Access code: 716 855 0900 Password: 535 007 8352
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The Season of Creation
The Season of Creation 2026 runs from 1 September to 4 October 2026, and this year’s theme is “Living Water,” inspired by Ezekiel 47:9–12. This ecumenical observance invites Christian communities worldwide to pray, act, and advocate for ecological justice, with the symbol “Immersion in Living Water.” In conjunction with the celebration of this season and the Feast of St. Francis, the Cathedral will hold its Annual Blessing of the Animals in Honor of St. Francis on the Eve of the Feast of St. Francis, October 3 at 4PM. Those unable to attend may also have their pet blessed following the 10:15 Eucharist on Sunday, October 4th. More announcements about Season of Creation events are pending.
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Holy Hikes
Holy Hikes of Western New York, a ministry of St. Paul's Cathedral, is pleased to announce its full schedule for the 2026 season. All hikes are held on the second Saturday of the month at 10am, unless otherwise announced. On September 12th, we will hike at Goat Island in Niagara Falls. We hike rain or shine.
All are welcome; carpooling will be available from the Cathedral at 9:30am or you can join us directly at the appointed hike location.
| | CHRISTIAN EDUCATION AND FORMATION | |
Adult Christian Education and Formation
The schedule of Adult Christian Education and Formation offerings for 2026/7 will be published in next week’s announcements. Keep an eye out!
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Children’s Christian Education: “Godly Play”
“Godly Play: a Montessori-based program is offered on Sundays at 10am in the Bishop Scaife Room on the lower level of the Cathedral. Making meaning through story, wonder, and play, the program nurtures spiritual lives by honoring the centrality, competency, and capacity of children. If you are interested in learning more about Christian Education and Formation for a child in your family, please contact Kathy Reiss at kathyreiss@yahoo.com. For information about baptism and/or confirmation, please contact Dean Rebecca at deanrebecca@spcbuffalo.org
| | SOCIAL JUSTICE & OUTREACH MINISTRIES | |
Garden of Love Update
For the past year or more, the Garden of Love has had the good fortune of having Archdeacon Diana Leiker as part of our operations. She has recruited six churches in the diocese to become part of this ministry by making sandwiches for the bag lunches. In addition, she organized the collection of clothing from the entire diocese, some of which we are still sorting and storing on the third floor of the FMC. A great helper in this endeavor is Deacon Diana’s brother Patrick who works alongside Diana to get the clothing sorted and put on racks.
Deacon Diana has recently expressed the hope that she could step away from the clothing sorting to devote more time to her art ministry on Thursday as well as continuing to deliver sandwiches to the FMC from some of our more distant ministry partners.
We are deeply grateful for Diana and Patrick, but now we must make some changes to the operations of the Garden of Love. Tuesdays are very busy as we assemble approximately 80 plus lunches for our less fortunate neighbors. There is little time left to sort and hang clothing.
To help facilitate the distribution of free clothing, we are proposing to start a Sorting Sunday for the last Sunday of the month after the 10:15 service. Some of you participated in Sorting Saturday in the past. The idea is that we would gather in the FMC at approximately 11:45 and work on sorting and hanging until approximately 1PM. That will make it possible to have lunch at home and be ready to watch the Bills play during the season.
The two obvious advantages of this proposal are that you need not come down to the cathedral on Saturday, you will be here for worship. The proposed schedule leaves a good portion of your Sunday intact.
We are hoping that those of you who participated in Sorting Saturdays will wish to help again. Many hands make light work. With enough volunteers we can accomplish a great deal of sorting and hanging. If you have questions, please see either one of us on Sunday.
Michael Bonilla
William Siener
| | IMPORTANT ONGOING ANNOUNCEMENTS AT ST. PAULS | |
“We’ve got you covered!” - Parking at St. Paul's
At St. Paul’s we are deeply aware of the challenges of downtown parking. As one of the oldest churches in the Diocese, we have been at this location for 210 years, long before the advent of the automobile era, but we do not want that to hinder your participation and worship at the Cathedral.
We offer the following options:
We've got you covered - literally! Park at Main Place Mall Parking (221 Pearl St., Buffalo, NY 14202, https://www.mainliberty. com/parking) .This is our preferred garage for those coming to St. Paul's. We suggest that you use the entrance directly across from the Rath County Office Building, approx. address is 166 Pearl, (you will notice the skywalk above) which is only a 1/2 block north of the Cathedral. Weekend parking is $6 all day. Weekday rate: $5 for 1 hr or less; $7 for 3hr or less; $12 full day. Accessibility: ADA-compliant spaces and elevator access available and 24/7 surveillance, well-lit areas, and patrolled security. EV Charging: Electric vehicle charging stations available. If you bring your ticket from the Main Place Mall Parking with you, at the end of the service ask an usher for a voucher for your card. (If you can afford to pay, we kindly ask that you please leave this limited fund for those who can’t, thank you!)
As a reminder, street parking is free on Saturdays and Sundays.
Additional ramps we suggest are:
- Adam Ramp (343 Washington St., Buffalo, NY 14202) - 1 1/2 blocks behind the Cathedral. Weekend parking is $6 all day. Weekday rate: $2.50 hr/ $10 max.
- 93 Pearl Street Garage (93 Pearl St. Buffalo, NY 14202) - A block south of the Cathedral. Daily Parking (Mon - Fri, 6 am - 6 pm) - $10 Max
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Pastoral Care Ministry at St. Paul's
In the weekly Prayers of the People, we offer intercessions for those for whom prayers have been requested who are in acute or critical need. Names remain on the list for six weeks. Should you wish to have them remain on the list longer, that request may be made to the Dean. We maintain a separate Pastoral Care prayer list for those who are homebound and in nursing homes, or may request ongoing prayer. This list is weekly announcements and eNews, but individual names are included in the intercessions. We ask that the entire congregation remember these beloved of our community in our regular prayers holding in your hearts and prayers, all those in need and absent from us.
In a Pastoral Emergency, please contact— The Reverend Elizabeth Grohowski, Associate for Pastoral Care at (212) 222-8109 / email at motherliz@spcbuffalo.org or The Very Reverend Rebecca A. Barnes, Dean at (646) 533-1836 / email at deanrebecca@spcbuffalo.org.
If you, or a family member, are in the hospital, a healthcare facility, or are home bound and would like to have a visit from one of the clergy or a member of our Pastoral Care Committee, please contact the cathedral office at 716-855-0900 or at office@spcbuffalo.org. Due to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, commonly known as HIPAA, hospitals no longer automatically provide churches with names of admitted parishioners. If you or a family member are hospitalized or in a healthcare facility, you or someone acting on your behalf will need to notify the church to assure that proper pastoral care may be offered. St. Paul’s complies with all HIPAA requirements and cannot provide personal information for sick or injured members without permission of the member or his or her close family member. Additionally, if you or a loved one are hospitalized or homebound and desire regular Eucharistic visitation, please notify the parish office. Eucharistic Visitations are customarily made once per month; weekly visits may be scheduled upon request.
Prayer and Pastoral Care for the Week of August 30
We lift up the following in prayer, especially Sean, Lynne, Alex, Jim, Chuck, Clark, Chris, Joe, Larry, Sharon, Elaine, Howard, Lillian, Patty, Renee, Jim, Judy, Ann, Carol, and Shirley. We also pray for those suffering from wildfires, the floods in Nepal , and the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and those who are living in fear of or suffering from the Ebola outbreak.
We also remember those who have died especially Rob and Antonio, and those whose anniversaries of death we mark this week. We pray for them and their loved ones who remember them.
| | ACROSS THE DIOCESE AND THE CHURCH | |
Diocesan Convention – October 23-24, 2026
Our 189th Diocesan Convention will be held in Celeron, NY at the Chautauqua Harbor Hotel on October 23 & 24, 2026. Convention Business begins at 10am, Oct. 23rd and continues thru noon, Oct 24th.
This year's convention theme is: WE ARE THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH! We are excited to announce that our keynote speaker will be: The Rev. Molly F. James, Ph.D.
Molly currently serves as the Interim Executive Officer of General Convention for The Episcopal Church. She holds a PhD in Theology from the University of Exeter (UK), a Masters of Divinity from Yale Divinity School and Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Tufts University. She grew up in Maine and was ordained as a priest in 2005. She has served on the Bishops’ Staff in Connecticut, as a parish priest, and a hospital chaplain, as well as an adjunct professor focusing on ethics and pastoral care. Her doctoral research focused on suffering and grief. Her work, With Joyful Acceptance, Maybe was published in 2013 by Wipf and Stock. Molly previously served as co-chair of Young Clergy Women International (an ecumenical organization of clergy women under 40), and as a board member for the Society of Scholar Priests. She is currently co-chair of the Faith Communities Today research consortium, a board member for the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, and the Yale Alumni Nonprofit Alliance. She has two children and loves cooking, reading, travel, and spending time in the splendor of God’s creation.
Molly will also preach at the Convention Eucharist on Friday, October 23rd.
Convention Delegation from the Cathedral - Elected Delegates: Su Hadden, Kim Goodman O’Connell, Evelyn Smigelsky; Estelle Siener (alternate).
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Episcopal Diocese of WNY and Church News
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For news about the Episcopal Diocese of Western New York, and to sign up for emailed newsletters, go here.
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If you are with a group meeting on Zoom,
use the following link, unless specified otherwise:
SPC Zoom Link
Meeting ID: 716 855 0900 Password: 4cathedral
By Phone: 929-205-6099 Access code: 716 855 0900 Password: 535 007 8352
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