St. Brendan the Navigator Episcopal Church
Our Mission: "To Love, Praise, Welcome and Serve"
| | Fourth Sunday after Pentecost | | | 9:30 a.m. Gathering at the Meditation Garden | | |
Worship this Sunday:
10:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist
The Rt. Rev. Thomas Brown, presiding
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All services and meetings will be held both in-person and via Zoom unless otherwise designated.
| | | | 8:30 a.m. Men's Breakfast | | | | |
8:30 a.m. Simmering Pot
4:30 p.m. Meditation/Silent Prayer (Zoom)
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10:00 a.m. In-person Meditation
10:30 a.m. Bible Study - Discussion on Silent Prayer and Meditation led by Miriam Antich (info below)
4:00 p.m. Choir rehearsal
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10:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist with The Rev. Steve Hayward presiding
7:00 p.m. Live Music at Working Loose, Blue Hill, featuring Geneviève Beaudoin (more info below)
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Wednesdays,
July 8, 15, 22, and 29
| | 10:30 a.m. A study of the Phenomenology of Illness with Dr. Peter Antich | | | | 11:30 a.m. Annual Meeting | | | | 4:00 - 6:00 p.m. Annual Lobster Picnic | | Third Sunday after Pentecost | | |
"Laughing with Sarah"
Sermon given by The Rev. Dr. Jenny Reece on June 14th.
Click below for the video recording.
| | Nancy Greene: I am grateful for 14 years with wonderful Jasper. | | |
Never Trust a Jesus without Wounds
If the UFC spectacle on the lawn of the White House this past week (in which men beat each other up in a cage as entertainment for the fans in the stands) wasn’t enough to raise serious questions about the values and integrity of many of our elected officials in this present moment, it was a misguided, tragic and abusive use of the Christian faith and of Jesus.
I had hoped to avoid all news about this event, planned by the president of the United States to honor his 80th birthday, because I didn’t want to give any time or energy over to it. But one of our most respected American contemporary theologians, Diana Butler Bass, wrote an article about the UFC event entitled “Roman Empire vs. Christians, 2-0,” which I decided to read. And in the article, what she said she found most offensive was the way in which the winners of the fights gave credit to Jesus for their victories (heavyweight Josh Hokit saying after defeating Derek Lewis, “There’s someone more incredible than the Incredible Hulk and that’s my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”).
Diana Butler Bass went on to speak of how the “hyper-masculine warrior Jesus” was used in the remarks of the UFC victors to demean their opponents and women in positions of authority, and how, as we near the November elections, this image of Jesus is being more widely used by the Christian Right to support some political candidates and to undermine others.
In her article, Diana Butler Bass mourned this misuse of Jesus’s mission, presence and person, and reminded her readers that from the very earliest days of Christianity, even as the earliest Christians faced Roman oppression and violence, their honor and character wasn’t found in the “virtues of Roman patriarchy, but rather in the virtues of humility, service, gentleness, gratefulness and love.”
She ends her article this way… “All I can say to this is that we’ve got work to do right now if either democracy or a semblance of real Christian faith is to survive this American nightmare. To put it in the words of the author of Hebrews, ‘let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.’”
“Keep running, friends. This isn’t a cage match. We’re in a marathon to, as Hebrews continues, ‘pursue peace with everyone.’”
As we continue to try to discern how to bear witness to the Jesus made known in the Bible, even as a different kind of Jesus is being widely portrayed by those in power across our country, I find one question and one bit of wisdom to be very helpful. The question is this… “What did Jesus do?” And the bit of wisdom is this… “Never trust a Jesus without wounds.”
May the Spirit of God give us the courage, the humility and the chutzpah to live our daily lives and to respond to the events around us with this question and this bit of wisdom in mind. And may we hold onto one another as we find our way through the storm. Because no one can do this work alone.
(And while my little “pastor’s page” could end here, I would like to add this… May we find hope and beauty and joy in the work we are called to do. Because those virtues too are at the heart of the Christian faith. I’m still learning what this means in the context in which we find ourselves. But perhaps we can learn together…)
Living in hope,
Pastor Elaine
| | Giving our Priorities Shape (GPS) Action Item | | |
Primary done! More work ahead! In this year of local and national elections, we need to be well informed about issues of justice and racial and gender equity in our state of Maine, so that we can listen to political campaigns and decide which candidates will best advance these issues.
GPS Action for this week!
Please explore the Maine Equal Justice website. This nonprofit works year in and year out on issues that affect people’s daily lives – access to health care, affordable housing, transportation, childcare, food and income security, higher education and training. Its website describes legislative priorities related to the above.
Please sign up for timely alerts about important votes, hearings, and other opportunities to take action as you sort out all the competing claims of candidates.
| | Bible Study Offering for July | | |
July 8, 15, 22, and 29 - A Study of the Phenomenology of Illness
with Dr. Peter Antich
Illness, both our own illnesses and those of the people we care for, is a key feature of human experience. We will undertake a philosophical study of illness through the lens of the phenomenological method. Phenomenology is a philosophical method that centers on our experience (rather than, say, in the case of illness, diagnosis, etiology, or treatment). The aim of doing a phenomenology of illness is to develop a more acute understanding of the experience of illness. Doing so enables us to relate to our own illnesses and to be present for those who are ill in new ways.
This workshop will involve:
- A discussion of the text, Phenomenology of Illness, by Havi Carel. A reading guide will be provided for each chapter.
- An introduction to the phenomenological method, followed by an invitation to perform your own phenomenological reflection on some experience with illness you have had.
Copies of the book, Phenomenology of Illness by Havi Carel, have been ordered and should arrive next week. It is also available on Kindle at Amazon. To sign up for the course and/or order a book, email mantichino@gmail.com
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ANTIGONE
A Drama for Today
Wednesday, August 5th at St. Brendan's
10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Play Reading - We ALL get to be Actors
5:30 p.m. Pot Luck Supper and Discussion
(Participants should be able to attend BOTH.)
Play and Questions to be distributed
SIGN UP BY SUNDAY, JULY 12th
Email Pete at nathandane3deerisle@gmail.com
| | Education & Spiritual Development Ministry | | |
"For God alone my soul waits in silence. . ."
Psalm 62:1
Zoom Meditation/Silent Prayer at 4:30 p.m.
Readings, poems, and prayers are shared before a period of silence.
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10:00 a.m. Wednesdays
In-Person Meditation/Silent Prayer at St. Brendan
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Bible Study
Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
Join us as we continue our discussion on ways to pray. All great spiritual traditions have encouraged seeking God in silence. This Wednesday, we will continue to explore silence, the mystery of God, and also Centering Prayer as a way of opening to God's presence.
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Bud Fisher – 2
Rick Alexander – 6
Nina Dayton – 12
John Lofty – 14
Sue Stoessel – 15
Jean Wheeler – 18
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Dennis Eaton – 19
Louise Lavine – 25
Bill Reardon – 26
Damon Beyer – 26
Chick White – 26
Julie Pierson – 26
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Sunday, June 28 at 7 p.m.
Live Music at Working Loose
49 Main Street, Blue Hill
This concert features Jack and Fay Beaudoin's daughter, Geneviève,
on her debut full-length as Dead Gowns.
More Information
| | We pray for those in special need: | | |
Harry Vickerson
Stephen Whiteley
Julie M.
Danny Judkins
Cathy Johnson
Meg Graham
Charlie Putnam
Judson Brown
Caroline Dane
Mike S.
Jennifer Hutchinson
Meredydd Cooper
Henna Torrey Roy
Liz Leuthner
Jerry
Agnes and Billy
Julie and Tom
Gwyn Murray
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Sally
Beth Kyser
David
Preston Henderson
Tammie and Jason Cox
Tyler Goss
Kate Hallen & Bob Blum
Mimi Maslan
Semantha
Judy Miller
Megan
Bishop Thomas Brown
Naomi
Anne Burton
Hewit
Mary Ann and Terry
Nishah
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David Morrish
Corbin
Rebecca
Pam B
Jaxson
Heather Corey
Stephen Gill
Bill Scaife
Brent Was
Gary and Wellesley
Mary Lawrence Hicks and family
Nancy Greene
Peter Brown
Seth
Linda Shepard and family
Marcia Scott
Carol Stoneburner
| | We pray, also, for those who love and care for them. | | |
We continue to hold in prayer those in our community who have recently lost loved ones; among them are the Stoneburner, Sherman, Hewes, Putnam, Wright, and Clauson/Hewes families.
We pray for those struggling with addiction and mental illness and their caregivers.
We pray for all those receiving care through Neighbor Care and for all the relocated residents of the Island Nursing Home and their families.
We pray for the victims of gun violence -- in our cities and towns, in our schools, in our places of worship, and in our homes.
We pray for the victims of the violence of armed conflicts around the world. We pray for those made refugees by the violence of armed conflicts. We pray for the victims of terrorist attacks everywhere.
We pray for all who suffer the effects of domestic violence and the violence of bullying in our schools and workplaces.
We pray for our nation, our president and vice-president, and all elected and appointed leaders.
We pray for all peacemakers and all those who work for justice; may we be found in their ranks.
We pray for all those serving in the armed forces of our country.
We pray for Sarah Mullally, Archbishop of Canterbury; Hosam, Bishop of Jerusalem; Sean, our Presiding Bishop; and Thomas, our Bishop.
In the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer, we pray for All Saints by the Sea, Bailey Island, St. Martin's in the Field, Biddeford Pool, and for the deacons of the Diocese of Maine.
In the Anglican Cycle of Prayer, we pray for The Church of South India (United).
On the Island and Peninsula, we pray for Sargentville Chapel Circle, Sedgwick.
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Fourth Sunday after Pentecost
Last Sunday, we heard Jesus give instructions to his twelve disciples as he prepared to send them out to proclaim the gospel. Today, that passage continues with his warning to them that they will encounter opposition to the message and even may have to suffer for it.
The first reading continues the story of Abraham and Sarah. Before the child promised them was born, they decided to help God out by Abraham getting a son by the slave girl, Hagar. However, once Isaac was born, Sarah demanded that Hagar and their son be sent away. God cared for them, however, and Ishmael became the ancestor of the Arabs, as Isaac was the ancestor of the people of Israel.
In the second reading, Paul sets forth the meaning of baptism. It is nothing less than a participation in the death and resurrection of Jesus. The terms used here in the original Greek mean that we have already died with him in baptism and are in the process of being raised with him into the resurrection life. Thus, our old identity is gone, and our new identity is as members of Christ’s Body.
We gather to respond to the same call that was made to the apostles and to Abraham. It is not always easy to be a follower of Christ. However, we find that God’s grace is always available in Word and Sacraments. We are upheld in the experience of those who have gone before us and above all by the example of Jesus dying and rising in our midst.
Notes on the Sunday Readings and Seasons of the Church Year. Copyright © 2009 by Michael W. Merriman. Church Publishing Incorporated, New York
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Office Hours: Tuesday 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Pastor Elaine Hewes
Tel: 207-479-5651
elaine.hewes@gmail.com
Emergency Contacts:
| | Warden - John Arrison, 207-505-2474 arrison17@gmail.com | | Warden - Allen Downs 207-348-2560 agdowns53@gmail.com | | |
Emily Hawkins - Treasurer
Cindy Beyer - Clerk
Beth Carter
Kassie Grey
George Pazuniak
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