Volume 5, Issue 9
March 6, 2020
THIS SUNDAY: March 8, 2020
Second Sunday in Lent

8:00AM
Chris Neumann (EM)
Jeff Albao (U)
Diane Sato (AG)

9:30AM
David Murray (EM)
Enrico Levi, Collin Darrell (R)
Alfonso Murrillo, Bara Sargent (U)
Jan Hashizumi (AG)
Paxton, Harper (A)
Vikki Secretario, Mabel Antonio (HP)
UPCOMING EVENTS
Stanley Wolshin Celebration of Life
Saturday, March 7 th
11:30AM
Southside of Hanalei Pier

Karate Car Wash
Saturday, March 7 th
9:00AM - 2PM
Sloggett Parking Lot

Lenten Bible Study
"Walking with Jesus through Holy Week"
Monday, March 9 th
6:30 - 8:00PM
Rectory

Daughters of the King
Thursday, March 12 th
7:00 - 8:00PM
Memorial Hall

Edith Hashizumi Funeral
Saturday, March 14 th
9:30AM - Visitation
10:30AM - Funeral Service
11:30AM - Reception
All Saints' Church and Campus

Ministry Council Meeting
Saturday, March 21 st
9:00 - 11:00AM
Memorial Hall

IWC Meeting
Saturday, March 21 st
11:00AM - 12:00PM
Memorial Hall
RECURRING EVENTS
Sunday School
Every Sunday, 9:30 - 10:15AM
Memorial Hall

Aloha Hour
Every Sunday, 10:45AM - 12:00PM
Under the big tree

Monday Crew
Every Monday, 8:00AM
Church Office

Laundry Love
1 st & 3 rd Wednesday, 5:00PM
Kapa`a Laundromat
McMaster Slack Key Guitar and Ukulele Concert
Every Wednesday, 6:00PM
Church

Daughters of the King
2 nd & 4 th Thursday, 7:00 - 8:00PM
Memorial Hall

Choir Practice
Every Thursday, 6:00PM
Choir Room
"...and a little child shall lead them."
Isaiah 11:6
During a recent service Skylaya Darrell and Tristan Caldwell decided to claim a front row seat for the Eucharist. After the offering, they joined hands, went up the altar rail, knelt and watched with rapt attention through the Eucharistic prayers until they received communion immediately after the altar party.
Edith Hashizumi
February 5, 1932 - January 25, 2020

Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her.
Long time member of All Saints' Edith Hashizumi passed away on Saturday, January 25 th, 2020. A celebration of her life will be held at All Saints' on March 14 th.

9:30AM Visitation
10:30AM Funeral Service
11:30AM Reception

If anyone has photos of Edith that could be included in a collage for the funeral, please email them to: [email protected]  
Stanley Wolshin
Died February 29, 2020

Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.
Stanley Wolshin , former All Saints' choir member and performer with KISS (Kauai Island Singers Showcase), passed away on February 29 th . A celebration of life will be held Saturday March 7 th at 11:30AM on the southside of the Hanalei pier.
ALL SAINTS' VIRTUAL SWAP MEET
A Service of the Environmental Stewardship Ministry on behalf of the All Saints' `Ohana
From time-to-time certain items like furniture, appliances, or other items of value become surplus and we need to repurpose them but we don't have the time, knowledge, or energy to do that work. Fortunately, the  All Saints' Virtual Swap Meet  is here to help. If you have items you would like to see in a new home or if you need items to repurpose, turn to your  Epistle  and we will publicize your need. As items are requested from, or contributed to, the  Virtual Swap Meet , we will keep you informed.

Please contact us at  [email protected] .

This week's entry is displayed below.
MUSIC MINISTRY NEEDS YOUR HELP
Asking For iPad Donation
All Saint’s is looking for the donation of an Ipad model 4 (2013) or newer. It is needed to remotely control the mixer on our church sound system. If you have one that is gathering dust in your desk drawer, please contact Ron Morinishi at (808) 482-4509 or

Mahalo.
Lenten Series 2020
"Walking Through Holy Week With Jesus"
Please Join Kahu Kawika Mondays, 6:30 - 8:00PM in the Rectory

  • Monday 9 March: Holy Monday – Jesus Clearing the Temple
  • Monday 16 March: Holy Tuesday – Jesus Cursing the Fig Tree
  • Monday 23 March: “Spy” Wednesday – Judas Agrees to Hand Over Jesus
  • Monday 30 March: Maundy Thursday – Institution of the Lord’s Supper & Jesus’ Arrest
  • Monday 6 April: Good Friday

Drinks provided
-Mary Margaret Smith
The Episcopal Diocese of Hawai`i

ST. MARYʻS ANNOUNCES NEW RECTOR:
THE REV. CHARLES BROWNING
We are happy to announce the naming of a new priest for St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Mo’ili’ili. A Florida native, Fr. Charles Browning will be coming to us from St. Andrew’s Chapel and School in Boca Raton, with his wife Cainna and two (soon to be three) children. Fr. Charles is an avid surfer, reader, movie-watcher, collector of vinyl LPs, and fan of science fiction (and especially Japanese giant monster movies). In addition, he is a writer, having had poetry and short fiction published in small-print journals. In 2019, his essay on soteriology, “The Joy of Salvation,” was published by Covenant, the blog of The Living Church. He is also one-third of the Masters of Divinity podcast. E komo mai, Browning family! Fr. Charles begins his call on April 1, 2020.
Laundry Love Kaua`i Needs You
VOLUNTEER NOW!!
After four years of dedicated service to Laundry Love, Chris Wataya is ready to step down from her position as dryer for Team A. The ministry is in search of a permanent replacement for Chris. The opportunity involves only 8 Wednesday evenings per year, about once every six weeks. It involves arriving around 6:00PM and finishing around 7:30PM. Please prayerfully consider if this ministry’s call to serve the needy is a way for you to answer God’s call.
THE REV. NAIM ATEEK TO SPEAK IN HAWAI`I
At the invitation of Bishop Robert Fitzpatrick, the Rev. Naim Ateek, Palestinian Episcopal priest, will be in Hawai`i from March 12-23, 2020. The public is invited to attend the following events:

  • March 14 at The Cathedral of St. Andrew, Von Holt Room, where Naim’s topic will be “Palestine: The US Role, Past and Present"

  • March 21 at the Parish of St. Clement, where Naim will speak on “Christian Zionism: A Palestinian Perspective”

Between March 15-21, Ateek’s schedule includes: meeting with interfaith leaders, co-hosted by Bishop Fitzpatrick and the Rev. David Popham, Conference Minister, Hawaʻii Conference United Church of Christ; meeting an!d sermon at Church of the Crossroads; presentation at St. John’s Episcopal Church, Kula, Maui; preaching at St. Clement’s, and meeting with students and faculty for Justice in Palestine UH.

On March 22, his last evening in Honolulu, the Rev. Naim Ateek will be made Honorary Canon of the Episcopal Diocese of Hawaiʻi. For more information, download the flyer  HERE .

FROM THE EPISCOPAL CAFÉ
O Be Joyful!

March 4, 2020
Megan E. Thomas
For an older generation who are sometimes called “cradle Episcopalians,” Sunday morning worship was Morning Prayer. And the canticles appointed for the day seem always, in my memory, to have included the  Jubilate Deo  (Psalm 100).
 
O be joyful in the Lord, all ye lands!  These words are a bucket drawing up from a deep well my memories of Sunday mornings on the choir bench, swinging my patent-leather shod feet, pushing my black beanie to the back of my head. And singing, “O be joyful in the Lord,  all ye  LANDS, serve the Lord with gladness and come before his  presence  with a SONG!” Music of the church is the music of my earliest memories. Consequently, I cannot hear Psalm 100—in any of its various translations—without wanting to sing out, whether as Anglican chant, or to a metrical hymn tune, or one of the great anthems for choirs. Why, every choir director worth their salt composed a setting for Psalm 100, mimeographed it, and taped it to the back cover of the pew hymnals.

So why a shout of joy in this first week of Lent? 

Because today the Episcopal Church remembers the Reverend Paul Cuffee (1757 – 1812), a member of the Shinnecock nation, who ministered to the native communities of eastern Long Island near what is now The Hamptons. It was a period of early American history when the original inhabitants of southern New England had already been decimated by disease and violence. Those remaining on Long Island were much reduced. (The Rev. Paul Cuffee should not be confused with his close contemporary, the Quaker abolitionist of the same name.)
  
“Priest Paul,” as he was sometimes called, stood within a line of New England native clergy inspired by the Great Awakening of the 1740s, including the Reverend Samson Occom and Cuffee’s own grandfather, the Reverend Peter John. Educated and ordained by English colonists, they ministered primarily to indigenous peoples, interceding and advocating for them.

Paul Cuffee was ordained a Congregational minister in 1790 and helped found a church at Hampton Bay. In 1798 the New York Missionary Society commissioned Cuffee as a missionary to eastern Long Island, where he worked among the Shinnecock and Montauk until his death. His grave marker, erected by the New York Missionary Society, can still be found on Shinneock tribal land. It reads, 

In memory of the Rev. Paul Cuffee, an Indian of the Shinnecock tribe, who was employed by the Society for the last thirteen years of his life, on the eastern part of Long Island, where he labored with fidelity and success. Humble, pious and indefatigable in testifying the gospel of the grace of God, he finished his course with joy on the 7th of March, 1812, aged 55 years and 3 days.

His grave is surrounded by a modest white fence on the ground where his church once stood and close by the Long Island Rail Road track. Perhaps a fitting resting place for a man who was set apart to be a missionary. (The photo above is by Jeremy Dennis, an artist and member of the Shinnecock tribal nation.  www.jeremynative.com/onthissite/ . Used with permission.)

The Psalm appointed for Paul Cuffee’s feast day is Psalm 100. Perhaps the church chose the  Jubilate  because the Missionary Society remembered him as a man who testified to the Good News with joy. Priest Paul probably said Psalm 100 regularly, likely in the King James Version. Personally, I like to imagine that he taught his congregations to sing it to the hymn tune “Old Hundredth..”

All people that on earth do dwell.

Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice.

Him serve with fear; his praise forth tell.

Come ye before him and rejoice.

O be joyful! Never mind that we are now in the solemn season of Lent. Never mind that my hands are becoming chapped from frequent hand-washing and sanitizing. Never mind that it is Super Tuesday while I write, and this evening’s news is full of political jostling. 

I will be joyful and serve the Lord with gladness and come before his presence with a song, sure that the Lord is God, that I am his, a sheep of his pasture, ready to enter into his presence with thanksgiving and speak good of his name, for he is gracious, his mercy is everlasting, and his truth endures generation to generation.  


The Reverend Megan E. Thomas is Priest-in-Charge of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Ewing, New Jersey and an attorney in private practice.
Nicodemus’ Invitation

August 13, 2012
Lowell Grisham
Nicodemus is unusual. He is one of the leaders who comes to Jesus with interest and sympathy. Most people of position and respect have found fault with the ititerant Galilean. But Nicodemus approaches Jesus with the respectful title, “Teacher.” “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.”

Jesus then takes Nicodemus to his edge. As a Pharisee, Nicodemus is an observant Jew, following the laws of Torah in a life of obedience and devotion. Since he is an acknowledged leader, he is probably a person of some accomplishment. In other words, he is managing his life with some degree of competence and dignity. But something must be lacking. He approaches Jesus with curiosity.

Jesus goes immediately to what must be Nicodemus’ edge: You must be “born from above/born anew.” Jesus will contrast the life of the flesh and the life of the spirit/wind. A new life from a new source. This is the next step for this good man. Nicodemus leaves this story appearing perplexed, but later we will see him standing up in the Sanhedrin, arguing for for due process for Jesus at his trial, and Nicodemus will help Joseph of Arimathea bury Jesus’ body.

Nicodemus is a good patron for all of us who are basically good, conscientious, and competent people. Those of us who follow the rules and seem to do okay. We are respectful and respected people who have accomplished a degree of success. But when you have done what you are supposed to do and established a sound reputation and degree of prosperity, sometimes there is a nagging sense of incompletion, “Is that all there is?”

Jesus invites this good man into a new self-understanding — a living relationship with a lively God. It is such a different way of being that it is like being born anew, born from above. It is unpredictable and light-hearted. It is more like sailing than motor boating.

In this new life, Jesus invites Nicodemus to attune himself to the subtle movement of the Spirit, as ephemeral as the wind. He is to let his intuition and wonder guide him into a mystery of divine adventure. When the wind of intuition moves a bit — he is to stop like Moses before the bush and allow himself to move with the Spirit.

All of his life Nicodemus has followed the conventional way — doing the correct and expected thing, setting goals and reaching them. Now he is to be open to new possibilities — available to turn in a moment should his heart be touched, willing to move into the unknowing direction should his intuitive curiosity be aroused.

For those of us with controlled and predictable lives, this can be an unnerving and thrilling invitation. Can we give up control? Can we let go of our comfortable, conventional way of living by the rules? Can we be free and responsive to the movement of the Spirit?

It is an exciting but risky invitation. It may call for great change and struggle and sacrifice. But it is walking in the light and living in love. It is the invitation into the kingdom of God.

The Rev. Lowell Grisham grew up Episcopalian in Oxford, Mississippi where he was strongly impacted by the Civil Rights struggle of the 1960’s. It planted in him a willingness to question inherited assumptions and to work for generosity and inclusion in a diverse society. Lowell served parishes in Mississippi and Arkansas before coming to St. Paul’s, Fayetteville in 1997, he retired in December 2017.
Presbyterian-Episcopal dialogue looks at the needs of a changing church

Posted Mar 3, 2020
[Presbyterian News Service] Meeting at First Presbyterian Church in San Diego Feb. 17-19, representatives of the  Episcopal-Presbyterian Bilateral Dialogue met and considered how the two ecclesial traditions could partner with each other considering the context of the 21st -century church.

Representing the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in San Diego were Ruling Elder Anne Bond (co-chair), the Rev. Neal Presa (co-vice chair), the Rev. Terri Ofori, the Rev. Dr. Christian Boyd, the Rev. Robert Foltz-Morrison, and Ruling Elder Dianna Wright, the  interim director  of the Office of the General Assembly’s Ecclesial and Ecumenical Ministries.

Representing The  Episcopal Church  at the gathering were the Rt. Rev. Eugene Taylor Sutton (co-chair), the Rev. Elise Johnstone (co-vice chair), Michael Booker, Elizabeth Ring, and Richard Mammana, serving as staff liaison. Other members of the dialogue from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) are the Rev. Brooke Pickrell and (alternate) Rev. Brian Entz and from The Episcopal Church, the Rev. Joseph Wolyniak and the Rev. Margaret Rose, serving as staff.

This was the second meeting of the third round of bilateral dialogues between the two ecclesial communions. The meeting was grounded in prayer, scripture and song.

Representatives discussed at length how the two communions might, at some time in the future, look to a limited exchange of ministers, noting especially the good work that has been done in the  Churches Uniting in Christ  and the June 2017 CUIC liturgy where all CUIC members recognized the ministries of each member body, in light of the  2008 agreement  between the two traditions.

Representatives affirmed that there are practical differences in the denominations, but that as there are fewer young people who have knowledge of any church body at all, The Episcopal Church and the PC(USA) are in a significant moment of being able to work together to build up the body of Christ.

Dialogue members also noted that ecumenical partnerships often occur at the grassroots level and the dialogue wishes to help those ecumenical partnerships to flourish. They affirmed that in whatever ways the two ecclesial communions will be working together, that partnerships would always work to break down oppressive, discriminatory barriers and look to all areas of partnership — especially such partnerships as campus ministry, immigrant communities, rural communities, communities of color and multicultural, multiethnic communities.    

Both the Rt. Rev. Susan Brown Snook, bishop of the  Episcopal Diocese of San Diego , and the Rev. Michael Mudgett, executive presbyter of the  Presbytery of San Diego , met with members of the dialogue to share about ecumenical and interreligious partnerships ongoing in the local area, especially those relating to caring for migrants on the border.

The members of the dialogue will meet again Sept. 16-18. They’ll be hosted by The Episcopal Church.

Life Transformed: The Way of Love in Lent - PRAY

March 8, 2020 – Lent 2
Drawing on the ancient practice of setting aside Lent as a period of study and preparation for living as a Christian disciple, we are pleased to present weekly teachings from  Life Transformed: The Way of Love in Lent . Learn more at  episcopalchurch.org/life- transformed .

READ Exodus 14:10-15:1

The story of the Exodus is one of the most important baptismal stories in the whole Bible. In the blessing over the water, which we PRAY at every baptism, we remember that the Hebrews were liberated from bondage in Egypt through water. Exodus is also the only reading that is specifically required in the Easter Vigil because of the way God delivered Israel through the Red Sea and the pillar of fire that lit the way for God’s people. That pillar is echoed in the Easter fire, which shines in our darkness at the vigil. The Exodus event holds a seminal place in the recitation of God’s liberating action – the common thread woven throughout the vigil and the Bible itself.

One of the most intriguing aspects of this powerful story is the way prayer has been woven through every step the Israelites took in their path to liberation. When they were afraid and even doubted, their prayer was heard by God who told them that he would not abandon them. When they were about to be overtaken by the Egyptians, their prayer for deliverance was answered. Moses was given the power to part the sea, and they crossed on dry land. Finally, when they were safe, the prophet Miriam led a prayer of rejoicing and thanksgiving with song and dancing. Each of these prayers is important to the story and to the relationship built between God and God’s people.

In the early Church, Lent was a time for catechumens (those who were preparing to be baptized) to learn about the Christian life. The outline of the faith that they would follow was called a catechism, and we still have a similar form in our Book of Common Prayer today (pp. 845-862). In particular, our catechism describes the role of prayer in Christian life, including the seven types of prayer:

  • Adoration: We lift up our hearts and minds to God, asking nothing but to enjoy God’s presence.
  • Praise: We praise God, not to obtain anything, but because God’s Being draws praise from us.
  • Thanksgiving: We offer gratitude to God for all the blessings of this life, for our redemption, and for whatever draws us closer to God.
  • Penitence: In penitence, we say we are sorry, confess our sins, and make amends and life change wherever possible.
  • Oblation: We offer ourselves, our lives and labors, in union with Christ, for God’s purposes.
  • Intercession: We bring before God the needs of others.
  • Petition: We present our own needs, that God’s will may be done.

Each of these forms of prayer will help you grow and bring you into a closer relationship with God. In fact, Scripture tells us that even when we don’t know how to pray, “the Holy Spirit will intercede for us” and teach our heart how to pray in “sighs too deep for words” (Romans 8:26).

REFLECT :  Prayer  is one of the essential components of walking the Way of Love. Yet, some people can find it intimidating, frustrating, or hard to practice. Which of the prayer styles from the catechism speak to you? Is there one that comes naturally?
Published by the Office of Communication of The Episcopal Church, 815 Second Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017
© 2020 The Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. All rights reserved.

 THE EPISCOPAL NEWS SERVICE
Episcopal clergy cartoonists find inspiration turning Christian messages into hand-drawn art

By David Paulsen
Posted Feb 28, 2020
The Rev. Jay Sidebotham has produced 12 cartoons a year for the Church Pension Group calendar since 2001. Image courtesy of Church Pension Group

[Episcopal News Service] In the Rev. Jay Sidebotham’s hand-drawn world, “safe church” isn’t a training. It’s a parish encircled by a thick, crenellated concrete wall, which itself is surrounded by a moat filled with toothy beasts. The church’s “Welcome” sign isn’t visible to visitors who approach the outermost layer of defense, a ring of razor wire.

“I believe there are easier ways to keep your church safe,” a man tells the rector, both dwarfed by the impenetrable fortress that is protecting the tiny church building within.

That’s just one of the hundreds of Episcopal-tinted cartoons Sidebotham has drawn, and it has a name: June 2020.

In addition to his main duties as director of RenewalWorks, Forward Movement’s  church vitality and spiritual growth ministry , this is Sidebotham’s 20th year as featured cartoonist in the  Church Pension Group’s annual calendar . Every year since 2001, 12 of his illustrations have provided monthly occasions for faith-based humor in each of the 10,000 calendars that are distributed, mostly by mail, to every congregation in The Episcopal Church.

For Sidebotham and other clergy members with cartooning in their professional resumes –  New York Bishop Andrew Dietsche is among them  – their creations are part meditation, part divine inspiration and often just a lot of fun. And while some professional cartoonists produce work worthy of museum or gallery exhibits, Sidebotham, a former “ Schoolhouse Rock! ” animator, said fine art isn’t his goal.

“The fewer lines I can use in a cartoon the better,” he said in an interview with Episcopal News Service. “It’s like preaching a good homily: Cut to the chase.”
Church Pension Group’s 2020 calendar, featuring this cartoon, is the 20th to showcase Sidebotham’s work.

Church cartoonist is just one of the several hats worn by the 65-year-old Sidebotham, who left a career in advertising to become a priest in the 1980s. He serves part time as associate rector of  St. James Episcopal Church  in Wilmington, North Carolina, and as RenewalWorks director, he  travels regularly to support congregations  that are enriching their parishioners’ spiritual journeys. However, his cartoons arguably have garnered him the most churchwide attention.

“Jay is an institution,” Dietsche told ENS. “Jay is certainly the best known and best recognized cartoonist in The Episcopal Church.”
The Rev. Jay Sidebotham. Photo: RenewalWorks

Humor doesn’t have to be edgy, but most humor is, Sidebotham said – including church humor. When a cartoonist makes a point with a joke and bit of loving-kindness, the audience may be more likely to hear the message, he said, and to consider previously hidden truths. “You’re able in those cartoons to highlight something that might otherwise be under the radar.”

As an example, he described a cartoon he drew about the regulars at the 8 a.m. worship service. A young couple – newcomers – is sitting, waiting for the service to begin, and an older parishioner approaches them and welcomes them warmly to her church.

“By the way,” she adds, “you’re in my pew.”

The cartoon was shared on an Episcopal Facebook group, and someone complained that Sidebotham was promoting an awful caricature. “Within a nanosecond, from around the globe, people were writing in saying, ‘This happened to me last week.’”

He also loves to poke some fun at clergy, being a priest himself. “A lot of us get to be sort of more impressed with ourselves than we need to be,” he said.
Church life is a bottomless source for inspiration in the Rev. Jay Sidebotham’s cartoons.

Dietsche thinks the church is a legitimate and fertile subject for cartoons, though the cartoonist also must respect Episcopalians who are serious in their beliefs.

“There’s plenty of room in the church to find absurdity or humor, not so much about the faith itself,” he said.

When Dietsche was in his 20s working as a commercial illustrator in Southern California, cartoons were his specialty, until he felt called to the priesthood in his 30s. He suggested that the club of Episcopal clergy who cartoon might be rather small. A fellow seminarian of his was an avid cartoonist, though Dietsche, now 66, isn’t sure if his former classmate continued cartooning as a priest.

The Rev. Nancy Hills, 63, sometimes  preaches about her love of old cartoons  at  Christ Church Episcopal  in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, where she is a deacon. Cartooning and church life are part of her heritage: Her father, the Rev. Donald Hays, was a longtime parish rector, including at  Christ Episcopal Church  in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and he would illustrate his sermons for children during Sunday morning services.

Like Sidebotham and Dietsche, Hays worked in advertising before giving up that work to attend seminary. He was ordained as a priest in 1966, and Hills said her father enjoyed illustrating scenes from the Bible for most of his adult life, until his death in December 2016.

Hills doesn’t consider herself a cartoonist, though art has been a big part of her life. She recently retired after 25 years working as a graphic designer for the city of Milwaukee. Some of her most intricate art takes the form of colorful journal drawings.

“It’s the way I meditate,” she said. The process itself is spiritual, as are the subjects. “Everything I draw, I would say, has a spiritual base to it.”

Dietsche agrees.

“The act of creation is inherently spiritual,” he said, “and very much fulfilling of that aspect of my life in Christ.”

The future bishop started cartooning as a child. In college, Dietsche first studied architecture, then switched to art school and painting, but he never liked his own paintings all that much. “I said, ‘You know, Andy, you’re just not that good.’ So I destroyed them all and put together a portfolio of cartooning work.”

Dietsche found work as a graphic artist and illustrator at a small commercial art studio while freelancing for ad agencies in suburban Los Angeles and later San Diego. As a priest, he continued to find audiences for his cartoons in church publications, including the Diocese of New York’s  Episcopal New Yorker magazine .

Church life offered an ample trove of punchlines. “Other people would have to tell you whether they were actually funny,” he said.

As bishop, Dietsche still illustrates his annual Christmas card, sent to more than 1,500 clergy and lay leaders in the diocese. His list of influences and favorites runs long, from Mad magazine and underground cartoonists like Robert Crumb to modern comic classics like “Calvin and Hobbes.” At home, “Barney Google,” “Krazy Kat” and other vintage comic strips hang in frames on his wall.

Sidebotham’s influences start with the late “Peanuts” cartoonist Charles Schulz, a man of deep faith and a great observer of human nature, Sidebotham said. “He understood children often have great insight, and the adult world just generates noise.”
Family was influential as well. Sidebotham’s grandfather worked in advertising starting in the 1920s, as did his father starting in the 1940s, both of them on New York’s Madison Avenue. In the suburban New York home where Sidebotham and his three siblings grew up, “there was a lot of white paper and magic markers around.” Drawing was a natural childhood pastime.

“Schoolhouse Rock!” was his first job out of college in the late 1970s. Back then, before computer animation, the popular educational cartoon series was produced by hand, and many hands were needed. Sidebotham later worked for ad agencies, as graphic designer, illustrator, animator and art director, before enrolling at Union Theological Seminary in 1986.

“I found myself cartooning in my seminary classes, and people would cluster around to see what I was cartooning while taking notes,” he said.

As a parish priest in Rhode Island, North Carolina and Washington, D.C., he often was enlisted to provide illustrations for various church communications, but it wasn’t until he returned to New York to join the staff at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church in Manhattan in 1999 that he connected with Church Pension Group, or CPG.

The Rev. Clayton Crawley, CPG’s chief information officer at the time, was assigned to parish work at St. Bart’s, and he asked if Sidebotham wanted to create some cartoons for the calendar. Sidebotham has been doing so ever since.

“Jay’s sense of humor is based on real life, which sometimes is funnier than anything you can think of,” Crawley said, and whatever tense topic the church is grappling with, “Jay can turn it into something we can laugh about and not get stressed about.”

Sidebotham’s process now is well established. He and a small team from CPG usually begin tossing around cartoon ideas in February or March, starting with leftover ideas that didn’t make it into the previous calendar. They also make sure they aren’t repeating a concept.

“In my limited cerebellum, I find I do an idea and I think it’s absolutely brilliant – and then I find I did the same cartoon verbatim about 15 years ago,” Sidebotham said.

Each calendar needs at least one cartoon for Lent and one for Advent. Other cartoons serve as friendly reminders about CPG products. In one cartoon, for example, a rector is in a rowboat outside his half-flooded church, with phone in hand. (It might be a good time to  call Church Insurance  and ask about flood insurance.) By the end of summer, Sidebotham usually is ready to submit his final artwork.

“There’s plenty of material,” he said. “There’s no shortage of topics to illuminate.”
The cartoons are casual, engaging and funny, but Sidebotham never loses sight of the higher purpose, said Crawley, now CPG’s chief church relations officer. “There’s a kind of hope – we’re working toward a common good. Sometimes we bumble it a little bit, but he can find humor in that. It’s a very Christian perspective.”

Sidebotham also is wrapping up another project for CPG in which he produced cartoons to illustrate every Gospel reading from the Book of Common Prayer’s three-year lectionary cycle. The cartoons and discussion guides in the books, “ Drawn to the Gospels ,” will be available to churches for use in parish materials, such as bulletins, posters and coloring sheets for children.

“It’s been a really powerful experience for me personally, in my spiritual journey,” he said, “to walk through the liturgical year thinking about what Jesus has to say, that I can put in a cartoon.”


– David Paulsen is an editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service. He can be reached at [email protected] .
Archbishop of Canterbury launches 2020 Thy Kingdom Come global prayer initiative

Posted March 3, 2020
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, with Pete Greig at Lambeth Palace last week for the launch of the Thy Kingdom Come global wave of prayer.
Photo Credit: Ben Jones / Missional Generation

[ACNS, by Staff Writer] The global ecumenical prayer movement  Thy Kingdom Come , which started life as a simple request from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York to the clergy of the Church of England, will this year take place in more than 90 per cent of countries around the world. The international launch of this year’s event – which runs from Pentecost to Ascension (21 to 31 May 2020) took place last week at Lambeth Palace, the official residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury in London, England.

Church leaders and representatives from a number of denominations and para church organisations gathered at the palace for the launch, which took place exactly four years to the day since the first launch. The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby was joined by a number of church leaders, including Pete Greig from the 24-7 Prayer movement, Bishop Nicholas Hudson from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Westminster, and Teresa Carvalho from the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales. The event was streamed live on Facebook and watched by Christians from around the world.

Archbishop Justin told those present: “what excites me is that as we come together and pray for people to be filled with the Spirit, so they come to know and love Jesus Christ, to repent of their sins and turn away from all that is wrong and to find the love of Christ filling their hearts, we are in fact praying for the changing of our world.”

Pete Greig acknowledged the busyness of his “fellow pastors, vicars and priests”, but urged them to make the Thy Kingdom Come initiative a priority. “Let us get behind this and let us have grace for one another in this because I believe Jesus is calling us to pray,” he said. “This has the marks of the Holy Spirit upon it.”

Thy Kingdom Come first emerged from the Archbishops’ Evangelism Task Group. “We wanted to see a culture change in the Church in this country on evangelism”, the Archbishop’s evangelism advisor Canon Chris Russell said. “We never thought it would grow this much over four years. God has done more than we can ask or imagine. . . We pray God will renew us, his church and that God would work in the lives of our families, neighbours and friends and open their hearts, hands, ears to receive Him In their lives.”

A new smartphone app with gaming and augmented reality technology has been created for this year’s  Thy Kingdom Come  initiative. During the 11-day prayer focus, the app will provide will provide a game, Bible story or video reflection. The resources will be available from  the  Thy Kingdom Come  website .

HALE HO`OMALU
MARCH COLLECTION
Toiletries: bar soap/shampoo
Place your donations in the red wagon by the door to the sanctuary on Sundays. Hale Ho`omalu also needs and appreciates monetary donations as well as gift-in-kind items.

Please note, we do not accept food items that are not mentioned on the monthly list and we do not accept clothing, toys or similar items unless a specific plea for such items is published in the  Epistle . Your  Epistle  Staff will inform you of any special requests for donations.
SUNDAY SCHOOL THIS WEEK
Scenes from the Ministry of Jesus
Jesus had a full life. We mainly think of him as teaching, performing miracles here
and there, and healing.

But here in this lesson is a sampling of what his days were like: picnicking with crowds of 5,000 and 4,000 men (plus women and children), spending some time with his disciples and friends; telling stories, meeting new people, being with children.

Here we see Jesus’ life as a human being, but it is also his life of ministry. Picture it this way: imagine his daily life and the people he met and got to know, then infuse that picture with the love that Jesus embodies as God-made-man.

The accounts of Jesus feeding the multitudes give us food for thought. The sheer numbers that are fed make these stories a social miracle—a miracle not just for one person but for thousands. Jesus frees Israel. Jesus feeds the world.

These feedings anticipate the Eucharist and the Eucharist gives us a foretaste of the messianic banquet in the kingdom of heaven. We are given a sample of the abundance and the infinite generosity of God in God’s kingdom.

And in these feedings, we see Jesus’ love and its consequences. Whether the abundant food came as the result of a physical miracle or as a result of the people responding in love to Jesus’ love for them does not matter. The point is that when someone loves us deeply, as Jesus loved the people there, we naturally respond in love. When we receive a hug, we want to give one back. That may be the true miracle: the miracle of love and its multiplication.

Look at these stories and see God’s utter generosity and love. That is how we are to follow God.
IN BRIEF . . .
These news briefs were featured in previous issues of "The Epistle"

Please submit your story ideas to the Epistle Staff at [email protected] .
ALL SAINTS' SERVICE BULLETINS AVAILABLE ONLINE
Go to allsaintskauai.org, the last time under "Worship Services" is "Download E-Programs". Click on that link to download the current service bulletin.

RIDES OFFERED TO BOTH SUNDAY SERVICES
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ALL SAINTS' WISH LIST
If any ministry has an unmet need, reach out to put it on the All Saints' Wish List and it will be published in the Epistle . Contact Bill Caldwell at [email protected] .

LAUNDRY LOVE VOLUNTEERS AND DONATIONS
For more information go to Laundry Love Kaua`i or contact Geoff Shields at [email protected] or Bill Caldwell at [email protected] .

PASTORAL CARE CONTACT INFORMATION
Whenever you have a need for support, please call (650) 691-8104 and leave a voice mail. The system will immediately forward the information to the Pastoral Care Committee who will respond to each request. If you prefer, you may send an electronic pastoral care request via email to [email protected] .

PRAYER CHAIN MINISTRY
Individuals who want to participate in the Prayer Chain Ministry must re-enroll to continue receiving the email communications . To re-enroll, please visit the newly established   Pastoral Care web page  or contact the Church Office at (808) 822-4267.

SUBMITTING A PRAYER REQUEST
Prayer requests will now be   submitted online   or by contacting the Church Office at (808) 822-4267.

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
Names can be added to the Prayers of the People petitions by using the  Prayer Chain Request form  or by contacting the Church Office at (808) 822-4267. Names will remain in the Prayers of the People for a maximum of four Sundays before a name must be resubmitted.

HOME COMMUNION FOR SICK AND SHUT-INS
All Saints' Eucharistic Visitors are available each Sunday (pending availability) to bring Communion to those who are sick or shut-in. Requests for a Eucharistic visitation can be made by calling the Church Office at (808) 822-4267 or emailing [email protected] .