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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.
 
JUNE
2015
 

Mark Your
Calendars


 

June 18 - 6:00 pm

3rd Thursday Evensong

& Potluck 

 

June 19 - 7:30 pm 

Organ Concert with

Kraig Windschitl

 

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!

 

Trig's Receipts



As of May 1st, 2015, Trig's has discontinued their program which donated 1% of marked receipts to a local charity of your choice.  While we are greatly disappointed by their choice to eliminate this wonderful service, we sincerely thank both Trig's, and you for your years of dedicated support.
 

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)
February Ambassador
March Ambassador
May Ambassador
 

The Clarion

 

Curious to see what else is going on in the Diocese of Fond du Lac?  Click the logo below to view the most recent Diocesan newsletter.

 

From the Interim



Beginning Wednesday, June 24th, at 5:00 pm, I will meet with anyone willing to join me in learning more about life in the Episcopal Church. Sometimes such classes are known as "Inquirers Classes" and are available to those adults and teens in a parish wishing to prepare for baptism, confirmation, or reception into the Episcopal Church for those already confirmed by a bishop of another faith tradition, or renewal of baptismal vows for a person already baptized or confirmed that wants to reaffirm their vows to follow Christ. These classes are being offered for anyone who desires to make such commitments at the time of our Bishop's visitation on Sunday, August 16th.

 

However, I encourage anyone that is interested in looking at our life and traditions as Episcopalians to join me in exploring how our faith and life has changed and continues to evolve. In reviewing the books and other resources I was considering for use as class resources, I learned several new things about the church. I am a lifelong Episcopalian and I would like the help of other long timers to assist me in looking at the life and lore of the Episcopal Church today.

 

Classes will be an hour and fifteen minutes in length. I promise to start on time and end on time. There will be six class meetings. Each of them will cover a separate topic and that topic will conclude at the end of the class meeting. This will be done in order that a person can attend just those classes that interest them and/or make it possible to participate in the course even if some classes must be missed. After class I will have dinner at a local restaurant and I hope anyone who is able to join me will do so. This will enable us to continue the conversation if anyone wishes to do so. Since I am not familiar with many eateries in the area, I would appreciate suggestions.

 

If anyone wishes to meet with me alone or as a couple or family to discuss their particular concerns, I would be most willing to set a time to do this. Last year while a member of the interim team at Trinity Lutheran Church on Washington Island, I had the privilege of teaching two series of classes on the Lutheran tradition. In order to do that, because I am not a Lutheran, I "applied" to the head of the Parish Council (who is much like the Senior Warden in the Episcopal Church), as well as the head of our interim team for the assignment. I have been able to do a lot of teaching during my and life and I really enjoy it.

 

For almost 20 years I was a member of the part time faculty of Seabury Western (now known as Bexley Seabury), the Episcopal seminary which was located in Evanston, Illinois. I taught the course in canon law and parish administration. It was subtitled: All the things you need to know that they don't usually teach you in seminary. I also taught ethics in the Diocese of Chicago's school for deacons. For many years I was on the faculty of the School of Social Work at Loyola University in Chicago where I taught Social Work and Law, Community Organization, Social Welfare Policy and Issues in the Treatment of Women. My husband Anselm and I team taught a course in nursing ethics for St. Francis College, and I taught a course in Family Law for the Kent College of Law, also in Chicago. I love learning and teaching and look forward to doing both with you here at St. Matthias.

 

I have ordered three books for the course. They are short and I have enjoyed reading them. We now have copies of each of them in the Parish Library. If you wish to have your own copies I can order them for you with no shipping charges. All of them are available as electronic books on Amazon. They are entitled: Episcopal Questions, Episcopal Answers: Exploring Christian Faith, by Ian S. Markham; Unabashedly Episcopalian: Proclaiming the Good News Of the Episcopal Church, by Andrew Doyle; and Strength for the Journey: A Guide to Spiritual Practice, by Renee Miller. There are no reading assignments -- suggestions for reading will be made. Sign-up sheets will be provided to give me some idea of how many handouts to prepare. If you forget to sign up, please come anyway.

 

The class schedule is as follows:

 

5:00-6:15 pm, Wednesdays, June 24-July 29

 

Topic 1: June 24

All Things Anglican:  A History of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion.

 

Topic 2: July 1

A Quick (But Entertaining) Trip Through the Book of Common Prayer.

 

Topic 3: July 8

The Bible:  Many Books, Many Approaches.

 

Topic 4: July 15

Liturgy and Sacraments:  The Lectionary; 3 Years and Seven Sacraments.

 

Topic 5: July 22

Strength for the Journey:  Spiritual Practices to Enhance Our Relationship with God and With One Another.

 

Topic 6: July 29

Episcopalians Believe What?  An Opportunity to Explore How the Episcopal Church Approaches Life's Tough Questions.
Annual Meeting Highlights

 

Many thanks to all who attended our 42nd Annual Parish Meeting - special thanks to all who brought food for the brunch and to the Vestry who set up, served and cleaned up afterward.

 

As in the past, Gordon Hermanson provided a very detailed 2014 financial report at a special 8:30 a.m. presentation; we are very grateful to Gordon not only for his expertise, but for the many hours he spends each week recording our contributions, paying our bills, preparing reports, reconciling statements, and generally overseeing the financial responsibilities of our parish.

 

Pastor Carol expressed happiness at being here at St. Matthias'; she is finishing up her parish review for the Diocese, and feels we are in great shape. Carol introduced a series of six sessions she will be facilitating based on the book, Episcopal Questions, Episcopal Answers. At the close of the meeting, Carol handed out a letter from the Bishop regarding his stance on the blessing of same sex unions - he is not willing to allow same sex union blessings at the present time. The Bishop is urging all congregations to talk about this, using a discussion guide he has provided (click here to view). Our congregation will be thinking about how and when to do this and Carol urged anyone who would care to speak with her about this to do so.

 

Vestry members, Wardens, Diocesan Convention delegates and alternates were elected. Isaiah Brokenleg was elected to the one year Vestry position, Mike Sabin to the three year Vestry position, and both Barbara Kane (as Junior Warden) and Chris Clark (as Senior Warden) will remain in their current posts for the upcoming year.   Diocesan Convention delegates are Joellen Bennet, Gordon Hermanson, Beth Jacobson and Michael Tautges; alternates are Isaiah Brokenleg, Bill Kane, Kathy Knobel and Kathleen Marshall.

 

Several reports are included in the Annual Meeting booklet and everyone is encouraged to read them. If you weren't able to attend the meeting and would like a copy of the booklet, or the letter from the Bishop, they are available from the Church Office. If you don't live in the area or aren't able to pick one up, please call or e-mail Michael and he will put them in the mail for you.
Music Ministry Team News

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

 

 

 

Organ Concert with Kraig Windschitl

Principal Organist, Mt. Olivet Lutheran Church, Minneapolis, MN

Friday, June 19, 2015, 7:30 pm

St. Matthias' Episcopal Church, Minocqua

 

This year's Susan B. Smith Memorial Organ Concert features Kraig Windschitl, the Principal Organist at Mt. Olivet Lutheran Church, and chapel organist / carilloneur / instructor at Breck Episcopal School in Golden Valley, MN. His program will include selections from recital literature that will use the many capabilities of our tracker organ. Because the air is conducted through the pipes via handmade "trackers", the resulting sound is more focused and centered than from electrically based organs. Our lovely organ has 20 options (ranks) of independent sounds, plus its many combinations -- thus, each organist uses his/her own creative ability in selecting the available sounds. How blessed we are to have this lovely instrument and recitalists that want to perform on it! Organ builder Dan Jaeckel and his wife will be guests at this concert, and there will be a reception in the Parish Hall following the performance.

 

For more information about the organ and its history, click here to visit our website.

 

The Music Ministry Team is handling the details for this concert, but we welcome help from the congregation! Contact Le Ganschow (lganschow@aol.com) or Marcia Wisner-Holt ( marcia.wisner@gmail.com) if you can assist with refreshments or in setting up for the event. We also welcome donations, and most importantly, support through your attendance at the concert.
Parish Updates  

  

Cook-out at Frederick Place
Every year St. Matthias' prepares and serves 4 meals for the residents of our local homeless shelter, Frederick Place in Rhinelander. In the Summer we like to do a cook-out, and this year it is scheduled for Sunday, June 7th. If you care to bring something for the dinner, please sign up on the sheet on the bulletin board and remember to bring your food to church on Sunday morning. Also needed are people to cook the hamburgers/brats at approximately 5:00 pm. This is an important ministry and a wonderful way to share our abundance with those who are going through difficult times. Thank you!

 

Rest In Peace

Our dear and courageous friend, Ginny Sherman, passed away on May 9 after battling ovarian cancer for four years. Everyone who knew Ginny admired her positive attitude, wonderful spirit, and the love she daily expressed for her family and friends. She particularly loved EFM and our book study group ~ our parish family will always remember Ginny.

 

Gene Hollander recently passed away after suffering complications from surgery. Gene and his wife, Barb, were members of St. Matthias' for several years back in the 80's and 90's; after Barb died, Gene moved out of state. He will be buried next to his beloved Barb in our columbarium in a private family service on June 12.

 

We also received notice this past week that Walt Mason passed away. Walt and Dee were also long-time members of St. Matthias' until they moved to Florida about 20 years ago. A memorial service for Walt will be held in Florida at a later date.

 

We also learned that Helen Shiel passed away earlier this month. Helen was a Florida resident and an occasional Summer visitor. When the new church was built, she donated the beautiful cross that hangs behind the altar in memory of her husband, Vincent.

 

We offer our deepest sympathy and prayers for the families of Ginny, Gene, Walt, and Helen at this most difficult time.
Touchstones:  Mothers
Written by Diane Diederich

 

Something I've been thinking about as this Mother's Day came and went are the "foremothers" that I can name who had so much to do with the woman I am today; wife, mother, grandmother, cherished friend, minister and so much more!

 

I remember a class at the Seminary entitled, Matristics. The course work was aimed at the awareness of the women of scripture and tradition who so greatly impacted the collective wisdom of a church that at times has been criticized for being so patriarchal. It was refreshing to get a balanced perspective by becoming aware of the impact men AND women had on the formation of the tradition.

 

It takes the celebration of a day like Mother's Day to help draw attention to the enormous strides that women have made in the last century - and continues still. My own mother, born in 1917 (the year women were able to vote), went on to college and wrote a newspaper column for years (it must be in the genes!). Often she diminished the importance of what she did, but in my mind she was part of the groundbreaking that allowed me to have the choices I did, and of course helped clear the way for my three daughters and three granddaughters to reach even further (the oldest of the granddaughters is soon to be a published), and the beat goes on! So many young women take for granted the strides that have been made in gender equality. They have never lived in a time when certain options just weren't open to them. So it's also a day to be thankful for all of the opportunities that lie before today's women.

 

The possibilities have a shadow side however, and to be honest, we must recognize that along with freedom comes the profound weight of expectation. It seems to me that women of all ages place an enormous burden on themselves when they attempt to be everything to everyone. Such an attempt inevitably ends in failure, and consequently, I encounter many discontent and guilt-ridden women who somehow feel they have let their predecessors down! Those who choose to make homemaking their full-time career express guilt that they aren't using the talents that have been put on hold until they re-enter the workforce. Those who try to juggle both a career in the home and outside of the home express that they feel stretched so tight that they fear they're not doing adequately in either arena. So, along with the wonderful grace of enhancing the quality of the race, comes the realization that we are not Superwomen!!

 

So, our generation adds its history to the generations that have come before. We learn not all at once, but by trial and error. It will be up to the future to evaluate the pain and triumphs we have contributed. One thing is for sure however, on this past Mother's Day we must allow the faces of our foremothers to parade before our mind's eye so that we might thank each one for their sacrifices made in your name and mine!

TTFN, Diane
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