The Lion's Pause 🦁

WE SEEK TO UNITE ALL PEOPLE WITH GOD AND EACH OTHER IN CHRIST THROUGH WORSHIP, FELLOWSHIP, EDUCATION, AND SERVICE

Rector's Ramblings

This Sunday, March 9, Bishop Anne Jolly will be with us at St. Mark’s for one service at 10:00 a.m. (Please remember to adjust your alarm clock for Daylight Saving Time if they do not do so automatically). There is a good reason to have only one service on the Sunday of an episcopal visitation. The bishop is a symbol of the unity of the church.

In his second century Epistle to the Smyrnaeans, Ignatius of Antioch wrote, “Let no man do anything connected with the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church. It is not lawful without the bishop either to baptize or to celebrate a love-feast; but whatsoever he shall approve of, that is also pleasing to God, so that everything that is done may be secure and valid.”

In the earliest church, there were only three orders, the laity, the bishops, and the deacons. As the church grew, it became impractical for one person to pastor all of the people in a geographical location. The order of priests was added to provide pastoral care and sacramental care for the people under the supervision of the bishop. The priests were allowed to administer certain sacraments such as the eucharist, confession and absolution, and baptism, because the bishops delegated those sacramental acts to them. The ministry of the priests flowed from the permission of the bishop. That is the reason that if a priest moves from one diocese to another, the bishops must transfer the ministry of the priest from one bishop to another.

As we gather together with Bishop Jolly this Sunday, we are doing something important to express our unity with the larger church. This will be a time of celebration and joy as we express our connection to the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church.

Fr. RJ+

Sunday, March 9:

ONE service at 10 a.m.

Bishop Jolly's Visit

Lessons

Bulletin

Live Stream

Monday, March 10:

Knitting, 1 p.m.

Book Club, 3 p.m.

Tuesday, March 11:

Yoga, 6:30 p.m.

Wednesday, March 12:

Zoom Evening Prayer, 4 p.m.

Bulletin | Zoom

Lenten Potluck, 6 p.m.

Lenten Potlucks:

Wednesdays March 12, 19, 26, and April 2 at 6:00 p.m.

March 25:

Lunch Bunch, 1 p.m., John's Bar

Cluster Dinner Group: our winter hiatus is about over. Stay tuned for info about signing up for Cluster Dinners and possible start date.

View the full St. Mark's calendar HERE.

Easter Lilies

This spring's Easter Lilies can now be ordered. Plants are $20 each with checks made out to St. Mark's Episcopal Church. Please find forms at St. Mark's. Each dedication may be (IMO) in memory of, (ICO) in celebration of, (ITF) in thanksgiving for, and (IHO) in honor of someone or something. The deadline for orders is Tuesday, March 25. Plants may be taken home Easter Sunday, April 20.

Yoga with Beth

Tuesdays, 6:30-7:30 p.m. in the undercroft.

Cost is $10 per session.

Cash, check, Venmo or PayPal accepted. Reserve your spot by texting 330-705-4359 or emailing yogabeth63@gmail.com

Ash Thursday | March 6, 2025

Ryan, Brynn, Connor, Emmett, Zeke, and Jack (with a little help from Emily and Beth), assembled 424 Hygiene Kits on Sunday, March 2.

Just think about that for a minute. Six students worked together in an assembly line efficiently and with great speed to get them all done within 45 minutes (they had music class for the first 15 minutes of Sunday School).

Therefore 424 men/women/kids/families who attend Hope Outreach Ministries will receive a washcloth and an actual full bar of soap. Things we all take for granted.

Thank you for all your continued donations of goods and money.

Hygiene Kit Totals–

YEAR 2024: 2,494

YEAR 2025: 793

~Beth Bletzacker, Coordinator

SOMEBUNNY will be collecting items for the baskets for the 32 women and their custodial children housed at the Y.W.C.A. homeless shelter over Easter. Our marked container will be in the narthex. Please bring your new toiletries, emery boards, razors, small paper items, playing cards, snack food, children’s toys to the church. We will be packing on Tuesday, April 15, at 1pm. Check donations accepted. Please write “Outreach” on the memo line. Thank you for your donations. E.C.W.

70th Anniversary Apparel!

Apparel to celebrate St. Mark's 70th Anniversary is being sold through March 2. T-shirts and sweatshirts will be available for purchase in the Narthex on Sunday mornings.

Need to mail an order form? Find it here.

St. Mark’s 70th Anniversary

May 18, 2025

Invitations are in the mail! Please mark your calendars for Sunday, May 18 to celebrate St. Mark's 70^thanniversary. There will be one service that day, at 10:00 AM. A special service is being planned with the Sunday School classes, beautiful music, and a delicious catered luncheon will be served.

If you are interested in donating to the celebration, checks can be made out to St. Mark's with 70^th anniversary in the memo line and dropped in the offering plate or the office.

Book Club Updates

April 14 - The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams

May 12 - The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson

Newsletter Additions

If you are adding something to the Lion's Pause, please submit it here by the Monday prior to Friday publication.

March Anniversaries

2 Tony and Beverly Kovacevich

4 Richard and Marcia Tirpak

13 Geoff and Bobbi Gordon

21 Christopher and Tasha Smith

22 Carol and John Hayn

27 Sara Strattan and Tom Burns

March Birthdays

1 Ken Jaeb

4 Sandy Paradis

6 Charlie Kiesling, Chuck Violand

7 Leslie Redmon

8 Beth Bletzacker

10 Kathy Sloan

11 Brooks Deuble, Colin Jenkins

12 Geoff Gordon

13 Carol Hayn

14 Jonathan Wise

18 Emmett Arnold

19 Beverly Kovacevich

21 Brad Kaustinen

26 John Werren

28 Joe Hoot, Sue Little

*Please note: Your birthday/anniversary will only show up if you've completed your profile on Instant Church Directory.

Need to log in? Go here.

Notable with Bob Morrison

For fifteen years I directed the AGO Festival Choir of music professionals. We enjoyed exploring great choral literature and, as I look back I see in my mind several very special people. I'm thinking of Martin Alexander who was St. Paul Episcopal's organist. He was a fine improviser and had the lowest-pitched voice of any man I ever met. And there was Bruce Layton Shelley, whose parents operated Shelley's Speed Queen. He had the sweetest highest voice and was so passionate about music that, as a high school choirmaster, his rehearsals would continue long after they were supposed to end; his enthusiasm so caught up the kids they didn't want to stop. And there's Bill Kendrick who grew up at St. Paul's Episcopal and became their organist and also at Zion Lutheran. Thankfully, he's still with us and just last Thanksgiving engineered the music for an interfaith service at First Lutheran. Chuck Reiman could sing, play piano, double bass, and coach basketball, a delightful guy. Avis Rae Bird Myers and husband Jim were faithful members and loved Handel's "I Was Glad." Jean McCuskey was a pupil of Karl Trump and had a rich alto voice. Catherine Elsass Dillon sang soprano (and still does at Christ Presby). Her mom was dean of our AGO chapter, and the brilliant trumpets at Christ Church are named for her dad.

But I was running out of accompanists. What to do?

And to have an accompanist like G. Dene Barnard was a "plus," but, alas! He left us to be the music man at First Congregational Columbus - a post he held for many years until his recent passing. What to do? Along came Shirley Allen Finney whose husband ran Finney Refrigeration. Her dad was our mailman at First Methodist. That girl could play anything! I'll never forget her rippling over the keys in a movement from the Durufle Requiem scored for violins. She never missed a note. And there was David Grainger Sparkes who served at Trinity UCC, St. Paul's, and some Akron churches. I'll never forget his handling of Zoltan Kodaly's "Psalmus Hungaricus," rich registrations and flawless technique.

But toward the end of our tenure, I couldn't find anyone to fill the accompanying role.

Prayer Concerns

Have compassion on: Vonda Temelkoff, Jim Weaver, Jane Schutrum, Ron Brooks, and all those who suffer from any grief or trouble.

For those who have died: Ten Gall

Family & Friends: Crosby Allyn (grandson of Jan Hudson) + Bobbie Lenzie, Lucas Anderson & family, and Clarice Lough (sister & friends of the Watters) + Katheleen Philippsborn (sister of Tom Turner) + Machelle Wells (friend of Jaime Heinzman) + Kimberly Nugent (daughter of the Thorps) + Father Jon Conventry (Trinity Episcopal Church - Alliance) + Jimmy Little (son of Sue Little) + Alison (friend of the Willoughbys) + Jane McBride (mother of Beth Crowl) + Tom (brother-in-law of AnJane McConville) + Gail and Judy Shumway (friend, sister-in-law, & co-worker friend of the Rand’s daughter) + Dr. Mallamaci (acquaintance of Bobbi Zollinger) + Jolonda Mull & Pam Lagodich (sister-in-law & friend of the Mulls) + Scott Jones, Val Hiner-Donlon, Rick Ciminelli, & Harold Freedman (cousin & friend of the Gordons) + Larry Aclaska & Judy Heisser-Turner (acquaintance & sister of Bert Heisser) + Lee, Theresa, & Chuck Boone (friends & cousin of the Hixons) + Melanie & Trish (friends of Paulette Frech) + Pat Walter & family (friend of Barb Whitehouse) + Alycia Geis (Karen Violand’s friend’s daughter) + Don Siegfried & Janet Sheatzley-Morgan (husband and sister of Barb Siegfried) + Allison Cornell-Hood & Anne Higgins (daughter & friend of Diane Cornell) + Finnigan Savage (friend of Pam McCarthy) + Tony Donahue (friend of the Boyds) + David (acquaintance of the Nadels) + Those in the Armed Forces.

PRAYER CHAIN:

St. Mark's has a group of prayer warriors who pray for the specific needs of those on the prayer chain. If you would like to place yourself or a loved one on the prayer chain, please contact Bobbi Gordon at ggordon24@sbcglobal.net

Prayer requests may be placed on the private Prayer Chain or on the Prayer Concerns list appearing in The Lion's Pause and Sunday bulletin or in both places. Please let Bobbi know your preference. Unless otherwise instructed, names will be listed as we receive them. Please update Bobbi or Katie on the status of your friends or family members as to when they may be removed from the prayer lists.