The Lion's Pause 🦁

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

Tomorrow, January 18, the church commemorates the Confession of Peter. When Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter responded, “You are the messiah, the Son of the living God.”

To Peter’s confession, Jesus responded, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”

These verses have been a source of controversy for centuries. The Roman Catholic interpretation of these verses is that the successor of Peter, the Pope, holds ultimate authority over the Christian church. Other churches, with bishops in the historic succession say that the church was founded on the apostles and their successors. Still other churches teach that the confession, not Peter or the apostles, was the foundation on which Jesus would build the church.

Perhaps Jesus did not have church polity in mind when he made this promise. Perhaps his focus was on the promise that he would build the church and the gates of hades, that is death itself, would not prevail against the church.

I take great comfort in the promise that Jesus is the one who is building the church. If the survival of the church were dependent on mere human agency, I do not think it would have survived for two thousand years. If it were dependent on mere human agency, we certainly could not say that death could not prevail against the church. When we join in Peter’s confession that Jesus is the messiah, the Son of the living God, we are joining something greater than a human institution. We are joining in what Jesus is building.

Fr. RJ+

St. Mark’s will hold its Annual Parish Meeting on January 26 following a single service at 9:00 a.m. An amendment to the Bylaws will be proposed to change the date of future annual meetings to February. The purpose for this change is to allow all of the prior year’s financial data to be available for the Financial Report. The proposed amendment is:

The annual meeting of members of the Parish, for the election of the members of the Vestry and for the transaction of such other business as may properly come before the meeting, shall be held on or before the ~~fourth Sunday of January~~ third Sunday of February of each year or on such other date and at a time and place that may be designated by the Vestry.

A Note from the Treasurer

Moved by the Spirit, I spent my first couple of days after arriving in Florida for the winter months working on the finance portion of the St. Mark’s annual report that most of you will see at the annual meeting on Sunday January 26^th. I also got caught up on my reading of Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditations, and a recap of Jimmy Carter’s funeral at the National Cathedral.

As I worked through the 5-page document I realized how insignificant this information is to the true calling of Jesus. I know it is important, and I am honored to do this work for St. Mark’s, however the real work of the “Jesus Movement” is what the rest of the Annual Report is about.

Since I am the finance guy, I want to highlight some import mission, outreach, general caring for others that is lost in the details of a financial reporting.

· In addition to the many hours of personal time and talent over, $7,700 was donated to outreach projects including Hope Outreach, Gibbs School, Thanksgiving Baskets, Community Christmas, and YWCA Easter Baskets.

· In addition to the pledge donations over $11,000 was donated for major repairs like the water softener, sanctuary HAVC motor and family room coiling coil.

· Each year St. Mark’s sends around $30,000 to the Diocese of Ohio as Support (also known as Assessment). I view these payments to the Diocese as major outreach for St. Mark’s similar to other organizations we support. St. Mark’s is a member of the global Anglican Communion. I like and support, that a portion of my donation not only supports programs in Stark County, but also in the state through the diocese, the country and the entire world, as a portion of the funds to the diocese move on to the national and global Episcopal Church.

As I watched some of the funeral in that amazing structure which is the “Cathedral of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington”, I felt some ownership and liked the thought that some small portion my financial pledge to St. Mark’s helps makes that space available.

See how easy it is to get caught up in money.

Based on the recap I read, Jimmy Carter was an amazing person. I need to confess that I felt some remorse as I thought about comments, I made years ago about his presidency and lack of accomplishment. He was truly a man dedicated to serving others and making the world a better place for all people.

St. Mark’s is full of amazing, caring people doing their best to support and care for each another. It’s not the length of a report, it’s the impact we have on each other and the world around us. Think about the young children involved in the Christmas pageant, teachers, the organizers of our social events, the makers of coffee, worship support, Fr. RJ, Lay Readers, Eucharistic Ministers, Acolytes, Altar Guild, Choir, Users, Parish Care, Greeters/Welcome Guild, Bell Ringers, Prayer Chain, Parish Note Cards, Vestry, Wardens, outreach committees, building and grounds, and cluster dinners cluster diners.

It looks to me like St. Mark’s is part of the “Jesus Movement”.

Charlie

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.

Visit our Website

Sunday , January 19:

Services at 8 and 10 a.m.

Lessons

Bulletin

Live Stream

Wednesday, January 22:

Evening Prayer, 4 p.m.

Zoom Bulletin

GREETERS!

There’s a new GREETER sign up sheet on the kiosk just waiting for you to be willing to welcome your fellow parishioners, prior to the 10 o’clock service.

ALTAR FLOWERS

It's a new year and time to donate to providing flowers for our Sunday services. Dedications can be made “in memory of”, “in celebration of”, “in thanksgiving for” and other requests for $20 each date to be honored. Checks, however, are now to be made out to St. Mark’s Episcopal Church (not Altar Guild). Envelopes for this purpose can be found in the pews and in the back of the church.

View the St. Mark's calendar HERE.

The Great Chili Cook-off!

Spicy - Mild - Texas style - Gramma’s recipe - Vegan!

Bring it on!

Bring your best crockpot Chili for tasting and

see who wins THE GRAND PRIZE!

DATE: SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2025

WHEN: AFTER THE 10:00 SERVICE

Sign-up now in the Narthex!

Beth Julian will guide you through slow, relaxing yoga stretches, breathwork. and guided muscle relaxation.

Join us for any or all of the sessions:

January 21 and 28, 6:30-7:30 PM 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

Book Club Updates

February 10 - The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

March 10 - Mr. Einstein’s Secretary by Matthew Reilly

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.

January Anniversaries

3 Jan Hudson

16 Mark and Kim Nadel

24 Fred and Roberta Zollinger

January Birthdays

3 Sara Strattan

4 Livvy Mull

6 John Willoughby

8 Rick Crowl

10 Debbie Shellhammer

13 Parker Heinzman, Ryleigh Heinzman

16 Tasha Smith

18 Julie Werren

25 Barrie Thorp Ten Gall

*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

My late caregiver Ray was a man of considerable talent. He enclosed my open-air porch when I was living at Glenmoor, and added a handrail to my basement stairs. With Vestry's approval, he remodeled the back choir pew at St. Mark's to accommodate handbells and crafted a handbell tree. He gave me a Yamaha keyboard which I've repeatedly used at our outdoor services. He designed and built a baptismal font for Peace Methodist in Louisville and votive stands for two UCC churches. He was a worker in stained glass and made delightful Christmas ornaments as well as a glass American flag which is now in my bedroom window at Canton Christian Home. He fashioned colored glass for lanterns; and - he fixed my hand chimes!

Quite some time ago I ordered 37 such chimes from Malmark (which they termed ChoirChimes). Eventually, they had problems that Malmark couldn't fix and I hadn't any clue what to do. I don't know why Ray took an interest in this dilemma, but he discovered that each chime had a rubberized plug insert, the position of which influenced the sound and he fashioned a four-sided wooden probe to insert in each chime to adjust the plug. I found the correct measurement for each plug online and, voila - success! With their sine-wave smooth sound, these chimes are a foil to handbells and a great addition to our arsenal of music-makers at St. Mark's.

I had no idea when Ray offered to be my caregiver what a blessing he would be. I think it was providential.

Prayer Concerns

Have compassion on: Anne Coen, Ten Gall, Vonda Temelkoff, Jim Weaver, Jane Schutrum, Ron Brooks.

For those who have died: Earl Hoot and Craig Kerner

Family & Friends: The Willoughby Family + Baby Ulysses (MaryAnn Kiesling’s 2nd cousin’s grandson) + Linda Young (Marcia Kiesling’s mother) + Kimberly Nugent (daughter of the Thorps) + Craig Kerner (Mandy Pelger’s father) + Grosschmidt family (friends of the Nadels) + Father Jon Conventry (Trinity Episcopal Church - Alliance) + Jimmy Little (son of Sue Little) + Patti & Jack Freeder and Kim Milinkovich (former members of St. Marks) + 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, & Tim Swihart (cousin & friend of the Gordons) + Larry Aclaska & Judy Heisser-Turner (acquaintance & sister of Bert Heisser) + Lee, Theresa, & Chuck Boone (friends & cousin of the Hixons) + Lucas Anderson & family and Clarice Lough (friends of the Watters) + Elaine Campbell (friend of the Turners) + Melanie & Trish (friends of Paulette Frech) + Pat Walter & family (friend of Barb Whitehouse) + Alycia Geis (Karen Violand’s friend’s daughter) + Don Siegfried and 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.