Saint Mark’s Episcopal Pro-Cathedral
April 2011
Why Easter is Late this year and What That Means for Us
Easter is the oldest and most important day in the
Christian calendar. Because Jesus’ death and resurrection took place
during the Jewish Passover, the date of Easter is connected to the
Jewish calendar, which is lunar – not solar like the one we use now. A
formula for finding the date of Easter was developed at the Council of
Nicaea in 325 AD. It was based on both the Jewish calendar and the solar
calendar – which at that time was the Julian calendar. When the western
world switched to the Gregorian Calendar in 1582, the Eastern Orthodox
Church stayed with the Julian Calendar – which is why they usually
celebrate Easter on a different date.
In the western
Church Easter can occur as early as March 22 and as late as April 25.
That means Easter this year (April 24) occurs one day short of the
latest possible date.
What is the “Easter formula”? Here is a
fairly simple explanation:
Easter is celebrated
on the Sunday following the first full moon that appears on or after the
spring equinox. The complete answer, however, is far more complex. If
you are interested, the directions for calculating the date of
Easter are on pages 880-881 in the Book of Common Prayer.
A much easier to understand resource is “A Table to
Find Easter Day” on pages 882-883 of the Book of Common Prayer. The
table in our current BCP starts with 1900 and ends with 2089. Between
1900 and 2038, Easter lands on April 25 only twice: 1943 and 2038.
Between 1943 and 2038, Easter occurs as late as April 24 just once:
2011. So if you’ve been thinking Easter is unusually late this year,
you’re right!
What does all this have to do with us Hastings
Nebraska Episcopalians? It means that, unlike most years, it is April,
and we are only halfway through our Lenten journey. There is still time
to participate in our Lenten Study on Wednesday evenings or attend
Sermons A La Carte. There is still time to take on a Lenten discipline.
Most of all, there is still time to participate in Holy Week and Easter.
Everything we do to observe Lent is in anticipation
of Holy Week and Easter. During Holy Week we walk through the final days
of Christ’s earthly life. We go with him to his death on the cross, and
placement in the tomb. We emerge with Christ from that tomb on Easter as
his Resurrected Body in the world!
Please come and worship with us no matter what kind
of Lenten discipline you have kept – or not kept- this year. Our Holy
Week Services begin with Palm
Sunday on April 17th.
A
Seder Service and potluck will take place at 5:30pm on Wednesday in
Holy Week - April 20. A 7:00pm service will take place on
Maundy Thursday. The Maundy
Thursday vigil will start after that service. There will be services at
noon and at 7:00 pm on Good
Friday. The noon service will focus on the seven last words of
Christ from the cross. The 7:00 pm service will be the “Solemn Collects”
– the service for Good Friday that is found in the Prayer Book.
The Easter Vigil
will begin at 8:00pm
on Saturday April 23. 8:00
and 10:00 am services will
take place on Easter Sunday.
An Easter Egg Hunt will follow the 10:00 service.
There’s
still time! Let’s walk with Jesus through Holy Week so that together we
may truly experience the joy of his resurrection.
Love in the Risen Lord,
Mother Catherine +
Vestry Notes
Rector’s Report: Mo. Catherine
met with the
co-chairs of the bishop search committee about what Saint Mark’s needs
to do. We will host approximately 250-300 people for the bishop election
on June 4th. The Vestry retreat will be rescheduled for April 2nd 10-2
at the church.
Committee
Reports:
Worship and Music did not meet. Spiritual Growth did not meet. The youth
group will meet for game night March 20th.
Building and
Grounds met and discussed purchasing event signs to be placed in the
southwest corner of the courtyard above the fence. Beyke Signs can make
the signs. Motion was made by
Nancy
seconded by Jessica to approve purchase of the signs. Motion carried. We
will use memorial money for the purchase. The large dishwasher is
out-of-order. We will try to make enough repairs to get us through
Sermons a la Carte. The art show will open May 15th.
Parish Life
did not meet. Sermons a la Carte is ongoing. Evangelism and Stewardship
did not meet.
Outreach
committee received suggestions at the pot luck for outreach projects.
One new project will be establishing a community garden in the east lot
currently vacant.
Finance
committee will begin meeting the 2nd Thursday of the month in April.
Old
Business:
Sermons a la carte is being broadcast on public access channel 12.
New
Business:
A financial report will appear in each edition of the Chimes. We will
try to utilize “community calendars” and sign boards to publicize
events. Nancy will coordinate this.
We need to
update our web page. Kyle will investigate the available options.
Lyndle Lewis, Clerk of the Vestry
Fine Arts Festival
The Cathedral Art
Festival seeks to promote participation in the visual arts in
celebration for God’s gift of beauty in the human soul. It is made
possible by the Elinor Bartholomew Memorial Trust established by gifts
in Elinor’s memory to celebrate
her life and her ministry at Saint Mark’s.
The Festival is a
juried contest open to artists in this area to submit original works in
painting or drawing, fine art prints, sculpture or photography.
The annual Elinor
Bartholomew Memorial Fine Arts Festival begins taking entries on April
3rd. Any artist in our area may submit up to three slides of original
works in painting, drawing, mixed media, fibers, sculpture, glass,
prints, or photographs.
Computer generated images are not part of this show. Slides or digital
images of works to be considered must be submitted with an entry form,
available from the Parish Office.
The jurors this year
are Mary Weber and Jeremy Daniels. The show will open on May 15th and
run until June 19th.
Rosebud Mission Trip 2011
Word has
been received that plans for this years youth mission trip to the
Rosebud Reservation are underway.
Fr. Tom
Jones has began coordination for this year’s youth mission trip to
Rosebud,
South Dakota
scheduled for July 10-15. He has been in contact with the Church of Jesus
and they are looking forward to our arrival. This is where we were at
last year.
The program
will mirror last year’s beginning with lunch followed by story time,
crafts, service projects and games. An added thing to consider is the
possibility of attending the closing ceremony for a powwow Sunday the
10th. Fr. Tom Jones is working with the elder of the church Layman’s
Guild to find out more information.
The service
projects on the table this year include: painting the basement and the
inside of the church, and replacing the handicap ramp up to the church.
We may be able to take on a little more as there is a strong possibility
that a team from North
Carolina
will be joining us for this trip
Any youth or
adult interested in learning more should contact Greg Burke or Fr. Tom
Jones. (frtom@chsepiscopal.org).
Women of St. Mark’s
Norma Hansen
– The Women of St. Mark’s will have a meeting on Saturday, April 16 at
1:00 p.m. in the Common Room. The main topic of discussion will be our
role in the election of the new Bishop. The election will be held on
Saturday, June 4, here at St. Mark’s with the first event beginning at
8:00 a.m. We will need help, mainly with food preparation and food
serving. It seems early to be making plans, and we will have another
meeting before June 4 to firm up plans. This meeting is to let you know
what we have been asked to do and get your input on how to do it.
Please try to attend. Please feel free to bring any other topics
for group discussion.
It's Game On for Saint Mark's Youth!
Sunday,
March 20th marked another successful meeting of the youth
group for Saint Mark's. We grew from twelve youth at our initial meeting
to seventeen in this latest installment. Bob and Kyle brainstormed and
came up with five games that could be enjoyed by all. The games
included: Two Truths and a Lie, Balloon Stomp (not too hard to figure
out what's involved), Ball (you must witness to understand), Mario Kart
on Wii, and Ping Pong. The winners of each game received a King-sized
candy bar for their efforts (some parents weren't sure how they felt
about this practice). There were also a total of seven adults present at
the youth meeting, showing how supportive the congregation of Saint
Mark's is of its youth.
Mary
Jo and Veldon came through in a big way with another food hit! Knowing
that the youth would be moving about, they provided an excellent spread
of food that the kids could keep coming back to throughout the event.
This included a scrumptious Taco Dip; a creation of Mary Jo's, two kinds
of Chex Mix, trail mix, an assortment of chips and dips, and cookies
made for the group by Father Bob. Despite the plethora of food, the
youth managed to dig there way through most of it before the meeting was
over; which can only be taken as a show of how well-received it was.
More great fun is in store for the youth
of the church this coming month. On the tenth of April, the youth will
gather to watch The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn with
a discussion of how the film relates to our Christian Faith. We will
meet in the church undercroft at 4:30 and have a brief intermission for
discussion and food after the first half of the show. Mary Jo is already
plotting pulled pork sandwiches for the group and we will be asking the
congregation for donations of fresh homemade cookies. The youth are also
planning to wait tables at Pizza Hut on a Monday during April to raise
money for relief in
Japan. The date for this is yet to be
determined, but will be announced in church. As always, with any
questions or comments, contact Kyle at 402-469-7242 or
kmart2187@gmail.com; or through the parish office.
Yours in Christ,
Kyle Martindale
Fr. Bob Scott
Sermons a la Carte
This year we
have received a time slot for the sermon to be shown on Channel 12 Charter
Cable. It will be on at 8:00 p.m. on Friday evening and again on Saturday at
3:00 p.m.
Lenten Study & Soup Supper
On Wednesday
evenings our Lenten Study will be an Inquirer’s class. We have started at
5:30 p.m. with Evening Prayer in the Choir and continue in the Undercroft
with a light supper and then the class. We will be done around 7:30 p.m.
Everyone is welcome.
Bakeless Bake Sale
The Women of
Saint Mark’s will host our Annual Bakeless Bake Sale. This event accounts
for a major portion of the budget for these ministries for the year, so we
need everyone to participate.
Easter Lilies
Each year in
celebration of the Feast of Our Lord’s Resurrection the Cathedral is
decorated with flowers through the gifts of Parishioners in memory of or in
thanksgiving for their loved ones. If you would like to participate, contact
the Parish Office.
Episcopal Relief & Development
ERD envelopes
will be appearing in the pews of Saint Mark’s. Our contributions will go to
support Nippon Sei Ko Kei (NSKK the Anglican Communion in
Japan) in support of its efforts following the
catastrophic 9.0 earthquake and tsunami that stuck off the coast of
Sendai Japan.
Open Table
Attention:
We will be making 650 sandwiches on Sunday June 12 in the kitchen in the
undercroft. It is time to be thinking about bringing pudding cups, fruit
cups, and chips.
Eggs
Polka dotted,
striped, pictures of bunnies, hearts and all different colored plastic
Easter Eggs were chosen from baskets and filled with sugar free candies and
returned by our parishioners. These will be placed on the Meals-on-Wheels
trays for our senior citizens to enjoy. THANKS parishioners of Saint Mark’s
Pro-Cathedral!!
Saint John’s,
Harvard Reed Organ
Susan Neal
– On March 20 I had the privilege of playing the reed organ at
Saint John’s for Sunday service. I came away with
such great respect for this aging instrument that has served the Harvard
church for many, many decades. The organ maker, Chicago Cottage Organ
Company, operated from 1880 to 1900 when the name changed to the Cable
Company. The Cable Company eventually produced player pianos, became a
bastion of the American piano industry and continued to produce Chicago
Cottage organs, also called harmoniums.
There are three
parts to this type of historic organ: the reed pan, the keyboard and the
bellows. A reed organ, powered
by the foot pedals, is not only a “green” instrument but also provides an
aerobic workout. Sounds pretty modern!
I found this
information and much more in a great little book, Harmonium: The history of
the Reed Organ and its Makers by Arthur W. J. G. Ord-Hume, c. 1986 and
available at Hastings Public Library.
Piano Trio Concert
The Ezinma Piano
Trio will be presenting a free concert at Saint Mark’s, April 3 at 4:30 p.m.
The trio is from the University of Nebraska and the Hixon-Lied School of
Music. Everyone including children and students are encouraged to attend.
This trio was
formed in 20009 and consists of Meredith Ramsay, Timothy Paek, and Michael
Glur-Zoucha. All are currently juniors at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln. Throughout the past two years the trio has performed in
such events as the UNL Honors ChamberFest and Chancellor Harvey Perlman’s
State of the University Address. They were especially fortunate to have the
opportunity to perform for world renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma at the Lied Center
in the spring of 2010. The 2010-2011 season highlights a tour of rural Nebraska sponsored by the
Hixon-Lied Endowment. In all, the trio will perform in 15 locations to help
promote classical music. This will be achieved through community
performances and school outreaches, which account for the entire state with
stops in Scottsbluff, Ord and
Peru. The trio is coached by the Chiara
String Quartet.
NOMINEES FOR THE 11TH BISHOP OF
NEBRASKA
ANNOUNCED
Election scheduled for June 4
The nominees are:
-
The Rev. J. Scott Barker,
Rector of Christ
Church in Warwick, NY,
·
The Rev. Margaret Duncan Holt Sammons,
Co-Rector of St. Michael's in the Hills Episcopal Church in Toledo, OH,
-
The Rev. Canon Sarah J.
Shofstall, Canon to the Ordinary in the Episcopal Diocese of
Western Massachusetts.
"We delight in
the grace of the Holy Spirit in providing us such talented candidates," said
The Rev. Ruth Tomlinson and Richard Kauders, co-chairs of the Bishop Search
Committee.
Barker currently
serves as member of the Board of the Episcopal Service Corps and as a member
of the Diocesan Council. He is a frequent guest preacher including
Battell Chapel and Yale
University.
Holt Sammons has
served on The Standing Committee, Episcopal Community Services Development
Council, and the Commission on Ministry. She also served as a Peace Corp
Volunteer in Liberia
where she taught elementary school and found a Junior High School.
Shofstall has
been faculty for a CREDO Vocational Team and currently serves as a
Conference Leader. She was a designer and presenter for Basic Reconciliation
Seminar for the dioceses of Western Massachusetts, Los
Angeles, Northern Indiana and
Ohio.
The Diocese of
Nebraska, founded in 1868, comprises 55 congregations throughout the State
of Nebraska.
The diocese began the search for a new bishop when the current bishop, The
Rt. Rev. Joe Burnett announced he had accepted a call as the Assistant
Bishop in the Diocese of Baltimore. Burnett resigns his office effective
March 31, 2011.
The diocese is
also accepting nominations by petition until March 31, 2011.
What are your thoughts?
On Sunday, May
1st, we will have our usual potluck dinner following church. Your delegates
to the bishop election would like to hear your thoughts about the
candidates. Presently, the three candidates are The Reverend J. Scott
Barker, The Reverend Margaret Holt Sammons and The Reverend Canon Sarah
Shofstall. The nomination period ends March 31. Short bios are available now
on these three candidates. Barb will make these available upon request.
After March 31, more information regarding each candidate will be posted
online. Responses to “essay” questions as well as proposed “vision
statements” will also be available online. The “walk-about” visits of the
nominees will be May 15-21 and the closest one for St. Mark’s will be Grand Island. If you unable
to obtain information online, please do not hesitate to call Barb and ask
for a printout. We hope that you will be able to attend the May 1st Potluck
and thereby represent you at the June 4th election held at Saint
Mark’s Pro-Cathedral. The May Chimes will have additional information about
the process
Holy Week Ministries Schedule
MAUNDY THURSDAY
–
Acolytes:
Clint Schwenk, Mary Brown, Pat Crawford
Eucharist
Ministers:
Greg Burke, Mary Helen Edwards
Oblations:
Chuck and Sigrid Eigenberg
GOOD FRIDAY –
Acolyte:
Mary Helen Edwards
GREAT VIGIL:
Acolytes:
Clint Schwenk, Mary Brown, Travis O’Connell,
Kyle Martindale,
Callie Brown, Greg Burke,
Eucharist
Ministers:
Ben Cannon, Robin Stitt
Oblations:
Katharina
Schwidtal, Lyndle Lewis
