Upcoming at Faith This Week

Friends,

What a peculiar week we’ve had. 

A week ago today, our Epiphany feast was marked by an attack on our Capitol Building, and today, impeachment is being discussed on the floor of the House of Representatives.  Like many of you, I was hoping that once 2020 was securely in our rearview mirror, we might realize a bit more peace and hope; we might be able to live into the promise of healing brought on by vaccinations.  Instead, we are being forced to face an illness that has plagued us for much longer than that of COVID-19. 

White privilege and racism are the unseen poisons that infect us and, whether overtly acknowledged or not, whether the folks caught up in the same rhetoric that whipped up the protestors last week are even aware of the underpinning of these sins, or not, their effects are deleterious to all we hold dear, in fact, to our very souls.

There is much work to be done before we will realize reconciliation in our country, and the work feels overwhelming.  The divisions between us appear too great; the roots of racism and white supremacy run deeply in our country—they are older than our nation and it will take years of concerted, courageous work to extricate ourselves from their tenacious hold on our minds and hearts.  But we must engage the work.  We must repent of the “evil that enslaves us; the evil we have done and the evil done on our behalf,” as we confess in the language of our liturgy.  It is only by opening our eyes and seeing how racism affects every aspect of our lives together, that we will be able to recognize, and resist it in our common life. 

As you know, beginning today our Senior Warden, Kay Rawlings will be facilitating The Episcopal Church’s “Sacred Ground” program, and the offering of this class is timely.  If you haven’t yet checked out the website for the program (click here), I encourage you to do so.  Racism transcends every political party, economic, and social class, and is prevalent in every geographic region of the nation.  It is so imbedded in our world, that unless we or someone we know has been directly harmed, we are often unable to see it.  In this season of Epiphany, let’s open our eyes and see what God would have us see in ourselves and in the world around us.  The truth will undoubtedly set us free.

Prayerfully,

Vicar Laura+

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Second Sunday after

the Epiphany

This Sunday's Readings: 1 Samuel 3:1-10(11-20) 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 John 1:43-51 Psalm 139:1-5, 12-17 Download the Sunday Readings as a Word Document   “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” John 1:43-51

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Memorial Garden Sculptures

Jackson Foster continues to craft beautiful artwork for us.  Our memorial garden is populated with stations of the cross, and plans are underway to make that place a spot of respite and contemplation for everyone.

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Bishop Rickel’s 10 Rules for Respect

I every Letter of Agreement Bishop Rickel has with congregations, and now with the Diocese of Olympia he has asked that the “10 Rules for Respect” spelled out below be made part of the agreement. He first saw these in an article by Church of the Nazarene pastor Charles Christian. He believes that they are quite helpful in framing our communication and life together.

He vows to do his best to follow them and invites you to do the same. We will all fail, but through gentle challenge and loving encouragement these can become a foundation for healthy communication for us all.

Faith’s Bishop’s Committee also uses this model as a rule for how we conduct our business and are in relationship with one another.

Read more: 10 Rules for Respect