Invitation to Observe and Reflect on the Tenth Anniversary of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks

Remembering those lost and lifting up those who survive, St. Mark's offers opportunities to observe the tenth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks that profoundly affected parishioners, our communities, and the country.

On Saturday, September 10, beginning at 6:00 p.m. in Carroll Hall, we invite the community to view and discuss the film Man on Wire [see trailer here]. This Academy-Award winning documentary tells the story of Philippe Petit's 1974 high-wire dance between the two towers of the World Trade Center. Petit's 45-minute "artistic crime of the century," as he calls it, took six years to plan, stopped traffic around the World Trade Center, and made headlines around the world. The film allows us to re-experience the towers through the intimate, poetic, and joyful feelings generated by Petit's audacious act.

Discussion will be moderated by Elizabeth Rundquist, psychotherapist and artist.

On Sunday, September 11 we invite the community to a labyrinth walk beginning at 5:00 p.m. and an interfaith healing service for all faiths beginning at 6:30 p.m. in Carroll Hall.

Absolutely everyone is invited to attend these events.

Throughout this time, all are invited to use this blog to share thoughts, memories, hopes, and prayers related to the events of September 11, 2001. Please feel free to post your contributions to the "Comments" section of this posting.

Anyone who may feel overwhelmed by the significance and intensity of this anniversary may find these resources helpful.

J2A Participates in North Porch Tea and Toy Fest

On November 23rd the St. Marks J2A youth group traveled to the Episcopal House in Newark for the North Porch annual Tea and Toy Fest. In addition to giving toys, we gathered and organized donated toys for underprivileged children served by North Porch in Newark, Paterson, Clifton and Dover.

North Porch is an organization that provides emergency services for mother with children under the age of three.

We met Bishop Mark Beckwith, Canon Greg Jacobs, North Porch board members, and many of the people that staff the centers. They appreciated us being there because they never before had youth participate at the Tea and Toy Fest.

We learned the importance of being generous, not only when it is convenient, but all the time.

"In God We Trust." Really?

This is a homily that was offered at Morning Prayer and at the evening service with the youth group on October 19.

In our gospel reading today, representatives of two groups united only by their desire to diminish his influence confront Jesus with a question on the subject of God and money. Disciples of the Pharisees, a Jewish sect that had the backing of the common people, and the Herodians, who supported the Roman regime, approach Jesus in front of a crowd with the intention of hanging him on the horns of a false dilemma. They pose a question to which he can give one of only two answers. They ask whether it is lawful to pay the Roman tax or not. Yes or no? (Has anyone ever set you up like that, with a question to which you can't respond without appearing to align yourself with a view you don't share?)

To answer that yes, it is lawful to pay the Roman tax would give Jesus the appearance of saying before questioners eager to establish a Jewish state that Caesar, not God, is sovereign. To say no, it's not lawful to pay the tax would make Jesus vulnerable to accusations of inciting rebellion.

Jesus grabs both horns of this supposed dilemma and shows that a third option exists: One can return to the emperor the coin manufactured by his mint, which bears his image and an inscription honoring him as divine, while at the same time rendering to God the things that are God's.

We might at first thing that Jesus was offering too easy an answer--what's Caesar's is Caesar's, what's God's is God's, and that's that. But how does the situation look if we hand Jesus one of our coins, bearing the image of a political leader and inscribed with our national motto: "In God We Trust"? Can Jesus escape the trap as amazingly now?

The Journey Begins

This was a homily given at our 6:30 p.m. service, which is led by and focused on our youth, but open to all. It was delivered on the day we wished Godspeed to our Rector of ten years, the Rev. Randall Day, and his partner, Bill Hurbaugh, as they accept a call to St. Mark's-in-the-Valley Episcopal Church in Los Olivos, California, and we begin the process of selecting a new Rector to lead our congregation.

One of my favorite things about the marathon camping trips my family took when I was a kid was to arrive somewhere late at night, fall in to bed, and then wake up to discover where we had ended up.

Of course I had no responsibilities other than maybe helping with breakfast or getting rid of the garbage. Pretty much everything else was decided for me. Someone else planned the trip and decided where we’d stop along the way (and my dad NEVER wanted to stop). My mom’s job was food and drinks in the car, and for some reason as the day went on, she would start combining the contents of drink coolers as they got empty. So you might get orange juice mixed with Coke or some other revolting mixture.

Most of the passing scenery was lost on my sisters and I as we played and fought in the back of my grandfather’s Suburban. I would call it an SUV, except they had not been invented yet. Picture an Escalade... minus ALL the bling. It didn’t even have air conditioning, so driving across the Great Salt Desert in Utah one July was NOT fun.

Even still, we had it pretty good compared to the Israelites who followed Moses out of Egypt in today’s reading from Exodus. Even today, the Sinai makes the Great Salt Desert look like Disney World. There are no air-conditioned rest areas with fast food and clean water. And these weren’t riding in cars, they were walking, carrying everything they owned, and it wasn’t just all day or even a week, but for forty years! They had no idea where they were going, sometimes they didn’t have anything to eat or drink, and, to top it off, Moses -- the guy they had been following on this crazy journey, who regularly interfaced with God on their behalf -- was taken from them before they made it to the Promised Land, which we now call Israel.

Sound familiar?

Of course the details are a little different, but we -- like the Israelites -- are a community on a journey. For ten years -- long enough that many of you don’t remember anything else -- Randall has led us through happy events, like Christmas, new babies and other celebrations, and tough times, like the deaths of people we loved, some of them way before their time. And now, we all face the task of choosing a new priest us to lead us forward.

This morning, we felt all kinds of emotions as we wished Randall and Bill our best and they left to begin a new life in California. And now, we begin a new chapter in our own life together. Some people are sad, some are excited, some are scared, and some are even angry. All of these feelings are normal, and whatever combination you may be experiencing yourself, it is okay.

The most important thing is that we are all here for each other. There will be opportunities to talk about what’s going on, ask questions, and make choices. Take advantage of those chances... you are just as important a member of the community as anybody else, and your opinion matters. It’s your church, too.

There will also be new opportunities to help out. Things that got done because Randall or Bill were here to do them may need to be done by someone else. That could be as minor as picking up scraps from the sidewalk. Sometimes it might mean just coming to church when you don’t feel like it. Yes, it’s true, even adults have days like that. But that may just be the day when someone needs an understanding ear... and the ear they need may just be yours.

The Israelites grumbled and complained to Moses that they were tired and hungry. I bet they whined, “Are we there yet?” like kids on a long car trip, and asked “Is God with us, or not?”. For us, the answer to the first question is no, we’ve only just begun. But yes, God is with us every step of the way.

Can we count on you?

Hot Time - Summer on the Sidewalks: Service to Day Laborers

As St. Mark's volunteers take to the sidewalks now, in the HOT days of summer, we move from handing out gloves & hats to water & oranges. Boy are they gratefully received!

More later...

Scotty

The Growing Food Crisis

Deacon Diane Riley writes: "The perfect sotrm of rising fuel costs, rising food costs and the economic challenges facing so many people have produced a shortage of food and donations and an increase in those that need food. The situation has become alarming. Consider increasing your support for or beginning a new food ministry to support a food pantry near you. There is no geater work that we can do than meet this growing need of our neighbors right next door. "
St. Mark's actively supports the Center for Food Action (CFA) and its Englewood distribution center. Your gifts of non-perishable food each Sunday, and especially the first Sunday of every month, are critically important. Remember when you are shopping to add something to your basket to bring to St. Mark's for CFA. Since our doors are open all day every day, you can drop off food here any time.

For Whom The Bells Toll

We toll our bell at 7 pm on days of executions, joining with houses of worship across the country to publicly witness against the death penalty the discriminates against the poor, undereducated, under-represented, and minorities. To find out more or to toll the bell contact Michael Accordino (201-281-4768, cell 212-698-7550 work: michael.accordino@simonandschuster.com)