IN THIS ISSUE: Finance Report Page 2 Adult Formation Page 3 Parish News Page 4 - 5 Advent & Christmas Page 6 - 7 Children’s News Page 8 Music News Page 8 Café Kairos Menus 9 Christmas Flowers 9 Youth News 10 - 11 Christmas Schedule Back ST. MARK’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH 315 E. Pecan St. San Antonio, Texas 78205 (210) 226-2426 www.stmarks-sa.org [email protected]Office hours: Monday thru Friday 9.00am-5.00pm Emergency Pastoral Care: 210-507-0256 Monthly Newsletter of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church themessenger November -December 2015 VOLUME 104 ISSUE 10 Advent is one of my favorite seasons of our liturgical year. It is a time to step off the cultural merry go round which moved directly to celebrating Christmas the day after Halloween. Advent brings the tension of awaiting the birth of Jesus while simultaneously awaiting the return of Jesus Christ. We look for new life as we commence another liturgical year with one another, and we reflect as a community on what gifts we each bring to the body. We are asked to wonder with one another, “What does it means to be an incarnate community in this time and place?” One thing we heard consistently as we gathered together in the past year is that we like to be with one another. So, for Advent this year, we have created several community-wide gathering opportunities. We will make Advent wreaths together on November 29 th . We will have our annual service of Advent Lessons and Carols on December 6 th . The Reverend Doug Earle will be sharing an Advent photography exhibit with us. In an effort to make the Christmas pageant more accessible to the entire parish, we will be having it at 9am on December 13 th in Gish Hall, followed by a combined worship service at 10am. Then during the week of December 13 th , we will be having a display of crèches from around the world to give the broader community a chance to pause and reflect on the true meaning of Advent. We will gather to serve food to those who are hungry during our annual Christmas to the Street offering. Our preparations will culminate in a huge celebration on Sunday the 20 th , when we will have a living nativity with a petting zoo and live animals in the Tucker Courtyard! I am hoping to reconnect with my good friend Seth the donkey, who we fondly remember from Palm Sunday celebrations. On Christmas Eve, we have added another service to offer our celebrations even more fully to our community. Plan to join us either at 4pm, 7pm, or 10:30pm. We will have wonderful musical offerings at each and welcome the Christ child in community with one another. This Advent and Christmas we will also be awaiting with hopeful expectation the arrival of our newest full time priest. I am delighted we will be welcoming The Reverend Matthew Wise to our community as well as his wife Amy and their beautiful newborn children, Jacob and Sawyer. His first Sunday with us will be January 10th. There is something wonderful about having them join us on the Feast of the Baptism of our Lord. It is also the day we celebrate the annual Epiphany Baby Shower that is sponsored by the Daughters of the King. How appropriate that as we give generously to babies and mothers in need at the Good Samaritan Center, we will welcome this new family into our midst. As always, I am grateful to be called to be part of this community. I give thanks for our common life and look forward to a hopeful Advent and glorious Christmas season. Peace, Beth+ A Season of Hopeful Expectation FROM THE RECTOR
The monthly newsletter of St. Mark's Episcopal Church, San Antonio.
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Adult Christian Formation The Rev. Carol Morehead | Associate Rector | [email protected]
Sundays in Advent, November 29 - December 20
Advent & Christmas November 29Intergenerational Advent Wreath Making, Gosnell Hall
December 6 What is Advent? Artist Talk with The Rev. Doug Earle
December 13 9.00am Christmas Pageant
December 20 9.00am Come, Let Us Adore Him Event, with Living Nativity, Crèche Displays, and Reception
December 27 No Sunday morning Formation
January 3 No Sunday morning Formation
Season After the Epiphany The Rev. Dr. John Lewis will lead us through the Season after the Epiphany.
Join in on Sundays at 10:10, January 17 through February 7.
Midweek Offerings Wednesday Evening Bible Study, Every other week, 6.00pm - 7.30pm
Dean Richardson Room (2nd floor) We continue our study of the Gospel of Mark.
Class will meet December 2 & 16. Led by The Rev. Carol Morehead
Time Out Bible Study, Weekly, Thursday mornings 10.00am - 11.30am, Youth Suite
Time Out will meet on December 3 to finish the Gospel of Mark and will resume on January 14 with the Gospel of Luke.
Led by The Rev. Dr. John Lewis and The Rev. Carol Morehead
See the St. Mark’s Parish Life Handbook for further Adult Formation offerings.
Worship Opportunities Mid-Week Eucharist, Wednesdays at 5.30pm in Bethlehem Chapel
Evening Prayer, Thursdays at 5.30pm in Bethlehem Chapel
Advent Quiet Day December 5, 10.00am - 2.00pm The WorkShop
The Poetry of Expectation: A Journey into Hope Led by The Rev. Carol Morehead As we prepare for all that is to come - the rhythm of a new liturgical year, the coming Christ for the love of the world,
the advent of God’s presence in our own lives - step aside from the daily rhythm and enter into a space of listening.
Often, we find this time of short days and early darkness to be a time easily filled with the call of the urgent. How do
we find balance between the quotidian mysteries of each day and the place where God draws us into kairos time? We
will use poetry to guide us through our Advent meditations, exploring waiting, expectation, emptying, and hope.
Attendance is free and open to all, and lunch is provided. Please register at [email protected] so we have food for
all.
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Parish News
Ministry Architects Update We had a fruitful visit with Ministry Architects in October. Thank you to all of you who participated in the listening
sessions and the town hall meeting. They have provided the parish and vestry with a detailed timeline to enhance our
children’s ministry offerings. At the October vestry meeting, the vestry recommended moving forward with plan they have
developed. Our new priest, Rev. Matt Wise, will be working closely with the renovation team, a group of parishioners who
worked with Ministry Architects during their assessment, to implement their recommendations and develop a
timeline. Thanks to Co-Chairs Elizabeth Raney and Shea Pollom and to Greg Merritt, Angela Torres Lopez, Katie
McDonough, and Dell Villa who have agreed to serve in this capacity. If you’d like more information on Ministry
Architect’s specific recommendations, please visit our website at stmarks-sa.org and click on Formation & Ministry, then
Children’s Formation.
The parish meeting on November 1 was lively with our vestry election, parish ingathering,
parish meeting, and distribution of our annual report — the energy level was palpable. The Annual
Meeting of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church commenced with an opening prayer and the singing of a
hymn. Senior Warden Carl Leafstedt led us through the election process and introduced the
candidates. He also shared his insights on the work of the vestry this year including moving to a
consensus model of decision-making. The One Body/Many Menus gatherings, another outward sign
of our work together, was a great platform for introducing rector The Rev. Beth Knowlton to the
parish. Input from these gatherings led to the Future Directions appeal and the hiring of a third
priest, soon to become a reality.
Treasurer John McClung gave a succinct overview of the church’s finances. Together, the
Finance Committee, Investment Committee, vestry, and clergy are responsible for the overall
financial health of the church. He gave thanks to Len Briley, the previous treasurer, for all his hard
work. John shared that there is now an email address: [email protected] to which anyone can
address questions on the financial health of the church.
Then The Rev. Beth Knowlton thanked everyone for an amazing 15 months! She thanked the
stewardship chairs for all their hard work. Some of the themes that came out of the gatherings were
to expand outreach downtown, explore new ministries, and put an emphasis on young families. The
total pledged for the third priest and money to alleviate the debt now stands at over $665,000. She
thanked Carl Leafstedt and Suzy Tackett, senior and junior wardens this year, as well as our former
Treasurer, Len Briley. Great things are continuing to happen: Ministry Architects were just here
assessing the nursery and children’s programs; they will be returning in January to look at the youth
programs. Vacation Bible School was moved back to St. Mark’s this summer and was tremendously
successful. The Vestry will begin to discuss the same sex marriage issue at an upcoming retreat.
Dina Aboul Saad has been hired to be in charge of Communications, Stewardship and Planned
Giving, and Bobby Stubbs is our new organ scholar who will be here for two years. This year we
also said our goodbyes to Elaine Enloe and Gail Jackins this year as they moved on to new
opportunities. We will continue to listen to each other and discern as a community where God will
lead us.
Parishioners Martha Steves and Pat Bridwell detailed the process that the Lenten Offerings
Task Force went through to formulate new programming for the season of Lent. They thanked the
committee for all their hard work. Participation sessions will be held in January for the parish to
discuss various options for 2017. The final report will then be given to the clergy and vestry.
Beth thanked Carol for all her hard work this year and also thanked the outgoing Vestry, with a
special thank you to the entire staff. Carl closed by announcing the vestry results.
We are grateful to all 10 members who were nominated this year for vestry. All are leaders in
this community. Those elected include: Paul Allen, Dawna Boudreaux, Joey Oliver, Angela Torres-
Lopez, and Agatha Wade. The remaining nominees will be invited into other leadership
New Associate Rector The Reverend Matt Wise At long last we are delighted to announce that the Reverend Matthew Wise has accepted the call to
join the staff at St. Mark's as the Associate Rector for Outreach, Family Ministry, and Parish
Life. Many of you will remember Matt from when he served in a part-time capacity here before
accepting the call to serve at Texas A&M. He has had a flourishing ministry there with young adults
for the past three years, growing that program in remarkable ways. He is a gifted preacher, teacher,
pastor, and person of prayer. He and his wife Amy are excited about joining our community with
their family, and we are delighted to welcome them. Matt's first Sunday will be January 10th!
Emmet Faulk Emmet Faulk has resigned his position as our business manager. He was offered an incredible job
opportunity that is wonderful for him and his family as the Marketing and Sales Manager-Southwest
Region for Boingo Wireless. He will be responsible for marketing wi-fi and wireless TV series to
military personnel in bases including Fort Sam and others other states. He will continue with us
through the end of November. The good news for us in the parish is that Emmet and Renee will still
be with us as active members of our community. We cannot adequately express our gratitude for
Emmet's many years of service with us at St. Mark's. We wish him well and look forward to seeing
him in the pews on Sundays!
Erin Hughes Erin Hughes is leaving her position as Assistant Youth Director at the end of the year. Her family is
moving to Abilene where her husband has accepted a promotion. Hayden, Maizey, and Erin will
follow after Christmas. Erin is looking forward to being at home with her growing (way too fast)
babies. We will miss Erin’s joy and enthusiasm and wish her well as her family takes on a new
adventure!
You may contribute to purses for Emmet and for Erin; donations should be made to St. Mark’s and may
be sent to Priscilla Briones’ attention.
We will celebrate and say a special goodbye to Emmet and Erin at the
Come, Let Us Adore Him reception on December 20 at 9.00am.
Parish News
The Blessing of the Animals on October 4 brought out cats, dogs, and even a chicken!
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Upcoming Events During the Advent Season
Advent Quiet Day - Saturday, December 5
Join us on December 5, from 10.00am - 2.00pm at The Workshop. As we prepare for all that is to come - the rhythm of a
new liturgical year, the coming of Christ for the love of the world, and the advent of God's presence in our own lives. Step
aside from the daily rhythm and enter into a space of listening. Often, we find this time of short days and early darkness to
be a time easily filled with the call of the urgent. How do we find balance between the quotidian mysteries of each day and
the place where God draws us into kairos time? We will use poetry to lead us through our Advent meditations -- exploring
waiting, expectation, emptying, and hope. If you are planning to attend, please RSVP to stmarks-sa.org.
Advent Lessons and Carols - Sunday, December 6 The St. Cecilia Guild presents Advent Lessons and Carols on Sunday, December 6 at 5.00pm. The St. Mark's Choir is joined
by the Choristers and Youth Choir in a celebration of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Calling all Créches for Advent In preparation for Come Let Us Adore Him: An Advent Celebration, the St. Catherine's Guild is calling for members of the
parish to share their crèches for display in the parish house December 10-20. If you have crèches or nativity scenes that you
would be willing to share with St. Mark's and the downtown community, please submit a picture of your crèche along with
the dimensions to [email protected]. All crèches will be carefully displayed in an appropriate display area in one of
the rooms on the 2nd floor of the parish house (Dean Richardson Room, Library, Jerusalem Chapel). For further
Come Let us Adore Him: An Advent Celebration, December 13-20 During this week in Advent, St. Mark's will be open to all, Monday through Friday from 11.00 am-1.00pm. We will have a
photography exhibit from The Rev. Doug Earle on the 1st floor; our St. Mark's Bookstore will be open, and drinks and
cheese straws will be served for guests. On the 2nd floor of the Parish House, crèches representing a multiplicity of cultures
will be on display. Each day will feature music from 12.15-12.45pm in the church, and docents will be available to give
tours of our historic church and chapel. Take this opportunity to be present to the true meaning of the season. Come by
Kitchen Crew: Saturday, December 19 (Shifts: 9am-11am, 11am-1pm, 1pm-3pm) Preparing everything for over 2000 meals (between St. Mark's and Haven for Hope) takes a lot of hands.
Cleaning up from it does too. Three shifts of volunteers will work behind the scenes in the kitchen on Saturday to
keep the serving line going. Contact Todd Allison at [email protected] to sign up.
Seeking Haven for Hope Volunteers We are seeking volunteers to help serve dinner at Haven for Hope during St. Mark's Christmas to the Streets
event on Saturday, December 19. The time commitment will be approximately 4 hrs, from 3.00pm-7.00pm.
Please feel free to invite your friends and neighbors to get involved and share the joy of the season! To sign up
and for further information, email Karen Snyder at [email protected].
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Youth News
Todd Allison, Youth Director | Erin Hughes, Assistant Youth Director | [email protected]
Summer Mission Experience in Haiti By Evan Tanner
Port-au-Prince, Haiti is a city holding roughly 1,897,859
people. Houses, apartments, and shacks are stacked on each
other to form a huge cement hub. I was given the opportunity
to travel on a mission trip to this city with others from our
diocese, to organize vacation bible school for a orphanage
and to start building their new home outside the city.
Immediately after landing, this third world country had
already taken our full attention to the way of living to which
we are not accustomed. We stare out the window in silence as
we head towards the orphanage, making our way through the
crowded streets
and slums that
was a prevalent
part through out
the city.
For a week I had
the privilege
to work and play
w i t h t h e s e
amazing children
of God. We
t aught them
games and bible
s tor ies . The
children did not
realize but in
return they were
teaching us about
humility and
opening our eyes
to a whole new world.
This trip has given me a new appreciation of my blessings. It
has also impacted me spiritually. I was able to see God's
work in a different country. The smiles on the children's faces
were prime examples of that. However, I was reminded of the
struggles the people of Haiti face when our bus passed by the
mass grave site where thousands of unclaimed souls are
buried, victims of the 2010 earthquake. No matter what, I
knew that it was in God's plan for me to be there. The
experience I shared with the children and my friends has truly
changed me. No matter how hot it got or how many
midnight bucket showers I took, Port-au-Prince, Haiti will
always have a special place with me and within my faith.
WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/SMCYOUTH @SMYGSA #SMYGSA
Farewell from Erin Hughes Assistant Youth Director Erin Hughes will be
moving to Abilene at the end of 2015. Here is a
letter from Erin.
"Sometimes God's plans differ from our own, and He
throws us a curveball. To accept a promotion, my husband,
Sean, will be moving to Abilene in November; and Hayden,
Maizey, and I will follow after Christmas. It is with a heavy
heart that I must leave my position as Assistant Youth
Director, our amazing youth group, and my St. Mark's family.
I am also saying goodbye to my English teaching position at
Krueger School of Applied Technology, and all of my
students and peers there. However, God has opened a door
that will enable me to stay at home with my growing (way too
fast) babies; and for that, I am extremely excited and grateful.
St. Marks has been my church home since the fall of
2011, after Sean and I took a leap of faith and moved across
the country from Upstate New York. Shortly after attending
church for the first time, I began volunteering with the youth
group, and became the Assistant Youth Director in the spring
of 2012. I have been blessed in countless ways during my time
here, and have enjoyed getting to know our youth and many
families along the way. St. Mark's has an incredible group of
young people who have challenged, humbled, and blessed me
throughout my four year tenure. Each one of these youth hold
a special place in my heart. Sean, Hayden, and Maizey were
also all baptized at St. Mark's, and we will always cherish this
beautiful holy place. Thank you for welcoming us, supporting
us, and loving us. We look forward to visiting often."
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Youth Confirmation Class Fall Project The Youth Confirmation Class is "Thinking Globally and Acting Locally".
Please help us as we begin Part 1 of our Confirmation Project. We will be
collecting fleece throw blankets. These blankets along with a bottle of water
will be given to people in need who attend St. Mark's Christmas to the Street
BBQ on Saturday, December 19th. Please look for our collection boxes around
the church to make blanket donations. Thank you for your support of this
ministry project.
Wonderful Wednesdays
Halloween Parade and Cos-
tume Blessing was a big hit!
Families dressed up for Hal-
loween and were led in
games by members of the
youth group.
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Children’s Ministry News
AmandaQuisenberry, Interim Director | Children & Family Ministry | [email protected]
Music News Joseph Causby, PhD | Organist & Choirmaster | [email protected]
Music from St. Mark’s
2015-16 Season All performances are at 5.00pm unless otherwise indicated.
Music from St. Mark’s is always free and is made possible by the
generous support of the members of the St. Cecilia Guild.
December 6: Advent Lessons and Carols
January 6: A service for the Feast of the Epiphany
Wednesday at 6.00pm
February 21: A concert at the University of the Incarnate
Word for the season of Lent (featuring the
Tallis ‘Lamentations of Jeremiah’)
March 6: Choral Evensong with guest conductor
Wilma Jensen
April 24: Fiesta Concert- Benjamin Britten’s ‘Noye’s
Fludde’ featuring the combined choirs of St.
Mark’s with orchestra and guests from
Judson Montessori School and St. Paul’s
Episcopal Montessori School.
May 15: Our own Jacquelyn Matava will present a
solo recital of art songs and arias.
In 2015-2016, once a
month, we will have the
opportunity to grow in
faith through fellowship
with our community at
St. Mark's. Come join in
as we share an evening
of food and fun! Mark
your calendar, and plan
to join us on these dates
beginning at 5.30pm.
(unless otherwise noted).
December 16
January 6
February 3
March 27 (Sunday)
April 20
May 18
Watch for details in
The Messenger!
Children's Ministry invites all children
ages 4-11 to Wonderful Wednesdays
Christmas
Pageant -
RSVP by
December
10 Call ing al l
families with
children ages 3-
12. It's time to
start thinking about the Christmas Pageant! Practice will be
held on Saturday, December 12 from 9.00am - 10.30am.
Children ages 3 through 6 will rehearse from 9.00-9.30am;
ages 7-12 will rehearse from 9.30am-10.30am. The pageant
will take place in Gish Hall on Sunday, December 13 at
9.00am, prior to the combined 10.00am service. Please RSVP