All Saints' Battlement Mesa Holy Eucharist each Sunday
beginning February 5th will be held at a new time of 11 AM
All Saints’ Episcopal Church
2012 Annual Meeting
Vicar’s Report
Submitted by
The Reverend E.J. Rivet
For the past two years, we have been engaged in a Mission Partnership with St. John’s Church in New Castle. This relationship has matured over the years as St. John’s served to strengthen the development of All Saints’ during its infancy in the early ‘90s. The purpose of a Mission Partnership is to provide consistent ordained clergy leadership whose primary responsibility is to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, provide the sacraments, raise up lay leadership, and train lay leaders for licensed ministry. During 2011, I have served as the vicar of the Grand Valley Mission Partnership. Each Tuesday and on Sunday morning, I travel to New Castle to provide for the community’s spiritual needs. As we enter into the final year of our three year agreement to form a Mission Partnership, it will be our duty to determine the next steps for this ministry. The following pages of this report provide data regarding liturgy and spiritual growth opportunities. Each page presents an overview of 2011 for All Saints’ and St. John’s.
The community of Battlement Mesa has been enriched in 2011 through a number of special programs. In January, an Epiphany Dinner was held which celebrated the visitation in Bethlehem by the Magi. A Christian Seder was held during Lent. Our annual Chili and Blue Grass festival was moved into early October. All Saints’ Feast day was celebrated with a worship service and community dinner. In addition, we hosted a number of Saturday morning breakfasts as well as Wednesday Soup Socials following weekday worship. Each of these events served to strengthen the bonds of affection between ourselves and others in our community. Hospitality expresses a part of our mission statement in regards to providing a “caring presence in the community”.
An important component of Worship on Wednesday (WOW) is the time of spiritual formation offered each Wednesday following the Soup Social. During 2011, twenty-nine (29) sessions were offered. These sessions included Anglican Formation programs such as Confirm not Conform and study of the Book of Common Prayer (BCP). Additionally, opportunities were provided for strengthening one’s prayer life. The first book in the Unbinding the Gospel series was used as a Lenten study. In it was a prayer journal which was used by individuals as a form of discipline during Lent. Summer provided an increase in outdoor activity thus WOW was moved to the patio and the All Saints’ labyrinth. Summer sessions were provided in learning how to use the labyrinth as a device for walking meditation and body prayer. Autumn brought us back inside and a continuation of the study on how we pray. The next book in the Unbinding series, Unbinding Your Heart, became the focus for learning additional methods of prayer. The Christian life of All Saints’ members has focused upon worship, study, prayer, and fellowship. We plan to continue this life of faith into, and beyond, 2012.
Finally, the women who make up our chapter of the Daughters of the King have faithfully gathered each month during the year to develop their lives in Christ. They read and discuss a variety of inspirational books. This year, they have invited women from the community to join in their studies. They serve as true models of our mission statement “sharing by word and action” a Christian life.
Grand Valley Mission Partnership:
Developing a partnership for mission
During the last month of 2011, Lou Blanchard and Lada Hardwick gathered together clergy and laity involved in partnerships for mission. The gathering served as a scaled-down version of the small church conference, “Companions in the Wilderness”, held the previous year.
As we discussed the issues, each person was asked to identify the next steps needed to promote the partnership. My first thought was to invert the emphasis between money & mission. I feel a need to involve both congregations in active mission participation. A beginning question might be: What exactly is our mission?
Next, I expressed a need to inform, inform, inform. Communication seems to be an issue. My role may be to become a more active listener while speaking less. A key question is: What do I need to hear/listen for?
In addition, I determined that the process of Appreciative Inquiry (AI) be engaged at the congregational level. AI seeks to have participants respond to the following:
A.) What do we (St. John’s/All Saints’) do well?
B.) What would we like to do more?
C.) What three wishes for the future do we have?
Ultimately, the most productive question of all is: How can our two communities and congregations support each other in ministry and mission?
Perhaps this Annual Meeting may serve as a starting place for answering some of the questions presented above. Let us explore the opportunities presented by God in all of our lives. I’m willing to listen. Shall we begin?
Introducing
The Classical 7 Circuit labyrinth
As a Tool for Prayer |
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All Saints’ offers visitors to our grounds a beautiful tool for prayer and spiritual growth: a labyrinth. A labyrinth is not to be confused with a maze. A maze is a puzzle with many confusing paths. In a labyrinth, there is only one path. We have created a 7 circuit labyrinth, also known as the Cretan Labyrinth, for your use.
It is the assurance that you cannot lose your way that makes the labyrinth a wonderful tool for prayer and self-examination. Labyrinths can be thought of as symbolic forms of pilgrimage; people can walk the path, ascending toward salvation or enlightenment. Many people can not afford to travel to holy sites and lands, so labyrinths and prayer are substituted for such travel. Many newly made labyrinths exist today, in churches and parks. Labyrinths are used by modern mystics to help achieve a contemplative state. Walking among the turnings, one loses track of direction and of the outside world, and thus quiets the mind. It is a path which you walk in the presence of God.2
The labyrinth provides focus for ones prayer as it is walked. The simple path is traveled without need for worry in finding the way out. Here is the real message of the labyrinth, for as we pray, God is always there guiding us to the next place in our lives. There is no need to worry or fear that which comes next, around the corner, or down the road we take, for God is always present for us.
Walk in Peace,
Father EJ
Suggestions for prayer while walking the labyrinth
- At the entrance: Prepare. Perhaps simply greet God or invite the Holy Spirit’s guidance.
- On the inward path: Letting go. Let go of things that impede your prayers. Free yourself from thinking of the obstacles to growth; deliberately lay aside each obstacle in order to open yourself to the Holy Spirit.
- At the center: Rest in God’s presence. Await his voice. Be at peace whether God speaks or not. Let His presence be His gift to you.
- On the outward path: Consider an action God is directing, or a commitment to which God is calling, or a choice God asks of you.
- At the exit: Give thanks for God’s presence and voice in your life. If you have made a commitment or reached a conclusion about your prayer concerns, speak your decision to God and internalize your experience.
- Depart in thanksgiving to serve the Lord.
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