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November 15, 2005Rector appointed to the ECVA board
The Rev. Dr. Charles Flood, will be a member of a board overseeing an exciting new ventures in the arts here in the Diocese of Pennsylvania. The Episcopal Church and Visual Arts (ECVA) has announced that Elizabeth Hoak Doering has been called as the Program Coordinator for its Visio Divina Program. Elizabeth is a sculptor who is currently a Lecturer in the Dept. of Fine Arts at the University of Pennsylvania. She has shown her work internationally and throughout the United States. In 2002 she was the Artist in Residence at the Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral. Her installation, "Initiation," commemorating those in Philadelphia who were born and who died on September 11, 2001, hangs permanently over the baptismal font in the Cathedral.
The Visio Divina program is a three-year pilot project of ECVA, funded by a grant from Trinity Wall Street. It is designed to encourage Episcopal parishes to incorporate the visual arts in parish life and programming. The new Visio Divina program coordinator will also be working with additional parishes that would like to experiment with ways of using the visual arts in various aspects of parish life.
ECVA is a nation-wide community of artists, arts' supporters, art historians and theologians acting in support of our common life in the Episcopal Church. It encourages local artists and visual arts communities, assists churches in integrating the visual arts into their worship space and liturgy, develops forums to explore the theology of visual art, and creates a heightened awareness of the spiritual role of the visual arts in an individual's life and in the life of the church. The ECVA website address is www.ecva.org.
Dr. Flood was trained in college in fine arts and worked at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Art and Architecture in New York. He is the diocesan calligrapher. Next month he will have an exhibit in the Cathedral.
November 15, 2005
Annual Pledging Drive begins for 2006
The dictionary defines Stewardship as "responsibility for taking good care of resources entrusted to us." At birth, we are entrusted with the precious gift of life which we have in our posession until we die. This is a gift and our duty is to define that gift and expand it in how we live our lives.
The church is, of course, not just a building at 19 South Tenth Street in Philadelphia. It is a society of believers which stretches around the world. So, what we have entrusted to us here is a spiritual gift of faith made real in the celebration of Jesus in our lives. Our buildings, staff and programs are all components of this stewardship we have agreed upon which we have being agreed by being here at St. Stephen's.
In recent years, our congregation has been very faithful in increasing what is given here in order to meet rising costs. We have doubled our giving from what it was only five years ago. However, we are a small group and the needs of the parish do not diminish. Costs of heating, building maintenance and other expenses will rise considerably in 2006.
So, it is our duty to prayerfully consider how much we can contribute here in funds and in our support at worship attendance. The community is made possible by each individual participating in prayer and expressing generosity.
November 11, 2005
St. Stephen's Delegates attend Diocesan Convention
The Rector along with David Donaldson, Robert Seabury and Janice Tillman attended the 222nd Meeting of the Diocese of Pennsylvania at the Philadelphia Cathedral on Saturday, November 5th. The theme of the Convention was the embracing of those who are different. Over 700 lay and clergy delegates attended.
There were a number of difficult issues surrounding this meeting, among which was a proposal to give a mandatory assessment payment from the parishes to the Diocesan Program budget. Many felt the 2006 budget itself was too large and unbalanced. The mandatory assessment proposal was defeated by the convention and the budget has been returned to Diocesan Council for further work.
A highlight of this year's meeting was his Eminence Cardinal Justin Rigali, of the Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia, who gave a homily at noon prayers. It was the first time the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese had ever visited a Convention of our Episcopal Diocese.
November 02, 2005
Transition at OCME Chaplaincy Program: Father John Vesey departs for missionary work
Father John Vesey, a Catholic priest from Brooklyn has been saying Mass at the chaplaincy trailer at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in New York for four years. The chaplaincy program is coordinated through St. Stephen's by The Rector and provides support and prayer at the site of the yet unidentified remains from the World Trade Center tragedy on September 11, 2001. Father Vesey was recently accepted as a Maryknoll missionary and this was his last celebration of mass at the morgue. Shown with Father Vesey and Dr. Flood are Frank and Anne Sheridan who have attended the weekly service. Frank Sheridan is a chaplain in the program.
November 02, 2005
Dr. Flood attends 2005 Julia Hollister Awards
The Rector recently attended the Annual Julia Hollister Awards sponsored by the Temple of Understanding. This year the dinner was held at the Rainbow Room in Rockefeller Center. The Temple of Understanding was founded to achieve peaceful coexistence among individuals, communities, and societies through interfaith education. Shown at the table here are members of the staff of the Temple of Understanding, Dr. Ephraim Isaac, a colleague of Dr. Flood's from Princeton University, Melanie Siben, Founder and President of Media for Humanity along with Seminarians from Drew Seminary in New Jersey and Union in New York who are interns in the religious cultural diversity program in Manhattan.
November 02, 2005
Happy Birthday Lukasz!
St. Stephen's celebrated Lukasz Kuleszynski's 17th Birthday in October. Lukasz is our host and liturgical assistant on Sundays. He is shown here with Agnes Glymph, Evelyn O'Rear and Florence Cochran.
