Category Archives: Generosity

Giving of our time and talents to ensure that we can give generously to others.

Reflections from Manny

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I have no problem with the Separation of Church and State. It is, after all, the law of the land. Yet, when we take a closer look at both subject matters, the Church and the State, we can also see how much both have in common. Both are clearly defined and identifiable; both have hierarchical structures; both are laden with laws, restrictions and guidelines and lastly, both are dependent upon the people for their existence and survival. Two subjects that have so much in common could very well work together quite nicely. The law is in place and has been for some time now. But, you know, it has been my experience that on the local level, Church and State do work together, quite often, hand in hand and mutually respectful of one another. Clergy and police department officials meet to solve communal problems and work at keeping our children safe and dare I say it…pray together, too.

The Fourth of July holiday provides me the opportunity to share these thoughts and reflections: our nation was forged through the independent spirit of the colonists, our national forbearers. Their diligence, determination and their thirst for freedom, which incidentally included religious freedom and a significant reason why ships first crossed the Atlantic and away from England and Europe, is what helped mold, form and give birth to what we now call these United States. A line taken from the Constitution reads: “We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect Union…” Is our Union perfect? Hardly. Is the Church perfect? Well, this is not as easy to answer. The human side of Church certainly is flawed as after all, people make mistakes and people ‘run’ the Church. Yet, the Divine nature of Church was, is and always will be perfect, for God is unquestionably perfect in all matters. We have gained, as a nation and a people our independence. We are a nation unto ourselves, umbilically connected to no one but still dependent upon the world-wide community for trade, commerce and our financial stability.

Perhaps I say this because I’m a “church person,” a Christian, passionately in love with Christ and a U.S. citizen who is proud of his Maltese-American heritage, but from where I stand it is clear to me we have always been connected, we, the Church and the State. We coexist and we work mutually, one with the other, while we respect one another and our legally provided separation. What better time, therefore, for us to celebrate not just our freedom as a people but our freedom as Church then this Fourth of July? We certainly have much for which to be grateful. Our country continues to be a great place to live and remains a beacon of hope for so many deprived and oppressed people in other countries. And we are free to worship as we wish, when we wish and as loud or quietly as we choose. What a shame it would be if we did not embrace and savor our precious freedom. My sisters and brothers, let’s make sure we take good advantage of our freedom to worship, with full voice, with our full diversity in glorious color and sound. Blessedly, at St. Nicholas, we have never been bashful about who we are…God’s people and one heck of a freedom-loving family of faith!

Your brother, with love,

Manny

Knead Bread

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Aidan Kavanagh, a liturgical scholar, has been quoted as saying that he never had any trouble believing communion was the Body of Christ; he had trouble believing it was bread! One is not likely to have that issue at St. Nicholas. Our fragrant and fresh communion bread is baked by members of our community. We are seeking more hands to bake the bread for our liturgies. If you are interested, there is a sign-up sheet in Holy Innocents Hall. If you would like to find out more about what is involved, ask any one of our current bread bakers: Anna Stefaniak, Denise Butera, Hal Stratton, Steve Raftery, Katie Black, Donna Tamaski, Jennifer Garcia, Douglas VanHouten, Manny Borg, Sean Khor and Mike Craig.

Our own bishop, Jeffrey Lee, writes in his book, Opening the Prayer Book that “the quality of a liturgical experience has to do with the quality of its fundamental signs. Sacraments effect by signifying. Sacraments make real; they do not make true . . . the bread and the wine of the eucharist do not make the presence of Christ true, they make it real. And if the purpose of sacraments is to make these things real, then the quality of the signs themselves matters very much.”

We knead you! Please consider joining our happy rota. There is a sign-up sheet in Holy Innocents Hall.

Pledges, Time, Treasure… Groceries, Books, DVDs, Kitchenware

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We welcome pledges at any time throughout the year, but we especially encourage those who have not yet submitted a pledge to St. Nicholas for 2011 to do so as soon as possible. You’ll find the pledge form at the church at this link [PDF file: PledgeCard]

In the Episcopal Church, and specifically at St. Nicholas, we pledge to give some of our treasure to St. Nicholas Church. Pledging allows your Bishop’s Committee to accurately budget for programming, staffing, worship, outreach and facilities upkeep each year. But just as importantly, pledging allows each of us to reflect upon the ways in which we choose to share some of what we’ve been given with others. Pledging is a sign of our commitment, not only to St. Nicholas, but to each other as well. When we prayerfully fill out a pledge card, we are saying that we realize the church indeed belongs to us, the people of St. Nicholas, but more importantly that we understand it belongs to everyone. We are sending a message that we wish to be part of helping St. Nicholas continue its tradition of welcoming all.

As much as we’d love to write simply about our mission and ministries, the reality is it takes financial resources to keep our doors open and our lights shining brightly to and for all. Our new building is a blessing, but it requires maintenance. Our instruments – organ, pianos and human voices – assist us in joyful and meaningful worship, but they require tuning and printed music. Our Food Pantry serves countless guests, but the gas and electric bills must be paid so that we have a place in which they may choose their items.

We ask that you prayerfully consider making a pledge to St. Nicholas for 2011. The amount you pledge is not nearly as important as the fact that you choose to pledge as a sign of your commitment to the mission, ministries and realities of St. Nicholas. Click here to get your pledge card and either return it by mail or place it in the offering on Saturday or Sunday.

An additional way to support St Nicholas is to sign up with Dominick’s Grocery Stores to donate a percentage of your purchases to the church if you get one of their Fresh Values cards. This is especially valuable if you purchase healthy non-perishable food items for donations to our Food Pantry on Sundays (or drop off any time the church is open for a meeting).

Yet another way to support St Nicholas is to use the Amazon Search box on each page to purchase books, DVDs, kitchenware, or electronics. This can be especially handy at “St Nicholastide” or Christmas – there are all kinds of things available on Amazon.com that would make great gifts for friends and family. Did you know that there are chocolate candy St Nicholases, and musical snowglobe St Nicholases?

Of course, the most important way to help support St Nicholas and the work that our community does (including the support groups, the little Bulgarian school, and the food pantry volunteers) is simply to be here with us, and to tell a friend.