From the Rector
May—Ascension, Pentecost, and Mary’s Month

My dear parishioners and friends of St. Paul's,

I write this letter to you immediately following certainly the most powerful and spectacular Holy Week I have ever experienced! It was a thrill to have our Presiding Bishop with us, and I must say that he celebrated and preached beautifully throughout the Triduum. Let me tell you that there are not many bishops who could so easily cope with our liturgical ways at such complicated liturgies with as much ease as Bishop Griswold.

I felt that God was glorified in our worship and that once again we were all powerfully renewed in the realities of the saving mystery of Christ's death and resurrection.

I also need to offer a public thank you to those dozens of people who worked so hard behind the scenes and "up front" to provide us with such wonderful liturgies. There is an enormous amount of work that goes on behind the scenes on many levels, and much of it unheralded and unrecognized. To such people we owe a great debt of gratitude, and I would like to acknowledge that here.

Events in May
This month of May also brings important celebrations in our corporate liturgical life. Thursday, May 5, is the Feast of the Ascension. I suppose I say it every year -- and here we go again! -- the Feast of the Ascension is essential to our understanding of the reality of Christ's resurrection. It is the completion -- in a very real sense -- of the Incarnation, as the crucified and risen Lord, perfect God and perfect man, enters the Godhead. In all of eternity, this is the first time that humanity has entered the Godhead, so that "where he is, we might also be, and reign with him in glory."

In addition to the Low Masses that day at 7 AM and noon, our principal celebration of Ascension Day will be at 6:30 PM, with a Procession and Solemn Mass. I am delighted that our old friend Bishop Montgomery will be the celebrant at that Mass. The preacher will be the Rev'd Stephen McWhorter, the rector of St. David's Church in Ashburn, Virginia, and a good friend of St. Paul's. Fr. McWhorter is already known to many of you, and I know you will enjoy hearing him preach once again. Fr. McWhorter has done an extraordinary job in planting and building the large church at St. David's. He will be retiring next January, so I am delighted that he has been able to accept an invitation to come formally to St. Paul's before he disappears into the sunset of retirement!

Saturday, May 7, will be the Annual Meeting of the Parish, and you will receive details of that meeting, including the agenda, along with this Epistle. The meeting itself will begin at 10:30 AM in the dining hall.

On Sunday, May 8, at the 11:15 Solemn Mass we will have an unusual musical treat with a Mozart Mass, the Missa Brevis in D major, K. 194, with orchestra. The Long-Range Plan suggests that from time to time we sing the choral setting of the Creed, and this will be true at that Mass. You can read about this on page 5.

Sunday, May 15, is the Feast of Pentecost, when we commemorate the outpouring of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and are ourselves once more renewed in that same Spirit. The usual Mass schedule will obtain, and we will commission the members of this year's catechumenate at that Mass for their new ministries.

Stewardship and lay ministries
You will be hearing from our stewardship committee about our stewardship of time and talent. The current plan is that we discuss financial stewardship in the fall and that we will look at our stewardship of time and talent on or around the Feast of Pentecost.

With the gifts of the Holy Spirit in mind, I have asked Susan Moore and Chip Heath to make a study of the various lay ministries we have here at St. Paul's. You will remember that last year at the Annual Meeting I published an honor roll of volunteers that included some 600 listings of volunteer ministry positions. At that time, I said that it was these ministries that make this parish work, and that of course is still true. I have asked Susan and Chip to identify the many volunteer ministries that we underta1ke here at St. Paul's. I have asked them to look at precise definitions of those ministries, the ministry goals, and the skills needed -- along with the spiritual gifts.

I also want them create clear job summaries and to indicate the training required. For each position, I would like them to come up with the time commitment that is involved in participating in these ministries and the length of service that is expected if people are to be involved with them. I have also asked them to look at how we better care for those volunteers who are involved in such ministries. I think that this work will be very helpful in our more deliberate approach to the volunteer ministries that are so vital to our functioning as the Body of Christ, and I am grateful to Susan and Chip for their work. Those of you who are already involved in ministries and certainly those in charge of them can expect to hear from Chip and/or Susan.

May travels
I shall be away on a couple of mid-week trips in May. On May 10, I shall be going to Charleston for a few days to attend a North American Regional Meeting of the Trinity Institute for Christianity and Culture. Bishop Michael Marshall, the Rev'd Nadim Nassar, and Canon Bruce Duncan will be coming from England to lead the American consultants in a discussion of our future ministry and presence. This is being hosted by Fr. Donald McPhail at Grace Church in Charleston. On Thursday, May 19, I will be visiting Nashotah House to receive the honorary Doctor of Divinity degree that they have so graciously and generously chosen to give me.

Please also remember that May is traditionally dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary: "May is Mary's month." I draw your attention to our daily devotions at the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham, as well as to the work of the Society of Mary and its monthly meetings here at St. Paul's on the third Saturday of the month.

This comes as always with my gratitude and my love in the risen Christ and in the anticipation of a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

Andrew Sloane+

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Fr. Barnett Elected Rector of St. Paul's, Doylestown

The following is from a letter from Fr. Sloane to the parish, dated April 10, 2005:

It is with mixed emotions of pride and sadness that I write to inform you that our curate, Fr. Edwin Barnett, has been elected rector of St. Paul's Parish in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. St. Paul's is a significant catholic parish in the Diocese of Pennsylvania.

I have been aware of this process since it began many months ago. I have known St. Paul's, Doylestown, over the years and once upon a time thought it would suit me nicely when I was looking to leave a curacy! I have felt that the parish would be a good match for Fr. Barnett and his family, and, it seems, so have their search committee and vestry, who recommended and elected him unanimously and enthusiastically.

Fr. Barnett and Leigh Ann have brought so many gifts to bear on our parish family in the past six years that they will be sorely missed -- not least of all by me, who have rejoiced personally in their friendship, support, loyalty, and love. I shall of course miss Rosalyn and James, both of whom I have known all their lives. I think we can take some comfort in the part we have offered in Fr. Barnett's own growth and formation as a fine priest to take on the challenges of leading a significant parish.

Fr. Barnett's last Sunday with us will be July 17. I shall be writing to you again about a fitting sendoff for the Barnett family.

Please keep the Barnetts, and the people of St. Paul's, Doylestown, in your prayers as they make this important transition. Please keep me in your prayers as I set about finding a suitable priest to join our staff.

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Charles Burks Leaving St. Paul's

The following is from Fr. Sloane's letter to the parish, dated April 10, 2005:

St. Paul's Parish plays an important part in shaping and forming those who work and minister here. This most certainly has been true of our Assistant Music Director, Charles Burks, who has blossomed and flourished in his time with us, most especially in his tenure as Interim Director of Music and his part in the transition from Jeffrey Smith's tenure to Mark Dwyer's.

It is not surprising then that he would be sought by distinguished places and programs looking for a new Music Director. It is with pride that I write to tell you that Charles Burks has accepted a call to become the Music Director at All Saints' Cathedral in Albany, New York -- where he will succeed Mark Dwyer!

Charles has brought his many talents and gifts to bear not only on our music program but also on our parish community. He will be missed, but we wish him Godspeed on his continuing journey of ministry -- which will, I believe, see great things.

Charles will be with us through June 12, when we shall give him a sendoff at a reception following the 6:00 PM Evensong and Benediction -- the last Sunday, too, when our children's choirs will be singing this program year.

Mark Dwyer and I shall obviously be discussing our plans for new assistance in the music department, and much of that work will fall to Mark. I am keen that he gets the help that he needs to run our very demanding program. As we pursue this, please keep us in your prayers, and, of course, Charles, as he prepares for a new ministry.

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Fr. Sloane to Receive Honorary Doctorate from Nashotah House

Along with graduates and other honorees, our rector, Fr. Andrew L. Sloane, will receive a Doctor of Divinity, honoris causa, at Nashotah House on May 19. This honor is in recognition of Fr. Sloane's years of faithful and dedicated service to the Church in parish ministry and his upholding the ideals of catholic priesthood, to which the seminary is dedicated. It is also to thank him for his years of service to the House. Fr. Sloane graduated from Nashotah with a Master of Theological Studies (MTS) degree in 1978.

Fr. Sloane is the third member of our parish to be so honored in recent history by Nashotah House, an Episcopal Seminary in Nashotah, Wisconsin. Last year, Dorothy Spaulding received an honorary doctorate for her years of faithful service in the seminary's library. Before that, Dorothy Mills Parker was likewise honored for her work in church journalism. Surely, it must be a rarity to have three persons from the same parish and in such a short time recognized by Nashotah for their work and witness in, from, and beyond the bounds of their parish!

This honor, while given to Fr. Sloane, brings honor to Nashotah House and to our beloved parish for the faithful commitment and trust he has shown throughout his priesthood. We are indeed fortunate to have such an energetic, faithful, and committed parish priest and leader!

Fr. Sloane joins a host of former rectors who have received honorary or earned doctoral degrees. By viewing the initials after each name on the photographs that line the stairway of Pillsbury House, one is reminded that this has become a parish tradition! Fr. Sloane will take his place in the good company of generations of faithful parish clergy who have served this congregation, the diocese, the Church, and the world. [DBJC]

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May 8 to Feature Mozart and Visiting Preacher

On Sunday, May 8, we will have two treats at St. Paul's. The Rev'd Canon Bruce Duncan, MBE, will be visiting the parish and preaching, and the music for the 11:15 Mass will be by Mozart.

Canon Duncan will preach at both the 9:00 AM and 11:15 AM Masses. Canon Duncan received the honor of Member of the British Empire (MBE) for service to children and young people, an honorary Doctorate of Divinity by the Graduate Theological Foundation, and, more recently, the Cross of St. Augustine, a personal honor from the Archbishop of Canterbury. He retired in 2002 from being Principal of Sarum College, an ecumenical theological education, training, and research center in the close of Salisbury Cathedral. In retirement, he has been Lazenby Chaplain of Exeter University, and he is helping to establish the Trinity Institute for Christianity and Culture.

The music at the 11:15 Mass that day will be Mozart's Missa Brevis in D major (K. 194) for chorus, soli, and orchestra. The combined parish choirs of boys, girls, and adults and soloists will sing this Mass with a period-instrument orchestra led by John Moran and Risa Browder. Our truly Salzburgian forces will present this setting composed in 1774, when Mozart was just 18 years of age. Mozart was then employed by the Archbishop of Salzburg, and the Missa Brevis in D major was designed for liturgical use. The Mass is concise and to the point, but is brimming with youthful elegance.

The Agnus Dei from this Missa Brevis has been described as "one of the composer's most poignant settings." In a switch from our usual practice, the setting of the Credo from the Missa Brevis will also be included.

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Annual Meeting to Be Held May 7

The Annual Meeting of St. Paul's Parish will be held on Saturday, May 7, starting at 10:30 AM. One item of business at the meeting will be the election of four new members of the Vestry to replace Larry Cook, Toni Mac Aulay, David McGaw, and Marcia Stanford, whose terms are expiring.

As of the deadline on April 14, there were nine candidates nominated: Susan Dirstine, Brian Hoyle, Ann Korky, Silvia Maza, Alistair Nevius, Geoff Peckham, David Schnorrenberg, Linda Wilkinson, and Anne Windle.

Nominations may also be made from the floor during the Annual Meeting, but nominees from the floor must meet the eligibility criteria to serve on the Vestry. Intent to nominate from the floor must be conveyed to the Secretary of the Vestry at least 60 minutes before the start of the Annual Meeting.

To open the meeting, boy chorister Eamon Boylan will offer a brief PowerPoint presentation on the Boy Choir at St. Paul's. In photos and narrative, Eamon poignantly describes why the choir is important to him and how it has positively influenced his life. Don't miss it!

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Receiving Visits from the Clergy and

Many thanks to C.B. Wooldridge for the beautiful, artistic, and imaginative bulletin board he created for the notices. It is located in the hallway of Pillsbury House on your right just before the back doors to the parking lot. You will find posted here up-to-date information about members of the parish who are sick or homebound.

They ask for your prayers and would also like to hear from you via a phone call or a visit. Cards are also appreciated, but keep in mind that many of those who are homebound have failing eyesight or are blind and are unable to read your letters or cards. Therefore, telephone calls or visits are encouraged. You will notice that you still see some of these faces in church on Sunday, but their names are included, as they are essentially homebound the other six days of the week.

Those who are homebound get visited twice a month, once by either Fr. Sloane or Fr. Barnett, and once by the , Jean Litwin. In addition, persons in the hospital get visited several times a week. We average about 500 visits per year!

You have to tell us!
If you want a visit when you are admitted to the hospital, you must call either one of the priests or the and make such a request. We have no way of knowing you are sick and in the hospital if you do not tell us. In leaving a message, please state your name clearly, what hospital you are in, your room number, your telephone number, and what services you desire. You may ask for a visit, a blessing, prayers to be said with you, or for the Sacraments of Holy Communion, anointing with oil for healing (Unction), and/or Confession.

When you make a request, your name (first name only) will automatically be put on the intercession list said during the Prayers of the People at each Mass, unless you indicate you do not wish this. Similarly, your name and whereabouts will be posted on the bulletin board for those parishioners who want to keep you in their prayers or who would like to call or make a visit.

Parishioners who are no longer able to get to church may request a visit from a priest and the in their home or nursing home. Visits are made once a month by the priest and usually two weeks later by the . However, you must make this request to the priest or the . We do not visit people who do not ask us to come. The Reserved Sacrament is available on all visits by a priest or the if requested ahead of the visit.

Phone numbers to remember: Fr. Sloane -- 202-337-2020, ext. 12; Fr. Barnett -- 202-337-2020, ext. 11; Jean Litwin, , 703-790-1715. [JL]

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Miss Stephanie Elecia Chesson
and
Mr. Tygh Landon Bailes

Request the honour of your presence

At their marriage
Saturday, the twenty-eighth of May
Two thousand and five

At two o'clock
Saint Paul's Episcopal Church
2430 K Street, Northwest
Washington, District of Columbia

And afterwards at the reception
 

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Plant Sale for Honduras

On Mother's Day weekend -- May 7 and 8 -- St. Paul's Parish will hold a plant sale to benefit our missions in Honduras. We are selling from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM on Saturday, and 7:30 AM to 2:00 PM on Sunday.

The plants have been ordered -- now we need help in selling them. We would like five people for each two-hour shift on Saturday and Sunday, May 7 and 8. Help is also needed for setup Saturday morning and to "put remaining plants to bed" for the night on Saturday afternoon, set up Sunday morning, and the final clean-up on Sunday afternoon. Please sign up on the display near the tract rack.

Also, we have been offered the loan of one wagon to help people transport plants to their cars or nearby apartments; another wagon would also be appreciated. You can note this on the sign-up sheet, too, if you have a wagon we could use.

Calling all teenagers: We could use your help in setting up for the plant sale both Saturday and Sunday mornings, and in cleaning up each afternoon and helping in general with the sale.

Gift baskets to be raffled
From now until May 8, to advertise the plant sale, there will be large baskets of various gift items on display during the coffee hours and again during the plant sale. These baskets will be raffled, so you will be able to win them on Sunday, May 8.

Alice de Michaelis and others have agreed to help with the sale of tickets -- you don't need to be present to win, but be sure to print your name clearly on all of your ticket stubs and include your phone number. Tickets are on sale, at $3 each, or two for $5. Again, all proceeds will go to our mission in Honduras.

Our work in Honduras
Although St. Paul's has had relationships with Honduras before, previous projects, such as helping to build the community of Colonia Episcopal to house homeless victims of 1998's Hurricane Mitch, have been completed. With the Right Rev'd Lloyd Allen, who became Bishop of Honduras three years ago, we are starting brand new projects according to priorities he has set. Our nascent mission in Honduras will involve partnership with a growing Episcopal congregation in the town of Proteccion in the Deanery of Santa Barbara. Proteccion is in a rather remote area in the mountains of the Honduran Department of Santa Barbara. (The Episcopal Church deaneries correspond to the governmental departments.)

Our first project in Proteccion is to help build a new health clinic run by the Episcopal Church to benefit both the health of the community and surrounding area, and also to help the finances of the congregation. They currently have a clinic and a doctor who comes three days a week. However, the building that houses the clinic is not in good condition and is owned by the local school, which needs the property back. The church already owns land for the new clinic and is in the process of raising money to finance the building project.

Besides helping them financially with profits from the plant sale, Lenten mite boxes, which many of the children and several adults used, and donations via our Commission on Mission's gift cards, the perhaps more daunting task will be to help with the actual construction of the clinic. A handful of St. Paul's parishioners, along with at least one member of St. Margaret's, and perhaps some members of other parishes, are scheduled to go to Honduras in late July of this year to help start the construction.

Another important object of this relationship, however, is to build relationships between us and the parishioners of Proteccion. Just getting to know the people by spending time with them will bring rewards to all. Those of us who have traveled and worked in Honduras before have learned that although we go there wanting to give something of our abundance to these people with very little money and possessions, we learn time and again that the Hondurans are very rich in their faith and love, and give very much to us, enriching our lives in what we learn from them. [JAS]

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Feast Days in May

St. Philip and St. James (transferred)
Monday, May 2
6:45 AM Morning Prayer
7 AM Low Mass
Noon Low Mass
5:30 PM Devotions at the Walsingham Shrine
5:45 PM Evening Prayer
6 PM Low Mass

Ascension Day
Thursday, May 5
6:45 AM Morning Prayer
7 AM Low Mass
Noon Low Mass
5:30 PM Devotions at the Walsingham Shrine
5:45 PM Evening Prayer
6:30 PM Procession and Solemn Pontifical Mass
The Rt. Rev'd James W. Montgomery, celebrant
The Rev'd Stephen McWhorter, preacher

Pentecost
Sunday, May 15
7:45 AM Low Mass
9 AM Procession and Sung Mass with the Rite of Commissioning the Catechumens
11:15 AM Procession and Solemn Mass
6 PM Solemn Evensong and Benediction

Trinity Sunday
Sunday, May 22
7:45 AM Low Mass
9:00 AM Sung Mass and Solemn Te Deum
11:15 AM Solemn Mass and Solemn Te Deum
6 PM Solemn Evensong and Benediction

The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Tuesday, May 31
6:45 AM Morning Prayer
7 AM Low Mass
Noon Low Mass
5:30 PM Devotions at the Walsingham Shrine
5:45 PM Evening Prayer
6 PM Low Mass

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Mission Calendar

Hunger/Homeless
Grate Patrol every weekend
Preparation Friday afternoons 3-5 PM
Delivery Saturday and Sunday mornings

Red Sea dinner Tuesdays at 6:30

Salvation Army dinner preparation First Friday of each month, 5-7 PM

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Birthdays in May

1 Merlyn Boakai; Helene Beckwith; Laura Hanson
2 Larry Cook; Karen Guishard
3 Andrew de Michaelis; Joel Burrows
7 Edwin "Ted" Pewett, Jr.; Janet Wamsley; John Schnorrenberg
9 Margaret Taylor
10 Harold Carrow, III; James Spaulding
11 Serge Simpson; Molly Minnig
12 Virginia Fitzpatrick; Elizabeth Henderson; Sean Byrd
13 Gloria Sellers
14 Barry Johnson
15 Charlotte Latham
16 Andrew Boran; Ron Grant; Bruce Hardy
17 Caroline Fitzpatrick; Ned Sieverts
19 Sophia Haughton; Charles Burks
22 Cornelius Efird
23 Lowell Miller
24 Cornell Cornish
25 Arnitta Coley; Rebecca Radley
26 Robert Bear
27 Reginald Wolfe; Darya Viles; Arianna Viles; Kyan Viles
28 Laurel Radley; Polly Peckham; Nan Burrows; Gwyneth Dickey
30 Michael Cutshaw; Michael Schutte; Marie Louise Walter

If you have a May birthday that was not included, or if there are any mistakes, please contact the parish office. [MW]

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Parish Statistics

Transfer In: Penelope Sutherland Everman from St. George's, Arlington, Virginia
Death: Inaita Lindsay (March 18, 2005)
Baptisms: Christian Caspian Haughton; Caroline Stafford Fitzpatrick; Michelle Hope Freeland (March 26, 2005)
Confirmations: Sharon Boyl; Sally Bogacz; Jeffrey Coulter; Cassandra Metzger; Susie Perry; Matthew Whalen; Charles Zukaib, III; Carol Berger; Patricia Blumenthal; Cyrus Robl; Geoffrey Suiter; Robert Bear (March 26, 2005)
Received: Mary Johnson; Ann Korky; Brian Nahodil; John O'Dowd (March 26, 2005)

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The Epistle
A monthly publication of St. Paul's Parish
K Street -- Washington, D.C.

Editors Alistair Nevius
Assistant Editor Allison Freeman
Desktop Publisher John Walker
Designer David McGaw
Contributors David B.J. Chase, Jeffrey Coulter, Mark Dwyer, Bruce Lawrence, Jean Litwin, Andrew Sloane+, Jo Stelzig, Melva Willis

Submissions Invited
We welcome the submission of articles, comments, and suggestions. Manuscripts and correspondence can be dropped off at the church office or e-mailed to the editors at nevius@erols.com. Electronic manuscripts are preferred. Articles accepted for the Epistle are subject to editorial revision.

SAINT PAUL'S PARISH Washington, DC 20037-1797
phone 202-337-2020
fax 202-337-7418
e-mail info@StPauls-Kst.com
Web www.StPauls-Kst.com

Parish Staff
The Rev'd Andrew Sloane, Rector
The Rev'd Edwin Barnett, Curate
Mark Dwyer, Music Director
Charles Burks, Assistant Music Director
Melva Willis, Parish Administrator
Frederick Murdock, III, Maintenance Manager

The Vestry
The Rev'd Andrew Sloane, Rector
David B. J. Chase, Senior Warden
Philip Schlatter, Junior Warden
Ellen Purvance, Secretary
Polly Peckham, Treasurer
Larry Cook, Antoinette C. Mac Aulay, David McGaw, Marcia Stanford; Jeremiah de Michaelis, Debra Loucks; Kenwin Benn, Rhoda Geasland, Matthew S. Leddicote, Lynne V. Walker

Our Mission
St. Paul's Parish seeks to restore all people to God and to each other, through Sacramental Worship and Christlike lives.

Deadline for next issue

Monday, May 9

© 2005 St. Paul’s Parish, K Street