Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Dear ones, as you might know, the State of Oregon has issued very clear guidelines on reopening parts of our economy and trying to ease some of our social distancing restrictions.

For the record, the Diocese of Oregon will follow recommendations from the Governor’s Office and the Oregon Health Authority when it comes to reopening church or scheduling in-person gatherings of any kind.

The state has created three phases to gradually ease restrictions. Each phase will be implemented on a county-by-county basis, and each county will have to apply for entry into each phase, dependent on clear benchmarks linked to the number of infections and community testing. Visit shorturl.at/bnuAN to find the full report.

As I write, Benton County is not even in Phase I, so reopening any kind of church gathering is out of the question at the moment. Phase II tentatively allows for gatherings of up to 25, but as the state guidelines make clear, this is all subject to change. So, at this point it’s anyone’s guess as to when we might be able to gather as church in any kind of normal way.

That said, your Vestry and I are thinking about ways in which partial reopening might be possible, and the steps we will need to take along that journey. As it seems clear that this situation is going to be for the long term, we are also thinking about ways in which we can add capacity to what we’re already doing to help us all keep a sense of community and connection. Some ideas under consideration are online classes and workshops, mailing birthday cards, adding birthday and anniversary blessings to our pre-recorded worship services, and introducing other virtual gatherings. If you have ideas, please let me know!

We do have some good news. Last month, Good Sam was awarded a loan of just over $53,000 through the Federal Payroll Protection Plan. As you might remember, the Vestry made the commitment from the very beginning of this shutdown that we would keep all of our paid staff on payroll if at all possible. We stand by this commitment. The PPP loan represents about a month and a half of salary and benefits expenses, so it’s a huge boost. The loan is forgiven as long as we can prove that at least 75% of the money was spent on payroll expenses. We owe a great debt of thanks to our volunteer church treasurer John Shea and our financial manager Robin Powel for doing the work to apply for this loan, as well as committing to keep track of how the money is spent over the next eight weeks.

Speaking of money, I am grateful and really heartened by the way in which everyone has remained so faithful and generous in their pledges and financial support of our church. It’s incredible. Thank you!

Please know that I am holding you in my prayers. I am just a phone call away: 541-207-5826. Stay well!

Love and prayers.

Sunday, April 12, 2020

Dear ones, a blessed, glorious, joyful and happy Easter to you! I say that most sincerely, because it always is — blessed, glorious, joyful and happy. Even now.

Christ is risen from the dead. Death no longer has power over us. Love has conquered suffering and violence, pain and despair. Our faith and our hope is grounded, not in some make-believe story that the disciples made up to help them all feel better; neither was it some mass hallucination brought about by uncontrollable grief. Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene and her companion, Mary. Then to Peter and John. Then to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Then to the other eight. Then to Thomas a week later. Jesus met with them in the house in Jerusalem, on the lake shore in Galilee and finally, as St. Paul tells us, to more than 500 people at the same time, some of whom were still alive in Paul’s time (I Corinthians 15:6).

This is real. The Resurrection is real. Our faith is real. God’s love is real. More real than the things we believe are real. More real than anything else.

So … a blessed, glorious, joyful and happy Easter to you, as well as to those whom you love and pray for!

Love and prayers,
Simon+

Friday, April 10, 2020

Dear ones, blessings this Good Friday. Today we stand at the foot of the cross. With us are Jesus’ mother, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and John, the other women who supported Jesus’ ministry and John, the Beloved Disciple.

They must have been wondering, “Is this what it has all led up to?” Jesus’s ministry. His words. The healings. All of the hope, all of the promise of a new world. And yet here they find themselves weeping, looking at their beloved Jesus, nailed to a cross. Hanging, helpless. Is this it?

Many of us have been having similar thoughts these last four weeks. This is day 28 since we closed the church building. All of our progress as a species, all of science, technology, the Internet, medicine, culture. Our democracy, our physical and financial well-being. All of our efforts, all of our striving, our hard work, sacrifices, dreams. Has it all come to this? Is this it?

I am not an expert, but I know from personal experience that a big part of facing grief, trauma, disappointment, confusion, and hopelessness is to acknowledge these feelings. Today it’s okay to be scared to go to the grocery store. It’s fine to be worried when someone comes too close right now. It’s permissible to be anxious about your finances, your relationships, your well-being, even your sanity.

Acknowledging our feelings, whatever they may be, whatever the source, is part of standing at the foot of the cross. Standing at the cross is having the courage to be honest, sometimes brutally so, about where we find ourselves and how we feel. We have to be willing to stand at the cross, sometimes for hours or days or weeks or longer, without an agenda, without expectations, and simply lay who we are — the good, the bad, even the things we prefer to forget — to lay all of those things at the foot of the cross, at Jesus’s feet. And wait.

—Simon+

Wednesday, April 7, 2020

Dear ones, blessings during this sacred time of Holy Week and Easter. We are planning a series of worship services for this special season.

I realize that this will be the strangest Holy Week and Easter that any of us have experienced. It will not be the same. But as I said a few weeks ago, the church buildings might be closed, but the Church — you and me and millions just like us all over the world – we are still very much open for business! Being Christ’s Body in the world, witnessing to the Love of God in our time and place, celebrating the Resurrection, always!

Know that we will all be close in prayer and in the Love of God.

—Simon+

Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Well, it seems that we are in for a much longer period of social isolation than we were hoping it would be, at least until the end of April perhaps even longer.

If you are like me, the first couple of weeks since this all began were crazy-busy. The news was changing day by day, even hour by hour. One day we would make a plan on to how to move forward, only to have to redo it the next. We went through this process at least three times. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. My difficulties are nothing in comparison to those who are actually ill, people who have died, or those working on the frontlines every hour of the day and night. What I am finding this week, though, is that after all of the chaos and uncertainty, I am beginning to have a clearer sense of how to live in this new normal. I hope this is the case for you.

That said, the new normal is far from normal. I am lucky in that I have a backyard and live on a quiet suburban street. I can get some fresh air and stretch my legs pretty much anytime I want. There are many, including some of you, who are literally locked inside apartments or retirement homes. I truly feel for you. Again, I am very fortunate that I can stay home and work. True, I am mightily sick of wrestling my computer, but I can work in a safe and familiar environment. I have enormous respect and empathy for those who are still going to work or who have to go to work – people working in our grocery stores, picking up the garbage, working in care facilities, police, fire and EMT staff as well as doctors, nurses, other medical providers, and many, many more. And quite a few are working with little or minimal protection. While I am deeply grateful that they are keeping essential services going, I can’t imagine what they are going through each and every day!

So, I live day by day with a deep sense of gratitude and fear, wonder and anxiety. This is not easy. None of this is easy, for any of us. And it’s raining. Again! But I don’t want to have a summer drought, either. Perhaps that’s a metaphor, too.

I miss you. I miss each and every one of you. As I have recorded services for the last two Sundays, I have imagined your beautiful faces in each row of pews, both in the chapel as well as the main sanctuary. That has been a comfort, but has also brought me close to tears. What we do and who we are as a church, as community, has to do with connection, with closeness, with being together. What we are living through now is so antithetical to all of that. And yet I am reminded, I forget who said this first. I am reminded that keeping our social and physical distance is, right now, the greatest act of love and compassion that we can show to friends, neighbors, loved ones and strangers. If you or I can keep one person safe and virus free it will have all been worth it.

—Simon+

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Please enjoy the poem “Pandemic” by Lynn Ungar.

In other news, we have received several inquiries regarding pledges. While our gatherings are on hold, Robin Powel will be picking up our mail from the Post Office. Please consider mailing your donation to the church during this time. If you want to save a stamp, or if you do not have one, Bill Pay is an alternative to check-writing and is, I believe, free through all banks.

If you would like this option and need assistance with set-up, please contact Robin at 541-760-0098.

She will be happy to help you. Thank you!

Love and prayers,
Simon+

Wednesday, March 18, 2020

Dear ones, given all that we are experiencing at the moment it is difficult for me to know what to say. Our lives have literally been upended these last few days, with no “normal” in sight.

And all because of a tiny, invisible virus. As you know, per the Governor’s orders, the church will have to remain closed until April 14th. The church leadership will review whether to reopen the church as planned after that date, but right now I have no idea whether we will in fact be able to do that or not. As you can appreciate, it all depends on how this situation evolves over the next few weeks.

In the meantime, we are actively thinking of ways in which some form of prayer/liturgy can be livestreamed or recorded so that those with access to a computer or smartphone can participate in worship, at least remotely. In terms of Holy Week and Easter — we are planning ways to offer some form of worship online.

I know that I have said this before, but it bears repeating. We are and will always remain the Church, the Body of Christ in the world, whether or not we are able to gather physically. We are united through our shared faith, our love for each other and our love for God. We are one through God’s love for each and every one of us, and the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in our lives and the world around us.

—Simon+