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Newsletter Date | Volume 1, Issue 1

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The Light on the Hill

March 2015

, 2011 From the Rector

Dear Friends in Christ,

Lent is where church tradition encourages us to prayerfully reflect on our lives. Implicit in looking at our lives, is to

then consider any number of questions. When we consider these “life questions”, total honesty is vital. Simply put, do

we lie to ourselves or are we willing to truthfully and with God’s assistance, examine our life choices?

I suggest that the only question we really need ask is: “Am I living life as God wants me to live it?” As we prayerfully

and seriously wrestle with this question, we will gain clearer views of our motivations and priorities. Do we like what

we see? Are we are happy or satisfied? Are we living lives following paths suggested by God? What do our actions say

about us?

Other questions that might flow from the primary question might be, “Am I satisfied with my personal relationships?”

or “Is this where I want to be in life at this age and with these obligations?” “Is this how I want to spend the next 5

years?” The questions are endless. Try to answer fewer questions, but do so fully, reflectively and with honesty.

For me, I reluctantly came to this answer: “My greatest peace and sense of fulfillment comes, when I am trying to

follow God’s path or plan for me.” I say reluctantly, because I wanted to do what I believed best. However, in truth, my

best was not enough. My best delivered a life where I was heartsick; I felt empty and aimless.

My life today is far from perfect. Looking back I see that my life’s turning point was when I seriously “Reflected upon

what God might have me do in my life”. I am not sure that this part of my journey began in Lent, but it could have.

Today, some variation of that question is in my thoughts and prayers, year around.

I want to leave you with this question: “Is your life giving you satisfaction and joy?” If not as you hoped or want, then I

suggest a follow up question: “What does God want me to do to become ______________”

May you recognize God’s peace and joy,

Tom+

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Season of Lent

Coffee Hour Discussions during Lent Sundays, February 22 – March 29

Please join Fr. Tom to discuss the previous week’s daily meditations of the Brothers of

the Society of Saint John the Evangelist www.SSJE.org/time.

Lenten Series ‘Exploration of the Gospels’ Wed. March 4, 11, 18, & 25th 7:00pm

Deacon John Roper will be leading an exploration of the Gospels this Lenten season. He

will be discussing how each Gospel gives a different portrait of Jesus. This will include the

background of the author, how they were written and who they were written for. How the

Roman, Greek and Jewish cultures and languages influenced the writings. Participates will

have a chance to reflect on the scriptures. Please bring a Bible and join him in the Large Classroom. Fr. Tom

urges everyone to take part – you will be amazed! Go and see why Fr. Tom says – “you will be amazed!”

St. John’s, Wichita, Lenten Luncheon & Speaker Series Feb. 25-March 25 Weds, Noon

Lunch will be available in the library following the service. A $5 donation is requested.

Speakers will continue an informal conversation with a question-and-answer time after

lunch. 402 N. Topeka, Wichita. www.stjohnswichita.org

Speakers for the 44th Annual Lenten Luncheon Series:

February 25 The Reverend Dr. Mary J. Korte, Rector, St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, Wichita, Kansas

March 4 The Reverend Andrew O’Connor, Rector, Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, Wichita, Kansas

March 11 The Reverend C. Earl Mahan, Rector, St. John’s Episcopal Church, Wichita, Kansas

March 18 The Reverend Dawn Frankfurt, Rector, St. James’ Episcopal Church, Wichita, Kansas

March 25 The Very Reverend Tom Wilson, Rector, St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, Derby, Kansas

Lenten Retreat with Sister Mary Kevin and Father Tom Wilson, Saturday,

March 7, 9:30am-4pm at Sisters Adorers Blood of Christ 1165 Southwest

Blvd, Wichita. (Meet at the church at 9:00am if you would like to car pool)

We live life going forward; an understanding of God's presence and actions in our

lives may be more clearly recognized through looking back at our lives. This

Lenten retreat is an opportunity to recognize and reflect upon God's presence and action in our lives; as

well as reflection upon how we will respond to God, going forward. Cost is $5 to cover lunch.

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Holy Week and Easter

Palm Sunday Service Sunday, March 29, 10:30am

The last Sunday in Lent and the day on which Holy Week begins. The day commemorates Jesus’

triumphant procession into Jerusalem and is marked by a blessing of palms and a procession,

usually with the signing of the hymn “All gory, laud and honor to thee, Redeemer King’. The

day is also marked by the reading of the passion Gospel from Matthew, Mark or Luke. Please

Easter Day Service Sunday April 5, 10:30am

Easter is the day the church celebrates the feast of Christ’s resurrection, and is the oldest and

greatest feast in the church year and the central day on the liturgical calendar. Every Sunday is a

“little Easter,” since every Sunday is a Feast of the Resurrection. It is the culmination of Holy

Week, with its special services recalling the last week of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Easter Day begins the Easter

season, which runs for fifty days until the Feast of Pentecost. We will have 1 service this year to allow

everyone the opportunity to watch the egg hunt.

Good Friday April 3, Noon service with Stations of the Cross and 7:00pm service

Friday before Easter, on which we remember the crucifixion of Jesus. No Eucharist is

celebrated, Communion may be part of the Good Friday liturgy, but it is administered from

the reserved sacrament. Stations of the Cross are a series of fourteen pictures depicting

incidents in the narrative of Christ’s passion, from Pilate’s house to the entombment. They

are used in conjunction with the devotional service The Way of the Cross in which the

stations are visited in turn, with a pause for a reading, a versicle and response, a collect, and meditation.

Maundy Thursday Service with Stripping of the Altar, April 5, 7:00pm followed by

Gethsemane Watch. Please sign up for an hour during this vigil.

Service in which the church remembers Christ’s institution of the Eucharist. Maundy means

“new commandment”; the Gospel associated with this day is of Jesus’ saying to his

disciples, “I give you a new commandment: Love one another as I have loved you.” The

Stripping of the Altar leaves the altar bare, and crosses are covered. It reminds us that the Eucharist is not

celebrated until the Easter Vigil; in remembrance of our Lord’s passion, the church’s observance of the sign of

his resurrections is suspended. The Gethsemane Watch is a prayer vigil representing the time Jesus spent in

the garden of Gethsemane the night before he was to be crucified. Participants sign up to spend an hour in

prayer. “Could you not keep awake one hour?” were the words of Jesus in reproach to his followers in the first

Gethsemane.

join our joyous procession. Attending Holy Week services will help us to experience the impact of Easter Day.

Tenebrae Service Wednesday, April 4, 7:00pm

One of the special services associated with Holy Week, Tenebrae (Latin word "darkness" or

"shadows") on Wednesday night involves the gradual darkening of the church by progressive

extinguishing of candles while Plasms and biblical texts are being read. The building is finally in

total darkness when a loud noise (recalling the earthquake during Christ’s passion) is made and

the last candle is brought back, lighted. The congregation leaves by its light.

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Shrove Tuesday Pancake Feed

A little over $220 was

raised. The funds will be

split between our Boy

Scout Troop 247 and in

support of parish outreach

programs in the immediate

Derby area.

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Scout Sunday, February 8th

Remember in Prayer Those Serving Our Country, Especially those below

Scott Oehmke’s nephew

Daniel Friend of Ropers

Ryan Son of Fr. Michael Bernard

Collin Former Parishioner

Johnathan Carol and Robbin Pagels' son

Chris Carol and Robbin Pagels' son

Joann Carol and Robbin Pagels' daughter in law

Scott Gary & Debbie Oehmke's son in law

KC Doyn Wiler's nephew

Stevie Suzy Roper’s cousin’s son

Nathan John Nicholas' friend

Brad Friend of Don & Sarah Morrow

Diane Parishioner

Mark Jenniffer Dorsett & Martha Mason’s son

Dale Dabney, Scout Master,

presented a slideshow, during

coffee hour, of all the activities

our parish sponsored Boy

Scout Troop 247 has been

involved in the last year.

Coffee Hosts needed

Do you feel called to the ministry of Hospitality to be a

Coffee Host? It’s not hard. Do as little or as much as you

like. Fruit and cheese or donuts are fine, the goal is to

provide a snack with our coffee and conversation.

Please call the church office 788-2595 or Fr. Tom 648-

4870.

MARCH BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES

BIRTHDAYS

1 Logan Baker

7 Diane Mitchell

8 Glenda Nicholas

9 Joan Foster

10 Don Morrow

10 Katie Dougherty

14 Maureen Sparks

16 Brennan Crippen

19 Dylan Jorns

20 Baine Miller

21 Debbie Pfingsten

25 Kathy Rucker

30 Rush Miller

ANNIVERSARIES

16 John & Suzy Roper

Volunteer Needed

Volunteer to help with ministry in

support of victims of domestic

violence needed. If interested

please contact Fr. Tom.

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Youth News >>Happening #89 is March 6-8 at St. Peter’s in Pittsburg. Happening is a spiritual retreat where high school students learn more about their personal relationship with Jesus. It is led by youth for youth. See: http://edokyouth.wordpress.com/happening/ for more information. >>Episcopal summer MegaCamp registration is now open. Camp is May 31 – June 6 at Camp Wood YMCA and is open to those currently in grades 3-12, and their friends. The volunteer Episcopal staff provides solid Christian education, featuring worship, music, small group discussions and prayer. Camp Wood features a variety of activities such as horseback riding, archery, climbing tower, canoeing, kayaking, swimming, water slide, mud slide, arts and crafts, and sports. The cost is $420 for the week, and the deadline to register is May 8. Registration forms and more information are online at http://edokyouth.wordpress.com/camp/

Lent Madness. The annual bracket-based opportunity to learn about (and vote for) modern and contemporary Christian saints takes on a local feel this year with the inclusion of Bishop Jackson Kemper in the field of 32. Bishop Kemper not only was the bishop who presided at the convention that created the Diocese of Kansas is 1859, he is the namesake for the Bishop Kemper School for Ministry. You can sign up for daily emails to learn more about the saints that face off in head-to-head matches (all to help people learn more), as well as purchase wall brackets to keep track of the event’s progress or smaller pocket versions for personal use. You even can buy coffee mugs with faces of past winners. Read more on their website: http://www.lentmadness.org/

Daughters of the King plan Spring Assembly Members of the Order of the Daughters of the King across the diocese are invited to attend the Spring Assembly on Saturday, April 18 at St. Paul’s, 1300 N. 18th Street in Kansas City, Kan. The event will include lunch and a program. Tentative times are 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The cost is $15 per person. Checks should be made payable to “Daughters of the King” and mailed to Lisa Adams, 14356 W. 81st Pl., Lenexa, KS 666215. Please mark “Spring Assembly” in the memo line. The deadline for early bird registration is April 1.

Diocesan News

Have You Ever Wondered…

Cruet: The vessel in which wine or water is brought to the altar; usually

made of silver, glass, or pottery, with a stopper. .

St. Andrew’s uses different Cruets, depending upon the church season. Blue

pottery cruets, given in memory of Lawrence Turner, are used during Advent.

The white pottery cruets are used during Advent and Lent. The white pottery

cruets were made and donated by Ruth Weber. The glass cruets are used

during Pentecost and the season after Pentecost. The crystal cruet is used during church feast days such as Easter.

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Mark Your Calendars

The Youth are providing dinner for the Overflow Shelter March 3, 5:00pm.

Parishioners are being asked to provide home baked cookies. They are still

collecting small tissue packets and socks to be distributed at St. John’s, Wichita

Sandwich Saturday Ministry.

Campus Ministry Dinner at St. Stephen’s. St. Andrew’s is providing the meal

March 10th for the Episcopal Campus Ministry of Wichita gathering 6-7pm at St.

Stephen’s. Please contact Jenniffer Dorsett 655-8558 if you are able to help. Fr.

Tom will be presenting the program

Vestry Meeting Sunday March 22nd, after the service.

Outreach Committee meeting Tuesday, March 24, 12:30pm in the classroom.

Come help plan what St. Andrew’s will be doing in the community. If you have

any suggestions or comments, but can’t attend the meeting please contact

Margaret Kinkead or Bob Gage

Please join the Altar Guild for a Church Clean-up day to get ready for Easter

March 28, 9:00 am.

Everyone is invited to fold Palm Crosses to be handed out on at the Palm

Sunday service. Saturday, March 28, 10:00am.

April 18, Red Cross Blood Drive in St. Andrew’s Guild Hall and Entrance. The

Youth Group Outreach will be manning the Canteen.

The Derby Police Dept. will be conducting an internet/social

media safety class on March 26th at First Presbyterian Church,

324 N. Baltimore, beginning at 6:30 p.m. The primary focus of

this class will be to enhance the awareness of parents

regarding common sense things they can do to keep their

children safe while using the internet or social media. The

class will be great for parents, grandparents, youth ministers,

teens or anyone simply wanting to know more.

Volunteer Needed

A volunteer is needed for the

ministry of watering our parish

plants once a week. We have plants in

3 locations, entryway/Narthex, Guild

Hall and the Sanctuary. Water, and

pitchers/buckers provided. Call the

church office 788-2595 or Fr. Tom

648-4870

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Holy Days (Holy Women, Holy Men, Celebrating the Saints)

http://holywomenholymen.wordpress.com/

March 19 – Saint Joseph

In the face of circumstances that distressed even a man of such tenderness and obedience to God as Joseph, he

accepted the vocation of protecting Mary and being a father to Jesus. He is honored in Christian tradition for the

nurturing care and protection he provided for the infant Jesus and his mother in taking them to Egypt to escape

Herod’s slaughter of the innocents, and in rearing him as a faithful Jew at Nazareth. The Gospel according to

Matthew pictures Joseph as a man of deep devotion, open to mystical experiences, and as a man of compassion,

who accepted his God-given responsibility with gentleness and humility. Joseph was a pious Jew, a descendant of

David, and a carpenter by trade. As Joseph the Carpenter, he is considered the patron saint of the working man,

one who not only worked with his hands, but taught his trade to Jesus. The little that is told of him is a testimony

to the trust in God which values simple everyday duties, and gives an example of a loving husband and father.

March 25 – The Annunciation of our Lord Jesus Christ to the Blessed Virgin Mary

Today’s feast commemorates how God made known to a young Jewish woman that she was to be the mother of

his Son, and how Mary accepted her vocation with perfect conformity of will. It has been said, “God made us

without us, and redeemed us without us, but cannot save us without us.” Mary’s assent to Gabriel’s message

opened the way for God to accomplish the salvation of the world. It is for this reason that all generations are to

call her “blessed.” The Annunciation has been a major theme in Christian art, in both East and West. Innumerable

sermons and poems have been composed about it. The term coined by Cyril of Alexandria for the Blessed Virgin,

Theotokos (“the God-bearer”), was affirmed by the General Council of Ephesus in 431. Mary’s self-offering in

response to God’s call has been compared to that of Abraham, the father of believers. Just as Abraham was called

to be the father of the chosen people, and accepted his call, so Mary was called to be the mother of the faithful, the

new Israel. She is God’s human agent in the mystery of the Incarnation. Her response to the angel, “Let it be to

me according to your word,” is identical with the faith expressed in the prayer that Jesus taught, “Your will be

done on earth as in heaven.”

Please Pray for those on the St. Andrew’s Prayer chain

Sherry, parishioner, for healing

Sammi, Selina’s friend, for healing

and comfort

Bob, Gage & Blouin, for healing

Cindy, Friend of Spark’s &

Daugherty, for strength, healing

and guidance

Don, Friend of Miller’s & Don

Morrow’s father, for healing and

strength

Harry, Friend of Miller’s, for

healing and strength

Herb & Earline, Martha Mason’s

uncle and aunt, for healing

Joe & Deanna, friend of

Margaret Kinkead, for strength

Frank, Annette’s father, for

healing & strength

Shannon, Fr. Mahan, & people

of St. John’s, for healing &

strength

Sue, Marge Rogers’ sister, for

healing

Luanne, Margi Young’s sister, for

comfort & strength

Theresa, Martha Mason’s co-

worker’s wife, for healing

Jean, Friend of Jenniffer Dorsett,

for strength & comfort

Names remain on the parish prayer

list for thirty days unless requested

for a longer period. All are

encouraged to extend a person's

request for prayers as long as is felt

necessary.

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St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church

1062 Chet Smith Ave

Derby, Kansas 67037

316.788.2595

The Very Rev. Tom Wilson, Rector

rector@standrewsderby.org

The Rev. John Roper, Deacon

Mr. Don Morrow, Sr. Warden

Ms. Selina Touhey, Jr. Warden

Mr. Jack Birch, Sexton

Vestry Members:

Mr. Rick Brown

Ms. Rebecca Dougherty

Mrs. Margaret Kinkead

Mrs. Martha Mason

Mr. Mark McCreight

Send newsletter entries or suggestions by the 20th of the month to Jenniffer Dorsett gigi12273@gmail.com and Fr. Tom