ECW Women Articles-Poems-Announcements Archives - Page 13 of 23

The Knitting Shoppe

I finger the yarn,
Checking its strength and quality,
Comparing the weights and colors.
The shop keeper watches me,
Unsure and unconvinced.
I am a foreign woman in a foreign land.
Possessing only the barest words of her language.

I pick up a particularly beautiful skein.
It is soft and obviously hand-dyed.
And sighing the sigh of true appreciation
I meet her eye and breathe,
“Sehr shon”. (There are umlauts over the ‘o’, ..)
“Very lovely.”

She stops,
Then beams,
Proud that the quality
Of the material she loves
Transcends.

We nod in agreement
As women (and knitters) will sometimes do,
With shared understanding
Of the humble importance
Of simple
Useful things
Which can only be created
One stitch at a time.

Shared with permission by Carrie Newcomer

Episcopal Church Women2020-08-18T14:20:58+00:00April 20th, 2020|

What is Heavy Turns to Spirit

All that is hard and heavy turns to spirit.
It cannot help but eventually
Become like a cup of ink
That is poured into the ocean.
I do not doubt that for a time
The ink darkens the water,
Obscures and displaces the light,
Leaching out its tendrils
Staining what it touches.
But eventually,
Finally,
The ink must break down into its smallest elements,
And even the stains become only faint shadows
Barely noticeable to the outer eye.

This does not belittle the awful impact of a cup full of shadow.
It is only to say, that in an ocean of goodness,
In an expanse of health and light,
A cup of dark can only prevail for so long,
Until it is overcome and transformed back into spirit,
Back into its smallest elements,
Received into one body,
To be made whole
And healed.

Used with permission by Carrie Newcomer

Episcopal Church Women2020-04-20T18:16:00+00:00April 20th, 2020|

Collection From ECW Board Meeting October 2015

Four prayers and blessings from Jennifer Kenna

Celtic Invitation
A Blessing
Reading from Soul Weavings
Homily, Sunday October 25, 2015 – NECW Board Eucharist

Celtic Invitation

This is the table not of the church, but of the Lord.
It is made ready for those who love God and those who want to love God more.
So come, you who have much faith and you who have little; you who have been
here often and you who have not been here long; you who have tried to follow
and you who have failed.
Come, because it is the Lord who invites you.
It is his will that those who want him, can meet him here.

Blessings

The Wisdom of God, the Love of God and the Grace of God equip you to be Christ’s hands and heart in this world. And the blessing of God, Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer be upon you and remain with you, and all those you love and pray for, this day and always. Amen.

Reading Soul Weavings

Spirit of love, who moves in creation,
drawing the threads to color and design
life into life, you knit our true salvation:
Come work with us, and weave us into one.

Though we have frayed the fabric of your making,
tearing away all that you intend,
yet to be whole, humanity is aching:
Come work with us, and weave us into one.

Great loom of God, whose history is woven,
You are the frame that hold us to the truth,
Christ is the theme, the pattern you have given:
Come work with us and weave us into one.

Homily, Sunday October 25, 2015 – NECW Board Eucharist

In the name of God, Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier. Amen.

It is probably the most famous scene in the Jack Palance-Billy Crystal mid-life crisis movie “City Slickers.”

Curly: Do you know what the secret of life is? (holds up one finger). THIS!

Mitch: Your FINGER??!!

Curly: One thing, just one thing. You stick to that and the rest don’t mean [nothin!] (my word – not a literal quote)

Mitch: But what IS the “one thing?”

Curly: That’s what you have to find out! ( Taken from “Gnaw on This” commentary. Rev. Mike Kinman, Christ Church Cathedral, St. Louis, MO website, Proper 25B, 2012)

Billy Crystal’s young Mitch is trying to find some meaning in his life, and it is the OLD cowboy, Curly(Palance) who tells him, he just has to answer one question for himself: What is YOUR one thing? What is the one thing that will make all the difference? What is the one thing that means the most? What is the one thing that will make you whole again? What is YOUR one thing?

AND I am going to take it one step further today. As I look around this room I see women who arrived as strangers to each other – well, SOME of us – and now are trying to figure out OUR ONE THING. We are trying to build relationships with each other. We are striving to weave ourselves together so we can best reach and lead and support the women and ALL of this wonderful Episcopal Church in new ways. We are looking for the ONE FOCUS, the ONE THEME that will sum up ALL of our experiences and ideas and hopes and longings – that will guide us in creating a new vision for the future of ECW.

Today we see the blind Bartimeus – sitting by the side of the road, shouting to Jesus, constantly told to STOP. This sightless outcast begging for Jesus’ time and mercy – calling him Son of David – recognizing him as MESSIAH! A BLIND man RECOGNIZES Jesus and names him.

Remember those three times when Jesus told his totally clueless followers that he was the Messiah and what that meant for them? NOBODY got it . . . . oh, except for the BLIND beggar now sitting on the side of the road. Jesus invites that outcast into the inner circle, into the midst of that community. And unlike last week’s gospel – you know, the one where James and John try to cash in on THEIR relationship with Jesus to get him to do whatever he could for THEM – unlike that story, we now see Jesus calling this man living on the edges of society – this Bartimeus – and asking HIM “what do you want ME to do for YOU? What is your one thing – what will make YOU whole – what will make a difference?”

For Bartimeus it is his sight – Jesus’ mercy meant that he could SEE again. And Jesus, without even TOUCHING Bartimeus, points out that his FAITH has made him well – his sight is restored. And then Bartimeus follows Jesus on the way – the only person healed in Mark’s gospel that does that, by the way. Jesus heads for Jerusalem – for his death and resurrection – with Bartimeus by his side.

This story takes place in Jericho – a place that rests in the hearts and minds of the Jewish people as a place where a miracle happened, a place where their faithfulness to God was rewarded – where against all odds that well-fortified city was taken by the Israelites. The writer reminds those first-century followers of Jesus that God can do seemingly impossible things when his people are faithful.

And here WE are in Bean Blossom, IN. And I don’t THINK we can count on any miracles happening – altho’ ya never know I guess. But we can be Bartimeus, as individuals and as a Board – crying out to Jesus, not backing down if and when we are told to stay by the side of the road. I think history has proven that WE don’t do that EASILY! Cooperation and attention to each other and kind listening may well be rewarded by the quiet whisper of the voice Jesus saying “what do you want me to do for you?” It may even be in the whisper of one of our sisters here. IMAGINE THAT!!!!

For Jesus and Bartimeus it’s about something deep down and vital to life – the ability to SEE. It made all the difference to Bartimeus, who kept on until he was right there with Jesus. It was about RELATIONSHIP. And I pray that it will be the same for us over the next three years – first and foremost our relationship with God and Jesus – and finally with each other – bringing our gifts and talents, sharing our memories and our dreams, opening our hearts and minds and eyes to see all the possibilities that lie ahead. We just have to be PERSISTENT, grounding ourselves in prayer, going to God as Bartimeus went to Jesus, and let the faith that brought us to this place lead us and guide us!

SO what DO we hope that God will do for US and ALL of this great church? What does the path to the future look like – what is OUR one thing? It’s time to leave the side of the road, be persistent and walk with Jesus.

Let us pray.

May the Lord bless [us] and keep [us]. May God’s face shine upon [us] and be gracious unto [us].

May God give [us] the grace never to sell ourselves short; grace to risk something big for something good; grace to remember that the world is too dangerous for anything but truth and too small for anything but love.

So may God take [our] minds and think through them; may God take [our] lips and speak through them; may God take [our] hearts and set them on fire. Amen (William Sloane Coffin, adapted)

Episcopal Church Women2020-05-26T13:01:40+00:00April 7th, 2020|

Fear of Transformation

Evita Krislock From “The Essene Book of Days” by Danaan Parry

Sometimes I feel that my life is a series of trapeze swings. I’m either hanging onto a trapeze bar swinging along or for a few moments I’m hurtling across space in between bars.

Most of the time I’m hanging on for dear life to my trapeze bar of the moment.

It carries me along at a certain steady rate of swing and I have the feeling that I’m in control of my life. I know most of the right questions and even some of the right answers. But once in a while, as I’m merrily swinging (or not so merrily) swinging along, I look ahead of me into the distance and I see another bar swinging towards me. It’s empty and I know, in that place in me that knows, that this new trapeze bar has my name on it. It is my next step, my growth, and my aliveness coming to get me. In my heart-of-hearts I know that for me to grow, I must release my grip on the present, well-known bar to move to the new one.

Each time it happens, I hope and pray that I won’t have to grab the new trapeze bar. But in my knowing place I realize that I must totally release my grasp on my old bar and for some time I must hurtle across space before I can grab onto the new bar. Each time I am filled with terror. It doesn’t matter that in all my previous hurtles across the void of unknowing, I have always made it. Each time I am afraid I will miss – that I will be crushed on unseen rocks in the bottomless chasm between the bars. But I do it anyway.

Perhaps this is the essence of what the mystics call the faith experience. No guarantees, no net, no insurance policy, but you do it anyway because somehow, to keep hanging onto that old bar is no longer an alternative. And so for an eternity that can last a microsecond or a thousand lifetimes, I soar across the dark void of “the past is done, the future is not yet here.” It’s called transition. I have come to believe that it is the only place that real change occurs.

I have noticed that in our culture this transition zone is looked upon as a nothing – a no-place between places. Surely the old trapeze bar was real and that new one coming towards me, I hope that’s real, too. But the void in between?

That’s just a scary, confusing, disorienting “nowhere” that must be gotten through as fast and as unconsciously as possible. What a waste! I have a sneaking suspicion that the transition zones in our lives are incredibly rich places. They should be honored-even savored. Even with all the pain and fear and feeling of being out-of-control that can accompany transitions, they are still the most alive, most growth filled, most passionate, most expansive moments in our lives.

And so, transformation of fear may have nothing to do with making fear go away, but rather with giving ourselves permission to “hang out” in the transition between trapeze bars. Transforming our need to grab that new bar – any bar, is allowing ourselves to dwell in the only place where change really happens. It can be terrifying. It can also be enlightening, in the true sense of the word. Hurtling through the void-we just may learn how to fly.

Offered at two National ECW Board gatherings during conversations about change. by Evita Krislock

Episcopal Church Women2020-05-26T13:02:37+00:00April 7th, 2020|

Navajo Blessingway Prayer

“WALK IN BEAUTY”

In beauty may I walk
All day long may I walk
Through the returning seasons may I walk
On the trail marked with pollen may I walk
With grasshoppers about my feet may I walk
With dew about my feet may I walk
With beauty may I walk
With beauty before me, may I walk
With beauty behind me, may I walk
With beauty above me, may I walk
With beauty below me, may I walk
With beauty all around me, may I walk
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, lively may I walk
In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, living again, my I walk
It is finished in beauty
It is finished in beauty.

From the women of the Episcopal Church in Navajoland

Episcopal Church Women2020-05-26T13:03:09+00:00April 7th, 2020|

Perseverance and Renewal

As we pause to feed our bodies in the middle of the day, we pause also to feed our souls by vowing again to live faithfully.

Living God,
long ago, faithful women
proclaimed the good news
of Jesus’ resurrection,
and the world was changed forever.
Teach us to keep faith with them,
that our witness may be as bold,
our love as deep,
and our faith as true. Amen.

From the midday gathering of Episcopal Church Women of the lower Cape Fear Deanery (Diocese of East Carolina), at St Paul’s Episcopal Church in Wilmington, NC May 23, 2017

Episcopal Church Women2020-05-26T13:03:48+00:00April 7th, 2020|

Women Helping Women

The Episcopal Women’s Caucus and The Episcopal Church Women are pleased to announce a joint initiative to support our Episcopal delegates to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women to be held this year, March 14-24. Of the 18 delegates from throughout The Episcopal Church selected by then-Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, seven have responded to our invitation to assist them in raising the funds needed to attend, each anticipates needing about $4,000 to attend the two-week event.

(The Social Justice Member-at-Large of National Episcopal Church Women represents ECW at the UNCSW gathering. For the 2015-2018 triennium that representative will be Beblon Parks. Her expenses will be paid by the NECW Board.)

Over the next several weeks we will post stories from previous delegates to the UNCSW and the stories of our delegates this year.

What is the UNCSW?

The United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) is held every year for two weeks in late February or early March. The Commission on the Status of Women was formalized in 1946. “The CSW is instrumental in promoting women’s rights, documenting the reality of women’s lives throughout the world, and shaping global standards on gender equality and the empowerment of women.” Representatives of UN Member States, civil society organizations and UN entities gather at UN headquarters in New York for the two-week session: “They discuss progress and gaps in the implementation of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the key global policy document on gender equality, and the 23rd special session of the General Assembly held in 2000 (Beijing+5), as well as emerging issues that affect gender equality and the empowerment of women. Member States agree on further actions to accelerate progress and promote women’s enjoyment of their rights in political, economic and social fields.” (www.unwomen.org/en/csw)

One does not need to be a delegate from a member state or an NGO in order to attend the UNCSW because there are many parallel events that take place during the two weeks the commission meets. Here are some guidelines for preparing for the conference:

Acquire the NGO event and workshop schedule, available on line at the UNCSW website approximately a week before the event begins. Review the schedule and pre-plan the workshops and events you want to attend.
Be sure to pre-register for the Ecumenical Women’s Orientation (usually held on the Saturday before the opening session) and the NGO orientation (usually held on the Sunday before the opening session).
Workshops begin at 8:00 am and end at 7:30 pm, running for 90 minutes with 30 minutes in between. Workshops are offered in two or three primary locations including the United Nations Church Center on 44th Street and 1st Avenue (across from the UN).You will find the locations listed in the NGO workshop guide. Attending workshops is free of charge.
Wear comfortable clothing that can be layered to adjust to NYC weather, which can change quickly. Remember to bring an umbrella.
Bring several pairs of shoes as you will walk a lot and your feet will need the variety.
If you are ordained wear your clerical collar, it helps to make the statement that ordained people care about this event and these issues, and are willing to be present.
Take the time to watch the opening session of the UNCSW, usually on Monday morning of the first week. Viewing is available via webcam at the UN Church Center Chapel and at various NGO sites.

The Episcopal Church is considered an NGO and in 2015 received NGO delegate status for the UN. This means The Episcopal Church is be able to send 20 delegates to the UN to lobby our UN representatives on issues we are concerned with.

Episcopal Church Women2020-05-20T13:28:58+00:00February 11th, 2016|

Tenacity

Lord Christ, be with me in my time of need. Give me the strength to hold on through each trial.

Lord Christ, be with me in my hour of desperation. Remind me that you call me by name.

Lord Christ, be with me during each moment of pain. Teach me your ways are not those of the one who oppresses.

Lord Christ, be with me each second that I am injured. Protect me and those for whom I provide care. Deliver us, as we hold tightly to you. Amen

Submitted by Jackie Meeks

Episcopal Church Women2020-05-20T14:18:56+00:00December 28th, 2015|

Encouragement

Encouragement can be another word for hope, belief, even for love. When used by different people in our lives it can be one, all, or more than these words. Depending on circumstances, this simple word, put into action, can make the difference to the extent of changing or saving a life. How easy it is to get caught in a downward spiral which without a lifeline can drag us deeper into unhealthy situations. Domestic violence leaves its impact on generations of families, from believing that this is normal, to thinking perhaps we deserved the reaction, the violent consequence.

A lifeline, positive encouragement of self, can stall or prevent the insidious slide into that dark place of thinking there is no other option in unhealthy relationships. Encouragement in the worth and value of self, in education and discovery of loving oneself and understanding love of others, an unconditional love, and the building up of hope, plants a seed. It starts with being present in body or spirit, listening and providing encouragement in a language that can be received and understood. There may be others that cultivate and nurture this seed, or it may be one steady voice of encouragement, either way it shines a light and a path out of the darkness.

May you find the light and be the light of encouragement.

By Evita Krislock

Episcopal Church Women2020-05-20T14:23:38+00:00December 27th, 2015|

Words Matter

Here, as Advent draws to a close, is a reflection about Mary the mother of Jesus. Written by the Rev. Lindsay Hardin Freeman, it’s adapted from her book, “Bible Women: All Their Words and Why They Matter.”

MARY: WHAT’S SHE DONE FOR YOU LATELY?

For the better part of forty years, Mary didn’t do anything for me. And that sounds like something a loser would say: “Hey, Mary didn’t do anything for me…”

Except, of course, she did something that no one has ever done; something that no one else will ever do. She gave birth to Jesus, the Prince of Peace, the Redeemer. Surely that ranks pretty high on one’s resume.

Yep. Of course, I knew that over the years. But I couldn’t relate to was the ever-so-meek and mild, complacent, virginal, pleasant, and practically perfect aura which has surrounded her for so many centuries…until I studied every word she said that is recorded in the Bible (see words below), and until I became a mother myself.

Her gift to the human race can best be summarized with one word: Yes. And it wasn’t a momentary “Yes”— it was a yes that would last her a lifetime, with all the pain and agony and joy that love brings.

HER STORY:

When Gabriel approached Mary, he tells her, “Hail, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” Her unspoken response (and this is as important as any spoken response): But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. (Luke 1:28–29)

She’s a smart girl. Most people do not wish to be high on the radar of say, cosmic forces, oncologists or fire departments. Mary knows that she was on God’s radar. Of course she was troubled. Of course she considered in her mind what sort of greeting “this might be.”

She knew the scriptures: how the Angel of Death went through King Sennacherib’s camp, causing 185,000 Assyrian soldiers to die (2 Kings 19:35); how Jacob fought with an angel and was disabled (Genesis 32:24–30); how an angel had issued a call to war by causing a fire to spring up in front of Gideon (Judges 6:11–21).

Hard not to be afraid, especially because she was only betrothed to be married, not yet married—and punishment for adultery was stoning. Neither Joseph nor her parents would understand—and yet somehow, she found the strength and faith to tell Gabriel, “Let it be to me according to your word.”

After her visit (which seems like more of an escape, away from prying eyes and ears) to Elizabeth, and after the birth of Jesus in a stable because the young couple could not find shelter in Jerusalem, she is visited by shepherds and wise men alike. Luke says, “Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.”

That phrase would again be used by Luke when Mary and Joseph lost track of Jesus on their caravan (many families traveling together) home from Jerusalem. Unbeknownst to them, he had stayed behind to teach in the temple. When, after three days, they finally located him, Mary was beside herself. “Why have you treated us like this? We have been in great anxiety!”

And although Mary did not understand her son, Luke says, again, that she “treasured these things in her heart.”

About eighteen years later, Mary is at a wedding with Jesus at Cana in Galilee, and the host runs out of wine, a terribly embarrassing problem for first-century hosts, whose celebrations would last for days. In classic mother style, she volunteers Jesus to fix the problem. Bringing him to the servants, she says, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Jesus, in classic grown son style, refuses, saying, “My time has not yet come!” But he does what his mother tells him to do…and all are happy. Perhaps she had seen him practice miracles around the house; she knew it was his time. Clearly, the fruit of “pondering things” in her heart was taking shape.

Such mother-privilege, however, did not seem to count when Jesus refused to see her when he was busy healing people, saying, “all who believe” were his family members. Again, probable consternation.

Finally, the day came that must have been the hardest day of all: Jesus’ death, at which she stood and watched the life drain from her beloved boy. How does one come to terms with that? How did Mary? We don’t know, except to know that Jesus “gave” her to John, one of the sons of Zebedeed (many scholars believe John was her nephew), following the crucifixion.

CONSIDER THIS

Mary could have refused Gabriel’s request; she could have said no to Gabriel. God would not have demanded she bear his son—after all, God is the primary believer in free will and designed this world to have it. What might have happened had she said no, or run away? I believe it is fair to say that Jesus–at least the Jesus we know–would not have been born. God would not have gone down the block, looking for another mother.

Here’s the point: God invited Mary into a radical life-transforming experience. She agreed, and opened herself to a life of love, self-sacrifice and divine intervention in world affairs. And as a result, the world will never be the same—and neither will we.

By saying yes, she didn’t know all the details that would come her way. She knew she would bear God’s son. By saying yes, she was in–in for all the joy and pain that love can bring.

What has Mary done for me lately? She’s shown me the way of love. I hope she does the same for you.

________________________

WHAT DID MARY SAY?

Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” (Luke 1:34)

Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38)

And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” (Luke 1:46–55)

When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.” (Luke 2:48)

When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” (John 2:3)

His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” (John 2:5)

FOR REFLECTION

How much do you think Mary understood about Jesus’ life when he was a baby? A boy? A man?

Out of the millions of souls on earth, why do you think God chose Mary to be Jesus’ mother? Was it that the time was right? Was it that she was right?

If an angel came to you from God, how easily would you believe whatever s/he said?

What emotions might you have struggled with if you had been in Mary’s place? Fear? Pride? Love? Desire?

Do you know anyone whose inner strength seems unshakable? How do they approach life?

________

Copy above adapted from Bible Women: All Their Words and Why They Matter. Published in 2014 by Forward Movement.

Artwork: Painted by Karen N. Canton, From The Scarlet Cord: Conversations with God’s Chosen Women, published 2010 by John Hunt Publishing

Episcopal Church Women2020-05-20T13:32:19+00:00December 21st, 2015|