The Pathfinder: July 4th, 2024
Who’s Here? A S
napshot from the House of Bishops at General Convention
17 years ago I served at my first meeting of the House of Bishops: 150 of them gathered; only 10 of them were women. Their enthusiastic singing could seriously compete with that of All Souls! One evening we closed the day with singing, “Abide with me.” I had asked them to take it easy on verse 3, to sing gently. What came forth was a testosterone-laden tsunami of sound which, while glorious, completely drowned out the voices of the women in the room. I couldn’t help but wonder how that made them feel. And that stuck with me.
It’s a new day in “the House.” There are now 46 women serving as bishops and it has completely changed the way they all sing together. The Choir of Bishops is now more than 50% made up of women, compared to the 3 or 4 when I began this work. Last week that happy change caught my attention in the most unexpected way.
While there’s mostly a relaxed atmosphere when they gather, their time together is always built upon a framework of prayer, scripture and song. And when they transact official business, they are very formal, especially when electing a new presiding bishop. Gathered in Louisville’s cathedral, the first order of business was to call the roll, which is always done in the order in which the bishops were consecrated, starting with the lowest number. Name after name was read, with answers, “Here,” or “Presente” (for bishops from Province IX of this Church), following. It was all male for a bit, and then the occasional woman’s voice rang out in the mix. Soon I realized that we’d had a long, uninterrupted string of “Here” from voices of women, and it made me sit up straight. A few more male and female voices punctuated the list, and then another long stretch of higher pitched answers brought tears to my eyes. That will stick with me forever.
The next day we marked in prayer the 50th anniversary of women’s ordination. Another roll was called, this time just the women, who were asked to stand. After the prayer there was a spontaneous extended ovation - applause that came from deep gratitude for their ministry. (I’m not crying, YOU’RE crying!)
It was a celebration and deep appreciation for The Episcopal Church’s bold step, finally recognizing how the Holy Spirit includes women’s voices and leadership gifts, and for all the women, (past, present, and yet to come) who respond to that still, small voice of God.
–Dent Davidson, Associate for Music
Resolutions and Relationships: More Reflections from General Convention
In late June, I joined thousands of Episcopalians at our church’s General Convention in Louisville, Kentucky. General Convention, the church’s highest legislative body, includes a House of Bishops and a House of lay and clergy Deputies, who meet separately but must agree on any legislation that is adopted.
General Convention is always a whirlwind of worship, committee meetings, legislative sessions, strategy sessions with colleagues, and lunches, dinners, and receptions hosted by many different church organizations. I was part of the awesome, hard-working, and deeply committed Diocese of California deputation. In our daily meetings, often with one or both of our bishops, we reported on the legislation each of us was following and reflected together on the joys and challenges of the day.
The highlight for me was moving forward with adding a gender-neutral marriage rite to the Book of Common Prayer and approving a new definition of marriage in the Prayer Book Catechism, saying marriage is between two people instead of a man and a woman. I worked on this project when I chaired the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music a decade ago (that’s when I met Dent Davidson), and it was deeply moving to experience the overwhelming support from both bishops and deputies. We’ve come so far as a church! We’ll have one more vote at the next General Convention (2027), finalizing our decision (revising the Book of Common Prayer is a long process).
Another highlight was remembering the first ordinations of women in the Episcopal Church, fifty years ago at Church of the Advocate in Philadelphia. We adopted a courtesy resolution naming the “Philadelphia Eleven” and the three bishops who ordained them, and we prayed a collect commemorating the ordination. We also added a new weekday commemoration of the ordination to the church’s calendar.
We approved three new diocesan configurations. The Episcopal Church in Navajoland became a Missionary Diocese, a step towards autonomy that will allow them to elect their own bishop. It was a joyous celebration with their deputation. On the final day, the three dioceses in Wisconsin re-united to become once again the Diocese of Wisconsin, and two of the four dioceses in Michigan joined to form the Diocese of the Great Lakes. In their presentations, deputies from the dioceses that were joining gave us a glimpse of the hard work of bringing together the different dioceses and their hopes for the future. I lived for five years in one of the Wisconsin dioceses and for ten in one of the Michigan dioceses, so I felt a personal connection to both decisions.
Midway through, the bishops elected (and deputies confirmed) a new presiding bishop, Sean Rowe, who will succeed Michael Curry on November 1. Bishop Rowe’s messages have been hope-filled, while also recognizing hard work ahead of us to make better use of our resources and rework our structure and governance to better support dioceses. I am especially encouraged that he has signaled his intent to continue Presiding Bishop Curry’s priorities of creation care, evangelism, and racial reconciliation. Bishop Rowe is already making a mark with his decision to be installed in office in a simple livestreamed service at the Church Center in New York, rather than an extravaganza at the Washington National Cathedral.
We did the business of the church, too, approving a budget for the next three years and electing people to governing boards and committees, including re-electing the President of the House of Deputies, Julia Ayala Harris, and electing a new vice president, Steve Pankey.
The church’s business is also its ministry and witness in the world. We adopted a number of resolutions, including ones from our diocese on migration with dignity and prison ministry, and several addressing current events. Many of these will be referred to the church’s Office of Government Relations, which represents our public policy positions to the US government.
Since 2015, General Convention has managed its work through the “vbinder,” an online tool where you can see all the nearly 400 resolutions that we considered in Louisville. Scroll through the list to see which ones we adopted and which ones were rejected or had no further action taken (sometimes because Convention receives multiple resolutions on the same topic).
Resolutions, though, are only part of General Convention. Relationships, new and renewed, are a key foundation for the work we do, along with the daily prayer and worship that grounds our work in our common faith.
–The Rev. Dr. Ruth Meyers, Assisting Priest
Meet the Acolytes!
Our acolyte program is back in full swing! You’ve likely noticed many of our youth serving as crucifers and torchbearers.
Acolytes play an indispensable role in our worship life, providing assistance to the altar party and participating in all parts of the service.
This summer, we are running profiles of our current acolyte team so you can get to know them.
If you'd like to join us and be trained as an acolyte, please reach out to me, Emily B!
Acolyte Profile: Bennett Schreiner (he/him)
“My name is Bennett. I am entering 8th grade this year. My hobbies are swimming and playing violin (bluegrass and classical). I also LOVE to travel, play with my Bernedoodle Sophie, play baseball, and build legos.
I like being an acolyte because I love the feeling of helping out and being useful— church is more fun when you’re being part of the service. I like helping make church happen.”
Thank you, Bennett!
–Emily+
Living Waters
We are still awaiting news from the City of Berkeley to finalize our construction permit, so we were unable to begin construction this week.
Our architect has been told that we can expect the next response from the City around July 9th.
Stay tuned for more updates and a timeline!
–Richard Lynch and the Property Committee
Announcements & Events
Happening This Week
Worship This Sunday
8:00am, Holy Eucharist in Chapel
10:30am, sung Eucharist (click here to access the live stream)
Wednesday 9am Eucharist Service. Join us by Zoom at this link.
Reading Between the Lines Bible Study, Sunday @ 7:00a. Click here to join by Zoom, or join them in-person in the Jordan Court Conference Room.
Adult Formation
Current Book Group: Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection, by Charles Duhigg. Led by Raymond Yee..
Have you ever wondered what makes some people "supercommunicators"? Who among your friends and family are the people you turn to when you need to be understood, to be heard? This month, we’ll embark on a journey to become better communicators ourselves and deepen our connections with each other.
Join us for the first meeting of this book group on Sunday at 9:15 in the Jordan Court Community Room. (July 7, 14, 21)
Upcoming Book Group: We Survived the End of the World: Lessons from Native America on Apocalypse and Hope, by Steven Charleston. Led by the Rev. Marguerite Judson. (July 28, August 4, 11)
Children & Family
Children’s Book Group While Sunday School is on a break for the summer, we are excited to offer a new form of fellowship for kids: children’s book groups! Fourth to sixth graders will read The Eyes and the Impossible by Dave Eggers. First to third graders will read The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls by M.J. Thomas. If you are interested in participating, please email Molly Nicol (molly.joan.nicol@gmail.com).
Youth Program is on hiatus for the summer. We’ll return in the fall.
Justice & Peace
Boost the Vote! “…it is the church’s responsibility to help get souls to the polls.” - Presiding Bishop Michael Curry
The All Souls Justice and Peace team invites you to help increase voter turnout by writing letters, following these easy steps:
Pick up from church 20 individual names, addresses, paper, & envelopes
(The names come from Vote Forward’s analysis, identifying citizens in low voter turnout areas)
Write non-partisan notes to encourage voting
Add postage
Return to Janet or a church basket to be mailed on Vote Forwards’s assigned dates
Ask for 20 more…?
Contact Janet Chisholm, jgchisholm@aol.com to request materials or to ask questions.
Undergraduate Street Medicine Outreach Undergraduate Street Medicine Outreach (USMO) is a Cal student group that organizes outreach events every Saturday to bring food and resources to homeless encampments in Berkeley. Because these encampments are in resource deserts, they often lack access to quality food, medical services, and other resources which we try to facilitate through our many partnerships. All Souls has been supporting this effort through donation of menstrual hygiene products.
Now, USMO has invited us to take part in more direct outreach efforts, especially as USMO student volunteers are away for the summer. The USMO group meets on Saturdays at 12:10 pm at the West Circle on UC Berkeley's campus (location linked here). From there, they organize pick-up and delivery of food and supplies. If you would like to join in this effort, please contact Beth Christensen for details (beth.christensen@gmail.com). She will connect you to the USMO leadership team.
Finally, while menstrual hygiene products continue to be welcome, there is additional need for the following items:
Power banks
Phone chargers
Batteries
General hygiene and first aid products
Size 8 women’s shoes
You can drop off these items in the red donation bin in the narthex. Thank you!
Volunteer Opportunity: WriterCoach Connection
All Souls community members have been invited by a local organization, WriterCoach Connection, to volunteer:
“We are a local nonprofit which brings volunteers into local middle schools and high schools to help students with their writing and critical thinking skills. Our volunteers provide much needed one on one support which helps students become confident thinkers and writers. Contact Noah Curtis-Goldstein (noah@writercoachconnection.org) if you are interested.”
Needs of the Community
Stephen Ministry When you experience unusual stress or navigate a major life transition, the support of a Stephen Minister could be helpful. To explore this possibility, contact Madeline Feeley, a Stephen Leader, at 510-495-4512 or madelinefeeley@gmail.com.
Meal Train If you are in need of meals, or if you’d like to join this network to deliver food to others, please email Sarah Oneto at sarahoneto@gmail.com.
Everything Else
Dent’s Farewell Reception and Gift Sunday, July 28th is our last day with Dent Davidson before his retirement! Join us after the 10:30 service for a reception in the courtyard. We are putting together a gift for Dent and his family and we would welcome your contribution. If you would like to contribute, you can do so by putting a check in the offering plate designated “Dent’s gift.” Or, watch out for more information about how to donate online soon. Thank you!
Big Sur Camping Trip Sign-Ups Are Live! Any and all are invited to the annual church camping trip at the Santa Lucia Campground in Big Sur. The dates this year are July 19-21st and the cost is $45 per person (kids under 5 are free) and there is a $180 max for families. If cost is prohibitive, please just let us know and we’ll have you covered. Sign-up here!
Save the Date: Parish Retreat Join us at Bishop’s Ranch for our annual Parish Retreat, September 13th-15th. More info and sign-ups to come!
Flowers on Sundays at Church If you are interested in dedicating the flowers in the Church on Sunday mornings to a loved one or a particular remembrance, please fill out this form and indicate which day you would like to contribute the flowers and what you would like the dedication to say. The dedication will appear in our announcement sheet on the Sunday you have selected. The suggested contribution for flowers is $75, which can be paid to All Souls either electronically or by check (see the giving page on our website for more information there), and be sure to write in "flowers" in the memo line.
Please contact Maggie Cooke for any questions, dmcooke92@comcast.net.
