The Pathfinder: September 19th, 2024
Answering the Call: Join Us This Sunday!
This fall’s pledge drive, Answering the Call – All Souls 2025, will focus on stepping into this moment at All Souls. We have the staff, the congregation and (soon, the facilities) to enhance the ways that All Souls is called to live out God’s love here in the East Bay. How we answer the call will be a large part of setting our course for 2025.
The Kickoff Presentation for this year’s pledge drive is this Sunday, September 22nd.
At 9:00 a.m. we'll begin serving Bageltopia bagels and All Souls coffee. The presentation itself will start promptly at 9:15 a.m., live in the nave and streaming on our Youtube “Live” page. The presentation will be done in time for the 10:30 service to use the same space. Phil, Emily B, and other church leaders will share the All Souls stories that inspire them and lay out their vision for the upcoming year, and invite all of us to help make that vision a reality.
Join us this Sunday!
–Richard Lynch for the AOC Committee
Invitation to Spanish Prayer: Feast of San Miguel
Join us to pray in Spanish and celebrate the feast of St Michael!
Our next offering of Oración del Atardecer or Evening Prayer will be on Friday the 27th of September beginning at 6pm in the Chapel.
We have a broad range of Spanish proficiency amongst our group and welcome all.
As I’ve said before, praying in Spanish (or any language beyond my first) is something I love and encourage. In fact, many of my own memories of deep spiritual connection come from contexts where I didn’t know what was being said entirely (or at all). But the location in the liturgy and other qualities like rhythm or symbolic actions brought me to a sense of ‘home’, which brought me closer to God and fellow worshipers beyond the binds of particular language.
I must admit that I’m excited to celebrate my patron saint and encourage others to celebrate theirs. It’s also a time of year when I most miss living in the state of Morellos in Mexico where the fields are full of pericón flowers, which are made into crosses, and ripe corn, which is often fire roasted. There are processions, fireworks, and music!
In a small way, we can join the fiesta with some food and fellowship after the prayers. There will be soft drinks and a mezcal tasting led by Eddy Herrera.
Find me in person at church or email with any questions: mdrell@ses.cdsp.edu…it would be great to have RSVPs for planning the food, but also please come even if that decision is last minute…there will be plenty.
–Michael Drell, Seminarian
Isaiah Project Updates:
Team evaluates eight applicants for grants
After many months of research, discussion, prayer and reflection, the Isaiah Project team in April recommended to the Vestry that All Souls invite eight East Bay organizations to apply for grants that we hope may in some small measure promote repair of the harms caused by the history of racism in our local communities.
At a meeting held on April 24, 2024, the Vestry unanimously approved the Isaiah Project team’s recommendation, and in May All Souls sent a written invitation to each of the organizations, asking that the organizations submit their applications by August 1, 2024. We provided a brief description of each of the eight organizations in the May 16, 2024 issue of the Pathfinder. Each of the organizations is addressing community needs in one or more of the four focus areas that had previously been approved by the Vestry: housing; children and youth services; Native American land and sovereignty; and environmental justice.
The Isaiah Project team is pleased to report that we have received applications from all eight organizations and have begun our evaluation process. We have created an evaluation rubric form with various criteria, with an overall emphasis on racial justice. Each member of the team is currently reading through all eight of the applications and supporting documents and then completing the evaluation form. Our next meeting is on September 24, at which time we will see what our evaluations show and have further discussion. If we decide we need more information in order to reach consensus as a group, we may conduct phone call interviews with the applicants, but we haven’t made that decision yet.
Our intent is to make a decision on either three or four finalists for the grants and present that recommendation to the Vestry at either the October or November Vestry meeting. We hope to begin funding the grants in 2025. Each of these grants will be in the range of $100,000 to $125,000 and will likely be disbursed over a three-year period. We’ll provide a further update on the status of our decision-making later this fall.
–Lewis Maldonado
Highlights from Parish Retreat 2024!
Enjoy some photos from this year’s retreat, where we explored together what it means to make our home in God.
–Emily Hansen Curran
A New Associate for Music
Dear All Soulsians,
I am pleased to share the news that Matt Wolka has accepted my invitation to be our new Associate for Music. Matt is the Director of the Old First Concerts in San Francisco and has served as the Director of Music at two Roman Catholic parishes, St. Perpetua’s in Lafayette, CA and St. Benedict’s in Chicago, Illinois. In addition to leading music for thousands of services, he has also led choir tours, organized parish orchestras, and even worked for an organ company.
Matt will start with us on Tuesday, October 1st at our staff meeting, his first choir rehearsal will be Wednesday evening, October 2nd, and his first Sunday with us will be the Feast of St. Francis on October 6th.
I am grateful to our search team in this effort, led by co-chairs Anne Yardley and Nat Lewis, along with Madeline Feeley, Kathleen Summerland Heuser, Jenny Kern, and Julie Legrand. In addition to creating the job posting and sending it far and wide, this summer they also conducted a parish survey about music at All Souls, organized candidate interviews with the search team, the staff, and the choir, and finally conducted thorough reference checks. Because of their dedication and diligence their report to me finished up at a parish-record 43 pages.
I am also deeply grateful for our interim lead musicians––Carol Terry, Nat Lewis, and Liam Daley. They kept us on beat and moving forward for the past 7 weeks. I cannot put into words what a gift it is to have folks like these in the congregation to guide us and lead us through interim periods like this. Thank you Carol, Nat, and Liam!
Please join me in the next few weeks in welcoming Matt. We are so looking forward to singing (and praying twice) together.
–Phil+
The generous financial support of All Soulsians makes our community and ministry possible. Throughout the year, we are highlighting ways that your support makes a specific difference in our communal lives.
Every Sunday, twelve to twenty voices of the choir lead us in song, under direction of our Associate for Music. (Welcome Matt!) .
Because of your generous financial gifts, we can support the choir and Matt's salary. You help make the music possible. Thank you.
+++
Don’t forget: Join us for the kick-off event of this year’s pledge drive, 9:15 in the nave this Sunday the 22nd! (Bagels and coffee provided).
–Richard Lynch for the AOC Committee
Living Waters Weekly Update
Patience: the ability to wait without getting angry or upset.
Our huge project is moving forward with framing started in some undercroft areas and new lighting going in. This is a long process with many parts and your patience is appreciated.
Entry is the same as last week, Cedar Street. Egress, in case of an emergency, is again through the sacristy and down and out. The porta potties and Jordan Court are the accessible bathrooms.
Enjoy the pics of some areas of work, captions should help!
Stay calm while we wait for our new spaces!
–Ann Myers and the Property Committee
Announcements & Events
Happening This Week
Worship This Sunday
8:00am, Holy Eucharist in Chapel. Please access the Chapel through the copper doors on Cedar St.
9:15am, Annual Operating Campaign Launch, in the nave or live-streamed here
10:30am, sung Eucharist (click here to access the live stream). Enter through the Cedar St. doors.
Wednesday 9am Eucharist Service, in the Jordan Court Community Room (note the new temporary location, due to construction noise). Join us on Zoom here.
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
We have a break from classes this week due to our Stewardship launch event. We will return next week, Sept. 29th, with Rev. Marguerite Judson’s class, below.
Gathering Silence: Deepening Our Prayer Practices
Led by the Rev. Marguerite Judson
Strengthen your relationship with the Holy One as we explore a variety of prayer practices together. Whether you are new to The Episcopal Church or looking for a booster to your current patterns, enjoy this drop-in class exploring how and why we pray and some resources to support individual prayer.
Sept. 29: Using our Oldest Hymnal (aka Praying the Psalms). Discover some of the ways the psalms are built and can be built into our faith walk.
Oct. 6: Gathering Silence. Episcopalians don’t just “read to God” in our prayer life. We might listen in the silence of Centering Prayer and Breath Prayer, which will both be introduced in our final class.
We meet from 9:15 to 10:15 in the conference room of Jordan Court. If you have a copy of the Book of Common Prayer (electronic or print), please bring it with you. Hard copies will be available to use in the first three classes.
Children & Family
Sunday School: Sunday School is back this week after a break for Parish Retreat!
Sunday School (for kids pre-K through 5th grade) happens every week during the 10:30 service. Meet outside of main Cedar St. doors at the start of the service; teachers will lead you around the corner to our temporary classroom space. (If you’re late, ask an usher for directions). Children will return to church at the “Peace.”
Godly Play Training (originally on Sept. 7th) has been rescheduled for November 23rd, 9am to 1pm, at All Souls. All are welcome to learn about the spiritual formation of children! Email Emily B to sign up.
Donate Supplies for Sunday School: Do you have old craft supplies at home? We are seeking creative materials for our Sunday School classes: yarn, fabric, paint, collage paper, clay, sketchbooks, wood, etc… anything is welcome! Please hand off any donations to Emily B at church, or email her.
To join our Children and Family mailing list, email emilyb@allsoulsparish.org
Youth Program
Youth Group returns this week (9/22) with our first High School Small Group, for youth grades 9-12. Meet at the church at 7pm.
A reminder that this year, we are following a new structure for Youth Group. We will alternate between an all-grades gathering, and a high school small group, every other week of the month:
Weeks 1, 3, and 5: All grades, 6th-12th
Weeks 2 and 4: High school small group, 9th-12th
View and download our full fall calendar (Sept. - Dec.) here.
To join the weekly youth mailing list, email emilyb@allsoulsparish.org.
Justice & Peace
(Inter)Faith in Action: Get-out-the-vote non-partisan letter writing event Sunday, September 29, 2024, 11:30am - 1:30pm @ Saint Paul’s Church, 2024 Ashby Ave, Berkeley, CA 94703
The Building Interfaith Bridges (BIB) group is sponsoring a non-partisan get-out-the-vote letter writing event. Congregants from three congregations - St. Paul AME church, congregation Beth El and All Souls Parish - are invited to address and send non-partisan letters to encourage people to vote. The event is being hosted, open-house style, from 11:30am-1:30pm on Sunday 29 September, at St. Paul AME church, 2024 Ashby Ave, Berkeley, CA 94703.
Template letters, envelopes and stamps will be provided. You just need to show up and write as many letters as you’d like! Feel free to bring a packed lunch and a snack or drink to share!
Please RSVP no later than Thursday, September 26. Hope to see you there! For more information and to RSVP, contact Paul Mathew: pmathew1000@gmail.com
Boost the Vote! “…it is the church’s responsibility to help get souls to the polls.” - Presiding Bishop Michael Curry
This important effort is still ongoing! Please consider taking part:
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. In addition to ongoing menstrual product donations, there is need for the following items: power banks, phone chargers, batteries, general hygiene and first aid products, and size 8 women’s shoes. Please bring these items to the red bin in the Narthex. Email Beth Christensen, (beth.christensen@gmail.com) for other volunteer opportunities with USMO.
Pastoral Care
Stephen Ministry Program
Each of us has times when we are lonely, grieving, hurt, or in need of care. Stephen Ministry at All Souls seeks to share Christ’s love and healing power with people in our community during those times. Stephen Ministers are a team of highly trained lay ministers who provide one-to-one confidential spiritual care.
How does Stephen Ministry work?
A trained Stephen Minister is matched with a person experiencing a life crisis. The Stephen Minister then meets with the person one on one to listen, care, encourage, and provide emotional and spiritual support. He/she usually provides care to one person at a time, meeting with that person typically once a week for about an hour.
Stephen Ministry is appropriate for people experiencing many things, including: grief, divorce, hospitalization, physical rehabilitation, long-term care, chronic or terminal illness, job loss, loss of a home, the onset of a disability, and may other life struggles.
If you are going through a time of crisis or challenge, or know someone who is, please reach out to Emily B or to Referrals Coordinator Marilyn Flood for more information about Stephen Ministers.
Needs of the Community
Free Furniture A member of our community, Cathy Goshorn, is looking for a new home for a double bed — clean, including mattress, box spring, and frame. Free for pick-up anytime. Email ogoshca@yahoo.com if you’re interested.
In addition, there is free furniture left behind by our former associate for music, including couches, dressers, and a queen bed. All furniture is available to view and pick up in Jordan Court. If you are interested in any items, please reach out to diana@allsoulsparish.org.
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
Ale Souls Brewing is at it again! This time we’re brewing for our Feast of Title: All Souls/All Saints Day. The next brewing will happen on September 26th at 6:30p at David Gutfeld’s house. If you would like to participate in the brewing, reach out to David Gutfeld, davidlawrencegutfeld@gmail.com.
