From the Vestry
The work of this year’s Vestry has been, directly or indirectly, the work of rebuilding. This process started with examining which parts of our communal life were feeling worn, tired, or broken. As we began the year, so many areas, small and large, were calling out for our loving attention and careful consideration of what is needed now.
The Vestry selected five areas on which to focus our efforts: revitalizing the experience of Worshiping together, developing a strategic staffing plan, developing a communications strategy and action plan, supporting the health of our Finance ministry and procedures, and, of course, supporting the implementation of the Living Waters Capital Projects and the Isaiah Project. A daunting list! I am happy to report that we have made strong progress in all of these areas and are beginning to see the fruits of our labors.
After careful discernment, we acted on the recommendation of the Vestry’s task force on the worship experience to adjust the number of Sunday morning services from three to two. Thanks to the changes implemented, the 10:30 service now feels vibrant and full of All Soulsians each Sunday morning.
As you will soon see with the launch of the new All Souls website, the Vestry’s Communications Team has made tremendous progress towards the project of reinvigorating our whole concept around communications, starting with reaching out to the Parish via a survey to learn which forms of communication are most appreciated and where improvements can be made. Our current website has served us well for many years but as it is no longer possible to make updates, the website is now very out of date. The new website is actively being built by many hands and we are eager for its launch! The website is just the first project the Communications Team is tackling and there will be more to come!
2023 has turned out to be a year of reconstituting the staff of our beloved parish. To our sadness, we have said or are saying goodbye to our Associate Rector Maggie Foote, our bookkeeper Steve Zimmerman, and our administrative assistant Annie Rovzar. And the currents run deeper as Phil is in discernment with the Diocese of California in the search for the next bishop. This is clearly a time of transition for our parish and the people in it, as well as for the world at large. A new-to-us, but very experienced bookkeeper, Betty Winnacker, has been hired and the Finance Team is happy to report that her skills are very strong and she brings lots of relevant expertise from other parishes and organizations she works with. The Vestry convened a team to call our next Associate Rector and, as you have heard, we are now eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Reverend Emily Boring, who will join us in that role on August 21st. And now a new search team is gathering to help us find our next Parish administrator.
The Finance Team, under careful stewardship, is reviewing our existing procedures and making recommendations for improvements.
The Isaiah Project Committee remains in discernment about how to share the bounty we enjoy with others and has recently begun examining how these funds might be used to repair the breaches that we, as All Souls Parish, may have caused or contributed to.
The most literal example of rebuilding that we are grappling with at this time is the effort to refresh our buildings and grounds and attend to 60-plus years of deferred maintenance. A great deal of time and attention has been spent on the implementation of the Living Waters Capital Projects by all involved. The Property Committee, chaired by Patrick Tahara, has spent countless hours exploring options, carefully considering how best to shepherd our resources and see that all areas needing attention can be addressed. The scope of work has now been selected, the budget is in the process of refinement, and while many decisions have been made, many remain to be addressed. A few repair projects will be starting soon but the concentrated work on the project will not begin until next Spring.
All this effort towards rebuilding, reconstituting, reinvigorating, and renewal has, at times, felt overwhelming. Through it all, the Vestry has worked to remain in conversation together and with the Parish. And, as Junior Warden Nydia McGregor reminds me, we are not alone in this work: in each task we seek to achieve, God is holding us in the palm of their hands.
–Sarah Kern, Senior Warden
1946: A Mistranslation that Shifted Culture
Last night about 15 of us gathered in the Common Room to watch an early release of the new film 1946: A Mistranslation that Shifted Culture. And because I tagged the film’s instagram account on our Sunday Night Service post about the film (on Instagram), the director reached out and offered to join us for a Q&A following the showing of the film! It was spectacular.
The movie follows the story of two ex-Evangelical Christians as they first wrestled with the damage caused by the idea of homosexuality being classified as a sin in their upbringings and churches, and then their journey towards figuring out how the word “homosexual” entered the modern Bible. What they discover along the way is both scholarly and personally remarkable. Through some microfiche film at the Yale Sterling Library, they discovered letters from a young seminarian who wrote to the RSV translation committee to challenge the use of the word in the 1946 RSV–– the first time the Greek had been translated to the one word “homosexual” and printed in a Bible. I won’t give away too much more, but if you get the chance to see this film and support it, please do––as we all know too well, the impact of this mistranslation has caused an immense amount of harm. This film is a polemic that suits our time: it is academic, but it is faithful and personal––the very thing needed to reach across the lines that have and do divide Christians today.
–Emily Hansen Curran
News & Notes
Adult Formation Classes
Reading Between the Lines Bible Study @ 7:00a. Click here to join by Zoom, or join them in-person in the Common Room.
Reading Between the Lines Bible Study @ 9:15a. On break for the summer.
Summer Book Group #3–The Red Tent by Anita Diamant, led by Emily McDonald, July 30th, August 6th, and August 13th.
The Red Tent is the story of Dinah, a minor character in the book of Genesis, chapter 34. The brief episode in which she appears is usually referred to as the “rape of Dinah,” a violent episode that has posed difficulties for biblical scholars over the centuries. Dinah does not say a single word in the biblical text; what happens to her is recounted and characterized by her brothers. The Rent Tent Gives voice to Dinah, daughter of Jacob and Leah, and brings life and story to her more biblically famous brothers. Although the book is painful to read at times, as some of Dina’s story is tragic, it is well written and a quick read that will astonish you and educate you about the historical context of Dina’s life. The book will no doubt bring about a lively discussion, as any time we talk about the Old Testament, there are lots of thoughts and feelings… And the author does an elegant job of outlining some of the historically accurate disturbing practices of the time. The Red Tent is essential reading for the curious Christian. Please consider attending the 3 week book group. Week 1: pages 1-104 (Genesis 29-31.21), Week 2: pages 105-210 (Genesis 31.22-34). Week 3: pages 211-321 (Genesis 35).
CHILDREN, YOUTH, AND FAMILY NEWS
Nursery The downstairs nursery is open and available to you for your use whenever you’re at All Souls. This is not a staffed nursery, so an adult must be there with your child, but if you need a quiet place to take a time out, change a diaper, let your child play or take a rest, the nursery is open for you to do all of those things. If there is a service going on that’s being livestreamed, you will be able to watch the livestream on the computer in the nursery as well.
Side Chapel There is a special seating area located in the side chapel that is meant for children and families, giving children a clear view of the altar, and full of materials with which they can immerse themselves in the actions of the liturgy. All are welcome and encouraged to check it out!
Sunday School On break for the summer!
Youth Sunday morning hang outs and youth group are on hold for the summer.
OTHER NEWS & NOTES
Homecoming
Save the date for August 27th when we’re transforming what has been Rally Sunday into Homecoming––complete with a taco truck and bounce house (yes, you read that right)! The Blessing of the Backpacks will also happen this day in the courtyard just after the 10:30 service when all the other festivities will also begin. Feel free to invite your friends!
New Member Class
If you’ve been hanging around All Souls for some time and would like to learn about what it means to be a member here, or if you’re new and wondering about learning more about All Souls, please join us for our two-series New Member Class August 20 & 27th during the Adult Formation Hour (9:15a). See Emily (emily@allsoulsparish.org) for more information.
All Souls’ Author Event
Our very own Tess Taylor has just published Leaning Toward Light: Poems for Gardens & the Hands That Tend Them, a new edited book of poems, and we are all invited to head out to the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden on August 24th from 5:30-7p to hear an amazing array of poets (including Tess) who will be reading their poems. Tickets are selling fast, and you can get them on the Berkeley Botanical Garden homepage (here).
Last Call for Baseball
Thinking about our All Souls night at the ballpark this year, I keep hearing the chorus of that old Stones song, “This could be the last time, Maybe the last time, I don’t know, oh no, oh no….” Well, we don’t know if this is the last time but let’s do it one more time. It’s been part of life at our parish for over 15 years. And I remind you, it has never been about the quality of the team on the field. Celebrating summer, celebrating our community life, some purely non-church fun with your church friends.
The windup, the Pitch: Saturday August 19, A’s vs Orioles, 6:07pm game time, 4:45pm tailgate party in the Coliseum lot with the usual great spread of food & bev, with each Soulsian receiving a 1973 replica jersey of the World Champion A’s, AND following the game a Star Wars Drone Show lighting up the sky.
$35/pp, PayPal / Venmo strongly preferred, RSVP by July 31, don.a.gates@gmail.com.
Don Gates
Racial Justice Movie Night
The Racial Justice Team will host another movie night with our Jordan Court residents on August 4th from 6-8p. This time we’ll watch the film Get Out and it will likely be in the Parish Hall (due to the large turnout of the last movie night!). Stay tuned for more details.
Sunday Night Service on Summer Break
The core team for the Sunday Night Service has decided to have the weekly worship services for the Sunday Night Service take a summer break (with the rest of you!). We’re going to take this time off and devote some of our energy to relaxing and making some plans for the future.