SAINT PAUL EPISCOPAL CHURCH
"A Jubilee Ministry Center"
P.O. Box 96
340 Locust Street, Columbia, PA‚ 17512-0096
717-684-8496
717-684-2560 (fax)
In the name of Christ, we offer you welcome to our church. May those who sorrow find comfort; the weary, rest; the troubled, peace; the stranger, friends; the unhappy, joy; and to all, the sense of God's presence in this Holy Place.
Please note that the next scheduled time for Baptism is Sunday, January 15 (Feast of the Baptism of our Lord). Please call the parish office (717-684-8496) to schedule a meeting of the parents and, if possible, the godparents, with the Rector.
March, April, May 2012
In my 30+ years of ministry I have experienced, more than I care to, that far too many Christians treat the Church and their parish like a buffet at a restaurant. They stop in, sometimes on a regular basis and sometimes infrequently, and graze through the offerings, sample some things, and then leave. Some of these same people announce that they "don't get anything" out of church or they say that they don't feel "spiritually nourished." Grazing through your spiritual life is a bit like eating a lot of carbs - you may feel full but all too soon you feel hungry again. We expect to be served when we come to church - all we need to do is sit there and be served - "come on Father, fill me up." Chrisitianity is not an "all-you-can-eat" dinner not is it a service station where you can sit in your place and be served your fill of grace, life wholeness, etc.
Christianity - at its most basic level - is a relationship between God and me through Jesus Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit situated in the community of God's People that call the church (parish). Each individual believer, is principally responsible for the feeding, nourishing, and sustaining of that relationship. Not my neighbor, not the person next to me in the pew, and not the priest. While my neighbor, the person in the pew with me, and my priest can all help provide an enviornment - and maybe even some guidance and insight into deepening my relationship with God - it is my ultimate responsibility - no one else's.
If I do not give real time and real effort to building my relationship to God - it will not happen no matter what who else tries to help. If I do not spend time in prayer (outside of Sunday), in reading the Scriptures, in learning more about my faith, then my relationship to God cannot grow, cannot be sustainted, cannot last. If my only prayer is Sunday morning at the Eucharist; if the only time I am exposed to the Scripture is the Sunday Lectionary readings; and if the only"learning" I have about my faith is the Sunday sermon - I am in serious trouble. Sunday worship, Sunday Scripture, and the Sunday sermon are all important aspects of my spiritual growth but all too often they are the only aspects of my spiritual growth. And then we wonder why we feel spiritually mal-nourished?
Each of us needs to take responsbility for our own growth in our relationship to God. it takes work - hard work - just like any relationship we might have in our human existence. If married couples did not take time to fee, nourish, and sustain their relationship -who would be surprised if it failed? if families did not work at building relationships with each other - who would be surprised if the family became dysfunctional? They why are we surprised when we feel spiritually adrift, mal-nourished, or cut off when we have done little to feed, nourish, and sustain our spiritual life?
I know that all us say, "I don't have the time." Well, we have the time to do the things that we really want to do - watch a TV program, go to a sport or concert event, be out with our friends in social events, etc. Why do we continue to make the excuse that I don't have the time to come to church on Saturday / Sunday? Whey do I say I don't have the time to pray, read Scriptures, attend the Monday Adult Forum, the Wednesday Lenten Series, or the Sunday Adult Forum during the Easter Season? Whey do I never have the time to come to a parish social event and yet complain that I "don't know anybody anymore?" I am often asked why we don't have more young people in our parish or why we don't have more new people, or more new young families? My response is - When is the last time you asked a young person, a neighbor, a young family to join you at church? When is the last time any of us asked someone to come to church with us - and kept asking until they did? How many of us have called someone who has been away from church for a while and told them what is going on here at Saint Paul's? When is the last time that you spoke up on a conversation and spoke of why you have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ empowered by the Holy Spirit? When is the last time you spoke proudly about Saint Paul's and told people why you are a member?
These are the responsibilities that each of us share equally. It's not just my job, or the job of the staff, of of the Wardens, or of the Vestry or of any committee. The responsibility for the feeding, nourishing, and sustaining your spiritual life is primarily your responsibility with me, the staff, the Wardens, the Vestry, the committees, and every other member of the parish helping you. The responsibility for the life, growth, sustainability of this parish is the responsibility of each and every one of us - not just the chosen few.
Peace and Blessings!
Patrick+
If you are a member of Saint Paul's, we hope that you find this web site useful and helpful to keep up-to-date with what is going on in the parish. If you are a non-member, we hope that our web site will entice you to come and pray with us and find out what really makes Saint Paul's such a great place - it's warm and loving people. If you are searching for a church, we hope that you will join us on our faith journey.
If you have a pastoral need, whether or not you are a member of Saint Paul's, do not hesitate to contact us and let us help you in any way that we can. If you would like the Rector to visit you, or would like a home communion / visit please call us and let us know. If you or a loved one are in the hospital, please call us so that we can come and pray with you or your loved one.
We welcome comments and feedback on our web site. If you have suggestions for parish activities or programs, please let us know.
GET DIRECTIONS TO THE CHURCH:
Go to the bottom of the Mail List - Request Information Page and click on the Map to Saint Paul Link
