Let me begin by saying thank you to everyone who helped with our celebrations of All Saints and All Souls. We are fortunate that we are able to celebrate both of these feasts, and thereby honor the themes of each. That being said, changing the church over from All Saints to All Souls within such a short period of time was not an easy task for the Altar Guild. I am grateful for the hard work of our worship and music volunteers.
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We have a truly wonderful weekend ahead of us, and personally, All Hallows-tide is one of my favorite times of the year. I have never understood those Christians who attack Halloween, for I have always understood it as an opportunity to mock death with costumes and frivolity. In its truest sense, Halloween is simply the Eve of All Hallows or All Saints - one of the greatest feast days of the church year.
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One of the things I am noticing more and more among people, is that their lives are consistently governed by things beyond their control, and as a result, they find themselves unhappy with what they must do, while also being annoyed by what they are not able to do. It leads to a state of constant restlessness or unfulfillment, and it is a state of being which is dangerous for mental health if it continues for too long.
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The days are becoming shorter as the sun rises later and the daylight fades earlier. Soon November will be upon us, and we will be celebrating All Hallows-tide. All Hallows, All Saints, and All Souls have been called the fall triduum or three days, reminiscent of the final three days of Holy Week. Similar to Holy Week, death and resurrection are prominent themes, but in this case the focus is not simply on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, but on the lives of saints and souls of the Christian faith throughout the ages.
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This Sunday's Gospel from Mark is about how hard it is for those who worship wealth to enter the Kingdom of God. Jesus states, "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God"
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We have quite the confluence of activities this weekend at the church. On Friday night the choir is offering a concert of sacred and secular music at 7:00 pm. They have been working especially hard these past few weeks, and all are invited to the concert. A reception follows the concert in the Parish Hall.
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Our stewardship theme for 2025 is Inspired by Love - United in Purpose. This past summer at their retreat day the Vestry asked, “Why is St. Mark’s such a special place? Why do we support St. Mark’s?” They agreed that in our divided society, St. Mark’s is a unique place, inspired by love and united in purpose. Our worship of the Triune God unites us, and God’s love for us inspires us.
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I am writing you having experienced our first Catechesis Evening this past Wednesday. Those of us who attended quickly learned why Dr. Michael Ida was honored as the Hawai'i State Teacher of the Year. Brother Michael, who is also an Oblate of the Order of Julian of Norwich, does an excellent job of teaching content while using multiple pedagogical techniques that stimulate conversation, reflection, and group interaction.
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Even though summer is almost officially over, the summer projects continue to keep us busy. This past Saturday the Parish Hall lanai was power washed, and the gates by the Lady Chapel garden were painted. This past Tuesday the choir steps were painted due to wear and tear, and soon the second half of the rectory fence will be stained.
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