Episcopal Church of St. John the Baptist

Who: Episcopal Church of St. John the Baptist

Where: 1000 Bethune Drive, Orlando 32805

Phone: 407-295-1923

Website: www.stjohnthebaptistepiscopalorlando.org

Services: 7:30 a.m., 10 a.m. Sunday

When founded: 1896

Members: 200

Demographic: predominately black, middle aged and older

Religious affiliation: Episcopalian

Rector: the Rev. Richard Meadows

Sermon snippet: “We have a short time to do a lot of things. I want to raise $5,000 before I go,” the Rev. Canon Nelson Pinder on his last day as interim rector.

Tidbit: Meadows took over June 1 from Pinder who first came to the church in 1952. Meadows is the 11^th priest to head the church in its 116 years.

I don’t know whether you’ve heard, but the man who is second in line to the throne of England got married at Westminster Abbey today.

In case you only got to see part of the ceremony or were mesmerized by the dress worn by the woman who is now the Duchess of Cambridge, take a look at the homily delivered by the Right Rev. Richard Chartres at today’s royal wedding:

Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” So said St Catherine of Siena whose festival day it is today. Marriage is intended to be a way in which man and woman help each other to become what God meant each one to be, their deepest and truest selves.

Many are full of fear for the future of the prospects of our world but the message of the celebrations in this country and far beyond its shores is the right one – this is a joyful day! It is good that people in every continent are able to share in these celebrations because this is, as every wedding day should be, a day of hope.

In a sense every wedding is a royal wedding with the bride and the groom as king and queen of creation, making a new life together so that life can flow through them into the future.

William and Catherine, you have chosen to be married in the sight of a generous God who so loved the world that he gave himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ.

And in the Spirit of this generous God, husband and wife are to give themselves to each another.

Reporter/blogger Cathleen Falsani has the rest of the text, here.

If you’re paying attention today, you may notice that quite a few of the people around you have what look to be smudges on their faces.

It’s not your imagination.

Today is Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the 40-day season of Lent for Catholics and other Christians.

Read more about Ash Wednesday here.

Beatrice, Mabel, John, Gladys, Polly

St. Luke’s Episcopal Cathedral in downtown Orlando honored its oldest members in a reception for Mabel Sturges on her 100th birthday. Sturges and the church’s other centenarians posed for a picture, along with John Newman, Mabel’s older friend. Together, their combined ages are 500 years.

From left to right is Beatrice Wilder (100), Mabel Sturges (100), John Newman (101), Gladys Munroe (99) and Polly Landgraf (100).

Mabel Sturges, Beatrice Wilder, Gladys Munroe

In a testimony to growing longevity and the aging of a congregation, St. Luke’s Cathedral in downtown Orlando will honor the 100th birthday of Mabel Sturges on Saturday. Sturgis joins two other members of the Episcopal church who have turned 100 –  Bea Wilder and Polly Landgraf — with 99-year-old Gladys Munroe not far behind.

“We have four ladies who together have 400 years. That’s rather amazing for a small church,” said Madison Gay, who is organizing Sturgis’ birthday event along with her daughter, Barbara Keene.

All four have been long-time members of St. Luke’s and regular attendants to the Sunday services that attract about 300 people on average. All have made significant contributions to the church, Gay said.

Bea Wilder, who turned 100 in October, was the cathedral librarian until she retired at age 99. A portrait of her hangs in the church library.

Gladys Munroe, who turned 99 on Feb. 2, sang in the choir until she was 90. She still attends church every Sunday.

Polly Landgraf, the oldest of the group, was a faithful parishioner until recently when she became confined to a wheelchair, Gay said.

Mabel Sturges, who was born 100 years ago on March 9, was in charge of organizing senior activities for the church and is credited for reviving the St. Elizabeth’s Guild, a service group of about 40 women who raise money for worthy causes, including a girl’s orphanage in Honduras. Several times a year, Mabel organizes “Mabel’s Table” — a bake sale held in the church by the Guild for the orphanage.

“Mabel is an absolute powerhouse at the cathedral,” Gay said. “She’s been involved in everything under the sun.”

Between 140 and 150 people have been invited to Mabel’s 100th birthday celebration from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 5, in the Great Hall of the cathedral. There will be refreshments and a slide show of Mabel’s life and activities in the church. The other ladies are expected to attend in what may be a once-in-a-lifetime reunion for the ages.

At the end of January, Episcopal Bishop John W. Howe announced his plans to retire as head of the Diocese of Central Florida in 2012. But three years ago, during the contentious debate within the church over the ordination of gay clergy, Howe was tempted to take an offer by a group of parishioners to take an early retirement.

Read the whole story here:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/os-bishop-howe-retires-profile-20110214,0,5064805.story

Orlando Diocese Episcopal Bishop John W. Howe announced at the end of January his intention to retire in 2012, setting in motion the selection of his successor. Howe has served as the 15-county Diocese’s bishop since 1990.

The standing committee of four lay people and four clergy will oversee the selection process. They have established the following timetable:

February — The standing committee selects committees for the Diocean Profile (which establishes the criteria for the new bishop’s selection) and Transition Process.

March — A survey will be discritubed to members of the Diocese of Central Florida asking them what they want in a new bishop in terms of gifts, skills and vision.

April — Deans and presidents hold forums to gather more information on what qualities the next bishop should possess.

May — From the surveys and forums, a “Profile” is created of the kind of bishop the people of the Diocese desire

June — The Profile and nomination instructions are sent to Episcopal Convention delegates who serve, in effect, as the Search and Nominating Committees.

July-August — Nominations are submitted.

September-October – Background screenings of nominees are completed and the names of nominees are submitted to the electing Convention.

Nov. 19 – Delegates to the Convention elect a new bishop.

April 21, 2012 – The new bishop is consecrated and Howe officially retires.

Bishop Noonan at St. George

In the 38 years that Father John Hamatie has presided over St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church, he has never had a Catholic bishop step inside his downtown Orlando church. In all his years as a Catholic priest, Orlando Bishop John Noonan has never been inside an Orthodox church.

Tuesday, Hamatie and Noonan came together, along with leaders from Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran, Episcopal, and nondenominational churches for a Christian Unity prayer service at St. George. The Orlando Catholic Diocese has been inviting Christian faith leaders to a unity service since 2008, but this was the first time it took place in a church outside the denomination.

“This happens in other communities. It hasn’t happened in Orlando before,” Hamatie said. “To me, them all coming to St. George’s is like all of us have come home.”

Hamatie and Noonan, whose churches are just blocks apart, shared hymns, blessings, prayers — and a sense of humor. Hamatie quipped that the crowd of 300 people was more than he usually sees on a Sunday. Noonan responded to Hamatie’s theory that barbarians invading Eurpose were responsible for the original split between the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox church.

“My ancestors were probably some of those barbarians that cause all this division and all these problems,” Noonan said. “Please forgive me.”

A free and open to the public, community-wide, recital of baroque bassoon music will be performed by James Massol and Sasha Gee Enegren, on Jan. 16 at 2 p.m., in the sanctuary of the Episcopal Church of the Ascension, 4950 S. Apopka Vineland Road, Orlando, 32819.

For more information, contact Church Administrator Melanie Ohrberg at 407-876-3480

Church of the Ascension,

In addition to the Top 10 religion stories for 2010 compiled by the Religion News Service, The Lutheran magazine has come up with a list of its own, including:

* The Presbyterian Church (USA) voted for the fourth time to allow openly gay clergy

* The Episcopal Diocese of Quincy, Ill., became the last to ordain a female priest since the 1976 decision by the denomination to allow women clergy

* Teen suicides and gay bullying spurred religious leaders to record “It Gets Better” videos

* Southern California televangelist Robert Schuller hands over his pulpit to his daughter Sheila Schuller Coleman after a bitter family dispute. Coleman files for bankruptcy in October with debts of $43 million

* Disgraced Colorado Springs pastor Ted Haggard starts a new church four years after a scandal involving drugs and a male prostitute

* Controversial pastor Jeremiah Wright alleges that President Barack Obama threw him under the bus during the 2008 campaign

* Social service agencies along the Gulf Coast struggled to provide relief to families and businesses affected by the BP oil spill.