News of St. Paul's
Kicking off the parade and supporting our Harvest Outreach Table
St. Paul's raised nearly $500 in free-will offerings on the morning of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Parade by distributing water, coffee, donuts, hotdogs and some early morning cheer. The money will support our H.O.T. lunch program -- the oldest continung ministry of St. Paul's. Thanks to all who contributed time, talent and treasure!
If you have news to share about any aspect of life at St. Paul's, please report it to Peggy at stpaulsoffice@att.net. Also, please have your announcements to the office by Monday noon for publishing in the Sunday bulletin.
Announcements
St. Paul’s Vestry meeting
The Vestry’s August meeting is Monday Aug. 15 at 6 p.m. While we’re meeting via Zoom, at least one member of the Vestry will be in the Guild Hall should anyone in the parish want to join the meeting. We welcome your suggestions for agenda items as well.
n turn supports our H.O.T. lunch program. We welcome you donation of food, time and enthusiasm for this annual event.
The annual convention and our next bishop
The 206th Annual Diocesan Convention will be Nov. 18-19 at the Cleveland Marriott Downtown at Key Tower. This is the annual gathering of representatives of 83 parishes in northern Ohio and is expected to include selection of the new bishop. Registration will be available in the early fall. If you would like to be a lay delegate, please let any member of the Vestry know. Delegates must be certified by Oct. 28.
The Vestry’s August meeting is Monday Aug. 15 at 6 p.m. While we’re meeting via Zoom, at least one member of the Vestry will be in the Guild Hall should anyone in the parish want to join the meeting. We welcome your suggestions for agenda items as well.
n turn supports our H.O.T. lunch program. We welcome you donation of food, time and enthusiasm for this annual event.
The annual convention and our next bishop
The 206th Annual Diocesan Convention will be Nov. 18-19 at the Cleveland Marriott Downtown at Key Tower. This is the annual gathering of representatives of 83 parishes in northern Ohio and is expected to include selection of the new bishop. Registration will be available in the early fall. If you would like to be a lay delegate, please let any member of the Vestry know. Delegates must be certified by Oct. 28.
St. Paul's June 2022 Newsletter
Growing the family
The Day of Pentecost was a celebration at St. Paul's on multiple fronts: Deacon Robin Woodberry joined Fr. Christopher Hofer for her first service at St. Paul's; Baylor Monroe Wade was welcomed with Holy Baptism; Vicki and Larry Simpkins celebrated a wedding anniversary, a strawberry festival coffee hour honored the memory of Deb Shamlin and a cello recital capped off the afternoon. David Rotthoff captured these images of the day.
St. Paul's celebrates the newest deacons in the Diocese of Ohio
Bishop Mark Hollingsworth ordained five new transitional deacons at Trinity Cathedral on May 28. Two have special ties to St. Pauls. Dr. Robin Woodberry (second from left among deacons) is to officially become our deacon-in-charge on July1. Standing next to her is Maureen M. (Wood) Major, whom St. Paul's sponsored in her candidacy. Also newly ordained are Leah L. Romanelli DeJesus, Albert Muller and Lonny Gatlin. Fr. Jon Coventry, who began his own trip to the priesthood at St. Paul's and is now priest-in-charge of Trinity in Alliance, offered one of the lessons. And nearly two dozen members of St. Paul's celebrated the day.
Celebrating the life of ‘a good shepherd’
The Rev. Dr. Erwin M. Smuda
Jan. 28, 1936-May 24, 2020
At Saturday’s (June 18) memorial service for the Rev. Dr. Erwin M. Smuda, Bishop Mark Hollingsworth remembered Fr. Erv as a good shepherd, one who served Episcopal and Lutheran churches over a half a century with humility and without pretention, someone who was accessible, patient, constant and calm.
“Like The Good Shepherd, Erv knew his sheep and his sheep knew him,” said Bishop Hollingsworth. And the parishes to which he was called “inevitably followed him to a healthier place.”
Jan. 28, 1936-May 24, 2020
At Saturday’s (June 18) memorial service for the Rev. Dr. Erwin M. Smuda, Bishop Mark Hollingsworth remembered Fr. Erv as a good shepherd, one who served Episcopal and Lutheran churches over a half a century with humility and without pretention, someone who was accessible, patient, constant and calm.
“Like The Good Shepherd, Erv knew his sheep and his sheep knew him,” said Bishop Hollingsworth. And the parishes to which he was called “inevitably followed him to a healthier place.”
Fr. Erv served churches in his native Minnesota and in Ohio. And after retiring from more than 30 years of full-time ministry, he took on the role of interim at 10 churches, easing them through times of transition. Among them were three Episcopal churches in Stark County: St. Paul’s, St. Mark’s and St. Tim’s.
Fr. George Baum, now the rector of St. Tim’s, likened Fr. Erv to John the Baptist, “preparing the way and making the path straight.” Fr. Erv brought “stability, stasis and essentially middle ground” to the churches he served, and “I’m forever grateful … for his making the rough roads smoother.”
Fr. Erv was serving as interim at St. Paul’s when he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease, Bishop Hollingsworh noted, robbing him of the voice “to which so many turned for confidence and stability.” He died two years later, in 2020, at age 84.
Born the youngest of five in Minnesota, Fr. Erv and was a teacher, youth advisor and director of education before earning his master’s of divinity degree at Concordia Seminary. He served Lutheran churches in Wyoming, Minn., and in Middleburg Heights before coming to Canton as senior pastor of Zion Lutheran Church. He earned his doctor of ministry at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago and became president of the Canton Association of Churches.
Erv’s survivors include his wife, Jan, son Jonathan and daughter Rachael.
Assisting Bishop Hollingsworth in Saturday’s service were both Episcopal and Lutheran clergy, including retired Lutheran Bishop Abraham Allende. Bishop Hollingsworth called the gathering “two branches of the Jesus movement … the best of who we are as a church.”
Fr. Erv’s ashes were inurned in the Columbarium at St. Paul’s with this prayer:
“May his soul, and the souls of all the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.”
Click here for a link to the memorial service for Fr. Erv.
Fr. George Baum, now the rector of St. Tim’s, likened Fr. Erv to John the Baptist, “preparing the way and making the path straight.” Fr. Erv brought “stability, stasis and essentially middle ground” to the churches he served, and “I’m forever grateful … for his making the rough roads smoother.”
Fr. Erv was serving as interim at St. Paul’s when he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease, Bishop Hollingsworh noted, robbing him of the voice “to which so many turned for confidence and stability.” He died two years later, in 2020, at age 84.
Born the youngest of five in Minnesota, Fr. Erv and was a teacher, youth advisor and director of education before earning his master’s of divinity degree at Concordia Seminary. He served Lutheran churches in Wyoming, Minn., and in Middleburg Heights before coming to Canton as senior pastor of Zion Lutheran Church. He earned his doctor of ministry at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago and became president of the Canton Association of Churches.
Erv’s survivors include his wife, Jan, son Jonathan and daughter Rachael.
Assisting Bishop Hollingsworth in Saturday’s service were both Episcopal and Lutheran clergy, including retired Lutheran Bishop Abraham Allende. Bishop Hollingsworth called the gathering “two branches of the Jesus movement … the best of who we are as a church.”
Fr. Erv’s ashes were inurned in the Columbarium at St. Paul’s with this prayer:
“May his soul, and the souls of all the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.”
Click here for a link to the memorial service for Fr. Erv.
St. Paul's says farewell to The Colonel
To view today's service for Pete, click on this link
E. Peter Taflan
Nov. 24, 1921 – Dec. 25, 2021
The sanctuary of St. Paul's filled with the mournful sound of Taps today, May 15, as we said goodbye to the last member of our congregation to have served in World War II.
The inurnment service for Pete Taflan followed our Holy Eucharist service and remains available on our Facebook page.
Pete was the patriarch of St. Paul’s, devoting himself to our church over some seven decades. He was junior warden and treasurer emeritus, a member of the long-range planning and 150th anniversary committees. He served on the altar and as Mister Fix-It around the building, was often involved with youth activities and rarely missed a social or educational event at the church.
As importantly, his steady presence (seated with wife, Lennie, in the back row each Sunday) served as a reminder of the power of the church to nourish, sooth, challenge and serve God. He invited others to know St. Paul’s and its “sense of peace … as well as the architecture and atmosphere, the Book of Common Prayer.”
A veteran of World War II and the Korean War, Pete retired from the military with the rank of lieutenant colonel, and many at St. Paul’s still affectionately called him “The Colonel.”
He and Lennie, who died in 2018, first came to St. Paul’s in 1953. He became a sales executive at Dyneer Corp; she was a nurse. And like many young couples, they anchored their life to their faith. St. Paul’s, he recalled a few years ago, was “right in the middle of everything” with multiple choirs, a basketball team (his personal favorite), scout troops and plays. “We thrived in pretty much every respect.”
Then, and in the decades to come, Pete did his all to ensure St. Paul’s continued to thrive.
Pete died Christmas Day, a month after his 100th birthday, while visiting son Peter in North Carolina. He is also survived by daughter, Deborah Findlay. His cremains will rest in the St. Paul’s Columbarium next to those of Lennie.
E. Peter Taflan
Nov. 24, 1921 – Dec. 25, 2021
The sanctuary of St. Paul's filled with the mournful sound of Taps today, May 15, as we said goodbye to the last member of our congregation to have served in World War II.
The inurnment service for Pete Taflan followed our Holy Eucharist service and remains available on our Facebook page.
Pete was the patriarch of St. Paul’s, devoting himself to our church over some seven decades. He was junior warden and treasurer emeritus, a member of the long-range planning and 150th anniversary committees. He served on the altar and as Mister Fix-It around the building, was often involved with youth activities and rarely missed a social or educational event at the church.
As importantly, his steady presence (seated with wife, Lennie, in the back row each Sunday) served as a reminder of the power of the church to nourish, sooth, challenge and serve God. He invited others to know St. Paul’s and its “sense of peace … as well as the architecture and atmosphere, the Book of Common Prayer.”
A veteran of World War II and the Korean War, Pete retired from the military with the rank of lieutenant colonel, and many at St. Paul’s still affectionately called him “The Colonel.”
He and Lennie, who died in 2018, first came to St. Paul’s in 1953. He became a sales executive at Dyneer Corp; she was a nurse. And like many young couples, they anchored their life to their faith. St. Paul’s, he recalled a few years ago, was “right in the middle of everything” with multiple choirs, a basketball team (his personal favorite), scout troops and plays. “We thrived in pretty much every respect.”
Then, and in the decades to come, Pete did his all to ensure St. Paul’s continued to thrive.
Pete died Christmas Day, a month after his 100th birthday, while visiting son Peter in North Carolina. He is also survived by daughter, Deborah Findlay. His cremains will rest in the St. Paul’s Columbarium next to those of Lennie.
Fr. Phil: The dictionary definition and more
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 Marilyn Dickinson was among those wishing Fr. Phil's blessings at a luncheon following his final service Sunday.
In his final service at St. Paul’s, Fr. Phil reiterated his call for strength in mission and the fight for justice -- and thanked the people of St. Paul’s for our four years together.
In the luncheon that followed, the people of St. Paul’s and other friends of the parish thanked Fr. Phil for going far beyond the dictionary definition of a supply priest. Barb Anderson said Fr. Phil’s presence energized a range of efforts, from spiritual development to rejuvenating parish organizations such as the Lazarus Society; from helping to lead the antiracist work of Courageous Conversations to supporting Altar Guild in a way she hasn’t seen over her nearly four decades helping to lead that mission. Sadly, she noted “too many of us learned of Fr. Phil’s pastoral gifts” as well, as he supported parishioners through the loss of loved ones. Even in the worst days of Covid, she said, “Fr. Phil has done far, far more than fill the pulpit on Sunday mornings” -- though he did a good job of that as well. “May the road leading you away from St. Paul’s be paved with blessings,” Barb said, “… as you have blessed us.” David Lewis, the Vestry member who worked most closely with Fr. Phil over his three years as senior warden, thanked him for his guidance and presented him with a new Webster’s dictionary – making it clear the parish was listening to the homework assignments Fr. Phil often worked into his sermons. In his response, Fr. Phil said it was an honor to have served on the leadership team of St. Paul’s and marveled at the organic and spiritual growth of Courageous Conversations. He credited the late Deb Shamlin as “the midwife and instigator in a positive way,” enlisting St. Paul’s in the fight against the corrosion of racism. He thanked our partners, Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church and StarkFresh, and urged the parish to continue “fervently praying for the Holy Spirit” to guide the effort. As he turned to Mt. Olive Pastor Eric Howard, he thanked “a treasured friend and colleague.” In the final prayer, Pastor Howard thanked God “for the witness of Fr. Phil” and asked God to “Bless and Keep us all now, as only you can.” Scroll down for a slideshow of Fr. Phil's farewell |
'Driving While Black:' The road to freedom with reminders of its fragility
The images author Gretchen Sorin shared during her meeting with St. Paul's Social Justice Book Group Thursday (April 28) were alternately uplifting and horrifying.
There was Chuck Berry, leaning on his sleek 1973 Eldorado, crowded Black-owned hotels and restaurants, a black family packing the car for a vacation.
Then there were the pictures that warned those families to stay out of "sundown towns" after dark -- and scores of other visual assaults those families found along the road: medallions celebrating the KKK, signs segregating bathrooms, marketing pitches using racial slurs to sell chicken.
Sorin, the historian and author of “Driving While Black,” joined the book group through its partner StarkFresh and the wider community in a virtual appearance at the McKinley Presidential Library Thursday night. The book has inspired a PBS documentary that can be viewed free through the following link: https://www.pbs.org/video/driving-while-black-race-space-and-mobility-in-america-achvfr/
Both the book and film examine how the car transformed African-American life and in doing so, says MIT history Professor Craig Steven wilder, “puts African-American history in motion.”
Black Americans faced restrictions on where they could own homes, work and travel -- down to where they could sit on buses and trains. But the car allowed them relative freedom, including escape from the Jim Crow South.
Or, as writer Herb Boyd says in the film, it “entails so much more than the simply driving while Black. It's living while Black. It's sleeping while Black. It’s eating while Black. It’s moving while Black. So, when we start talking about the restrictions placed on Black movement in this country, that's a long history. That goes all the way back to day one.”
Sorin told PBS she recognizes that the car has a universal appeal in America.
“I think this story resonates tremendously with Americans, both Black and white, because everyone understands and remembers driving or riding in an automobile, and many people have the experience of going on an annual family vacation.
“But while these vacations may be fairly universal American experiences, Black and white travelers went down parallel roads, and the experience for Black drivers on the road is something unknown to most white Americans.
“For African Americans, travel by automobile during the 20th century posed a paradox: although cars freed them from the tyranny of the Jim Crow bus or train, they faced intimidation and even violence when they ventured out on the road.”
The centerpiece of Sorin's book is Victor and Alma Green's "Green Book," which began helping middle-class Black families navigate their vacations in segregated America in 1936. Similar guides helped led the way through communities throughout America.
Sorin told the Book Club she recognizes a historical irony in her book. The vehicle that gave African-Americans relative freedom also led to the construction of what destroyed many Black neighborhoods: The interstate highways. They sliced through Canton's southeast, Akron's northwest and thriving neighborhoods throughout the country (and she said they may be the subject of her next book).
But ultimately, says MIT history Professor Craig Steven Wilder, "Driving While Black" is an uplifting story.
"Gretchen Sorin takes us on a powerful intellectual and emotional journey that reaches from side streets to interstates and reveals how black families and communities embraced technology to claim their rights and control their destinies."
There was Chuck Berry, leaning on his sleek 1973 Eldorado, crowded Black-owned hotels and restaurants, a black family packing the car for a vacation.
Then there were the pictures that warned those families to stay out of "sundown towns" after dark -- and scores of other visual assaults those families found along the road: medallions celebrating the KKK, signs segregating bathrooms, marketing pitches using racial slurs to sell chicken.
Sorin, the historian and author of “Driving While Black,” joined the book group through its partner StarkFresh and the wider community in a virtual appearance at the McKinley Presidential Library Thursday night. The book has inspired a PBS documentary that can be viewed free through the following link: https://www.pbs.org/video/driving-while-black-race-space-and-mobility-in-america-achvfr/
Both the book and film examine how the car transformed African-American life and in doing so, says MIT history Professor Craig Steven wilder, “puts African-American history in motion.”
Black Americans faced restrictions on where they could own homes, work and travel -- down to where they could sit on buses and trains. But the car allowed them relative freedom, including escape from the Jim Crow South.
Or, as writer Herb Boyd says in the film, it “entails so much more than the simply driving while Black. It's living while Black. It's sleeping while Black. It’s eating while Black. It’s moving while Black. So, when we start talking about the restrictions placed on Black movement in this country, that's a long history. That goes all the way back to day one.”
Sorin told PBS she recognizes that the car has a universal appeal in America.
“I think this story resonates tremendously with Americans, both Black and white, because everyone understands and remembers driving or riding in an automobile, and many people have the experience of going on an annual family vacation.
“But while these vacations may be fairly universal American experiences, Black and white travelers went down parallel roads, and the experience for Black drivers on the road is something unknown to most white Americans.
“For African Americans, travel by automobile during the 20th century posed a paradox: although cars freed them from the tyranny of the Jim Crow bus or train, they faced intimidation and even violence when they ventured out on the road.”
The centerpiece of Sorin's book is Victor and Alma Green's "Green Book," which began helping middle-class Black families navigate their vacations in segregated America in 1936. Similar guides helped led the way through communities throughout America.
Sorin told the Book Club she recognizes a historical irony in her book. The vehicle that gave African-Americans relative freedom also led to the construction of what destroyed many Black neighborhoods: The interstate highways. They sliced through Canton's southeast, Akron's northwest and thriving neighborhoods throughout the country (and she said they may be the subject of her next book).
But ultimately, says MIT history Professor Craig Steven Wilder, "Driving While Black" is an uplifting story.
"Gretchen Sorin takes us on a powerful intellectual and emotional journey that reaches from side streets to interstates and reveals how black families and communities embraced technology to claim their rights and control their destinies."
Alleluia! Christ is risen.
Christ is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Christ is risen indeed. Alleluia!
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Bidding farewell to Fr. Phil
Bishop Hollingworth on the Russian invasion of Ukraine
February 24, 2022
Dear colleagues and friends, The news reports emanating from Ukraine bring directly into our homes and hearts the terrifying reality of war. With it come emotions that including anger, fear, and helplessness. We feel these both for ourselves and for all those more immediately in harm’s way. It seems unimaginable that, as an advanced civilization, we are unable to find ways to move toward peaceable resolutions that, in the words of our baptismal covenant, “respect the dignity of every human being” and protect the vulnerable and undefended. It is hard to accept that destruction and death constitute an acceptable way to find stability and security. We may be thousands of miles from where the missiles are launched and the bombs land, but we are all complicit. In continually succumbing to a we/they construct in addressing our local, national, and global differences, we are inevitably led to polarization and destructive results. I offer this not in judgment, but in confession. It remains our common human condition. As disciples of the one who said, “Peace I give to you, my own peace I leave with you,” we turn to him now for guidance and help. We hold before him our human brokenness that keeps leading us into dehumanizing behavior, and we offer our broken selves back to the God who has given us this life to share. Our prayer for the victims of this attack on Ukraine and our prayer for those who have initiated it must be accompanied by our prayer for ourselves, that we will give ourselves to peace. Such willing self-sacrifice is at the heart of all intercession. Indeed, God can do anything, but always demands our participation. The answers Jesus gives to our prayers at this moment will doubtless cost us. They will require us to pick up the peace he has given us, his own peace, and make the same sacrifice of ourselves that he made for us. They will require us to hear what God needs of us to incarnate the peace of Christ in our own lives and be willing to pay the price. Let us, therefore, pray for peace; for the safety and comfort of all victims in this time of fear and devastation; for those in leadership and those carrying out their orders; and for ourselves, that we will give all that we are to the peaceful resolution of all conflict: Almighty God, kindle, we pray, in every heart the true love of peace, and guide with your wisdom those who take counsel for the nations of the earth, that in tranquillity your dominion may increase until the earth is filled with the knowledge of your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer, p. 258) Know that you are in my prayers, The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Jr. Bishop of Ohio Update from the Diocese of Ohio on the Bishop Search
(Please see our Home page for the latest on the Bishop search.)
Update, May 9, 2022: The committee charged with the search for a new bishop for the Diocese of Ohio plans to complete its first-round interviews later this month and will meet in August for extended interviews with the top candidates. The Search Committee will submit names of finalists to the Diocesan Convention in the fall for a vote. March 23, 2022 Dear Friends and Colleagues, On behalf of the Bishop Search Committee, I write to update you on the progress of our work. We are happy to report that more candidates responded to our position profile than we had expected based on similar searches in other dioceses. Candidates specifically cited the position profile as having helped inspire them to respond to our call. We feel blessed to have a strong group of candidates! Based on the feedback we gleaned from nearly two dozen listening sessions with members of our diocese, we are assessing the candidates’ application materials and preparing questions for the two rounds of interviews we will conduct before we recommend a group of finalists for your consideration. Representatives from every parish will ultimately choose our next bishop at the diocesan convention next autumn. We hope you will please consider representing your parish at that important gathering. We are grateful to those of you who participated in our listening sessions or shared your thoughts and questions with us individually. One of the concerns we heard focused on the search process itself: some had hoped the listening sessions would be held before the position profile was posted. We understand this concern; there are advantages and disadvantages to the process we followed. One of the advantages was that posting the profile sooner afforded more time to recruit candidates and assess them, which bore fruit in this case. Even so, a disadvantage is that some members of the diocese initially felt less included in the search. Please know that we are working hard to make sure your priorities for the next bishop are incorporated fully in this search process. The position profile was not the final word on our next bishop – far from it – but was merely a call to those who might be interested. The profile gave some initial shape to the applications, but as the process unfolds, we continue to adjust that shape in response to your input, getting more fine-tuned at every stage. The listening sessions have already informed the application materials: questions drawn from your ideas were used as the basis for short essays from each candidate. Those questions elicited important feedback from our candidates about key challenges for our diocese, including racial justice and the need to find creative ways to support and include smaller parishes outside of our more densely populated metro areas—especially parishes that are struggling. Looking ahead, your feedback continues to serve as one of our most important guides as we prepare for two upcoming rounds of interviews. We will be asking the candidates about many topics you’ve raised with us, including the importance of deacons, the bishop’s role as pastor to clergy, and the development of Bellwether Farm as an asset for all. We have a lot of work to do before we’ll be ready to recommend to you a group of finalists for your consideration. Throughout this process, we appreciate your support, encouragement, and participation! Halley Marsh, Chair Three changes in St. Paul's Covid guidelines
UPDATE: The Vestry voted at its meeting on April 25th to further adapt our Covid protocols. The newest protocols are incorporated below.
At its April 25 meeting, Vestry made three major changes to our Covid protocols:
To quote Dr. Ashish K. Jha, the dean of Brown University's School of Public Health and new White House Covid-19 response coordinator: "... Think of this like the weather. When it is bucketing rain -- umbrella, rain coat, boots, are all essential. When the storm turns into a drizzle, those become less critical." Here are our protocols, effective April 25, 2022 Overall guidance: Any person who is feeling ill, i.e. sneezing, coughing, body aches, fever or other symptoms of Covid, please do not attend services or other activities in St. Paul’s. We care about your health and that of the entire congregation. Masks: Per CDC guidelines, masks are optional inside all parts of St. Paul’s. Vestry will continue to monitor the weekly community positivity rate and will revisit the masking policy if the level reaches 5 percent. Choir-specific masking policies: Choir members will have the option to be unmasked per CDC recommendations, but the music director will monitor weekly Covid statistics; if the positivity rate jumps above 5 percent, he will re-institute a masking policy. Outbreaks of other illnesses will also be considered grounds to reinstitute masking; cold and flu numbers are expected to soar as people begin to unmask. Congregational social distancing: Congregants are asked to space themselves safely. Pew materials: The Book of Common Prayer, Hymnal, Lift Every Voice and Sing and pew cards are returned to the pews. Sanitizing: The sexton will continue all sanitizing protocols, including those of the communal spaces of the church before each service. The use of Microban has been discontinued. Contact tracing will continue for each activity within St. Paul’s. Temperature taking will be discontinued. Communion: St. Paul's will continue to offer the body (consecrated bread), and Vestry endorses the reintroduction of the second kind of communion, the blood (consecrated wine), in consultation with the celebrant. Coffee hour and other social events will continue in the Guild Hall with appropriate social distancing. Masks are optional. Windows will be open whenever weather permits. Barbara Nowlin:
A beloved and loving optimist Barbara Vaughan (nee McCoy) Nowlin
Feb. 18, 1942-Feb. 12, 2022 
March 3, 2022
At her funeral Thursday at St. Paul’s, Jeffrey Nowlin remembered his wife, Barbara, wearing many hats: A violinist, a world traveler, an excellent golfer – even the “Duck Lady of Edgewood.” He remembered what Barbara was wearing nearly 53 years ago, when he first met “the most beautiful girl I ever laid eyes on,” and how she responded when he offered to pull her golf cart (“she was perfectly capable of doing it herself”). He remembered their trip in a convertible in a rainstorm heading to the Florida Keys – sheltered by nothing more than a golf umbrella; her laugh when he flooded a laundromat; her determined protection of a mother duck and her ducklings. “But most of all,” he remembered, “she loved her family” -- sons Michael and David and daughter Kathleen, and grandchildren Madeline, Alex, Jenna, Lindsey, Elaine Grace, Ava Grace and twins Everly and Harper. And, he said, she loved St. Paul’s. Barbara was born in Duluth, Minn., on Feb. 18, 1942, and her mother, Ruthann McCoy, died when she was 3. Her father remarried and Wirth and Dorothy McCoy included an early education in Paris and a focus on music in Barbara’s upbringing. She graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a bachelor of arts in applied music, the first to receive that degree from Penn State as a violinist. She continued her graduate music studies in Philadelphia, but opted instead to become a banking loan officer, a profession she continued when she and Jeffrey settled in Canton after stops in Atlanta, Chicago and Minneapolis. They were married for 52 years; 21 years ago, Barbara was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. But as Jeff, Fr. Phil+ and many of her friends at St. Paul’s noted, she remained an optimist. Hers was a “richly blessed life,” Fr. Phil+ said, and Barbara was a “gift that God gave to us.” “Death is not the last word,” Fr. Phil+ reminded those gathered for her funeral. “The last word is resurrection.” The family has asked that memorial donations in Barbara’s name be made to the Organ Fund of St. Paul's Episcopal Church, PO Box 21333, Canton, OH 44701-1333. Breaking (H.O.T.) bread together again
In February 2020, we finished our monthly H.O.T. lunch fully expecting to do it again four weeks later -- just as we have every third Saturday of the month for nearly six decades. No way did we anticipate the tsunami of Covid and the disruptive impact it would have on our church life and the lives of our families, friends, neighbors and community.
Today, we resumed H.O.T. in the Guild Hall for the first time in two years and were so happy to see familiar faces among the three-dozen Canton neighbors who joined us. Thanks to Carol Sutek and the extended Sutek clan, Cara Warren, Susan Phillips, David Lewis and others for putting on the spread of Salisbury steak, chili, potatoes, green beans, salad, cookies and, of course, ice cream. And welcome home to St. Paul's, old friends and new!! Fr. Phil at Mt. Olive: On voting rights
and living the legacy of Dr. King Feb. 1, 2022
In a message focusing on ways the voting rights struggle led by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is relevant today, Fr. Phil called on all the people of God to continue to stand and speak together “louder and more relentless than the evil that is upon us.” Fr. Phil was guest preacher Tuesday at Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church, our partner in St. Paul’s Courageous Conversations anti-racist efforts. He had originally been invited for the Martin Luther King Day service – a plan temporarily derailed by a major winter storm. But Fr. Phil noted that Tuesday marked yet another of the many significant days in the civil rights struggle. On Feb. 1, 1965, King wrote from a jail in Selma, Ala., after he and 250 activists had been arrested as they marched to the courthouse to register to vote. With only 1 to 2 percent of the African American people in Selma being registered, King’s letter observed, "There are more Negroes in jail with me than there are on the voting rolls." “American history is not comfortable,” Fr. Phil noted. But understanding that and changing the course for the future is part of God’s call to Christians, and he said a large part of changing our course lies with access to the ballot box. Quoting Dr. King’s speech from May 1957, Fr. Phil read: “So long as I do not firmly and irrevocably possess the right to vote, I do not possess myself. I cannot make up my mind -- it is made up for me. I cannot live as a democratic citizen, observing the laws I have helped to enact. I can only submit to the edict of others.” Taking part in the ongoing voting rights struggle, he said, is a way to honor King’s “lifelong passion and commitment.” Fr. Phil called on those concerned about voting rights to weigh in with their elected representatives on everything from the Senate filibuster to the gerrymandering of state legislative and congressional maps. St. Paul’s, Mt. Olive and StarkFresh first came together three years ago to begin a conversation about race, with as many as a hundred people gathered over time for dinner in the church hall. The meal wasn’t incidental, Fr. Phil said. “Where there’s food, there’s fellowship” and a chance to “get to know each other as human beings.” Mt. Olive Pastor Eric Howard preached the Martin Luther King Day message at St. Paul’s in 2020. In introducing Fr. Phil Tuesday at Mt. Olive, Pastor Howard said, “He has become my friend and my brother over these past few years,” and through the relationship between the two churches – one a predominantly White Episcopal church and the other a predominantly Black Baptist church – “we have been able to peaceably and diplomatically have some very transparent and forthcoming discourses and … a lot of maturity a lot of illumination has come to the forefront.” To hear Fr. Phil's complete message, click HERE. Our choir is back, and Music Director Grimes invites you to join!
It is with enthusiasm and joy that we announce the restarting of choir at St. Paul's! I have been able to reach out to most previous choir members. If I have not reached out to you yet, please expect an outreach from me soon. This is also an opportunity for those who have not previously sung in choir at St. Paul's to prayerfully consider taking part in this important (and extremely fun) ministry at St. Paul's. There is no audition process and participation in this ministry requires no formal training or experience. It does require a love of singing and a willingness to learn. Everyone is welcome, without exception. There will be an organizational meeting and a bit of singing on March 17th, 7:30 p.m. in the chancel at St. Paul's.
If you are interested please contact me with any questions or concerns by phone: 330-968-7487 or email: etgrimes71@gmail.com. The Cleveland Chamber Choir's premier of Cecilia McDowall's newest work
St. Paul’s Music Director Edward T. Grimes was among the Cleveland Chamber Choir voices this past weekend celebrating the music of award-winning composer Cecilia McDowall. The free public concerts included the world premiere of McDowall’s newest composition, “On the Air (Dear Vaccine)”.
McDowall was the 2014 winner of the choral category of the British Composer Awards and her music has been performed worldwide, including by the BBC Singers, the National Children’s Choir of Great Britain and the Kansas City Chorale. The Saturday and Sunday concerts featured other compositions by McDowall and works by Britten, Tallis and Stravinsky and the composer participated in a pre-concert talk about her inspirations and compositions. Edward is a tenor with the 32-member Cleveland Chamber Choir, which debuted in 2015. For the weekend concerts, the choir was accompanied by choruses from Kent State, Cleveland State, Youngstown State and Case Western Reserve universities. As with all the choir concerts, a free-will offereing was collected with a portion going to community charities. The performances are also available on the choir's YouTube and Facebook pages. For more information, go to clevelandchamberchoir@gmail.com St. Paul’s selects its new leadership team
Update: At its organizational meeting Feb. 5, Vestry selected officers for 2022:
The annual congregational meeting via Zoom on Jan. 23 elected the new Vestry for 2022, giving the parish a lay-leadership team combining fresh perspectives with long institutional knowledge. Unanimously elected to new three-year terms are Demetrius Carrothers and Cara Warren, who have quickly embraced the parish and the difference it can make in Canton. We profiled both in the October newsletter, which you can find at the bottom of this page. The congregational meeting also waived a limit for this year only on the number of terms Vestry members Carol Sutek and M.L. Schultze can serve. Each will serve one additional year. (Senior Warden David Lewis consulted the Diocese regarding the policy). In alphabetical order, here’s the list of Vestry members for 2022. Demetrius Carrothers Douglas Colmery David Lewis Valerie Frear Stephen Johnson Richard Oloya M.L. Schultze Carol Sutek Cara Warren 
Parish milestones
Newly ordained Fr. Jon Congratulations to John Coventry who, culminating a journey that began at St. Paul’s, was ordained an Episcopal priest on Jan. 19. Jon became Trinity Alliance deacon-in charge last year and is now the priest-in-charge of the parish across the street from University of Mt. Union. He will continue his decades of work as a drug and alcohol counselor as well. Jon began exploring the priesthood while he was a member of St. Paul’s, where he served on the Vestry, and the parish has supported his journey as he attended Bexley Hall seminary in the midst of the pandemic. Among those from St. Paul’s helping to celebrate his ordination was Maureen Wood, who also began her journey toward the priesthood at St. Paul’s. In comments during the ordination, Bishop Mark Hollingsworth welcomed Jon, noted his route to the priesthood was a circuitous one, and predicted a new journey that’s only just beginning. Pete Taflan passes on Christmas Day Just a month after turning 100, Pete Taflan died while staying with his son in North Carolina. “Pete has enriched St. Paul's immeasurably,” said Senior Warden David Lewis. “He was involved in nearly every aspect of St. Paul's. Fr. Phil asked if he could be considered a patriarch of St. Paul's. Absolutely. He will be missed greatly.” Pete served St. Paul’s for seven decades. He did it in formal roles, such as junior warden, and in recent years, he was treasurer emeritus and a member of the long-range planning and 150th anniversary committees. But he also was someone who was nourished by the church and invited others to experience “the sense of peace … as well as the architecture and atmosphere, the Book of Common Prayer.” A veteran of World War II and the Korean War, Pete retired from the military with the rank of lieutenant colonel, and many at St. Paul’s still affectionately called him “The Colonel.” He and his wife, Lennie, who died in 2018, first came to St. Paul’s in 1953, and they raised their daughter, Deborah (Findlay), and son, Peter, in the church. 
From our archives: A celebration of Pete
If you’ve heard that Pete knew Philander Chase personally, somebody’s kidding with you. But Pete did turn 100 on Wednesday, November 24th!!! And even if he can’t tell you much about the founder of the Episcopal Church in Ohio, he may regale you about his nearly 70 years at St. Paul’s. During that time, Pete has been part of just about every social, community and organizational facet of St. Paul’s life. He has served on the altar. He has served as Mister Fix-It around the building while junior warden. He was often involved with youth activities. And rare is the social event he’s missed in all these years. When money has been an issue – namely, the scarcity of it – it has been Pete to the rescue. So prized has been his understanding of dollars and cents that when he hinted at retirement a few years ago, the vestry bestowed on him the title of treasurer emeritus (and financial adviser emeritus and everything emeritus) just to make sure he’d not be too far away when money matters nagged again. Indeed, he remains loyally tethered to church life as a member of the church’s long-range planning committee, while also helping out as a member of the 150th anniversary planning committee. Sunday, you’ll find Pete in his customary spot in the back pew, where he and wife Lennie so often worshipped. Lennie passed away on Jan. 27, 2018, but daughter Deborah joins her dad on many Sundays. (Son Peter lives in North Carolina.) Pete and Lennie arrived at St. Paul’s in 1953. He was a veteran of WWII and Korea and retired from the service at the rank of lieutenant colonel, the reason people today still call him “The colonel.” He landed a job as a sales executive at Dyneer Corp. She was a nurse. Like many young couples, they anchored their life to their faith, and that meant many church-related functions. Adults enjoyed each other’s company at dances and dinners and bowling. Kids had baseball and basketball, choir and scouting. The church even had its own theater program. “We were right in the middle of everything,” Pete said in our newsletter not long ago. “We were really the epitome of the area. Everybody knew St. Paul’s. And the activities within the church—we had everything. An adult choir, boys’ choir, girls’ choir, a basketball team (which was one of Pete’s personal favorites). We had a Boy Scout troop. We put on plays. We thrived in pretty much every respect.” But what really attracted him to St. Paul’s “was the sense of peace … as well as the architecture and atmosphere, the Book of Common Prayer.” As the suburbs beckoned in the mid-to-late 1950s, many church members followed. City populations declined as young couples could find affordable housing in the townships. As inner cities hollowed out, churches struggled financially and saw fewer worshipers in the pews. Churches like St. Paul’s worked hard to redefine themselves but have had trouble keeping up with the changes required by an increasingly secular society. This church has been retro-fitted many times to meet community needs: after-school children’s programs, food pantry and Meals-on-Wheels, an in-house clothes store, support to substance abuse programs, community music performances, not mention Thanksgiving Baskets. Not long ago, Pete offered his theory: “I think it’s an ‘I know’ mentality.” he said. “I know everything, so there’s no need to look anywhere else for answers.” For Pete, the most compelling answers have often been found right here at St. Paul’s. The search for Bishop Hollingsworth's successor
The Bishop Search Committee recently interviewed two bishops to discuss The Role of a Bishop. The Bishops’ interviewed are the Rt. Rev. Jennifer Lynn Baskerville-Burrows and the Rt. Rev. Sean Rowe. We hope you find these interviews of value as we, as a Diocese, search, discern and elect our next Bishop. The link to the interviews are available.
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St. Paul's welcomes
Fr. Christopher+ 
Fr. Christopher Hofer+ celebrated his first Holy Eucharist service with St. Paul's on Sunday, May 8.
Fr. Christopher lives in Cuyahoga Falls and earned his bachelor’s degree at Walsh University and master’s from Kent State, before being awarded his master’s of divinity from The General Theological Seminary. His ministry has included Episcopal West Side Shared Ministry and serving as rector of The Church of St. Jude in New York. Please welcome him to the St. Paul’s family! Trying to sort the information wheat from the chaff?
The League of Women Voters is offering a free workshop on Saturday May 7 titled: "Pop the Disinformation Bubble."
The workshop from 10-11:30 a.m. at the main branch of the Stark County District Library offers practical advice for anyone trying to figure out how to distinguish lies from facts in all kinds of media. The program is being done in association with Building Bridges for America which, like the League, is a nationwide all-volunteer organization that shares "the goal of building a just and equitable democracy." The workshop is both in-person in the second-floor meeting room of the library at 715 Market Ave. North, in downtown Canton (handicapped accessible) or via Zoom. Those wanting to participate virtually should go to www.cantonlwv.org for a Zoom link. Featured in the workshop will be Caz Margenau, a leader with Building Bridges who will help people "learn to identify disinformation, understand how and why people believe lies, and how empathy can be used to help us differentiate between truth and fiction. The goal of Building Bridges for America is “delivering racial equity, bridging rural and urban communities, reforming democracy, and creating a sense of belonging.” See and hear: Witness to Wartime
The Canton Museum of Art is opening an exhibition this week titled "Witness to Wartime: The Painted Diary of Takuichi Fujii.”
Fujii was 50 when the war between the United States and Japan began and was one of 100,000 Japanese Americans forced into incarceration camps during World War II. In the camps, he kept a diary with hundreds of ink illustrations and later created more than 130 watercolors. s part of the exhibition, Karen Jiobu will share her personal story of being an internee this afternoon at 2 at the Cable Recital Hall at the Cultural Center. 
St. Paul's 2022: What will it take?
 M.L. Schultze, Sr. Warden
In some ways, 2022 is a reset year. We’ve resumed in-person Sunday services and are gathering again on Fridays through Lent for Stations of the Cross. The Guild Hall is open for our monthly H.O.T. lunch with our Canton neighbors and for coffee hour after Sunday services. Wednesday Book Study is beginning a new video series, “Witness at the Cross.”
But 2022 also offers St. Paul’s a chance at more than a reset. It’s a chance to move ahead, revitalized and re-energized – fully understanding that we face challenges, but also opportunities. Think of this as the year of: “What will it take?” What will it take to do the things that strengthen our ties to each other, to our community and to God? This doesn’t mean massive projects that require big money, long time-frames and dramatic changes in direction. It means a range of ideas – some big, some small and some falling in the middle. It means inventorying the resources we have and the resources we need to respond to a challenge and grab ahold of an opportunity. It means consulting with the people and groups in the church and beyond, inviting them to join us and focus us. It means arriving at a blend of actions that do what the Rev. Dr. Tricia Lyons identified at the Diocesan Winter Convocation as “micro and macro evangelism”: The experiences that strengthen our everyday foundation AND take us to the mountaintop. It means purposeful joy – or maybe a joyful purpose. Toward that end, the Vestry Retreat on Feb. 25 included an open-ended exercise, covering a table with ideas of short-, medium-, and long-term actions, things we can integrate into what we already do and things that can take us in a new direction. The list is long. And it is incomplete, awaiting your input as well. Vestry will be coming together at the next meeting (6 p.m. on March 21 in the Guild Hall), to select at least one from each category and to begin answering the question: “What will it take?” Thanks to Clerk Cara Warren’s careful notetaking, you’ll find the list of the ideas below (Some are repeated because they came up more than once.) This list is separated by time frame, but Cara also has categorized them by the type of activity:
LONG-TERM
MEDIUM-TERM
SHORT-TERM
The Diocese of Ohio invites you to a close encounter with God's beautiful creation Join friends for the best week of the summer! Bellwether Farm is a working farm with fields, forests, and facilities sure to transform lives. Our traditional overnight summer camp lets children immerse themselves in fun, engaging activities which seek to teach healthy social, nutritional, and environmental practices, while providing a safe context in which to encounter God's beautiful creation. Campers will have an opportunity to learn about organic gardening, animal care, and creative cooking. They will also participate in traditional camp activities including swimming, canoeing, arts and crafts, fishing, campfires, and field games. The Bellwether Farm staff is invested in the life of every camper, seeking to inspire future generations to become passionate leaders in the world around them. Registration is now available!
The Rev. Beth Frank's farewell Update: Click here for a link to Beth Frank's funeral The funeral service for The Rev. Beth Frank, a friend of St. Paul’s, will be Saturday, Feb. 5, at Trinity Cathedral at 11 a.m. It will be shared at satellite sites in four of the parishes in the Diocese of Ohio where Beth served: St. Mark’s, Canton; St. James, Painesville; St. Paul’s, Medina; and St. Andrew’s, Toledo. You can also participate in the livestreamed service from home. Beth, who died Jan. 21, was an interim Episcopal priest with a sharp sense of humor. From her obituary: “In a sermon to a new parish she talked about her life as follows. A Yiddish proverb says, ‘Man plans. God laughs.’ Beth believed her path to the priesthood provided plenty of material for God and God's angels at their weekly comedy nights.” Before becoming a priest, she was an attorney specializing in f air housing and civil rights litigation, taught English in Beijing and Hong Kong and coordinated athletes and volunteers for the Special Olympics.She served as vice-chair of the Standing Commission on World Mission for the national Episcopal church and was active in the Diocese of Ohio companion relationship with Belize. Contributions in Beth’s memory may be made to a medical services ministry in Nigeria that she particularly cared about: Kateri Medical Services. (www.KateriClinic.org) New Consecration Sunday meets the spiritual challenge
New Consecration Sunday on Nov. 7th was the culmination of our stewardship program and it was wonderful to see so many of you in church in person on that day.A huge thank you to all those who attended and completed Estimate of Giving cards as well as those of you who couldn’t attend but have already mailed back your cards. For those of you who still have cards at home, please return those to us asap as it really helps the Vestry in planning our church outreach activities for 2022 to know what gifts are being provided. This year, we challenged you to think spiritually about stewardship and answer the question, “What is God calling me to give?” It is my honor to report that more than 50 percent of you ‘stepped up’ in your giving for 2022 and at this stage I can report that the total amount promised is now over $124,000, which is more than a 11 percent increase over last year! My personal thanks go out to the stewardship committee for this year -- Barb Anderson, Douglas Colmery, David Rothoff, Karl Roshong, Cara Warren -- and to Fr. Phil for all his guidance. I would also like to thank those parishioners who gave personal witness and assisted with our various “temple talks,” Demetrius Carrothers and Susan Phillips. I trust that you all enjoyed your freshly made sandwiches from Deli Ohio that were provided as a celebration of New Consecration Sunday. I had the turkey bacon avocado and Wendy had the spinach apple brie, both of which were very tasty! Hopefully, in 2022 we will be able to have a catered lunch and gathering of our church family in person. Until then, stay safe, healthy and happy. Yours in Christ, Steve Johnson Stewardship Committee Chair |
Ted Milton Dunbar, 1925-2021 Ted and Frances Dunbar were mainstays of St. Paul’s and each other’s lives. They were married for 67 years until her death in 2015, and no one doubted it when he described her as the love of his life. But he was proud of other things as well, including his son, Ted, daughters Elizabeth Toth, Janice Farley and Barbara Dunbar (a missionary in Japan), nine grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews. He often shared pictures and stories of them all with his St. Paul’s family as he headed out of Sunday service. But he also had plenty of time to listen to the stories of others. Ted was a World War II veteran, who entered the U.S. Coast Guard at age 17. Throughout his lifetime, he demonstrated an “uncanny knowledge of all sea-faring vessels.” He served in the Pacific Theater on the troop transport USS Callaway and after more than three years, was honorably discharged as a Water Tender Petty Officer First Class. He and Frances participated in yearly Callaway reunions all over the United States. Ted spent 57 years as a steam boiler operator, retiring from the VA Clinic in Brecksville. A member of the Society of Mayflower Descendants, he loved researching the history of World War II and Canton. “He was known for his humor, kindness, work ethic and being the family fix-it man,” his obituary recalled. |
Charles Morgan Jr., 1921-2021 Like Ted, Charles Morgan was a World War II vet who served in the Pacific theater and loved the water. He’d worked his way through Case Western Reserve University with the Interlake Steamship Company and joined the Marines at the start of the war, earning his wings at the Naval Air in Corpus Christi, Texas. During the war, he was a captain, squadron leader and decorated dive-bomber pilot. After earning his law degree at the University of Michigan, he specialized in labor mediation and arbitration and was known over his nearly 60 years of practicing law “for his calm reasoning and resolution skills.” His community service included the boards of the Deuble Foundation and Aultman Hospital. He and his wife Mary (Polly) were married for 67 years until her death in 2010. He is survived by children Brian of Massillon and Megan Morgan of Takoma Park, Md., four grandchildren and two great-granddaughters. |
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St. Paul's Newsletter, April 2022
St. Paul's Newsletter, March 2022
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If you have any news concerning any aspect of life at St. Paul's, please be sure to report it to Peggy at stpaulsoffice@att.net Also, please have your announcements to the office by Tuesday morning for publishing in the weekend's bulletin. |
St. Paul's Newsletter, February 2022
St. Paul's Newsletter, November/December 2021
St. Paul's Newsletter, October 2021
St. Paul's Newsletter, September 2021
Letters from the Bishop
Covid guidance from the Diocese of Ohio, effective Sunday, June 13, 2021
Beginning Sunday, June 13, decisions regarding the use of masks, singing, serving food for coffee hour and feeding programs, reception of the sacrament, and the physical spacing of participants at any in-person gathering will be the responsibility of each individual congregation’s clergy and lay leaders. Please read the entirety of this letter carefully.
Continued progress in understanding the nature of the coronavirus and increasing success in limiting its spread through vaccination, as reflected in amended guidelines from the CDC and state health agencies, allow us to move further toward subsidiarity in pandemic response and procedures. The availability of sound scientific resources and the intimate knowledge of their communicant base increasingly support individual congregations in making decisions that best meet their particular circumstances.
I recognize that in some places this may result in a transfer of frustration or disagreement from episcopal to parochial leadership, and I regret any increased burden on our clergy and lay leaders after all that they have endured over the past 15 months. Nonetheless, the breadth of our parishes in almost every demographic and characteristic makes it increasingly difficult to provide a one-size-fits-all set of protocols that adequately responds to their varied contexts.
Masks
The makeup of our congregations differs considerably from parish to parish. Those with relatively fewer communicants, all of whom are fully vaccinated, are, according to CDC and state guidelines, at low risk as sites for COVID-19 contagion. Requiring masks in those settings is now no longer considered essential by the State of Ohio.
Other parishes, on the other hand, whose attendance regularly fills the available space, or whose communicants either include families with young children or hope to include such families, may appropriately feel that wearing masks is a discipline warranted by their commitment to the health of the particularly vulnerable. This would likewise be a reasonable and responsible practice for congregations with communicants unable to be vaccinated due to some other health condition.
Thus, the decision about whether and at which services the required use of masks is appropriate is best determined by parish leadership.
Singing
Singing will be permissible both out of doors and indoors, with or without masks, as determined by each parish. This applies to parishioners, soloists, and choirs. As with all in-person practices, attention to safe practices is paramount and should be determined by leaders and encouraged by all.
Food
Food may be served at church and outreach events alike, as directed by safety policies and practices established by clergy and vestry. This includes coffee hour, receptions, formation events, community dinners, and any event at which food and drink may be offered.
Reception of Eucharistic elements
While I will continue to encourage strongly that the Eucharistic sacrament be received in one kind (bread only), that decision will also be the responsibility of parish leadership, with the final say resting with the clergy. There are certainly a few congregations in which every attendee may be fully vaccinated. Drinking from the common cup, however, or reaching one’s hand into the chalice for intinction may well remain uncomfortable to many and unsafe for some. It is important to teach the Doctrine of Concomitance as an assurance to communicants that the sacrament is complete when received in one kind only, i.e., in either the bread or the wine.
On a personal note, as a recovering alcoholic I have received the Eucharist in bread alone for over 35 years. For me, not unlike for those who would choose to do the same in this time of pandemic, this was solely to protect me from a grave and chronic illness – alcoholism. In all of that time, I have never felt a diminution of the Eucharistic presence of Christ.
If a congregation considers distributing the consecrated wine at this time, I strongly urge that it be done cautiously, patiently, and after providing appropriate teaching so that communicants will feel free to choose not to receive.
Conclusion
Restoring the option to return to any of these practices is in no way an indication that doing so is the appropriate and correct determination for a specific congregation or event. That choice, as with all issues in Christian community, is a responsibility, not a right. It should be considered thoughtfully and humbly, not measured simply by one’s own desires, rather, as Jesus directed his disciples, in light of its implications for the well-being of “the least of these my brothers and sisters.”
As always, Brad Purdom, I, and all members of the Bishop’s staff are available to assist in exploring these or any issues regarding in-person gathering.
The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Jr.
Bishop of Ohio
March 21, 2021
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
Thank you for sustaining your heroic efforts to maintain parochial community as we continue to combat the coronavirus. I share everyone’s longing to return to in-person gathering. The numbers are finally trending in a positive direction, as a result of adherence to the protocols requested and required by federal, state, and local government agencies. Just last Thursday, the first four of the 48 counties in the Diocese of Ohio have turned from red to orange, one of which is home to an Episcopal congregation. At the same time, a number of epidemiologists are expressing caution about a potential surge at the end of March from the variant strains currently being diagnosed across the country. While we monitor that possibility, we can begin to consider the possibility of return to in-person gathering for worship, formation, and governance.
To that end, the decision of whether in-person gathering for worship, formation, and governance is safe and appropriate will return to parish leadership for services and events beginning on the 5th Sunday in Lent, March 21. This will give every congregation time to consider carefully and thoughtfully what will be best in their specific context.
No congregation is required to return to in-person gathering and no communicant is expected to participate if and when it does. The parochial responsibility for making this decision in no way implies that in-person gathering is necessarily appropriate. The decision of whether to participate is an individual obligation that concerns one’s own health and that of others.
No member of the Clergy is required to participate in in-person gathering for worship, formation, or governance at this time. Members of the Bishop’s Staff will not be expected to visit parishes for gatherings of any sort until the county in which they live and the county in which the parish is situated are at Level 1 or 2 (Yellow or Orange, respectively) and the staff member has received a COVD-19 vaccination or otherwise feels secure.
To every extent possible, all vehicles for “virtual” participation (Zoom, Facebook Live, YouTube, etc.) should be continued and enhanced.
In carrying out this responsibility, it will be critically important for clergy and lay leaders to give serious consideration to a range of available data and guidelines. These include:
Beginning the 5th Sunday in Lent (March 21), parishes resuming in-person gathering must:
A pre-recorded, online worship service for the Second Sunday of Easter (April 11) will be made available to all congregations by the end of this month. The hope is that this will provide a modest break in responsibilities following Holy Week and Easter.
Finally, if any vestry, clergyperson, or lay leader is experiencing difficulty in making these decisions, please do not hesitate to contact me or any member of the Bishop’s Staff for assistance. There is a wide diversity of perspective on every aspect of COVID-19 response, and I know that when decision-making about gathering moves from me back to parish leadership, so, too, will move some of the division and divisiveness that accompany it. The challenges of this time need not threaten our unity, rather may they bring out the best in our vocation to be Christian and exhibit, within our congregations and beyond, what it means to be the Body of Christ.
Know that you remain always in my prayers and affection.
The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Jr.
Bishop of Ohio
Covid guidance from the Diocese of Ohio, effective Sunday, June 13, 2021
Beginning Sunday, June 13, decisions regarding the use of masks, singing, serving food for coffee hour and feeding programs, reception of the sacrament, and the physical spacing of participants at any in-person gathering will be the responsibility of each individual congregation’s clergy and lay leaders. Please read the entirety of this letter carefully.
Continued progress in understanding the nature of the coronavirus and increasing success in limiting its spread through vaccination, as reflected in amended guidelines from the CDC and state health agencies, allow us to move further toward subsidiarity in pandemic response and procedures. The availability of sound scientific resources and the intimate knowledge of their communicant base increasingly support individual congregations in making decisions that best meet their particular circumstances.
I recognize that in some places this may result in a transfer of frustration or disagreement from episcopal to parochial leadership, and I regret any increased burden on our clergy and lay leaders after all that they have endured over the past 15 months. Nonetheless, the breadth of our parishes in almost every demographic and characteristic makes it increasingly difficult to provide a one-size-fits-all set of protocols that adequately responds to their varied contexts.
Masks
The makeup of our congregations differs considerably from parish to parish. Those with relatively fewer communicants, all of whom are fully vaccinated, are, according to CDC and state guidelines, at low risk as sites for COVID-19 contagion. Requiring masks in those settings is now no longer considered essential by the State of Ohio.
Other parishes, on the other hand, whose attendance regularly fills the available space, or whose communicants either include families with young children or hope to include such families, may appropriately feel that wearing masks is a discipline warranted by their commitment to the health of the particularly vulnerable. This would likewise be a reasonable and responsible practice for congregations with communicants unable to be vaccinated due to some other health condition.
Thus, the decision about whether and at which services the required use of masks is appropriate is best determined by parish leadership.
Singing
Singing will be permissible both out of doors and indoors, with or without masks, as determined by each parish. This applies to parishioners, soloists, and choirs. As with all in-person practices, attention to safe practices is paramount and should be determined by leaders and encouraged by all.
Food
Food may be served at church and outreach events alike, as directed by safety policies and practices established by clergy and vestry. This includes coffee hour, receptions, formation events, community dinners, and any event at which food and drink may be offered.
Reception of Eucharistic elements
While I will continue to encourage strongly that the Eucharistic sacrament be received in one kind (bread only), that decision will also be the responsibility of parish leadership, with the final say resting with the clergy. There are certainly a few congregations in which every attendee may be fully vaccinated. Drinking from the common cup, however, or reaching one’s hand into the chalice for intinction may well remain uncomfortable to many and unsafe for some. It is important to teach the Doctrine of Concomitance as an assurance to communicants that the sacrament is complete when received in one kind only, i.e., in either the bread or the wine.
On a personal note, as a recovering alcoholic I have received the Eucharist in bread alone for over 35 years. For me, not unlike for those who would choose to do the same in this time of pandemic, this was solely to protect me from a grave and chronic illness – alcoholism. In all of that time, I have never felt a diminution of the Eucharistic presence of Christ.
If a congregation considers distributing the consecrated wine at this time, I strongly urge that it be done cautiously, patiently, and after providing appropriate teaching so that communicants will feel free to choose not to receive.
Conclusion
Restoring the option to return to any of these practices is in no way an indication that doing so is the appropriate and correct determination for a specific congregation or event. That choice, as with all issues in Christian community, is a responsibility, not a right. It should be considered thoughtfully and humbly, not measured simply by one’s own desires, rather, as Jesus directed his disciples, in light of its implications for the well-being of “the least of these my brothers and sisters.”
As always, Brad Purdom, I, and all members of the Bishop’s staff are available to assist in exploring these or any issues regarding in-person gathering.
The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Jr.
Bishop of Ohio
March 21, 2021
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
Thank you for sustaining your heroic efforts to maintain parochial community as we continue to combat the coronavirus. I share everyone’s longing to return to in-person gathering. The numbers are finally trending in a positive direction, as a result of adherence to the protocols requested and required by federal, state, and local government agencies. Just last Thursday, the first four of the 48 counties in the Diocese of Ohio have turned from red to orange, one of which is home to an Episcopal congregation. At the same time, a number of epidemiologists are expressing caution about a potential surge at the end of March from the variant strains currently being diagnosed across the country. While we monitor that possibility, we can begin to consider the possibility of return to in-person gathering for worship, formation, and governance.
To that end, the decision of whether in-person gathering for worship, formation, and governance is safe and appropriate will return to parish leadership for services and events beginning on the 5th Sunday in Lent, March 21. This will give every congregation time to consider carefully and thoughtfully what will be best in their specific context.
No congregation is required to return to in-person gathering and no communicant is expected to participate if and when it does. The parochial responsibility for making this decision in no way implies that in-person gathering is necessarily appropriate. The decision of whether to participate is an individual obligation that concerns one’s own health and that of others.
No member of the Clergy is required to participate in in-person gathering for worship, formation, or governance at this time. Members of the Bishop’s Staff will not be expected to visit parishes for gatherings of any sort until the county in which they live and the county in which the parish is situated are at Level 1 or 2 (Yellow or Orange, respectively) and the staff member has received a COVD-19 vaccination or otherwise feels secure.
To every extent possible, all vehicles for “virtual” participation (Zoom, Facebook Live, YouTube, etc.) should be continued and enhanced.
In carrying out this responsibility, it will be critically important for clergy and lay leaders to give serious consideration to a range of available data and guidelines. These include:
- The Ohio Public Emergency Level (1-Yellow, 2-Orange, 3-Red, 4-Purple) of the county in which your parish is geographically situated. Updated ratings are released every Thursday. Extensive county-specific data is available on this site by clicking on the name of your county in the drop-down to the right of the map. (These data do not include the incarcerated.)
- The Ohio Public Emergency Level of the counties contiguous to the county in which your parish is geographically situated. People regularly cross county lines for many reasons, including church attendance.
- The Ohio Public Health Advisory System’s Summary of Alert Indicators.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) COVID-19 guidelines for protecting oneself and others.
- The Episcopal Church’s Toolkit for COVID-19 Vaccination Distribution.
Beginning the 5th Sunday in Lent (March 21), parishes resuming in-person gathering must:
- follow all existing guidelines regarding the wearing of masks, physical distancing, sanitizing, restrictions regarding singing by congregation or soloists, the sharing or distribution of food, contact tracing, and the use of buildings for community service ministries or by outside groups, and
- at least one week prior to resuming in-person gathering, submit this brief, online report. The purpose of this report is to facilitate communication and coordination with Mission Area deans and diocesan staff members for sharing valuable information and helpful resources and communicating best practices.
A pre-recorded, online worship service for the Second Sunday of Easter (April 11) will be made available to all congregations by the end of this month. The hope is that this will provide a modest break in responsibilities following Holy Week and Easter.
Finally, if any vestry, clergyperson, or lay leader is experiencing difficulty in making these decisions, please do not hesitate to contact me or any member of the Bishop’s Staff for assistance. There is a wide diversity of perspective on every aspect of COVID-19 response, and I know that when decision-making about gathering moves from me back to parish leadership, so, too, will move some of the division and divisiveness that accompany it. The challenges of this time need not threaten our unity, rather may they bring out the best in our vocation to be Christian and exhibit, within our congregations and beyond, what it means to be the Body of Christ.
Know that you remain always in my prayers and affection.
The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Jr.
Bishop of Ohio