Trinity Times Lent and Easter Newsletter 2016

Lent/Easter
2016
Newsletter of Trinity Episcopal Church Buckingham, PA
Thoughts
from our Rector
Nancy Dilliplane
Trinity offers many opportunities to share the road
this Lent:
Worship: of course, beginning with the sign
of the cross on our foreheads on Ash
Wednesday (February 10 at 8 am, 10 am
or 7:30 pm), and special liturgies during
Holy Week.
Dear People of God at Trinity Church,
Spiritual Formation: a Quiet Day on February 13, and weekly forums on Sundays at
9 am and Wednesday nights at 7:30 p.m.
As I write this column about Lent, it is actually midJanuary and I am still smiling at the memory of our
joyful 4 pm Christmas Eve service, with all of those
bright-eyed children filling the crèche, the beauty of
the 9:30 pm service with its hand bells and trumpet
and candle-lit Silent Night, and of course our
Epiphany Pageant, where our very own angels,
shepherds, sheep, magi and holy family told once
more the story that changes everything: The love of
God became flesh and dwelt among us.
Fellowship: The feasting of Shrove Tuesday
Pancakes (February 9 from 5:30 to 8 pm)
gives way to the simpler fare of Soup
Suppers on Wednesday evenings and a
“Seder” meal on Maundy Thursday. We’ll
feast again following the Great Vigil on
Saturday, March 26.
Matthew concludes his gospel story about the visitation of the magi to the Christ Child with these words:
“and so they left for their own country by another
road.” As Caroline Oakes, our new lay associate,
commented recently, that’s a pretty good metaphor
for a life of faith. Wherever and whenever the love of
God grabs hold of us, one thing is certain, we will
never be the same again. We can’t continue to go
about life as we always have. From now on, we
travel another road.
Service: Trinity’s wide range of outreach
ministries continue during Lent: Community Meal, PeaceMeal, Bread Ministry,
Church World Service Blanket Sunday
(February 7), Layette Sunday (March 13),
St. Mary’s Soup Kitchen and the Lambertville Wednesday Lunch, to name just
a few.
I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to
the observance of a
holy Lent. More information about each of
these areas of our
parish life is contained
The season of Lent, it seems to me, is all about our
within the pages of
learning to travel on that new road. Whether we give this newsletter. I look
up something—that is, intentionally abstain from
forward to walking a
something that holds some power over us—or
new road with you!
whether we take on a new practice in order for the
love of God and neighbor to become more prominent
in our lives, during Lent we are invited to explore
what God’s love-made-flesh can mean for us, how it In faith, hope and
can change our lives, and send us home by another love,
road.
Nancy+
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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The Associate Minister Corner
The New Facebook: Sharing
Trinity’s Light in the Local
Community and Beyond
As Trinity’s Associate Minister, I am
enjoying finding ways to make sure
the local community and beyond
become more aware of the many important and generous ministries of Trinity. Because
so many people are on Facebook these days, one of
the most efficient means of “getting the word out” is
through Trinity’s Facebook business page.
The goal of an active church Facebook page is not
only to post upcoming church events, but to grow an
online spiritual community of members and nonmembers of the church who are called to join together in living out the Gospel’s call to love our neighbor.
If you are on Facebook yourself, go to our page
(search for Trinity Buckingham Church) and whenever you see a post or update or quote or video that
you particularly like, click the “share” button directly
under the post, and our post will go into the newsfeeds of each of your Facebook friends. It is a wonderful way for each member of Trinity to be literally
“sharing the good news” of all we are doing at Trinity!
(Also, if you “like” the Trinity Facebook page — by
clicking on the “LIKE” box at the top of our page —
you will receive our posts and updates right into your
own page, so Trinity’s posts will come to you, rather
than you having to check into Trinity’s Facebook
page).
So please consider helping Trinity to get the news out
about all the wonderful ways Trinity is involved in
God’s love and God’s work here in Bucks County and
in our lives. And always feel free to call me — (I’m in
the church office on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and
So we “curate” the web for spiritual resources, greater Thursdays) or write me at [email protected]
church news, prayers, and inspiration that give our
anytime to talk about ways to be involved in all the
online community a sense of what is important to
wonderful ministries here at Trinity.
Trinity and what ministries we offer here. When
those posts and updates are “shared,” the number of What a joy it is to be with you all here at Trinity
people who see Trinity on their Facebook page grows. Buckingham!
If you would like to be an integral part of Trinity’s
communications ministry and help others to know
more about Trinity, here’s something you can do —
Trinity has a new Publicity Monitor!
Thanks to the ingenuity and skills of both Marty and Keith
Goggin, Trinity’s lobby features a new publicity monitor,
complete with rolling slides of all things Trinity — including
all the successes thus far
in the 2020 Vision Campaign, Worship, Spiritual
Growth and Service opportunities.
Take a look the next time
you’re on your way from
the church sanctuary to
Faith Hall and learn more
about what is happening
at Trinity. Thank you,
Marty and Keith!
Caroline Oakes
Blessings,
Caroline Oakes
St. Mary’s Soup Kitchen
A new sign up sheet is posted on the bulletin board closest to the nursery school office. We make soup and
Family of God Lutheran make sandwiches. We do this
ten times a year and share delivery duties into Philadelphia. For information contact Bonnie McCabe at
[email protected].
Bonnie McCabe
Trinity Book Club
~ next selection ~
A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
Wednesday, April 6 at 7:30pm
Church Library
Come read with us!
Lauren Gillen
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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Abundant New Offerings During a Splendid Christmastide
at Trinity Buckingham
From the first Sunday in Advent to the journey of the Three Kings in the Children’s Pageant on
Epiphany Sunday, Trinity was full of the Spirit of Christmas, offering traditional favorites as well as
several new events for our parish and the local community.
Service of the Longest Night
Trinity hosted a Longest Night Service
on the evening of the Winter Solstice.
Carol Sing
Many hearty souls gathered in
front of Historic Trinity on a night
in mid-December that turned out
to actually be cold outside! Rush
hour traffic stopped at traffic
lights on the Routes 413 and 202
intersection were serenaded by
adults and children alike, fit with
sleigh bells and Santa hats. A
short evening prayer and cups of
hot cocoa warmed us up
afterward inside Historic Trinity!
For many, the holidays are a time of joy,
while for some they may be a reminder of
pain and loss. In the quiet and lovely
Service for the Longest Night, prayers for
comfort, healing and peace point to the
turning of the light during Advent as a
sustaining and hopeful turning, as the world turned once again from darkness
towards light. Luminaries lit the path from the Church’s main sanctuary to the
Historic Trinity Chapel.
Several people from the local community attended the service. One
participant sent an email to Trinity saying,
“I am so grateful I attended the beautiful service on Monday evening. The
lighted path, the warm light within, the prayers, silences, music all spoke and
helped me to take the time to acknowledge the sadness carried within, and in
a protected way so that you can see the light by the wording of the prayers
and presence of those around.”
A Quiet Advent Hour for Busy People
Trinity hosted a diocesan-sponsored Advent Prayer Station event as an
opportunity for the busiest among us — youth and their families — to step
back from the stress of getting ready for the Christmas holidays and take a
few minutes to explore and experience the quiet grace and power of the
Advent season.
The Quiet Advent Hour featured a series of interactive “prayer” stations
inviting participants into prayerful and personal reflection — through action,
art or movement — on what it means to wait for the light in the darkness. Several participants thanked the diocesan youth leaders who led the
evening, letting them know it was a holy evening for them in the midst of
the busy season of Advent.
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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Fill-The-Creche Children’s Christmas Eve Service
Children from parishioner families as well as grandchildren visiting from afar were all
able to be an integral part of the delightful and creative “Fill-the-Creche” Children’s
service on Christmas Eve.
As children as well as grandchildren and their parents and grandparents entered the
Church, children were invited to look into Pastor Nancy’s huge square basket filled to
the brim with crèche figures — from Mary and Joseph and the shepherds, to dozens
of tiny angel ornaments and squishy, soft baby sheep toys.
To the delight of the children, Pastor Nancy invited each of them to leave their seats
and come up to the altar during particular Christmas hymns throughout the service to
place their crèche figure in the crèche or on the angel ornament tree. Mary and
Joseph came during one hymn; the baby Jesus in another; then all the angels came
up during another hymn; and finally all the squishy baby sheep came up during
another.
By the end of the service, the crèche was filled with heavenly and terrestrial beings,
and the children and parents and grandparents in the pews were overjoyed singing
Silent Night and Away in a Manger. It was a holy night!
Epiphany Children’s Pageant
Having a pageant for Epiphany was, what one parishioner called, a
“delightful double-dose of Christmas magic” for Trinity this year! This
year’s original play created by Trinity’s Minister of Music Regina Gordon
cast the children and adults of Trinity as characters in the Nativity story
as told from the perspective of the angels. And as Pastor Nancy
reminded us, “Christ is born in each of us, so each one of us always has
a part to play in Trinity’s Epiphany pageant.” The angels’ tidings of great
joy were so infectious, both congregation and cast robustly sang the
hymns and carols to tell the story we hold so dear.
The stories we love best do live in us forever. — JK Rowling
Scenes from Trinity Buckingham Nursery School Children’s Chapel
The children of Trinity Buckingham Nursery School were rapt with attention as Pastor Nancy shared the light and
love of the Advent story with them. They watched as Nancy lit candles for each week of Advent, and then told the
Nativity story afresh, with the Three Kings following the star and arriving in Bethlehem with gold (chocolate!)
coins and REAL frankincense and myrrh. When asked what their favorite part was, one of the children said,
“I liked the WHOLE story”!
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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Sunday School Notebook
Luke Keller, Jake O'Donnell, Connor Quin, Ali Reed, and
Naomi Rothschild.
We began this year with our Epiphany Pageant. The
children were quite excited about their participation in this
event. Many thanks for Regina Gordon, the children, and
their parents for this beautiful re-enactment.
At the end of January, the children created Valentines for
Trinity’s shut-ins, Armed Service members and with
Veterans in the Delaware Nursing Home. If
you know of a church member who is in the
Armed Forces, please leave the address in my
mailbox at church. The children just love
helping others by sharing thoughtfulness and a little
“sunshine” with the recipients of their cards.
Confirmation classes are underway, in preparation of
Confirmation on May 15. Confirmands this year include
Tim Goggin, Julia Huddy, Olivia Huddy, Philip Huddy,
On Easter, March 27th, there will be no Sunday School.
Everyone will go to Church and then the children will
participate in our Annual Easter Egg Hunt. If possible,
please have your child bring an Easter basket to put their
gathered eggs in.
In April, our second graders will be receiving instruction
about Holly Eucharist. This will take place during their
regular Sunday School time. If you have an older
elementary student that wishes to participate in this class,
they are welcome to join us. On April 11th, at 10:15 am
there will be a Special Blessings and Eucharist Service for
these children and their parents.
Sallee Lord, Sunday School Director
Winter Feast for the Soul:
A Contemplative Practice Group
During the month of January and February, our new Associate Minister Caroline Oakes has been leading a group of
parishioners in learning new contemplative practices that help us slow down the busy-ness of our lives and deepen
our experience of God’s abiding presence in every moment.
This group was intentionally limited in size and filled up very quickly, so Caroline will be sharing this rich experiential
approach again. If you are interested in participating in a Contemplative Prayer Practice Small Group, please contact
Caroline at [email protected] to register, or to receive more information.
Caroline is currently enrolled in a program — Leading Contemplative Prayer Groups and Retreats — through the
Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation, and this program is being offered in fulfillment of its requirements.
Mark your calendars!
Trinity will be hosting a blood drive on
February 29, 2016. More information
is on its way to you. You may also
contact Heather Carbo for details.
To learn about exciting upcoming music events
at Trinity, be sure to read the MUSIC & ARTS
brochure included with this newsletter.
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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Sign Committee Update
Our sign committee has been making steady progress
assessing our needs and sorting out details for the installation of proper signage at our entire Trinity campus. Over the past several months we've met to review
our options including specifications, locations, other
church signs, and potential contractors. Hopefully by
late spring or early summer we should see our first new
sign out front. We aim to have our new signage reflect
a vibrant and active place where all are welcome.
Members of the sign committee include Carol Downs,
Pam Fuchs, Pastor Nancy, and co-chairs Jackie Moore
and me. We'll keep you posted as we progress.
Second Sunday Supper Church
Mark your calendars! Trinity is piloting a new worship
service on the second Sunday of the month at 5 pm. The
service, which will include Eucharist, is designed to be
short, hospitable to children (adults, too!) We will use liturgies both ancient and modern, so each will be different.
Best of all, we’ll end with a shared supper. End your
weekend, start your week, fill your tummy, make new
friends and leave the dishes!
Sunday May 8, 2016
Sunday June 12, 2016
Peace,
Dom De Caprio
Wednesday Night
Lenten Simple Suppers
Lent Madness, inspired by college basketball
Don’t cook at home on Wednesday nights during Lent!
Come to Faith Hall at 6:45pm and join your Trinity
family for Simple Suppers of soup and bread.
tournaments, pits 32 saints against each other in a
bracket, as each saint seeks to win the coveted Golden Halo. Throughout Lent, fans vote for their favorite
saints at www.lentmadness.org. We will keep track of
the saints’ progress through Lent Madness with a
poster-sized bracket in the Narthex. To learn more
about Lent Madness, visit www.lentmadness.org
Pastor Nancy will provide the meal for the first
Wednesday, February 17th, and there will be a sign-up
for volunteers for subsequent Wednesdays.
Come one, come all!
Pastor Nancy
The Divine Cosmos Inside Our Head: The Human Brain
-A Lenten Wednesday Night Series The fourth annual of Trinity’s Lenten “Conversations
on Science and Theology”
series — The Divine Cosmos Inside Our Head: The
Human Brain — will be
based on the award-winning six-part PBS documentary
“The Brain,” created and produced by neuroscientist and
writer Dr. David Eagleman.
Following each viewing of the documentary’s compelling
episodes, Trinity’s Dr. Steven W. Mann will facilitate discussion and offer some reflections.
Premiering in November 2015, Eagleman’s “The Brain”
is a not-to-be-missed documentary series that blends
breakthrough science discoveries, storytelling and stateof-the-art visual effects. Trinity’s Wednesday Night Se-
ries is a wonderful opportunity to discuss “the big questions” of this series with others who are interested in
learning more about what it means to be human.
Dates:
February 17
February 24
March 2
March 9
March 16
March 23
Place: Faith Hall 7:30PM—9:00PM
The series follows Trinity’s Wednesday
Lenten Simple Suppers at 6:45 p.m.
Come and enjoy a simple supper prior
to enjoying the delight and wonder of
the Lenten Series.
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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Blanket Sunday for Church World Service is set for
February 7th. Blankets are very real tools of hope,
providing warmth, comfort and protection to disaster
victims and refugees -- all those left homeless and in
need of a safe, dry place to spend the night. Your blanket gifts of $5.00 or more will help to make available
blankets, bedding, tents and other shelter items when
an emergency or natural disaster occurs. Within the
folds of a blanket a disaster victim knows that somewhere, someone cares. Special Blanket Sunday envelopes for your donations will be available in the pews.
Checks or cash in any amount will be most welcome.
Please make checks payable to ECW and mark for
blankets. Thank you for helping to share warmth, hope
and love around the world!
Layette Sunday is a Lenten project which will take
place on March 13th. There will be an ingathering of
infant garments and blankets at each service that day.
Everyone is encouraged to participate in this heartwarming activity. Donations of hand-made or purchased items are needed. A layette consists of two receiving blankets (knitted, crocheted or flannel), two
sleepers, two “onesies”, two baby washcloths, and one
outerwear set (sweater or jacket, hat, booties). Garments should be unisex and size medium, not newborn.
Give what you can, but please donate only listed items
and do not gift wrap. Assembled layettes will be distributed to needy new mothers through Child Home and
Community (CHC) of Doylestown. Thanks for caring.
ABC Quilts will be on display in the narthex on
Mother’s Day, May 8th. For over 20 years Trinity parishioners and friends have been assembling little “love
and comfort” quilts for at-risk babies -- those born alcohol or drug affected or infected with HIV/AIDS virus -in the greater Philadelphia area. Quilts do not have to
be elaborate, but there are some guidelines to follow.
Please contact Elizabeth Crooke (215-598-3575 or
[email protected]) for directions.
Rector’s Warden Report
The holiday season has ended with
wonderful attendance at all of our
Advent services. The warm weather
made it difficult to get into the holiday
spirit but we joined together for dinner,
gift exchange and carols at the annual
Christmas Party early in December.
We provided gifts for needy individuals
filling their wishes from our Giving
Trees. Now the trees have kitchen needs for Code Blue
and the tags are flying off the branches, being filled quickly. While you are grabbing those tags check out our new
television messaging system in the lobby. Thanks to
Marty Gillen and Keith Goggins we can keep up to date
on everything happening here at Trinity, thanks!
Our annual meeting was held on January 31st following
our 9 a.m. service. This is our opportunity to look back at
the past year and make plans for 2016. We have had
many new families and individuals attending our services
and we hope that many more will join us in the coming
year. We have made additional improvements to our rectory replacing the exterior lighting and the front porch due
to decay. The welcoming committee volunteers have
made progress in the selection of the company who will
install the new exterior signs for our church. They will be
installed in the spring improving the communities ability to
know more about our wonderful church and our ministries.
I wish everyone a healthy and happy 2016,
Carol Downs
Rector’s Warden 2015
Elizabeth Crooke
ECW News
Our ECW meeting in December was very enjoyable. We had a wonderful presentation from Judy Krausse who attended the Triennial ECW meeting in Salt Lake City. We distributed our monies from the Fall Sale, giving to Doylestown
FISH, Episcopal Community Services, Code Blue supplies, the Discovery Project, Bread Ministry gas. We started to
save for a freezer/refrigerator fund as our equipment is getting old. Please SAVE THE DATE for our Spring Rummage
Sale - APRIL 23. Start putting clothes and rummage aside - if you have no room, give Mary Beth Perisho a call and
she will store it. Our next meeting will be March 23 in Faith Hall at noon. Hope to see all women in our church there we welcome all!
Mary Beth Perisho
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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Opportunities to Worship during Lent
Shrove Tuesday Pancake Dinner – 5:30pm to 8pm
Hosted by our 2016 Confirmation Class
Ash Wednesday: Wednesday, February 10, 2016
8 am in the main church
10 am (in the library chapel)
7:30 pm in the main church
Sundays in Lent
Lent 1 February 14, 2016
“Temptation in the Wilderness” 8am, 10:15am
Lent 2 February 21, 2016
“Gathered under God’s wings” 8am, 10:15am
Lent 3 February 28, 2016
“Burning Bushes and fig trees” 8am, 10:15am
Lent 4 March 6, 2016
“The Prodigal Father”
8am, 10:15am
Lent 5 March 13, 2016
“Costly Love” 8am, 10:15am
QUIET DAY SATURDAY FEB 13TH / 9 TO 1:00 pm
Spend a quiet morning reflecting on the Parable of the
Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). We'll share some guided
meditations and have plenty of quiet time for personal
prayer, journaling, walking, and meditating with art materials. The day will begin at 9 am and include a simple
lunch and conclude with a healing Eucharist.
Please register for this event with the church office.
Palm Sunday:
March 20, 2016 8am, 10:15am
Procession of Palms and Reading of the Passion Story
Palm Sunday is liturgical drama at its best: we begin with
hope and expectation as Jesus enters Jerusalem to the
waving of palm branches and Hosannas, and end with our
hopes and expectations dashed by his arrest, condemnation and death on the cross. Is this the end? What will
happen next?
Holy Week Worship
Easter comes as good news only to those who have
shared in the disappointment, betrayal and abandonment
of Jesus’ final week in Jerusalem. We are too often
tempted to go straight from Hosanna to Alleluia. Join us
for one or more of our special liturgies in the week before
Easter so that you may know the meaning of resurrection
more fully.
Monday, March 21, 2016:
Stations of the Cross
7:30pm
In this contemplative worship event, we will meditate on the traditional fourteen Stations of the
Cross with the aid of music, silence, poetry and
art from around the world.
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Maundy Thursday
7:30pm
On Thursday in Holy Week, we remember Jesus’
institution of the Last Supper and his ultimate act
of servant leadership—washing his disciples’ feet.
Following the Eucharist, the altar is stripped in
anticipation of Jesus’ death on Good Friday. Join
us for a “Seder” fellowship meal in Faith Hall at
5:30 p.m..
Vigil in the Garden 9pm to noon following day
Keep watch with Jesus by the reserved sacrament in the Library Chapel through the night to
the Good Friday service at noon. Sign-ups will be
available in the Narthex and the church office
Friday, March 25, 2016
Good Friday
Two services: 12 pm noon and 7:30 pm
We read John’s passion narrative (come and experience how different John’s story is from
Luke’s, which we read on Palm Sunday), offer
prayers at the foot of the cross and receive communion
from the
reserved
sacrament.
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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Easter Worship
Saturday, March 26, 2016
The Great Vigil of Easter
7:30pm in Historic Trinity
After sunset on the third day, we will light the new
fire, and process behind the Paschal candle to
Historic Trinity church where we will hear again
the stories of salvation and share the first Alleluia
of Easter. The breaking of our Lenten Fast follows worship!
Sunday, March 27, 2016:
Easter Sunday Worship 8am, 10:15am
Easter Egg Hunt after 10:15 worship.
Sunday Faith Forum:
Making Sense of the Cross
9:00 — 10 a.m., Pierce Hall
Lutheran Seminary President David Lose will join us
(via DVD) as we look how the meaning of Jesus’
death on the cross has been understood by the
church across two millennia.
Our Church Family
Baptisms
Hailey Grace Bobowicz 7/12/15
Palmer Mae Carr 10/25/15
Tineke Kiki Holterman 10/25/15
Maximus Jon Mohr 12/27/15
Wyatt Robert Overington 1/2/16
Marriages
February 28:
A Man Hanging on a Tree
March 6:
Portraits and Perspectives
March 13:
Ransom and Victory
No forum on Palm Sunday or Easter Day
April 3:
fice
Substitution, Satisfaction and Sacri-
April 10:
Example and Encouragement
April 17:
Event and Experience
Steve Siliani and Kirstin Bittner Siliani 10/17/15
Kiki Holterman and Timmy Carr 12/5/15
Deaths
Victoria Ziegler 9/24/15
Dorothy Newman 9/25/15
Gail Brusch 11/7/2015
Celebration and Installation
The Rev. Dr. Nancy Burton Dilliplane 6/1/15
www.trinitybuckingham.org
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Conversations on Science
and Theology
Perspective! Humans predominantly
view ourselves based on culture as
reflected in our written and
archaeological records. By evolutionary standards, we
are newcomers to Earth. In the 21st Century, we have
more technological capability than any other time in
history with enormously complex social, economic, and
political systems.
Human beings possess the capability to alter the future
of our planet for better or worse in ways no other
sentient creature before us has ever possessed. We
were created in the image of God and imagine we are
the pinnacle of God’s evolutionary system, a system
that has created and re-created life on planet earth for
about 3.5 billion of the 4.5 billion years of Earth’s
existence. Life has ebbed and flowed as the continents
drifted, the climate changed, and cataclysmic events
repeatedly caused great changes in Earth’s
environment and to life on Earth. Five mass extinction
events have eliminated great swaths of life, followed by
great shifts in the forms of life that adapted and filled
the changed environment. Scientists estimate that 90%
of all species that have ever existed are now extinct.
Change and renewal seem to be God’s way. Thus,
both the origin of species and the loss of species is a
constant process on the Earth.
Some creatures have been so well adapted that they
have lasted tens of millions and even hundreds of
millions of years. Dinosaurs roamed the planet for
about 165 million years, until an asteroid strike
destroyed them and many other creatures 65 million
years ago in what is called the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K/
T) mass extinction event. The first primates appeared
about 50 million years ago. It is difficult to imagine how
long ago this was until we compare it with ourselves:
modern humans have lived on Earth for about 200,000
years, the genus Homo existed about 2 million years
ago, and the very earliest hominids - members of the
human family tree - lived about 6 million years ago. A
genus is a taxonomic group covering more than one
species. We are the ONLY member of the genus Homo
still existing. The reason is unknown, but all the other
members of the genus Homo to which we belong have
become extinct. You might say we are “The Last Man/
Woman Standing!” Thus, our species (Homo sapiens)
has only existed for about 3% of the entire period of
human evolution. On average, a typical species
becomes extinct within about 10 million years of its first
appearance, although this varies widely (e.g. dinosaurs
were spectacularly successful for 165 million years).
Environmental changes, including competition with
other species, is the primary cause of extinction and a
driving force of evolution. Compared to the long
success of many species, we are evolutionary
toddlers.1
I would like to turn towards a personal theological
reflection. Have you ever wondered why Jesus might
have come when he did and where he did? Written
history and culture can be traced back to 7,600 BCE in
China, while Egyptian culture to about 3,100 BCE, or
about 5,000 years ago. Abraham was born about 2,166
BCE, or over 4,000 years ago. Abraham is considered
the father of the three monotheistic religions, with the
oldest being Judaism. The earliest books of the
Hebrew Old Testament were written about 3,300 years
ago, or about 1,300 BCE. Much of the Old Testament
narrates the transition of human religion in the
Mediterranean region from pagan polytheistic worship
of many gods to the worship of one God by the
Israelites. A frequent conflict spoken of by the prophets
in the Old Testament is about the Israelites struggling to
let go of their pagan idol worship and worship the one
true God.
Suppose God knew that these new creatures arising
from the hominid line, these Homo sapiens, these
human beings were truly an evolutionary leap forward
and the only remaining species in the genus Homo.
Suppose God knew these beings had self-awareness,
were creative, and evolved higher intelligence than any
creature arising previously from God’s creation.
Suppose God recognized these creatures had special
potential. These creatures were not only slowly
evolving biologically, but they were adapting much
faster culturally to environmental challenges. We did
not adapt to cold climates by evolving to grow a heavy
coat of hair, like a Woolly Mammoth; instead, we
adapted by building shelters, heating them with fire, and
wearing clothes. Cultural adaptations do not take
hundreds of thousands of years but in evolutionary time
happen in an instant. Suppose God knew of another
critical capacity in these new beings, the ability to feel
the presence of God! Suppose God knew these
creatures had the potential to subdue the world and to
dominate and impact the entire creation on Earth.
Suppose also that God knew these beings’ abilities to
be fruitful and multiple, but the cultural and
technological potential present in them was still linked
to a paleolithic brain, a paleolithic brain that responded
to threats by either “fight or flight,” and not by
reasoning, dialogue, or reflection. Suppose God knew
their paleolithic brain evolved tribally and survived to
this point with both tribal cooperation and inter-tribal
violence.
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Suppose God knew this creature’s potential yet also
knew its greatest weaknesses. Might God have chosen
to send a messenger, a savior to the world, in an attempt
to provide cultural guidance, a Light in the darkness,
without which this amazing creature might self-destruct?
Without God’s help, this creature might develop the capability of overwhelming the world and destroying itself,
the Earth, and many of God’s other creatures. If God
was going to send a Light into the world, would it not
make sense to send God’s Word to the first peoples that
were monotheistic and possibly better prepared to hear
the message and pass it on to future generations?
Would it not make sense to offer a better way early on in
this creature’s existence, for without God’s Light this
creature that had developed the moral knowledge of
good and evil might go down in flames (metaphorically
the flames of hell)? This creature was capable of sens-
ing God. But, this creature was new to Earth, and young,
and wild like a teenager. This creature, like a teenager,
thought it was immortal. This creature thought its kind
should live forever. This creature was reckless; like a
teenager, this creature lacked wisdom. Jesus was the
Savior sent by God to save humanity from itself. We
have nuclear weapons and we are altering the planet’s
environment in radical ways. We are running out of time
to see the Light and hear the Word.
1
Human evolutionary timelines come from - What
Does it Mean to be Human? by Richard Potts and
Christopher Sloan, National Geographic, 2010.
Faithfully,
Steven W. Mann, Ph.D.
Happy
Bernadette Gross 2/2
Aileen Wanzer 2/04
Pam Fuchs 2/6
Rachel Dilliplane 2/9
Emily McCreary 2/11
Steven Guidry 2/12
Daphne Rolleri 2/14
Christian Serban 2/18
Connor Wisnom 2/19
Jessica Overington 2/20
Catherine Kirchner 2/21
Corinne Shisler 2/23
Jamie Schisler 2/23
Mary Ellen Brehm 2/26
Barry McCabe 2/26
Nancy Dilliplane 2/26
Birthday to you!
Sarah Goggin 3/01
Patricia Bradbury 3/05
Shayne Dougherty 3/05
Patty Goldbach 3/06
Jane McConeghy 3/06
Elisabeth Goggin 3/07
Camillle Serban 3/07
Gianna Jaedicke 3/11
Stephen Badiali 3/13
Aida King 3/13
David King 3/13
Jim Sanders 3/16
Helen Badiali 3/21
Jackie Moore 3/21
Steve Dilliplane 3/22
Peggy Kern 3/22
Luke Keller 3/24
Nicholas Conoscenti 3/25
Heather Carbo 3/30
Gary Hattal 3/31
Connor Quinn 4/03
Ray Barkalow 4/4
Debbie Grant 4/4
Jennifer McCreary 4/07
Charlie Seckinger 4/10
Erin Gilber 4/11
Stephanie Oiler 4/11
Joanne Fulcoly 4/12
Lue Hansen 4/13
Logan Rollieri 4/14
Nathaniel Wanzer 4/19
Lisa McBride 4/20
Karen Brown 4/21
Kyle McConeghy 4/21
Jane Eastwood 4/25
Gail Smith 4/27
Debbie Prendergast 4/27
Betty Kitson 4/29
Leslie Jaedicke 4/30
Logan Rollieri 4/14
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Page 12
CONTACT US
Church Telephone:
215.794.7921
Church Fax:
215.794.5223
TBNS Telephone:
215.794.5530
Staff Email
[email protected]
(The Rev. Dr. Nancy Dilliplane)
[email protected]
(Cynthia Goode)
[email protected]
(Caroline Oakes)
Church Website
www.trinitybuckingham.org
Nursery School Website
www.trinitybns.org
Church Service:
8am Holy Communion, Rite II
10:15am Holy Communion, Rite II
With Organist and Choir
Summer Schedule:
9am Holy Communion, Rite II
2016 Vestry Members
Dom DeCaprio, Senior Warden
Amy Conoscenti, Accounting Warden
Elisabeth Goggin, Vestry Secretary
215.630.3662
215.534.9020
908.732.3645
Dom DeCaprio, Senior Warden……..……….……[email protected]
Dani Badiali………………………….…………[email protected]
Mark Barnard……………………………………………[email protected]
Amy Conoscenti, Accounting Warden…………[email protected]
Mark Evans…………………………………………[email protected]
Marty Gillen…………………………………………………[email protected]
Elisabeth Goggin, Vestry Secretary………[email protected]
Paul Harar……………………………………………………[email protected]
Aida King…………………………………………………[email protected]
Jackie Moore………………………………………[email protected]
Peter Oliver……………………………………………[email protected]
Donna Wisnom……………………...………………………[email protected]
Deputies to Diocesan Convention
Dom DeCaprio
Janet DeCaprio
Jill Unger
Bob Kinney (Alternate)
Kay Kinney (Alternate)
Deanery Delegates
Marty Gillen
Woody Kiel
Judy Krauss
Church Office Hours:
9:30am to 2pm Monday—Thursday
9:30am to 1:30pm Friday
Bernadette Gross….….Prayer Chain Coordinator
Regina Gordon……..….…….....Minister of Music
Martha Dudich………..……..…………….Organist
Mark Evans…..…………...Buildings and Grounds
Sallee Lord……………….Sunday School Director
Alan Powell………...………….Church Webmaster
Cynthia Goode…….........…....Office Administrator
Caroline B. Oakes…….…..Associate Lay Minister
Lauren Gillen ………………..…..Newsletter Editor
Our Mission: Christ in our hearts, Sharing God’s love;
His work through our hands, Serving God’s people
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