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What Makes a Good Shepherd?
The 4th Sunday of Easter is always referred to as Good Shepherd Sunday. This is because the collect or prayer for the day reflects one of the places in John’s Gospel where the Shepherd is described: O God, whose Son Jesus is the good shepherd of your people: Grant that when we hear his voice we may know him who calls us each by name, and follow where he leads; who, with you and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. This year we read another description. So, this year, what makes a Good Shepherd?
“The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
In Easter we celebrate Jesus “laying down” his life for all, and being raised to new life. The promise that is attached is that his offering of himself brings new life to all who believe. Those who claim the promise are also claimed by it. We are to live like the Good Shepherd.
While there is a big difference between Jesus offering himself, laying down his life, and our offering ourselves, we too, are invited to “lay down our lives” for others. What might that look like?
It might look like our Pew Shepherds. That is any worshiper who gets to know the folks around them at worship and pays attention. If they seem happy or sad, the Pew Shepherd notices and cares. If they are not at worship for a couple of weeks, the Pew Shepherd might check on them. The Pew Shepherd is “laying down her life” by moving outside her comfort zone to build community.
It might look like the volunteers who minister to the homeless at Roy’s SOS or the hungry at Well in the Desert. Each of them “lays down” his or her life by taking time to pay attention to someone who is often “off the radar” of anyone who cares.
Anytime we move our focus from meeting our own needs, as important and appropriate as that is, to caring for another person – we take a step in becoming a Good Shepherd.
Join us in worship this weekend. See if you can spot a Pew Shepherd. See if you might be spotted.
Fr. Andrew
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John 10:11-18
Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away– and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”
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Bless the Lord, Oh My Soul
Sunday, April 29th | 4pm | St. Paul in the Desert |
$12 general, $10 Student/Senior
is a concert by the Anglican Chorale of Southern California, James A. Person, Founder/Director, and Brent Reynolds, Accompanist. Information at 760.992.7947, anglicanchorale@dc.rr.com,
or www.anglicanchorale.org.
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Robert Taylor will be back to read from and promote his new book on May 13.
We will have the reading, conversation and signing at 9:15 in the Library.
He will be available to greet and sign books after the 10:30 service also.
Visit Robert’s website by clicking here.
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Celebrate May with ECW Thursday, May 3rd | 11am | Parish Hall.
May is a month that holds promise, what with Mother’s Day and the bloom of spring flowers, and that theme will be featured when the Episcopal Church Women gather for their monthly meeting. Come and share memories about your Mother, bring a favorite flower and celebrate May.
A business meeting begins the gathering and is followed by the noon luncheon and program. This meeting is open to all, and newcomers are especially welcome.
Please bring a salad to serve 4-6, rolls, or a dessert; beverages are provided. Hostesses for the event are Beverly Zwack, Barbara Villani, and Anna Secrist. For additional information, contact Kathy Briski at 760.864.7145.
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Annual Waddy Scholarship Auditions
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  The Annual Waddy Scholarship Auditions for young talent in music and speaking is scheduled at St. Paul’s Cathedral, 5th and Nutmeg Streets, in San Diego on Saturday, May 19th. Students from 8-12 are invited to participate. A brochure with an application form is available in the church office. Scholarships in past years have ranged from $50 to $350. Deadline for the application is Thursday, May 10th.
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“Sundays at 9:15”
In The Library
April 29
04/22 The Apocalypse: Daniel, led by David Abernethy-Deppe
04/29 The Apocalypse: Revelation, led by David Abernethy-Deppe
May 6, 13, & 20 No Class May 27
5/06 The Synoptic Gospels: St. Mark, led by Jerry Lynch
5/13 St. Matthew, led by Victoria Hatch
5/20 St. Luke, led by Jerry DiNoto
5/27 No class
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“Thursdays At 7”
April 26
04/19 The Protestant Reformation: Calvin, led by Jerry DiNoto
04/26 The Protestant Reformation: The Anabaptists, led by David Abernethy-Deppe
May 3, 10, 17, 24, & 31
5/03 Buddhism: A World Religion
5/10 The Life of the Buddha
5/17 All Is Suffering
5/24 The Path to Nirvana led by the Faith Formation Team
5/31 The Buddhist Community, with the Dharmachakra Buddhist Center
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So far 166 members or families have committed $332,391.00 for the support of God’s Mission at St. Paul’s. In addition to 23 new pledges there are about 25 pledges still outstanding from people who pledged last year and are still part of St. Paul’s.
Our pledge target for 2012 is $416,000.00, so we are considerably short of that goal. We anticipate missing our target by as much as $40,000-50,000.
The support of every member is needed to support our mission and ministries. If you have not made a pledge, please do so if you are able.
The Rector and Vestry will be considering a variety of options to respond to this situation and will keep the parish informed.
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Rebuild Our Church in Haiti
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The Episcopal Diocese of Haiti—the largest Diocese in the Episcopal Church is in ruins. While the people of Haiti struggle to rebuild their nation, Episcopalians are uniting to rebuild our Church in Haiti.
Click the image above to learn more.
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Bullies Not Welcome Here
At St. Paul in the Desert we want to welcome all worshipers to a place that is free of violence and bullying.
Physical, verbal or emotional violence against others or against oneself is not acceptable.
“It Gets Better” is a series of video messages to encourage Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, or Transgender youth and let them know that they are loved as they are.
“A Blessing for Those Who Are Bullied” was written by the Rt. Rev. Steven Charleston, a Bishop of the Episcopal Church.
It is not enough to say “NO” to bullies. It is important to stand up for people and to provide resources for those who have been the targets.
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The St. Paul Columbarium Niches are over 60% sold out. If you are interested in a specific niche, please do not wait to purchase it or reserve it. Deposits are required for all niche reservations. Please contact Jonathan Abernethy-Deppe, at 760.320.7488, ext. 224 for further information.
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 Parish Photographer Needed
St. Paul’s needs a photographer to capture pictures of our people in action. We want pictures of our people in worship, in ministry and in fellowship.
Although most cell phones take decent pictures, the parish photographer would need a good digital camera and be willing to learn how to take pictures without distracting from the activities being photographed. The photo-grapher would also need to be able to upload the pictures quickly so that they might be used for parish purposes.
This is an important volunteer position and has the potential to assist the parish in attracting and welcoming new people.
Please contact Jonathan Abernethy-Deppe at Jonathan@stpaulsps.org or call him at 760-320-7488 ext. 224.
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Prayer Shawl Ministry
. . . meets every Wednesday from 10 am – 1 pm in the Parish Hall. This peace-filled stitching circle gives members fulfillment and spiritual sustenance in creating prayer shawls to comfort those in need of prayer. For more details contact Valerie Ferguson at 760.799.5927, Barbara Hawkins Villani at 760.322.3987, or Audrey Spencermorris at 760.835.5506.
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New Members
. . . will be received at all services on the weekend of May 5 & 6. For further information, please contact Jonathan at 760.320.7488, ext. 224, or jonathan@stpaulsps.org.
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Well in the Desert
. . .is looking for a couple of additional servers for the hot lunch they serve on Wednesdays at our church. They serve from 11 am – 1 pm. If you are interested please contact Jonathan Abernethy-Deppe at 760.320.7488 ext 224 or jonathan@stpaulsps.org
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Coffee Hour
Host for 8:00 is John Hampson.
To sign up to host a Coffee Hour, please use the binder on the entrance table in the Parish Hall. If you have questions, please contact Ray or Cheryl Kelley at 760.778.1725.
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Volunteers from St. Paul’s continue to serve dessert to between 70 and 100 homeless men, women and children at Roy’s every Monday evening. The desserts consist of baked goods and other goodies (store-bought or homemade) from our parishioners. As well, we deliver each month sox and undies purchased from our SOS Fund or placed in the SOS basket on Sunday. which is funded by special donations from parishioners. All of these efforts are deeply appreciated by these people who are earnestly striving to get back into the main stream.
If you would like to participate in this program, you can:
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Sign up to Volunteer
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Write a check to St. Pauls (marked for SOS Fund)
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Bring new white socks and/or large underwear for the Basket
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Place baked goods in the center section of the Fridge (again, marked For SOS)
Please call Hap Blaisdell at 760-323-5726 for additional information and ideas.
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 Do-It-Yourself Mosaic for Home & Garden
On May 19, June 2 from 10am-2pm. Cost is $25. Location is Camp Stevens. The art of assembling pieces of glass or stone into images, mosaics are a beautiful addition to a home or garden–and it’s simpler to do than you may think! In this hands-on workshop, you’ll learn the steps to creating your own mosaic, including supplies and design considerations, and practice on an installation at Camp Stevens.
For more information and to register, go to www.campstevens.org/garden.
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Sign Up for Flowers,
Coffee Hour and
Desert SOS
To make is easier for parishioners to sign-up for Flowers, Coffee Hours, and the Desert SOS Dessert Ministry, the sign-up sheets are in binders that are on the entrance table in the Parish Hall. The 2012 binders are filling fast, so if you have a special date that you want to commemorate, be sure to sign up early.
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Report Sexual Misconduct
As part of our ongoing commitment to creating a safe haven for everyone, please be reminded that our diocese values the tenet of our baptismal covenant to “respect the dignity of every human being.” Part of the way we live into that is to train people in the prevention of sexual misconduct. Another part that goes hand-in-hand with training is reporting incidences of sexual misconduct. Our bishop, the Rt. Rev. James R. Mathes, takes reports seriously and investigates them thoroughly and confidentially. If you believe you have experienced sexual misconduct of any kind, please contact Bishop Mathes immediately: bishopmathes@edsd.org, 619-481-5450.
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The Bishop’s Appeal
The Bishop’s Appeal supports the mission of the diocese through gifts that are used for support of our ongoing programs and ministries: congregational support and development, leadership development, pastoral care, ministry development, and Christian formation. 100% of your gift goes to supporting our ministries. To make a gift, to the secure website at http://www.edsd.org or mail to: Episcopal Diocese of San Diego, 2728 Sixth Ave., San Diego, CA 92103.
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