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Be joyful!
No this is not Hollywood’s Raiders of the Lost Ark! The Ark of Yahweh symbolized tribal unity in ancient Israel and was believed to be Yahweh’s actual throne. It was therefore very important to David to have this shrine of God’s presence within the walls of his city, Jerusalem. He was clearly overjoyed to the point of wild dancing upon receiving it.
As I reflected on this biblical lesson, I wondered what brings us joy. What generates within us a joy that passionately urges us to sing, shout and dance? On our joy list, where is God? What about the place we gather to worship and build a faith community together? We must have some level of joy, since we do come together weekly and tell others of our church and invite them to join us. How else do we radiate that joy?
Be it far from our Episcopalian nature to get up and dance and shout, but what if someone did? How might we be different if we allowed ourselves to be a little more excited, a little more joyful and a little foolish for the Lord? – Dignified and orderly, of course! We may not be like David dancing in a loincloth around the sanctuary but we certainly can demonstrate our own expression of joy in the Lord not only at our services, but after and throughout our week.
There certainly is a tremendous amount of love, compassion, inclusion and joy demonstrated in our faith community. What if we amplified that even more?
We gather on the Lord’s Day; the first day of the week. This is the day when God said, “Let there be light.” This is the day when Jesus overcame death and the grave and rose to new life. This is the day when we share in that heavenly banquet by being fed with spiritual food. What if we lived and worshiped as if every day were the first day of light, or the day we saw the resurrected Christ? That would be worth celebrating joyfully and excitedly!
David danced around the Ark, but what if we see ourselves as the Ark, carrying God’s gift of healing and joy? Then we’ll become the catalyst for excitement, joy and uplifting love for the people around us.
Our world certainly needs a joyful noise!
Jerry Di Noto
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2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19
David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. David and all the people with him set out and went from Baale-judah, to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the LORD of hosts who is enthroned on the cherubim. They carried the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were driving the new cart with the ark of God; and Ahio went in front of the ark. David and all the house of Israel were dancing before the LORD with all their might, with songs and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals.
So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom to the city of David with rejoicing; and when those who bore the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. David danced before the LORD with all his might; David was girded with a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet.
As the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal daughter of Saul looked out of the window, and saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart.
They brought in the ark of the LORD, and set it in its place, inside the tent that David had pitched for it; and David offered burnt offerings and offerings of well-being before the LORD. When David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the offerings of well-being, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts, and distributed food among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, to each a cake of bread, a portion of meat, and a cake of raisins. Then all the people went back to their homes.
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Harriet Yost
April 27, 1921 – June 28, 2015
Funeral to be celebrated this coming winter at St. Paul’s.
View her Obituary
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New Ways to Manage Your Support
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 Beginning in August, donations to St. Paul in the Desert can be made online through PayPal. In the Column to the right of this newsletter, there is a button labeled “DONATE ONLINE” (See photo insert). Follow the instructions and make your donation using either your PayPal account or a credit card. You can make a single donation, or set up recurrent donations on a monthly basis. You can also manage your pledge using the “MY PLEDGE CARD” button.
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Mark Your Calendar for a COOL Treat
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CHILL OUT FOR DESERT BLIND at Ben & Jerry’s, 110 S. Palm Canyon Drive. Enjoy your favorite ice cream delight on Thursday, July 23rd from 6 TO 8PM and Ben & Jerry’s will donate 25% of all sales to Desert Blind & Handicapped. No hoops to jump through, just show up! See Diane Stielstra, George Holliday or Mike Carson for any questions.
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Episcopalians for PRIDE – All Are Welcome
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 According to a recent study, over half of all Americans (58%) believe that religious groups are “alienating young adults by being too judgmental on gay and lesbian issues.” Want to help change that opinion? This year the Episcopal contingent will be at the front of the San Diego PRIDE parade along with the mayor. With more than 300,000 onlookers, many of whom are millennials and young families from around the county, we have a great opportunity to reverse this misconception. St. Paul’s Cathedral typically has more than 100 marchers and last year we were joined by St. Margaret’s, St. David’s, St. Mark’s, Grace San Marcos, Good Samaritan, St. Andrew’s Pacific Beach and St. Bartholomew’s. The parade ends at Balboa Park where St. Paul’s throws a BBQ for everyone in the contingent. Kids, strollers, friends are all invited.
Date: Saturday, July 18 Time: 10am (parade starts at 11am) We lead the parade, so don’t be late! Additional information is available at St. Paul Cathedral’s website: www.stpaulcathedral.org
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Help Others Beat the Heat
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St. Paul’s will be sponsoring a new ministry this summer to help those in need to gain relief from the heat. Through the Social Justice Team, St. Paul’s will be providing and distributing free bus passes to clients of Well in the Desert and others so they can have access to the cooling center, showers, Bingo and crafts workshops offered there. Daily bus passes are $3 (adult) and $1.50 (senior/disabled). If you would like to contribute to this important effort, please make checks payable to Church of St. Paul in the Desert, with “bus passes/Social Justice” in the memo line, or, place cash in an envelope identified in the same way. Any support you can give will be greatly appreciated.
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“Sunday Mornings at 9:15 AM
Episcopal Café returns in The Chapel”
7/12 Charleston: Responses from voices of faith.
7/19 Forgiveness: The First Step Toward Reconciliation.
7/26 Speaking to the Soul: Jesus calms the storm.
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“Tuesdays at 7:00 PM in the Library”
THERE WILL BE NO TUESDAY NIGHT SESSIONS
DURING JULY AND AUGUST
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Baked Goods Donations for
ROY’S DESERT RESOURCE CENTER
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St. Paul’s ongoing outreach to the homeless men, women and children at Roy’s Desert Resource Center needs renewed donations of cookies, cakes and other baked treats for our Monday night dessert service at the North Pam Springs facility. Homemade items are especially popular and appreciated. You can simply bring donations with you to church and leave them with an usher before the service. Or you can feel free to contact Chris Kelly – (760) 406-2978 – for further information. Thanks for your help.
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CHURCH OFFICE HOURS
The church office is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm with a lunch break from 11:30 am until 1:00 pm.
Please observe that the office is not open for walk-ins on Mondays. If you call, please leave a message. In case of emergencies, a priest will return your call.
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Copies of . . .
A CHURCH GROWS
IN THE DESERT,
Rev. Robert Semes’ history of the first 75 years of St. Paul in the Desert, are available at the Church Office during regular business hours. Rev. Semes is an accomplished historian and his richly illustrated book chronicles the life and times of the people and events that shaped the Church we are today. Cost of the book is $20.00.
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HOLY COMMUNION
SERVICE
FOR
LOCAL CARE FACILITIES
Holy Communion at Windsor Court, 201 South Sunrise Way, Palm Springs, is hosted by the Nursing Home Ministry on the second Wednesday of the month, next, on August 12th, at 10:15am. The Presiding Priest always welcomes assistance from parishioners.
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COFFEE HOUR CELEBRATION
Today’s coffee hour following the 10:30 Service is hosted by John Alex Houlton and Hank Smith.
There are several Sunday hospitality opportunities available through the end of the year. Please consider sponsoring a Coffee Hour after the 8:00 or 10:30 services. Sign-up binders are on the large table on the right as you enter the Parish Hall.
If you have questions, call Ray or Cheryl Kelley at 760.778.1725.
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PRAYER SHAWL MINISTRY
The Prayer Shawl Ministry invites you to join our circle on Wednesday’s from 10am -1pm in Hogarth Hall. Whether you wish to learn to knit or crochet or are an expert needleworker, we welcome you. Needles, hooks and yarn are provided. Please drop in to create and enjoy our prayerfully made creations.
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Bullying Behavior Not Welcome Here
At St. Paul in the Desert we 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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A WELCOMING, EMPOWERING, SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY
Our mission statement calls us to be “a welcoming, empowering and supportive community.” We are currently forming a new ministry at St Paul’s to support that mission. Volunteers are needed from all three services to donate approximately 90 minutes of their time per month. That time is split into 3-30 minute segments: 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after the service you attend, once per month, to support the Welcoming Table located in the Narthex and another 30 minutes a month assisting with name badge organization. If you are able to lend a hand, please contact Mike Funke at 760.-409.0986 or mike.funke@yahoo.com!
Help us live our mission statement!
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At the Church
of St. Paul
in the Desert
. . . we welcome all worshipers to a place free of violence, bullying, and abuse. Physical, verbal or emotional violence against others or against oneself is not acceptable because of our understanding of what it means to follow Jesus. Please let Jesus’ command to love your neighbor as yourself be your guide.
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REPORT MISCONDUCT
As part of our ongoing commitment to creating a safe haven for everyone, our diocese trains people in the prevention of misconduct and encourages all to report misconduct. All reported incidents are taken seriously and investigated thoroughly and confidentially. If you believe you have experienced misconduct of any kind, please contact the John Seitman, at jseitman@pacbell.net or 858-793-4426.
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Episcopalians Against Gun Violence
. . . is an ad-hoc group of bishops, clergy and lay people disseminating information about Episcopalians who are working, collectively and individually, to curb gun violence. For further information, click here.
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