Showing posts with label missouri. Show all posts
Showing posts with label missouri. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Security Not a New Concept for Churches in the Ozarks

From Missouri

As you would expect, First Baptist will be beefing up security following a weekend shooting, but it's not alone. Some churches already have a plan in place for situations like this.

Rev. Kenneth Chumbley is the rector of Christ Episcopal Church in downtown Springfield. On Monday, along with planning for his next service, he's thinking about security.

"We want people to be able to come to church and to feel safe and secure."

Increased violence is what he describes as soft spaces, like churches, has him concerned.

"So we can be ready," he adds. "So we can be prepared."

It's a message Mark Struckhoff, with the Council of Churches of the Ozarks, shares with leaders across the area. His organization encourages churches to work with police. He says it's necessary, but unfortunate.

"Deep sadness that there is a situation now where churches need to think and think again about their plan."

Rev. Chumbley's church has an emergency system, but he says it needs to be better.


More here-

http://www.ozarksfirst.com/story/security-not-a-new-concept-for-churches-in-the-ozarks/d/story/nfS9hMMqcEeM6DFn0_JVJA

Friday, December 21, 2012

Clayton lawyer to get 40 years in prison for $50+ million Ponzi scheme

From St. Louis-

A Clayton lawyer and American Anglican bishop who helped bilk more than 100 investors out millions of dollars with an overseas Ponzi scheme will be sentenced Dec. 28 to 40 years in federal prison, a judge’s memo issued Thursday says.
Martin Sigillito, 63, preyed on family, fellow church-goers and friends from the local country-club set from 1999 to 2010 with investment opportunities in the so-called “British Lending Program.”

Investors were told that their money was going to real estate investments in the United Kingdom, that the investments bore little or no risk and that they would earn high rates of return. They weren’t told that money from new investors went to pay off older investors and that Sigillito and others took fees that went as high as 32 percent of the money invested, wrote U.S. District Judge Linda Reade.

By 2009, the pyramid began to collapse. In 2010, after Sigillito’s secretary took her concerns to law enforcement, the FBI raided Sigillito’s office. The Ponzi scheme’s collapse has also spawned a federal civil suit.


More here-

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/clayton-lawyer-to-get-years-in-prison-for-million-ponzi/article_9a984708-47d4-503b-93f9-1de9e6569a0b.html

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Faith grapples with art, lust


From St. Louis-

In the middle of the 16th century, Catholic bishops and theologians met sporadically in the city of Trento in northern Italy to discuss the church's response to the Reformation. In periodic meetings over 18 years, the Council of Trent produced documents correcting abuses like indulgences and other corruption.

A surprising victim of the Counter-Reformation was Michelangelo, whose depiction of the "Last Judgment" in the Vatican's Sistine Chapel was altered as a result of the Council's dictate that "all lasciviousness be avoided; in such wise that figures shall not be painted or adorned with a beauty exciting to lust."

In 1564, the council ordered that certain naked figures in the "Last Judgment" considered "obscene" be painted over with loin cloths.

It will be difficult for critics to compare Michelangelo's nudes with the Rev. John Blair's. Just after the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri launched an investigation of the St. Louis priest Tuesday evening, many of his photos of nude models were removed from the Internet.

And yet the diocese's disciplinary board, whose members will decide if Blair's photography constitutes sexual misconduct, will try to answer the same question as Trent's participants 450 years ago: How does the church recognize the beauty of art that depicts God's creation — the human form — without seeming to condone, in the council's phrasing, "a beauty exciting to lust"?

More here-

http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/faith-and-values/faith-grapples-with-art-lust/article_7f750f85-1d36-569c-9f44-37101a52ba3c.html

Thursday, August 9, 2012

St. Philip's Episcopal Church Hosts Iftar Dinner For Islamic Society of Joplin Whose Mosque Was Burned In Fire


From Missouri-

Joplin churches are holding a special ceremony for members of a mosque destroyed in a suspicious fire.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations said Joplin churches planned to gather Wednesday evening at St. Philip's Episcopal Church as a show of support for the Islamic Society of Joplin. They'll be taking part in an "iftar," which is a meal to break a fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The Islamic Society of Joplin's mosque was destroyed in a fire early Monday. Federal officials have been working to determine whether the fire was arson, but said Wednesday it's unclear when they'll know if the fire was set.

CAIR says the groups participating Wednesday night include the South Joplin Christian Church, United Hebrew Congregation, First Community Church and Peace Lutheran Church.

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/08/st-philips-episcopal-chur_n_1757933.html?utm_hp_ref=religion

Monday, April 23, 2012

A Female Episcopal Priest Visits a Mormon Temple


From Missouri-

As I stood in front of the new Mormon Temple in Liberty, Mo., it struck me as ironic that close to 175 years ago, Mormons were forced out of this same state.

Whereas the Missouri public once urged their governor to force Joseph Smith and his followers out of the area surrounding Kansas City, Mormons began to return to the region in the 1900s, eventually gathering in such large numbers that the Church organization decided the region needed a temple.

Which is why I came to visit.

Latter Day Saints restrict temple access to members of their denomination who have proven themselves to be faithful and dedicated adherents. Because Mormons believe temples are the most sacred places on earth, one needs to be prepared to enter them by being an active member of the Church. (In contrast, chapels, where Mormons hold Sunday worship, are open to everyone. Temples are used only for certain rituals and are not open on Sunday so that Mormons can be at their chapel services.)

When a new temple is built, anyone may enter prior to its dedication. So, always curious to learn about the faith of others, I didn't want to miss an opportunity to see a site normally closed off to an Episcopal priest like myself.

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/danielle-tumminio/inside-a-mormon-temple-a-female-episcopal-priest-visits_b_1430206.html

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Church blends music of U2 in traditional service


From Missouri-

I have run

I have crawled

I have scaled these city walls

These city walls

Only to be with you

But I still haven’t found what I’m looking for

Is the singer of these lyrics proclaiming his feelings toward a romantic or a spiritual relationship?

Twelve years after the song’s release, in 1999, “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” was used in the opening scene of the Julia Roberts’ movie “Runaway Bride” as she runs away, on horseback, from a wedding.

But for Mitch Jarvis, senior pastor at First United Methodist Church in Independence, the song’s spiritual connection is clear.

More here-

http://www.examiner.net/news/x586055828/Church-blends-music-of-U2-in-traditional-service

Fire is in Episcopal tradition for Easter


From Missouri-

While Easter is most often associated with sunrise services, lilies, bunnies, and dyed eggs, our family celebrates Easter first with fire.

In the Episcopal Church tradition, a fire is lit on Saturday evening during the Great Vigil service to commemorate Jesus’ passing from death to life. This new fire is blessed with water and is used to light a Pascal (Easter) candle to start the first celebration of Easter with these words:


O God, through your Son you have bestowed upon your people the brightness of your light.

Sanctify this new fire, and grant that in this Pascal feast we may so burn with heavenly desires, that with pure minds we may attain to the festival of everlasting light.

Our family delights in bringing this new fire home in a glass jar candle to illuminate our darkness and to reminds us always that Christ lights the way to eternal life. We keep the flame from the Pascal candle burning safely during the night and throughout Easter Day to recall the words of the Exsultet, one of the oldest songs in Christendom that is sung during the Great Vigil:

More here-

http://www.news-leader.com/article/20120407/LIFE07/304070033/Fire-Episcopal-tradition-Easter?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cs

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Scandal rocks church


From Missouri-

When Father Joseph Carlo of the Christ Episcopal Church in Rolla retired in 1990, he left behind a legacy as a priest who led his congregation to flourish. An internal church investigation recently completed by the Episcopal Church’s Diocese of Missouri may leave Carlo with a new legacy.

According to the Rev. Canon Daniel Smith of the Diocese of Missouri, an investigation into reports of alleged sexual abuse of children within the church by Carlo was recently completed. According to Smith, the church has been in contact with five people who claim they were abused by Carlo between 1975 and 1985.

“We believe that(sexual abuse) has occurred,” Smith said about the abuse allegations and the results of the internal investigation. Carlo worked at the Rolla congregation from 1960 to 1990. He went into retirement when he left the Rolla congregation and is believed to be living in Florida. Within the congregation, Smith says the church is focusing on healing — healing for the victims, healing for the families and healing for the congregation. More here-

http://www.therolladailynews.com/news/x503113159/Scandal-rocks-church

Friday, November 18, 2011

Episcopal presiding bishop visiting Cape


From Missouri-

Katharine Jefferts Schori, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, will be in Cape Girardeau on Sunday morning at Christ Episcopal Church.

Jefferts Schori is in St. Louis for the state's Diocesan Convention, and Cape Girardeau was selected as the location for her to lead a Sunday service while in the state.

The Rev. Robert Towner of Christ Episcopal Church said the Rev. George Wayne Smith, the bishop of Missouri, selected the Cape Girardeau church as a way for the presiding bishop to see a congregation outside the metro St. Louis area.

"He also wanted her to see what a very active church was like out here, a small church but with a big mission. So I take it as a great compliment," Towner said.

Jefferts Schori said part of her responsibility as presiding bishop is to visit various church gatherings, be it a convention, when a new bishop is installed, or in other official capacities.

Churches outside major cities are often used for her visits, particularly those with thriving immigrant congregations or those doing something unusual.

More here-

http://www.semissourian.com/story/1785875.html?response=no


Sunday, October 16, 2011

Kansas City bishop indicted on child endangerment charge


From CNN-

Catholic Bishop Robert W. Finn and the diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph have been indicted by a grand jury on a charge of failure to report suspected child abuse by a priest, prosecutors said Friday in Missouri.

The class A misdemeanor carries a potential sentence of up to a year in jail and a fine up to $1,000 for Finn, 58, and a fine for the diocese, said Jackson County prosecutor Jean Peters-Baker. Both pleaded not guilty Friday.

"The fact that this is a misdemeanor complaint should not diminish the significance of this charge," Peters-Baker said. "This is a significant charge. To my knowledge, a charge like this has not been leveled before."

The prosecution alleges that Finn "had reasonable cause to suspect a child may be subjected to abuse" by Father Shawn Ratigan, a priest from Independence, Missouri, who was indicted in August on 13 counts related to child pornography. Finn "had reasonable cause to suspect a child may be subjected to abuse due to previous knowledge of concerns about Father Ratigan and children," Peters-Baker told reporters. That reasonable cause included the discovery of hundreds of photographs on the priest's laptop, "including a child's naked vagina, upskirt images and images focused on the crotch area and violations of restrictions that were placed on Father Ratigan."

More here-

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/14/justice/catholic-bishop-indicted/?hpt=hp_t2&imw=Y

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Labor for love: Alex Rhodes uses his love for the outdoors to help his church


From Missouri-

Alex Rhodes uses his love for the outdoors to help with the lawn care at his church, Christ Episcopal Church in Cape Girardeau. The son of Joel and Jeanie Rhodes, Alex will be a junior this year at Cape Girardeau Central High School. He participates in pole vaulting, wrestling and cross country. He also enjoys hunting and hanging out with friends. Here he shares about how he lives his faith through works of service.

How long have you been involved in Christ Episcopal Church?

Since I was 7.

What do you like most about your church?

It's a small church, so you get to know everybody there, and you know everybody's name. It's like a family.

How are you involved in your church?

I help out with the lawn care, mowing the lawn, with the food pantry, and I help with the Sunday free meal for the community. If it's snowy, I shovel the snow and stuff like that.

How did you get involved in your church?

When my parents got divorced, my mom married my stepdad and that's when we started going to Christ Episcopal Church. When I was 9, I became an altar boy and would help carry the cross and help with the sermon, and I still do that today. Then three years ago I started mowing the lawn and helping with most of the other lawn care at church. I try to do jobs as they need me to.

More here-

http://www.semissourian.com/story/1750934.html

Monday, July 18, 2011

Trinity Episcopal Church in St. Charles celebrates 175 years


From Missouri-

Trinity Episcopal Church, located at 318 S. Duchesne Drive in St. Charles, is celebrating its 175th anniversary this year with several events, many focusing on St. Charles history.

The next event will be at 5 p.m. Aug. 14 at the church. Pastor James Vargo and others will speak on the "Founding Women of Faith in St. Charles County." The panel will discuss such noted St. Charles women as Mary Sibley, founder of Lindenwood University, and Rose Philippine Duchesne, a member of the Sacred Heart Order and founder of its St. Charles congregation in 1818.

"Our previous event topic was the Civil War and its impact on local churches," says Keith Hazelwood, chairman of the committee organizing the Historical Speaker Series. "St. Charles County Executive Steve Ehlmann, who has written a history of St. Charles County and is a noted St. Charles County historian, spoke about the histories of St. Charles Borromeo, St. Peter's Catholic Church on First Capitol Drive and St. John's United Church of Christ on Fifth Street.

"The Civil War put St. Charles County residents in positions of conflict among family members, friends and neighbors. Mr. Ehlmann's comments spoke to the types of assistance each church offered its congregation and, as a special part of the presentation, there was a 6-minute segment from a forthcoming video (featuring many photos) created by St. Charles County relating to the Civil War in the county, which will be released later this year. There was a large turnout, a lively presentation and much audience participation, both in the form of comments and questions."


Read more:

http://www.stltoday.com/suburban-journals/stcharles/life/article_e64dab36-2e47-546b-aff8-88c9b8486d30.html#ixzz1SSAslbLE

Monday, July 11, 2011

Lobsters Help Church Raise Money for Annie's Hope


From St. Louis-

Thanks to hundreds of live lobsters that recently made a trek from Maine, members of Grace Episcopal Church in Kirkwood were able to raise $1,491 for Annie's Hope.

This is the 10th year the church has held "Lobsters on the Loose," in which buyers place orders in June and pick up the lobsters (live or cooked) at Grace Episcopal.

Church members recently prepared, cooked and wrapped the 328 Maine lobsters. They also sold classic lobster sides, corn-on-cob and new potatoes. The produce was donated by a local distributor, according to a statement from Grace Episcopal.

Originally funds from "Lobsters on the Loose" went to the church's operating fund, but five years ago members turned the sale into an outreach project.

“Over the past five years that we’ve donated to Annie’s Hope, we have raised more than $11,000,” said event co-chair and Grace member Julie Grossman in the statement.

More here-

http://kirkwood-webstergroves.patch.com/articles/grace-episcopal-church-kirkwood-annies-hope-bereavement-center#photo-6952395

Friday, June 24, 2011

Las Vegas priest resigns amid sexual abuse lawsuit

From Las Vegas-

A Las Vegas Episcopal priest resigned from his duties at his church Thursday after his name surfaced in a lawsuit alleging a Missouri monastery covered up sexual abuse by him.

The lawsuit, filed in Missouri by a former choir boy, alleged the Roman Catholic monastery, Conception Abbey, kept secret the boy's 1987 sexual assault by Bede Parry, then a Catholic priest who directed the choir.

Parry, 69, who was not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, had been serving as the organist and choir director at All Saints' Episcopal Church in Las Vegas since 2000.

He said he told the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada of his resignation as the Missouri lawsuit became public Thursday morning.

Bishop Dan Edwards, who heads the Nevada diocese, confirmed the resignation and said that because Parry remains a priest, the diocese is investigating internally to determine whether any further action needs to be taken against him.

More here-

http://www.lvrj.com/news/lawsuit-against-missouri-monastery-involves-las-vegas-episcopal-priest-124432963.html?ref=963

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Missouri youth group helping build Winona Habitat house


From Missouri-

A youth group from Kirkwood, Mo., hoped to escape the Southern heat while working in Winona this week.

On Tuesday, they sweated under an unusually cruel Minnesota sun.

The 24-person team from Grace Episcopal Church is in town for its annual youth mission trip and is building a home at 269 Chatfield St. with the help of the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity.

The structure will become home to the family of Tiffany and David Mitchell, who hope to move in before Christmas. On Tuesday, the Mitchells helped with the construction — Habitat requires homeowners spend 300 hours working on their new house — while getting to know the Missouri group, like Carly Wooldridge, 18, who has participated in the mission trip for the past four years.
“The families are so deserving of what they get, and they really put a lot of work into their home,” Wooldridge said.

More here-

http://www.winonadailynews.com/news/local/article_2dea7686-918b-11e0-9c03-001cc4c03286.html

Friday, May 27, 2011

Praying at the edge of the grave


From Missouri-

Today's paper is full of information about ways to help Joplin, including collections sites in the St. Louis area. I imagine many area churches and other religious organizations are collecting money and much-needed items; my own congregation is starting a collection this Sunday, and is trying hard to stay on top of information as it develops, so that we meet the most urgent needs in the most repsonsible and helpful way.

As part of that effort, I've been regularly checking on the Diocese of West Missouri's website. (In the Episcopal Church, the state of Missouri is divided into two dioceses, Missouri and West Missouri. Joplin obviously is in West Missouri, while St. Louis is in Missouri.) There is a lot of good, concrete information on the site. On the day after the tornado, Bishop Martin Field posted a letter, including a list of those clergy and families who were accounted for, as well as explaining the difficulty of obtaining all the information needed to make a full report. It reminded me of the parable of the shepherd going out of his way to find the one lost sheep. According to the website, the Bishop is in Joplin now and will remain there through the weekend.

More here-

http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/faith-and-values/civil-religion/pamela-dolan/article_34f83490-87b3-11e0-96b5-0019bb30f31a.html

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

This Priest Faces Mecca? A Parable of Confusion


From Christian Post-

Rev. Steve Lawler has attracted the attention of the national media because this Episcopal priest chose a very odd way to observe Lent. He decided to “adopt the rituals of Islam” for the forty day season observed by many liturgical denominations, including the Episcopal Church.

As reported in The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Lawler decided to practice as a Muslim for the forty days as a part of his “Giving Up Church for Lent” emphasis at St. Stephen’s Church. The closer you look at this story, the more it appears that Rev. Lawler “gave up church” some time ago.

According to the press reports, the priest began to perform Muslim prayer rituals, facing toward Mecca and praying five times a day. He prayed to Allah, read the Qur’an, and adopted Islamic dietary restrictions.

He also got in trouble with his bishop. “He can’t be both a Christian and a Muslim,” said Bishop George Wayne Smith of the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri. The bishop continued: “If he chooses to practice as Muslim, then he would, by default, give up his Christian identity and priesthood in the church.” The bishop also told the public that his priest had a responsibility “to exercise Christianity and to do it with clarity and not with ways that are confusing.”

It is refreshing to see that kind of conviction from a mainline Protestant church leader. But, after all, he had a priest who was practicing a different religion. Sort of.

More here-

http://www.christianpost.com/news/this-priest-faces-mecca-a-parable-of-confusion-49525/

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Mixing lent and Islam does not amuse bishop


From Missouri-

The Rev. Steve Lawler should have just given up chocolate or television for Lent.

Instead, Lawler, the part-time rector of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, decided to adopt the rituals of Islam for 40 days to gain a deeper understanding of the faith.

Two days after it began, he faced being defrocked if he continued in those endeavors.

“He can’t be both a Christian and a Muslim,” said Bishop George Wayne Smith of the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri. “If he chooses to practice as Muslim, then he would, by default, give up his Christian identity and priesthood in the church.”

Lawler didn’t foresee such problems when he came up with the idea. He merely wanted to learn more about Islam, he said, especially in light of the ongoing congressional hearings on the radicalization of the faith.

On Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, he began performing “salah” five times a day, by facing east, toward Mecca, and praying to Allah. He also started studying the Quran and following Islamic dietary restrictions by abstaining from alcohol and pork.

More here-

http://life.nationalpost.com/2011/03/21/mixing-lent-and-islam-does-not-amuse-bishop/

Friday, January 21, 2011

Rector speaks of Haiti experience at service


From Missouri-

As golden light from stained glass windows in Drury University's Stone Chapel streamed around him, the Rev. Ken Chumbley said Haiti will need an outpouring of help for a long time to pull out of its dark days.

Chumbley, who is rector of Christ Episcopal Church, has only memories left of the Episcopal cathedral in Port-au-Prince he visited just four days before an earthquake demolished the landmark church and much of the capital city.

During a homily given during a prayer service for earthquake victims, Chumbley said he has been wearing a special wooden cross given to him by a Haitian priest.

"When I wear it, I feel close to the people of Haiti," Chumbley said. "When I wear it, they are close to my heart."

More here-

http://www.news-leader.com/article/20110121/NEWS01/101110010/Rector-speaks-Haiti-experience-service?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cp

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

U.S. allies keep close watch on Sudan independence vote


From The Christian Century-

The people of south Sudan are voting this week on whether to split Africa's largest country in two and form the world's newest nation, or to reunite with their neighbors in the north.

The seven-day referendum, which started Sunday (Jan. 9), was part of the January 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended 22 years of civil war between the largely Muslim north and Christian south, and gave the south autonomy leading up to the election.

Monitoring the referendum closely, from 7,000 miles away, are members of the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri, who have had a "companion relationship" with the Episcopal Diocese of Lui in southern Sudan since 2006.

"The main point, theologically, is the relationship itself," said Debra Smith, the Missouri diocese's representative of the American Friends of the Episcopal Church of Sudan and wife of Missouri Bishop George Wayne Smith.

"The church is the body of Christ, and each church is part of that body. To get to know someone from a different culture who shares the same beliefs and liturgical practices is mind-broadening and spiritually invigorating."

Southern Sudan is one of the poorest, most isolated places on the planet. The civil war cost more than 2 million lives, and today millions more are dependent on food aid, according to the International Rescue Committee. Decades of war and violence have left the region's economic and social infrastructure in ruins.

More here-

http://www.christiancentury.org/article/2011-01/us-allies-keep-close-watch-sudan-independence-vote