Greetings

I greet all who read this article, in God’s name and blessings. It is an awesome concept to write something that will be read by people who live all over this world. It gives me pause to think and truly consider my words carefully.
At St. Alban’s Episcopal Mission Church in Yucaipa, California, you will find a very loving family of friends and some who remind you of your favorite as well as your least favorite relative. We are so full of God’s goodness and gifts that sometimes we do not always see eye to eye. Is that not part of being in a family? The answer to that question is always YES! So, if you are feeling on the fringe of the Christian Church, please come and give us a try. You will be welcomed as much if not more as the wayward son was from the gospel stories.
It is the duty of a deacon in a congregation to bring the concerns of the world to the attention of the congregation. That seems simple enough! The difficulty can be that the church does not want yet another concern to be brought to their attention. Unpopular is a place a deacon in a congregation will often times find him/herself. And God gives us the strength to continue bring concerns.
Our mission at St. Alban’s is ever growing and dynamic for such a small congregation. As Jesus reminded his disciples, the harvest is great but the laborers are few. All of us continue to strive to live out our individual and corporate callings. We are involved in the Interfaith Community Service project in Yucaipa. Every Sunday folks bring food offerings that one member of our congregation faithfully takes to their distribution place. There is a ever growing need for food these days. More and more people find it almost impossible to provide enough food for their families and lean heavily on food banks such as ICS.
Another mission work we do at St. Alban’s is provide a place for quiet, prayerful time with our Savior, Jesus. We host a monthly Taize service, on the second Wednesday of each month. We begin at 6 p.m. and generally finish by 6:45 p.m. Many folks stay in the church, in the quiet and continue to pray or contemplate or just enjoy the silence. You are always welcome. There is a place waiting for you at those services.
Another mission work we do at St. Alban’s is outreach to other organizations needing financial help. We send monetary donations to our Episcopal Relief and Development Fund of our national church.
We are involved in the Chamber of Commerce’s work in our community. More will be done as our numbers grow and the need for assistance is better known by our congregation. We also are searching for volunteers to teach reading at the Literacy Program at the library in Yucaipa.
When a person is released from prison back in to the community where they were before going to prison, there are many unanswered questions. Such as fear of the unknown, fear of returning to the same old group of people who may have contributed to that person’s incarceration. There is often the problem of addiction to drugs and alcohol present and what and where a person can go to get support to avoid going back to drug/alcohol use and abuse. A program in Redlands, begun by the United Church of Christ is working with the newly released and those on parole. It is called Step By Step and assists new and former prisoners on parole with answers to those questions and other support. Many of the newly paroled do not have a high school diploma or can read enough to fill out a job application. Step By Step has places where a parolee can get the tutoring to pass the high school equivalency exam and be able to work in the work force with the rest of us. Their reading skills are where they need to be to compete in our society.
Exciting new developments are happening at St. Alban’s and I invite you to come and see. To quote from a recent blog entry, “Bring your culture, your voice, your whole self. We want to engage in truly mutual relationship.”

Blessings,
Deacon Larry

Ramblings and More

When going about my life and work as a deacon and a chaplain, many, all too many, folks ask me what is an Episcopalian. My first reaction is to say, one is in front of you. Touch me and you have touched a very good Episcopalian. I am hoping that including this quote from our Bishop's Proposed Budget for 2008 will help.

WHAT MAKES AN EPISCOPAL CHURCH!

“Episcopal: comes from a Greek word for “overseer.” It indicates that this is a church that has bishops. The congregations of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles are bound together by their bishop, their reliance on each other, and by the Mission Share Fund to which all congregation contribute and in which all congregations, through their clergy and elected representatives, have a voice.

In the Episcopal Church of the United States , bishops are elected by the lay delegates and clergy of a diocese and consecrated in the apostolic succession. In turn, the bishops ordain deacons and priests, who are raised up as candidates by their congregations.

This hierarchy gives the Episcopal Church its basic structure and its character as both an apostolic church and one in which lay members have an equal voice. Episcopal congregations are never founded independently. Each congregation has a rector or vicar and an elected vestry or bishop's committee, and governs its own ministry under the leadership of the bishop, Convention, an d the canons, or laws, of the church.

That says it well in a short form. If you have questions about the Episcopal Church, please email me your questions and I will do my best to give you an answer that is short and understandable.

DEACON DIRECTS YOU TO:

Do you need help I learning to read or to improve your reading and writing skills? Contact the Yucaipa Branch Library at 12040 5 th Street , Yucaipa , (909) 790-3147.

Or you may find information at yeplit@lib.sbcounty.gov .

If reading is not your difficulty, then maybe you would have time to volunteer as a tutor for the adult literacy program at the Yucaipa Library. It is one of the most rewarding endeavors you will under take in your life, guaranteed.

Call Debbie at (909) 790-3147 or at the Mentone Brach Library (909) 790-0327.

Training is available, arranged at your convenience and is free.

Also at the Yucaipa Branch Library, on Tuesday evenings from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. is a six week course for give you support in finding a job, accessing the internet for assistance, employment workshops for resume writing, job applications, interview skills and how to keep a job. There are also employers recruitment workshops. Call (909) 790-3147 for more information and registration.

Many, all too many, of our children have a parent in prison or jail. The Department of Child Support Services can and will answer questions. For more information contact the offices of Child Support Services at www.childsup.ca.gov

The Garden of Angels, inc., is always in need for support and promoting the Safe Surrender Law for Newborns. GoA 's goal is to end the practice of abandoning newborns who may not live. Surrender is so simple. For more information contact those good folks at: www.gardenofangles.org .