Dear Five O' Clock Friends,

Four years ago, our worshipping community got together to look at what we treasured about the past and what we dreamt for our future.  One of the things we affirmed that day was our belief "that innovation and exploration takes faith in the unknown."  We also said about ourselves that " We are a community that recognizes our traditional liturgy while incorporating alternative styles of worship."  According to the church calendar, we are about to start a new year.  Our liturgical New Year's Eve is this Sunday--November 22.  Our New Year's Day is next Sunday--November 29.  New Year's is a good time to try something new.  That's just what we will be doing.  

Beginning the first Sunday in Advent, we will gather in chairs around the altar.  The lights in the church will be dimmed.  Candles will be grace the bancos and the candles in the sconces will be lighted.  On each chair, you'll find all you will need to join in the service--the order of worship, the prayers and the responses, the music and words of the songs we sing.  

Readers will rise and read from their place in the circle.  We'll hear the Gospel and reflect on how God's word shapes our lives.  We'll stand together as we affirm our faith in word and song.  Prayers will be offered from the midst of the people.  Shoulder to shoulder we will make our confession.  From the front of the altar--not more than a breath away--will come the assurance of God's forgiveness.  We'll turn to one another and pray that God's peace surround the person facing us.  Then, as one of us said four years ago, " As the sun sets and the day closes, we gather together in communion with all of God's holy creation and people to experience our oneness and connection with each other and to an awe-inspiring spirit."  From the table, from our place in the circle, from that embodied connectedness, we'll go as we are sent--out to world--"a people forgiven, healed, renewed",  proclaiming God's love to our broken world.
I hope that you will join Father Joe, Larry Gallegos and me as we step into this next stage in our life together in Christ on Sunday, November 29, at 5:00 p.m.

Susan +

Dear Five O' Clock Friends,​

Tomorrow is the Feast of All Saints.  We'll be celebrating twice.  Once at the Marigold Parade (which begins at the South Valley Community Center) at 1:00 p.m. and once at St. Michael's at our usual time.

Tomorrow, we'll gather at the parade staging ground, put the final touches on our float (note the truck above), finish painting our faces and then celebrate a simple meal of bread and wine accompanied by prayers of thanksgiving and remembrance.  At that marvelous, joyful, kooky parade, we, along with all the other people dressed in ghoulish costumes and sporting faces painted like skulls, will celebrate life that triumphs over death.  That's what we do EVERY Sunday.  We celebrate life--life bigger than any one of our individual lives.
Howard Thurman, that wonderful mystic, pastor and chaplain to the Civil Rights movement, often reflected on lives--individual and particular--and life in a bigger broader sense.   In his meditation "All Men Live the Eternal", Thurman suggests that there is a "both/and ness" to life--both individual and collective, both temporal and eternal.  Thurman puts it this way, "...death is something that comes in life but not something that comes to life.  This is the meaning of the eternal in time.  All men (sic) live the eternal in time.....Here is one of the central insistences of Jesus, that death is powerless over the life of a man who lives the eternal in time....birth and death with all the vicissitudes in between are but episodes in a wide range of possibilities"(Meditations of the Heart, 67-68).  The Marigold Parade and the many activities around Dia de los Muertos celebrate life in its biggest sense.

Celebrate life and the life we share in Christ.

Susan +

​Dear Five O' Clock Friends,

Tomorrow, the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi, marks the seventh anniversary of Live at Five.  Tomorrow, we celebrate the Feast of St. Francis.  Tomorrow, worship outside on the East Meadow of St. Michael's as we gather to hear stories of God and God's creation, to share the bread and wine and to give thanks.  And tomorrow, we'll share our worship with the dogs and cats and snakes and chickens and turtles and maybe even a mule that share our lives with us as we bless those who bless our lives.  

Four years ago, our community came together to reflect on who we were and who we wanted to be as people of Christ in this little corner of the world. Today, I looked back at the work we did that day.  
One of the values we identified was "Seeing ourselves as part of creation." One of the dreams we had that day was worshipping outside from time to time.  One of our hopes was that we, as a community would serve others.  We started that day reflecting on what we loved about Live at Five.  More than one person loved the joyful nature of our music and our worship. 

Isn't it fitting the anniversary of our worshipping community falls on the Feast of St. Francis--a person known for his joyful nature, his love of creation, and for serving others--especially the most vulnerable.  On this eve of the Feast of St. Francis, the words of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin keep echoing in my mind:  Joy is the most infallible sign of the presence of God.

May our hearts be filled with joy.

Susan+

Dear Five O' Clock Friends,

When I first began talking with the leadership of St. Michael and All Angels Church about the possibility of serving as their rector, one of the things that especially caught my eye was the "Live at Five" service. I was thrilled to know that there was alternative worship that was bi-lingual, oriented to the local culture, innovative, and with a closely knit group of participants. 

During the interim period, I realize that there was some variation in the Live at Five worship, due in part to the lack of a full-time rector. Well, now that I am here, I would like to commit the parish to providing a priest-and therefore the Holy Eucharist-on every Sunday at 5:00 pm, and to building and encouraging the Live at Five congregation and community. This Sunday, August 30, we are inviting everyone who has been a part of this Sunday afternoon congregation to join us in a "Reunidos" as we begin this new chapter together. 

Yours in Christ, 
Fr. Joe 

Dear Five O' Clock Friends,

All day long, my Facebook page has been awash with the words, "Love Wins", as folks record their joy in the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that no one can be denied the right to marry on the basis of gender orientation.  Marriage is now equally available to all.  Love did, indeed, win today.  

Yet another thread is also running through this day.  A thread of mourning. Today, the Rev. Clementa Pickney was buried in Charleston, South Carolina.  As you well know he, along with eight other people, was shot to death at a Bible study at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston.  Shot by a young man who, on his Facebook page, ranted against African Americans and posted images not of love but of hate.  

 And yet the people of Emanuel AME Church are not letting hate have the last word.  At the arraignment of Dylan Roof, the accused killer, the granddaughter of one of the people killed said, "We are here to combat hate-filled actions with love-filled actions...."  

Perhaps that is our call in Christ--a call to love-filled actions that help to heal our broken world. Actions so particular, so concrete that they change a person's way of thinking or being or living.   Particular responses to particular situations.  Not just walking away from a racist or sexist or homophobic  comment or joke, but stopping the conversation and saying why.  Or looking at the world around us and asking "why"--why are their more black men who have been imprisoned in our country than who have  graduated from high school?  Why do African American men suffer from a disproportionately high rate of heart disease?  Why do we not have an acronym DWW (Driving While White?) 


Howard Thurman, a mystical theologian and a pastor to one of the first (he would likely claim "the first") racially, ethnically and economically diverse congregations in the United States often noted how important community was in bridging gaps that often divide.  Indeed, Thurman once said that "Contact without community breeds contempt but that contact through fellowship builds community."  Live at Five offers such a community.  Every Sunday.  

This Sunday, we will hold our monthly potluck following our worship service.  Our new rector, Father Joe Britton, will be preaching at Five and joining us for the potluck afterwards.  Come along and build community through food and fellowship.  Share your stories of love-filled actions as we celebrate Love winning once again.
In gratitude for all of you and for our life together,

Susan +

Dear Five O' Clock Friends,

Today is the last day of Lent.  Tomorrow we enter into Holy Week. Tomorrow the Hosannas will ring out.  But today is the last day of Lent.  No Hosannas today and no alleluias either.  For today is the last day of Lent. 

The Gospel assigned for today is the story of Mary and Martha and Lazurus. Today we hear Mary say, "Lord if you had been here, my brother would not have died."  Today we hear those words, "Lord if you had been here", echo through our lives and through our world. 

Today, one foot planted squarely in the present, we look out at the scene of a horrific plane crash and  and wonder with Mary, "Lord, if you had been here...."

We read what happens next.  Seeing the tears flow down the faces of Mary and those around her, Jesus asks, "Where have you laid him?" Someone in the crowd answers, "Lord, come and see."

Then we hear, "Jesus wept."   Words worth remembering as we look out on the world in which we live.  Words that bring me comfort when my heart is full with grief.  Jesus' tears mingling with the tears of those who follow him.

There is a change of scene.  Jesus and the crowd move the tomb where Lazurus lies.  Jesus tells the crowd to roll away the stone and then shouts loudly, "Lazarus, come out."  What strikes me about this passage is how it concludes with words Jesus says to those standing close to Lazurus, "Unbind him, and let him go."

Imagine that:  the last words of the Lenten gospel are "unbind"--"let go."

Today is the last day of Lent. Tomorrow we enter into Holy Week.  But today those words--unbind and let go--linger in the air.  As we enter into Holy Week a question begins to form on our lips:  What might we be called to unbind and let go as we follow Jesus to Jerusalem and we walk with Him to the Cross?

Easter will come as it does every year.  But this year, I invite you to walk slowly with me through Holy Week.  Cry out "Hosanna" with the crowds that lined the path to Jerusalem and remember that it means, "Save us."  Hear Jesus say to his disciples--both then and now--"He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life."  Listen to Jesus' words to those gathered around him,"Walk while you have the light, lest the darkness overtake you...."  Gather at the table for one last supper with the one who walks with us.  Stay awhile to pray with Him in the garden. 

Walk with Him to the Cross.  Pick up his cross-beam.  Carry it for Him.  Then wait with Mary and the others in the darkness of the nights and day that follow. 

Then rise early.  Go with Mary to the tomb.  Watch as they roll away the stone.  For Easter will come again this year as it does every year.

Dear Five O' Clock Friends,

Not long ago, a group of people gathered around a table and reflected on the role Lent plays in their lives.  For some people, Lent is a season marked by abstinence from chocolate or fine red wine or shopping sprees.  For others, Lent is a time for prayer and service.  But for the people who gathered around that table in the library at St. Michael's, Lent is a time to go deeper-deeper in prayer, deeper in reflection, deeper in relationship with fellow travelers on the journey with God, and deeper in relationship with God.  This year, our Live at Five Governing Group has decided that our Lenten Focus will be "Digging Deep." 

 You will see us digging deep in worship in the silences that will surround the readings, the prayers and the homily.  You'll hear this meditative approach to worship resonating in the music we sing and the chords played on the guitars.  One way you might dig deep in worship is to read the scripture assigned for the day before you come to church.  (You can find the assigned readings by googling "The Lectionary Page" or by checking St. Michael's weekly e-Noticias.)  I find that if I let the words of scripture simmer on the back burner of my mind, they tend to echo in my life and in the world in which we all live.  What if we all began our Sunday worship on Monday morning by reading and praying the lessons for the following Sunday? 

 Another opportunity for Digging Deep this Lenten season is our weekly offering of praying the rosary together.  Every Sunday during Lent those interested in praying the rosary in community will gather in the Narthex at 4:30 pm.  Sometimes the prayer will be in English, sometimes in Spanish and sometimes in a little of both.

 If reading is a way you dig deeper, you may decide to join other members of the Live at Five community in reading Thich Nhat Hanh's Be Free Where You Are.  Each week, we'll read a few short chapters (most chapters are only a few pages and the pages are very small) and after worship we pull up some chairs and share our responses to the reading.  We'll have books available for purchase every Sunday (for $8.08) or you can order the Kindle version from Amazon. 

Not long ago, I ran across a Lenten practice I found intriguing.  It comes from the blog "Praying in Color" (http://prayingincolor.com/lenten-calendar-templates-for-2015).  Blogger Sybil Macbeth suggests,

I love using a calendar template for Lent because it gives me a one-day-at-a-time, concrete, manageable way to have a daily practice for the 40 (or 46) days before Easter. 

Here are some ways to use the calendar:

1) Pray for someone each day. Write a name, doodle around it, pray with words or in silence as you draw.

2) Choose a word from the Daily Lectionary or other reading and write it in the space for the day. Pray the word. Meditate on it. Spend time with it as you draw. Let it tell you about itself. Let God reveal something new to you about the word.

3) Write a word you associate with Lent-sin, forgiveness, journey, palms, Jesus, salvation, crucifixion,.... Meditate on it. Spend time with it as you draw. Listen to what the what can tell you about itself. Let God reveal something new to you about the word.

4) Just doodle or draw in the space without words. Keep silence and listen for the "still small voice of God."

5) Write one of the different names for God each day and pray/meditate on the name.

 If you want to make a Lenten calendar, you can find templates at the site listed above. 


For over a year, our governing group has been searching for ways that we, as a community, might get to know one another more deeply.  Beginning with our potluck on Sunday, February 22, we'll have table questions for folks to explore as we eat.  We won't spend long on them and they won't be difficult questions, but they will offer a path for us to dig deeper into our shared life of faith.

In gratitude for our shared journey,

 Susan+

Dear Five O' Clock Friends,

I still can't quite wrap my mind around it.  I've heard people talk about grace.  I've probably even talked about it myself every so often.  I can even give a theological dictionary definition of the word, and, if pressed, I can probably point to theologians who are known for their work on grace.  But never have I seen grace at work in the moment.  Or maybe not in quite the same way--a way that left my head spinning; a way that left me speechless.

 It was the end of the month.  People at the shelter were at their most vulnerable.  And I had threads to follow, work to do--a deaf mute woman lost in Albuquerque, a man in a wheel chair trying to find his way home to Amarillo, a regular at the shelter hoping to recover his belongings from the evidence compound.  I worked my way through the crowd and through the demands of the day.  

 A man nudged me.  He needed to talk.  Privately.  There was an urgency to his plea.  An urgency I'd not often heard--even in the midst of all that need.  We found a place to talk in a hallway behind a closed door and a blaring TV.  The hallway wasn't wide enough for us to face each other, so we sat side by side as he told me his story.  

 A gun in his back.  A command to freeze.  A demand for his money. "I was terrified," he said.  "I couldn't move even if I wanted to."  He stood frozen for twenty or thirty minutes.  And then rage--a murderous rage--wiped away his fear.  

 He told me that all he could think about was getting a gun and killing the man who had taken all he had.  He found a friend, borrowed some money, got a gun.  For three days he looked for the man who had shaken his foundations and shattered his world.  

 All this he told me as he sat impassively not even facing me.   His expression didn't change.  You could see the barely controlled rage in the grinding of his teeth and in the tensing of the muscles in his arms.  

And yet as he talked his expression seemed to change.  Subtly softening.  On the third day, he gave the gun back to the man who had helped him purchase it. Then he headed for St. Martin's.  He needed a shower and a change of clothes.  What he found was a change in attitude as his rage morphed into anger right before my eyes.

As he talked,  the edge in his voice soften.  His facial muscles began to relax.

You could feel a peace come over him.  "I need to go home," he said as much to himself as to me.  It felt like an "Amen" to grace working it's way through him.

Years ago, I ran across a cartoon in The New Yorker.  Two guys leaving church.  One says to the minister standing at the door, "You mean I have to believe it to see it?"  Last week, I thought a lot about that cartoon and about seeing grace at work.  Sometimes you have to see it to believe it! 

On Sunday we'll gather at St. Martin's.  We'll hear the Word of God; we'll break the bread and share the alcohol-free wine; then we'll join around the table for breakfast.  We'll be bound together in an every-so-often visible cord of grace.  Come share in the gifts of grace.

See you Sunday, February 8, at 8:00 am at St. Martin's.

Susan +