Christ Episcopal Church 321 West Avenue

Red Wing, MN 651-388-0411

Bishop The Right Rev. Craig Loya

Priest-in-Charge

The Rev. Letha Wilson-Barnard

651-327-2242

Deacon

The Rev. Barbara von Haaren

barbaravonhaaren@gmail.com

Christ Church Vestry

Senior Warden: John Blue

Jr. Warden: Catherine Johnson

Zoe Malinchoc DeVoe (2020)

Open(2020)

Charlie Brown (2021)

Ken Christensen (2021)

Sandy Richter (2022)

Pam Dressen(2022)

Treasurer

Buck Foot

finance@christchurchredwing.com

Administrator

Debora Gilson

office@christchurchredwing.com

The Caller July 2020

Woyaya

“We are going, heaven knows where we are going,

We'll know we're there.

We will get there, heaven knows how we will get there,

We know we will.

It will be hard we know

And the road will be muddy and rough,

But we'll get there, heaven knows how we will get

there,

We know we will.

We are going, heaven knows where we are going,

We'll know we're there.”

(Lyrics written by Annie Masembe from Uganda. Woyaya means “we keep going” in a

Ghanaian language called Ga. Covered by Art Garfunkel, on debut solo album.)

WILDERNESS is the metaphor that comes to my mind to characterize the times

we’re living through. Wilderness is a common theme in scripture: it is a place

of danger, disorientation, and re-direction.

The children of Israel were brought out of slavery in Egypt by God with the

help of Moses, to worship in freedom. They wandered in the wilderness for 40

years – God was with them, fed them, gave them water, and gave them the law

(the commandments) to shape them into God’s people. Centuries later, the

Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians, and the leaders of Isra-

el were captured and hauled off to live in exile in a foreign land. God reassured

them they were not forgotten and called them to repentance and recommitment,

right there in the midst of exile. Jesus was driven into the wilderness by the Ho-

ly Spirit, after his baptism. There Jesus was tested by Satan and resisted tempta-

tion, through fasting, prayer and meditating on Scripture. The call and promise

from God, during these wilderness periods, is always, I am with you: (re)turn

to me, draw close to me, trust in me.

We are facing multiple challenges in our wilderness time. We are in the midst

of global pandemic, with the U.S. now the epicenter.

The pandemic has disrupted every aspect of our

lives and is hitting hardest the elderly, the poor, and

People of Color. Our economy is distressed and un-

employment is at its highest in decades. We are in

the midst of civil unrest, an uprising, a racial reck-

oning, if you will, that we haven’t seen in over 50

years.

As Christ’s Body, what is God saying to us? What

is God inviting us to in this moment?

I don’t believe any of these major issues will be re-

solved quickly and I believe the church, and will

have a role to play in our healing, recovery, and

transformation, if we are faithful. I wonder if this

might be a time for us to dig deep into our spiritual

tradition, to recommit to discipleship, as followers

of Jesus, and to focus on recovering ancient spiritual

practices. These are described in the Episcopal

Church’s Way of Love movement as Turn, Pray,

Learn, Worship, Bless, Go, and Rest. (https://

episcopalchurch.org/library/video/getting-started-

way-love)

I wonder if in this time - when we can’t meet togeth-

er in our church building—we can begin to gather

in small groups, on Zoom, or conference calls, or

some might gather outdoors, observing health and

safety guidelines, during the summer. Though tech-

nology may not be satisfying for many, right now,

it’s what we have.

This is an opportunity, in the midst of wilder-

ness – of disorientation of uncertainty and un-

knowing, for us to discern together God’s call

to us;

I’ve noticed that when people have the chance to

gather in small groups, to share personally, to pray,

or discuss scripture or a topic related to discipleship

- the connection and conversation is deep and rich

(examples are the Wednesday 10 a.m service, virtual

coffee hour on Sundays, Centering Prayer, and con-

firmation). It’s like manna in the desert, it feeds

people, strengthens people’s faith in God and our

bonds to one another.

I wonder if God, who is always with us, in the midst

of all that is going on, wants to get our attention.

This is an opportunity, in the midst of wilderness –

of disorientation of uncertainty and unknowing, for

us to discern together God’s call to us; to (re)turn to

God, to deepen our own spiritual practices, and to

trust in God with all our heart, our mind, and our

strength.

As Christians, discipleship is both individual

and communal as Christ’s Body.

We don’t have to look far to know the framework of

what God desires for us. Jesus summarized all the

law and the prophets into these two most important

commandments: Love God and love your neighbor.

And from Micah 6:8: “O mortal, what is good; and

what does the Lord require of you but to do justice,

and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with

your God?”

As Christians, discipleship is both individual and

communal as Christ’s Body. We need each other for

support, discernment, and encouragement. It is

when we gather to pray, to study, to discern God’s

call to us, that Christ is in the midst of us, through

the Holy Spirit, ready to guide, to strengthen, and to

equip us for the work God calls us to as God’s peo-

ple.

This fall, I would like us to find a way to offer small

groups, perhaps, using the “Way of Love” small

group curriculum, developed by The Episcopal

Church. There may be some folks that would like to

focus on other topics, such as studying a book of the

Bible, or anti-racism.

I wonder if God, who is always with us, in the

midst of all that is going on, wants to get our

attention.

Rev. Letha is available for outdoor pastoral visits at your home, or at church. Please contact me to

schedule a visit. Please know you can always call me for a phone conversation or to arrange a

Zoom, one-on-one meeting.

A NOTE ON REOPENING: You may hear about other churches in Red Wing reopening for worship

this summer, including St. Paul’s Lutheran in mid-July. Also, some of the other Churches around the Park,

will be collaborating to offer an ecumenical outdoor service on Sunday mornings during July in Central

Park. Christ Church won’t be reopening for indoor worship anytime soon, and we won’t be co-sponsoring

the outdoor service in Central Park. Bishop Loya is being cautious and loving in his response to the pan-

demic. However, starting July 1st, we are permitted to gather in small groups (10 or fewer) outside for

meetings or worship, following the public health guidelines of social distancing, wearing masks, etc. If you

lead a group that would like to meet together outside, within these perimeters, please talk with Letha.

Our Reopening Task Force is working on developing guidelines for various situations outside and inside

our building so we will be ready, when it seems safe to meet.

For now, I invite you to join:

Wednesday, 10 a.m. a simplified liturgy, with one lesson from the Gospel for the following Sunday,

and a gospel discussion, instead of a sermon. On Zoom, same as for Sunday.

Tuesday, 7 p.m., Centering Prayer (15 minutes of meditation, together in our own homes).On Zoom,

same as for Sunday.

Thursday, 8:30 p.m., An Order of Compline (close of evening prayer). FBLive on facebook.com/

cecredwing

Anti-racism study group, on 7/30 at 6:30 p.m. on Zoom. Bishop Craig Loya, of the Episcopal Church

in Minnesota, has invited Minnesota Episcopalians to read, James Baldwin’s book, Fire Next Time.

Zoe Malinchoc has several copies in stock for purchase at Fair Trade Books. Zoe and I will co-facilitate

the conversation. Please read the book before 7/30, and join us on Zoom, ready to discuss it. Look for

reminders mid-July.

Blessings.

Letha+

Introducing the Huneke Family

Earlier this year the Huneke family began attending Christ Episcopal Church. Amanda Huneke, the

Mom, said, “Christ Church just felt comfortable to us, it is a place that is very welcoming and reflects our

family values.”

The parents, Mike and Amanda, grew up in the Goodhue area. After completing school in Mankato, the

two were married and Mike joined the Marines as an officer. They were stationed on the East Coast. Mike

served several deployments in Afghanistan and then was Company Commander for the Wounded War-

rior Project East at Camp LeJeune.

They have two children, their son Ryan is almost 12 and wants to grow up to be a farmer. Austyn, their

daughter is 9 and wants to be a teacher, a veterinarian, a dentist…. In Red Wing she participated in the

Missoula Children’s Theatre in Zumbrota.

While Mike was in the Marines, Amanda was at home with the children. Hardly a quiet life, she began

writing children’s books. Her first series of books, inspired by her son, were published by Abdo Publish-

ing in Edina: Monster on the Loose: A Monster at Schoo l; A Monster in the Park ; A Monster on the Bus.

Her next book was inspired by her daughter it is called Why Not?

As Mike reached ten years of service in the Marines, the family made the decision to leave the Marine’s

and move back to Goodhue. The land where they have built their hobby farm is near Bellechester. The

farm animals include ducks, Kathdin sheep, goats, and a few pigs. Mike is working full-time at Fabtech as

a process engineer and plant manger.

Caring for the farm and the animals is a family affair. Everyone pitches in. A special project for Mike is

restoring the hardwood forest on their property.

The family has found a new lifestyle, close to family and with that have found a Church that is an im-

portant part of their lives as well.

We look forward to welcoming them in person when we can.

The landscaping on 3rd Street began on

June 30th and will be completed quick-

ly.

Family Fare Receipts

I hope you have been saving your receipts even though the church has been closed. When it reo-

pens again, the receipt box on the buffet in the Parish Hall will be waiting for them. You can al-

so put them in the church mail box on West Avenue and Debora will collect them and keep them

safe.

Marian Gustafson

The Living Church’s Kirk Petersen’s In-

terview with the Bishop Craig Loya.

KP: Just to set the stage, when you were elected

bishop on January 25, nobody in the United States

had died yet from the coronavirus. Then on June 6,

in a cathedral that was almost empty, you knelt

down as a priest and stood up as a bishop. And

that was 12 days after George Floyd was killed.

So, two times, you’ve had to come to terms with

the fact that your new job is going to be very

different from what you imagined. What has that

been like for you, emotionally and spiritually?

CL: Moving and starting a new vocation always in-

volves disruption, and that’s been particularly true

in these last six months. It has certainly been a chal-

lenging time to make a transition.

At the same time, we learn over and over in the

Scriptures that the people of God often meet God’s

love and power most fully during periods of disrup-

tion, during periods in the wilderness, during peri-

ods of exile. As challenging as the transition has

been, I have also been reassured of God’s love and

God’s presence, and God’s faithfulness to the

Church. Even with all the grief and loss we’re expe-

riencing, we’re being reminded that God is faithful

to God’s people, from one generation to the next.

None of us would choose the suffering that is being

caused by COVID-19. Certainly, none of would

choose the suffering that has been caused for many

centuries by the Church’s complicity in systemic

racism. But given that this is where we are, I do

think there’s an invitation from the Holy Spirit in

this moment for a deeper transformation, so that we

become a more just, more faithful, and more vibrant

witness to Jesus Christ on the other side of all of this.

Could you say more about the Church’s complicity

in systemic racism? What form has that taken?

I think early in the Church’s history in this country,

we oftentimes were complicit in the decimation of

indigenous cultures, with sort of a thin veneer of

Gospel witness and evangelism layered over the top

of that. Our own structures, our own leadership, our

own makeup at different times has privileged peo-

ple who are white over black, brown, and indige-

nous people.

Last week, the Executive Council voted to give

$150,000 each to your diocese and the Diocese of

Kentucky, where Breonna Taylor was killed. Do

you have a sense yet how you want to spend that

money?

Not specifically, but we want to do a couple of

things. The first is to continue to work with our com-

munity partners to provide relief and assistance

where it’s immediately needed.

Second, this has been a reminder to the Episcopal

Church and to disciples of Jesus everywhere, that

this is long work. We are called to repenting, ac-

counting, and reconciling with our own history of

being complicit in systemic racism. We hope to set

up that work of racial justice and reconciliation for

the long term.

One of the videos on your diocesan website said

your predecessor, Bishop [Brian] Prior, made

strong efforts to be a bridge between the police and

the Black community. Clearly you would want to

continue that. Do you have any thoughts on what

form that might take?

One of the things that excites me is that a few years

ago, the diocesan offices were moved to North Min-

neapolis, which is a predominantly African-

American neighborhood. I hope we can continue to

join the Holy Spirit in bringing new life, and recon-

ciliation, and justice in North Minneapolis. We have

community groups that use our spaces. During the

protests after the killing of George Floyd, our offices

were used as a community center to provide food

and other critical supplies to people in the neighbor-

hood. I hope we can continue to follow the lead of

our community partners in North Minneapolis, en-

gaging in that work of reconciliation.

Are you working out of the diocesan offices now?

No, our offices are still closed because of COVID.

Our staff members are working from home. I’m not

able, other than by phone and virtually, to begin to

connect with our community partners. Now that

I’m the bishop, those are relationships I’m going to

have to continue to build and cultivate and establish

on my own. This is a challenging time to try to do

that.

In one of the videos you said Revelation 22 is one

of your favorite passages in Scripture, about the

restoration of Eden. You’re involved in a restora-

tion project right now. Does that linkage evoke

anything for you?

Absolutely it does. That vision of the restoration of

Eden in Revelation 22 is an image we are called to

bear witness to. It’s God’s initiative to restore the

world to what God envisions. In every generation,

in every context, in every season, God is always try-

ing to restore God’s vision of a beloved community

of justice, and peace, and love, and life. It’s our job

as disciples to discern where God is doing that and

to join up with that.

We’ve talked about the need to build bridges be-

tween police and the Black community. The day

after George Floyd was killed, you posted some-

thing on your personal Facebook page about being

“heartbroken and angry.” That really came

through when you wrote: “America in 2020 is the

place where Black men are regularly murdered by

police while they are handcuffed and begging for

their lives.”

Since building bridges between the Black commu-

nity and the police is going to involve working

with both sides, and recognizing that people on

both sides are children of God, I’m wondering if

that’s still the way you would frame that thought,

now that the initial passion has passed.

I would say the facts would suggest that

we do regularly have Black men being killed by po-

lice when they are handcuffed and begging for their

lives. At the same time, racism in the form of police

brutality is a systemic problem more than a people

problem. The vast majority of police that I know are

really good people, trying to do good and critical

work for our communities. The systemic challenge

comes from the fact that this continues to happen

over and over, that there doesn’t tend to be a lot of

accountability for when these things happen. The

problem is in the system, and it’s up to all of us to

work to transform the system.

What makes you hopeful?

The thing that makes me most hopeful is the fact

that God is faithful. The Scriptures, Church history,

my own personal experience, communicates over

and over that despite our limitations, despite our

shortcomings, despite our failures, despite the con-

stant uncertainty in the world, in every generation,

God is faithful to God’s promise. I’m so grateful to

be called into this ministry in this moment when

both the call of the Gospel is so clear, and the need

of our witness to the Gospel is so urgent. It all

comes back to the world’s deep hunger for the good

news of Jesus, and for our ability to follow the Holy

Spirit’s call in bearing witness to that.

Christ Church’s Summer Adventures with Flat Jesus

Remember “Flat Jesus”, a fun way to keep our church

family connected during the summer, when we are enjoy-

ing the warmer weather; and especially, during the pan-

demic, when we aren’t gathering for worship in-person.

Flat Jesus isn’t just for children, adults and youth, please

join in the fun.

Char Friedrich and Flat Jesus at the St. Crispin Villa

Apartments

The kitchen is being painted by Calvin

in a beautiful Revere Pewter.

July Birthdays

3rd Amy Mayo

Scarlett Johnson

7th Bob Dail

Teagan Lerum

14th Esme Murnane

15th Landon Johnson

17th Ilah Sullivan

19th Teagan Lerum

Thomas Blue

20th Alyssa Haas Johnson

Keith Hase

Oakley Anderson

22nd Jean Featherstone

24th Wendy Thomforde

26th Nada Peters

Pam Dressen

July Anniversaries 6th Jim and Pam Dressen

8th Pat and Ellie Kelly

9th Gary and Wendy Thomforde

16th Brianna Dressen and Matthew Pearson

19th Ann and Kevin Florine

20th Ted and Kelly Florine

21st Erik and Laura Prink

26th Mary Ann and Bob Stark

28th Charlie and Lynn Brown

SHARING IN LIFE’S MOMENTS.

July Flowers July 5th Chapel: In memory of loved ones Jean Chamberlain

Church: In memory of Warren Naomi Lenway, Susan and Mary

July 12th Chapel: Foot Memorial Fund Mr. E.H. Foot

Church: In memory of loved ones Jamie and Laura Teele

July 19th Chapel: In memory of Gene Arlene Beckwith

Church: In memory of son Grant and husband Dick Carol Kosec

July 26th Chapel: In memory of love ones: Louis & Adela Possehl, Edward & Martha Possehl, Louise

Wright & Colin, Adeline & Hyden Lindsted

Church: In memory of Don and Vonnie Vick Dennis and Marlis Whitmore

Thank you, thank you:

Pat Martin

Vicki Lambert

Elaine Hoisington

Mary Ann Valentine

Sharon Bryan

Charlie Brown

Fr. Phil McNairy

Peggy Danielson

Laurie Wronski

Maureen Blue

Terri Van Allen

Norma Neufeldt

Chris Foss

These folks have been making weekly phone calls to elders of Christ Church since the start of the pan-

demic. What a beautiful way to support and love one another. I am truly grateful to each of you. I’ve

heard that it has been a mutual blessing, from both the callers and the people receiving the calls. Plus, a

special thank you to Chris Foss, who recruited and organized the volunteers – well done Chris! Thank

you for your ministry. If you would like to be added to list to receive a call, or if you are willing to be a

caller, please let Debora know. Many blessings to each of you. Rev. Letha