Author Archive: Frank Christman

Adventure Team, May 1

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Tuesday, May 1st, the Adventure Team will depart the Parish Hall at 10:45AM for lunch at LaMadeleine SMU then proceed to SMU’s DeGolyer Library to view “Charles Dickens at 200 Years.” On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens, SMU’s DeGolyer Library is displaying 200 items including all of Dicken’s major works in original editions as well as prints, drawings and other ephemera. RSVP to Ed Morton if you plan to attend.

Captain Hope Kids Carnival

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St. Mark’s will be hosting our 4th annual event for Captain Hope’s Kids on Saturday, May 12th. This will be the Captain Hope Summer Carnival from 10am – 2pm. We need candy, books, toothbrushes & toothpaste, as well as lots of volunteers! Please let Sara Clements know if you will be able to help

HOLY WEEK SERVICES

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The regular Wednsday schedule will be observed.
Thursday evening the Eucharist & Footwashing will take place at 6:30PM.
The Prayer Vigil will begin following the service, continuing through Friday with the Good Friday Liturgy at 6:30PM.
Also on Friday, Morning Prayer will be said at 7:30AM and Stations of the Cross will be walked at noon.
Easter Services will be said at 8:00AM and sung at 9:30AM

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner ?

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Recently, Panera Bread ran a brilliant ad in USA Today. Imagine such polar opposites coming together at a table:
The Secret Service & The Party Crashers; Darth Vader & Luke Skywalker; Glee Club Singers & Football Players; Barack Obama & Joe Wilson; The Mac Guy & The PC Guy; Brett Favre & Wisconsin; Wall Street Execs & Everyone Else; Martina Navratilova & Andre Agassi; Sons-In-Law & Mothers-In-Law; Introverts & Extroverts; Mike Tyson & Evander Holyfield; Ohio State & Michigan; Yoko & The Remaining Beatles; Tori & Candy Spelling; Optimists & Pessimists; The Right & The Left; Lou Dobbs & CNN; People Who Are Always Right & People Who Are Never Wrong; Vampires & Werewolves; Kanye West & Anyone with a TV; Hallmark & Paris Hilton; Those Who Think It Tastes Great & Those Who Insist It’s Less Filling; Bart Simpson & Sideshow Bob; Insomniacs & The Inventor of the Car Alarm; Jessica Simpson & Perez Hilton; Red Sox Fans & Yankees Fans; Billy Corgan & The Smashing Pumpkins; Nerds & Dweebs; Rosie O’Donnell & Donald Trump; Prius Drivers & HUMMER Drivers; Batman & The Joker; Mariah Carey & Eminem; Guys Named Beau & Guys Named Bo; Joe Lieberman & Democrats; Popeye & Bluto; Bill Gates & Steve Jobs; Those Who Install Toilet Paper Over & Those Who Prefer it Under; Skiers & Snowboarders; Teenagers & Parents; Bud Selig & Pete Rose; The FiOS Guy & That Other Cable Guy; Importers & Exporters; Iceman & Maverick; Conformists & Nonconformists; Freudians & Skinnerians; Housewives in Orange County & Housewives in NYC; Michael Moore & George W. Bush; Early Birds & Night Owls; Sarah Palin & Tina Fey; Goth Girls & Homecoming Queens; Big Dog People & People Who Put Dogs in Handbags; Susan Boyle & Sharon Osbourne; Slobs & Their Roommates; Dick Cheney & Hunters; Financial Planners & Spendthrifts; Magic Johnson & Isiah Thomas; Rosie O’Donnell & Elizabeth Hasselbeck; and Benjamin Netanyahu & Mahmoud Abbas.
It has been said that a mind stretched with a new idea can never return to its former shape. Can you just imagine the controversy at such a dinner? As unthinkable as such a gathering, it is at the heart of Kingdom principles. Isn’t that what Jesus did when he came to the table? The Kingdom of God always stretches our expectations. When you get together with Jesus, the question always has to be asked, “Guess who’s coming for dinner?”
But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?” Matthew 9:10
I love you, St Markians, Dcn Ash

We Can All See Light in Our Brokenness

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STEP FIVE IN A.A.: “We . . . admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.”
Keith Miller writes about his own experience with how hard this step can be. Keith, a Protestant, called a Catholic priest who lived 500 miles away and asked, “Would you hear my confession?” He made a long list of his character flaws and defects and the many people he had wronged. Then he traveled to the priest’s home city, sat before him, and read aloud the entire list without even looking up. At the end, Miller held his head in his hands, waiting for a response. There was none. There was nothing but silence. Miller kept expecting the blow to fall. Nothing. When he finally forced himself to raise his head, he saw that the priest was crying, “My God, Keith,” he said, “that’s my list too.”
To this day, Keith attributes his healing to the honesty of that encounter. He later developed a ritual each night of creating a mini-inventory of his short comings, confessing those and jotting a note to make amends, if appropriate. Then, breathing a prayer of gratitude, he goes to sleep.
….and when, in my earlier life I hit bottom, Jesus offered his hand, assuring me that the bottom was firm.
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. James 5:16
I love you, St Markians, Dcn Ash

Easter Baskets for Captain Hope’s Kids

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Volunteers are needed to help fill 4,000 plastic Easter eggs that will be provided to homeless children in the DFW area. The Egg Fill will be at the Captain Hope’s Dallas facility (10555 Newkirk, Ste. 580). Dates and times are are on Saturdays: March 10 from 10am – 2pm and March 17 from 10am -2 pm. If interested, please see Wende or sign up in the Parish Hall. If you would like to donate any Easter items (eggs, candy, toy animals, etc.), please leave them in the BodyBuilding bin by Friday, March 16.

From the Bookkeeper…

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Just a quick housekeeping notice: Please be sure to discard any giving envelopes that you might have that are NOT dated 2012. Each year, envelope numbers which identify your giving account are re-assigned to the alphabetical list of names of parishioners submitting a Giving Card. Also, please be alert to ‘dating’ your checks with the new year, “2012”. Our bank will not accept checks which appear to be a year old. We appreciate your help with these matters.