St. Joe's Dispatch | March 9th, 2025
I. From the Desk of the Vicar
Dearests,
The cycle of the church year might be considered a cycle of storytelling - each season asks us to tell stories of different emphasis, and the swiftness of the church year means we never remain too long with any one beat of the Christian story.
During Advent, for example, we tell the stories of our longing — of our yearning for more of God’s presence and more of God’s light. During Easter, we tell stories of new life — stories of that which has died and been resurrected; of, maybe, friendships or marriages restored from struggle to joy; or of mourning and grief shifted into the surprising new life of widowhood; or of broken institutions or broken politics revivified. Stories of the green blade riseth.
And during the season of Lent we tell stories of our sin; of the damage within us and the damage we do. These are often not easy stories to tell.
Lent begins with two litanies. On Ash Wednesday, we prayed the Litany of Penitence, in which we named more than a dozen variations of sin to which we are prone: our self-indulgent appetites and ways; our exploitation of other people; our intemperate love of worldly goods and comforts; our negligence in prayer and worship; our failure to commend the faith that is in us.
I was deeply struck, on Wednesday, by confessing to God “our envy of those more fortunate than ourselves.” I feel this envy all the time—a kind of bitterness toward Duke colleagues who I know get paid way more than I do, say. The bitterness I feel is bitter like a raw unsugared cranberry, or like unripe melon. I sometimes feel the same bitterness toward a friend who is given a car by her employer and who thinks this is normal, to be given a car; sometimes when she and her car pull into my driveway, I find myself toting up the hours of work that went into my own purchase of my own car and I feel like a bitter orange peel. Wednesday’s litany jolted me, and I’ve been thinking in the days since about my envy. It’s sad and ridiculous—ridiculous!—that I feel this way. There’s a personal and private sin here: my lack of gratitude for all I’ve been given is, I think, what my bitter envy comes down to.
Lent also bids our inquiry into the sins of the various communities and societies of which we are a part. Social damage, collective damage, underwrites the much of the Great Litany, which we pray today, the first Sunday of Lent. When we pray that it may please God to make wars to cease in all the world; that it may please God to show pity upon the homeless and the hungry, and to allow all to enjoy the fruits of the earth — those are damages that, although inextricable from our individual lives and individual straying, are elementally social.
Both litanies are long — they can overwhelm — the mind can wander. But the overwhelm is, I think, part of the point: it means there’s no corner of the world that isn’t damaged, no corner of the world that doesn’t need God’s healing. When we pray God’s mercy on the government and the homeless and the hungry, when we pray wars to cease, we are recognizing that our whole society is damaged, and that try as we might, we are simply not capable of repairing all the damage by ourselves: we need God’s help.
These litanies help us begin to tell stories of the damage we’ve sustained and the damage we’ve done. And I, at least, need the prodding of prayer, because I do so much work during the rest of the year to distance myself from knowledge of all this damage—to insulate myself from the world’s ravages, and to insulate myself from knowledge of my own lacks and the harms I’ve caused.
It’s not wrong to fear such knowledge; after all, it might be crushing to walk around with damage-stories on our lips all year round. And if we didn’t have a story to tell of a savior who joins us in this mortal life and heals up the world from all this sin, a savior who loves us and feeds us at the altar and desires our company at every turn — if we didn’t have that story, the stories of even our mundane bitterness would indeed be crushing.
But I discover every Lent that it feels liberating rather than devastating to tell the stories that our Lenten prayers press us to tell — the stories of selves and a world that need, as today’s litany puts it, to be delivered by the good Lord from sinful affections and wickedness.
All this penitential storytelling is one reason many people decide to make a one-on-one confession to God in the presence of a priest during Lent. You can make such a confession any day of the year, but Lent is an especially apt time for what is sometimes termed “auricular confession.” (“Auricular” there just means “to the ear” — to the ear of a priest.) To that end, Fr. Lachlan or I will be in the Romanian churchspace, at the top of our parish house, each Wednesday of Lent from 5:00 to 5:50, ready to hear your confession. You may also email us and make an appointment to confess at a different time, and we can provide suggestions about how to prepare for a confession. (Suggestion #1: read through the liturgy we use, which begins on page 447 of the Book of Common Prayer. Suggestion #2: before coming for Confession, take some time in prayer asking the Holy Spirit to clarify what you need to confess.) Of course, you may confess to God alone, without a priest. But the church understands that sometimes it is helpful to be companioned by someone who can offer words of counsel, and who can speak aloud to you God’s forgiveness.
At the heart of speaking to God about our sin — at the heart of Lenten litanies, and Lenten confession — is the belief that when we speak about these matters, we arrange ourselves more truthfully before God. Sometimes, a story of damage can be quite hard to tell. But it can also be a vast relief — the way blocking your knitting can relax the fabric; the way sunlight coaxes a flower to open; the way a fist can unclench.
I look forward to praying, during this Lent, with and for you. (I hope you’ll also keep me in your prayers.)
With love from
Vicar Lauren
PS Sometimes people are more comfortable making a confession in the presence of a priest they don’t see on a regular basis. If that’s your wish, during Lent or at any time of year, get in touch with me, and I can refer you to someone else.
II. Announcements
Migrant God conversation and book signing with Isaac Villegas, Jed Purdy, and Vicar Lauren * Saturday, March 22 from 5:00-6:30 pm in the nave. Join us for a conversation about Isaac’s book, immigration and faith, and how we live out our hopes for democracy. Isaac Villegas is an ordained Mennonite minister and the author of Migrant God. Jedediah Britton-Purdy is a professor at Duke Law School. His most recent book is Two Cheers for Politics: Why Democracy is Flawed, Frightening—and Our Best Hope. (NB: later in the spring, dates TBD, the vicar will host a two-part class discussing Migrant God.)
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Breakfast Fundraiser Letter Writing * We’ll have multiple opportunities to gather and write letters together:
Thursday, March 13, from 5:30-7:00 pm (come have dinner at our March parish potluck and also stay for letter writing) in the Parish House.
Sunday, March 30, beginning 10 minutes after coffee hour in the Parish House and also at 4:30 pm at Dains on Ninth Street (first beverage of your choice on Fr. Lachlan).
If you cannot attend a gathering but wish to participate in fundraising (or have any questions), email Hannah Flack and she will be happy to provide you with letter materials and all the information you need to involve your friends and family in supporting our breakfasts.
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Newly formed finance committee * Today, a newly-formed finance committe convened. Interested to learn more? Email our treasurer, Elliot Krause.
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Spiritual Friendship Group for young adults (~20 to 39) * Will resume on Wednesday, March 12 for the season of Lent. The group will gather following Evening Prayer at 7:00 pm at Julia’s house. During Lent, the group will be focused on going deeper in the season: into hope, grief, repentance, and reconciliation accompanied by the book of Lamentations. Email Julia for the address.
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Parish potluck * Thursday, March 13, 5:30-7:00 pm in the Parish House * If your last name starts A-M bring: dessert; if N-Z: salad/side dish. Childcare will be provided. Questions? Email Hannah.
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Durham CAN listening sessions * Sunday, March 16 at 11:45 am after the 10:30 am worship in the parish hall and Wednesday, March 19 at 6:30 pm, after evening prayer in the parish hall. These listening sessions are an opportunity for you to share your stories, concerns, and experiences about issues that matter most to you and the St. Joe’s community. Information gathered from St. Joe’s and other Durham CAN member organizations helps organizers understand community priorities and shape future organizing efforts. Questions? Contact Doug Merrill at 919-724-3022.
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Song in a Weary Throat discussion * Monday, March 17 from 6:00-7:30 pm at Fr. Lachlan’s home. We will discuss chapters 2, 3, 12, 13, and 14 - plus one chapter from Jane Crow by Rosalind Rosenberg (which will be made available at church this coming Sunday and the Sundays that follow). This is a two-part series and will meet again on Monday, April 7. Come to one or both discussions. Questions? Email Fr. Lachlan.
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Welcome Weavers * To enrich St. Joe’s beloved community, we seek to deepen our connection to newcomers and further connect the not-so-newcomers to all we do. If you’re willing to make a phone call, take a walk, or share a cup of coffee to help create those ties, become a “Welcome Weaver!” Email Lauren Norton for more information or to participate in this important effort.
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New Sunday lay-liturgy schedule * We are about to set our next Sunday liturgy schedule for April-June 2025 and we would love to have you join us as a reader, chalice-bearer, sound system maestro, etc. We will share job descriptions and assist in setting up a time for you to be trained. Email Hannah for more information or to get on the rota.
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Name Tags * Vestry members are sporting theirs, and we’ll offer them to everyone once we land on a storage and display setup. If you’d like a name tag, email Lauren Norton.
III. Art
IV. Community Events
Our Sunday evening musicians, Mary Rocap and Megan Whitted (The Travelin' Mercies), will perform a Spring Concert on Saturday, March 22 at 4:00 pm at St. Mary's Chapel (located at the intersection of St. Mary's Road and Schley / Pleasant Green Roads in Hillsborough). There is no charge for this concert, but donations will be gratefully accepted. Proceeds will go to the Chapel for its upkeep and maintenance and to us as we raise funds for a recording project this summer.
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Conversation with activist and author Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove * April 10 from 7:00-8:30 pm at First Presbyterian Church in Durham. With faith communities in mind, Wilson-Hartgrove will explore how myths have been used to stigmatize and oppress poor people and people of color and will offer insights into how moral fusion can serve as a transformative solution. Register here.
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City of Durham Holding job fair tomorrow, March 10, from 5:00-7:00 pm at the Walltown Recreation Center * The job fair will focus on recruiting for Parks & Recreation and Maintenance positions. Learn more here.