Hello Dear Hearts,
With summer initiated because of Memorial Day weekend, end of school and June just around the corner, we wanted to give you an update on The Table's response to COVID-19 & what to expect out of our summer months.
The Table's Board & leadership team has voted unanimously to continue meeting online for the months of June & July, with reevaluation about next steps for August & September at July's Board meeting.
Are we afraid?
No. We are not afraid of the global pandemic we are all facing as a "nemesis" but we do take seriously the call to love our neighbors as ourselves by protecting one another from a deadly virus that has caused
100,000 deaths in the USA alone
since March (ranked less in our history only than the Spanish Flu, Civil War and WWI & II). The risk management of being a community that is based on food sharing & intimate dialogue requires us to be cautious, wise and loving in our actions. Our standard is not fear or reactionary.From the Bishop-elect of the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Missouri, Deon K. Johnson:
The church does not need to 'open' because the church never 'closed'. We who make up the Body of Christ, the church, love God and our neighbors and ourselves so much that we will stay away from our buildings until it is safe. We are the church.
Are we faithful?
This is our goal. The standard by which we hold ourselves to as a community is love & the common good. In the words of our friend & influencer, Parker Palmer:
"We must judge ourselves by a higher standard than effectiveness, the standard called faithfulness. Are we faithful to the community on which we depend, to doing what we can in response to its pressing needs? Are we faithful to the better angels of our nature and to what they call forth from us? Are we faithful to the eternal conversation of the human race, to speaking and listening in a way that takes us closer to truth? Are we faithful to the call of courage that summons us to witness to the common good, even against great odds? When faithfulness is our standard, we are more likely to sustain our engagement with tasks that will never end: doing justice, loving mercy, and calling the beloved community into being."
~Parker Palmer, Healing the Heart of Democracy
Are we hopeful?
Very. The intimacy of our dialogue, meditation based community, while different in an online setting, is not lost as we gather on Zoom. We are still able to lead our kids in mindful meditation, thoughtful Godly Play stories & reflections. We are still able to hold space for our own mindful reflection, prayerful response & deep inquiry into how to be the kinds of humans we are called to be as a "community together, while physically separate."
Your leadership team is brainstorming ways to imaginatively and creatively continue to love and serve each other so that when love feels strange and far away, we can find in our community the kind of generosity we crave. If you have any ideas, send them our way!
Our mission has not changed. The Table’s mission is: to nourish the spiritually hungry and welcome the curious into our studio of love by asking good questions, seeking good answers and joining forces for good in Casper and beyond.
We began our response to this time with a mantra, and we continue to repeat this mantra through June & July and beyond:
Love will not run out
Compassion is not cancelled
Neighborliness is still our calling
Listening opens our hearts to courage
A prayer for these times:
I do not know when we can gather together again in worship, Lord.
So, for now I just ask that:
When I sing along in my kitchen to each song on Stevie Wonder’s Songs in The Key of Life Album, that it be counted as praise. (Happy 70th Birthday, SW!)
And that when I read the news and my heart tightens in my chest, may it be counted as a Kyrie.
And that when my eyes brighten in a smile behind my mask as I thank the cashier may it be counted as passing the peace.
And that when I water my plants and wash my dishes and take a shower may it be counted as remembering my baptism.
And that when the tears come and my shoulders shake and my breathing falters, may it be counted as prayer.
And that when I stumble upon a Tabitha Brown video and hear her grace and love of you may it be counted as a hearing a homily.
And that as I sit at that table in my apartment, and eat one more homemade meal, slowly, joyfully, with nothing else demanding my time or attention, may it be counted as communion.
Amen.
-Nadia Bolz-Weber
Summer Theme (June and July):
“Breathing Under Water: Spirituality and the Twelve Steps"
Exploring the book by Richard Rohr
To survive the tidal wave of compulsive behavior and addiction, we must learn to breathe underwater and discover God’s love and compassion.
If you would like to purchase or borrow a copy of the book to read along with us, please send an email with your mailing address to: community@thetablecasper.org If you are a subscriber at levels two or three to our "Love Share Challenge," your book is included in your subscription.
We will begin on June 10th with the introduction and chapters 1 & 2.
This Week:
During tonight's gathering of the online version of The Table, we will conclude our "Shared Future" theme by asking the question: what makes you come alive? This will be an exploration of imaginative, creative spiritual gifts contained within each of us and the tools we have for discerning how to utilize these gifts.
6:15pm - Kids Korner - including "show and tell" from home
6:35pm - Wider Gathering
We are gathering via ZOOM which means you can join the "call" by telephone or by video conference. We hope you'll join us so we can see your face, and listen to your voice. We need now, more than ever, to hear from each other and grow in our Studio of Love, even if if looks different than we are used to.
JOIN URL:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82837074025
Next week:
A very special celebration welcoming Jessika Waldron as The Table's first ever pastoral resident! We will spend time celebrating Jessika, blessing her as a community, and sharing about the transition time during Pastor Libby's parental leave as the Hugus family welcomes baby number two into their world.
Do you need support? please reach out to us -- the office number is listed in our signature and you can always find us on Facebook or email.
You are loved, dear hearts.
In the same way, let us love and serve each other, so that those to whom love is a stranger might find in us generous friends.
From the Studio of Love,
Pastor Libby & The Table Leadership Team
RESOURCES:
From the Bishop-elect of the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Missouri, Deon K. Johnson:
"The work of the church is essential.
The work of caring for the lonely, the marginalized, and the oppressed is essential.
The work of speaking truth to power and seeking justice is essential.
The work of being a loving, liberating, and life giving presence in the world is essential.
The work of welcoming the stranger, the refugee and the undocumented is essential.
The work of reconciliation and healing and caring is essential.
The church does not need to “open” because the church never “closed”. We who make up the Body of Christ, the church, love God and our neighbors and ourselves so much that we will stay away from our buildings until it is safe. We are the church."
"It’s not uncommon to find people who are frustrated and angry these days. It’s a normal human response to these abnormal circumstances. But taking steps to reduce the spread of the coronavirus is the right thing to do. Refusing to act responsibly doesn’t make you a civil libertarian. It doesn’t make you a patriot or a devout person of faith. It surely doesn’t make you a hero. What it makes you is just another statistic, a potential carrier of a virus against which there is no known cure. We are all in this together. Stay safe. Hold fast. And follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Or, to put it another way, embrace the Golden Rule, and do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Your life may depend on it."
~ Baltimore Sun Editorial board
Check-In
Mental
1. Knowing myself includes practicing non-judgemental observation
2. I am more than the sum total of my thoughts
Emotional
1. Building resiliency is an adapted choice, not an ingrained trait
2. Saying no is just as important as saying yes, may God grant me the wisdom to know the difference.
Physical
1. My body is my teacher
2. I am creative and intuitive, I can change my habits
Spiritual
1. I chose to give and receive the generosity I crave
2. Channels for fueling my spiritual energy and reserve are available all around me