September 2023
Spirit of the Eagle
St. John the Evangelist ACC
Spiritual Tidbits & Rector’s Reflections for
September 2023 from Father Tim
As we leave August 2023 we mourn the passing of our Shepherd, Bishop Rommie Starks, who watched over our diocese for over two decades. The Right Reverend Rommie M. Starks was the Bishop of the Diocese of the Midwest of the Anglican Catholic Church for 23 years. Bishop Starks grew up in Covington, Kentucky and received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from Eastern Kentucky University. He began attending the Anglican Catholic Church here in Dayton, Kentucky, at our little parish of St. John’s beginning in 1975, eventually moving to Indianapolis to study under the Right Reverend Joseph Deyman. Bishop Starks graduated from Holyrood Seminary in 1984 and was ordained to the Diaconate on Saint Nicholas Day, 1984, at St. John’s. In 1985, on the Feast of the Annunciation at Saint Edward’s, Bishop Starks was ordained to the Priesthood by Bishop Deyman. In 2000, he was consecrated as the fourth Bishop of the Diocese of the Midwest and remained in Indianapolis until his death on the 21st of August 2023. O God who hast made thy Servant Rommie Starks to flourish among the Ministers of Apostolic Succession in the honourable office of a Bishop: grant, we beseech thee, that he may also be joined with them in a perpetual fellowship. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen. The last day of Summer 2023 arrives on Ember Friday, the 22nd of September. Along with Ember Wednesday (20th), Ember Saturday (23rd), and the four Trinity Sundays, other holy days to note are the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (14th), the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary (15th), S. Matthew, Apostle & Evangelist (21st), and S. Michael & All Angels (29th). In addition there are a couple of Anglican Worthies to celebrate in September, Blessed Edward Bouvarie Pusey, Confessor (18th) and Blessed Lancelot Andrewes, Bishop & Confessor (25th). As we mourn the passing of our Bishop this month let us remember the words of S. Bernard as he contemplated the Seven Sorrows of Mary, “Truly, O Blessed Mother, a sword has pierced your heart. He died in body through a love greater than anyone had known. She died in spirit through a love unlike any other since His.” For the entire month of September let’s invoke the name of Jesus as often as possible, and pray that “our sorrow shall be turned into joy. John xvi.20. ~ Father Tim
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Is there someone in your life who mourns over the uncertainty of life? Do they fear the unknown in the future? September is a wonderful month to invite someone to Saint John’s where they can discover the Way, the Truth, and the Life eternal. ~ Father Tim
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Living is death; dying is life. On this side of the grave we are exiles, on that, citizens; on this side, orphans, on that, children; on this side, captives; on that, freemen; on this side, disguised, unknown; on that, disclosed and proclaimed as the sons of God. ~ Henry Ward Beecher, 1813-1887, American Congregationalist Minister
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Did you know?
Did you know Saint John’s made a charitable gift to Holly Hill Child & Family Solutions in July? Did you know our Book of Life Club has chosen Reflection on the Psalms for our September reading? Did you know we are scheduled for new kneeler padding and upholstery this fall? Did you know two of those kneelers are complete and available for inspection in the Parish Hall? Did you know that St. John’s was established in 1873 and 2023 is our 150th anniversary?
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Tears are a tribute to our deceased friends. When the body is sown, it must be watered. But we must not sorrow as those that have no hope; for we have a good hope through grace both concerning them and concerning ourselves. ~ Matthew Henry, 1662-1714, British Minister & Author.
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St. John September Ordo Kalendar
Sat., the 2nd of Sept., at 3:15 PM, Reflection on the Psalms, The Book of Life Club
Sunday, the 3rd of September, at 10:30 AM, Trinity XIII Mass
Wednesday, the 6th of September at 6:30 PM, Evening Prayer
Sunday, the 10th of September at 10:30 AM, Trinity XIV Mass
Wednesday, the 13th of September at 6:30 PM, Evening Prayer
Sat., the 16th of Sept., at 2:00 PM, Bible Study Lineup, The Usual Suspects Club
Sat., the 16th of Sept., at 3:15 PM, Reflection on the Psalms, The Book of Life Club
Sun., the 17th of Sept., at 10:30 AM, Trinity XV Mass, Vestry Meeting
Wed., the 20th of Sept., at 6:30 PM, Evening Prayer, Ember Wednesday
Sunday, the 24th of September, at 10:30 AM, Trinity XVI Mass
Sun., the 24th of Sept., at 12:00 PM, Aug. & Sept. Birthday/Anniversary Coffee Hour
Wednesday, the 27th of September, at 6:30 PM, Evening Prayer
Friday, the 29th of September, at 6:30 PM, S. Michael & All Angels ‘Quiet Mass’
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Has this world been so kind to you that you should leave it with regret? There are better things ahead than any we leave behind. ~ C.S. Lewis, 1898-1963, British Writer, Literary Scholar, & Anglican Lay Theologian
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St. John Shut-In Visits by Fr. Tim & Janet
Visited with Rob Ridiman at St. E’s in Fort Thomas on August 13th.
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September Birthdays & Anniversaries
Jonelle Prideaux – September 1
Joanna & Jim Barnett – Anniversary – September 5
Robert Kleven – Birthday – September 12
Terry Mitchell Centers – September 13
Eliot Miller – September 15
Micheal Fraser – Birthday – September 26
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Why should we want to worship Jesus well?
The day may come when after a long fight with disease, we shall feel that medicine can do no more, and that nothing remains but to die. Friends will be standing by, unable to help us. Hearing, eyesight, even the power of praying, will be fast failing us. The world and its shadows will be melting beneath our feet. Eternity, with its realities, will be looming large before our minds. What shall support us in that trying hour? What shall enable us to feel, “I fear no evil”? (Psalm 23:4). Nothing, nothing can do it but close communion with Christ. Christ dwelling in our hearts by faith. Christ putting His right arm under our heads. Christ felt to be sitting by our side. Christ can alone give us the complete victory in the last struggle. ~ J.C. Ryle, 1816-1900, Anglican Bishop of Liverpool
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Exaltation of the Holy Cross, 14th of September
The cross of Jesus displays the most awful exhibition of God’s hatred of sin and at the same time the most august manifestation of His readiness to pardon it. Pardon, full and free, is written out in every drop of blood that is seen, is proclaimed in every groan that is heard, and shines in the very prodigy of mercy that closes the solemn scene upon the cross. O blessed door of return, open and never shut, to the wanderer from God! How glorious, how free, how accessible! Here the sinful, the vile, the guilty, the unworthy, the poor, the penniless, may come. Here too the weary spirit may bring its burden, the broken spirit its sorrow, the guilty spirit its sin, the backsliding spirit its wandering. All are welcome here. ~ Octavius Winslow, 1808-1878, Evangelical Preacher in America and England, seceded to the Anglican Church in 1868
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The seeking of Jesus Christ and the quest for chivalry combined lead directly to one place only: Anglican-Catholicism. Courage, honor, courtesy, justice, and a readiness to help and defend the weak and the poor. Welcome to the Anglican Catholic Church. ~ Father Timothy Butler