Category: The Messenger

STINA’S MESSAGE As we come to Holy Week and Easter, and my retirement shortly thereafter, I want to share the Presiding Bishop’s Easter Message for you to ponder. I found it very helpful, thinking about the future. The only place we do not find Jesus is in the tomb. Below that, you will find upcoming…

STINA’S MESSAGE On Sunday after the service, although we did not have a quorum for having a Bishop’s Committee meeting, I informed the congregation that I will be retiring, effective the end of April. This is a very difficult decision to make, because I love being at SKK so much. However, things change, and we…

STINA’S MESSAGE As we get to the end of Advent, see Christmas close at hand, and then the season of Epiphany, there are many readings that talk about light. It is so important in this dark time of year to know that we have light. Our Scriptures tell us that “a light has shined in…

ALL SAINTS’ ALERT – It’s that time again, please send in any new names to Stina ASAP! STINA’S MESSAGE I want to give you my report on Convention this year. First, about the Eucharist on Friday evening. The Asian Commission of the Diocese was asked to put this service together. We worked as a team,…

STINA’S MESSAGE I think it is safe to say that the Asian Music Festival was a rousing success. The performers were awesome, everything went very smoothly, the new person in charge of these things at the Cathedral was incredibly helpful, there were a good number of new people in attendance, and we made a very…

STINA’S MESSAGE So first, my apologies for the long silence on the Messenger front! There are many reasons, and the accumulation of them was simply too much. I’m so sorry! There is much to report, and then finally, a reflection. First, the Japanese Convocation met in NYC, and I was your representative to that meeting.…

  STINA’S MESSAGE When bad things happen… When bad things happen, at first it is simply hard. Don’t tell someone at that point that there is a reason for everything, or that God wanted their loved one with him (horrid!), just say I’m sorry, and keep coming around, and keep listening. There is a fine…

Stina’s Message What a wonderful service we had on Easter Sunday! Because of the Cherry Blossom Festival Parade, we only had a few very small children, but that was OK. One small fellow came up to the front of the church and inspected me for quite a while, which I thought was fabulous.

Stina’s Message We had a fabulous annual meeting on Jan 12. For those of you that were there, thank you for all of your input. For those who could not be there, please read the comments and results (below) carefully. And, this was only the beginning of a longer discussion about who we are and…

Stina’s Message Advent! The coming of Christ! Advent used to be the time when people thought about the second coming of Christ, not Christmas. That’s why we have the better-known tradition of using purple for Advent – it was a preparation for Jesus coming again, with a call for repentance and preparation. But things change…

Stina’s Message How then shall we live? This is a huge question. The first thing we have to realize is that the question is in the plural. How shall “I” live can only be answered with the relationships I have with those around me, including those who cannot speak, the animals, plants, and even the…

Stina’s Message The Festival is almost here! Please bring your friends. It will be a very nice concert, and sushi and treats on the Cathedral Plaza after the concert. There will be some new performers, and many that you have seen before. Some people have asked why we are giving the money away instead of…

Stina’s Message Where do we turn when we get into trouble? One part of that question looks at whether we turn inward or outward. Do we look inside first to see what is going on? Do we trust our inner strength and knowledge? Or, when trouble happens, do we automatically assume that we have done…

STINA’S MESSAGE Visions of terror flash across the screen, screams of victims and their families and friends, the sounds of explosions, repeating over and over until we turn off the television and computers and radio, and there is silence. But it keeps going in our heads, doesn’t it? One of the problems that Jesus commented…

Easter! He is risen! We celebrate the time that sets us apart from other religions, with our claim that God has come to be human, and was willing to die, and was claimed by God in resurrection. This Jesus, this elder brother of ours, has defeated our old enemy, death, to set us on a…

Stina’s Message During a question and answer session at a speaking engagement, a university student asked, Why do you believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God? Now this is a very interesting question, and one that anyone could ask.  In other words what is so special, so unique, about the Bible that…

STINA’S MESSAGE Lent??? Already!!! Well, yes, we just had Ash Wednesday, and so this Sunday is the First Sunday in Lent. We have started the Bible Challenge, and for the 5 Sundays of Lent, we will be looking at the Gospel readings after church. It is not a lot of reading, 7 pages or less…

We are starting to read the New Testament from beginning to end. If you would like to join us, please do! It is a matter of starting at the beginning of the New Testament and reading all of it straight through to the end. If you want to add the reading of the Psalms, that…

STINA’S MESSAGE What are they doing now? This is usually a good question in my book. It means that something is going on that the person who is asking the question does not quite understand. If we are doing God’s work, it will not always make sense, especially to those people looking in from the…

Dear People of God, [pullquoteright]Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat / please to put a penny in the old man’s hat / If you hae no penny, a ha’penny will do / if you have no ha’penny, then God bless you![/pullquoteright]These are the words to a song I was taught as a child. Most…

STINA’S MESSAGE “All things come of thee” This is the old sentence that the priest said when lifting up the gifts and bread and wine at the offertory, and the people responded, “And of thine own have we given thee.” Both are still true. All that we have comes from God. Therefore, when we give…

STINA’S MESSAGE Who/What are we? Every church and organization has a core narrative. Shaping, refining, and remembering that narrative is a core task of leadership and a key to congregational life. When things happen, what interpretation is placed on the event and how is meaning made? What pops up when you think about our church,…

STINA’S MESSAGE Are you in? Last year, I sent out a slightly different stewardship letter. The basic question was this: Are you in? Are you willing to say that you will support Christ Church Sei Ko Kai financially this year? A large number of you said yes, which was very gratifying. It is coming to…

STINA’S MESSAGE Are you in? Last year, I sent out a slightly different stewardship letter. The basic question was this: Are you in? Are you willing to say that you will support Christ Church Sei Ko Kai financially this year? A large number of you said yes, which was very gratifying. It is coming to…

STINA’S MESSAGE Anointing This Easter, we will baptize two children. One of the parts of the service is the anointing. It is a very short part, and so it seems not very important. However, it is very important, one that we should notice. Anointing is a sign of blessing. Kings are anointed as part of…