Trinity Episcopal Church - Baytown, TX

Painted Churches Trip

Dodie — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 19:02:12 +0000

The Abraham & Sarah Guild is planning a trip to see the Painted Churches in Schulenburg on May 7. The buses will leave Trinity at 9 am. For more details talk to Bob Maeser or see the flyer on the bulletin board.

We Are Family

Dodie — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 18:58:24 +0000

As I write these words, America is still feeling the sting of the horrendous killing spree that took place earlier this week at Virginia Tech. There is little doubt that this tragic loss of life will spur a great deal of discussion and debate as government leaders and school officials look for ways to prevent another such occurrence. I am personally doubtful that any human means will be totally effective in the battle against evil. Evil is a spiritual reality and must be combated on a spiritual plane – even when it becomes incarnate in an individual and manifests itself in the terrible actions that human beings are capable of. Having said this, though, it occurs to me that there are things that the church (that is to say, we) can do beyond prayer to do battle against the type of violence we witnessed on that campus. One of the first things that struck me about the young man in question is the total isolation that he felt as a student on the Virginia Tech campus. As more information is discovered and released, we see the picture of a person who is friendless and feels unaccepted by fellow students; an outsider looking in at a world he feels he can never be a part of; a very lonely young man. This is similar to the information we have about the Columbine shooters, two individuals that Cho Seung-hui identified with and mentioned in his manifesto.

At one level, it is hard to believe that loneliness and isolation can drive a human being to commit the type of violence we have witnessed this week. Yet we might be able to understand how brooding and resentment unchecked by any meaningful human contact can grow into rage and how rage unchecked by any sort of external reality can become homicidally violent – which brings us to the role of the church. During his earthly ministry, Jesus was careful never to allow his disciples to live and work in isolation. At a bare minimum, he would task two individuals to travel and work together. Following his principles, the Apostles spread the gospel and as people came to faith, they placed them in organized groups – the groups that have come to be known as church congregations. I am convinced that Jesus put us together in groups intentionally and for a lot of reasons, one of which is to combat the manifestation of evil that germinates in environments of isolation and loneliness.

As Christians and members of a wonderful church family, have an obligation to be here for one another – that is obvious. What is less obvious is that we also have an obligation to reach out to those who don’t know about churches; especially to those who might appear to be “misfits”. When we see someone who is struggling to fit in at work or at school we should invite them to come and be with us, to consider joining our family. And we have an obligation to give them permission to become part of the family no matter how “misfit” they may seem to be at first. Of course, we can not reach every troubled person on the planet. But if we can reach just one person before they become violent we will surely have done the work of the Kingdom. Food for thought.

God bless – Fr. Nick+

Kairos #31 – February 23 – 25

Dodie — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 16:26:33 +0000

Trinity’s very own Trevor Hawkins is one of the team members. Please pray for Trevor and the success of the Kairos weekend. Signup sheet for Prayer Chain in on the table by the bulletin board or click the comments link below to sign up here.

Abraham and Sarah Road Trip – Haak Vineyards & Winery

Dodie — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 15:50:51 +0000

Mon, Feb 19 – Abraham and Sarah Road trip to Haak Vineyards and Winery in Santa Fe. You can sign up here by clicking the Comments link below and entering your name and how many in your party or you can sign up on the sheet on the table by the bulletin board in the Gathering Room. Contact Bob Baeser for more details.

Hello world!

Dodie — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 15:10:26 +0000

Welcome to the Blog for Trinity Episcopal Church in Baytown, TX. Please visit TrinityChurchBaytown.org. Trinity Church, led by Father Nick Novak, is a community of faith that proclaims the Word of God and the love of Christ by being a caring, inclusive Christian community within the Episcopal tradition; by extending ourselves, our resources and our passions to each other and the wider community; by enriching our lives and the lives of others through education, spiritual development and fellowship; and by providing a place for community service and spiritual sanctuary.