St. Luke's Episcopal Church

05/05/2021

https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/spu-can-atone-for-harmful-history-by-embracing-lgbtq-community/

The Seattle Pacific University Board of Trustees has a choice: It can perpetuate its harmful discriminatory hiring practices and policies or embrace its LGBTQ staff and students.

03/28/2021

Palm Sunday, three years ago.

03/19/2021

St. Luke's has "blessing bags" available for our unsheltered brothers & sisters—bags of fruit and nut bars, other healthy snacks, and socks. Parishioners can keep these bags in their cars and offer them to people without shelter. You can pick up blessing bags at St. Luke's between 2 and 3 p.m. on Tuesdays. Also, you are welcome to drop off individually wrapped healthy snacks and/or socks to be included in next week's blessing bags!

03/19/2021

All the music in this Sunday's service was written by American composers. The choir sings a round by the New England composer William Billings (1746–1800), "When Jesus wept," which is also in our Episcopal Hymnal ( #715). The choir will sing it as a virtual round. The opening hymn is another early American hymn from the shape-note tradition, "What wondrous love is this," and the final hymn "Give me a clean heart" (our psalm text for the day) is by African-American Gospel composer Margaret Douroux (b. 1941). The psalm setting again is by Peter Hallock, musician at Saint Mark's Cathedral from 1951–1991 and the Gospel responses are by local composer Darlene Franz. The organ music includes a series of variations on "What wondrous love is this" by Samuel Barber (1910–1981), best known for his "Adagio for Strings."

—Mel Butler, Music Director

03/17/2021

At St. Luke’s, we reflect the diversity of all God’s people. We’re old and young, rich and poor, gay and straight, single people and families of all kinds. We come from many places, cultures, and races. And there’s one table where we all have a place to know God’s grace.

Bishop Rickel has issued the following statement in response to the Vatican's statement on same-sex marriage:

"To all our LBGTQIA+ fellow sojourners with Christ, we do not see you, or your relationships, as sin. We see you and experience you as true blessings, reflections of our living God. Thank you for the inspiration and the many ways you show us how to love. Thank you for the gifts you bring to our collective Body of Christ. Thank you for how you have blessed me and you bless this Church."

03/15/2021

Join other parishioners from St. Luke's and the Diocese every Tuesday (2–3pm) and the first Sunday of the month (12–1) to demonstrate our support for racial justice. Family and friends are welcome to participate. Bring a sign, an extra sign, or simply come stand with us. If you don't have a sign, we have extras you can use. If you can't attend in person, please drive by and honk!

Masks and social distancing required; hand warmers available!

03/12/2021

Our "Covid Blues" vaccination support team (Katie Murphy, The Rev. Jerry Shigaki, and Mary Butler) scheduled first and second vaccinations for two Saint Luke's members and neighbors of another member. We also scheduled appointments for members of Church of the Resurrection and supported others in their search for the vaccine and with transportation.

As supply of the vaccine increases in the system, we will be winding down our support in the next two weeks. In the meantime, if you have neighbors or friends in the current phase who need help navigating the internet, please contact Mary Butler.

03/10/2021

This Sunday the choir sings the famous anthem "God so loved the world" (which is also the Gospel lesson for the day) written by the great Victorian composer John Stainer (1840–1901), undoubtedly his most famous composition. Hymns include "As panting deer desire the waterbrooks" by contemporary American hymn composer John Carter and "Amazing Grace," which everyone knows and loves. Our resident guitarist Dave Brumbaugh will play a beautiful guitar rendition of this hymn as the final voluntary (with a few viola additions here and there!).

03/10/2021

All are invited to attend the Diocese's annual faith formation conference—featuring Fr. Kevin and Josh deLacy!

The Episcopal Diocese of Olympia Faith Formation Team presents: A Mini-Conference for Faith Formation Leaders  Saturday, March 13, 9:00 am-4:00 pm

02/25/2021

This Sunday's organ prelude "Meditation" was composed by Ulysses Kay (1917–1995), a distinguished African-American composer who studied at both Yale University and Eastman School of Music (which I also attended). Kay was highly respected and his orchestral works have been performed by major orchestras around the world. He also wrote five operas; the final one, "Frederick Douglass", premiered in 1991. Our choir's offertory is a simple and beautiful arrangement of the spiritual "Deep River." Again, we will feature an exquisite psalm setting by Peter Hallock, and the final hymn will be the famous Taize chant "Ubi caritas." Please sing along with the choir; the three repetitions will be sung in Latin, English, and Spanish. Our resident bass recorder player, choir member, and usher Roger Flores will play a reprise of "Ubi Caritas" for the closing voluntary.

—Mel Butler, Music Director

02/17/2021

Because these wings are no longer wings to fly
But merely vans to beat the air
The air which is now thoroughly small and dry
Smaller and dryer than the will
Teach us to care and not to care Teach us to sit still.

—"Ash Wednesday" by T. S. Eliot

02/16/2021

Happy Shrove Tuesday! In place of our usual pancake supper and bingo:

"The Cascades" by Scott Joplin
David Ritt on trombone
Fr. Kevin as Buster Keaton