CREAMLOGO GOES HEREof all myCreamHeart

The

2015 Pledge Offering Ministry

“...and the cream of all my heart I will bring thee.”

George Herbert, The Temple, 1633 Hymn 382

If you would like to spend some quiet time with God, we welcome you. If you want to dive right into the life of a busy church, we can help you find ways to connect with other people and deepen your faith. Wherever you are in your journey of faith, there is a place for you at Saint John’s Cathedral.

If you have been away from the Church and want to give it another try because of an important event in your life, such as an upcoming wedding, or a baby on the way, a death, or some other reason, there is a place for you at Saint John’s Cathedral.

An open door.

WE FIND JOY & MEANING FOR OUR LIFE HERE...

We are a community of communities, a large congregation with a place for everyone. We include children and youth in all aspects of our Cathedral life. We care for one another and reach out to those in need. We are a place for questions and rediscovery, stillness and growth. We are welcoming and inclusive of all.

We believe God is calling each of us into relationship with God and with one another. We are learning and growing together, and through programs like RenewalWorks, a spiritual inventory that we participated in the spring of 2014, we are actively listening to one another, challenging ourselves to new ways of providing spiritual support to our church community.

Life

An open door.An open door.

A warm greeting.

A welcoming pew.

A stately procession.

Inspiring music.

Christ-centered worship.

An encouraging sermon.

Solace found.

Holy Communion.

An encounter with God.

As an essential aspect of our ministry to our city, the Cathedral community works with over 25 partner organizations and ministries to care for the homeless, the hungry, and the sick.

Each week the people of Saint John’s send individuals out from the Eucharist to share Holy Communion with parishioners who are hospitalized, ill, or homebound. This Eucharistic Visitor ministry is comprised of lay volunteers who partner with the Cathedral clergy to care for and minister to other parishioners.

CommunityA community of smiles, handshakes, and hugs.

A place to know God, to know others, and to be known.

A center for community where we offer the best of ourselves.

A home where meals are prepared and served and where love is shown.

A church for service to one another and to those in need.

A PLACE TO CALL OUR HOME...

Volunteers work tirelessly over countless hours to provide dinners on Wednesday nights for Cathedral Nite, breakfasts on Sunday mornings, and warm meals and a safe, comfortable place for homeless women to sleep on Monday nights. Many events and meals are provided by selfless volunteers who have a gift of hospitality.

Our programs for children and youth nourish the seeds of God’s love and help our children find ways to strengthen their relationship with God throughout their lives. We do this through the stories of the Bible and our Church, by encouraging their wonder, and by welcoming them fully into the Saint John’s community in all that we do.

Home

YOU NOW HAVE A NEW PERSPECTIVE AND DIFFERENT QUESTIONS...

Jesus said we should love others as God loves us—selflessly, sacrificially, with understanding and forgiveness. Through small groups, classes, groups, and other programs at Saint John’s, we grow together and challenge ourselves to love better, to love more, and to know God’s love fully.

We welcome questions of life and faith here at Saint John’s. Often, deep questions can never be fully answered, but together we wrestle with the tension of doubt and truth. As a community, we find love, hope, and healing. We experience authentic worship together and have meaningful conversations.

Questions

We are a place for everyone, no matter where we are on our journies with God. Saint John’s exists to help us each discover who God is. Transformation is hard work and we are committed to supporting and challenging one another as we work “to know Christ and make Christ known.”

We experience life-changing moments here. They happen when we are challenged and grow in our faith and joy as a follower of Christ. We give sacrficially as a grateful response to God’s many blessings and we express our profound gratitude for what God has done in our lives.

Longing

Community

You are longing to have real conversation.

You have questions about God.

How do I know God cares about me?

Is it ok to doubt?

Does God love me?

You want answers.

You find community at Saint John’s.

You encounter genuine people with their own questions.

The older lady two doors down is scared of dying alone.

Your neighbor is looking for comfort from her grief.

The mother with her baby you just passed by slept in her car last night and is scared to return home.

The guy seated in front of you needs a hug.

The woman in the car next to yours longs for meaningful conversation.

The man eating his lunch next to you on the bench is searching for God and authentic worship.

You attend a meal, a study, a concert, a group at Saint John’s. You belong here. You are welcome here. You are wanted here.

I will bring thee...

WE ARE A COMMUNITY

& WE BELONG TO OUR GREATER COMMUNITY

Together

Community

THIS IS OUR CALLING THIS IS OUR LIFE TOGETHER

The word “cream,” which evokes imageries of richness and fullness, comes from the Greek and Latin words for “holy oil” or “chrism.” Its alternate etymological meaning was “most excellent part of,” which is why the best oils were reserved for blessing from our many and most ancient religious traditions, including Judaism and then Christianity. This is why the cream, which rises to the top of fresh milk, is “the most excellent part” of the milk harvest.

Kings were made by anointing them with the best oils. Jesus was anointed with the most expensive oils, which shocked and

annoyed some of his own followers in the moment. During Holy Week, in most Episcopal and Anglican dioceses, including ours, the bishop gathers the clergy from every corner of the

diocese to bless flagons of oil, which are then distributed for use in all the churches. One ewer of oil is for blessing

and anointing the sick and dying. Another is for blessing and anointing the Catechumens, the baptized, and the confirmed. Still another is for anointing and blessing churches, altars, priests, bishops, and kings or queens. This last oil, Chrism, is flavored or scented with a perfume, which adds to its special place in the life of the church.

And the cream of all my heartI will bring thee…

by Father Charles LaFond

I will bring thee...THE CREAM OF ALL MY HEART

In the Easter icon on the left, Jesus is wrapped in a cream-colored cloth, reminding me of the way God pours the heavy cream of salvation into the human recipe as the Kingdom of God is revealed. Cream has always been a European delicacy because only a bit of it floats to the top of milk when it is collected from a cow, goat, sheep, or even a yak. Creamy milk is our first nourishment, and medieval images of Jesus and Mary often depict Jesus at Mary’s uncovered breast as the symbol of God’s provision, Jesus’ humanity, and our human predicament of needing nourishment.

In George Herbert’s lovely sonnet from The Temple (1633), the great Anglican divine sums up this whole notion of pouring the cream from the top of the milk. He gets to the heart of stewardship and invokes an image familiar to his parishioners, who were 17th-century English villagers. When one collects the morning milk, the cream on top is reserved for butter and desserts. It is special, rich, and delicious. To give some cream away was an act of great generosity, one that symbolized gratitude.

In one of our most beloved hymns, “King of Glory, King of Peace,” we read these words taken from Herbert’s poem:

“And the cream of all my heart I will bring thee...”

To pour the cream off the top of one’s heart is to take the metaphor to its spiritual conclusion. And that is why this ancient religious term for the most holy act in our faith, chrism, has become the word we use for cream, because we take the finest we have to offer and give some of it back to God—physically with our money as we make our pledge and relationally with our hearts as we offer our best selves to God.

The blessing and intentions of what we do on Sundays is connected to the blessings and intentions of what we do the rest of the week and work together to create the integrity for which our souls long.

When I make ginger pear ice cream, I often think of

“To pour the cream off the top of one’s heart is to take the metaphor to its spiritual conclusion.”

“The phrase that comes to mind when I think of Saint John’s is ‘Come as you are, leave transformed.’ Saint John’s is a place where all may come, and, by the overwhelming holiness of the worship, music, lessons, service, and community, be transformed. It is a place that not only opens its doors to all, but challenges all those who enter to grow in their lives of faith and show forth that life into the world.”

- Jacob Neumann“We have received a gift so great there is no way to repay it, other than ‘in kind.’ We are constantly inspired to give of ourselves back to God and to the beautiful community of Saint John’s, who have given so much to us.”

- Bryant & Heidi Harris

the perfuming of oils in the liturgy. Once you have mixed the milk, sugar, and salt, you add the heavy cream along with vanilla and a purée of canned pears and thin ginger slices in honey. The richness of this confection has blessed many meals in my home.

The best oil is used to mark me as a Christian. My only possible response is, then, to offer God “the cream of all my heart.” My pledge is not a bill I pay. My pledge is not dues to a church club. My pledge is not to assure membership or pay for services. My pledge is a symbol that I am offering to God the cream of my heart. My pledge is a symbol of a deeper reality connected to real, human things like church mission, ginger pear ice cream, and resurrection.

“...we take the finest we have to offer and give some of it back to God—physically with our money as we make our pledge and relationally with our hearts as we offer our best selves to God.”

“For me, Saint John’s represents the proverbial house with many rooms reserved for those who pursue a life in Christ and in service to others. It’s a place to reflect and to grow. Saint John’s allows me to reflect on my individual spirituality both in times and ways appropriate to me and of my choosing.”

- Thom Williams

“I cherish the passionate, caring, and bright clergy who challenge me to become a better Christian, and a better person. They meet me wherever I am on my walk with God, even when I stumble, and especially when I fall flat on my face. Folks in the pews and in the pulpit sincerely care about me and my family, and I care for them as well. I feel blessed to be a part of the genuine community at Saint John’s.”

- David Ball

“The words ‘come and see’ have always been very special to me. I love seeing the beauty and wonder Saint John’s children experience when encountering the Gospel of ‘come and see’ at Cathedral Camp each summer. There is nothing like experiencing the opening of eyes and hearts to the Gospel and to one another. Our children and youth are the future of the Church and Saint John’s Cathedral; what a great place to be and support.”

- Kathleen DeMars

“Saint John’s Cathedral provides our family a glorious place to worship. The beauty of our Cathedral clearly shows that we are in the presence of God. No ‘High Five God’ here, but this is high church, holy and honoring to God. It is a privilege to kneel before the Lord our maker. And then the bells chime and the beautiful organ music sounds and we are ready for a meaningful worship experience.”

- Brad Potter

“I have found everything I need here — support, encouragement, hope, fellowship, love, guidance, faith —except answers. But what I have learned is the value of questions, and the power of that faith. We follow Christ knowing that all will be revealed when we finally make it home. That’s why I contribute all I can here to get us there.”

- Brian Rivera

“Being able to give to, participate with, and be witness to a deeper reality at Saint John’s Cathedral is a rich and satisfying experience that reflects the cream of my heart. The liturgy, the music, the opportunity for outreach and the physical beauty of our church all speak to the spirit of our community.”

- Mary Welker-Haddock

An Exciting Year!

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

We have an exciting year ahead of us!

We welcome warmly your commitment to this pledge campaign, which will support the ministries of Saint John’s Cathedral in 2015. In light of our many commitments and the opportunities we have to share our mission, we have set a goal of $1.3 million to be able to continue to enrich the work we do in Denver and within our congregation.

Our commitment to you is that the money you invest in the work of the Cathedral by “pouring the cream of your heart” will be put to thoughtful and prayerful use to enable the creation of effective ministries that will have far-reaching benefits throughout our communities.

The Cathedral leadership has made the commitment to examine our own giving. Just as we are asking you to consider your pledge for 2015 carefully and prayerfully, we shall do the same. We shall not simply pledge the amount we pledged last year. We make the commitment to discern what it means for each of us to follow George Herbert’s great theological and spiritual statement of bounty, extravagant generosity, and acknowledgment of God’s glory through our giving. We shall celebrate God and our faith by giving the best of ourselves as we make our pledges.

And as Cathedral leaders, we shall make our pledges remembering that we have the opportunity to bring about life-giving transformation in our city and congregation in the coming year. We promise this discernment of our commitment and we invite you in this same discernment as well.

May God so inspire us to a fresh awareness of God’s blessing in this life that we may be strengthened to bring to God the cream of our hearts through our pledges.

Thank you.

The Very Reverend Peter Eaton Dean

Larry Kueter Senior Warden

Carol Miller Stewardship Chair

You will be sent a letter confirming your pledge in November 2014 and a letter for your tax use reflecting your 2015 contributions in January 2016.

Please send your completed pledge card to:

Stewardship CampaignSaint John’s Cathedral

1350 Washington StreetDenver, CO 80203

I/We are interested in making a separate gift (in addition to the annual support listed above) to a specific project for which funds are needed. Please have the clergy contact me about having this conversation.

I/We are interested in receiving information about planned giving (estate planning, charitable trusts, making a will or living will, etc.) Please contact me/us about this by sending literature which will help to inform my/our planning.

A FINANCIAL & FAITH COMMITMENT FOR 2015

THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMITMENT

2015 Saint John’s Cathedral Pledge Certificate

Having prayed about this annual pledge to fund the mission of Saint John’s Cathedral in 2015 and in the context of gratitude for all that God has given to me/our family, and with the sure knowledge that this pledge is part of living out my/our life as having been made in the image of the God who is creator, sustainer, and life-giver, please be advised of the 2015 pledge of during the next fiscal year (January 1, 2015 - December 31, 2015).

$ Yearly

(I/we realize that in the event of a financial problem in 2015, we can confidentially adjust our pledge by calling the clergy.)

I/We intend to give: (a weekly pledge is very helpful in our financial planning!)

Weekly Monthly Quarterly Full Amount Yearly

Email

Preferred Contact Method

Name(s)

Address

Home Phone

Preferred Contact Method

Signature(s) Date

You may also pledge online at sjcathedral.org/pledge

of all myCreamHeart

The

By: Automatic Bank Transfer Credit/Debit Card Payment Offering Plate Giving

1350 Washington StreetDenver, Colorado 80203

sjcathedral.org info@sjcathedral.org

303.831.7115

“I will love thee; and that love may never cease,I will move thee.Thou hast granted my request,thou hast heard me;thou didst note my working breast,thou hast spared me.Wherefore with my utmost artI will sing thee,

and the cream of all my heart I will bring thee.”George Herbert, The Temple, 1633 Hymn 382