Pledge fulfilled

Saint Philip’s church, with your help, has fulfilled its $25,000.00 pledge to Saint Andrew’s, Glendale, from a combination of parishioner funds and outreach monies. Thank you to those who donated!

We are so grateful to all who have helped. Your support of Saint Andrew’s amazing ministry is noteworthy.

Saint Andrew’s is a creative mission community doing God’s work in their community and beyond, and they still need our help. Below you can find Fr Robert’s original “From the Rector” published in February that does an excellent job of telling Saint Andrew’s story.

Beyond its cash pledge, Saint Philip’s is involved with Saint Andrew’s another way. A group of clergy and laity from here, led by Jane Prescott-Smith, meets regularly with Fr Martir Vasquez and a group of Saint Andrew’s laity with a goal of discovering an outreach ministry the two churches can share.

Here is Fr Robert’s article from February:

“This has been a year when we have asked, in so many ways, how are we to care for our neighbor. Who is our neighbor? How can we show our love? 

“In this time of pandemic, as I was thinking about love, I could not help but think of a quote from George Sand, from a letter to Gustav Flaubert, “Everyone is dying, everything is dying, and the earth is dying also. I don’t know where I get the courage to keep on living in the midst of these ruins. Let us love each other to the end."

“It’s easy, in the midst of things passing away, to lose hope. Sand is calling us, in the midst of loss and uncertainty, to do the thing that will always keep humans from becoming inhumane — to love. 

“This past week we received a request to assist another congregation in Arizona. 

“Saint Andrew’s in Glendale is a parish full of the Holy Spirit. They love and care for one another. They love Jesus and when the bishop goes there to do confirmations they usually have around 50 people waiting to be confirmed.

“They are the most racially diverse congregation in the diocese. At the height of the border crisis, they were at the frontlines of caring for refugee families from Guatemala. It is not a congregation that is financially rich, but they are rich in the way that matters most — in love. Most of the congregation is working-class and employed in hospitality, retail, and food service. Many are undocumented.

“The pandemic has been especially hard on them and the parish. The congregation depends on the weekly plate offering and rental of their hall for big events like quinceañeras. They have been providing rental assistance to members and making food, shelter, and more available to a hard-hit community. Many of their members contracted COVID and some have died.

“Saint Philip’s has been able to weather much of the pandemic in good health and without financial distress. For the most part, our members have generally been able to maintain incomes, work from home, and have not had our livelihoods upended in the way places like Saint Andrew’s have.

“Our budget and this coming year are uncertain — and yet it is in uncertain times that the Church is called to be a sign of love and hope. Saint Andrew’s is looking for signs of hope — reasons to stay courageous.

“In response to the request for help, the Vestry voted unanimously to help support Saint Andrew’s. We have pledged $25,000.00 to help sustain them in this perilous time.

“We are asking that parishioners, if they are able, make a gift dedicated to help support Saint Andrew’s and their ministry….

“In a time when there is a lot of conversation about supporting communities of color and acts of justice and reconciliation, this simple act of generosity is a demonstration of our faith that, in uncertain times, God will provide. We are not flush with cash nor are we able to make gifts like this with the frequency we would like. But we are in a place of relative stability and this is a time of instability in many communities and churches.

“In a letter to us about Saint Andrew’s, the Bishop wrote, “In so many ways, they are a model of what Jesus calls the Church to be.” Let us endeavor to have the same said of us also--that we model what Jesus calls the Church to be--that we model love for one another. 

“I come back to that Sand quote, “Let us love each other to the end.” Let us love each other to the end of this pandemic--and beyond. Let us love one another through it. Let our love be light in a dark time. Let us love each other through the valley, through the shadow, as we find light together.

“Thank you for considering supporting the life-giving and lifesaving ministry at Saint Andrew’s and for being part of the ministry of Saint Philip’s in the Hills to the wider Church.”