Tent City 3 (TC3) has arrived and will be with us through June 28. Your help is needed! Volunteer opportunities await people of all ages! 

Here are some ways to get involved:
-   Donate disposable cameras for a Tent City photo 
     project with residents of TC3
-   Host the TC3 Table after a 9:00 or 11:00 AM service
-   Co-guide a TC3 tour
-   Volunteer at a Sunday meal 

Visit the Tent City 3 page for more information and updates.

If you would like more information, have an idea, or would like to be involved, contact Julie at julieclements04@gmail.com 

During Epiphany Faith Formation began a series on Leadership in the church. This was followed in Lent by the organic development of members of the parish who felt called to engage in this conversation about leadership at St. Mark’s as the cathedral moved more deeply into its own time of transition. Many public forums and conversations have followed, and many have participated. These will continue as the transition continues. 

It is a difficult time – and yet it is also Spring, the time of Resurrection and Pentecost, a time that our former Canon Missioner Pete Strimer always called the beginnings of the church. 

We invite you in the coming weeks and months to begin the Church with us. 

SUNDAYS IN MAY
at 10:10 in Bloedel Hall: 

Sunday, May 4: Vestry Forum. Members of the Vestry will be on hand to discuss recent developments and ongoing work– the cathedral’s financial situation, staffing, openings on the Vestry itself – and to answer questions.
Leffler Board Room: Planned Giving Conversation.

Sunday, May 11: Pentecost. At 10:10 and at 12:30, in Skinner Auditorium: a labyrinth walk for healing. Walk, draw, create a mandala or a collage, or join a small group for conversation. 

Sunday, May 18: The Mission & Strategy Committee will host a forum discussing their ongoing work and inviting the parish to revisit the cathedral’s Mission Statement. This is a chance to take a hard and spirit-filled look at our purpose: why do we gather here? What is the most important reason that I’m here? 

Sunday, May 25: Unanswered Questions. What do you still not know and need to know? Where do we find ourselves, individually and as a parish? We will begin in a large group and, if needed, break into smaller groups for conversation. 

WEDNESDAYS IN MAY:

Wednesdays, May 7 and May 21, 7:00-9:00 p.m. in Skinner Auditorium. A labyrinth walk in Skinner Auditorium (St. Nicholas Building). This is a time for reflection, for prayer, for healing. Walk the labyrinth, draw, create a mandala or a collage, or join a small group for conversation. 

Wednesday, May 14, 7:00-8:45 p.m. in Bloedel Hall: Thinking about joining “St. Marks at Holden Village” in August? in Bloedel Hall when we tell stories about Holden Village, --the hiking, the friends we have met, and the lectures scheduled (including lectures by Doug Thorpe and David Mesenbring). We'll show photos and a slideshow on Holden Village too. Holden Village is a retreat center for all ages with classes, crafts, bowling, hiking, great food and companionship located in a beautiful valley above Lake Chelan. Childcare is available this evening.

Wednesday, May 28, 7:15 p.m. in Bloedel Hall 
Tell Me A Story: A time for conversation over coffee and desert. Questions for the evening include: 
1. Tell the group about a time when you felt welcomed and included at Saint Mark’s. Who was involved, what did they do that made you feel welcome?
2. Tell a story about a time at Saint Mark’s when you learned something of considerable value. Who was involved, how did you feel, and what impact did it have on your life?
3. What things do you value deeply about Saint Mark’s? What is the single most important thing that Saint Mark’s has contributed to your life?

Beginning Sunday, May 4

Yes! teaches the fundamentals of appreciative inquiry-based living that forms the basis of saying Yes! to God, Yes! to yourself, and Yes! to your neighbor. The Yes! program was developed by the Rev. Dr. Rob Voyle to encourage, empower, and excite discovery and creation of a purpose-centered life. Yes! requires commitment to attend each meeting of the six-part series. 

The series, outlined below, includes a personal retreat day in Bloedel Hall 9:30 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, May 31, in which participants will explore their life purpose. The final Sunday session, on June 16, extends the concept of "Pentecost" into living out of the gifts of the Spirit. 

Please contact The Rev. Marilyn Cornwell at 206.323.0300 ext. 222 or at mcornwell@saintmarks.org to reserve a place for this series, to ensure that sufficient study texts will be on hand. 

The topics for the sessions are:

May. 4: Who Blessed Your Existence To create a life of abundance, we attend to the blessings of our lives, affirming and empowering someone or something with a Yes! of gratitude.

May 18: Unconditional Love and Saying Yes! to God Participants will explore their experience of unconditional love, and connect with their source of existence and life.

May 31: (Saturday retreat) Finding Life's Purpose Surrounded by frantic consumerism, we pause to appreciate and inquire into the greatest "gifts" we will ever receive, those things that we do well, that we value, and that give purposeful meaning to our lives as individuals. Lunch served at noon.

June 1: Saying Yes! to Your Neighbor Creating a just world that you would like to live in, and finding what qualities would make others eager and grateful to share it as well.

June 8: Saying Yes! to Yourself Manifesting God-given talents and abilities to the benefit of self and others, while receiving a deep sense of satisfaction and fulfillment.

June 15: Next Steps Ensuring that goals for the future will be achievable and sustainable, allowing participants to say Yes! to God, self and neighbor as the Spirit will lead us.

Sunday, May 11, 2008 
after the 11:00 a.m. service 
outside unless it is raining; Bloedel Hall if it is raining 

Join the community at the Pentecost Picnic following the 11:00 a.m. service! Hamburgers, hot dogs and buns will be provided. Please bring a dish to share. If it the weather is good the picnic will be outside; if it is raining, in Bloedel Hall. Contact the Rev. Marilyn Cornwell, 206.323.0300 ext 222, mcornwell@saintmarks.org 

Saturday, May 17 
at 10:00 a.m. in Thomsen Chapel

On the Day of Pentecost, 1549, the first Book of Common Prayer began usage in England. It was a radical departure from the past in that it was in the English language. As in ancient liturgies, it called for an active participation by the faithful. The response was not entirely favorable! For the traditionalists it was an unwanted innovation. For the more reformed minded it was entirely too traditional. The language was courtly and spoke of God’s transcendent majesty. Within a year music had been composed by John Merbecke so that the liturgy could be sung by congregations, aided by a few cantors. The calendar of the current American Book of Common Prayer provides for a commemoration of this event during the weekdays following the Feast of Pentecost each year. 

On Saturday morning, May 17, at 10:00 a.m. the liturgy of 1549 will be celebrated in Thomsen Chapel at Saint Mark’s Cathedral. That lovely space is the perfect setting for the rite. The altar and priest will be vested as was required by the 1549 prayer book. Merbecke’s setting will be sung. A brief introduction to the rite will be given just prior to the celebration. All are welcome.

Tuesday, May 27 
6:00 p.m. in St. Nicholas Room 216

The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Vestry is on May 27, 2008 at 6:00 p.m. in the St. Nicholas Building, Rm 216. Guests are welcome to attend.

Wednesday, May 28 
7:30 p.m. in the Nave 

Join our talented singers from the Junior Choristers, Boys and Girls Choir and Youth Ensemble in a multi-faith, multi-cultural celebration of God’s creation and love. Audience sing-along included. Admission is free.

Monday, July 21 – Friday, July 25, 
9:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m., begins and ends in Nave

We will celebrate God through participation in music and creative arts, and learning about the ministry of Heifer Project. Children age 3 through 5th grade are invited to participate! Older students are welcome to join us as small group leaders or preschool assistants. (This is a great way to earn those service hours for school!) Registration forms and more information are available in the Children/Youth ministries office.

For more information please contact Tom Hayton at tomhayton@yahoo.com or Colleen Boyns at cmboyns@hotmail.com.

January 15 – February 3, 2009

Church in the World Ministries at Saint Mark’s is organizing an ecumenical pilgrimage to West Africa early in 2009. Thirty (30) participants from around the diocese will travel to Cape Coast, Ghana, where Africa’s best-preserved slave castles are located. The journey will bond a diverse group of Christians with first-hand experience of how most people live, and help them reflect together on the implications of economic disparity. 

The pilgrimage cost is $3,535, plus airfare (currently $1,850). For more information, or to apply, visit www.cookedtrails.com/stmarks.htm. Applications will be accepted through June 1st with participants selected soon thereafter. To offer financial support for partial scholarships, please contact David Mesenbring at dmesenbring@saintmarks.org or 206.323.0300 ext. 217.

A Book of Remembrance is located at the Peace Shrine in the Nave. The names of all affected by the war in Iraq may be written there. The names will be prayed for regularly in the cathedral's liturgies throughout the week. Feel free to add names of people you would like included in these prayers.

If you would like to e-mail names to us, send them to bmorrill@saintmarks.org, with a subject line of IRAQ WAR BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE.

NO PHONE CALLS OR VOICE MAILS PLEASE!!

Vigil for Peace in the Middle East

On the 18th of every month,
McCaw Chapel 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Thomsen Chapel  8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.

Some of us believe our Loving God hears our prayers.  Please pray for peace with us in Washington State on the 18th of every month.  The other 49 states have been assigned the other days of the month.   People of all faith traditions are warmly welcomed.

Selected Readings and community prayer 5:00 p.m at the Peace Chapel, in the main worship space.

Further information:  www.pepm.org , click on “Peace Vigil” or call Tom Walker at 425.641.9247.