The Episcopal Church doesn't really do surprises. The overall structure of our service is pretty much the same all over the world. We also use a common lectionary (though in different languages) and say similar prayers. And there's never a big surprise ending to the service.

This Sunday, we're in for a surprise. The Mission Team, freshly back from their service adventure in South Dakota, promises a special surprise as they host the breakfast between the first and second services. They're playing it very close to the vest (appropriate for a group that raised funds with Texas Hold 'Em), so you'll have to come to breakfast to find out what all the fuss is about.

Sunday, July 5
Check the server schedule.

• 8:30 am: Holy Eucharist, Rite 1 See the program.
• 9:30 am: Breakfast and program (Mission Team "Surprise")
• 9:45 am: Choir rehearsal
• 10:30 am: Holy Eucharist, Rite 2, with choir See the program.

You can learn a lot at camp — and those lessons are often different than the ones on the curriculum. Take for example one of our Rite 13 group, who spent last week at the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont.

She learned about a microorganism that can curl up and hibernate for 200 years if conditions become too hostile. She learned how to catch crawfish. And she learned what to do when confronted by a bear. The hard way.

This group of 24 middle-school girls was hiking through a field in Cades Cove when they saw two black bears at the other end of the field. The bears were far enough a way, and the group waited for them to move on. Suddenly, one bear started caught sight of the girls — who evidently looked very interesting. It started lumbering quickly toward the group.

Blessed with knowledgeable and level-headed leaders, the girls clumped together in a tight mass and ... screeched like banshees at the top of their lungs. The bear stopped; the screaming continued. The bear eventually decided that this large, screaming mass was Not A Good Thing and moved off into the woods.

Accepting the Light

Charles Fels

Third Sunday in Lent

Charles Fels