Monthly Archives: October 2015

A spiritual oasis at St. Mary’s Episcopal in Anchorage

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A gentle knoll at Lake Otis Parkway and Tudor Road, one of Anchorage’s busiest intersections, houses a beautiful sanctuary overlooking the Chugach Mountains. It’s also home for a remarkable congregation dedicated to common worship, earnest study and being a caring presence for God in our community.

This uncommon Episcopal congregation, St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, has attracted my attention for many years. Although I’m not a member, I’m always treated as one, something I rarely experience among other Anchorage churches.

Before I started visiting churches and writing about those visits, I had an opportunity to attend this church almost 15 years ago. The occasion was the wedding of a couple I knew. That first visit awakened in me a curiosity about the church and its people.

The view of the Chugach Mountains from the church’s long section of windows was breathtaking then and remains so to this day.  Last Sunday, St. Mary’s rector, Michael Burke, looking out over the view, commented on the perspective folks on the Hillside and East Anchorage were seeing; they were in the clouds but worshipers saw a clear view of the mountains and the beautiful sky beyond.

It may be coincidental, but I like the church’s choice of its web address, godsview.org. The website really explains what the church embodies. “We are a vibrant, multigenerational and inclusive faith community, centered in Jesus and committed to spiritual growth, service and social justice.”

St. Mary’s offers four Sunday services, each unique and attended by worshipers drawn for specific reasons. All services offer a sermon and the Eucharist. The 8 a.m. service is quiet, without music, and follows Rite I, using the old Elizabethan language in the Book of Common Prayer. The 9 a.m. service features choral music and pipe organ accompaniment for hymns; Karen Bretz plays and directs the choir. The 11:30 a.m. service music is led by Wade Hampton Miller and the St. Mary’s Praise Singers, adding lively folk, gospel and gospel bluegrass renditions. Finally, the 4 p.m. service is quiet and refreshing, providing a much-needed respite.

But wait, there’s more. There is also a 7 a.m. Eucharistic service Wednesday mornings. Lasting about 20 minutes, it brings together those desiring a midweek taste of Eucharistic fellowship. Rector Burke tells me attendees are not all of his faith but children of God desiring this special experience.

Burke said that 90 percent of people coming to St. Mary’s have no previous relationship with the Episcopal Church. He’s quick to tell newcomers that if they’re looking for a perfect church, they won’t find it at St. Mary’s; it’s a work in progress.

Burke has been at St. Mary’s for 15 years as rector, and it was his sponsoring congregation for ordination many years ago. It recently lost several clergy to another congregation and will lose aoter clergy after the first of the year. Knowing St. Mary’s, it’s seeking new clergy with demonstrated passion for its unique mission.

Opportunities abound for study at St. Mary’s. One study group meets in Cay’s Room (the library) between the 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. services to read and discuss significant contemporary spiritual books. Most recently, Nadia Bolz-Weber’s groundbreaking work, “Accidental Saints” was used as its focus.

Burke recommended this wonderful book to me, which I purchased, devoured quickly and now highly recommend. Written by a unique ELCA woman pastor, it is reminiscent of the character of St. Mary’s mission: full of grace and caring. Another group meets at the same time in Waldron Hall to hear provocative and informative speakers. Known as CAFÉ (Christian Adult Formation and Education), these meetings are delightful.  Recent presentations included authors William Kamkwamba (“The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope”), Mark Osler (“Jesus on Death Row: The Trial of Jesus and American Capital Punishment”) and Robin Meyer (“The Underground Church: Reclaiming the Subversive Way of Jesus”).

These are not light topics for most audiences, but they tend to be standard fare at St. Mary’s. Thursday morning men’s Bible study and Thursday evening Bible workbench study are additional examples of the study character of St. Mary’s.

I talked with Burke about St. Mary’s social justice focus. “In these things we call social justice, I believe all we are trying to do is to follow in the way of Jesus,” he said. “All the ‘isms’: racism, sexism, heterosexism, they are just different ways of talking about how we are all broken; broken by our past, broken by the abuse and misuse of power, broken by the choices others have made and, often, broken by our own choices. Sometimes I think all we have in common is our brokenness and our shared experience of being instruments of God’s grace and healing to one another.”

Finally, St. Mary’s is preparing to open the Thomas Center for Senior Leadership, a new 15-unit senior housing complex nearing completion and located close to the campus of St. Mary’s at Tudor and Lake Otis. Originally the vision of church members Tay and Lowell Thomas, the dream project has been accomplished with support from the Thomas family along with assistance from the St. Mary’s community.

According to board chair Mike McCormick, the center was “conceived as a way to help meet a growing need for senior housing in Anchorage. It’s designated for independent residents aged 62 and above. (However, the facilities are ADA compliant to enable aging in place by long-term residents). The Thomas Center was formed with the belief that healthy senior leadership is a gift to all with resident elders serving as role models for the greater community rather than becoming patients or ‘objects of care.’ It’s built around the idea that we are ‘members of one another,’ we each have both gifts and needs and we are all called to support one another in an interdependent community.”

He said the faith-based center has a primary relationship with St. Mary’s Episcopal Church but will welcome residents of many faith traditions as well as those with none at all.

Chris Thompson is a religion scholar who visits local churches and writes about his experiences and matters of faith on his blog, Church Visits, at adn.com/churchvisits.

Contact Chris Thompson at churchvisits@gmail.com or on

Memories of Merton stirred in Alaska and beyond

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An undated photo provided by Cordova's Mark Heidbrink shows, from left, Heidbrink's father John Heidbrink, contemplative Catholic monk and author Thomas Merton and Buddhist monk and peace activist Thích Nhất Hạnh. Heidbrink's was one of several memories of Merton shared by Alaskans after a recent column recounting his time in the state. Courtesy of Mark Heidbrink
An undated photo provided by Cordova’s Mark Heidbrink shows, from left, Heidbrink’s father John Heidbrink, contemplative Catholic monk and author Thomas Merton and Buddhist monk and peace activist Thích Nhất Hạnh. Heidbrink’s was one of several memories of Merton shared by Alaskans after a recent column recounting his time in the state.  Courtesy of Mark Heidbrink

My Sept. 11 column about Thomas Merton’s brief stay in Alaska jolted Merton memories across the U.S. Then Pope Francis invoked a memory of Merton in his recent address to Congress. In this column, I’m sharing several voices of those who contacted me about Merton in the days that followed.

One amazing story comes from John Smelcer, former 20-year resident of Eagle River. He wrote, saying: “This spring and summer, I came into possession of all of Thomas Merton’s personal possessions, including all the clothes you’ve ever seen him wear, including his religious clothing, and his Gethsemani work clothes. The treasure trove also included previously unknown photographs, letter, and the last poem he ever wrote, stuffed in a pocket of the clothes that were returned from Thailand with his body. The poem was dated the day before his death.”

Smelcer, writing a book about this experience, has donated the bulk of this trove to the Thomas Merton Center at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky. He added: “I have letters he wrote in the days before he left on his fateful trip in which he says his trip was simply to attend a conference in Bangkok. I also have the letter sent from the conference to the abbott of Gethsemani the day after Merton died in which the delegates there say again how the conference was mostly organized so that religious could meet Merton. I wonder if in the Alaska Journal he meant that these places (Eagle River, et al) would be a good place for contemplative orders, but I know that he was very, very happy at Gethsemani…after all, he had only recently had his hermitage in the hills built.” Smelcer was recently interviewed on KBIA, Mid-Missouri Public Radio. It’s a fascinating listen, filling in many gaps. The listening and reading link is at tinyurl.com/oqad8z6.

“This donation is significant as, prior to it, the Merton Center had very, very little in the way of personal artifacts that had belonged to Merton,” said Dr. Paul Pearson, the Thomas Merton Center’s director. “As an orphan there was just no one to keep things from his childhood, and so we have just a handful of photographs. As a monk he wasn’t interested in these kinds of things. He was certainly concerned in later years that his papers would be preserved, but not personal items.”

About Merton’s quest for solitude, Pearson said: “Merton was certainly seeking somewhere that would afford him more solitude than his hermitage at Gethsemani. Just a couple of days before his death he wrote to his friend John Howard Griffin saying that he hadn’t found anywhere better than his hermitage at Gethsemani ‘which is, after all, a great place.’”

Rosemary Marto, a former nun of the Precious Blood community, Merton’s host in Eagle River, had strong memories of him.

“I spoke with one of my colleagues who was also a member of that community,” she recalls. “We agreed that the impression Father Merton made on us was an overwhelming awe at the stark simplicity, humility and surprising humanness of this world renowned author and political figure. I remember one of the sisters in Anchorage at a retreat called him ‘Uncle Louie’, and Father Merton seemed to enjoy that. He was remarkably aware of his surroundings, each person he encountered, and would comment on specific people and events. The lasting impression I have of Father Merton is one of awe that a man of such renown, obvious spiritual gifts, and closeness to his Creator could manifest something of the simplicity and transparency of God’s greatness yet manage to reflect his many remarkable gifts back to the source of all spiritual greatness.”

A group of Merton devotees, myself included, is forming a local chapter of the International Thomas Merton Society. Local writer, and fellow Merton devotee, Kathleen Tarr is heading up this endeavor. To be part of this group, contact her to indicate your interest: ktarralaska@gmail.com.

“I have been researching and writing about Thomas Merton and have re-traced his steps in Alaska and beyond,” Tarr said. “I’ve completed a 103,000 word draft manuscript of narrative nonfiction, a spiritual memoir, which partially tells the story of how Thomas Merton became my spiritual guide, and which goes into depth about his Alaska sojourn.”

Despite not having a religious background, Tarr discovered Merton a decade ago and “quickly became smitten with him,” she said. “After 10 years of immersing myself in his life and teachings, I remain in awe of Merton for many, many reasons. In speaking solely about his writing, there’s so much to say about his voracious, omnidirectional mind, his intimate and engaging voice, and how his sentences are never boring. But beyond the details of his prose style, and the intimidating amount of his productivity, one the most important take-away messages I got from him is this: to never give up on the world.”

Mark Heidbrink wrote from Cordova telling of the friendship his father, John, had with Thomas Merton. His father introduced Merton to Thích Nhất Hạnh, internationally recognized Vietnamese Buddhist monk, teacher, author, poet and peace activist. Mark shared a photo of Merton, Nhất Hanh and his father.

Merton’s writings continue to affect many people’s lives, in significant ways. Karen Quirk wrote: “Thomas Merton’s writings were my turning point toward conversion of heart and my journey of deepening faith and contemplation. Not all of us can be monks, but each of us can live a life of discipline in the world while not of the world.”

Through Merton’s literature she found her way to the Catholic Church and then as a Benedictine oblate.

“Ten years ago I left all I knew of my life Outside to come to Alaska,” she wrote. “While discerning the move, a friend’s bookshelf held a book I did not know existed: ‘Thomas Merton in Alaska.’ What better way to confirm that Alaska would be right for me. And I continue to find this ‘an ideal place for solitude.’”

Chris Thompson is a religion scholar who visits local churches and writes about his experiences and matters of faith on his blog,churchvisits.com.

The views expressed here are the writer’s own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com.

Contact Chris Thompson at churchvisits@gmail.com or on

My Sept. 11 column about Thomas Merton’s brief stay in Alaska jolted Merton memories across the U.S. Then Pope Francis invoked a memory of Merton in his recent address to Congress. In this column, I’m sharing several voices of those who contacted me about Merton in the days that followed.

One amazing story comes from John Smelcer, former 20-year resident of Eagle River. He wrote, saying: “This spring and summer, I came into possession of all of Thomas Merton’s personal possessions, including all the clothes you’ve ever seen him wear, including his religious clothing, and his Gethsemani work clothes. The treasure trove also included previously unknown photographs, letter, and the last poem he ever wrote, stuffed in a pocket of the clothes that were returned from Thailand with his body. The poem was dated the day before his death.”

Smelcer, writing a book about this experience, has donated the bulk of this trove to the Thomas Merton Center at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky. He added: “I have letters he wrote in the days before he left on his fateful trip in which he says his trip was simply to attend a conference in Bangkok. I also have the letter sent from the conference to the abbott of Gethsemani the day after Merton died in which the delegates there say again how the conference was mostly organized so that religious could meet Merton. I wonder if in the Alaska Journal he meant that these places (Eagle River, et al) would be a good place for contemplative orders, but I know that he was very, very happy at Gethsemani…after all, he had only recently had his hermitage in the hills built.” Smelcer was recently interviewed on KBIA, Mid-Missouri Public Radio. It’s a fascinating listen, filling in many gaps. The listening and reading link is at tinyurl.com/oqad8z6.

“This donation is significant as, prior to it, the Merton Center had very, very little in the way of personal artifacts that had belonged to Merton,” said Dr. Paul Pearson, the Thomas Merton Center’s director. “As an orphan there was just no one to keep things from his childhood, and so we have just a handful of photographs. As a monk he wasn’t interested in these kinds of things. He was certainly concerned in later years that his papers would be preserved, but not personal items.”

About Merton’s quest for solitude, Pearson said: “Merton was certainly seeking somewhere that would afford him more solitude than his hermitage at Gethsemani. Just a couple of days before his death he wrote to his friend John Howard Griffin saying that he hadn’t found anywhere better than his hermitage at Gethsemani ‘which is, after all, a great place.’”

Rosemary Marto, a former nun of the Precious Blood community, Merton’s host in Eagle River, had strong memories of him.

“I spoke with one of my colleagues who was also a member of that community,” she recalls. “We agreed that the impression Father Merton made on us was an overwhelming awe at the stark simplicity, humility and surprising humanness of this world renowned author and political figure. I remember one of the sisters in Anchorage at a retreat called him ‘Uncle Louie’, and Father Merton seemed to enjoy that. He was remarkably aware of his surroundings, each person he encountered, and would comment on specific people and events. The lasting impression I have of Father Merton is one of awe that a man of such renown, obvious spiritual gifts, and closeness to his Creator could manifest something of the simplicity and transparency of God’s greatness yet manage to reflect his many remarkable gifts back to the source of all spiritual greatness.”

A group of Merton devotees, myself included, is forming a local chapter of the International Thomas Merton Society. Local writer, and fellow Merton devotee, Kathleen Tarr is heading up this endeavor. To be part of this group, contact her to indicate your interest: ktarralaska@gmail.com.

“I have been researching and writing about Thomas Merton and have re-traced his steps in Alaska and beyond,” Tarr said. “I’ve completed a 103,000 word draft manuscript of narrative nonfiction, a spiritual memoir, which partially tells the story of how Thomas Merton became my spiritual guide, and which goes into depth about his Alaska sojourn.”

Despite not having a religious background, Tarr discovered Merton a decade ago and “quickly became smitten with him,” she said. “After 10 years of immersing myself in his life and teachings, I remain in awe of Merton for many, many reasons. In speaking solely about his writing, there’s so much to say about his voracious, omnidirectional mind, his intimate and engaging voice, and how his sentences are never boring. But beyond the details of his prose style, and the intimidating amount of his productivity, one the most important take-away messages I got from him is this: to never give up on the world.”

Mark Heidbrink wrote from Cordova telling of the friendship his father, John, had with Thomas Merton. His father introduced Merton to Thích Nhất Hạnh, internationally recognized Vietnamese Buddhist monk, teacher, author, poet and peace activist. Mark shared a photo of Merton, Nhất Hanh and his father.

Merton’s writings continue to affect many people’s lives, in significant ways. Karen Quirk wrote: “Thomas Merton’s writings were my turning point toward conversion of heart and my journey of deepening faith and contemplation. Not all of us can be monks, but each of us can live a life of discipline in the world while not of the world.”

Through Merton’s literature she found her way to the Catholic Church and then as a Benedictine oblate.

“Ten years ago I left all I knew of my life Outside to come to Alaska,” she wrote. “While discerning the move, a friend’s bookshelf held a book I did not know existed: ‘Thomas Merton in Alaska.’ What better way to confirm that Alaska would be right for me. And I continue to find this ‘an ideal place for solitude.’”

Chris Thompson is a religion scholar who visits local churches and writes about his experiences and matters of faith on his blog,churchvisits.com.

The views expressed here are the writer’s own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com.

Contact Chris Thompson at churchvisits@gmail.com or on

Paying a visit to the Jehovah’s Witnesses

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After 15 years of attending Anchorage churches, I still look forward to visiting new denominations or congregations. Recently I was able to add a new group to my list: Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Many of us have been visited by a pair of Jehovah’s Witnesses distributing their literature and trying to engage us in conversation about religious issues. Recently, I visited a Jehovah’s Witnesses congregation to see firsthand how they present themselves to one coming in unannounced. My primary motive was to see if they represented the degree of diversity, noted in Pew Research data and my last column, which ranked the Jehovah’s Witnesses as the second most diverse religious group nationally.

It was difficult locating local JW churches on the Internet. Instead of websites, I found Facebook pages for several Anchorage congregations. The closest congregation to me was the Sand Lake Kingdom Hall on Strawberry Road. Their Internet presence is an unofficial Facebook page without information about service times. Confused about meeting times, I finally resorted to the national website, jw.org, and used their locator. It’s not a friendly website, but eventually I found seven sites for Anchorage and Eagle River. That’s deceptive, though. Several congregations meet in the same Kingdom Hall but are listed separately. For example, Parkway, Sand Lake and Anchorage South listings meet in the same Kingdom Hall on Strawberry Road. All are shown as English language meetings, but some are conducted in other languages.

The website showed a 1 p.m. Sunday English service, which brought me to the Kingdom Hall on Strawberry Road. The grounds were spacious and attractive, with plenty of parking, and I saw many people streaming into the building. Jehovah’s Witness commenters had previously noted that I would be warmly welcomed, but no one greeted me when I entered, or during my visit. By mistake, I went into the first meeting room. Upon asking, I discovered I’d entered the Spanish language meeting by mistake. Directed to the other side of the building, I entered, but no one greeted me. People were talking with each other but I was ignored. One always wonders, when this happens, if they are in the right place — clearly an awkward feeling.

The meeting started on time with a leader announcing an opening hymn. People sang to music played by digital piano recordings. The leader didn’t introduce himself or welcome visitors, but referred to all as brothers and sisters. Members used a thin hymnbook to sing to the music. I noticed some parents pointing out the words to their children following the song. A speaker, Brother David Bresky, was introduced to give a talk about comfort. His talk frequently referenced to scripture — and frequently used the word “Jehovah.” This term supplants many other scriptural references to the deity.

I was surprised, though not unpleasantly, by the manner in which both the Spanish- and English-speaking congregations were dressed. It was quite formal with suits and ties for the men and dresses or suits for the women. Even the children were dressed up in their best.

Bresky’s talk lasted 30 minutes, after which another song was sung. Then Brothers Chip Boyle and Michael Tuminella took the platform to review that week’s Watchtower lesson. The Watchtower is a semi-monthly magazine published by JW national headquarters. It contains updates, inspirational articles, and four study lessons used during services. Brother Boyle read the lessons, and Brother Tuminella asked congregation members questions contained in the lesson, calling on those who wanted to answer. Several men had portable microphones to give to those answering the questions, a great practice so all could hear clearly. Amazingly, parents and children eagerly raised their hands to answer. I’ve never seen so much attention to a Bible lesson in any Anchorage church. It was great. The lesson, in which one or two paragraphs were read, and a response then called for in the form of a question, lasted more than 45 minutes and was comprehensive. Its theme was “Meditate on Jehovah’s Enduring Love.” After the lesson, announcements from JW headquarters were read.

A final song was then sung and the meeting adjourned.

I approached meeting participant Chip Boyle to introduce myself and ask several questions. He was helpful in answering question for this column. He and other participants function, without titles, as elders of this congregation.

I enjoyed my visit here. Their stancess on private scriptural interpretation, biblical translation and health issues, such as blood transfusions, have brought them into the spotlight nationally. Their voluntary witnessing has some detractors, but I applaud them for courage in sharing their faith. They are a culturally diverse group with 3,000 to 4,000 members in Alaska.

Chris Thompson is a religion scholar who visits local churches and writes about his experiences and matters of faith on his blog,churchvisits.com.

The views expressed here are the writer’s own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com.

Contact Chris Thompson at churchvisits@gmail.com or on

How diverse are Alaska’s religious groups?

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In July, Pew Research released a new analysis of data from their 2014 Religious Landscape study. Twenty-nine religious groups were categorized by racial diversity, including percent of adherents by race and Herfindahl-Hirschman Index, widely used by demographers to quantify diversity.

According to Pew data, the top four most racially diverse U.S. religious groups are as follows: Seventh-day Adventist with 37 percent white, 32 percent black, 8 percent Asian, 15 percent Latino, 8 percent “other,” and an H-H Index of 9.1; Muslims are 38 percent white, 28 percent black, 28 percent Asian, 4 percent Latino, and 3 percent other, with an H-H Index of 8.7; Jehovah’s Witnesses are 36 percent white, 27 percent black, 32 percent Latino, 6 percent other, and have an H-H Index of 8.6; and U.S. Buddhists are 44 percent white, 3 percent black, 33 percent Asian, 12 percent Latino, 8 percent other, with an H-H Index of 8.4.

By comparison, the average H-H Index for all U.S. religious groups is 6.6.

Other notable H-H Index rankings are as follows: Catholic-6.7; Assemblies of God-6.2; American Baptist Churches-5.5; Presbyterian (PCA)-4.4; Orthodox-4.2; Anglican-3.7; Southern Baptist-3.4; Mormon-3.4; Nazarene-2.8; Episcopal-2.3; United Methodist-1.4; Lutheran (LCMS)-1.2, and Lutheran (ELCA)-1.0.

Three major historically black denominations had relatively low H-H Indexes: Church of God in Christ-3.5; African Methodist Episcopal-1.4, and National Baptist Convention-0.2, the lowest index.

I’ve visited Seventh-day Adventist churches locally and have seen this diversity firsthand. SDA congregations are clearly multicultural, especially to an outsider such as me.

I asked Alaska SDA Conference president Ken Crawford for his comments about their local diversity.

“If you were to visit one of the 40 Seventh-day Adventist churches in Alaska on a Saturday morning, you would encounter amazing racial diversity,” he said. “Why? No one has been able to put a finger on it, but it is unique among Christian churches to see such diversity in both worship and fellowship. Two possible reasons for this unique diversity is (1) the rapid growth of the church worldwide, and subsequent immigration to America, and (2) the fact that the Adventist Church as a whole is very accepting of all people. Its message emphasizes commonalities such as a community in Christ and the hope in the Second Coming rather than differences.”

Last weekend, I made my first visit to a Jehovah’s Witness congregation — Sand Lake on Strawberry Road, curious to see if they mirrored the U.S. averages. By mistake, I wandered into the Spanish congregation first, and was redirected to the English service on the other side. It appeared the English service was attended by a blend of various racial and ethnic backgrounds, including black, Hispanic, Alaska Native and white. Talking with several members afterward, I learned the congregation locally supports English, ASL, Korean, Russian, Spanish, Hmong, Tagalog, Samoan, Nuer and Yupik languages.

Dr. Youssef Barbour, a leader who fills some of the roles of an imam in Alaska’s Muslim community says, of diversity among Islam in Alaska,“I think this is very evident in our community. We have people from all backgrounds. In terms of numbers, I don’t think we have statistics, but there are approximately 3,000-4,000 Muslims living in Alaska. I would say the majority would be Muslims of African descent, and those can be African Americans or African migrants. The representation in our committee is diverse and reflects the different back grounds (sic) in the community.”

To date, I’ve not visited Alaska’s Buddhist community, but I plan to, and I’ll be keenly interested in diversity.

Catholics represent approximately one in four Anchorage churchgoers. I asked Mary Gore, executive director of the Alaska Catholic Conference, about diversity among local Catholics. “In our 10 year report to Rome, we noted that our Catholic population mirrors that of the state as far as ethnic composition: 66.7 percent Caucasian, 14 percent Alaska Native, 6.4 percent Asian or Pacific Islanders, 5.6 percent African American, and 5.5 percent Hispanic,” she said. “Those statistics are from 2010 are probably somewhat outdated. I think we’re closer to the Pew Study but we probably have more in the category of Asian/Pacific Islanders than indicated on a national level. Several of our parishes are probably 75 percent Filipino — St. Mary in Kodiak, and St. Christopher in Dutch Harbor for sure. We don’t keep ethnic statistics by parish. St. Anthony and Our Lady of Guadalupe have high proportions of Alaska Native, Filipino, Pacific Islander and Hispanic.” My visits to local Catholic parishes tend to suggest a better-than-average record of diversity.

The lack of diversity among mainline Protestant denominations, such as Methodists, Lutherans, and Presbyterians is worrying. Two of the three local leaders of these denominations tell me it’s receiving attention from the highest levels nationally and locally. Bishop Shelley Wickstrom of the Alaska ELCA Synod said, “We have a saying in the ELCA that if you’ve seen one region of the church, you’ve seen just one region. Alaska is home to 24 percent of Alaska Native and American Indian members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America so Alaskan ELCA congregations don’t look like the rest of the churches in the Lower 48.”

Many local church organizations could do more in seeking greater diversity. Alaska is, and will continue to be, a melting pot of many different cultures.

Contact Chris Thompson at churchvisits@gmail.com or on

 

Fr. George Shaloub on end times, monasticism and marriage

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In August, I was privileged to attend the annual Eagle River Institute at St. John Orthodox Cathedral in Eagle. I was fascinated to hear a series of lectures on “Christianity in the Arab World” by the Rev. George H. Shaloub, pastor of The Basilica of St. Mary Antiochian Orthodox Church in Livonia, Michigan. Shaloub was raised in Syria, and trained at a monastery in Lebanon.

Before returning to Livonia, Shaloub graciously fielded some questions on religious diversity, eschatology, monasticism and marriage. Early in our conversation, I mentioned a Pew Research global religious diversity study from last year that, based on 2010 data, found that 31.5 percent of the world’s population identified as Christian, compared to 23 percent as Muslim and predicted Muslims will exceed Christians by 2050. Shaloub said the constant conflict in the Middle East had uprooted many Christians, and noted the loss of faith in Europe and decreasing family sizes.

What follows is a condensed and edited version of our exchange.

Does all this herald the imminent return of Christ?

“In the Orthodox tradition, we do not time the return of Christ. That would be against our faith. We have no control and we cannot predict. Now, there are so many stories in the Old Testament and in the Book of Revelation that can allude to circumstances. The Orthodox Church never interprets these ancient texts or symbolism as to relate to the present time. The Orthodox Church believes that all what’s written in the Old Testament and the book of Revelation is the fulfillment of God’s promise to send his son Jesus. So we do not look at the world as a subject to be interpreted by Scripture. The Scripture can only be a map of salvation for us, without taking in all contexts at this time.”

But many Christians play up end-time possibilities.

“No stress, I always tell — if the Lord comes today, it would spare me paying the mortgage of the church of $3.4 million. If He chooses not to come, let Christ be Christ. There’s a tendency always here, we play God, and we play the Lord. We tend to put him in the box and limit him; therefore our own limitation. This is not part of our practice. People are looking for an answer why there is a war in Ukraine and war in the Middle East. The war is in our own inner city, not far from our doorsteps in America. That is a reflection of what’s going on. Let’s fix our home first.”

Continuing, he observed evangelicals perceive far away things as more healing, so they go to Africa and South America, when Detroit and Anchorage really need the help. “Charity begins at home. But in America, as a great power, a great influence, it does not pay to show our power and influence in our backyard. It is always on the world stage, because this is where America’s foreign policies interest lies.”

How do you address these issues in your ministry?

“We address it from three perspectives. One perspective, from my homily, is that we do not live alone in the world. If I’m to be a Christian, I have to fulfill God’s greatest commandment. It’s not enough to live for God. I have to look after my neighbor, whether he’s godly or ungodly. The second thing is in your community’s participation. You reach out and you work; whether in the soup kitchen, whether to collect blankets for the homeless in winter, clothes for children, or to feed the hungry. The third is to reach out to the religious leaders in your own community because the religious leaders have a lot of influence.”

What about monasticism’s role in early growth of Christianity?

“In the early days, third to seventh century, the piety of the Christian life was overwhelming. Men and women would leave the hustle and bustle of everyday life, called to become monks and nuns. They chose the desert because it either gave you life or made you naked — it would kill you. It was a very hostile environment, a testing ground about the endurance of the Christian. In the desert, most of our hymnology, most of the ‘yeast,’ that fermented the dough for the entire Christian world, came from the desert.”

Does a role for monasticism still exist?

“Absolutely, because what is missing from our Christian life is this deep spirituality. This can only come from one person chosen by God to dedicate his or her life to the life of prayer. Monastic life can be lived in your own married life but you cannot devote all of your life to a life of prayer. You have the worry of family, children, money, payments. A monastic person’s call is to pray for all of us. We need to have this prayer of intercession. We need people to pray for the world instead of fixing up the world. We don’t know how to fix the world.”

I understand you had an arranged marriage and have authored a book on marriage. Could you share some thoughts on strengthening marriage?

“Your spirituality and your morality is the guideline for your marriage. You will be angry, but Jesus said ‘get angry less.’ Your spirituality when you pray for someone is when you pray, you pray for yourself. It means you’re taking someone on the journey of life with you. Where do you learn that attitude and attribute and the cost of love? From your spirituality. Love is accountable, is responsible.”

Chris Thompson is a religion scholar who visits local churches and writes about his experiences and matters of faith on his blog,churchvisits.com.

The views expressed here are the writer’s own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com.

Contact Chris Thompson at churchvisits@gmail.com or on