St. Anselm of Canterbury Episcopal Church

13091 Galway Street

Garden Grove, CA. 92844

(714) 537-0604

5/1/09

Dear Parish Family,

It is not every day that a member of the U.S. Congress invites a group of 200 people to come to worship at St. Anselm’s Church, but that is what The Hon. Loretta Sanchez did just this morning! As you know, we hosted a town hall meeting on the Employee Free Choice Act sponsored by the Orange County Labor Federation here today and it was a most successful event.

I welcomed our guests and prayed the invocation which apparently touched a lot of hearts. Many of the folks approached me afterwards asking about service times and thanking me for a church that stood firmly behind workers and their families. As our church continues to work closely with community activists, our worship services will keep growing, bringing new life into our parish. I know that you share my concern for the future of our church and I feel that this outreach is a sign of Christ in our midst.

If you are not familiar with the Employee Free Choice Act, this bill supports workers’ right to organize unions without harassment from management. Currently only 7% of the workforce in the U.S. is unionized which correlates to reduced wages and benefits all for the sake of greater profits for the “almighty corporation.” In this modern era of Milton Friedman economics, corporations have become the “temples of worship”. I think we all can agree that no economy is sustainable if it does not respect the dignity of every human being as called for by our baptismal covenant. I believe that the Employee Free Choice Act is a sign of life, of Easter resurrection, for the workers of our land. This bill balances the power of management by protecting workers’ rights. For more information visit: Service Employees International Union.

Once you’ve acquainted yourself with this bill, please write your Congressperson (US House of Representatives, House Office Building, Washington DC 20515) and Senator Dianne Feinstein to express your support (Senator Dianne Feinstein, United States Senate, 331 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510).

By the time you get this letter I will be in Turkey on “study leave” with the Pacifica Institute as part of our parish’s commitment to interfaith work. It is another step toward building bridges across religious and ethnic lines. Among other things, I will visit Christian holy sites in the footsteps of the apostle Paul and also many Sufi Muslim holy sites. I am looking forward to this experience and ask your prayers for safe travel. In addition to the education this trip will provide, I anticipate lots of wonderful photography.

As we move ahead in this time of Easter it is my prayer that the joys of the resurrection permeate our hearts. St. Anselm’s is gradually distinguishing itself in the broader community as a church committed to a prophetic vision. One of the best outgrowths of this is that we have been attracting new people to the parish in recent months. I ask that we all join in prayer for continued growth of our faith community.

During this summer I hope to start a weekday service in the Little Church for people seeking religious community who are committed to a deeper understanding of the Gospel, one that calls us beyond prayer to social action. I look forward to your input on this exciting idea.

In closing, I want to acknowledge the joy of our Easter celebration during the Great Vigil of Easter and also on Easter Sunday. We really did produce a joyful noise with the ringing of bells during the Easter acclamation: “Alleluia, Christ is Risen! The Lord is Risen indeed, Alleluia!” That was great worshipful fun and carried over to the St. Elsewhere Dinner Theatre shows. I want to thank Nathan Pham and the actors for pulling these together. The cast really worked hard to make it happen.

Signs of life surround us!

In Easter Joy,

Wilfredo Benitez+

The Rev. Wilfredo Benitez,

Rector