Spotlight on Emma Shane

Savior is thrilled to welcome several new members this fall! Over the next few weeks, we'll turn the spotlight on Savior's newest members so we can get to know them and welcome them into our community. This week, we meed Emma Shane:

Emma, left, with her sister.

Where do you live now, and where are you from?

I am from Littleton, Colorado, where I am one of 5 kids in my family! I have two older sisters (both are married and live in Denver), a younger brother who is a sophomore at Wheaton, and a younger sister (She is my best friend). I am currently a junior at Wheaton College working towards a B.A in English Literature and a Master’s in Education.

What do you do when you’re not at church?

When I’m not working on classwork, I love to spend time with my friends at Wheaton. I also enjoy painting, running, and reading.

What’s your favorite song?

One of my favorite songs is an instrumental song by Sleeping At Last titled “Sun.” I listen to this song almost every day and I love it because I feel like it describes my relationship with God. It feels like God sings this song over me whenever I hear it, it is a promise of the light-filled life I’m living with Him and the hope of an eternity to delight in Him.

What’s your favorite quote?

“Light itself was your first love: you loved paint only as a means of telling about light” –C.S. Lewis; The Great Divorce

What brought you back to Savior after your first visit?

The extremely long passing of the peace and Marilyn Stewart. The next week I came back and she came up to me at the end of the service. She remembered my name and told me that she had prayed for me that week. I knew Savior was a place where people genuinely knew and cared for each other and I wanted to be a part of a community like that.

What passions and skills do you bring to Savior?

I really enjoy singing but I don’t get many opportunities to sing other than in church. I also really enjoy decorating/building/making spaces more beautiful or inviting.

Note from Sarah: Emma is also a talented visual artist; watch for her painting of her great-grandmother, which will go up on the blog on All Saints’ Day (November 1).

Resources for What We Believe

As we learn about the Apostles Creed in Father Kevin’s upcoming sermons (Nov. 10, Nov. 17 and Nov. 24), here are additional resources for further study of the Creed and Christian Doctrine:

SHORTEST & SIMPLEST:

• A pamphlet, Creeds and Heresies, explains how Christian belief (as expressed in the Apostles’ Creed) differs from its main early competitor, gnosticism

 FOR CHILDREN:

• The Nicene Creed: Illustrated and Instructed for Kids

FOR HIGH SCHOOL YOUTH AND OLDER:

•  How to Understand the Creed by Jean-Noel Bezancon, et al., illumines each phrase of the Nicene Creed with sidebars and images 

•  “I Believe”: Exploring the Apostles’ Creed by Alister McGrath. Perfect for a 6-week study group. Each week includes key Bible passages informing the Creed 

FOR THE THEOLOGICALLY MINDED:

•  To Be a Christian: An Anglican Catechism, the official catechism of Anglican Church in North America, explains each phrase of the Apostles’ Creed in question-and-answer format 

• Dogmatics in Outline, by Karl Barth. The 20th-century Swiss Reformed theologian expounds on Christian doctrines.

FOR THE HISTORICALLY MINDED:

•  The Nicene Creed for Today by Br. Gregory Simpson tells the story of the how the creed came to be in under 100 pages 

•  ”The Road to Nicaea” by John Anthony McGuckin gives the same story about the formation of the Nicene Creed in article length (and free)

(Photo: the oldest known copy of the Nicene Creed, created during the 6th century; currently held at the University of Manchester Library in England)

Word from Father Kevin: Meet Savior's Clergy

At Savior, we are blessed with a number of clergy, and since several have joined our clergy team recently, I wanted to make sure you met them.

On a Saturday evening, you’ll generally see me (Fr. Kevin), Mtr. Karen, and Deacon Sandy at the Holy Table. Karen works for Savior part-time, leading and coaching our staff; she also works part-time in her own leadership-coaching practice, Strengthen Your Leadership. Sandy works at Outreach Community Ministries as a social worker and volunteers much time to serve Savior—for example, leading our acolytes and altar guild, and taking Eucharist to shut-ins. Did you know she bakes our Communion bread each week?

Fr. Bill and Mtr. Linda, our founders, may think they were retiring, but they often serve as prayer and Communion ministers; they also preach and celebrate as needed. I am grateful I can sometimes ask Bill and Linda for their wisdom and knowledge of the parish. Of course, Linda leads our annual Blessing of the Animals.

Fr. Aaron Harrison (and spouse Whitney) came to Savior this year. During the day, Aaron teaches Bible and logic to middle-school and high-school students. Fr. Aaron and Deacon Sandy will lead a session explaining our liturgical worship early next year.

Deacon Brad Lindsay (spouse Sarah, now on staff, and children Isabel, Claire, and Vivian) came to Savior in 2017, when the family moved to Wheaton. You’ll see Brad serving as a prayer and Communion minister and leading our new Welcome ministry.

Deacon Josh Steele (and wife Rachel, and now baby Eva) came to Savior about the same time as Brad, to begin work on a doctorate in theology at Wheaton. Josh launched the current Savior website and Breeze, helps lead and teach our youth on Wednesday evening, and assists in coordinating pastoral care. He and Rachel also lead music team sometimes.

Our other resident theologian, Deacon Emily McGowin, came to Wheaton this summer to teach theology. Her husband, Fr. Ron McGowin, serves two parishes within ACNA as interim priest—including our sister parish, Christ Redeemer in Milwaukee. Ron and Emily and their children, William, Emmelia, and Althea, were welcomed to Savior at our Anniversary on Saturday.

All of these clergy pray for Savior and help as needed. I thank God for each one.

Spotlight on Luke and Christine Wulbecker

We are excited to welcome Luke and Christine Wulbecker as new team leaders heading up a new ministry area! In addition to serving on the music team and in the nursery, Luke and Christine will be leading the Compassion Ministry, which will identify places where members of Savior can practice their outward journey by caring for those around us. Get to know Luke and Christine in today's post.

Where do you live and where are you from?
We live in Schaumburg with our Corgi, Barnabas (or Barney, as he prefers), who rules the home. Luke grew up in Roselle, and Christine's childhood was spent between Park Ridge and Nigeria, where her parents were medical missionaries.

What do you do when you’re not at church?
Luke is a recruiter for a staffing agency, and has a passion for connecting with college students. Christine is a therapist for expectant and newly parenting families. We spend a lot of time with our families, most of whom live in the area. Luke loves riding his motorcycle, playing music, and baseball/softball. Christine loves reading, yoga, and Zumba.

Luke's favorite quote:
"Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking about yourself less."  -C.S. Lewis

Interesting fact about Christine:
She was a goalie for the water polo team in high school.

How does the Compassion Ministry serve the life of our congregation?
A major goal of the Compassion Ministry is to support the church in efforts to connect and engage with the local community.

How can people get involved in the Compassion Ministry?
Pray for Wheaton and the surrounding area. Speak with Luke and Christine about your ideas of how to best engage the community. Watch for upcoming announcements about Outreach Community Ministry's Christmas Store, a chance to donate gifts to families in need this holiday season.”

Blessed to Be a Blessing: Closing Prayer

Savior’s Blessed to Be a Blessing sermon series concluded on Saturday, but we pray that what we learned will continue to shape our lives and our interactions with others. As we reflect on the teachings and challenges offered to us from the pulpit over these past 5 weeks, Senior Warden Deb Nickerson offers the following prayer:

Father God, we thank you that on this day and in this present moment, you have called us to live and serve you in this place, right where we are. Thank you for placing our church in Wheaton. Show us how to love others here, we pray. The work before us today, the people who cross our path today, the challenges and the rewards of this day, you have set before us. Give us courage and presence of mind to press forward. 

We thank you for the example of Jesus, who demonstrated the value of slowed pace throughout His life. Provide us with the gift of seeing others not as interruptions, but as dear ones in need of healing and wholeness, worthy of our attention and love. Give us the patience to slow down. Give us the presence of mind to welcome “interruptions” as gifts and opportunities. 

Lord God, as we see the faces of those you bring into our lives each day, give us ears to hear their stories. Give us divinely inspired interest and curiosity. Rather than the desire to be heard, give us the desire to listen. Fill us with a loving concern and appreciation for each person you place in front of us today.

We are grateful that by your grace, you are already at work in the lives of those we will encounter today. We thank you that we do not have to sell them a package of faith, because you are already calling them gently. Give us discernment and wisdom to fulfill whatever part you would have us to play in each one’s life. 

Father God, we thank you for this community that you have called us to. We are not on a solitary journey, isolated from your people. We thank you for friends to confront, pray and love us as we journey. Thank you for friends to advise, support and embrace us as we offer ourselves to bless those around us. 

 Mold us in your image, El Roi, God who sees Me, that we might truly see the people you place on our path. May it be so, Lord. May it be so. Amen.