The Flame

Each week we send out an e-newsletter, the Flame. It includes a reflection by Cameron, brief articles by parish leaders, community announcements, and the parish prayer list. On Saturdays we also send out "The Spark" with links to the Sunday Worship booklets and brief announcements. Past issues of both the Flame and Spark can be found here. If you would like to add someone to the prayer list for the Flame and the Sunday bulletins, please reach out to our parish administrator. To ask for prayers from the Prayer Chain, please reach out to Lois Roach here.

Good Courage

The Flame for Friday, January 16, 2026

O God, you have called your servants

to ventures of which we cannot see the ending,

by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown.

Give us faith to go out with good courage,

not knowing where we go,

but only that your hand is leading us

and your love supporting us,

through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

This prayer has been taped to bottom of the desktop computer monitor in my office at St. Aidan’s for some time now. I’ve appreciated it for years, and when it was used in a formation event or workshop I clipped it from a printout and taped it there. Last evening our outgoing Senior Warden Barbara Stevenson closed our vestry meeting with it. Today I looked up where it came from online. The Lutherans are very fond of it – it showed up in multiple Lutheran websites and social media posts. It turns out they got it from an Anglican priest who was an army chaplain during World War I, Eric Milner-White (1884-1963). He composed it and other prayers to speak to the lives and contexts of the soldiers he knew, as well as other people of various walks of life. It was originally published in the 1941 collection Daily Prayer.

I am struck that he lists the prayer as the first of several inspired by the witness of the ancestors of our faith. Abraham’s journey outward into unknown terrain is the guiding story of the prayer. God called him out from the land of Ur, saying “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). He journeyed by stages, never knowing what exactly would unfold.

Of course, none of us does. All of us make our way through ventures of which we cannot see the ending. We walk paths whose destination we do not see and have never before traversed. We need courage to make our way in the midst of the unknown. We need to be reminded of what we do know: that just as God calls us into our journeys, God leads us and supports us with love all along the way.

I frequently – no, always – need to pray this prayer, but especially now, in these days. I so appreciated the witness and leadership of Bishop Craig Loya of the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota, who spoke at an online vigil of 3700 people this week. “After all the things I have seen this week in Minnesota, I am weary, I am weighed down, I am angry, and I am heartbroken, and I have no doubt that all of you are, too. For those of you who are outside of Minnesota, it is hard to overstate the magnitude of the random and reckless cruelty that we are seeing and the depth of the fear that nearly everyone is living with all the time.”

He continued, “The forces of evil in this world are always fed by mimetic anger and hatred. You can be sure those forces are out there tonight, as they ever are in a fallen world, daring us to become its food.We’re not going to do that. We, as followers of Jesus, are going, in this moment, to … turn the world upside down by mobilizing for love. We are going to disrupt with Jesus’ hope … because we know the cross of Jesus Christ settles forever that love is the most powerful force for change and healing in the universe.”

Bishop Loya and those gathered needed, claimed, and expressed God’s good courage.

As we head into this weekend, may God increase our faith to continue making our way with good courage.

Peace,
Cameron

ANNOUNCEMENTS

From Deacon Margaret

I’m writing with so much gratitude for all of the books that you and the people of Holy Innocents donated to the prison library at San Quentin. I invited the people of Holy Innocents to join us in our ongoing book collection practice during the holiday season.

By my count, well over 1,000 books came in! A parishioner from Holy Innocents and I drove them over to my friend Diane’s home on December 31 – she told me that the prison library was nearly bare the last time she visited, so the books will be very welcomed. She’ll be bringing them to the prison very soon.

Thank you so much for your continuing generosity, and I’ll be happy to keep picking up books whenever folks have them – just let me know and I can come to your home or the church to fetch them.

It hurts my heart to think of a prison library without books, and I’m grateful that we can continue to work together to right that wrong.

- With all the best - Margaret

Good News Gardening - upcoming dates
In 2026 we are continuing with the second Saturday of the month at our usual 12:30-2 pm time, with some exceptions one of which is that in February we'll meet on the 7th. The next dates will be March 14, April 11 etc. Looking forward to the next gathering. Please reach out to Margaret at mdyerc@stanford.edu with any questions.

Young Adult Retreat at St. Columba's, Inverness - February 13-15

Folks in their 20s and 30s are invited to a young adult retreat "Discerning Your Vocation: Hearing God's Call in Marriage, Family, and Career" at St. Columba's in Inverness from Friday, February 13 - Sunday, February 15. Here is the description: "Our theme for retreat year is Discerning Your Vocation. For generations of Christians, this has meant hearing God's unique call to each of us as we make the major life choices like marriage, family, and career." The sing-up link is here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfmwOi8_8jZKufrm0ob4464gWnocXPKUPE5P4oEjlDOEdFJ7w/viewform?fbclid=IwVERDUAPLZ39leHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEer6jEfhSnAqv82l7I4pGQEcild3AHcDaxx84Y3MO2zz8SGynA_g0M61sB9wA_aem_1sibvYAKARguEtjcOnH7bg

Opportunities for Immigrant Solidarity

Several local organizations offer opportunities to stand with immigrants facing Trump administration attacks.
Faith in Action(www.faithinactionba.org): Local branch of a national community-organizing group anchored in faith communities around the country. In the Bay Area they focus on housing and immigration. Opportunities include:

Immigration Court. Accompany immigrants to their court hearings. You’ll need at least conversational Spanish, and you’ll be trained before you get started. For more information and the sign-up link: www.faithinactionba.org/accompaniment.
Rapid Response Network (203) 666-4472: Faith in Action operates the San Mateo County Rapid Response phone network, providing information for immigrants and their supporters in the whole Bay Area, not just San Mateo. Call the number:
- If you or a loved one has been detained by ICE
- If you learn that someone has been detained by immigration enforcement
- If you see ICE activity in the community
- If you need accompaniment at an ICE Check-In or court appearance
- If you need support filling out your asylum paperwork within the first year of entering the country
- If you think immigration enforcement is contacting you by phone call or text message

Immigration court demonstrations and vigils: Several groups maintain a presence outside the immigration court at 100 Montgomery in downtown SF. Here are a couple:

Interfaith Court Vigil (www.im4humanintegrity.org/category/events/): Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday every week. Sponsored by the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity. Click here to sign up: bit.ly/CourtVigilVolunteer.
Tuesday and Friday demonstrations: Loosely organized, pretty confrontative demonstrations, called by Democratic Socialists of America and others.

Immigration Court Observers: The National Lawyers Guild trains non-lawyers to participate in observing and documenting what happens in immigration courts in S.F. Click here for more information: nlgsf.org/programs-committees/nlg-sfba-programs/immigration-justice-program/

Comprehensive action calendar: (www.actiontogetherwest.org/bayarea) A project that grew out of the 2016 Pantsuits Nation group, this is a very well-maintained and up-to-date calendar of resistance activities in the Bay Area.

Men's Group: Saturday, February 7, 9-10:30 am, via Zoom. We will connect for prayer, study and fellowship. All men are cordially invited. If you haven’t received connection information by October 30, contact Dave Frangquist (frangquist@acm.org).

Wrestling with the Scriptures meets every fourth Tuesday at 10:30 am (via Zoom). The next meeting will be Tuesday, February 24. Please feel free to reach out to the office for the Zoom access information: office@staidansf.org.

St. Aidan's Gourmet Book Club
We will continue to meet via zoom with LeeAnn DeSalles serving as our zoom master. If you need the link or would like help with zoom, please contact LeeAnn at leeanndesalles@comcast.net. If you would like to be on the Book Group’s mailing list, please contact elaine@mannon.com.

Monday, January 26, 2026, 7:00 p.m. There There by Tommy Orange – “A wonderous and shattering novel that follows 12 characters from Native communities, all traveling to the Big Oakland Powwow and all connected to one another in ways they may not realize.” (Goodreads) 294 pages.
Monday, February 23, 2026, 7:00 p.m. Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960’s - by Doris Kearns Goodwin (480 pages). A Memoir about Goodwin’s relationship with her late husband, Richard Goodwin, blending her work as a presidential historian, and offering an intimate look at the era’s pivotal moments, and the couple’s shared life and work.
Monday, March 30, 2026, 7:00 p.m. The Safekeep -by Yael van de Wouden (272 pages). A historical mystery, set in 1961 Netherlands, that unearths hidden wartime secrets and explores themes of obsession, desire, and control.

Diamond Diners, our Monthly Neighborhood Luncheon be Wednesday, February4th at the usual time and place: 12 PM in the St. Aidan's sanctuary. We look forward to enjoying lunch with you then!

Sources for Factual News from the Rev. Gary Ost:

At our Quarterly Parish Meeting on May 4, Cameron asked me to submit some suggested ways to stay grounded in reality in the midst of deliberate attempts currently to normalize the untrue and the unholy. I recommend this list for fact-based sources of information to help “fight against all such injustice in the name of Christ,” as we promise to do in our Baptismal Covenant:

For reporting on the work of The Episcopal Church in this matter:

The Episcopal Public Policy Network; news, resources and how to sign up to listen to their weekly policy network calls on Thursdays, 10-10:30 am. PDT: EPPN sign up

For news:

The Guardian for international perspective: <info@email.theguardian.com>

The New York Times: na.nytimes.com

For sound journalistic reporting, try reading or listening via these links:

The Contrarian: contrarian+jen-rubins-morning-columns@substack.com>

Joyce Vance: Civil Discourse <joycevance@substack.com>

Heather Cox Richardson: heathercoxrichardson@substack.com

Dan Rather, <steady@substack.com>

To put things in bigger scientific, historical and theological contexts, try reading:

Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart, by Brian McLaren (Successer at Richard Rohr’s Center for Action and Contemplation), St. Martin’s Essentials, 2024 St. Martin’s Publishing Group, New York

The False White Gospel: Rejecting Christian Nationalism, Reclaiming True Faith and Refounding Democracy, by Jim Wallis (Founder of Sojourners magazine), St. Martin’s Essentials, 2024 St. Martin’s Publishing Group, New York

Origins: How Earth’s History Shaped Human History, by Lewis Dartnell, Basic Books, New York, 2019

Cosmogenesis: An Unveiling of the Expanding Universe, by Brian Swimme, Counterpoint, Berkeley, CA, 2023

The Once and Future Church: Reinventing the Congregation for a New Mission Frontier, by Loren Mead, the Alban Institute, Inc., c/o Duke Divinity School, Durham, NC; 1991

And remember, we renew our faith in Jesus as our Only Lord by remembering how he first loved us—all of us!
By faith in Jesus Christ, Gary Ost

Resources for Engaging in Anti-Racism, from Elena Wong
Thank you to Elena Wong for sharing this list of resources that were in turn shared with her through her membership in the Western Association for College Counseling:

READ
Resources on talking to young kids about race and racism
The 1619 Project (all the articles) | The New York Times Magazine
“Who Gets to Be Afraid in America?” by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi | Atlantic (May 12, 2020)

LISTEN (Podcasts to subscribe to)
1619 (New York Times)
Code Switch (NPR)
Seeing White Series on Scene On Radio

WATCH
13th Film (2 hours)
When They See Us (Four episodes)

DONATE
Color of Change
Southern Poverty Law Center

FOLLOW
Groups and people doing anti-racist work, such as @colorofchange @weinspirejustice @showingupforracialjustice

Contemplative Prayer: Tuesday & Thursday from 9-10 AM via Zoom
We offer Contemplative prayer via Zoom. Contemplative Prayer is silent with the beginning and ending marked by a bell. You can practice meditation, silent prayer, journal, or otherwise enjoy the collective quiet. Thank you to Susan Spencer for anchoring this practice. Please feel free to reach out to the office for the Zoom access information: office@staidansf.org.

Morning Prayer: Mon, Wed, Fri at 7:30 AM - M/W Hybrid, Fri via Zoom
We offer Morning Prayer in hybrid mode (at church and via Zoom) on Mondays and Wednesday, and on Fridays via Zoom only. Please feel free to reach out to the office for the Zoom access information: office@staidansf.org.

Evening Prayer: Wednesdays at 6:30 PM via Zoom

We offer Evening Prayer via Zoom. Readings for the day are from the Episcopal Church's daily lectionary or calendar of saints, and the service includes a brief reflection time on the readings. Please feel free to reach out to the office for the Zoom access information: office@staidansf.org

Hybrid In-Person/Zoom Sunday Worship

Sunday worship is hybrid at the 10 AM (not the 8 AM), with both in person and Zoom platforms available. We encourage you to connect with worship in whatever way is most accessible for you.

Mask Policy: We respect the preference of anyone who feels safer by masking. We continue to monitor public health advisories and may modify our mask policy, as appropriate. Please pray for the health and safety of all our members and friends as we continue to navigate this challenging time.

To add an announcement to the weekly bulletin of the Flame, please send your edited text no later than 11:00 am Wednesday to office@staidansf.org