Here are some photos from the July 11 Playground Build day.  Thanks to everyone from Rez whose hard work and preparation made this project possible.  And thanks to those who showed up ready to work.  The day was a great success!  Click more to see photos.

7 pm Tuesday, August 11
Christ our Shepherd Church
801 North Carolina Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20003

Join us for a multi-church gathering to hear two international updates from Europe and Rwanda. The Rev. Christian Hofreiter, who served on the pastoral team at Resurrection 2005-07, will give an update on his Oxford studies and opportunities for ministry in Austria.

Also speaking will be the Rev. Tommy Hinson, Rector of the Church of the Advent, and Laura Waters Hinson, producer and director of the award-winning documentary, As We Forgive. Tommy and Laura will report on their recent visit to our sister congregation in Nyagatare, Rwanda, as well as the premier of As We Forgive in Rwanda on the 15th anniversary of the 1994 genocide.

Please bring a dessert to share and we look forward to seeing you on Tuesday!

With joy we announce the addition of two new staff members at the Church of the Resurrection!

Our newly appointed Assistant Pastor is the Rev. Matthew Mason, currently Curate of St. John’s Church in Tunbridge Wells, England. Matthew is married to Annabel, and they have two daughters, Tabitha and Evie (left). We expect the Masons to join us in DC this fall after they have been granted appropriate visas. Please pray for the visa process, and for the Mason family as they say farewell to family and friends and move to the United States.

We also welcome to the staff as a Ministerial Fellow our very own Aaron Damiani. Aaron and his wife, Laura, together with their two sons Gus and Sammy (below), have been part of Resurrection for the past year since moving to DC from Chicago. God willing, Aaron will be ordained as a deacon this fall, and a presbyter in the spring of 2010.  Aaron begins with us officially on August 4. Please pray for the Damiani family as they make this transition.

The search for an Assistant Pastor began earlier this spring when then Assistant Pastor Mark Booker and his family were commissioned for a new work in Boston, MA, and in anticipation of Assistant Pastor Matthew Anderson’s departure overseas at the end of this summer. Through the end of May, the pastoral search committee received numerous applications from excellent candidates across the United States and in several countries. During the past six weeks, the committee focused on the top five applicants for the position. Through interviews with the clergy and parish council, two candidates rose to the top of the list: Matthew Mason and Aaron Damiani.

Matthew and Aaron are similar in many respects, inasmuch as both are godly leaders who share our vision for a vibrant, transformational Christian community in urban Washington, DC. Both also have healthy marriages and families. But they are also quite unique. Matthew brings substantial pastoral experience from his work as a presbyter in the Church of England. He is a mature theologian with a gift for proclamation, a concern for the unchurched, and an obvious international perspective. Aaron, on the other hand, has several years of experience as a college chaplain. He has an abiding passion for prayer and liturgy. He is already well-known and trusted within our community.

Two excellent candidates. Both would be welcome additions to the team and would bring new life to Resurrection. It was very difficult to choose between them. After much prayer and deliberation, we finally discerned a third option that we believe is right for our church at this time. We sense that God has called our congregation to take a leap of faith by trusting in him to provide for us financially during times of economic uncertainty. It’s a stretch, but we believe the Lord has answered our prayers for a new pastor by sending both Matthew and Aaron to us.

Please join us in giving thanks to God and welcoming both Matthew and Aaron on to the Resurrection staff. Please also remember both families in prayer during this time of transition.

Just a reminder that we will be having an after-church grill out/potluck tonight at 7:15.  We hope to see you all there!

The Parish Council would like to hear your thoughts on Rez and its future!

After church this Sunday, we will be hosting a focus group of 8-10 Rez members.  Over the course of less than an hour, starting at 7:15-8:15, we’d like to hear your
thoughts on a range of topics, including:
What attracted you to Rez?
What keeps you at Rez?
What does Rez do well?
How could Rez be better?
What are your hopes and dreams for Rez in the future?
This first focus group is for members.

If you would like to participate in the focus group, please send Greg Justice or Matt Luecke an
email: gregjustice@gmail.com or matt.luecke@gmail.com.

In two weeks we’ll have another focus group for non-members and people who have been at Rez for less than 9 months.

PS:  There will be pizza!

Thanks for praying for and volunteering to help with the playground!  As Bryan Wandel announced on Sunday night, the playground will be built this Saturday in the Hopkins Housing Community at 12th and K SE.

You can register to help build by emailing me  emiliekao (at) yahoo.com by June 9 or showing up at 8:30am.

*Please wear covered shoes (e.g. sneakers), but not open-toed (e.g. tevas, flip-flops).
*Lunch and Breakfast provided.
*All skill levels welcome
*Rain date is 7/12

We are hoping for 25 volunteers from outside Hopkins and 15 from within Hopkins.  So far we have 5 volunteers from the Rez…come join us for all or any part of the day.