The Pathfinder: July 10th, 2025
See You at Camp!
The Big Sur All Parish Camping Trip is July 18th-20th, 2025. Join the All Souls community for a relaxed weekend of intergenerational fellowship and fun! The Santa Lucia Chapel and Campground, a mission of All Saints Episcopal Parish in Carmel, is a private and secluded campground nestled beneath the redwoods on the gorgeous Big Sur River.
It’s California tent camping at its finest, and it's right next door to the Big Sur River Inn and restaurant. There’s a spot to float down the river and a little swimming hole with a family-friendly beach, complete with a rock to jump from.
The campground has running water and toilets (but no showers), picnic tables, a group barbecue area, and a large campfire circle. Everyone is invited to bring something to contribute to the communal dinner on Saturday night, but otherwise meals are individual responsibility. The weekend will be framed with Evening and Morning prayer, and an informal Sunday Eucharist in the outdoor chapel.
Julia Pfeiffer Burns and Andrew Molera are beautiful state beaches within driving distance for those who want to venture out. This weekend is a time to relax, enjoy the company of other parishioners, and experience physical and spiritual renewal!
The campground is reserved from 2:00 pm on Friday through 11:00am on Sunday.
Sign up using this link, or on the physical sign-up sheet in the narthex. (The link will prompt you to sign in to Realm. If you need assistance, please contact Mother Rachel at rachel@allsoulsparish.org ).
Directions and final details will be sent out to those registered a week before the camping trip.
– Mother Rachel
Learning to Be Brave
For three Sundays in June, All Soulsians gathered to talk about the book How We Learn to Be Brave, by Mariann Edgar Budde, the Episcopal Bishop of Washington, DC. Budde’s honesty and humility inspired a depth of personal sharing and reflection that I found deeply moving.
Many of us had witnessed or heard about Bishop Budde’s bravery earlier this year, when she called on President Donald Trump to “have mercy” in her sermon at the Washington National Cathedral the day after the presidential inauguration. Her book had been published two years earlier, and the book group offered an opportunity to learn from her courageous actions.
Budde tells her readers, “The courage to be brave when it matters most requires a lifetime of small decisions” (page xviii). The book is filled with stories from her life as well as from scripture, history, literature, and pop culture. She describes different ways to be brave: pivotal decisions to go, to venture into the unknown; a decision to remain in place and deepen a commitment; deciding to start, to begin a new practice or undertake a courageous journey. She acknowledges failure as well as success, and the myriad feelings that precede and follow critical decisions.
For participants in the book group, Budde’s storytelling sparked reflection on our own lives. As we shared our experiences, we acknowledged suffering, pain, and loss as well as joy and new life. We pondered the ways in which Christian faith shaped our decision-making, and the transformations we had experienced.
One theme that emerged was the importance of a community of support and care during pivotal times. For some, the church was that place of sustenance.
Each week, I was awed by the trust that participants in the book group showed in their storytelling. It told me that All Souls offers a safe place where we can bring our whole selves and know that we are welcomed and beloved, and for that I am deeply grateful.
– The Rev. Dr. Ruth Meyers
All Souls’ August Book Club
Our book selection is All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me. When his older brother Tom died of cancer at age 26, Patrick Bringley found himself in a dark and bewildering landscape of grief. “I had lost someone,” Patrick writes. “I did not wish to move on from that.... I didn’t wish to move at all.”
Finding meaning drained from the cool gig he’d had working at The New Yorker, he ached to discover somewhere quiet to stand, a place he might begin to make sense of this emptiness.
All the Beauty in the World is the intimate story of the ten years Patrick Bringley then spent as a museum guard in the hallways and rooms and galleries of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Please join Jane Vandenburgh and the Reverend Mark Richardson over the first three weeks of August as we read how the camaraderie found in meaningful service and the transcendence of art can help uplift and spiritually heal us.
– The Rev. Mark Richardson and Jane Vandenburgh
Pathfinder Hiatus
The Pathfinder is taking a little summer break. The next edition will arrive in your inbox on July 31st.
– The Staff
Announcements & Events
Happening This Week
SUNDAY
7 AM, Reading Between the Lines Bible Study, either in person in the Common Room or Click here to join by Zoom.
8 AM, Holy Eucharist in the Chapel. Please access the Chapel through the copper doors on Cedar St.
9:15 AM, Summer Book Group Discussion in the Common Room.
9:30 AM, Moving the tables & chairs back into the Parish Hall - please help if you can!
10:30 AM, Sung Eucharist in the Nave. Join us via livestream here. Coffee hour after the service.
12:15 PM, Visit to St. Gregory of Nyssa in San Francisco.
MONDAY
7:00 PM, Reading Between the Lines Bible Study, either in person in the Common Room or Click here to join by Zoom.
WEDNESDAY
9:00 AM, Eucharist in the Chapel
Learn with Us
ADULT FORMATION
Summer Reading Group THIS SUNDAY
JULY 13th, 20th, 27th: Jack Shoemaker will lead a discussion of Elaine Pagels’ Revelations: Visions, Prophecies, and Politics in the Book of Revelation. In week one, we will discuss Chapters 1 and 2 along with Revelation 1-7. In week two, we will read Chapters 3 and 4 along with Revelation 8 -12. In our final week, we will discuss Chapter 5 and the Conclusion along with Revelation 13-22. This group will meet in the Common Room at 9:15 am.
Upcoming Summer Reading Group
AUGUST 3rd, 10th, 17th: Patrick Bringley's book All the Beauty in the World: The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me. Please join Jane Vandenburgh and the Rev. Mark Richardson to discuss this story of how meaningful service and the transcendence of art can help uplift and spiritually heal us. This group will meet in the Common Room at 9:15 am.
Gather with Us
Dancing Saints Await You on July 13th
THIS SUNDAY, July 13, everyone is invited to see the Dancing Saints of St. Gregory of Nyssa in San Francisco. Rector Paul Fromberg will be our host and guide. The address is 500 de Haro Street, SF. Carpooling is being arranged. Start time is between 1 to 1:30 pm, depending on traffic. Bring lunch. More details can be found here in the June 26 Pathfinder. For Questions and to RSVP, click here to email Bonnie Bishop.
Big Sur Parish Camping Trip - July 18-20
Sign-ups are live for our Parish Camping Trip in Big Sur, July 18th-20th! This is a very kid and family-friendly event, including swimming, games, campfires, outdoor church, and more. See an invitation and details from Mother Rachel here, and sign up and pay online using this registration form. (Alternatives: contact Mother Rachel or sign up on a physical sheet in the narthex.)
An Invitation to the 1700th Anniversary of the Nicene Creed
You are invited to an ecumenical pair of talks on the 1700th Anniversary of the Nicene Creed. This is a joint project of St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church and St. Mark's. Part I will take place in two weeks' time, on July 19th, at St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church as part of their Mary Magdalen Festival. Part II will happen at St. Mark's on August 16th. Click here to see the flyer.
Pray with Us
Stephen Ministers are standing by!
With the addition of three new Stephen Ministers to our team there are plenty of compassionate skilled people available to support you in a time of need. Stephen Ministers are trained lay persons who walk with you in a confidential one to one relationship to provide a listening ear, supportive dialogue, and prayer for all times of difficulty, stress, transition, loss and uncertainty. If you are interested in meeting with a Stephen Minister please click here to email the Rev Emily or click here to email coordinator Marilyn Flood.
Worship with Us
WEDNESDAY EUCHARIST
The 9am Eucharist will be in the Chapel of the Nativity for the months of July and August. Come join us for a reflection on the Saint of the day and sustenance for the rest of the week.
CHILDREN & FAMILY
Godly Play will resume beginning August 24th. Over the summer, we hope you will take advantage of the soft spaces at the back of the church and in the side chapel, where you’ll find snacks, books, and toys. Kids are also welcome to use the playground with adult supervision.
You are also invited to join our Parish Camping Trip in Big Sur, July 18th-20th. This is a very kid and family friendly event including swimming, games, campfires, outdoor church, and more. Sign-ups forthcoming!
To sign up for our Children and Family newsletter, please email Emily B.
YOUTH PROGRAM
Youth Group (for grades 6-12) will resume in the Fall and will take place on Sunday evenings. Generally, we alternate between an all-grades gathering, and a high school small group (~once a month).
Serve with Us
All Soups and Such Cookbook
We’re creating an All Souls Community Cookbook filled with delicious, heartfelt recipes. Whether it’s your grandma’s secret soup or a go-to weeknight dinner, we’d love to include it. This isn’t just about good food—it’s about doing good. All proceeds from cookbook sales will go directly to the Berkeley Food Bank, supporting local families with access to healthy, nourishing meals.
How to contribute:
Click this link to submit your recipe. It only takes a few minutes!
Please send in your recipes by August 25, 2025, and feel free to include a short note about why the dish is meaningful to you.
Thank you for sharing your table and your heart with our community. If you have questions, please click here to contact Cathy Goshorn.
We Need Your Help THIS Sunday, July 13th BEFORE the 10:30 Service!
Our beautiful, new Parish Hall flooring has been installed! Please join us THIS SUNDAY around 9:30 am, BEFORE the 10:30 am service, to move the tables and chairs out of the Narthex and back into the closet in the Parish Hall.
Food Bank collection is active. Please bring non-perishable food on Sundays and use the baskets in the Narthex. We also need drivers to deliver food. If you want to help, click here to e-mail Cathy G.
Meal Train delivers food to others. If you are in need of meals, or if you’d like to join this team to deliver to others, click here to email Sarah O.
Open Door Dinner (ODD) will make a warm jambalaya meal for anyone who is hungry THIS SUNDAY. Note: The ODD teams need a few people willing to drive these meals to various locations in Berkeley. If you can help, please click here to email Cathy G. If you are interested in joining the ODD team, click here to email Jennifer A.
Undergraduate Street Medicine Outreach (USMO) is a Cal student group that organizes outreach events every Saturday to bring food and resources to homeless encampments in Berkeley. They are especially seeking donations of the following items:
General hygiene products (toothbrushes/toothpaste, deodorant, soap, etc.)
Clothing
Bottled water
Please bring these donations to the red bin in the Narthex. Click here to email Beth Christensen for donation and other direct volunteer opportunities with USMO.
Responding to the Flooding in Texas Hill Country
Please consider supporting the Texas Hill Country flooding response and put your faith into action. Episcopal Relief & Development is helping local diocesan partners in Texas provide support to those impacted by the catastrophic July 4-5 Texas Hill Country flooding. The Flood Response Fund is an important tool for responding to immediate needs and supporting long-term recovery. Please contribute to Episcopal Relief & Development’s Flood Response Fund to support these efforts.
Ways to respond to the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Education: Learn and educate yourself on the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict dating back to the late 19th Century.
Partnership: Consider partnering with these organizations: Episcopal Relief and Development (episcopalreleif.org), Episcopal Peace Fellowship (episcopalpeacefellowship.net), and the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity (www.im4humanintegrity.org).
Advocacy: Our baptismal covenant calls us to "...strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being."
