TRINITY ePISTLE Sunday June 22nd, 2025

WEEK OF SUNDAY, JUNE 22nd, 2025
✢SECOND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST✢

The Trinity (c. 1411 or 1425–27) by Andrei Rublev.

It’s the Real Thing!

Dear Beloved of Trinity,

Recently, I was invited to speak at a conference. My presentation was titled In Search of Me: The Quest for an Authentic Life. As I neared the end of my talk, I referenced an old Coca-Cola jingle from the 1970s. It’s the real thing. The way it should be. What the world wants to see. It’s the real thing. That slogan still lingers—because it speaks to a deep human longing. We long for something real.

In our time, with the rise of artificial intelligence and its seemingly limitless ability to generate nearly anything—images, voices, even entire realities—the line between what is real and what is manufactured is getting harder and harder to see.

We live in a world of curated lives, projected images, and polished personas. Promises are made, truths are proclaimed, and yet so often, we’re left disillusioned, discovering that what we thought was real was just an illusion. A bait-and-switch. Smoke and mirrors.

Even in our own lives, we often fall into the same trap—constructing versions of ourselves that are more successful, more secure, more admired than who we really are. We chase dreams, accumulate things, wear labels… and yet deep down, so much of it feels hollow.

John Mabry, in his book Growing into God: A Beginner’s Guide to Christian Mysticism, writes:

“When the seed of God is planted in you, when you are given a glimpse of the Real, when you have seen what is essential and what is dross, how will your life change?”

That’s the question: What happens when we encounter something real?

We need truth, not spin.
We need beauty, not glamour.
We need hope, not empty promises.
We need love, not fleeting infatuation.

And we are offered all of that—not in a product, not in a program, but in the Gospel of Jesus Christ - The Real One.

When you’ve encountered Him—when you’ve truly experienced what is real—everything else begins to pale in comparison. You start to see the emptiness of the imposters.

Because … the real thing, Is … the way it should be. Is … what the world wants to see. Christ is the real thing!

Peace and Blessings,

A Call to Serve at Cavalry

Dear beloved friends at Trinity,

I’m writing to share some personal news with a full heart and deep gratitude.

After much prayerful discernment, I have accepted a call to serve as Associate Minister for Congregational Care at Calvary Episcopal Church in Memphis, Tennessee. Calvary is a beautiful, spirit-filled community, and from the moment we connected, it felt like a true and joyful match. They’ll be making an official announcement today, but it was deeply important to me that you, my Trinity family, heard it from me first.

Trinity has been home for me in every sense of the word. You embraced me as a seminarian from Princeton Theological Seminary, sponsored and sent me forward in my call, and supported me through a grace-filled year as Lay Pastoral Associate after I received my MDiv. You have prayed with me, challenged me, nurtured me, and truly helped form me as the priest I hope to become. I cannot overstate what your love has meant to me.

When I left Trinity to pursue additional studies at Virginia Theological Seminary, the hope was that I would return to serve among you again. While that path has taken a different turn than I expected, I trust deeply in the Holy Spirit’s work-and I’m profoundly grateful to be stepping into this new chapter with Calvary.

While I won’t be returning to Princeton (except for lots of visits), please know that Trinity will always have a place in my heart and in my story. I carry you with me, not just in memory, but in the way I preach, pray, and care for God’s people.

With deep affection and abiding hope,

Wesley Steven Rowell

Associate Minister for Congregational Care Calvary Episcopal Church, Memphis

P.S. If you ever find yourself in Memphis, please come say hi. I’ll take you out for the best barbecue (outside of NC) you’ve ever had, and if you’re vegetarian, well… we’ll pray through it together.

A Dispatch from Oklahoma

After a long, long drive, I finally arrived in the Diocese of Oklahoma on Saturday. The weather so far has lived up to the expectations I had from watching Twister: truly spectacular thunderstorms with flash flooding and the possibility of tornadoes several days this week.

I was blessed to spend Trinity Sunday at St. Paul’s Cathedral in Oklahoma City. I preached in the morning and at Evensong, then gave a lecture on the Nicene Creed. It was a full day, and my heart was full of gratitude for the wonderful hospitality of Bishop Poulson Reed, Dean Katie Churchwell, Fr. Chris Yoder of All Souls’ Parish in Oklahoma City, and the many staff and volunteers who put this event together.

If you’d like to see the video from Evensong and my lecture, here are the links:

Evensong: HERE

Lecture (starts around 19:15 on the video): HERE

For context, the hat that appears around 30:00 is for the Oklahoma City Thunder who are currently playing in the NBA Finals. Many folks throughout the Diocese wore Thunder gear to church this Sunday, so I decided to play along during the lecture.

I miss you all tremendously! Know that I am carrying each one of you in my heart as I learn and grow in my own ministry, so I can bring the fruits of that learning and growth back to Trinity Church.

In Christ,

Summer Schedule

Holy Eucharist Rite I at 8 AM

Holy Eucharist Rite II at 10AM

This Sunday’s preacher:

The Rev. Cn. Stephen Connor STM (Canon to the Ordinary, Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey)

The Rev. Canon Stephen Connor is the Canon to the Ordinary. Rev. Connor recently served as Rector of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Ocean City from 2018 to 2024. He was co-chair of the Committee on Priesthood for 4 years. He attended General Theological Seminary for an Anglican Studies Year and completed a Master of Sacred Theology (STM). Rev. Connor was received into the Episcopal priesthood on June 30, 2018. Rev. Connor is a former member of The Paulist Fathers, a Roman Catholic religious community where he served from 1983 – 2005.

During his time with the Paulist Fathers, he received an M.Div. from Catholic University, and he was ordained to the Roman priesthood in 1989. Rev. Connor served in a variety of ministries with the Paulist Fathers including urban ministry, campus ministry, religious publishing, vocations, and a member of the Paulist Fathers leadership team. Leaving the Paulist Fathers in 2005, he worked for ten years in religious publishing for Loyola Press in Chicago as the Director of Adult Spirituality Resources leading a team of writers and editors. It was during his time in Chicago that he began attending the Episcopal Church.

Rev. Connor authored The Dynamic Leader: Balancing Faith & Work published by Renew International and Loyola Press in 2017.

SUNDAY READINGS

Sunday Forum: There will be no Sunday forum during summer.

CONTRIBUTION

Rooted in Faith. Moving Forward in Hope.

Trinity Church has stood as a beacon of worship, learning, and service in Princeton for nearly 200 years. As we prepare for the next chapter, we are launching a $7.5 million comprehensive campaign to ensure our ministries thrive and our historic campus is preserved for generations to come.

Inspired by the beloved hymn, God of Grace and Glory, this campaign reflects our gratitude for God’s past provision and our collective call to invest in Trinity’s future.

Summer Choir Returns!

For the months of July and August, we will have a come-and-sing summer choir open to all.

Each Sunday in those months, simply show up at Ivy Hall for rehearsal at 9:00 a.m. (arrive no later than 8:50) to learn the music for the 10:00 service.

You can sing as many or as few weeks as you like!

The music will be fairly straight forward, so it’s a great way to give choir at Trinity a try if you love to sing!

All ages are welcome, but please check with Meg if you have a child younger than age 10 who wants to sing so that we can make sure it’s a good experience for them.

You could even bring your whole family to sing together!

Contact: Meg Harper harperm@trinityprinceton.org

We are still in need of adult and teen volunteers to run Vacation Bible School.

Please reach out to Annie Bryson

Vacation Bible School

Road Trip! On the Go with God: Vacation Bible School 2025!

Dates: June 23-27, 2025, 9:00 am-12:00 pm

Road Trip! VBS is based on Joshua 1:9, "The Lord your God is with you wherever you go." This verse reminds us that God's presence is always near, no matter where the journey of life takes us. Road Trip! invites us on an exciting journey as we discover new places, new friends, and ways that we can discover God's goodness and presence everywhere.

Road Trip! is set out on the open road in an imagination-powered vehicle which will take Travelers on amazing adventures to exciting destinations. During each session, Travelers will learn that God is with them in whatever situation they face. With the help of great stories from the Navigators' Guide (the Bible), Travelers will explore timeless Bible stories that show how people from the Old and New Testaments journeyed with God through many locations and situations and found strength in God's presence wherever they went.

Road Trip! VBS stations include Bible Stories, Music, Crafts, Recreational Games, and Science. Snack will be provided.

Registration is open to children in grades prek-6. To register, please complete this form: HERE

We need many volunteers to make this happen! We will need volunteers to sign up as both Station Leaders and Group Leaders. Teens are welcome and encouraged to volunteer as Group Leaders. To volunteer, please use this form: HERE

If you have any questions, please email Annie Bryson (brysona@trinityprinceton.org).

50th Trinity Church Rummage Sale

This is an amazing time for Trinity Church…

50 years, and going strong with the Rummage Sale!!!

Save the date: October 16th-18th 2025

Please start putting all your treasures aside this summer to support our sale! Collections will begin in September but start sorting your donations now! As always, we are not collecting furniture, pet items, baby items, broken electronics, and/or torn damaged goods.

Questions? Please email: rummage@trinityprinceton.org

PRAYER LIST:

Please pray for the following souls who have recently passed:

Carolyn Green

Michelle Romero

Please keep the following individuals in your prayers: James Arnold, Boden, Peter Brown, Katherine Burke, Clark, Ruben C, Evon Cassier, Jason Clark, Shereese Clark, Donna Crafford, Cullen Creel, Patricia Domino, Bob Edwards, Don Edwards, Christopher Dismas Eldredge, Steve Evans, Gus Escher, Marty Fitzgerald, Pat Grabiec, Shane Greene, Kate H, William Hannan, Sissy Hoover, Charlie Huebner, Tamara James, Ellen Jane, Patricia Killian, Lerose, Charles Lewis, Lillie Lim, Jay Lipscomb, Makenna, Julie Meidlinger, Nancy Metcalf, Les and Joanne Miley, Candice Miller, Chris Moser, Clive Muncaster, Steven Murray, Rosemary Parish, Paul, Ed Perrott, Linda Perrott, Katrina Poskay, Kim Prior, Jason Chandler-Renfro, Freddy and Daneel van Rensburg, Roger Quinn, Kathy S, Amber Schuppan, Dianne Senko, Samantha Seto, Nancy Slade, Maria Smarsh, Isaiah Stevens, Marcia Thompson, Trisha Thorme, Phil Unetic, Anthony Wilmoth, Mike Zimmerman, Betty Zuray ➨ Please pray for the following souls who have recently passed: Jack Wallace

➨ If you want to add someone to the list, please email Annie Bryson at brysona@trinityprinceton.org.

RECOVERY MEETINGS: Looking for recovery meetings? See our list of recurring meetings here.

ZOOM EVENTS: Join all Zoom meetings, unless otherwise advertised, at ZOOM.US/J/2859819016 [By phone: 1 646 558 8656 Meeting ID: 285 981 9016 Password: 1979].

ABOUT US: Trinity Church ➨ Est’d 1833 ➨ An Episcopal Church in the Diocese of New Jersey ➨ 33 Mercer Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 ➨ (609) 924-2277 ➨ The Rev. Paul Jeanes III, Rector; The Rev. Cn. Dr. Kara N. Slade, Associate Rector ➨ Website: trinityprinceton.org

“We believe God’s love is expansive and unconditional and that through Christ, God has called us to love one another as God loves us. We welcome all people of every gender, race, age, culture, ethnic background, sexual orientation, economic circumstance, family configuration, or difference of ability. We celebrate the worth, dignity, and gifts of every person as a child of God.”