“Faces of Hope - a New Year’s Resolution” 

Love in Action, Feeding Bodies Feeding Souls.

The Rt. Rev. Ian D. Anderson, Ph.D, Bishop                                           

 Missionary Diocese of the Resurrection

 My wife Robin is a professional photographer.  Her work has been featured in national magazines and on the pages of various newspapers.  She has an “eye” for things.  Not just in the camera, but in the way she looks at life.    

Resurrection Protestant Episcopal Church in Palencia has had a homeless outreach ministry since it formed as a congregation in April of 2009.  The congregation identifies itself as “Christ’s hands and feet” in the greater community. They call it, “Love in Action - Feeding Bodies, Feeding Souls.”

                                                                                                                                                                                      At 6:30 pm every Sunday at the Plaza De Constitution in downtown St. Augustine, the homeless come, prayers are said, and dinner is served.  They are a very private and dignified group as a whole. They are very careful about whom they trust or let into their world, and they rarely allow themselves to be photographed. 

                                                                                                                                                                                 Yes, people are homeless for a reason; some due to mental illness, others because of addiction.  Some are victims of themselves, some are victims of circumstance.  They look rough, some smell bad, and many have had more than one encounter with the law.  They also are students, working poor, veterans, and former neighbors.  Some are restaurant workers and day laborers who live on the street, managing to earn enough money to keep a small storage locker to hold their belongings until they can better their situation.  Some never will.  

                                                                                                                                                                                  Into this world my wife and I came to help feed the homeless.  When we arrived and started serving I made it a point to look directly in the eyes of each and every individual.   I saw great need, obvious despair, some distrust, and even anger.  My wife saw something deeper, and wanted it captured in her camera.

                                                                                                                                                                                  Robin spent time with each person getting to know them by name.  People with street names like Pirate Rick, Angel, and Law.  She listened to their stories and heard their frustration.  In short order, she earned their trust and they let her in; not only as a friend but as the only one allowed to photograph them. Some even came to her wanting to tell their story and have their picture taken.  She managed to capture the humanity in each one she photographed.   After seeing a nationally advertised photo collection contest called “Faces,” she knew she had the makings of a powerful entry.

                                                                                                                                                                                  She titled the work “Portraits of Hope, Hunger, and Homelessness.”  Out of a 1000 entries her work took second place.  She put a face on a problem that is steadily growing in our country.  My mother used to say, “You do not need to be great to start something, but you need to start something to be great.”  This year make a resolution to do something great, something that will greatly impact your community.

                                                                                                                                                                     Resurrection Protestant Episcopal Church is a small but growing community of believers who have started doing just that – doing something great.  I see it in the faces of the people they serve every week.  Maybe I am starting to get an “eye” for things myself.  Now I see what Robin saw the first time we came to the plaza, Faces of Hope…

                                                                                                                                                                                    To view Robin’s work, follow the link below.  

http://www.robinmcquayanderson.com

                                                                                                                                                                                   For more information on how you can be a part of Resurrection Protestant Episcopal Church’s outreach ministry “Feeding Bodies Feeding Soul’s”   Contact: Regine Maximilean at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

People attend from many different backgrounds, religions and viewpoints.  They attend for a variety of reasons. Some want to investigate whether God exists and if there is any point to life; others are concerned about what happens after death.  Still others may have attended church all their life, but feel they never really understood the basics of the Christian faith.

Alpha is the course for everyone who thinks there may be more to life than meets the eye. For more information regarding upcoming offerings of this program please contact The Rev. Castillo at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The Marriage Course is a series of eight sessions designed to help any married couple invest in their marriage to strengthen their relationship and is a great opportunity for couples to spend time together looking at the important issues in their marriage.

The Marriage Course is very practical and will help equip couples with the tools needed to build a healthy marriage that lasts a lifetime. Each week provides an opportunity for couples to enjoy a special meal together, listen to a talk and then discuss the topic as a couple. There is no group work involved at any stage of the course.

While the course is based on Christian principles couples are welcome with or without a church background and many couples who are not churchgoers have enjoyed and benefited from doing the course. For more information regarding the Marriage Preparation Course please contact The Rev. Castillo at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .