You Can Climb but You Can't Hide

YOU CAN CLIMB, BUT YOU CAN'T HIDE

By John Santosuosso

Well, it is almost January 5th again, and one of my favorite saints has still failed to achieve the coveted status of having his feast day included on the Episcopal Calendar. Perhaps you have not heard of him. His name is Simeon Stylites.

Simeon's origins are quite humble. He was born around the year 390 into a shepherd family. As a child he toiled as a shepherd, but at an early age he began to have visions. He soon entered a monastery, and then shortly another, but poor Simeon was so devout and so strict in his devotions that the monks weary of his ways kicked him out! However, they had not reckoned with the determination of young Simeon. He soon moved to the top of a mountain where he could pray and fast without interruption, or so he thought. Even in an age without Internet and cell phones, word quickly spread about the devout holy man living on the mountain. Crowds began to gather at the foot of his refuge seeking prayer and advice.

Poor Simeon, although kind and helpful, longed for a life of solitude. In a desperate attempt to find it, he moved to the top of a ten-foot-high pillar, with a platform six-feet in diameter. However, the crowds simply followed. By the time of his death in 459 Simeon had resorted to a sixty-foot-high pillar, but still the devoted came. Actually, they tried to help the reluctant saint by climbing a ladder with a basket of food or tying a rope to the basket so that it could be raised to the pillar platform. Since pillar monks were rather reluctant to bathe, some were probably thankful Simeon stayed at the summit of his perch.

Still the monk's fame continued to spread. He preached daily and converted many. Emperors Theodosius II and Leo, I sought his consul. Other monks sought to imitate his devotion and built pillars of their own, sometimes adding a small hut or a chapel at the top. Even today there is a monk in Georgia (not the state, you Braves fans; the country) who continues the tradition.

Eventually a church was built at the site of the base of Simeon's pillar, a few miles northwest of the city of Aleppo in Syria. Most of the pillar had been destroyed by souvenir hunters, but as recently as 2016 the base was still standing in the church courtyard. Unfortunately, in that year a Russian aerial attack during Syria's civil war reduced it to a small pile of rubble.

So, what is Simeon's legacy? Perhaps it is the awareness that some may be chosen for a true life of contemplation, but for the vast majority of us, the Christian life is one lived in community. We are here to minister to each other, and, if we take the words of Jesus in Matthew chapter 25 seriously, also to those outside our immediate community. Yes, sometimes we may forget. I once saw two grown men argue for an hour over who would get to wear the Santa Claus suit at a church Christmas party. We might need to remind ourselves on occasion that silence is golden, but often we do come together, we do hold each other up, and we share both joy and sorrow. I think Simeon would approve.

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ST PETER'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH BLOG

Rector's Thoughts (October 17, 2026)

By Derek Larson • October 17, 2026

Quick Note: We hope you can join us tonight (Saturday, October 17th) at the rectory for our Backyard Open Mic Night gathering! 6:00pm! Pizza will be provided; you bring anything else you like. Now for what I'm thinking about this week: Here it is! A new look to our weekly newsletter. We hope this design is more accessible, engaging, community oriented, and clear in sharing all that's going on in the parish. Thank you so much to our Communications Team who worked hard on this. We highly encourage you to subscribe to our text messages so that you can receive it right on your phone as well! You might notice in the bottom section of the newsletter (called, "All the Rest"), we have three titles: The Table, The Living Room, and the Kitchen. A word about these images. The word parish literally means "to dwell beside". The idea is that a parish is a community of people who share life with one another. Let's take that idea a step further and imagine that St. Peter's is our spiritual family home. Where in the home do people gather? From the earliest centuries of the Church, Christian faith has been lived out in three primary ways. The Benedictines call these three areas Prayer, Study, and Work. A healthy and mature Christian faith includes all three areas. The three areas are also guiding principles in our parish life together. The Table is the place we gather for prayer. We gather each week at the altar for the Eucharist, to share a Divine meal with God and one another. We gather each day for Morning and Evening Prayer, speaking aloud the names of those on our parish prayer list and the needs of the world in the presence of Christ and the holy sacrament. The Table is a metaphor for prayer. The Living Room is the place we gather to grow in our Christian faith. It's where we share stories with one another, get to know each other, and spend time with one another. In Sunday School, Bible Study, and small groups, we gather to learn. At coffee hour, Engage Cafe, and festive dinners we gather to grow closer to one another. And thus the Living Room is a metaphor for fellowship and formation (study). The Kitchen is the place we gather to serve. Where aprons are put on, hands are washed, and sleeves are rolled up as we work together to take care of the community. At St. Peter's we serve both internally (through the work of Ministry Teams, the Vestry, the Choir, the Altar Guild, Lectors, etc.) and externally (through the work of Laundry Love, Friends in the Park, Meals on Wheels baskets, and so much more). The Kitchen is a metaphor for serving (work). To live out our lives as Christians means to live in Christian community in these three areas. In this new weekly newsletter, all of the relevant events, gatherings, and happenings in the parish will be listed in these areas to help us consider how we are engaging in the life of the whole parish. As you walk with others in faith at St. Peter's, I invite you to regularly participate in at least one gathering for prayer, one gathering for formation, and one way to serve. When we participate in the life of the parish in these three areas, not only will we see our parish strengthened, we'll see our relationships flourish and our personal faith lives grow. I hope you like the new design! I can't wait to see some photos that you submit to be featured each week. That's what's on my mind this week. I wonder what's on yours. I'd love to hear. Peace, Derek The Rev. Derek Larson

Rector's Thoughts- July 10, 2026

By Derek Larson • September 8, 2026

This week I am thinking about the treasure trove that is The Book of Common Prayer and other authorized liturgies in the Episcopal tradition. Most of us have no idea just how many wonderful prayers and liturgies there are for all occasions of life. For obvious reasons, the one that is foremost on my mind is on page 439 in The Book of Common Prayer, Thanksgiving for the Birth or Adoption of a Child. This liturgy has quite a history, going back hundreds of years. It has its roots in the Jewish tradition of purification rites for women 40 days after childbirth, but equally emphasizes thanksgiving for the birth of a child. In centuries where mortality rates of women during the birth of a child were very high, it became particularly important to thank God for safety in coming through it. It also was often the first time much of the community would be introduced to the child, who may or may not have been baptized yet, and thus it became a presentation of the child to God and to the community of God.