News
Campaign to Eliminate Trinity's Debt
May 04, 2025
“And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:8
An Opportunity for Financial Leadership
The Vestry is excited to announce an opportunity for the parish to exercise leadership over the direction of the Cathedral, even in this time of transition. This opportunity is for the congregation to pay off Trinity’s financial debt.
You likely have questions about this project. The first may be, how much is our debt, and where does it come from? Using round numbers, the debt is approximately $350,000. It mostly stems from mortgages on the buildings across Spring St. from the main part of campus, though a portion comes from a line of credit the church had during the early 2010s. The debt has existed in one form or another for decades.
Make a Pledge Make a Contribution
Why Now?
The most important question to ask is, why should we pay this debt? There are two important answers to this question. First, it is time for us to move beyond it. The debt is holding us back. We pay nearly $50,000 per year in debt service, money that could otherwise be used to expand or create new ministries for the church to serve the parish, the community, and the diocese. We need to move past this debt and fixate our eyes squarely on the future. If not now, then when? If not us, then who?
The second reason is because of the timing of calling a new Dean & Rector. Anyone interested in answering our call to serve Trinity will take a close look at the financial condition of Trinity. Being a debt-free parish will make us much more attractive. Beyond having no debt, the Search Committee can communicate to those who may be interested that we came together as a parish during this search process and paid this debt just in time for our new Dean. The Search Committee would also be able to communicate that this frees up a significant amount of money in our budget that the new Dean would be able to help shape. The timing from that standpoint could not be better.
How Will We Do This?
The final question is, how do we make this happen? First, please know that every member of the Vestry has fully committed to participate. Further, the Vestry has already raised approximately half of the funds necessary to pay the debt off. In a way, that becomes a challenge to the parish to match what has already been raised to complete this work. A good benchmark for participation is for you to identify what your annual gift to Trinity is—whether through a pledge, passing the plate, a Christmas donation, or whatever the case might be—and then make a gift to the debt payoff fund of 25% of that annual amount.
Please understand, this gift is not in place of any amount you may already be giving; rather, it would be in addition to what you are generously offering for the church. The Vestry will gratefully accept whatever you may be able to give, even if it is less than the 25% benchmark. Every penny, or every mite, as the case may be, matters and is a blessing. The Vestry will also gratefully accept anything you may be able to give above that 25% benchmark. We know that not everyone will be able to participate, so if you can give a greater amount, then that will help us reach our goal.
Our goal is to have $350,000 committed to this fund, with as much of the money in the bank as possible, by Pentecost Sunday, June 8. We understand that some folks may need more time to contribute their share. We are hoping to have all of the money raised by September 1, the date currently targeted for Trinity’s profile to go public for a new Dean & Rector. In order to pay, you can simply send a check to Trinity with “debt” mentioned in the memo line. We have also created two links for this effort. You can pledge a certain amount at this link: bit.ly/TrinityDebtPledge. And you can pay toward this fund at this link: bit.ly/TrinityDebtGift.
Thank you!
Thank you so much for your willingness to thoughtfully consider what you may be able to give. As you reflect on this request, please keep in mind the passage from 2 Corinthians above and remember that God has provided abundantly for us so that we may share abundantly in every good work. Many thanks and blessings.
Broadway in Bloom
April 20, 2025
A Garden Gathering with P. Allen Smith
May 4, 2025 at 12:30
$75 registration fee includes lecture, demonstration and a light lunch.
An inspiring garden event with P. Allen Smith to benefit the Broadway Community Garden—lunch, market, and more!
Join us for Broadway in Bloom, an inspiring afternoon celebrating community, beauty, and sustainability—featuring nationally renowned garden designer and lifestyle expert, P. Allen Smith.
Enjoy a delicious lunch, shop a curated garden market, and take a guided tour of the Broadway Community Garden—all while supporting the vibrant neighborhood initiative that makes it flourish.
Highlights
Presentation by P. Allen Smith:
- The Power of Pollinators: Orchestrating Vegetables, Herbs, & Flowers
- Live Container Garden Demo
- Open Forum Q&A
Lunch provided
Garden market & plant sale in the scenic Trinity Garth
Tour of the Broadway Garden
Exploring the Sacred Feminine
April 16, 2025
In collaboration with The Interfaith Center
Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m.
The Interfaith Center (1616 Spring Street)
After Easter Sunday, there are 6 weeks of the liturgical season of Easter. The name Easter is actually an ancient name for the Great Goddess, who was a deity imbued with the power of creation and new life, two of the primary values of the rising consciousness of the Sacred Feminine in our day. To intentionally observe that time and to offer a balance to the penance of Lent, Trinity and The Interfaith Center will offer an Easter Series of speakers to discuss their encounter and experience with the feminine aspect of God, the conscious role she plays in their lives. The series will be on Wednesday evenings during the Easter Season, April 23-June 4, at 6:30 at The Interfaith Center unless otherwise noted.
The speakers will be The Rev. Stuart Hoke, The Rev. Susan Sims Smith, the Rev. Thomas Alexander, State Sen. Clarke Tucker, Lisa Thorpe - artist and spiritual director, and the Rev. Patricia Matthews and Becky Tucker, coordinators of Spring House. If you have been curious about the feminine aspect of God, please join us.
Lenten Reflection from Bishop Harmon
April 09, 2025
Well Water Wisdom
Reflections from John T.W. Harmon
“Returning to God”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
2025 April 4th
Rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing.
~ Joel 2:13
Beloved,
Lent is an obvious invitation to repent, renew, and amend our lives; but it is much more. Lent is also about conversion; embracing our need for transformation. Conversion, in this sense, is a kind of returning to where we have not been before. Since it is almost impossible for us to return to where we have never been, our returning as a Lenten discipline, is an invitation to surrender, or give back to God that which belongs to God — our very selves. Thus, our return is a journey forward on a path that takes us deeper and back into the heart of God, our true home.
If conversion is indeed a return to a place we have yet to experience, a place where we have no recollections, then we can echo William Wordsworth's words:
Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting;
The Soul that rises with us, our life’s Star,
Hath had elsewhere its setting
And cometh from afar;
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home:
Heaven lies about us in our infancy!
Our conversion as a returning to God is more than a mere memory of some distant or imagined past. It is about the grounding of our lives and souls in a commitment to holiness, fostering a kindness that transforms everything about our lives and habits. It is an ongoing invitation to return again to our authentic selves, where we are unrecognizable, even to ourselves, as our hearts burn with the fire of God’s love.
Conversion is hard work. It requires sacrifice and involves some suffering that invites us to get out of the way so that God might be visible in and through us. It is passionate love that involves surrendering our wills, allowing us to reflect Christ's love in a broken and hurting world. Ultimately, our conversion is a reunion with God and each other, creating bonds of peace that give rise to joy.
May the remaining days of Lent bless you with joy and strength as Holy Week approaches.
With Lenten blessing, I am,
Faithfully,
The Right Reverend John T. W. Harmon
Bishop of Arkansas
Upcoming Adult Formation Classes
March 30, 2025
Walking with Christ: An Introduction to Holy Week
Bible Study: Romans with Beverly Gaventa
Book Club: The Reason for God by Tim Keller
Insights Lecture Series
March 10, 2025
A Theology of City Planning
Trinity Cathedral's Insights Lecture Series presents a lecture and panel discussion with the Rev. Dr. Willie James Jennings.
What kind of city do we want to live in? What kind of city should we live in? And how might a Christian participate in making those decisions? As Little Rock undergoes a new city planning process, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral welcomes the Rev. Dr. Willie James Jennings, one of the world’s leading and most celebrated theologians, to speak about a “theology of city planning” as a part of the Insights Lecture Series. Immediately after his lecture, Professor Jennings will participate in a panel discussion with local change-makers, Kathy Webb and Jay Jennings. A reception will follow in Morrison Hall. On Sunday, April 6, Professor Jennings will lead Trinity’s Adult Formation offering at 9:15 am and will preach at the 10:30 am service. To learn more, contact the Rev. Thomas Alexander (thomas@trinitylittlerock.org).
The Rev. Dr. Willie James Jennings is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of Systematic Theology and Africana Studies at the Yale Divinity School. A theologian who teaches in the areas of Christian thought, race theory, decolonial, and environmental studies, Professor Jennings is the author of the award-winning The Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race, which is now widely recognized as a theological masterpiece. He is currently completing on a two-volume work on the doctrine of creation, including a reflection on how cities are planned and organized.
Tickets are $25 and can be purchased here.
The Message - Lent 2025
February 28, 2025
Read the latest issue of The Message. It is filled with useful information for the season of Lent.
Preaching Mission and Revival with Bishop Michael Curry
February 19, 2025
Thursday, March 13 @ 7 pm*
Lenten Preaching Revival, Trinity Cathedral
Friday, March 14 @ 7 pm*
Lenten Preaching Revival, Trinity Cathedral
Saturday, March 15 (limited seating)
Welcome Dinner, 5 - 6 pm
Speaker, Bishop Michael Curry, 6 - 6:30pm
Book signing, 6:30 - 7pm
Sunday, March 16, 9 - 10:30 am*
Holy Eucharist Service with The Right Rev. Michael Curry
*open to the public without reservation
New Vestry Members Elected
January 20, 2025
We are happy to announce the Vestry Class of '27. With in person and online votes counted, Susan Mehlburger, Elizabeth Smith, Katie Stephens, Clarke Tucker, and Eric Wippo have each been elected to a three year term. Their first meeting will be at the vestry retreat, February 7 and 8.
Thank you to all those who added their names to the list of candidates. Such a strong slate is a good indication of the health of our ministries.
If you want to hear a recap of 2024, and our expectations for 2025 be sure to come to the Annual Meeting, Sunday, January 26.
2025 Vestry Election and Annual Meeting
January 09, 2025
It's that time of year again. Each year we experience change in our vestry leadership at Trinity. We bid farewell to five outgoing vestry members and elect five new vestry members. Each person on vestry serves a 3-year term to help lead in the church by electing a Dean, setting and paying her compensations; executing all contracts for the Parish and executing its business.
We are grateful for the leadership of Senior Warden, Melonese Clarke, Treasurer, Grant Wallace, Clerk, Susan Allen, Member-at-Large, Lara Schock, and member Christoph Keller as they conclude their terms of service. We are also grateful for the the ongoing leadership of those continuing on vestry: Greg Albert, Sarah Bennings, Eliza Borné, Josie Felton, Jack Harvey, Josh Hill, Grady McCoy IV, Richard Moore, David Turner, and Kelly Wassell.
Our Annual Meeting opens at the 8 a.m. service on January 19, 2025. The nominees for vestry will be introduced at this and all subsequent services. Nominations will be taken from the floor at the 8 a.m. service only. Voting will be held after each service, concluding with the 4 p.m. Choral Evensong.
We will have an electronic voting option on January 19. Those eligible to vote will receive a link to the form through REALM.
The Annual Meeting will continue with business and reports and lunch Sunday, January 26 following the 10:30 a.m. service. If a run-off vote is needed, it will happen at this time.
