Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Page A-3
Saint Matthias now offers weekly Sunday services
By
Annette McGee Rasch
IVN Senior Contributing Writer
Cave Junction’s Saint Matthias
Episcopal Church has a new spiritual
leader in Father Bryant Bechtold, a
longtime Episcopalian priest.
Bechtold and his wife Susan
were looking for a new place to live.
Seeking a location with proximity
to the coast, they found a home they
liked in Cave Junction’s Cedarbrook
gated community.
“We really have a preference
for smaller rural towns,” Bechtold
said. “After we moved in, we learned
that Saint Matthias didn’t have a
fulltime resident priest. So I notified
the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese
of Oregon, Michael Hanley, to let
him know I had retired in Cave Junc-
tion and asked if I could be of some
service at Saint Matthias.”
Hanley responded by licens-
ing Bechtold as “priest in charge.”
Before Bechtold arrived, the Val-
ley’s Episcopal church had gone a
longtime without a resident priest.
Retired priest Jim Boston drove to
the Valley from Grants Pass once a
month to hold services.
“Father Boston said I was an
answer to his prayers,” Bechtold
said. “We have a very small congre-
gation, and part of that may be due
to having gone so long without a
residence priest. When there is only
one service a month there isn’t much
continuity or opportunity for church
growth.”
Now Bechtold has instituted
regular weekly Sunday services, held
at 10:30 a.m. There is a little sign
just outside the small wooden church
located on land that dips down into
a hollow, just north of True Value
Hardware on Redwood Highway.
“We certainly welcome anyone
who is not already affiliated with
another church to come and join us,”
Bechtold said.
Episcopalian faith, in many
respects, resembles the Roman
Catholic church, but also bears some
similarity to the Protestant Church,
Bechtold said.
“I like to say that the Episco-
palian Church makes a good bridge
between the two,” Bechtold said.
“Our church is part of the Anglican
Communion, and our mother church
is the Church of England.”
“All churches have their
own way of living out their faith,”
Bechtold explained. “For Episco-
palians, we try very hard to live in
what we call the ‘baptismal cov-
enant’ which we enter into when
we’re baptized. Living the covenant
means regular attendance at worship,
studying the scriptures and serving
the Lord anyway we can. We try to
respect the dignity and worth of ev-
ery human being no matter who they
are or what their circumstances are.”
“I think as Episcopalians, we’re
very incarnational in our thinking,”
Bechtold said. “In other words, when
people look at us we want them to be
able to see the face of Christ in us.”
Bechtold added how this is one
key reason why Saint Matthias, for
many years, has offered a
“harvest kitchen” that of-
fers meals to homeless or
disadvantaged people.
“I know some don’t
always approve of help-
ing some of these disad-
vantaged people, perhaps
believing they got into
their circumstances due
to poor choices and
should not be enabled,
but we help many people
who have lost their jobs
or homes at no fault of
their own, and also, low
income people who can
barely afford to buy food,
and others who are deal-
ing with serious physi-
cal handicaps. We don’t
judge anyone; but we do
like to give them a hand.”
The Harvest Kitchen
is open from 11:00 a.m.
to 1:30 p.m. on Tues-
days and Thursdays, and
serves hearty nutritious
meals.
One goal Bechtold
plans to pursue is the
possibility of networking
with the Good Shep-
herd Lutheran Church.
Bechtold explained how
the Episcopalian and Lu-
theran churches entered
into a “concordant of
agreement” which allows
the two denominations
to exchange pastors and
priests.
“Essentially what
the agreement has done is
to bring the two churches
closer together,” Bechtold
said. “And I would like to
explore doing some mu-
tual ministry’s with the
local Lutheran church. I
intend to make contact
soon.”
Bechtold, originally
from Florida, spent many
years serving in churches
all over the Southeast-
ern United States. He met Susan,
originally from England, in Utah,
27 years ago. They have three adult
children living in Fort Worth, Texas,
one in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and
another in Alachua, Florida. They
also have 15 grandchildren.
Most recently the Bechtolds
spent seven years in England, serv-
ing the Wainfleet group of parishes,
which consists of four churches.
Bechtold had “pastor oversight” at
these churches located in England’s
central midlands, just a few miles
from the coast on the North Sea, in
the county of Lincolnshire.
“Now, we’re so delighted to be
part of this community,” Bechtold
said. “One thing we have really
noticed about Cave Junction is that
everyone seems to be very friendly.
Another reason we moved here is be-
cause my wife and I love to hike and
there are so many opportunities on
the area. But mostly, we’re looking
forward to being able to serve the
community any way we can.”
“It is important that we live in
accordance to our faith and that we
practice what we preach the other
six days of the week,” Bechtold said.
“Because if we have no authenticity
then people are not going to listen
to us or believe what we say. We
have to let people know that Christ
has changed our lives - that he does
make a difference in our lives. Peo-
ple have to be able to see concrete
examples of that.”
(Photo by Annette McGee Rasch, Illinois Valley News)
Father Bryant Bechtold at the alter of St. Matthais in Cave Junction.
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