Fellowship fosters friendship at annual Lenten Soup for the Soul Series

Joanna Chau special to the Daily News The Rev. Gene Scott, one of the featured speakers for Lenten Soup for the Soul, takes his bowl of soup. Scott was the featured speaker at Wednesday's event.

The Rev. Gene Scott took the podium Wednesday and had the crowd laughing in unison within minutes.

But Scott, who is known for his entertaining and comical sermons, was not preaching to his own congregation at Celebration Community Beach Church, in Naples. He was giving a service to members of various ministries at St. Monica’s Episcopal Church as part of the 13th annual Lenten Soup for the Soul Series.

“We want to establish harmony between the denominations,” said the Rev. Samuel Sewell, president of the Theological Center of Naples, which sponsors the speaker event. “It’s important to get everyone together to experience other pastors, members and churches outside of their own.”

The series features six local pastors from a variety of denominations who speak at six different churches in the area during each Wednesday of Lent from noon to 1 p.m.; it runs through April 20 (see below for more information).

More than 500 members participated last year in preparation for Easter. Sewell said the center tries to choose a diverse group of pastors and chaplains.

“We like to highlight the diversity of the Christian community,” said Sewell, who has been president for a year. “We have female pastors, black pastors and Hispanic pastors.”

The center also selects an assorted group of churches to host the events, including Catholic and Orthodox ones.

“We try to include anybody and everybody,” Sewell said. “The Christian community is not as near as conscious about the denominational dividing lines that have always been part of our history. There is a coming together.”

Attendees come from about 30 ministries for a soup luncheon followed by a sermon. At Wednesday’s service hosted by St. Monica’s Episcopal Church, about 100 participants dined on homemade soup and bread. Shortly after, Scott spoke about prayer, gratitude and the Bible all while inserting his own lively humor that drew plenty of laughter. Sewell introduced Scott on stage as “the most unorthodox minister he knows,” garnering chuckles from the audience.

“We need every opportunity to help us to connect,” Scott said. “It takes all different churches to reach all different types of people.”

Kathy Schillreff, the pastor at St. Monica’s, has participated in the series twice before. Her church hosted the event for the first time this year.

“It’s an opportunity for people to get together,” Schillreff said. “We worship at all separate places on the weekend, but it’s good to be reminded that it’s the same God. After all, we are all Christians.”

Long-time St. Monica’s congregation member Betsy Smith says she has attended many speaker series events in the past. She says she enjoys hearing a different perspective on faith.

“It’s always good to hear someone else,” said Smith, a member of St. Monica’s for six years, “because they bring a slant that’s different from what we’re used to Sunday after Sunday.”

“Sometimes all we look at are the things that make us different,” Smith said.

“But the things that bring us all together, there are far more of those than the things that separate us.”