A few thoughts...

Monday, September 15, 2008

Anne and I returned a few days ago from our daughter Elizabeth’s wedding on September 6 at St. Michael’s, Bristol, RI, where I served as rector for 12 years.  She married a fine young man, Jared, whom she met during her college days.  They live and work in New York City, he as an attorney, and she as a publicist of Random House.  Anne planned a beautiful and fun wedding, and it was a joy to be with family and friends from far and near for this wonderful occasion.  

On September 14, I made a visitation to St. George’s, Lake Landing (near the shore of Lake Mattamuskeet).  The church is a lovely 19th century carpenter style, recently and very beautifully restored and repaired, along with the original pipe organ and newer parish house next door.  All this was accomplished by a successful capital funds campaign and a grant from our Diocesan Episcopal Foundation.  Fr. Jim Lupton gives fruitful service to this congregation and St. James, Belhaven. Were it not for Jim Lupton and the many retired priests who continue to serve, many congregations in our diocese would be without priestly presence- for this I am grateful.  Thank God for them all!  On this day we gathered in a packed house for an excellent and abundant covered dish lunch.  Afterwards, I met with the vestry to discuss their desire to begin a long range planning process around congregational growth, stewardship and mission.  The vestry just purchased the 19th century Masonic building next to the Parish House with the idea of using the building to serve the community. 

Today is September 15, and I am sitting on an airplane on my way to Salt Lake City for a meeting of The House of Bishops.  This will be a somewhat brief (Sept. 17-19) but busy meeting:  The House will spend some time debriefing from the recent Lambeth Conference in Canterbury; we will have a major discussion on the crisis in the education and preparation for ordained ministry in The Episcopal Church.  (Specifically, we will begin to look at our Church’s increasing inability to sustain eleven independent seminaries, ten of which have never received funding from the National Church, and the related issue of seminarians graduating from seminary only to begin their ordained ministry with substantial student loan debt; and finally, the House will review the determination of the Review Committee’s determination that Bishop Duncan of Pittsburgh has abandoned the Communion of the Episcopal Church.  In addition, I am arriving a day early to continue my training as a peer coach for newly elected bishops during the first years of their episcopate.  During the meeting, I will also gather with the Presiding Bishop as a member of her Council of Advice and will meet with the Court of Reviews for the trial of a Bishop, for which I am Presiding Judge.

It will be good to gather, work and pray with many friends and colleagues.  It will also be good to return home for my visitation this coming Sunday  morning with St. Peter’s, Washington for baptisms and worship down on the river shore, and for dedication of the restored pipe organ at Trinity, Chocowinity later that afternoon.