This Sunday we’re going to walk up to the altar and pledge. We pledge our time, our talent, and our treasure as part of our piety, but that message comes on Sunday—not today.
I want to take a moment to say thank you. The faithful giving of this church throughout the last year has been remarkable; we have been able to address multiple areas of the building wherein new spaces have been transformed. Instead of wasted or unused space we now have portals: there’s a space for young people to run around the room and play games; there’s a space for all people to go and sit quietly with a book; there’s a space for groups to meet and discern the next step in their faith or in the life of this church; the halls breathe warmth and the floors echo the returned joy and laughter of days’ past. So the giving of which I speak is not just financial, but spiritual and heartfelt. It’s a giving of entirety, a handing over of self that is transformative and life-giving. And how sweet it is…
This year I’m thankful for our community. Not because I am supposed to say it, but because every morning I look forward to going to church. I eagerly anticipate being with you all throughout the week, whether that be in joy, sorrow, business or shenanigans. You’ve become an integral piece of me, and of Nicole. And of each other. I see it in the way you interact with folks, new and known. I witness it during moments of vulnerability in classrooms and in thin spaces during worship. The heartbeat of resurrection beats within us all, because we are its bearers. In truth we don’t go to church; we are the church.
As we head into a spiritual season of Advent, Christmastide, and Epiphany I simply desire to give you thanks, especially considering tomorrow’s feast day. Thank you for bringing us here, and thank you for being part of this beloved and now-thriving community. You make this ‘work’ beautiful, worthy, and fulfilling.
Tomorrow, look forward to food, fellowship, football and family. And know that wherever I am, there you will also be. I pray for each of you to have a restful and wonderful holiday, and I look forward to our Thanksgiving feast on Sunday wherein we’ll eat the bread of life and drink the cup of salvation, giving thanks to God for the innumerable benefits of His present kingdom at Episcopal Church of the Resurrection.
Faithfully and Thankfully,
Fr. Sean+