It takes all of us.
Eric Hileman and I hung out after this week’s staff meeting for a few hours. In our conversation, we both lauded the amount of people simply “showing up” for church, for church events, and for fellowship. This place has an almost palpable sense of vitality to it—when I walk these hallways, I can feel the energy of this beloved community and I can sense the profound change that has taken place over the last eleven months. It has taken every single one of us to impact this place, to continue to steward it into the next chapter of our story, together.
Then I began thinking about General Convention. Thousands of people have come together in Austin, TX to do similar work to that which we’ve done in the last year. These dedicated folks are discussing possible shifts in language, where we should place our resources for the betterment of ministry, and many other and equally important topics concerning God’s church. The Prayer Book revision did not pass through the House of Bishops, yet the House of Deputies passed it. Now, it will return to a committee to be re-engaged and further discussed. Most are of the mind that the revision will not happen, yet. I’m comfortable with that decision, but some are not. But like I said…
It takes all of us.
The beauty of the Episcopal Church is our ability to remain in conversation, regardless of whether our opinions become canon or not. I love the fact that our church is growing; I love the fact that the National Church is seeing growth, too. In an age where discourse is nearly impossible, we’re showing others that we can disagree with relative harmony and continue on being the people we’re called to be: God’s children. But I want each of you to know that, if you haven’t found your place in ministry, here, please come see me. I want you to feel included, listened to, loved, and appreciated. Because without you, “WE” turns into fewer and fewer folks—and if that happens, less people out in the world are given the opportunity to see Christ’s love shine. The more of us that there are, the less that this world will have the final say. So know that you’re beloved, appreciated, and wanted here. Come see me about opportunities for ministry and work to be done. Come see me about what’s happening next at ECOTR. Or, just come see me and have coffee, and we’ll talk about faith, hope, and love and what we would like to see happen with this, our sacred Church.
Because it takes all of us.
Faithfully,
Fr. Sean+