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| Pulling the Church into dry dock |
 My dad was a sailor, an old salt if there ever was one. He sailed San Francisco Bay as ateenager, and then skippered small ships in World War II. When I was growing up he alwayshad a sailboat, and he always seemed to spend as much timeworking on the boat as he did sailing the boat.
He impressed upon me the importance of maintaining the ship no matter its size.
St. Paul's Memorial Church, at the corner of Chancellor Street and University Avenue, built in 1927, is a sturdy ship that has weathered many storms, including four blizzards this past winter.
What many people don’t know is that our building is heavily used during the week; we host recovery groups, student and community organizations, our own small groups, community night classes, choir rehearsals and many other church groups. Every weekday, and most evenings, something is happening at St. Paul’s.
This ship is not just the gathering place for our faith community but is also our tool for ministry, and is a gift to us from earlier generations. It is now our turn to maintain the ship so that our children and their children will have it for their ministry.
This summer we’ve pulled the ship into dry dock for an overhaul.
You will notice on Sunday we’ve refurbished the restrooms on the ground floor. Meanwhile, the kitchen is being completely gutted; all of the equipment, counters, stove – everything – has been hauled out.
The paint on the kitchen ceiling was crumbling has been chipped off. The floor has been stripped down to the sub-floor and will be replaced. A new double-size refrigerator will be installed; new dish washers, easier to use, will also be installed.
Soon we will have new and safer hardware on the exterior doors.
 Outside, the front yard is a construction zone. Crews have worked all month in the heat laying down concrete forms and foundations for a mediation garden. These are big jobs, and the many moving parts have been overseen by John Reid, Pat Punch, Joan Albiston, Michael Wheelwright, Peter Dennison and several others. It takes a village to fix a building.
We have more to do. In coming years, we need to make major repairs to the 1920s church building, and renovations to our 1950s education wing and office spaces.
Our elegant church sanctuary has blistering plaster in many places. The walls have not been painted in years. Our rare and valuable Skinner organ needs substantial repair and restoration. The sacristy is worn out. The lighting and electrical systems throughout the building need updating.
Yet, as crucial as all of that is to our parish, maintenance of the Church is more than about bricks-and-mortar. Foundational to our parish life is the infrastructure of The Episcopal Church, especially the health of the Diocese of Virginia and the Episcopal seminaries. St. Paul’s is one parish among 181 in a diocese that counts 80,000 members; our two bishops log roughly 40,000 miles a year visiting parishes; our parishes rely on well-educated clergy and lay professionals.
 Voluntary parish giving accounts for more than 90 percent of diocesan funding for programs including youth camps, seminarians, and congregational development. At St. Paul’s, we give $67,000 a year from our operating funds to the diocese; we also give through the time and talent of our people. Several members of St. Paul’s have given thousands of volunteer hours to the diocese.
The seminaries of the Episcopal Church also rely on parish and individual giving, and many are in dire financial condition; one seminary, Seabury-Western in Chicago, closed last year because it was broke.
My own seminary, the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, is operating at a substantial annual loss. The flagship of the Episcopal Church, General Seminary in New York, reportedly is selling Manhattan real estate to stay afloat. Seminarians, paying substantial tuition, now graduate with tens-of-thousands of dollars in student loan debt and that drastically limits their ability to accept calls to small and poor congregations.
The fiscal crisis of the Episcopal seminaries is as real as it is unnecessary. It used to be that parishes were expected to contribute 1 percent of operating income to the seminaries so that future leaders could be educated. That level of giving has faltered in recent years, largely because the seminaries are out-of-sight and out-of-mind. I am proud to say that St. Paul’s is giving to the seminaries but we could give substantially more. If all Episcopal congregations even gave one-half percent of operating incomes, the seminaries would be financial healthy.
 At St. Paul's, this is our centennial year, a time for us to look not just back, but to look forward. Others gave us the infrastructure – the buildings, the diocese, the seminaries. Earlier generations built all of it through their selfless giving, and then gave it all to us. We are the beneficiaries.
Now it comes to us to maintain, enhance and give this treasure to the next generation. To us comes a big task, and to us comes many blessings.
It is our turn to step up and get it right.
Photos by Dudley Rochester |
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| Tags:
year, church, paul, seminaries |
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General Convention: Breathing space on same sex blessings
ANAHEIM -- General Convention is over.
The convention ended Friday with a final vote by the House of Deputies on a resolution drafted by the bishops that would allow for a "generous pastoral response" to our gay brothers and sisters seeking to have their unions blessed. It was not a full-fledged endorsement of same-sex blessings, and it certainly was not an endorsement of gay marriage. But it was a giant step forward for this church.
How this plays out in Virginia will take many months, and Bishop Shannon Johnston has signaled he will work with those of us who want to provide blessings for all those living in committed relationships. What such a ceremony might look like I don't know; the resolution calls for developing "resources" for the church. When this will happen I don't know. We await further conversations with our bishop.
But make no mistake, the Church looks different today.
I know that this development will not please many in our church. Many have deep reservations that we are eroding traditional moral standards on marriage; I don't happen to agree, but those who feel differently must be heard and respected. Others will find this too slow and a half-loaf, and perhaps it is. It is up to each of us to take seriously the signs that say "The Episcopal Church Welcomes You" and make it a reality.
My plea is we will give each other breathing space, listen to each other, tell our stories and trust that the Holy Spirit is at work in us and in our church and making us a new creation.
I also hope that we will now stop fighting over sexuality and move onto the issues that threaten our very existence on this planet. I am mindful of Bishop Stephen Charleston's declaration earlier this week that the environmental clock has stopped ticking and the crisis of global warming is upon us. We are God's hands and feet in this world, God's partners, and the Episcopal Church is especially positioned to show how human beings can live together with their differences and find a way forward. I believe Bishop Stephen when he says we are not an accident.
There were many other issues at General Convention, including passage of a budget with $23 million in cuts for the national church, roughly a reduction by a quarter of the budget. Programs were eliminated and staff was laid off. A number of my friends are now looking for work today and recovering from the shock of losing jobs they love.
I will comment further in the next few days about the other issues, our experiences and some of the more zany moments of convention. We ended as we began, in worship, and Lori and I served together holding chalices and serving communion to friends and strangers alike. We are very blessed to be in this church.
Blessings,
Jim & Lori
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Same-gender blessings task force meets today in the Diocese of Virginia
Today I am participating in the "R-14 Task Force," the 11-member panel appointed by Bishop Shannon Johnston of the Diocese of Virginia to determine how/when/whether we can proceed with same-gender blessings. This will be the first meeting, and I will give a report in this space as best as I am able when we are done.
So that you are on the same page with me, I am reprinting below the "R-14" resolution approved by the Diocesan Council of Virginia that set up this task force, followed by "C056" approved by General Convention last summer that called for a "generous pastoral response" on same gender blessings. Please read these carefully.
I am mindful that the stakes are large for many people, and there are only 11 of us on this task force. So I invite your advice, your wisdom, your opinions and especially your prayers. Please feel free to post here on this blog under "comments." And please have the courage of your convictions by giving your name and church affiliation. I will not respond to anonymous comments -- they interest me not -- but I will consider all comments with all due respect. Hateful or bigoted comments will be deleted with no apologies.
Here are the resolutions, beginning with C056, the General Convention resolution, followed by R-14, the diocesan resolution:
C056 - approved by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church Resolved, the House of Deputies concurring, That the 76th General Convention acknowledge the changing circumstances in the United States and in other nations, as legislation authorizing or forbidding marriage, civil unions or domestic partnerships for gay and lesbian persons is passed in various civil jurisdictions that call forth a renewed pastoral response from this Church, and for an open process for the consideration of theological and liturgical resources for the blessing of same gender relationships; and be it further Resolved, That the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music, in consultation with the House of Bishops, collect and develop theological and liturgical resources, and report to the 77th General Convention; and be it further Resolved, That the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music, in consultation with the House of Bishops, devise an open process for the conduct of its work inviting participation from provinces, dioceses, congregations, and individuals who are engaged in such theological work, and inviting theological reflection from throughout the Anglican Communion; and be it further Resolved, That bishops, particularly those in dioceses within civil jurisdictions where same-gender marriage, civil unions, or domestic partnerships are legal, may provide generous pastoral response to meet the needs of members of this Church; and be it further Resolved, That this Convention honor the theological diversity of this Church in regard to matters of human sexuality; and be it further Resolved, That the members of this Church be encouraged to engage in this effort. R-14 - approved by the Council (convention) of the Diocese of Virginia Substitute for R-3 (Inclusiveness in Ordained Ministry), R-4 (Authorizing Rites of Blessing) and R-11 (Defining Sacramental and Civil Definitions of Marriage)
Adopted as substituted. Whereas, the Rt. Rev. Shannon S. Johnston stated in his pastoral address to the 215th Annual Council of the Diocese of Virginia: “I do regret that, in this address, some important matters in our common life will seem to be slighted while others are omitted, such as the several topics arising from the debate on sexuality. But I look for us to address these issues thoroughly in regional forums in 2010. It is unfortunate that some of the weightiest deliberations that come before us cannot be adequately and justly dealt with in the very short time allowed by Annual Council,” [verbatim transcript of the bishop’s pastoral address], and Whereas, the necessary process will involve both the bishop’s regional forums, which will allow for broad individual contributions on these issues, and the drafting of proposed canons for the effective and consistent exercise of pastoral ministry should same-gender blessings be authorized; be it therefore Resolved, the 215th Annual Council of the Diocese of Virginia recognizes that: 1. Our clergy and people remain divided over the wisdom and theology of blessing same gender relationships, as well as how much weight to give to the views of others in the Anglican Communion about these issues, particularly to views from those with whom we are in mission partnership; 2. The growing differences between Christian and Civil understanding of marriage and relationships create immediate pastoral issues for our clergy and congregations; 3. There are numerous same-gender couples in our diocese engaged in long-term monogamous relationships who have engaged in productive and vital ministries for the proclamation of the Gospel. Many of these couples strongly desire the church’s blessing of their relationships; 4. These issues deserve to be collectively addressed in an orderly, careful, and deliberate way assisted by appropriate legal and canonical experts; and
Recommends that: 1. Our Bishop is asked to empanel a group of clergy and lay people, including attorneys admitted to practice in Virginia and recognized experts on canon law, as well as knowledgeable clergy and lay representatives of a variety of theological perspectives on the issue of blessing same-gender relationships. 2. Such panel shall recommend consistent standards to be written into diocesan canons so that, if services of blessing same-gender unions are authorized, our clergy and people have a clearly understood and enforceable set of rules to guide the application of clergy discretion in providing pastoral care to same-gender couples seeking such blessings. 3. In formulating these recommendations, the following issues may be addressed (based in part on General Convention Canon I.1.18 and I.1.19): (a) Whether individual members of the clergy have the right, as a matter of theological principle, to decline to conduct any such service, without adverse disciplinary consequences or personnel action; (b) Whether individual members of the clergy have the right to decline to conduct such a service for a particular same gender couple, without adverse disciplinary consequences or personnel action, similar to the current rule for clergy asked to conduct weddings; (c) The age, capacity and degree of kinship, if any, of the parties; (d) The effect of prior marriages or unions blessed by a licensed clergy person or registered with civil authorities, the responsibility to any former spouse or partner in such union, and responsibility to minor children of any prior marriage or union; (e) The appropriateness of advance medical screening, if any; (f) The effect of any legal union or marriage entered into between the parties in another jurisdiction; (g) The appropriate role of the Bishop for advanced review of any proposed blessing of a specific same-gender couple; (h) Review of financial arrangements to protect the parties in the absence of state law presumptions governing married couples, presumptions intended to protect the weaker party from potential exploitation, oppression, or improvident action by the other party in the relationship; (i) Other factors listed in the General Convention canons for marriage, Canons I.1.18 and I.1.19, including the baptismal status of the parties, the commitment to life-long union, the voluntariness of consent, the absence of coercion, fraud, mistake of identity of the other party; (j) The minimum time line between notification of the clergy of a desire to obtain such a blessing and the performance of the ceremony; (k) The number of witnesses and the record-keeping requirements for the clergy and any congregation involved; (l) Any requirement for written affirmation by the couple that the commitment is to a life-long union; (m) Any statement of the theological basis for the union to which the partners are to subscribe; (n) Provision to address possible dissolution of a blessed same-gender relationship, including the considerations of factors enumerated in Canon I.1.19 to address marriages which are in distress or which have been terminated by a civil court, as well as the circumstances, if any, under which another same-gender relationship may be blessed where both partners to an earlier such relationship remain living; (o) The restriction in the General Convention canon on marriage in the church to heterosexual couples; (p) Whether any blessing service for same-gender union may be used in lieu of marriage for heterosexual couples under any circumstances, and if so, what those circumstances are; (q) How these might apply to all members of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Trans-gendered community; (r) Any other factor deemed important by the panel. 3. If the Bishop appoints such a panel, the panel shall strive to deliver its report (including proposed canonical language) to the Executive Board by All Saints Day, 2010, in time for careful and orderly consideration of its recommendations by the 216th Annual Council of the Diocese. The panel is not to opine on whether the blessings of same-gender unions should be authorized, but it is to set forth its canonical recommendations to govern blessing such relationships if such services of blessing are authorized. 4. The consideration of any authorization for Virginia clergy to enter same gender unions should be deferred until after consideration of the preceding process.
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General Convention: A generous pastoral response, we pray
ANAHEIM -- As we prepare to depart California, please let me offer a few last thoughts on the General Convention that is now finished. Many words have already flown, reaction in some quarters is already extreme. Yet, there remains many conversations ahead, more than a few questions and much work to be done.
The biggest development coming out of the Anaheim convention, the one with all the headlines, is that our Episcopal Church took two significant steps to fully include gays and lesbians in the full life of the church. The convention declared, in effect, an end to the moratorium on ordaining new bishops who are openly gay. The other was to approve a resolution providing for a "generous pastoral response" around same-sex blessings. What that phrase will mean in our parishes remains the work of all of us and our bishops.
The convention also declared its willingness to remain fully engaged in the life of the Anglican Communion, but clearly understood that a cost will be paid in our relationship with the communion. How that will play out remains to be seen. Commentators will note that the Windsor Report is all but dead, but that has been true for some time. Perhaps it never had a chance; I will leave that to another day.
I am mindful that many people read this blog, and I do not want to put words into the mouth of our bishops. They speak for themselves, and will return home to answer questions and clarify the meaning of their work and words. I hope that our bishops will issue a pastoral letter clarifying what they mean by a "generous pastoral response" on same-sex blessings. I hope each diocesan bishop, including ours in Virginia, will write such a letter to their respective diocese explaining the way ahead as they see it; some bishops have already done that before leaving Anaheim.
And I hope we will give our bishops and our deputies a generous pastoral response. They worked very, very hard, grappled with difficult issues, and somehow managed to keep their respect for each other and their sense of humor.
The major reason I go to General Convention, even though this time around I had no official role, is to experience for a few days the breadth and diversity of our church. Worshipping with strangers from Missouri and Alaska just took my breath away. I heard some of the most moving and prophetic preaching of my life from our own Presiding Bishop Katharine , and Stephen Charleston , and Mike Kinman and Brian McLaren .
We sang favorite old hymns; worshipped with a big jazz band; danced to rock music; chanted Taize, and sampled worship forms that I am not sure yet have a name. Some will be lasting, others will fade away, and all were delightful and genuine attempts at loving God.
The Exhibit Hall was worth the trip by itself. The hall was filled with displays not just by vestment vendors, but by religious orders and educators and artisans. Military chaplains, including my friend Col. Carl Wright , had a booth, and they wore dress uniforms and fatigues. They reminded me that the gospel is preached on battlefields and in dangerous places by courageous people.
The work of convention seemed crushing, and deputies and bishops often looked exhausted. The Episcopal Church budget endured huge cuts -- Bishop Katharine said it would feel to many like they "had a heart attack," and it indeed it did. But the budget also presented a huge opportunity to focus our church on mission to the wider world, to truly look at how we are called, in Katharine's words, to "speak a word of healing to a world desperately in need of it."
We also revisited the e-word -- evangelism . We were told once again that we are called to be more than simply "an ancient service organization that meets once a week to do good works." We are called to change lives and save the world by recruiting people to the way of Jesus. Brian McLaren , who is a dynamic non-denominational evangelist from Maryland, told us how we need to retake the word from shabby television hucksters and street hustlers. "Evangelism means recruiting people and transforming them to defect from the old order," he said.
McLaren also thanked us for being willing to pay the cost of broadening who is included in God's church. Yes, there are those in the rest of the Anglican Communion and in Christianity who disagree with us. "You are doing a service by wading into turbulent waters," he said. "Every moment of Episcopal crisis is a moment of Episcopal opportunity."
Finally, Bishop Katharine reminded us "these resolutions only have life as they are implemented around this church. Your job is to go home and help this work we have done become food."
Amen.
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General Convention: Reunions, receptions, worship, light sticks
ANAHEIM - General Convention Wednesday was a swirl of reunions and receptions, worship, music, light sticks and heavy doses of church polity and politics.
For me, the most moving experience was our worship at mid-day. Bishop Stephen Charleston gave one of the most moving homilies I have ever heard.
He called himself a "Ten-minute prophet," saying he had only 10 minutes to convince us that our highest priority as a church and as human beings must be "saving this planet our island home" from the immediate threat of global warming.
And he said it is no accident that God has called our church to show the way. "The Episcopal Church comes to its decisive moment in history," he said. "Let your mind be open to the truth of what I have spoken."
At communion, Lori and I were among those privileged to serve bread and wine. We were at "Station 6," and I had a basket of bread and Lori administered a chalice of red wine. Many old friends came to our station, including Bishop Jerry Lamb and his wife Jane .
Another old friend, Carl Wright , who is a chaplain in the Air Force, came to our station, and after receiving communion, he asked for a blessing. I was very, very touched by so many familiar faces coming to my station. My soul soared.
We also looked at the exhibit hall, and were especially engrossed by the "Discovery Center" displaying various Christian education materials. The center was the brainchild of our friend Nancy Tennyson , and the photo is of Lori at the center.
This afternoon I sat in the visitor gallery of the House of Bishops as it took up a proposal for same-sex blessings. A group of 26 bishops Tuesday night worked on a resolution calling for the church to develop theological and liturgical resources and report back to General Convention in three years, and in the meantime provide "generous pastoral response." Among those in the working group was Virginia's Bishop Suffragan David Jones .
The resolution did not exactly endorse same-sex blessings, but it opened the door to exploring what that might look like in the future. Bishop Jones and Bishop Shannon Johnston both voted for the resolution while Bishop Peter Lee voted against.
There was a group of bishops who said they preferred to handle same-sex blessings without legislation, but their effort to sidetrack the resolution was not successful. The resolution ultimately passed the House of Bishops with 104 yes votes, 30 no, and two abstaining. The resolution moves back to the House of Deputies for a final vote.
Tonight we attended a Diocese of Los Angeles event that celebrated the Book of Genesis. As we heard the biblical story of creation, we got to wave light sticks. The photo is of our friend Stephen Carpenter and his light stick.
More tomorrow!
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Duduza dolls for Haiti: Stitchers get out your needles!
Many of you have been generous in so many ways to help the people of Haiti recover from the devastating earthquake. At St. Paul's, we've now contributed more than $24,ooo to Episcopal Relief and Development to assist with purchasing trucks to bring food and supplies into the country. You can learn more about ERD's efforts and make a contribution by clicking HERE .
There is one more way that you can help, and it is catching on big time at St. Paul's: stitching Duduza dolls, or comfort dolls, for children in Haiti. They are simple, beautiful, a easy to make (for those of you who are stitchers).
Jane Rotch, Margaret Haupt and Anne Marshall have been making them at St. Paul's, and we will be sending them to Lauren Stanley , our missioner in Haiti, to get them into the hands of children. You can find the directions for making a doll by clicking HERE .
The photograph at right shows the doll Jane finished a couple of nights ago. Jane wrote me an email about making the dolls, and her is what she told me: My early experience with knitting a doll showed me that it's much simpler than it appears to be. I did the knitting in an evening (it's only 32 stitches on your needle) and am now working on finishing and stuffing. You can use scraps of leftover yarn, combining bright colors as you please, as long as the face and feet are brown yarn. Dolls can have knitted black hair or a cap, and can be boy or girl (trousers or skirt.)
Thanks Jane!
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Education Communication: 5 Questions with an Industry Veteran
Parkway School District Director of Communications Paul Tandy has more than ten years experience in school communications. Our education team recently visited with Paul to get his unique perspective on trends and changes in K-12 education.
1. &nb...
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