Times they are a changing

The Parish of the Epiphany is engaged in a strategic planning exercise. We're using a tried and true book from the Alban Institute, Holy Conversations. We're also using a product from Father Jay Sidebotham called RenewalWorks, which is embedded in Forward Movement's new service-oriented approach to reinvigorating the Episcopal Church. 

Yesterday a parishioner asked me, "why are we doing this strategic planning? It doesn't seem necessary; things are fine." I'm afraid my eyes told her of my incredulity!

Then this morning I found through Facebook this post from a young clergy person's blog. I'm not sure he says it all, but he sure says a lot about what I'm thinking these days:
http://ancientfuturefaith.net

Faithfully in Christ,
Thomas

Address to the Parish's Annual Meeting

An address to the 125th annual meeting of the Parish of the Epiphany, given by the rector, 

the Reverend Thomas J. Brown, on Wednesday, 19 February 2014. 

Your flexibility in rescheduling because of our storm two weeks ago is another testimonial to your resilience, and to your ongoing commitment. Thank you for being here. 

The Annual Report provides a thorough accounting of what we did during 2013. God is good all the time, and all the time God is good. Let me say a few words about where I’d like us to go during 2014. 

You know that for the past 11 years I meet without fail twice a year with a group of eight other priests (actually one of us is a bishop now). We pray, we laugh, and we challenge each other on our shortcomings, even as we celebrate our growth.  At a meeting in May of 2010, each was responsible for bringing to the group one successful adult education program or initiative which the rest of us could adopt or reuse in our respective congregations. What came from that weren’t 9 different programs, but a synergy which landed us to sketch one comprehensive program to adapt for our respective contexts. After all there isn’t one size that fits all—what a parish does for formation in Marin County won’t necessarily fly at the Cathedral in St. Louis, nor will whatever’s sponsored at Trinity Wall Street necessarily work here at Epiphany. And, the truth is, the end result wasn’t completely ours as much as it was Carol Anderson’s, the former rector of All Saints in Beverly Hills, for whom one of us once served as her curate. 

So from that meeting came the Basic Courses—Basic Anglicanism, Basic Bible, Basic Christianity, and Basic Discipleship. And following two years of those courses happening all over the country, arose in one of us a desire to write a book about discipleship, and to form a network, something called The Restoration Project. Epiphany is part of this network. In fact, you can watch a video of Christopher (the author) on our website, and hear more about his interest in helping churches grow through ancient spiritual practices including developing friendships with the poor and structured small groups and formation classes. 

And from there we developed the 20+1+4 theme. It’s a challenge and an invitation, but one I present gladly. Will we spend 20 minutes a day praying, 1 hour a week worshiping, and 4 hours a month serving directly and intentionally the poor among us? 

Many of the churches in this network are adopting 20+1+4 as a Lenten challenge, but we’re going to adopt it as our theme for the entire year. So when you see 20+1+4—you’ll think PrayWorshipServe—20 minutes a day, 1 hour a week, 4 hours a month. 2014. Much of what we’ll do programmatically throughout this year will revolve around 20+1+4. 

There are four other matters to discuss tonight. The first is the strategic planning process and the second is the search for an organist. Scott Street and Suzanne Owayda have shared a good deal already about each of these topics, but I want to add to information about the strategic planning. First, about the survey: it’s not the only medium for collecting your experience and voice. It’s one tool, and it gets at the heart, I think—which is your assessment of how the Parish of the Epiphany fosters your spirituality, your prayer life, your sense of being a baptized Christian. But, there will be plenty of opportunities for you to speak in your own words about where you believe we should focus our attention in the next 5-7 years, some of those will be individual conversations in groups with others, and some of them will be in constituent ministry groups, which means that many of you will have multiple opportunities to speak and to hear. Your attention to this work is key; thank you.

The third is about the building project, and the fourth is about a change in our personnel. 

There are really two projects related to our capital campaign. The first is to repair the tower, and the second is to install an elevator; both of the projects are in the engineering design phase, right now, and our hope is to present to the vestry as early as next month the cost estimates. This will give the vestry time to prioritize and to schedule the projects. You’ll hear much more about this, but for tonight, I want to recognize Fred Spencer and Jay Stott who are leading these efforts and giving so much of themselves and their time. 

Finally, a word about the transition that’s occurred because of Tommy Campbell’s resignation. As you know, Tommy was a part-time employee who supported our children and youth programs. Right now the Christian Formation Steering Team and the Assistant Rector are working with children’s chapel leaders, parents of middle schoolers, and our  church school teachers to figure out what we can accomplish for the rest of the year, as well as to look ahead to next fall. Whenever there’s a personnel transition it makes good sense to look at the whole picture, and we’re doing just that. Your opinion about what you think is needed, and your interest in helping us keep the program strong are welcomed. 

I conclude now with a word of deep thanks for the sacred privilege you grant me to serve among you. The trust and the encouragement given me, as well as the guidance and course corrections you suggest are great gifts. 

You know that I don’t do this work alone, and so I must express equal thanks to the wardens and the vestry, and to my colleagues on the staff. Every day they are here to serve you and in doing so they support me—and they do it in response to God’s mission. If we are congregational leaders it’s not because we possess certain innate traits, charismatic gifts, or a particular office, but because over time we have been molded into the likeness of Christ. Our metamorphosis comes through our life of praying, worshiping, and serving. As congregational leaders—all of us—you could say that we are made, not born. For your prayers, and for your generosity of time and money, and your continued devotion to the Risen Christ who is always among us, I am profoundly thankful. 

Presentation of the Icon of the Visitation of the Magi to one who has demonstrated exemplary faithfulness to God in service of the Parish of the Epiphany

JOSEPH GEORGIS

2014

Warden, Usher, Stewardship Chair, Lector, Chalice Bearer, 

Property Chair, Resident Expert on Middle East Culture, Food, and Christianity, Faithful Communicant of the Sacraments and the Church’s Corporate Worship, and a Lover of all the ways the Parish of the Epiphany seeks and serves Christ, the Icon is joyously presented to Joseph Georgis, 

19 February 2014

Putting on our own masks first

The Sisters of Saint Anne are five women religious whose gifts of prayer and hospitality seem utterly boundless. About 15 years ago they partnered with a number of lay women in the Diocese of Massachusetts to develop the Bethany House of Prayer. Today, the once quiet city block containing their convent, chapel, two houses, and their former school for girls is bustling with activity. People go for spiritual direction, for retreats, and various church and non-church groups use the resources of these highly skilled women (most of them not ordained) to connect with God and to develop community. I go to the convent about once a month to celebrate Mass for the sisters, a precious gift which they give to me and to many other local priests. 

The Sisters of Saint Anne
Arlington Heights, Massachusetts

Two years ago the Parish of the Epiphany’s vestry went to Bethany for a retreat, ably led by Bethany House of Prayer’s staff, Julia Slayton and Mary Meader. We left renewed and energized and we didn’t do a single piece of business. We prayed, listened, ate, and prayed some more. 

Just this past Friday and Saturday, like we did in 2012, the vestry turned ourselves again toward Julia and Mary’s voices, the Sisters’s hospitality, and it’s not too much to say that in doing so we were transformed yet again

Vestry work is often intense, and it’s also quite often fairly mundane. A monthly meeting in a parish hall, no matter how attentive we might be to Bible study and to praying at the beginning and at the ending of our meetings, is not an adequate forum to reflect on our call, or to connect with God and each other. Yesterday after church every single vestry member who was there (in church) made a comment about the retreat—how important, how moving, how grounding, how energizing, how powerful. 



There’s no question that we’ll do an annual retreat—we might even do two a year—because it’s now in our DNA: it’s essential to our ministry.

In September the Diocese of Massachusetts sponsored an event in Roxbury about the B-Peace for Jorge Campaign (our work to end violence in our city). The keynote speaker was the rector of Trinity Church in Newtown, Connecticut, Kathy Adams-Shepherd, who had been there for 18 years when the tragedy at Sandy Hook School occurred. In her keynote Mother Adams-Shepherd told us a story about how Trinity Church was completely unprepared for that moment (everybody was), and completely prepared for it. Her church, led by the vestry, worked together in complete synchronicity during those days and weeks. She attributed their capacity to respond to the community (and to one another), and her ability to lead them in those dark hours, to the parish’s emphasis on pastoral care and prayer. Then she said there one particular practice their vestry has always done: they go on retreat twice a year. “In those vestry retreats we have learned the importance of putting on our own oxygen masks first,” Adams-Shepherd said, “then we can help others.”