Dear St. Luke’s,
Just a few minutes before writing this I signed my Letter of Agreement to be your next Rector! That sentence has a ton of jargon, so let’s unpack it for a moment. A Letter of Agreement is like a contract, and it is official once it is signed by the clergyperson in question (me), the senior warden (Richard McFarland), and the Bishop of the Diocese (Bishop Goff). Until the Bishop signs it, I will be a Priest-in-Charge, which is very self-explanatory. A Rector is just like a Priest-in-Charge, but has tenure. Essentially, I was a temporary employee, but I am being made permanent, so we will be stuck with each other, something that brings me much joy!
I am thankful we are stuck with each other for many different reasons. One of the things I love about this Church the most is that you know how to get stuff done. Episcopalians have a bad habit of starting things, and not finishing them, or just hiring staff to do ministry on their behalf. As St. Luke’s has slowly come back to life, I am consistently amazed at everything we do for the Kingdom of God. The big things like the craft fair, pumpkin patch, and annual BBQ are great examples, but just the tip of the iceberg. From worship to outreach, buildings and grounds and vestry all require a lot of passion and work, and they would not exist without the heart of St. Luke’s, which is the laity.
We believe the ministers of the Church are Bishops, Priests, Deacons, and all baptized Christians. That means you! Part of our faith is ministering to one another, and to the rest of the creation that God has given us. We cannot remain stagnant or allow others to do this work for us, because all that we do is meant to be for the Kingdom of God. I know that as we move forward, we are going to be tremendous partners in ministry. I will not, and should not be, the major moving force behind every ministry. If that were the case, we would be severely limiting what our Church can be.
A tremendous example of this is the Sacred Ground group that started meeting almost a year ago. Sacred Ground is a curriculum that was created by the national Church that is meant to help faith communities explore issues around race. Marjy and Skip Jones had the energy to get the circle started, and did all of the groundwork. I was honored to have joined them. I contributed mostly as another participant, but occasionally I provided staff or priestly support. As the group grew and went on this journey together, each person’s strengths and perspectives came to the surface. Now we are discerning what we are going to do next. If you want to learn more about this you can go to www.saintlukeschurch.net/sacred-ground
This group has been a microcosm of my experience with St. Luke’s as a whole. People here seem to have a fire in their belly to do something to address the ills of the world, and they know how to get stuff done. I know that whatever we do in the name of Christ will be wonderful. I am humbled by the vestry’s show of faith in me. I know there will be disappointments and failures, I hope they are few and far between, but even then those are only opportunities to learn and show grace.
My heart is full knowing we will continue on this journey together.
Blessings,
Nick
