In this moment of significant recovery from the pandemic, many of us are sensing that we have an opportunity to defy the recent pattern of collective anxiety. There is an emerging optimism shared by the wardens, vestry and your rector alike. At the vestry meeting on Tuesday night, decisions were made to make the wearing of masks in church optional and to gradually reintroduce congregational singing, starting next Sunday. Other Covid protocols will remain in place during this time of transition. Please review them here, as they will be subject to change over the coming weeks and months.
I am confident that we, as a congregation, will adapt and change, reaffirming our faith-filled lives in creative new ways. For example, last Sunday night, 20 youth members from St. B’s and IPC met for the kickoff of our brand-new youth program. Apart from the joy of gathering a significant number of our young people together, I am hopeful that the decline in the individual capacity of our respective churches gives us the perfect opportunity to let go of whatever held us back from this and other joint-church (ad)ventures in the past.
So, let us embrace the changes we need to make in this moment, knowing that the church will not be the same 10 years from now; and, at the same time, recognize that we are well positioned to live in the kind of thriving, faith community we would like to see in five, 10 or 15 years time.
Onward in Hope,
Gareth+
This past Sunday in my sermon I leaned heavily on the wisdom of Anne Lamott as I explored the nature of mercy as it relates to the practices we immerse ourselves in during Holy Week. Here’s her definition of what mercy looks like: “Mercy is radical kindness. Mercy means offering or being offered aid in desperate […]
Back in the 50’s and 60’s, it was thought that 500-year-old church divisions could be healed if churches reached across denominational lines and got to know each other. This was an exciting time for the churches in Irvington, as all the fundamental theological issues between the Protestant, Catholic, and Anglican Churches were on the way […]
In my message last week, I wrote of an emerging sense of optimism shared by our church leadership that church life can once again take on the semblance of normality. This past week, Bishop Dietsche shared his own sense of optimism in a letter entitled, “Return of the Common Cup.” He wrote, “…with the waning […]