From the Rector
The Rev. Stephen Elkins-Williams

Dear Friends,
People have been asking me, "Are you depressed to have finished your sabbatical? Is it hard to be back?" The answer is "No!" I truly enjoyed my sabbatical. I needed it. I feel refreshed and rejuvenated by it. But I am also excited to be back. It is wonderful to reconnect with you and with the vitality of the ministry of the Chapel of the Cross.

Everywhere I look there are signs of life. People are worshipping God in spirit and in truth and in greater numbers, including at the very moving, overflowing Requiem Eucharist on September 11. Both Campus Ministry and Episcopal Youth Community have bolted into a new year with strong participation and solid leadership. Christian Education for both children and adults has generated the most momentum and excitement in recent memory. Social Ministry continues a strong and pervasive dimension of the parish’s ministry. The Pastoral Care of the parish is extended to so many of all ages, both by clergy and laity. The chapel floor has been renovated and new lighting and safety measures have been installed. The lay leadership of the parish, through the vestry and many other avenues, just keeps growing stronger. The combined years of experience in this parish of the four staff priests and the Organist-Choirmaster has now reached 80! A number of new staff members now bring their own experience and imagination and dedication to their positions, including the new position of Orange County Missioner, which is to provide leadership in beginning a fourth Episcopal congregation. How could I not be excited?

I am profoundly grateful to be part of this vitality. God’s grace and energy are clearly at work. We can all give great thanks to God from whom all these blessings flow.

We do so in worship, of course, which is at the heart of the Church’s identity and mission. Our basic posture is to bow down in praise to God. But we are to do so "not only with lips, but in our lives," acting out our gratitude in real ways. "To do good and to share what [we] have" expresses that genuine gratitude.

Each fall we have the opportunity in the Every Member Canvass to reflect on how we are sharing what we have. Despite the many demands on our limited financial resources, we stretch beyond our comfort zone to return to God a generous portion of what God has given us. In doing so we live out who we are as children of God. As we all do that individually, we also do so communally, and we make possible the exciting momentum of the ministry of the Chapel of the Cross.

In other articles in this issue you will read more about that ministry, about the budget that supports it, and about the budget process and needs. I hope you will take the time to familiarize yourself with this information and when you receive the canvass mailing to respond prayerfully and joyfully. It is worth being excited about! – and responding in gratitude.

Faithfully,
- Stephen