From the Rector

Dear Friends,

As most of you know, in April the parish engaged in an educational series entitled, "A Conversation on Gay Unions." Several of us gave presentations, and there was much discussion. This issue gives you a summation of the presentations and a flavor of the conversation. In addition, the text of my reflections in booklet form was mailed to all active parishioners several weeks ago. I hope that all of this will be helpful to us as part of the Church, which is struggling to discern the presence and direction of the Spirit in this complex and pastorally very sensitive matter.

Despite the pain of conflicting convictions on all 'sides', I sense a new vitality coming out of these discussions. For me personally and, I think, for the parish as a whole, there seems to be an unleashing of energy that had previously been occupied with worries and unspoken anxieties. I do not mean that we collectively or even all of us individually have resolved all the concerns or made all the necessary decisions in this regard. But for a significant number of us, having at least confronted the issues involved and voiced our hopes and concerns to one another has unbound energy in us that was previously tied up in these anxieties (which Jesus encourages us to let go of!). Without diminishing the importance of the discerning work we still have to do with regard to gay unions, this new energy is now available to us for other significant efforts.

I recently experienced this one evening in an unexpected way. A month or so previously, some of us had gotten together to try to organize a sustained and vital international dimension to the parish's outreach ministry. There have been wonderful projects like the Namibian library collection and our mission trips by youth, students, and adult parishioners; but we have not had a steady, cohesive, well-organized effort. We decided to have a second meeting and invite the chair of our diocesan Companion Diocese Committee to address us, letting word of mouth draw whoever might be interested. Twenty-five dedicated, talented people showed up, most of them with international experience! Many of us might have come whether or not the parish had engaged in this thoughtful conversation on a controversial subject, but speaking for myself and from what I sensed around the table, there was a new energy there, some of which, at least, was unleashed by this communal engagement.

To me, that was a validation of the fruitfulness that comes when we as the Church make the necessary effort and take the inherent risk of facing controversial and divisive issues together. Let us all give God thanks for this most recent grace to do so and ask for the grace to persevere in faithful, undaunted response.

Stephen

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