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February 20, 2005

"Rector's Annual Address"

The Rev. Stephen Elkins-Williams

It may seem unusual in the midst of Lent and nearly three months after Thanksgiving Day, to begin today's meeting with a hymn associated with that special occasion. But not only is it "right, and a good and joyful thing, always and everywhere to give thanks to [God], Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth," as the priest chants at the Eucharist each Sunday. Today at this Annual Meeting we have particular reason to proclaim our thanks to God. It has been a wonderful year for the Chapel of the Cross, with many good gifts and signs of God's love. Let me just remind you of some. I cannot possibly mention them all in a few minutes, but I will give you a taste.

One of the first I want to mention is our Youth Ministry. For most of 2004, it operated with what I guess we could call in today's vocabulary, a virtual clergy vacancy. I say "virtual" because even though Tammy Lee became the Associate for Campus Ministry and shifted the majority of her focus to the next age level, she still was here and available to Caroline Alexander Williams, our Youth Ministry Assistant and her team of volunteers and parents for direction and consultation, and Ms. Lee still organized and led the summer mission trip, for example. Tammy's juggling these roles is a great gift for us to be grateful for, and so is the work of all those who stepped forward and helped our youth ministry continue to flourish this past year. Now we are in the delightful position of having David Frazelle on board, after a long anticipation, to help lead our youth ministry and our ministry with young adults. Most gratefully I can say that the reality of David's presence has in every way matched or even exceeded the very high expectations that preceded him! And that of course is not always true and not to be taken for granted.

A main reason for being able to have David among us as a fourth full time clergy, a first in the long history of our parish and the fulfillment of a longtime aspiration and goal, has been your generous financial stewardship. The challenge became apparent to the Vestry, who issued it to the whole parish: in order to achieve this dream and to accomplish other significant budgetary goals, we needed to increase our Annual Giving for 2005 by a record 15%. The final report at the Vestry meeting this past Thursday night was that we went from $966,000 last year to a pledge total for this year of $1,103,000, an increase of $146,000 or just over 15%! What a great gift that has been, and how much do we need to thank God for it!!

To get a real sense of this accomplishment, we must see it in context of the previous year. Listen to what I said at last year's annual meeting:

Rise to the challenge you did, and the Vestry was able not only to budget for a full staff, thus strengthening our whole parish ministry. It was also able to increase program funding, outreach spending, and facilities maintenance, easily our most fruitful budget ever. Thanks to all of you who helped us to hold the line last year, including our clergy who helped cover that long vacancy, and other staff, who managed their budgets so very well. And thanks to all of you who rose to the financial stewardship challenge for this year. You will be hearing more about this from the Treasurer and the Jr. Warden.

I am nearly halfway through my address, and I have only covered two areas; so let me quickly mention others! (I feel like the cartoon bird back in the black and white television days of my adolescence, who would announce breathlessly, "I've got six seconds to sing: Buy Kraft Cottage Cheese, you'll love, love it; buy Kraft Cottage Cheese!" A note of nostalgia...)

A growing area for us and one for which to give great thanks is that of hospitality. The February Cross Roads (another fine thematic issue put together by Vivian Varner and her volunteers!) was devoted to this important ministry, so I will not duplicate it. But I do want to give thanks for Mary Schoenfeld of the Vestry and Barbara Day, who have graciously agreed to lead, coordinate and integrate our welcoming of others, including, for example, a newcomers dinner later this spring in a parishioner's home. In addition, this has been a notable year for "grassroots" efforts, e.g. the newly energized coffee hour with refreshments after the 11:15 service, initiated by Peggy Quinn, the dinners for church school teachers hosted in her home by Gretchen Jordan, a warming fire and refreshments in the night air outside the church for students and others after Sung Compline, provided by Tammy Lee, etc. Hospitality is a wonderful way to thank the Lord for all his love.

Our Campus Ministry is another vibrant ministry for which to give thanks, or as you will be hearing it called from now on, our University Ministry. Just last Thursday night, the Vestry unanimously ratified an outstanding report by the UNC Campus Ministry Vision Committee, ably chaired by Janet Turchi, which recommends changes in structure to support a wider vision of our campus ministry. The Associate's title will now be the Associate for University Ministry, and the group advising and supporting the Associate in developing and implementing this ministry will be called the University Ministry Advisory Council. Its makeup, with different areas of responsibility and representation for each member, will ensure that our ministry with students will remain strong, while our ministry with faculty and staff and our presence on campus and engagement with significant issues will grow to that level. The previous structure, known as the University Ministry Committee, has served us well for over twenty-five years; and I am most grateful to all who have fulfilled its role so very well. Now it is time to put new wine into new wineskins, and I look forward to new dimensions of our University Ministry. We will appoint the members of this new group as soon as possible, so that it will be up and running before Tammy takes her long delayed three month sabbatical, beginning in mid-May.

Another area for which to give thanks is our outreach. Under the coordination and leadership of our Social Ministry Committee, devotedly chaired fro several years now by Sandra McClaskey and including our two deacons, Martha Hart and Bill Joyner, we have been caring for those in need and striving for justice and peace among all people in a myriad of ways. We continue to provide several food teams for the Community Kitchen; we hosted the men's shelter for two weeks this past summer; we collected well over 600 boxes of food again for Project 5000; we continued our strong Habitat for Humanity efforts; we responded generously to several Thompson Home clothing drives; we raised the bar even further on the ABC Sale; in addition to those funds, we gave away significant amounts of money, all listed on the next to last page of your Annual Report. We are even poised now to partner with Holy Trinity Lutheran, a block over, to resettle Burmese refugees. All of this corporate outreach, is in addition to strengthening many individuals for serving others, typified by our own Fran Finney receiving the Pauli Murray Award next Sunday from the Orange County Human Relations Commission! I also want to give thanks for the funds that materialized through several parishioners' efforts, which are allowing a strong transition year for the Johnson Intern Program. In this year without interns, through the untiring efforts of Watty Bowes and others, it has now become a separately incorporated organization and has nearly completed developing a community-wide board (still appointed by the rector), so that, for example, you will not see Mary Agnes Rawlings' name as a staff member anymore, although her office and clerical support will still be an in kind contribution by our parish. We have high hopes that this new structure will attract more and varied funding and ensure a strong future for this creative and much needed program, which combines outreach with leadership training and vocational discernment.

Christian Education continues to flourish, under the leadership of Gretchen Jordan and strong lay leaders like Nancy Tunnessen, who chairs the Adult Ed Committee. There are many and visible programs, which you are familiar with. In fact, one of our second graders, overhearing her parents' conversation last week, heard a word she did not know and asked what a rector is. "That's the person responsible for all that goes on at the Chapel of the Cross," her mother told her. "Oh," said the girl, her face brightening. "You mean Gretchen Jordan!" Even so, I give great thanks for Gretchen and all the wonderful Christian Education that is happening! I will mention just one future adult ed program, entitled, "A Conversation about Gay Unions." On the first three Sundays of April, in both the morning and the evening, we will have the opportunity to hear from and discuss with three presenters: Dr. Pfaff, the Rev. Gray Temple from Atlanta, and me. You will be hearing more about this later, but I hope it will be an opportunity for us to have the conversation that General Convention and the Windsor Report have asked us to engage in.

Liturgy and music remain a strength at the Chapel of the Cross. From regular worship to special feasts to the popular children's chapel on Sunday mornings to sung Compline to the monthly Special Worship for people with developmental disabilities, our worship lies at the heart of what we do and is the primary way that we give thanks to God. A special point of gratitude here is that Dr. Quinn is about to complete his 35th year with us! How remarkable! His dedication and skill and liturgical and musical sensitivities are surely great gifts sent to us from heaven above. In this liturgical area, I want to add two things. One is my excitement at the new organ for the chapel, which should be built and installed by next year's annual meeting. The beauty and the depth and the flexibility it will add to our regular liturgies as well as to the not infrequent funerals and weddings in the chapel will be a great gift for many generations. The second is that I was delighted to meet with one of our Adult Inquirers the other day, who told me that he first came to a service at the Chapel of the Cross and became interested in pursuing the Christian faith because one of his co-workers, a communicant here, invited him to come to church one Sunday. I urge all of us to follow that example and to give others the same opportunity that this new parishioner now has. In the words of the Ash Wednesday Liturgy, we are to "commend the faith that is in us."

Another way we are doing that, of course, and making that opportunity possible, is by supporting the establishing of the Episcopal Church of the Advocate. That congregation continues to grow, and a happy event was their first anniversary last September. Growing a new church is never easy, however, and I ask you to support them in any way that you can, including referrals!

Although I have exceeded my time, I want to give thanks for the wonderful pastoral care engaged in by this parish. From devoted and capable clergy, including the leadership of Vicky Jamieson-Drake, to committed and caring laity, people in need of prayer, counsel, casseroles, or companionship through a difficult time, so frequently find what they need. As one who experienced several difficult personal moments this year myself, I can testify to your thoughtfulness and care. This week I read back over all the cards and letter you sent me when my mother-in-law died, when I had surgery, and when my mother died, and it took me over an hour! Thanks be to God for all these tangible and human signs of the immeasurable and divine love.

Finally, while being thankful to God for all these good gifts around us, sent from heaven above, I urge us not to be complacent and satisfied. When we are so loved, we can never love enough in return. As we move ahead with the life and ministry of this parish, as we contemplate the Next Step and what God might be calling us to and what long range plans to commit to and support with our time, our treasure, and our talent, may we continue to respond joyfully and gratefully to the God from whom all blessings flow. Together let us continue to "thank the Lord, O thank the Lord for all his love."

© 2005: Chapel of the Cross