E-pistle for 1-25-08
01/25/2008
Let’s call this week’s column “Interfaith Dialogue—Part II.” Actually, my thoughts this week concern not so much interfaith conversations but ecumenical dialogue between Christian Groups. This past week marked the 100th anniversary of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (You did remember that, didn’t you?). I was a participant in two services marking this event, one in Phoenix and another in Tucson. Tucson beat out Phoenix when it came to participation by about five to one, and I was proud that St. Philip’s hosted the event there this year. I was particularly gladdened that the various chaplains at the U of A had brought students with them, who made up about 50 of the 400 or so who attended (compared to only a small group of 80 at St. Francis Xavier, Phoenix).
Epistle for 4-24-08
04/24/2008
It was my hope that this week I could switch the publication day of E-pistles from Friday to Tuesday. Many of you have commented that receiving this missive on Friday is too late to have an impact on Sunday events, and many of the clergy take Fridays off. I am happy to oblige, but the pace of life at Diocesan House meant that, for this week anyway, I was only able to push back the transmission time by one day. I hope to do better next week!
Epistle for 4-12-08
04/12/2008
Thursday night I spoke to a group of about 1,500 members of the East Valley Interfaith, an ecumenical group that works with political leaders to further such causes as public safely, education, health care, and immigration reform. It was apparent from that meeting that Arizona has a major church/state crisis on its hands as it reacts to the tactics used by the County Sheriff in his crusade to catch undocumented immigrants. Last Sunday, he interrupted a confirmation service in a Roman Catholic Church in Guadalupe. Last night the Mayor of Phoenix, the Police Chief, and representatives from the Governor's office were present to hear our concerns. I shared with that group the story of my Holy Week encounter with the Sheriff's Department, and I pass it on to you:
A Diocesan "Relic"
11/19/2008
Being historically a rather new part of the Episcopal Church, the Diocese of Arizona doesn't have many physical objects that connect us with our past. Compared to the ancient parishes of the Church of England, which have communion silver and vestments that have been in use for hundreds if not thousands of years, we are bit short in the "relics" department.
E-pistle for September 15, 2006
09/15/2006
One of the first things I wanted to do when I became Bishop was to provide for clergy and their families the support of a chaplain to the clergy. I realized from my own experience as a parish priest that there are sometimes issues of a sensitive personal nature that clergy feel uncomfortable discussing with their bishop. For awhile, our Diocese was lucky enough to have the help of the Rev. Bill North, a skilled priest and pastoral therapist, who was on our staff part-time. Sadly for us, Bill left to take a wonderful new job in Texas.
E-pistle for November 10, 2006
11/10/2006
There has been so much written about the investiture and installation of our new Presiding Bishop that I almost feel that I have nothing to add. If you have not already visited that National Cathedral website, you are missing some great pictures. To those images, I can only add my own very personal impressions as one who was there. First, when it comes to liturgical celebration, we Episcopalians do things right. I don't believe I have ever been part of a more glorious worship service, one which combined both the ancient beauties of our Anglican liturgy with the full spectrum of our American diversity. There were dancers, Native American drummers, and Gospel choirs. Somehow it all fit together into a lively joyful celebration. An Englishman I spoke with remarked that we ought to send a mission to his country to show the English church how to do it right!Secondly, although it was a moving occasion for me, I became aware that it was even more so for the women who were present. One woman priest recently recounted how it was not that long ago that she as a postulant was interviewed by a panel of 18 men, and then had to sit with their wives at lunch who told her never to forget that it was God's plan for her to be subservient to her husband. In just thirty years as a church, we have gone from allowing women to be priests, to making one the Presiding Bishop. Another woman wrote on a blog, "When I heard the knock at the cathedral door, I thought, ‘move over old men, there is a woman coming to set things right!'"Finally, it became clearer to me that somehow the Holy Spirit is at work in all of this. By her own admission, Bp. Jefferts Schori never expected to be elected. I have shared with you before how I had felt as late as March of this year that she was only a "token" candidate. From a political standpoint, it was certainly the absolute worst time to elect a woman and perhaps further antagonize some in the wider Communion. But we did it anyway, not because we were making a statement, but because Katherine was someone we felt excited about. In her first few days in office, and by her demeanor in Washington, it is clear to me that she is living up to our expectations.Now comes the hard part. Any new leader carries the hopes and dreams of those he or she leads. Some of those projections are unrealistic. But I am optimistic. If the Holy Spirit was truly at work in Katherine, then I am certain we have a bright future ahead.
E-pistle for November 17, 2006
11/17/2006
One of the most Frequently Asked Questions I get when I visit parishes and vestries is "What is the secret to that mega-church in our town? Why, they have several thousand people in their parking lot on Sunday morning! What do they have that we don't?" The answer is that in many ways they have less to offer than we do, but there is one important difference. Their members passionately believe that bringing people into church is the business of every member. This is why they experience such exponential growth. Do the math. If every member of your congregation brought one new member into your church each year, you would double in size in one year, quadruple in two years, and so forth. At that rate of growth, it doesn't take long to grow from a handful of members to several thousand!Contrast that to the attitude of most Episcopalians. A recent study indicated that the average Episcopalian invites someone to church once every TWENTY ONE YEARS!That rate of growth does not even make up for normal attrition.The reasons for our lack of zeal are many. It has partly to do with our English village paradigm of what a parish church should be. It has partly to do with our tendency to look back to the days when Episcopalians were the most socially acceptable denomination in American society. And let's face it, snobbery and welcoming new members don't exactly go together! There is also the temptation to place the burden of church growth on the clergy-if they were only better preachers, organizers, activists, etc., then the congregation would grow.When it comes to church growth, I am convinced that the bottom line is simple: every parishioner must own their baptismal calling to share the Good News. Inviting new members into fellowship with Christ is everyone's job. When was the last time you did this? Will we ever have 10,000 member Episcopal churches?-maybe not (and maybe we wouldn't want to if we could), but we can have larger churches and healthier churches.Our growth will not depend on the attractiveness of our buildings, the kind of music we have, the quality of the sermons, or our theological viewpoint (although those things can help!). It will depend on the willingness of each of our members to accept the Great Commission that Jesus gives us all-"Go therefore to all peoples...baptizing and teaching them all that I have told you."PLEASE NOTE: Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, there will be no E-pistle next week. We at Diocesan House wish you a happy and blessed Thanksgiving.
E-pistle for August 10, 2007
08/10/2007
Did you ever visit a circus or a stage show and watch a “plate-spinner” in action?
The trick was to keep as many plates as possible spinning on the tips of long flexible rods. The performer had only so much time to keep all the sticks and plates in motion before one would begin to wobble and fall. Some even attempted acrobatic tricks or gymnastics while their plates were in the air.
E-pistle for March 2, 2007
03/02/2007
It was not a great week for religion in the media. First there was the story on CNN about the evangelical pastor in the Midwest who has attracted a huge following with his sermons about how believers can have a better sex life with Jesus--read it here. Then came the story about thousands of Roman Catholic believers making the pilgrimage to a little town in Texas see the image of the Virgin Mary as revealed in a pizza pan. (Judge for yourself here. But both of these were overshadowed by the claim made a documentary producer that he had discovered the bones of Jesus in a tomb in Jerusalem. A show based on this is scheduled to be shown this weekend (check local listings for the Discovery Channel -or not!).
E-pistle for November 3, 2006
11/03/2006
I want to share with you what I believe is an example of the Holy Spirit at work in the church, even in the midst of disagreement and conflict.Most of you are aware that many (but not all) members of Christ Church of the Ascension in Paradise Valley have been alarmed by the actions of our two recent General Conventions. They feel the positions the church took on issues of human sexuality are not compatible with Biblical teaching or with our Anglican tradition. Some members even felt that the only option they had was to leave the Episcopal Church.
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