A Gathering of Leaders
Several years ago I attended a few
conferences of Episcopal clergy called the Gathering of Leaders.
This was designed for clergy who were under 50-years old, and it was
the brainchild of the former bishop of Texas. The overall goal of
these conferences was to help shape clergy leaders, make contacts,
and help us help our parishes move forward.
While I am well-past being under 50,
and I no longer attend these gatherings, I still find myself
surrounded by a gathering of leaders here at Saint John's. You're
probably tired hearing me tell this story, but one of the biggest
reasons I submitted my name to be a part of the search process here
was because, as I read the profile, it was clear to me that the
people of Saint John's “got it.” Worship was a big part of the
life of this parish, but so was the variety of outreach efforts. The
people here knew that “church” meant more than Sunday mornings.
I still find that to be true.
This COVID pandemic has been tiring for
us all. Many of us have been stuck at home for longer than we would
care to be. Reports of the infection rate declining are then
followed by reports of outbreaks because people got careless, or were
allowed to gather prematurely, or, or, or. And as of now, we are
limited to gatherings of 10 or fewer, maintaining a 6-foot distance
between people, and we have a target date of May 17 when we might be
allowed to worship at church again (but, based on current trends, I'm
not holding my breath about that timeline).
But even so, as this pandemic has
dragged on and we have lived with stay-at-home orders, and are unsure
of a realistic time of regathering, leaders of this church have begun
to surface. A few people have contacted me about starting a book
study, or bible study, or some other adult study. The J2A group
meets regularly on Sundays for a game night and again on Thursdays
for Compline (affectionately dubbed Zoompline). The Community Cafe
group is having a brainstorming session next Tuesday, May 5, to
discuss how they can effectively get food and toiletries to those
people who have come to depend on the Cafe. And yesterday morning I
had a long conversation with Peg Brown about how we might utilize
various leaders to help keep us connected, involved, and engaged.
Peg will be reaching out to a few
people to see about being the point person for a few small groups. I
don't know who those people are, but I am confident that, with the
leaders that are gathered here at Saint John's, they will be more
than capable. If you get that call, don't be shocked. Instead,
think of it as an opportunity to help the people of Saint John's
remain connected, involved, and engaged during this time of
disconnection, isolation, and loneliness.
As I think about all of this, I am
reminded that we are a gathering of worshipers. We are a gathering
of disciples. We are a gathering of servants. And we are a
Gathering of Leaders.
May we all look for ways to help lead
the people around us through this pandemic.
Be well,
Todd+
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