what I did this weekend.... Convention 2015 Reflections

First of all , let me say that it was an honor and a privilege to represent YOU as an alternate lay delegate at this year's Convention. even though I did not get to vote, the experience was a blessing and a gift and again I say thank you for this opportunity.

After the first business session I went to a meeting on the Commission for Youth, of which I am a member.  I am excited to serve our diocese in this way, and I shall update everyone of this commission's activities regularly.

I watched the election of our fourth bishop in ' real time' from the parish hall at Trinity Episcopal. The process began with a prayer, and delegates were asked to remain silent during the voting.

The election process in itself fascinated me, and I was impressed with the orderly fashion in which the election occurred. As many of you already know, the Reverend Dan Smith dropped out of the election process the day before convention met so the voting delegates were left with a slate of only three candidates. 

Canons require the winner required a majority of two-thirds in each ' house [ clergy and lay voters} to become elected. after each ballot, each candidate was phoned  with the results and asked if he wished to continue in the process.   Reverend  Ed OcConnor dropped out of the election after the second ballot, so that left  Rev. Chuck Treadwell and Rev Russell Kendrick as the choices  on the third and final ballot. Reverend Kendrick accepted his election  and will be installed as our fourth bishop this summer.

In closing, this was a wonderful, faith-affirming experience.

 Pax Christos,

Sarah Beth

Alternate Lay Delegate

St Francis of Assisi , Gulf Breeze

Remembering: The " Philadelphia 11" 40 years later

This weekend marks the 40th anniversary of the anniversary of womens' ordination in The Episcopal Church. While I have only been a member of this Church for approximately 6 years, I am glad to know that my Church has been ordaining women for longer than I've been alive.


Maybe some men do not understand what a huge deal it is for we women to acknowledge this important day. Because we Episcopalians ordain both men & women whose calls are affirmed by the wider Church


This quote sums up my feelings towards what those brave women did 40 years ago:


"Women in all orders of ministry--baptized, deacons, priests, and bishops--can walk proudly today in whatever kind of shoes they want to wear because of what happened here 40 years ago."--from the Presiding Bishop's homily on the 40th anniversary of women's ordination.


This morning I had the privilege of serving at the altar at Beach Church. Our altar party consisted of men & women of all ages and life experiences. I probably will get in trouble for making this statement, but I truly believe that God does not take a human's gender into consideration when God calls someone into any type of ministry.


 Today I was reminded that it is an honor and a privilege for ALL we Christians to serve God at the altar. We are all called to do our best in whatever ministry we take part in every day. This morning I found myself standing taller and prouder as I walked with a torch in hand during the procession and recession. I did not think about my being " a girl"  & I highly doubt that any of my sister & brother parishioners did either.


I am " a girl" , and a very feminine one. While I do not hide the fact that I am feminine, neither do I think that my gender should hinder me or any other woman, in discerning how to serve God.


When I serve at the altar as a layperson, I do not concern myself with my own identity. Altar servers & clergy dress in vestments in part to " blend in" together so that no one serve stands out. Altar serving, like all other ministries, should be about pleasing God.


All the fuss that some Christians make regarding the gender of those serving at the altar seem to miss the point of what we are called to do. ALL we baptized believers are called to spread the love of our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ. We are not to make disciples of only men, nor are we to make disciples of only women.


O God, thank You for the witness of those brave women in Philadelphia .May other brave men & women work hard to empower all persons to live out their baptismal covenant in any way they feel led by You. In the Name of the Father, Son & Holy Spirit, Amen.




"

I prefer a Church...

Pope Francis rocks!

I found a quote from the current pope {to whom I lovingly refer as " Papa Francis" for many reasons}that spoke to my soul .My Annual Convention for my Diocese is in February, and I am going as an alternate lay delegate.

Anyhow, here is the quote:

 

Amen and amen again! Although I am pretty sure that the Pope is speaking of the Roman Catholic Church, his statement SHOULD ring true for Christians of any & all varieties.

 

No one asks me of my opinion on such lofty matters: I am after all " merely a young woman" {sic} and " everyone knows that young people have nothing to contribute" { sic}

 

Too often the institutional Church is too concerned with maintaining status quo and keeping out "those who are not like us" than actually BEING Christ's hands & feet here and now.

 

I am sad about all the hard feelings that surround certain Church issues and I am even more saddened by the fact that these issues keep people away from knowing Christ & Christ's community.

 

I dream of a Church that is more concerned with BEING Church than DEFINING Church.

 

I dream of a Church whose Holy Scriptures are not used to justify hatred towards those whose lifestyles we do not understand. As long as some one's lifestyle harms no one,  we should not justify our prejudices in the name of the Church

 

I dream of a Church that focuses more on empowering members to live out our Baptismal Covenants rather than playing politics.

 

I dream of a Church that is more concerned with doing ministry that will make a difference to the greater local area than placating  members by playing up to prejudices of people with a lot of money.

 

I am 37 and one-half years old. It is my HOPE and PRAYER that I live long enough to see some of my dreams for the Church come to fruition.

 

Amen.

 

Christmastide 2014.

 

Will " they" know we Christians by our LOVE?

I dream of a Church { and a Diocese} that when people who are NOT part of our faith community meet us, they will know we are Christians by our agape LOVE .

This love is not the romantic kind of love that is shared between two partners. I'm talking about the agape love that our LORD commands that we share with each other & the people with whom we come into contact on a daily basis.

How can we, as a community of faith, show our agape LOVE towards each other? How can we show LOVE to the stranger who finds him/herself among us on any given day?

The Gospel of John is very specific  on this matter. John 13:34-35 records Our LORD Jesus Christ as saying::

"I give you a new commandment, that you love one another Just as I have loved you, you should love one another. By this , everyone will know you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." 

Jesus says the word LOVE four times in that short passage. 

How do people in our communities know we are Christians by our love for one another? How would they know we are disciples of the risen LORD by our love for people in our community?


Often I am reminded of the simple three part equation for evangelical discipleship: find a friend, be a friend, & then bring a friend to Church. All the " programs " that the Church can create are well & good, but if we do not build upon the foundation of John 13--we will not work towards fulfilling the Great Commandment.

Amen.

Dare To DREAM

I checked Facebook this afternoon and saw a post from a member of the Communications Team of my Diocese regarding the work of the Committee on Structural Reform. Since I was not a voting delegate at this years' DioCgc Convention, I do not know exactly what the work of this group is commissioned to do. But in the Facebook post, they asked us to fill in the blank of this phrase:

I dream of a Diocese that_______________________________________________.

In the future, I'll write about MY hopes for our Diocese &  " brainstorm" with my readers on ways that The Episcopal Diocese of the central Gulf Coast can more effectively proclaim the Gospel that IS Jesus Christ, our Risen LORD.

One of the happenings that struck me the most when I attended DioCGC13 as a photographer was the energy that was literally palatable during the meeting & throughout the entire three days in Panama City. For the first time in my faith life, I saw a real spirit of co-operation among the lay & clerical leaders of the Church.  I also remembered witnessing what I percieved to be an inter-generational dialogue among my gneration & those leaders with a few more years' worth of life experience. :O)This is exciting.

Although I am a relatively " new" Episcopalian{ I was confirmed in May, 2009} this Church is my spiritual home. I am not positive that the learned people who are serving on the Committee On Structural reform will want to read any of my thoughts at all, but since they asked { again, via the Facebook post on the Central Gulf Coast page} for our thoughts/ideas/concerns I am more than happy to oblige.

Dare to dream with me.

Amen.