On July 1st I officially begin my ministry as the Assistant Rector at the Episcopal Church of the Ascension in Gaithersburg, Maryland in the Diocese of Washington. I am so grateful! This is a large and diverse parish, and I am certain that I will learn a lot and hope that I will contribute much!
I am grateful to so many people, especially to Church of the Redeemer, Bethesda, MD., and to Church of the Resurrection, Alexandria, VA., for their support during my ordination process including my time at seminary. I was grateful that representatives from these parishes and a respresentative from my original sponsoring parish, St. Thomas' Dupont Circle, were my presenters at my Ordination to the Sacred Order of Deacons on June 13th. A glorious and wonderful service! The sermon was especially wonderful thanks to preacher Judy Fentress-Williams!
I am grateful for the opportunity to attend the ordinations of friends and classmates in the Diocese of Virginia, the Diocese of Texas and the Diocese of Delaware. While in Texas it was wonderful to attend a Sunday service at St. Mark's Houston and to reconnect with so many friends from years ago. Likewise, at the ordination in Delaware I reconnected with a friend, now priest, from Arkansas who is serving a parish in Delaware. Small world! A wonderful reunion!!
I am so very, very grateful!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Liminal Time
The word 'liminal' is defined as "of, or relating to, an intermediate state, phase, or condition." Synonyms are 'in-between, transitional.' I am in liminal time - a transitional and in-between time.
On May 21st I received a Master of Divinity degree from seminary. It was a wonderful and joyfilled day. Bishop Barbara Harris was our commencement speaker and she, not surprisingly, gave a wonderful address.
This Saturday I will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacons in the Episcopal Church. I am eager to begin my formal ordained ministry and look forward to the Holy Spirit's movement on Saturday!
However, for the moment, I am in liminal time. I suppose, given the stress of finishing three years of graduate education or seminary, which included a full summer of hospital chaplaincy, a three-week immersion in Honduras to learn Spanish, and an immersion in South Africa last summer, that I should not be surprised that during this liminal time my body decided it could afford to get a bad cold because it needed rest. So during this liminal time I am resting, staying at home, drinking lots of fluids and trying to get rid of this cold.
On May 21st I received a Master of Divinity degree from seminary. It was a wonderful and joyfilled day. Bishop Barbara Harris was our commencement speaker and she, not surprisingly, gave a wonderful address.
This Saturday I will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacons in the Episcopal Church. I am eager to begin my formal ordained ministry and look forward to the Holy Spirit's movement on Saturday!
However, for the moment, I am in liminal time. I suppose, given the stress of finishing three years of graduate education or seminary, which included a full summer of hospital chaplaincy, a three-week immersion in Honduras to learn Spanish, and an immersion in South Africa last summer, that I should not be surprised that during this liminal time my body decided it could afford to get a bad cold because it needed rest. So during this liminal time I am resting, staying at home, drinking lots of fluids and trying to get rid of this cold.
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