THE RECTOR’S ANNUAL REPORT

Presented at the Annual Congregational Meeting

January 27, 2008

My dear sisters and brothers in Christ,

It is exciting for me to be with you for our 2008 Annual Congregational Meeting.  This is my fourth Annual Meeting with you, and I give thanks for you having brought Sheila and me to Trinity Episcopal Church, and for your willingness to allow me to share with you in the ministry of this very precious Christian family.

As I did in this report last year I want to remind all of you that I am generally in the office Monday thru Thursday, and I am also available at other times by appointment.  If you have any questions you would like to ask me, any issues you would like to share with me, any pastoral concerns or needs, I encourage you to come in for a visit.  It is always best to call ahead to insure I am in the office, and not with someone else.

I spent my first three years in this parish being somewhat surprised at how busy this congregation is.  I have now discovered that such busyness is the norm, that such busyness is a way of life at Trinity.   It matters not if we are in season or out of season, if attendance is up or down, if it is summer or winter, if it is Christmas, Lent, Easter or mid-summer.  We are a busy place, and I suspect we will remain a busy place.

During the past year I have been busy, and on the go, carrying out the work given to me as Rector of this congregation.  I traveled nearly 12,000 miles on church business, and paid over $400.00 in Turnpike Tolls.  I had over 70 meals away from home while I was on church business, and I have now taken on the joy of listening to audio books on my new mp3 player (a Christmas present from my beloved wife) as I travel, doing the work of a parish priest.  I have attended diocesan meetings, including Diocesan Convention where I was a presenter for one of the workshops.  I have visited with members of the parish, attended convocation and clericus meetings, taken part in an ongoing continuing education program and I have met regularly with the Clericus of the Southwest Convocation.  Last year I made over a hundred hospital and nursing home visits, along with taking my part in the counsels of the church and of diocese.  I have been elected President of the Council of Trustees of the Diocese of Kansas, and I have also been elected as Secretary of Episcopal Social Services.  As President of the Council of Trustees I keep in close contact with our Bishop, a task made much simpler by email and voice conferencing.  Actually being President of the Council of Trustees is a pretty simple task – with the major responsibilities being that in the absence of a Bishop in the Diocese I would chair the Council as the ecclesiastical authority of the Diocese, and we don’t anticipate being without a Bishop.  Secretary of ESS is also a very easy job, as they have paid staff who do all of the labor involved in that position, with the exception of signing some documents at the direction of the Board of Directors.

We, as a parish family, got a lot done last year.  The Kirkpatrick Room Committee did a beautiful job or respectfully renovating and updating that beautiful room.  It always has been a beautiful part of this parish and it now exceeds what it had been in the past, while maintaining its own special degree of sacredness and beauty.  This work was all done to the glory of God, and in loving memory of and in thanksgiving for our sister in Christ, Ruthora Preston.

We have been able to replace worn copies of the Book of Common Prayer also in loving memory of Ruthora Preston. 

The Gospel Book and the Lectern Book were replaced to bring us line with the new Revised Common Lectionary, which was mandated for our use (by General Convention) by the First Sunday of Advent, 2007.  These books were given to the Glory of God and in loving memory of Ruthora Preston and Jacquiline Denny.

Additional memorial included new Acolyte Robes in memory of Jeanette Sankey Murfin, the repair and re-silvering of our Altar Vessels (using undesignated memorial funds), and new Aisle Candles and Brackets which were purchased with an anonymous gift which was given to the Memorial Fund.

We have begun the Teen Intervention Program here at Trinity.  I hope and pray you are as excited about us doing some of the work of Episcopal Social Services here in Butler County as I and leaders in our community are.  The TIP program really changes lives.  It enhances greatly the quality of living in our community, and gives some of our young people opportunities that have never before existed for them.  I continue to be hopeful that other ESS programs will one day become a part of the work we are doing at Trinity.  I continue to be hopeful that we will be able to bring the Representative Payee Program back to Trinity, and that we might also be able to initiate an Aggression Replacement Training Program (i.e., a research based intervention program that targets eligible juvenile offenders and aggressive youth ages 10 to 17 years.   It is 10-week program which utilizes role-playing, group interaction and weekly assignments to provide young people with a comprehensive, step-step approach to altering aggressive behaviors).  There is so much we can do, so much we can do in the name of Jesus, so much we can do in the name of Jesus that will make this part of God creation a better place to live, work, play and enjoy.

You have all been hearing about the Trinity Labyrinth.  This is an exciting project, both for the Trinity family, and for our community as a whole.  You can now see examples of different labyrinth designs around our parish.  A labyrinth is not to be confused with a maze, as when one is “walking” a labyrinth they can always see where they have been and they are going, and there are no “dead ends.”  A labyrinth is an ancient spiritual tool that is a walking meditation.  In the Christian context a labyrinth is a “centering” meditation, in which one finds many of the distractions of life are removed while their hearts and their minds are open to Jesus.  In her book, Walking a Sacred Path, The Rev’d Dr. Lauren Artress says, “I suspect there are as many ways to walk the labyrinth as there are people on this planet.”  Some may walk the labyrinth to quiet their mind.  Others may do it to pace their own bodies and lives.  For others, there may be something on their mind, and the labyrinth will allow them to present themselves to new degrees of awareness.  Many will walk the labyrinth with a word or a phrase, perhaps from the contemplative method of Christian centering prayer.  Some simply pray as they walk.

The Trinity Labyrinth project, now known as Trinity Labyrinth Ministries, is headed by Gail Ellet.  When completed the labyrinth will be a beautiful addition not only to Trinity Church, but also to our community.  The labyrinth will be on our vacant lot on Taylor Street.  It will be pretty much maintenance free, and will be available to anyone who wishes to use it.  This will be a definite asset to our parish, and to the world around us.  I encourage you to support the different fund raising events which are and will be taking place in the future.  It is envisioned that this project will be completed using donations form our parish family, and from the community around us.

Finances...    What can one say about finances in a small parish church in the year 2008?  Finances continue to be very interesting.  I can say again this year, as I said last year; “we have more money than we have ever had before.”  As I write this report to you our financial assets are in the neighborhood of $770,000.00 (understand that this figure changes almost minute by minute).  That figure does not include any of our real estate, our buildings, our equipment, or our inventory.  Our financial pledge drive for 2008 began a little late, but as I prepare this report I can tell you that it appears we will generate more income from pledges for 2008 than we did for 2007.  Unfortunately we are faced is escalating costs, primarily in the area of insurance and utilities.  We work hard to keep the our utility expenses in check, and I am working, along with the Diocese of Kansas and the Episcopal Church, to develop new paradigms which will allow us to offer reasonable health care to our employees, both lay and ordained, at what can be considered, in this day and time, a reasonable price.  The bad news about all of this is that there is no instant fix.  With lots of prayer, hard work, and God’s blessings, we may be able to see the horizon on affordable (comparatively speaking) health care costs in two years.  Not soon enough, but we are moving in the right direction.

I will again, this year, ask our Finance Committee to continue working with the Vestry in establishing sound financial management and reporting which will allow all of us to fully be aware of and understand the finances of our parish.  I think the contemporary term is that we must create complete financial transparency.  I will also be calling again on the Finance Committee, as I did last year, to meet at least quarterly and to report to the Vestry on our financial condition and how they (the Finance Committee) believe we might be better able to manage our finances.  In the office we are working toward better reporting on your financial pledging and gift giving.  We continue to work on a more user friendly format to use when we report to you on your parish giving, and it is my plan that we will begin sending out giving statements every two months instead of every three months.

There are a couple things I need to be sure you understand about financial management in a parish.  Your elected leadership, your Vestry, has a responsibility to insure the prayerful and informed management of the funds you have entrusted to the parish in a manner that is transparent and fully visible to you.  Those same leaders also have the responsibility to insure that the resources entrusted to this parish are used to carry out the ministry of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I also want you to know what I have learned by experience in my own life, and what the Church has learned in some 2,000 years of experience:  God will always give us what is necessary for His work to be done.  He will never give us more – He will never give us less.  I repeat – “He will always give us what is necessary for His work to be done.  He will never give us more – He will never give us less.”  My sisters and brothers in Christ, this fact is worth celebrating daily in our lives.  It says something about how much God loves his Bride, the Church, and how fortunate we are to be a part of it all.

I wish I could tell you that the controversies of the Episcopal Church are behind us.  The truth of the matter is, most simply put; we are the kind of Christian denomination that will always have some degree of controversy.  That happens because we don’t ask anyone to “check their brains at the door before they come in.”  We encourage people to think, we encourage people to ask questions, we encourage people to ask the hard questions and deal with the difficult challenges in their life and faith.  In the Episcopal Church, and here at Trinity, we face the difficult questions in life, the questions others don’t want to deal with.  By allowing these kinds of questions, we are bound to be confronted with disagreement and controversy.  Disagreement and controversy can and will be encouraged unless they separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

The controversies within the Anglican Communion continue because of the openness of the church.  Unfortunately, some have decided to end these healthy conversations by deciding they are right and others are wrong.  Most recently my friend John David Schofield, Bishop of the Diocese of San Joaquin, has chosen to withdraw himself and his diocese from the Episcopal Church.  In so doing he has chosen to abandon the doctrine, discipline and worship of the Episcopal Church.  In every ordination – Bishop, Priest or Deacon alike – a solemn declaration is made by the person being ordained that they will “engage to conform to the doctrine, discipline, and worship of the Episcopal Church.”  Bishops also promise to share with their “fellow bishops of the whole church.”  I am sad to say that +John David withdrew from the counsels of the church many years ago, in what could only be considered a “self imposed excommunication.”  For these actions Bishop John David Schofield has now received a letter of inhibition (not because someone is angry with him, but in accordance with the Canons of the Episcopal Church) which prohibits him from functioning as a Bishop, Priest or Deacon.  Please know I am deeply hurt by what has taken place in San Joaquin.  But know, also, that steps are being taken, as we speak today, to reconstitute that diocese.  It is painful, but not life ending.  I pray daily for +John David, and for the people of that diocese.

I conclude that the Episcopal Church is troubled.  We are, however, searching for God’s will.  In these troubled times I feel I must share something with you that comes from the depth of my heart and soul.  I must tell you that had I been a member of the House of Bishops I would not have voted for our current Presiding Bishop, the Most Reverend Katharine Jefferts Schori.  Many of you know I went to great lengths, doing all I possibly could, to influence members of House of Bishops to vote for Bishop Henry Parsley for Presiding Bishop.  My friend and long-time mentor, Bishop Parsley, was not elected.  He came in second.  The House of Bishops, in some very interesting balloting, elected Katharine Jefferts Schori as the Presiding Bishop.   To say this was a shock would be the understatement of some two centuries of Christian history.  Bishop Schori is not perfect.  She is not what people expected.  She sometimes makes mistakes.  She is a woman in what many consider a man’s job.  She certainly doesn’t have the experience to do what she is now called to do.  She is disliked by many, and some won’t even begin to hear what she says, or sit at table with her, or take Communion with her, because they have decided she is a woman, she is an outsider, and she can’t be anything but wrong.  It is strange, isn’t it?  Is it coincidence that this is exactly how those whom God calls to His service have been treated, from the beginning of time until now?  Beginning with Moses, with the Prophets, even Jesus and the Apostles, this kind of treatment has been the norm.  Please understand, I don’t agree with everything Presiding Bishop Schori says or does.  But I have prayed about this daily since her election.  I now find myself coming to the conclusion that we must do everything we possibly can to have our presiding Bishop be heard by the members of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion.  I must also tell you that I believe God is at work in this woman, in Katharine Jefferts Schoir, for whom we pray in this service this morning, and for whom I pray every day.  By taking the time to listen to what she says, by putting away my own personal bias and prejudice, I have begun to hear the Word of God in what she proclaims.  Again I tell you...  I don’t agree with everything she says, I don’t agree with everything she does.  I must agree with those who say she doesn’t have enough “parish” experience, or enough experience as a bishop.  However, in my lifetime I have come to realize that God works in mysterious ways, that God does what God wants, when God wants.  And I stand here today to tell you that I hear God speaking in much of what our Presiding Bishop, Katherine, is saying.  Take the time to hear her message.  Pray for her.  Pray for us.  Pray for the Episcopal Church.  Pray for the Anglican Communion.  Pray for all Christendom.

I want to make one more point on the issues facing the Episcopal Church.  This diocese is Windsor compliant (and please, if you don’t know what that means, come and talk with me).  We are mainstream Anglicanism.  There is some strange stuff going on in some parts of the world around us, but we are a traditional diocese in a traditional church.  We are a part of the Episcopal Church, and we will continue to do all in our power to follow Christ; to come together week by week for corporate worship; and too work, pray, and give for the spread of the Kingdom of God.  You must believe me when I tell you that the Diocese of Kansas is beginning to have great influence within the rest of the Episcopal Church and in the Anglican Communion.  People are hearing what we are saying, and people are asking our advice and following our examples.  Please know that in the Diocese of Kansas there is no such thing as “gay/lesbian marriage.”  Please know that in the Diocese of Kansas there are no clergy living sexual relationships outside the bonds of holy matrimony.  Please know that in the Diocese of Kansas we believe not only that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, we believe that JESUS is the ONLY WAY, the ONLY TRUTH, and the ONLY LIFE.

‘Nough said.  On to other issues...

During 2007 we devoted a great deal of time and resources to a visioning process, using a method known as Appreciative Inquiry.  That program was very successful, as it allowed the leadership of this parish to hear voices that aren’t often heard.  It allowed the leadership of this parish to begin working toward focusing on what it is that the people of this congregation dream about, what they love, and where they want to go.  Having a facilitator for the Appreciative Inquire program was ever so helpful, because it allowed us to step away form our own tunnel vision, and to begin to see things in a new a positive light, to see things in a way that allows us to truly celebrate who we are, and what we will become. 

From that program we discovered a bit of what makes us tick, what is important to us, and where we might be headed.  We discovered that we are in the process of becoming a Christian community that is

MAKING A DIFFERENCE AS WE

Grow together – Worship together – Play together

and

Share the love of Christ

We are struggling to do some genuine long term planning.  I must be honest and tell you that as a parish we are not very good at that.  It is difficult for us to look beyond today, or even yesterday, into tomorrow.  Long range goal setting can be a frightening process.  What if we fail?  What if we end up doing something else that is better than what we planned on?  What is the Holy Spirit comes along and sends us on a completely different path?  What if.... what if?

We are going to get better at this process, and I am excited to tell you that we have already taken some steps in that direction.

Your Vestry is to be commended for the work they have done together this year.   It has not been an easy year, and it has not been without controversy.  The successes of your Vestry have come about as the result of lots and lots of conversation, lots and lots of time, lots and lots of differing opinion, and lots and lots or prayer.  The fact that members of your Vestry have been willing to discuss, openly and honestly for the most part, items on which they have not agreed has brought about a feeling of community within that group that has not existed during the time I have been here.  It has also brought about a new ability to have consensus on what we will do.

Probably the greatest example of the work of your Vestry is now able to do, as a team, is found in what I am now ready to announce to you.

Your Vestry has come to a conclusion that what we have been doing in the past is not necessarily what we need to be doing in the future.  Your Vestry has decided, based on what we have learned about this parish family, and what have been able to learn from the world around us, that if we are to do our work at Christians we need to do it in some new ways.  If we are going to share Christ with the new generations of this community, we must find a way to do that.  We have realized that what we have done in the past, as dear and sacred as our past it to us, it has failed to bring youth, young adults and college students.  We have been forced to look at new and exciting ways to take the Christian imperative seriously, and be able to go forth into the world, baptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

We first looked at the possibility of a part-time youth minister (not necessarily ordained) and explored that idea from many different prospective.  Something about that idea just didn’t jell, even with lots of prayer, lots of consultation, and with some opportunities presenting themselves, it just didn’t come together.

Then, somehow, we began looking at the possibility of taking advantage of the Diocesan Curacy program.  This is a program which brings new seminary graduate is assigned by the Bishop, for a two year period, with the Diocese sharing in the expenses and maintenance of that position.

Well, this was a great idea, but in order for it to work we would need a lot of money (after all, we tend to present a deficit budget every year), and it if it was going to work, we would surely need a “young” seminary graduate, one with experience working with youth, young adults, and with campus ministry.  Dream and pray as we might, this still seemed to be impossibility.

The next thing that happened was when two of the major donors to what we refer to as Clergy Endowment (which totals over $135,000.00, and is designated to “clergy expenses”) encouraged the Vestry to consider using this endowment to support a two year curacy program at Trinity.  Those encouraging us to use a portion of these funds for this program asked us to see it as an investment in the future, an investment that could make as big a positive difference in the life of this parish as anything else we have done in the past.  The question posed to the Vestry was this – Do you invest these funds in our future, or do we allow them to sit as investments until one day our parish dies because we didn’t step forward, and then have these hard earned and well invested funds passed on to others?  Please keep in mind that these particular funds have been given to the parish with no restrictions other than they be used for clergy expenses.  The use of these funds are not restricted, by deed of gift, to the income from invested capital, and there is nothing in the world to keep us from reinvesting in these funds in the future.

I need to try and make a long story short.  For a serious preacher that is a difficult task, but I’m going to try.

This whole thing has come together.  Your Vestry debated, prayed, researched, prayed, talked, prayed, listened for the voice of God, prayed some more, talked some more, argued a bit, prayed some more, and to the shock of all, voted all 9 members in favor of proposing to the Diocese that Trinity have a Curate.  I must tell you -- I am not joking --  in this day and age about the only time a unanimous vote is expected at a Vestry meeting is in response to a motion to adjourn!

The proposal was presented to the Diocese, and the Diocese approved our proposal. 

The Bishop has appointed Laurie Ann Lewis to be the Curate at Trinity Church, for a period of two years, beginning in July or August of this year.  Her primary responsibility will be in the areas of YOUTH, YOUNG ADULT, AND CAMPUS MINISTRY.  She will be graduating from Virginia Theological Seminary in May, and will be ordained Deacon, at the Cathedral, on June 7.  She will be working closely with your Rector, Father Craig Loya (Diocesan Campus Missioner) and Mr. Chad Senuta (Diocesan Youth Minister) as we all work and pray together to develop new and exciting programs for the youth of El Dorado, for the young adults of El Dorado, and for the students of Butler Community College.

Laurie, her husband Tom (an electrician) and their young son T.J., will soon be joining the Trinity family.  Laurie will be working with us for approximately thirty hours a week, and will become an integral part of the work and ministry which we carry on in our parish family and our surrounding community.  I have met with Laurie, and she and I now converse at length, and I have no reservation in proclaiming she will be an asset to each of us.  She is tremendously talented, and she has the experience we need.  She is filled with excitement for life, and even those of us who are what we might say are a “bit more on the mature side,” will benefit from her love of God, from her devotion to Jesus Christ, and her openness to the Holy Spirit.  How blessed we are.  God answers prayers, even when we don’t think he will.  God answers prayers even when we aren’t sure what to pray for.  How blessed we are!

For those of you who would like to know a bit more about Laurie, I will post her resume on the bulletin board.  She is a graduate of WSU, and her “home parish” is Saint James, Wichita, she and her beautiful family own a home in Wichita.

One other thing we can look forward to on the more immediate horizon is the addition of a new worship service after Easter.  The new service will be a contemporary service of Evening Prayer, which will take place in the parish hall.  The service will initially be held on the last Sunday of the month (beginning March 30), and will begin at 5:00 p.m.  The worship service will be followed by a meal.  This worship service and meal will be advertised at BCC as “A Little Prayer...  A Little Singing... A Little Preaching... A Little fellowship... A Lot of Food.”  This worship opportunity is designed with college students, young adults and youth in mind.  However, if you don’t fall into any of those categories, you are still encouraged to plan on joining us, experiencing something new, having a good time, meeting new sisters and brothers in Christ, and enjoying a wonderful meal.

I also want to encourage you to look forward to our Lenten Program.  The title this year is Who Am I?  Who Are We?  The Program begins on Wednesday, February 13, and continues each succeeding Wednesday in Lent, concluding on Wednesday, March 12.  It will follow a service of Evening Prayer which will begin at 5:45 p.m., in the church.  Plan to journey with your sisters and brothers in Christ this year by sharing in meaningful worship, by being a part of our Lenten Program and by taking part in our now traditional Soup Suppers.

There is so much could share with you this morning.  I am ever so excited and thankful for in the life of our parish.  I could go on for a long, long time, but I know I must end, at least for now.  How do I thank everyone who does so much?  How do I thank all who support the many and varied ministries of this family?  How do to I thank those who give so much of themselves?  How do I thank those who pray for this church?  How do I thank those who pray for the clergy of this parish family?  How do I thank so many who do so much?  Where do I begin?

For now I say THANK YOU.  The words seem to understate the thought.  For now I simply thank God for each of you and for all you do.  I thank God for each of you, as you are truly a gift from God, a gift which shows forth His glory in so many varied and wondrous ways. 

I thank God especially, today, for our Vestry.  For their willingness to pray – for their willingness to stick to the tasks our Lord has put before us, for their willingness to disagree, for their willingness to listen to God’s voice and call, and for their willingness to go to those places where we have been afraid to go in the past, knowing that we go not on our own, but in the name of Jesus Christ, who was, and is, and always will be.

Hear this prayer, the prayer we use to close every Vestry meeting.

(written by Sir Francis Drake)

            Disturb us, Lord, when we are too well pleased with ourselves, when our dreams have come true because we dreamed too little, when we arrive safely because we sailed too close to the shore.

          Disturb us, Lord, when with the abundance of things we possess, we have lost our thirst for the waters of life; having fallen in love with life, we have ceased to dream of eternity; and in our efforts to build a new earth, we have allowed our vision of the new Heaven to dim.

          Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly, to venture on wider seas where storms will show your majesty; where losing sight of land, we find the stars.

          We ask you to push back the horizons of our hopes, and to push us into the future in strength, courage, hope and love.

          This we ask in the name of our Captain, who is Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Can you give me an AMEN?

Can you give me another AMEN?

Can you give me an ALLELUIA?

Amen.

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