Dear Friends,
God works in time. I allude to that in my birthday blessings every Sunday. God who is beyond all categories chooses to enter into the constructs of time. We have seen the witness of this parish over the past 100 years, and we are here now claiming that God is with us. God calls us to be the body of Christ in this time and place. While there may be unique nuances to the hopes and hardships of our time, the call to love God and our neighbors as ourselves guides still holds.
The renovations to our space offer an opportunity to explore how we are present in this time and place. How will we use this space in creative ways that declare that God is with us? What voices do we need to pause and listen to? What words do we need to speak in our time? What does loving God, our neighbor, and ourselves look like in this time? I pray that we can all be curious about ways to point to God's presence in our time.
I know that I am grateful and encouraged to be a part of this parish now. We have many opportunities to be together. There are opportunities to pray, study, and serve together. Note that we will have a Friendship Circle dinner on June 24. Come and join us as these have been times to just be together. Coming together with you helps me see God present in this time and place. May we all know God with us in this time.
Peace,
Fr. John Mark