January 2022, St. Paul's

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Message to Parish
Fr. Dale
Jan. 13, 2022

From the Diocese

As you may be aware every week the Bishop of the Diocese of North Carolina meets with clergy and other leaders over Zoom. I have said before that I am enormously impressed by the ability to stay connected with the bishop and the clergy of the diocese. It is one of those unintended and surprising consequences to our response to COVID-19.

Last week was the first week since Christmas that we met. The bishop expressed some regret at the disruption that we have felt with the eruption of the Omicron variant among us. At that time, and again when he was with us for his visitation on Sunday, he emphasized that the diocese intends to support each local community as it makes decisions about how to respond with compassion and wisdom to the effects of the current spike resulting from the Omicron variant. In response to my inquiry, he reported that some parts of the diocese have continued to have in-person worship while other parts have made the decision that we made here at Saint Paul’s to have a virtual worship through live streaming.

As most of you are aware the Covid positivity rate in Union County is around 30%. The positivity rate established as the base back in the fall for instituting masking and social distancing was 7.5%. Clearly we are experiencing a dramatic spike of infections locally as well as nationally and globally. One of the important concerns is the heavy load that is being laid on healthcare workers and our healthcare system. As has been reported the greatest danger from infection is from those who are not vaccinated, but this variant has proven a surprising ability to infect even those who have been vaccinated.

I have made difficult decisions on behalf of our faith community and tried to balance different needs and expectations. It's never possible to satisfy everyone's needs. Sometimes when one seeks to balance competing needs one succeeds in satisfying no one. We made a sudden shift to virtual worship and then I was concerned about what the bishop’s expectations would be for his visit. We have now navigated holidays and special services and are looking at a return to in person worship. The peak of the omicron surge is unlikely to be reached for a couple of weeks.

It seems prudent to continue with the current worship schedule for the next couple of weeks as we gauge the overall impact of the surge. My hope is that as January draws to a close it will appear clearer when we can prudently and with concern for all return to in-person worship. On January 23 Mary Pat and I will be out of town and I have asked Tripp Helms to officiate and preach at Morning Prayer. For the next two weeks we will continue with live streaming worship.

  • Jan. 16: Eucharist -- Epiphany 2 (10 am)
  • Jan. 23: Morning Prayer -- Epiphany 3 (10 am) ## Bishop's visit and Confirmation Although attendance at the bishop’s visitation was minimal because of our Covid decisions, there were quite a number of you who viewed the liturgy online. You were able to see Elizabeth Aodo Evans Becker make a public dedication and commitment to Christ. There really was a sense of glory in the room.

We also commissioned our new vestry reflecting the very changed circumstances that we find ourselves in at Saint Pauls. We are still in need of someone who is willing to serve for 1 year in the single vacancy in our 6 person vestry.

The bishop himself preached poignantly and powerfully about the need to build our whole lives together on the basis of love. All too often the church generally has focused on other concerns. St. Paul’s has a long history of demonstrating love. Let us focus on our demonstrated strengths, not our perceived weaknesses.

My Faith, My Church

As the main part of our preparation for Lizzy's confirmation she and her family read a book titled My Faith, My Church. We met weekly, often via Zoom, and had interesting and enlightening conversations about the content. The subjects were:

  • Chapter 1: Baptism and Confirmation: Beginnings
  • Chapter 2: The Bible: Stories about Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
  • Chapter 3: Knowing Our History
  • Chapter 4: Faith: What Do We Believe?
  • Chapter 5: Worship: Responding to God’s Blessings
  • Chapter 6: Sacraments: Signs of Grace
  • Chapter 7: Spirituality: Created for Prayer
  • Chapter 8: Navigating the Church: From Local to Worldwide Church
  • Chapter 9: The Mission of God: What’s Your Ministry?

Lizzie’s father repeated several times, "I think that many members of St. Paul's would be interested in this."

Are any of you interested? Would you like to be a part of a study group? A reading group? At some point we will be able to safely gather in person. A virtual or Zoom gathering has certain advantages. Let me know of your thoughts. Respond to this email. Call or text. Leave a message.

Buechner: Vocation of individual, vocation of community

As we begin a new calendar year, it is natural to turn our attention to the near future. What does the future hold for Saint Paul’s? These are both the natural questions to anticipate but also the source of a good bit of fear on the part of many.

I am persuaded of the profound wisdom found in a brief description by Frederick Buechner. He was describing how one can identify one’s vocation, one’s calling, what it is that God wants us to be doing.

There are all different kinds of voices calling you to all different kinds of work, and the problem is to find out which is the voice of God rather than of Society, say, or the Super-ego, or Self-Interest.

By and large a good rule for finding out is this. The kind of work God usually calls you to is the kind of work (a) that you need most to do and (b) that the world most needs to have done. If you really get a kick out of your work, you’ve presumably met requirement (a), but if your work is writing TV deodorant commercials, the chances are you’ve missed requirement (b). On the other hand, if your work is being a doctor in a leper colony, you have probably met requirement (b), but if most of the time you’re bored and depressed by it, the chances are you have not only bypassed (a) but probably aren’t helping your patients much either.

Neither the hair shirt nor the soft berth will do. The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet. (Wishful Thinking)

I am convinced that it is it as important for a community to pay attention to these matters as it is for an individual. I have seen again and again communities that thrive when they have figured out where it was that God wanted them to be. The intersection of the heart’s desire and the needs of the world.

We need not fear the changes approaching us in the coming months and years. “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear...” (1 John 4:18) What is needed is the courage to walk into The intersection of heart’s desire and the needs of the world.

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