Wednesday

  • Usual AM routine; Morning Prayer in the cathedral.
  • Wrote a note of congratulation and appreciation to a retired priest of the diocese about to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his ordination.
  • Wrote a letter to a Brazilian priest who is planning to take part in a graduate program at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale this spring, the purpose of which is to help him and his wife secure travel documents from the U.S. government.
  • Wrote a substantive email to a lay leader in one of our parishes regarding an emerging issue there.
  • Traded several emails with a travel agent in an effort to make flight reservations for the Title IV "Conciliation" meeting to be held next month in Richmond, VA. Two other bishops and I are representing the five others who are respondents to a clergy misconduct complaint regarding statements we made to secular courts regarding the polity of the Episcopal Church.
  • Planned and scheduled the individual tasks associated with two upcoming major projects: leading the Lenten teaching series at St Matthew's, Bloomington, and leading the regular annual retreat for priests in the Diocese of Albany this next April.
  • Lunch at home--leftovers.
  • Did some mop-up work re the travel plans mentioned above.
  • Conceived and hatched a sermon for Christmas Eve (St Paul's Cathedral).
  • Took a quick tour of the diocesan website just to flag any areas that need freshening. It looked pretty good.
  • Posted to the website a communication I received this morning from the Bishop of Tabora, one of our new companion diocese relationships.
  • Posted to the website a series of teaching videos that was recorded at St Thomas', Salem this past August and September. Check it out: Proclaiming Good News 101.
  • Evening Prayer in the cathedral.

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