Friday (St Monnica)

  • Usual weekday AM routine. Morning Prayer in the cathedral.
  • Dealt with some logistical and planning issues related to my attendance at a meeting of the Corporation Members of Nashotah House later this month,
  • Attended to a piece of business related to my trusteeship of the Putnam Trust, of which two of our Eucharistic Communities are beneficiaries.
  • Moved the ball downfield a few yards toward the goal of being able to send some names to the search committee of a parish with a pastoral vacancy,
  • Took care of a small detail pertaining to next week's Darrow Deanery Ascension liturgy, at which YFNB is celebrant and preacher.
  • Cracked open the commentaries on both Mark and II Corinthians toward the end of preaching responsibly at St Michael's, O'Fallon on June 10.
  • Read some material online about a batch of General Convention resolutions that will try to homogenize and standardize procedures around the election of bishops in TEC. Lots of potential for chicanery here, IMO. Vigilance required.
  • Lunch from Taco Gringo (it's been a while), eaten at home.
  • Surveyed my calendar and blocked out some time for a personal retreat in December.
  • Spoke by phone with a member of the Camp Board about some routine administrative issues.
  • Read and responded to an email from one of our parish clergy about goings-on in the parish.
  • Wrestled with my homiletical notes for Proper 6 (June 17 in Mt Carmel) toward the end of emerging with a central message statement for the occasion. I succeeded.
  • Read the Blue Book report from the SCLM on the status of the liturgies for same-sex "marriage."
  • Spent a good chunk of time in silent prayer in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.
  • Evening Prayer in the cathedral.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Spring 2018 House of Bishops, Day 3

Image
We have new stricter social media rules now in the HOB--no photos taken during a session without the permission of those in it. So ... I'm having to be more creative about finding pics for the blog, because I'm not going to take a panoramic group shot and then contact everyone whose balding head shows in the photo! Once again, the day began with Eucharist. This time, though, I took a pass, and opted for a vigorous walk on a brisk morning. Having looked at the liturgy sheet in advance, there were enough triggers that I knew the net spiritual effect for me would be negative. #selfcare  I will say, however, that HOB worship has gotten incrementally less problematic during the tenure of the current Presiding Bishop, and I give props for that. When we convened at 10:15, there were the usual announcements, then a whirlwind set of summary reports from bishop members of the Standing Committee on Liturgy and Music (SCLM) and the Task Force on the Study of Marriage. The full report
Read more

The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany

Image
Ten years ago, minus about six weeks, I served as the supply priest for Trinity, Lincoln six days before my consecration as Bishop of Springfield. Today I was there for the final regular scheduled canonical parish visitation of my episcopate. (I have a few more gigs on my calendar: March 7 in Mattoon, the Chrism Mass, the Triduum at the cathedral, May 30 in Cairo, and June 27 back at the cathedral--May 2 is available and not yet spoken for--but the every Sunday routine of my life for the past decade (in a larger sense, for the last 32 years) is at a major flex point.) As much as it could have been in the midst of a pandemic, this morning at Trinity was luminous. We confirmed eight adults, six of them qualifying as "young." My homily had to compete with the sounds of active young children. (I would much rather do that than have no kids in church.) Trinity is one of the exciting points of light in my ministry in the diocese. I took my time getting out of Lincoln because I wante
Read more

Saturday (St Charles, King & Martyr)

Substantive phone conversations with the rector of Lincoln, the President of the Standing Committee, and the Canon-to-the-Ordinary. Attended the live-streamed memorial service for a former clergy colleague, and continuing friend, with whom I was in serious conversation about coming to the diocese less than a year ago, who died quickly of COVID at age 66. Then, earlier than I actually needed to, but wanting to get out of town ahead of the snowstorm, I packed up and headed south to Lincoln, where I had time to do some significant reading before hitting the sack.
Read more