Loading...Dear Friends in Christ,
Every day I am more excited about being an Episcopalian. I started going to Stras Memorial because of the ritual. I love the processions, the vestments, the music and, of course, the Liturgy. I guess I liked the ritual because of my music and theatre experience – role playing, costumes, and drama. Then I learned what the Episcopal Church is really all about. A young man began coming to church, and after a while said he wanted to join. I explained to him about confirmation. He would take a confirmation class where he would study the Old and New Testaments, the history of the Christian Church, the history of the Episcopal Church, the Sacraments, and the Creeds. In other words, what we are all about. I then asked him why he wanted to be confirmed as an Episcopalian. He said all he heard in the church he had attended was about sin and hell, and all that he had heard while attending the Episcopal Church was about love.
That is what I learned, too. I still love the ritual and always will, but I love so much what we stand for. Jesus said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Love. It is expressed on the Episcopal Church signs, “The Episcopal Church welcomes you.” You is whoever is reading the sign. We love others not because we will get something from them but because they need to be loved. They need to be loved just as much as we do.
There are many different ways to express that love and I am so proud to be part of it. As I mentioned in an earlier letter, the Abingdon Convocation has begun a ministry to the families of those incarcerated in the local prisons. Families should not suffer for the crimes of others. Family is important to me. On May 21, the Convocation will transport family members from eastern Virginia whose loved ones are in Keen Mountain and Pocahontas Correction facilities. The Cluster parishes will feed them breakfast, supper, and give them snacks to eat on the way home.
Our convocation is also establishing a relationship with the Episcopal Churches in Haiti. Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the world. A group from the churches in the Abingdon Convocation will be traveling to Haiti this summer to help relieve some of the suffering.
On June 19, the Cluster will prepare and serve a meal at Grace House for parishioners from All Saints Episcopal Church in Jacksonville, FL who will be giving their time to help those in our area who are in need.
Please keep all of them in your prayers: family and prisoners, the people in Haiti, those in our area, and all those who will minister to them. By keeping them in your prayers, you, too, are part of these outreaches. Remember, it is by your love that you are known to be a follower of Jesus.
May God continue to bless you and keep you.
In Christ’s Love,
Father Russ
