Transcript:
Greetings, beloved in Christ, and happy Easter. If you were to ask any of my children, they would tell you that Easter is a season, not a day. This is the mantra they’ve heard from the time they were very little, that as Episcopalians, we celebrate 50 days of Easter, 50 days of rejoicing in our resurrected life, 50 days in marveling at the miracle of resurrection that connects us to our creator and to one another through our risen Lord.
As many of you know, I will be embarking on sabbatical this fall, and the theme of my sabbatical is connection. In light of that theme, I will be traveling to the Anglican Church of Kenya and the Anglican Church of South Africa and the Anglican Church of Mexico. Specifically, I will be hosted by the first women ordained bishops in the churches that I will be visiting. I will be learning from them what the Holy Spirit is doing, learning how Church is enriching the lives of community, learning how we can be in deeper connection and communion with one another.
As part of my journey, I am asking you, the Episcopal Church of Colorado, to consider donating to my bishops’ appeal for connection and community. The money raised in this appeal will be divided equally among these Anglican churches. In these regions, the church is an arbiter of care for community. They provide mosquito nets, they provide education, they provide healthcare for expectant mothers and children. The church in these places is a centralized place for aid and nurture, the gift of the Holy Spirit made manifest in material goods and care.
And so I am asking you as individuals, as congregations to donate to this cause, because as we connect and care for one another, we are living the kind of communion that the body of Christ is called to live. Our communion is not just for us, it is for all of God’s people. And I pray that you will be willing to contribute generously to this cause. Know that as I travel on sabbatical, I will be carrying you and my heart and in my prayers. And I ask that you pray for me, for my family in my absence. Pray that the Holy Spirit will move and inspire me so that I can return to you refreshed and energized and ready to serve. Blessings.