Dear Friends,

What does it mean to be a member here at St. John’s? There are actually many ways to answer that question. As we prepare for our Annual Meeting on February 2nd, the following information may be helpful:

Membership in the Body of Christ: According to The Book of Common Prayer, “Holy Baptism is full initiation by water and the Holy Spirit into Christ’s Body the Church. The bond which God establishes in Baptism is indissoluble.” Any baptized Christian then, is a member of Christ’s church. But that church manifests itself in a myriad of ways throughout the world, and different traditions have different ways of defining what it means to belong.

Membership in the Episcopal Church: Adult members of the Episcopal Church are those who have made a mature public affirmation of their faith and commitment to the responsibilities of their baptism. If your membership is still in another Episcopal Church it can be transferred to St. John’s. If you come from another tradition, you can be received or confirmed in the Episcopal Church. During Lent and the Easter season, we will offer an Inquirer’s Class so that those who wish to join may do so. Reception and Confirmation occurs at a service at a large service in the spring, presided over by the bishop.

Membership in St. John’s Church: You can also be a member of this local parish, even before joining the Episcopal Church. St. John’s, like every parish, has a Constitution (or set of bylaws) – and membership is defined this way:

 Any baptized person of the age of sixteen years or more, who acknowledges in writing the authority of the Constitution of the Parish, and by declaring his or her intention to support the parish by regular attendance in public worship, and by contributing time, talent, and treasure, shall be considered a member of the Parish and entitled to vote in its affairs.

In other words, membership at St. John’s involves a commitment to be engaged in the worship life here, and to contribute one’s time, skills, and financial gifts to the life of the parish. Each year, those who wish to become members are given an opportunity to sign the Parish Register at the Annual Meeting and become voting members. (This can also take place at another time if you cannot be here on February 2nd.)

If you are not yet a member here, I hope you will consider joining us as we live out our call to follow Jesus Christ. And if you are a member, I hope that in the weeks to come the commitment of new members will lead you to remember and reaffirm your own commitment and your own calling.

Faithfully,

Tom

Dear Friends,

As I write these words late on a Friday afternoon, sunlight is streaming through the windows of the office in the Parish House. And I am delighted. Clearly, there is more light than even a few weeks ago. The days once again are growing longer. I notice that reality, and yet I don’t. The change is gradual, I am unaware, and then suddenly there is a moment when the change is so apparent. It can happen sitting at the desk. It can happen walking across the locks. It can happen as a child steps off to school in the morning, suddenly surrounded by so much more of the daylight.

While the candles of Christmas have been put away, we often talk about how the light of Christ is made manifest to us in these weeks and months after the celebrations are over. Christ’s presence in our lives and in the life of our community is not unlike that sunlight. There is a persistent, growing presence, which at times is unnoticed, or unseen. And then comes a moment when we realize how much has changed,  how much we have been changed, how much we have been blessed. And we are delighted.

I hope that in these days of growing light, you and I take time to look and to see how it is that Christ is growing in us, for the fulfillment of all God intends in this place. May the light that is Christ surprise us, with its radiance and with its promise.

Faithfully,

Tom

Dear Friends,

Last week at a clergy luncheon, I was approached by the Rev. Canon Connie Ng Lam. Connie is new to our diocese, and is the Canon for Asiamerican Ministries at St. Paul’s Cathedral. The cathedral has a flourishing Chinese American congregation, and Connie told me that she had distributed the Advent calendar that I design each year to the congregation. As I looked at her copy, I was surprised and delighted – all of the scripture citations and devotional suggestions had been translated into Chinese.

In the twenty years that my friend Merry Watters and I have been producing this calendar, we continue to be amazed at how it finds its way to places we never would have expected. We make an effort each year to produce it, but once we send it out into the world, it seems to take on a life of its own. The fruit of our efforts is the result of much more than our efforts. And for that we are grateful.

This Sunday, I am inviting to you to join in a conversation after church about our parish’s mission and ministry in the larger community. I know that Advent is already a busy time. I know that the very last thing we may want to be doing two weeks before Christmas is to explore what new challenges or tasks we may be called to undertake. And yet they are not challenges or tasks. When we consider Christ’s call to us to serve others, it is to hear an invitation to participate in something that is about much more than our own efforts.

Though it is not a regular part of our Advent readings from the Hebrew scriptures, in this season I am particularly fond of these words from the prophet Isaiah:

For as the rain and snow come down from heaven,
and do not return there until they have watered the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.      (Isaiah 55:10,11)

The word goes out. And the way in which that word manifests itself is always the result of much more than our efforts. I invite you to join me on Sunday to consider what seeds God may be planting in the good soil of this parish, so that the word will indeed accomplish all that God intends.

Faithfully,

Tom

Dear Friends,

I usually use this space to share my reflections on the week. Today let me share with you instead a letter from the Rev. Canon Mally Ewing Lloyd, Canon to the Ordinary for the Diocese, concerning Bishop Shaw’s health:

Dear Friends,

Bishop Tom asked me to be in touch to let you know that his doctors have recommended a surgical procedure in order to continue monitoring his response to his treatment for brain cancer.  This recommendation comes after consultation with his medical team over the past few days.  The procedure is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 6 at 1 p.m.  He expects to spend a couple of days in the hospital and then recover at home with his SSJE brothers.  He asks for your prayers, which he so deeply appreciates; no hospital visits, please, but cards and messages are welcome.  They may be sent to him in care of the Society of St. John the Evangelist, 980 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02138.

While another surgery may sound worrisome, Bishop Tom is confident in his doctors’ advice and continues to be grateful for their care and expertise.

We will update you when there is more information to share.  Thank you for your prayers during this Advent season of watching and waiting.

Peace,
Mally

I know that all of us at St. John’s will continue to keep Bishop Shaw in our prayers.
Faithfully,
Tom