26 August 2020
Dear friends,
At a recent funeral (the first in the church since February) we heard the famous reading from Ecclesiastes that begins, “For everything there is a season.” More on my mind lately is how it ends: “That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already is; and God seeks out what has gone by.” After six months in which it has felt as if the world has been holding its breath and time has been on pause, this seems like a good time to look back and look ahead.
My first and most important message is to say thank you. We devoted a Carpenter’s Helper issue to this theme, but I must add my own thanks. Many people have kept St. Thomas’s going through the COVID Spring and Summer of 2020. The altar has been tended. Meals have been made and delivered. The grounds have been planted and weeded and cleared of storm damage. Pledges and other donations have continued to come in. Our ability to share our events over the Internet has expanded rapidly. A wonderful new chapter in our cooperation with St Nicholas’s has begun. To all those who have made these and other things happen, I extend my personal thanks and the thanks of the parish. Well done, good and faithful servants of our Lord Jesus.
With that as a launching pad, we are ready to begin looking forward. Committees have been meeting over the summer to work on stewardship and Christian education for children and youth. They will begin to share the fruits of their work soon.
The first offerings of the adult education program for the year will also be coming up in September. For these and other events, we are excited to be able to use what we have learned about Zoom and YouTube to make sure that everyone has a chance to participate.
Another small group has joined with members of St. Nicholas’s to explore ways we can cooperate on service, fellowship, and worship. Expect to hear more about this mutual ministry in the coming weeks.
At a meeting of the clergy this week, the diocesan Commission on Ministry rolled out a new program to help parishes organize small groups for the deepening of faith and the discernment of new opportunities to which God may be calling us. I am excited about this initiative and am confident that many at St. Thomas’s will find it to be a powerful faith fertilizer.
Another diocesan group has been working on our response to racism inside and outside the church. The first of their recommendations and the programs they inspire will be coming to St. Thomas’s and churches all over Delaware this fall. I encourage everyone to join in this part of the church’s mission to heal creation.
And I am pleased to report that the Vestry has voted to resume in-person worship at St. Thomas’s on Sunday, September 13th. A group of parishioners met over the summer to produce a plan for a safe resumption of services. This plan has been approved by the Diocese and will guide us in helping to make sure those who wish to be present for worship can do so with the least risk possible.
For the present, our weekly schedule will remain the same: Sunday morning at 9:00 a.m. and Wednesday at noon. All services will continue to be live-streamed. Some details of our routine will look a bit different. Numbers will be limited and safety precautions like masks and hand sanitizing will be firmly in place. Look for another communication in the next week to give more information and answer some frequently asked questions.
And so, friends, we approach the end of the summer with a lot to show for the odd “in-between” days we have been passing through. I hope your summer has been restful and that, like me, you are ready for some new beginnings. May God shower you with every spiritual blessing as we move toward what is yet to be.
Peace and be well,
Fr. Howie+
The Reverend Dr. Howell C. Sasser, Jr.
A short course comparing religions will cover the theologies of Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism, using a comparison with Christianity as a way of pulling the threads together. Our goal will be to see how the major faith traditions approach the same questions of creation, sin, eternity, and the righteous life.