On Saying Goodbye and Welcoming New Clergy : A Letter from the Rector

The occasion of Matthew Scott’s new calling is a good time to hear God’s call to us as we enrich his leaving and the calling of a new associate rector.

When we say goodbye to our clergy, it’s always a time of mixed feelings.  Everyone understands that clergy must move on to be faithful to their vocation, develop their career, and provide for family needs.  However, many still wonder why it must happen to a particular clergy member.  This may be even more deeply felt with Matthew as we have shared many important transitions with him—as a student, a new deacon and staff member, ordination to the priesthood, and sharing with him and Nancy as proud new parents.  The calling to be a priest-in-charge is another rite of passage in which we both play important parts—his going forth and our letting go.

Let us honor this mutual calling by starting to say our goodbyes now.  The word, “goodbye,” literally means “God bless you.”  We commend those who leave us to God’s gracious care for a new ministry without expecting them to continue to be our pastors here.  On the contrary, we claim that same grace to welcome new clergy and to entrust ourselves to their care.  I deeply respect the mixed feelings of letting go and welcoming new clergy.  It’s been 13 years since I left Marietta, and I have not returned for pastoral services for those I really still love.

In every ending, God calls us to new beginnings. The calling of a new associate begins with the rector’s search and choice of a candidate for the ministry. I will rely on parish leaders (and anyone’s input) to spell out the needs of the parish and the kind of person needed to meet them.  This calling process is completed when the vestry, in consultation with the Finance Committee, approves a financial package for the rector’s choice.  I avoid timetables and focus on trying to find the best individuals. If you have any suggestions—please speak with me or email me.

We rejoice for Matthew’s new call.  Pray that we may hear our new calling and be faithful in it.

Faithfully yours,

The Dr. Laurence K. Packard, Rector

Rector’s Reflection: Arlington Easter 2010

Rector’s Reflections: It Ain’t Birthdays that Age Us!

How often I have used that saying! Birthdays come and go, with day the same as the next. Yet the memorable ones are those that leave their indelible marks on us. Sometimes they come out of the dark–the slings and arrows of outrageous betrayal–as Shakespeare said.  And, we are left scarred for life,  beyond the reach of any plastic surgeon. The church year frames our aging differently. No matter what those close to us do to us–and the sky is the limit–the church year says that heaven, not the sky, is the real limit. We walk with Jesus through the Church Year, and in so doing, we learn day by day with event by event, what Paul wrote in Ephesians 4: that we in every way to grow up in Christ, who is the head of the Body, to attain the full stature of Christ. — Larry

As General Convention Ends… Follow-Up Report August 16, 10:15, Parlor

The Episcopal General Convention ended on Friday, and as we have done in the past, we have scheduled a follow-up review of its work. The lessons from past Conventions cautions us that the press has a difficult time accurately reporting the actual intent of legislation and resolutions of a religious nature. In the meantime, if you have specific questions, please don’t hesitate to speak with me.  – The Rev. Dr. Laurence K. Packard, Rector

Rector’s Reflections Maine’s Greeting– Soul Survival!

Vision

Why do I set the clock to chase the sunrise,
Or stop the busy day to catch the sunset?
I live for colors to soak the soul,
And open my eyes to a world of wonder,
With rainbows that come without a storm.

Greetings from the Maine coast!  Ever watch that movie “City of Angels” with Meg Ryan and Nicolas Cage?  All the angels gather at the sunrise because it holds out for them “light uncreated—the divine light for angels.”  All of them turn aside for what really gives them life.  That first light, or that last light is like a birth—when we hold a newborn and know it is pure gift, miracle—not yours, but higher grace through you.  Such is first light, or last light that leads to the newness of the day or the next day.  In our heart of hearts, we hear the angels sing with the psalmist, “This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.”  So I leave myself the same pressing question for you—why don’t I set the clock to chase the sunrise or sunset at home?  Ah, follow the angels!

Larry

Rector’s Reflections : Where Was Your Graduation?

No doubt about it—graduations are memory makers.  First we take those steps to Pomp & Circumstance and then we get to watch our kids do it. It’s already meant more for me and Melissa to be a part of our sons’ graduations now means more than our own.  Donna Williamson shared much the same sentiment when she recently attended her daughter, Rachel’s graduation at Duke Univ.  Imagine Donna’s surprise, however, when she turned on the Today Show and there was her daughter being interviewed after the graduation!  Graduation is more than a time of individual accomplishment. Isn’t a whole family taken up in that event and brought to a new level of life?  At the heart of our faith are the sacraments, the outward visible signs of the inner spiritual grace of God.  Graduations have that same sacramental quality – outward signs of the commitment, devotion and investment of lives readied for a new life.  Congratulations to all of our graduates—and their families!  Larry

Rector’s Reflections : Babbling at Pentecost

After the musical sermon, I was asked this question:  “Why in the world did God mess up all of the languages—did God just need more to do?”  “No,” I said, “God did not speak—he did not have to. Pride spoke at the Tower of Babel—and pride has a language of its own that runs over others and confuses what we say. We do hear from biblical scholars that Pentecost reverses the Tower of Babel.  It gave the one language that could be understood.  The Spirit.  When we are humble and quiet enough to let the Spirit speak—then all understand.  Usually without saying one word…   Larry

Rector’s Reflections : What I Live For….

“Every Spring, I head my car north,” wrote E.B. White, “and longed for the moment when my car crossed the Kittery Bridge and I plunged into Maine.” He was home! Ditto from this vacationing rector. It’s not that I live to go back to Maine, but it refreshes my life through one important connection—it’s the one place where I reconnect with my father and mother and the boyhood years of summer. It is a place I knew as a home away from home. I often wonder – Do I feel that way about the Kingdom of God? E.B. White and a whole host of writers told us that “heaven lies about our feet.” Do I know the signs to the Kingdom like I do to Maine? And do they open me to heaven lying about my feet? Jesus certainly had that internal compass in him to follow—using ordinary bread and wine as the way to the real feast in this world. Jesus also gave himself to us as “way, the truth and the life” – no matter where we drive to! Ah, smell that salt air…. That’s home. Larry

What Matters in 24HRS?

Ever watch the series 24, which winds you up into a drama spanning twenty-four hours?  The intensity of the show rises with compressed scenes and the rapid development.  Frankly, I cannot watch it for too long!  That’s what last Saturday was like for me with two weddings, a funeral, wedding consultation and a vestry planning session—before I got up for next day’s full Sunday program. It was living out an episode of 24—I had to rapidly adjust where I was emotionally to hear and speak to each situation. I came away with the wonder of God’s grace—that meets people wherever they are in their lives and regardless of the circumstances.  Ours is to be there as the channel of that grace.  By day’s end, I felt tired but strangely refreshed by what God had done.  A good reminder from the Psalmist for every 24HRS—“This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.”  Larry

Rector Reflections & Photo

Life Dying Young

Light upheld in a rose,
a halo of grace, transitory,
passing through petals,
for life eternal promised,
that God crowns forever.