My Dear People of St. Thomas,
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Christ is Risen!
After what always to me seems like an eternity, and this year even more so, we are finally to Eastertide, the great 50 days of Easter in which we celebrate the Resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ, the conquering of the grave. We can now, and we should now, and we must now shout “Alleluia” at every opportunity we can possibly find! Recognize Jesus Christ alive, Immanuel, among and with us, in all that we live and do, and all that we will continue to be. The promise and the hope of our future are alive and well, in spite of what our circumstances seem to say. Graves do not win!
“Alleluias” of life-giving spirit and shouts of great thanks simply must be raised to all who worked tirelessly to make our Lenten/Palm Sunday/Holy Week/Easter observance the once-in-a-lifetime experience it was. I am so grateful and humbled by the retired (and yet never retiring) clergy bench at St. Thomas the Apostle that continues to surround me with love, support, wisdom, and fresh, new, creative ideas for ministry! (Stephen J. Waller, Virginia Holleman, Ray Ball, Andy McCarthy) And I am particularly grateful to one Brite Divinity School seminarian (Allen Junek), who has jumped with us into this technological fray as we are thrust, kicking and screaming, into the world of virtual church! (I told you on my first Sunday with you that your comfort zone would be tested with me and it was going to be through technology – but sisters and brothers, I had no idea this was going to be the method!)
I offer up “Alleluias” of thanks and praise for the tireless work and optimistic spirit of our Organist/Choirmaster, Lee Corbin, who is creative and talented and willing to try most anything I ask! And I “Alleluia” all of the wonderful, talented singers who so freely and beautifully offer up to God the fragrant incense of their gifts. For lectors who read with conviction and tenderness and hope, and are willing to help “tell” our faith story! And all the behind-the-scenes folks who make this story run! (Pam Liles, I see you back there, making the virtual office run!)
Alleluia!
And I think the most exciting “Alleluia” that I have this day is to be a Doubter, because Lent 2020 has demonstrated for me what that really means. Doubters have a “can-do” spirit that extends in every single direction.
We have learned some things in our quest for God in the most usual, mundane, routine, even rote places of our lives as we took a highly unusual Lent 2020 journey. I don’t want us to miss or forget or lose any of that. We ARE going to use all this, I promise.We are continually developing ourselves in our common life together for the work that God IS calling us to, and WILL call us to when we reoccupy the property on Inwood and Mockingbird.
This Sunday, we are going to hear the story of our patron saint, Thomas, the original doubter! Thomas gives life to all our ability to ask questions, to be people of great faith. You are people of great faith. I have witnessed that, and I am forever grateful for that. I hope you’ll zoom into church on Sunday and witness that for yourselves. Come touch for yourself.
It really is true.
The Lord is Risen Indeed! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Yours faithfully,
Fr. Christopher+
