Outside Church Walls

opalian C pis e Virginia of Virginia Diocese Magazine of the Episcopal Quarterly The Summer 2014 Outside Church Walls 2 Deacons Connect Church & World 10 Food Trucks Build Community Presence at Church 20 Small Churches Grow in Local Outreach 22 Congregations Focus on Wellness For Christ. For this time. For all time. letter to the Editor Who We are Bishop Johnston, in the Spring edition of the Virginia the episCopal DioCese oF Virginia Episcopalian, observes that he is often asked about the For Christ. For this time. For all time. Diocese: “What is it?”, “What does it do?”, etc. But then he all but ignores the questions and devotes his quarterly column to the mayo memorial Church house: the January 2014 Council. 110 West Franklin St. 800-DIOCESE The Council may be important to the Diocese. But the Richmond, VA 23220-5095 804-643-8451 Diocese surely does not exist just to present a Council to its Fax 804-644-6928 member parishes and parishioners. And, to add a cautionary note to Bishop Johnston’s enthusiasm about the last Council, The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia is a part of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the it is worth remembering that only about 1 percent of the Episcopal Church. We are a community of 80,000 baptized members and 425 clergy in 38 diocesan membership were present. counties and serveral cities of central, northern and northwestern Virginia, serving the world Perhaps a forthcoming issue can address the relevance and through 182 congregations, six diocesan schools, two diocesan centers and six diocesan homes, role of dioceses in general and our diocese in particular. I would and home to the largest Anglican seminary in the world. Our episcopal seat is the Cathedral hope that the bishop or whoever might author such an article Shrine of the Transfiguration, Orkney Springs. Organized 1785. would keep in mind that many current Episcopalians have how to reach the Diocesan staff: strong congregationalist backgrounds of one sort or another. Paris Ball, Director of Christian Formation [email protected] ext. 1042 Buck Blanchard, Director of Mission and Outreach [email protected] 1016 W. MICHAEL MAHONEY Mary Anne Bryant, Assistant, Mission and Outreach [email protected] 1017 Trinity, Washington Joy Buzzard, Financial Administrator [email protected] 1022 Emily Cherry, Communications Director [email protected] 1021 Laura Cramer, Benefits Administrator [email protected] 1040 Stephanie Higgins, Bp. Assistant, Congregational Support [email protected] 1029 Virginia episCopalian Edward W. Jones, Secretary of the Diocese, Chief of Staff [email protected] 1030 Summer 2014 Wilbert “Skeet” Jones, Sexton 1028 Volume 123 IssuE 3 Ed Keithly, Vocation Officer [email protected] 1015 Mildred Lofton, Bookkeeper [email protected] 1023 Published by the Diocese of Virginia – Circulation 19,400 Bill Martin, Assistant to the Secretary [email protected] 1025 Bishop: The Rt. Rev. Shannon S. Johnston Kendall Martin, Communications & Transition Ministry Asst. [email protected] 1029 Bishop Suffragan: The Rt. Rev. Susan E. Goff Lindsay Ryland, Transition Ministry Director [email protected] 1013 Assistant Bishop: The Rt. Rev. Edwin F. Gulick Jr. Editor: Emily Cherry Mitchell Sams, Bishop’s Clerk [email protected] 1038 Design/Layout: John Dixon Meg Schwarz, Assistant, Christian Formation [email protected] 1043 Advertising/Copyediting Assistant: Kendall Martin Julie Simonton, Staff Officer for Congregational Development & Stewardship [email protected] 1035 Virginia Episcopalian (ISSN 15353621, USPS 019711) is published quarterly by the Karen Smith, Receptionist/Assistant [email protected] 1010 Episcopal Diocese of Virginia, periodicals postage paid in Richmond, 23232-9998. Ted Smith, Treasurer [email protected] 1046 Copyright 2013. Contact the editor for reprint permission. Views expressed in Michael Wade, Asst. to the Director of Christian Formation [email protected] 1027 this newspaper are not official statements of policy by the Diocese. Editorial/ advertising policy is set by the editor and Executive Board. Kate Wettstein, Assistant to Bishop Gulick [email protected] 703-241-0441 Postmaster: Send changes of address to the Virginia Episcopalian, 110 W. Amy Williams, Assistant to Bishop Johnston [email protected] 1012 Franklin St., Richmond VA 23220. Office hours are 8:30 a.m.-4:45 p.m., Monday The Rev. Canon Pat Wingo, Canon to the Ordinary [email protected] 1024 through Friday. Communicants: $5/year Non-Communicants: $6/year On the cover: Open doors at St. Mark’s, Richmond. Photo: John Dixon Lee Construction Consultants LLC Assisting building committees in the management of their design and construction teams James M. Lee, President P.O. Box 29074 Richmond, VA 23242 (804) 332-1274 [email protected] l www.lee-cc.com Of the holy spirit ThE Rt. Rev. Shannon S. Johnston So now we’re in that part of the year that in the Church is people, to whom the Prophets known as “after Pentecost” (as in the “umpteenth Sunday communicated the will and after Pentecost”). Why make a count of Sundays after the Day ways of God. It is God the Holy of Pentecost which, this year, was June 8? Because that great Spirit who has sustained the Day of Pentecost, the feast of the gift of the Holy Spirit to the Church’s holiness for 2,000 Church (see Acts 2:1-11), actually concluded the theological years despite the Church’s story of the Church Year, properly speaking – Advent through many failings. It is God the Easter – and “marks time” until we return to the new Church Holy Spirit who enables us to Year with next Advent I. build up the Kingdom of God This gives us the opportunity to reflect on that gift of Photo: Brandon Martin more and more in human life. the Holy Spirit to the Church. Just what is meant by this term, Bishop Johnston Baptism is the gift of the the “Holy Spirit”? How can we tell anything about the Spirit’s Holy Spirit to the one being presence and activity? What does this have to do with your daily baptized. It is through that gift life of faith? that the Christian is able to know God personally, live in God’s To begin to think about the Holy Spirit, I’d like to go to that will, and receive God’s grace. But note that this happens only Day of Pentecost itself. That unfathomable day was the time after the Spirit filled the Church on the Day of Pentecost. We can when God’s own being was joined with the life of the Church. all too easily forget that the activity of the Holy Spirit is primarily We are told that following Jesus’ ascension into Heaven, the a communal reality. This is certainly not to say that the Holy Holy Spirit came to the Apostles in the form of “tongues of Spirit doesn’t move in individual life; after all, Christian history is flame” with a sound “like the rush of a violent wind.” The full of quite notable, even history-making examples of solitary proof of the Holy Spirit’s presence and power was that, as inspiration. Even so, the larger record of Scripture and most of the Apostles spoke, the people who were present from many our history show that the movement of the Holy Spirit is first regions heard their own native languages being spoken, all and foremost a phenomenon of a community of the baptized at the same time. This miracle infused the Church’s ministry (even as small as two or three). This is but one reason why it with the very presence of the triune God. Thus, Pentecost is is so self-defeating to try to “go it alone” for Christian faith sometimes referred to as “the birthday of the Church” since and life. Moreover, it is essential that we fend off the strong this was the event through which the Church was empowered temptation to equate the will and the work of the Holy Spirit by God to begin its mission in the world. with our own personal emotions. The Holy Spirit has nothing to The Day of Pentecost is the assurance that the Church is do with our satisfied subjectivism – what makes us feel good, what it claims to be: the continuing Body of Christ and the real- or comfortable, or correct. The Spirit has everything to do with life way to live in the saving acts of a gracious God. This means what brings our lives closer to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Given that Pentecost boldly proclaims that the Church’s power is the realities of human nature, I would argue that the leading nothing less than God’s own power! Who wants a Church that of the Spirit in the Gospel is more likely to be uncomfortable, is only as good or as strong as we are in ourselves? Pentecost disorienting and challenging for us. celebrates the fact that the Church has the transforming love Something of this is gathered from the imagery in Scripture and strength of God to offer to human life. evoking the nature of the Spirit: “violent wind” and “fire.” We People are sometimes confused by the unfortunate know that wind and fire exist beyond us and have overwhelming modern-day connotations of the old English translation “Holy power that compels our humility. So it is with the Holy Spirit. Ghost.” That term can lead to thinking of the Spirit as essentially The Spirit is also a power that inspires our gratitude. The “Jesus’ ghost.” This is not at all what Scripture says and shows. Holy Spirit comes to us to make us God’s own. To that, we can The Holy Spirit is not a “ghost,” but rather is no less than God, only respond: “Amen.

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