More musings from the Rector - February 23, 2014

Thirteen years ago this week I arrived as the Rector of St. John’s Church here in Detroit.  I consider it to have been a great privilege and a great grace to baptize 137 adults and children, present 105 people for confirmation or reception, solemnize 70 marriages, and officiate at the burial rites for 77 people.

For those who have not heard the story of my being called, I will share it here.  I was the Rector of a parish in a small town 25 miles south of Pittsburgh.  Having felt that perhaps I was finished there, God provided, through the recommendation of David and Sharon Schafer, the opportunity to apply for the position of rector at St. John’s.  They were long-time friends of my family and Dave worked with my father.

Fr. Richard Kim had retired in 1997 and the parish had been without a rector since then.  The Diocese, under a previous administration, was not keen on the election of a new traditional 1928 Prayer Book priest, and worked to prolong the search process.  But the combination of the institution of a new Bishop and staff, and the determined work of the vestry and search committee, accelerated the process so that I was able to interview the week after Thanksgiving in 2000.

Generally, a candidate for rector only meets the search committee members, but a part of my interview included a dinner with the committee, vestry, and spouses and families!

After accepting the call in January 2001, during a phone call with Fr. Bedford (who was holding down the fort), I discovered that during the interview process I had never asked what Sunday attendance was, or to see the budget.  God had put blinders on me to prevent me from asking those two questions.  Little did I know that at that dinner in November I had met just about everyone in the parish, and that the average Sunday attendance was less than 50!  I think I might have hesitated if I had known that during the interview process.  God did a good job of focusing me on coming here!

Tempus fugit – time flies!  St. John’s has so many wonderful people, and her future is certainly bright, all by His Grace!