Thursday, May 10, 2012

Mother's Day and Women's Leadership

Weekly Message
from Bishop Robert Gepert

When we think of Mother's Day, we think of all the things our mothers do for us. Mothers cook meals, put bandages on the skinned knees of their children, and traditionally clean and care for the home. The role of the women in societies throughout the ages has been narrowly defined. Women have been kept out of positions of power and influence.

In observing Mother's Day, we can also think about the role of women in the Church. Things have changed significantly throughout the ages. In the time of Jesus, it was not considered the place of women to delve into the teachings of God's Law.

But through the story of Martha and Mary as told in Luke 10:38-42, we are allowed to see the pivotal point this changes.

Jesus is welcomed by Martha into her home, but Martha's sister Mary sits at the feet of Jesus and listens while Martha works frantically in the kitchen. We might think that Martha simply resented the fact that Mary was not helping her with the chores, but in fact, Mary was acting like a man, boldly sitting at the feet of a teacher in a culture where men and women did not even occupy the same rooms in a home. It was not Mary's role to be a student of Jesus.

Jesus said, 'Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.'

Jesus quickly makes clear that it is a woman's role to listen to the word of the Lord and also bear witness to it.

John Shea writes in The Spiritual Wisdom of the Gospels, 'Sisters symbolize side-by-side realities that are meant to be together. Christian history is fond of playing Martha and Mary against one another, the real task is to discover their proper relationship. It is not a matter of which one is more important, it is a matter of how they complement each other. The teaching of the text is about discovering their mutuality.'

Truly, Martha and Mary are often divided into different styles of spirituality. One is active, the other contemplative. But both are necessary. N.T. Wright writes in Luke for Everyone, 'Without the first you wouldn't eat, without the second you wouldn't worship.'

The Episcopal Church first began ordaining women in 1977. Having a church open to women in leadership is a gift, because we see all of what humanity represents - men and women - standing in for Christ at the table.

Our churches have more women worshipping in them than men, yet men most often hold positions of power and authority. We have only one female bishop in Province V (the Midwest), The Right Rev. Catherine Waynick of Indianapolis. I hope we are headed for a time of equal representation in the House of Bishops, which includes not only a balance of gender, but of ethnic representation as well.

St. Mark's in Newaygo, which I visited last week, is a parish led by a deeply spiritual woman, the Rev. Mary Frens. St. Mark's is another one of our small parishes that has a dynamic mission and ministry. Despite its small size, the church is a self-sustaining parish. In addition, they have a very active outreach called Vera's House, which is a health and wellness center that provides spiritual and emotional support to women in transition, like divorce or unemployment. Vera's House is right next door to St. Mark's; it is named after a late parishioner who joined the parish in her 90s. This small church is not only paying for their full-time priest, but also the mortgage on Vera's House.

Vera's House partners with Catholic Charities and other organizations to provide individual and group counseling, as well as parenting, anxiety, bereavement and caregiving support groups, to those in need.

Rev. Mary Frens is a trained spiritual director, and her deep commitment to meditation and prayer, as well as her practice of active listening to those who tell their stories, translates to the community at St. Mark's.

'Because I am a woman in ministry, and because I have experienced being a mother, spouse, friend, I can be present with women in need,' she said. 'Some of these women have difficulty with male images of God. But what we have been able to impart to many of them is that being weak, being vulnerable, feeling pain is not a detriment, but a way to relate and be present to others.'


The proof is in the pews. St. Mark's last Sunday was full, with a lot kids and diversity. People with special needs are welcome. People of all levels of income are welcome there.

When asked about the energy at St. Marks, Rev. Mary said, 'I like to think of the Good Shepherd, who is always welcoming, always calls each of us by name, and allows us to be fully and completely accepted. We're small but the spirit makes us mighty.'


Book recommendation from the Bishop:
The Wisdom of Jesus: Transforming Heart and Mind - a New Perspective on Christ and His Message
by Cynthia Bourgeault

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Weekly Message
from Bishop Robert Gepert


Many of you received an email invitation from Gennie Callard this week inviting you to the Confirmation, Reception, and Reaffirmation Celebration at Grace Church in Grand Rapids on Saturday, May 19th at 11:00 a.m.

I want to take this time to invite the entire diocese to support our confirmation candidates in making the public proclamation that they want to follow Jesus. There will be a beautiful liturgy, great music and a festive celebration following.

What is wonderful to me about confirmation is that it is not something done to us, but something we do when we hear God's call.

When we choose to be confirmed, received, reaffirmed, we are doing so because our hearts have been set on fire by the Holy Spirit. This important step declares our desire to be more committed Christians. It is not a ceremonial promise, but a real promise before God.

I have always seen the laying-on-of-hands in the Confirmation service as a way of commissioning missionaries.

When I anoint the confirmation candidates with Chrism, which is the fragrant oil used in the Anglican tradition for baptisms and ordinations as well as confirmations, it is symbolic of strengthening the confirmands for the mission ahead of them.

Come to the Confirmation, Reception, and Reaffirmation Celebration and welcome these new missionaries into their deeper commitment.

Sincerely,
The Rt. Rev. Robert R. Gepert
VIII Western Michigan



Confirmation Retreat, Camp Newaygo

The above photos are from the Confirmation Retreat at Camp Newaygo last weekend. Photos by Barbara Traxler.