One of the First Evenings

This evening Kathy and I attended two events with friends from Alabama. The first was an open house sponsored by Integrity, which is a group who is seeking the full inclusion of all people within the life of the Church. I enjoyed my time there and had good conversation with a number of long-time friends, many of whom I am in agreement with and a number of whom I disagree with their agenda. What I loved about being there, was the people who love the Church and were open and honest about why they believe what they believe. These are people who love the Lord and continue to be a part of the Church that often rejects them. I find at times that I am seeking ways to reconcile my theology (the Church’s Theology) and my desire to keep the Church (the larger church beyond my own congregations, diocese and Episcopal Church) together in conversation, and a way of living beyond our differences and disagreements. I am encouraged that it has been that way since the time of the writing of the Acts of the Apostles.

We drove to St. Michael’s Church and attended two meetings. The first was for the Hispanic/Latino ministries. It was a joyous time and I was able to spend time with the Rector, The Rev. Juan Jimenez. Fr. Juan was the Canon of St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Dallas when I was the Dean. What a joy for Kathy and me to see him and the wonderful ministry he is doing in this diocese.

We also saw Sarah Eagleheart from our Diocese, who is now working for the Episcopal Church as the new Program Officer Indigenous and Indian peoples. It is always good to see her and to see the ministry that she is doing. The last time we saw Sarah was in Poarch, Alabama, and she was getting ready to move. She has moved and is doing fine work getting things prepared for the General Convention and our visit. We will see Sarah again and I am pleased that this ministry is bringing joy and focus to the work of our hands on evangelism, to which we are all called.

Tomorrow I have a very long day with a four hour meeting in the morning with Committee #18, Ecumenical and Interreligious work and ministry in the Episcopal Church. May God’s grace always lead us and following, as we move where we are called to go.

Blessings and PAX, Bishop Duncan

A Long Trip and Short Journey

During this past week Kathy and I have traveled from our Diocese to California. We drove to Austin, Texas where Sunday a week ago at the 5:00 PM Service of the Holy Eucharist, I celebrated the Holy Communion and Baptized our granddaughter, seven month old Bella Isadora Duncan. What a joy that was and what fun it has been to have many of the family and long-time friends present, to witness to and participate in this Sacrament of God’s inclusive love for all people. The Rector of St. David’s Episcopal Church and the members of the congregation welcomed us all. We were invited, encouraged and embraced as visitors and guests in the household of faith. We will be back. Many of our guests decided to return and “try them out for a place to become members and become involved.” That is both a blessing and a gift of grace.

Early on Monday we drove 14 hours to Albuquerque and then on to Flagstaff to spend a few days with a priest friend and his wife. We have been friends for more than 42 years and it was an opportunity to see those ministries that they are involved, within the community. Prison and jail work, work with the homeless and training those who are unemployed, are just a few of the ministries they have seen that needed doing and to which they started and engaged others to catch the vision of what God had in mind for this place.

We also visited Meteor Crater, the site where a meteor struck the earth 50 thousand years ago and went on to see miles of desolation where lava and volcanic ash covered the ground. We both enjoyed seeing three deserted Anasazi (Sinagua) dwellings, which included Montezuma’s Castle and Well, Tuzigoot and Homolovi, all now in ruins. Our time spent at the Lowell Observatory on Mars Hill, the Indian Museum in Flagstaff, the Frank Lloyd Wright Chapel in Sedona, were special places in which we spent a number of hours. By the end of this part of our trip, we visited shops in the closed copper mining town of Jerome, and that Friday evening, the Art Festival on the streets of downtown Flagstaff. It kept us busy and interested and involved in the life and character of multi-cultural development in an area of our country that continues to grow, welcomes tourists and embraces diversity. I did learn a good deal from this time and being with these old friends and new friends.

On the morning of the 4th of July (my parents were married 67 years ago today) we drove to Anaheim and checked into the hotel about 4:00PM, after almost ten hours on the road. We were in the mountains, the hills, the plains, the desert and along the coastal shore. The temperatures ranged from 59 degrees when we began the drive, to a high of 109 degrees in Needles, California. We arrived in Anaheim to find a good deal of traffic and checked into the hotel and then moved into our room. We found time to scope out the area and set up the hospitality conference room for our deputation.

By 7:30PM, we went to the Hyatt Hotel for a dinner and program of the Daughters of the King (DOK) and enjoyed being with this group. It was a good meeting with many friends. There is a good deal of turmoil in the Order and this is difficult to experience for all those concerned. I hope this is resolved during the next three years, because the ministry of prayer and evangelism is too important to be sidetracked.

Today we began the day with a visit to the Crystal Cathedral, which is very beautiful. It always amazes me to see how Philip Johnson was able to put his ideas into practice. We had an early lunch in this part of the city and then spent the rest of the day organizing and preparing the hospitality room for guests. I went to a working dinner with Bishops Harris of Massachusetts and Klusmeyer of West Virginia, and enjoyed being with them for conversation about ministry and the General Convention.

During this time we have also been reading the materials about the various legislative matters and the bishops and deputies’ thoughts on these matters. Please remember to pray for the General Convention and those of us who are preparing to do the work God has called us to do. Your support and ministry are an important part of our work. Kathy and I are getting ready to attend several events this Monday evening and will spend time with Fr. Gerald Hyche, who was in our diocese and is now in the Diocese of Texas.

May God bless us all in the work we do and the ministry we share. The Journey continues!

Blessings and PAX, Bishop Duncan

General Convention 2009

Bishop Duncan will begin blogging during the General Convention, July 8-17, 2009 in Anaheim, California. Please check this blogsite in July. Thanks!