Beloved in Christ:

The 166th Convention of the Episcopal Church in Minnesota is in our rear-view mirror now, but what a convention it was! Delegates from all over the state met at St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Eden Prairie to do the work of the church, worship, learn, laugh, and sing. The energy was high and the atmosphere was joyful. So much thanks to all who represented Calvary: Nathan and Colleen Spillers, Darren Cooper, Casey Caldwell, Laura Ehling, and as an alternate delegate, Martha Mangan. Our other alternate, David Reiman, stayed home but was on standby. Also there on Calvary’s behalf were Ben and Sally Scott and Paul Ehling. Congratulations to Paul who was elected to a term on the standing committee of the diocese, and to Laura Ehling, who along with the rest of the members of the Commission on Racial Justice and Healing that Laura has been serving on, received a “Canon Award,” becoming unofficial lay canons of the ECMN for their hard and persistent work on this critical issue of racial justice. I have one more year to serve as a trustee of the diocese.

Music was provided by the Theodicy Jazz Collective, and we had a wealth of inspiring speakers from different faith communities, our own Bishop Loya, and the presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church, the Most Rev. Michael Curry. Bishop Loya‘s address to convention (he mentions Calvary), along with Bishop Curry‘s two sermons and other worship events were livestreamed and recorded and are available on the ECMN Facebook Live page, on www.churchanew.org, and soon will be on the ECMN website. We will be showing Bishop Loya‘s address at a forum in Crawford Hall in early December.  It was very timely for our future work at Calvary.

Attending our annual convention as a delegate is a time honored and very important ministry in The Episcopal Church. I hope you will consider becoming a delegate in the future. In 2024, the convention will be in Bemidji.

I will be keeping you all in my prayers for a safe, loving, and joyful Thanksgiving next week, and if you are traveling, traveling mercies for you. I will be taking a final vacation week of the year next week, beginning after the Sunday vestry meeting and staying home to work on never-ending new home projects and getting a little pre-Advent rest. I am available for pastoral emergencies. Our guest celebrant and preacher on November 26 will be the Rev. George Favell, newly ordained to the priesthood after serving for decades as a vocational deacon.  And, as an added treat, we will also have a transitional deacon with us at the 10:30 service, the Rev. David McEachron who a few of us know from our work on the Faithful Innovation project last fall and winter.

Gratitude for our common life, for each of you, and for a good end to Ordinary Time and preparation for Advent. May each of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends.

With love,

Beth+