Homecoming 2012 ... What WILL you do with your one wild, precious life?

Today was my eleventh Homecoming Sunday at All Saints Church -- I celebrated my 10th anniversary on August 1st -- and as always it was a grand conglomeration of festive Eucharistic celebration, food, fellowship and faith in action. Here are a few random snapshots:

And here's the rector's sermon -- arguably a conversation between Mary Oliver and Mark 8:27-38. The quote that's getting the most "re-tweets" over on twitter is: "Religion is for people trying to stay out of hell. Spirituality is for people who've been through hell."



Finally, in answer to all the "how are you doing?" questions all I can really say is "I'm doing." One thing at a time -- an inch at a time. As I told friends at dinner last night, the best analogy I can come up with is I feel like I'm waiting for the novocaine to wear off: everything is a little numb; everything is a little slow; everything is a little weird. And one minute I'm kind of OK and then next minute I'm totally not. And that's just going to be how it is until it isn't that way anymore.

I am more grateful than I can find words for all the love, support and care received -- and even more grateful for all the tributes and affirmation of Louise's life, work and witness. Of course I thought about that when Ed preached about our "one wild, precious life" ... and thought that nobody summed it up better than Michael Hopkins did in the words he spoke at her memorial service on September 8 ... words he shared on his blog which included:

Louise's great gift was enabling people who have no voice to have one. She took flesh and enabled it to have a word, and in doing so, justice was made. You might notice that is backward from "the Word was made flesh," but that is how it works. The Word was made flesh so that flesh might speak the word, or, to use another important concept from John's Gospel, The Truth became flesh so that those in the flesh might speak the truth. And when that happens we see glory and justice is made.

Happy Homecoming!