... from a week ago.
I'm still decompressing from the Educational Conference I attended in Kansas City, MO, a week ago. I've promised not to be as obsessive in recording my activities there as I was in detailing my annual trip to Winfield, KS, last September, but here's a few snapshots.
Early on, I was asked why I was there. And I talked about how I've taught a number of classes at church, and especially focused on the prayer classes I've done at St. Paul's. Someone asked why I chose that topic, and I said, "I'm trying to pass something on that was given to me. Much of what I'm doing is based on a series that was offered by Fr Spaine around the time I started attending church again." That bedrock of prayer has provided a foundation for everything that followed.
I take it as a given that I am an introvert. When I am with large groups of folk, especially if it's noisy, I tend to withdraw. I also tend to bond with someone friendly (typically a woman), who then becomes my sole society for the time I'm with the group.
It would have been easy to hide in this fashion during this conference. Maggie was very friendly, and we seemed to bond in the most platonic manner possible. It would have been easy to "puppydog" Maggie for the two and a half days of the conference. But, somehow I sensed this would not be fair to either of us.
So I made a conscious decision to meet new people. To sit at different tables every chance I got. I did end up returning to the same three or four people, but I always met new people in the process. I think it was surprisingly comfortable because we shared common interests. It was a treat to share ideas with these people, who treated me like an equal.
That's how I met the priest who had served in Newark, NJ, when John Spong was their bishop. He did not have kind words for the bishop; not because of the man's theology, but because Bishop Spong seemed more interested in promoting his books and ideas than in serving the diocese.
That's how I met Dawn, the sole African American at the conference. She is serving St Paul's Cathedral in downtown Detroit. Things are as bad there as ever.
That's how I met Judy S—, who attended seminary with Canon Joplin – Rev. Joplin is my favorite minister at the Cathedral. Small world, nu?
All this helped me feel at home. People listened to my ideas; they honored my thoughts. No wonder the time was energizing.
Saturday, when I was visiting with Rev. Yeager, she asked me what I thought my ministry was. At first, I responded with my customary response that I wasn't sure. Then, I told that story of passing on what I have received. Ultimately, as if out of the blue, I said, "I'd like to lead people to a deeper sense of prayer."
And, just like that, Sophia spoke my ministry for me.
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