Newsmakers: Royals Visit, Tutu Preaches, Tyson Reflects, and More
Episcopal News Service. November 10, 2005 [111005-2-A]
* BAY AREA: Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall visit Inverness parish
* LOS ANGELES: Diocese, Pasadena parish welcome Archbishop Tutu
* PASADENA: Actress Cicely Tyson reflects on Rosa Parks, tributes
* CLEVELAND: Churches Uniting in Christ names interim director
* PITTSBURGH: Canon Richard Davies celebrates 50 years of ministry
* CONNECTICUT: Pioneering priest Clifton Jones recognized
* NEW YORK: Communicators welcome veteran colleague Magee Anderson
BAY AREA: Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall visit Inverness parish
Excerpted from a report by Sean T. McConnell
[Source: Diocese of California] Charles, the Prince of Wales, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, attended All Saints Sunday services November 6 at the Parish Church and Retreat House of St. Columba's in the quaint California seaside town of Inverness.
The royals were in the middle of a visit that included stops to an organic farmers' market in the town of Point Reyes; lunch with farmers in the hidden coastal community of Bolinas; a visit to the long-running San Francisco cabaret show "Beach Blanket Babylon," accompanied by former Secretary of State George Shultz and his wife Charlotte Maillard Shultz, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, author Danielle Steel, and Episcopal Bishop William Swing and his wife, Mary Swing; and a tour of the Berkeley Edible Schoolyard led by chef Alice Waters of Berkeley's Chez Panisse restaurant.
The little redwood Church of St. Columba's was filled to capacity for the royal visit, as the security contingent and media entourage practically doubled the population of this Northern California hamlet.
A misty rain fell as the motorcade pulled up the drive to the church. The congregation sat quietly anticipating the entry of the prince, the duchess, and their attendants. From inside the church it was obvious that the royal couple had stepped from the limousine because the strobe of camera flashes illuminated the church windows.
The entourage, with all members wearing poppies of remembrance on their lapels, entered first, then the royal couple followed. The duchess smiled warmly at members of the congregation as an officer of the Royal Air Force escorted her and the prince to their seats in the front pew.
Rector Tom Brindley's sermon reminded the congregation that all who are in Christ are bound to Christ in a dynamic union by being bound to one another, and to all the saints. He told those gathered, royal and commoner, that it is when we are all bound together as the Body of Christ, that we are made perfect.
Before Holy Communion, the rector presented the royal couple with a gift of two cross-stitched bookmarks depicting crosses, and a picture illustrating Isaiah 12:2, colored in by children from the congregation.
After meeting the royal couple, Diane Archibald, senior warden of St. Columba's, said: "God was honoring this holy place by bringing the future head of the Church of England to worship with us."
When asked what the visit meant to him personally, Brindley said, "For a priest in the Anglican Communion it's the opportunity of a lifetime. There are some in places where this happens all the time. Praise God that the Lord has placed them there and given them those gifts. But for most of us, it is once in a ministry that you get this opportunity laid before you by God. It's humbling."
-- Sean McConnell is editor of Pacific Church News, the newspaper of the Diocese of California.
LOS ANGELES: Diocese, Pasadena parish welcome Archbishop Tutu
[ENS] In an All Saints' Sunday sermon stating that God's people "are meant to be family," Archbishop Desmond Tutu called Anglicans everywhere to remember the "comprehensiveness" of their tradition.
"Jesus did not say, 'I if I be lifted up I will draw some,'" Tutu said, preaching in two morning festival services at All Saints' Church in Pasadena, California. "Jesus said, 'I if I be lifted up I will draw all, all, all, all, all. Black, white, yellow, rich, poor, clever, not so clever, beautiful, not so beautiful. It's one of the most radical things. All, all, all, all, all, all, all, all. All belong. Gay, lesbian, so-called straight. All, all are meant to be held in this incredible embrace that will not let us go. All.
"Isn't it sad, that in a time when we face so many devastating problems -- poverty, HIV/AIDS, war and conflict -- that in our Communion we should be investing so much time and energy on disagreement about sexual orientation?" asked Tutu, the Nobel laureate and Archbishop Emeritus of Southern Africa.
Pointing to the Anglican tradition of tolerance, Tutu said the Communion, which "used to be known for embodying the attribute of comprehensiveness, of inclusiveness, where we were meant to accommodate all and diverse views, saying we may differ in our theology but we belong together as sisters and brothers" now seems "hell-bent on excommunicating one another. God must look on and God must weep."
Emphasizing the connectedness of the human family, Tutu further asked: "How could we then -- we who are family -- go on spending obscene amounts on budgets of death and destruction, knowing full well that a minute fraction of these would insure that children everywhere would have clean water to drink, would have enough food to eat, would have adequate, affordable health care, would have decent homes. How could we if we really are those who pray as our Lord has taught us? How can we be willing to drop bombs on those who are our sisters and brothers, children of God, members of our family? God's family. How could we?"
Yet when Christians are found to be "caring, gentle, compassionate, sharing, embracing everyone ... God is smiling," Tutu said.
Tutu began his sermon with repeated "thank you's" to All Saints Church, which stood by him faithfully in the fight against apartheid. Rector J. Edwin Bacon and Rector Emeritus George Regas joined in welcoming Tutu to the parish.
Los Angeles Bishop J. Jon Bruno honored Tutu with a November 5 dinner attended by nearly 90 gathered at the city's landmark California Club. Praising Tutu's unparalleled ministry, Bruno presented the Archbishop with a framed photograph of Tutu visiting with Rosa Parks some years before her death on October 24.
The Archbishop departed Pasadena on November 6 to meet in Santa Barbara with Oprah Winfrey on the subject of girls' education in Southern Africa.
PASADENA: Actress Cicely Tyson reflects on Rosa Parks, tributes
[ENS] Actress Cicely Tyson -- well known for her portrayal of "Miss Jane Pitman" among other roles -- told Archbishop Desmond Tutu on November 6 that civil rights leader Rosa Parks was "strong even in death."
Tyson -- who eulogized the recently-deceased Parks at three memorial services in Montgomery, Detroit, and Washington D.C. -- said she was deeply moved as she viewed Parks' body.
"I've never seen a face that showed more strength," Tyson told a lunch gathering honoring Tutu. "The strength in this woman's being was oozing out every pore. I maintain the reason was that King Jesus was her Driver. She was not to be moved; she was like a tree planted by the river."
In life, Parks consistently told the story of her historic 1955 arrest, for refusing to yield her bus seat, "in a quiet and humble" manner, Tyson said. Parks died October 24 at age 92 in her Detroit home.
Tyson, who joined Pasadena's All Saints Church in welcoming Tutu, said she found particularly poignant the placement of Parks's casket in the U.S. Capitol rotunda, and the crowds who lined the streets in homage. "It's a journey I would not have missed," Tyson said, "and I am so honored to have been part of it."
CLEVELAND: Churches Uniting in Christ names interim director
[Cleveland, Source: CUIC] Churches Uniting in Christ (CUIC) has called the Rev. Dr. Thomas E. Dipko, a United Church of Christ minister, to serve a six-month term as CUIC interim director.
An ecumenist and liturgy scholar, Dipko was from 1989-2002 a member of the Executive Committee of the Consultation on Church Union, the predecessor of CUIC. He has served his denomination as a parish pastor in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts, Ohio Conference minister, and executive of the Church Board for Homeland Ministries.
In announcing Dipko's appointment, CUIC's president, the Rev. C. Dana Krutz, said: "The Coordinating Council of Churches Uniting in Christ unanimously approved the calling of Dr. Dipko to serve as interim director for the coming six months. He brings a wealth of ecumenical experience and administrative ability to this position at a critical time of renewing the CUIC member communions' commitment to this relationship of unity and mission...." Krutz underscored the importance of reconciliation and anti-racism initiatives engaged by CUIC participants.
PITTSBURGH: Canon Richard Davies celebrates 50 years of ministry
[SOURCE: Diocese of Pittsburgh] St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Mount Lebanon, Pennsylvania, will celebrate the ongoing ministry and the 50th anniversary of Canon Richard Davies' ordination on November 13. Davies, who currently serves on the staff at St. Paul's and has charge over Old Saint Luke's in Woodville, was ordained in 1955.
Davies spent his first two years of ordained ministry at St. Paul's, Monongahela. In 1957, he was called to St. Peter's, Brentwood where he served 25 "great, glorious and happy years" as rector. During that time, he oversaw the construction of the new church. In 1958, St. Peter's Child Development Center was formed to meet the needs and educate Down's Syndrome children and their families. Growing from the pleas of parishioner that Davies, "do something" for her daughter at a time when very few others considered the needs of special children, the ministry spread to six locations and is now known as the Early Learning Institute.
In 1983, Davies was called to be Executive Officer and Canon to the Diocese, a role he filled for four years. Then, he was named Director of Episcopal Service Ministries, until his retirement in 1990. It was then that he assumed his place at St. Paul's, the role in which many best recognize him.
In honor of Davies' many years of service, there will be a special Welsh High Tea on November 13 immediately after the 10:15 a.m. service at St. Paul's in Mount Lebanon.
CONNECTICUT: Pioneering priest Clinton Jones recognized
[SOURCE: Diocese of Connecticut] An Episcopal priest who pioneered in developing counseling and support programs for sexual minorities will be honored at a dinner November 12 at Christ Church Cathedral in Hartford, Connecticut.
The Rev. Canon Clinton R. Jones, 89, has earned a national reputation for his ministry and research in the fields of sexual orientation and gender identification. He served as an ordained priest for more than 60 years and was named canon emeritus of the cathedral in 1987.
The dinner, sponsored by the Friends of the Cathedral, will also be the occasion for announcing an award in Jones' name which annually will recognize community leaders in the areas of pastoral care, counseling and social work.
Jones' work with sexual minorities began in the early 1960s when his research on homosexuality spurred the formation of a special task force, known as Project H, by the Greater Hartford Council of Churches. He later served on a similar task force for the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church.
Through the years he has lectured at many schools, churches, universities and social institutions. He is the author of three books on homosexuality and has written many articles and research papers. He lives in Manchester, Connecticut.
NEW YORK: Communicators welcome veteran colleague Magee Anderson
[ENS] Margaret "Magee" Anderson was welcomed back to the Episcopal Church Center -- which she helped open in 1963 and served as a communication staff member for 25 years before retirement -- during a November 9 dialogue with current Communication Office staff.
"The mission remains the same today," Anderson said. "The priority is serving parishioners and clergy in the congregations, dioceses and provinces of our church to support them in their local ministries."
During her tenure, Anderson served as interim director of the Office of Promotion, and as manager of audio-visual materials.
Anderson's visit included a tour of offices newly refurbished at the Church Center in its first renovation since opening February 3, 1963. "The improvements are impressive in every way," she said.