Saint Benedict Episcopal Church

Recently I was asked: “When are you going on to be a priest?” The question comes out of the confusion between those whom the Church refers to as “transitional deacons” and those referred to as “vocational deacons”. The question reflects a general lack of  understanding about what deacons do. I hope to shed some light on this for you.

A transitional deacon is a person whose vocation and call is to be a priest but, who serves temporarily as a deacon as part of his or her formation. I am a vocational deacon which means that my vocation and calling is to be a deacon.

Georgi recently told us that Bishop Greg says that the role of deacons is to get priests (and congregations) into trouble. Bishop Sandy presents another metaphor. He says that some Native American tribes have a member who is referred to as the “Hayaka”. This person’s job is to “kick butt”, to get other tribal members to do the things that are necessary for the tribe.

The Book of Common Prayer presents an important insight into the work of a deacon on page 543. “In the name of Christ, you are to serve all people, particularly the poor, the weak, the sick, and the lonely.” It goes on to say: “You are to interpret to the Church the needs, concerns and hopes of the world.” My good friend and fellow deacon Zula Johnson has done this by her work with the homeless. As a result of her calling our attention to those who are hungry, St. Benedict’s now has a Community Dinners program to welcome those who are poor, lonely and hungry to the church one Saturday a month for a meal. Those who come are also given bags of groceries made available from the Thurston County Food Bank.

Likewise, I want to call your attention to another need. It is the need for what I call “Pastoral Hospitality”. Sometimes when a parishioner is sick or is recuperating from a medical or surgical procedure, he or she is unable to prepare meals. In years past, members of the congregation would do a “casserole brigade”. Individuals would agree to bring a meal to the sick person. We would take turns at this so that food was provided as long as the sick person was unable to prepare food.

Over the past several years, we have recognized that hospitality is a major calling of our congregation and something that we do well. I challenge myself and you to find a way to make a program of Pastoral Hospitality a reality for members of our congregation. Since the main ministers of the Church are the laity, I believe that this should be a lay led effort. I suggest that we need the following:

• Someone or a group of people who agree(s) to organize and coordinate this program. In order to prevent burn-out, the coordinator should serve for a specific, limited period of time.
• There should be an effort to recruit and train others to take the position of coordinator.
• There should be a communication system set up to that those who are in need of meals can call the office to make that need known.
• The communication effort should include a list of the names and phone numbers of people who are willing to cook a meal and transport it to the one in need. (I know of at least one couple in the congregation who is willing to do so.)
• The budget committee should provide a line item in the budget in an amount expected to cover the expenses of the food to be prepared so that there isn’t a financial impediment to those who are willing to provide food.

There may be other things needed. I hope that someone with more organizational skills than I have will agree to head up this important ministry. If you feel called to help with this important ministry, please call Rev. Georgi at 360-456-2240 or me at 360-491-3111.