Thoughts from Your Rector,
St. Anselm of Canterbury Episcopal Church
AkA St. Elsewhere

 

January 16, 2008

Dear Parish Family:

I wish you many blessings as we begin a new and challenging year. We ended 2007 with plenty of Christmas joy. We are now moving full steam ahead toward Lent, which comes early this year. Ash Wednesday will be observed on February 6, 2008. I have included with this letter a picture of a Crucifix in autumn foliage I took this past November at Sleepy Hollow cemetery in New York. My lens was drawn to this particular tombstone because the crucifix had been planted on the back side, not the front side of the tombstone. It made a visual impact, especially with all the red autumn leaves surrounding it. Both the tombstone and the leaves were a reminder to me of our mortality, our finality, and that nothing physical lasts forever. We are “dust and to dust we shall return.” It is a proper photograph as we begin to prepare for Lent.

I’m one of those weird persons who likes old cemeteries, I’m not exactly sure why, but I often feel a sense of peacefulness when I stroll down the path of an old cemetery, exploring with the camera, looking at tombstones, and wondering about the lives they represent, who these persons were, what were their happiest moments, what tragedies had they endured? There is a quiet serenity that begins to permeate my soul when I do this, and I am at peace for the moment with my own mortality. It also reminds me that I am on a journey that has been undertaken by millions and millions of sojourners over the last six million years who have asked the same questions I ask today. And still the answers elude us, but I am thankful for those moments of serenity where I find peace and there is no fear, even of death.

Lent moves us in the direction of getting in touch with our limited humanity. It will be a time of reflection and re-creation as we move into the mystery of Holy Week, and emerge alive on Easter. It will be a reminder to us that Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness, preparing for his monumental work. Getting in touch with our mortality, our weaknesses, our powerlessness, in the end strengthens our trust in the higher power we call God, and allows us to open ourselves to the grace that will sustain us along the journey.

As a parish we struggle to find relevance in a changing world. St. Anselm’s is forging a new identity and developing a reputation in the community as a church committed to service and love of neighbor. We have tackled lots of difficult issues in the last year through various programs and quality presentations on topics that include global warming, peace, interfaith relations, the Middle East, sexuality, universal healthcare, economic justice, Darfur, etc. The list is getting lengthy. Just yesterday I represented the parish at a press conference of the workers of St. Joseph’s Hospital System. These workers want to have the right to unionize but ironically the management of this particular Catholic hospital system is blocking their wish through tactics of intimidation. As I stood with the workers, and addressed them, I got a sense of their gratitude that a church presence was in their midst, I even got that sense from the Union people who may not necessarily attend a church or a house of worship. The Spirit of Christ was present. This is all part of our journey. On a given day we may be praying for someone’s health and wellbeing, visiting a dying member of our congregation in the hospital, celebrating a birthday, or challenging a system that exploits the needy. This is all part of the challenge of being a relevant community of faith in the 21st century. Some may ask: “why bother?” Because it is our faith. We only pass through the earth, but if we are to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, the man baptized by John who spent 40 days in the wilderness wrestling with his own demons, then we must recognize that this is our calling; this is how we collectively move from death to life; this is how we become the multi-dimensional body of Christ in the world.

As we move into 2008, we will need your continued support. Please pray for the parish. We have particular challenges as a small church and sadly the Cross Cultural Community Center will probably leave us this year. This will place us in an even greater financially challenging situation. The Center which was started by our parish over 30 years ago, in response to a call for help in aiding refugees from Vietnam, has become institutionalized. We wish them the best as they continue to provide viable services to the community at large, in their new location.

I believe along with the rest of you that there are many people out there who are looking for us, a church family with its feet on the ground. Most of those people probably don’t even know we exist. More than ever we need to grow and expand, but this needs to be a growth firmly rooted in the Spirit of Jesus. Nothing else will do. 2008 will probably be the most challenging year in the history of St. Anselm’s. We have done much with our limited resources, and I trust in our Lord that new doors will open for us, and we will become an even greater visible witness to Christ. Keep us in your daily prayers and please continue to support the church with your gifts of time, talents, and treasure. As we move ahead, I wish you all a blessed new year.

In Christ,

Wilfredo Benitez +
The Rev. Wilfredo Benitez,
Rector

Remember that You are Dust and to Dust You Shall Return

See previous Logs