Blessings and Peace

Thursday, March 22nd, 2007

It has been awhile since I have written, but that should definitely not be construed as my not holding you and your snow in my heart!  By the way it is hitting the 80s here now!  But all this will change when it is 100 here and 80 in New England.
This week a group of students from Tufts have been working in one of the free clinics here.  One of the students is a parishioner at Old North Church.  We had emailed briefly prior to their arrival, but not set up any definite plans to connect.  So Tuesday as I headed back from the beach (working not playing) I decided to swing by the clinic and say hello.  We had a great time talking.  I invited the group to join us for the midweek Eucharist with healing prayers.  They expressed the same outrage at the slow pace in getting resources to the poorest of the Gulf Coast residents and the same admiration for the resilience and perseverance of the people here.  I really do wish each of you could come down (even if not to work) and just see the look of despair on the faces of those who have stood in line, filled out paperwork, and who are just simply exhausted from the process of trying to state their needs.  I am reminded of the Psalm… “There is no hope in me”  Of course we, like the Psalmist, know that our only hope rests in God and that hope is not in vain. 

In the Epistle for Wed Paul reminds us to rejoice.  As we talked each person had a story of their struggle with loss but could also talk about the moments where a hand reached out or someone said just the right thing to help them see the joy, the reason to rejoice in the midst of the hardship.  I think this is what Paul means when he talks about the Peace of God that passes understanding.  This Peace is not freedom from trouble, it is being engaged in all of life, the painful and the joyful, and being aware of god’s presence through both.  That is one of the most wonderful things about being with the volunteers.  People standing with people and both being aware of God standing there too.

On the work front, I am happy to say that House Bill 1227 passed.  This bill expanded the continued government  assistance to Mississippi , Texas, and the rest of Louisiana.  Among other things it will improve the tracking of recovery money, allow at least some of those living in FEMA trailers to get a Section 8 voucher to keep the trailer longer, clarify the use of the already allocated funds that are sitting idle, and provide for support for those who were living in public housing and low income housing.  This is a good bill for all of the areas hit by Katrina and Rita.

There is a lot of energy here.  We are about to complete the work on DiMiller Hall which is the old parish house on the beach.  We are talking to several non-profits about using the space as Redeemer stands to take its place as a force for justice in the recovery process.  There will be more to follow on this later.  We are really excited as this Easter our parish will worship in Dimiller Hall.  It is not the perfect palce for a worship service and we will be crowded, but we will be in our own space as a whole parish for the first time since the storm.  It is a huge move and we ask that you pray for us and with us as we celebrate this occasion.

I heard today that one parish, St Mark’s, is going to designate its Easter Sunday loose plate offering to the ministry here.  I spread the word quickly to others at Redeemer.  We are grateful and humbled by this gift.  There have been so many gifts that it seems overwhelming sometimes.  In April I will return to Boston for Clergy Conference.  I will be in several places over the week, preaching and offering pictures and stories from the Coast and from New Orleans.  I also invite you to check out my pictures of Redeemer’s dedication of our office space and my trip to New Orleans at flickr.com.

Blessings and Peace as we move toward Holy Week and Easter.  You are always in my prayers.

Jane+