An article from the Cathedral Times.
As many of you know, I send a special email message each week to one particular ministry group of the Cathedral of St. Philip. It is a simple thank you to that guild, or group, or ministry, with the notice that we will pray for that ministry during the following Sunday’s “Prayers of the People.” When I send that notice, my own prayer turns to that ministry, and I see the faces of so many dear saints of God.
But the time comes, this week, to thank all of you in a more public way. The ministries of the Cathedral of St. Philip are broad and enormous. There is probably no one person, including me, who knows every detail about all of them. By name, they range from Christian Education teachers, to choristers, to Habitat For Humanity workers, to funeral guild volunteers, to ushers, to more teachers, to ECW guilds, to spirituality groups, to stewardship groups, to flower guild members, to acolytes, to garden guild members, to caregivers of all sorts! I am sorry to leave out so many in this brief list; we pray for you each week!
Now, I know that every parishioner, and every associate member, and every visitor, has a God-given ministry – and that ministry might not be served through the Cathedral of St. Philip. In fact, your ministry might not be through any church. For each of us, our primary service to the world is probably where we spend most of our time: at work, at school, or at home.
The ministers of the gospel of Christ are not just you who are seen serving at church. The ministers of the gospel are you who are saints at your place of work. You make right decisions, you express love to your co-workers, you express love to the people you serve at home and at work, you are engaged in occupations that use your God-given talents to make the world a better place. When your place of work makes both you and the world better, then your work is not just an “occupation;” it is a “vocation.” A vocation is a calling of God, and each of us has a vocation – not just priests and church-workers.
Furthermore, many of you have vocations that are not part of the corporate or business world. You are mothers and fathers, for instance, with the constant responsibility of care and stewardship of a home. Maybe you have no children, but you have a partner. Maybe you have your own parents to care for, or grandchildren to care for, or your neighborhood to care for.
In short, the place where we serve the world is our vocation. The place where we serve the world with the grace and love of Christ is our vocation. You can be a teacher, a scientist, a policeman, a musician, a manager, an assistant, a warehouse worker, a poet, a mother, a chef, a restaurant server, a father, a banker, a truck driver, a lawyer, an athlete, a student. Those vocations are where Christ truly touches the world.
So, I give thanks for so many of you—so many of YOU!—who accept ministerial roles at the Cathedral of St. Philip. We need you and appreciate you! But I also know that, at their best, the roles you assume here are also reflecting the vocations you serve out in the world. Good investment managers can be good lectors! Good fathers can be good teachers! Good doctors can be good members of the flower guild! Thanks to all of you who serve Christ both in the church and in the world.
