Mi Buenos Aires Querido

It's good to be in Buenos Aires again. We arrived safely on Thursday after a long day's travel, yet without a hitch. We've seen lots of family and friends over the last couple of days. Having lived here seven years there is an intense sense of familiarity I experience walking these streets. It has been fun watching my boys experience this city that has been such a big part of our family's life. 

The picture above is of Avenida Del Libertador, just a couple of blocks from where we are staying. As I walked briskly with Francisco in my arms across Libertador the other day, again I looked with amazement at the magnitude of this city. You can only easily count in this picture eight of the ten lanes of this one-way, incoming artery into the city. It is good to be back in Buenos Aires, yet the change of pace and scenery when we arrive in Mendoza later this week will be welcome.

As we immerse ourselves into the place and life of Mendoza, I'll share more with you.

For now, Peace...

Rules of Disengagement

In just over a week I will be leaving on sabbatical. At last month's session meeting, we approved a sabbatical covenant for this time. I've mentioned to a number of people that it felt like drawing up rules of disengagement, and I believe it is healthy to put these things in writing before departure.

Here's the covenant we agreed upon:

Throughout Scripture, from Genesis’ beginnings to Jesus’ ministry and the church’s witness, accounts of holy activity are clearly set apart by rest, quiet places, and time for restoration. God has given us, God’s people, the Sabbath pattern as a time of renewal, a time to be reminded of whose we are and what we are called to do, a time of rest that refreshes us for faithful living.

It is a gift given to the congregation…a time for leaders to step forward and share their gifts with the community in new ways. It is also a gift given to the pastor…a time to be renewed for ministry and strengthened in their sense of call.

First Presbyterian Church of Birmingham and the Rev. Drew Henry enter this sabbatical covenant as they prepare to begin their seventh year of ministry together. Drew will be on sabbatical during the months of April, May and June of 2008. This leave is not just a reward for longevity of service and commitment, but is an extended period away from normal responsibilities for renewal through personal growth, spiritual formation and continued professional development.

During this time, the church will release Drew from all pastoral duties and responsibilities. Drew commits not to assume regular pastoral duties and responsibilities while on sabbatical.

During his sabbatical, the church will continue Drew’s full salary and benefits. Drew commits to using the Sabbatical Grant for Pastoral Leaders he was awarded from the Louisville Institute to pursue this season of prayer, study, and renewal following the proposal he submitted for this grant.

Upon return, Drew commits to continuing serving First Presbyterian Church for at least four times the length of the sabbatical leave (one year) as stated in our Sabbatical Policy.

While he is on sabbatical, Drew will make occasional posts to the sabbatical blog he has prepared (www.tableofwelcome.org) as a means of staying connected to the congregation and sharing some sabbatical reflections. Drew welcomes and would appreciate comments regarding any posts he makes, and he commits not to respond to any posted comments while he is on sabbatical.

Drew commits not to check his church email or voicemail while on sabbatical, and he commits not to discuss the ongoing work of the church during this time with members, colleagues or staff.

In the case it is deemed necessary to communicate with Drew while he is on sabbatical, Drew will provide our church administrator, Debbie Hamrick, with appropriate contact information. Debbie will personally contact Drew if and when any communication is necessary.

Upon return from his sabbatical, Drew will prepare and submit a written summary to the Session, Committee on Ministry and the Louisville Institute. He will also make time to share with the congregation his sabbatical journey and reflections.

Finally, I, Drew, am grateful for this sabbatical gift and the opportunity to be in ministry with you the people of First Presbyterian Church. I will pray for you and the church while I am away, and I ask you to pray for me and our family during this time of sabbatical.

Gracious God, pour out your Holy Spirit upon us and upon these your gifts of bread and wine.

Peace...

The Mysteries of Lent & Easter

As I was preparing for Ash Wednesday (a month and a half ago - wow), I came across the work of Jan Richardson. At first I was struck by this image - The Best Supper. I ordered a card from Jan of The Best Supper, and I've been contemplating this image as I prepare for a table of welcome. Twelve people, plus the cat. Bread and wine on the table. Men, women, young and old. The diversity of God's creation gathered at a round table, united in welcome. I can almost hear the song.

I also purchased a copy of Jan's book - The Garden of Hollows: Entering the Mysteries of Lent & Easter. Throughout this season, I've turned to this book as I journey towards Easter and then onto sabbatical. I keep coming back to these powerful words of Jan's (pages 8 & 9):

That's part of what Communion does: it gathers us around the vessels that help us to hear the story, that help us to hear the echoes of Jesus' blessing and offering, to listen to our history, and to enter into it. Gathering at the table of Communion, of Eucharist, invites us to listen also to the hollow places within us, to seek sustenance and nourishment, to be reminded we are not alone. The table invites us to meet Christ and one another at the point of our hunger. It confronts us with the knowledge that we can't get by on our own reserves. And it offers a space where those hungers, and our hollows, can be held.

In a culture that constantly tells us what we're hungry for and how to get our desires sated, it is a marvel that the central sacramental space of the Christian tradition is a table that beckons us to acknowledge that we have deeper hungers and keener desires than the ones our televisions, magazines, and radios inundate us with. To gather at the table of Christ is a countercultural act that challenges us to sort amongst our competing hungers, invites us to name the desire that lies beneath them, and beckons us to resist the urge to stuff ourselves not simply with food but with whatever keeps us from acknowledging the empty places within us...

The table of Christ beckons us to reckon with the complexity of our hungers, how wanting is not simply a belly thing, a bodily thing, but is tied in with so much else. But hunger is also basic. We are human. We get hungry. Christ's table challenges us to discern where we will seek the sustenance for our deepest hungers. And how we will go from the table to work for the feeding of others.

Thank you, Jan, for feeding us and for welcoming us to the Best Supper. May we all be in touch with our deepest hungers and the hungers of the world as we move into Holy Week, knowing that at the table of Christ, we are all welcome and fed.

Peace...

Getting Ready

It's been a while since I've written. I feel like so much of my time recently has been spent getting ready. At the church, I'm getting ready to be gone for three months with all that entails. I preached a going away sermon on Sunday, and we had a time set aside in the liturgy for a sabbatical sending away.

I've been making travel plans and such, and some of that has been fun. We'll be leaving in just a couple of weeks, and I'm getting ready to go.

I went about ten days ago to spend an afternoon and evening working with the kitchen staff at Highlands. They were so gracious and helpful, and they work really, really hard. There's an amazing camaraderie there, and I look forward to joining them for six weeks when I return from Argentina.

On my way over to Highlands, I stopped by the cleaners and picked up my white alb and stole for Easter Sunday. I experienced a deep moment of re-cognition of what lies ahead. I get to celebrate Resurrection with the people at First Presbyterian Church and then I embark on this journey of communion. There was something powerful in that moment about preparing for both Easter and Sabbatical in essentially the same motion.

I've been reading some of my wine related books recently, as that is the first part of this journey. I finished My First Crush: Misadventures in Wine Country by Linda Kaplan. I've also been reading Romancing the Vine: Life, Love & Transformation in the Vineyards of Barolo by Alan Tardi. Both are about folks who left their life behind to work in the world of wine. Linda Kaplan and her husband left Des Moines, Iowa, and moved to the Williamette Valley of Oregon to make Pinot Noir. Alan Tardi left New York and moved to Piedmont, Italy, to immerse himself in the world of Barolo. Both have offered glimpses of the wine making process. I found the sentiment of Kaplan's journey personally a bit more interesting. While I plan on just being in the wine country for a month (Mendoza, Argentina), it's been helpful to learn a bit about what's involved in this amazing process from vineyard to vine to grape to cup.

I'll leave you with a couple of quotes I've run across in other readings recently.

From Frederick Buechner's Wishful Thinking: A Theological ABC:

WINE
Unfermented grape juice is a bland and pleasant drink, especially on a warm afternoon mixed half-and-half with ginger ale. It is a ghastly symbol of the life blood of Jesus Christ, especially when served in individual antiseptic, thimble-sized glasses.
Wine is booze, which means it is dangerous and drunk-making. It makes the timid brave and the reserved amorous. It loosens the tongue and breaks the ice especially when served in a loving cup. It kills germs. As symbols go, it is a rather splendid one.

(Thanks to Steve Stockman for pointing me to that one.)

And finally, from none other than John Calvin himself - for all you Reformers out there:

Wine is God's special drink. The purpose of good wine is to inspire us to a livelier sense of gratitude to God.

Peace...