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Bishop Shand addresses convention in DelawarePartners in Ministry

Address to the Diocese of Delaware in Convention 2008 by the Rt. Rev. James J. “Bud” Shand

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It is a real pleasure for Lynne and me to be here this evening and to share with your bishop, Holly, and all of you in this banquet, as partners in ministry together on the Delmar Peninsula.

You notice, I did not include Virginia here. Only when we become the Diocese of Delmar will we truly be partners in ministry in this Episcopal Church of ours. In fact, one of the reasons Wayne has asked me to share some thoughts with you is because, WE think, uniting as one diocese of this peninsula would be the way to go! Right, Wayne?

He is so shy, isn’t he? In fact, he will tell you tomorrow in his Convention Address that he has offered me the position of Suffragan Bishop of Delmar. Talk about partners in ministry — What a concept!

Then we could truly be inclusive of all Anglicans — from the Pennsylvania line, to Virginia and from sea to shining sea, the Atlantic to the Chesapeake — think about the possibilities! Sharing the bounty of the land; enough crabs and chicken to go around, and we wouldn’t have to worry about offending one another or asking permission to cross the state line.

ONE big happy family!

You know, that’s how I got invited to speak to you, as punishment for speaking at chapel at St. Anne’s in Middletown. Almost a year ago, I realized that I had not gotten the Bishop of Delaware’s permission to trespass across the line and I called Wayne to confess my transgressions, and breaking the bonds of affection that unite us. But being Wayne — a giant of a man in so many ways:

He forgave me, told me to SIN NO MORE, and my penance was to attend this event tonight to share almost ten years of his partnership with you in episcopal ministry. I would be forgiven and absolved.

So, here I am. Without hesitation and with my sincerest gratitude and appreciation, I want you to know that I am very humbled by his generosity of spirit and his kind wisdom so freely shared to a new bishop five years ago, and even today. Thank you, Wayne.

You are fortunate to have him as your shepherd and in all things a faithful pastor and wholesome example for the entire flock of Christ.

As Wayne has been a partner in ministry with you and me, he has truly been a follower of Jesus Christ and has faithfully executed this office of Bishop.

Has he been obedient to Christ?

Is he faithful in prayer?

Does he have the mind of Christ?

Does he proclaim and interpret the gospel of Christ?

Does he enlighten your mind and stir up your conscience?

Does he encourage and support all baptized people in their gifts and ministries?

Does he nourish you in the riches of God’s grace?

A RESOUNDING “YES!”

All these things and so many more are what bishops are called to do in their exercise of Episcopal ministry. In all these things I believe that the reason you and I can be in partnership with bishops, priests, and deacons, and each other is because we are willing to give ourselves away. Let me explain.

Years ago, in the very first year of my priesthood, a very special parishioner, the kind that has the presence and peace of Jesus flowing out of them, you all know what I mean, gave me a book entitled Try Giving Yourself Away by David Dunn. The book’s message was a simple one: the key to happiness is to use the gifts you have for the benefit of others by being more human, kinder, and empathetic to the world around you. In short, the essence of living is making the world more livable.

I latched on to this little book early on, and through the gospel of Jesus Christ, I was able to comprehend the message of our Lord through the lens of giving, sacrificial giving, and of course, the ultimate example of giving yourself away — which is, always will be — by accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as a believer.

During my ministry, I have witnessed the effect of giving yourself away when people finally unwrap the truth of the gospel, and it begins with the verse everyone of us has known since our very first encounter with the gospel of John or the “comfortable words” of the Rite I Holy Eucharist:

“God so loved the world that he GAVE His only begotten Son to the end that all that believe in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

In this scriptural verse, we are told that God loved the world so much that he gave us His Son. God did not loan us His Son, or put restrictions on the gift, or even tell us how to use the gift. He just gave us His son because, simply put, God loves us and wants to share His love with us.

When God gave the world Jesus, God shared what he loved, what he cherished, and what was most precious to him. The benefit of faith in Jesus is the salvation of our souls and the new life that comes to us in this Easter season of Resurrection. We all know that, but do we share our Easter joy with our brothers and sisters of our peninsula? In many ways we do, through our institutional and parochial outreach; but at the core of our faith, there is that personal conversation that we all need to have with our fellow brothers and sisters who we do not know and probably, if we are honest, have no interest in taking the time to get involved with.

I had one occasion, years ago, when a young Canadian shared a question with me. He had a long list of phrases, and asked me what phrases would make me a Christian:

Phrases like:

... and on, and on, and on.

I told him they were all good things in and of themselves, but none of them made you a Christian. I said, “you have to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and then you can be a Christian.” He looked at me, with surprise and said, “No one ever gave him that answer.” Then he said, “What do you do for a living?” I said, “I am a minister, a priest.” He almost fell over in disbelief.

I tell you that story not to give a witness to my faith but to emphasis that people can give away what is most important to them, they can give away what gives them life and that is their faith.

For the young man, the essence of living was his faith, and he wanted me to have life that was more livable. A better life. Sound familiar? Jesus said he wanted us to have “the abundant life.”

Personal faith motivates our corporate faith or we would not be here tonight. In Convention you are ready to put your gospel belief in action. For me, one of the greatest groups to give myself away to is the children and young people of our world.

Children and young people have been a source of inspiration, great satisfaction, and a source of time well spent when I look back over my years of ordained ministry.

The children of the world need for us to give ourselves away, even if it is the child living next door or the child in the Sudan or Africa or some other impoverished or war-torn, conflicted land.

Here at home, I believe we are called by the baptismal covenant, all people, to continue in the apostles teaching and fellowship, as well as the breaking of the bread and the prayers. We Episcopalians do worship quite well, at least we think we do. But the day is gone when we can boast that our liturgy alone will fill those pews. Of course, it will to some extent, but our worship must reach out and touch the soul.

So should our education to our children and young people. They need to know the Jesus we know. They need to experience the Christ of the cross — the Christ of the Resurrection and the living Christ who heals and is at the center of reconciliation and redemption. Our children will never get that unless we see to it that it is given to them.

They need to know that God loves them and that Jesus died for them. That the faith community is a safe place to find shelter, have their questions answered and know that their dignity as a human being is respected. We adults want respect and so do they. By giving ourselves away, we share what is so vital to our existence, the Lord of our lives — Jesus.

I cannot help but say that for me, CHILDREN & YOUTH are the church of today, in 2008, and if we do not care for them, there will be no need for the old historic churches of your diocese and mine, because we’ll all be gone and there will be no one to sit in the box pew in our place. They are with us today, but they will not be partners in ministry with us in the future unless we give ourselves away, and let them see that the essence of living is making the world more livable.

We are called by the baptismal covenant to seek and serve all persons, and loving our neighbors is essential, but sharing compassion for all people puts the rubber to the road and gives truth, gives breath, gives dimension, gives vitality to our existence. Compassion for this generation needs to come from us. Trends that lead to dark alleys and dead ends must be shown for what they are. Addiction cannot be allowed to be a substitute for grace and acceptance. Sexual exploitation and sexual freedom lead to the destruction of values. Substance abuse — alcohol, drugs, smoking — is just as deadly as moral abuse and the devaluation of family values will only end in hurt and pain. Another scenario that is growing in our adolescents’ lives is the rise of gangs — yes, even in our land of pleasant living. These must be shown as abuses that are contrary to the positive love that being connected to one another in community is all about.

So, my friends, as you share bread and wine, as you pray, as you unwrap the good news of Jesus Christ, as you go into Convention, I shall pray that you can explore as partners in ministry the best opportunities we all have to give ourselves away in respectful, sensitive, vital, loving, joyful, visionary, and compassionate ways.

There are so many individuals — not just the children and young people of our world — but of all ages who need the compassionate care of the Savior. We are the vehicles of that care, of that service that our Lord talks about, when he told us that “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve.”

The mission of all of us — lay folks, priests, deacons, and bishops — is to serve humanity in the name of Jesus Christ.

Our mission as the followers of Jesus is to make the world, this part of God’s creation, a place that is more livable for one and all, and its starts with me and you, discerning how we can be partners in ministry, and share our faith — and not hold on to it, but GIVE IT AWAY.

Wayne, God bless you, and thank you for allowing me to share this time with you, as a partner in ministry.

Link to Diocese of Easton | Delaware Youth

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