Dear People, Neighbours, and Friends of St. Thomas’s
The weeks really fly by around here. September 12th will mark my ninth in-person Sunday since arriving in Canada and at St. Thomas’s. (But who’s counting?) The kids started school on Thursday. I also interviewed a seminarian from Wycliffe College this week who will officially start with us at the beginning of October. (Look for a formal introduction in a future edition of the Thurible.) Oh, and I picked up some recycling.
That recycling may turn out to be the most important thing I’ve done this week. Last month, Eli cleaned up the area around the fire stairs on the south side of the church, and on Friday I spotted an errant piece of paper, evidently blown off a notice board, which had gotten stuck in the corner. Because that area looked so tidy, I picked it up, intending to put it into the recycling bin, but then I saw that it was advertising for videography services. I immediately wondered whether this might be God’s way of connecting us to a student at the university who could help us with our live-streaming project. I called and left a message, and a couple of minutes later got a call back.
The student I spoke with is just starting his third year as an undergrad, and better yet, he lives in the campus co-op housing on Huron Street. I told him we had not yet installed an upgraded camera and audio system, but wondered whether he might be interested in being interviewed as we look for someone who can take the tech oversight off Matthew Whitfield’s already full plate. After all, we are hoping that Matthew will be able to return sooner rather than later to directing our choirs live. The student replied that he has experience with the sort of fancy camera systems we’re looking into, and he said he thought his schedule might accommodate helping out; even if it didn’t, he knows plenty of students in the same field, and he’d be happy to make some introductions. He promised to email me soon.
Nothing may come of this, of course, but it’s one small step toward three big goals: 1) improve our streaming services for parishioners and virtual visitors alike, 2) reach out to students by building relationships at the grassroots level, and 3) connect with our neighbours who live in the houses owned and operated by Campus Co-operative Residence, Inc., a.k.a. CCRI, which is headquartered right next door to the church. So far, the only thing St. Thomas’s and CCRI share is a dumpster. (We split the cost of renting one.) But I think we might be able to do a little more than that. I don’t know what, but I’m praying about it. Apparently, CCRI is still searching for a new executive director, so I haven’t had a chance to invite anyone to lunch to talk about how to be better neighbours.
Another co-op that’s been in my prayers is the Huron Playschool. They’ve been running their program out of our parish hall basement for decades. I’ve met adults who have fond memories of going to nursery school there. Although not a ministry of the church, the playschool draws parents and children to the church grounds, and this alone presents some sort of opportunity. I haven’t even met the director of this co-op, so—again—I have no idea what might be possible. I do know one thing, though: the faded sign affixed to our baptistry (or baptistery, whichever spelling you prefer) could probably use an update, along with some directional information on how to get into the playschool! Last week, with Christine on leave and our keeping reduced office hours as a result, I saw many flummoxed parents in the courtyard, looking more out of place than that windblown flyer I picked up in the corner. By the time I realized they were probably new families trying to figure out how to get inside, I’d already missed out on some opportunities to be hospitable. I did manage to catch one family and let them know that, as far as I knew, they needed to walk around to the back of the parish hall via the alley between CCRI and the church, but I wasn’t 100% sure of that advice. In any event, we’ve got to find more ways to make these families and others feel welcome.
Anne and I noticed that during the morning at drop-off, it’s popular for parents to stow strollers temporarily in the very area that Eli had cleaned up, but when it rains, there’s no place to stash the strollers where they won’t get soaked. I can only imagine what it will be like in the winter! I don’t know whether some sort of stroller shelter would be helpful, or if that corner would be the best place for it, but I’d like to talk with the director and find out. It seems like the least we could do.
Sometimes very little things can make a big difference. One relatively small change will be the addition of pre-recorded choral music this Sunday as we await the return of live choral music and congregational singing. We will start out with a choral setting of the Nicene Creed by a “guest choir,” as you’ll read below. For various reasons, I’ve decided to place the Creed following the sermon, where I’m told it had been for many years prior to my arrival. To conform the liturgy with what is usually found in other parishes of this tradition, it is fitting that a dismissal should formally signal the end of the rite. These are even more minor changes than what I have in mind with regard to being more cooperative with those two co-ops, but attentiveness to all of these things is for the sake of being more faithful to the mission of hospitality, evangelism, and reconciliation which the church is called to embody.
Of all the little things that are making a big difference, however, your prayers are the most important. As I wrote earlier this week, prayer is both the least we can do and the most we can do at this time, or at any time in a community’s life. I want to thank you all for holding St. Thomas’s in your intentions as we continue the parish novena this week, and I look forward to seeing the wonderful things that God will accomplish through you.
Yours in Christ’s service,
