Church News
With the encouragement of my boss at St Mary’s, I’m passing around word that we’re looking for a Vice Provost for the cathedral. It’s not a training position, not a curacy, but a position for someone with experience. It would perhaps prepare you for subsequent service at a senior level, or provide a setting to ratchet down from a senior position which has become too onerous. I’m especially calling for the attention of my friends Stateside; St Mary’s is looking especially for help in consolidating the growth of the past few years and moving forward into the next phase of our congregational life.
I will add as a strictly personal note that it might be easiest for a single person. Margaret and I have had a degree of vexation with visas, ourselves. But you know I love Glasgow, and the congregation is at a very promising juncture of its corporate life. Wonderful, strong music program; liturgically deliberate but not very high church; good overlap with University community, though there’s probably work to be done enhancing that connection; my non-stipendiary colleagues are tremendous to work with; and I have very high regard for the Provost, who is a strong presence in the Scottish Episcopal Church, a lively intellect, and an accomplished preacher and congregational leader. He and I take different views on a number of topics — in some cases, very different views — and we can hold those divergent views with respect and clarity (I don’t try to undermine him, he doesn’t try to override me). That’s an important indicator, I think; too many clergy respond insecurely to difference, and they redouble (overt or covert) hostility to anyone who doesn’t sign on their dotted lines, and that can be a perilous, frustrating position for a member of staff. I haven’t seen that in Kelvin, and I appreciate that immensely. So that’s my non-stipendiary-clergy-team view of the position; I don’t have any role in the search process, so there may be aspects of the position that I’m entirely wrong about. Send a query (to the cathedral), or write to Kelvin, or just apply and see what happens.
I preached this morning, too, which went moderately well. “Moderately,” because it became clear during my reading of the gospel that my microphone wasn’t on (and it’s important that we all be miked). As I processed to the pulpit, I fiddled with all the buttons and connections, and everything seemed to be in order. I extricated the main power pack, the on-off switch, and the mic itself from multiple layers of clothing and vestments, and our MC dashed off to grab a spare, which I manipulated into place (sort of) while standing at the ready to being the sermon.
Once I got going, the sermon part was fine (apart from occasional unanticipated squawks from the back-up mic, which gave me a start). Since we at St Mary’s are moving ahead into a new phase, for which our Vice Provost will play an essential role, and because congregational growth (change!) usually occasions stress and disruption, I preached o the Colossians text — hoping that by working together and thinking theologically together, we can keep our bearings through any storms that may come our way.
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