{Find a special video link HERE.}
Last Sunday marked the anniversary of my ordination to the Episcopal diaconate in a pandemic, amid a day red with wildfires. It was a surreal time. The tiny, physically-distanced service became tinier as relatives and friends cancelled travels due to smoke. But my husband and sister did readings, my godchild came, along with clergy friends, and my daughter played beautiful music on my computer. Special, it was, despite all.
In these years, diaconal ministry has looked different than I envisioned during formation/candidacy. I’m now a better preacher; I do a lot more theological writing; and I’m honing my Spanish. The small mostly-Spanish-speaking community where I serve has won my heart and perhaps I theirs. For those who don’t know what an “ordained deacon” is in the Episcopal church: deacons are clergy who do ministry outside the walls of the church, serving as a bridge of sorts, often multi-vocationally (“deacon” means “one who serves”). They are non-stipendiary by theological design, so nothing inhibits their role as truth-telling prophetic voices within the institution. {Read the remainder of this article on Patheos HERE.}