Your Diocese

Chicago

Your City

Libertyville

Your Parish

St. Lawrence

Your parish website

http://www.stlawrencechurch.org/

Your blog (if you have one)

http://Ecumenical-Oblate.blogspot.com/

Your Anglican 'Species'

Lay person

Your 'Day Job'

Neuromuscular Therapist, Writer, Retreat Leader, (Whatever else is required )

What you do for fun and re-creation?

Read, make jewelry, knit, train my West Highland terrier pup, participate in a vibrant Benedictine oblate community.

What do you see as some of the biggest challenges facing Anglicans today?

1-The elitist, exclusive, mindset.
2-The wide-spread belief that our tradition's value is limited to the role of "keeper of history." (This is evident in attitudes about all things English, musical, and architectural.)
3-The financial drag of real estate.
4-The wide spread assumption that lay ministry is less important than clerical ministry.

What do you see as some of the biggest opportunities for Anglicans today?

1-I think we can build on our Liturgical / Monastic roots, while branching out to transcend expectations of limited styles of music, liturgy, and behavior and/or appearance.
2-We can focus on God's loving goodness incarnate in each person. Incarnate even in those who don't make the big bucks, or look a certain way.
3-We can share the work of ministry across the whole body by affirming the value of lay ministry; and even encouraging lay persons to do the work of God, rather than just sending a check.
4-Those gifted to give can support the gospel message going forth, reaching a huge population through technology. Even though they need to know it may not put more people in the Anglican pews.
5-We have the opportunity to truly grow inclusive faith community, across age limits, political, ethnic, and gender barriers.
6-We can actively support justice for the oppressed, both inside and outside these new faith communities.

What do you want Anglimergent to be? and what other Anglimergent resources, gatherings, activities or events would you find helpful for your ministry?

I long for opportunities for lay people to gather locally and regionally for prayer and/or discussion of emergent possibilities ( without being out numbered, overshadowed, or dismissed by clergy).
The emergent conversation is a grassroots movement. So we Anglimergents need to encourage those discussions among lay persons. Failure to encourage lay leadership in these conversation will functionally direct the 'sunami' of emergent seekers away from us and toward other spiritual sources that support that development. This will require a step of faith. It requires a choice to trust that God has prepared lay people to think both theologically, and strategically, for just such a time as this. We cannot control the process with puppet strings from above, and we are used to the clergy being in charge.

I hope we will learn to build a community of faith (person to person), outside the walls of elitism, and exclusivity. A community where we can acknowledge, worship, share and know a loving God who is at work in creation. That we can invite all, as if they were Christ, to participate as fully as they are able. Simultaneously seeking to serve, and forgive, each other, as well as the larger world. That we might also to bring justice, and peace, for the poor and oppressed.