Back from the Conference

I’m finally back from the SCP conference and at the keyboard once again. The conference was wonderful. M and I had a great time, it was so good to see familiar faces and to chat with people that we hadn’t seen in a while. As M remarked to me, it feels like the society is really beginning to gel; real relationships are being built up– as had always been the intent.

This was the first time that the conference had been held outside of New Haven and not at a parish where the convener and the communications director served.  I have to give major props to the Great Lakes Chapter, and especially to our friend and colleague Jared Cramer, for working out schedules and logistics especially when the city of Detroit was foreign territory for most of the chapter members! The biggest structural news, is that, after three years, we have transitions in some of the high positions.  The new convener is Bill Carroll; the new communications director is Chris Arnold. I think there’s a lot of good energy around the society and its mission to be a catholic presence within the Episcopal Church.

As for the presentations, Tripp Norris gave a great account of his experience conducting an Anglo-Catholic church plant. I was unable to be at Bishop Gibbs’ presentation, so I can’t comment on it. The former Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold gave a wonderful presentation on the sacrament of reconciliation. Through it, we got to see a side of him that I, at least, had never seen before. He was charming and witty, but his advice also showed a depth of wisdom in catholic spirituality that impressed me.

I thought my presentation went pretty well too. I have put it up on my Scribd account but will subsequently be posting it here for thoughts and comments.

All in all, it was another wonderful experience! I got to see old friends, I got to make new friends, and came away with renewed energy for the work of the catholic cause in the Episcopal Church.

1 thought on “Back from the Conference

  1. John-Julian, OJN

    Ah, Derek—what lovely words! I’m distributing them to everyone in the Order (even though some of it is “parochial”).

    Someday think of doing a piece on the liturgical implications of the definition of the mission of the Church in the Catechism (BCP p. 855)! There’s so much hullaballoo about “mission” these days (most of it concerns paarish growth, and is hollow and “pragmatic”) which forget entirely about this (essential) definition. The “restoration of union” is our primary job!

    Thanks for the good words. Someday I’ll get to a SCP meeting…..

    John-Julian,OJN

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