St. Ed Said

When someone says the word mission, what do you think about? What is the first thing that comes to mind when you say the word, mission? I asked this question in a sermon in 2001, and the overwhelming response was, the Mormons who go around door to door selling Jesus. The young men in white shirts and blue or black pants and a tie, knocking on your door. That was an overwhelming understanding of the word mission about 24 years ago. Some other responses I heard to that question were the arrival of the pilgrims and the immediate exploitation and subversion of the indigenous population residing here. The Poisonwood Bible was released right around that time and had become popular, it depicted a certain style of mission work as well. The other image I often recall is the movie Mission with Robert DeNiro and Jeremy Irons. Erin received a letter from a woman who lives around the corner. We never met her, so we spent a few minutes trying to figure out where the address was, just a few blocks aw...

This past Saturday I found myself walking around the Church property and explaining to a rapt crowd the plans for the pet memorial garden and the rainbow bridge. Most people were amazed and very excited about the opportunity. I talked about the walking path I envision for the church around the outside of the property, with the couple of meditation spots as well. Most of the folks gathered this past weekend had never been to St. Edward’s, and were impressed with the property and the solitude it has the potential to provide. It was a moment where I was reminded that we have something special, and even though I haven’t carried out the “One Thing” plan to perfection, it is still a ministry that catches the attention of people who hear about it. It catches the imagination of folks and the uniqueness of the ministry to pets and their owners energizes the imagination. So I thought I would revisit with you all, where we are at, and what it looks like will happen by October 5, when we will cele...