Pilgrims in Place

Pilgrims in Place—our Stewardship theme this year. What can this possibly mean? It seems to be self-contradictory, an oxymoron, a paradox, and it is, and I kind of love the fact that it is. Like many things we have faith in (a fully incarnate God come to mind, the trinity, the last being first, the list goes on) a pilgrim, a traveler who is on a journey to a holy place who stays firmly in place must be kind of a miraculous being. And you, my friends, are miraculous beings. I see the extraordinary you—everywhere I look, doing extraordinary things, inside and outside the walls of St. John’s.

So, let’s remember what your generous contributions to St. John’s Episcopal Church make possible. You support the staff’s salaries and benefits, funding a first-class team. You maintain a beautiful campus in the heart of Jackson Hole, a little patch of Eden in the middle of the bustle of town. You fund two services every Sunday in town, and four in the summer when The Chapel of the Transfiguration is open. You make it possible for us to provide special services that celebrate the crux moments in people’s lives—baptisms, marriages, and funerals. Your contributions pay for creative classes and retreats which help to form people and promote wellbeing. You support the Diocese of Wyoming (recently renamed the Episcopal Church in Wyoming) and the National Episcopal Church. And of course, you make possible the generous outreach we are able to accomplish.

These are the ways we, together, spread love throughout this valley and beyond. This is how we travel to a holy place, firmly planted here. You make this work possible. Thanks for pledging, thanks for giving, thanks for all you do, Pilgrims.

Peace, Brian