A provision of my 2001 Letter of Call, as pastor of St. Stephen, is a three-month sabbatical granted for every six years of service. A sabbatical period is intended to be a period of rest, renewal, and refocus for the next period of service in the congregation. (As one writer puts it, a sabbatical is “time to rest and regain some sense of the sacredness of my life and work.”) The time for my sabbatical would be sometime in 2007. It would be easiest for the congregation if it would happen during the summer months.

I have been doing some thinking about the content of the sabbatical, and I have asked for advice from members of the Mutual Ministry Committee. It seems to me that a theme for the time away could be “Cultivating Awareness” – of how God is working in my life and how God might be working in the future life of the congregation. The time away could consist of several components:

• Reading that requires significant set-aside, uninterrupted time. Possible reading could be some important new work by Biblical scholar N.T. Wright or liturgical scholar Gordon Lathrop.
• Travel. Travel that would expose me to other traditions and religious practices could include a trip to Tanzania, or a trip to Ireland, or a month living in the monastic community at Mepkin Abbey. Another idea for travel could be a long bicycle touring trip, perhaps following the Civil War trail in Virginia.
• Work that is very much different from what I do here at St. Stephen, because there would be refreshment in that. A possibility could be volunteering in a bicycle shop! I have talked with a friend who’s a Catholic priest in the midst of abject poverty in north Philadelphia, asking him to think about what he would have for me to do if I were to spend time living in his rectory.

It will be extremely important to think through who will provide for worship and pastoral care while I am away. A list of who does what during the sabbatical would be published before and during the sabbatical, so Sandy Peterkin is not put on the spot. For instance, would supply pastors be engaged for worship leadership, or would we schedule members to offer sermons? Pastors would need to be scheduled to be “on call” in case of deaths and funerals. Would we approach Robin Hudson to do that? (If so, how much would we increase her compensation?) Would Stephen Ministers be engaged to make “routine” hospital visits? What leadership role would Council members play in enabling members to care for each other?

What would the sabbatical cost the congregation? If we contract for three months of supply preaching, the expense would be $2,400 (12 weeks times $200). If we contract with Robin or a retired pastor to provide hospital visiting and funeral services, at $100 a week, that would be $1,200. One way to cover expenses would be to use the $4,000 we will be receiving because of my service in “Project Connect.” The Lilly Foundation also receives applications for grants to fund sabbaticals.

Help me to do some thinking about all of this!

Wow! I flip a switch -- and a light comes on! I punch in a few buttons -- and the microwave begins heating! I move a switch -- and water begins dripping through the coffee grounds in the filter! I turn on the hot water and hot water comes out of the faucet! Yes, we have power back on, after two days without electricity because of Tropical Storm Ernesto.

What wondrous things -- indoor plumbing carrying hot water, electric lights and coffee pots and cooking applicances. What a shame that we most often take them for granted.

It is a spiritual practice: to be thankful for the wonders that surround us day to day. When we are grateful, we become joyous!