Retired Clergy Newsletter – February 2017
Late Winter Greetings & Happy Valentine’s Day from Vermont’s Co-Chaplains to Retired Clergy
Christian Century: Below is the link to a recent article in Christian Century entitled “Blurring the Lines.” The article describes several congregations who have made creative arrangements for retired or soon-to-be-retired clergy to be involved in a variety of ways with a congregation they have served. It is a thought-provoking essay and raises some interesting questions about the relationship between congregations and their former clergy. It also presents some thoughts about how clergy might be able to offer gifts to the Church after retirement from parish ministry.
https://www.christiancentury.org/article/can-retiring-pastors-mentor-their-own-successors
Got Books? Been thinking about passing along some of your treasured books? Well, have we got a deal for you! Check out the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) at www.spckusa.org. They are looking for specific kinds of books and vestments that will be passed on to others in need. They are seeking: Major Theologians (past and current); Bibles; New & Old Testament; Church History; Current Commentaries; Anchor Bibles; Homiletics; Pastoral Care (current issues); General Christianity; Vestments; and Theology. Please limit your offerings to those books published after 1980 although classics published before 1980 would be okay.
Shipping info: Pack and ship in boxes no larger than 16 11/16” x 12 5/8” x 16 ¼” (the size of a box holding a case of wine.) Patti Joy Posan, Executive Director, requests you call SPCK/USA before shipping books to discuss the shipment (931) 598-1103. Send to SPCK/USA, PO Box 879, Sewanee, TN 37375. Books can be shipped Media Mail rate. You can also ship them to: The Rev. Dwight Ogier, 125 Betty Street, Clarkesville, GA 30523 (Chaplain to Retired Clergy in Atlanta and the Virgin Islands) who will see they get delivered along with other donations from Province IV.
Written acknowledgement will come from either party but Dwight+ has time to accomplish that faster. For tax deductible IRS receipts, you determine the value. Dwight’s guidelines are: $50-$75 per box; 10-$15 per hardbound book; $5-$9 per paperback book; $2 magazines (magazines, however, are on the “Do Not Send” list). If you choose, make a list of title & author for your records only. No need to send list with shipment. No insurance needed.
Check out www.spckusa.org for more information about this program and for additional details re: what books/vestments they are looking for and what materials they are NOT looking for. Also please do not give your books to John or Carole to mail for you. Nope. Don’t do it. Thanks!
News & Notes: A few folks had some news to share and here is the synopsis:
- Remington Rose-Crossley reports that he and Ramona are keeping busy as spiritual directors and confessors to students at the School of Theology where both of them studied.
- Al Stefanik has published a second book: I See Your Belly Button that is about learning American compassion from an immigrant. Available on Amazon. Al also had an essay (“Story Telling on a Full Sea”) published in a recent issue of the CPG’s Vintage Voice.
- Thad Bennet has just completed training as CASA/Guardian ad Litem for Family Court in Windham County.
- Ellie Perry, wife of John Perry, is also serving as Guardian ad Litem in the Northeast Kingdom.
- Blayney Colmore explores fragile friendship among men of high achievement in seemingly opposite careers in his new book: The Priest & The Spy. Available through Amazon.
- Carole Wageman has her first book coming out in March: The Light Shines Through: Our Stories Are God’s Story focuses on stories from people in scripture and where our stories intersect with theirs and God’s. Available through Church Publishing and Amazon.
Be sure to send us (John Morris and/or Carole Wageman) anything new you are doing that you would like us to share. Spring will be here soon and there has been interest in organizing a few gatherings for retired clergy around Vermont. We are waiting for weather to be more dependable for travel, so stay tuned.
We hope you have a good Lent!
Blessings,
Carole Wageman+ (revmomvt@gmail.com) and John Morris+ (morrisvt@tops-tele.com)
PS check out www.lentmadness.org for a Lenten discipline that is educational as well as fun!