Grace Cathedral

Dear Friends, 

On the night of Jesus’ betrayal, the Gospel according to John records an extended teaching, which scholars term Jesus’ “Farewell Discourse.” In its narrative context, the lyrical, mystical poetry is intended to shore up the disciples and prepare them for Jesus’ glorification on the cross and ultimate return to the Father. Jesus prays: “Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.” (John 17:11 NRSV) And Jesus continues: “I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” (17:23) 

Theologians have understood the unity of which Jesus spoke as proleptic (already and not yet), or eschatological (fulfilled at the end of time). We might look to it as both vocational and aspirational — that is, it is the work and hope of every Christian, by the grace of God working in us. And while this work is common to the whole Church and shared among its members, it is particularly expressed in the Episcopate, the Order of Bishops. 

The rite of ordination of a bishop makes explicit this vocation of unity. In the Examination (BCP 517), the Presiding Bishop describes the call to the Bishop-elect, who is “called to be one with the apostles,” and to “guard the faith, unity and discipline of the Church.” The first liturgical act that the Bishop-elect leads in the rite is the Nicene Creed: We believe in one God, and by the Holy Spirit, one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church. The theme of unity continues after the prayer of consecration and laying on of hands. There, Presiding Bishop then prays that the new Bishop’s heart will be filled so that they can “serve before (God) day and night in the ministry of reconciliation.” (BCP 521) 

A Bishop’s ministry of reconciliation concerns not only pronouncing God’s forgiveness at the confession of sin, but the church-wide and public exercise of their ministry to gather, heal, and share God’s love for the world. Episcopal ministry has been understood as central to the reconciliation of church bodies, dating from the 1886 Chicago Quadrilateral, four criteria for Christian unity, written by Episcopal priest William Reed Huntington and affirmed by the House of Bishops in the Convention. (The unifying role of Bishops was also understood as central to Anglican polity and identity when the Quadrilateral was adapted and affirmed by Anglican bishops at Lambeth two years later.) 

Chicago and Lambeth affirmed “the historic Episcopate, locally adapted.” There is no one way to be a Bishop or to exercise a ministry of reconciliation. While the purview of a Bishop is decidedly global — each is called to “share in the leadership of the Church throughout the world” (BCP 517) — the exercise is often local and particular. Bishops confirm individuals with names, stories, and gifts in the unity and faith of the apostles. They ordain deacons and priests in the same. Bishops convene specific interfaith, civic, and other partners, with whom they build relationships over time, and partner to respond to the real, human (and ecological) circumstances on the ground. 

When Jesus convened his disciples on that fateful night, he prayed that they would be one. Jesus would not need to pray for what already was in its fullness. He prayed because the disciples were also going to be scattered; they were going to betray, deny, despair, disagree, disbelieve, and drift away on their boats. None of this dissuaded Jesus from his prayer, call, and ultimate faithfulness; neither should it dissuade us. This is the faith of the apostles. It transformed the face of the earth. Thanks be to God who gives us signs of unity and the ministry of reconciliation, that by them the world may glimpse the love that makes us one. 

With love,
Anna 

The Rev. Canon Anna E. Rossi
Canon Precentor
Director of Interfaith Engagement 

This is the third in a series of reflections on the Election of the Ninth Bishop of California. You’ll find the first and the second on Grace Cathedral’s blog.

Dear Friends,

In the first of a series on the election of the ninth bishop of the Diocese, I reflected on the interdependence of the Body of Christ, and of the orders of ministry (lay persons, deacons, priests, and bishops). In this second part, I want to underscore that each of us has a role and responsibility to play in the governance of the church. Moving from the theological to the practical, what follows is a bird’s eye view of making a bishop in our church.

In some Christian traditions — notably in the Roman Catholic Church — bishops are appointed. By contrast, in the Episcopal Church, we elect bishops. This distinction follows from an Episcopal/Anglican understanding of authority, which echoes democratic structures. On the one hand, the Bishop is the Ecclesiastical Authority. Diocesan governance provides that “in addition to being the Ecclesiastical Authority, the Bishop is the Chief Pastor …” (Constitution and Canons of the Diocese of California, 2018, Article IV) And on the other hand, that authority is exercised with others: “The authority of the Diocese is vested in and exercised by its Bishop (and Bishop Coadjutor, if there is one), its Conventions, Annual and Special, and its Standing Committee, acting under and in subordination to The Episcopal Church, its Constitution and Canons and its General Convention.” (Constitution and Canons of the Diocese of California, 2018, Article III)

In The Episcopal Church, the Standing Committee plays a prominent role in the governance of the diocese. The Church provides for a Standing Committee in each diocese, and its broad remit. “When there is a Bishop in charge of the Diocese, the Standing Committee shall be the Bishop’s Council of Advice. If there be no Bishop or Bishop Coadjutor or Suffragan Bishop canonically authorized to act, the Standing Committee shall be the Ecclesiastical Authority of the Diocese for all purposes declared by the General Convention.” (The Constitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church, 2019, Article IV) Other purposes of the Standing Committee are determined by the Diocese. (In our case, the President of the Standing Committee is an ex officio member of Grace Cathedral’s Board of Trustees.)

This model of governance was exemplified when Bishop Marc publicly announced his retirement on the Feast of St. Mary Magdalene, July 22, 2022. That announcement followed several months of working with the Standing Committee to anticipate the requirements and form of an election for his successor. The Standing Committee in turn helped to form the Search and Transition Committee of the Diocese (Learn more at DioCalBishopSearch.org.

We will soon see some of the fruits of the Search and Transition Committee’s work. An initial slate of candidates will be announced on Friday, September 22. Consisting of those who applied by May 31, 2023, candidates will have undergone a substantial review of their applications, supporting material, and references, as well as multiple interviews and a retreat, before being put forward. On September 22, the committee will also open a process for candidates by petition through Friday, October 27, the eve of the Diocesan Convention, when the final slate will be announced. From November 2 through 6, the people of the Diocese are encouraged to attend one of the Meet and Greets with the final slate.

When the diocese convenes on Saturday, December 2, we’ll elect a Bishop Coadjutor, who will serve alongside Bishop Marc in a few months’ transition. The “we” includes a majority of the clergy entitled to vote, and not less than two-thirds of all the parishes and missions, including the cathedral, represented by at least one delegate. Cathedral delegates are elected at the Annual Meeting of the Congregation. So, if you voted at Annual Meeting in January 2023, you have contributed to the election of the next bishop.

In the December electing convention, the clergy and lay delegates vote separately, and the candidate must win a majority of both to be elected. (Constitution and Canons of the Diocese of California, 2018, Article XII) The election result then proceeds to the whole Episcopal Church, where it must be certified by a majority of the Bishops with jurisdiction, and the Standing Committees of those dioceses. (The Constitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church, 2019, Article II, Sec. 3.) And then follows an ordination and consecration — an update unto itself.

I see in the intricacy of this governance process the extraordinary care that our forebears took to ensure that the Spirit moving through each of us could give rise to a Chief Pastor, the principal steward of the mysteries we celebrate in the same Spirit.

Almighty God, giver of every good gift, by your grace you have called us into one fellowship of faith: Look graciously on the people of the Diocese of California during this time of transition. May we be guided in heart and mind by your Holy Spirit to seek and welcome a faithful pastor who will care for your people and equip us to perform the work of the Church. Grant us, in all our doubts and uncertainties, the grace to ask what you would have us do. Save us from all false choices, that in your light we may see light, and on your path may not stumble; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

All good things,
Anna

The Rev. Canon Anna E. Rossi
Canon Precentor
Director of Interfaith Engagement

Dear Friends,

Save us from all false choices. This sage bidding is included in our prayer for the Bishop Search and Transition process, and borrowed from a Prayer for Guidance in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer (p. 832). Its human authors recognize that we are too often captive to mutually exclusive propositions and that asking a good question is as important as defining a good response.

On December 2, 2023, the clergy and lay delegates of the Diocese of California will convene at Grace Cathedral to elect our ninth bishop. The election is actually for a coadjutor, allowing for a time of transition with Bishop Marc, before his retirement. The successor is, among other things, asked to build on Bishop Marc’s leadership in ecological and social justice, and to discern with the congregations and institutions of the diocese as we grapple with the impacts of a post-COVID, inequitably digitized, climate-impacted, and yet grace-filled world.

The forthcoming election generates excitement about possibilities, as well as curiosity about the mechanics of the election, and the significance of the orders and bishops to our Episcopal/Anglican tradition. For today: The faith that has been handed down to us is an ordered faith, understanding the structure of the church to be expressed in distinct charisms and commitments. The largest and most important order — the laity — emerges from the waters of baptism, affirming that each of us is a child of God, charged with an essential faithfulness to the Almighty, the Christian community, and the whole creation.

Those whose Church expectations were formed in a small parish, or in another Christian tradition, might next think of a priest, pastor, or senior minister. In a practical sense, if they were the only staff cleric, that person may have been the principal preacher, teacher, minister of the sacraments, or decision maker. If they had a long tenure, they may have had an outsize influence on the community’s understanding of orders — the community may or may not have had the sustained presence of a deacon or bishop, or a fulsome sense of the authority given to the laity at baptism.

The aspiration of an Episcopal cathedral is quite different: my fervent hope is that by being part of this worshipping assembly, by encountering a variety of priests and deacons in their roles, and by praying with Bishop Marc and perhaps being confirmed, or hearing him pronounce God’s forgiveness or blessing, you are building a nuanced and composite image of what it means to be an ordained minister for the church. You know that each of us expresses a call with a different accent or emphasis, and, I hope, that those accents speak to the depth and breadth of Christ’s body.

In his First Letter to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul writes: “Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot would say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ that would not make it any less a part of the body…If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? … But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many members, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you.'” (NRSVue 12:14-21, excerpted) “Save us from all false choices,” the prayer continues, “that in your light we may see light, and on your path, may not stumble.” How many muscles and organs it takes to walk without stumbling?

We are approaching the program year, where the cathedral will have a significant role in the sequence of events leading to the election (December 2), ordination and consecration (May 4), and eventual seating (date tbd) of that bishop. There will be times of intentional preparation and reflection for the election, which will be planned in August. We will host a meet and greet with the final slate of candidates (November 2, evening). And most importantly, we will continue to pray for the process, for Bishop Marc and Sheila as they continue to love and serve the people of this cathedral and diocese, and for the sign that we are all called to be as Christ’s body, mutually dependent, broken and poured for the world.

Every good gift,
Anna

The Rev. Canon Anna E. Rossi
Canon Precentor
Director of Interfaith Engagement

Dear Friends,

I am writing to you today to share with you some information that may have made it a little harder to connect with your cathedral in the past weeks. Two weeks ago, we had a technical event that impacted our telephone and voicemail system. We expect the system to be fully restored in a few days. If you have tried to reach us by phone and have been unable to leave a voicemail, please accept our apologies. Until phone systems are fully restored, email is the best way to reach the staff. If you don’t know the email address of the person you hope to reach, email reception@gracecathedral.org with the person’s name in the subject line, and your message will be forwarded.

The cathedral clergy are here to support you in your time of need. Often that is a prayer, or sitting together during a hard time, or making connections for health and mental health support. If you have a prayer concern, the best way to communicate that is to email prayer@gracecathedral.org. It will ensure that your concern is included in the daily rhythm of prayer, a ministry to which many people, lay and ordained, staff and volunteer, contribute. If you wish to bring a personal concern to a member of the pastoral staff, write pastoralcare@gracecathedral.org. 

There are also those rare and poignant circumstances when an accident occurs, or someone is admitted to the hospital, and after-hours support is called for. If you have an emergent need such as this, and are not able to reach the pastoral emergency phone, please call my extension at (415) 749-6396, or that of the Rev. Canon Mary Carter Greene at (415) 749-6369.

The cathedral offices and programs will be closed on Monday, July 3, and Tuesday, July 4, in honor of Independence Day. Amid barbecues and fireworks, please join in praying for our country, in your own language, or in the tradition of our prayer book:

Almighty God, who hast given us this good land for our heritage: We humbly beseech thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of thy favor and glad to do thy will. Bless our land with honorable industry, sound learning, and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom in thy Name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that, through obedience to thy law, we may show forth thy praise among the nations of the earth. In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in thee to fail; all which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Every good gift,

Anna

Dear Friends, 

Among the great delights of our new flat is the local farmer’s market. It unfolds on a small street off Columbus, and its relatively small footprint boasts lively vendors, delectable produce, unparalleled sourdough, and third-wave coffee. Part of our Saturday morning shtick is for my wife Amie to wax poetic about the day’s finds, and each walk down the street is marked by some anticipation of the following week’s treats. It’s stone fruit season! 

Yesterday, I gave myself 20 minutes to run an errand that took me across the very street. This time, it was filled with flats of produce in 50-pound bags. I gazed up to see a line of people waiting to receive food, stretching down the city block and around the playground. The people standing in line were overwhelmingly ethnic-Chinese elders, standing single-file, masked, six feet apart in relative silence. And the atmosphere felt heavier than the flats of produce. Today, I made a small contribution to the San Francisco Food Bank as an acknowledgment of this shared space without common ground. 

The Daily Office lectionary has led us into the Letter of James, a small portion of the New Testament that drew great ire of the Reformers for its assertion that faith without works is dead. The letter is critical of wealth, not for its own sake, but because of its emotional power and externalities — the unseen and unjust ways that the costs are born, out of sight and out of mind. In our reading this week, a phrase leaped from the page: “Let the brother or sister of humble means boast in having a high position and the rich in having been humbled because the rich will disappear like a flower in the field. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the field; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. It is the same way with the rich; in the midst of a busy life, they will wither away.” (NRSV 1:9-11) 

Absent smartphones, energy drinks, and Wi-Fi-enabled flights, exactly how busy were the rich in the pre-industrial Mediterranean? What timeless insight! Few of us are rich by local standards, but compared with the span of the globe and the centuries, many are. It is often in the disruption of business as usual that we are reminded of our relative comfort and the great gifts we have been given. And as in my neighborhood, many of the disparities are hidden in plain sight: I don’t fear hunger, and my immediate neighbors do. 

Pentecost Sunday, May 28, we welcome the Rev. Norman Fong to The Forum and the pulpit. From his humble beginnings in Chinatown, Norman has become a Presbyterian minister of deep faith, and a passionate activist for housing, social welfare, and civil rights. His generous vision of a society that seeks common ground — Norman has said to me before: we both share noodles; this is the beginning of a shared table. Please join us for this festive celebration of Pentecost, which also concludes AAPI Heritage Month. Consider what you hope for, and what you will bring to a shared table.

With love,
Anna 

The Rev. Canon Anna E. Rossi
Canon Precentor
Director of Interfaith Engagement

Dear Friends,

What’s so good about Good Friday?

It’s a fair question to ask of this solemn observance, centered around the cross and passion. Good Friday is not a funeral for Jesus, but it does take us to Calvary and to the tomb. Good Friday asks to draw near to the savior who chose solidarity with those condemned to human violence, over any clean escape that might be afforded by his divine office. We go as willingly as Jesus himself did. The events of Good Friday are entered into fully because they are integral to the Easter story, to resurrection. And with this trust, we venerate an instrument intended for torture, praying an ancient antiphon: “We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your Holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.”

The long shadow cast over Good Friday is not just our Christian experience around the cross, it is that of our neighbors. This is especially true of the Jewish people, who, in the name of Christian supremacy and anti-semitism, have been subjected to violence on this day across the centuries, and made to feel that they were somehow outside the world to be redeemed. In addition, the themes of Good Friday have also been misused to defer the healing of human suffering to an afterlife, rather than making it our work in this life.

A growing dis-ease with this history prompted the General Convention of the Episcopal Church to charge an interim body with the study of the Good Friday liturgy, then, in 2022, to authorize new resources for trial use. This work has prompted lively scholarly debate about the use of the word “Jew” in scripture, especially the gospel according to John; the curation of the lectionary; and the substance of the Solemn Collects in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. I give thanks to the many communities who will pray the Solemn Liturgy of Good Friday in a more sensitive and responsible way because of this good work.

At Grace Cathedral, we continue the work of revising the Solemn Collects to enfold not just the Jewish people, but the whole world. The same arrogance and hatred which has led to specific violence against our Jewish neighbors contributes to the general degradation of the planet and its peoples. This is the sin of Christian supremacy. We may not each bear personal fault, but neither are we exempt from shared responsibility. If we can stand alongside Jesus on Good Friday, we must lay down any illusion that we are part of an elite or protected class, and follow in his humble way, as a self-offering for the life of the whole world.

Our ancient liturgies must be continually revised to respond to the present and to God’s mission for the world. This is inherently a slow process. The liturgy is not a lecture, but a common prayer and work in which the whole body shares. It is more than words, and more than any one of us, and should, from time to time, take us out of our heads and sweep us off our feet. In these Great Three Days, preparing for Easter joy, let us pray:

“Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

Blessed Holy Week,

Anna

The Rev. Canon Anna E. Rossi
Canon Precentor
Director of Interfaith Engagement

“Our compass must point toward hope.” Hope is the heartbeat of the Christian story, and of this NPR Perspective, shared by my colleague Katherine Thompson.

At Grace Cathedral, and in The Episcopal Church, we strive to be trans-inclusive, a place of welcome for Katherine’s daughter, and any who have found themselves on the margins. Our motivations aren’t political, and sometimes they’re not popular — they’re about following the way of Jesus, who showed us that God loves everyone, without exception. We know that love isn’t just a word or a feeling. Love is standing with people who feel afraid, creating spaces where they feel welcome, and speaking out when basic rights and needs are imperiled. Love is expanding our vocabularies and our imaginations, so that together, by God’s grace, we can build that future filled with hope.

Take the next step, and listen to Katherine’s Perspective on KQED.

Dear Friends,

Traditional disciplines of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving mark the season of Lent, but sometimes those general categories are expressed in very particular ways in our lives. For me, that has been a move. We’ve traded the keys to a rental house in the East Bay, where our sons moved from middle school to high school and are now at the beginning of college, for a flat within walking distance of our San Francisco workplaces. The welcome, if dramatic, change has left me with a clear sense of Lent as homemaking and homecoming, at once unsettling and promising.

Anything we undertake or shed during the season is done under the rubric of making us more the selves and the community that God made us to be. So the journey, while reflecting shared patterns, is personal, particular, and contextual. This week marks a midpoint in the season. How is your Lenten journey unfolding? What themes are emerging for you?

Lent is traditionally a time of preparation for people who wish to be baptized, confirmed, or received. I’m grateful that two leaders in the congregation, Roberta Sautter and Robert Ward, are guiding a 6-week series that will serve as preparation; it is also an excellent opportunity for those who wish to explore or deepen their faith generally. The series will begin this Sunday, March 12, at 12:30 pm.

Finally, Lent prepares us for Easter, for resurrection, and new life. The wisdom of our tradition is that it is most fruitful to walk the whole path through the Lenten desert, the last supper, betrayal, crucifixion, and death, and to sit at the tomb. Then we are most prepared to meet the Risen Christ. We make this pilgrimage together as a community during Holy Week, which begins this year on Palm Sunday, April 2. Mark your calendars with updated information about Holy Week and Easter.

With gratitude for our shared pilgrimage,
Anna

The Rev. Canon Anna E. Rossi
Canon Precentor
Director of Interfaith Engagement

Dear Friends,

Last week I had the great pleasure of announcing the appointment of the Rev. Joe Williams as Grace Cathedral’s Succentor. I am grateful for your responses. I gathered from them that there was a degree of Episcopalianese in the announcement, and a few clarifying comments would be helpful.

First, on titles: although Anglicans talk about worship in the vernacular, part of our inheritance is Latin, as exemplified by the terms Precentor and Succentor. You’ll see in them the common root “centor,” Latin for cantor. The Precentor was historically the first cantor, who led the assembly in worship. The Succentor was the second cantor. In Grace Cathedral’s context, the Precentor is the director of liturgy and a canon, or adviser to the dean, with responsibility for the department. The Succentor is the deputy, an ordained person with particular areas of oversight in the liturgical life and supportive (but not administrative) responsibilities in others. The Succentor is also equipped to act on the Precentor’s behalf when necessary.

Second, about the Precentor’s department: full staffing of the Precentor’s department is about 3.5 FTE’s, working in concert with a fully staffed and formed Office of Music and Office of the Congregation. As you may know, the last time the Office of the Congregation was fully staffed was in October 2020. For the Precentor’s Office, that was April 2021. The result is that we have a number of critical functions with no redundancy, which is especially vulnerable to predictable variables like getting sick (Murphy’s law!) or taking a couple of days off. The Succentor is not intended to replace me, or to allow me or the department to take on additional responsibilities. Rather, the Succentor is foundational to the continuity of operations in the department and the liturgical life of the cathedral.

If etymology and operations don’t make your soul sing, here is the part that most pertains to you: it is the duty of all Christians to work, pray and give for the kingdom of God — the Beloved Community. While human labor and money make work possible, it is no accident that prayer is at the center of that trifecta. Prayer is what allows us to work wisely, within our capacities, to build upon our strengths and make room for weaknesses. It’s what inspires us to labor on a project, but not grind to exhaustion, or to the exclusion of health, home, or leisure. Prayer is also what allows us to have an honest accounting of our assets and appetites, and to share generously and freely.

We are approaching an inflection point in the liturgical year, when we turn from Epiphany’s themes of light and God’s self-revelation to the Lenten rigor of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. The Last Sunday after the Epiphany, this year February 19, resounds with alleluias and the story of Jesus’ Transfiguration, prefiguring the resurrection. We celebrate this year with Circlesongs with Bobby McFerrin and Motion at 10:30 am, a special musical collaboration with composer and author Parris Lane at 11 am, and welcoming the Rev. Joe Williams at all three Eucharists. Then, at 6 pm, our shouts of joy sung in the Eucharist carry us out to the plaza, where we burn last year’s palms from Palm Sunday in a rite of Palms to Ashes. All are encouraged to bring last year’s palms to services on February 19.

We begin our Lenten journey on Ash Wednesday, this year, February 22, with Morning Prayer at 9 am, and Holy Eucharist with Imposition of Ashes at noon and 6 pm. The Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession) will be offered from 10 am to 11:45 am and 1:30 pm to 5:30 pm.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in all circumstances … the one who calls you is faithful.

With love,

Anna

Dear friends,

It is with great joy that we announce the appointment of the Rev. Joe C. Williams as Succentor. 

Williams comes to us from the Diocese of Oklahoma. He was ordained to the diaconate in December 2022, anticipating ordination to the priesthood in the summer of 2023. As Succentor, Joe will play an integral role in the preparation of cathedral liturgy, and the care and formation of all who serve our worship life.

A sixth-generation Oklahoman and citizen of the Choctaw Nation, Williams is a recent graduate of the Seminary of the Southwest. Prior to ordination, Joe was a nonprofit professional, working in development and communications for agencies specializing in hospice, HIV/AIDS care, youth development, and adults with developmental disabilities. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Organizational Leadership from the University of Oklahoma, as well as certification in Nonprofit Management through the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits.

Williams is steeped in the liturgical traditions of the church. He comes to us with a deep life of prayer and commitment to God’s people, as well as the production and management skills necessary to carry out the cathedral liturgy. We will formally welcome Joe to the Grace Cathedral at each celebration of the Eucharist on Sunday, February 19, 2023, ahead of his permanent arrival in mid-March.

Please join us in celebrating our new Succentor!

With gratitude,
Anna

Dear Friends,

From the beginning, the church has fractured in the face of disagreements over doctrine, liturgical practices, and human diversity, sometimes colored by money, power, and politics. And because of this reality, or perhaps in spite of it, the church has continued to pray for unity, even when that unity is amorphous or aspirational. Traditionally, a week-long observance of prayer for Christian unity begins on January 18 (The Confession of St. Peter) and concludes on January 25 (The Conversion of St. Paul).

The World Council of Churches explores a theme for Christian unity each year, and 2023’s is “Do good; seek justice.” The theme recognizes that our care for the human community is both an ethical imperative and a potential source of commonality among the diverse Christian bodies. Like world peace, Christian unity is both worthy of our striving and something that will ultimately be fulfilled at the end of time. It is our work and God’s work. It is more practice and intention than a measurable goal.

Put “do good; seek justice” into practice with this year’s Winter Interfaith Shelter. A collaboration of Episcopal Community Services, the San Francisco Interfaith Council, and local houses of worship, the Winter Interfaith Shelter takes place in the coldest months of the year, and provides our unhoused neighbors with a warm place to sleep indoors, and a nourishing meal. Grace Cathedral will serve on Thursday, February 9. Learn more and register to join the team of volunteers to cook, serve, transport, and clean up.

We recognize the unity of the Body of Christ in many ways, among them the Eucharist, and, more particularly, the common cup. We might think first of the contents of the cup (Wine), but the total witness of scripture is to the fact of a shared cup. Many have expressed enthusiasm about the return to Communion in both kinds (Bread and Wine), and some their concerns. Both have a place and support our preparation for how to proceed. We’ll begin on January 29, and robust participation from the congregation serving in the liturgy is both necessary and desired. Confirmed Christians with reverence for the sacramental life are encouraged to register for Chalice Bearer trainings offered throughout the day on Sunday, January 22. 

I want to call your attention to a few important events in cathedral life:

• This Sunday at 12:15 pm, join Inquirers Class to learn more about The Episcopal Church, our traditions, and what it means to belong.

• Next Sunday, January 29, at 9:30 am in the Nave and online, we’ll hold the Annual Meeting of the Congregation. All pledging members are eligible to vote. Your vote matters, so please make your 2023 pledge today.

• For two decades, our congregation members and others have followed the star of wonder to experience Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Nazareth, and other places from the life of Jesus. This is the final call for the final Grace Cathedral pilgrimage led by the Rev. Canon Mark Stanger.

• We are delighted to share with you all the new Grace Cathedral Website. Learn more in our blog!  

Finally, I am delighted to announce that Interim Director of Music Mr. Chris Keady and his husband Dan have just been given a new foster-to-adopt baby boy after many years of waiting. Chris is taking family leave as of this week. Please join me in wishing Chris and Dan hearty congratulations on the new addition to their family.

With love,
Anna

The Rev. Canon Anna E. Rossi
Canon Precentor
Director of Interfaith Engagement

Dear Friends,

Blessed Feast of the Epiphany, and Happy New Year!

It’s customary to begin the new year with bold resolutions and relatively firm intentions about how things are to unfold. But sometimes, we find our intentions to be counter to the natural flow of things. Enter plans b, c, and d; enter ideas subject to revision. Life is, shall we say, fluid.

We encountered the fluidity of life in a salient way this week, with meteorologists using terminology at turns militaristic (“bomb cyclone”) and evocative of tropical vacations (“pineapple express.”) For much of the country, a few inches of rain and 40-60-mph winds would be unremarkable. But Bay Area architecture is not built with storm shelters or hurricane-grade shutters; our public transit was not engineered for atmospheric rivers.

Many of us were spared the worst of the storms, but some were not. For them, the fluidity of the situation is not just reshuffling appointments; it’s replacing personal artifacts that are water-damaged or somehow adrift or addressing deeper losses. Whatever the circumstance, we’re not quite set up for this, and it’s clear that more fluidity is on the way. What do we make of the flood?

The imagery of a great flood pervades religious and mythological traditions. The account of Genesis 7-8 ends with a “never again” promise from God, with a dove, an olive branch, and a rainbow. I can’t believe that God controls weather, but I do believe that God reveals God’s self in signs, no matter how overwhelming the deluge. If you were impacted by weather, how did God appear alongside you? In the care and concern of a neighbor, in the synchronicity of a family visit, in the silent reminder to take a deep breath?

God’s presence in the flood is part of what makes it ripe baptismal imagery. The flood is not just a violent force of destruction but the revelation of God in all and through all. Countless generations after Noah, and after Jesus submitted to the baptism of John, people of faith emerge from the torrents as a new creation and a new human family. Join us this Sunday as we celebrate the Feast of the Baptism of our Lord, with child and infant baptisms at 11 am and 6 pm, and renew your own trust in God’s surprising and abiding presence.

From deluge to measured droplets: we can also celebrate the return of the Common Cup. Receiving communion in both kinds, Bread and Wine, will return to cathedral practice on Sunday, January 29. Trainings will take place on Sunday, January 22, adjacent to each service to prepare people to serve as chalice bearers. Anyone who wishes to serve must attend a training, regardless of prior experience. Confirmed Christians with a reverence for the sacramental life are encouraged to take part. To help staff plan for both training and scheduling, please register at gracecathedral.org/commoncup.

May the flood waters recede, the new creation show forth, and the cup of love overflow.

Every good gift,

Anna