Greetings, Friends!
Easter blessings to you all! I hope that your celebration of the Resurrection brought you ever closer to experiencing The Way of Love in your lives.
There is a phenomenon that astronauts experience in space as they gaze back on our beautiful planet known as the “overview effect.” From space, our Earth is seen as a fragile ball hanging in the void surrounded by a paper-thin atmosphere. More importantly, there are no boundary lines, no borders, no conflicts, only a seemingly united whole. This cognitive shift in their perspective has changed the way astronauts think about our planet and her people after they return from their trip. I wish that we all might have the opportunity to experience this change in perspective so that we all could recognize our similarities rather than our differences.
This week, I’d like to highlight one diocese that is making an attempt focus on our similarities by raising awareness of the needs of some of their neighbors so I decided that we might take a little break from specific resolutions – although this does reflect the spirit of many of our resolutions – to discuss their plans. I learned about this endeavor from our good friends in Episcopal Migration Ministries’ (EMM) weekly “Hometown” podcast. This week’s edition, entitled Pilgrimage of Hope, begins with an Easter reflection by Bishop David Rice which lays the background for the Diocese of San Joaquin’s decision to embark on a new journey. Bishop Rice reminds us that we are an “Easter people” and, acknowledging that, this should raise the question within us of “to what extent are we willing to help to fill the empty places, the voids, for those we encounter – to make a difference, to make sure that everybody has enough…” This is an important question with which each of us must grapple as followers of Jesus.
A little background first… You might recall that back in 2008, the Diocese of San Joaquin experienced a difficult division when the delegates to their convention voted to leave the Episcopal Church and become the Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin. Eventually, Bishop Rice was seated as their provisional bishop in 2014 and became Bishop Diocesan in 2017. Part of his mission and the mission of the revived Episcopal diocese is the call to get to know their neighbors and neighborhoods, to get to know the context of the community, and to get to know the stakeholders – all important steps in desiring to bring new life to a diocese trying to answer Bishop Rice’s question.
One of their first initiatives was a 23 day bicycle ride to raise money for agencies and victims of human trafficking. The Tour Against Trafficking went from October 2nd to the 23rd of 2015 and covered over 750 miles. The team from the diocese, including Bishop Rice, was joined by others in the communities through which they passed. The tour made 26 stops which included every church in the diocese and provided time to offer interviews to the press and speak to the communities about the reality of labor and sex trafficking in their area. All sponsorships and proceeds went to agencies and victims of trafficking in the local communities.
Now the diocese is embarking on a new mission called the Pilgrimage of Hope – a 173 mile walk from Fresno to Sacramento to raise awareness of the plight of immigrants and refugees in California’s Central Valley. Bishop Rice plans on walking every mile of this journey along with all those who register. The journey begins on May 4th and ends on May 20th when they will join other people of faith and activists for California’s Immigrant Day of Action. The Pilgrimage of Hope website explains: “Our hope and intention in this walk is raise awareness of the struggles our sister and brother immigrants and refugees face daily, while also raising money to support Legal Defense Funds throughout the Valley.”
An article from the Episcopal News Service (ENS) describes California’s Central Valley as home to many undocumented agricultural workers since this region produces over a third of our nation’s vegetables and two-thirds of our fruits and nuts. Bishop Rice reported that there are over 2.8 million undocumented persons in California, a larger number than any other state. The article goes on to say:
For those who are seeking a pathway to citizenship, it “is expensive, it is time-intensive and results in people living in constant fear of deportation or detention,” Rice said. He added, “When we become aware of what is going on in our larger context, when we hear the voices of the other, if we don’t respond, then we are complicit in the systems that form those voices.”
Bishop David shares some background on their pilgrimage in this video and, while it was made earlier this year, it presents the motivation behind their walk together.
I think I was initially intrigued by San Joaquin’s journey because I have always wanted to walk the Camino de Santiago in northern Spain and yet, after listening to the podcast, watching the videos, and reading the ENS article, I find that I am even more interested because this pilgrimage has arms to reach out to some of the most vulnerable in our nation right now.
What can we do here in Michigan? We can pray for all those taking part as well as for those seeking a pathway to citizenship. We can follow along on their website. We can contribute to their cause because doing good work often has costs. A prayer booklet will also be available in a few days for those of us who might want to pray along even at a distance. And then we can begin to ask ourselves, “Where are the needs in our diocese, our communities, our neighborhoods? What might God be calling us to do right here in the Diocese of Michigan?”
Let us pray –
Dear Jesus,
Our journey through life is long and hard.
We cannot make this trip alone; we must walk together on the journey.
You promised to send us a helper, your Spirit. Help us to see your Spirit in those you send to journey with us.
In the refugee family, seeking safety from violence,
Let us see your Spirit.
In the migrant worker, bringing food to our tables,
Let us see your Spirit.
In the asylum-seeker, seeking justice for himself and his family,
Let us see your Spirit.
In the unaccompanied child, traveling in a dangerous world,
Let us see your Spirit.
Teach us to recognize that as we walk with each other, you are present.
Teach us to welcome not only the strangers in our midst but the gifts they bring as well: the invitation to conversion, communion, and solidarity.
This is the help you have sent: we are not alone.
We are together on the journey, and for this we give you thanks.
Amen
~ The Rev. Judith Schellhammer, chair, Resolution Review Committee, Diocesan Council
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