Dear Cathedral Family,
I am excited to return to our worship together this Sunday for the celebration of the feast of The Transfiguration. The last three months of sabbatical have been a wonderful time of renewal, rest, and discovery for me. I am deeply grateful for your generosity and support in allowing me this opportunity—and for the gifted and dedicated servant leaders, both staff and congregational, who carried the extra responsibilities that made possible my absence from parish duties.
On Sunday, as we join Peter and John and James in beholding our Lord in his beauty and glory, I will share with you something of my experience of beauty and joy and abundance on the Camino pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella. This long walk of enquiry—of remembering, releasing, and re-imagining—has been genuinely transformative for me, as it has been for thousands of other “peregrinos,” or pilgrims, through the ages. Along with this email message you will find a few photos of the beginning of this journey, its paths and way markers, and the pilgrim community of which I was privileged to be a part.
As I re-enter our life together here at Christ Church Cathedral, I look forward to sharing more of my sabbatical experiences with you, and to listening to news of your summer, as together we prepare for the program year ahead beginning in September.
One of my strongest emotional awarenesses along the way this summer was of how much I love this Cathedral Family and how deeply affected I have been by your love for one another and for me and my family. Below you will find a prayer for arrival in Santiago; please know that I held you all in my heart and lifted you in prayer, as I continue to do.
I am glad to be home with you.
Faithfully,
Beverly+
Prayer on Arrival in Santiago
We thank you, God, for bringing us safely here and for the many blessings and gifts of our pilgrimage. The company and kindness of strangers, the beauty of the way, the joy of traveling light, the strength to go on even in difficulties are reminders of your presence within us and among us.
Now that we have arrived, we remember all our loved ones, especially those who have been in our hearts and minds as we walked the Camino. As we return home, give us courage to live in the spirit of the Camino so that we may make this world a more loving and peaceful place for everyone.
We make our prayer through Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Amen.