The Consecration

Tell them, tell them Jesus loves them. Tell them Jesus died for them, tell them Jesus loves them. Tell them, tell them, tell them.

Tutu was not addressing me. He stopped speaking to the large crowd gathered under the colorful banners. As he ended he addressed Ian directly. 'Ian, you must tell them.'

Sitting on the front row I could see the pain in his old face, the tiredness that comes with a long life. His eyes were closed for much of his sermon. Just the night before, in stark contrast, smiling, asking how I was doing, he gave me the youthful 'fist bump.' I wonder what wisdom, what depth of life, is revealed in his range of expressions.

Ian Douglas is now the new bishop of Connecticut. Desmond Tutu gave the sermon at his Consecration on Saturday. I landed the front row seat through a fit of good fortune.

Over the last year and a half I served on the Transition Committee. We orchestrated and arraigned the transition from the retiring bishop to the new. The first step this entailed was bringing in the new candidates - freshly found by the search committee - so that they could see the diocese and the people of the diocese could see them. Also under our charge was the election convention, the retirement celebration and the consecration along with all other logistics in moving people about.

The experience was quite educational. I intend never to give comments to any event planners unless explicitly begged. Discussions innumerable, and lengthy, were played out over every imaginable topic. It is difficult to remain gracious when one flippantly criticizes what you have done and offers an alternative that you long ago thought of along with all of its pros and cons before deciding against it.

I learned much about the Episcopal church as well. When I started on this committee, brand new to the episcopal tradition I understood very little of anything. I can not claim to now have much knowledge of they way things work but after watching and working with this committee I have seen amazing things. I saw people live, work, and pray together. I saw tensions rise and grace overcome. I saw real people with real differences - differences of style and beliefs – work in the messiness of real life and still love each other. God must be here.

Its funny, even as I write this, reading back over it, I see that what I just wrote, that God must be present because they love each other, is not my idea. Jesus said, 'A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

I had no particular role in the consecration until one member of our committee had a scheduling conflict. She was to direct the giving of the Gifts of the Office. A new bishop is given things. They receive a funny hat, the miter, a staff, ring, cross, stole, and cope along with a bible. The gifts are usually given to the bishop by people with personal significance, in this case his wife and children. And this would not be an episcopal service if there wasn't tradition and unnecessary people involved. Enter me! My new job was to pick up the gifts from the table and hand them to his children who then would hand them to their father. During the rehearsal the gifts were not there. I had never seen them nor knew what a crozier (staff) or miter (funny hat) was. So if my role was to help his children each get the right object in the correct order they couldn't have chosen a worse person to do it. It made even less sense since his children were grown, quite competent, and had seen all the items. But it secured me a front row seat so I couldn't say no.

I made it to the reception and dinner after the rehearsal, and after a long detour due to bad directions. Leaving from work earlier in the day I was in jeans and fortunately a button down shirt, but I was ridiculously under dressed. Even Bishop Douglas' kids had changed clothes for the dinner. Ever one seemed too busy to notice. I did get a few questioning looks from the waitstaff.

I sat at a table and answered questions about my research and tried my best to deal with the inevitable 'wow that's amazing you must be way smart' that I always get when I mention that I study molecular biology. The table's other occupations were priest (not surprising) and lawyer. I heard more than one joke.

It was towards the end of the evening when I passed by the emeritus archbishop Desmond Tutu. He had just given a blessing at the conclusion of dinner and was returning to the hotel as I was returning to the open bar. Coming around a large pillar he looked up (he is quite short) and smiling asked 'How are you doing?” “I am doing well, I replied, And you?” “Yes, well.” And then he held up his fist to me. And I bumped back.

Telling this tale to some friends Saturday night they suggested he was merely going to bless me. Surely I have brought bad luck upon myself for bumping his blessing, they said. But I was there. It seemed pretty clear to me.

The consecration started at 10am. When It was time for me to direct the giving of the gifts I got up and walked front and center. I felt a little out in the open. Almost 2000 people squeezed into the building to watch. Up front with me was Katherine, the Presiding Bishop of the American Episcopal Church, her chaplain, The immediately to be bishop, his chaplain, and his family. Of all the thoughts that could be rolling threw one's mind – I was hoping my pants wouldn't fall down. Getting dressed in the morning I realized that my suit pants, like all my pants are now really loose. I punched a new hole into my belt but everything still felt too exciting.

The night before I memorized the order and looked up each item on Wikipedia. I didn't screw up. I successfully handed each item to those that would hand them to the bishop. For a few minutes after I was trapped, by design, up front. The bishop's family gathered around him for pictures as the presiding bishop proclaimed 'Greet your new bishop!” So I stood their clapping and smiling, and wondered how I looked in the background of all the photos. After a few remarks the service continued with the exchanging of the Peace. Being right there I shook hands with all the big wigs, Desmond, Katherine, the new Bishop, his family, and random other priests and bishops. And then I was able to sit back down gratefully out of the spotlight and gratefully with my pants still around my waist.

It was exciting to be apart of this, and it was fun to meet the famous people, but I really want to be changed by the message of Tutu's sermon. He drew on two main ideas. First, that Jesus, when raised from the dead told Mary to “Tell my brothers, I go to my father and their father.” And second that Jesus said, 'If I am raised up I will draw all men.' We are all in God's family. He stressed it over and over. I want to love my neighbors and the people I work with, and all the people I see with that love. Or I should say I want to want that.

“He didn't say 'friends,' he said 'Go and tell my Brothers!' This was too important of a moment to use words carelessly. This is radical stuff man. 'I go to my father and your father.'”