Called to Become
The Rev. Allen K. Shin
Bishop Suffragan Elect
In the Episcopal Church, we elect our bishops. Yesterday, we gathered as a body of lay and clergy within the Diocese of New York and selected Allen K. Shin to become the next Suffragan Bishop of New York from a slate of five candidates.
In a brief speech after the election, a very moved Shin thanked his wife and shared with us the way he had sprung upon her not two weeks after they were married that he felt called to the priesthood. She had stood by his side as his rock and support throughout his career, and now stood with him filled with what must be a strange mix of joy and anxiety. How will his life and hers change now?
All who heard them pondered them and said, 'What then will this child become?' For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him. - Luke 1:66
I am reminded in today's reading from Luke that our ministries affect those we love and who love us just as much as they affect and change us. We cannot accept a call from God to do and be alone.
We call them sacrifices, when we make changes in our daily schedules to accommodate the needs and wants of those we love. The early morning rise to drive to a swim meet in another state, the second mortgage to pay tuition for college, the decision to stay at be a stay-at-home parent, the flight to a parent's bedside in their final hours, these are the moments when we are called to become who we are meant to be.
Giving of oneself is an act of love.
I know that every decision I make has an effect on my wife and family. Some may effect others as well, depending on the size and number of ripples the decision makes when tossed into the pond of my daily existence.
The story of the birth of John the Baptist is a great example of this, albeit on a grand scale compared to many of the changes I face in my life. Zechariah and Elizabeth had choices to make about their lives and the life of their newborn son, and while it seems that God was very demanding and forceful in their lives, the call for the new baby to become something much different from his father required their support. They had to change their plans and make sacrifices for the ministry of John to become a reality.
Every Christian is called to ministry, not just those who wear collars and stoles. And the ministry of service to others includes setting the stage for the ones to come or become, the ones fulfilling the most visible or obvious calls from God.
Those other candidates who were not selected to become bishop may feel the calls they felt were not real, but I am certain that isn't the case. The experience of walking with Allen through that process and being there as an equal waiting for the decision of the people was pure ministry to God, to the people of the diocese and to the new bishop.
He could not become who he will become without them by his side, and they will become something new along with him, especially those from the diocese who will be able to work with him going forward.
We are blessed in our church to be a true community, a real embodiment of Christ in this world, each with our own ministries and calls to serve each other and God.
It is not a career as much as a transformation that we seek and achieve.
I ask your prayers for Allen that he continues to receive support from the Church as his election is confirmed by the greater church body. And I ask your prayers also for all who are called to change and become the living Gospel of Christ, to be that light on the hill and that beacon welcoming all in need, all who are lost, all who are hungry, all who feel alone, shut out or abandoned.
It is not about our plans, is it?
Like Zechariah, we may not be able to truly speak until we let go of the idea that we are in charge of who we become.
More to come...