Ready for a quick quiz? Pick one or more answers for each question…..
1. Who or what is a postulant?
a. Someone with excellent posture
b. A French politician
c. A kind of cake eaten in Sweden
d. A candidate, especially one seeking admission into a religious order.
2. Do we have any at Incarnation?
a. 4 or more
b. 3
c. 1 or 2
d. None
3. Are any of these people a postulant?
a. Quauhtli Olivieri
b. Amy Rowe
c. David Griffin
d. Katie Hamlin
e. All of the above
4. What are they postulants for?
a. Transitional deacon
b. Vocational Deacon
c. Priest
d. A mixture
(Note: all of these are 'clergy' roles, so they will all land up wearing a clerical collar!)
5. When will they stop being a postulant and start being clergy?
a. Never
b. Soon
c. At various times in the next year or so
And the answers are.... 1d, 2a, 3e, 4d, 5c
YES! Incarnation has FOUR postulants! Four worthy and delightful souls who are all aiming to be ordained as clergy in the Anglican Church of North America, within the Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic by our Bishop John Guernsey within the next year(ish).
Katie Hamlin will be ordained as a transitional deacon next month - Saturday, Oct 3 at 10am in the Chapel. And you get to watch on zoom :) You can read more about Katie in this Thursday’s outreach blog… Katie will then be ordained as a priest in about a year.
David Griffin will be following in Katie’s steps soon, and Amy Rowe shortly after that, first as transitional deacons and then as priests. Both David and Amy are currently finishing off their academic requirements before they can be ordained.
Quauhtli Olivieri is slightly different as he is going to be ordained as a vocational deacon. He will also be ordained - but he won’t later become a priest. Quauhtli also has more work to do as he prepares and studies.
This article gives a very helpful outline of what each of these terms/roles means.
We are so grateful to these four people as they faithfully follow God’s call on their lives. The call to ministry is one which demands so much: time, effort, money!, prayer, study, paper-writing, thinking, dreaming… and then some more prayer. The cost is significant as they rigorously apply themselves to their process. And we are grateful that these four are pursuing ordination in our midst.
So what is our responsibility to our postulants at Incarnation?
We are called to help these four learn what it means to be clergy. We are here for them to practice on :) and for us to pray for and encourage them! Our responsibility is to love them well. And so over the months ahead why not make sure that each of these four is on your list of people to pray for regularly? Why not buy them a coffee or invite them out for a socially-distant walk or meal? Why not think of ways you can ensure their flourishing? Perhaps you could pay special attention when they lead or preach and give them positive feedback? Perhaps you could write them a note and let them know that you are praying for them? So many ways to practically love them! (And please pray for me too as I help to guide them through this process)
Got more questions? Ask them! Drop them an email or ask me!
An in next week's letter I'll fill you in on what a vestry is and what they do....
But for now: in other news
- Are you in at least one small group? If not - sign up now!
- Have you made a note to be at church on Oct 4, and stay for the parish meeting?
- If you are a member look out for an email from me with the Vestry Slate - please read, pray and decide who to vote for in our next election.
So grateful for you all!
Your loving pastor,
Liz
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