Vestry Approves Ordination to the Priesthood

St. Michael's vestry has approved my application for ordination to the Priesthood! ¡Gracias a Dios! Next step, approval of the Diocesan Commission on Ministry, then approval by the Standing Committee. Things are a moving!

Teresa and I are leaving Berkeley July 22rd and will arrive in Nampa, Idaho July 23. The adventure continues.

The Lexington Kentucky opportunity did not work out, or others I applied for. However, a ministry to Latino community opened up in Nampa, so that is why I'm heading there. Quite excited about it. Now to finish my Spanish/English sermon I will preach this Sunday at Holy Trinity/La Santísima Trinidad. Last Sunday there. Good-byes will be teary. I will miss those dear folk.

Quick Look Over the Last 8 Months

My, My, it has been 8 months since I last blogged! Been really busy. I've been working on my Spanish. If you are on facebook, you can check out my facebook page. My statuses are bilingual.

I've been having an amazing and transformative time ministering with the good, faithful folks at Holy Trinity/La Santísima Trinidad, Richmond, CA. Seminary classes of course, keep me really busy.

Today I got a comment from a Jim Sheehan about a post from 8 months ago. Wow.

Tomorrow I interview for a position in the Diocese of Lexington, KY. That is a whole story in itself but no time to explain further. Any of you prayers out there who feel lead, please pray for me and the other seminarians looking for new ministries. And pray for Canon Sam McDonald who will be interviewing five of us tomorrow. It will be a long day for him. I am confident that God is working in this, so I feel relatively calm.

Must see video from Canterbury

With the Lambeth Circus, errr, Conference now in full tilt, there is like, way too much to read or take in. Yet there are some gems already emerging. One came forth yesterday (Sunday) in a park in Canterbury where the Rev. Susan Russell, president of Integrity, preached a mighty sermon and made me proud to be an Episcopalian and a member of Integrity. *Do* view this 10 minute video of her sermon. Scroll down to "Susan Russell preaches at Changing Attitude/Integrity service"You can read the text here, but a sermon is never written to be read, but preached. I encourage you to see and hear her preach this puppy. She will stir you hearts and raise your spirits.

On Sunday Teresa and I where also in park, though halfway around the world from the one Rev. Susan preached in. The weather was similar, being in San Francisco at the AIDS Walk in Golden Gate park. We walked with a delightful group of Episcopalians, having celebrated Eucharist together

right there in the middle of the assembly area for the myriad of teams. A most appropriate place for celebrating Eucharist.











Here the Rev. Mary Louise Hintz is leading us in prayer.


Teresa became a honorary Episcopalian for a day.
For me, the most moving part of the walk were to two displays of part of the AIDS Quilt. When I saw the display that was on the walk route, I immediately know what it was and Teresa and I went to walk and pray in that sacred space.

Sacred Space

Reverence

Some of the panels are most poignant. All are a testament to love that dwells in our souls, the image of God within us.

In particular I searched for the panel of a friend, Fr Bill Steuber. His was a Roman Catholic priest who served in the Diocese of Boise and died of AIDS, 19 days before Teresa and I had our wedding ceremony. A few days before the AIDS walk I had looked up his name at The Names Project website and found the section his panel was in. So I knew what it looked like. It was not on display Sunday.


There are 5,748 sections, over 46,000 panels to the Quilt. In 1996 the Quit covered the entire National Mall in Washington, D.C.
Every section that is displayed though is in memory of all who have died of this awful disease.

Sunday was a powerful day all around the world. What a blessings to be alive this day.

More photos of the AIDS Walk may be found here.

Finally, Ordination Photos

Here I am, newly ordained. I still feel amazed,
awe filled and grateful . I am especially
grateful to the Rev. Mary Lou Weiner,

She was my mid-wife for this ordination service,
and is a dear, dear friend.
Here we are celebrating after the service.

You can find many more photos right here.

Picasa is a great photo sharing app, but I'm not able to set the order of the albums yet. So be sure to scroll down to or just lick this link: 2008-06-29 Ordination - Canon... These photos where taken by Canon Karen Hunter and are really good. Muchas Gracias a Canon Karen.

Enjoy!

I have a date!

God willing and the people consenting

The Right Reverend Harry Bainbridge III
Bishop of the Diocese of Idaho will ordain

Deborah Marie Térèse Graham
to the Sacred Order of Deacons

on Sunday, the twenty-ninth of June, 2008
at four o clock in the afternoon

at St. Michael's Episcopal Cathedral
518 N. 8th St., Boise, Idaho

Your prayers and presence are requested

Reception following

Clergy: Red Stoles


You all are invited. There is joy in Berkeley, Boise and beyond today! Hallelujah. Thanks be to God!

Photo Albums on Web

Hi all. I have photo albums on the web here. Enjoy!
Note: I recommend having a high speed line to view these, especially the graduation one.

I Have Graduated! May 23, 2008, 11:22 PDT

I am still a swirl of emotions: joy, wonder, gratitude, sorrow (saying good-by for now to dear friends)happiness, excitement ... A picture is worth a thousand words. So here are photos:






The cross I am wearing is our CDSP Celtic Cross, given to all new Grads the night before Commencement. I wear it with pride, with pride in my class, the CDSP Class of 2008 and pride in my seminary. I am grateful to God for this blessing and the many people who have made this day possible. God bless us, everyone

DCOM approves ordination to diaconate

I have moved towards the more steps in my journey to ordination. Last month St. Michael's vestry approved my ordination to the diaconate. Also last month, on April 26, the diocesan Commission on Ministry approved my ordination to the diaconate. There are now three steps left in this part of my spiritual journey: (1) approval by the standing committee, (2) background check is okay, and (3) Bishop Harry's final decision. There is light at the end of the tunnel and I am so excited.

I sent out an e-mail earlier this week to some of my friends about the DCOM approval. I just want to clarify the ordination isn't a sure thing, yet we are getting really really close and indeed congratulations are in order at this point. The real party will begin, God willing and the people consenting, after my bishop places his hands of my head to ordain me.

I will update my blog today I hear of any more developments. The episcopal ordination process as many steps and at times can indeed be confusing. OK where are we at in this process? What are the next steps? Pero parte de parte, step by step, we move forward.

I want to thank and will continue to thank all of you who have supported me so much in this process. Your support will bear fruit in the building up of God's Reign, the realization of God's dream for humankind and all creation.

I will be in Boise June 2 through the 7. Teresa is not able to come. :-( Hope to see some of you at least, while I am there. God's blessing on you all.

Still truck'n and the truck'n is good.

Man, I haven't blogged in far too long. Busy, as seminary life always is. Lots been going on. Thinking about writing about it feels overwhelming. So I'm going to try doing a little at a time.

First the big news. I'm now officially a candidate of the Diocese of Idaho. Being a candidate is the next big step after postulancy and the one before ordination to the diaconate. Official date of my candidacy is Oct. 26th. I could be ordained to the diaconate this summer. Then after at least 6 months I could be ordained to the priesthood. Things are getting close and it's like --- wow!

Some of you may have known I took the GOEs (General Ordination Exams) this January. GOEs are like board exams. During the GOEs you write on 7 questions over 4 days, covering Theology, Ethics, Scripture, Church History, Liturgy, Pastoral Care, Contemporary issues. Some of the questions are closed book, some have limited resources, some are open resources, which includes the internet.

We all took these exams on the internet, in our homes or apartments so it's on the honor system. We'd login and at the exact starting time of the exam period the question would be posted. Then we'd 3 1/2 hours to answer the question. We needed to write 3 single spaced pages, 12 pt. type for each answer. It was an ordeal! I did not think I did well because I did not get to 3 pages on some of the questions.

However, I passed.

The readers I had, thanks be to God, valued content over answer length and typos. I'm relieved and sooo glad I can put that behind me.

On another note, here are pictures of my Quito family. Click on the picture for a larger image.


This is me, Miguel and Fernando. Fernando is the papa.


This Marianna,la mama, me and Miguel.

Greetings from Quito

I am blogging in Quito. Can you believe this? They have internet cafes everywhere, even in working class or poorer areas. Quito is an exciting place, very alive and colorful. I´m staying with a family in a working class neighborhood. They are very gracious. One young man, Miguel know a good bit of English and is helping me out. I will have a lot more to write when I get back but most now be on my way. Chow!

Nine months BC

Great video for an Epiphany laugh.

A New Year, a New Beginning

A new year, a new beginning. I'm really feeling that inside today. Thanks be to God!

Two links of note for the new year:

The Archbishop of Canterbury's New Years message - Take care of the earth and each other! Text of his message is here

BBC Interview with Katharine Jefferts Schori. Katharine,"unrepentant on gay clergy" tells it like it is to the Anglican Communion, tells it in truth, with grace and clarity.

Blessings!

A Last Post for 2007

Oh my goodness -- I haven’t blogged since June 2!. Well, I have to make an entry now to complete the year!

I have been very busy since June 2. Clinical Pastoral Education was a very busy time, like I expected. I had some nice surprises, like the two honorable, generous gentlemen from the gay community in Boise who lent me their extra car for the summer. Ken, Wendy and Alex Eklund hosted me for the summer. I had a cool, quite basement bedroom, which helped a lot during the long, hot summer.

Class started ten days after I got back. I preached my senior sermon 7 days later on 9/11. Thus the semester started with a crunch that didn’t let up until the last week. Now that I’m someway recovered, I have the dreaded GOEs – General Ordination Exams coming up in less than two days. GOEs are a four day test – with two 3.5 hour test periods each day from 9 to 5 (except Friday when we get the morning off). We get the test question from the GOE website , have 3.5 hours to write a 3 page, single space essay, and submit it before the webpage goes away at the deadline. We are tested on:

1. The Holy Scriptures

2. Church History, including the Ecumenical Movement

3. Christian Theology

4. Christian Ethics and Moral Theology

5. Studies in Contemporary Society, including Racial and Minority Groups

6. Liturgics and Church Music

7. Theory and Practice of Ministry

Fun, uh?! Prayers are much appreciated! There 18 of us seminarians taking it here at CDSP, 250 for the whole Episcopal Church.

Then on January 10^th, I’m off to Quito, Ecuador to study Spanish and learn about el Iglesia Episcopal del Ecuador Comunidad Anglicana – the Episcopal Church of Equador. Visit their home page and test your Spanish, English translation here.

I wish you all un Feliz Año Nuevo -Happy New Year! Blessings!

Oh, one last thing. I'm on Facebook.

Good-bye Berkeley. Hello Boise.

My blog has been pretty slow for awhile. Been writing my brains out doing papers. I know I wrote over forty pages the last three weeks of school. One of those papers was a twenty-one pager I wrote for the toughest professor in the seminary, Marian Grau. Found out yesterday I got an A. Wow, that was truly with God’s help. In the midst of all this writing I got writer’s block so it took longer to write than I planned. But I kept pray’n and write’n. I got them all done on time, thanks be to God Now on to the next fun thing.

To my Boise area friends, I apologize for not getting this news out earlier. I will be in Boise for the Summer! But not Teresa. She is staying in Berkeley. She has a job with CDSP, working in the business office. So we will be apart from June 3^rd to August 25^th.

I will be doing a summer internship at St. Luke’s RMC in Clinical Pastoral Education. I hear CPE is pretty intense and exhausting. I hope my previous experience as a nurse will ease some of the exhaustion for me. I do look forward to being back in a clinical setting and working with patients on a different level than patient care nursing. I look forward to working on my active listening skills and practicing being fully present to each person in the moment.

I also look forward to being back at St. Michael’s. I am so glad I am going to a loving supportive place with a number of friends. I will be going from one loving parish to another. I’ve been doing field education at All Souls parish in Berkeley and have bonded with the good people there. All Souls is a very dynamic, welcoming parish, about a third the size of St. Michael’s but with the same alive energy. Lots of families of all types. Pretty diverse. Us gay folk are just part of the parish family. The parish has a way cool play yard, which is a concrete example of its commitment to children.There are folks there I will miss yet …

There are people I have missed at St. Michael’s and elsewhere in the Treasure Valley and I am glad I will be will you all for a time. This really gives me a sense that Teresa and I are sojourners now, wanders in God’s creation with no permanent home. Concrete practice in impermanence. Concrete practice in opening to God’s gift in the moment wherever we are. Concrete practice in being Christ’s body in the world .wherever we are.

So tomorrow it will be good-bye Berkeley, hello Boise. Good-bye

Teresa

and Misty.

Hello friends. I will be staying with Ken and Wendy Eklund. My email address and phone number will be the same so you all know where to reach me.

Blessings.

Never Prouder to be an Episcopalian

The Bishops have found their backbone. The House of Bishops has taken a stand for the gospel. The House of Bishops has taken a stand for equality and inclusion in Christ’s Church. The House of Bishop issued these statements today.

Read the whole statement at

http://www.episcopalchurch.org/3577_84148_ENG_HTM.htm

In sum, the HoB rejected the Primates communiqué:

"Resolved, the meaning of the Preamble to the Constitution of The Episcopal Church is determined solely by the General Convention of The Episcopal Church; and

Resolved, the House of Bishops believes the proposed Pastoral Scheme of the Dar es Salaam Communiqué of February 19, 2007 would be injurious to The Episcopal Church and urges that the Executive Council decline to participate in it;"

And further in the statement:

We proclaim the Gospel of what God has done and is doing in Christ, of the dignity of every human being, and of justice, compassion, and peace. We proclaim the Gospel that in Christ there is no Jew or Greek, no male or female, no slave or free. We proclaim the Gospel that in Christ all God's children, including women, are full and equal participants in the life of Christ's Church. We proclaim the Gospel that in Christ all God's children, including gay and lesbian persons, [emphasis mine] are full and equal participants in the life of Christ's Church. We proclaim the Gospel that stands against any violence, including violence done to women and children as well as those who are persecuted because of their differences, often in the name of God. The Dar es Salaam Communiqué is distressingly silent on this subject. And, contrary to the way the Anglican Communion Network and the American Anglican Council have represented us, we proclaim a Gospel that welcomes diversity of thought and encourages free and open theological debate as a way of seeking God's truth. If that means that others reject us and communion with us, as some have already done, we must with great regret and sorrow accept their decision. [emphasis mine]

Fall and Spring Together in Berkeley

I said I would post photos of fall colors and blooming magnolias, all taken on the same day, so here goes. All these photos were taken on January 6, 2007.

Fall Colors on the Cal Berkeley Campus

Fall Colors 100 feet up Virginia St. from our apartment

Blooming Magnolia Tree behind Pacific School of Religion

Magnolia Blooms 200 feet down Virginia Street from our apartment

They are predicting lows around 29 degrees Friday night. We will see how all the blooms do in the cold weather. I do hope they survive.

Postulancy

Today I received a letter from Bishop Harry, my bishop, that he has made me a postulant. Postulancy is a significant step in the ordination process. It's like going from just dating to going steady. The next major step is candidacy. That's like getting engaged. After candidacy comes ordination as a deacon. After six months, one may be ordained to the priesthood. As you can see there are still more steps to go but this one is a biggie. It puts me firmly in the ordination track. Still no guarantees until the Bishop's hands are on my head but the path ahead is clearer now.

Bishop Harry will be in Berkeley next week for a meeting of the bishops in Providence VIII, which is basically the Intermountain West and the Pacific Coast. He would like to meet with me so I am hopeful that that will happen. I do look forward to seeing him.

In the meantime Berkeley is showing its truly berserkly side. Just up the street is a tree still in its autumn colors. On the Cal Berkeley campus magnolia trees are blooming. Fall and spring at the same time! I hope tomorrow to post some wonderful photos of this berserkly event.

Fast away the old year passes

Last day of 2006 and I preached. You can view my sermon here. The Gospel for today is John 1:1-18, one of my favorites. It was easy for find preaching topics. The harder part was narrowing the focus. I got good reviews from the congregation, which added to the gift of preaching today.

I took the GRE (Graduate Record Exam) Wednesday and got good scores on the multiple choice part, Math and Verbal. I have to wait two weeks to find out how I did on the writing part. There are two timed essays. Having to write on a 45 minute and 30 minute deadline was very challenging for me. I’m glad the essay part was at the start. I would have been even harder to compose those essays after answering around a hundred tough questions. The computer GRE is set up so that when you answer a question right, the next one is harder. I’m glad I know that going into the test. At the end of the test I did not think I did well.

At the end of the test you are presented with a choice. You can cancel the test and have your scores not recorded or you can accept the test and see your scores. You have to make this choice without knowing what your score is. When you make your choice, you get another screen asking if you are sure this is what you want to do and they spell out again what your choices are and the consequences of each. You go through two more times before you come to the screen that says that your choice will be final when you click this button. I was sure I wanted to know my score. If it was bad, I wanted to know that so I could move on to plan B. Still I took a deep breathe before I clicked the button. I could not believe what I saw. I scored a hundred points more then I needed for the MA program. I wish I could have written them down, but they do not allow you to take any paper out of the testing room. You are only given pencils to write with so I could not write the scores on my hand. If I had tried that, I’m sure they would have invalidated my test. There is strict confidentiality around the test questions and every test taker is video taped while in the testing room.

Both places I applied to for Clinical Pastoral Education turned me down. It is very completive here in the Bay Area with seminarians from nine seminaries vying for positions. The CPE training programs want diversity in their summer intern groups so very qualified applicants may not get positions. I now going for plan B, applying to the CPE program at St. Luke’s in Boise. I talked to their CPE supervisor and he strongly encouraged me to apply. It is a good program and I think I have a good chance of getting in. It would be nice to spend ten weeks in Boise, with one exception. Teresa would not be with me in Boise. :-(

I wish all of you a Happy and Blessed New Year. May this year bring peace where there is discord and violence, light where there is darkness, joy to all sorrowing hearts.

3 down, 3 or 5 to go

My third semester of seminary is over. Completely over. No incompletes. All papers done. What has been read has been read. What is not been read has not been read. I finish the semester in good shape both academically and physically. I can take a brief breather before I go on to the next Fun Thing, taking the GRE's. I am applying for a master's of arts in theology with emphasis on Christian spirituality. That means I will be down here yet another year and it means I will leave here with more options available to me in terms of ministry. I need to pass the GRE’s first though, so I appreciate all your prayers for me on December 27^th. I will be taking them between 12 noon and 4 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.

In the meantime I'm also waiting to hear if I will have a summer Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) position. I also appreciate your prayers about this too.

This afternoon is clear and cold, that is cold for Berkeley. The temperature is in the 40s. The sun goes down quite early down here. It's dark, dark, dark by five o'clock. Twilight is very short. Still, there are flowers blooming. It's always spring in Berkeley. As I look out my window I can see trees with green leaves and trees which have dropped all their leaves. Just a block from here there are trees with their autumn colors. That's one of the fun things about Berkeley, even though it's always spring here, there is an autumn that lasts a long, long time.

It is the third Sunday in Advent and Christmas is only a week away! I hope you all will take some time to be still reflect wonderful mystery of God coming to us in human form. Many we all remember that in the Christian calendar, Christmas is a season, not just a day. It is a season of opening to the gift of God coming to us in human forms and in so many other ways in every day. Let us be awake and alert to the ways God comes to us and let us give thanks and praise.

Busy but Good

This blog has been pretty quite lately. I felt pretty busy lately. School has started up and I'm taking a full load: homiletics, modern church history and theology, Anglican ethics, and Field Ed. I have to a lot of writing so that drains my writing energy for this blog. However, my health is holding up and my energy is improving.

I’m going to try to do short posts more frequently instead of trying for longer ones. I know you all like hearing from me. Writing short notes would make it easier for me to keep you all informed. Peace!