Sunday, 2 October 2011

The Feast of the Dedication
The Rev’d Lloyd Prator
St. John’s in the Village
New York City

Today is the feast of the didication ... that is the day set aside by the Church to celebrate the anniversary of the dedication of the Church Building we enjoy. and, I doubt that the people who rebuilt this church after the 1971 fire had this in mind, but in fact, this is the actual anniversary of that day back in 1974, when Bishop Paul Moore dedicated this building as the church of St. John the Evangelist in the City and Country of New York.

The dedication is a time when we look backward to celebrate where we have been. And we will do that today. It has been a good year for looking back, because this year, the Reverend Warren Platt, assistant priest at the Church of the Transfiguration, completed his very fine history of the parish for us. It was his gift to us, and we are still grateful. You can get a copy toay in the Parish Hall. No parish home should be without one. And, as we have for the last few years, after the liturgy we will make a procession to St. Benedict's Courtyard to visit the shrine of Bishop Wainwright, the Bishop in whose honor this building was built back in 1853. As the plaque which rather quaintly recalls, the ladies of New York who built this church in honor of this iconic, stablilizing forece in 19th Century American church life, we will remember Bishop Wainwright and give thanks for his influence at a terribly distressing time in our church's life.

Our church was founded in memory of Bishop Wainwright, whose biography note appears in the leaflet today. He became bishop here at a terribly difficult time; a time when the previous bishop had been tried and convicted in a sex scandal -- he had been caught placing his hand on the knee of a lady in his carriage -- which gives you an idea of how times have changed. Believing that his predecessor had been given an unfair trial, and that there were churchmanship issues behind the charges, Wainwright refused to take the title of Bishop of New York, calling himself the provisional Bishop of New York instead. And he spent his brief episcopacy soothig the ruffled feelings and calming he urbulent ecclesiastical waters. H ejust kept on being faithful and diligent.

We are in much the same situation now, in the church around the nation and around the world. Faltering leaders, parishes drifting away from the Church, sad, messy and expensive litigation --- all of these are marks of our turbulent age, in some ways like that of Bishop Wainwright, a centruy and a half ago.

And yet, the faitful people in this parish keep pushing on. the last two years we have provided concerete assistance to orphans in Africa, victims of the AIDS epidemic, and we have given them new life and hope. We continue our own work here with people with AIDS, we welcome people who are injured and confused to the parish counseling center. In the first reading, Samuel writes about his nation and the temple he has built, where his people can bring their broken lives for God's forgiving love. People likewise come to this place for the same care even today.

Many people come here for education and enlightenment, both in sermons, particularly those which are better than this one, and in the wide range of classes we offer. As peter said in the second reading, they come to be built upon lie stones and bricks into a temple of the Lord. They come here to replace pain with hope, and stagnation with growth.

And 150 years later we are still here. Here because of you, your generosity, your openness of spirit, and your energy. For this we still bless God as our ancestors did --- different language, different times, with different issues, but many of the same challenges. Today we plan how we shall meet them.