Dear saints,



Last Sunday, we completed our three-part forum series on the future of our block. Our architect, Hank Houser led us through a wonderful presentation of the process we have been on thus far, the work of the steering committee and vestry this summer and early fall, and the models for the block they have been pondering. If you were there, or if you watch this video of the forum, you will be right up to date with the work of the steering committee and vestry.

What was presented to us on Sunday was a picture of change. You may well be of the mind that you'd rather there wasn't change, especially at your church. I can empathize with that. Among the deep treasures I seek to unearth in being in places set aside for sacred worship is the timelessness of it all. I want church to be a place that is, in a way, outside of time, or at the least is an exception to what can sometimes feel like the relentless busyness of the world. 

Yet, I also know that as a follower of Christ Jesus, I am called to live a life characterized by change. As we say in our baptismal liturgy, we are to die with Jesus in the waters of baptism such that we might be raised with him in his resurrection. The Christian life is the life of a new creation. As the Prayer Book says, ”things which were cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new.”

I believe that as much as we need timelessness in our lives, we are living now in an age of rebirth in the church. God is raising something new up, and our calling is to be part of that new birth. 

If that is the calling, what might that calling look like in the material life of the buildings and grounds of this block? 

Sunday's presentation gives us an opportunity to see and imagine what new things being raised up in this place might look and feel like. Is your sense of All Saints' future one where a tall tower is a welcome part of our landscape? 

Would you see that tower as one structure consistent with what one day will likely be a constellation of towers in Midtown, or would you see the intentional absence of a tower as what would make this block distinctive? 

Now that we have had a chance to see what a mid-rise housing / mixed-use development would look like on the block, is that what you want All Saints' future to be: a place where people live as well as a place where people come to church?

And given all we now know about the long-term nature of our finances and the needs of our current buildings, what are the priorities you believe are most important for the vestry to consider?

This fall, the steering committee for the future of our block will have a professional financial feasibility study carried out for the various models under consideration. They will hear from an environmental stewardship task force and work with landscape architects as we seek to preserve our oasis in the city. 

Crucially, though, they also need to hear from you. I invite you to use this time to make your voice heard so that the final recommendations the steering committee will present to the vestry in the new year will incorporate your voice as the parish. 

I am deeply grateful for the work of Michael Gragnani and the whole block steering committee. They have worked very hard for many years. We could not have asked for a more thorough and thoughtful discernment process. 

I will press pause on these block updates until the new year. In the meantime, please pray for our continued discernment work and for all the gifts of God this church makes present to our lives.