wfn.org | UMNS# 04453-Pastor's sabbatical explores simplicity of life

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Pastor's sabbatical explores simplicity of life 

Oct. 4, 2004	 News media contact:   Linda  Green * (615) 7425470* 
Nashville {04453}

NOTE: A head-and-shoulders photo of the Rev. Jeffrey Edwards is available at
http://umns.umc.org.

A UMNS Feature
By Linda Green*

In the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi, the Rev. Jeffrey G. Edwards will
strive for "simplicity of heart and life" when he leaves his pulpit this
winter.

The pastor of Parsippany (N.J.) United Methodist Church is taking a
sabbatical to reconnect with the simple life-a sabbatical made possible by a
national program that enables pastors to leave their pulpits for an average
of three months for spiritual renewal.	

Edwards is one of 10 United Methodist pastors participating in the 2004
National Clergy Renewal Program, funded by Indianapolis-based Lilly
Endowment. The United Methodist churches are among 132 congregations that
will collectively receive $5 million in grants to provide their pastors with
opportunities to get re-energized for ministry.

The pastors of churches from Hawaii to New Hampshire will tour religious and
spiritual sites, as well as visit theological centers and churches similar to
theirs. They will take a break from their everyday lives to pursue
significant interests, reconnect with families, travel, study and rest to
enhance their spiritual lives. The program also aims to give congregations a
new sense of mission and purpose as they assume additional responsibilities
in their pastors' absences.

The 5-year-old National Clergy Renewal Program awards diverse congregations
grants of up to $45,000 each to plan a "well-thought-out, intentional program
of renewal for their pastor and themselves," says Gretchen Wolfram,
communications director for the Lilly Endowment. 

Congregations from 37 states and 23 Christian denominations may use up to
$15,000 of their grant money to pay for pastoral services in their pastor's
absence and for congregational renewal expenses, she says. A separate clergy
renewal program for Indiana churches will provide as many as 40 congregations
with up to $45,000.

The endowment's goal is to reinforce and build on the work of both clergy and
lay people, she says. Most participating pastors will begin their renewal
sabbaticals in spring of 2005 and will have until Dec. 31, 2006, to complete
their spiritual journeys.

Because pastors are faced with relentless demands on their time, renewals
allow them to "renew the passions that led them into ministry in the first
place," Wolfram says. 

Edwards, who has led the nearly 240-member Parsippany congregation for 15
years, wants this sabbatical to reconnect with authentic ministry. "The
simplicity of heart and life that keeps focus on the one truly needful thing
is the heart of authentic ministry," he says.

He plans to use St. Francis, "to whom I have long been drawn," as a model for
his renewal. "His embrace of poverty simplified his life so that in all
things he could attend to the call of Christ," Edwards says. "Francis
pioneered a way of life that was deeply engaged in ministry to a suffering
world, while at the same time remaining truly contemplative."

St. Francis lived in Assisi, Italy, in the late 12th and early 13th
centuries. Several Christian traditions mark Oct. 4 as his feast day.

Like St. Francis, Edwards will take retreats into solitude to explore simple
living. The day after Christmas, he and his family will depart for a two-week
stay at a campground on St. John's Island in the Caribbean. The family will
"decompress and reconnect following the stress of living through a Christmas
season in a parsonage and in this frenetic, materialistic culture," he says.
St. John's is unusual because two-thirds of it is a U.S. National Park, and
it lacks the "high staples of the typical American fast-paced family
vacation," he says.  

Afterward, Edwards will spend time alone in the guesthouse of the Mount Saint
Francis Retreat Center in Ringwood, N.J., reading, walking and writing a play
about St. Francis' simple lifestyle. "His frequent retreats into solitude
testify to the ongoing necessity in the spiritual life of clearing away the
brambles from one's soul to keep focus on God," the pastor says. As Francis
did, Edwards has chosen settings of "wilderness beauty" for his renewal
leave, to recognize the "recreative capacity of communion with God's
creation."

He plans to spend time at Pendle Hill, the Quaker Center for Study and
Contemplation outside Philadelphia. In a simple living workshop, he will
explore some of the practical issues involved in living a simpler life
relating to finances, the environment, work and community.	 

Edwards also will travel to San Francisco during his sabbatical. There, with
assistance from a spiritual director and certified guide in wilderness rites
of passage, he will take a four-day "sacred quest" to fast and retreat among
the redwoods of northern California.	 

Congregations that participate in the renewal program know they must step up
in the pastor's absence, Wolfram says. "The congregations are pleased for the
minister and their families to be able to be off, and they have surprised
themselves at the success they have had when the minister is gone."

While the pastor is away, many congregations do activities that mirror their
pastor's work, says Craig Dykstra, vice president for religion for the Lilly
Endowment.  Numerous churches take the opportunity to learn about their
denomination, study how similar congregations have overcome common challenges
and concentrate on building their spiritual life, he says.

"In our religion grant-making, we hope to strengthen the efforts of today's
excellent pastors," Dykstra says, "because it is no secret that pastors who
have reconnected themselves to the passions that led them to the ministry in
the first place are more likely to lead healthy and vibrant congregations."

The Parsippany church has undergone growth, new construction, the aftermath
of Sept. 11, 2001, and the deaths of members. "After shepherding the
congregation through the broad range of emotions we experienced along the
way, I felt drained and depleted," Edwards says.

While Edwards is away, the congregation will also focus on simplicity of
heart and life in worship and personal devotions. The goal is to experience
an overall congregational rejuvenation, he says.   

In addition to the Parsippany church, United Methodist congregations and
pastors participating in the 2004 National Clergy Renewal Program and the
grants received are:

7	St. Paul's United Methodist Church, Helena, Mont., the Rev. Marianne
Niesen, $45,000.
7	Park Avenue United Methodist Church, New York, the Rev. William S.
Shillady, $45,000.
7	Community United Methodist Church, Crofton, Md., the Rev. Christopher
T. Holmes, $44,865.
7	Grace Fellowship United Methodist Church, Katy, Texas, the Rev. James
E. Leggett, $40,740.
7	St. Andrew United Methodist Church, Carrollton, Ga., the Rev. Karen
Miyoshi Kagiwama, $40,525.
7	Bethany United Methodist Church, Ellicott City, Md., the Rev.
Roderick J. Miller, $38,135.
7	Reisterstown (Md.) United Methodist Church, the Rev. W. Richard
Harden, $33,687.
7	Providence United Methodist Church, Charlotte, N.C., the Rev. William
T. Jeffries, $26,000.
7	Bemus Point (N.Y.) United Methodist Church, the Rev. Daniel G.
McBride, $25,550.

*Green is a news writer for United Methodist News Service.

News media contact: Linda Green, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or
newsdesk@umcom.org.

********************

United Methodist News Service
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