Meeting the Presiding Bishop

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Living in the Netherlands, one quickly becomes convinced that no rain can do one any harm (except maybe for monsoon). So going to Munich, where we had an appointment with the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, the Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, we didn’t pay much attention to weather forecasts, which were rather ominous. Only driving through the Moselle Valley did we realize that this time it would indeed be wiser to change our new car for a little amphibious vehicle, for light rain turned into Dauerregen , and the rivers, usually majestically flowing through the landscape, into raging torrents. The wipers hardly managed to wipe water off the windscreen and local radio stations we listened to on our way were bringing worrying news of blocked, flooded motorways and long traffic jams. Finally, near Stuttgart, we got stuck for good – in a traffic jam that lasted, with small interruptions, for two hours. We arrived in the flooded capital of Bavaria three hours later than planned. After checking in in the picturesque B&B the Sollner Hof and tasting local specialties, for which even Pradusz, bravely fighting overweight, decided to loosen his diet a bit, we went to the Old Town. We couldn’t walk long, of course, because we didn’t have galoshes suitable for that kind of rain, and we felt the tiredness caused by a ten hour journey. We walked through the Marienplatz, went to the monumental Cathedral of Our Dear Lady , lit a few candles before her statue, thinking both about the meeting the day after and worrying news of more victims of tornadoes in Oklahoma, far, yet for so many reasons dear to us, and we returned to the Gasthof .

Not only we were greeted by this weather. Also the Presiding Bishop, who came to Munich on Friday for the 110th anniversary of the Church of the Ascension , had to face the rain. The church serves local English-speaking community in Munich and Bavaria since 1903, and for over 40 years has been gathering in the Lutheran Emmauskirche , where Episcopalians from Munich “worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness” on Sunday, while through the rest of the week realizing their commitment to the dignity of every human being. In the bulletin ikon we received from the rector, the Rev. Steven R. Smith, we read his reflection on Pentecost, and in it the following:

This Pentecost I wonder whether we might rethink the conception of God’s Spirit “coming at us” from outside our human being. I have been thinking about this especially because of the recent services of baptism and confirmation held at Ascension, when we have acknowledged that God’s Holy Spirit exists from birth in each of the children who were baptized and the youth who were confirmed. At baptism and confirmation, we do not confer God’s Spirit on the individual as if for the first time. Rather, in those sacramental rites we recognize that the Spirit is given to each of us at birth. We are reminded that God has placed God’s divine life within each of God’s loved children. The trick, of course, is to know and feel God’s presence within our own being and to see it in others.

This is indeed what the whole trick consists in. The congregation at Ascension does this in a very concrete way by cooperating with the Missionaries of Charity in running a soup kitchen and with the Innere Mission (“Inward Mission”) of the Lutheran Church in the asylum seekers center. Apart from this, missionaries from the congregation are working in Romania.

The festive Eucharist presided by Bishop Katharine, who also preached the sermon, was attended by friends and partners from the Lutheran and Old Catholic Churches and enriched by the singing of the parish choir, which was very good indeed. After the service a reception was held, during which we met a few parishioners and guests from nearby Augsburg. About 3 pm Bishop Katharine found time to talk with us. The conversation was scheduled for half an hour, but despite the Presiding Bishop being obviously tiered by the intense program of the visit, it took almost twice as long. We had a chance to tell her about the Polish Episcopal Network , its establishment, our activities today, our plans and dreams for the future. We talked about problems and worries, but in the first place we tried to express how happy we are to have met on our way such truly wonderful, committed and active people, cooperation with whom empowers us in difficult moments and gives us hope for the future. We could see that Bishop Katharine was impressed. She would immediately react to what we were saying, share her ideas and advices. We didn’t actually have to explain a lot: she understood most things immediately. And above all it was certain that she cared about the little group of enthusiasts that had the idea to set up a mission of the Episcopal Church in Poland and organize it like a base community. We will draw an overview of the activities and strategy of the Network and send it to her office this summer. About 4 pm it was time for a photograph and to say goodbye. Somewhat worried about the long journey that awaited us in the pouring rain, Bishop Katharine wished us a safe travel and asked us to be careful.

Our travel back home took another ten hours and we came to Leiden just before dawn. This time too we spent a lot time in the traffic jam, but at least it stopped raining about halfway of the journey.

Since everyday duties awaited us at home, we didn’t have time to quietly think about the fruits brought by this intense weekend. In a nutshell: we met another Episcopal congregation, attended a beautiful service, had several interesting conversations, and, above all, met and talked to Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, the primate of the Episcopal Church. And we have no doubts: Bishop Katharine belongs to the steadily growing group of friends and allies of the Polish Episcopal Network. We are thankful to God for all of this…