There are many reasons for a rostered leader to take a sabbatical: redefine relationship with work, focus on what’s really important, deepen one’s spiritual life, create space for imaginative dreaming, etc. Common categories of sabbatical themes include personal development, career reflection, and health and wellbeing. The Trinity Vestry has granted me a sabbatical (originally scheduled for 2020) that will begin May 20. I have chosen the themes of Curiosity, Creativity, Connection and Renewal.
During the 25 years I have served alongside the people of Trinity, my ministry and job description have taken many forms. This year, in consultation with Pastor Hans, we have revamped my job description and future ministry directions. This sabbatical time will not only provide ‘academic time’ on Biblical Pilgrimage to Greece and Turkey with professors from the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago, but it will also give me some freedom for creative thinking and organizing.
Planning for creative ways to provide faith formation experiences for children and youth, and strategizing for congregational care and concern will be the focus of July. I will be visiting several congregations and leaders, including the pastors of St. Peter’s Church in Midtown Manhattan.
The final weeks of my time away will be vacation, fulfilling a lifelong dream with my husband, Peter. We will be traveling to Peru to visit Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley. While I am away, I will not be answering Trinity email nor posting on social media. Pastor Hans will be my main point of contact for any important communication.
My time away is also an opportunity for the people of Trinity. I challenge and encourage you to join me on my sabbatical journey by considering the themes: Curiosity, Creativity, Connection and Renewal. I will return to worship on Sunday, August 11 and I look forward to hearing about your own experiences.
Summer Challenge: Sabbatical Time for Trinity
How can you embrace themes of Curiosity, Creativity, Connection and Renewal this summer? You can be intentional about talking time to notice things during your daily life or when on vacation:
- What are you curious about? What might you want to learn this summer?
- What is something creative you have always wanted to try? Or what is something that you have done in the past, that you would like to begin again? How can you make that happen?
- Where do you connect with God and your neighbor? (Record your God sightings.)
- Where and how are you renewed? How can you carve out time for sabbath renewal?
How you might share your insights and learnings:
Take pictures. Write a poem or a paragraph. Draw an image. Talk about it at the dinner table. We will have a formal time of sharing at the end of the summer.