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June 11, 2006
The Very Rev. Donald G. Brown, Dean Emeritus
Trinity Sunday - Installation of Dean Brian Baker

To read the lessons for the day clickhere

I speak to you in the name of the One God, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Wow! What a great joy it is for me to back here this afternoon, among so many friends, surrounded by so many great memories, and filled with so much hope for the future of all of you who are a part of this astounding Cathedral congregation. I am profoundly thankful to Dean Baker for inviting me to preach and participate in this service that recognizes his call and ministry among you as the ninth Dean of Trinity Cathedral. And having been present for Bishop Lamb's first visitation to Trinity Cathedral there is a certain symmetry to being here for his last visitation.

In thinking about this afternoon, a story about an untimely death came to my mind. A man who just died is delivered to the mortuary wearing an expensive, expertly tailored black suit.

The mortician asks the deceased's wife how she would like the body dressed. He points out that the man does look good in the black suit he is already wearing.

The widow, however, says that she always thought her husband looked his best in blue, and that she wants him in a blue suit. She gives the mortician a blank check and says, "I don't care what it costs, but please have my husband in a blue suit for the viewing."

The woman returns the next day for the viewing and burial. To her delight, she finds her husband dressed in a gorgeous blue suit with a subtle chalk stripe; the suit fits him perfectly.

After the burial she says to the mortician, "Whatever this cost, I'm very satisfied. You did an excellent job and I'm very grateful. How much did you spend?"

"There's no charge," he says.

"No, really, I must compensate you for the cost of that exquisite blue suit!" she says.

"Honestly, ma'am," the mortician says, "it cost nothing." "You see, a deceased gentleman of about your husband's size was brought in shortly after you left yesterday, and he was wearing an attractive blue suit.

I asked his wife if she minded his going to his grave wearing a black suit instead, and she said it made no difference to her as long as he looked nice."

"So I just switched the heads."

Here this afternoon, we acknowledge the fact that at Trinity Cathedral the heads have indeed been switched. But unlike in my little story, there is only one body, and you and all who make up this faithful and risk taking congregation, you are the living body, alive in the Holy Spirit, filled with Jesus' life of inclusive love and sacrificial service to a world filled with people in all kinds of need. This body pulses with creativity and life as it worships God and strives to grow as a community where people might find forgiveness, healing, justice, reconciliation and hope.

This afternoon's Liturgy for the Celebration of a New Ministry, and especially the scriptures that have been read, are a timely reminder regarding the life and ministry of every congregation represented here today. Yet there are also some very timely messages for the entire Cathedral congregation and for your lay and ordained leaders as this new chapter in your history begins. There are actually about 10 points I want to make but since it is warm in here, and some of you are already starting to get that glazed over and sleepy look, I am going to hit ever so briefly on five points.

Point one. Be mindful of the work of the Holy Sprit in your lives and in the life of the congregation. The point of the lesson from the Book of Numbers is that God's Holy Spirit is not the possession of any one person. Not the Archbishop of Canterbury, or the Bishop of Rome, or the Bishop of Northern California, or the Bishop elect, or the old eighth dean or the bright and shiny new dean, the various staff members or clergy, or vestry members, or committee chairs, or committee members..or even the most devout and prayerful member of the congregation.

In the lesson from Numbers we heard about how God sent some of his spirit to the 70 elders who were in the Tent of Meeting. And we know that once God caught onto this idea of sharing the Spirit, God was not content until his Spirit rested upon all people.

And that leads me to point two. Remember Eldad and Medad. They are mentioned in the Book of Numbers just beyond where the first reading ends. They did not go to the Tent of Meeting but stayed home in the camp, maybe to watch a Kings or River Cats game, or the soccer World Cup Games, who knows why? But regardless of why they stayed home, still they were given the Spirit anyway.

Joshua, son of Moses' assistant, Mr. Nun, was hot and bothered when he found this out and he pleaded with Moses to stop them from being messengers of God's Spirit. Moses' responded to this plea with a reprimand and a kind of a prayer, "Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit on them." On Pentecost, Moses' hope was realized. Still, there are those who think that they have an exclusive hold on the Holy Spirit. They do not, but some times such people can be very convincing. For their sake, your sake, and the sake of the life of the Church, remember Eldad and Medad and that the Spirit moves wherever She wishes.

That slides me into my third point. Invite others to join with you in the life of this Cathedral congregation. If a week goes by and you have not extended an invitation to someone to come to church with you, you are missing the opportunities God is giving you to be an angel of hospitality and welcome in someone's life who needs this Cathedral and whom this Cathedral needs.

As St. Paul points out, there are varieties of gifts for ministry given to individuals for the good of the whole community. When a new person comes into the community she or he, brings gifts that are necessary and needed if the congregation is to thrive and achieve its God inspired purposes. A healthy congregation is always in need of people with new ideas and new enthusiasm.

The symbols of ministry that will be given to Brian come from various individuals and groups within the Cathedral congregation and from the Bishop and members of the diocesan family. These are gifts that are not Brian's alone. They only find their value as they are shared and used by, with, and for, the life of the Christian community. The more the merrier...so invite, invite, invite!

On to point four. Always live love. This is the message Jesus gave to his disciples in the reading from the Gospel of John we heard a bit ago. Over and over again, Jesus tells us in the Gospels that the most important thing we can do as his disciples is to love as God loves. Not with a narrow, selfish, exclusive kind of love, but a love that is inclusive, a love that reaches out and seeks the best for all people and all creation.

Mother Teresa, who gave her entire adult life to loving those who had been cast aside says, "Never has the world had a greater need for love than in our day. People are hungry for love. We don't have time to stop and smile at each other. We are all in such a hurry! Pray. Ask for the necessary grace. Pray to be able to understand how much Jesus loved us, so that you can love others."

You who are members and friends of Trinity Cathedral know how to love. There is great diversity here in terms of politics, theology, musical tastes, sexual orientation, ethnic backgrounds, ages, incomes and abilities, but what binds this community together is Jesus' love, a generous and forgiving love that bridges all chasms and breaks down all dividing walls. Jesus commands us to love and one of the great blessings in this congregation is that you do your very best to love one another, just as Jesus loves you.

Now to my fifth and final point. Actually NOW is my point. Now. Now is the time for all of you to move forward. Interim periods in congregations tend to be times when many in the congregation sit back, slack off on their involvements, financial support tends to coast, plans for the future all await the coming of the new leader. Now you have a great new Dean. Now is the time to see to it that the Cathedral's finances are strong. Now is the time to give thanks for the blessedness of th0.e heritage that has nourished this congregation as you work toward creating a Cathedral that will be able to respond to new realities, a huge new Sutter Medical complex, a ever expanding population in the Sacramento region, and the challenge of being a progressive and life changing Christian presence with other like minded congregations here in the central city.

Now is the time to get on with the ministry God has given you. B-R-I-A-N.
B E mindful of God's Holy Spirit
R EMEMBER Eldad and Medad and that no one has a corner on the Spirit.
I NVITE, invite, invite.
A LWAYS live love
N OW get on with your ministry

Mr. Dean, please stand. Brian I am delighted that you are here to lead this congregation into new adventures in being Christ's presence in the Sacramento region and beyond. You have exciting times ahead of you. You are surrounded by a wonderful Christian community who will be supportive of you, Andrea, Laura and Mark as this new place becomes home.

Will all of you who are members and friends of Trinity please stand. Together with your new Dean and his family, may you live out the charge John Wesley gave his followers more than 200 years ago: In the Name of Christ,

"Do all the good you can By all the means you can In all the ways you can In all the places you can To all the people you can As long as ever you can.

Amen.