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Maybe He's Just An Interim ...

In the Episcopal Church, after a Rector leaves a parish for another calling, a Search Committee is formed and the parish hires an Interim Rector for a year or more to provide a transition from the former Rector to the new one.

The Interim will change things, wipe away the old, mix things up so the former rector’s shadow fades before the new one arrives. You know: new committees and projects, different people in leadership, unfamiliar hymns or liturgy, not distributing communion “the way we have always done it.”  We learn what we don’t want. 

When the “permanent” Rector arrives, the parish is ready for stability. The Interim brought turmoil, so let’s get back to normal. 

Might there be a parallel with our national government? Perhaps the Electoral College has installed an Interim President. He is mixing things up. Old precedents are ignored -- especially the dignity of the office. Former ways are gone, and innovations rule. Like an Interim Rector.

But there is a difference. Even an Interim’s job is to provide a pastoral presence. To serve the needs of the parish. To support the weak, encourage the weary, give comfort to those in pain, rejoice with those who are doing well. And to respect the dignity of every human being.

Not just Christians or White Americans. Not just America First. Every human being. Can our Interim President be any kind of a Pastor? To remind us to love God and love our neighbor?

When this Interim period is over, I suspect that normalcy will be in high demand.  And we’ll know what we don’t want next time.

I’m Peter Carroll, and that’s my perspective.