Canon Maria Tjeltveit
Church of the Mediator, Allentown
…the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and
Saul for the work for which I have called them.”
Acts 13:2
It was a Holy Spirit moment. In the fall, a group of leaders were gathered to talk about how we could engage our diocese in pilgrimage. I raised my hand and volunteered Anne Kitch (without asking her) and me, to do meditations for the pilgrimage. Both of us have written meditations before and it seemed a good way to use our gifts. Anne agreed; the group encouraged us, and the Pilgrimage Blog was born.
In the Acts 13:1-3, a group of leaders of the church in Antioch is gathered for worship and fasting when the Holy Spirit tells them to set apart Barnabas and Saul “for the work for which I have called them.” The community commissions them and sends them off.
In this season of Easter, we hear the story of the pilgrimage of the early church being sent out in witness to the risen Christ. My blog will explore that story in conversation with the pilgrimage and witness of the parishes in our diocese, as well as our own lives. Like Barnabas and Saul, our parishes have been set apart by the Holy Spirit for a work to which we have been called. Discerning what that call is, at different times in our individual and common lives, is part of our pilgrimage and witness.
To what work is the Holy Spirit calling you and your parish now?