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From Reverend Jeff Cover...
Not long ago I announced that Central had received a
grant from the Lilly Foundation for me to go on sabbatical.
You might remember that, some months ago, a team of people--Kevin
Riley, Sarah Johnson, Cris King, Chip Goldsberry, Bill Smutz and Linda
Conner—helped me put the grant proposal together.
It was a much stronger proposal for their excellent input.
This
was one of 40 successful Clergy Renewal Program applications in the state
of Indiana this year.
Many of you have been curious about the timing of my sabbatical, and there
have been numerous questions about how long I’ll be gone and about what
I’ll be doing for the sabbatical.
My sabbatical will take place next summer, May 9-August 13, 2011. I
selected this time in order to be least disruptive to the work and
ministry of Central.
Those of us making grant proposals were asked to answer the question,
“What Will Make Your Heart Sing?”
One thing that makes my heart sing is being in the presence of
ancient places of worship. Next
to going to Greece and Scotland (both of which I have had the privilege to
visit), I have always wanted to visit France.
I will have the opportunity next May, when Debbie and I will go
there. Highlights for me will
be the chance to see the Neolithic standing stones of Carnac on the
Brittany coast and the replica of the Cro-Magnon cave paintings of Lascaux.
We will also visit the Taize’ community in eastern France and take part
in the life of the community there. Many
of you know of my involvement in helping to organize the downtown
churches’ Taize’ services. This
will give us the opportunity to see this Protestant/Roman Catholic
community first-hand, and hopefully enrich our services when I return to
Lafayette. Recently the
downtown churches committed to continuing the services through 2011.
We
will spend some time in Paris. Of
particular interest to Debbie will be a visit to Monet’s gardens at
Giverny.
I
have long been fascinated by the cathedral at Chartres.
There we hope to see the famous Chartres 7-circuit labyrinth and
soak up the incredible medieval architecture, leaded glass and carvings.
From Paris we will fly to Rome, from where we will launch a trip to see
some of the great sites of Italy, among them Venice, Assisi and Florence.
Next summer I also hope to complete and begin marketing a book I have been
working on now for nearly twenty years, a book about Biblical characters
who are called to public life. From
their stories I hope to glean insights useful to modern people as they
consider the challenges and commitments necessary to being faithful in the
public realm.
Toward the end of the summer I plan to go to Ghost Ranch in New Mexico to
take a class in hand-built pottery making. We
plan to meet up with my father and his wife for a few days.
I’ll return to work just in time for the Sunday School Kick-Off brunch
with which we begin a new Sunday School year.
About 40% of the grant is to be used by Central Presbyterian Church.
The
sabbatical committee will soon meet to plan in more detail the church’s
portion of this time of study and renewal.
Plans at this point call for some special speakers to come and lead
the congregation in introducing practices to enrich its spiritual life.
Those will be held in the summer and fall of 2011.
Of course, the sabbatical will necessitate a shift in some of the
staff’s responsibilities to help cover the work while I am gone.
Those details will be worked out over the next several months.
I hope to come back renewed indeed by this sabbatical experience, my first
in thirty-two years of ministry. I
can already see the possibilities of classes on the Christian citizen and
public life and on our discoveries about the faiths of ancient peoples.
I will also be excited to hear about your discoveries about
spiritual life during the time that I am gone.
In the meantime, I continue to welcome your questions and comments.
I’m
hoping that this can be an experience of renewal for all of us.
Affectionately,
Jeff
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