Okay, so what does a bishop do anyway?
Or for that matter, what does a synod do? I’ve noticed that several of my colleagues regularly post their weekly schedule on Facebook or in a newsletter. I won’t bore you each week with that just yet, but it might be helpful for you to have this snapshot into my month of January:
January 1: Worship with my wife, Wendy, at my home congregation of St. John’s, Salisbury (a rare opportunity—about four times a year), then take communion to Pastor Don Phillips who is hospitalized in Winston-Salem with stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
January 2: Home for the official New Year’s holiday, work on sermon outlines for the January/February Synod Partners, Phase Two worship services and for this coming Sunday’s preaching at Our Saviour, Southern Pines.
January 3: Office day, catch up on snail mail from holidays, all-team staff meeting, evening meeting with a congregation council in response to allegations of clergy misconduct (these sometimes take 400 hours or more of total synod staff time in investigation, support, consultation, and guidance).
January 4-7: At the annual ELCA Academy of Bishops, this year in Charleston, SC, as part of our 65 bishops’ commitment to continuing education, even as the ELCA Church Council is now requiring 40 hrs./year for all rostered ministers.
January 8: Preach at Our Saviour, Southern Pines.
January 9-11: Office days, including four supervisory meetings with staff, weekly chapel service on Tuesday, Call Process meeting (usually every Wednesday), begin reading and responding to the expected 300+ “Annual Rostered Ministers’ Reports to the Bishop,” possible interviews for assistant to the bishop.
January 12: Help lead Boundary Training at Our Father, Greensboro. (Boundary Trainining is required of all rostered ministers every three years).
January 13: Scheduled day off, which usually means preparing sermon for the coming Sunday, as this week.
January 14: Ordination of Carolyn Remaklus at Good Shepherd, Raleigh. Drive to Fayetteville for overnight.
January 15: Preach at St. James, Fayetteville, then to Wilmington for Emily Clamser’s consecration as deacon.
January 16-18: Morning in the office, then attend my old (29 years) Confirmation Cluster retreat at Lutheridge followed by an ILCO (Costa Rica Companion Synod) meeting and dinner at Lenoir-Rhyne University (LRU).
January 19: In the office. The third Thursday is a regularly-scheduled appointment day—every hour on the hour all day.
January 20: My regular Friday off (sermonizing for Sunday), Inauguration Day, and my birthday (I’ll be 57!)
January 21: Preach at Synod Partners, Phase Two worship at St. Philip, Raleigh. Overnight in Raleigh.
January 22: In the morning, preach at Holy Trinity, Raleigh; afternoon installation of Pastor Wolfgang Herz-Lane, at Christ the King, Cary.
January 23: In the office for a supervisory meeting and correspondence day.
January 24: Help lead Boundary Workshop Basics event at the synod office.
January 25: Dr. Mindy Makant’s Consecration as deacon during morning worship at Grace Chapel, LRU.
January 26: Office day to catch up on correspondence, sign call & transfer paperwork, appointments.
January 27: To Asheville to help with twin grandsons and prepare for next day’s Consecration.
January 28: Consecration of Katie Rivers at St. Mark’s, Asheville.
January 29: Synod Partners, Phase Two event at Bethany, Boone.
January 30-31: In the office to prepare for upcoming Bold Like Jesus weekend, with several supervisory and other appointments.
AND…as with all of us, more than half my time will be spent opening mail, responding to phone calls, Facebook messages, and emails not yet on the calendar, including probably half a dozen or more evening call process, conflict-addressing, or strategizing/planning meetings in congregations!
New Year’s blessings and hope to all!
