Congregation Visitations Spring 2025

Another joyful Sunday morning in The Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina, with worship and a delicious lunch at St. Thomas Ahoskie. It was my first chance to worship with the Rev. Samson Mamour since he was called as priest-in-charge of St. Thomas Ahoskie and St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Windsor, NC. There were members of both congregations present, with three from Ahoskie and one from Windsor confirmed today. In fact, there were more people present than expected, with extra tables and chairs needed for everyone at lunch!

I’m grateful for the leaders of the two congregations who were willing to work together to call and share a priest. There are lots of challenges facing congregations in small eastern North Carolina communities, and I pray that God will “do a new thing” in the midst of these faithful people!

Sometimes, I forget to pull out my camera during Sunday visits …or at least I forget to pull it out while there are still people around! After morning worship with the people of St. Philip’s Church in Holly Ridge, we shared lunch and then I spent a little time with members of the Vestry. Finally, just before getting in the car to head home, I slipped back into the church to get some pictures. More about this a little later!

Like many of our congregations, these faithful people are watching the world around them change very quickly. Long a small, quiet community, they are now seeing all sorts of the growth that is taking place up and down Highway 17. Large, new housing communities are springing up within ten minutes of their church, including Evolve Holly Ridge Apartments and Summerhouse On Everett Bay.

Back to the pictures. The people of St. Philip’s Church were long served by the Rev. Tim Dols, their regular supply priest. With changes in his health, Tim needed to step away not terribly long ago. And now, in these last days, members of the congregation have learned of Tim’s death. We remembered his wife Anne in our prayers today. One of the many gifts that Tim brought in his relationship with the people of St. Philip’s was his love of iconography. Thought it would be appropriate to highlight some of the liturgical art that continues to adorn this peaceful place of worship.

So many smiles this morning, at St John’s Episcopal Church in Wilmington! Many thanks for these pictures shared with me after worship, chronicling something of “a morning in the life of a bishop!”

We celebrated the “Presentation of the Lord” during two services this morning, with a lively reception in Elebash Hall in between. At the second service, forty teens and adults formally renewed the vows of their baptism, and were confirmed, received, or reaffirmed in their faith. What a joy to be with everyone at St. John’s today!

Greetings from all of us who worshipped today at St. Peter’s Church in Sunbury! From Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth, we heard that every member of the Body of Christ is valued! We’re each different and we each have a distinct function, but we’re each a part of the same body! That continues to be a part of the message of God’s good news that I seek to proclaim as I travel from congregation to congregation across The Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina!

Many thanks to Hannah & Maddie, with their leadership team of former Camp Trinity staff members, for hosting our largest ever Winter Retreat for High Schoolers! With Fr. Nathan Finnin as celebrant & preacher and Caroline Harris leading the music, our worship this morning was wonderful. With 8th through 12th graders from across The Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina we had nearly 70 campers in attendance, probably the largest weekend gathering of East Carolina teens during my 10+ years as bishop! So glad I could be there!

Wonderful to be able to celebrate the 2nd Sunday after Christmas with a congregation named “Emmanuel”! The good folks of Emmanuel Farmville are a small but mighty congregation that worships faithfully every week, hosts a Community Outreach Kitchen that feeds the hungry each day, and offers great hospitality whenever I visit. Three pictures today: 1) a few members pose with me; 2) a banner that hangs in their church; 3) the figurines of “the Flight into Egypt” which were in my family home, and that were partial inspiration for my sermon.