Atlanta Update Four...
(Note: For this week’s update from Atlanta, I have decided to write it in a series of answers to common questions. Feel free to keep asking! BTW, the painting above and the painting in AU3 are done by members of the HC who participate in the Friendship Center. pretty cool, huh?)
What is the Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter?
The Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter (HC) was founded more than one hundred years ago and it originally met in a tavern on Sunday Mornings (yup, its Episcopalian). A few years later, it had a building in Grant Park that is somewhere beneath one of the many parking lots that surround Turner Field. In the Fifties, it moved to its current location in Ormewood Park with hopes to build and expand the Parish in a predominately white, middle class neighborhood. The turbulent sixties, however, had different plans for HC. As the neighborhood integrated, many of the members of HC left the neighborhood in search of the suburbs in “white flight.” Banks redlined the neighborhood as crime, drugs and prostitution moved into the neighborhood. A few years later, the Bishop of Atlanta decided that HC needed to close down and the small congregation resisted his plan. It has been said that grown men cried at that meeting with the Bishop of Atlanta.
A priest in the diocese heard of the consternation caused by HC and asked the Bishop’s permission to go to HC. He went to “see what he could do.” Almost immediately, he walked the neighborhood, knocking on doors and going to places that only Jesus would go. The Parish started growing again, but the new members were people who were not traditional Episcopalians: the poor, the suffering and the oppressed. Therefore, the Bishop saw a need for HC in the neighborhood and decided to make it into a fully-funded mission of the diocese.
What is the Friendship Center?
When the Olympics came to Atlanta in 1996, many in the mental health community realized that the Olympics would be stressful for those suffering with mental disorders. In an attempt to ease the stress (and to get the “unsightly” off the streets), Friendship Centers opened throughout the city. Since HC already had a ministry to the mentally and emotionally handicapped, it seemed only natural to host a Friendship Center. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the Church opened its doors to those living in group homes, offering meals, art, and daily services. Originally, HC’s Friendship Center was designed for thirty participants. On a given Tuesday or Thursday, we have around 125-150 people coming to the Friendship Center for art, gardening, music, daily services and two fresh meals - all in an attempt to foster community for those who have been banished by family and society. A large percentage of those 125 are members of the Parish and are regular communicants at our Sunday and Wednesday service of Eucharist.
What is the chief end of man?
“Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” The Westminster Shorter Catechism.
What exactly do you do?
Lead Morning and Noon Prayer on Tuesday/Thursday; preach at the Wednesday Evening Eucharist; help serve breakfast and lunch; work as an acolyte on Sunday mornings; aid in the day-to-day running of the Friendship Center; do visits to group homes; write grants, work on an Energy Audit for the Church; and researching better ways for the Church to do transportation. Among the other interns, I seem to be the resident liturgist (but really, is anyone surprised by that?).
What is up with the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church? Are you all still going to hell?
I would not know anything about that. The Lambeth Conference coming up should be interesting, to say the least. I have learned to avoid endless conversations about the Bishop of New Hampshire, certain African Bishops and the Archbishop of Canterbury’s lack of a backbone (to both parties) like the plague. As our Senior Warden said, “If we get kicked out of the Anglican Communion, would someone please e-mail us?” It is just not a topic of conversation or focus around here - thank the Lord.
What possessed you to engage in this work?
The Holy Spirit, I presume. When I visited over Spring Break with the Milligan College Concert Choir, I knew that I had to come to HC to learn. It was refreshing to see a church act like the Church, loving with abandon all who would darken the door of the church. To see incarnated (in the flesh) the Gospel that saved me acted out with such care.
What exactly do the other interns do?
There are three other interns. Two of which are undergrad (myself included) and two of whom are CPE Students. The other undergrad and I are interns for the Church; the CPE interns are for the Friendship Center. We undergrads are responsible for assisting Fr. Mike with the day-to-day running of the Church. We are here every time the doors are open for around 40+ hours a week.
The CPE Interns come on Tuesday and Thursday and aid in the running of the Friendship Center and the services on T/R. They also take the lead when we do visits to Group Homes on Fridays. Overall, they are only here about 10-15 hrs a week. And they are all great to work with!
What do you do for fun?
Go to the Park, various restaurants, the High Museum, the Cyclorama, hanging out with friends and $10 student tickets to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra! But you all knew that I am, in fact, this boring.