From the National Cathedral…

My name is Jason Roberson, I am a postulant for Holy Orders from The Episcopal Church in South Carolina (my home parish is Grace Church in Charleston), and this past September I began my middler year of seminary at The Virginia Theological Seminary.  It was an honor to be able to attend today’s Holy Eucharist and Installation of the Most Rev. Michael Curry as our 27^th Presiding Bishop.  A group of several seminarians from VTS made the short trip across the Potomac from Alexandria this morning, and as we drove into Washington, we talked about how lucky we were to have tickets for this historic service (thank you, Annie and Bishop vonRosenberg, for my ticket!).

With over 2,500 people in attendance, the entrance line was long, and the seats in the central nave of the cathedral were already full (even though we arrived one hour before the service).  But we were lucky again…we were able to sit upstairs in the West Balcony with an amazing view of the entire nave.  As we took our seats, I realized I was sitting in the same row with the rector of St. Stephen’s in North Myrtle Beach and president of the diocesan Standing Committee, the Rev. Dr. Wilmot Merchant … it's a small world!

It was also great to see others from our diocese - Ginga and John Wilder from the Church of the Good Shepherd in Summerville were there, and the Rev. Jean McGraw and a group of parishioners from St. Francis in Charleston also made the trip.  Ginga took these great shots...

The liturgy was a wonderful celebration of the diversity of The Episcopal Church.  A Native American drumming band from the Piscataway Indians of Maryland provided music during the prelude and the Gospel procession.  Music of praise and worship was provided by the St. Thomas African Episcopal Church Gospel Choir and by soloists from the Latino/Hispanic Ministries of the Episcopal Church.  Prayers and readings were offered in Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew, and Dakota.

Today was a celebration of love and ministry: of Bishop Curry’s love for and dedication to this Church and of this new phase of his ministry.  It was also a reminder of our own baptismal covenant and of our Christian responsibility to love and minister to others.  The Great Commandment that Jesus teaches in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark could not have been made clearer:  love God and love neighbor.  Near the end of his sermon, Bishop Curry said these words, “The Holy Spirit has done evangelism and racial reconciliation before in The Episcopal Church…we are God’s children, all of us, no matter our race, no matter our religion, no matter our class, our stripe, or our type.  We’re God’s children, and we are God’s baptized children who are part of Jesus’s movement to change this world by the power of love.”  Thanks be to God!

The full, recorded webcast of today's service along with the service leaflet can be viewed here: http://www.generalconvention.org/pb-installation