November 9, 2010

Tree of Life

I spent the Saturday night before our All Saints celebration as the stage manager for an event at our cathedral entitled, “A Celebration of the Tree of Life in the Time of the Great Turning.” It was an incredible event anchored by a talk by Joanna Macy and two participatory stories by Michael Meade. Wrapped around them were dance performances led by Betsey Beckman, music by Gina Sala, and the singing of the Spirit of the Sound Choir. Ninety participants, 600 attendees; each making a $20 contribution. Beyond interfaith to transfaith.

This celebration occurred during a nine-day period when St. Mark’s Cathedral held a silent movie and organ screening of the “Hunchback of Notre Dame,” hosted the diocesan All Saints requiem mass for those who have died of AIDS, and baptized babies at its All Saints Day service on Nov. 7.

Our cathedral is the kind of crossroads and commons that the medieval ones were. Fairs, markets, debates, and modern-day madrigals all are enacted in this sacred space. When on staff I organized and hosted “The Tree of Africa” an arts and music gathering for the African diaspora in Seattle. We also had the Kyoto Monks, the Dalai Lama’s own monastery, come and create a sand mandala and offering an evening of chanting. 800 people paid well for the experience.

Each Episcopal Church is a mini-cathedral meant to be a crossroads for the many communities that surround us. Some churches host AA meetings and meal programs. For others it’s chamber music concerts and polling places. And for emerging churches it is pubs and performance art.

Whatever is right outside your door needs to be invited in with open arms. In each and every setting with an Episcopal Church there are surrounding circles of seekers, fellow travelers, allies, debate partners, and even enemies to be embraced with God’s love. Our spaces are places for all saints and souls.