Indeed, being ‘in community' is not something we choose to add to our repertoire as Christians, when time and energy allow, or when interest and curiosity insist. Being-community ‘is' the way that we are called into relationship with the community of the Trinity and is essential for our formation as sisters and brothers who claim a Christian identity. The shape our community comes to have, is the extent to which we model what God has in mind for all of humanity...God's strategic plan coming to fruition in our flesh as St. Thomas'.

Episcopalians, and Anglicans in general, seem comfortable with God the Father - for generations, the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man, said just about all there was about church leadership. For similar reasons God the Son made perfect sense, like a family business that adds each new generation to the corporate letterhead. The third person of the Trinity, however, has remained largely a celestial poltergeist, the Holy Ghost, the highly uncomfortable family member!

This sixth Sunday of Easter could easily be called, "vision Sunday." As a parish we meet after today's service for the second of our "Visioning 2020″ meetings to hear your visions of what St. Thomas' Parish will look like in the future. And as if to mark the significance of all such visioning processes, our lessons tell us of three times when the followers of Jesus are given visions that are to guide their understandings, actions, and imaginations as they dare become believers and followers of the Risen Christ. There is much to learn from these visions from the earliest days of the church that might help us be more faithful as we work to envision God's desires for this community.

This is an interesting Gospel account for us to try and enter into. We have an unrecognized Jesus standing on the side of the sea who calls out to his disciples, "Children, you have no fish, have you?" John tells us the disciples were only about 100 yards off the shore, in our common parlance a football field out there on the Sea of Galilee. Have you ever noticed how well sound travels across water? The disciples look back and they tell him no, no fish today.