During the Celebration of New Ministry on Saturday you will notice that there is an exchange of gifts that are symbolic of the office of rector and the ministry of the church. Notable is that the first gift is a Bible, this is the core of how we proclaim the Word and of how God is revealed to us.

  

Some may have heard the concept that authority within Anglicanism and the Episcopal Church is founded upon scripture, tradition, and reason. Richard Hooker, writing in the 16th century, highlighted the importance of each leg of a three-legged stool, each leg is necessary and a fourth leg would lead to instability. The architect Frank Lloyd Wright took this concept to his iconic design Falling Water where the chairs that he designed for use on a rough stone floor all have three legs so that they don't wobble. So we continue to work to achieve a balance of scripture, tradition, and reason in what we do in the Episcopal Church.

  

The strength of scripture, and our study of it, is important. There are also other sources that inform us as we consider tradition and reason. I would like to commend some of these to you.

  

Close to home, news comes to us regularly from the Diocese of Washington. If you have not subscribed to their eNews I encourage you to do so. Local events as well as insights from Bishop Mariann are all featured. At the bottom right corner of the Diocesan homepage you can signup to receive their eNews, http://www.edow.org

  

Looking a little further afield The Episcopal Café is a source for news from all around the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. This is a good way to keep abreast of the news that affects our larger church. You can visit the site http://www.episcopalcafe.com or follow them on FaceBook.

  

The Episcopal News Service also keeps us informed of events both local and national that involve our sister parishes as well as the House of Bishops and the Presiding Bishop. Like many of these sources, ENS can be followed on Twitter or FaceBook as well as being able to subscribe to their eNews http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/

  

It is amazing to experience the diversity as well as the commonality found within the Anglican Communion. For a small taste I encourage you to subscribe to the Anglican Communion News at http://www.anglicannews.org and to also explore the Anglican Communion website http://www.anglicancommunion.org . Who knows, it might be the impetus to travel the world to experience the many forms of Anglican worship and mission; it would be a marvelous pilgrimage.

  

As we consider these many different sources of information we always return to Scripture to put this information into perspective. I encourage you to be informed and to be curious. Comedian Robin Williams spoke of his faith as an Episcopalian through comedy, his native language. In his Ten Reasons to be an Episcopalian reason #7 is "You don't have to check your brains at the door."