Holy Rollers...Pass Me Another Amen!

This past Thanksgiving my family and I traveled from our home in Richmond, Virginia to visit and stay with our famlies who live in Augusta, Georgia. We all loaded up - Sallie, Jack, Annabel and even Mandy the dog and headed south. The week was nice despite a few family arguements (usually over the same old silly things!) The only real soar spot of the whole trip (besides the fact that my mother didn't like my sisters new hair color) was that my beloved Georgia Bulldogs got beat in football by our much loathed arch rivals, Georgia Tech.

One of the highlights of my Thanksgiving week in Augusta was a most unexpected opportunity to co-celebrate the Eucharist with one of my dear friends who is an Episcopal priest in the Diocese of Georgia, and lives in Augusta. Joe is a wonderful and fine gentleman. He and his wife Cissy are dear friends and the god-parents of my two little children, Jack and Annabel. Joe is not only a priest but a surgeon and teacher at the Medical College of Georgia. I often tease him by saying that he is the only person I know that can diagonse a medical problem, operate, and if everything goes south (as in death) give his patient last rites!

Now, one might quickly assume that Joe and I were celebrateing the Eucharist at his parish, Holy Comforter, Episcopal Church; but that was not the case. Joe got invited to celebrate the Episcopal Eucharist at the Penticostal Worship Center in a very impoverished area of Augusta. The minister at the church was admrally teaching his non-denominational Penicostal church about the broader church and her diverse liturgical traditions. I was so impressed with their pastor. He genuinely wanted his congregation to experience other Christan faith denominations so that they would not become narrow-minded in their faith.

Well, what a night! I have to tell you that it was much livelier than most traditional Episcopal services. The music was awesome, using a diverse set of intruments such as the keyboard, drums and guitar. Everyone sang from their heart like there was no tomorrow. It was an incredible and moving experience.

There is one tradition that these fine folks have that really stood out that evening - they enthusiastically say Amen anytime they are moved by the Holy Spirit. Man, they were moved by the Holy Spirit! After every sentence in Joe's sermon he was met with a round of Aaaaaamens! They Amened everything in the Book of Common Prayer. They even Amened me when Joe introduced me to the congregation!

We Episcopal priests don't often get many Amens when we preach, teach or celebrate (unless it says to do so in the Book of Common Prayer). Joe told that beautiful congregation that he and I were going to load up on all the Amens we could possibly get, since we rarely receive that kind of spontaneous congregational affirmation.

So my dear sisters and brothers - here's to you - and have a Aaaaamen kind of day! As for me and Joe, we decided that we will take as many Amens as we can possible stand.