Annual Report from the Priest-in-Charge, the Reverend Lynn Oldham Robinett

January, 2012

As I stand here today, I realize that I have now been here five years. It’s hard to believe that I have been here that long already, and yet it’s only a drop in the bucket in the life of this community of faith that just celebrated its 110th anniversary. And as I look around this room I see faces that have been here so much longer. Some of you have been members here for 10, 20, 30, even 60 years, and you have seen many changes take place in this wonderful community. Many of you worshiped here with Father Ewald, the first rector of Holy Innocents, who arrived here straight from seminary at a time in our country where communities were much more homogenous, and expectations were great. Churches all over the country were growing in leaps and bounds, as babies were born from families returning to normalcy after a period of war. Baby boomers arrived to change the demographics of nearly every neighborhood.

But by the end of Father Ewald’s 30 year tenure as rector, our country, our state, and this church community were indelibly different. A high proportion of those same baby boomers who attended church with their parents as children, no longer felt the need to join a church, nor raise their children in church. Holy Innocents’ Sunday attendance like many others, began to drop in numbers, gradually at first, and then noticeably. Families that were always around, no longer showed up, or if they did, their attendance was sporadic. Life in our country, and at Holy Innocents, had changed.

And while there are many positive aspects of life in the church 50 years ago, we can never go back. God calls us to move forward in faith, and the Holy Spirit never stops moving among us and challenging us in new ways. Jesus the Christ, the one who began this whole journey for us nearly 2000 years ago, was rejected by his established faith community for speaking too boldly, for challenging interpretations of laws, for believing that God was alive in him and available to others. Our Church has changed, and whether we believe it good or bad, we live with that change. And there will be more.

During what I have called a time of stagnation, this past year has been one where many of us have watched our Sunday attendance numbers slide somewhat. The 7:45 service, which has been the bedrock of our Sunday morning worship since I’ve been here, has seen many of its members unable to attend on a regular basis. Until recently, Kid’s Church had been suffering as well, from the Marin malaise of families having to choose between the many Sunday activities occurring, and the understandable decision of a few families with older children to start attending the 10:30 service. The 10:30 service, on the other hand has benefitted from families getting older and growing out of Kid’s Church, and has jumped considerably in numbers from last year. The church is shifting, and the energy is changing once again. Just as it has done throughout the years.

This year promises to be one of transformation and regeneration as we spend time as a community looking at how we do Sunday mornings. All aspects of Sunday morning – such as worship, music, ushering, acolyting, and coffee hour – will be explored and discussed, first with the vestry and then with the congregation. How can we be a more welcoming and inviting congregation? How can we attract new families that are searching for a place to worship and teach their children about God? How do we open ourselves to God’s Spirit to guide us in this process? Questions such as these are very crucial to the heart of who we are and who we are meant to be, and I am excited about exploring them with you.

We have also been approached by the Marin Food Bank about becoming a possible food pantry one day a week, operating as a sort of farmer’s market for local residents to get fresh food, something very exciting, yet also a little daunting.

Holy Innocents was built to embody Christ’s presence in Corte Madera and the greater community. When I walk into our sanctuary, I can feel the presence of God and the multitude of faithful people who have made Holy Innocents the place that it is. I want others to feel God’s presence the minute they walk through the door like I do, like you maybe do. We are God’s people, called to embrace new life in this day and age and called to embody Christ in all we do. When I came back from CREDO in October, I realized that while I love the 10-15 people who show up for a given service, I don’t like seeing only them. This church was meant for more than that, and it is my work, and your work, as servants of Christ to help build God’s kingdom on earth. So I hope you will join the vestry and me in our work this year as we discern more succinctly where God is leading us as a community.

The new vestry will start the year off with a lot to talk about and a retreat in March to kick start them into gear. I truly believe that God’s Spirit is alive and well and leading us into this new year. But as we exit the past one, there are a few things I would like to say and a few people I would like to thank.