I value what little time I am able to get at the convent in Mendham (the home of the Community of St. John Baptist, an Episcopal order of women religious). The sisters are extraordinarily generous with their beautiful grounds and even have been known to let me use my aerial camera there. So much of what I experience on the grounds of the convent is a lesson about the importance of getting a different perspective.

If your life is at all like mine, it’s easy to get caught up in the minutiae of things—the sometimes-ugly daily details (grocery shopping, laundry, bill paying or desk-cleaning, diocesan requirements and figuring out the answer to the perpetual ‘where-will-the-money-come-from?’ question) that often require far too much of our attention and sap way too much of our energy. It’s nice to have a place so close by to get a different perspective—literally!

I know that the Community has as many property worries as we do—for roughly a dozen nuns they have a lot of buildings and real estate and staff to maintain. But I also know that God provides, and has for that order exactly as long as she has for Redeemer—since 1852 (just as Redeemer was incorporated in Morristown in 1852, the Community of St. John Baptist was founded in England in 1852).

When I wander into the cemetery at the convent and see what appear to be some walls in less-than-perfect repair, I know what that burden is like. But I can also get some perspective when I’m there by flying above all of the cracks in the walls with my aerial camera (some call it a drone, but that has too many military implications for me…) and seeing the big picture. From the perspective of someone driving by or even walking in the cemetery, it may not be obvious how it is laid out. But as soon as you see it from the air it becomes obvious—a reminder that a change in perspective is always a good thing!

Cynthia Black taking photos of Redeemer marchers at Families Belong Together march in Newark.     PHOTO CREDIT: Diana Wilcox

On one of the hottest days of the year, Redeemer showed its compassion once again, this time at the Families Belong Together rally and march in Newark on June 30.

It had been a long week. One that started with the Hasker’s funeral, included another horrific shooting (in a newsroom), news that a budget request has been made to build housing on military bases for 12,000 people who cross into the US seeking asylum, and a variety of Supreme Court rulings. The hardest part of that week was the revelation that a Supreme Court justice will soon be appointed.

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I regularly get reminders of what I love about Redeemer, but yesterday seemed full of them. When I woke and saw the beautiful blue sky I hopped out of bed and high tailed it to work. I’ve been wanting a chance to get my drone up in the air to take photos of the workers on the roof, and since there has been a lot of rain recently, this hasn’t been possible. I also wanted to do it before there were too many people around, as drone flying is inadvisable under those conditions. So the early start meant I got to practice my Spanish with the roofers and chat with some of the earliest soup kitchen guests, who were all quite curious about what I was doing. After getting the foreman’s permission, I was up in the air, checking out the views! Read more →

Never have I been so perplexed, nor waited so long to decide what to do for a Lenten program. For months I thought I knew what we would be doing for our Wednesday evening program. Then the election happened. Why should that matter, you might wonder? Now it seems that so much of our conversation gets viewed through the lens of “What’s happening in Washington” or the latest CNN News Alert to pop up on our phone. So it seemed this year that it was important to return to our roots– to consider the most basic premises that underlie any outward manifestations of our faith right now. Read more →