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<\/a>Lincoln did not have lunch and apparently hadn\u2019t had one for days since Lunchables are what the school gives children when they do not have their own. When I asked Lincoln about this he said, \u201cYeah, school lunch ended last week. It\u2019s ok. I know you are busy.\u201d<\/p>\nMy mother-heart was broken. I had failed to take care of the most basic need of my little boy. In the business of my calendar, I had neglected to feed him. I\u2019m sure it goes without saying\u2026we immediately went out for ice cream.<\/p>\n
In What Clergy Do<\/em>, Emma Percy uses this beautiful analogy of mothering in comparison to the work of the parish clergy. With a careful effort to not take the comparison to the extreme, she offers a picture of spiritual leadership that tends to the needs of the parish through service, worship, and hospitality.[1]<\/a> She compared her responsibility to keep her fridge full of food at home to the responsibility of spiritual feeding in the parish:<\/p>\n Parish priests have primary responsibility for ensuring that the worship, teaching and preaching within the church feeds people adequately so that they can live out authentic Christian lives in the world.[2]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n In chapter seven, she goes on to explain that priests should give their time to ensure people are adequately fed through spiritual food of word and sacrament. Her main focus in this chapter is the weekend experience, explaining that the priest should offer a spiritual meal to sustain parishioners through their week.[3]<\/a> Percy\u2019s charge to priests gave me pause as I reflect on my own life and ministry.<\/p>\n In this fast-paced, productivity-obsessed world, am I giving rightful priority to the feeding of those under my spiritual care? Am I so preoccupied with peripheral issues, administrative responsibilities and putting out fires that I fail to take the time to prepare an adequate \u201cmeal?\u201d<\/p>\n Percy (along with Lincoln\u2019s teacher) challenges me to, once again, reprioritize my activity. Those in my care deserve a leader who is taking time to ensure they are receiving what they need to grow and flourish. My hope is that the time I invest in preparation now will lead them to a place where they can feed themselves.<\/p>\n _________________________<\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Emma Percy, What Clergy Do: Especially When It Looks like Nothing<\/em>, 2014, 127.<\/p>\n