March 13, 2025

The Episcopal Church in Eugene

Last year Resurrection and St. Matthew’s began some initial experiments to see what it would be like for our churches to work together. As you know, our cooperation did not bear fruit. Since that time, Anne Gaillard, Rector of St. Thomas’, has announced her upcoming retirement, and St. Thomas’ anticipates that they will fill her position with a part-time Rector. St. Matthew’s remains without a Rector, able to offer only a minimal part time position, St. John the Divine’s ongoing ministries hang by a very thin budget, and, of course, Resurrection continues to count on reserve funds to support a deficit.

Yesterday the Rectors and many of the Wardens of the Episcopal Churches in the Eugene-Springfield area gathered with Christopher Craun, our Canon to the Ordinary. We began a broad discussion of how we will be the Episcopal Church in our community. We looked at a map of all the parishes and the travel time between them. We compared our liturgies and the traits and values of our congregations. We brainstormed possible approaches, from specific models to general approaches. We came away with several places to start:

1. Some of our parishes have very limited resources and quickly looming financial and staffing thresholds. We believe that the conversation must continue with purpose and with openness to new possibilities and we will meet together monthly to continue to discern and plan.

2. We believe that the Episcopal Church in Eugene-Springfield is already a strong community and that we should begin with that strength, offering more opportunities to build connections among all the congregations and ministries in our area.

3. We believe that prayer is the foundation of any community, and we have committed our congregations to praying for one another by name whenever we gather for worship.

I will keep you informed as our conversation together proceeds. Our case is unique in the diocese both in our proactive approach to our situation and in our eagerness to work together for a systemic solution. The approaches we try together and the solutions we find in the months ahead will offer a wonderful model for the wider church as we all face dwindling congregations and a shortage of priests to serve them. I am excited to see where the Holy Spirit leads us together. Please keep our work and the congregations of St. John’s, St. Mary’s, St. Matthews’, St. Thomas’, the Episcopal Campus Ministry, and Resurrection in your daily prayers.