Dear Friends:
We are now into the second month of my time among you as Trinity’s Interim Rector. Returning to our spiritual home has brought Zonnie and me more joy than either of us can adequately express.
My work with our faithful and gifted Wardens and Vestry gives me great confidence in Trinity’s leadership today. And I also want you to know how impressed I have been with the skill and professionalism and deep dedication of our program and administrative staff. They are a great team and I hope the next time you greet one of them you will say “thanks for your hard work.”
Now all this is very good news and gives me great confidence in the future of this place. At the same time, and not surprisingly, though, there are areas of concern that I am finding as I continue to look under the hood, so to speak.
I called some of these out in Sunday’s sermon. If you weren’t able to be present, I hope you will read it or watch the video now. As we move forward towards calling the best possible candidates to be Trinity’s next Rector, these areas of concern need immediate attention.
Let me summarize what I called in my sermon some “uncomfortable truths:”
That truth is that Trinity, this place I so dearly love, as do so many of you, is approaching a crossroads. For the last several years, Trinity’s stewardship of its financial resources has not kept pace with inflation. Giving is down.
You’ve seen the tangible fallout from this as some staff have been laid off or have not been replaced after moving on. Attendance at worship has been declining.
In fact, year over year from 2017 through 2024 Sunday attendance has declined by 25%.
And Trinity has a physical plant that needs attention even beyond the scope of the very successful capital campaign. None of this has been dramatic. Just a slow drip-drip. But if attention isn’t paid, if action isn’t taken soon, the drip will become a systemic problem that will be increasingly difficult to sustain.
This interim period we are in now is exactly the right time to address these issues of evangelism and financial commitment. They really go hand in hand, you know.
It’s going to take dedicated staff to support you and me in our work of evangelism as we invite others to join us here and that will take more money than is currently available to us.
Now, the good news is that this community has the financial capacity, the skills, the vision, and most importantly, the faithfulness to turn this supertanker in the right direction. But having the capacity and offering it—time, talent, and financial resources—in service to Trinity’s mission and ministry are not the same thing.
Here’s the truth. Your church needs your generous support and your heartfelt commitment now more than ever. Your church needs YOU!
I can’t say that often enough. Your church needs YOU. And me, too. Every one of us. You are Jesus’s hands; you are Jesus’s feet.
Trinity, as it has for the last 175 years, will move from strength to strength powered by the Holy Spirit. Trinity will continue to witness to the love of the Lord Jesus Christ to neighbors near and far. Trinity will continue to build the Kingdom of God in New Orleans.
You’ll be hearing lots more about this in the weeks and months to come from lots of different folks in this community about why Trinity is so important to them, about how their encounters with the Risen Christ at Trinity and through Trinity are shaping their lives, about why Trinity matters. So stay tuned. And stay faithful.
May God continue to bless you and all the ones you love,
Lex
