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Dear Friends in Christ,
This Thanksgiving my heart is filled with profound gratitude for the witness and ministry we share across the Diocese of Florida. In this time of both challenge and opportunity, I am reminded daily of the resilience, faithfulness, and love that characterize our common life together.
The apostle Paul writes to the Corinthians, "For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ" (1 Corinthians 12:12). This truth has never been more evident than in these recent months and years, as we have walked together through seasons of listening, discernment, and healing.
I think of the first time I met Archbishop Desmond Tutu at my home parish as a high school student and how he taught us about ubuntu—the African concept that "a person is a person through other persons." He recounted how, in traditional African societies, when someone was asked "How are you?" the response would be "We are well" if the community was thriving, or "We are not well" if anyone in the community was suffering. This understanding echoes Paul's words: "If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it" (1 Corinthians 12:26).
The Diocese of Florida embodies this truth in remarkable ways. We are a diocese of broad theological diversity—from Anglo-Catholic to Evangelical, from contemplative to charismatic, from traditional to progressive expressions of worship and witness. This diversity runs to our very core. It is who we are, and it reflects the expansive love of God that draws all people to Christ through different paths and experiences.
As the Standing Committee recently communicated regarding marriage and our non-discrimination language, we affirmed this fundamental truth about our diocese: we are committed to being a church that reflects and honors our theological diversity while ensuring that all God’s children can find their place in the Body of Christ. This is not about choosing sides or declaring winners and losers. This is about living into ubuntu—recognizing that we need each other, in all our beautiful differences, to be the fullness of Christ’s body.
Ubuntu teaches us that “I am because we are.” In our diocese, this means:
• The traditional parish needs the progressive parish
• The social justice advocate needs the contemplative prayer warrior
• The young questioner needs the elder’s wisdom
• The careful theologian needs the passionate evangelist
• Those who emphasize God’s justice need those who emphasize God’s mercy
• We all need each other
When any part of our diocesan family feels excluded or diminished, we are all diminished. When any part of our family is celebrated and included, we are all strengthened.
This Thanksgiving, I am grateful for:
• A diocese brave enough to hold theological diversity in creative tension
• Clergy who minister faithfully across the theological spectrum, united in their love for Christ
• Lay leaders who model how to disagree in love while working side by side
• Communities that choose to stay at the table together even when conversations are difficult
• The holy work of building a church where ubuntu is lived out—where no one thrives unless all can thrive
• The courage to say clearly: our diversity is not our weakness but our strength
As we gather around tables this Thanksgiving, may we remember that ubuntu calls us to see that the person across from us—even when we disagree—is essential to our own wholeness. We cannot be who God calls us to be without them. Our unity is not found in theological uniformity but in our mutual recognition that we belong to each other through Christ.
The work ahead remains significant. We continue to heal, to listen, and to discern God’s call for our future together. But we do this work knowing that our diversity is a gift that enriches our common life and strengthens our witness to the world. A diocese that can hold difference in love is a powerful sign of God’s kingdom.
In his letter to the Philippians, Paul writes, “I thank my God every time I remember you, constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now” (Philippians 1:3-5). Despite our differences—indeed, because of our differences—we continue to share in the Gospel together, each bringing unique gifts to the whole.
May your Thanksgiving be filled with the peace of Christ that transcends all understanding, binding our diverse hearts together in love. May we continue to live into ubuntu, knowing that our individual flourishing depends on the flourishing of all. Let us continue to learn about each other, heal, and grow together.
With deep gratitude,
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