Week One Speakers: Joseph Watson and Mary Miller

Hello. My name is Joseph Watson and this is my wife, Mary Miller. As Anna said, we’re co-chairs of the 2025 Annual Pledge Drive. And we’re here to tell you a bit more about the Pledge Drive, why we hope you’ll contribute (if you haven’t already), and why we give.

We kicked off the Pledge Drive with a coffee hour over at the Tempo Hotel a few weeks back, and if you made a pledge last year or have an address on file with the church, you should have already received your pledge card in the mail. If haven’t received one, don’t worry, there should be one in the back of the pew in front of you. You’ve got about 3 minutes to fill that out while we’re up here, and you can drop it in the offertory plate or hand it to one of us after the service.

In case you missed that coffee hour back in September or scrolled past it in Happenings, we’re offering a little added incentive for folks who get their pledges in early. We’ve got a few hundred prints of a watercolor painting of the cathedral by architect and preservationist (and former parishioner), the late John Kiser, and everyone who gets a pledge in before the end of October will get a print. (The image on the pledge card is Kiser’s painting.)

We’re hoping that might serve as a little nudge if you need one, but there are, of course, so many reasons to give. Each Sunday, between now and mid-November, you’re going to hear about some of them. We’ve invited representatives of several of the Cathedrals’ ministries and commissions to help us shine a light on the many different ways that our pledges have a direct impact on the work we’re able to do here at the Cathedral, from pastoral care and Christian formation to evangelism and the Isaac Project.

We’ve asked the folks who are going to be standing here at the lectern over the next few weeks to talk about two things — how the work of their commission or ministry is supported by the Pledge Drive and, on a more personal note, why they give to the Cathedral. To answer the question of why we give, I want to draw on some of the work I’ve done with the Isaac Project.

Almost exactly sixty years ago, Ray Ferris, who was rector here during the Civil Rights movement, stood in that pulpit and preached his final sermon here at Christ Church. He encouraged the congregation to commit itself to the struggle for justice, saying, “The kingdom of God is not all here yet. It’s ever dawning; it’s never high noon for the kingdom.” That idea of working toward something that’s always in process, something we’re all striving toward together, is why we give to Christ Church.

To be honest, we have really only experienced Christ Church in transition, so the idea that it’s “never high noon” really resonates to us. We arrived in the summer of 2022, as a lot of us, individually, and the Church as a whole was still trying to figure out how to emerge from COVID. Less than a year after our arrival, Timothy, our former dean and rector, departed. And now, we’re in the midst of a massive construction project and on the verge of calling a new dean and rector.

Despite all of this change, we have quickly and genuinely been made to feel at home here. There have been countless instances throughout our two and a half years at Christ Church where people have gone out of their way to make us feel not only welcome, but made space for us in their lives. This kind of community is rare, and as we see it, an incredibly valuable thing to recognize and invest in.

That investment takes different forms. We’ve gotten involved as ushers and chalice bearers at the 11:15 service; Mary has joined the flower guild; and I have been working with the Isaac Project. Our son, William, loves hanging out in the nursery, almost as much as he loves coming to an active construction site every Sunday. All of that, from the beautiful arrangements on the altar to the women who staff the nursery, depends in some form or another on our pledges.

So much of what we all experience here is intangible, from that sense of “community” to the Divine itself. But the financial support each of us offers, however big or small, is what makes these intangible things possible. Especially as we embark on this new chapter in the Cathedral’s history, with a new building and a new dean around the corner, we hope you’ll prayerfully consider pledging. After all, as Ray Ferris would remind us, the work is never done: “it’s never high noon for the kingdom.”

 Week Two Speaker: Susie Ries

I want to introduce myself and share a bit about what this church means to me. Then, as the vestry liaison to the Outreach Commission, I want to tell you about the work of that commission.

I grew up in the Presbyterian church. My husband Russell was a cradle Episcopalian. Almost 40 years ago we moved to Nashville with our two young children, Katie and Russell Jr. Soon after moving, we met some parishioners from Christ Church who invited us to worship here. Around that time our third child, Bud, was born.

One of the first things we loved about this church was that it served breakfast before the 8:45 service. In addition to feeding us scrambled eggs, grits, bacon and biscuits, that occasion gave us the opportunity to meet and get to know other parishioners. When I told my mother that I was going to join the Episcopal church, she replied, ” I think any place that feeds you breakfast is worth joining.”

Christ Church became our primary community and has been nourishing us for all these years. I am eternally grateful for that. Almost four years ago, Russell was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer and died seven weeks later. The outpouring of love from this community during his illness and after his death fed and carried us through that traumatic time and continues today. I know that God was and is with us, working in and through the people of Christ Church Cathedral.

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As the vestry liaison to the Outreach Commission, I want to highlight the work of that commission. But first, I want to tell you that when I was growing up, my parents taught my sister and me about tithing. Mom and Dad took 10% of every bit of income they received and deposited it into what they called their “Tithing Account.” They were very disciplined about that and took great delight in giving those funds to programs that they deemed were doing God’s work. The largest portion went to our church, but they gave to other programs as well.

Christ Church Cathedral does the same thing. We allocate ten percent of all budgeted pledges to the Outreach Commission. As with my parent’s system, one tenth of the pledged income goes into a fund which is administered by the Grants Committee.

The mission of the Outreach Commission is to “seek and serve Christ in all persons” and ”to strive for the justice and peace of God.” This year, the Grants Committee was charged with the distribution of over $200,000 in funds, the direct results of tithing from our pledges. I know that pride is a sin, but, I’m really proud of our church for using this portion of our pledges to answer Christ’s call to love our neighbor through acts of mercy, acts of justice and acts of repentance.

With these funds, our church has financially supported 19 ministries, some local, some global. I will not list them here, but I urge you to look at the 2023 Annual Report on our website to see the ministries we support and the allocations of funds with which we support them. And, by the way, next year our church will participate in building a Habitat for Humanity house.

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Before closing, I want to recognize two significant leaders of the Outreach Commission. Joe Altman has chaired the Grants Committee for about a decade and is now ready to step down. Joe has been a strong and faithful leader, sharing his financial acumen and teaching as he led thoughtful discussions about allocations. David Morton chairs the Outreach Commission and serves on the vestry, and for the last 23 years, he has led our participation in the Room In The Inn program, offering hospitality to our unhoused neighbors. He himself has been there every Thursday night! This past Friday an email was sent from church to everyone with information on how to volunteer for Room In The Inn. I think David would tell us that the way to thank him for his dedication is for us to volunteer to help any Thursday night that we are able.

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This year’s stewardship campaign theme comes from the second chapter of Acts, verse 44: and all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. This church is feeding us all as it has for almost two hundred years. To continue to do this we need the support of everyone here. Think of the loaves and the fish. This is an opportunity for us to invest in our community and improve the lives of others as welcome exciting new leadership. I urge you to prayerfully consider giving generously – maybe even tithing - to improve our life here at Christ Church Cathedral and outside these walls. Thank you!

Week Four Speaker: Maura Black Sullivan

 Good morning, Christ Church Cathedral family,

Hello. I am Maura Black Sullivan and I am grateful to be among you at Christ Church Cathedral.

2025 is set to be a remarkable year for us, as we open a new building for ministry and welcome a new Dean and Rector to lead us in our shared mission. This is a time of great opportunity, and I invite you to prayerfully consider how your financial gifts can help us seize this moment.

We are called to live as if God’s kingdom has already come on earth, as it is in heaven. That’s not just a theological concept—it’s a call to action for each of us. And today, I stand before you to ask: What will we do, individually and collectively, to help make this vision a reality in the coming year? As chair of the Evangelism Commission, I can tell you that your giving directly advances the work we are called to do. In 2024, we have been expanding our outreach through programs like the Welcome Bag ministry, which greet newcomers with open arms. We have extended our reach with the new Street Ministry, bringing the sacred to the streets through our Ashes To Go during Lent and Blessings from clergy on the sidewalk in front of our beautiful doors. We continue to expand the BreakingBread@6 ministry, adding a Bluegrass Mass this year that was lots of fun and very successful. The Community of the Cross of Nails has brought amazing speakers into our midst to enlighten our minds and spirits.

The Evangelism Commission is committed to ensuring that Christ Church Cathedral is not just a building at 9th and Broadway, but a beacon of God’s love, radiating out into the community. But we can’t do this alone. We need your help. We need your prayers, your participation, and yes—your financial support. When you give, you are not just supporting the day-to-day operations of the church. You are fueling ministries that touch lives, that draw people into deeper relationships with God and one another. You are helping us reach the stranger, the seeker, and the inquirer. You are building the kingdom of God here in downtown Nashville.

Our clergy and Vestry have already made their pledges for 2025. If you have not made your pledge yet, I encourage you to join them. And remember, if you pledge by October 31, you’ll receive a beautiful watercolor print of our beloved church—a symbol of the community we are building together. These prints will be available here at church during office hours and after services on Sundays for you to pick up, after November 1 st .

As a relatively new Nashvillian and lifelong Episopalian, I am glad to have found this church and grateful for all that is done here. Thank you for all that you contribute—your time, your talent, and your treasure. Together, let’s make 2025 a year of growth, service, and transformation for Christ Church Cathedral and the wider community.

Peace.