Dean's Message for November 5, 2026

Author:
November 05, 2026

Beloveds,

What a beautiful and meaningful beginning to November we have shared at St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral.

On Sunday, we celebrated All Saints’ Day with Bishop Poulson Reed, giving thanks for the great communion of saints and the generations of faithful people whose lives continue to shape our own. It was a gift to welcome our bishop into our worship and to hear his reflections during Dean’s Hour on “Towards Transformative Christian Practice: A Theological Roadmap.” His visit offered a wonderful reminder that our faith is not simply something we profess on Sundays, but something we are called to practice in every part of our lives.

We had also anticipated gathering Monday evening for our All Souls’ Requiem Mass, but severe weather prompted us to postpone this sacred observance. We will now gather this Sunday, November 8, at 4:00 p.m., and I hope you will join us. There is something profoundly moving about hearing the names of those we love but see no longer spoken aloud in sacred space, holding cherished memories before God, and being reminded that love does not end with death.

Together, All Saints and All Souls invite us to look both backward and forward—with gratitude for those who have gone before us and with renewed awareness of the lives we are called to live. And perhaps that is especially fitting as we prepare for a Sunday that will hold both our celebration of faithful generosity and our remembrance of faithful lives.

That connection feels especially meaningful as we begin November’s focus on Service in our Living a Faithful Life journey.

Our November 1 Faithful Life Card offered this beautiful reminder: “We receive a legacy of faithfulness and carry it forward in service.”

Think about that for a moment. So much of what we treasure about this Cathedral exists because someone before us chose to give. Someone offered their time. Someone shared a gift. Someone saw a need and responded. Someone made room for another person to belong. The ministries, traditions, relationships, and sacred spaces we enjoy today are part of a living legacy of faithfulness.

And now it is our turn.

Service is one of the ways we honor those who came before us—not simply by remembering what they did, but by continuing the work of love they began. This week's card encourages us to learn more about a Cathedral ministry or community partner, ask what is needed, and consider one meaningful way to help. Sometimes the most faithful thing we can do is simply pay attention, listen, and respond.

This brings us to a particularly important moment in our shared life: Consecration Sunday, November 8.

This Sunday, we will gather as one Cathedral family for a single combined service at 10:30 a.m., followed by our Thanks-a-Lunch celebration in Dean Willey Hall. I hope you will join us for both.

Throughout our Walk in Love stewardship season, we have been invited to consider how the gifts God has entrusted to us become part of something greater than ourselves. Our financial pledges are an important expression of that commitment, making possible the worship, music, formation, pastoral care, outreach, and hospitality that shape our Cathedral's life. But stewardship also encompasses how we offer our time, share our abilities, care for one another, and participate in God's work in the world.

Consecration Sunday is an opportunity to celebrate all of it—to give thanks for what God is doing among us, to commit ourselves to the year ahead, and to recognize the extraordinary possibilities of ordinary people walking together in love.

And what a wonderful season lies ahead! November brings continued opportunities for formation, fellowship, music, and service. Soon we will turn toward Advent, with its beautiful invitation to slow down, watch, wait, and Make Room for Wonder. There are so many meaningful ways to participate in the life of this Cathedral in the weeks ahead, and I encourage you to explore them, invite someone along, and discover something new.

As I reflect on these days of All Saints and All Souls, I find myself returning to one simple thought: We are here because others were faithful. What we do with that inheritance matters.

May our gratitude become generosity. May our remembrance become service. And may the love we have received continue to find new expression through each of us.

With love and gratitude,

The Very Reverend Katie Churchwell +
15th Dean, St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral

 

BACK