Priest-in-Charge Annual Report
February 1, 2009

Chinese Version

Fourteen years ago when my family came to this country, we came to Princeton, NJ. The town, the people and the culture were all as removed from India as it could be. We were surrounded by blond blue-eyed neighbors, the houses were all so picturesque and the streets were mostly empty of pedestrians. Having lived in cities and towns where we were never far away from a crowd of people in India, Princeton in early winter seemed rather desolate, lifeless and utterly foreign to me. Over time we got to know the people inside the pretty homes, and I soon realized that life happens pretty much the same way whether in Princeton or in Nagpur.

A year ago I came to this church with some nervousness and a deep consciousness about being the “foreigner” amongst you. I do not presume to know everything there is to know about Chinese culture and its people, but today I stand before you knowing and understanding to a large degree that life happens pretty much the same even in this Cantonese speaking church in Chinatown. Where ever we go and whatever language we speak, people everywhere long for affirmation and fellowship. Life happens in churches just as much as it happens outside the church with all its ups and downs, with all its weirdness and with all its joys and sorrows. You have all been very gracious to me and I thank you all for having invited me into your lives. Since I have been here, some of the clear signs of life in our church started showing with the baptisms of Andrea Chan, Arthur and Brian Fok, Xiang Min Ou and Adela Chan.  We also witnessed the wonderful wedding of De Young and Adela Chan. Besides the baptisms and the wedding we have had wonderful celebrations of birthdays, wedding anniversaries, church anniversary, concerts, community outreach programs like the health fair, church outings and the retreat. We have also started the English service that we had wanted to, our weekend enrichment programs run through the Jubilee Center have continued to flourish, and we have hosted many other events in collaboration with other church bodies like EAM and the Church Pension Fund.  

At the beginning of yet another year as your priest, the Vestry graciously asked me what it might do to make my ministry here at church easier. I told them that it would be wonderful to have an assistant who is fluent in both English and Cantonese. After a long search I asked Pam Tang to come on as my assistant.  She worked hourly for the month of December and as of January 1st she is working fifteen hours a week as the part-time Parish Administrator. It has been wonderful to have her by my side and she has made so many things so much easier. You may have noticed that last year we had no Priests’ warden; Sam Cheung graciously took on the work load of two wardens and much more, and I thank Sam for giving me such support and encouragement throughout the time that I have been here.  Sam will be retiring as Warden, and another will take his place as people’s warden. I have asked George Man to me the priest’s Warden and he has agreed to take on that position in the Vestry. I already feel totally supported and encouraged by his presence in the Vestry as well as to me personally. One of the things that have changed in the past months is the location of my office. I know that some of you contributed much toward making the space possible for my office to be there along with the Mission Graphics Staff.  But for many reasons I felt that it would be better to move my office to the originally designated Rector’s office adjacent to the conference room. Peter Ng helped move the After-School program office downstairs, and George Man donated a new intercom system to make this move possible. I thank George and Blanda for their generous gift . I hope that you will take time to come and visit me in my new office. All in all, it has not been a bad year at all. But of course, a large part of life also has to do with areas of growth.

In the year that I have been here, one of the most challenging areas in the parish has been the need for people to come forward for leadership positions.  I am very sorry to say that we have not been able to get enough people to fill in our vacant vestry positions, nor have we found anyone to sit on the board of our building to represent the church. Let me remind you that in the body of Christ we have only one leader, Jesus Christ Himself.  We are all merely followers and disciples and to take up positions of leadership in church is all about serving the body of Christ. I urge you my dear brothers and sisters to think about what areas of service to the body of Christ each one of us can take to make it easier for us to go forward in our mission to glorify God in this neighborhood and beyond. Your opinions matter, your contribution of time and energy matter even more than any amount of financial contributions you can make. If you are afraid of being left with a certain responsibility for many years to come, which I admit is a genuine concern; let us make it clear that we will take a yearly turn.  If you are afraid that you don’t speak English well enough, let us remind ourselves that this is a Chinese church. Let us come forward to bear each others’ burdens and the concern of Christ for all members of His body to work together. One of the concerns about our church is the need for us to grow numerically. I agree that it would be good to have more people on a Sunday, but we cannot lay out plans of growth unless we ourselves grow. Growth is not only about becoming aware of what it means to follow God, it finally has to be about engagement in God’s work, which at this point in time for our church is forming a strong team of vestry members.

In the coming months we shall continue to explore areas of growth for our church, and as and when the need for growth is perceived I will be in discussion with everyone here to move toward the changes we need to embrace. Finally, let me assure you that God loves us all with an everlasting love, the areas of challenges are nothing to be ashamed of rather, they are wonderful opportunities for God to work in our lives. After all, we are all pilgrims eagerly awaiting and giving our lives for God to mold us to be His holy people. May God bless us as we look for his presence and direction. Amen.