May 14, 2025
Thank you, everyone, for the time to take a sabbatical this year. I needed it more than I thought I did – and I thought I needed it pretty badly! I return to the office and the pulpit with a lot more energy than I had in January, and with a good deal more joy in the ministry and in the work. Mahalo nui loa!
I will schedule a time for a presentation fairly soon. One of my sabbatical activities, one I had not planned but which became deeply refreshing, was photography. I credit Pelehonuamea with providing ample opportunity for dramatic pictures and for offering the blessings of one of earth’s thin places. During these three months I marked over 1,000 pictures as worth sharing. I promise that I’ll make the slide show shorter. Much shorter.
I found it more difficult than I’d anticipated to prepare a publishable manuscript of stories (Jonathan Roach warned me about this). It took me some time to read them and to make decisions. In the coming months I’ll work on editing the texts for a printed format.
I also didn’t get to all the Hawaiian Islands. As I tried to plan the last trip to Maui and Moloka’i, I ran into a medical appointment which had been scheduled months ahead and would be difficult to delay. Instead, I plan to visit those islands during my vacation between Christmas and New Year’s Day.
Sabbath rest is one of the commandments, one of the “Big Ten,” if you will. It applied not only to people, but to also to domestic animals in their care. The ancient law of Israel even gave rest to the land every seven years. Rest is a sacred thing.
Thank you again for help me connect with sacred rest.
In peace,
Pastor Eric
PS: I hope you enjoy the video below which covers my sabbatical time (and a little beyond).
