St. John’s Welcomes Rev. Kathy McAdams as Permanent Rector

Members and friends of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Franklin gathered inside the sunlit sanctuary in the early evening, April 26, to welcome their new permanent, half-time rector, The Rev. Kathy McAdams. The evening was filled with pomp and ceremony, presided over by the Diocese’s Bishop Suffragan, the Rt. Rev. Gayle E. Harris.
The pews were filled with people of all ages, and throughout the liturgical service, people came forward to present Rev. McAdams with multiple gifts. Andrea Blood and Joyce Crisp presented McAdams with keys to the church, while the Rev. David Milam presented a copy of the Constitutions and Canons of the diocese. Jane Farrell and Kathi Saunders brought forward a flask of oil for healing. Bishop Harris presented McAdams with a vessel of water, urging her to “take this water and help me to baptize in obedience to our Lord.” McAdams also shared simple gifts with several members of the congregation; the gathering began to take on the feel of Christmas morning!
A mentor of McAdams, the Rev. Alden Flanders, shared a homily in which he invited the children who were there to join him at the front of the church. When some were reluctant to step forward, McAdams joined right in, sat at the feet of her mentor and soon had a number of children and parents gathered around her to listen as the priest shared a children’s story book, with a message of enduring love that does not give up. The mood was light-hearted and there were lots of opportunities for laughter.
The service concluded with an offering of the Eucharist, with Bishop Harris and McAdams serving the people of St. John’s.
McAdams has been an Episcopal priest since 2001 and has already been serving at St. John’s since this past January. She previously served in several Massachusetts congregations, and was the director of Ecclesia Ministries’ Common Cathedral, an outdoor church and street ministry in Boston. She noted that, “I chose St. John’s because the people are warm, enthusiastic and full of energy. They’ve done so much without a permanent rector. I look forward to helping them reach further into the surrounding community to see what needs we can help fill here.”
St. John’s is located at 237 Pleasant Street in Franklin, the tall A-frame building tucked into the woods near the center of Franklin. For more information about the church, or to get in touch, visit http://stjohnsfranklinma.org/