Dear People of Trinity Church Oxford,

It is with great joy that I greet you for the first time as your new rector. Although I’ve been in the application and interview process here for nearly a year, others have been hard at work even longer. Your Discernment Committee and Vestry have worked diligently to determine, along with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, their choice for the future of this historic parish church. They deserve your thanks for this great effort.

Pete and I are in the end stages of settlement on our new home. But even as that settlement comes to a close, we must deal with some of the more glamorous aspects of home ownership—namely sanding the floors and replacing an ailing septic system. Once these items are completed and we are comfortably settled, we look forward to sharing our home and hospitality with parishioners and friends of Trinity Church in an appropriately celebratory manner!

Speaking of celebrations, my formal institution as thirty-first rector of Trinity Church, Oxford will take place on Friday, October 16th at 7:00 PM, with Bishop Rodney Michel as the Officiant. I hope that all of you plan on attending. A festive reception will follow.

A chain of men’s clothing stores in New York and New Jersey has a slogan: ‚An educated consumer is our best customer.? Those who study business models have dissected this slogan to determine its veracity. However, in the Church it is true that ‚An educated layperson is the best (most fulfilled) worshipper.? With that in mind, we will begin our Fall Christian Education series in October.

Beginning Sunday, October 18th and continuing through Sunday, November 22nd (six consecutive Sundays), we will explore the beauty and mystery of the mass from historical, theological and practical perspectives. The historical being, ‚Where did all this come from?? The theological being, ‚What is the deeper meaning of it all?? And the practical being, ‚What exactly is he doing up there at the altar?? It is my hope that through this series we, as a parish, will all increase both our understanding and our love of our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. More details will follow later this month.

Finally, please let me reiterate just how pleased and humbled I am to receive this call from God to do His work in this section of His vineyard, tending the old vine of Trinity Church Oxford, with its beautiful branches, gnarled with the history of our Church and our Nation. Working together, our job is to nurture that vine so that it continues to send forth fresh, new shoots that bear the bountiful fruit of our ministry in this place. I look forward to getting to know you all, and to a bright and holy future together in this august and lively parish.

Please keep me in your prayers, and may God’s blessing be upon you as we begin this new ministry.

Sincerely, your brother in Christ,

Fr. Richard J. Robÿn