St. Barnabas Church To Be A Full Parish, Father Keppler It’s First Rector

On Trinity IV Sunday, July 13, the Most Rev. Ray R. Sutton, Bishop of the Reformed Episcopal Diocese of Mid America, Presiding Bishop of REC, and Dean of Ecumenical Affairs of the greater Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), made a multipurpose visitation to St Barnabas’s Anglican Church, Bellville. His Grace sees to it that he or one of his Bishops Suffragan visits every parish, mission, and potential mission of this large RE diocese at least once a year, even if there are no confirmations to be celebrated. On this occasion, he not only confirmed four and received one from another church (in which she had been confirmed by a Bishop), but he also gave a dedicatory blessing for the new (unfinished) parish hall, and at the time of announcements in the main service led a special service for blessing Fr Mike Keppler in his service as a presbyter (priest) on the 22nd anniversary of his ordination to the Anglican priesthood.

As a result of the confirmations and reception of these five members (who have worshipped for some time now in St. Barnabas’s as baptized members of Christ’s Church), who are now full communicants, this mission congregation reached the number of full communicants necessary for a mission to become a full parish. “In a sense,” said Bishop Sutton, “nothing much changes except that Fr. Mike will no longer be your Vicar but your Rector.” (Mission congregations in REC learn early how to pull their own weight, cooperating with their Bishop, for example, in calling or receiving a Vicar, not just having one assigned to them by the Bishop without their say-so. They are also largely responsible for the Vicar’s stipend.)

Bishop Sutton told Fr. Mike that a date needs to be set for his installation as the Rector (He has been the fifth Vicar of this mission.). The Bishop’s schedule already full, he has suggested to Fr Mike that arrangements be made for newly-consecrated Bishop Jason R. Grote, (who will assume his ministry as Bishop Coadjutor of the Diocese of the Central States next spring after his and Liz’s daughter will have graduated from high school, their new probably-temporary home to be in the area of Cincinnati) to perform the service. Still the Dean of St Matthias’s Proto-Cathedral, Katy, he will have an easier job of clearing his schedule, turning the service at St. Matthias’s over to his assistant, in order to come to Bellville. It was twenty years ago on Whitsunday/Pentecost, May 15, 2005, that as Father Jason, then Vicar of St Matthias’s Church, Katy, he and some of his parishioners came out to the Sens Sisters Center to lead the first service of Holy Communion according to the rites of the Reformed Episcopal Church (four years before ACNA would be founded in 2009, with the help of the REC, a founding constituent jurisdiction thereof) for the benefit of a number of local Episcopalians. Out of this grew the Anglican Fellowship of Bellville, which in 2006 was received as a mission of the diocese as St. Barnabas’s Anglican Church, REC. Thus, such a service at which to be officiated by Bishop Jason will be most special to him and to St. Barnabas’.

The unfinished parish hall (with new deck) was dedicated by Bishop Sutton as Adkins Hall, in memory of faithful member the late John Adkins, and in honour of his loving widow, Joy, now in a retirement home in Georgetown, whose health precluded her attendance at the service. The Adkinses poured their love and energy into St. Barnabas’s, even before selling their house in La Grange and moving hither when the mission was still worshipping on Sundays in the cafeteria at Bellville Junior High School.

Although there are many physical reminders around the church and grounds of John’s fellow parishioners and his hard work and dedication, even more especially the spiritual DNA of both the Adkinses will always remain an integral part of the spiritual make-up and heritage of St. Barnabas’s Anglican Church as this small but growing parish enters her third decade as part of Christ’s greater Church, that is, her sister churches in Bellville and Austin County.