The Episcopal Church of St. Paul's first woman rector and pastor, and the parish's first openly gay spiritual leader, is leaving the parish to figure out "where God might be calling me next," she said.
In her more than eight years at St. Paul's, the Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Kaeton brought "challenging" sermons and a new perspective to the Main Street church.
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Kaeton, a long-time activist in the Episcopal Church who worked with New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson, the first openly gay, noncelibate Episcopal bishop, to have his consecration approved amid controversy in 2003, said she sensed it was time to move on.
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"I think you know when it's time," she said. "You can't take them any further than you have already taken them. And when you can't go any further, it's time to go."
She said she will consider how she can best do the work of the Gospel in communities, and hopes St. Paul's members know she loves them. Kaeton officially resigns as rector on Sept. 1, 2011, and is taking a sabbatical leave until then.
From the website of The Episcopal Church of St. Paul:
Rev'd Elizabeth is on Sabbatical leave. While she is away, the leadership of the church is under the care of the Wardens and Bishop. Rev'd Elizabeth will be doing post-doctoral work as Proctor Fellow at The Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, MA, during the Spring Semester, 2011. In the interim, she will be busy renovating her home on Rehoboth Bay in DE, spending time with her brother who has early-onset Alzheimer's Disease, assisting at All Saint's, Rehoboth Beach and St. George's Chapel, Harbeson, considering early retirement, and discerning how she can best use her skills and talents, to the honor and glory of God, to pursue her vocation as a Servant Leader of the mission of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She will officially leave St. Paul's on September 1, 2011
Dear Elizabeth, I offer my prayers, blessing, and best wishes to you and Ms Conroy as you set out on the next phase of your lives together. With the people at St. Paul, I say, "Well done!"
Thanks to Ann for the link.