9 ministers were there today?

At first, there were nine, including Reverend Billy Hester.

The other eight are regular attendees, sometimes preaching for him during his summer sabbaticals.

For all I know, they are members of Asbury Memorial, too.

 

In the above photo, there's Billy on the right, with Marilyn Leigh and Danny Beam behind him.

Claire Marich is in the white robe with the rainbow stole, and that's Bob Townsend in the gray robe between her and Lynn Drake.

I know them rather well: Danny Beam, Lynn Drake, both native Savannahians like me; Claire Marich, Marilyn Leigh, Bob Townsend, all transplants who have been here for a number of years now.

That leaves Richard Allen, Steve Tysinger, and Carol Warfield, all recent additions to this church at the corner of Waters and Henry, none of whom I know by face, though I think it can be said that the woman behind the kneeling man in fuchsia has to be Carol.

And just who is that kneeling man?

He's August David Alderman, here to be ordained as a minister, having just completed his masters degree in theology.

All of the folks on stage are taking part in a ritual that none of us had ever witnessed before, a ritual which has never been performed in all the years that this building has stood.

I just got shivers again thinking about it!

I've marked the video of the service, right at the point of the ordination ceremony, so I can watch it again.

I do love pomp and circumstance, and this was every bit of that.

Here's what happened right after that scene: all of the ministers laid a hand on August and recited the Prayer of Ordination.

It was quite moving.

Then August stood and was presented with his stole by Billy, then all the ministers took a turn to speak words to the brand-new minister, with many tears all around, both there on the stage and in the audience.

Amazing.

Truly amazing.

And the stage held not 9 ministers, but ten.

Amazing.

Did it matter that at least two of those ministers belong to the LGBT community?

Not to me.

Not to anyone of the stage as part of the ordination.

Not to anyone in the audience bearing witness to this ritual.

I know Grandpa would have pronounced it a true miracle.

i thank You, God, that I was there.