Sermon: "Go Ye into All the World"
The Right Reverend Charles G. vonRosenberg
Third Bishop of East Tennessee

[This sermon by Bishop vonRosenberg was delivered using the following notes.]

It is a pleasure once again to meet with the Episcopal Church Women of the three Tennessee dioceses. I am happy to greet you on the occasion of this gathering.

The theme of this year's ECW Conference is "Go Ye into All the World." In this opening service, we celebrate the feast day of St. Mark, the Evangelist, transferred from next Monday. Perhaps, then, we may consider for a few minutes several common threads from the ECW Conference, St. Mark's Day, and our own ministries as baptized Christians.

Almost daily for three years in the chapel of Virginia Seminary, I observed this exhortation over the window behind the altar - "Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel" (Mk 16:15). Those words from St. Mark's Gospel are part of the DNA that I absorbed during my formation as an ordained person. The missionary intention and thrust of St. Mark's exhortation are unmistakable. The expectation, likewise, is quite clear. Followers of Jesus Christ - those of us whose time on earth comes after his resurrection - we are called by our Lord to spread the faith that we have been given. "Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel."

Likewise, a missionary emphasis has always been present and vital in the life of the Episcopal Church Women. You have been a very significant missionary arm of our church. Indeed, perhaps you have been our most effective missionary organization. The official title of the Episcopal Church, as you know, is the "Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society." As this "missionary society" - our church - turns an unfortunate amount of attention and resources inwardly these days, I pray that will not be the case with you, the Episcopal Church Women. "Go ye into all the world."

On this day - the start of our ECW Conference and the feast day of St. Mark the Evangelist - on this day we focus on the mission of the church. And we - all of us - are called to be missionaries, in word and in deed.

The Gospel reading today comes from the very last of St. Mark … in fact, from a portion of that book often not even included in our bibles. However, the other end of the Gospel includes these words: "The beginning of the good news (or, "gospel") of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, 'See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way'"(1:1-2). Of course the one who prepared the way for the Lord was John the Baptist - an evangelist, a missionary, one who went ahead and ventured forth on behalf of a cause and a person.

Most biblical scholars agree that St. Mark is the oldest of the four Gospels. Thus, we prayed in our collect today, "Almighty God, by the hand of Mark the evangelist you have given to your Church the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God: We thank you for this witness, and pray that we may be firmly grounded in its truth." St. Mark gave us the Gospel - the good news - in word. As missionaries for the cause of Jesus Christ, our call is to spread that Gospel, that good news - and St. Mark provides the content of what we have to share with the world - the word.

However, our call also is to be missionaries in deed. Our deeds as Christ's missionaries surely speak louder than any words we say or preach. The Episcopal Church Women have always stood for the deeds of Christian mission. Your history tells story after story of the mission of Jesus Christ accomplished in the world. And that is a proud and significant history - a legacy of faithfulness as Christian people.

Our Christian call, in deed, is summed up in the Baptismal Covenant. That covenant outlines our agreement to serve as missionaries for Jesus Christ. May I ask you now, therefore, to stand and turn to page 304 in the Prayer Book, so that we may renew our Baptismal Covenant. Remember that this is a covenant for mission.

May God bless you as you live your life as a missionary for Jesus Christ!

Copyright © 2004 The Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee