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Mav 7 1997

May 7, 1997

The Reverend Thomas P. Eggebeen
St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church
27475 Five Mile Road

Livonia, MI 48154

Dear Mr. Eggebeen:

Thank you for your note and the invitation to visit St. Paul’s during February 1988. I would very
much enjoy being with you and Lydia and Ray Mao since we share grandchildren.

I have decided not to accept Sunday morning preaching engagements away from Fourth Church
for a considerable period of time after this moderatorial year is over. We will be sitting down in
July to go over the invitation list and will be able to give you a definitive answer then. My sense,
however, is that I will not be preaching away from here during that time period.

{s there any possibility that a visit to St. Paul’s could happen on some time other than a Sunday
morning? The old-fashioned pot-luck dinner, adult forum, and whatever else sound like a good
idea to me if we could schedule it sometime other than Sunday morning.

Let me know if this holds any possibility for you. Ifnot, I will certainly understand.

In the meantime, every good wish to you in your important ministry.

Yours faithfully,

John M. Buchanan

JMB:cea

February 25, 1998

The Reverend Thomas P. Eggebeen
St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church
27475 Five Mile Road

Livonia, MI 48154

Dear Tom,

Thank you for your kind note. It was good to be with you and to sense again the creative life of
St. Paul’s.

We’d love to have you give us a phone call the next time you are in Chicago.
Again, many thanks for your hospitality and every good wish to you.

Yours faithfully,

John M. Buchanan

JMB:cea

John M. Buchanan. Pastor

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A LEGHT IN THE CITY

March 11, 1998

Ms. Sue Perrish
20085 Hubbard
Livonia, MI 48152

Dear Sue,

I’m enclosing copies of receipts covering the Buchanan’s visit to St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church
on February 15".

Parking at Midway $ 20.00
Air Fare 160,00
Total $180.00

If I can be of further assistance please do not hesitate to contact me at (312) 787-4570.

Sincerely,
Judi Simon
ST. PAUL’S PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH q
PH. 319-422-1470 FAX 919-422-3845
27475 FIVE MILE RD.
LIVONIA, Mi 48154
PAY
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY AND 60/100 DATE AMOUNT
TO THE
ORDER OF 3/28/98 keeeS5180.00

ST. PAUL'S PRESBYTERIAN CHUACH

JOHN M BUCHANAN
FOURTH PRESBYTERIAN CHUR ee

126 BAST CHESTNUT ST / Ak? Oo

CHICAGO IL 60611

Ace't #: 00120 Co ==
PWOCOEEOW HO? AGO00TER pasooseecun/ /

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02-16-98 APCOGz0G9
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. PHONE: (708) 771-5500 Armerens Socity

T R AX V E |. me FAX: (708) 771-4834 of Travel Agents
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NOTE: Due to the necessity of issuing tickets

FOURTH FE RESRYTER IAN CHURCH in advance to protect fares, we advise that you
leé FE. CHESTNUT verify flighl times and schedules — 24 hours
CHICKS TLL @8G6i1 prior for domestic travel — 72 hours prior for
om ‘ “es international travel.
Thank You For Your Business
FOR: BUCHANGN/JOHN INVOICE:
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BILLED TO AXS?8eSRSSASPeaRsS 4.808
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#AN Ce35

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\

1

FOURTH
PRES BY
TERIAN
John M. Buchanan. Pastor CHURCH
A LIGHT IN THE CITY

February 24, 1998
e-mail to: Mr. Ralph C. Bolz
Rebolz@aal.com

Dear Mr. Bolz:

Thank you for your message and your kind words about my speech in Livonia last week. It was
good to be with your congregation and, of course, I always enjoy seeing Lydia Mayo with whom
I share grandparenting honors.

Ralph, I appreciate your thoughts about the democratization of the Presbyterian Church. We are,
as you know, constituted on the republican constitutional model — elected officers making major
decisions for the body politic.

I agree that the system works better when all the citizens are involved in the decision-making
process. Our hope, from the beginning, has been that the entire Presbyterian family would engage
in the conversation about ordination of gay and lesbian persons. You are quite right in your
assessment that this has not happened. In some places, where the decision was taken very
seriously, there have been more than enough resources including seminars and papers “for” and
“against.” However, | am always distressed to learn that it is only a small fraction of the
Presbyterian family that is engaged in the conversation thus far.

I have no authority anymore since I am a former moderator but I will personally take very
seriously your suggestion that the entire Presbyterian family should be heard on this issue.

Thank you for your thoughtful note and every good wish to you.

Yours faithfully,
John M, Buchanan

The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago 126 East Chestnul Street Chicago [L 60611.2094 phone 312. 7874570 fax 312. 7874584

Allerton Carol

From: System Administrator
To: Carson Simeon
Sent: Tuesday, February 24, 1998 3:14 PM
Subject: Delivered:
Your message
To: Carson Simeon
Subject:
Sent: 2/24/98 3:14 PM

was delivered to the following recipient(s):

Carson Simeon on 2/24/98 3:14 PM

Simon Judi

From: Carson Simeon
Sent: Monday, February 16, 1998 11:25 AM
To: Simon Judi

Date: Mon, 16 Feb 1998 11:25:54 EST

ee
Subject: To Rev. John M. Buchanan, a comment from Livonia, Mi. \ yy Op

From: Rcebolz@aol.com

To: Fourthch@mcs.com \AD w

Dear Rev. John Buchanan, a comment from Livonia, Mi.
2-16-98

| am a member of St. Paul's Church and was in attendance at the dinner, your
presentation and the discussion yesterday in Livonia. | am just a lowly
member of the congregation, have never been in a leadership position, yet was
thinking of your comments as | lay in bed early this morning, and just wanted

to convey one not so simple thought to you. My wife and | did enjoy your talk
and your insight into some of the problems of the church. | also brought a
friend of mine, who is in a leadership position in a Detroit church, and she

said that you gave her a lot to think about.

One of my themes lately, that | have conveyed to Rev. Eggebeen, is my
opinion that churches would be better off if they empowered the lowly
congregational members to a greater degree. As I'm sure you know, many major
industries in the U.S. have had to do this during the last 10 to 20 years, as
a matter of efficiency and survival against foreign competition. The lowly
worker has had to be empowered to use his brains, ideas and initiative to get
the job done. The message from churches in general, it seems to me, is a top
down message with little mechanism in place for feedback from the lowly
member. The major feedback loop seems to be the amount of money each member
pledges, and | agree that is major, but it's awful silent. | can remember a
few years back at a congregational meeting, the financial officer saying,

"great, if you want to do more good, just give us more money, and that will
take care of it". But why doesn't the church promote and be more open to
other feedback means. | guess | would like to see some major decisions made
by the membership by actual vote. The leadership could present the pros and
cons after studying the issue, also present options, and then let the
congregation decide. Wouldn't that be a good feedback loop to let the
congregation feel that they really are the church.

Now, with the above theme in mind, Rev. Buchanan, why couldn't this be
applied to the Gay & Lesbian issue. Since most of us in the mid-west don't
know "beans" about gays or lesbians, we would need education, prior to a vote.
The church leadership could provide some of this with a "for" position paper,
and an "against" position paper, and perhaps some other background info.
Instead of a small group at the top making the decision, why not have a
referendum of all Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) members. Since we are probably
better off without too many rules, | think at least a 55% margin would be

1

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required for any proposal on the subject to pass. Wouldn't this method for
making the decision take the "pressure" off of the church leadership. Once
the national church sets up the mechanism for such a vote, it could be used
for other "impossible" to decide issues. | know it's Scary, but you did say
that good creative idea's are necessary to start rebuilding the church.
Perhaps a more democratic approach to some issues should be considered.
Well, Sir, that's my thoughts for this morning, and | greatly thank you
for giving me the opportunity to think about the subject.
in God we trust,
Ralph C. Bolz

14130 Livonia Crescent, Livonia, Ml 48154 E
Mail: Rebalz@aol.com

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Join M. Buchanan. Pastor

O49 7

LIGHT IN THE CITY

February 25, 1998

The Reverend Thomas P. Eggebeen
St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church
27475 Five Mile Road

Livonia, MI 48154

Dear Tom,

Thank you for your kind note. It was good to be with you and to sense again the creative life of
St. Paul’s.

We'd love to have you give us a phone call the next time you are in Chicago.
Again, many thanks for your hospitality and every good wish to you.

faithfully,

J M. Buchanan

JMB:cea

The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago 126 East Chestrut Street Chicapo IL 60611.2094 phone 312. 7874570 fax 312. 7874584

The Reverend Thomas P. Eggebeen, D.Min.

St. Daul’s Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
27475 FIVE MILE RD. + LIVONIA, MI 48154
PHONE (313) 422-1470 « FAX: (313) 422-3845 » E-MAIL: tegg19@idt.net

Monday, February 16, 1998.

The Rev. John M. Buchanan

The Fourth Presbyterian Church

126 East Chestnut Street /
Chicago, IL 60611-2094 wf

Dear John:

My heartiest thanks for taking the time t¢ visit with us. Your comments were
so delightfully phrased, incisively put. Ir’was a pleasure to have you and Sue
at St. Paul's. I'm sure Lydia was especially pleased, and how nice to have

Jonn and Nancy here, too.

After reading a piece from the Pr¢sbyterian Coalition this morning, I'm just
heartsick. Their position is so nayrow and so determined, there is no room at
all for discussion. One's own pégsition always makes eminent sense, |
suppose, while the other side/seems foolish and ill-thought at best, but that’s
just the way it seems to me.

Blessings on you, your famjly, and your church. In the next several months,
Donna and | hope to be if) Chicago to see our son and his fiancée and it

would be our pleasure tg see you and Sue; perhaps we might have dinner
together sometime,

Keep up the good work; be not discouraged! An inclusive church is still the
only kind of church worthy of the name Christian and Presbyterian.

Cordially,

ee
Thomas P. Eggebeen

CC: Sue Perrish & Sue Gloster

“O Lord, our sovereign, how majestic is your name.” - Psalm 8:1

~ John M. Buchanan. Pastor

July 23, 1997

The Reverend Thomas P. Eggebeen
St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church
27475 Five Mile Road

Livonia, MI 48154

Dear Tom,

i am following through on your very kind invitation to come to St. Paul’s during February of
1998,

' As I indicated in my last correspondence with you, it will not be possible for me to be away from
Fourth Church on a Sunday morning in February. And, of course, the sadness about Ray Mayo’s
illness is another factor in our thinking.

Could we have a conversation about this some time soon? Would it make any sense for me to

. ‘ ‘ . . [nea
come over to Livonia — perhaps on a Sunday evening, assuming I can get to Detroit after church
here on Sunday morning, to be with you for some kind of an evening event?

In any event, let’s correspond a little bit more and see if we can come up with something which is
acceptable to everybody. In the meantime, please know my gratitude for your invitation and for
your very important ministry with Ray and Lydia at this critical time.

Yoyers faithfully

M. Buchanan

JMB:cea

The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicaga 126 East Chestnut Street Chicago IL 60611.2094 phone 312. 7874570 fax 12. 7874584

208TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JOHN M. BUCHANAN, Moderatur

May 7, 1997

The Reverend Thomas P. Eggebeen
St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church
27475 Five Mile Road

Livonia, ME 48154

Dear Mr. Eggebeen:

Thank you for your note and the invitation to visit St. Paul's during February 1988. I would very
much enjoy being with you and Lydia and Ray Mao since we share grandchildren.

I have decided not to accept Sunday morning preaching engagements away from Fourth Church
for a considerable period of time after this moderatorial year is over. We will be sitting down in
July to go over the invitation list and will be able to give you a definitive answer then. My sense,
however, is that I will not be preaching away from here during that time period.

Is there any possibility that a visit to St. Paul’s could happen on some time other than a Sunday
morning? The old-fashioned pot-luck dinner, adult forum, and whatever else sound like a good
idea to me if we could schedule it sometime other than Sunday morning.

Let me know if this holds any possibility for you. If not, I will certainly understand.

In the meantime, every good wish to you in your important ministry.

Yours faithfillly,

Jolin M. Buchanan

JMB:cea
INOW alerspumda Street *hourth Pissbs teria Chir
Damass ily, Kenta hs 0007] gy [26 Chestiut Sarees
ANZ. 34 Sine Oli args, Eins flea | |
M12. Fita SOA TAS 312 PN7-457N

VIZ TAT ASN ETAN

The Reverend Thomas P. Eggebeen, D.Min.

St. Paul's Presbyterian Church (U.S.A)
27475 FIVE MILE RD. * LIVONIA, MI 48154
PHONE (313) 422-1470 » FAX: (313) 422-3845 * E-MAIL: tegg19@idt.net

Friday, April 25, 1997

The Rev. Dr, John Buchanan A . ING .
Fourth Presbyterian Church . A \ g
126 E. Chestnut | ZX \ I

Chicago, Illinois 6061 1
Dear John:

Lydia Mayo prompted me last week to get a letter off to you for a visit to St.
Paul's: of the month of February, 1988, please choose any one of the
Sundays and let me Know ... for two services, an adult forum in between,
and maybe even a good old fashioned pot luck dinner Saturday night.

Lydia says: “He can always stay with us” ... but if you wish, we'd be happy to
put you up in an area motel, too ... just let me know your pleasure.

It's been a busy year for you, and | wish you good health and a speedy
recovery from the demands of being Moderator. | have appreciated your
efforts in spite of a most difficult era for the Church.

Looking forward to your being in our pulpit.

Cordially,

ee.
J Ere
Thomas P. Eggebeen

CC: Sanctuary Commission

“O Lord, our sovereign, how majestic is your name.” - Psalm 8:1

relationships, your vocation, your aging, your death; to bring whatever you have into his
presence—your belief, and most importantly, your doubts, your unbelief.

The promise is that God is trustworthy—God is faithful. Whatever becomes of us, God can
be counted on to love us, forgive us, accepl us, and welcome us home.

Wendell Berry, in one of his Sabbath poems, writes:

“The mind that comes to rest is tended
In ways that if cannot intend.

Is borne, preserved, and comprehended
By what it cannot comprebend.”
(Sabbaths, p. 7-8}

“F believe; help my unbelief.”

“Just as Tam, though tossed about,
With many a conflict, many a doubt,
Fightings and fears within, without

O Lamb of God, E come, [| come.”

Amen.

It is, in fact, a bad definition of faith with which we are operating here; a disastrous
definition, a definition characterized by that crusty old Maine farmer, who said, “Faith
means believing what you know ain’t so.”

As a matter of fact, I weuld propose thal doubl is part ofan honest faith; that faith withoul
doubt is either dishonest or dead. I take for my model the compelling man who confesses,
“T believe; help my unbelief.”

Doubt, afler all, is a mostly useful dynamic. Rollo May wrote, “The most creative people
neither ignore doubt nor are paralyzed by it, and act despite il. Commitment is healthiest
when it is not without doubt, but in spite of doubt.” I love something the poet Rilke said
once, “Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and learn to love the questions
themselves.” (see William Sloane Coffin, Courage and Love, p. 7}.

Scientificaily r tof th: 288 Of newdiscovery. The history of
ql wisdor

often tin

antibiofics, v¢ccipalions, silrgex¥—all of it grew out of the-Courag
challedge corversiti isdotn, i.e. “ihe world was absolut
Maddfine/f. Lxfg ipe it opine am unexpecled digg

i Oo

Something happens to religion thal has no room for doubt: something not very pleasant,
nor, in my opinion, faithful. It becomes exclusive. It begins to focus on keeping out those
who don’t measure up. It invests its energy building walls, not bridges. It becomes timid,
introverted, and irrelevant. The philosopher Pascal quipped, “I am astonished at the
boldness with which men undertake to speak of God.” And Presbyterian theologian
William Placher reminds us that an important part of our Reformed theclopical Lradition is
that God, even in revelation, remains hidden, mysterious; that, as St. Augustine noted,
centuries ago, “If you understand, itis nol God.” Martin Luther named it the “hiddeness of
God,” and taught thal faith is the acceptance of insecurity, living in trust of a God who
remains a mystery. Placher guesses that Luther would call the doubters the most authentic
believers.” (The Domestication of Transcendence, p. 51).

What the man who brought his son to Jesus had was not intellectual certainty. He did not
have his personal theological statement in hand. He brushed right by the theologica)
questions that stop us in our tracks and cause us to build walls of orthodoxy around our
religious institutions. He did not declare his belief in the Trinity or the blood atonement of
Jesus or the doctrine of divine election. He didn’t fall on his knees and recite a creed,
rather, he did recite his most personal, most honest creed. He brought to Jesus what he had:
his belief and his unbelief and a heart full of love for his son, and it was enough.

“Faith,” Douglas John Hall says, “is a category of relationship and a fundamental trust.
Faith is what occurs from the human side, when we know ourselves to be encountered,
judged, and accepted by the gracious God.”

That's exactly what happened to that man when he came to Jesus—a personal confrontation
that evoked his trust. Something like that is necessary for the recovery of the churches in
our time. As mainline Christianity continues to lose members, the temptation is to tighten

believed that the person was possessed by a demon, Apart from understanding and
treatment, epilepsy is a heartbreaking condition. Most of the time, he is fine; a beautiful,
energetic little boy, running and playing and talking and asking questions non-stop. And
then, without warning, his beautiful face contorts, his eyes roll back, he falls dawn, and he
can't seem lo speak or hear. He grinds his teeth almost violently and foams at the mouth.
People are terrified and his friends run away; then, later, children, being children, tease him
about it and mimic his seizures, It is humiliating. It’s also dangerous; he has often hurt
himself during one of his seizures. His parents have done everything they can think of,
talked to everyone who knew anything or thought they did, tried every prescription. And,
as parents in any age who have responsibility for a chronically-ill child, they look to the
future with a great deal of wariness and dread. Someday, he’ll be on his own, without them
to protect him and take care of him. 5a, they wait and watch for anyone who has a new
idea, a new approach.

That's what the man was doing there that day. it doesn’t say so, but I think he’s feeling very
vulnerable and not a little foolish. He doesn’t like to beg anyone for help, and he’s not at all
confortable with religious fanatics and faith healers and would-be messiahs. In fact, his
inherent intelligence and careful thoughtfulness are often in conflict with his desperation to
help his son live. He doesn’t like this business of coming to a young, charismatic rabbi from
Nazareth.

“Teacher, f brought you my son; he has a spirit that makes him unable to speak; and
whenever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and
becomes rigid; and | asked your disciples to cast it out, but they could not do so,”

And at thal very moment, it happened again. The litle boy had a seizure and fell down.
And his father is surely cradling him when he says, “If you are able to do anything, have
pity and help us.”

Jesus responds, “Anything is possible for the one who believes.” And now, the man begins
lo weep; he and his faith and his love and his desperale hope for his son are now the focus.
“All things are possible if you believe,” Jesus has said.

So there he is, loving his little son enough to walk through the fires of hell for him, enough
to die for him, and it turns out that his son’s life depends not on his bravery, but on his
faith. And so, for the love of his son, he blurts out the most honest confession I’ve ever
heard: “I believe; help my unbelief.”

That touches my heart. I’m a father. It touches that place in each of us where we love
desperately, love enough to give life iiself for the child, the woman, the man; but also the
place where we know the limits of our love; where we know that sometimes we can’t give
life-healing wholeness, save life; can’t make it all right. “I believe; help my unbelief.”

Theologian Douglas John Hall writes, "No Biblical verse is more existentially meaningful
... than this prayer, “Lord, | believe; help my unbelief.” (Thinking the Faith, p. 250).

We post-moderns, as a matter of fact, seem to be suspended somewhere between belief and
unbelief, faith and doubt. Part of us continues to want a religion that is rational and