[Oe List ...] Thanks for the Memories

[Mari Crocker]

Dear John and our OE colleagues,

Regarding Karen’s last posting.

Yes, and the more profound courage and power of that address was that John, and others of us serving that year on the Global Panchayat, knew JWM had “returned to his maker at high noon”, as Bishop Jim, who was with us at that very moment,  pronounced. Knowing Joe was close to his end, we had the traditional OE “Completed Life” posters ready to put at the elevator landings at noon, and then decided to recall them, until after the Guardians meeting.  What a burden John, and all who knew JWM had passed, were bearing, but how graciously John prepared Those Who Care for “the life of destiny.”  Once the Guardians had departed, Joe’s body was laid in state on the 4th floor and viewed by our community, and was  taken to the crematorium (a trip which I recall John and I were assigned to accompany.) Upon return, the Panchayat began calling Religious Houses across the globe, announcing Joe’s death and sharing the plans for the Celebration of Joe's Completed Life, to occur, which it did, about a week later.

John, do you remember it this way?

Hugs, my colleague,  Marilyn

> On Jun 10, 2020, at 4:14 PM, jlepps39 via OE <oe at lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:
> 
> Thanks, Jim and Karen 
> 
> I had forgotten the content of that talk, but remember vividly giving it. If you have it please forward me a copy. I don't have it.
> 
> How did your surgery go,? You've been in our thoughts and prayers. 
> 
> Take care,
> 
> John
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my T-Mobile 4G LTE Device
> 
> 
> -------- Original message --------
> From: Karen Snyder via OE <oe at lists.wedgeblade.net>
> Date: 6/9/20 16:38 (GMT-07:00)
> To: Order Ecumenical Community <oe at lists.wedgeblade.net>
> Cc: Karen Snyder <karen.snyder10 at gmail.com>
> Subject: [Oe List ...] Thanks for the Memories
> 
> When I read John Epps’ remarks titled “Thanks for the Memories,” a small echo rang in my head. I recalled he had thanked colleagues before in a talk he gave sometime in the late 1970s. Scouring the archives database, Karen found what I was looking for. 
>  
> John was assigned to deliver a talk on “The Life of Destiny” at a Guardians meeting. I was present for the talk and in re-reading it now, a couple of things struck me. John, surprise-surprise, had a 4 X 4 outline. He did a marvelous thing with the first three points. Instead of describing his own theological insights (which as we all recall, were numerous if not a little mysterious), he pointed back to the talks and reports given by others up to that point in the weekend meeting. That way, he reinforced and celebrated the contributions of his colleagues. I have often utilized that technique ever since.
>  
> Here is the pivotal pearl of his talk (slightly abridged for clarity):
> The other thing we need to know and be aware of as we give the gift of destiny to people for the sake of their profound humanness is that it means also giving up your death, in the sense that death is no longer - once one is a person of destiny - it is no longer an option to at least be let alone to die peacefully. Even death becomes a sign. Even that becomes a tool, a vehicle, a device that history uses for the sake of its creative movement. That is what we are doing to folks.
>  
> The impact of this remark is accented when one realizes that right before John came on stage to deliver his talk on the Life of Destiny, institute founder and dean Joe Mathews had completed his life that noon, Sunday, October 16, 1977. 
> 
> Well, John nailed it, didn’t he? And all I can say is, John, you have fulfilled your destinal gift as well, brother; we’ll never forget the sign you have been to us.
> 
> 
> 
> Jim Troxel
> 
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