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15 March 1998
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The journey home for Brad Hall began with his baptism when with water and the word he was claimed as Christ's own, forever. Though he would often think he was master of his own destiny, the Spirit knew otherwise. And while courage and dedication to country motivated his efforts early on, the Spirit was constantly working within him until at just the right moment, at the moment chosen by God, Brad Hall could no longer put off the insistent persuasion of the Holy Spirit. Leaving the United States Navy at a point where many were predicting great things, including an Admiral's star, for Brad Hall, he entered the seminary, and we give thanks to God.
With the same energy and enthusiasm that served him so well in the Navy, Brad excelled in his new course of study and action. As he stepped forward to be ordained a priest he heard these words spoken on his behalf:
God and Father of all, we praise you for your infinite love in calling us to be a holy people in the kingdom of your Son Jesus our Lord, who . . . has poured his gifts abundantly upon your people, making some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry and the building up of his body.
As the Bishop laid his hands upon Brad, he prayed:
Therefore, Father, through Jesus Christ your Son, give your Holy Spirit to Gordon Bradford Hall; fill him with grace and power, and make him a priest in your Church.
The Bishop concluded his prayer for Brad with powerful words of intercession. I will read them slowly. Close your eyes if it will help you concentrate. Listen with your heart to the prayer of the Bishop:
May he exalt you, O Lord, in the midst of your people; offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to you; boldly proclaim the gospel of salvation; and rightly administer the sacraments of the New Covenant. Make him a faithful pastor, a patient teacher, and a wise councilor. Grant that in all things he may serve without reproach, so that your people may be strengthened and your Name glorified in all the world. [All this we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever.]
Those privileged to be there responded with a loud: Amen. And we give thanks to God.
Many of us who gather this morning have been privileged to share this final leg of Brad's journey home. We have received the benefits of Brad's conviction, conversion, and consecration as he lived up to and into the prayer of his Bishop at ordination. For, at just the right moment for God's kingdom, Brad Hall was called to be rector of St. Margaret's Church taking up his ministry here in 1984. And we give thanks to God.
Courtney Shucker was the organist here as Brad took up his
ministry. Listen to his memory of that time:
"When Brad arrived at St. Margaret's, he began to ask challenging
things, like where we wanted to be in five years—five years?
We just wanted to pay our summer utility bills! And he told us
that even though we'd hired him to be our Rector, it was really
our church—our responsibility to insure that the doors were
open so any who came our way could enter and find God here—our
responsibility to invite others in through those doors! I mean,
we did our job—we hired him and now it was his turn to do
his job! He said we had to catch the dream: God's dream of having
a church on this hill and, with God's help, make that dream a
reality." As you look around, you know we caught the dream.
And we give thanks.
Truly it was Brad's genius to set out a vision, invite us to own it ourselves, and enable us to contribute to the achieving of the goal. Just before I came here, Brad set out a five point vision. He set out God's dream for this place. We were to continue to provide spirit-filled, Christ-centered, uplifting worship services. We would expand and deepen our weekday programs. We would build some more: a parish day school, a new organ and chancel. In 1992, with the completion of this magnificent sanctuary, and with full knowledge of continued building, Brad called upon us to develop and fund more outreach programs, "to find something bigger than our own needs to support." The fifth point of the vision was to further develop the working staff of St. Margaret's parish. And like a wise parent, he helped us make these goals our own. Like a wise parent he helped us succeed. Like a wise and faithful pastor, Brad Hall equipped us to carry on God's work begun with him.
Certainly a big part of Brad's work was accomplished in his preaching. We caught the dream as he lived into his ordination prayer and "boldly proclaimed the gospel of salvation." And, thanks to a generous gift from the Burch family, the hard work of parishioner Peggy Smith, and the staff support of Peter Brennan, the book of selected sermons should be available in April. (I hope that you have reserved your copy.)
What will be remembered much longer than the exact words or topics of Brad's sermons, however, is best spoken by others; it is about presence, and touch, and about Brad's ability to bring God into our midst. As I give voice to these memories and hopes, I know that they will call forth images of your own, either of Brad and his ministry here, or of other, equally blessed and beloved pastors from your past. Brad taught by doing, and always invited our participation in the same kind of ministry.
"I will always remember" begins Laddie Sakala, "the day when I was in the hospital recovering from surgery and in walked Brad with a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eyes. Our hands touched and at that moment I felt closer to Christ than I ever had in my life."
Joan and Bill Hobin, when they were looking to relocate found Palm Desert at the top of their list because of "the weather, Brad Hall, and golf." They explain further: "Brad had [blessed Joan's] parents on their 50th wedding anniversary and later buried each of them in beautiful and very personal ceremonies." And parishioner Allyn Simmons elaborates from her own experience: "How truly rare and wonderful [Brad's] presence on any occasion . . . in his face I saw the face of Christ; in his vision I saw peace, hope, love and constancy."
Brad was so totally grounded in Christ that what was communicated in his presence, his words, and his touch was Christ himself. Julie Hilgren puts this into words for us: "My sister and I were living in Irvine, California, when I was diagnosed with cancer a year ago Memorial Day. We immediately moved to the desert so I could receive treatment here. A week later, we attended services at St. Margaret's. As we were leaving the church, I waited in line to thank Fr. Brad for his message and to say good-bye. I had not yet lost my hair to chemo, nor did I have any physical signs of the dreaded diagnosis. As I approached Fr. Brad, he gave me a big hug and told me, `I think you and I are facing the same challenges.' I began to cry. How did he know how much I needed that hug? How did he even know I had cancer? I wish I could have comforted him more that day, but I was overcome by his miraculous insight. This would be the first of many times I would see his benevolent spiritual gift."
Lest you think Brad's presence and touch was reserved only for adults listen to Nicole Chapman, whose son, Geoffrey, is a student at our school. "It has been said that the best gift you can give a child is your time. Fr. Brad was someone who truly must have believed in this for that is what I saw him give so many children at St. Margaret's. My seven year old son Geoffrey . . . always enjoyed Fr. Brad's frequent visits to the school. Geoffrey would come home almost weekly with stories of Fr. Brad's visits to his classroom, the picnic tables, and the playground. . . . We are so thankful for the time we are . . . given on this Earth. But we are incredibly thankful for special people like Fr. Brad . . . especially for the time he gave the children at St. Margaret's."
So what do we do with all these memories? And you realize I have only given you a small taste of the thousands of ways Brad lived up to and into his ordination prayer. We give thanks to God, certainly. And we listen to each other again. For Brad was able to share the love of God through his preaching, teaching, and presence. And he was able to share the Spirit (as Courtney and others discovered) as he reminded and encouraged us to do something with our lives.
The Rev. Julie Christian, now serving as Rector of St. Francis Church in Simi Valley, starts us off: "[Brad] had a way of setting an idea or a project loose simply by saying "Make it happen." He didn't second-guess or nag or hover. He simply let go and let others make it happen. He expected excellence, but it was a tacit expectation. By modeling exceptionally high standards of excellence in ministry, everyone else's efforts just appeared to rise naturally to the same high levels. And he always had a word of encouragement, having found something worthy of praise.
Peter Brennan, our Development Director, continues the thought, "[Brad's] management style mirrored our Lord—considerate and compassionate, but decisive and based on a clear sense of right and wrong. Brad taught us—and showed us—that life in the Lord is loving, sharing, thinking, smiling, hugging and hoping. His life's legacy challenges all of us to `do something with our lives.'"
Polly Aldige reminds us that in the communion of saints, Brad's invitation to do something with our lives, will be around a long time: "Brad will always be with us at every communion service, and we will, every so often, feel his little "nudges" to motivate us to `go do it.'"
Be ready to be nudged, for we will let Brad have the next word. He illuminated a grace filled path to guide us when he spoke on St. Margaret's Day in 1996. With a passion that crackled with energy and conviction Brad set our course: "We need to build up this ministry of St. Margaret's now, because I am convinced that America will experience an upsurge of religious fervor and church attendance as we pass through the year 2000. We need to be ready for these folk when they show up at our doors."
By Brad's faithful ministry among us we are equipped and poised to be the church God wants us to be. We have been nudged to "go do it." And with the help of the Holy Spirit, we will! Amen.
The Rev. Daniel Rondeau
drondeau@stmargarets.org
15 March 1998