Loading...Bishop Ted Gulick is this year's recipient of the Lifetime Achieve Award of the Center for Interfaith Relations. He received the award Nov. 11 during a gala dinner, "Night of 1000 Stars," held to honor the recipients of the interfaith center's awards and show appreciation to the donors who have supported the center. The arts event and dinner capped off the annual Festival of Faiths in Louisville, Ky.
Tribute to Bishop Ted Gulick, recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Center for Interfaith Relations
By Jan Arnow, Executive Director of the Center for Interfaith Relations
Delivered Nov. 11, 2006, at the Night of 1000 Stars, Louisville, KY
Jan:
In the seed, there is a forest waiting to grow.
On the artist's canvas, a masterpiece is waiting to be painted.
In the engineer's workstation, a technical breakthrough is waiting to be developed.
Everywhere there is possibility.
Every moment of every life is filled with possibilities, and the next moment as well.
Every problem has a possible solution.
Every goal has a possibility of achievement.
All we need to do is open ourselves to what could be, and to make it so.
The Lifetime Achievement Award of the Center for Interfaith Relations is given annually to recognize and honor a person who has made a substantial contribution to humanity that is attributable to that person's faith tradition.
We are here this evening to honor a man who has seen the possibilities in all of us, someone who is committed to help create a more tolerant and peaceful world.
The Rt. Rev. Edwin F. Gulick, Jr. was consecrated the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Kentucky on April 17, 1994, at St. Stephen Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky.
As the Diocese of Kentucky's bishop, he is chief pastor to its clergy, 36 congregations and about 10,600 active members.
At the time of his election as bishop, Ted Gulick had been rector of St. Stephen's Church in Newport News, Virginia, for 11 years. Previously he served as rector of Grace Church in Elkridge, Maryland, and as assistant at Trinity Church in Towson, Maryland. He was ordained deacon in 1973 and priest in 1974.
His educational background includes a Bachelor of Arts from Lynchburg College in 1970, a Master of Divinity degree from the Virginia Theological Seminary in 1973, and honorary Doctor of Divinity degrees from the Virginia Seminary and the University of the South.
So. Now you've heard the rather dry, curriculum vitae-type material that anyone of you could have read had you Googled Bishop Gulick. But, as Jay Magness, the Cannon to the Ordinary of the Episcopal Diocese told me, there's lots of undercurrent stuff about Ted Gulick that doesn't get seen.
Female Reader:
People who know the bishop can readily point to three subjects that are guaranteed to get his attention and prompt a joyful response, or, at the least, a wide, exuberant smile.
Anyone who shares a meal with him, as our staff does at lunch when he is in the office, will find out that our bishop, ever a storyteller, likes to talk about food. A fresh, homegrown tomato has prompted such enthusiastic description that I knew I would never taste a tomato as sweet as the one he described. Ask him how he and Barbara make crab cakes and escalloped oysters, and this Virginia native, former English major and teacher will spontaneously expound in precise, carefully crafted prose, identifying not only the ingredients and process but also the subtle flavors, textures and aromas of the well-made dish.
Put him in our office suite at the end of the day, after he has dictated correspondence to our office associate, Betty Williams, and he is likely to break out in song. And it's usually not some traditional Episcopal hymn (though anyone who has been to a worship service with him knows that he can pelt out those from memory). No, he'll talk Betty, our resident Baptist, into singing a Baptist camp song or hymn like "Shall we gather at the river" that they both love and know by heart.
Mary Jane Cherry
Communication Director
Editor, Episcopal News
Diocese of Kentucky
Male Reader:
Bishop Ted Gulick has served our diocese with compassion and love both for individuals and for divergent groups in the diocese. At the same time he has been an involved leader in the community and the entire diocese, championing the needs of a youth ministry, All Saints’ Conference Center, and many elderly through his work at the Episcopal Church Home.
His support was crucial to the Cathedral Commons housing project, providing downtown, affordable housing in an inspired design adjacent to the Cathedral. We are proud of his recognition by our sister Cathedral of the Assumption and the community of faith and we extend our warmest congratulations.
From two devoted members of the Episcopal Diocese of Kentucky
JAN:
Bishop Gulick's greatest interest is in young people. Recognizing how formative his own camp experiences were for him as a child, and knowing what they can do for the children in this diocese, Ted spends part of every summer at All Saints’ Center in Litchfield. This integrated and interstratified environment allows all kids to be equals and peers within a rich Christian setting. Working with young people of all ages is a foundational piece of his ministry.
Male Reader:
Bishop Ted Gulick is a wise and self-effacing servant leader. He is greatly admired by people of faith for his remarkable spiritual depth and his exemplary pastoral sensitivity. The coming generations of students and younger leaders revere Bishop Gulick as a trusted - indeed, preeminent - mentor.
Dean K. Thompson
President
Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary
Female Reader:
I discovered this spring, when news media folks were asking for photos of him, that, in his best photos, he was always holding babie--not particularly useful when he was a nominee for presiding bishop. Send one of those and he might be mistaken for a candidate, and he was adamantly not running for presiding bishop. So if you want a really good picture of the real Ted Gulick, relaxed and smiling, bring along a child or put a baby in his arms.
Jan:
Bishop Gulick has a compassion for the disenfranchised that speaks very loudly. Hardly a week goes by when they don't see one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, who have immigrated to Louisville, in his offices. They see him as their parent and their father in God.
Male Reader:
My perception of the bishop is that he is like a father to the entire Sudanese community. Since I never knew my father because he died while I was very young, Bishop Gulick has been the father I never got to know. He is very humble and truly a man of God. He is a very generous man who has made it possible for many people to experience the 'American dream.'
Gabriel Akec Kuai
Sudanese Congregation
Resurrection Episcopal Church, Louisville
Bishop Ted Gulick is the best spiritual leader I have ever met! He has respect for all humankind, is filled with the Holy Spirit and knows the Holy Bible. He is like a father to me.
Solomon John
JAN:
An avid environmentalist, Ted is committed to the knowledge that we have the opportunity, as well as the requirement, to act right now. And as a conciliator, he has a remarkable ability to hear people and to go the extra mile, even those from whom he differs significantly.
Male Reader:
When most people are looking to gather people around themselves who are not like them, he's looking at it differently. To the Bishop, it's important to have all points of view in the room at the same time.
James Magness, Cannon to the ordinary, Episcopal Diocese of Kentucky
Bishop Gulick has been a national figure in the cause of Christian Unity since his consecration as Bishop of Kentucky. His ministry is rooted in an unfailingly affectionate regard for all those he serves and all those he encounters in any way. He is a Christ-like figure among us. I honor him as brother and friend and mentor. It has been a joy to serve with him in this Commonwealth.
Archbishop Thomas C. Kelly
Archbishop of Louisville
JAN:
Of course, in addition to ministering to thousands of us in Kentucky, Ted is a devoted husband, father and grandfather. His family and friends are a source of incredible strength and joy to him.
Female Reader:
Early morning coffee every Wednesday with Ted has given me an insight into his love for his family, especially his new grandson, Sam. He lights up when he speaks of his children. He is so proud of them and very closely connected to all of them. But when he speaks of his grandson, he beams from ear to ear, his face all-aglow with pride and deep love for this small human. This past month, his 11-month-old grandson, said "Hi Granddad!" Ted's face was radiant when he told this story.
Ted's love and great care for his family is a joy to see. Even a Bishop as accomplished and gifted as Ted can be humbled by a small child. What a joy to know this side of Ted. I am proud to call him friend.
Betty Meadows
General Presbyter
Mid-Kentucky Presbytery
Ted has a huge capacity for friendships. For all of us, he listens to our stories and accepts whatever is told. Then he helps us mine our stories for our hopes, our vocations, and the best truths about ourselves. He invites acquaintances to become friends and friends to become "family." He seeks and finds God in people and their circumstances, and accepts it all as gift and grace.
Bishop Gulick's wife, Barbara
When I told my family I wanted to be a priest, my dad sat on his hands, swayed backwards just a bit and then leaned forward, raised his eyebrows, smiled and said,
"Isn't that interesting!"
Such restraint!
I think this series of gestures, though, illustrates quite well how Dad leads his family and his flock. He greets our news with a reserved excitement, allowing space for the Spirit to mark the sacred, letting the force of God push him backwards in delight, and then
letting go to celebrate the power of God working in our lives. And then, of course, he asks us to go on. Say more. Do more. He invites us to own our next steps and our future with God and each other. Bishop Gulick's daughter, Robin
JAN:
I know this has been a rather embarrassing exposé for Bishop Gulick. I don't think I've ever known a more self-effacing leader - clergy or lay. This was especially revealed to me when I was reading a Lenten sermon that he gave in February 2005:
Male Reader:
All of this reminds me of a dream I had, one of the most vivid dreams in my life. It occurred forty-eight hours before my consecration and the main character in the dream was a priest that I had known and loved for many years. He had died three months before my consecration and in my dream, I was talking to him and I said: "Oh, Joe, I just hate the thought of this service! I cannot stand the focus of all the attention on me." And in the dream, he said "Ted, you have been preaching about the prodigal son all of your ministry and now you have to put on the robe and ring." And I woke up stunned.
JAN:
Anne Frank once said,
"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world."
Bishop Ted Gulick sees the hope in our world - all of the possibilities - and embraces them with a benefit that accrues to each and every one of us.
It is my pleasure - and more importantly, our honor - to bestow the Center for Interfaith Relation's 2006 Lifetime Achievement Award to the Right Reverend Edwin F. Gulick, Jr.
