AMEN on the Island

On Tuesday of this week I journeyed to Mackinac Island for the biennial* AMEN clergy conference.  AMEN stands for All Michigan Episcopal Network.  (I wonder if the Chinese love acronyms as much as English-speakers.)  This event attracts about 150 clergy from the state's four Episcopal dioceses. [*Not biannual... I need a proofreader!]

For those unfamiliar with Michigan, Mackinac (pronounced MACK-a-naw) Island is situated in the Lake Huron side of the Straits of Mackinac, just east of the Mackinac Bridge which connects the Upper and Lower Peninsulas.  Since motorized vehicles are not permitted on the island — save for emergency rigs year-round and snowmobiles in winter — horse drawn carriages and bicycles are the most common means of conveyance.  During the summer a dozen or more fudge shops cater to the sweet teeth of hoards of tourists.  Thus Mackinac Island is fondly known for its "fudge and horse...."  Well, you get the idea.

Mackinac Island played a strategic role in the fur trade, the American Revolution, and the War of 1812.  Its function today is to provide an escape from the heat and humidity of Michigan's summer.  The governor has use of a state-owned summer "cottage" perched on the hillside above the Straits.  Other folks — of necessity better-heeled than the average Michigander — own summer cottages here, some small, some quite imposing.

For transients like our Episcopal clergy, the hangout of choice is The Grand Hotel.  This is a late 19th century, six-story, white-painted, geranium-bedecked wooden hostelry which boasts the world's largest porch (660 feet in length).  Thomas Edison demonstrated some of his inventions on this porch, and Mark Twain made the Grand Hotel a regular stop on his speaking tours in the Midwest.

St. Anne's Church and summer cottages on Huron St.

Fort Mackinac perches on the East Bluff,
overlooking the harbor and shopping district.

For many movie buffs the Grand Hotel is best known as the setting for Somewhere in Time, a 1980 scifi-romance film starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour.  Fans gather at the hotel each October to screen the cult classic and indulge themselves in turn-of-the-century costuming.  However, for AMEN goers, the program included worship, book discussions, and free time for rest and relaxation.  This lack of formal programming distresses some, given the travel and cost involved.  But the conference allows chat time with colleagues one might otherwise hardly ever see.  For me, the best part of the week was the opportunity to catch up with John and Liz, formerly of St. Thomas, Trenton, and now retired near Nashville, TN.

Clergy and spouses/partners listen to announcements after
Morning Prayer on Wednesday.

John and Liz pose before the Grand Hotel after a morning
of golf (for John) and water color sketching (for Liz).

The hotel's Parlor is a good place to intersect with
friends and catch up on gossip.

I also found time to connect with David and Clara, who I first met in 1975 when I became an Episcopalian at All Saints Episcopal Church in East Lansing.  (They talked me into going off to seminary!  Blame it on them!)  Now retired in Zeeland, David serves as a part-time interim priest in the Diocese of Western Michigan while Clara continues her work as a spiritual director.  I also bumped into Rob, now rector of St. John's Episcopal Church in Westland, near Detroit, as well as several clergy I've met in my (somewhat aimless) wanderings through our three Lower Peninsula dioceses.  There was also time for reading on the hotel's porch and window- and fudge-shopping downtown.  This nicely filled the hours between meals which, at the Grand Hotel, are intentionally formidable.

Huron (Main) St. boasts a host of fudge and t-shirt shops,
along with hotels, eateries, and other tourist stops.

For a reasonable fee, tourists may take a horse-drawn
guided tour of the Island's main attractions.

After Eucharist on Thursday, John, Liz and I touched base with a few more colleagues and then walked downtown to catch the Noon ferry back to Mackinac City.  From there we made our way to Presque Isle where I took them on a brief lighthouse tour and then fixed us a dinner of Plath's smoked pork loin.  The next morning, before they began their journey home, I took John and Liz to the Maritime Museum in Alpena.

On Thursday David and Liz review the previous night's
dinner table discussion of politics.  It was a bit heated!

After a restful night at Lake Esau, John and Liz prepare
to leave for home.

Amazingly, for all the grazing the AMEN conference encouraged, I netted only a one pound weight gain.  With Presque Isle now in the grip of High Indian Summer, and lots of outdoor chores awaiting me, that pound will surely go the way of all bad things. •••