As a young child in West Hartford, CT, I lived in a very challenged family, and John was my pastor and father figure.  I used to sneak from the Sunday School into the “big church” to hear his sermons – his spiritual messages were inspiring to people of any age.  As I grew older, he mentored me in my journey towards ordination, and came back to First Church in West Hartford to officiate at my wedding.  One of my most poignant memories of John was in a spiritual direction session during my years at Yale Divinity School.  I had become very close to the Roman Catholic Dutch priest, Henri Nouwen, as well as to two Roman Catholic nuns with whom I was living.  I was confused and concerned about what my powerful spiritual experiences with Henri and with my Roman Catholic sisters meant about my identity as a perspective pastor in the UCC.  And so when I next met with John, and in a spirit of almost-contrition, I confessed my spiritual kinship with my Roman Catholic sisters and brother, and my wondering whether this meant that I had strayed too far from my UCC roots to be acceptable as a candidate for pastoral ministry.  John's response was as freeing and empowering as it was surprising: “I'm so delighted that your faith is constantly exploring and growing; if we don't allow our beliefs to be challenged by the beliefs of others, our God becomes just another version of ourselves.”  John will be sorely missed….