An open letter to our burglar: Of what you found this past Sunday night, about $70 was for coffee hour, so we hope you use it for getting together with friends while sipping something hot and nibbling on some fruit, deviled eggs or pastry. While you sip and nibble, we hope you will trade stories about the past week, ask about any friends who couldn't make it, and make plans for the next outreach event. If possible, can your kids run in and out all the while, grabbing the occasional cookie and laughing and chasing each other.

About $6 was Head Start's, so we hope you use it for some small child with an unexpected need.

And about $4 was Christ Church's, so perhaps you can send someone a really nice thank-you.

The doors you jimmied with the crowbar are fixed now, but the doors to the Erie Canal Cloggers' storage cabinets (dancing shoes, sound equipment) have not. On the other hand, it is now really easy to get things out for rehearsals and for performances (most often at area nursing homes).

We are grateful that you left our sanctuary untouched.

The things in there are just things, but they have been speaking to us of God's love for 167 years now, and so they are especially precious to us. Did any of them speak to you?

If you do end up going to jail (the state troopers have been wonderful, especially trooper Tom Quilter and inspector Art Broccoli), we will try to stay in touch with you.

In any case, you're on our prayer list from now on. We pray that you will hear, in your heart of hearts, that God loves you as you are, and yearns for you to turn around and go back home to him.

If you hear that, do come by and celebrate with us some Sunday. Our service is at 10 a.m., and we do a great coffee hour.

The Very Rev. Kate Lufkin Day

Jordan

Lufkin is pastor of Christ Episcopal Church