[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 233-234]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO PASTOR DAVID WOOD

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, Chris Bohjalian is one of the treasures of 
Vermont, as well as being a gifted writer. We Vermonters are fortunate 
to be able to read his weekly column. They almost always deal with some 
aspect of life in the State he and I share.
  Marcelle and I were especially touched by his column on Christmas Day 
about Pastor David Wood, of the United Church of Lincoln, VT.

[[Page 234]]

  So many of us go to church on Christmas Day, shake hands with those 
officiating at the service and thank them for what they have done, and 
then go home to be with our families. What Chris has done is talk about 
the Herculean tasks of Pastor David Wood. It reminds us that those who 
give us spiritual guidance and consolation do far more than what we see 
on holidays and holy days. I would ask unanimous consent that Chris 
Bohjalian's column about the extraordinary David Wood be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                    [From the Burlington Free Press]

        Idyll Banter: Burning the Christmas Candle at Both Ends

                          (By Chris Bohjalian)

       Look, I know Santa just pulled an all-nighter, flew through 
     serious turbulence over Iceland, and had to put up with--yet 
     again--Prancer's ``attitude'' that no one has yet to write a 
     song about him. (You live on nothing but lichen between 
     Thanksgiving and Christmas, and watch what happens to your 
     temper.) But my great friend and the pastor of the United 
     Church of Lincoln, David Wood, just performed four church 
     services in 16 hours.
       Yup. Four in 16. This is what happens when Christmas falls 
     on a Sunday.
       ``From a spiritual point of view, I love it when Christmas 
     comes on a Sunday. From a practical point of view, it's 
     terrifying,'' David told me.
       Specifically, last night there were three services at the 
     church here in Lincoln. There was a 7 p.m. pageant for 
     families--and this year the pageant was mighty impressive, 
     with St. Nicholas himself sharing the story of the Nativity. 
     Then there was an 8:30 p.m. service that was more 
     traditional, just as joyous, but at least marginally less 
     raucous. Finally, at 11:30 p.m., there was the quiet, 
     contemplative, communal service that ended shortly after 
     midnight--on Christmas Day. And while the church's youth 
     pastor, Todd Goodyear, did the heaviest lifting at that very 
     first service, David was still plenty involved.
       In any case, after three services in five hours last night, 
     David finally collapsed into bed about quarter to 1 on 
     Christmas morning . . . and was back in the sanctuary today, 
     preaching, 10 hours later.
       That workload might not daunt Santa, but it would most 
     mortals.
       It has always seemed to me that the majority of priests and 
     ministers and rabbis and imams work incredibly hard. 
     Certainly David does. To wit: I will never forget when my 
     wife was in labor with our daughter a little over 18 years 
     ago. When Grace arrived--so did David. The labor was 22 
     hours, but still he was there within 40 minutes of Grace's 
     arrival. Two months ago, my wife had six hours of kidney 
     surgery. I had told David about it the day before. Sure 
     enough, there he was the next day at the hospital. And it's 
     not like my wife gets preferential treatment. (Given the 
     number of Humane Society shelter cats she has tried to foist 
     on David's family, he should be giving her a very wide 
     berth.) He is always comforting someone or some family in 
     hospitals in two counties. And then there are the funerals. 
     And the christenings. And the baptisms. And the marriages. 
     And the meetings. And the counseling. And the Yankees. (We 
     all have our flaws.) David has been the pastor here in 
     Lincoln since 1979, so this is not the first time that 
     Christmas has fallen on a Sunday on his watch. He knows what 
     to expect: ``Everything speeds up. Nothing slows down.'' 
     Consequently, he had his sermons done weeks ahead of time. He 
     had a plan in place to get the props from the pageant removed 
     from the sanctuary in time for the 8:30 service. And, once 
     again, he made sure that all six church fire extinguishers 
     were distributed discretely to volunteer firefighters before 
     that first Christmas Eve service, since it would end with the 
     congregation--including the children--raising and lowering 
     lit candles while we all sang ``Silent Night.''
       But despite the borderline bedlam that can mark this time 
     of the year for us all, he tries not to lose sight of the 
     blessings that come with that chaos. ``What is most special 
     for me every Sunday, but even more as we approach Christmas 
     and Easter, is the realization that I get to speak the good 
     news to people. Christian faith isn't about rules and 
     regulations, it is about our relationship with a God who 
     loves us enough to choose to be with us.''
       Indeed. So, while I remain impressed as heck with what 
     Santa Claus and his reindeer just pulled off, I am mighty 
     grateful as well for the work of David Wood and his peers.
       Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Peace.

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