It's the dementia talking.

It is my hope that, after a very long life, I will have an account to be able to hand off to my successor. The denomination follows the "per vitam" style of leadership, with the caveat that I can be removed from my position.

I cannot promise the world, but I can promise the following:

That I will not back down from the truth, no matter how bad it may hurt

That the Church I lead will continue to serve the broken, the bruised, the vulnerable, and the marginalized so long as I occupy this office.

That I will be a faithful steward of whatever platform you are willing to give me.

That nobody will be turned away from this Church, its worship, or its membership without just cause.

And my last promise is that I will continue to speak out when people are harmed. If it comes to my attention, I will not hesitate to speak on it.

I want to make it clear that I have no tolerance for churches that do harm to their members; this tradition (denomination) was born out of my own experiences and those of the people I initial served when I was ordained; I vowed that my church will not be like many others.

Again, I thank all of you. God bless you all, and continue to pray for the State of Minnesota. I have faith that we will be delivered from ICE soon enough, but until that time I will continue to speak out.

lastly, I couldn't be prouder of my Colleagues who have showed up and stood up.