Sabbatical

Information & Daily Resources
for Pastor Paul's Sabbatical
May 26-August 25, 2025

Pastoral Coverage

Sabbatical Itinerary

Pastoral support will be provided by a team of folks while Pastor Paul is away.

All summer - Alan Bancroft and Paul Burgess
Monday, May 26 - Sunday, June 22 - Duane Hix
Monday, June 23 - Sunday, July 20 - Osy Nüesch
Monday, July 21 - Sunday, July 27 - Duane Hix
Monday, July 28 - Sunday, August 25 - Deky Hall

Contact information is available from the church office during business hours.

Paul will be renewing his spirit, in part through travel. Highlights include:

May 26 - June 3: NC Mountains
June 4 - June 16: Adriatic Sea cruise
June 18 - July 27: North Sea and North Atlantic cruise
July 29 - August 17: Scottish land journey
August 18 - August 25: Rest

download a detailed itinerary

Paul's Sabbatical Primer

Paul has written a book with daily prayers and thoughts for each day of the sabbatical journey. These are the same prayers Paul will be praying on his sabbatical. Please use a votive from the Narthex for your daily prayer ritual.

You can access the Primer in a few different ways:

View or download a PDF of the entire 500+ page document. Because of file-size constraints this is a low resolution PDF where the image files are less crisp.
Access the writings each day through the day-by-day index on our website.
Tap on the entry for each day in the Sabbatical Calendar in the Cary Presbyterian Church app. If you have notifications turned on for the app, you should receive a notification with a link to the writings for the day each morning at 9:00 AM.

View/Download PDF

Go to day-by-day Index

GET MOBILE APP

Sabbatical Events

Sunday, May 18 - Farewell Pig Pickin'
Celebrate our confirmands and the end of the faith formation year, and wish a bon voyage to Paul and Sarah. Please bring a dessert to share. Sign up here to help set up or clean up.

Sunday, May 25 - Liturgy of Departure
This is Paul’s final day in worship until August 31.
We will celebrate Paul’s liturgy of departure and light the candle for our prayers for his journey. Congregational votives and touchstones will be available in the Narthex to take home.

Wednesdays, May 28 – August 20 at 9:30 AM
Weekly Prayer Service
20 minutes of prayer, scripture, and reflection in the Sanctuary each Wednesday morning during Paul’s sabbatical.

Sunday, June 8 – Sabbatical Lunch & Learn
Lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the worship service and learn about sabbatical resources for the congregation and a few of the saints associated with the places Paul will visit on his sabbatical.

Sunday, July 27 – Celtic Tea Lunch & Learn
Scottish tea, finger sandwiches, and baked treats in the Fellowship Hall after worship, with Celtic music and travel slides by our own Bill Leslie. If you have a favorite teacup, please bring it. Scottish tartans welcome!