Finding hope and holiness in everyday life.
An interview with Reverend Rick Bellows

Reverend Rick Bellows is an Episcopal minister who lives with his family in
Western Massachusetts. Trained at Seabury-Western Theological
Seminary in Illinois, he has served churches throughout New York State
and Massachusetts. He was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2002.
Rev. Bellows retired from full-time work at the Episcopal Church of the
Atonement in Westfield, Mass. in 2007 at age 48 but remains involved in
ministry as a volunteer at the Cathedral in Springfield. An avid
photographer and writer, he creates original cards that are sent to people in
need of healing. Rev. Bellows’ photographs are also available for purchase.

Rev. Bellows recently took time to talk with Spirited Movement
about how living with Parkinson’s Disease impacts his spiritual life and relationship
with God.

How has your relationship with God changed since you began living
with Parkinson’s Disease?

“For a long time I just kind of relied on my traditional approach to things –
that God will take everything and make it work for the good. More
recently, though, I realize that it’s taken me this long to begin to grieve.
Having to retire and everything has been in many ways much harder on my
wife and children than on me . . .

I miss preaching. I miss having an impact in the world. But it has begun to
strike me that instead of changing the world, maybe I can change four or
five or six peoples’ lives. God and I right now are working through the grief.
I feel a little anger, yes, as I consider how God can still use me. As I
wonder what’s next.

And God can handle that. I have always been a proponent to let people
know that God can take our frustration and anger, and that anyone who
tries to shield God from that does God and themselves a disservice.”

Please tell us about the role faith plays in your journey.

“My faith is part of who I am, part of the package. My faith calls and
challenges me to let go of baggage and move forward toward new
opportunities. That is what the Christian faith is about in many ways, from
baptism to confession, letting go of the old and embracing the new. My
faith is what allows me to embrace change.”

What have you learned about God that you never knew before?

“I am much more visual than I used to be, which may be associated with
Parkinson’s effect on the prefrontal lobe in my brain. I think the disease
has made photography more important to me. Because of this I can see in
new ways how God expresses God’s self through creation. Taking
photographs and writing let me see God’s presence through nature. My
relationship with God is growing. I have a new appreciation of God’s
incarnation and presence, and I believe what I am pointing to and speaking
about is real.”

What spiritual or religious practices do you find valuable and why?

“Holy Communion is very valuable to me. It helps me look at the whole
world as being a sacrament of God. Being in community is also important.
I get together with other clergy and talk. I am also part of the Third Order of
the Society of St. Francis. I also pray for others and from that prayer
emerge inspirations for the healing cards.”

What are the top three things you would encourage people to do to
deepen their spiritual lives while living with a movement disorder?

“The main thing is to have people see the glass as half full. The person
who sees the glass half full is not in denial – but is seeing the positive. If
you want your life to be positive, you have to look for God speaking to you
through the positive.

“Mark Twain said that the only person who likes change is a baby with a
wet diaper. To move into change happily takes commitment and effort.

Find something that helps you do that like a camera or a guitar. Find
something that captures your creativity and helps you see the world
differently.”

What do you feel most encouraged about?

“Right now, I feel most encouraged about my relationship with my son. On
the seventh day of Christmas, we as a family all write love letters to each
other. He wrote me this letter that just blew me away. I spend a lot of time
with him – and I am encouraged to see that paying off. The moral of the
story is that everyone should write love letters to their family members
every New Year’s Eve!”