All Saints Bijou Temple

Phoebe's mind is on Josephine as she stands at the front of the theatre and prepares to give this week's sermon. All Saints Bijou Temple is non-sectarian, so she has a lot of latitude when it comes to liturgy, but rambling meditations on issues of personal disappointment have, in the past, inspired certain members of the congregation to get up and walk out...so Phoebe is determined to stick to the sermon she has already prepared, which this week she has titled: "People Are A Mess." (Titles are an important part of Phoebe's community outreach, as she posts them weekly on the church/theatre marquee.)

There are only three parishioners in attendance this Sunday. One is the owner of the theatre, who likes to be called Deacon. Phoebe doesn't know this for certain, but she has been told that Deacon was once the head of the university's Divinity School, and that he got into some kind of dispute with the Chancellor (some say he seduced the Chancellor's daughter, other say he wouldn't give up his parking privileges), but whatever it was, the thing escalated until the two came to blows. The incident took place during a commencement ceremony, right after (some say before) Deacon gave the benediction. The police were called. Deacon's family had been significant contributors to the endowment fund, so lawyers became involved. In the end, no charges were filed, but the Chancellor left shortly thereafter to give a series of lectures on Antiquities in Mesopotamia, and Deacon retired, to take over his family's extensive chain of theaters.