Source: http://stthomas-lyndhurst.org/aggregator/sources/2?page=3
Timestamp: 2019-04-21 22:13:07+00:00

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Tue, 03/19/2019 - 4:23pm
Grace Episcopal Church in Gainesville, Georgia, hosts an ecumenical Lenten worship service in 2017. Its service this year will be March 20. Photo: Grace Episcopal Church, via Facebook
[Episcopal News Service] Several churches in Gainesville, Georgia, including Grace Episcopal Church, have a local Lenten tradition of holding weekly ecumenical gatherings centered on worship services and fellowship over lunch. After a decade of such gatherings, those churches are going a bit deeper this year.
The season of Lent gives Christians “permission to be more intentional” in how they live out their faith, said the Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, rector of Grace Episcopal, and the intent of the weekly sessions this year is to focus on issues related to poverty in Hall County, Georgia, where as many as one in five of the 180,000 residents lives below the poverty level.
Such statistics came as a shock to some of those who attended the first in the Lenten series last week, at St. Paul United Methodist Church, Higginbotham said, and “it’s going to take all of the churches working together, along with the United Way, the nonprofits and the local government to really see what the root causes are.”
At noon on March 20, his church will host the second service in the series, which is held across five Wednesdays leading up to Easter. The services typically draw about 150 worshippers and last a half hour – the one at Grace Episcopal will be a kind of abbreviated Morning Prayer – and then worshippers eat together.
In the past, the primary purpose of the series has been to bring members of the local Christian community together during Lent to “step outside their comfort zone” in new worship settings. “These Wednesday services, the juxtaposition of different traditions has really opened up conversations in the community,” Higginbotham said.
Church leaders want to build on that success by incorporating poverty awareness into the services and lunches.
“It’s an issue that’s as close to the heart of the Gospel and the Christian faith as anything else,” the Rev. Lee Koontz, senior pastor at First Presbyterian Church, told the Gainesville Times. “It’s very clear that those of us who follow Jesus and seek to worship God through the way we live our lives, we are expected to be engaged with those who are experiencing poverty.”
The area has about 400 nonprofits working on various social issues, Higginbotham said, but in recent years, community leaders have looked to the United Way of Hall County to become a kind of hub for coordinating money and resources in the fight against poverty.
Each church hosting the ecumenical worship services this Lent will take a collection for United Way, and the services will feature brief remarks by social service leaders and sermons on related issues by guest preachers. Beth Brown, executive director of the Gainesville Housing Authority, will participate in the upcoming service at Grace Episcopal, and the guest preacher will be the Rev. Mary Demmler, a Gainesville native who now is rector at St. James Episcopal Church in Clayton, Georgia.
Higginbotham also noted the Gainesville churches’ ongoing collaboration with an organization called Family Promise of Hall County, which provides shelter, food and support for low-income families suffering from homelessness. The churches have offered space, through a regular rotation, to serve as a homeless shelter for Family Promise’s clients.
“It’s really made an impact,” Higginbotham said.
The post Churches host Lenten ecumenical services to highlight poverty issues in Georgia county appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Tue, 03/19/2019 - 3:29pm
Barbara Harris, obispa sufragánea jubilada de Massachusetts, invita a la congregación a comulgar el 12 de marzo durante la Eucaristía de apertura de la reunión de primavera, de cuatro días de duración, de la Cámara de Obispos en el Centro de Conferencias y Retiro de Kanuga. Harris presidia el officio poco más de un mes después del 30º. aniversario de su ordenación y consagración como la primera obispa de la cristiandad. Foto de Mary Frances Schjonberg/ENS.
[Episcopal News Service – Hendersonville, Carolina del Norte] La Cámara de Obispos de la Iglesia Episcopal ha comenzado una profunda inmersión de cuatro días en el Camino del Amor, lo que el obispo primado Michael Curry llama una regla de vida para la rama episcopal del Movimiento de Jesús.
Curry explicó a la Cámara que la idea para el Camino del Amor, un compromiso consciente de seguir a Jesús y adoptar una serie de prácticas, tales como cambia, aprende, ora, adora, bendice, ve y descansa, surgió de una reunión de un grupo de obispos, clérigos y laicos que él convocó para ayudar a los episcopales a mantener a Jesús en el centro de sus vidas y en el centro de la Iglesia.
La cuestión, dijo él, es cómo vivir de tal manera que “cuando la gente mire a los episcopales, ya no vean a los que celebrábamos por su poder y su gloria, sino a los que celebran y la gloria y la grandeza y la bondad de Dios. ¿Cómo hacemos para que eso suceda?”
El Obispo Primado dijo que el Camino del Amor era un regreso a las raíces del cristianismo. “No hicimos nada nuevo”, precisó. “Retornamos al cofre del tesoro”.
Curry explicó que le impactó la manera en que fue recibido su sermón en la Boda Real en mayo pasado. Insistió en que él no dijo nada nuevo desde el púlpito de la capilla de San Jorge [St. George’s] en el castillo de Windsor. “Lo que me sorprendió fue que el sermón era una novedad porque representar al cristianismo como un camino del amor no era sólo una buena nueva, era una novedad en la cultura occidental”, afirmó.
Él llamó a esa realidad una “oportunidad de misión para nosotros”. Dijo que es ahora contracultural tener “una manera de ser cristiano que se parezca al rostro de Jesús de Nazaret y que refleje su camino del amor, pero eso es contracultural, siendo lo bastante sincero”.
El obispo primado Michael Curry dijo durante su sermón en la capilla de Kanuga que la Iglesia debe volver a sus raíces en la “inclusión definitiva” de Jesús. Foto de Mary Frances Schjonberg/ENS.
El Obispo Primado lamentó el hecho de que la mayoría de las encuestas de opinión entre los jóvenes arrojan que ellos ven el cristianismo como “estrecho de mente, fundamentalista, homófobo y fanático”. Dijo que “el rostro público del cristianismo en Estados Unidos ha sido secuestrado. No hay una percepción de que existe una diversidad de expresiones entre los cristianos”, por el contrario, cada vez más la imagen pública es “la imagen de una agenda política de derecha”.
El Obispo Primado insistió que no estaba hablando de [asumir] una postura liberal o conservadora. “Se trata de seguir a Jesús, no al partido político de nadie”, recalcó.
Más información acerca del Camino del Amor y los recursos para explorarlo se encuentran aquí.
Durante su sermón en la Eucaristía de apertura más temprano en el día, Curry invocó lo que llamó el “legado” de Jesús en la Última Cena y lo que E. Franklin Frazier definió como la “Iglesia clandestina” de esclavos en Estados Unidos. La Iglesia, dijo Curry, debe volver a su raigambre en Jesús de modo que pueda predicar las buenas nuevas de la salvación para todos. Los esclavos iban a la iglesia el domingo por la mañana con sus amos, pero su Iglesia clandestina representaba “el movimiento cristiano para ellos, y es a partir de este movimiento, este movimiento de Jesús, que ellos se dieron cuenta de que este Jesús tiene la llave para liberar al cautivo, y tiene la llave para liberar al esclavista”, afirmó.
Esa fue “la inclusión definitiva”, dijo Curry.
Barbara Harris, obispa sufragánea jubilada de Massachusetts, escucha predicar el 12 de marzo al obispo primado Michael Curry durante la Eucaristía de apertura de la reunión de primavera, de cuatro días de duración, de la Cámara de Obispos en el Centro de Conferencias y Retiro de Kanuga. Harris presidia el officio poco más de un mes después del 30º. aniversario de su ordenación y consagración como la primera obispa de la cristiandad. Foto de Mary Frances Schjonberg/ENS
“Lo que fue verdad para Jesús en la Última Cena y lo que fue verdad para esos esclavos en los campos de algodón y tabaco antes de la guerra [de Secesión] bien puede ser verdad para nosotros en nuestro propio tiempo como Iglesia Episcopal”, enfatizó él.
Curry contó la historia de un descubrimiento que la congregación de la iglesia episcopal de Santiago Apóstol [St. James’] en Baltimore hiciera después de que su edificio hubiera sido alcanzado por un rayo. Durante la restauración de la iglesia, donde Curry prestó servicios de 1988 a 2000, un arqueólogo urbano descubrió, debajo de varias capas, un mural de una vid de múltiples ramas pintada en la superficie del piso original.
“Puede ser que debajo de las capas que se han añadido con el transcurso de los siglos —capas de institucionalización, capas de ser la primera iglesia, capas de contar con los mejores ciudadanos, capas de donaciones, capas de comodidad y conveniencia— puede ser que debajo de todo eso haya una simple vid con sus pámpanos. ‘Yo soy la vid, ustedes los pámpanos. Permanezcan en mí, y yo en ustedes’”. Dijo Curry. “Y no importa lo mal que parezcan sus estadísticas demográficas, no importan cuan difíciles sean las circunstancias culturales, no importa quién esté en la Casa Blanca, ‘Yo soy la vid. Los que permanecen en mí, llevarán mucho fruto’”.
También en la agenda de la reunión
La Cámara de Obispos sesiona del 12 al 15 de marzo en el Centro de Conferencias y Retiro de Kanuga, en las afueras de Hendersonville, Carolina del Norte.
Los obispos comenzarán cada día con una eucaristía y el trabajo de la jornada se centrará en un tema acerca del Camino del Amor. Los temas incluyen ‘Participar en el Camino del Amor”, “Profundizar en el Camino del Amor”, “Gestión de recursos para el Camino del amor” e “Integración en el Camino del Amor”. En la jornada del 12 de marzo colaboraron la obispa Vashti Murphy McKenzie de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal Africana, la primera obispa de esa denominación, y el obispo Ric Thorpe de la Iglesia de Inglaterra, un fundador de iglesias que es ahora el obispo de Islington.
Esta es la reunión anual del grupo en primavera. Los obispos normalmente se reúnen en primavera y en otoño en los años en que no hay Convención General.
Los obispos concluyen su semana en Kanuga con una reunión de trabajo en la tarde del 15 de marzo.
– La Rda. Mary Frances Schjonberg es la redactora sénior y reportera de Episcopal News Service. Traducción de Vicente Echerri.
The post La Cámara de Obispos inicia su reunión de primavera con una exploración del Camino del Amor appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Tue, 03/19/2019 - 3:22pm
[Anglican Communion News Service] A former Roman Catholic priest, the Rev. Daniel Genovesi, has been consecrated to serve as interim bishop of Uruguay.
The diocese recently has faced a series of difficulties involving personnel, finances and a gradual reduction in clergy numbers. The Anglican Church of South America’s House of Bishops proposed the appointment of an interim bishop who would work, with help, to strengthen the diocese.
The post Former Catholic priest becomes interim bishop of Anglican Diocese of Uruguay appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
[Anglican Communion News Service] The head of the New Zealand Church Missionary Society, the Rev. Steve Maina, has been elected as the next bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Nelson. The bishop-elect was born and raised in Kenya, where he was ordained a priest in 2004. After serving in the Anglican Church of Kenya, where he planted a new church as missions pastor at Nairobi Chapel, he was appointed general secretary of Church Army Africa before being recruited to lead CMS in New Zealand.
The post Kenya native elected bishop of diocese in New Zealand appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Mon, 03/18/2019 - 6:08pm
Episcopal UNCSW delegates Chiseche Mibenge, Diocese of El Camino Real, left, and Michele Roberts, Diocese of Delaware, stand together March 17 during a tour of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in New York. The 63rd annual United Nations Conference on the Status of Women is underway at U.N. headquarters. Photo: Lynette Wilson/Episcopal News Service
[Episcopal News Service] The annual United Nations Conference on the Status of Women draws 9,000 women and men from all the regions of the world to the U.N.’s New York headquarters.
“It (the Commission on the Status of Women) is one of the largest feminist gatherings in the world,” said first-time UNCSW Episcopal delegate the Rev. Martha Korienek, interim rector of Grace Episcopal Church in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.
Still, as impressive at the attendance figure is, more important, she added, is that the delegates advocate for an estimated 3.7 billion women and girls worldwide.
The 63rd UNCSW, meeting March 11-22, is focused on social protection systems, access to public services and sustainable infrastructure for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.
“Ensuring equal access, and gender equality, is good not just for women and girls, but for everyone,” said Lynnaia Main, who represents The Episcopal Church at the United Nations and coordinates and leads the Episcopal delegation.
“As we prepare for the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action next year, we are aware that no country has yet achieved gender equality,” she said. “We have heard from the U.N. secretary general that, at the current rate, it will take 217 years to achieve gender equality. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry reminded us in his video to the UNCSW delegates that Jesus believed that women and men are equal and honored women by his example. We need to follow Jesus’s example and at the same time step it up for gender equality.”
For Michele Roberts, a first-time Episcopal delegate and a long-time fighter of environmental racism, the theme access to public services and sustainable infrastructure profoundly resonates.
“We have the global south right here,” said Roberts, a member of St. Andrew and St. Matthews Episcopal Church in Wilmington, Delaware, and The Church of the Epiphany in Washington, D.C.
Meaning, one doesn’t have to travel to remote villages in the developing world to encounter inadequate infrastructure and restricted access to potable water; inadequate services exist here in the United States, and here in New York, she said.
Anglican and Episcopal delegates to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women gather at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in Manhattan for a tour led by Tom Fedorek, a docent for 35 years, of the Gothic and Romanesque cathedral before a March 17 evensong. Photo: Lynette Wilson/Episcopal News Service
On March 17, Anglican and Episcopal delegates gathered at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, first for a tour of the Gothic and Romanesque cathedral, and then for an evensong and welcome from the cathedral and from New York Bishop Andrew Dietsche and the Global Women’s Fund of New York.
“There’s an old saying, ‘the sun never sets on the British Empire,’” said Dietsche, adding the sun never sets on the Anglican presence. “Anglican and Episcopal women, our sisters, since the beginning of the UNCSW have had a strong presence and have made a difference in the lives of women and girls everywhere.”
Established in 1946, the UNCSW is the foremost intergovernmental agency dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. Although The Episcopal Church has had a presence at the UNCSW since 2000, it has sent a delegation to official UNCSW proceedings only since 2014, when it gained consultative status with the U.N. Economic and Social Council.
For a list of Episcopal delegates and staff representing Presiding Bishop Michael Curry click here, and click here for the Anglican Communion delegation.
Even though the United Nations is considered an international territory, delegates from countries that require U.S. entry visas must apply them. Each year, the U.S. denies a significant number of delegates access; this year the U.S. denied entry visas to the Anglican delegate from Burundi and the Episcopal delegate from Colombia. The Episcopal and Anglican delegates represent women from the United States, Ghana, South Africa, New Zealand, the Solomon Islands and Scotland.
The Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion are members of and participate in advocacy with the faith-based coalition Ecumenical Women, an international coalition of church denominations and ecumenical organizations that have status with the U.N. Economic and Social Council; these bodies share and are committed to a common mission and vision.
Both The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion are signatories to Ecumenical Women’s joint written statement, found here.
During the commission’s annual two-week session, representatives of U.N. member states, civil society organizations and U.N. entities gather at the U.N. headquarters in New York. They discuss progress and gaps in the implementation of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the key global policy document on gender equality, and the 23rd special session of the General Assembly held in 2000 (Beijing+5), as well as emerging issues that affect gender equality and the empowerment of women. Member states agree on further actions to accelerate progress and promote women’s enjoyment of their rights in political, economic and social fields. The outcomes and recommendations of each session are forwarded to the U.N.’s Economic and Social Council for follow-up.
In her evensong homily, New York Assistant Bishop Mary D. Glasspool talked about how it “takes real willpower to do something counterintuitive” and referenced the day’s Gospel reading, Luke 13:31-35, where Jesus says in reference to Herod, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow and on the third day I finish my work. Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing.”
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Mon, 03/18/2019 - 5:21pm
[Anglican Communion News Service] The Church of England has called for communities to join together in conversation and prayer as discussions over the UK’s departure from the European Union reach a pivotal point. The debate is splitting communities in the UK. The UK Government and the EU have reached a withdrawal agreement; but this has twice been rejected by the country’s Parliament. Today, the Speaker of the House of Commons ruled that the government could only bring it back for a third vote if the motion was “substantially different”. Britain risks leaving the European Union without a deal on 29 March unless the other 27 EU member countries agree to a British government request for an extension.
The post Church of England invites parishioners to “tea and prayer drop-ins” as Brexit deadline nears appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Mon, 03/18/2019 - 5:09pm
[Episcopal News Service] In the latest installment in a nearly decade-long effort to have the Internal Revenue Service’s clergy parsonage exemption declared unconstitutional, the federal Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled just the opposite.
A three-judge panel said March 15 that the principal effect of the tax exemption is “neither to endorse nor to inhibit religion, and it does not cause excessive government entanglement.”
Seventh Circuit Judge Michael B. Brennan, writing for the unanimous panel, said “any financial interaction between religion and government — like taxing a church, or exempting it from tax — entails some degree of entanglement.” But, he wrote, only “excessive entanglement” violates the U.S. Constitution’s Establishment Clause. The clause in the First Amendment prohibits the government from establishing an official religion, unduly favoring one religion over another, favoring religion over non-religion or vice versa.
The opinion marked the second time that Seventh Circuit has overturned Judge Barbara Crabb of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, who has ruled that IRS Code Section 107(2) is unconstitutional. That section allows the exclusion from taxable income of cash housing allowances to “ministers of the gospel,” if certain conditions are met. Certain nonreligious housing allowances also are exempted from tax, such as for military personnel.
The Justice Department called the ruling a win for the religious protections enshrined in the Constitution.
“The tax code treats ministers the same as hundreds of thousands of nonreligious workers who receive tax-exempt housing for their jobs – that’s not special treatment, it’s equal treatment,” Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a nonprofit law firm that intervened in the lawsuit on behalf of various ministers, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Freedom from Religion Foundation leaders Annie Laurie Gaylor, Anne Nicol Gaylor and Dan Barker have claimed for years that the IRS “parsonage exemption” violates the U.S. Constitution by providing preferential tax benefits to religious leaders. (Anne Nicol Gaylor has since died and been replaced in the suit by the personal representative of her estate, Ian Gaylor.)
The plaintiffs say that although the foundation gives them a housing allowance, IRS rules deny their attempts to claim the related expenses under the parsonage exemption because they were not deemed “ministers of the gospel.” Annie Laurie Gaylor is a layperson, as was Anne Nicol Gaylor, her mother. Barker, the foundation’s public relations director, is an ordained minister who the foundation says “gradually outgrew his religious beliefs.”
Reacting to the latest ruling, Gaylor called the exemption “so clearly a handout to churches and clergy, and it so clearly shows preferential treatment and discriminating in favor of ministers.”
Brennan, a President Donald Trump appointee who has been on the court since May 2018, wrote that the foundation says the exemption “‘renders unto God that which is Caesar’s.’ But this tax provision falls into the play between the joints of the Free Exercise Clause and the Establishment Clause: neither commanded by the former, nor proscribed by the latter.”
The foundation said the court’s reasoning “shows that ministers are not entitled to the benefit, therefore Congress could repeal it.
“It’s an injustice not just to us, but to taxpayers who have to pay more than their share, because clergy pay less,” Gaylor said.
Gaylor told the Associated Press that the foundation was weighing whether to ask the full Seventh Circuit to review the case or take it to the U.S. Supreme Court.
U.S. Department of Justice spokeswoman Kelly Laco called the ruling “a win for the religious protections enshrined” in the Constitution, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
The case, originally titled Freedom from Religion Foundation v. Geithner and Shulman, was filed in September 2011. The original suit named then-U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and IRS head Douglas Shulman as defendants. The current filing replaced them with their successors, Steve Mnuchin and John Koskinen.
There are also intervenor-defendants: the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia’s Diocese of Chicago and Mid-America and a minister of one of its churches; the Chicago Embassy Church and its pastor, and Holy Cross Anglican Church in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and its rector, the Rev. Patrick Malone.
The other judges on the panel were William Bauer and Daniel Manion.
How the tax exemption works
The employers of most but not all clerics who do not live in church-owned housing designate a portion of a cleric’s salary as a housing allowance. However, if such clerics plan to seek the IRS-allowed parsonage exemption, they must have their employers officially declare (by way of a resolution passed by the organization’s governing body) a specific amount of money that the cleric intends to claim on his or her taxes in the following year.
If the cleric can later document the amount of eligible expenses, that amount may be deducted from the cleric’s taxable income. Those expenses include furnishings, maintenance and repair, and certain supplies. For instance, if the enabling resolution sets the amount at $10,000 but the cleric can only document $9,000 in allowed expenses, then only the smaller amount can be deducted. If the cleric had $11,000 in allowed expenses, only $10,000 can be deducted. There is no tax penalty for overestimating the parsonage allowance.
Clergy may use the exemption for rent or mortgage as well as for home improvements and maintenance up to the fair market rental value of their home. Congress’s Joint Committee on Taxation has estimated that the exclusions allowed to ministers for housing costs amounted to $3.8 billion between 2013 and 2017.
Retired and disabled clergy can continue to claim the annual exemption and, in fact, all retirement benefits from the Church Pension Fund come to recipients with the IRS-required housing allowance designation.
More information about how parsonage allowances work is available in the 2019 tax guide offered by the Church Pension Group.
The case, which will be litigated for several years and could reach the U.S. Supreme Court, does not apply to clergy who live in church-owned housing, such as rectories. Loss of the tax exemption would have a major financial impact on clerics of all faith traditions who do not live in church-owned housing.
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Mon, 03/18/2019 - 4:49pm
La Cámara de los Obispos de La Iglesia Episcopal se reunió en retiro en el Centro de Conferencias de Kanuga, Hendersonville, Carolina del Norte, del 12 al 15 de marzo de 2019. En la reunión de negocios del 15 de marzo, la Cámara aprobó una resolución comprometiéndose a defender la Resolución D034 de la Convención General, que suspende por tres años el canon (ley de la iglesia) que limita a un período de diez años el inicio de procedimientos en casos de mala conducta sexual del clero contra adultos. La iglesia no tiene límite de tiempo para denunciar conductas sexuales inapropiadas del clero contra niños y jóvenes menores de 21 años.
La resolución afirma que los obispos están “decididos a tener una respuesta pastoral robusta en todos los asuntos relacionados con la conducta sexual indebida, independientemente de cuándo se produjo esa presunta conducta indebida”.
El texto de la resolución es este:
Considerando que, nuestros cánones proporcionan que “[e]n virtud del bautismo, todos
los miembros de la Iglesia están llamados a la santidad de vida y a la responsabilidad
mutua”, y que “[l]a Iglesia y cada Diócesis apoyarán a sus miembros en su vida en Cristo
y buscarán resolver los conflictos promoviendo la sanidad, el arrepentimiento, el perdón,
la restitución, justicia, reforma de la vida y reconciliación”, (Canon IV.1),
Por tanto, está
RESUELTO que esta Cámara, reunida en el Centro de Conferencias de Kanuga del 12 al
15 de marzo, apoya el compromiso de sus miembros de proporcionar una “respuesta de
pastoral robusta” a las denuncias de conducta sexual inapropiada, independientemente de
cuánto tiempo atrás tal alegada mala conducta ocurrió.
The post La Cámara de los Obispos afirma el compromiso de defender la Resolución D034 de la Convención General appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Mon, 03/18/2019 - 1:41pm
La Reverenda Dra. Molly James de West Hartford, Connecticut, ha sido nombrada deputada directora de la Convención General. Al anunciar este nombramiento, el Reverendo Canónigo Michael Barlowe, secretario y director de la Convención General, dijo: “Molly James aporta enormes dones y creatividad a la labor de la Convención General, convirtiéndose en un miembro central del talentoso equipo que envía el gobierno de La Iglesia Episcopal”.
James fue seleccionada después de una búsqueda en toda la iglesia durante los últimos meses. En este nuevo rol, ella supervisará los informes parroquiales y diocesanos; coordinará con otros profesionales que trabajan en la convención y planificación de reuniones; trabajará en colaboración con el diputado para la legislación; y asistirá al director en sus diversos ministerios.
Antes de este nombramiento, James sirvió en el personal del obispo para La Iglesia Episcopal en Connecticut como deán de formación, ayudando a re-imaginar y administrar el proceso de ordenación. También ejerce como presidenta de la Comisión Permanente sobre Estructura, Gobierno, Constitución y Cánones. Como diputada a la Convención General en 2018, James presidió el Comité Legislativo del Ministerio. También fue diputada en la Convención General de 2015, donde se desempeñó como secretaria adjunta del Comité Legislativo sobre Gobierno y Estructura. Ordenada en 2005 por la Reverendísima Chilton Knudsen en su estado natal de Maine, James ha servido como capellana de un hospital y como párroco. Tiene un doctorado en teología por la Universidad de Exeter (Reino Unido), una maestría en teología por el Seminario de Teología de Yale y una licenciatura en psicología por la Universidad de Tufts.
En Connecticut, James ejerce como profesora adjunta en el Seminario de Hartford y en la Universidad de San José, centrándose en la ética y el cuidado pastoral. Su investigación doctoralWith Joyful Acceptance, Maybe se centró en el sufrimiento y el dolor y fue publicada en 2013 por Wipf and Stock. James también fue copresidente de Young Clergy Women International (una organización ecuménica de clérigos de mujeres menores de 40 años) y miembro de la junta de la Society of Scholar Priests. James y su esposo Reade (un ingeniero mecánico) viven en West Hartford, CT con sus dos hijos, Katherine y Halsted.
Sobre la Oficina Ejecutiva de la Convención General.
La Oficina Ejecutiva de la Convención General, o “GCO”, como se la llama a menudo, es una de las tres oficinas de La Iglesia Episcopal (las otras son la Oficina del Obispo Presidente y la Oficina del Presidente de la Cámara de los Diputados ). El GCO administra el gobierno de la Iglesia, y lo hace de varias maneras:
La Convención General, la reunión trienal de la Cámara de los Diputados y la Cámara de los Obispos, junto con la reunión de las Mujeres de la Iglesia Episcopal y otras reuniones concurrentes de grupos de La Iglesia Episcopal.
El trabajo del Consejo Ejecutivo de la Convención General.
Las actividades de los diversos cuerpos interinos de la Convención General y los cientos de voluntarios que forman esos cuerpos.
Reuniones oficiales de la Cámara de los Obispos y cualquier reunión interina de la Cámara de los Diputados.
El ministerio de varios cuerpos ecuménicos, interreligiosos e inter-anglicanos de la Iglesia.
El Informe Parroquial anual de la iglesia y la investigación asociada.
Otras obligaciones derivadas de la Convención General y del Consejo Ejecutivo.
El GCO también apoya al oficial ejecutivo en sus diversos roles:
Como secretario corporativo de la Sociedad Misionera Doméstica y Extranjera (“DFMS”: la corporación religiosa sin fines de lucro con sede en Nueva York a través de la cual opera gran parte del ministerio de la iglesia).
Como secretario del Consejo Ejecutivo.
Como registrador de la Convención General (con deberes de certificación y autenticación para la consagración de los obispos).
Dentro de la Comunión Anglicana, como secretario provincial de La Iglesia Episcopal.
Como oficial principal de La Iglesia Episcopal.
The post Molly James fue nombrada deputada directora de la Convención General appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Fri, 03/15/2019 - 6:09pm
[Episcopal News Service – Hendersonville, North Carolina] The Episcopal Church’s House of Bishops said March 15 that it is “aggrieved and distressed” by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby’s decision to exclude the same-sex spouses of bishops invited to the 2020 Lambeth Conference.
The bishops said they “are concerned by the use of exclusion as a means of building communion.”
Welby says on the website of the gathering of Anglican Communion bishops that he prays that “the Lambeth Conference will reinvigorate the Communion.” The website notes that Welby has invited “every eligible bishop and spouse.”
The majority of the house plans to go to Lambeth, according to the statement. The bishops said they want to continue to build relationships across the communion, “further the conversation around the various cultural expressions of marriage” and “reflect our understandings of marriage, as well as our commitment to the dignity of all human beings, including the human rights of LGBTQ+ persons.”
The statement passed on a voice vote. At least one bishop, Dan Martins of Springfield, could be heard voting no.
Diocese of New York Bishop Assistant Mary Glasspool currently is The Episcopal Church’s only actively serving bishop who has a same-sex spouse. She addressed the house on March 14.
The Rev. Thomas Brown is due to be ordained and consecrated on June 22 as the next bishop of the Diocese of Maine. He is married to the Rev. Thomas Mousin. The diocese elected Brown on Feb. 9. It is possible that Episcopal Church dioceses will elect bishops with same-sex spouses between now and the July 23, 2020, beginning of the Lambeth Conference.
The only other active bishop in the Anglican Communion to whom Welby’s decision is known to apply is Diocese of Toronto Bishop Suffragan Kevin Robertson. He married Mohan Sharma, his partner of nearly 10 years, on Dec. 28, 2018.
The statement includes a statement from the Bishops Spouses Planning Group saying they
“join our voices with those in The Episcopal Church who have expressed their disappointment and dismay” with Welby’s decision. “We especially stand with our fellow spouse, Becki Sander, spouse of Bishop Mary Glasspool,” they said.
“The spouse community understands that the Anglican Communion is not of one mind with regard to marriage, and that, in the life of the communion, this is a complex issue,” they said. “Exclusion of same-gender spouses, however, seems like a simplistic reaction to this complex issue. It saddens us that all are not welcome to walk, listen, and witness with us, and that all voices will not be heard at this gathering.”
The bishops refused on a 44-42 show of hands to pass a second resolution calling on Presiding Bishop Michael Curry to ask Welby to change his mind. Curry told the house before the vote that he has had “one long conversation” with the archbishop and has exchanged letters with him as well.
“I’ve got to be honest with you, I don’t expect he’ll change, but I’m willing to say that this house really would like it to be reconsidered if there is any way that it can be,” he said.
The texts of the bishops’ statement and that of the spouses are here.
Diocese of San Joaquin Bishop David Rice speaks to the house on March 15 hours after the terrorist attacks on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. Rice once served as a vicar in the Diocese of Christchurch. Photo: Mary Frances Schjonberg/Episcopal News Service
The bishops responded in a number of ways to the attacks on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, in which 49 died. The morning Eucharist included prayers for “the victims of the shootings in New Zealand, rest to their souls and peace to their families.”
Diocese of San Joaquin Bishop David Rice, speaking at the opening of the morning session, called the attacks “an unprecedented act of terrorism.”
Rice was the bishop of the Diocese of Waiapu in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia when he was called to San Joaquin. Born and raised in North Carolina, Rice was a Methodist pastor for eight years prior to his ordination in the Anglican Church.
He began his Anglican priesthood in the Diocese of Christchurch. It is where his daughter and son went to kindergarten and primary school, he told the house. He and his wife Tracy have a home there to which they will retire, Rice said.
“I find myself as I stand here before you – and I should have thought of this because I was up all night contacting family and friends to see if they’re okay – to have something to say, but I find I have no words.”
He said he suggested to Diocese of Connecticut Bishop Ian Douglas that Bishops Against Gun Violence reach out to Christchurch Bishop Peter Carrell and Richard Wallace who leads Te Wai Pounamu, the Maori diocese, “as an act of solidarity to send our love.”
Rice evoked the statement from New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern who said of the victims of the attacks, “They are us. The person who has perpetuated this violence against us is not. They have no place in New Zealand.”
Rice said, “Say that with me. They are us.” The house responded loudly, and Rice stopped to compose himself.
“Our immigrant and refugee sisters and brothers, say it with me, they are us.”
The house responded, “They are us.”
“Our Palestinian sisters and brothers, say it with me, they are us.”
The house responded, “They are us.
“Those who even lose their way and do harm, say it with me, they are us.
“Amen,” Rice said, returning to his table.
The bishops prayed in silence and then were led in prayer by the Very Rev. Miguelina Howell, a chaplain to the house and dean of Christ Church Cathedral in Hartford, Connecticut.
Later in the day, the members of Bishops Against Gun Violence who were at the meeting gathered for the group’s weekly Facebook Live prayer service, held this Friday in the chapel at Kanuga Conference and Retreat Center. The vigil included remarks by Curry.
The House passed a resolution committing itself to upholding General Convention Resolution D034, which suspends for three years the canon (church law) that places a time limit on initiating proceedings in cases of clergy sexual misconduct against adults. The church has no time limit on reporting clergy sexual misconduct against children and youth under age 21.
The resolution affirms that the bishops are “intent on having robust pastoral response in all matters regarding sexual misconduct regardless of when that alleged misconduct occurred.”
Diocese of Central New York Bishop DeDe Duncan-Probe later told the house that the group that planned the Liturgy of Listening during the 2018 General Convention has assembled a toolkit for other Episcopalians to use for similar services.
“It is our responsibility as bishops to make sure everyone is safe and to respond well when that is not true,” she said.
The bishops who have taken The Episcopal Church’s pledge to protect and renew the Earth and those who live on it gathered March 15 under the trees at Kanuga Conference and Retreat Center to record a video invitation for the rest of the church to join them. Photo: Mary Frances Schjonberg/Episcopal News Service
The bishops also voted to “commit ourselves, individually and corporately to live the Way of Love, practices for a Jesus-centered life, and we ask every member of The Episcopal Church to consider joining us in meeting and following Jesus through the Way of Love.”
Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe Bishop Suffragan Pierre Whalon proposed the resolution, saying it grew out of the previous three days of exploring the Way of Love.
Whalon and some colleagues discussed how the Way of Love could develop into a de facto strategy for the church’s mission if the bishops committed to live the Way of Love and invited other Episcopalians to join them.
“We’ve had a lot of things come down the pike that were supposed to be life-changing programs and they came along, and they just continued down the pike,” he said. “I believe that the Way of Love could be considered yet another program” if the bishops and the entire church do not commit to the practices it outlines.
More information about the Way of Love is here.
Five women bishops who have either been ordained and consecrated or elected since General Convention in July 2018 attended the March meeting. They are Arizona Bishop Jennifer Reddall, Newark Bishop Carlye Hughes, West Tennessee Bishop-elect Phoebe Roaf, Colorado Bishop-elect Kimberly D. Lucas and Kansas Bishop Cathy Bascom.
The Episcopal Church House of Bishops’ women of color who attended the Kanuga meeting pose March 14 for a photo. They are, front row left to right, Indianapolis Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows, West Tennessee Bishop-elect Phoebe Roaf, Colorado Bishop-elect Kimberly D. Lucas and retired Massachusetts Bishop Suffragan Barbara Harris; and back row, left to right, Massachusetts Bishop Suffragan Gayle Harris, Newark Bishop Carlye Hughes, Bishop Carol Gallagher (serving as Diocese of Massachusetts regional canon) and Cuba Bishop Griselda Delgado del Carpio. Photo: Mary Frances Schjonberg/Episcopal News Service
The House of Bishops met March 12-15. Diocese of Los Angeles Bishop Suffragan Diane Jardine Bruce, the house’s secretary, said 132 bishops attended the meeting, including three bishops-elect. Bishops-elect who have received the canonically required consents to their ordination and consecration are invited to attend the meetings. Retired Bishop Suffragan of Ohio Arthur Williams was the senior bishop present.
Five of the 10 bishops who form the 2018 class are women and five are men, marking the first time in the church’s history that a class is evenly divided between women and men. Four of the 10 are persons of color, Diocese of Newark Carlye Hughes, Ecuador Litoral Bishop-elect Cristobal Leon Lozano (who did not attend the meeting), Colorado Bishop-elect Kimberly D. Lucas and West Tennessee Bishop-elect Phoebe Roaf.
The gathering is the group’s annual spring meeting. The bishops normally meet each spring and fall during non-General Convention years. They will next meet Sept. 17-20 meeting. Spouses are traditionally part of the fall meeting.
Other ENS coverage is here.
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Fri, 03/15/2019 - 6:07pm
The House of Bishops of The Episcopal Church met in retreat at Kanuga Conference Center, Hendersonville, North Carolina. At their March 15 business meeting, they adopted the following Mind of the House Resolution and received a statement from the Bishops’ Spouses Planning Group which follows the bishops’ statement.
Bishops gathered at the Spring 2019 meeting of the House of Bishops are aggrieved and distressed by the Archbishop of Canterbury’s decision to exclude same sex spouses of bishops from participating in the Lambeth Conference, 2020. We appreciate that all of our bishops diocesan, suffragan, and assistant have been invited, and are concerned by the use of exclusion as a means of building communion.
At this time, the majority of bishops invited plan to attend the conference. Through our presence we will participate fully in the program of the conference, as well as seek to further the conversation around the various cultural expressions of marriage. We intend to build relationships and missional partnerships that will be inclusive vehicles for building communion across the Anglican world in all its beautiful diversity. We will seek to reflect our varied understandings of marriage, as well as our profound commitment to the dignity of all human beings, including the human rights of LGBTQ+ persons.
This week we have been in prayer and reflection on the Way of Love and how we as The Episcopal Church make that witness to the world as disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ. We affirm that all persons have been named by God as beloved and we commit to living more deeply into that truth.
A STATEMENT FROM THE BISHOPS’ SPOUSES PLANNING GROUP
We join our voices with those in The Episcopal Church who have expressed their disappointment and dismay at the exclusion of same gender spouses from the invitation to Lambeth Conference. We especially stand with our fellow spouse, Becki Sander, spouse of Bishop Mary Glasspool, who is one of the spouses being excluded.
The Archbishop of Canterbury has stated that the theme of this Lambeth Conference is “God’s Church for God’s World: Walking, Listening, and Witnessing Together”. The spouse community understands that the Anglican Communion is not of one mind with regard to marriage, and that, in the life of the Communion, this is a complex issue. Exclusion of same gender spouses, however, seems like a simplistic reaction to this complex issue. It saddens us that all are not welcome to walk, listen, and witness with us, and that all voices will not be heard at this gathering.
As Christians, we strive to live out our Baptismal Covenant and respect the dignity of every human being. A faithful expression of that Baptismal Covenant would be including same gender spouses to walk, listen, and witness with us at Lambeth.
The post Episcopal House of Bishops March 2019: The Bishops’ Mind of the House Resolution on Lambeth and a statement from the Bishops’ Spouses Planning Group appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Fri, 03/15/2019 - 12:00pm
[Anglican Communion News Service] Anglicans from throughout the Caribbean have been taking part in a “Pastors and Disasters” workshop in Grenada. The workshop has been organized and hosted by the Church of the Province of the West Indies with the global Anglican Alliance, the U.S.-based Episcopal Relief & Development and the Canadian Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund. It was staged following a number of natural disasters and climate change-related events to hit the island nations.
The post Anglicans from Caribbean dioceses train for disaster preparedness and resilience appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Fri, 03/15/2019 - 11:55am
[Anglican Communion News Service] Anglican archbishops in New Zealand, Australia and England have spoken out after gunmen attacked two mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch. At 9 p.m. Friday NZDT (8 a.m. GMT), the official death toll from the terror attacks stood at 49 people with another 39 being treated in Christchurch Hospital. New Zealand Police Commissioner Mike Bush told a press conference that 41 people were killed at the al-Noor mosque on Deans Avenue; and seven at the Linwood Islamic Centre on Linwood Avenue. Another person died at Christchurch Hospital.
The post Church leaders offer prayer and solidarity after New Zealand mosque attacks leaves 49 dead appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Thu, 03/14/2019 - 5:20pm
[Episcopal News Service – Hendersonville, North Carolina] The Episcopal Church’s House of Bishops spent time on March 14 in both open and closed sessions considering how to respond to the decision to exclude same-sex spouses from the 2020 Lambeth Conference of bishops.
“We are not avoiding it. We are being prayerful, thoughtful, strategic about what is the loving action for us,” Presiding Bishop Michael Curry told Episcopal News Service after the closed session ended. “We as a house are now thinking and considering what are the creative possibilities and loving ways that we can bear witness to the Way of Love that we are committed to as the way of following Jesus.”
Diocese of New York Bishop Assistant Mary Glasspool addressed the house in open session to begin the day, with New York Diocesan Bishop Andrew Dietsche and New York Bishop Suffragan Allen Shin at her side. She is The Episcopal Church’s only actively serving bishop who has a same-sex spouse. Glasspool asked for her colleagues’ continued support, while also urging them to listen to their spouses and to consider what it would mean if “we are not at the table to bear witness” to the love of Christ that “lives and bears fruit in the lives of married LGBT people.”
Before he closed the house, Curry asked the bishops to enter “the vision that Mary has invited us into” with two questions that she had just put to them: How will they continue to be a “hospitable house” and welcome new bishops with same-sex spouses? And, What is the best way and most creative way to bear witness to God’s love and justice at Lambeth?
He invoked theologian Paul Tillich’s idea that there is a “creative and saving possibility in every situation.”
Curry asked the bishops to consider how to employ Tillich in finding ways to “witness to the communion that we love and that we are a part of, and on behalf of our sisters and brothers whom we love. What are those creative and saving possibilities that reflect the Way of Love even though it is hard?”
Curry suggested that they consider forming a small group of bishops and spouses to generate some ideas before the house’s Sept. 17-20 meeting. The bishops and spouses will meet together in September. Spouses do not normally attend the spring meeting.
Diocese of New York Bishop Assistant Mary Glasspool, front row right, joins in a group photo of all the women bishops and bishops-elect who are present for the March 12-15 meeting at Kanuga Conference and Retreat Center. Photo: Mary Frances Schjonberg/Episcopal News Service
Glasspool was elected bishop suffagran of Los Angeles on Dec. 4, 2009, and was consecrated on May 15, 2010, along with Bishop Suffragan Diane Jardine Bruce who was elected by the same convention. At the time she was the 17th woman to be elected a bishop in The Episcopal Church, and still is the first openly lesbian bishop in the Anglican Communion. She is married to Becki Sander, her partner of more than 30 years. She has been bishop assistant in the Diocese of New York since April 2016.
Glasspool spoke to the bishops for about 15 minutes, recounting how “within hours” of her election then-Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams issued a statement that was interpreted as a call to the diocesan standing committees of The Episcopal Church and its bishops with jurisdiction to withhold their consent to Glasspool’s ordination and consecration.
Two years ago, Williams, who retired from Canterbury in 2012, was in New York for Holy Week and was invited to be part of the traditional clergy Renewal of Vows service on Holy Tuesday at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. Glasspool said she was anxious about encountering him, and, she did in the crowded sacristy. Williams, according to Glasspool, said, “Bishop Mary, we got off to a rocky start, and I’m sorry. I hope you will forgive me, and we can begin anew.”
“I stammered out ‘Of course. I understand. Thank you.’ For me this brief exchange was the holiest of gifts, a true balm in Gilead.”
She also recounted a gathering sponsored by Trinity Wall Street in September 2018 to give Welby the opportunity to promote Lambeth during which he had “gone out of his way to engage and befriend” her wife. Glasspool said that the archbishop and Sander had a “friendly and lengthy conversation” about their shared “passion for social work.” Welby, Glasspool said, gave Sander his card with his personal email address, and invited her to be in touch.
Thus, she said, she was shocked by a letter from Welby on Dec. 4, 2018, telling her that Sander was not invited to Lambeth. Sander was “shocked, hurt and enraged.” They each replied by letter to Welby, and, she said, they had hoped that news about Welby’s decision would not become public until this House of Bishops meeting.
However, on Feb. 15 Anglican Communion Secretary General Josiah Idowu-Fearon wrote in an Anglican Communion News Service blog that “it would be inappropriate for same-sex spouses to be invited to the conference.” He said the Anglican Communion defines marriage as “the lifelong union of a man and a woman,” as codified in Resolution 1.10 of the 1998 Lambeth Conference.
In the midst of the publicity that the blog generated, it “became startlingly clear that this was a political issue” that went beyond her and Sander, and the two other affected couples, she said.
Diocese of Maine Bishop-elect Thomas Brown
The Rev. Thomas Brown is due to be ordained and consecrated on June 22 as the next bishop of the Diocese of Maine. He is married to the Rev. Thomas Mousin. The diocese elected Brown on Feb. 9. A majority of bishops with jurisdiction and diocesan standing committees must consent to his ordination and consecration. The process of obtaining those canonically required consents (under Canon III.11.3 beginning on page 164 here) is underway.
Diocese of Toronto Bishop Suffragan Kevin Robertson
Robertson recently told ENS that Welby informed him in person in early February that Sharma would not be invited. Robertson and Sharma are the parents of two young children.
It is possible that Episcopal Church dioceses will elect bishops with same-sex spouses between now and the July 23, 2020, beginning of the Lambeth Conference.
Glasspool asked her colleagues in the house to consider that “spouses are autonomous people – they are not simply extensions of the bishops to whom they are married” and ought to be able to make their own decisions about Lambeth. Glasspool said she hoped that the House of Bishops would not try to speak for them but instead would “listen to their voices, individually, and to whatever degree they can speak collectively, as a group.”
“Second, I really believe that it is better to be at the table when you’re on the menu,” she said. “How will people come to see and know the love of Christ as it lives and bears fruit in the lives of married LGBT people if we are not at the table to bear witness to that love?”
As Glasspool began to make a third point, her voice caught. “I want my own life to be centered in the life, ministry, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, and I dare say you do, too. It is so easy, and at times very tempting, for me at least, to be drawn away from that center. So I’m asking your help to stay centered,” she said. “I’m keenly aware that the Way of Love is also the Way of the Cross. You all know this, too. The sacrificial aspect of Jesus’ love for us is also the most precious, and for that, and for all of you, I am eternally grateful.”
The House of Bishops is overwhelmingly a married house. Of 160 bishops who are active, full- or part-time, in a diocese or institution, only 16 are single, according to Bishop Todd Ousley, who oversees the church’s Office of Pastoral Development.
The bishops gave Glasspool a prolonged standing ovation. Before the closed session began, Curry told her that “the spirit of God that was upon Martin [Luther] King [Jr.] is upon you now.”
The Episcopal Church’s Executive Council on Feb. 24 asked the bishops and their spouses, and the House of Bishops collectively, “to prayerfully and carefully consider her/his/their response, choices and actions” in the light of what it calls the “troubling circumstances” of the decision to exclude same-sex spouses from the Lambeth Conference. Council unanimously approved a resolution that said it found the decision “inconsistent” with the positions of The Episcopal Church and with multiple statements of Anglican Communion entities that have urged the church to listen to the experiences LGBTQ persons.
An outward and visible sign of support by some bishops
Diocese of Idaho Bishop Brian Thom says he decided to attach a photo of Diocese of New York Bishop Assistant Mary Glasspool and her wife Becki Sander to his name badge as an “expression of love” for them and for all of the bishops’ spouses. Photo: Mary Frances Schjonberg/Episcopal News Service
From the beginning of the meeting, Diocese of Idaho Bishop Brian Thom has worn a photo of Glasspool and Sander on his name badge. It is an “expression of love” for them and appreciation for all bishops’ spouses, he told ENS.
Thom said other bishops have asked him about the photo that hangs below his name badge. Some have asked him for one to wear as well, while “others have observed them and thanked me for them,” but not asked for a copy, he said.
He told ENS that he downloaded the photo from the web and did not tell Glasspool beforehand what he was doing. As it happened, she was the first person he encountered when he first wore his name badge. She responded with a big hug, he said, and then took a photo of it to send to Sander.
“I know how much my spouse contributes to my ministry, makes it possible,” Thom said of his wife, Ardele. “It’s hard for me to imagine an invitation that does not include both partners.
“Every bishop here would say that they could not do what they do without their spouses in some way.”
Thom said, “The Anglican Communion is working out its conflict on the back of persons not responsible for the conflict.”
About the meeting’s agenda
The House of Bishops is meeting March 12-15 at Kanuga Conference and Retreat Center outside Hendersonville, North Carolina.
The gathering is the group’s annual spring meeting. The bishops normally meet each spring and fall during non-General Convention years.
They will close their time at Kanuga with a business meeting the afternoon of March 15.
The post Bishops consider response to Lambeth decision not to invite same-sex spouses to 2020 gathering appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
[14 de marzo de 2019] La obispa Mary D. Glasspool, asistente del obispo de la Diócesis Episcopal de Nueva York, compartió estos comentarios durante la sesión matutina del 14 de marzo en el retiro de la Cámara de los Obispos de La Iglesia Episcopal en Kanuga:
Comparto todo esto con ustedes para que puedan comenzar a imaginar el impacto cuando, de forma inesperada, recibí una carta personal del Arzobispo Justin el 4 de diciembre, cuya primera frase decía: Querida Obispa Mary, le escribo a usted directamente, ya que siento que le debo una explicación a mi decisión de no invitar a su cónyuge a la Conferencia de Lambeth, una decisión que, como bien sé, le causará dolor, lo cual lamento profundamente. La carta me recordó que La decisión sobre las invitaciones a la Conferencia de Lambeth la hace el Arzobispo de Canterbury.La carta incluía una invitación a que Becki y yo fuéramos al Palacio de Lambeth para hablar más sobre la decisión, si así lo deseábamos, y pedía mi comprensión, aunque no mi acuerdo con esta decisión. La carta fue copiada a + Andy Dietsche, + Michael Curry, y al Arzobispo Josiah Idowu-Fearon, Secretario General de la Comunión Anglicana.
Oh Dios de poder inmutable y luz eterna: mira con favor a toda tu Iglesia, ese maravilloso y sagrado misterio; por la operación eficaz de tu providencia, lleva a cabo en tranquilidad el plan de salvación; haz que todo el mundo vea y sepa que las cosas que han sido derribadas son levantadas, las cosas que han envejecido son renovadas, y que todas las cosas están siendo llevadas a su perfección, mediante aquel por quien fueron hechas, tu Hijo Jesucristo nuestro Señor: que vive y reina contigo, en la unidad del Espíritu Santo, un solo Dios, por los siglos de los siglos. Amén. BCP, p. 2o0
The post El Camino del Amor y Lambeth: La Obispa Mary D. Glasspool habla a la Cámara de los Obispos appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Thu, 03/14/2019 - 2:52pm
[14 de marzo, 2019] El Consejo Ejecutivo de La Iglesia Episcopal aprobó las recomendaciones de becas 2019 para Jóvenes adultos y Ministerio universitario durante la reunión de febrero en Oklahoma. Se otorgará un total de 133.150 dólares a 21 beneficiarios de becas de toda La Iglesia Episcopal.
Las becas para jóvenes adultos y para el ministerio universitario brindan fondos a las diócesis, las congregaciones y las comunidades de los colegios /tribales y los campus de colegios universitarios que están participando o buscan participar en el ministerio con jóvenes adultos dentro y fuera de los campus universitarios.
“Estas becas ayudan a La Iglesia Episcopal a vivir en una comprensión más amplia de lo que significa estar en el ministerio con jóvenes adultos dentro y fuera de los campus universitarios”, dijo la Reverenda Shannon Kelly, Directora de los Ministerios de Jóvenes Adultos y Universitarios. “Este es un ministerio en crecimiento, que muestra a la iglesia cómo participar en la misión y en el Movimiento de Jesús en formas nuevas e innovadoras”.
Se concedieron cinco becas para el ministerio del campus, cuatro becas para liderazgo, tres becas para proyectos y nueve becas para los jóvenes adultos a 19 diócesis. Las becas para el ministerio del campus proporcionan capital inicial para ayudar en la puesta en marcha de nuevos ministerios innovadores del campus o para mejorar un ministerio actual. Las becas de liderazgo establecen nuevos ministerios, restauran la inactividad o revitalizan los ministerios actuales del campus. Las becas para proyectos brindan dinero para un proyecto único que mejorará e impactará el campus o el ministerio de jóvenes adultos. Las becas para jóvenes adultos proveen dinero inicial para ayudar a la puesta en marcha de nuevos ministerios innovadores para jóvenes adultos o para mejorar los ministerios actuales.
Recipientes y proceso de revisión.
Se recibieron un total de 57 solicitudes de becas, de las cuales 19 fueron becas para el liderazgo, 16 becas para el ministerio del campus, cuatro becas para proyectos y 18 para el ministerio de jóvenes adultos. La petición de solicitudes totalizó más de 665,000 dólares.
Las solicitudes de becas fueron revisadas por un equipo que incluyó a los coordinadores provinciales para el ministerio del campus y a los líderes en el área del ministerio de jóvenes adultos. Las solicitudes fueron leídas por miembros del personal del Departamento de formación en la fe, así como por un miembro del Consejo Ejecutivo. Cada solicitud recibió una puntuación, así como comentarios de tres revisores. Todos los revisores se reunieron en persona (con una persona que se unió mediante video llamada) para discernir qué becas deberían financiarse. El equipo de revisión trabajó increíblemente duro y fielmente para discernir cada solicitud y la Oficina de formación está profundamente agradecida por su dedicación y trabajo duro.
Becas para el ministerio de campus
Todos los Santos’ @ La Mesa, Diócesis Episcopal de Arkansas, Provincia VII, 4.800 dólares
Canterbury @ Plymouth, Diócesis Episcopal de New Hampshire, Provincia I, 3.400 dólares
Beca episcopal y luterana en el Campus de Macon, Diócesis Episcopal de Atlanta, Provincia IV, 4.850 dólares
Ministerio del campus episcopal en la Universidad de Carolina del Norte, Asheville, Diócesis Episcopal del Oeste de Carolina del Norte, Provincia IV, 3.700 dólares
Futuros fieles: puesto de escucha, Iglesia Episcopal en Connecticut, Provincia I, 5.000 dólares
Becas para el liderazgo
Pastoral Universitaria – Iglesia Episcopal Puertorriqueña, Diócesis Episcopal de Puerto Rico, Provincia IX, 30.000 dólares
Georgia Tech, Diócesis Episcopal de Georgia, Provincia IV, 14.000 dólares
Capellanía de la Universidad de Pittsburgh, Diócesis Episcopal de Pittsburgh, Provincia III, 14.000 dólares
El Ministerio del Campus Episcopal de San Lucas y la Biblioteca de U R Loved, Diócesis Episcopal de Fort Worth, Provincia VII, 14.000 dólares
Becas para proyectos
Diócesis Episcopal del Norte de Michigan / Canterbury House, Diócesis del Norte de Michigan, Provincia V, 1.000 dólares
Ministerio del campus episcopal en la Universidad de Rutgers, Diócesis Episcopal de Nueva Jersey, Provincia II, 900 dólares
Iglesia Episcopal de San Juan, Diócesis Episcopal de Ohio, Provincia V, 1.000 dólares
Becas para el ministerio de jóvenes adultos
3er lugar – Un ministerio para jóvenes adultos de la Diócesis Episcopal de Carolina del Norte Occidental y el Ministerio presbiteriano del campus episcopal en la Universidad Estatal de los Apalaches, Diócesis Episcopal de Carolina del Norte, Provincia IV, 2.500,00 dólares
Amado en el desierto, Diócesis Episcopal de Arizona, Provincia VIII, 5.000,00 dólares
Comunidades emergentes, Diócesis Episcopal de El Camino Real, Provincia VIII, 4.000,00 dólares
Campamentos episcopales y centros de conferencias, Diócesis Episcopal de Virginia, Provincia III, 5.000,00 dólares
Cuerpo de Servicio Johnson, Diócesis Episcopal de Carolina del Norte, Provincia IV, 3.000,00 dólares
La vida juntos, Diócesis Episcopal de Massachusetts, Provincia I, 5.000,00 dólares
Ministerio de Jóvenes Adultos Marquette, Diócesis Episcopal del Norte de Michigan, Provincia V, 5.000,00
Plainsong Farm & Ministry, Diócesis Episcopal del Oeste de Michigan, Provincia V, 3.000,00 dólares
Iglesia Episcopal de Santo Tomás – Dinner church, Diócesis Episcopal de Nueva Jersey, Provincia II, 4.000,00 dólares
Para más información, diríjase a Kelly, skelly@episcopalchurch.org.
The post 133.150 dólares otorgados en becas para el Ministerio de Jóvenes adultos y el Universitario appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Thu, 03/14/2019 - 2:46pm
[14 de marzo de 2019] La Cámara de los Obispos de La Iglesia Episcopal se reunirá en retiro en el Centro de Conferencias Kanuga, Hendersonville, NC. En la Eucaristía inaugural del 12 de marzo, el Reverendo Ricardo Bailey, capellán de la Cámara de los Obispos, dirigió a la congregación en las Oraciones de los fieles, escritas especialmente para esta reunión, con reconocimiento y oraciones por la Reverendísima Barbara Harris, celebrante, y por David Booth Beers, Canciller del Obispo Presidente, Emérito.
Estas oraciones se comparten aquí:
EUCARISTÍA DE APERTURA DE LA CÁMARA DE LOS OBISPOS
CAMPAMENTO KANUGA, CAROLINA DEL NORTE
CAPELLÁN: Llamados, como todos estamos, a dar a Jesús al mundo, nos reunimos en fe, como Iglesia en oración, pidiendo a nuestro Dios misericordioso que escuche nuestras necesidades y las necesidades de todos los que nos pidieron que les recordáramos en nuestras oraciones:
En acción de gracias a Dios por el testimonio y el ministerio de La Iglesia Episcopal y el de la Comunión Anglicana, especialmente cuando observamos y agradecemos a Dios por la Obispa Barbara Harris, la primera mujer ordenada obispo en esta Iglesia y en esta Comunión el 11 de febrero de 1989 ¡Que esta observancia de su 30º aniversario de la ordenación renueve su llamado a ser un apóstol a medida que continúa liberando corazones y transformando las mentes para que todos puedan celebrar la efusión del Espíritu de Dios en todos nosotros!
¡Oremos al Señor! R /. ¡Señor, escucha nuestra oración!
Que al observar y celebrar el don de las mujeres, durante este mes de marzo, tengamos siempre la buena intención de celebrar los dones de cada mujer, creadas a imagen y semejanza de nuestro Dios, para anunciar la Buena Nueva a un mundo que necesita una Palabra del Señor. ¡Que Dios bendiga a las mujeres que sirven en nuestra Iglesia en el laicado, en la vida religiosa y monástica, en el diaconado, en el presbiterado y en el episcopado: que sigan sosteniendo, alimentando y capacitando a nuestro mundo para que se vean como Dios nos ve!
POR LOS OPRIMIDOS, AFLIGIDOS O EN NECESIDAD
Por todos los que sufren injusticia a manos de otros; recordemos especialmente las almas cuya dignidad y derecho a la vida no se respetan ni se protegen, especialmente a las que sufren por la “industria” del tráfico sexual humano; que el legado justo y el alma santa de Harriet Tubman inspiren a hombres y mujeres a trabajar para poner fin a todas las formas de esclavitud moderna, opresión y falta de respeto a la dignidad humana.
POR LAS NECESIDADES DE LA COMUNIDAD LOCAL.
Que el Señor, que nos llama a todos por nuestro nombre, nos capacite e inspire a todos a continuar construyendo la relevancia y el lugar de Dios en cada aspecto de nuestras vidas. Por aquellos que consideran que nuestro ministerio es ofensivo o incluso amenazador, que el Espíritu Santo libere cada corazón endurecido y transforme cada mente cerrada para ver el bien que hacen los discípulos humildes de Jesús, todos los días en nuestras comunidades locales.
POR LA ASAMBLEA CRISTIANA
Para que celebremos con profunda gratitud el trabajo, el ministerio, el fiel testimonio de nuestro hermano, David Booth Beers, Canciller del Obispo Presidente, que cumplió fielmente con este rol durante 27 años, que experimente paz de mente y corazón al embarcarse en el siguiente capítulo de su vida que Dios tiene reservado para él.
Que Dios, que es fiel, levante y restaure a la promesa de la Vida Nueva a cada obispo de esta cámara y, más allá, a quienes nos hayan precedido, marcados con el signo de la fe. ¡Que tengan la paz y el descanso eternos y que sus oraciones se unan a la Comunión de los Santos que continuamente interceden por el bien de la Iglesia todos los días!
POR LAS ORACIONES EN NUESTROS CORAZONES
Que cada oración que traemos a esta reunión de hoy, las dichas y no dichas, sean contestadas de acuerdo a la voluntad, al propósito y al plan de nuestro Dios que siempre conoce nuestras necesidades incluso antes de que las pidamos.
OBISPO: Dios Todopoderoso, que conoces nuestras necesidades antes de que las pidamos: ayúdanos a pedir solo lo que concuerda con tu voluntad; y las cosas buenas que no nos atrevemos, o en nuestra ceguera, no podemos pedir, concédenoslas por el bien de tu Hijo, Jesucristo nuestro Señor. ¡Amén!
The post Cámara Episcopal de los Obispos marzo de 2019: Oraciones de los fieles, Eucaristía de apertura, 12 de marzo de 2019 appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Archbishop of Cape Town honored for work combating poverty and promoting education
Thu, 03/14/2019 - 2:28pm
[Anglican Communion News Service] The British international affairs organization FIRST has given its 2019 Responsible Capitalism Advocacy Award to Archbishop Thabo Makgoba for his work in establishing a trust to combat poverty and promote educational skills. The Secretary General of the Anglican Communion Josiah Idowu-Fearon, collected the award on Thabo’s behalf from the Princess Royal, Princess Anne, during a reception in the historic Lancaster House in London, a former royal palace.
The post Archbishop of Cape Town honored for work combating poverty and promoting education appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
President of Mauritius bestows country’s highest honor on Bishop Ian Ernest
Thu, 03/14/2019 - 2:25pm
[Anglican Communion News Service] Bishop of Mauritius Ian Ernest, former primate of the Indian Ocean, has been made Grand Commander of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean (GCSK). The award is the highest rank or distinction of Mauritius’ honor. The award was made by President Barlen Vyapoory on the advice of the country’s Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth and announced on March 12, the National Day in Mauritius. This year’s celebrations marked the 51st anniversary of the nation’s independence. Ernest is now entitled to use the prefix “The Honorable,” and the post-nominal initials GCSK.
The post President of Mauritius bestows country’s highest honor on Bishop Ian Ernest appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
Archbishop Welby warns against ‘cultural imperialism’ in evangelism to other faiths
Thu, 03/14/2019 - 2:21pm
[Anglican Communion News Service] Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has warned against “cultural imperialism” and called for Christians to be sensitive and seek genuine dialogue when witnessing to those of other faiths. He made his comments when delivering the annual Deo Gloria Lecture, hosted by the London School of Theology, at Lambeth Palace March 13. The archbishop warned against making evangelism a product in a marketplace or an expression of cultural superiority.
The post Archbishop Welby warns against ‘cultural imperialism’ in evangelism to other faiths appeared first on Episcopal News Service.
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