Risen

The Convention Issue

Fall 2011

COVER PHOTO: Bishop Wolf at St. Michael’s, Bristol. Taken by Ruth Meteer

RISENRhode Island’s Source for Episcopal NewsThe Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island275 North Main Street, Providence, RI 02903Phone: (401) 274-4500 Fax: (401) 331-9430www.episcopalri.org

Publisher: The Rt. Rev. Geralyn Wolf, Bishop of RI Editor in Chief: Ruth Meteer, Communications Officer Art Direction and Design: Ruth Meteer, Communications Officer

Copy Editors: Liz Crawley, Executive Assistant to the BishopGloria Williams, Administration/Reception Printer: Graphic Developments, Hanover, MA

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2012 Camp Dates :

Teen Camp - July 1-6 grades 7-9Music Camp - July 8-13, grades 7-12Older Children - July 15-20, grades 5-6Nature Camp - July 22-25, grades 6-8Younger Children - July 30-Aug 3, grades 2-4Camper’s choice - August 5-10 , grades 7-11Summer’s End - August 12-17, grades 7-11For more info: visit www.ECCRI.org email summerregistrar@ECCRI.org or call ECC at 401-568-4055

EPISCOPAL CAMP AND CONFERENCE CENTER

2 RISEN / Fall 2011

ContentsFEATURESConvention Introduction 14When, where, why, and how

Convention Resolution 15Convention is just around the corner. Be sure you

know what you think, why, and be sure that your

delegates know how to represent you well.

Convention Nominations 18Learn a little more about those who have been nomi-

nated to take positions as the future leaders of this

diocese.

Into the Wardrobe 20An exploration into the land of ecclesiastical garb

with Dean Krauss and the Cathedral’s Closet

COLUMNSOpenings 4

From the Bishop 5 Body Building 6

Christian Formation 7

NewsBriefs 8Episcopal Charities 8

Bishop Search 9AFRECS Conference 10

Mission Task Force 11Health Ministry 13

Episcopal Life 28

Postlude 34

20

11

14

9

13

Fall 2011 / RISEN 3

At the Round Earth’s Imagined Corners (Holy Sonnet 7)

by John Donne

At the round earth’s imagined corners, blow

Your trumpets, angels, and arise, arise

From death, you numberless infinities

Of souls, and to your scattered bodies go,

All whom the flood did, and fire shall, o’erthrow,

All whom war, dearth, age, agues, tyrannies,

Despair, law, chance, hath slain, and you whose eyes,

Shall behold God, and never taste death’s woe.

But let them sleep, Lord, and me mourn a space;

For, if above all these, my sins abound,

‘Tis late to ask abundance of thy grace,

When we are there. Here on this lowly ground,

Teach me how to repent; for that’s as good

As if thou’hadst seal’d my pardon with thy blood.

4 RISEN / Fall 2011

Council of Chalcedon (451) delineat-ed the two natures and one person of Christ: human and divine.

In attendance at the Council of Nicea (325 AD) were 380 bishops, plus the Emperor Constantine. In our church and time, we gather as laity and the three orders of the church: bishop(s), priests, and deacons. In addition, they gathered for two months and 12 days! In comparison, gathering for an eve-ning and one day is quite a relief!

The early ecumenical councils were held in response to significant ques-tions of faith and doctrine. While we ask many important questions today,

our conversations are not of the same depth. We are called upon to report on our common life in this diocese, ad-dressing mission, ministry, programs, budget, and pri-marily those things

which effect our local part of the wider church. We do not determine doctrine or church teaching, but we participate in the decision making of the broader church that meets in General Con-vention every three years. The next convention is in Indianapolis in July, 2012.

In preparation for our convention in November, a series of presentations has been made by the Program and Budget Committee, a resolution has been sub-mitted, and various nominations have

been made for participation on the “councils” of the Church.

However, as our decisions effect the local body, we must never forget that we are part of The Episcopal Church and the wider Anglican Communion. It is im-portant for us to recognize our responsibilities to and our partic-ipation in a wider community of believers who are our sisters and brothers in the faith.

On Friday night of our conven-tion, we gather to celebrate the Holy Eucharist, where we receive the Body and Blood of Christ, so that when we gather for the tem-poral work of the church, we will have the strength to focus our labors in union with Christ and his will.

Yours Faithfully

OThis call is part of the Bish-op’s examination of a person who is about to be ordained

to the priesthood. It reveals the colle-gial nature that priests share with their bishop{s} in the decision making bod-ies of the church, and it is the duty of every priest to participate when called upon or elected to a position of trust.

The examination of those entering the diaconate does not include this call, nor does the Baptismal Covenant. However, promises are made to engage in the action that councils convey. The ministry of servant-hood, the com-mitment to Eucharistic fellowship and prayer, and the keeping and proclama-tion of the gospel mes-sage are common to all the faithful.

There were seven great Ecumenical Councils of the church, begin-ning with the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD and ending with the Second Council of Nicaea in 787 AD. They attempted to reach an orthodox consensus and to establish a unified Christendom as the State Church of the Roman Empire. The first four are particularly helpful for our basic un-derstanding of the faith.

The First Council of Nicaea gave us the Nicene Creed; the First Council of Constantinople (381 AD) clarified the Doctrine of the Trinity; the First Council of Ephesus (431) proclaimed Mary as Mother of God; and the

From The Bishop

It is important for us to recognize

our responsibilities to and our participation in

a wider community of believers who are

our sisters and brothers in the faith.

“Now you are called to...take your share in the councils of the Church.”

Fall 2011 / RISEN 5

Openings

The Apostle St. Paul says in Chapter 12:4-5 of his Epistle to the Romans:

For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.

In today’s culture of individual-ism, the idea that we are parts of a whole from which we take our meaning and purpose may seem strange, but in my experience, it is clear that we are indeed meant to be dependent upon and inter-woven with each other in order to do God’s work in the world.

If we unpack that concept of the church a bit further, we need to acknowledge that the church - whether we think of our own church community, the Diocese, The Episcopal Church or, in fact, the whole of Christendom - is not an organization or institution but an organism infused with life and spirit.

So, we are both individually and cor-porately part of the larger whole that is Christ’s living body which exists to make God’s kingdom visible here on earth by doing Christ’s work of rec-onciliation so that all may experience God’s inestimable love.

Is that what YOUR church is all about?

When I ask this question as I visit in churches around the diocese, the answer is usually something like this: How can God expect us to do all this ‘extra work’ when we have di-minished financial resources, aging buildings and fewer members to take care of it all? It takes just about all we have just to keep the doors open, and we can no longer af-ford to have a priest except on Sun-days. Without a minister, how can we be expected to do anything more?

My friends, I’ve had this conversation all too often with leaders in our con-gregations. These are hardworking and good people who are exhausting themselves just to keep on doing what they have always done with fewer re-sources. The difficult and deflating work of survival in an increasingly hostile environment is life-draining and dulls our ability to think creatively about other options.

If we are truly one body and our wor-shipping community is just one part of the body of Christ, dependent on and intertwined with the other parts, how is it that we don’t work together to en-able God’s work to be done?

When was the last time you sat down with folks from your neighboring churches and talked about what it takes to be the church today? Have you listened to their story and been willing to name both your joys and concerns? Have you heard their ex-citement about their ministries which serve those in need around them?

Have you dreamed together about how you could make a difference in your area? Have you thought and prayed about what might be standing in your way?

I am excited about the energy and ideas that are arising from such conversations. The amaz-ing thing that comes from these gath-erings is the acknowledgement that we can do more together! We can think outside the box and risk trying some-thing new in partnership with others. For example, the Vestries of the four Episcopal churches in Cranston have been meeting together monthly to talk about how to be the Episcopal Church in Cranston as well as to support one another and to provide added energy for their ministries to Cranston. God only knows where these conversations will lead, but I am gladdened by their willingness to minister collaboratively.

This is what being the Body of Christ is about! God invites us to use all that we have by working together, sharing joys and challenges and making the best use of all our “parts” to do God’s work.

By Betsy Fornal, Canon for Congregations and Clergy

BODY BUILDING:congregational d e v e l o p m e n t

God invites us to use

all that we have by working together,

sharing joys and challenges and making the best use

of all our “parts” to do God’s work.

6 RISEN / Fall 2011

Openings

David’s-on-the-Hill, Cran-ston

Ordinations/Celebra-tions of New Ministry• Patrick Campbell was or-

dained deacon on October 8, 2011, by Bishop Wolf at the Cathedral of St. John.

• John Higginbotham will be ordained priest on October 18, 2011, by Bishop Wolf at St. Luke’s Church. John is serving as Assistant to the Rector at St. Luke’s.

Churches in Self Study • St. David’s-on-the-Hill, Cranston• All Saints’ Memorial, Providence• Transfiguration, Cranston• Trinity, Cranston• Christ Church, Westerly• Emmanuel Church, Cumberland• Christ Church, Lincoln• St. Augustine’s, KingstonReceiving Names• St. Elizabeth’s, Hope Valley, Vicar• St. Columba’s, Middletown

• St. Luke’s, East Greenwich• St. Paul’s, WickfordRecent Calls• Beth Sherman, called as Rector of St.

Francis in San Francisco, CA• Jennifer Phillips, called as Rector of

St. Francis in Rio Rancho, NM• Scott Gunn, Executive Director, For-

ward Movement, Cincinnati, OH• Melody Shobe, Assistant to the Rec-

tor, Emmanuel, Cumberland• Peter Lane, Interim Rector at St.

I have had the privilege of meeting with, training with, and conferring with many of you as we begin another Christian Formation program year. Thanks to all of you. I am grateful to serve with you.

I want to announce some exciting news for all of our congregations. For a number of years now, our diocese has held a license for the Journey to Adulthood program through Leader

Resources. This license has enabled all of our congregations if they choose to access all of the J2A materials at no ad-ditional cost to the parish, for use in their Christian formation program-ming for youth. Many of you have made good use of this license, and some of you have used the solid les-son plans creatively as teacher training and/or adult programming.

Leader Resources, while recognizing the wonderful support to Christian formation and ministry with youth that Journey to Adulthood provides, knew it was time to update and up-grade their materials as well as the services they offer to parishes and dio-ceses. They established a new license attached to what they have named The Center for Youth Ministry. This li-cense provides access to the Journey to Adulthood materials, and many more.

Recognizing that not all of our con-gregations have felt the materials in J2A to be what they need for program-ming, The Diocese of RI has upgraded our license to the one for The Center for Youth Ministry. All of our congre-gations are identified to Leader Re-

sources as users of this license. Parish leaders just need to log on at www.leaderresources.org , reg-ister your church, as part of this license. You will be asked to cre-ate your own password and you can begin downloading some of the wonderful materials avail-able.

I encourage you to log on and browse through some of the ma-terials, which along with J2A, also includes introductory ma-terials, Confirmation prepara-tion, mission projects and pro-grams, information on youth retreats and trips, intergenera-tional and parent materials and other Middle School programs to name a few. I think you will find this most helpful in your ministries and I hope you are as pleased with it as I am. As al-ways, please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, and know that the staff at Leader Resources is always very helpful if you find you need to call them directly

Notes From Christian Formation

By Mary Ann Kolakowski Director of Christian Formation

Clergy Transitions

Fall 2011 / RISEN 7

Openings

Episcopal Charities Update

By The Rev. Dcn ricky Brightman

One day Buddy said “Oh, my foot hurts. That blister just won’t heal”.

He was limping badly, but when I told him to try bigger shoes or go to a doctor he said he didn’t have any insurance. I suggested he try The Rhode Island Free Clinic.

Later on I ran into Buddy again and he told me this story:

“I went to the clinic. My number was drawn from a lottery and I went right in. I Filled out some forms and had a complete physi-cal, not just a look-see at my feet. It was bad because blood tests re-vealed that I have diabetes and need to watch out for blisters and other skin problems that do not heal. All at no cost I got my blis-ter treated, a follow-up appoint-ment, and advice about getting shoes that really fit. Thanks.”

2011 campaign updateThanks to our hard working volun-teers and our generous donors for their support and commitment to helping people living on the edge. If you have not made a contribution yet, please be prayerful about what a difference your generosity canmake for so many in Rhode Island. By reaching our goal, we can all know that, as a Diocese, we give hope and opportunity to those who live in desperate situations.

Progress – As of September 15 we have reached $300,000 of our $450,000 Goal – 67%.

Ways to Give:• Donate online at

www.episcopalri.org/charities

• Respond when contacted by our parish representative

• Send your donation with your name, address, phone # and parish to 275 North Main Street, Providence, RI 02903

RHODE ISLAND FREE CLINICOver 140,000 state residents pres-ently live without health insurance. The RI Free Clinic is located at 655 Broad Street in Providence and is the only resource for uninsured Rhode Island adults seeking comprehensive health care. In 2010, the Clinic had more than 6,000 patient visits, and all patients are uninsured. Nearly half have jobs that do not provide health insurance and can’t afford to purchase it elsewhere.

The clinic is staffed by professional medical workers and numerous vol-unteers who provide primary care ser-vices as well as diagnostic, laboratory services, and even a free pharmacy. Through a physician’s network, pa-tients see doctors in their offices and receive the same care and attention as everyone else, free of charge.

The clinic also offers specialty care for patients seeking help with chronic conditions, such as diabetes, depres-sion, hypertension, and obesity. There is follow-up and and wellness counsel-ing in a wellness center with a teach-

ing kitchen, exercise space, and mental health counseling rooms.

Peggy Amatore and Ricky Brightman visited the Clinic in June as part of a regular site visit. Each subsequently referred a friend who needed medical care. Both men appeared at the clinic the following Thursday with necessary paperwork to take part in the monthly lottery. Both were accepted and now have a medical home.

www.rifreeclinic.org Comprehensive medical care for uninsured adults – supported by Episcopal Charities.

8 RISEN / Fall 2011

NewsBriefs

By Dave Seifert, Search Committee

The search for the 13th Bishop of Rhode Island has shifted from the development of our

story to assessment of potential candi-dates.

The Search & Nomination Commit-tee posted the diocesan profile in early October on its blog (www.episcopal-risearch.org). The document tells our story as a diocese, defines our strengths and challenges, and describes the char-acteristics we are looking for in our next bishop.

“We’re excited about the profile,” says Lora MacFall, chair of the Search & Nomination Committee and a mem-ber of St. Andrew’s, Little Compton. “People throughout the diocese gave us thoughtful and passionate com-ments, especially about their hopes and dreams for the future. We are con-fident the profile will help us attract a group of strong candidates.”

Drawing on input provided by Rhode Island Episcopalians in an online sur-vey and series of listening sessions, the committee identified five specific strengths and skills it will seek in po-tential candidates.

Visionary leadership was the most im-portant attribute identified; along with an effective, compassionate pastor to both clergy and lay leaders; the abil-ity to foster ministries and programs that create healthy, growing churches; The ability to speak with clarity and to make the Gospel relevant in people’s lives; and a group of personal skills. We hope for a strong communicator who has deep integrity, relates well to oth-ers, is deeply spiritual and prayerful, and has a sense of humor.

Based on those characteristics, the committee issued a clear call to candi-dates, saying that the diocese is seeking A compassionate, approachable, and wise shepherd who has the capacity to love the quirky, independent, pas-sionate people of Rhode Island: the people who have been in our churches for gen-erations, the peo-ple who have just found our churches, and the people who are not yet in our churches with whom we are called to share the transformative, reconciling love of God.

We seek a visionary who exercises ener-getic, creative and inspiring leadership to call us to our better selves, pointing a clear path ahead while recognizing and making use of the gifts and skills of others.

We seek a reconciler who appreciates and honors the diversity we bring as individuals and parishes while con-sistently reminding us of our shared

profile outlines what we seek in our next bishop

identity in Christ.

We seek a prayerful person of integrity, sound judgment and wisdom who will remind us of our highest calling as disciples of Jesus.

We seek a deeply and persistently hopeful partner in ministry who, like us, sees our challenges as op-portunities and is deeply rooted in the belief that “with God all things are possible.”

The committee is accepting nominations through Oct. 28; nominees must have all applica-tion materials submitted by Nov. 18. At that point, the commit-tee will evaluate all candidates

and deter-mine which of them will move on to Skype in t e r v i ews (computer-to-computer video con-ferences).

After com-pleting those

initial conversations, the com-mittee will send interview teams to parishes of selected candidates in early 2012.

The Skype and onsite interviews will be used to determine a group of semifinalists who will spend a weekend meeting with the com-mittee in late February, prior to the announcement of the slate of finalists in March.

Check the Bishop Search Process blog (www.episcopalrisearch.org) for updates throughout the process.

The diocese is seeking A compassionate,

approachable, and wise shepherd

who has the capacity to love the quirky, independent,

passionate people of Rhode Island:

Fall 2011 / RISEN 9

NewsBriefs

As of July 9th, The Republic of South Sudan is the newest democratic nation in the world. Voters elected for separa-tion from the north this past January by a margin of 98% to 2%. The South Sudan is also now the 193rd mem-ber of the United Nations, and stands poised to grasp a new and democratic future of far greater hope and prosper-ity than they have ever known.

Over 150 partici-pants attended the three day AFRECS conference, including the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, The Rt. Rev. Katherine Jefferts Schori. She brought with her a freshly passed reso-lution from Executive Council, calling for all of the Church to work as strong

companion diocese committee at afrecs conference on the s. sudan

advocates for this new nation and for the cessation of the violence that has broken out; violence that has been in-stigated by the north.

Presenters such as Dane F. Smith, Jr. Senior Advisor for Darfur in the Of-fice of the Special Envoy to Sudan; and Alan F. Gouty, a career British diplomat and former UK ambassador to Special Representative to Sudan ad-dressed the conference on the history of the Sudan and future prospects for peace. Mr. Smith told the group that he meets weekly in the Whitehouse on the situation in Sudan.

Progress reports from many other dio-ceses in both the Episcopal Church and the Church of England detailed the strides being made in companion diocese relationships. Successful ini-tiatives exist in several areas includ-ing healthcare, education, diplomacy, peacemaking, advocacy, and more.

At the closing forum, held on Saturday afternoon, the participants gathered to share the inspiring impressions that they had garnered from the confer-

ence’s meetings, presentations and workshops.

Coincidentally, at the invitation of Senator Shel-don Whitehouse, Bishop Wolf trav-elled to Wash-ington on July 14th to open the Senate session in

prayer and visit with RI’s congressio-nal delegation to advocate strongly on behalf of Rhode Island’s companions in the South Sudan.

calling for all of the Church

to work as strong advocates for this new nation

and for the cessation of the violence

that has broken out; violence that has been instigated

by the north.

By Tom Bair, Ezo Chair

This past summer, Mary Ann Kolakowski and Tom Bair of the Diocese of Rhode Island traveled to the annual conference of the American Friends of the Episcopal Church of the Sudan to support Rhode Island’s Companion Dio-cese relationship with the South Sudanese Diocese of Ezo. Mary-ann is RI’s Director of Christian Formation and Tom Bair, who is Bishop Wolf ’s husband, chairs the Companion Diocese Committee.

AFRECS meets yearly to educate and share best practices among those who are vitally interested in this dynamic part of the church, and this year’s gathering in Rich-mond VA was especially impor-tant as the South Sudan’s date to become a country separate from the north was approaching.

10 RISEN / Fall 2011

NewsBriefs

10

The Mission Task Force is alive and well and concentrating on developing and enriching the Mission Focus of “Feeding the Hungry”. We are a small working group that represents a diver-sity of churches in our diocese.

Throughout this past year we com-municated with parishes about what activities they are engaged in and are doing well. We also endeavored to dis-cern unmet needs and challenges. Parishes and ves-tries participated in lively and some-times unexpected discussions. Some parishes focused on identifying various hungers as they perceived them, while others reported on work they were do-ing in their own communities.

We heard that people in the Diocese of Rhode Island hunger to know God in a deeper way and for personal spiritual development - through worship – as we learn more. Episcopalians hunger for fellowship, conversation, commu-nity; to contribute and to share in the

ministry of the Church. People hun-ger to find ways to address the needs of those who live in poverty and to reach out to people who are hurting or ex-periencing change. We want to find ways for youth to make a difference. And finally, we hunger to find ways to change the system.

We found that most parishes work ef-fectively to feed the physical hungers of their community, and are creatively exploring ways to address spiritual hunger through worship, pastoral care, and education. Traditional activities abound with food

pantries, soup kitchens, and thrift shops. Small groups make prayer shawls. Youth engage in Mission Trips and participate in Crop and Hunger Walks.

Now, more than ever, people recognize different needs and enthusiastically look to find ways to solve the prob-lems. Food stamps running out at the end of the month = the start of a Sun-

day breakfast program. Growing unemployment = distribution of food and clothing gift cards. Young mothers who cannot at-tend regular church activities = starting their own bible study. Episcopalians create a commu-nity garden in an unused space beyond the parking lot, donate new prayer books to a church that lost theirs in a fire, and make regular financial donations to re-build Haiti and New Orleans.

The Mission Task Force has been given the privilege of planning Convocation 2012. This event will be held on two days, March 9 and 10. We are planning a program that will engage us all in our efforts to feed the people we encounter in our daily lives and parish communities. We hope to recognize good old ideas, explore new ones, provide a forum for sharing, and inspire all to move forward as “Episcopalians Feed-ing the Hungry”.

For up-to-date information visit us on www.episcopalri.org/Mis-sionTaskForce. You can also email Frbill@cox.net to subscribe to our monthly electronic newsletter, or speak personally with one of the following Mission Task Force Members: Ricky Brightman, St. Luke’s in East Greenwich; Buck Close, St. George’s in Central Falls; Bill Locke, St. Paul’s in Pawtucket; Jennifer Pedrick, Epiphany in East Providence; Modesta Pellot, St. George’s in Central Falls; Melody Shobe, Emmanuel in Cumber-land; and Susan Wright from As-cension in Cranston.

We hope to recognize good old ideas,

explore new ones, provide a forum for sharing,

and inspire all to move forward as “Episcopalians

Feeding the Hungry”.

mission task force update;episcopalians do feed the hungry

Fall 2011 / RISEN 11

NewsBriefs

In the seminal work Faith in the Future, Professor Harold Koenig M.D. and Doug-

las M. Lawson, PhD predicted that within the aging population of baby boomers, more people will be turning to their churches for help with needs.* As this is written, churches face such cases with increased frequency.

The present economy and cut-backs in many social programs have left the church as the place to which the aged turn for heal-ing; for whole, integrated care of the body, mind, and spirit. To meet this need, the Episcopal Church has a Health Ministry program which has already been implemented in some Rhode Is-land Parishes.

In the program, a Parish Nurse professional and/or Parish Health Ministry team acts on

behalf of the recipient, and can give holistic spirit care, by acting as health educator, referring one to resources, assisting as a referral agent, advocating and developing support groups. The message is one of hope.

Anne McCarthy, a Registered Nurse who used the health ministry curricu-lum at St. Michael’s in Bristol for 9 years and Grace church in Providence for 3, sees a grander vision for this ministry in Rhode Island. She hopes to establish a deanery based program so all parish-es, even those with limited resources, can still reap the benefits of a health ministry as needs increase.

At Grace Church, Anne set up a Health Ministry Team composed of interested professionals and nonprofessionals to

assess the faith community’s needs. Over time, through visits in the home, hospital and nursing home, a positive change occurred for some in the par-ish community. Different churches are different in needs.

People who formerly suffered from iso-lation and lack of socialization began to trust and open up as Anne and the Health Ministry Team cared for them. Relationships grew with time, and as parishioners shared stories about hurt, loss, guilt, courage and faith, recipi-ents came to recognize that they were still part of a faith community which shares their suffering, offers support, renewal and remembrance in prayer.

On the deanery level, clergy will be in-troduced to the program and explore the possibilities for Health Ministry partnerships with other churches in the immediate area. A Diocesan Health Ministry Team has been formed to assist with this and make resources available to those who seek to form a program. So far, members are the Rev. Mary Korte, Church of the Transfigu-ration; the Rev. David Ames, All Saints

in Providence; Rev. Dcn. Robin Higbie, Chaplain at Kent County Hospital; and Louisa Jones, St. Michael’s in Bris-tol. Join this team to help bring strength

and wholistic healing to Rhode Island congregations in these times of rapid change.

To get inviolved contact: Anne Mc-Carthy RN FCN, evenings at 401-944-3435 or capris1103@hotmail.com.

* Page 15, Faith in the Future London: Templeton Foundation Press, 2004.

all parishes, even those

with limited resources, can still reap the benefits

of a health ministry as needs increase.

envisioning health ministryin rhode island By anne mccarthy

12 RISEN / Fall 2011

NewsBriefs

Scenes

1

65

7

32

4

AROUND THE DIOCESE1 Summer camp at ECC. 2 The wa-terfront at ECC. 3 MaryAnn Kola-kowski and Tom Bair of the Com-panion Diocese Committee at an AFRECS conference raising aware-ness of our companions in Ezo in the South Sudan. 4 Bishop Wolf with Brother John at Taize in France on

AND MOREthe annual diocesan pilgrim-age. 5 Ringing the bell at ECC Summer Camp. 6 A Chorister at the RSCM Summer Course at Salve Regina University in Newport. 7 RSCM Summer Course rehersal in Newport .

Fall 2011 / RISEN 13

NewsBriefs

CONVENTION CALENDAR

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 116:00pm Opening Eucharist

followed by a collation.St. Luke’s Church, East Greenwich

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 12Business Meeting: 9:00am – 4:00pm Check-in opens

at 7:30am Includes Continental Breakfast and Lunch

The Marriott Downtown, One Orms Street, Providence, RI

Throughout Convention weekend, Friends of the Groom will be participating in the worship. Friends of the Groom is a nonprofit performing arts minis-try that reveals the Gospel of Jesus Christ through

drama, storytelling, and music.

Each Parish in the Diocese of

Rhode Island has a few delegates

to our Diocesan Convention, which will

meet November 12th to vote on the resolu-

tion and nominations included in the following

pages. Why do you need to know what reso-

lutions there are and who these nominees are?

Because they will affect your parish life, and

through your parish delegates you have a vote.

Unlike The Episcopal Church’s General Con-

vention, our Diocesan Convention has Clergy

members and lay Delegates, not Deputies. Del-

egates are required to vote as representatives of

their Parish, so make sure you are being cor-

rectly represented. Read the following resolu-

tion which was submitted to this year, and let

your Parish’s delegates know what you’d like

to see happen, and even what you wouldn’t.

THE EPISCOPAL DIOCESE OF RHODE ISLAND

2011 DIOCESAN CONVENTION

Proposal to Revise Canon 10.7 and Add New Canon 10.810.7. Conversion of Parish to Mission

(a) If, after notice to the parish and opportunity to be heard, the Bishop, with the advice and consent of and the Standing Committee shall have determined that any par-ish:

i. is unable to support a rector full time;

ii. fails to provide financial support necessary for the spiritual program of the parish;

iii. Ffails adequately to insure and maintain its parish property;

iv. fails to shall provide a pro-portionate share of the expenses of the Diocese in the manner described in Canon 14.2; or

v. Ffails to observe in a significant manner the Con-stitution and Canons of The Episcopal Church and of the Diocese;

and that such condition is not of a temporary or insignifi-cant nature, the parish shall, at the request of the Bishop, may require the Parish to surrender its all rights and privileges as an organized parish and, become at such date specified by the Bishop, convert to an organized mission upon such terms as the Bishop and Standing Committee shall prescribe.

(b) Upon termination of its parish status as a parish, the parish, if so requested by the Bishop, shall forthwith take

the steps necessary to transfer to the Diocese of Rhode Island, all of its tangible and intangible property of the par-ish to be held, managed or disposed of transferred in such manner as the Bishop and the Standing Committee may determine. In addition, the Bishop may remove the wardens and vestry and appoint a Bishop’s Committee in accordance with Canon 11.3.

10.8. Reestablishment of Parish. A parish classified as a mission in accordance with Canon 10.7 may be reestablished as a parish with the consent of the Bishop and Standing Committee upon submission of evidence that in the discretion

of the Bishop and Standing Committee establishes qualification as a parish.

10.89. Aided Parishes. If the Bishop and the Standing Commit-tee deem any condition described in Canon 10.7 to be temporary, the parish may be allowed to continue its parochial relationship with the Diocese as an aided parish upon such terms and with such financial assistance as the

Bishop and the Diocesan Council may authorize.

ExplanationThe Diocese of Rhode Island is at a crucial tipping point in relation to its long-term health, vitality, and growth. We are currently a diocese of fifty-three churches, down from sixty-five less than ten years ago, and several more churches face closure in the next two to three years. In 2009, twenty-five of the fifty-three churches in the diocese used more than 5% of their investment accounts for oper-ating expenses. This is shocking news when you consider that the survival rate for non-profits spending from their endowments at the same level is 50%. The financial crisis

RESOLUTIONSFor the 2011 Diocesan Convention, there is ony one resolution on the table for discussion. It is an

important decision we will all have to make. Please discuss this resolution in your churches and dean-

eries, then let your church’s Convention Delegates know what you think, as it is their priviledge and

responsibility to represent the voice of your whole church on November 12th.

To Do:READ this Resolution!

GO to that Deanery MeetingTELL your parish delegates

what you thinkPRAY for wisdom

and guidance for all

for many of our churches is matched by a crisis in mem-bership. In 2009, only seven churches in the diocese had an average Sunday attendance above 150. Many of our churches are too small to provide for a full-time priest, and they often cannot afford the ministries, programs, and staff that are mainstays of healthy, growing churches of all denominations. If we fail to take decisive action now, in five years we may be a debt-ridden diocese with deteriorating church buildings, shrunken ministries, and disheartened congregations.

On the other hand, God may be pre-senting us with an opportunity for extraordinary transformation and re-birth. Our financial challenges are a reminder that as the Body of Christ, we are an interdepen-dent community defined not by our church buildings, but rather by our common worship and discipleship. Perhaps God is calling us through this crisis to new levels of col-laboration. In this diocese we are blessed that no church is more than 10 miles from its nearest neighbor. Yet many of our churches continue their own unsustainable struggle to remain financially viable, while the spiritual, emotional, and material resources of their people are taxed to the point of exhaustion.

Our canons exist to help us live out our mission to “live in Christ” and “transform the world.” However, the weak language of the existing canon 10.7 may be contributing to the gradual demise of the very communities it is meant

to support and sustain. The current canon states that if a parish fails in three critical areas, and if the condition of failure is not of a temporary nature, then the Bishop may require that parish to revert to mission status. The inclu-sion of the word “may,” and the impetus falling solely to the bishop to apply or not apply the rule, has resulted in several churches remaining parishes of the diocese long

after they violated the language of the canon. This has allowed some parishes to continue struggling into their own demise without receiving the outside support, council and resources they may need to change and survive. Because of its vague language, the current canon makes the decision to require a parish to

convert to mission status extremely difficult, and almost entirely reliant on the judgment of the Bishop.

The two centerpieces of the proposed change are

(1) clearly stating the requirement that parish status is contingent upon the presence of a full-time rector, and

(2) failure to meet the five stated criteria (10.7 i – v) in a significant and non-temporary way initiates a consid-eration process among Bishop, Standing Committee and the parish in question which may lead to the conversion of a church from parish to mission status.

The requirement of full-time priestly leadership recognizes the importance as chief pastor, worship leader, teacher

God may be presenting us

with an opportunity

for extraordinary transformation and rebirth.

16 RISEN / Fall 2011

and administrator that priests have in Episcopal churches. Priestly leadership is about more than celebrating the sacraments and preaching; it is about working with the lay leadership of a church to cast vision, form disciples, and empower ministry. Less than full-time priestly leadership is a model that has proven ineffectual in this diocese, and severely handicaps churches from growth and congrega-tional vitality. While some churches may attain a unique form of viability with part-time rectors, as a diocese we must aspire toward proven models of leadership that offer the greatest opportunity for congregational health and dynamism.

Currently the process by which a mission church attains parish status includes demonstration of full-time priestly leadership. Therefore, altering the canon governing the transition from parish to mission would simply create mirror processes; if a church is required to have full-time clergy leadership to become a parish, then lack of full-time clergy leadership leads to mission status.

The likely result of approval of this canonical change would be a significant number of churches transitioning from parish to mission status. For some, the possibility of such a transition engenders anxiety and fear about loss of control and autonomy. We believe this reaction is governed by two common misconceptions about the status of mis-sions in the Diocese of RI:

Misconception #1: Missions have no control over their day-to-day operations.

Response: While missions receive guidance from, and are ultimately answerable to, the Bishop and Diocesan Coun-cil, they continue to manage their property and resources on behalf of the Diocese. St. Francis in Coventry and St. Thomas in Alton are two examples of mission churches that operate with a generous amount of independence and autonomy. While it is true that major decisions about property and finances require the Bishop and Council’s ap-proval, the day-to-day life of missions is virtually indistin-guishable from parishes.

Misconception #2: Missions have fewer resources than parishes and are therefore weaker. They are basically on “death row.”

Response: In fact, missions are eligible to receive assistance that would not otherwise be available to them as parishes. For instance, the Congregational Development Commis-

sion has significant grant money available exclusively for the work of missions in the diocese. These funds are used to support the growth of missions, with the hope that they will become self-sustaining parishes in the future. When a church is facing a crisis of survival, conversion to mission status enables direct intervention in the form of outside counsel, resources, strategic thinking, and financial sup-port that may affect positive transformation.

As a diocese, we need canonical language that will make the process of reversion to mission status transparent and predictable. Furthermore, this canonical change will assist us in accurately identifying as missions those churches where intervention and counsel is necessary, a process that is severely hindered by the autonomy granted parishes.

The current challenges facing us as a diocese may be a reminder that each congregation has particular gifts to contribute to the work of Christ, and that we are respon-sible for nourishing each other in our roles as disciples. This proposed canonical change is intended to enable transformation, to help struggling parishes make admit-tedly difficult sacrifices for the health and vitality of their communities and of the diocese as a whole.

Fall 2011 / RISEN 17

nominationsThese are the names and biographies of those who have been nominated for the positions of Diocesan

Leadership that are open this year. Take a look, and talk amongst your church about who you would

like to see on these councils. Be sure to let your Church’s Convention Delegates know what you think, as

it is their priviledge and responsibility to represent the voice of your whole church on November 12th

James W. KelliherFor Standing Committee A life-time member of the Church of the Good Shepherd, in Pawtucket, I have served on the Vestry, as well as many committees. I have been Stewardship Chair for the past two years and am a Blackstone Valley Deanery member. I am a “Happening” alumni serving in RI on #’s 2 and 7. I was selected to bring the program to the diocese of Central New York and Western Massachusetts. During my tenure at Good Shepherd, I have served as Vestry, Sunday School teacher and Superintendent, Confirmation Instructor, Eucharistic Minister, Administrative Assistant and Lay Reader. I seek to service the diocese in same manner to which I have served Good Shepherd.

Sue (Susan) HurnFor Diocesan CouncilI moved to Rhode Island to work for the Episcopal Dio-cese as Director of the Resource Center. In 2006 I became the Interim Director of the Episcopal Conference Center (ECC) until my retirement in 2009. I have always had a focus on the importance of the ministry and education/formation of the laity, having served as the diocesan coor-dinator of the Education for Ministry Program (EfM) in the Diocese of Virginia and the Diocese of Rhode Island. Currently I co-mentor an EfM group that meet at the An-nex and I am an EfM mentor trainer. Since retiring from the diocese, I have trained as a search consultant, and was asked to convene a gathering of the wardens of the four churches in Cranston to explore ways of doing ministry to-

gether. Those meetings are progressing and we have several ministry projects in the works.

This is an exciting time to serve on Diocesan Council, as we move forward to welcoming a new Bishop and explor-ing the future of this vibrant diocese.

I am a member of St. David’s on-the-Hill, Cranston.

The Rev. James R. BocchinoFor Diocesan CouncilThe Rev. James R. Bocchino is a RI native and has served his entire ordained ministry in Rhode Island. Jim was the Assistant at St. Mary’s Church, Portsmouth; Rector of All Saint’s Memorial Church, Providence; Interim Rector of St. John’s, Barrington; and is currently serving as the Interim Rector of Christ Church, Westerly. Jim has been actively involved in the diocese serving in the following ministries:

• 3 terms on Diocesan Council; currently Vice-President• 1 term on Standing Committee; served as President• 3 terms with the Commission on Ministry• 3 terms on the ECC Board• 1 Term on the Episcopal Charities Board, Chaired the

Clergy Campaign• 3 terms as the Dean of Providence and Central Dean-

eries• 1 Term on the Deacon’s School Board• 3 years as an instructor in Church History, School for

Ministry• 2 terms on the Ecclesiastical Trial Court, currently

18 RISEN / Fall 2011

president• 18 years as a project leader at ECC• 3 years on the City camp board

The Rev. Patrick GreeneFor Diocesan CouncilI have been a member of this diocese my entire life. I was baptized at St. Stephen's in Providence as an infant and grew up attending St. John's in Barrington. I was or-dained a deacon in May of 2010 and a priest that Decem-ber. I am currently serving as the Assistant to the Rector at St. Paul's in Wickford, I have been serving in this position since August of 2010. At St. Paul's I am responsible for our youth ministry and am involved in all other aspects of the parish as well, primarily the liturgical life of the parish, pastoral care and Christian formation. Over the past year I have taken on the position of Co-Diocesan Director of our Happening, a diocesan retreat for high school youth.

Catherine ThenaultFor The Commission on Congre-gational DevelopmentCatherine Thenault, from St. James Woonsocket, is a current member of the Congregational Development Commission who is passionate about helping congrega-tions grow and thrive. Catherine has been involved in the Congregational Development Commission for 3 years. A mother of three children – ages 22, 19 and 17, Catherine lives in North Smithfield and works as an Information Technology Project Leader specializing in content manage-ment systems at AIPSO in Johnston. She enjoys visiting different churches in the diocese to see the good things that are going on, and is especially interested in welcome and ministry with youth. Catherine assists the Diocese with youth events, and has led two groups of youth to the National Episcopal Youth event; one in Berea, KY in 2005 and San Antonio, TX in 2008. Catherine occasionally provides technical expertise to the diocese in the areas of collaboration and database software and even occasionally cooking!

The Rev. Dennis M. BuccoFor The Commission on Congre-gational DevelopmentThe Reverend Dennis M. Bucco has been serving as rector of St. Luke’s, Pawtucket since September of 2009, and St. Luke’s has seen significant growth since. St. John’s, Ashton recently merged into St. Luke’s allowing the new con-gregation to increase all aspects of its ministry. St. Luke’s now offers a summer Vacation Bible School, an expanded Christian Education curriculum focusing on Sunday School, A Youth Group, Adult Formation classes and a Lenten Program with other Blackstone Deanery churches. The music program has strengthened with the addition of a music director and a youth choir. St. Luke’s is committed to serving those in need, with weekly community meals and food pantries in both Pawtucket and Cumberland. Fr. Dennis has served on Diocesan Council since 2010. Fr. Dennis has been serving as chaplain to the West Green-wich Fire Department since 2006. He, his wife Midge, and son Harrison live in West Greenwich RI.

Michael Lofaro For Commission on Finance Michael is a Certified Public Accountant with over 40 years of increasing responsibility in the field. Lofaro has been responsible for all financial and regulatory report-ing at various New York firms including Haskins & Sells CPAs, DLJ Securities and W.E. Polluck. After 1985 Lofaro served as the COO & Executive Director of W.E. Pollock in NY, as well as the Senior Vice President of Finance & Operations at Mizuho Securities. He was responsible for the day to day operations of the firms. Currently Lofaro is the Treasurer of Saint Ann’s By-The-Sea on Block Island where he also served as Junior Warden in 2005 & 2006. He is the Treasurer of the Block Island Fire & Rescue Department.

Fall 2011 / RISEN 19

Into the Wardrobe with The Rev. Harry Krauss and the closets of The Cathedral of St. John

20 RISEN / Fall 2011

In the Beginning there was... basic black. This is where we start.

Over the basic black goes an Anglican cassock with bands.

Most of our vestments are basic Roman street attire from the First Century.

A cassock is essentially ecclesiastical underwear. This one is double breast-ed, i.e. the front is overlapped. Other cassocks button up the front.

Cassocks come in various colors. Black is the standard. Reddish purple is worn by Bishops. Bluish purple is worn by Cathedral clergy, acolytes and choristers. Blue is used in Collegiate Chapels and red in Chapels Royal.

Bands are the ancestor of the modern necktie. Originally they were a piece of linen two inches wide and about a yard long. The linen was wrapped around the neck and knotted with the ends hanging down. The bands in the photograph are two inches wide and about eight inches long and are attached to a tape which is tied underneath the clerical collar.

Fall 2011 / RISEN 21

The Amice.

The amice was a neck scarf. Now it forms as a collar for the alb. It is folded and tied on with tapes. After the alb is put on it is pulled down to form the collar.

The Alb

This is the simplest of vestments and it derives from the Roman tunic. It is always white, thus its name from the Latin word for white, albus. It can be worn by all orders of clergy, servers, and acolytes.

The Stole

The stole was originally a towel which was carried for convenience over the left shoulder. We still see this with Dea-cons. In time, however, the stole was folded and came to look as it does today, a long narrow piece of cloth. The Priest wears the stole over the shoulders and crossed in the front as it was used as a neck scarf. The Bishop wears it over the shoulders, but hanging straight down. The cincture around the waist holds it in place.

UnderWear

22 RISEN / Fall 2011

This chasuble is cut in a different shape and is called a continental or fiddle-back chasuble. It is obviously sleeveless and came to be used in the warmer Mediterranean countries

The chasuble is descended from the commonest Roman over-garment, which was a circular piece of cloth with a hole in the middle. In other words, a poncho. Chasubles can be plain white & of the sim-plest cloth or more elaborate & of the various liturgi-cal colors: white, gold, blue, violet, red, pink, green.

TheChasubelThis photograph shows a traditional “Goth-ic” style chasuble with an ornamental strip of velvet on the front called an or-phrey.

A traditional red cha-suble. Chasubles can be ornamented in various ways. This red chasuble has a velvet orphrey in the shape of a cross with a crown embroidered on it.

Vestment symbolism can ref-erence history, theology, or other things. The silver & blue squares at the top of this cha-suble reference the ephod worn by the High Priest in the Temple. The Cathedral has a series of contemporary vestments made by Arlene Wilson and commissioned by the previous Dean & Bishop Wolf

Fall 2011 / RISEN 23

The cope is derived from a lacerna, a light cloak or mantle, which was the height of fashion in first century Rome. It is a semi-circular piece of material which is fas-tened in the front by a clasp or morse, and on the back there is a hood

TheCope

The ornamental hood on a white cope.

A white cope which is ornamented with tapestry borders

24 RISEN / Fall 2011

An 18th century Italian red, cut-velvet cope. It is em-broidered with motifs of gold bullion. the hood shows a sunburst in the center of which is the Holy Name of Jesus, a cross and three nails of the Passion.

Fall 2011 / RISEN 25

Office VestureThe basic vestments for officiating at the Daily Office and other rites which are not the Eucha-rist are a cassock and surplice.

The surplice never was secu-lar clothing. It derives from the superpelliceum, a light sort of overcoat. These vestments are worn not only by the clergy, but also by choristers and serv-ers who do not wear albs.

The hood was a mediae-val headdress which hung over the shoul-ders when not up around the head. Hoods are made of various materi-als and colors now. Latterly, they have be-come part of academic dress and the colors and shapes of hoods desig-nate the kind of degree, and the university, college or in-stitution which has awarded it. These are usually worn at Morning or Evening Prayer, Mattins or Evensong.

26 RISEN / Fall 2011

The Scarf was originally part of the hood, but became a separate garment worn over the shoulder. It is usually black and is not folded but gathered at the neck. It too is worn at the Daily Office or other non-Eucharistic liturgies. The Tippet is like the scarf in how and when

it is worn, but it pre-folded at the neck and hangs flat around the shoulders.

Tippets can be enhanced with heraldic seals. This is the seal of the Cathe-dral of Saint John. It is properly affixed to the upper left of the tippet. There should never be more than two seals on a tippet. Both of them should be affixed to the bottom of the ends of the tippet

For office vesture the most appro-priate headgear is the mortar board. Although this type of headgear is usually seen in academic situations, it originally was a clerical hat.

This is a square cap or Canterbury Cap. It derives from every day wear in the 16th and 17th centuries. It should be made of black velvet for bishops and doctors and black cloth or stuff for others.

The biretta is a continental univer-sity hat and was adopted by the Roman Catholic Church and still is seen in High Church parishes. The pompom and the piping can be of various colors to designate rank or education.

Fall 2011 / RISEN 27

JOURNALEpiscopal

VOL 1 NO 3 | FALL 2011 QUARTERLY EDITION

By Joe Bjordal For Episcopal News Service

In the evening hours of June 25, two liturgical pro­cessions set out from op­posite ends of the campus

of Bethel University in Saint Paul, Minn., with nearly 1,100 people heading to the closing worship service of this year’s Episcopal Youth Event (EYE).

One group, nearly 700 strong, came from “Episc­Olympics,” a series of team contests — relays and games — with an Episcopal theme. They chanted as they walked, accompanied by crude percus­sion instruments made of scrap materials from the construc­tion site of a Habitat for Humanity house, which participants had helped to build on the campus before it was moved to provide shelter for a single mother and her children.

The other, smaller procession was composed of two teen­agers from each diocese and 12 bishops. They came from the Habitat house, where they had written prayers on the inside, unfinished walls for the recipient family and watched as Min­nesota’s bishop, Brian Prior, dressed in full episcopal regalia, stood on the roof of the house as he blessed it.

The processions met at Benson Great Hall, the room where EYE had opened earlier in the week with a challenge to the youth from Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori to be­come empowered for service and to “get connected and heal the world.” What took place in­between were times of learn­ing, prayer, worship and intentional Christian community that

established new friendships across the vast geography of the Episcopal Church.

For three solid days — from early morning to late night — 730 Episcopal youth, supported by more than 300 adult advisors and 50 bishops, were immersed in a comprehensive program de­signed to enrich and empower the next generation of leaders.

Participants at more than 50 workshops shared knowledge, sto­ries and skills on subjects such as prayer and spirituality, effective Bible study, youth ministry and mission­trip planning. Presenters included leaders like Bishop Eugene Sutton of Maryland; the Rev. Angela Ifill, the Episcopal Church’s Black ministries officer; the Rev. Winfred Vergara, Asian American ministries officer; and the Rev. Bob Honeychurch, officer for congregational vitality.

Two daily plenary sessions presented keynote speakers that included Rodger Nishioka of

400 years later — the King James Bible remains the favoriteE

Presiding bishop honored for social justiceDNEWS

Chaplains recall9/11 ministry10 years laterCNEWS FEATURE

Adventure for 730Episcopal youth enriched in spirit and empowered for mission

continued on page B

Photo/Joe Bjordali

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and Bishop Brian Prior of Minnesota inspected a Habitat for Humanity House constructed by teens at a national Episcopal youth event at Bethel University in Saint Paul, Minn. It was the first time a house had been constructed at the triennial youth event is the first “new-zero” home built by Habitat for Humanity.The house will produce as much energy as it consumes.

JOURNALEpiscopal

VOL 1 NO 3 | FALL 2011 QUARTERLY EDITION

By Joe Bjordal For Episcopal News Service

In the evening hours of June 25, two liturgical pro­cessions set out from op­posite ends of the campus

of Bethel University in Saint Paul, Minn., with nearly 1,100 people heading to the closing worship service of this year’s Episcopal Youth Event (EYE).

One group, nearly 700 strong, came from “Episc­Olympics,” a series of team contests — relays and games — with an Episcopal theme. They chanted as they walked, accompanied by crude percus­sion instruments made of scrap materials from the construc­tion site of a Habitat for Humanity house, which participants had helped to build on the campus before it was moved to provide shelter for a single mother and her children.

The other, smaller procession was composed of two teen­agers from each diocese and 12 bishops. They came from the Habitat house, where they had written prayers on the inside, unfinished walls for the recipient family and watched as Min­nesota’s bishop, Brian Prior, dressed in full episcopal regalia, stood on the roof of the house as he blessed it.

The processions met at Benson Great Hall, the room where EYE had opened earlier in the week with a challenge to the youth from Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori to be­come empowered for service and to “get connected and heal the world.” What took place in­between were times of learn­ing, prayer, worship and intentional Christian community that

established new friendships across the vast geography of the Episcopal Church.

For three solid days — from early morning to late night — 730 Episcopal youth, supported by more than 300 adult advisors and 50 bishops, were immersed in a comprehensive program de­signed to enrich and empower the next generation of leaders.

Participants at more than 50 workshops shared knowledge, sto­ries and skills on subjects such as prayer and spirituality, effective Bible study, youth ministry and mission­trip planning. Presenters included leaders like Bishop Eugene Sutton of Maryland; the Rev. Angela Ifill, the Episcopal Church’s Black ministries officer; the Rev. Winfred Vergara, Asian American ministries officer; and the Rev. Bob Honeychurch, officer for congregational vitality.

Two daily plenary sessions presented keynote speakers that included Rodger Nishioka of

400 years later — the King James Bible remains the favoriteE

Presiding bishop honored for social justiceDNEWS

Chaplains recall9/11 ministry10 years laterCNEWS FEATURE

Adventure for 730Episcopal youth enriched in spirit and empowered for mission

continued on page B

Photo/Joe Bjordali

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori and Bishop Brian Prior of Minnesota inspected a Habitat for Humanity House constructed by teens at a national Episcopal youth event at Bethel University in Saint Paul, Minn. It was the first time a house had been constructed at the triennial youth event is the first “new-zero” home built by Habitat for Humanity.The house will produce as much energy as it consumes.

B EPISCOPAL JOURNAL Fall 2011

Columbia Theological Seminary, missionary Cameron Graham Viv­anco, and the Rev. Luke Fodor, network coordi­nator for Episcopal Re­lief & Development.

Fodor challenged the participants to reframe the way they think about mission and their role in it, suggesting it “is not possible for us to do mission” but that rather “mission is some­thing that God does through us. God is the missional agent in this world.”

“Mission is not about us but is about God and the others we meet when God is using us to build the reign of God,” he said. “When we begin to think about mission in this way, mission becomes less and less about us. As we shed our bag­gage of fear, anxiety and the silent lies that suggest we don’t matter, then mis­sion becomes more and more about God and our fellow humans.”

The final plenary was the closing Eu­charist, and it was clearly an emotional time for many. With arms locked about friends old and new, cheers and applause for presenters and planning team mem­bers as they appeared in a slide show re­counting the past three days, and while dancing in the aisles, the young men and women received one final call to mission.

Explaining that laypersons, like bish­ops, priests and deacons, are “the min­isters of the church” Bonnie Anderson, president of the House of Deputies, in­vited participants to “jump into the wa­ters of baptism.”

Jesus was not passive, she told the youth. “Jesus troubled the waters. That’s our job if we are to follow Jesus. Our job is to upset any status quo that stands in the way of peace and justice, to question and do something about anything that stands in the way of a reconciled world,” she said. “That’s why we are committed to mission. It’s our job to turn this world up­side down; to turn over the tables; to look outside ourselves with fresh eyes and then help others see the kingdom of God.”

As a video clip of the Cowardly Lion from The Wizard of Oz, who discovered

his courage, played in the background, Anderson invited the participants to “embrace courage, take off your seat belts, put on your bungee cord and jump into your life with Jesus.”

Even after the closing Eucharist, the experience continued for more than half of the youth, who engaged in three more days of mission.

Wendy Johnson, missioner for com­munications for the Episcopal Church in Minnesota, who spent a full year ar­ranging service opportunities, said the idea was “to give everyone at EYE the opportunity, after three days of work­shops learning about mission, to actu­ally do mission.”

More than 200 stayed in the Diocese of Minnesota, while others returned to their homes dioceses to undertake this work. Young people from the Diocese of Hawaii traveled to far northern Minneso­ta, to Ely, to do environmental education. The New Jersey diocesan group headed to rural Brainerd, on an indigenous peoples tour to follow the path of the Ojibwe in Minnesota. Groups from the dioceses of Utah, Western Louisiana, Ohio and Iowa remained in the Twin Cities metropoli­tan area to work with various charities, including Second Harvest Food Shelf and the Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches “Paint­a­Thon.”

Before EYE, Bronwyn Clark Skov, youth ministries officer at the Episcopal Church Center in New York, said that the event would be a “transformative experi­ence of worship, community and mission.

“What will be most significant and

transformative is that for most it will be the first time to see so many other young Episcopalians their age together in the same place,” she pre­dicted. “And in the midst of a huge gath­ering, close friend­ships will be made in small groups.”

That’s just what happened to Con­nor Durgin from the Diocese of Maine, one of the “percus­sionists” in the pro­cession to the clos­ing worship service.

“Where I come from there is not a lot of youth, especially in my own church, which is really sepa­rated from everywhere else. So to see lots of kids just like us, interested in the same things, is just amazing. You can just find so much connection.”

Two teenagers from the Diocese of Puerto Rico had the same experience. Stacy Medina said “it’s been a really big experience, and I want to take it home. I’m going to take a big step in Puerto Rico. I’m going to make a big change in my church. I want to have more youth, and I want to do more mission. I’ve learned a lot here about why we don’t see a lot of young people in church, and now I know what I can do to change that.”

José Rivera said it had been a great ex­perience. He said he learned about work­ing with other cultures to “come together with one goal.”

The Rev. Canon Anthony Guillén, the Episcopal Church’s program officer for La­tino/Hispanic ministries, worked closely with teens from Puerto Rico and the Do­minican Republic. He said the experience is bound to have an impact on the church.

“A number of these students are phe­nomenal leaders — they are just gifted. It’s not like they needed EYE to do their min­istry, but this has given them a connection to a lot of people. They want to be part of the larger church. They have spread out and made new friends and feel like they are part of a bigger family. This is going to make them more effective yet.” n

Joe Bjordal is a correspondent for Epis­copal News Service.

NEWS n

EYE continued from page A

Photo/Joe Bjordal

Bishop Brian Prior of Minnesota blesses the completed shell of a Habitat for Humanity house. The structure was constructed from the ground up by participants at the Episcopal Youth Event.

CFall 2011 EPISCOPAL JOURNAL

By Val Hymes For Episcopal News Service

“I realized we had to do something. We’ve got to step into the vacuum, step into the breach, either lean in or run away. We are chaplains. We know how to do chaplain’s work.”

George Packard, then bishop for Episcopal chaplains in the armed servic­es, had gone alone to the still­smoking Ground Zero, where terrorist attacks had destroyed New York’s Twin Towers. With those words, he pushed back his grief and fear and moved to rally forces and launch what became a 100­day mis­sion of support to those at the site and in nearby communities.

It began the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, when someone entered the chapel at the Episcopal Church Center in New York to announce that a plane had just flown into the World Trade Center.

“I happened to be leading morn­ing prayer that morning,” said the Rev. Gerald Blackburn, Packard’s executive officer. “We soon realized it was not a small plane off course. After the service, we gathered around a television set and watched in numbness and shock as the second tower was struck.”

Packard recalled, “We went outside to smell burning rubber and electrical­fire fumes. The wind was blowing smoke and debris. People were streaming up the avenue with their clothes covered in ash. The sirens started to wail; they closed down all the avenues. It was just chaos. We started to make an assessment of what we had to do.”

Earlier that morning, at the Penta­gon across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital, Senior Chaplain Jay Magness was meeting with other chap­lains when alarms sounded, ordering an evacuation.

He and his colleagues went outside to see billowing smoke and flames. A plane had flown into the building about two wings away. They quickly broke into teams of three and re­entered the build­ing to help rescue survivors.

“It looked like nothing I’ve ever seen,” he said. “I saw the absolute horror in

people’s eyes. Acrid smoke filled our nos­trils. We tore up T­shirts for masks.”

Magness, now the church’s bishop for the armed services and federal ministries, worked with two other chaplains and helped carry out the injured and dying, comforted other survivors and called fam­ilies for them. His own wife, Carolyn, did not hear that he was safe until hours later.

In New York, church center staff members, including the Rev. Jackie Means, the Rev. Melford “Bud” Hol­land, the Rev. David Henritzy and the Rev. Canon Brian Grieves, left to find a way to help people.

Some went to a hospital to comfort families waiting for survivors who never came; others went to an emergency ral­lying point on Manhattan’s Lower West Side to help counsel the shocked and grieving evacuees and workers.

In his first trip to Ground Zero, Pack­ard found a “silt­like ash covering every­thing. Lights were on the lattice­grid, the shell of a tower about three stories tall.

“It was eerie, with smoke and steam and secondary explosions. Fire hoses snaked around all over the place. The only thing left was a hill of debris. It was awful.”

Recalled Means, “It looked like World War II, with everything bombed out.”

While a dozen buildings around the Twin Towers were demolished or badly dam­aged, she said, St. Paul’s Episcopal Chapel did not have even a cracked window.

When Packard got to St. Paul’s, he found the Rev. Lyndon Harris, priest­in­charge, putting water out on a table and inviting in exhausted firefighters and EMS crews. Soon the chapel became a haven and the heart of the ministry to the workers, providing food prepared by the chefs of New York’s restaurants, medical treatment, pastoral counseling and the services of a podiatrist and chi­ropractor. “One woman’s ministry was to bring fresh flowers to the chapel every day,” said Means.

Added Packard, “Lyndon Harris is the real hero of this story. He brought things together. It was a unique moment of the church happening there at St. Paul’s.”

Packard said that in giving last rites to the remains of victims over and over at Ground Zero, “I had a definite sense of God’s grace.

“I knew,” he said, “that we had to make room for sacred space, for the holi­ness that was there.” n

Val Hymes is a member of the Diocese of Maryland and editor of www.PrisMin-Net.org.

Remembering 9/11Episcopal chaplains made room for ‘sacred space’

n NEWS

Photo/Jerry Hames

The New York City Master Chorale performs at St. Paul’s Chapel on Sept. 9. Choirs from Boston, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C., as well as Trinity’s own choir and baroque orchestra, a string quartet and organists performed at con-certs at Trinity Wall Street and St. Paul’s Chapel in the days leading up to Sept. 11.

D EPISCOPAL JOURNAL Fall 2011

By Tracy Sukraw

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jef­ferts Schori, who joined 560 Episcopalians in the Diocese of Massachusetts in June to cel­

ebrate the work of Episcopal City Mis­sion, encouraged them to both pray and “work like hell” for a world where no one goes hungry, illness is answered with healing, and all are free to live in peace.

“We live in hope for a world redeemed into that reality, and we work at transfor­mation because we are a very long way indeed from seeing it come to fruition,” she said in a keynote address.

Episcopal City Mission (ECM) pro­motes social and economic justice in the diocese, with particular emphasis on the urban poor. ECM’s annual event at Bos­ton University showcases the programs and organizations funded through its grant programs and public policy initiatives, in­cluding, this year, an affordable housing project in partnership with the Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit in Mattapan, and a letter­writing campaign against the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s controversial Secure Com­munities program aimed at deporting criminals who are in this country illegally.

“We know that we were not the only ones organizing opposition to that pro­gram, but we are delighted that so many

Episcopalians and so many parishes partici­pated in that campaign,” Dr. Ruy Costa, ECM’s executive director, told the crowd. He said that 800 letters from more than 60 parishes helped successfully voice op­ponents’ concern that flaws in the program would result in overreach and the deporta­tion of persons who are not criminals. (The governor of Massachusetts has announced he will not support the program.)

Costa also announced a partnership

with St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Dorchester to expand the reach of a food pantry program and called for volunteers with expertise in food distribution.

The presiding bishop said these kinds of efforts reflect “the most basic ways that the Christian community has served and empowered God’s people,” describ­ing how Jesus spent much of his public ministry feeding, healing and teaching the crowds that followed him, and how he challenged both political and religious authorities about the injustices that made the rich richer and the poor poorer.

“The last presidential election was not the first time somebody figured out that Jesus was a community organizer,” she said, describing places where community organizing is having an impact through creative responses to local hunger, health care, housing and education needs.

“We need bold and prophetic voices. We need networks that inspire and or­ganize people,” she said. “There is abun­dant work to be done and it must always be inspired by that vision of shalom: food and drink for feasting, dignified work and Sabbath leisure, none lording it over another, all God’s children living in peace. Pray that it may be so and work like hell to make it so.” n

Tracy J. Sukraw is communications director in the Diocese of Massachusetts.

Photo/Matthew Cavanaugh

Bishop Barbara Harris [right] presents the Barbara Harris Award for Social Justice to Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori.

NEWS n

In transition? Here’s help for clergy, congregations

A new set of resources gives clergy and congregations a head start in the search and transition process that often

perplexes church communities.“Fresh Start in the Search Process” of­

fers tools to assist church communities in the transition period between rectors. It consists of three parts: an overview and suggested transition timeline; a series of short sessions in PowerPoint format that can be used in conjunction with regular meetings; and supplemental materials for use by congregations in transition.

The materials are available from Fresh Start®, a program sponsored by the Episcopal Church’s transition

ministry office, the Episcopal Church Foundation, and CREDO Institute, Inc., of Memphis, Tenn.

“I am delighted to receive these re­sources,” said the Rev. Canon James H. Pritchett Jr., canon to the ordinary in the Diocese of Western North Caro­lina. “They are easily adaptable and will be very helpful for diocesan transition ministers and consultants to use at the most crucial parts of the process: the be­ginning and the end.

“These materials would work well at a ‘one shot’ meeting or as part of a re­treat with vestries or search committees,” he said. “The exercises intended for the whole congregation will collect valuable

data, help the congregation reflect on its character and history, and engender trust between the parish and diocese.”

Fresh Start has traditionally focused on the period from the arrival of a new clergyperson in a congregation through the first two years of his or her tenure. With this resource, Fresh Start materi­als now also cover the early stages of a congregation’s transition, from the an­nouncement that the current clergyper­son is leaving through the call of his or her replacement. n

All the materials are available for free through the Fresh Start website at www.episcopalfreshstart.org

Living the gospelMassachusetts celebrates its mission work

EFall 2011 EPISCOPAL JOURNAL

By Melodie Woerman

It has been called one of the great­est works in the English language, rivaled only by Shakespeare. For many, it is the only Bible they con­

sider “authentic.” It was seven years in the making, the work of a 54­member committee, but within 90 years it had come to be known simply as “the Bible.”

This year marks the 400th anniver­sary of the printing of the King James Bible, a work of religious, political and linguistic force that continues to shape the thinking and vocabulary of much of the English­speaking world.

Two copies of first editions of the Authorized Version, as it was known when printed in 1611, are in the Quayle Bible Collection at Baker University in Baldwin City, Kan., along with first or early editions of works that led up to the creation of the Bible authorized by King James I of England.

Kay Bradt, director of library services at Baker and the wife of Episcopal priest George Wiley, serves as curator for the collection. She said the two originals there are known as the “He” and “She” Bibles, based on differing translations of Ruth 3:15 — one says “he went into the city,” and the other, “she went into the city.” That difference comes, she said, be­cause different printers produced the first runs of the newly revised translation.

The confusion on their part is under­standable. “The Hebrew says ‘he,’ but the context indicates it should be ‘she,’” Bradt said.

These first editions are quite rare, with fewer than 50 of the “He” Bibles and fewer than 150 of the “She” versions still in existence.

The collection also has a copy of the infamously nicknamed “Wicked” Bible, an edition printed 20 years later in which the printer glaringly omitted “not” in the seventh commandment, rendering it “Thou shalt commit adultery.” Most of the 1,000 copies were destroyed, making this version very rare.

Bradt said errors in these Bibles were

common, even in first edi­tions, given that all the type was set by hand. “They would print some copies, find errors, change them, and then print more,” she said.

The King James Bible didn’t spring just from the linguistic skills of the 54 learned men who produced it. Rather, it was the result of more than 200 years of English translations of the Scriptures, and the Quayle Collection has all of them.

John Wycliffe trans­lated the Latin Vulgate version of the Bible into English in the late 1380s, an act that had the early re­former branded a heretic after his death.

As Reformation ideals spread across Europe, one of its adherents, William Tyndale, asked to translate the Bible into English but was denied the right to do so. He then fled to Belgium, where in 1526 he produced an English New Tes­tament, copies of which were smuggled into England in bales of cloth.

Tyndale translated the entire Bible into English in 1530, but its Protestant leanings were too much for King Henry VIII. In spite of his eventual break with the Church in Rome, Henry feared the egalitarianism advocated by reformers. In 1536 Tyndale was strangled and his body burned at the stake.

But the influence of Tyndale’s Bible already was being felt. After Henry’s break with Rome in 1531, he commis­sioned his own English Bible, known as the Great Bible because of its size, which was produced in 1538.

Henry wanted a text that would pro­mote knowledge of the Scriptures among his subjects but wouldn’t introduce wholesale reformist ideals that were tak­ing root elsewhere in Europe.

Myles Coverdale, who had done his own translation in 1535, gave Henry such a Bible, basing his version on Tyn­dale’s work but removing things the king

found too Protestant, like the use of “congregation” for “church” and “senior” instead of “priest.”

Henry ordered that his Bible be placed in every church and chained to the lectern so it would be available at all times for those who wanted to read it for themselves.

The impact the King James Bible has had upon the English language — be­yond the everyday phrases it introduced — includes the rhythmic cadences heard in the writings of many well­known peo­ple, including President Abraham Lin­coln, poet Walt Whitman and novelist Willa Cather.

Even noted atheist Richard Dawkins said that with its influence on the cul­ture of English­speaking countries, “not to know the King James Bible is to be in some small way, barbarian.”

Bradt said she hopes the Quayle’s dis­play of the He and She Bibles, as well as all the versions that preceded it, will help people better understand this 400­year­old translation that has played such a key role in the formation of modern English Christian thought. n

Melodie Woerman is director of com-munications for the Diocese of Kansas. This article was published in the most recent is-sue of The Harvest, the diocese’s bimonthly newspaper.

n FEATURE

One of the two first editions of the King James Bible in the Quayle Bible Collection at Baker University, Baldwin City, Kan.

400-year anniversaryKJV: ‘The Bible’ that remains a force in the English-speaking world

EFall 2011 EPISCOPAL JOURNAL

By Melodie Woerman

It has been called one of the great­est works in the English language, rivaled only by Shakespeare. For many, it is the only Bible they con­

sider “authentic.” It was seven years in the making, the work of a 54­member committee, but within 90 years it had come to be known simply as “the Bible.”

This year marks the 400th anniver­sary of the printing of the King James Bible, a work of religious, political and linguistic force that continues to shape the thinking and vocabulary of much of the English­speaking world.

Two copies of first editions of the Authorized Version, as it was known when printed in 1611, are in the Quayle Bible Collection at Baker University in Baldwin City, Kan., along with first or early editions of works that led up to the creation of the Bible authorized by King James I of England.

Kay Bradt, director of library services at Baker and the wife of Episcopal priest George Wiley, serves as curator for the collection. She said the two originals there are known as the “He” and “She” Bibles, based on differing translations of Ruth 3:15 — one says “he went into the city,” and the other, “she went into the city.” That difference comes, she said, be­cause different printers produced the first runs of the newly revised translation.

The confusion on their part is under­standable. “The Hebrew says ‘he,’ but the context indicates it should be ‘she,’” Bradt said.

These first editions are quite rare, with fewer than 50 of the “He” Bibles and fewer than 150 of the “She” versions still in existence.

The collection also has a copy of the infamously nicknamed “Wicked” Bible, an edition printed 20 years later in which the printer glaringly omitted “not” in the seventh commandment, rendering it “Thou shalt commit adultery.” Most of the 1,000 copies were destroyed, making this version very rare.

Bradt said errors in these Bibles were

common, even in first edi­tions, given that all the type was set by hand. “They would print some copies, find errors, change them, and then print more,” she said.

The King James Bible didn’t spring just from the linguistic skills of the 54 learned men who produced it. Rather, it was the result of more than 200 years of English translations of the Scriptures, and the Quayle Collection has all of them.

John Wycliffe trans­lated the Latin Vulgate version of the Bible into English in the late 1380s, an act that had the early re­former branded a heretic after his death.

As Reformation ideals spread across Europe, one of its adherents, William Tyndale, asked to translate the Bible into English but was denied the right to do so. He then fled to Belgium, where in 1526 he produced an English New Tes­tament, copies of which were smuggled into England in bales of cloth.

Tyndale translated the entire Bible into English in 1530, but its Protestant leanings were too much for King Henry VIII. In spite of his eventual break with the Church in Rome, Henry feared the egalitarianism advocated by reformers. In 1536 Tyndale was strangled and his body burned at the stake.

But the influence of Tyndale’s Bible already was being felt. After Henry’s break with Rome in 1531, he commis­sioned his own English Bible, known as the Great Bible because of its size, which was produced in 1538.

Henry wanted a text that would pro­mote knowledge of the Scriptures among his subjects but wouldn’t introduce wholesale reformist ideals that were tak­ing root elsewhere in Europe.

Myles Coverdale, who had done his own translation in 1535, gave Henry such a Bible, basing his version on Tyn­dale’s work but removing things the king

found too Protestant, like the use of “congregation” for “church” and “senior” instead of “priest.”

Henry ordered that his Bible be placed in every church and chained to the lectern so it would be available at all times for those who wanted to read it for themselves.

The impact the King James Bible has had upon the English language — be­yond the everyday phrases it introduced — includes the rhythmic cadences heard in the writings of many well­known peo­ple, including President Abraham Lin­coln, poet Walt Whitman and novelist Willa Cather.

Even noted atheist Richard Dawkins said that with its influence on the cul­ture of English­speaking countries, “not to know the King James Bible is to be in some small way, barbarian.”

Bradt said she hopes the Quayle’s dis­play of the He and She Bibles, as well as all the versions that preceded it, will help people better understand this 400­year­old translation that has played such a key role in the formation of modern English Christian thought. n

Melodie Woerman is director of com-munications for the Diocese of Kansas. This article was published in the most recent is-sue of The Harvest, the diocese’s bimonthly newspaper.

n FEATURE

One of the two first editions of the King James Bible in the Quayle Bible Collection at Baker University, Baldwin City, Kan.

400-year anniversaryKJV: ‘The Bible’ that remains a force in the English-speaking world

F EPISCOPAL JOURNAL Fall 2011 FEATURE n

By Don E. Johnson

Over the last few weeks, I have peppered my sermons with quotes from the Benedictine nun Joan Chittister and her

exposition on the writings of St. Bene­dict of Nursia, the founder of Western monasticism.

When we think of monasticism to­day, we may think of going away to be with God. In fact, that assumption is wrong. The monasticism that Benedict invites us to is about community. Even now, some fifteen hundred years later, this call to community is still speaking to my heart as a Christian, even in a world that calls me to be an individual in a most self­centered way.

Benedict offers an al­ternative reading on the world and, by extension, he offers a spirituality for the 21st century.

Sister Joan has pro­vided not only a copy of the text of the Rule of Benedict for our consid­eration, but also a com­mentary on the Rule. I have been reading and reflecting on both at the end of my daily time of prayer. It’s enriching, at both the personal level and the level of what it suggests about living together as a community of believers every day.

I just completed a series of reflections on a section of the Rule that focuses on the ten steps to humility. It seems a fit starting place as we consider the impor­tance of the mission of the [church] to “invite all people, as God’s beloved, into communities of Christian faith, love and service.” Yet we cannot invite people into our community if it does not exist. The challenge is to face our role in being God’s “beloved” and to learn what that might look like for others. It all starts, as Benedict notes, with humility.

To use Chittister’s reflection to begin our own, she observes:

“If the modern age has lost anything

that needs to be rediscovered, if the Western world has denied anything that needs to be owned, if individuals have re­jected anything that needs to be professed again, if the preservation of the globe in the twenty­first century requires any­thing of the past at all, it may well be the commitment of the Rule of Benedict to humility. … Benedict’s Magna Carta of humility directs us to begin the spiritual life by knowing our place in the universe, our connectedness, our dependence on God for the little greatness we have. Any­thing else, he says, is to find ourselves in the position of ‘a weaned child on its mother’s lap,’ cut off from nourishment,

puny, helpless — how­ever grandiose our im­ages of ourselves — and left without the resources necessary to grow in the Spirit of God. No infant child is independent of its mother, weaned or not. No spiritual maturity can be achieved independent of a sense of God’s role in our development.”

Benedict goes on to speak of 10 aspects (or steps) of humility that we would all do well to consider if we are to become invitational of God’s love. Sister Joan’s

reflections on a much longer passage are summed up as follows:

“The chapter on humility is a strangely wonderful and intriguingly distressing treatise on the process of the spiritual life. It does not say, ‘Be per­fect.’ It says, ‘Be honest about what you are and you will come to know God.’ It does not say, ‘Be flawless and you will earn God.’ It says, ‘If you recognize the presence of God in life, you will soon become more and more perfect.’ But this perfection is not in the twenty­first­century sense of impeccability. This per­fection is in the biblical sense of having become matured, ripened, whole.”

Chittister then goes on to summarize the steps of humility:

“The entire chapter [on humility] is

such a nonmechanistic, totally human ap­proach to God. If we reach out and meet God here where God is, if we accept God’s will in life where our will does not prevail, if we are willing to learn from others, if we can see ourselves and accept ourselves for what we are and grow from that, if we can live simply, if we can respect others and reverence them, if we can be a trust­ing part of our world without having to strut around it controlling it, changing it, wrenching it to our own image and like­ness, then we will have achieved ‘perfect love that casts out fear’ (I John 4:18). There will be nothing left to fear — not God’s wrath, not the loss of human re­spect, not the absence of control, not the achievements of others greater than our own whose success we have had to smoth­er with rejection or deride with scorn.”

Such humility gives us both a means and a destination for our lives as we be­come invitational people. If the goal is to live in such a way that we show forth “perfect love,” we are a people called to maturity, ripeness and wholeness. It’s a call to become signs of the love we have received. Rather than perfecting fear to cast out love (which is a way the church has, on too many occasions, chosen to live in our desire to exert control), we are called to live without fear and in the light of God’s perfect love. This community of invitational people will be hard for the world to ignore. In fact, these communi­ties of Christian faith, love and service are most likely to provide the world a much­needed alternative to self­centeredness.

As I listen to my own sermons in the weeks ahead, I hope that they will not only be seasoned with the words of Bene­dict and the reflections of Chittister, but also that these great and lasting influences on the Christian life will give me new life as well. I don’t want only to be seasoned, I want to be changed. With love being perfected, perhaps we will all become the people God has called us to become. n

Don E. Johnson celebrated in June his 10th anniversary as bishop of the Diocese of West Tennessee. His column first appeared in Church News of the Diocese of West Tennessee.

Spirituality for a new ageAuthor says we must rediscover Benedict’s rule of humility

Photo/Jerry Hames

Sister Joan Chittister, Benedictine nun and prolific author, in New York in 2008.

Dear ReadersOnce again we have come around to the Convention issue of RISEN Magazine. This year there is only one resolution for us to consider, but don’t let that fact mislead you to think that discerning the answer to that one resolution is any less important than the ten we had last year. Yes we had ten. Remember?

My hope is that this issue will be a valuable tool as you meet together to prepare for the priviledge and responsibility that our Diocesan Convention is.

Convention is your church’s time to gather together as one body with the rest of the churches in this diocese. It is a time to collaborate, consider, and to celebrate each other’s unique position and gifts in Rhode Island. What will your church bring to the table this year? Be sure you have contributed to what your church’s delegates will share with the whole.

Read the resolutions and nomination biographies. Meet with others in your church, and chat about it at coffee hour. Tell your parish Clergy and Delegates what you think. You can help form the future of our diocese, and since there is only one resolution to consider this year, may you give that question your whole undivided heart.

Ruth A. Meteer, Editor in Chief

Never Know Whats Going On? Sign up for eRISEN*, our biweekly e-calendar of Diocesan events, Parish events, and other opportunities you need to know about.

sign up and submit events at www.episcopalri.org/eRISENevents

DIOCESAN CONVENTION

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 11

6:00pm Opening Eucharist followed by a collation.

St. Luke’s Church, East Greenwich

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 12

Business Meeting: 9:00am – 4:00pm Check-in opens at 7:30am Includes Continental Breakfast and

LunchThe Marriott Downtown, One

Orms Street, Providence, RI

34 RISEN / Fall 2011

Postlude

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email Risen@episcopalri.org

To Find Out More

Right Here

Are you on facebook? The diocese is!

Come visit our new page, and become a “fan”. It is a one stop

hub where you can catch up on our blog and meet other RI

Episcopalians.

To find us search facebook for “The Episcopal Diocese of

Rhode Island” or use the link on our homepage at

www.episcopalri.org

Fall 2011 / RISEN 35

You don’t have to be rich or famous to make a difference in the world.

All you need is a caring heart.

Mother TeresaDesmond Tutu

Martin Luther King, Jr.Roger Williams

Albert SchweitzerMahatma Gandhi

Harriet TubmanSusan B. Anthony

Abraham LincolnBill Gates

Bishop John HigginsAnd you.

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2012 Camp Dates :Teen Camp - July 1-6 grades 7-9Music Camp - July 8-13 grades 7-12

EPISCOPAL CAMP AND CONFERENCE CENTER

Older Children - July 15-20 grades 5-6Nature Camp - July 22-25 grades 6-8Younger Children - July 30-August 3 grades 2-4

For more info visit www.ECCRI.org email us at summerregistrar@ECCRI.org or call ECC at 401-568-4055

Camper’s choice - August 5-10 grades 7-11Summer’s End - August 12-17 grades 7-11