NewsLink, Serving the Episcopal Church
Daybook -- Today is Tuesday, December 19, 2006, in Advent.
* Today in Scripture: Daily Office meditation: http://www.forwardmovement.org/todaysreading.cfm * Today in Prayer: Anglican Cycle of Prayer: http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acp/index.cfm * Today in History: On this day in 1855, William Henry Draper, Anglican priest and hymnist, was born in Kenilworth, England. http://www.cyberhymnal.org/bio/d/r/draper_wh.htm
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Diocesan Digest
NORTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA/MAINE: One nomination process winds down, another about to begin http://www.episcopalchurch.org/3577_80627_ENG_HTM.htm
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People
Brother Justus Richard Van Houten dies suddenly at 58 http://www.episcopalchurch.org/3577_80624_ENG_HTM.htm
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Teaching: Congregational Development to embark on international, ecumenical gathering
By Daphne Mack
[ENS] Church growth, leadership, and welcoming newcomers are some of the topics set for discussion at the first ever international and ecumenical seminar sponsored by the Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand, and Polynesia and the Episcopal Church's Office of Congregational Development.
"Bringing Christ to the Post-Christian World" will run from February 14-17, 2007 at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Auckland, New Zealand.
Enrollment for the four-day "once in a lifetime seminar" is open to registrants from New Zealand, Australia, Canada and the U.S.
"This [gathering] is a morph of Congregational Development's 'Start Up! Start Over' (SUSO) seminar which focuses on church growth and the 'Upward Bound: Leading Congregations through Change, Decisions, and Conflict' seminar, which is designed for the primary clergy leader to heighten self-awareness and skills required to lead congregations in times of change, transition and conflict," said Sally Dresser O'Brien, vice president of the Episcopal Church Building Fund (ECBF) and seminar co-coordinator.
O'Brien said discussions with Archbishop David Moxon in planning this event revealed common areas of concern such as "church decline and growth and how the culture impacts on how we speak to unchurched people and invite them."
The seminar presenters include the Rev. Jeunée Cunningham, vicar, St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church in Leesburg, Virginia; the Rev. Dr. Eric Elnes, senior pastor, Scottsdale Congregational United Church of Christ, Scottsdale, Arizona; the Rev. Charles N. Fulton, III, director, Congregational Development and president, ECBF, New York City; the Rev. Dr. George Martin, consultant, Rosemount, Minnesota; Lydia Ruffin, artistic director, Art and Soul Café, Christ Church Cathedral, St. Louis, Missouri, the Rev. Dr. Tex Sample, coordinator, Network for the Study of U.S. Lifestyles, Avondale, Arizona and the Rev. Suzanne E. Watson, staff officer, Congregational Development, Small Church Focus, New York City.
This ecumenical team of clergy and laity, whose expertise is congregational health and leadership development, draws from years of experience presenting Congregational Development seminars. While their experience is based primarily on work in the U.S., the sessions have international relevance and applicability.
The founding vicar of a successful new church start, Cunningham served on the steering committee for the national "Plant My Church" conference, and on former Presiding Bishop Frank Griswold's Consultation on New Church Development. She presents on issues related to welcoming guests and new member incorporation at the SUSO seminars.
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/3577_80628_ENG_HTM.htm
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Catalyst: "Choosing a Bible for Worship, Teaching, Study, Preaching, and Prayer" from Church Publishing, Inc., by Donald Kraus, 94 pages, paperback, c. 2006, $12
[Source: Church Publishing, Inc.] -- How do we choose among all the different Bible translations available today? How do we know which is the right one to use for specific situations? And how do we understand what factors lie behind these translations?
Oxford Bible editor Donald Kraus surveys 25 different Bible translations, and discusses general principles of translation, specific illustrations of difficult texts, the range of translation choices available, and the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches.
To order: Episcopal Books and Resources, online at http://www.episcopalbookstore.org or call 800.903.5544.
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