Episcopal Life Daily March 26, 2008
Episcopal Life Online is available at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife.
Today's Episcopal Life Daily includes:
* TOP STORY - April 6 bulletin inserts outline the work of Episcopal Appalachian Ministries * DIOCESAN DIGEST - CHICAGO: Cathedral exhibit honors U.S. military deaths in Iraq * DIOCESAN DIGEST - LONG ISLAND: Court rules for diocese, wider church in property case * TEACHING - Online Spirituality and Mission School debut at Seminary of the Southwest * TEACHING - Episcopal Divinity School transformational leadership workshops conclude April 5 * SPIRITUAL REFLECTION - Second Sunday of Easter - Year A [RCL] * DAYBOOK - March 27, 2008: Today in Scripture, Prayer, History * CATALYST - Crossing: Reclaiming the Landscape of Our Lives
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TOP STORIES
April 6 bulletin inserts outline the work of Episcopal Appalachian Ministries
[Episcopal Life Weekly] Bulletin inserts for April 6 outline the work of Episcopal Appalachian Ministries, which serves the people of mountain communities in eight dioceses by repairing homes and building up neighborhoods.
Bulletin inserts are available at
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/95270_ENG_HTM.htm
More Top Stories: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife
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DIOCESAN DIGEST
CHICAGO: Cathedral exhibit honors U.S. military deaths in Iraq http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_95975_ENG_HTM.htm
LONG ISLAND: Court rules for diocese, wider church in property case http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_95981_ENG_HTM.htm
More Diocesan news: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_ENG_HTM.htm
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TEACHING
Online Spirituality and Mission School debut at Seminary of the Southwest
[Episcopal News Service] "To address the needs of people who want to gain knowledge, deepen their spirituality and do more effective mission work." That's why the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest (http://www.etss.edu) is opening its Online School in Spirituality and Mission, says Madelyn Snodgrass, administrator of The ETSS Online School in Spirituality and Mission.
ETSS has emphasized mission since its founding in 1951. Courses in spirituality were added because both an alumni survey and unsolicited phone calls pointed to a desire for courses to enrich spirituality "over and over again," according to Snodgrass.
Inaugural courses (http://www.etss.edu/coursereg.shtml) are "Holy Whodunits: Religion as Portrayed in Contemporary Murder Mysteries," taught by author and retreat leader Debra Farrington (http://www.debrafarrington.com); "The Desert Mothers: Spiritual Practices from Women of the Wilderness," with teacher, writer and spiritual director the Rev. Mary C. Earle (http://www.marycearle.org); and "Consumerism against Christianity," taught by Robert Elzy Cogswell (http://www.etss.edu/OnlineBioCog.shtml), teacher and poet.
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_95983_ENG_HTM.htm
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Episcopal Divinity School transformational leadership workshops conclude April 5
[ENS] Episcopal Divinity School (EDS), in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in partnership with a collaborative of faith-based educators and trainers, is set to offer its final continuing education workshop on leadership and community development for the 2008 spring semester on April 5.
Led by area faith leaders known for their ability to build community at the intersection of spiritual growth and social justice, these workshops -- Leading Reconciling Communities -- have offered brief theory presentations that serve as a springboard for individual and group exercises designed to help participants develop an understanding of strategies and skills for strengthening the calling of all God's people.
Leaders Judith Oleson and Tulaine Shabazz Marshall will engage participants in the nature of conflict and healing in organizational systems. Participants are encouraged to learn specific facilitation skills for healing historical wounds and embedding reconciling practices in parish and other organizational settings.
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_95982_ENG_HTM.htm
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SPIRITUAL REFLECTIONS
Second Sunday of Easter - Year A [RCL]
Acts 2:14a, 22-32; Psalm 16; 1 Peter 1:3-9; John 20:19-31
By Debbie Royals
[Sermons That Work] The journey to Easter is one filled with questioning and reconciliation as we follow the narrative that brings us to the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. These stories provide many examples of what God would have us do and be through the living example of his son, Jesus. We even experience through Jesus the mystery of belief complete with its companions: questioning, doubt, and obedience.
The mystery and complexity of belief is woven throughout scripture. They are at the heart of what it means to be Christian, making the stories of mystery and belief essential for our own understanding of faith and challenging our ability to share that part of ourselves with everyone we encounter in obedience.
Aside from the miracle of creation, for which there were no witnesses, most of the stories in scripture invite us into believing through the relationships of others. Take for example the mystery shrouding Mary's conception or the miracle for Elizabeth both as she recognizes the child Mary bears to be Jesus and as her own unborn child leaps - already going ahead, announcing Jesus. Or consider the miracle of Lazarus or the widow's child being raised up from death. Or the healing of the lepers, the blind, or people otherwise afflicted. Or the faith of the Syrophoenician woman that her child could be healed if only Jesus would acknowledge her. Or the Samaritan woman at the well whose only task was to draw water but gained new life instead.
Full reflection: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/82478_95963_ENG_HTM.htm
More Spiritual Reflections:
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/82457_ENG_HTM.htm
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DAYBOOK
On March 27, 2008, the Church calendar remembers Thursday in Easter Week and Charles Henry Brent, bishop of the Philippines, and of Western New York (1862-1929).
* Today in Scripture: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/82457_ENG_HTM.htm * Today in Prayer: Anglican Cycle of Prayer: http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acp/index.cfm * Today in History: On March 27, 1991, a royal commission confirmed the election of Dr. George Carey as the 103rd Archbishop of Canterbury.
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CATALYST
"Crossing: Reclaiming the Landscape of Our Lives" from Church Publishing, Inc., by Mark Barrett, 120 pages, paperback, second edition, c. 2008, $16
[Source: Church Publishing, Inc.] This book illuminates the spiritual journey we all take and the choices we make by focusing on five of the monastic hours: from Vigils which reflect on the edges of the day and our own difficulty in choosing to begin the journey, through Compline or night prayer, the time for letting go and remembering the reality of death. Full of humor and eloquently written, Crossing shows Christians how to bring faith and human experience together.
"A bold, intelligent and uncompromising primer on monastic spirituality." -- Publishers Weekly
To order: Episcopal Books and Resources, online at http://www.episcopalbookstore.org, or call 800-903-5544 -- or visit your local Episcopal bookseller, http://www.episcopalbooksellers.org
More Catalyst: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/83842_ENG_HTM.htm