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>Episcopal Life Daily
>December 15, 2009

Episcopal Life Online is available at  http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife.

>Today's Episcopal Life Daily includes:

* DIOCESAN DIGEST - NEW YORK: 'Slave galleries' depict 19th-century  marginalization
* DIOCESAN DIGEST - WASHINGTON: Bishop praises council's approval of  same-gender marriage
* OPINION - Proclaiming God's love this Christmas
* ARTS - Episcopal visual artists reflect on grace
* DAYBOOK - December 16: Today in Scripture, Prayer, History
* CATALYST - The Story of the Episcopal Church

>_____________________

>DIOCESAN DIGEST

NEW YORK: 'Slave galleries' depict 19th-century marginalization

>By Lynette Wilson

[Episcopal News Service] From the floor of the sanctuary at St.  Augustine's Church on Manhattan's Lower East Side, the two tiny rooms to  either side of the organ where blacks worshiped in the 1800s are barely  visible.

Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_117833_ENG_HTM.htm
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WASHINGTON: Bishop praises council's approval of same-gender marriage

>By Mary Frances Schjonberg

[Episcopal News Service] Episcopal Diocese of Washington Bishop John  Chane celebrated the Washington D.C. City Council's passage of a  same-gender marriage bill Dec. 15

Like some other Episcopal Church bishops, Chane permits the clergy in  his diocese to bless same-sex relationships. He had previously said that  the diocese had begun studying the church's canons to determine whether  diocesan priests will be allowed to solemnize same-gender marriages and  sign marriage licenses if same-gender marriage became legal in the  district. In the Dec. 15 statement, Chane said an announcement would be  forthcoming.

Full story: http://www.episcopal-life.org/81803_117839_ENG_HTM.htm

More Diocesan news: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_ENG_HTM.htm

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>OPINION

>Proclaiming God's love this Christmas

>By David F. Sellery

[Episcopal News Service] "Happy Holidays" or "Merry Christmas": take  your pick. For years now the armies of inclusion have battled the troops  of tradition. No year passes without a breathlessly televised crèche  controversy or a school pageant showdown.

Naturally, I've always been a "Merry Christmas" man myself. But this  year I think it's time to step up the game.

"God loves us" captures Christmas for me. It packs a wallop. And it's  even four letters shorter than "Merry Christmas."

Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/80050_117826_ENG_HTM.htm

More Opinion: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/80050_ENG_HTM.htm

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>ARTS

>Episcopal visual artists reflect on grace

>By staff

[Episcopal News Service] An association of Episcopal artists has  launched its final exhibition of the year -- a slide show of two dozen  pieces of art for Advent that best convey the varying concepts of grace.  The exhibition, Full of Grace, can be viewed at www.ecva.org.

Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81827_117823_ENG_HTM.htm

More Arts: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81827_ENG_HTM.htm

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>DAYBOOK

>On December 16, 2009...

* 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 December 16, 1485, Catherine of Aragon, the first  wife of Henry VIII, was born in Laredo Palace, Alcala de Henares, Spain.  On December 16, 1826, John Ellerton, Anglican priest, hymnist and hymn  translator, was born in London, England.

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>CATALYST

"The Story of the Episcopal Church" from Cathedral Film & Video  Productions, produced by the Rev. Jim Friedrich, narrated by David  Morse, DVD, $20

[Cathedral Film and Video Productions] Our church's past merges with the  present with narration by David Morse and interviews with Episcopal  historians and commentators that 'make the history of the Episcopal  Church come alive.'

Part 1: From Jamestown to Revolution (20 min.) The challenges of the New  World affect the evolution of a colonial church into an independent  American church.

Part 2: The Call to Mission (23 min.) In the 19th and 20th centuries,  the church's identity and mission are themes as the Episcopal Church  responds to a changing American culture.

To order, please visit Episcopal Books and Resources online at  http://www.episcopalbookstore.org, call 800-903-5544, or visit your  local Episcopal bookstore.