wfn.org | [ELD] Harare bishop condemns continued persecution of Zimbabwe's Anglicans; Presiding Bishop says in

["Matthew Davies" <mdavies@episcopalchurch.org>]

>Episcopal Life Daily
>May 23, 2008

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

Editor's note: Episcopal Life Daily will observe the Memorial Day
holiday on Monday, May 26, with regular service resuming on Tuesday,
May 27.

>Today's Episcopal Life Daily includes:

* TOP STORY - Harare bishop condemns continued persecution of
Zimbabwe's Anglicans; Presiding Bishop says international solidarity
is vital
* DIOCESAN DIGEST - LOS ANGELES: Pasadena church to treat 'all couples
equally' in marriage
* WORLD REPORT - BRAZIL: Church destroyed, clergy threatened in
Diocese of Parana
* WORLD REPORT - ENGLAND: Archbishop welcomes Dalai Lama to Lambeth
Palace for meeting of faith leaders
* WORLD REPORT - SOUTHERN AFRICA: Church leaders urge regional summit
to discuss violence
* PEOPLE - Episcopal Church Foundation announces 2008 fellows for
Fellowship Partners Program
* TEACHING - Episcopal Divinity School bestows 34 degrees and five
honorary doctorates
* TEACHING - Virginia Seminary bids farewell to the class of 2008
* MULTIMEDIA - Video: Canterbury Cathedral Dean Robert Willis
* ARTS - Meet a videographer of the Spirit
* DAYBOOK - Today in Scripture, Prayer, History
* CATALYST - The Way of Mary: Following Her Footsteps Toward God

>_____________________

>TOP STORIES

Harare bishop condemns continued persecution of Zimbabwe's Anglicans;
Presiding Bishop says international solidarity is vital

>By Matthew Davies

[Episcopal News Service] Bishop Sebastian Bakare of the Anglican
Diocese of Harare, Zimbabwe, has issued a statement condemning the
"brutality" of the local police who have repeatedly persecuted and
assaulted Anglicans in an attempt to stop them from attending Sunday
church services.

Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori has said that the
"continued brutal attacks on Anglicans seeking to worship in peace
leaves little doubt that far stronger international action is needed
to contain that nation's rapidly escalating political crisis."

Bakare, who replaced the controversial former bishop of Harare,
Nolbert Kunonga, in December 2007, appealed to law enforcement agents
and the police "to let sanity prevail and refrain from harassing and
brutalizing Anglican Christians" in the Harare diocese.

Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_97327_ENG_HTM.htm

More Top Stories: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife

>_____________________

>DIOCESAN DIGEST

LOS ANGELES: Pasadena church to treat 'all couples equally' in marriage
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81803_97331_ENG_HTM.htm

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

>_____________________

>WORLD REPORT

BRAZIL: Church destroyed, clergy threatened in Diocese of Parana
http://www.xicoassis.blogspot.com

ENGLAND: Archbishop welcomes Dalai Lama to Lambeth Palace for meeting
of faith leaders
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_97329_ENG_HTM.htm

SOUTHERN AFRICA: Church leaders urge regional summit to discuss violence
http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_97330_ENG_HTM.htm

More World news: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_ENG_HTM.htm

>_____________________

>PEOPLE

Episcopal Church Foundation announces 2008 fellows for Fellowship
Partners Program

[ECF] The Episcopal Church Foundation (ECF) has named five grant
recipients -- the Rev. Joseph F. Duggan, the Rev. Joseph Hyvenson
Joseph, the Rev. Susan Richardson, the Rev. Steven R. Smith, and the
Rev. Stephanie Spellers -- for the 2008 Fellowship Partners Program.

The Fellowship Partners Program, which includes both academic and
transformational ministry grants, emphasizes the idea of partnership.
Fellows are expected to share their knowledge, experience and best
practices with the wider Church in practical ways.

"These are not potential scholars and transformational leaders -- they
are already persuasive educators and passionate leaders," said the
Rev. Lynne A. Grifo, ECF program director. "They are modeling
Christ-like action by building bridges that will help TEC embrace anew
the meaning of communion."

The new fellows are engaged in ministries and studies centered on the
idea of enhancing multicultural competency -- that is, the Christian
calling to welcome the stranger -- and will have important impact in
their communities and beyond.

Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81831_97326_ENG_HTM.htm

More People: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81831_ENG_HTM.htm

>_____________________

>TEACHING

Episcopal Divinity School bestows 34 degrees and five honorary doctorates

[EDS] "As you go out into the world to preach the good news of the
Good Shepherd, remember that there are many who are thirsty for the
water of life," said Hellen Wangusa, Anglican Observer to the United
Nations, in her May 15 commencement address to the graduates of
Episcopal Divinity School (EDS).

EDS conferred 34 degrees including 20 Master of Divinity, six Master
of Arts in Theological Studies, six Doctor of Ministry, and two
Certificates of Theological Study, during services held at the First
Church in Cambridge, Congregational.

Throughout her address, Wangusa illustrated her strong stance in
defense of issues of justice, reconciliation, and peace. Using the
gospel story of Jesus meeting the Samaritan woman at the well, she
drew parallels between this conversation and current calls for
reconciliation.

Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_97325_ENG_HTM.htm

>- - - - -

Virginia Seminary bids farewell to the class of 2008

[VTS] Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS) celebrated its 185th
Commencement on May 22, awarding 59 students, representing more than
22 dioceses and four countries, with degrees of either Master in
Divinity, Master in Theological Studies, Doctor of Ministry,
Postgraduate Diploma in Anglican Studies, or Certificate of Work
Accomplished.

The commencement address, delivered by the Rev. Dr. Roger Ferlo,
associate dean and director of the Seminary's Institute for Christian
Formation and Leadership, focused on making a commitment to furthering
religious education after seminary.

"As some of you cross this stage," said Ferlo, "I suggest that all of
us here try to regard these academic hoods not simply as the secular
symbols of advanced degrees, but also as symbols of the yoke of the
Kingdom of Heaven, the outward and visible signs of our shared
commitment to the way of the Torah that is the way of Christ, a
commitment to the act of lernen.a commitment to the act of loving the
Lord our God with all our minds as well as with all our hearts, and
loving our neighbors as ourselves."

Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_97324_ENG_HTM.htm

>_____________________

>MULTIMEDIA

Video: Canterbury Cathedral Dean Robert Willis

[Episcopal News Service] The Very Rev. Robert Willis, dean of
Canterbury Cathedral, speaks about the historical significance and
ministry of the mother church of the Anglican Communion, underscores
its role as a place of pilgrimage and reconciliation, and looks toward
the 2008 Lambeth Conference of bishops.

Video: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81231_ENG_HTM.htm

More Multimedia: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/80056_ENG_HTM.htm

>_____________________

>ARTS

>Meet a videographer of the Spirit

>By Jerry Hames

[Episcopal Life] It was the sound of the pipe organ, Bryan Matuskey
recalls, which first drew him to the doors of this church, located
just north of the heart of downtown Phoenix in the middle of the
Roosevelt Row arts district.

Just out of college, he was doing work he loved, shooting music videos
for bands and local artists. He had in his mind the possibility of
using the church as a backdrop for one of the groups he was about to
film.

"Hi! I'm Bryan with a 'y'! My friends and I were shooting a video and
we were walking by and tried the door and it was open and we thought
we'd take a look around. Do you mind?"

Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81827_97322_ENG_HTM.htm

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

>_____________________

>DAYBOOK

On May 26, 2008, the Church calendar remembers Augustine, first
Archbishop of Canterbury (d.605).

* 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 May 26, 1979, the Rev. Roberto Martinez, rector
of the San Jose de Gracia Cathedral, was elected suffragan bishop of
the Diocese of Central and South Mexico.

>_____________________

>CATALYST

"The Way of Mary: Following Her Footsteps Toward God" from Paraclete
Press, 228 pages, hardcover, c. 2007, $23.95

[Paraclete Press] Christians of all denominations are rediscovering
the significance of the mother of Jesus, as films such as The Nativity
Story and The Passion of the Christ portray her life in new and
startling ways. Written for a popular audience, Mary Ford-Grabowsky's
new book shares the wisdom of a lifetime of devotion to Mary.

These new devotions, all of them inspired by the scenes and stories of
the Gospels, comment on Mary's extraordinary life on earth and
momentous influence on the human heart, male or female, ever since.
Arranged in a two-week cycle, each of these devotions includes
meditation, reflection, prayer, visualization, and ideas for freeing
the creative spirit.

The new spirituality of Mary contained in this book will help readers
learn that drawing closer to the mother of Jesus is a way to attain a
holiness that is unlimited and a joy that can never end.

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