ANGLICAN CHURCH IN AMERICA Diocese of the Northeast Rt. Rev. Brian Marsh, Bishop

Transcription

1 ANGLICAN CHURCH IN AMERICA Diocese of the Northeast Rt. Rev. Brian Marsh, Bishop MONTHLY NEWSLETTER-June 2010 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, This newsletter comes to you near the beginning of the Trinity season. Summer has officially begun and it is time to make the necessary seasonal adjustments. I pray that you will all have a wonderful Summer, filled with the knowledge of God's love for you all. During the Summer months, there is a distinct shift in our church activities. Church schools generally take a break until September, our parishes often adopt Summer schedules and the calendar seems to offer more leisure opportunities. Often, because of vacations, attendance may fluctuate at this time of year. Many parishioners and clergy take time during the summer months to travel and take some much needed rest. But during this time, it is important to remember our commitment to stewardship. Our parishes need the resources to continue their important work and it is necessary to keep the bills paid. Even more important, we may receive visitors at this time of year. Many Anglicans from other parts of the country take their vacations in the Northeast. We may even receive visitors who are un-churched. It is important for us to welcome and minister to the travelers who come to our doors, travelers who seek the spiritual refreshment our churches and missions have to offer. Not only will the travelers be nourished for the balance of their journey, but we, too, will feel the joy that comes from serving others who travel the Christian path. MONTHLY NEWS June has been an exceptionally busy month. The House of Bishops and Executive Council met during the first week in June. A series of decisions were made at that gathering that concerns the Apostolic Constitution and our relationship to it. Following the meeting, I issued a Pastoral Letter that summarized the decisions made at that gathering. At the request of some clergy, that letter is reissued here and may be copied and disseminated as necessary and appropriate. ACNA CONFERENCE During the second week of June, your bishop attended the ACNA conference in Amesbury, Massachusetts. It was a wonderful event and it gave me the opportunity to greet old friends and make new ones. As a guest observer, I was granted voice in the proceedings and was able to observe a part of the continuing development of the Anglican witness. The ACNA is currently resolving several structural and theological issues. Among the issues under discussion, ordination is most prominent. We pray that God will guide the deliberations of the ACNA as it struggles with this issue.

2 SUMMER CLERGY TRAINING PROGRAM, JUNE The second annual Clergy Training Program was held at St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield, Connecticut. This excellent facility afforded our eleven students a superb setting for the necessary instruction of men who are candidates for holy orders. The program was held in association with Logos House of Studies. This year's theme was "Sacramental Ministry." The formation of men for holy orders involves far more than learning the practical tasks of ministry and the educational aspects of theology. Formation also involves prayer, meditation and living the Word of God. Accordingly, in addition to classes, chapel worship occurred four times a day. A variety of styles of worship were presented, including simple said Morning Prayer, sung Compline, a Gregorian Mass and a festival Eucharist to complete the week's educational and devotional activities. At the final Eucharist, Mr. Scott Chase, a student from Good Shepherd, Charlestown, New Hampshire, was confirmed. During the week, several students preached homilies at either Evening Prayer or Mass. Judging from the quality of these homilies; the church will be well served by its future clergymen. Special thanks should be accorded Archdeacon Koller and Canon Henthorne for their work in administering the program, to Jeanne Moody for locating the seminary and to all the instructors and students for participating in an excellent week of education, formation and fellowship. FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR SEMINARIANS Training clergy can be a very expensive proposition. Several years ago, the Helliwell Fund was established to provide funds for some types of education. This fund, administered by St. Margaret of Scotland Church, has provided invaluable assistance to our full-time seminarian, as well as to the Summer Clergy Training Program. Thanks to St. Margaret s Treasurer Rebecca Harrington for her assistance to the seminarians. Although we do our best and, as good New Englanders, get a "lot for our dollah," there is a great need for support. We have twenty-nine men from this diocese alone who are studying at Logos House. Our full-time seminarian, Mike Cupoli, has a challenge to make ends meet every month. We need two things: 1. contributions to the seminarian fund; 2. a person to begin a program of development to raise funds for ongoing education. This is an absolutely necessary part of our work. We rarely ask for funds. We do now. Any funds may be sent to diocesan treasurer, Kathy Lippman. If anyone is interested in doing development work, please contact the bishop. MISSION WORK Deacon Art Bennett has been actively reviving the ACA mission in the St. Johnsbury, Vermont area. Services have been held at the Seventh Day Adventist Church for three weeks and it appears that a good church plant is in the works. Please keep Deacon Bennett in your prayers.

3 Mr. Merrill Perkins has been appointed Lay Missioner for St. Matthias in Mystic, Connecticut. Services had been abruptly terminated at this location several months ago. Many thanks to Merrill for his work in continuing a ministry that has been so vital to a part of the diocese that needs this missionary work. Deacon Ed Kalish has been appointed Deacon in Charge for Holy Trinity Parish in Waterville, Maine. The parish meets at Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church in Waterville and is one of the first parishes to formally share a space with a Roman Catholic Parish. Please keep them all in your prayers. POSTULANT AND CANDIDATE NEWS Mr. Stephen Rugg, a member of Trinity Church in West Lebanon, has been made a postulant for holy orders. Steve completed our recent Summer Clergy Education Program. Mr. Michael Cupoli and Mr. Allen Ryan have passed their canonical exams and will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacons on August 14, the Vigil of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The ordinations will be held at St. Paul 's Anglican Church in Portland, Maine. Further information will be forthcoming. Mike is also taking a course in Clinical Pastoral Education at Mercy Hospital in Portland, Maine. The CPE course is a standard "rite of Passage" for all three-year seminary students. Typically held in hospital settngs, CPE is designed to train students for pastoral ministry in an institutional setting. It was a pleasure visiting Mike three weeks ago and to see the facility where he is taking this course. He is also assisting with maritime chaplain work under Seafarer s Friend as part of the program. CLERGY NEWS The Very Rev. Owen Williams will attend a Summer Program at Nashotah House in July. This is part of his educational program that will result in a STM degree. We wish him well during his time at this historical and orthodox seminary. Father Sam Logan attended the recent Fellowship of Concerned Churchmen conference in Belleville, Illinois. Father Sam represented our diocese very well indeed and we thank him for sharing the wonderful spirit of our diocese with others. Father Jeff Monroe has been called to and accepted the position of Rector at St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church in Conway, NH. He served there as Vicar for the last six months and took over from Fr. Kevin LaMarre who had been interim rector. NORTHEAST ANGLICAN The Ascensiontide/Trinity issue of the Northeast Anglican is now available and should have been received by now. It is, once again, an excellent edition. The editor, Ed Pacht, has done a remarkable job. Please be sure to thank Ed when you see him. The Procathedral has also made its resources available to assist in the printing and mailing of the

4 NEA. Thanks to Dean Owen Williams and his staff for their work in producing this excellent publication. HARVEST MAGAZINE The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland did a wonderful article on our joint Anglican- Roman Catholic Prayer service held at their Cathedral in February. Copies will be available at Synod in the fall. YORKIE S CLOSET As most of you know, the Diocese has a repository of liturgical items that have been given to us for use by Mission Churches and parishes with limited resources. Named for the late Father York who began this ministry informally, the program has provided hundreds of items, clothing items and vestments to clergy and missions not only in our own diocese but also to missions in other parts of the ACA. The administration of this ministry has been handled on my behalf by Father Jeff Monroe and it will now be located at St. Margaret s Church in Conway. Anyone who has surplus items to provide or needs items should contact Fr. Monroe at mirage@maine.rr.com. (207) We are in need of Books of Common Prayer and Fr. Jeff has requested that if each parish can bring two old and surplus BCP s to Synod that should restock the inventory. They can be repaired if they are in disrepair. Any other surplus items including vestments, liturgical items, or similar material would also be appreciated. SUMMER CAMP As reported in the recent edition of the Northeast Anglican, St. Luke's Summer Camp will be held again this year at New England Keswick in Monterey, Massachusetts. Deacon Rich Dibble will be serving as Camp Director again this year. If you know of children who would benefit from an excellent Christian camp experience, please register them immediately. All registration information is listed in the NEA. SYNOD, 2010 Radisson Hotel. Manchester, New Hampshire, September 23-25, Preliminary information about the 2010 synod will be forthcoming very soon. Many thanks to Linnea for her work in getting the administrative details of the synod put into place. Thanks to St. Luke's and All Saints for agreeing to jointly host the synod at very short notice - and to Father Christian for making the hotel arrangements. ADVERTISING GRANTS Advertising grants in the amount of $1,500 are still available from the national church. These grants are given to parishes and missions that have less than thirty members and are designed to be used for advertising. If you are interested in applying for such a grant, let the bishop know. The grant process is very simple and the response time is very quick. The finance committee of the national church should be commended for offering this grant program. Parishes and missions that have received these grants previously may reapply. However, such applications must be made a year after the previous grant was awarded. Applications may be sent to: Anglican Mission Grants, c/o Mr. Mark Newsome, 335 Fountain Place, Burlington, NC

5 AND - FINALLY A great deal of activity happens in our diocese every month. This is a small sample of the many positive activities that happen throughout the Northeast. Know of my prayers for you all. Pray that God will continue to bless our great work and continue to grow our diocese. Your Brother in Christ, +Brian JUNE 4 PASTORAL LETTER Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Blessings and Peace in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ! This pastoral letter will address issues related to the Apostolic Constitution of the Roman Catholic Church. This issue was the subject of discussion at the recent House of Bishops/Executive Council meeting in Belleville, Illinois. The following clarifies the decisions made and affirmed at that meeting. The Apostolic Constitution was developed for those groups of Anglicans who wish to be in full, visible communion with the Roman Catholic Church. The structure for this particular form of communion has been referred to as an "Ordinariate." Let me emphasize that no one, whether diocese, parish or individual is or will be compelled to join an Ordinariate. Correspondingly, no parish will be required to remain within its present diocese, should that parish choose to join the Ordinariate. Ordinariates will be established. However, this diocese and the national church structure will continue in its present form. We all, no matter whether we are proponents of the Ordinariate or not, remain committed to each other as we seek to discern God's call for us. We remain committed to assisting parishes in discerning their own direction. Those parishes that wish to join the Ordinariate may do so. Similarly, those parishes that wish to remain within their present diocesan structures may do so. Neither will be penalized; all will be assisted in discerning and following the path they feel called to take. Any ultimate decisions will take place at the parish level. The parish is the smallest unit that may be received into an Ordinariate. Any parish that may be so inclined need only communicate its wishes. All assistance will be provided to ensure a smooth transition into an Ordinariate. Parishes that do not wish to become part of an Ordinariate need do nothing. The task we have set for ourselves is a challenging and difficult one, but it is a path that emphasizes the love of God and love for each other. It is a simple thing to create fractures and disunity; it is challenging indeed to seek unity within the

6 disparate elements of our lives, our histories and our deeply held beliefs. But that is precisely what we are endeavoring to do. We believe that is God's command. At this time, we must approach our work with charity and love. We are certainly aware of the negative and ungodly responses that come our way from time to time. We need to pray for our detractors, challenging as that too may be. Above all, we need to recognize that we are all children of God. Whatever our individual parochial decisions, we must understand that there is no "pride of place" in either endeavor; only peace in the conviction that we are trying to do God's will as the present - and the future - determine it to be. Your Brother in Christ, +Brian