A creative and helpful time ... [From Bishop Paul] My thanks go to all who prepared, presented, and attended the Diocesan Training Day. It was a creative and helpful time. Canon Kitch asked us to value our gifts, the things that make our hearts sing, and there were many such moments. Thanks also go to St. Stephen's for hosting us and to Canon Laubach, whose rendition of the Sinfonia from Cantata 29 in that room and on that instrument was unforgettable. I hope your lives and ministries were enriched! Blessings, +Paul
What makes your heart sing? ... Canon Anne Kitch's sermon for Diocesan Training Day. Read it here.
Join an Episcopal Church online Bible study ... The Episcopal Church invites online visitors into a Bible study by posting comments and thoughts on each week’s Sunday readings from the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL). The complete weekly readings are posted along with study questions and reader comments here. ENS Weekly bulletin inserts for May 9 outline this service and invite all church members and others to join in the online discussion. Inserts available in English and Spanish here.
Dorothy Height, a leader of the African-American and women’s rights
movements who was considered both the grande dame of the civil rights
era and its unsung heroine, died a week ago Tuesday in Washington. She was 98. Her funeral takes place today, Thursday April 29, at the National Cathedral, 10:00 a.m. President Obama will give the eulogy. The service will be streamed online from the Cathedral homepage. More here.
Eleanor Magnuson, widow of The Rev. Fred Magnuson, has died. Her funeral will take place at St. Alban's, Sinking Spring, on Monday, May 3, at 11 a.m. Please keep Eleanor and her family in your prayers. May her soul rest in peace and may light perpetual shine upon her.
Oscar Rankin, father of Canon Elizabeth Geitz, died during the morning of April 28. May he rest in peace and may light perpetual shine upon him. Find the obituary here. Author of Fireweed Evangelism, Canon Geitz is licensed to officiate in our diocese and has a home in Shohola.The Grace Montessori School annual scholarship auction benefit will take place this evening [Thursday, April 29], at the Allentown Brew Works, 812 W. Hamilton Street, Allenown (Hamilton Room). Great hors d’oeuvres (enough for a meal), complimentary glass of wine or beer, cash bar, jazz music, pick-a-prize auction, live auction, and 50/50 raffle winner drawing! The best place to park is the lot behind the school, across the street from the Brew Works. Enter on 8th Street. Free after 6 p.m. GMS was founded in 1992 for children of Grace Church's food bank clients. The mission to provide excellent education for economically disadvantaged kids remains at the heart of the GMS program which has grown from serving 7 children to 120 students this year. All proceeds from this major fundraiser go to the scholarship fund that allows about 40 children to attend GMS with financial assistance. Contact the school office at 610-435-4060 for raffle tickets ($5 each/ 4 for $20) and event tickets ($20 per person). Walk-ins welcome. An outreach of Grace Episcopal Church, Grace Montessori School is a not-for-profit, urban school and childcare center, licensed by the Department of Public Welfare and registered as a private, non-public school with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
May Diocesan Life ... Download it here.
Prayers of the People, Easter 5C ... Here. To receive these alternative prayers of the people composed by Canon Cliff Carr for use on Sundays by email on Wednesdays, sign up at the "Get Connected" box at the DioBeth website.
War and Peace...in
Sudan ... Read Nicholas Kristof's reflection here.
Festive Evensong at Mediator Allentown on Sunday, May 2 at 4:00 p.m. More here.
Choral Evensong and "mini-concert" at St. Stephen's Pro-Cathedral
Wilkes-Barre
on Sunday, May 2 at 5:00 p.m. More
here.
A conversion story ... As we think about the reading
from the Acts of the Apostles for Sunday. Read
it here. [H/T to Bishop Paul[
Different Hymns, Different Tunes ... Stephen Prothero, a professor of religion at Boston University, has written a new book saying that there are differences in the world's major religions, that we cannot harmonize or homogenize them, and to try to do so is both naive and, very possibly, dangerous. More here.
Probing the mystery of faith, found and lost ... “To you I’m an atheist; to God, I’m the loyal opposition.’’ ... When and if we get to heaven, the honest Atheist will find that God will probably say, "You were mistaken, but come in." [From a Boston Globe review of Eric Lax's Faith Interrupted. Read more here.]
The Religious Case for Church-State Separation ... [Jon
Meacham, Editor, Newsweek] Religious liberty—the freedom to
worship as one chooses, or not to
worship—is a central element of the American creed. Yes, many of the
Founders were believing, observant Christians. But to think of them as
apostles in knee breeches or as passionate evangelicals is a profound
misreading of the past. In many ways their most wondrous legacy was
creating the foundations of a culture of religious diversity in which
the secular and the religious could live in harmony, giving faith a role
in the life of the nation in which it could shape us without strangling
us. On the day George Washington left Philadelphia to take command of
the Continental Army, the Rev. William Smith preached a sermon at the
city's Christ Church, saying: "Religion and liberty must flourish or
fall together in America. We pray that both may be perpetual." More here.
An open letter to
Latino Episcopalians in Arizona ... [From Bishop Kirk Smith]
My Dear Spanish-Speaking Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Today is a sad
day in the struggle to see all God's people treated in
a humane and compassionate manner. I had hoped that our Governor and
law-makers would listen to their consciences and not be swayed by the
voices of bigotry and racism. With the Governor's signing of SB 1070, it
seems that for now the advocates of fear and hatred have won over those
of charity and love. Arizona claims to be a Golden Rule State. We have
not lived up to that claim. Read
it all here. [H/T to Andrew Gerns] And a Washington Post column
by E.J. Dionne. And a more recent essay by Bishop Kirk Smith, AZ
Law Criminalizes Compassion, in the Huffington Post here.
You may donate online to diocesan funds or to your parish? At the DioBeth website, click on "Donate Now" to the right on the homepage. There you will be able to make a one-time or recurring donations. Should you choose to do so, especially for recurring donations, you will be able to create a profile which will enable you to set up/manage your donations and track your donation history.
Dive In: A Day Exploring Baptism ... Saturday, May 8. St. Luke's Scranton. What does it mean to be baptized and to live a baptized life? How can you nurture your life in Christ? How can your congregation live more deeply into baptismal ministry? This day of Christian Formation will offer resources for parents, Christian educators, clergy, and anyone seeking a deeper life in Christ. More info here.Forward Life Planning Workshop ... May 22, St. Luke's Scranton, with Charles Cesaretti, Diana Marshall and Charlie Barebo. More info here.
Finding information ... The Diobeth website and newSpin blog work hand in hand. If you can't find the info you seek at the website, please search at the newSpin blog.For daily news, info and commentary, visit the newSpin blog, the Episcopal Cafe and Episcopal Life Online.
The Diocese of Bethlehem ... DioBethWebsite ... newSpin Blog ... DiobethKids ... Share the Bread ... Bakery (Get Connected) ... Audio ... Photos ... On Twitter ... On Facebook ... On YouTube ...
The Episcopal Church ... Website ... NewsLine ... News & Notices ... InfoLine ... Episcopal Life Online ... FastFacts ... Calendar ... I am Episcopalian ... Weekly Bulletin Inserts ... On Twitter ... On Facebook ... and on YouTube.
What's happening?... Calendar of diocesan events. updated April 7. If you would like an event posted, please email Kat Lehman; she will put it on the next version, posted monthly. Also, weekly, we post What's Happening...on Facebook.
Bakery ... The best place by far to post news or information about your parish is on the interactive list of the Diocese of Bethlehem (the House of Bread) called the Bakery. In order to post there, however, you have to be joined to the list. Join at the "Get Connected" page at the DioBeth website. Bakery includes some 200 addresses. If you post something about your parish on Bakery, however, I will most likely include it also on the twice-weekly newSpin newsletter which goes to some 1,000 addresses. And Kat may pick it up for use in Diocesan Life.
Find earlier issues of the newSpin newsletter here.
Do you wonder at times why you are not reading anything
in the newSpin newsletter, the newSpin blog, the DioBeth website
or Diocesan Life about your parish or your committee or your sermon? Try
Occam's Razor. The simple answer, usually the correct one, is that
nothing has been sent to Bill or Kat. Send. Send. Send. Preferably
online.
About the newSpin newsletter ... Written at least weekly (usually twice a week) by Bill Lewellis, the newSpin newsletter appears as a post within the newSpin blog, but newsletter and blog are not identical. The newsletter currently goes to some 1,000 email addresses on a separate list. The views expressed, seemingly implied, or inferred in items or links contained in the newsletter or the blog do not represent the official view of the Diocese of Bethlehem unless expressed by or forwarded from the Bishop or the Archdeacon as an official communication. Comments may be addressed to Bill.
There are moments in life when you miss someone so much that you just want to pick them from your dreams and hug them for real!
Posted by: coach sale | June 25, 2010 at 03:09 AM