DioBeth newSpin

Diocesan Life for December 2011/January 2012

Open publication - Free publishing - More floods

You can download a .pdf of the file here: Download DECEMBER2011_DiocesanLife_SMALL

He Blessed the Bread

This video was produced by Kat Lehman, Director of Communication and Information Technology for the Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem, for the 140th Diocesan Convention in conjunction with the Congregational Renewal Committee.

Diocesan Life for November 2011

Open publication - Free publishing - More bluegrass

Want the .pdf version instead? You can download load the 2.3 MB file here: Download November2011_DiocesanLife_SMALL

Election Results for Diocesan Convention

The following are the election results for the 140th Diocesan Convention

The Commission on Ministry - Clergy (3 year term)
The Rev. Frank St. Amour, III
The Rev. R. Jane Williams

The Commission on Ministry - Lay (3 year term)
Virginia Falzone
Carolyn Tolley

Diocesan Council - Clergy (3 year term)
The Rev. John R. Francis
The Rev. Daniel Gunn

Diocesan Council - Lay (3 year term)
Richard Evans
Joan Flint
Joe Jackloski

The Incorporated Trustees - Lay (3 year term)
Charlie Barebo
Cynthia Phillips
Bob Romeril

The Standing Committee - Clergy (5 year term)
The Rev. T. Scott Allen

The Standing Commitee - Lay (5 year term)
Elizabeth House

Diocesan Convention Resolutions as passed

The following are the Convention Resolutions as passed at this year's Diocesan Convention.

Resolution on the Budget of the Diocese of Bethlehem

Be it Resolved, That the Assessment Rate applied to Line A, Normal Operating Income (NOI), of the 2010 Parochial Report shall be 12% in 2012;

and be it further

Resolved, That the Proposed Mission and Ministry Budget of the Diocese as it is presented to the Convention be adopted.

Presented by Diocesan Council

Explanation:

With this Resolution, Diocesan Convention adopts a Diocesan Operating Budget for 2012.  The Income of the Budget represents a continuation of a blend of Assessments and Acceptances, both at rates identical to last year: 12% of Normal Operating Income (NOI, Line A of the Parochial Report) for the Assessment and 3% of NOI for the Acceptance.

Resolution of the Personnel Committee Regarding the 2012 Salary Schedule

Be It Resolved, that the Salary Schedule for Clergy for 2012, be as follows with a 2.8% Cost of Living increase,

and be it further

Resolved, That the same Cost of Living increase applies to lay employees.

Parish Index                    Size of Parish                    Clergy Salary Range
1-99                                Small                                $30,635.00 - $36,800.00
100-250                           Medium                            $33,925.00 - $50,165.00
250-399                           Large                                $40,600.00 - $62,500.00
400 – above                      X-Large                            $54,790.00 - $88,715.00

Be It Resolved, That the Clergy Supply Schedule for 2011, be as follows, and be it further

Resolved, That Supply Clergy be reimbursed for travel at the current IRS rate.

Number of Services

1 Sunday Service or 1 Saturday                $130.00
2 Sunday Services                                    $160.00
Mid Week Service                                    $80.00

Resolution To Establish a Plan of Action for Relief for the Homeless and Poor in Our Society
[A M E N D E D]

Whereas the current increase in suffering of homeless people in our society has been largely ignored during our economic downturn and housing crisis, as almost 700,000 of our citizens are known to be homeless (with four in ten living on the street);

Whereas the greatest increases in recent years in homelessness are among people who have become unemployed (including veterans returning from our wars) and among those who formerly lived in homes now in foreclosure;

Whereas 250,000 persons living in families are homeless;

Whereas, contrary to misconceptions, blame and stereotypes, the root causes of homelessness are lack of affordable housing and poverty;

Whereas in response to our economic downturn and jobs crisis, budgetary reductions at the state, federal, and local levels have had direct and devastating effects upon our parishes’ work with the poor – upon shelters for the homeless; upon soup kitchens, upon food banks, upon employment counseling programs, upon legal services programs;

Whereas a large part of Jesus’ ministry consisted of the prophetic task of confronting and denouncing not merely the distinct sinful actions of individuals, but a host of systemic, structural evils (e.g., the transformation of the temple into “a den of thieves”) that degrade human life and impede the coming of God’s reign;

Be it Resolved, therefore, That parishes throughout The Diocese of Bethlehem will form prayer-and study-groups to meet regularly for an extended period in order to discern what is the Church’s call to the homeless and the poor in this present era; to discover how our faith in the coming reign of God may be sustained and strengthened in these profoundly difficult days; to devise methods for challenging and changing systems that now severely limit our society's potential for achieving a just distribution of the necessary means of life; to examine government policies that either contribute to or reduce unemployment; to plan actions for relief of the most vulnerable among us; to raise the quality and dignity of life for the poor and the homeless; and to restore compassion to our public and private discourse.

Be it further Resolved, That this convention submits the following resolution for the General Convention of the Episcopal Church in 2012 which commends the same practices to the parishes and dioceses of the National Church:

To Establish a Plan of Action for Relief for the Homeless and Poor in Our Society

Whereas the current increase in suffering of homeless people in our society has been largely ignored during our economic downturn and housing crisis, as almost 700,000 of our citizens are known to be homeless (with four in ten living on the street);

Whereas the greatest increases in recent years in homelessness are among people who have become unemployed (including veterans returning from our wars) and among those who formerly lived in homes now in foreclosure;

Whereas 250,000 persons living in families are homeless;

Whereas, contrary to misconceptions, blame and stereotypes, the root causes of homelessness are lack of affordable housing and poverty;

Whereas in response to our economic downturn and jobs crisis, budgetary reductions at the state, federal, and local levels have had direct and devastating effects upon our parishes’ work with the poor – upon shelters for the homeless; upon soup kitchens, upon food banks, upon employment counseling programs, upon legal services programs;

Whereas a large part of Jesus’ ministry consisted of the prophetic task of confronting and denouncing not merely the distinct sinful actions of individuals, but a host of systemic, structural evils (e.g., the transformation of the temple into “a den of thieves”) that degrade human life and impede the coming of God’s reign;

Be it Resolved, therefore, That parishes and dioceses of The Episcopal Church will form prayer-and study-groups to meet regularly for an extended period in order to discern what is the Church’s call to the homeless and the poor in this present era; to discover how our faith in the coming reign of God may be sustained and strengthened in these profoundly difficult days; to devise methods for challenging and changing systems that now severely limit our society's potential for achieving a just distribution of the necessary means of life; to examine government policies that either contribute to or reduce unemployment; to plan actions for relief of the most vulnerable among us; to raise the quality and dignity of life for the poor and the homeless; and to restore compassion to our public and private discourse.

Presented by the following:

Members of Grace Church, Allentown, Summer Reading Group, 2011:
Addison Bross
Mary Louise Bross
Kelly Cannon
Kelly Denton-Borhaug
Gunnar Denton-Borhaug
Bob House
Libby House
Lori Molloy
Jean Moody
Jack Moody
The Rev. Elizabeth Reed
Jeff Reed
Joan Roy

The Rev. T. Scott Allen

Vestry Members, St. Andrews Church

The Clergy and Vestry Members, Trinity Church, Bethlehem

Resolution on Building Relationships with Muslim-American Community
 
Whereas:  A Washington Post-ABC News poll conducted in September 2010 found that 31 percent of U.S. citizens believe that "mainstream Islam [i.e., not "militant Islam"] encourages violence;"

Whereas:  Rep. Peter King's accusation (in Congressional hearings, March 10, 2011) that American Muslims have failed to support U.S. law enforcement's fight against terrorism has caused much pain and misunderstanding;
 
Whereas:  John B. Chilton, reporting on these hearings  in the Episcopal Cafe,  cited a document entitled "Shoulder to Shoulder," signed by clergy and laity of various faiths, representatives of national religious councils, and leaders of institutions for training of clergy, calling on elected officials and all citizens "not to perpetuate damaging false witness against our neighbors," but instead "to stand shoulder-to-shoulder [with persons of all faiths] in communities of growing awareness, trust and hope;"

Be it Resolved: That the parishes within the Diocese of Bethlehem be encouraged to work with the Diocesan Ecumenical and Interfaith Commission in reaching out to their local Muslim neighbors by organizing or being a part of an event in the coming year to build new relationships that will lead to better understanding of our different faiths.
 
Presented by the Diocesan Peace Commission:
Addison Bross, Co-Chair;
Barb Gessner, Co-Chair;
Mary Louise Bross;
Njideka Kelley;
Fr. Don Knapp;
Tom Lloyd;
Suzanne Siebert;
Candis Siatkowski.

Come to the Mountain

Come to the Mountain

By Bishop Jack Croneberger
October 8, 2011
Diocesan Convention Eucharist Sermon
Cathedral Church of the Nativity

“Then Moses went up to God; the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, ‘Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the Israelites, you have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now, therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples. Indeed the whole earth is mine, but you shall be for me a priestly kingdom, and a holy nation.’” (Exodus 19:3-7)

Brothers and sisters, it is time for us to go up to the mountain, to God, for God is surely calling to us. We shall be borne on eagles’ wings and brought to God’s presence and we...we are called to obey God’s voice and keep God’s covenant, for we are God’s treasured possession. A priestly kingdom, a holy nation.

O.K., O.K...Then tell me how come I frequently don’t feel much like a treasured possession or a priestly kingdom and certainly not a holy nation!

Let’s try this...called to obey God’s voice and keep God’s covenant. Obeying God’s voice requires the sharpest of our listening skills, listening for God’s voice in the panoply of creation; from the beauty or the devastation of wind, or water, or fire; from the roaring sounds of the world around us to the still small voices of the world within us.

How is God’s voice being spoken to us this day? Can you hear it? Can you share it?  Can you do it? What if it’s not popular or politic? I call upon you this day, at this convention and Eucharist to come to the mountain...to hear the voice of God.
Be careful now, for if you hear God’s voice, you will inevitably be called to keep God’s covenant. And not just the “Do you believe” but also the “Will you continue, will you persevere? Will you proclaim, will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, will you strive for justice and peace among all people?”

Just when I believe I might have a handle on all the “Will I’s?” of the covenant, the old fears come to visit again. Something is not right! Something is missing! It’s too much! I cannot possibly do all the covenant asks of me. Forgive me, Lord.
And just then, Jesus steps into my screen...this time in the form of a “Peanuts” cartoon strip. Lucy is crying bitter tears over a decision her mother has made. She wails, “You promised me a birthday party  and now you say I can’t have one! It’s not fair!”

Enter Lucy’s brother, Linus, who is the theologian in the group, who calls her aside to offer some advice. “You’re not using the right strategy,” he says. “Why not go up to Mom and say to her, ‘I’m sorry, dear Mother. I admit I’ve been bad, and you were right to cancel my party, but from not on, I shall try to be good.’”

Lucy thinks about it. She even rehearses the little speech to hear what it sounds like coming from her. Then she thinks about it some more. Finally, in the strip’s last panel, Lucy cries out, “I’D RATHER DIE!!”

Sometimes I think I’d rather die than say “I’m sorry.” Rather die than repent. But then dying to self is really what repentance is all about. Perhaps it is because I seem to be surrounded by death and dying, some expected and some very unexpected, but within the context of these finite lives of ours we need to be prepared. We need to wash our faces in the waters of baptism and put on the wedding garments of faith and our active response to faith. So let’s do whatever dying we need to do now, in order that we might be ready to live. To live with Christ and in Christ, now and forever.

 “Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.’” (Matthew 16:24-25).

Bishop Paul's Diocesan Convention Address

Convention Address, Oct. 7, 2011
Bishop Paul V. Marshall
Diocese of Bethlehem
Cathedral Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem
 
To enjoy each other and grow together in the Lord
I greet you with joy and affection as we gather again for convention. It is good to see new faces and to welcome back those who have moved back into the Diocese.
 
Those of you who are new or who are coming to our convention for the first time will notice something a bit unusual about this gathering. The time we spend debating and discussing resolutions is not particularly long. We put our energy into being together, in praying together, in eating together, and into learning together. The gathering is one piece, so there is no discount, so to speak, for skipping the eucharist or not having dinner.
 
So if you are here for the first time, please do not think of this as a two-day vestry meeting, but rather like a small and discrete camp meeting. Our goal is to enjoy each other in the Lord and to grow together. Every group has only so much energy, and by long tradition we spend ours in this communal way.
 
The King James Version of 1611
You will also notice that our scripture readings at all services are from the King James Version of 1611. It is the foundation of the modern translations we use in all our parishes; it served our ancestors very well. We gratefully remember at this Convention that “God’s word written” can only reach us if someone translates it. We remember how the 1611 translation gave shape to the thinking and language of every English-speaking person, usually without their knowing it. We remember that it was, as all memorable English Bible translations must be, an effort at Christian unity. All of that said, it is also just fine to sit back and enjoy its language.
 
Scanning a few headlines of the past year
A lot has happened since we last met, much of it joyful, some of it challenging. Let me just scan the headlines of Diocesan Life for you.
 

Diocesan Convention Preprint and Meetings (UPDATED PREPRINT)

Attached you will find the preprint for the Diocesan Convention October 7-8 at Cathedral Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. All delegates should receive a pre-convention packet mailed to them at their home. If you are a delegate and have not received your packet by September 23rd, please call Rosie Hummel at 610-691-5655 x221. Included in the packet is the preprint as well. Delegates are encouraged to read the preprint and attend one of the following pre-convention meetings.

You can download the 3.5MB .pdf preprint file here: Download 110930PreprintUpdated

Pre-Convention meetings are open to anyone in the diocese. They are scheduled as follows:
September 27, St. Alban's, Sinking Spring     7:00 P.M.
September 29, Church of the Epiphany, Clarks Summit    7:00 P.M.
October 4, Cathedral Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem    7:00 P.M.

REMINDER: Vendor "booth" registration for Diocesan Convention closes September 30th

[From Cindy Bakos]

2011 DIOCESAN CONVENTION Exhibitor “Booth” Request Form is attached.

Deadline: September 30, 2011

There is a $35.00 registration fee per table for all outside members. Please complete this form and return it to the address below along with your check made payable to “The Diocese of Bethlehem”. Space is limited. Table requests will be filled as received. There is the expectation that you will arrive at the exhibit area with all you need to set up your display. (Don’t forget to bring tablecloth, extension cords, scissors, tape, magic markers, pencils, etc.)

The exhibit hall will be available from 10:00 a.m. on Friday, October 7, 2011, until after the Eucharist on Saturday, October 8, 2011. All exhibits must be removed by 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. With this in mind, please complete the following form and return it to:

CINDY BAKOS
THE DIOCESE OF BETHLEHEM
333 WYANDOTTE STREET
BETHLEHEM, PA 18015

WE WILL NOT TAKE BOOTH RESERVATIONS OVER THE TELEPHONE. REQUEST FORM REQUIRED.
Download 110907 BOOTH REQUEST FORM 2011-Fill In

Diocesan Convention resolutions and information about pre-convention meetings

Attached you will find the four resolutions that will be presented at the Diocesan Convention October 7-8 at Cathedral Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. All delegates should receive a pre-convention packet mailed to them at their home by September 17th. If you are a delegate and have not received your packet by September 23rd, please call Rosie Hummel at 610-691-5655 x221.

Pre-Convention meetings are open to anyone in the diocese. They are scheduled as follows:
September 27, St. Alban's, Sinking Spring     7:00 P.M.
September 29, Church of the Epiphany, Clarks Summit    7:00 P.M.
October 4, Cathedral Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem    7:00 P.M.

Resolution A: Resolution on the Budget of the Diocese of Bethlehem
Resolution B: Resolution of the Personnel Committee Regarding the 2012 Salary Schedule
(Resolution A and B can be found here): Download 2011 Resolutions A and B

Resolution C: To Establish a Plan of Action for Relief for the Homeless and Poor in Our Society
(Resolution C can be found here): Download 2011 Convention Resolution C

Resolution D: Building Relationships with the Muslim-American Community
(Resolution D can be found here): Download 2011 Resolution D

Diocesan Life for September 2011

Download the September issue of Diocesan Life as a .pdf
Download September2011_DiocesanLife_SMALL (3.3 MB file)

Registering for Diocesan Convention, Oct. 7-8

[From Archdeacon Stringfellow]

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

This note is written to give you a simple and overall picture of registering for the Diocesan Convention to be held October 7-8 at the Cathedral Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.

Lay Delegates need to see that three steps are accomplished:

1.  Each Lay Delegate has to make sure that the parish you represent has filed a Certificate of Election with the Secretary of the Diocese.   This step is unnecessary for Lay Visitors to Convention who may simply register by accomplishing 2 and 3 below.

2.  Each Lay Delegate either individually or as part of your parish's delegation needs to Register for Convention.  This process now is exclusively accomplished online at the Diocesan website.  The website will be programmed to receive registrations beginning August 5.  The deadline to complete registrations is September 26.  (Late registrations incur a late registration fee.)  It is here that you specify your entrée for the banquet.

3.  Each Delegate either individually or as part of your parish's delegation needs to reserve a room at a hotel in Bethlehem if you need overnight accommodations.  Please find the attached names of the hotels, their locations, the rates they charge, and their telephone numbers.

The Clergy Delegates to Convention have to accomplish numbers 2 and 3 of these steps.  In virtue of being canonically resident or licensed to officiate clergy are expected to attend and to be part of Convention.

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask them.

Best regards,

Howard Stringfellow
Archdeacon


Convention Hotels:

        Best Western
        300 Gateway Dr.
        Bethlehem, PA
        610-866-5800
        Double  $85.00
        King  $85.00
        Rates available until Sep 7
        Smoking Rooms available upon request
        Total of 65 rooms

        Comfort Suites
        120 W. Third St.
        Bethlehem, PA
        610-882-9700
        King  $89.00
        Double $89.00
        Rates available until Sep 10
        Non-Smoking Hotel
        Total of 30 rooms   
   
        Holiday Inn Express
        3375 High Point Blvd.
        Bethlehem, PA
        610-882-2255
        Will provide transportation
        King Non-Smoking $99.99
        Double Queens Non-Smoking $99.99
        Rates available until Sep 7
        Smoking Rooms available upon request
        Total of 15 rooms

Diocesan Life for November 2010

Attached is the latest Diocesan Life for November, 2010. Remember, we love to get stories and pictures! If you have something you want featured, please contact Kat Lehman to discuss publication. Diocesan Life deadlines are posted on the calendar as well so you know when to get the stories in. For December's issue, we need the stories by November 2nd. The attached file is 2.7 MB in .pdf format.

Download November2010_DiocesanLifeSMALL

 

Congregational Renewal Bibliography

The attached bibliography is the one that was given to clergy for assisting them with processing From Risks to Opportunities in their parishes. Charles Cesaretti has recommended it be shared with everyone. You can download the file in either Word format or as a .pdf. If you have further questions, please contact Charles Cesaretti.

Download 101008 BiblioCONGREGATIONAL RENEWAL in Microsoft Word

Download 101008 BiblioCONGREGATIONAL RENEWAL in .pdf

Bishop's address to the 2010 convention

The Rt. Rev. Paul V. Marshall
Cathedral Church of the Nativity
Bethlehem, October 8, 2010

This has been a year of deeper connections for the Episcopal Church. In our part of the country it is especially joyful news that the two provinces of the Moravian Church have now entered into full communion with us, and that gift will be celebrated nationally in January of 2011. Additionally, for the first time that I know of, the Roman Catholic Bishop of Scranton will be preaching at St. Luke's in Scranton. Beyond that, we are planning a joint Eucharistic celebration with the Methodists for next fall, and of course, our relationship with the Lutherans continues to develop. For the first time, I have been able to receive a Lutheran pastor as an Episcopal priest by a simple letter of transfer.

These are the major indicators, but not the only ones, that Christian witness and service will in God's time regain united focus, that the world may see and know the power of the gospel. Canon Maria Tjeltveit is working on getting the leaders of the Lutheran, Moravian, Episcopal and Methodist communities to a meeting at the same time and place, so that we can begin to put some flesh on the structures of communion that have been erected.

Members of our House of Bishops and their spouses got to experience a new connectedness within our own church as we met with the fast-growing Coalición de Episcopales Latinos. The fastest growing demographic in our mainland dioceses, Latino Episcopalians will bring us many gifts. For some decades now the church has benefited from the presence of the Union of Black Episcopalians, and it is my hope that the Coalition will similarly help us to eliminate barriers in our family and move into a future that celebrates the beautiful complexity of God's creation.

All of that said; let me speak to our own time this weekend. This is more of a working convention than we usually have.

Consequently, things will feel different over the next two days. My address today is one third shorter than usual and will not review the highlights of the past year. My sermon tomorrow morning will also be shorter, to allow more time for the morning discussion groups to operate. Our worship services will be more compact. There will be fewer lessons and hymns, and the usual processions of clergy, the United Thank Offering, and the Episcopal Church Women's gifts will not occur until next year.

So what is there for us to discuss? This afternoon we will discuss some of the points I am trying to make now, and tomorrow we will hone in more directly on the work of the Congregational Development Committee.

A Committee's New Ministry

A year ago in my address to the convention I expressed a desire for us to reinvent our efforts in congregational development. My reason was that the culture and the economy in NE PA have changed, with dramatic results for the life of the church. Each of us has a list of things that pinch us right now in the enterprise of being a church, but as a community we don’t yet have a pattern of response for these times, and we particularly need a pattern that works from our strengths rather than one that remains fascinated by our perceived weakness.

My prayers were fully answered. A much-enlarged Congregational Development Committee, led by Canon Charles Cesaretti and Fr. Scott Allen, went to work on the challenge I laid down with an enthusiasm that escapes my powers of description. Would the members of that committee who are here today please stand.

Every word of their substantial report needs our attention, but let me tell you what is particularly important to me as a pastor when I look over their work.

Faith in a Time of Anxiety

Decades ago C. H. Dodd observed that Christianity attracted followers in its early days because the new religion was an answer to the troubles of what he was the first to call an "Age of Anxiety." The world's situation was tenuous on almost every level, and multitudes came to find in the practice of the new religion gifts of peace, confidence, and joy for their lives.

We are back in that emotional territory. About the time I was born, Leonard Bernstein was writing his second symphony, which he entitled, "Age of Anxiety." Perhaps that says it all. It is surely unnecessary to give a detailed account of the anxieties our culture has been struggling with for the last sixty-five years. We also don’t need to dwell on the extent to which churches and clergy can feel like failures when secular models of success are imposed on them—especially when they are forbidden to use many secular tools to attain that success.

Other writers on the ancient world have pointed out that in times when life was cheap, Christians distinguished themselves by the care of the poor and helpless, especially abandoned infants.

With this image of Christian origins as a calm and compassionate center in the anxious and violent world of the past and present in mind, I followed the committee's work. I was very grateful for what I observed. Rather than funding yet another research project on what went wrong with the culture or the church, rather than asking which issues of the day could have been better dealt with, the Committee calmly and lovingly went out to talk to parishioners and their clergy about what does work. They consulted with what we might consider larger, wealthier, parishes and they also visited an equal number of parishes facing significant challenges. In all cases, they modeled the important skill known as "appreciative inquiry," listening in an affirming way.

That is, they went as appreciative listeners, seeking to learn in each case what gives a parish cohesion, what it is proud of, and it how it assesses its strengths for future ministry. They wanted to know what parishes have to share with their neighbors in the diocese and beyond its community. You have their report, From Risk to Opportunities, in your packets, and many of you have seen it before. Many of you have read the summary articles Ty Welles wrote for our diocesan newspaper as well.

The committee was delighted at the many experiences of rich parish life that were shared with them. They formulated their recommendations with that memory in the forefront of their minds.

R2O Close Up

I want to make some observations about From Risk to Opportunities before you begin to work on it in your groups and back home.

If you have read it, you know that the first and most important point to make is that From Risk to Opportunities is not another program that your vestry must somehow fit into the schedule of your church. From Risk to Opportunities describes a process for discovery and some organizing principles for what is already happening in churches. It describes a way of being that can shape us during the generation or so that it takes to make permanent change in an organization. It is a gift we will leave to our children and grandchildren.

Using the Product

The process "R2O" recommends is grounded before all else in prayer, both personal and corporate. Being in touch with God is nothing more or less than "using the product", and church life little makes sense without it. While prayer means many things, the committee is especially interested in prayer as openness to God in a way that gives "lightness and energy and excitement" to congregations. (R20, p. 10, quoting Reese) Living prayerfully delivers congregations from secular management styles and opens them to the direction of the Holy Spirit.

In this regard, I wish to repeat once more my core beliefs about Vestry meetings; many of you have heard them. The first is that the container shapes the contents: meetings should not take more than 90 minutes, and if they routinely do take longer, there may be a problem in the system. The second is that financial matters must come last on the agenda so that the focus can be on the parish’s mission. The third is that leadership meetings must emerge from corporate prayer. If you look at our most energetic parishes, you will find without exception that the environment in which leadership meets is prayerful, most vestries attending to word and sacrament as well as sustained prayer. To help make this point, beginning in January we are re-shaping our Diocsan Council meetings in several ways, and one of them will be to deepen Council's life as a body at prayer.

Planning and Partnership

Back to the committee's report. Out of prayer comes discernment. In From Risk to Opportunities the hope is that concentration on our prayer life and listening to God will help each congregation focus on and celebrate what they do well, what they have to share. From there flow questions of goals and planning for the near and long-term future. Planning in one sense means visualizing yourself as successful at some task, really entering that vision and enjoying it—and then asking what you did to get there.

Part of the planning process the committee has in mind here, especially for smaller congregations, is planning for partnership with others. That is hardly news, although we have room to grow in this department. What is new about From Risk to Opportunities for some of us will be the emphasis on parishes partnering not just with Episcopal congregations, but with our ecumenical partners and other groups as well. The full communion relations I have mentioned with Lutherans and Moravians, and the developing relationship with the Methodists, may well provide all partners with new possibilities for the future.

Those are my comments on the process, and you will want read more about it in the report itself. However, I think that the committee’s assumptions are worth examining as well.

They assume that each of us is aware that our baptismal relationship to Jesus is one of discipleship, a relationship where our Lord gives each of us work to do for the life of the Church and its service to the world. Without that belief our expectations are limited. Church can no longer be for us something we occasionally attend, but is the community where we are nourished for and to some degree express our discipleship.

Transforming the Culture

The writers assume that we are able to live with reality, even if reality means doing without. This is another place where we have something to teach the culture. For example, the budget that the diocese will consider tomorrow is a seriously contracted one, and there are a number of staff positions we are not filling because there isn’t money for them. I do not say this as a complaint; I say it as a recognition of certain economic facts that cannot now be helped. A number of congregations have had to make similar decisions about staffing for the same reason. It may be a few years before improvement in finances reaches our level, and we have to unemotionally work with what is. It has never failed to be true that when one door closes another opens—if that is what you are looking for.

In circumstances and times like this it is it vital to maintain hope, and as Nathan Duggan told us last spring, hope without a plan is denial. Hope without a plan is denial. We have the opportunity to show the culture what hope looks like when it plans realistically about using and preserving financial and human resources.

This observation about the important ministry of teaching the culture helps me keep to Anglicanism's famous middle way. For example, I am not driven by a daily need to get out there and be what is called "counter-cultural". Equally, I am not driven by a daily need to affirm business as usual at home or abroad.

What I do feel is that culture can be transformed by the witness and sweaty work of committed disciples of Jesus. Whether it was the sinking of the Titanic or the devastation of the First World War, or both, since the beginning of the last century it has been impossible for a literate person to expect inevitable and uniform progress morally or socially. However, as a follower of Jesus I have come to expect that in the moments where individuals or communities give of themselves as Christ gave, new life breaks through unstoppably. Those moments may not look holy except to those with eyes to see, but it is a special talent of the Holy Spirit not to look very religious, and nowhere does the Bible suggest that the Spirit only works through Christians—quite the contrary. One of our Eucharistic prayers asks, "open our eyes to see your hand at work in the world about us." That is a subtle phrase, and will come to mind as you hear Sunday's gospel about the grateful leper. Those who so desire can and do see God at work.

Conversation

The committee also expects that we can be in holy conversation. Certainly we invite generous conversation with each other all the time, but as you read From Risk to Opportunities, you will see in it the invitation to each congregation’s conversation with our perception of our past, our present, and our vision for the future. That call to us is as challenging as it is intriguing.

From my perspective, getting past and future together is not always an easy conversation to hold with others or within ourselves. If you are like me you may have to realize repeatedly that the church of my childhood or other favorite period, a church which I loved and which inspired me, is not coming back, although it has left many traces. There was an extraordinary amount of good about it, and some of that good has been lost while much has been preserved. But there has been other good emerging as well. If history teaches anything, it is that there will always be fresh vision into which we are invited to move, but always at a cost, cultural or emotional. It is o.k. for me to grieve what is gone as long as I ask the question, is what we have now adequate to who we are and how we serve the world?

What is Permanent

The crucified and risen Jesus Christ is eternal, as is his call, "follow me" and his presence with his people until the end. Just about everything else in response to him has adjusted to historical circumstance and the proddings of the Spirit in many and various ways. As I said a minute ago, the lesson of Christian history is that the Holy Spirit continues to lead us into newness of life, some of it quite unexpected.

That is easy to say, and I know that there are some people who like change for its own sake just as there are those who find all change difficult, but generally we need to go easy on each other. One of the hardest verses in the Bible is "behold, I do something new." (Is 43:19) Like many of you, I did not sign on for that: I signed on for personal security, control of my life, and good music. What I have learned, however reluctantly, is that the future I may have dreaded in 1970 turned out not to be such a bad place. The advantage of surviving major illness, in my case heart surgery, is that very little in life seems urgent, while much more in life seems important.

Avoiding Rumpelstilskin

The result of my own internal conversation between past and future is that I am now mostly ambivalent about the church I once idealized, even idolized. I think that this is maturity, but it may be too soon to tell. I have found that if I expect perfection from the church, I will just go into Rumpelstiltskin mode when it fails that test of perfection, which it cannot help but do. On the other hand, I find that if I try be merely spiritual and to ignore the church in the hope that it will go away, God will send some incredibly gentle and loving saint across my path to remind me that "game over" has not yet flashed on the screen and that I must get back to work with my fellow disciples. What I have come to care about is not a perfect organization but a faithful organization, doing its best to serve Christ, limping onward to Zion. I have come to care about the present in a way that is informed by the past and invites the future. But the present is our home address, and like most of our homes, there is room for improvement, and not all of it will get done before the family comes for the holidays. I am willing to believe that I stand with St. Augustine in trying to cultivate a healthy ambivalence about the church, and about myself—we all contain that which is valuable and that which is not yet finished. The end-product is patience.

What this has to do with our present endeavor is this: there is a temptation to ask too much of the church, and to be crushed when our hopes are dashed by human reality. We are not here this weekend suddenly to fix anything, because there are no miracle cures or magic bullets. We can begin work over the years to make each congregation better and better connected, one step at a time, accepting our personal and organizational imperfections and celebrating God's rich gifts.

Killing George Herbert

The realities of the present are that all the baptized must work together and develop together in their discipleship. Let me say to my colleagues in the clergy that there is a book perhaps worth an afternoon’s read. It is called, provocatively, If You Meet George Herbert on the Road, Kill Him. I did not write it. For those who don't know, Herbert was a poet who also wrote a book called The Country Parson, an idealized view of the perfect priest that has inspired and maddened Anglican clergy for centuries. To put it another way, it has become the seminarians' persecuting superego. I think that the title of the book about killing Herbert is an exaggeration designed to sell books, but the point is worth thinking about. The village parson who was everything to everybody dare exist no longer. In the first place it is not healthy—it is a little known fact that saintly Mr. Herbert died at age 41 after a whopping three years in parish ministry. The healthy part of moving away from Herbert is that by putting down most of the burden, we make room for others to pick it up, to their souls' joy. In the second place, we do not want parishes where everyone is dependent on the priest for emotional support—that reflects not a theology, but a diagnosis.

Here is where those of you who are teachers may offer something. Teachers know that if you ask a class a question, you may have to be prepared to live through twenty very long seconds of silence before someone suggests an answer. That is not always easy. In the same way, if you as a priest or parish leader say that you can no longer manage a certain parish task, it may take a while before someone else picks it up, but if the task is essential to the life of the parish, somebody will take it on.

So what we hope to see more and more is partnership in parishes, partnerships among parishes, and partnerships with our ecumenical companions, not expecting too much yet expecting everything as God gives it. We are called to act realistically, sharing the load, and integrating our traditions and our future into today's church.

Questions

This address does not have a stirring conclusion, because that is for you to develop in your groups. The committee is providing your table leaders the following questions for you to discuss, so as the Dean says, "don't write this down."

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS (and make your own)

What was the most useful part of the bishop's address for our parish?

How does our parish live a life of prayer?  How might we deepen the experience?

How is the "management style" in our parish marked by "openness to the Holy Spirit?"

How does our parish presently maintain conversation with both its past and its future?

I ask that you go to your groups now, dropping off your ballots as you go.

2010 Convention Sermon, Saturday, October 9

A sermon preached by the Rt. Rev. Paul V. Marshall
at the Eucharist during Diocesan Convention
on October 9, 2010.

It would not be completely accurate to call them terrorists, but the two men crucified with Jesus were by no means shop-lifters or jay-walkers. The word we are used to translating as "thieves" means something like brigands, bandits, or perhaps insurgents, seriously violent people, desperados. Rome was publicly torturing them to death that Friday as a message to other potential career criminals: resistance to the state is useless.

It is not often that we hear conversations among people who are being killed, so it is worthwhile to listen in.

How could we not identify with the first thief? Reality had caught up with him, his future was zero. Tragically, he isn’t getting it.

Do we? At what point in life do we realize that the limitations we experience in career and relationship may have something to do with us? There is no one for whom it is not true that personality offers both possibility and limitation, and that some choices follow you. Some people are too frightened to face this, and our thief was one of them.

The first robber had not reached that moment of insight—he blames what is wrong in his life entirely on the outside. From the depths of his rage he lashes out at Jesus.

And who has not been there? Who hasn’t been furious with God for something that has gone horribly wrong in their life, furious to the point of bitter rejection of the creator? Who doesn’t know something of the robber’s emotions about his fate? Who doesn’t secretly know or half-know that things at work or at home would be different if they themselves had been different? Who do you blame for your personality defects?

A comedian one said, "My one regret in life is that I am not somebody else." I have often wondered about the pain beneath a joke like that.

So the robber spits out his rebuke to Jesus. And Jesus, who is at that moment bearing the sins of the world in the most literal of senses, bears this outburst as well. Jesus, whom the gospels show us besting the best debaters of his time, just lets it go.

I wonder if we always realize that God's apparent silence when we challenge the universe or life itself is a kind of toleration, a non-engagement in what could only get worse. There are times when you argue and times when you don't. Job is an extraordinarily difficult book to read, and no explanation is satisfactory, but I wonder if God’s silence through most of it is a species of kindness.

The second thief is in a different place. He has recognized that his life has caught up with him, and tries to shut the first one up. We don’t know how that dialog turned out, but we hear from him the words we will sing many times this noon as the we pray for our dead, "remember me when you come into your kingdom."

That cry from the other cross is an act of surrender, and second robber reminds us of another aspect of our being. After the rage, after running into the brick wall for the millionth time, what is there to say except, "Lord, have mercy?"

There isn't a lot of content in that plea, there are no explanations or apologies, or promises to do better, but there is the heart's cry that each of us who has survived the fourth grade knows, the cry for peace, acceptance, and an end to struggle. From Huckleberry Finn to Catcher in the Rye to The Great Gatsby, in William Shakespeare, Earnest Hemingway, and Iris Murdoch, there is a longing in us for things to make sense and come connectedly to rest. That longing may be sharply defined or just a vague groping after something more, but the second crucified robber gives it voice.

Unlike the first robber, he is ready for peace, and Jesus promises it to him, that very day. Each of these condemned gets what they can handle at the moment.

Jesus takes the rage of the first robber, and responds to the plea of the second—all while he himself is dying. If we believe that Jesus was a real human being, really dying by the exquisite torture that was crucifixion, we might wonder why he didn’t say, "can't you let a person even die in peace?"

Bruised, beaten, and punctured with spikes, Jesus is shown to us summoning the energy to care for the person on the cross next to him.

To come to today's point. You and I already know that God can absorb our rage. You and I know that Jesus promises to share paradise with us. That is why we are here. These new prayers and lessons "For Forgiveness and Reconciliation" encourage each of us to discover new depths to which we have been accepted, forgiven, and promised peace.

And if we were about to break out into groups, the question I would offer is, But what about the person on the cross next to yours?

Convention small groups highlight the work of the Spirit in Diocese

By The Rev. Canon Andrew Gerns

When the Diocese of Bethlehem met in Convention in October, the lay and clergy delegates met in small groups to discuss the common ministry of each congregation in the diocese and how members might work and pray across parochial lines to forward the work of God in Northeast Pennsylvania.

In addition to the usual work of electing persons to various diocesan positions, passing resolutions and approving a budget, the bulk of the weekend was spent in small groups. Groups of lay persons and clergy were organized roughly by parish size and geography, allowing people in small churches to listen to members from other small churches, for example, and for people who live in the same parts of the diocese to meet each other and hear each other’s stories. 

Groups worked for two 90 minute sessions, one on Friday and one on Saturday. Separate groups were arranged for clergy and laity. The groups grew out of the work of the revitalized Congregation Renewal Committee, formerly known as Congregational Development.  The background document, called “From Risks to Opportunities” was included in the convention pre-print, through the diocesan web-site, through clergy at their September retreat, and through articles in Diocesan Life.

Since last January, Congregational Renewal has listened to clergy and members of parishes, some vital and growing, and some stagnant and some that in peril. Instead of proscribing solutions, the group listened to the variety of experiences and asked members what they needed to be vital communities of ministry.

The main purposes of the small group was to listen to each other’s experience, develop networks between congregations, and create an environment of openness so that ordained and lay leaders can draw on their parish’s strengths and the resources of the diocese—especially from the experiences of the other churches from around northeast Pennsylvania.

Bishop Paul set the tone for the small groups during his address. He spoke of our baptismal relationship as one of discipleship. “We have work to do,” he said. “Church is no longer something we attend.” He told the convention that one way we can celebrate what we do well, instead of only fixing what went wrong, is to plan and visualize a goal as successful, imagine what that would look like and how we got there.

The assumption is that God has both blessed us with an abundance of experience and given us a vision for renewed life in Jesus Christ. Understanding that all of the congregations are sharing a common mission is at the heart of From Risks to Opportunities. There are a variety of programs, techniques, and approaches to ministry, and each congregation will find their own way to worship God, disciple follower of Jesus and minister to their communities. The point is not a single, one-size-fits-all program, but a sense of connection and common mission among all members of the diocese.

The response to the small group discussions was very positive.

Father Charles Cesaretti, chair of Congregational Renewal, said that as at the Friday night banquet, “I sat with the delegates from a congregation who told me that for years they had felt alienated and isolated from the diocese.  They told me how welcome and included they felt by their group.”

“Thank you one and all for your incredible participation in two days of thoughtful dialogue on the future of your church,” wrote Terry Gangaware, a member of Trinity, Easton, to a group of laity she facilitated.  “You enriched my spiritual life with your sharing of ideas and enthusiasm for moving into new areas of enrichment.”  This group decided to keep the conversation going by sharing through e-mail and future face-to-face meetings.

The small group format exposed the isolation that some laity and congregations experience. One facilitator said, “One thing I definitely picked up on was that some of these congregations feel isolated and don't even know what kinds of resources are available to them from the Diocese.  None of the  
delegates in my group had heard about the report or read it yet (I've emailed them all a copy).”

The small groups were designed to focus on the strengths and experiences of the members, rather than to focus on problem-areas or to seek quick solutions.

Future plans include the distribution of the observations and ideas that came out of the small groups to the rest of the diocese. In March, members of the Diocese of Bethlehem will have the chance to work with Luther K. Snow, developer of a tool called “Asset Mapping”, at Moravian Seminary.  In November, the clergy will gather at the next clergy day and learn about the State of the Diocese Report from the Standing Committee and return to their discussion groups from convention for a “check in”. 

The Rev. Canon Andrew Gerns is Rector of Trinity, Easton, chair of the Evangelism Commission and a member of the Congregational Renewal Committee.

Diocesan Life October 2010 issue

Attached you will find the latest Diocesan Life for October, 2010. Highlights include Trinity, Easton's new addition; From Risk to Opportunities: Congregational renewal in the Diocese of Bethlehem which will be discussed at length during convention this year; Consumers or shareholders?; The Martyrs of New Guinea; Youth Council; E.C.W's tea party; information on "Creating a Culture of Peace" training; Happening #19 and more. The file is in .pdf format and you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader 8.0 or better to read it. The file size is 2.7 MBs.

Download October2010_DiocesanLifeSMALL

E.C.W. collecting sweatshirts and socks for homeless during Diocesan Convention

From Marlene Hartshorne:

For Diocesan Convention we are asking the parishes to help collect sweatshirts and socks for the homeless and those in need.
 
Each delegate should please bring one package to convention. The ones we receive at convention will be given to those churches who open their doors during the cold winter providing a place to sleep and hot food for the homeless. The ones not taken to convention each parish will deliver to those in need in
their area.
 
We appreciate very much all the help you give to us.
Thank you.
 
The Diocesan Episcopal Churchwomen.
Marlene.

From risk to opportunities: Congregational renewal in the Diocese of Bethlehem

[Editor's note: this is the first of four parts. This post includes the full document which will be discussed at length during the 2010 diocesan convention. The following posts are the commentary articles that are published in Diocesan Life.]

I.  Introduction

    The purpose of this paper is to discern the standards, practices, and resources that will foster faithfulness of ministry in every congregation of the Diocese.  The object is that the Committee will become the catalyst and agent for a multi-year program to shepherd all congregations of the Diocese to renewal and transformation, and to move from risk to opportunities.
    We suggest that the mission and instrumentality of the Committee is to:

• Strengthen all parishes, especially those that have exhibited vitality;
• Inspire and provide resources to those congregations “at risk”; and
• Provide self-realization and eventuality to those congregations that have lost their sense of purpose or vitality.

II.  Background

    The mission of the Congregational Development Committee in the past has been to support dependent congregations through financial grants; to support congregations in long-range planning; and to foster the development of new congregations.  Over the past several months an ad hoc committee of interested persons in the Diocese has met concerning the role of congregational development in the Diocese.  A drafting team was tasked to develop a report.  It convened four mini-consultations with representative groups from across the Diocese to provide information, background and suggestions to a reconstituted Committee.  This report is the result.

Download the full report here: From Risks to Opportunities (Full Report)

Download the executive summary here: FROM RISK (Exec Summary)