160204
February 04, 2016
newSpin, the newsletter
February 4, 2016
Bill Lewellis
TopSpin [• New item •• Repeat]
• When an engineer becomes a pilgrim … [Pilgrimage Blog] Engineer Jeffrey Kemmerer’s pilgrimage blog will run until February 9. Jeff says he is "more comfortable discussing chemistry or nuclear physics than the Scriptures … My biggest contribution is probably my perspective of the world. I have friends throughout the world, so world news is very personal to me.” Thus far he has reflected as a pilgrim on travels to Mexico and China as well as on rekindling our star, U2's song on Psalm 40, do-overs, an Episcopal jukebox and the fabric of spacetime. Read on. Read on.
•• Pilgrimage Prayer and Blessing … [Pilgrimage Blog] God of Journeys, as you led and nourished your ancient people though the wilderness, give us the courage to set off on pilgrimage to seek the forms and styles of life and ministry you have prepared for us. You call us to leave familiar things and leave our “comfort zone.” Guide our footsteps, open our eyes to new experiences, open our ears to hear you speaking to us, touch our imaginations, and clear our vision that we may become the people you would have us to be. We ask this in the name of Jesus, who travels always with us. Amen.
May God the Father who created you, guide your footsteps;
May God the Son who redeemed you, share your journey;
May God the Holy Spirit who sanctifies you, lead you on life’s pilgrimage; and,
The blessing of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit
be with you wherever you may go. Amen.
• Lenten Pilgrimage Resources … [Pilgrimage Blog] A guide with Lenten Pilgrimage Resources is available here, offering ready-to-use materials and ideas for leaders and pilgrims throughout the diocese. With these resources – designed especially for the season of Lent – we can travel on this spiritual journey together, while adapting to local context and needs. This guide is for leaders, shepherds, and all participants who want to know more about our shared travels. Read on.
• Videos of Trinity Institute available to watch now at no charge … The 2016 Trinity Institute conference, "Listen for a Change: Sacred Conversations for Racial Justice," featured notable speakers such as the Most Rev. Michael Curry, Presiding of the Episcopal Church; Emilie Townes, Dean of Vanderbilt Divinity School; and Kelly Brown Douglas, Professor and Director of the Religion Department at Goucher College. Videos of the conference are available to watch now here.
• Why is it so difficult for Syrian refugees to get into the U.S? .… [NYTimes Magazine, Eliza Griswold, Jan. 20] 2,647 Syrian refugees have been resettled in the United States, roughly 0.06 percent of the more than 4.5 million driven from the country since the uprising began in 2011. The scale of the crisis is such that of the 20 million refugees flooding the world today, one in four is Syrian. Although President Obama has committed to bringing at least 10,000 more Syrians to the United States by this October, that number is still a trickle compared with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s effort to resettle 25,000 in Canada; Chancellor Angela Merkel’s acceptance of nearly 93,000 in Germany last fall; and President François Hollande’s promise to bring 30,000 more Syrian refugees to France over the next two years. Why has the United States taken so few? Read on. Read on. [Eliza Griswold is a writer based in New York. She is the daughter of our onetme presiding bishop Frank and Phoebe Griswold. She last wrote for the NYTimes Magazine about the exodus of Christians from the Middle East.]
• Drone footage of the Syrian city of Homs destroyed by war … [Kottke] Here.
It has spent millions a year on travel, dinners, hotels and conferences that often seemed more lavish than appropriate, more than four dozen current and former employees said in interviews. Former workers recounted buying business-class seats and regularly jetting around the country for minor meetings, or staying in $500-per-night hotel rooms. The organization has also spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in recent years on public relations and lobbying campaigns to deflect criticism of its spending and to fight legislative efforts to restrict how much nonprofits spend on overhead. Read on.
•• The Cathedral Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem has begun to livestream its 10:30 Sunday Eucharist … Watch live (or later on demand) here. View the Eucharist for Sunday, Jan. 31, here.
• Can RC church teachings change? [Commonweal] If so, how? Commonweal is featuring a web exclusive from Stephen Pope and Richard R. Gaillardetz on the vexing questions concerning the development of doctrine. "The extent to which the church’s teachings have changed in the past few centuries, often to the point of reversal, is breathtaking," they write. "Catholicism went from supporting slavery to condemning it as an intrinsic evil and from prohibiting usury to allowing it (while continuing to condemn unjust interest rates)." And that's just one example. Read "Doctrine Air" here.
Where Religion, Culture and Politics Intersect [• New item •• Repeat]
• How Trump got religion — and why his legendary minister’s son now rejects him … [WaPo] John Peale, 79, son of Norman Vincent Peale, said he winces when Trump invokes his father’s name. Read on.
DioBeth [• New item •• Repeat] • DioBeth Leadership News, Jan. 14 Here.
•• DioBeth Special Pilgrimage Issue, Jan. 6 … Here and Here.
• DioBeth General News, Jan. 28 … Here.
•• Look online … for the Diocese of Bethlehem Facebook Page, Facebook Group (Bethlehem Episcopalians) and Twitter feed.
•• Bethlehem Episcopalians … is a Facebook group for conversations about mission, spirituality, Christian formation, and more that has replaced the old Bakery email list. Bethlehem Episcopalians is an open group. Anyone can join and items that you post can be shared by group members on their own Facebook pages. This offers each of us the opportunity to reach a larger audience with news and conversations about what God is doing in our diocese." Join the Facebook group. Includes 365 members.
• Look online every Thursday for a Diocese of Bethlehem newsletter or for newSpin … [Bill] Every Thursday in the following rotation: (1) Leadership News, (2) The newSpin newsletter, (3) General News, (4) The newSpin newsletter.
The Leadership News and the General News are official publications of the Diocese of Bethlehem. They include news, info, features and events relating to our diocese and parishes. Find the most recent General News, January 28, here. Find the most recent Leadership News, Jan. 14 Here. Find Special Pilgrimage issues, Jan. 6 … Here and Here.
The newSpin newsletter you are now reading is not an official publication – and will usually not duplicate news, info and features relating to our diocese and parishes found in the official newsletters. It is a relatively lengthy eclectic sampling of items related to religion – at times not, at times not so clearly – that the editor thinks readers might find to be of interest. It has been a kind of hobby of a onetime communication minister, the work of a volunteer who in retirement enjoys and dedicates time to do the research required. I always post the newSpin newsletter on the newSpin blog. If you wish to receive it by email, please send a note to Jo Trepagnier, [email protected].
Episcopal/Anglican [• New item •• Repeat]
• Who will be the next bishop of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia)? … [ENS] The Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania has announced a five-person slate of nominations for the next diocesan bishop. The election will take place on March 12. Read on.
• New vestment in Church of England: jeans and hoodies? … [Christian Today, Ruth Gledhill, Jan. 30] Dressing down on Sundays may become legal as the Church of England considers allowing clergy to wear casual clothes during services so long as they make sure to be "seemly". Read on.
• Weekly bulletin inserts … provide information about the history, music, liturgy, mission and ministry of the Episcopal Church. Current inserts here. To view the archive of bulletin inserts dating back to 2006, please visit here.
• Resources … way below.
• SpiritSpin [• New item •• Repeat]
•• Jubilate … Trinity Bethlehem has posted Canon Cliff Carr's Jubilate for Lent and Easter.
•• How not to pray … My bet is that you won't regret reading this simple, yet profound, advice from Bosco Peters and then contemplating with the included 10-minute video wherein Rob Bell suggests that our relationship with God has to do with staying in tune with a song that is many thousands of years old. Meditate with the video today, tomorrow and however many days you find it prayerful to do so. Read on.
• You're good – sermon help in a diner … [Bill Lewellis] My next to last step when preparing a sermon once played out on Saturday morning at a local diner where I browsed through my notes while having breakfast and a few cups of coffee. I'd glance randomly at the faces of strangers. Might anything I’ve written be useful to anyone in this place? Read on.
• Spirit Resources
... way below.
• Resources ... way below
In the Media [• New item •• Repeat]
• The Rev. Rebecca A. Barnes, priest-in-charge at St. Luke's Scranton … Times Leader, Wilkes Barre and Times Tribune, Scranton.
Rest in Peace [• New item •• Repeat]
• John M. Brndjar, 79 … died on January 23. The Rev. Dr. John M. Brndjar was president emeritus of Lutheran Social Services of South Central PA. He served in many capacities in the Northeastern Pennsylvania Synod of the ELCA until his retirement in 2000. Since then, he has served many churches in the Diocese of Bethlehem, including St. Peter's in Hazleton and St. Barnabas' in Kutztown. Please keep his wife Betty and family in your prayers. May his soul rest in peace and rise in glory. Read his obituary.
•• Prominent Black Americans … To commemorate the birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. — he would have been 87 — in advance of Black History Month in February, The New York Times culled its historical obituary files for a retrospective on how he and other prominent black Americans were regarded at their deaths. Read on.
TaleSpin [• New item •• Repeat]
• When a onetime Anglican monk wins the Powerball … [NYTimes, Jan. 27] The play "2666" – based on a most difficult novel – seemed potentially unproducible until lightning struck last year in the form of Roy Cockrum, a former actor and onetime Episcopal monk who started an arts foundation with part of his $153 million Powerball winnings, and chose “2666” as its first grant recipient. “It’s like a Bolaño story: an actor turned monk turned Powerball winner,” Mr. Bockley said. (Another Cockrum-backed project, Charles Mee’s “The Glory of the World,” about the mystic Thomas Merton, is running at the Brooklyn Academy of Music through Feb. 6.) Read on.
• The wisdom of the aged … [NYTimes, John Leland, Dec. 25] For six New Yorkers age 85 and older, whose lives were followed throughout the year, old age is a mixture of happiness and sadness, with less time wasted on anger and worry … “I would say, that I am applying the ‘butterfly wing’ theory to my everyday life. It’s a kind of moral dictum, moral responsibility to keep in mind that whatever I do this second affects what the next second will be. So I try not to do anything negative, which is my best insurance that the world will be better next second, or at least not worse. But of course, my positive action may be undermined by 100 negative actions of others and so it may mean nothing. But I still have to follow that dictum.” Read on.
• All stories are the same … [The Atlantic] In stories throughout the ages there is one motif that continually recurs—the journey into the woods to find the dark but life-giving secret within. Read on.
• Maclean couldn't quite trust Christianity's promise of redemption … [Commonweal] Timothy Schilling considers the novelist Norman Maclean's works within a theological frame. Might works like A River Runs Through It and Young Men and Fire be Christian tragedies? "While Maclean understood this experience in the light of Christian faith," Schilling writes, "he couldn’t quite trust Christianity’s promise of redemption." Read "The River Runs On" here.
•• Back from the frozen brink … [Standard-Speaker, Morning Call and WaPo] Being frozen 'to death' saved this man's life. From lying in a snow bank near McAdoo PA overnight, for 12 hours, below freezing, to Lehigh Valley Hospital branch in Hazleton to LehighValley Hospital in Allentown. Read on here, here and here.
BackSpin: Do you remember? [• New item •• Repeat]
Employment Opportunities [• New item •• Repeat]
• Episcopal Positions beyond DioBeth ... Here.
Ecumenism, Interfaith, Pluralism – or Not [• New item •• Repeat]
• Stamp will honor Richard Allen … [Phila Inquirer] There were few things the seemingly indefatigable Richard Allen was unable to do. Born into slavery in Delaware in 1760, he worked tirelessly, purchased his freedom and came to Philadelphia, founded a civil organization, founded a church, and then an entire religious denomination. He ran a successful chimney-sweep business (working on President Washington's chimneys, among others). He sought to end slavery, provided refuge for those escaping its chains, and organized black conventions. He wrote powerful political pamphlets and an autobiography. He preached and gave speeches. And he was finally laid to rest here in 1831. Now his portrait will be on a stamp. Read on.
• Lehigh Valley religious leaders offer support for Muslims … [Morning Call, Jan. 28] As religious leaders we affirm the need for dialogue among people of diverse religious traditions, and we urge members of our community, whether or not they are religious, to study and learn about Islam and other religions. We affirm the values that we cherish as Americans: free inquiry, respectful encounter with others, tolerance of diverse viewpoints and peaceful coexistence among a wide array of religious bodies, groups and organizations. We celebrate the diversity of our religious community and the goodwill of citizens in the Lehigh Valley.
The following religious leaders from the Lehigh Valley signed this statement … Read on.
• Pope Francis, pastor … Protestants of all stripes are still officially barred from receiving communion in Catholic churches. Pope Francis. however, stirred up a controversy when he visited a Lutheran church in Rome last year. You may have missed an important remark by Francis.
During a question-and-answer session, he suggested to a Lutheran woman married to a Catholic man that perhaps, if her conscience permitted, she could receive communion in her husband’s church.
“I wouldn’t ever dare to allow this, because it’s not my competence,” Francis told the woman, according to news reports, then added: “One baptism, one Lord, one faith. Talk to the Lord and then go forward. I don’t dare to say anything more.”
• A lesson learned from a good and kind man … [Bill Lewellis] A reporter from The Morning Call gave me my first lesson in Ecumenism 101, soon after I began working as director of communication on the bishop’s staff of the RC Diocese of Allentown. It happened with one brief phone call. I had issued a press release that used a negative descriptor common in my old culture. Feedback came quickly from the late Dick Cowen, an experienced and competent local journalist.
Dick was a good man. How do I know? He used to hold babies in the birthing wing of a local hospital. “I’m looking at the press release you sent,” Dick began. “I suppose you mean to include me when you say ‘non-Catholic.’ “I am not a ‘non-Catholic.’ I’m a Lutheran. And I suppose there are many Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians and Baptists, among others, who never think of themselves as ‘non-Catholic.’ You might consider respecting that.”
Never again did I put anyone in a ‘non-Catholic’ box. Thanks to Dick Cowen, my God got a little bigger. During the many years of our professional relationship, he did not allow me to get away with anything. He was also so kind. His obituary was published in The Morning Call, February 25, 2015. Read it here.
• Resources … way below.
Evangelical Lutheran Church [• New item •• Repeat]
ELCA website ... Here.
ELCA News Service ... Here.
ELCA's blogs may be found here. See especially "Web and Multimedia Development."
Spirit Spinning ... for those who hunger and thirst for a deeper connection with God ... Here.
Moravian Church [• New item •• Repeat]
Moravian Church in North America website.
Moravian Church Northern Province website.
Moravian Theological Seminary website.
United Methodist Church [• New item •• Repeat]
News Service Here.
Communication Resources ... Start here.
Eastern PA Conference website Here.
Facebook Here.
Bishop Peggy Johnson's blog Here.
Presbyterian Church USA [• New item •• Repeat]
Website ... Here.
News & Announcements ... Here.
Roman Catholic [• New item •• Repeat]
• 'I'm gay and I'm a priest, period' … [WaPo, Michelle Boorstein, Jan. 31] God, what are you calling me to do here, prayed the priest. Come out, or stay in the closet ? After 23 years in Chicago parishes, the question had pushed its way to the surface. He weighed his options. He thought about his parishioners. Many, he knew, were accepting of gay people, even of same-sex marriage, but others — less so. He had grown up in a large Catholic family; he understood what people’s faith meant to them. He didn’t want to harm his flock, or the Catholic Church. He wondered if he could be penalized in his job. And, in truth, he considered his status. He knew many Catholics had what he might call a romanticized view of the priesthood: Priests are supposed to be pure, almost above the world of sexuality, selflessly willing to give up creating a family of their own to serve God. This would mean falling from that pedestal. Then, he weighed these factors against the impact his coming out could have on the lives of young gay people in treatment for addiction or who are suicidal, on the parents and grandparents who feel they must choose between their gay child and their church. For some, knowing their priest is gay — and at peace with it — could be healing, he felt. Read on.
• Diocese of Allentown ... Here.
• Diocese of Scranton ... Here.
• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops ... Here.
• Catholic News Service ... Here.
The Vatican [• New item •• Repeat]
• Did it strike anyone else as odd … [Religion Dispatches, Mary E. Hunt, Feb. 1] that the Vatican announced that women could have their feet washed on Holy Thursday the same week Mattel announced three new Barbie sizes (and a number of other variations) for its iconic doll? The convergence was nothing short of astonishing in a news cycle when competition for the surreal is keen. Rome got out ahead with its news on January 21, 2016. Women are now eligible to have our feet washed in the Holy Thursday liturgy, a privilege heretofore reserved officially for men though anatomically it appears that women’s and men’s feet are remarkably similar. Even Pope Francis has been known to wash women’s feet in these ceremonies. Now it is company policy, proving there are some perks to being the pope. Read on.
• Vatican website ... Here.
• Vatican Information Service blog ... Here.
• Vatican News/Info Portal ... Here.
• The Joy of the Gospel [Evangelii Gaudium] ... Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis, with detailed table of contents. Here.
• A readers’ guide to “Laudato Si” … [NCR, Thomas Reese, June 26] Chapter-by-chapter guidance with study questions to help in reading Pope Francis' encyclical on climate change. Intended for book clubs, classes and small discussion groups. Read on.
Health and Wellness [• New item •• Repeat]
•• Tetanus, diphteria and pertussis (whopping cough) … [MedlinePlus, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] are serious bacterial infections. Tetanus causes painful tightening of the muscles, usually all over the body. It can lead to "locking" of the jaw. Diphtheria usually affects the nose and throat. Whooping cough causes uncontrollable coughing. Vaccines can protect you from these diseases. In the U.S., there are four combination vaccines. Read on.
• Resources … below
Media/Print/Films/TV/Music/Tech [• New item •• Repeat]
• Biopic about black preacher is toast of Sundance … [RNS, Kimberly Winston, Jan. 27] If viewer response is any indication, “The Birth of a Nation,” an independent biopic about a black slave, preacher and rebel-leader, seems destined for Academy Award nominations in 2017. Audiences apparently roared their approval of the film’s director, writer and star, Nate Parker, after it was shown Jan. 25) at the Sundance Film Festival, and Fox Searchlight Pictures quickly purchased the movie for $17.5 million. The price is a record for Sundance.
“The Birth of a Nation” tells the story of a historical figure, Nat Turner. Turner was a slave and a preacher who organized an uprising against white plantation owners in Southampton County, Va., in 1831 — three decades before the Civil War. The movie reportedly focuses in part on how he reconciles his faith with the violence he must do to free himself and others. Read on. LINK LINK
• The siren call of the swindler … [NYTimes, Review by Jennifer Senior, Jan. 14] In “The Confidence Game: Why We Fall for It … Every Time,” Maria Konnikova provides a modest compendium of outrageous deceptions, but the real purpose of Ms. Konnikova’s book is not to rehearse a history of the con. Rather, as she explains in her introduction, it is to explore “the psychological principles that underlie each and every game, from the most elementary to the most involved, step by step.”And this is precisely what she delivers: an anatomy of the scam. It’s a Via Dolorosa of ensnarement and betrayal. Read on.
• Rituals of transformation in Jill Soloway's 'Transparent' … [The Revealer, Geoffrey Pollick, Jan. 25] In the second season of her award-winning television series Transparent, Jill Soloway sets ritual to work as a principal storytelling device and a vehicle for social critique. During its first season, Transparent provided an exposition of interpersonal dynamics among the character Maura Pfefferman’s (played by Jeffrey Tambor) family members, following her decision to come out as a transgender person. In season two, Soloway addresses each of her characters more individually. In this round of ten episodes, the show portrays each of the Pfeffermans as indulging in ostentatious narcissism, each somewhat blindly seeking their own interests. This greater emphasis on individual experience allows Soloway and the members of Transparent’s cast to explore dynamics of inner transformation as each character pursues distinct lines of development through the season. Read on.
• The Good Book … [Commonweal] When it comes to the Bible and its place in our culture, Americans seem deeply ambivalent. Our nation’s history brims with biblical rhetoric. Hollywood films based on Bible stories, like Darren Aronofsky’s blockbuster Noah, continue to draw reliable crowds. Classes at secular universities dedicate themselves to studying the Bible as literature. Yet a book that reflects on the Bible for a general readership? That can be a pretty hard sell. In The Good Book, edited by Andrew Blauner, thirty-four writers engage biblical texts ranging from the whole of the Psalms to a single parable. Most of these contributors are public figures—journalists Cokie and Steven Roberts, the Rev. Al Sharpton—or professional writers like Pico Iyer, Lydia Davis, and A. J. Jacobs; some have explored biblical subjects before. The essays are wildly heterogeneous in tone and method, somewhat like the Bible itself. New Yorker writer Avi Steinberg tries a “thought experiment” about the true character of the snake in the Garden of Eden. Georgetown sociologist Michael Eric Dyson writes about present-day Ishmaels in light of the Trayvon Martin case. Paul Elie’s piece (initially published in Commonweal) sails between John’s Gospel, a performance of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, and St. Augustine. We even find a new poem by Robert Pinksy and a short story by Colm Tóibín. …
If some of the essays in The Good Book prove less than fully satisfying as interpretations of their chosen passages, they at least offer us an invitation to take on the task ourselves. The Good Book records the efforts of diverse readers working to make sense of the Bible—a book at once too foreign and too familiar—and in the process, treating it as though it could still somehow speak. Read on.
2015 was a big year for the little pronoun they and its slide into use as a singular pronoun.
First, in December, the Washington Post admitted the singular they into its style guide, saying it is fine for Post writers to use they as a singular pronoun for transgender people and to avoid awkward sentences. Then last week, hundreds of linguists at the American Dialect Society annual meeting voted for the singular they as the 2015 word of the year.
- See more at: http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/singular-they-has-its-day?utm_source=GG2016-01-19&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=grammargirl#sthash.CPam2pyD.dpuf******************
The strange word … I decided years ago to call this newsletter and its related blog newSpin. The "S" in the middle suggests that some items in newSpin are newS; others, Spin; others, both. Which items I include as well as how and how often I present them are clues to my leanings. I think all of us spin. There's a lot more spin in the world of news than most editors own up to. Watch out for that upper case S in the middle. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Paul might be said to have spun "the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God" [Mark 1:1]. We continue to spin that good news, as we experience and dance with the Risen Lord.
The newSpin newsletter is uploaded to the newSpin blog and posted on a newSpin list of some 2,000 addresses every other Thursday. Many recipients forward it to others. It comes, of course, with some spin from the editor. The views expressed, 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, the Standing Committee or the Archdeacon as an official communication. Comments are welcome on Bethlehem Episcopalians (if you have joined that interactive FaceBook group).
Bill Lewellis, Diocese of Bethlehem, retired
Communication Minister/Editor (1986-2010), Canon Theologian (1998-)
Blog , Email (c)610-393-1833
Be attentive. Be intelligent. Be reasonable. Be responsible.
Be in Love. And, if necessary, change. [Bernard Lonergan]
Resources
DioBeth
• Look online every Thursday for a Diocese of Bethlehem newsletter or for newSpin … Every Thursday in the following rotation: (1) The Leadership News, (2) The newSpin newsletter, (3) The Diocesan e-Newsletter, (4) The newSpin newsletter. The Leadership News and the Diocesan e-Newsletter are official publications of the Diocese of Bethlehem. They include news, info, features and events relating to our diocese and parishes. The newSpin newsletter you are now reading is not an official publication – and will usually not duplicate news, info and features relating to our diocese and parish as found in the official newsletters. It is a relatively lengthy eclectic sampling of items related to religion – at times not, at times not so clearly – that the editor thinks readers might find to be of interest. It has been a kind of hobby of a onetime communication minister, the work of a volunteer who in retirement enjoys and dedicates time to do the research required. The newSpin newsletter is always posted on the newSpin blog. If you wish to receive it by email, please send a note to Jo Trepagnier, [email protected].
• Look online … for the Diocese of Bethlehem Facebook Page, Facebook Group (Bethlehem Episcopalians) and Twitter feed.
• Bethlehem Episcopalians … is a Facebook group for conversations about mission, spirituality, Christian formation, and more that has replaced the old Bakery email list. Bethlehem Episcopalians is an open group. Anyone can join and items that you post can be shared by group members on their own Facebook pages. This offers each of us the opportunity to reach a larger audience with news and conversations about what God is doing in our diocese." Join the Facebook group.
• DioBeth website
• Stumbling into the Sacred ... [Reflections on seeing God in the everyday by Canon Anne E. Kitch]
• newSpin blog ... including the newSpin weekly by Bill Lewellis.
• Facebook Page … Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem
• Facebook Group … Bethlehem Episcopalians
• Twitter …
• Flickr
• YouTube
• Vimeo
• LinkedIn
Center for Congregations ... The "Using Resources" series of publications by the Center for Congregations is designed to help congregations make the most effective use of capital funds, consultants, architects, contractors, books, congregation management software, and more.
• Congregational Consulting ... More information on how to contact the consultants can be found here and at http://www.congregationalconsulting.org/ .
• Church locators ... Here.
• ECF Vital Practices ... Here.
• The Chalice, a publication created by Joan DeAcetis for older adults and caretakers. Download issues here.
• Weekly Bulletin Inserts from the Episcopal Church ... Here.
• Calendar of events in our parishes ... Here.
Episcopal/Anglican
• TREC [TaskForce for Reimagining the Episcopal Church] … website.
• TREC … Video Q&A with TREC panel at Oct. 2, 2014 TREC Churchwide Meeting at the Washington National Cathedral
• The Episcopal Church website, news service, news service blog,
• Episcopal Café
• AngicansOnline website and news centre.
• The Living Church
• The Anglican Communion website and news service.
• The Daily Scan: Contact [email protected] to add subscribers for news releases, notices, statements, or Daily Scan.
• Free weekly bulletin inserts provide information about the history, music, liturgy, mission and ministry of the Episcopal Church. Find the inserts here.
• Updated Episcopal Church canons and constitution ... Here.
• Forward Movement ... Here.
• Episcopal Web Radio ... Here.
• Episcopal Church Event Calendar ... Here
Ecumenical/Interfaith Relations
Franklin Graham had a revelation. On Friday, Graham said it has “dawned” on him on how to “fight the tide of moral decay that is being crammed down our throats by big business, the media, and the gay & lesbian community.”
His solution: stop doing business with LGBT-friendly companies.
- See more at: http://elielcruz.religionnews.com/2015/06/07/franklin-graham-calls-on-christians-to-blacklist-lgbt-friendly-companies/?email=blewellis%40diobeth.org#sthash.WI32aUeD.dpufSpiritSpin
• The Book of Common Prayer ... every edition from 1549 to 1979. Here.
• Prayers and Thanksgivings from the BCP ... Here.
• The (Online) Book of Common Prayer ... Here.
• The Daily Office ... can be read online in Rite I, Rite II or the New Zealand Prayer Book versions. At Mission St. Clare.
• The Daily Office ... from the Diocese of Indianapolis. Here.
• Daily Prayer ... a resource of Forward Movement. Here.
• Holy Women, Holy Men ... Download Holy Women, Holy Men as a .pdf file.
• Speaking to the Soul ... An Episcopal Café blog. Sermons, reflections, multimedia meditations and excerpts from books on spirituality. Here.
• The Imitation of Christ ... Available free online.
Evangelism/Stewardship/Church Growth
• Telling the good news, in the media ... [Jim Naughton and Rebecca Wilson] If the media isn’t telling the stories you want told it is possible (we say very gently) that those stories aren’t interesting or significant enough to warrant coverage. Or, it is possible that you are not presenting them to the media in a way that catches their attention. Or perhaps you have not presented stories to the media at all. It isn’t easy to get your congregation, diocese, conference, or other sort of Christian organization into the newspaper or in online media outlets unless something has gone significantly wrong. It is even harder to get it on television or the radio. But it is possible if you absorb these 10 simple tips. Read on.
• EpiscopalShare ... Here.
Bible&Worship
• The Lectionary ... A collection of Lectionary resources for the Episcopal Church, updated Sunday night. Here.
• Lectionary Page ... A liturgical calendar for upcoming weeks, with links to readings from the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL), as adapted for use in Episcopal worship. Here.
• Revised Common Lectionary ... Here.
• The Liturgical Calendar ... BCP, Lesser Feasts and Fasts, HWHM ... Here.
• Oremus Bible Browser ... Here.
• Celebrating the Eucharist, by Patrick Malloy. Google Book
• Enriching our Worship, 1 to 5 ... Free download here.
• The Witnessing and Blessing of a Lifelong Covenant: Liturgical Resources for Blessing Same-Sex Relationships [Extracted from Liturgical Resources 1: I Will Bless You and You Will Be a Blessing] Here.
• Collection of worship resources at Diobeth.org ... Including Diocesan Cycles of Prayer for weekly worship, Holy Women Holy Men, and The Text This Week. Here.
Health and Wellness
• Resources for caregivers ... Here.
• Medline Plus ... Here.
• WebMD ... Here.
• Alzheimers.gov ... For people helping people with Alzheimers. Here.
• Three Free Apps for getting qualified medical advice... [Techlicious] Urgent Care, HealthTap and First Aid. Info and links.
• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
• Center for Disease Control - Healthy Living
•Church Health Reader
• Eastern Pennsylvania Faith Community Nurses
• Episcopal Mental Illness Network
• Go4Life from the National Institute on Aging at NIH
• National Episcopal Health Ministries
• NEHM Wellness Resource Page
•Let's Move
News/info/commentary
• Religion News Service Daily Roundup ... here.
• Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project: Daily Religion Headlines ... here.
• Religious Freedom Blog ... a weekly look back at the top stories and developments on religious liberty around the world. Here.
• National Catholic Reporter ... here.
• BBC News Online ... here.
• BBC Religion & Ethics ... here.
• Faith in Public Life ... Here.
• Religion&Ethics News Weekly (PBS) ... Here.
• Religion Research Hub ... ARDA, Association of Religion Data Archives, an especially useful site.
• Back issues of the newSpin newsletter ... here.
Media/Film/TV/Books/Podcasts/Music/Tech
• Spirituality & Film ... Here.
• Spirituality on DVD ... Here.
• Books for Spiritual Journeys ... Here.
• Audios for Spiritual Journeys ... Here.
• Free eBooks by Project Gutenberg ... Here.
• Free Audiobooks from LibriVox ... Here.
• Free Audiobooks and eBooks ... Here and Here.
• Google Books ... Millions of books you can preview or read free. Here.
• The Online Books Page ... from UPenn. Here.
• More free eBooks and Audiobooks ... [Techlicious] Here.
• Telling the good news, in the media ... [Jim Naughton and Rebecca Wilson] If the media isn’t telling the stories you want told about your congregation, it is possible (we say very gently) that those stories aren’t interesting or significant enough to warrant coverage. Or, it is possible that you are not presenting them to the media in a way that catches their attention. Or perhaps you have not presented stories to the media at all. It isn’t easy to get your congregation, diocese, conference, or other sort of Christian organization into the newspaper or in online media outlets unless something has gone significantly wrong. It is even harder to get it on television or the radio. But it is possible if you absorb these 10 simple tips. Read on.
• Communicate … Your Ministry, including Bill's Communication Biases and Communication-Evangelism. Here.
Varia
• Insights into Religion ... Here.
• The Alban Institute ... Here.
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