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Diocesan Digest, December 14
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Annual Meetings: Invited to Love
It is that time of year once again: annual meeting time. Many of the congregations of the diocese will be holding their annual meetings this week or in the next few weeks to come. This is a stressful time for all concerned, clergy and lay leaders alike. It is often when vision and reality meet, and at times it is not a pretty sight. Often congregational leaders dream wonderful visions of what is possible only to be confronted with the harsh reality of shrinking budgets and lack of resources to accomplish all that we can see in our minds.
I invite you all to two practices as you enter this time together. First, I invite you to prayer.
If you are clergy, pray for your lay leaders who offer themselves, mostly without pay, for the work of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Some of these lay leaders will disappoint you as you invite people to stretch in their vision of what can be accomplished. Some will disappoint simply by not showing up and some will disappoint by disagreeing with the vision or the facts. Know that they do so with love as the motive for what they do. (Some will of course delight you with their support!)
If you are a lay leader, pray for your clergy, who serve, mostly underpaid, for the work of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Your priest may disappoint you with visions too grand, or not grand enough. Some will seek approval at the expense of the work and some will push for work that is in your eyes unattainable. Some will find your disagreement hard to take and others may forget to thank you for your support. (Some will of course delight you with their support!)
The second practice I invite you to is love. Please remember that whether you are clergy or lay you are a child of God and worthy of love and respect. Care for each other, be mindful of the challenge that the annual meeting creates for all leaders of the church. Love one another as Christ has loved you, and in the end you will be fine and the mission of the good news of Jesus will be proclaimed to the ends of the earth.
You are all in my prayers, +Michael
Read more of Bishop Michael Online.
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Congregation Close-up: St. Thomas, Dallas
Clergy: Fred Heard, Vicar
The strength of St. Thomas is our relationship with Jesus Christ, and the love in our hearts makes this such a special place.
We are increasing our efforts to be a welcoming presence in our city. As a community, we went door to door in our neighborhood inviting our neighbors to Holy Week and Easter services. We proclaimed our official “Believe Out Loud” congregation status, displaying the rainbow flag at services and events, and with a contingent of parishioners marching in the Dallas Summerfest Parade. We celebrated a Recovery Mass in November and dedicated a service to the LGTBQ community. In June, we joined the greater church by wearing orange during our service to end gun violence.
During 2017, we will complete our Memorial Garden and move forward to bring a professional kitchen to St. Thomas. This will create another way to reach out to the community, perhaps providing a monthly breakfast to those in the Dallas community who need such a service.
Visit the St. Thomas website.
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Featured Program: Episcopal Youth Event
"At EYE, I realized there are kids my age who are also into religion, and that's really cool."
The video above highlights the 2014 Episcopal Youth Event (EYE). EYE is a triennial event for high school students, gathering youth, their mentors, and Bishops from throughout the Episcopal Church on a college campus for nearly a week. Time is spent in worship, large group presentations, small group discussions, workshops, and a lot of time hanging out and meeting people from around the world.
In Oregon, because of the size of our Diocese, teenagers may not get to know that many other Episcopalians their own age. This is one time where they will be surrounded by them. This is also an opportunity to serve others by being part of an intentional Christian community.
EYE applications are due February 15. Visit our Youth Ministries page for more information.
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Upcoming diocesan and church events:
Radical Kindness Tools Workshop: Vicki Hanna Lein will offer practical steps to diffuse abusive situations. Church of the Good Samaritan, January 28 from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm.
Pajamas & Pancake Service
: celebrate Candlemas with this child-centered service at All Saints, Portland. February 2 at 6:30 pm.
Interfaith Advocacy Day
: registration ends next week! Join us for briefings, advocacy trainings, and meeting with state legislators. Salem, February 7, 9 am - 4 pm.
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Events and Notices
Bishop Michael's Visitation Schedule:
St. Thomas, Dallas: January 29
St. Bede, Forest Grove: February 12
All Saints, Portland: February 19
St. Mary, Woodburn: February 26
Transitions
Congratulations to the Rev. Shana McCauley (Vicar of St. Edward, Silverton) and her family on the birth of their third child on December 27, 2016.
Congratulations to the Rev. Karen Tiegs (Associate Priest at St. Bartholomew, Beaverton) and her family on their birth of their third child on January 12.
The Rev. Abigail Buckley resigned her position as Assistant Rector at Good Samaritan, Corvallis, and Campus Minister for Holy Grounds Episcopal Campus Ministry at Oregon State University, effective January 22.
The Rev. Dn. Lurena Anne Abdy and the Rev. Dn. Iain William Stanford will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Priests on January 28 at Church of the Resurrection, Eugene.
St. Mark, Medford, will host Bishop Michael for a Celebration of New Ministry for their rector, the Rev. Tom Sramek, Jr., on February 8.
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Word of the Week
Whether you're a cradle Episcopalian or just walked through the red doors yesterday, chances are you've encountered some of the special vocabulary specific to our faith and wondered, what does that mean?
Check out previous entries on our
Instagram
account.
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We are the people in the Diocese
Name: Richard Van Orman
What keeps you busy: being retired! And volunteering as the archivist for the Diocese of Oregon.
What's the furthest place you've visited? I served for 40 years in active and reserve duty with the Army, which sent me to the DMZ north of Seoul, South Korea.
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