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Making Disciples, Raising Up Saints & Transforming Communities for Christ
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From Bishop Barry
Dear Friends in Christ:
As I write this, some of us have just departed from Mercy Center, Auburn, and the Clergy Quiet Day for Lent. In addition to the gift of Marilyn McEntyre's wonderful presentation, we enjoyed a gift of meaningful time together - in times like these, a very valuable thing. It is important that we seek out such opportunities to come together, take each other by the hand, look each other in the eye, listen carefully to each other, and be present to each other in ways that strengthen the bonds of our communion in Christ. I certainly look forward to being together next month at the Clergy Conference!
As with the clergy community of our diocese, so with our congregations, we need to work at being communities united in Christ. One vital way to do that is, of course, the work of prayer, both personal and corporate. I commend to you regular public and private use of the three prayer cycles available on our website as a discipline to help strengthen our unity.
Pray together - and play together. It may be far from your thoughts right now in Holy Week, but when you start to think about plans for summer relaxation, and specifically what reading you might like to do, I'd like to hear from you. Please share those titles; perhaps we might all come together around something interesting, or even fun.
God bless, strengthen, and sustain you in this holy Season.
P.S. Two Reminders:
First, Ann and I are leading a Holy Land pilgrimage open to everyone in the Diocese. Jan. 24 - Feb. 3, 2018. The price (including airfare, room, board, and gratuities) is $4,295. (The brochure will be out soon.) All interested should contact Sandra Littman at [email protected].
Second, our Clergy Quiet Day for Advent will be Wednesday, Dec. 6, at Bishop's Ranch.
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Good Friday Offering: April 14
It's important for us to be mindful of the work and witness of Christians in the region of the Holy Land, and the Episcopal Church's annual Good Friday Offering "is an important way to do just that," said Bishop Barry Beisner. "Benefiting the Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East, which includes the Diocese of Jerusalem, this offering helps further Christ's work of reconciliation more broadly, in places and at a time when that work is urgently needed."
Click here for the resources which explain the mission of the Episcopal Church in supporting the ministries of the Province of Jerusalem and
the Middle East, and the importance of contributions to the Good Friday Offering in making this work possible. A full-color poster and bulletin inserts are available for download.
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Register Now for CLC, Eureka
The Eureka Congregational Leadership Conference is Saturday, May 13. Join Bishop Barry and learn how to strengthen your service to your church and community.
Click here
for the full program.
These leadership conferences, sponsored by the Office of the Bishop, are designed for clergy, vestry members, treasurers and other program leaders in your church. Everyone is welcome to attend. There is no cost to participate - registration is required. Check in, coffee and conversation begins at 9:30 a.m.; the program runs from 10 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
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 Save the Date - Clergy Conference - May 23-25
Dr. Ellen Davis of
Duke Divinity School will be the keynote speaker at this year's clergy conference, which will be held at the Bishop's Ranch.
Click here
for more information about Davis and this year's clergy conference. Registration is now open through Eventbrite and the agenda will be available soon.
The Rev. Phina Borgeson reviewed Dr. Davis's new book: Preaching the Luminous Word: Biblical Sermons and Homiletical Essays; her review is
available here.
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Retired Clergy Lunch - May 11
Our next Retired Clergy lunch with Bishop Barry will feature a special presentation by the Church Pension Fund called "Enriching Your Retirement." Those considering retiring this year may find it worthwhile to wait until after Jan. 1, 2018; CPF urges clergy nearing retirement to call their client services department, (866) 802-6333, for personalized help in making this decision.
Time: Gathering, with coffee, tea and snacks will begin at 9 a.m. The program, including luncheon will start at 10 a.m. and end at 2:15 p.m.
To learn more, contact the Rev. Dr. Christine Leigh-Taylor, chaplain to retired clergy at
[email protected] or 916-704-8698.
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Episcopal Migration Ministries to Reduce Network Size
For The Episcopal Church's media release on the future of the EMM,
click here.
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The Deacon's Retreat is now on the Diocesan Calendar for the following dates:
March 16-17, 2018
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Open Clergy Positions
- St. Martin's, Davis: Receiving names
- Christ Church, Eureka: Applicant review committee is reviewing names
- Grace Church, Fairfield: Receiving names
- St. James', Lincoln: Applicant review committee is reviewing names
- St. Clement's, Rancho Cordova: Receiving names
- St. Patrick's, Kenwood: Profile process underway
- St. Luke's, Calistoga: Priest-in-charge has retired; vestry pondering next steps
To learn more about these and other opportunities, click here.
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Bishop's Visitation Schedule
Bishop Beisner will be visiting the following congregations in the next two months:
For the Bishop's full 2017-2018 visitation schedule, click here.
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Office of the Bishop Staff News
Jacqi McKinney, administrative assistant to Canon Andrea McMillin, was married on April 1 and is now Jacqi
Seppi.
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No Diocesan e-News Easter Week, April 18
Interim Communications Director
Lori Korleski Richardson
will be at the Episcopal Communicators annual conference during Easter week. The e-News will resume on Tuesday, April 25; deadline for submissions is the Wednesday before publication.
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Holy Week & Lenten Resources
T
he Rev. Anne Clarke, Lifelong Christian Formation Coordinator, has prepared several resource links for individuals and congregations to observe a blessed Holy Week.
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CONFIRM
NOT CONFORM
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Companion Guide for Youth and Intergenerational Groups: "Faith in Action" is companion guide from
Confirm Not Conform based on "Toxic Charity," the Bishop's Spring and Lenten Book. This guide, which can be found
here,
would be a huge help in planning a youth group series or
intergene
rational event based on the ideas about community engagement
presented in the Bishop's Book.
For more resources on books for Holy Week,
click here.
For Holy Week resources for children and youth, check out Building Faith's resources
here
.
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Contemplating Compline for Families
"As my children transitioned from toddler to school-age, I worried that they might reject whatever I would come up with, just because. As double Priest's Kids, (my husband is also an Episcopal priest), they already get a lot of religion anyway.
"But still it nagged at me. I wanted a time at the end of the day that we could all come together, be aware that we are in the presence of God, and pray. Finally I gathered up my courage to try something new."
Read her entire post, which she says grew out of work she did during her College for Congregational Development training, here.
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Children and Youth Ministers - Bishop's Ranch Retreat - May 4-5
There are still spaces to join a retreat for children and youth ministers at Bishop's Ranch on May 4 and 5. Our retreat will be led by the Rev. Anne Clarke and the Rev. Dr. Susanna Singer, who teaches Christian education at CDSP. Our time together will focus on discernment about personal ministry, congregational life, and strategy/planning, both in your congregations and in our work together as deaneries and as a diocese.
If you are interested in attending, please contact Anne Clarke, Lifelong Christian Formation Coordinator, at
[email protected]
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News & Events in our Diocese and Beyond
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Earth Day Event with Matthew Fox - Trinity Cathedral - April 22
In honor of Earth Day, the Rev. Dr. Matthew Fox, an early and influential exponent of Creation Spirituality, and artist Ullrrich Javier Lemus will be speaking at
Trinity Cathedral, Sacramento, on Saturday, April 22 at 6:30 p.m. The topic is "Earth Day Every Day: A Conversation of Art and Spirituality." A
reception will follow the talk.
Fox will interview Lemus on his ecologically inspired art pieces, and the artwork will be hung in the Cathedral for all to enjoy. The cost is $15. Tickets are available through Eventbrite and will also be sold at the door.
The Rev. Matthew Fox will also be preaching at Trinity Cathedral on the following day, Sunday, April 23
at the 9 a.m. and 11:15 a.m. services. Fox will have a book signing at the Cathedral Book Shop at 10:15 a.m. as well.
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Vigils begin as Arkansas steps up execution schedule
The state of Arkansas plans to execute eight convicts in a 10-day span beginning this Easter Monday.
The
Episcopal Peace Fellowship is speaking out against this and the Diocese of Arkansas says it will hold vigil at its cathedral in Little Rock for the condemned beginning on Good Friday.
"The state of Arkansas hasn't executed an inmate since 2005, but Governor Asa Hutchinson has plans for eight executions within the span of ten days in April beginning one day after Easter because the state's supply of midazolam expires at the end of that month and drug companies are increasingly deciding not to sell their drugs for executions," said the Rev. Allison Liles, EPF executive director.
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Survey on Two Marriage Liturgies
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Jesus Movement Bumper Stickers Now Available as Banners
A North Carolina church liked last year's "Jesus Movement" bumper stickers so much they asked Forward Movement and a local NC print company to come up with a banner.
The "Jesus Movement" banner, left, comes in two sizes: standard, 18-by-60 inches and large, 24-by-60 inches, which allows for the inclusion of church service times.
The cost of the standard banner is $30 (or $50 for two); $40 for the larger size (or $60 for two). To order a banner, contact Bert Walker at North State Signs & Wraps,
[email protected] or (919) 977-7053.
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Episcopal Community Services - Grant Proposals Due May 1
Episcopal Community Services is now requesting grant proposals for those who have sub
m
itted
Letters of Interest for the Ministry Development Fund Grants, the Bishop Jerry & Jane Lamb Grant, and the new three-year Warren Dunning Memorial Social Justic
e Grant.
If you did not submit a letter of interest, please contact ECS, so that a mentor may be assigne
d to assist you through the Request for Proposal (RFP) process.
For more information and RFPs, visit the
ECS website. Email
Betty Harrison-Smith to submit
your RFP or for any questions at
[email protected].
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Human Rights, Development, and Dignity Course in El Salvador
Cristosal, a human rights organization, will host a Global School seminar July 1-8 in El Salvador, and the Rev. Amy Zuniga, Grace, St. Helena, is leading a trip there.
The course has been designed to blend the understandings from "Toxic Charity" with a human rights framework and liberation theology: "A perfect follow-up to the Bishop's Spring Book," Zuniga said. "We will be engaging the course with Salvadorans who are wrestling with these questions in their own communities."
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Easter Chicks That Keep Giving
To send an Easter gift through Episcopal Relief & Development,
click here.
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Sept. 29 - Oct. 1
Creation & Climate: Just Living or Living Justly?, with the Rt. Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, Transfiguation Spirituality Center, Cincinnati. To register,
click here
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Upcoming Events:
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Share the Good News!
If you have a news story or event of interest to others in the diocese, or if you want assistance with your church or ministry communications, call Lori Korleski Richardson, Interim Communications Director, 916-442-6918, ext. 226.
Click here to sign up for our e-News.
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