E-Communiqué: Diocesan Labor Day Weekend Service, Bishop's Fall Conference, LGBTQ+ Retreat and more

Diocesan-Wide Labor Day Weekend Service

Sunday, September 6

via Facebook and YouTube

On Sunday, September 6 (Labor Day Weekend), we will gather online, as the Diocese of Virginia, for a worship service led by your bishops. Bishop Goff will preach and Bishops Brooke-Davidson and Taylor will be there, too.

We want to gather with you – and we want to give your devoted priests and pastors a break. As you know so well, your clergy have been working heroically since early March with online and outdoor worship, pastoral care, and formation, all in a strange new world of electronic connection. We honor their commitment and we hope that you will be as eager as we are to create a tiny sliver of real Sabbath time for them.

We will broadcast the service via Facebook and YouTube and will publish the links where you can tune in. Please mark your calendars for this worship service with the 60,000+ members of the Diocese of Virginia, and many friends, families, saints, and seekers. Can’t wait to see you there!

Save the Date: Bishop's Fall Conference

The Bishop’s Fall Conference for Lay Professionals, Clergy, & Spouses

Tuesday and Wednesday, October 20-21

9:30 a.m. – 12 noon

via Zoom

Join Bishop Susan Goff, Bishop Jennifer Brooke-Davidson, and Bishop Porter Taylor as they offer teachings and reflections on the themes of Communion, Community, Conversation.

Together we will explore Christ’s call to us to live faithfully in this and every time of disruption.

We will focus on our missional priorities of racial justice, creation care and evangelism as we strive to become a Church that looks more and more like the communities and world around us. Our time will include teachings and reflections by each bishop, conversations between the bishops and small chat groups that bring you fully into the conversation. Registration opens August 24.

First-Ever LGBTQ+ Diocesan Retreat – Next Week

Saturday, August 22 | 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

via Zoom

Deepen your walk with Christ in spiritual space designed by our community, for our community. The Rev. Elizabeth Edman, author of Queer Virtue: What LGBTQ People Know About Life and Love and How It Can Revitalize Christianity, will introduce Queer Theology through prayer and reflection, followed by virtual lunch and conversation. Share your whole self without pretenses while starting new and deepening existing friendships with people across our Diocese. Register here before Thursday, August 20 to join. Questions? Contact lgbtqministrydiova@gmail.com.

Ordinations to the Priesthood

September 12-19

via livestream from St. Paul’s, Richmond

God willing, Bishop Goff will ordain eight transitional deacons to the Sacred Order of Priests at St. Paul’s, Richmond:

Sat., Sept. 12: Carey Connors at 10:30 a.m. + Jennifer Lazzuri at 1:30 p.m.
Mon., Sept. 14: Gwynn Crichton at 10:30 a.m. + Will Dickinson at 1:30 p.m.
Thurs., Sept. 17: Matthew Dumont-Machowski at 10:30 a.m. + Pete Nunnally at 1:30 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 19: Colleen Schiefelbein at 10:30 a.m. + Sam Sheridan at 1:30 p.m.

All are welcome and invited to attend the services via livestream. For each ordination, there will be a maximum of 10 in-person attendees (wearing masks and properly spaced), following the diocesan guidelines for safe worship during the COVID-19 pandemic. All services will be livestreamed through St. Paul’s Facebook Live and St. Paul’s YouTube pages. We will provide links to the livestreaming on the diocesan pages.

Hurricane Preparedness Guide

The Diocese of Virginia Disaster Preparedness and Response (DOVDPR) ministry team is in the process of expanding its mission to include planning and responding to disasters in this COVID 19 environment. Therefore, we are looking to expand the DOVDPR ministry team. If you have a passion for this area of ministry and are interested in joining the DOVDPR team, please email Deacan Dan Wilmoth, Co-chair of the DOVDPR team at danny.wilmoth@yahoo.com. Meetings of the DOVDPR will be held virtually using the Zoom platform.

In the coming weeks, the ministry team will share additional resources for congregations, beginning with the Virginia Hurricane Evacuation Guide during the COVID 19 Pandemic.

Upcoming from Virginia Theological Seminary

August 20, 2:00-3:00 p.m. Off Screen Ministry Ideas for Fall | Join Building Faith editor, Sarah Bentley Allred, and other formation professionals in a conversation on ideas for ministry that do not require use of a screen.
September 1, 3:00-4:00 p.m. | Mind the Gaps: Churches & Schools Amidst Pandemic Realities | A one-hour webinar exploring the policies and practicalities of ministering in the crisis of pandemic schooling.
September 3, 3:00-4:00 p.m. Imagination in Sermon Preparation | The spiritual imagination is one of the cornerstones of the preaching process. Deep Calls to Deep presents ways to engage the imagination in the sermon preparation process, using movement and the visual arts to explore scripture.
September 18, 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Pandemic Evangelism: Creative Strategies for Sharing the Good News | In this Zoom workshop, the Rev. Dr. Tricia Lyons shares strategies for discipleship during disrupted times.