June 8, 2022 | Volume 12, No. 23

When we think of summer and church, we typically veer towards Vacation Bible School. We envision parish halls full of little ones singing silly songs, classrooms that are filled with arts and craft projects, and the grounds swelling with laughter while games are played. Vacation Bible School and other summer programs geared towards children and youth are great ways to open your parish to the community, share the Gospel, and involve your parishioners in a different aspect of church life. 

Each one of these events is a way for us to show God’s Love in the world, and the most foundational form of love is a commitment to the safety of our children. Just as we need a first aid kit handy for those scrapes and accidents that will inevitably happen, we also need to equip all our volunteers with the tools to keep our children safe.

On a practical level, this means that everyone who works with children and youth is required to undergo a background check and complete all of the Safe Church, Safe Communities modules offered by the Episcopal Church through Praesidium Academy. These modules are all online and can be taken one at a time. Each congregation has an individual registration code so each person’s record is accurately recorded.

To obtain your church’s code for Praesidium Academy and self-enrollment instructions for your parishioners, email Canon Varner at jvarner@gaepiscopal.org.

To complete the form for the background check, visit https://gaepiscopal.org/reference-library/background-checks/. Make sure you fill the form out in its entirety and email it to Maggie Lyons at mlyons@gaepiscopal.org.

The “Patriarchess” of Evangelical Revival

As we approach the bicentennial of our founding in 2023, we will share the story of the Diocese of Georgia. This week we remember Selina Hastings Countess of Huntingdon who funded the Bethesda Orphanage in Savannah as she guided an Evangelical movement.

James Edward Oglethorpe sent a party up the Savannah River in 1735 to build a fort as a refuge for settlers living near the first set of rapids. Oglethorpe named Fort Augusta for the princess who would become the mother of George III. In time, the trading post prospered. In April of 1750, the people who lived and traded in this area erected a church. Noting that their friendship with the indigenous population was “sometimes precarious,” they built the church under the shelter of the Fort.

After her husband died in 1746, Hastings increasingly connected with Methodism through the Rev. John Wesley, who she met after his return from Georgia. In published letters, Wesley credited the Countess with convincing him to preach to miners in the open air, telling him “They have churches, but they never go to them! And ministers, but they seldom or never hear them! Perhaps they might hear you.” He tried her plan and found his preaching transformed.

At the time, the Church of England was not licensing evangelicals to preach and she discovered a loophole that allowed their preaching at private chapels. She would create and fund 64 such chapels, making room for thousands to hear an evangelical presentation of the Gospel.

The Countess of Huntingdon would later move on from Wesley to George Whitefield as John emphasized our need to strive for holiness in this life. She found the goal of perfection was far from the grace she had found in salvation coming through faith alone.

Whitefield had followed John Wesley as the Rector of Christ Church Savannah, serving here from 1738 until 1740. During that time, he would found Bethesda. The Countess’ financial support was vital to the orphanage.

Her views on slavery were inconsistent and her work in Savannah was part of that story. She promoted the freedom of formerly enslaved Africans and supported publication of two slave narratives, written by Ukawsaw Gronniosaw and Olaudah Equiano. Those 1700s memoirs published in England were the first time those in Britain heard of life directly from those who had been enslaved. On Whitefield’s death in 1770, she inherited his estates in Georgia and South Carolina, including the Bethesda Home for Boys and some enslaved persons who worked at the home. She then added to their number, approving the purchase of more enslaved persons to work at Bethesda. She continued to support and oversee the orphanage until the newly formed State of Georgia confiscated the property after the Revolution.

The Countess would become an increasingly influential and controversial figure. As bishops of the Church of England worked to close the loophole for private chapels, she started “the Countess of Huntington’s Connexion” which was her own denomination. When she died in 1791, she left debt rather than an estate as she spent every bit of her considerable fortune to advance the gospel. In an obituary, Horace Walpole named her a “Patriarchess” for her philanthropy especially in the funding and supervision of her chapels that led to an expansion of Methodism.

Pictured above: A portrait of Selina Hastings Countess of Huntingdon and Bethesda on its 201st anniversary in 1941.

Summer Camp starts in two and a half weeks and preparations are in full swing for our children and youth to arrive at the Creek. And now you can be part of the camp experience! By purchasing camp supplies from our Honey Creek Camp Wish List on Amazon, you can help our counselors have the materials they need for everything from Archery and Arts & Crafts to Pool Time, Music, Worship, and more. 

Many of the items on our list are clearly intended for a specific purpose, but some are more general purpose, such as computer adapters that allow the projection of song words in Bishops’ Hall or flashlights and extra batteries for our counselors. Whether or not youth from your family or your congregation are coming, please take the time to support Summer Camp to the best of your ability! Click the link above or here to access our wish list: https://amzn.to/3LCCS5u. You can also scan this QR Code if you would prefer.

If you haven’t had time to sign up for summer camp yet, do so now! Remember that scholarship is always available. Financial concerns should never keep any of our young people from attending camp. Please contact Canon Varner at jvarner@gaepiscopal.org with questions about scholarship. For all other camp questions, contact our Camp Director, Karen Bell at karenmackenziebell@gmail.com. 

Our Summer Camp Schedule is below. All registrations are at www.honeycreek.org/camps 

• High School Camp (completed grades 9-12): June 12-18 
• Camp St. Peter (completed grades 6-8): June 19-25
• Camp St. Joseph & Mary (completed grades 3-5): June 26-July 2
• Family Camp (families of all types and sizes): July 8-10

During the 2021 Diocesan Convention that met in November, delegates considered a package of changes to the Constitution and Canons of the Diocese. After passing two amendments and postponing a third, the Convention passed the resolution on a first reading. The proposed changes will come before the Convention this November.

Bishop Logue is appointing a Task Group to shepherd the process this year, allowing time for due consideration and a a way to propose additional amendments. The Constitution and Canons as voted on by Convention in 2021 can be viewed here.

The Constitution and Canons as voted on by Convention in 2021, with all changes tracked from the previous version, can be viewed here.

Propose amendments online

The Diocese will use a Google Form to facilitate the collection of proposed amendments to the Canons. Any member of the clergy or delegate to Convention (2021 delegates remain in effect until a congregation names new delegates) may propose an amendment using this form: Proposed Amendments to Canons.

If you have any questions, please contact Canon Loren Lasch at llasch@gaepiscopal.org.

If you would like to have your submission considered for From the Field, it needs to be sent to Communications Manager Liz Williams (lwilliams@gaepiscopal.org) by noon on Tuesday.

Hurricane season officially begins on June 1, and the diocese will once again use AlertMedia to stay in contact with parishes who may be affected by natural disasters. 

Send your updated information of Clergy, Senior, and Junior Wardens to Liz Williams at lwilliams@gaepiscopal.org.

The deacons of the Dioceses of Georgia and Atlanta met for their inaugural joint Deacon's Retreat at the Little Ocmulgee Lodge in middle Georgia. The retreat was comprised of over 35 deacons, postulants, and candidates for ordination. 

St. Francis of the Islands in Savannah held a celebration in May in honor of Interim Rector Emeritus Konrad White for his 50th year of ordained life, and in June celebrated five parishioners for their 80th birthday!

St. Barnabas in Valdosta celebrates Pentecost with flames in the procession and a parish lunch after the service.

The procession at Saint Paul's in Augusta included hand made Pentecost flames.

Doves abounded at Our Savior in Martinez.

St. Michael's in Waynesboro with the excellent table centerpiece for their Pentecost lunch.

The altar party at St. Augustine of Canterbury in Augusta gets ready for the procession.

Bishop Logue at Holy Nativity on St. Simons Island for his visitation.

St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Darien is seeking a part-time organist for Sunday worship and special occasion services. Hymns and service music are typically from the 1982 Episcopal Hymnal. There is also a Tuesday evening rehearsal requirement with the choir, all to total approximately 3-4 hours per week. Candidates should be familiar with an organ with 2 manuals and a pedal clavier, be music literate, and be willing to work collaboratively with the Rector and Music Director. Pay will be commensurate with experience. Interested parties should email their resume to standrew@darientel.net.

The Church of the Good Shepherd in Augusta is searching for a Director of Student Ministries. A resource size parish with a pre-pandemic ASA of 500, The Church of the Good Shepherd is seeking a full-time youth minister. The DSM has responsibility for all aspects of youth ministry and Christian formation for parish youth from middle school through high school, which includes Sunday School, Youth Group, mission trips, and other youth activities. A detailed job description can be found here. For further information, please contact the Rev. Ted H. Clarkson, Interim Rector at tclarkson@goodshepherd-augusta.org or call (912)230-9388.

St. Augustine of Canterbury in Augusta is looking for a Parish Administrator. For more information, contact the Rev. Jim Said at jim@st-augustines.org.

Our one-year prayer cycle combines prayers for every congregation in the Diocese of Georgia with prayers for our ecumenical partners and for our Companion Diocese of The Dominican Republic.  

The 2022 one year prayer cycle is online here: 2022 Prayer Cycle.  

June 5 - 11

In our diocesan cycle of prayer, we pray for our congregations in Martinez, Holy Comforter and Our Savior. We also pray for our ecumenical partners, especially St. Teresa of Avila Catholic Church in Grovetown. In our companion diocese of the Dominican Republic, we pray for Christ Resurrected (Cristo Resucitado) in La Vega. 

June 12 - 18

In our diocesan cycle of prayer, we pray for our congregation in Moultrie, St. Margaret of Scotland. We also pray for our ecumenical partners in Moultrie, especially Immaculate Conception Catholic Church. In our companion diocese of the Dominican Republic, we pray for Holy Spirit (Espíritu Santo) in Las Carreras. 

Newly Revised 31-Day Prayer Cycles

We also offer 30-day prayer cycles for those who wish to pray daily for the clergy and clergy spouses: Diocesan Prayer Cycle and Clergy Spouses Prayer Cycle. (Updated 3/1/2022)

Bishop Logue will make his visitation to Grace in Sandersville on Sunday.

To view Bishop Logue's full visitation calendar, click here. (Updated 4/4/2022)

Pictured: Canon Lasch celebrated the closing Eucharist for the combined Deacon's Retreat with deacons from both the Diocese of Georgia and Altanta.

Canon Easterlin, Daniel Garrick, and Maggie Lyons are preparing for the annual audit.

Canon Lasch will be celebrating and preaching at the Church of the Epiphany in Savannah on June 12 and 19.

Canon Varner will be at Honey Creek during the month of June to assist Camp Director Karen Bell with summer camp.

Maggie Lyons will be on vacation June 22-24.

The office will begin the summer hours of operation, which will mean that the office will be closed on Fridays after lunch.



The best way to reach a staff member is via email as we will always get back with you promptly in many cases and in 24-72 hours when working on more pressing matters. Staff e-mails can be found here with a list of responsibilities so you know who to contact for what.

You may also reach diocesan staff by phone at (912) 236-4279.

Jackson Beckham from St. Anne's in Tifton gets some serious air from the diving board at a Young Life camp session.