Train of Tears, the news, and turning to Scripture - a Reflection from our Bishop
Dear friends in Christ,
Last Friday I spoke at the “Train of Tears” event sponsored by Riverside Church in Hood River. This United Church of Christ congregation decided a year ago to investigate their response to the internment of the Japanese American citizens of Hood River during WWII. Finding no evidence of any kind of response, they concluded that their congregation was silent – and that this silence was, itself, a statement about their lack of compassion for the racism that affected families like my father’s. They issued an apology two weeks ago; the Train of Tears event followed the public release of this apology.
I have a long history with Riverside Church because my best friend (today, she remains my best friend) worshipped there as a kid. When I stayed overnight with her, I would go with her to church at Riverside on Sunday morning. Sitting in the chancel as the service began, I looked out at the packed church and saw the faces of my high school girlfriends, many of them from families who were also interned. The weight of the internment and its generational effects settled upon me, and I wondered if I could hold it together. The emotions in that space were palpable.
After arriving home that afternoon, I made a strange decision, given how emotionally heavy the day had been. I read the newspaper. Within minutes I felt yet another weight descend. Why did I do that? I asked myself. Reading the news didn’t help me feel lighter or less worried. The next morning I did what I typically do as part of my devotions, I read something from The Bible. This practice did not function like an antidote – we Episcopalians don’t engage the Scriptures that way. I did not instantly feel unburdened. I did, however, return to my fundamental orientation of being grounded in God’s unfathomable love.
In times like these, I turn to the Psalms. This has been a practice of mine for decades and one I stumbled upon in my first job after graduating from college. During my lunch hour, I would go to the local Episcopal church (those were the days when the nave was always open), sit in a pew, and flip through the Book of Common Prayer to the Psalms in the back section. There is a Psalm for almost every human emotion.
Today, the verses in Psalm 72 are like a divine friend walking alongside us as we navigate deeply troubling times.
11 All kings shall bow down before him, *
and all the nations do him service.
12 For he shall deliver the poor who cries out in distress, *
and the oppressed who has no helper.
13 He shall have pity on the lowly and poor; *
he shall preserve the lives of the needy.
14 He shall redeem their lives from oppression and violence, *
and dear shall their blood be in his sight.
Biblical reflection is not like aspirin; the pain isn’t removed from simply opening the book and reading a passage. Biblical reflection is more akin to entering into a spiritual reality that reminds us we are not alone; that our times of helplessness are not a measure of whether God is with us.
Theologian Karl Barth famously said that we ought to read both The Bible and the newspaper, but that we ought to read the news through the lens of The Bible. Reading the news alone can make us cynical, fearful, and superficial. Reading The Bible alone runs the risk of losing our grounding in our humanity, our imperfect nature, and our need to return to a loving God in order to repair the world.
There is, every day, some kind of bad news to read in the newspaper. Read it, reflect, and then turn to Holy Scripture and read it twice as long as the news. The Good News of God in Jesus Christ is waiting to meet us and greet us, and will walk lovingly with us even as we bear the weight of difficult times. We are never alone. God is with us.
Blessings,
Bishop Diana
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Pastoral statement on mass shooting in Buffalo from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry
My heart is heavy with the news that a white supremacist gunman took the lives of 10 children of God in Buffalo on Saturday. I grew up walking distance from the scene of this hateful crime, and my friends and I used to ride our bikes around the neighborhood. Buffalo’s Black community raised and formed me. I grieve with the city and people I love.
Read the full statement online y en Español aquí. You can find a litany in the Wake of a Mass Shooting from the Bishops United Against Gun Violence here.
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Nominations for Diocesan Leadership Positions now open!
You can stand for election yourself or nominate someone to one of the following bodies:
- Standing Committee
- Board of Trustees
- Diocesan Council
- Trinity Cathedral Chapter
- Deputies to the 81st General Convention in 2024
You can learn more about each of these elected bodies and the open positions in those bodies, and access the nomination form on our website. All nominations must be submitted online by July 1, 2022.
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The 80th General Convention to be shortened over the summer
[Episcopal News Service] The 80th General Convention will now be held July 8-11 in Baltimore, Maryland, shortened from eight to four days under a recommendation from the design group charged with planning a “shorter, smaller, safer” gathering, according to a letter to the church sent May 17 by Presiding Bishop Michael Curry and the Rev. Gay Clark Jennings, president of the House of Deputies. Continue reading about these changes here.
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Deacon Tricia Gates Brown awarded Independent Publishers Medal for her novel, Wren
The Rev. Deacon Tricia Gates Brown has received the 2022 Independent Publishers Award Bronze Medal for Regional Fiction (West Pacific) for her novel, Wren. The “IPPYs” include small and medium publishers (less than 100 books published per year). All independent publishers are eligible, ranging from indie authors to major university presses, and roughly 2,400 publishers participate each year. Congratulations Tricia!
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Alli to be on parental leave this summer
Our Director of Communications, Alli Gannett, and her husband are expecting their first child at the end of June. Alli will take parental leave beginning June 18 and return on September 6.
While she is away, you can contact the following individuals:
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Christina Munoz for the summer mini-digests.
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Tracy Esguerra for the Annual Meeting of the Diocesan Convention and changes to clergy information.
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Derek Moyer for emergency/urgent parish website assistance.
If there are communication projects that can wait, please contact Alli after September 14 (after the Presiding Bishop's visit).
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The Flowing Light of The Spirit, ECW 30th Anniversary Spirituality Day - May 28
Join the Episcopal Church Women of the Episcopal Church in Western Oregon for their Spirituality Day at St. Francis of Assisi, Wilsonville on Saturday, May 28 from 8:30 am - 3:30 pm.
To view a schedule, and workshops, and to access registration please visit the diocesan ECW website.
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Music that Makes Community event happening this June
Join the Liturgy & Music Working Group and others from around the diocese for a one-day paperless music workshop at the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection, Eugene, on June 25. The program will go from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm and will dive into the practice of paperless singing leadership, communal prayer, and fellowship with others.
You can learn more about the workshop here. There is a registration cost.
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Camp Registration!
Episcopal Week at Suttle Lake Camp is July 18-23, 2022.
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Elementary Week 1 Camp - Click here to learn more & register campers currently in 3rd-5th grades.
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Mid-High Summer Camp - Click here to learn more & register campers currently in 6th-11th grades.
Cost: Subsidized Rate: $545 | Full Rate: $615 (A non-refundable $50 deposit is required to hold your spot. This deposit will not be refunded but may be transferred to another session.) Scholarships are available, up to $200 per camper, please email the Rev. Carol Sedlacek to learn more.
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Holy Land Pilgrimage: October 8-19
The Rev. Sara Fischer and the Very Rev. Nathan LeRud are leading a pilgrimage to the Holy Land from October 8-19, 2022. Please note that the registration deadline has been extended through May.
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Presiding Bishop's visit to our Diocese
Presiding Bishop Michael Curry will visit our diocese from September 10 - 12, 2022. His visit will take him from Portland to Lincoln City to Eugene. This visit is an opportunity for him to meet with individuals and groups from across the diocese to learn about our ministries in a variety of local communities, lead us in worship, and experience the beauty of our state.
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UPCOMING EVENTS:
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May 20 at 7:00 pm: Crozier Memorial Organ Concert: Lynne Davis hosted by Trinity Episcopal Cathedral
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May 21 at 9:00 am: In-person Mini-Retreat Contemplative Prayer in Prisons, hosted by Trinity Episcopal Cathedral. Learn more here.
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May 21 at 10:00 am: May's Holy Hike at Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve in Hillsboro, please RSVP at HolyHikesNWOregon.com
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May 27 & June 4: Silent Auction begins May 27, Live Auction on June 4 hosted by Christ Church, Lake Oswego
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May 28 at 8:30 am: The Flowing Light of the Spirit - ECW 30th Anniversary Spirituality Day, more information above
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May 29: Bishop Visitation to St. Barnabas, McMinnville
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May 30: Memorial Day - the Diocesan Office will be closed, and the staff will be off
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June 2 at 10:00 am: Standing Committee Meeting
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June 4 at 9:00 am: June Deacon Meeting with Bishop Akiyama, register here.
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June 5: Bishop Visitation to All Saints, Portland
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June 5 at 2:30 pm: Central Convocation Meeting
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June 5 at 4:00 pm: Kurleen George Laplanche, African-American Spirituals Concert at St. Paul's, Salem
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June 11 at 10:00 am: Diocesan Council Meeting
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June 11 at 7:00 pm: Theodicy Jazz Collective in Concert at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral
Ongoing invitations:
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Tuesdays at 2:00 pm - Office Hours with the Rev. Chris Craun, Missioner for Thriving Congregations (link to join here)
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Thursdays at 1:00 pm - Office Hours with Derek Moyer, Missioner for Lifelong Formation (link to join here).
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Thursdays at 2:00 pm - Office Hours with Alli Gannett, Director of Communications (link to join here). Her final office hours for the summer will be June 9.
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Fridays at noon: Say Their Names at St. David of Wales, Portland, to honor and lament the black and brown people killed by racial and police violence.
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Today we pray for...
In our Diocesan Cycle of Prayer (DOWNLOAD):
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Portland: Trinity Cathedral. Nathan LeRud, dean; Shana McCauley, Matthew Lawrence, canons; Ken Powell, deacon; Phillip Ayers, John Bright, Roy Coulter, Joseph Dubay, Robert Ladehoff, Harriet Linville, William McKenzie,Raggs Ragan, John Scannell, Stephen Schneider, Bud Thurston, Patrick Tomter
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Portland: Legacy Good Samaritan Med Ctr. Sallie Bowman, Director of Spiritual Care; Kurt Neilson, Rïse Thew Forrester, Scott Dolph, Clare Wykert, Chaplains.
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Good Samaritan Foundation.
In the Anglican Communion Cycle of Prayer (DOWNLOAD):
The Missionary Diocese of Lodwar - Anglican Church of Kenya
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Clergy calls with Bishop Akiyama:
We will be taking the next few months off of the monthly calls with the Bishop. The next call will be Tuesday, September 6 at 8:15 am. The link to the call information, found here, will remain the same.
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FROM THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH |
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Episcopal leaders step up advocacy of Indigenous issues, including at United Nations forum
Episcopal engagement with Indigenous issues is occurring both within the church and with ecumenical and global partners, including at the recently concluded United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. A small Episcopal delegation attended the annual forum in New York and online April 25 to May 6. The theme of this year’s forum was “Indigenous peoples, business, autonomy and the human rights principles of due diligence including free, prior and informed consent.” Continue reading here.
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