23: Formation Zoom gathering, 11 a.m.

23: Trustees Quarterly Investments meeting, 2 p.m.

28: Get those Parochial Reports in!

2: Ash Wednesday

2: Lenten Lunch Series, 12:15 p.m.

8: Clergy Zoom gathering, 1 p.m.

8: Open Zoom gathering, 6:30 p.m.

9: Lenten Lunch Series, 12:15 p.m.

10: Trustees meeting, 10 a.m.

12: Diocesan Council, 9 a.m.

12: Deacon Ordination, 11 a.m.

16: Lenten Lunch Series, 12:15 p.m.

6: St. Timothy's, Cincinnati

13: St. Anne's, West Chester

27: St. Christopher's, Fairborn

Bishop Smith invites clergy and laity to join him on two Zoom gatherings to check in and keep connected. The gatherings will be held on Tuesday, March 8; the clergy-only gathering will be held at 1 p.m. and an open gathering will be held at 6:30 p.m. You must register in advance for either meeting, using the links below. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Dear Friends in Christ,

As you know, I retired in January 2021, thus resigning my jurisdiction as Bishop of Southern Ohio, a position I was privileged to hold since my consecration in 2007. Since then Margaret and I have been focusing on the many decisions that come with retirement, not least of which is where we are going to spend it. It became clear to us early on that it is time for us to return to Oregon, which shaped and sustained us in our youth and young adulthood, and where we still are blessed with family and friends. Now, having sold our house in Cincinnati, we are moving back to Portland, where we have purchased a condominium apartment right downtown. In fact, as I write this we are newly arrived, waiting for the furniture to arrive!

I wanted to let you know about our move directly since I have great affection for you, and cherish the years we worked and prayed together. For me, as for you, the pandemic has brought isolation and in some cases an apparent loosening of ties. I regret that it has not been possible to take my leave of you without proper goodbyes, but it’s oddly comforting to know that the pain of that is a part of the hardship — and in some cases, the real loss — that no one has been spared. When this ordeal is finally behind us, I have no doubt that we will discover surprising ways in which it has bound us closer to one another than we were before. That is cause for thanks.

And so I am writing to you in sadness, but also with great hope, not only for our individual lives moving forward, but for the ministry we all continue to share, as we follow Jesus into new neighborhoods, and into old neighborhoods encountered in new ways.

You are much loved.

In faith and gratitude,

+Tom Breidenthal

March 1: Parochial Report

April 1: Annual Reporting Form

June 30: Previous year Mission Share payments

September 1: Annual Audit

The canonical deadline for filing your 2021 Parochial Report is March 1, 2022.

To prepare for the upcoming filing year, downloadable forms and instructions are available on our website and the Episcopal Church website. There you will also find a video tutorial and detailed instructions. 

A reminder that reports are filed online at: https://reports.dfms.org using your login information from the previous year. Administrators should have received an email from the General Convention Office with the login information.

A video of the Feb. 10 webinar on Parochial Reports offered by the finance office is available on our video page.

The Lawrence Home Association, founded in 1896 under the will of philanthropist Eleanor Earnshaw, was started to “provide a Christian home for self-supporting, young women on limited means, the most important aim being to help them elevate their standard of life.” To this day, the Lawrence Home Association provides opportunities for young women.

The association expects to make eight grants in 2022. The application deadline is March 25, 2022. All applicants for the 2022-23 grant period will be selected by April 21, 2022, and notified after May 1 about the status of their applications.

Today’s update includes calls to action on Ohio’s rapidly-moving Permitless Conceal Carry bill, the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, Ohio’s redistricting battle, and webinars on stewardship of creation and criminal justice reform. Here’s a summary.  Please click on “Read More” below for details and additional links.

Thursday. Feb. 24, The Intersection of Racial Justice and Climate Action, 3-4 pm:  Three Ohio environmental leaders – Leah Hudnall of the Ohio Climate Justice Fund, Crystal Davis of the Alliance for the Great Lakes, and Rachael Belz of Ohio Citizen Action - will share their work to center racial justice in the environmental movement to overcome the disproportionate impacts of climate change on communities of color.  Register here. 

Thursday, Feb. 24, Apart Documentary and panel by Faith in Public Life, 6 pm, follows three mothers incarcerated in Ohio as they prepare to return home and rebuild their lives after being separated from their children for years. This documentary shows the human toll of current felony policy for low-level drug charges.  The online screening includes a panel discussion. Register here.

Sunday, Feb. 27 on Zoom, SW Ohio University Students share their work on Climate Change, 4-5:15 pm.  Panelists from Cincinnati State, Miami, Mt. St. Joseph, Northern Kentucky, the University of Cincinnati, and Xavier University will share their ideas, hopes, and work to protect the environment now and for the future. Register here. This event is sponsored by Faith Communities Go Green, EquaSion, and Green Umbrella.

Committee Vote Likely March 1 for SB 215: This bill would allow Ohioans 18 and older to carry loaded, concealed weapons without safety training, a background check, or a permit, and exempt them from the duty to inform police of their weapon if they are stopped.  Passed by the Ohio Senate, SB 215 has its fourth hearing in the House Government Oversight Committee next Tuesday, with a possible vote to send it to the House floor.  You can submit written testimony to the committee via this email, with the deadline being Feb. 28 at 10 am. The “Read More” section includes the names and phone numbers of all members of the Committee.

Episcopal Public Policy Network:  Call on Congress to Reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, which expired in early 2019.  The bipartisan S.3623 includes funding for vital crisis services and violence prevention programs. A companion bill has already passed in the House.

Redistricting Drama!  The Ohio Redistricting Commission failed to produce revised state district maps by last week’s deadline, defying the Ohio Supreme Court order which found their second set of maps unconstitutional for partisan gerrymandering. This is a constitutional crisis for our state. Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor ordered the Redistricting Commission to submit documents by this Wednesday on why they should not be held in contempt for failing to draw new maps. Meanwhile, after a long delay, the Redistricting Commission scheduled its first hearing Feb. 22 on Congressional maps, which the Legislature failed to re-draw after the Ohio Supreme Court found the first set unconstitutional, also for breaking constitutional rules against unduly favoring or disfavoring a political party. 

The Diocese of Southern Ohio Youth Ministry is excited to announce the creation of an internship program for high school students, called the Youth Engagement Design Internship, or YEDI. The internships are offered in partnership with Bespoken Live, a storytelling, story-listening, and mindfulness program designed to create a safe space for high school students to find their voice together. We’re looking for designers, creatives, artists and thinkers currently enrolled in grades 9 through 12 who would like to imagine and build the future of youth engagement for the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio.

All interns will be compensated $12.50/hr for their participation in March Zoom meetings (total $75) and the diocese will cover all expenses for the retreat. In order to be accepted, interns must commit to full participation in the meetings and retreat. Opportunities for extending the internship will be presented based upon the success of this initial step of the process. Interested? Apply here. Applications are being accepted through February 28, 2022.

Join Emma Helms-Steinmetz and the Formation team on Zoom for a Lenten Lunch Series to dive into the Lenten Zine, "To Be Cracked Open," where we will work with the text by Stephanie Spellers, The Church Cracked Open, and discuss the overlap with Becoming Beloved Community and the opportunities ahead for our parishes and communities. Conversations guided by the Zine (which will be printed in Connections as well on the DSO Formation page starting Feb 28) will be on Wednesdays from 12:15 to 1 p.m. from March 2 – April 27.  

Participants will receive a copy of The Church Cracked Open as well as an Anglican Rosary to keep. We hope that you can join us at the table as we work together on this rich text and dream together of ways to Become Beloved Community. 

Register Here 

Procter Center is assembling its summer team! Checkout all the postings at www.proctercenter.org/jobs.

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Music Live at Lunch, Christ Church Cathedral's weekly concert series, is celebrating its 50^th year! These free concerts are presented on Tuesdays at 12:10 p.m. Patrons may bring their own lunch or purchase one at the cathedral. 

March 1: Lagniappe – Cajun French music 

March 8: Organ and harpsichord students from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music 

March 15: The Southbank Quartet – Classical music 

March 22: Laney and the Tramps – Swingin’ jazz 

March 29: Buffalo Ridge Jazz Band – New Orleans jazz

Canticles: Magnificat & Nunc dimittis (Fourth Evening Service) – Adrian Batten 

Anthem: Out of the Deep – Thomas Morley

The final event on the Richards, Fowkes Op. 24 inaugural year is a hymn sing to be held on June 5. An opportunity, after a long period of holding back, to sing with a joyful voice. Join the Christ Church Cathedral Choir and guest musicians as we celebrate the new organ and lift our voices in prayer and praise through familiar hymns.

This is where you get to help. We need to know your favorite hymns. Between now and April 1, follow this link to share with us the name of three of your favorite hymns. While we will not be able to include everyone's favorites, the music team will take your suggestions to assemble a wonderful service of singing.

5: Otterbein University Concert Choir at St. Patrick's, Dublin, 7:30 p.m.

6: Kenyon College Chamber Singers at St. Stephen's, Columbus, 2 p.m.

6: Choral Evensong at Christ Church Cathedral, 5 p.m.

8: Kenyon College Chamber Singers at St. James, Cincinnati, 7 p.m.

On Saturday, March 5 at 7:30 p.m. Otterbein University’s Concert Choir, under the direction of Dr. Gayle Walker, will present a concert at St. Patrick’s, Dublin, as part of their spring break tour.

The Kenyon College Chamber Singers, conducted by Dr. Benjamin Locke, will perform on Sunday, March 6 at 2 p.m. at St. Stephen’s, Columbus, and on Tuesday, March 8 at 7 p.m. at St. James, Cincinnati.

The Chamber Singers will again present an eclectic mix of a cappella choral repertoire on their 2022 Spring Tour. A centerpiece to the program will be Johann Sebastian Bach’s motet Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied (Sing to the Lord a new song), with numerous other compositions by composers Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Eurydice V. Osterman, Morten Lauridsen, Adolphus Hailstork, Elliott Carter, and others. The ensemble is noted for its regular inclusion of music from South Africa, which this year includes Sangena (We’re coming in!), a Zulu processional arranged by Mzilikazi Khumalo.

Province V of the Episcopal Church is a wonderful networking resource to connect with Episcopalians from the Midwest who share interest in a same ministry area. Province V News also has information about webinars and other events of interest.

Please join us to pray together and to lament the human harm caused by violence and conflict. We will offer prayers for the people of Ukraine, and for a peaceful resolution to the crisis that prevents further human suffering. Also joining us are Presiding Bishop Michael B. Curry and Bridget Moix, the General Secretary of the Friends Committee on National Legislation.

Join on Zoom: Register Here

Join on Facebook Live: Watch Here

Full information can be found here 

Contact Heather Barta with any questions: 989-413-3229 or provinceVcoordinator@gmail.com