May 25, 2022 | Volume 12, No. 21

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.

In addition, if you are a graduating senior or already in college, we still have a few spaces available for our Summer Camp Staff. Your commitment begins with our staff training week, which starts Sunday June 5 and ends with the conclusion of Camp St. Joseph & Mary. Summer Staff are paid a stipend and all food and lodging expenses are covered. Most importantly, serving on staff is an incredible way to make a lasting impact on young people. If you are interested in serving on staff, fill out the application here: https://bit.ly/HoneyCreekSummerStaffApp.

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

The faithful pastor, Bartholomew Zouberbuhler

As we approach the bicentennial of our founding in 2023, we will share the story of the Diocese of Georgia. This week we remember the Rev. Bartholomew Zouberbuhler.

Three of the greatest change agents in the history of the Church spent time in the Colony of Georgia. All three belonged to the Anglican Church in the 18th century. John Wesley and George Whitefield both served as rectors of Christ Church in Savannah, while Charles Wesley working as a non-stipendiary priest established worship on St. Simons. Whitfield changed the face of American Christianity in preaching “the great awakening,” John Wesley changed the face of American Christianity and the world with the Evangelical commitment to share the Gospel with people of other classes and colors, and Charles Wesley added greatly to our hymnody. Yet not one of these three was particularly effective in their ministry in Georgia. Bishop Henry Louttit observed, “It was Bartholomew Zouberbuhler, born of German-speaking parents, who was the first great pastor in the Anglican tradition in Georgia.”

Zouberbuhler was appointed on All Saints’ Day, 1745, by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (SPG), to be pastor of Christ Church in Savannah. Bartholomew was the son of a native Swiss pastor who had originally served congregations of Swiss Protestants in the colony of South Carolina and then had become pastor of an Anglican parish there. Bartholomew, believing himself called to the ministry, made the long trip across the ocean to be ordained by the Bishop of London. 

The trustees of the Colony of Georgia charged Pastor Zouberbuhler with ministering to the French and German inhabitants of Georgia in their own languages, as John Wesley had done, according to the ceremonies of the Book of Common Prayer. In 1748, Savannah boasted 613 inhabitants, of whom 225 were members of Christ Church and 388 were dissenters of all sorts (Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Lutheran, etc.). Under Zouberbuhler’s leadership, Christ Church moved into its first building in 1750. The congregation met in the courthouse before then.

Zouberbuhler served not just in Savannah, but also led worship in outlying villages as well as at Fort Frederica on St. Simons Island. He suffered from bad health and several times during his years of ministry petitioned to be replaced as the pastor for the colony. In the records of the SPG in London are letters from the vestry of Christ Church urging that he continue to serve as the congregation loved him and grew under his leadership. The roots of what would later become Episcopal worship really began to be firmly established during his tenure.

Zouberbuhler’s concern was not only for Christians of other languages and church traditions who had settled in Georgia, but for all the inhabitants, including enslaved persons from Africa. At Christ Church in 1750, he baptized the first enslaved African to be baptized in the colony. When Zouberbuhler died, he left a sizable portion of his estate as a trust to be used to employ qualified teachers “to teach Anglican Christianity to Negroes.” He is buried in Savannah’s Bonaventure Cemetery.

In 1999, Bishop Henry Louttit, Jr. named him a Saint of Georgia with a feast day falling on any liturgy in the week of October 22. This article was adapted from Bishop Henry Louttit's biography of Zouberbuhler in Saints of Georgia.

Pictured above: The 1734 engraving above shows how Savannah remained a small settlement at the time Zouberbuhler became the ninth Rector of Christ Church, 12 years after the congregation's founding in 1733; and Zouberbuhler's grave in Bonaventure Cemetery is the second from the right. There are no pictures of the pastor.

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.

Deadline for EYCS scholarships NEXT WEEK

This past Sunday, the Church of Holy Nativity on St. Simons Island honored the Rev. R.V. Cate by naming the Parish Hall in his honor. Bishop Logue will dedicate Cate Hall on Pentecost Sunday. At left, the Rev. Tommy Townsend is pictured with Deacon Cate as they hold the vestry resolution naming the Parish Hall for him.

The Rev. Glenn Palmer, Interim Rector at Holy Comforter in Martinez, gets a little assistance with the dismissal on Sunday.

On May 24th, St. Luke's Episcopal Church, Hawkinsville hosted the community's annual Blessing of the Crops Prayer Breakfast. After two years' hiatus, the community was incredibly supportive to pray for and celebrate farmers and agricultural businesses throughout the area. The worship service was held at a local restaurant, included 38 sponsoring organizations, led by 9 representatives from local churches and community leadership, and featured 2 speakers.

Pictured are (L-R): Brad Hardy of Hardy Peanuts (Speaker), Tyler Harper from the GA State Senate (Speaker), The Rev. Dr. Don McClung (Pastor: Hawkinsville First Baptist Church), Robert Lancaster (farmer and Deacon: Corinth Baptist Church), The Rev. Craig A. Dolack (Rector: St. Luke's Episcopal Church), Linda Willis (farmer and Lay Minister: St. Luke's Episcopal Church), Moses Collins (Springfield Baptist Church), The Rev. Dr. Jeff Water (Pastor: Broad Street Baptist Church), Jenna Mashburn (Pulaski County Sole Commissioner) Bobbie Clemons (Planters First Bank).

The Rev. Galen Mirate joins other members of St. Paul's in Albany for a blood drive in honor of the

Rev. Jim Bullion.

The Rev. Michael Gumulauskas visited Darien to scope out housing before his official start date of July 1. Pictured l-r: Bob Pontello, the Rev. Michael Gumulauskas, Harriet Roberson, LeeAnn Gumulauskas, Hugh Brown, and Kay Brown

Christ Episcopal Church in Valdosta celebrated Rogation Sunday on May 15 with a procession around the perimerter of the church property. Rogation Sunday was an agricultural feast in France in the Fifth Century, and has been broadened to include prayers for agriculture, commerce, and the environment.

Bishop Logue with the altar party, the two who were confirmed, the two who reaffirmed their faith and their sponsors at St. Paul's in Jesup on Sunday.

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.

King of Peace in Kingsland is looking for a part-time organist/piano player for the 10:00am Sunday service and special occasions. The musician will work with the music team in selecting appropriate hymns for the service and rehearse with the choir one day a week. Please contact the Rev. Aaron Brewer at abrewer@kingofpeace.org or (912)510-6100 for salary and additional information.

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.  

May 22 - 28

In our diocesan cycle of prayer, we pray for our congregation in Kingsland, King of Peace. We also pray for our ecumenical partners, especially St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Folkston. In our companion diocese of the Dominican Republic, we pray for the congregations in Jimaní, especially St. Paul the Apostle (San Pablo Apostól), St. Titus (San Tito), and St. Ignatius (San Ignacio). 

May 29 - June 4

In our diocesan cycle of prayer, we pray for our congregation in Louisville, St. Mary Magdalene. We also pray for our ecumenical partners in Louisville, especially St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church. In our companion diocese of the Dominican Republic, we pray for the congregations in La Romana, especially The Encarnation (La Encarnación) and All Saints (Todos los Santos).

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 St. Matthew's in Fitzgerald on Sunday.

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

Pictured: Bishop Logue with acolyte Shelburne McDonald at St. Paul's in Jesup.

Canon Varner will celebrate and preach at St. George's in Savannah on Sunday.

Canon Lasch will celebrate and preach at St. Thomas in Savannah on Sunday.

The office will be closed on Monday, May 30 in observance of Memorial Day.



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.

“The Acolyte Guild” by Jerry Woods of Church of the Good Shepherd, Augusta received the Award of Excellence in Photography from the 2022 Polly Bonds Awards. The awards, given by the Episcopal Communicators, recognize excellence in church communications across eighteen different categories.