Diocese of Missouri prepares for bishop election

From ENS-

The Episcopal Diocese of Missouri is pleased to announce a slate of three nominees to become its 11^th bishop:

• The Rev. Stacey Fussell, rector at Episcopal Church of the Ascension in Bradford, Pennsylvania
• The Rev. Deon K. Johnson, rector at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Brighton, Michigan
• The Rev. George D. Smith, rector at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Glen Ellyn, Illinois

A committee made up of lay and clergy members from throughout the diocese conducted a search and discernment process lasting nearly a year. Their slate was presented and was approved by the Standing Committee on Sept. 26.
The nominees are scheduled to visit the diocese Nov. 4-7 for a series of four “walkabouts.” These meet-and-greet sessions will give members an opportunity to ask questions of the nominees, as well as provide time for the candidates to learn more about the diocese.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/10/24/diocese-of-missouri-prepares-for-bishop-election/

Does a 19th century priest haunt St. Mary’s Episcopal Church?

From Kansas City-

Jason Dean, a parishioner at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, wrote of hearing about a controversial priest who died in 1886 and haunts the church to this day. In conjunction What’s Your KC BOO?, our special Halloween edition of What’s Your KC Q focusing on Kansas City’s haunted lore, he asked us to investigate.

We found … intrigue.

St. Mary’s wasn’t St. Mary’s when the church was first established in 1854. St. Luke’s Mission, as it was initially known, had humble beginnings. Lacking a permanent home, its congregation met at a variety of locations near today’s River Market neighborhood. The church prospered and, by 1867, had purchased a lot on the southeast corner of Eighth and Walnut and erected its first permanent home.

More here-

https://www.kansascity.com/news/your-kcq/article236604123.html

Read more here: https://www.kansascity.com/news/your-kcq/article236604123.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: https://www.kansascity.com/news/your-kcq/article236604123.html#storylink=cpy

Newcastle Anglican diocese hoses down talk of a split over same-sex marriage

From Australia-

The Anglican Dean of Newcastle has rejected comments by the Archbishop of Sydney that supporters of same-sex marriage should leave the church, saying differing views deserve respect.

The Very Reverend Katherine Bowyer is supporting the Newcastle diocese's move to bless same-sex marriages, when the issue comes up for debate at a synod in the city's Christ Church Cathedral on Saturday. 

Despite the legalisation of same-sex marriages two years ago, the Anglican Church maintains that marriage is a lifelong union between a man and a woman.

Newcastle's vote follows a similar move in August by the small diocese of Wangaratta in north east Victoria to allow for the blessing of same-sex unions.

Both moves have raised the ire of the conservative Archbishop of Sydney Glenn Davies, who told a Sydney synod on October 14 he "feared for the stability of the church" and described the situation as a "crisis".

More here-

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-10-24/anglican-church-split-over-same-sex-marriage/11628628

Atlanta Episcopal Bishop Helps Ensure Justice for Children

From Atlanta-

He was born in an inner-city Philadelphia orphanage. A combination of faith and perseverance propelled him to become bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta. 

And Bishop Robert Wright is the only faith leader on the Georgia Supreme Court’s Committee on Justice for Children (J4C) committee. The 29-member committee’s goal: ensuring justice for children and families involved in Georgia’s juvenile courts.

Wright said he brings a unique perspective to J4C, because of his own life story. “Having been a ward of the state for a short time, when I see some of these kids and I see some of these cases, I see myself,” he said. “One of the best things we can do as Americans is to take in our children and give them better futures. A more just juvenile system is just one way to get that done.”

More here-

https://jjie.org/2019/10/23/atlanta-episcopal-bishop-helps-ensure-justice-for-children/

In Memoriam: Bishop James Montgomery, 1921-2019

From Chicago-

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ: 

I write today with sad news. Bishop James Montgomery, ninth bishop of Chicago, died today at home after a short illness. He was 98 years old. I will preside at a solemn celebration of the Eucharist for the Burial of the Dead at St. James Cathedral in November. We will share more information as soon as it is available.

Jim was a true son of Chicago. He was born here on May 29, 1921 to James Edward Montgomery and Evelyn Winchester Montgomery, the daughter of the Rt. Rev. James Winchester, bishop of Arkansas from 1911-1931. He grew up in Rogers Park and attended Sullivan High School and Northwestern University. After service as a lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve during World War II, he entered General Theological Seminary and was graduated and ordained priest and deacon by Bishop Wallace E. Conkling, seventh bishop of Chicago, in 1949.

More here-

https://www.episcopalchicago.org/our-stories/2019/10/23/memoriam-bishop-james-montgomery-1921-2019?fbclid=IwAR3ow8VCeuGkA7xmtpMonLx-MaAfO9aRbAf6rHEIHba3cL7KMtBPJvcuSvA

Oklahoma diocese updates bishop election slate

From ENS-

The Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma received notification Oct. 23 from the Rev. Greg Methvin, that he was withdrawing as a nominee for bishop of Oklahoma for personal and professional reasons. The Diocese of Oklahoma expresses its thanks to the Rev. Methvin for his willingness to participate in our election process.

The election of the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Oklahoma will go forward with the two nominees, the Rev. Scott Gunn and the Rev. Poulson Reed. The election is scheduled for Dec. 14 at St. Paul’s Cathedral in Oklahoma City. The consecration of the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Oklahoma is scheduled for Saturday, April 18, 2020, at the Oklahoma City University.

 

Here-

 

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/10/23/oklahoma-diocese-updates-bishop-election-slate/

 

 

British bishop rebukes Sydney Anglican leader's call for gay marriage supporters to leave church

From The Guardian-

A senior Church of England bishop has expressed regret at comments by the Archbishop of Sydney that supporters of marriage equality should leave the Anglican church.

Reflecting sharp divisions within the global Anglican communion over LGBT+ issues, the Bishop of Liverpool, Paul Bayes, said: “I regret that the archbishop [of Sydney] seems to want to exclude people rather than to engage with them within the wider Anglican family.”

Archbishop Glenn Davies said last week that those who supported same-sex marriage should abandon the church.

“If people wish to change the doctrine of our church, they should start a new church or join a church more aligned to their views – but do not ruin the Anglican church by abandoning the plain teaching of scripture,” he said. “Please leave us.”

More here-

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/23/british-bishop-rebukes-sydney-anglican-leaders-call-for-gay-marriage-supporters-to-leave-church

What is left to say about a new John Grisham novel? ‘The Guardians’ has something to add.

From The Washington Post-

What is there left to say about a new John Grisham novel?

Maybe only that Grisham has done it again.

“The Guardians” is Grisham’s 40th novel; he’s now 64 and has been writing suspense novels pretty much nonstop since “A Time to Kill” was published in 1989. Most of his novels are legal thrillers, but Grisham has also branched out into stories about rare books, sports and medicine. (His 2015 e-book, “The Tumor,” is about an experimental cancer treatment called focused ultrasound technology that Grisham champions.) Grisham has even written a YA legal series featuring a 13-year-old amateur legal eagle named “Theodore Boone.”

More here-

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/what-is-left-to-say-about-a-new-john-grisham-novel-the-guardians-has-something-to-add/2019/10/21/a7d0a998-f1db-11e9-8693-f487e46784aa_story.html

The Episcopal Church will sell stock in companies profiting from the occupation

From RNS-

A Statement by the Episcopal Peace Fellowship’s Palestine Israel Network (EPF PIN) on Action by Executive Council re Resolution B016 (2018): Adopt Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s Action on Israel/Palestine.

The Steering Committee of EPF PIN commends Executive Council for positive action on three Resolutions implementing the mandate from the 79th General Convention expressed in Resolution B016: Adopt Evangelical Lutheran Church of America’s [ELCA] Action on Israel/Palestine.

Meeting in Montgomery, Alabama on Oct. 18 – 21, the Council voted to receive the June 2019 Report of its Committee on Corporate Social Responsibility (CCSR) on resolution B016 and adopt the recommended Global Human Rights Screen (GHRS) with “criteria for the Israel//Palestine conflict.” The GHRS is modeled on the ELCA’s human rights screen and is consistent with policy adopted by General Convention or Executive Council over the last six decades. PIN lauds the clear criteria established by the GHRS for deciding if a corporation supports or benefits from denial of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). 

More here-

https://religionnews.com/2019/10/22/the-episcopal-church-will-sell-stock-in-companies-profiting-from-the-occupation/

Former Haywood County priest enters guilty plea to multiple child sexual abuse charges

From Western North Carolina-

A former Haywood County Episcopal Priest, charged with multiple counts of child sexual abuse, entered a guilty plea Monday morning.

Howard Willard White, Jr., 78, pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree forcible rape, eight counts of second-degree forcible sex offense and seven counts of indecent liberties with a child.
White was charged over a year ago in Haywood County with multiple felonies connected to the sexual abuse of multiple children over two decades.

In June 2017, White pleaded guilty to child sex charges in Massachusetts. Prosecutors said White assaulted a child during two overnight trips to Boston when the boy was 15 and 16. At the time, White worked at St. George's School in Middletown, Rhode Island. White, who was stripped of his priesthood by the Episcopal Church, received an 18-month sentence in that case.

More here-

https://wlos.com/news/local/former-haywood-county-priest-enters-guilty-plea-to-multiple-child-sexual-abuse-charges

Executive Council closes fall meeting with vote endorsing major ‘Way of Love’ expansion

From ENS-

The Episcopal Church’s Executive Council concluded its four-day meeting here Oct. 21 with a series of votes that included an endorsement of plans for a dramatic expansion of Presiding Bishop Michael Curry’s Way of Love initiative, featuring plans for a major revival event in New York and a growing list of media projects.

Curry spoke to the purpose of those efforts during a weekend committee meeting and again before the vote of the full Executive Council on its final day. Sharing the message of the Way of Love more broadly will counter a strain of conservative Christianity that has strayed from the teachings of Jesus, he said, and the church affirming a Christian message of love “can be helpful for a proudly divided and polarized nation.”

“This is really how can we make – and this actually is evangelism – how can we make the way of Jesus, which is the way of love, a part of what it means to be a Christian in this particular culture,” Curry said.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2019/10/21/executive-council-closes-fall-meeting-with-vote-endorsing-major-way-of-love-expansion/

Episcopal Bishop Calls for Election of Eventual Successor

From West Virginia-

The Rt. Rev. W. Michie Klusmeyer, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia, has called for the election of a bishop coadjutor to be his eventual successor.

Klusmeyer made his announcement Saturday during the 142nd annual diocesan convention, which was held at Oglebay Park.

A coadjutor holds the right of succession to become head of a diocese upon the diocesan bishop’s retirement.

Klusmeyer, 63, has not set a date for his retirement. He will retain ecclesiastical authority within the diocese until he steps down. 

“I am not announcing my retirement, please know that. Calling for a coadjutor is a statement that I’m planning to retire,” he told clergy and lay delegates at the convention.

More here-

https://www.theintelligencer.net/news/top-headlines/2019/10/episcopal-bishop-calls-for-election-of-eventual-successor/

NZ gets two Anglican Churches. Maybe Australia will too

From New Zealand-

There is a great line that economics writers use to disparage each other: “They predicted ten of the last three recessions.”

Church splits are a bit similar. It would be easy to have predicted ten of the last three schisms.
For example, an imminent split in the Anglican Church of Australia has been written about for the last two decades – normally in the Sydney Morning Herald.

This is not to diminish the seriousness of the current situation facing Australia’s Anglican Church. The dispute over same-sex blessings that escalated after the Diocese (region) of Wangaratta authorised blessings of civil marriages of LGBT people and the Archbishop of Sydney Glenn Davies responded by asking those leaders who want to change doctrine to leave, was quite rightly described by Davies as a “crisis”.

More here-

https://www.eternitynews.com.au/australia/nz-gets-two-anglican-churches-maybe-australia-will-too/

‘There Is No Hope’: Crisis Pushes Haiti to Brink of Collapse

From The New York Times-

“It was scary, really scary,” said Archdeacon Abiade Lozama of the Episcopal Church of Haiti, which owns the hospital. “Every day, things become more difficult, day after day.”

Though the country has been trapped for years in cycles of political and economic dysfunction, many Haitians say the current crisis is worse than anything they have ever experienced. Lives that were already extremely difficult, here in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, have become even more so. 

Weeks of unrest around Haiti, coupled with rampant corruption and economic malaise, have led to soaring prices, a disintegration of public services and a galloping sense of insecurity and lawlessness. At least 30 people have been killed in the demonstrations in the past few weeks, including 15 by police officers, according to the United Nations.

more here-

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/20/world/americas/Haiti-crisis-violence.html

'Tampon Team' curbs period poverty in Teton County

From Wyoming-

Melinda Binks and Sarah Ferris have worked on providing access to menstruation products in the Himalayas. But both were surprised to find the same problem facing girls and women in Teton County.

“I couldn’t believe it was going on here,” Binks said.

Binks and Ferris joined a small group of mostly women on the southwest corner of Town Square on Saturday to hand out information about “period poverty” and where people could access products.

The educational rally, timed to coincide with National Period Day, was born from the organizers of the Period Project, a collaboration started by St. John’s Episcopal Church, St. John’s Hospital Foundation and the Jackson Cupboard.

The three groups joined forces last spring to purchase and distribute tampons and pads to schools and businesses throughout town. The Tampon Team — the moniker given to the group of volunteers that stock the baskets — have expanded to include Arapahoe Middle School in Fremont County and the Community Resource Center of Teton Valley in Driggs, Idaho.

More here-

https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/jackson_hole_daily/local/tampon-team-curbs-period-poverty-in-teton-county/article_249169aa-65b0-5744-bf40-2639374a1d18.html

Exodus from church worries Northwest Ankole bishop

From Nigeria-

The Anglican prelate of Northwest Ankole Diocese, Bishop Amos Magezi, has expressed concern over the rate at which men are abandoning the church for “worldly things.”

Speaking during the launch of Men’s Ministry diocesan committee at St. Peter’s Cathedral in Ibanda on Friday October 18, Magezi said men were spending all their money and time in bars and gambling.

“Men are not in church; they are not even in their homes, yet they are key in taking the work of God forward. So, we want men in this diocese to know their place and role in the church and its development,” he told the 13 newly sworn-in members of the diocesan committee

The committee was tasked to spearhead the continued rejuvenation of the Anglican Church in the diocese and especially evangelising to the men and convincing them to come back and support the work of God.

More here-

 https://www.newvision.co.ug/new_vision/news/1508903/exodus-church-worries-northwest-ankole-bishop

Bishops highlight Church’s responsibility to show support and pray amid Brexit anxiety

From Premier-

Anglican Church leaders in Exeter have made an appeal for churches be supportive to their communities amid the uncertainty of how the UK will leave the European Union.

Rt Rev Robert Atwell Bishop of Exeter, and the two Suffragan Bishops of Plymouth and Crediton, the Rt Rev Nick McKinnel and the Rr Rev Jackie Searle, have written to all the churches in about their responsibility to respond to Brexit anxiety in their local area.

The bishops said the letter was in response to the worries of many in the county, particularly in the farming community, and their “concern at the deep divisions in our nation”.

More here-

https://www.premier.org.uk/News/UK/Bishops-highlight-Church-s-responsibility-to-show-support-and-pray-amid-Brexit-anxiety

John Grisham works his narrative magic in newest legal thriller

From Maryland-

When an attorney takes on a matter of life and death, the client is usually the only person in peril.

But not in John Grisham’s new legal thriller, “The Guardians.” Danger stalks lawyer Cullen Post and the inmate he represents.

Post—an attorney-turned-Episcopal priest—combines those roles for Guardian Ministries, a four-person operation that investigates the cases of prisoners who might have been wrongly convicted.

With several successes in hand and five ongoing investigations, Post and his colleagues—founder Vicki Gourley, litigation chief Mazy Ruffin and investigator-exoneree Francois “Frankie” Tatum—accept the case of Quincy Miller. An African American convicted of murdering white lawyer Keith Russo of fictional Seabrook—a small town in the north Florida backwoods—Miller is in the 23rd year of a life sentence.

More here-

https://www.fredericksburg.com/entertainment/arts/book-review-john-grisham-works-his-narrative-magic-in-newest/article_88a8a64a-d4f9-5793-adc0-4c571491e0b7.html