The Provincial Leadership Conference (PLC) is sponsoring a series of monthly webinars for deputies and bishops who will be voting on resolutions at General Convention. Presenters will offer their perspectives on some of the issues coming before General Convention. The PLC chose to focus the webinars on the pillars of the Presiding Bishop's vision of Beloved Community - reconciliation, evangelism, and environment - as well as resolutions around structure and canon changes. Individuals who have worked on some of the submitted resolutions throughout this triennium and others knowledgeable in the focus field have been enlisted as panelists for the webinars. The webinars will be on the second Th

The 2018 Episcopal General Convention is considering the how and when of prayer book revision. Charged with presenting a plan for a comprehensive revision to The Book of Common Prayer, the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music (SCLM) will offer two options to the upcoming General Convention of the Episcopal Church in Austin, Tex., July 5-13. The first option would move the church immediately into a full nine-year prayer book revision process. The second option would call the church into a period of "unifying discernment" about the current Book of Common Prayer before undertaking any revision, and would include new Book of Common Prayer translations in Spanish, French, Haitian Creole an

Carol Gallagher is the first American Indian (Cherokee) female bishop in the Episcopal Church and first Indigenous female bishop in Anglican Communion. Carol offers both her personal experience and churchwide perspective as theAssistant Bishop for Native Ministries in Montana and Bishop Missioner for the Bishops' Native Collaborative. Carol contextualized the conversation with a brief history of the Anglican/Episcopal Church's relationship with Native people, explored the implications of a predominance of Indigenous peoples in urban areas yet a limited focus of the Episcopal Church, and her efforts to raise up and train Native leaders for the church. Maine's Bishop Steve Lane, Canon for Advo

Congratulations to the leaders of the Center for Wisdom's Women, a ministry that grew out of Trinity, Lewiston, as it successfully obtained funding to proceed with Sophia's House, a long-term, community-based residential recovery program for women who are survivors of addiction, incarceration, and trafficking. Sophia's House will be modeled on a ministry called Thistle Farms based in Nashville. A Diocese of Maine New Initiative Fund grant allowed Center volunteers to attend a multi-day training at Thistle Farms in 2016. In addition to the donation of the former convent by St. Mary's Health System, Sophia's House, in partnership with Norway Savings, recently received a $500,000 affordable hou

Earth Credo is a 5-day immersion in the practice and spirituality of living in right relationship with the natural world. Rooted in the Christian tradition of care for the earth, participants will learn contemplative disciplines that support intimacy with God through Creation. Earth Credo is designed to train and empower participants to offer Christian eco-spirituality workshops, classes, and leadership perspectives within their local church and community. Participants will simultaneously immerse themselves directly with the land, plus learn practical outdoor skills needed to be comfortable interacting more closely with nature. Evening discussions will center on the inter-dependency of int

[February 7, 2018] The Episcopal Church Executive Council, at its January meeting in Linthicum Heights, MD, approved the recipients of 15 Evangelism Grants, totaling $37,450. The new Episcopal Evangelism Grants Program is designed to fund local and regional evangelism efforts in the Episcopal Church. “This program will encourage our whole Church to share resources, catalyze imagination, and ultimately cultivate a network of evangelists who can learn from each other and connect with each other,” explained the Rev. Canon Susan Brown Snook, Chair of both the Episcopal Evangelism Grants Committee and the Executive Council Committee on Local Mission and Ministry. The Episcopal Evangelism Grants

"Global Mission" means a lot of things to a lot of people. Here in the Diocese of Massachusetts, we believe that Global Mission is a journey into God's Mission, through formational pilgrimage and relationship building with communities from contexts different than our own -- by virtue of culture, geography, background, or experience -- with the purpose of accompaniment, understanding, reconciliation, and justice. In answering the call into God's Mission, it's easy to get caught up in the details of trips and projects with our partner community. The 2018 Global Mission Summit is an opportunity to step back, share what we each see as the big picture, and explore the role that God plays in our r

Leading by example can be a powerful part of our moral responsibility to care for creation. By reducing the carbon footprints at our houses of worship we also lower energy bills and free up funds needed for other important purposes. Participants will learn what to do about: Electricity — How to recognize the major energy hogs — and what to do about them. Solar Power — Is solar an option for your congregation? Heat & Air Conditioning — Is it time for an upgrade? Building Envelope — How to make your congregation more comfortable & save money. Behavior — How simple actions can reduce your energy bill – and carbon footprint – by 10% or more. 8:30 am: Registration, refreshments and networking;

A Call for a Thousand Sermons in Solidary with the Youth Awakening the Nation to Climate Change In 2015, 21 youth took our federal government to court over its "role in causing climate change and violating their rights to life, liberty, and property, while also failing to protect essential public resources." This landmark case, Juliana v. US, continues to unfold. On December 11, 2017, a three-judge panel heard oral arguments by the youth plaintiffs and by Eric Grant, representing the Trump administration, who argued that the case should be dismissed. The youth and their attorneys are now awaiting the panel decision. You can find more details about the case here. This February 28, join a webi