DioBeth newSpin

Long live the Revolution ... by Bishop Paul

Long live the Revolution
Bishop Paul V. Marshall
July 2009

[This is Bishop Paul Marshall's July 2009 column for secular newspapers throughout our 14 counties. It is published by The Morning Call, Allentown, on the first Saturday of every month. It usually appears also in ten additional papers. The combined circulation of papers that publish the column regularly is more than 400,000. More than 130 columns have been published over the past 13 years. If your paper does not publish the column and you would consider bringing it to the attention of the editor, please email Bill Lewellis, blewellis@diobeth.org]

In my tradition, we have an obligation to observe Independence Day in church, and we cannot help remembering how many of the founders were members of our church. It is, therefore, all too easy to forget that the American Revolution was opposed by many good Christians because the New Testament is clear about the duty owed to kings, and that members of my church were also represented in that group. Red and Blue have always been with us.

In Pennsylvania, many members of the Church of England and many Lutherans distinguished themselves in the Revolution. For even more of those groups, the Revolution was a crisis of faith; many of them did not participate. The Revolution rearranged their thinking not only about government but also about how God has ordered the world. The very idea that the government gets its powers from the consent of the governed was very uncomfortable.

Be wary if you hear from former PB Frank Griswold

Written by Patrick Malloy
Posted by Bill Lewellis

Sisters and Brothers,

Two days ago, Facebook offered me the former Presiding Bishop, Frank Griswold, as a friend, and I figured, "Why not?"

Yesterday I got a response.  It was signed, "Frank," and was a grammatical mess full of typing errors.  It asked if I had received Bishop Griswold's snail mail letter.  I thought it strange that he would have sent me a letter, since I have only met him a couple times.  How could he possibly remember me? But I wrote back, and another response came, and then a message came to my regular email address (not my Facebook account), asking me to wire money to an orphanage in Uganda named for him.  Of course, there is no Bishop Griswold Orphanage in Uganda.

The folks at 815 tell me that they became aware earlier today that someone has hacked into Griswold's email account.  Now they know that his Facebook account has likewise been hijacked.

So, if you hear from Bishop Griswold by email or on Facebook, it is almost certainly a scam.

Patrick Malloy
Grace, Allentown

The House of Bread "Tweets" Hello

Posted by Kat Lehman
The Diocese of Bethlehem has entered the Twitter fray! Come follow us on Twitter here: http://twitter.com/Diobeth

Don't know what Twitter is? Twitter is a microblog/social network online community. It's useful for sending quick text messages that can be viewed online or via a cell phone depending on how you wish to receive your messages. We will be exploring ways to use Twitter to communicate more in the future. If you have anything to share in the conversation, please let us know!

World Mission Draft Report

Posted by Kat Lehman

Draft report encourages Episcopalians to re-evaluate mission

By Lynette Wilson, June 30, 2009

[Episcopal News Service] The Episcopal Church Center staff issued a 27-page draft report on world mission June 26 in response to two questions posed by Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori:

• What is the primary motivation for global mission?
• How do we practice global mission strategically in the 21st century?

"They are questions that continue to engage us," said Jefferts Schori in an interview when asked if the draft report adequately answered the questions. "This is a good beginning and meant to stimulate greater discussion."

The draft report includes a brief history of Episcopal global mission, estimated 2008 international mission expenditure figures ($22.9 million), the 2009 projected budget for international mission and geographic breakdowns of where the money is spent.

The $24 million projected 2009 budget for Episcopal International Mission, which includes all mission work outside the United State, is broken down by area: Episcopal Relief and Development (ERD) (60.6 percent), Domestic and Foreign Missionary Society (DFMS) (33.3 percent) and United Thank Offering (6.1 percent).

To read the whole story, go to Episcopal Life Online here.

Pray for our young men and women who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan

[Posted by Bill Lewellis]

June 30 ... Pray for our young men and women who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for their families … Casey L. Hills, 23; Brian N. Bradshaw, 24; Joshua L. Hazlewood, 22; Steven T. Drees, 19; Peter K. Cross, 20; Timothy A. David, 28   ... and for the citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan who have died, unnamed and unknown to us, and for those who mourn ... and for an end to this endless war.

Posted usually on Tuesdays, with names found over seven days.

Culled from various web pages, including:
U.S. Department of Defense news releases
In Remembrance, at legacy.com
Honor the Fallen, from Military Times
U.S. and Coalition Casualties, at CNN.com

Parish Websites and Newsletters

Clicking on the name of the parish or agency will take you to its website where its newsletter may be found.

Thirteen years with Bishop Paul

Thirteen years with Bishop Paul
By Bill Lewellis

Well-kneaded, God-baked, God-broken, God-made
Thirteen years ago, June 29, 1996, the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, bishops laid hands on Paul V. Marshall, consecrating him eighth bishop of the 14-county Diocese of Bethlehem.

Many of us who were there remember snippets of the sermon preached by Bishop Catherine Roskam, a former student in Bishop Paul’s homiletics class at Yale. One part, where she recited a poem, Bakerwoman God, seems to me to have been especially prophetic: “Bakerwoman God, I am your living bread … I am your rising bread, well-kneaded … Put me in fire, Bakerwoman God … Break me, Bakerwoman God … Bakerwoman God, remake me.”

Upon returning from a 2005 mission trip to southern Sudan, Bishop Paul told a story about the impetus for the New Hope Campaign which has now raised more than $3.8 million for the people of Kajo Keji and the needy of northeastern Pennsylvania. “At the end of a week in that bomb-torn country, Diana and I baked in a bus for 14 hours in the Ugandan sun. Finally you give up wiping your face. As we became increasingly caked with red dirt and the overcrowded bus grew hotter and hotter, I found myself baking in a creative and holy sense: I knew God wanted my attention. Genesis says humans began our existence as kind of mud pies, and the red dust of the earth baking into my pores helped me have a new beginning of insight: Here were sisters and brothers with almost nothing to their names trying to build a life and a country — how could I go on as usual? In addition to altering how I live personally, I have had to abandon some of my bricks-and-mortar dreams for our own diocese, particularly regarding a conference center, in order to see what God would have us do for others. The question that intrigued me was, Could we dare to have a capital fund drive where we didn’t get the money?”

From my perspective, Bishop Paul's well-kneaded, God-baked, God-broken and God-made ministry among us has been broad and deep: teacher, pastor, preacher, administrator, author, advocate and participant in ministry with people in the developing world, children and youth, the poor and the marginalized, advocate and reconciler with those within the church who consider themselves progressive as well as those who consider themselves traditionalists, interpreter of family systems theory, communicator within and beyond the diocesan community, a leader who consults with colleagues, and a person whose ministry as bishop proceeds from prayer and a contemplative vision of God's kingdom.

Please pray for our bishop, especially on his 13th anniversary among us, not only as he experiences these days the continuing pain of good recovery from surgery but also the questions of the day and the challenges from the gospel passage about loving God and being taken to difficult places (John 21:15-19) proclaimed on the day of his consecration.

Cycles of Prayer for July and August

Posted by Kat Lehman
In the Diocese of Bethlehem
www.diobeth.org
July 5: The TV ad campaign of the Episcopal Church in Northeast PA, www.nepaepiscopalchurch.org
July 12: The General Convention of the Episcopal Church
July 19: North Parish: St. John’s Church, Ashland, Holy Apostles Church, St. Clair, and Christ Church, Frackville, The Rev. James Smith, priest, The Rev Dolores Evans, priest, www.northparish.com
July 26: The ministry of the Evangelism Commission of the Diocese of Bethlehem, The Rev. Canon Andrew Gerns, chair
Aug. 2: The ministry of the Stewardship Commission of the Diocese of Bethlehem, The Rev. Canon Lexa Shallcross, chair
Aug. 9: St. Alban’s Church, Sinking Spring, The Rev. Karl L. Kern, rector, The Rev. Charles L. Beem., associate priest, The Rev. Bruce Baker, associate priest, www.stalbansepiscopal.org
Aug. 16: Church of the Good Shepherd, Scranton, The Rev. Canon William T. Warne II, priest-in-residence, The Rev. K. Frederick Mauger, assistant priest. www.churchofthegoodshepherdscranton.org
Aug. 23: Church of the Good Shepherd and St. John the Evangelist, Milford, The Rev William J. McGinty, rector, www.goodshepherdmilford.org
Aug. 30: Christ Church, Reading, The Rev. John R. Francis, rector, www.rdgchristchurch.org

Anglicans Around the World
www.anglicancommunion.org
July 5: The clergy and people of the Phulbani in North India
July 12: The clergy and people of the Diocese of Portsmouth in the Province of Canterbury, England
July 19: The clergy and people of the Church of Pakistan
July 26: The clergy and people of the Diocese of Rhode Island
Aug. 2: The clergy and people of the Diocese of Rochester
Aug. 9: The clergy and people of the Diocese of Ruwenzori in the Province of Uganda
Aug. 16: The clergy and people of the Diocese of San Joaquin
Aug. 23: The clergy and people of the Anglican Church of Korea
Aug. 30: The clergy and people of the church in the Province of Singapore

The Diocese of Kajo Keji
July 5: St. Emmanuel Pro-Cathedral,Canon Yoasa Wurube, Canon Henry Leju, Canon Dr. Oliver Duku, Canon Elikana Duku
July 12: Tipere Parish, The Rev. Mary Kwiansuk
July 19: Walilo Parish, The Rev. Samuel Pianile
July 26: The 1000 members of the Mother’s Union
Aug. 2: Wudu Parish and Prisons Kangapo, The Rev. Rupasi Sombe
Aug. 9: Wudu Town Parish, The Rev. Sadaraka Muni
Aug. 16: Wuruta Parish, The Rev. Norah Pita Wani
Aug. 23: Beliak Parish, The Rev. Elikana Lodu
Aug. 30: Ajira Parish, The Rev. Joseph Lomuja

Peace Scholarships

Posted by Kat Lehman
The Diocesan Peace Commission will award 8 Peace Scholarships to Episcopalians to attend "Creating a Culture of Peace" (CCP) training retreat. The deadline to apply for the $300 scholarships is August 10, 2009. The CCP training is September 10-13, 2009, and runs from Thursday dinner through Sunday lunch at Kirkridge Retreat Center near Stroudsburg. The full cost of the training retreat, including room and board, is $395.  Scholarship recipients will be awarded $300 and will pay the remaining $95 themselves. Episcopalians Janet Chisholm and Fran Hlavacek will lead the training. CCP training responds to General Convention resolutions and funding to develop a culture of peace and nonviolence and to make nonviolence training and peace education available throughout the Episcopal Church. This is the second CCP training for the Diocese of Bethlehem. Apply for Scholarship:  Mary Louise Bross, mlb2@lehigh.edu, 610-691-2684 or 610-248-0030. Download the complete flyer Download 09PeaceScholarship.

St. Gabriel's, Douglassville Youth Events

Posted by Kat Lehman
Tuesdays to Serve
In response to the teens at St Gabriel’s saying that they miss one another over the summer, the increased need in our community and the desire to “do the work of Jesus”, St Gabriel’s Youth Ministry has started a Summer program for youth in grades 6 through graduating seniors.  This program is called “Tuesdays to Serve”  teens are dropped off in the morning, while parents are on their way to work, they bring a brown bag lunch, and spend the day doing mission work, in prayer and in fellowship.  Some of the mission projects scheduled for the summer include working around the church campus, visiting our neighbors at the Villa at Morlaton, assisted and independent living facility, cooking the Community Meal for those in need in Birdsboro, and possibly working with the Humane Society and the Greater Berks Food Bank.  If you would like more information about the program please contact Kim Rowles, youth ministry coordinator, at youth@stgabriels.us.

Teens and Tech Seminar
Do you know what social networking is all about?  Do you know the difference between a tweet and an update?  Do you know how to keep your kids safe online?  Do you know what the dangers of the online world even are?  In hopes of opening communication between teens and their parents about their lives “online”  St Gabriel’s is hosting 5 teens and tech seminars over the summer.   Come to St Gabriel’s for a FREE seminar on Tuesday July 21, Thursday July 23, Monday August 10, Wednesday August 12, or Friday August 14 to discuss the dangers of “online life”  and how to keep safe in the cyber world.  Topics to be discussed are :  Social Networking, Cyberbullying and Cyber Predators.  Come and learn more about how teens can protect themselves on line through programs like the Teen Angel network.  For more information about the seminars contact Kim Rowles, youth ministry coordinator at youth@stgabriels.us or if you would like to learn about the Teen Angel network visit http://www.teenangels.org/.