Happy New Year 2014 Caledonia - may it be blessed for you!

Caledonia TimesJanuary 2014 - New Year’s Edition

The Diocesan Section of the Anglican Journal

Diocesan Exectuive Meets for 2014 Budget

The Bishop and the Clergy gather at Camp for Clericus

Diocesan Executive at the November 2013 Meeting

The Bishop and clergy gathered at Camp Caledonia for a two day face to face meeting to discuss a variety of issues that face the clergy on a day to day basis - everything from building issues to self care to relationships with the National Church life and local ministry in the diocese. they took time to poses for this photo. - Ed

The Diocesan Executive Committee met on November 15th in Terrace to discuss matters of life and ministry within the Diocese. What follows is a thumbnail of the meeting’s min-utes and the matters into which their time and energy was spent:

The Bishop introduced our new Secretary-Treasurer, Mrs. Audrey Wagner, to the Ex-ecutive Committee. Time was taken to go around the table and introduce everyone so that in the days ahead Audrey can put a face to a name when talking to people on the phone when they call. Audrey came to the Synod Of-fice in August, to succeed Michelle Tangauy who left at that time to take employment else-where. The Bishop also took the time to in-troduce the Rev. Canon Dr. James Nuzzo, who was visiting the Diocese for the Clericus and was going to spend some time in the Ca-thedral Parish, including preaching on Sunday Morning. Canon Nuzzo serves the Bishop as Canon Theologian and as an honourary As-sistant at the Cathedral when he is here from his native Boston.

The Budget was discussed in detail and ap-proved for 2014, including grants to various parishes worth about $95,000. The National Block Grant has been cut from $250,212 in 2012 to $234,996 for 2014. And there are going to be cuts of at least 5% per year to the Diocese to 2017. These cuts were agreed to as part of an arrange-ment with the Council of the North and the Council of General Synod, where funding levels were held for five years and then cut by 5% per year for a five year period. There is a concern that the Diocese is drawing down its reserves too quickly and must take some actions soon to stem this trend. There

was also a provision to use money that would send the Editor to the annual Editors’ Conference (to be held in Niagara Falls in June 2014) to be diverted and used to facilitate a clergy gathering in 2014.

The Diocese will be moving from three separate payments of Stipend, Insurance, and Diocesan Fair Share to a single unified monthly pay-ment: The Bishop noted a growing concern over the number of congregations that are not meeting it commitments to the Diocese for the big 3 (1) Sti-pend, (2) Insurance, and (3) Diocesan Fair Share. The first two are contract obligations and must be paid. Failure on the part of the parish to pay

stipend or insurance can result in the clergy getting layoff notice or the buildings being locked up until the finances are brought up to current because of the costs and legal commit-ments the diocese has to the clergy. The insur-ance covers not only the building, it also cov-ers the officers of the parish for various things, including directors’ insurance if the parish is every sued.

There have been a number of changes in life and ministry in the North Peace Par-ish – end of the relationship with St. Luke’s United congregation and property matters: The Bishop noted that the legal transactions ending the relationship between St. Martin’s Congregation and St. Luke’s United Church have finally been finished. The diocese paid out about $350,000 for the lands, buildings and legal fees. Executive has chosen to work with St. Martin’s congregation over the next year on how the money will be repaid. In the meantime, the parish has been led by the Rev.

Jacob Worley who spent six months with the parish as an interim priest. The Bishop announced that he has appointed the Rev. Enid Pow from the Diocese of Chelmsford (UK) to the Parish. Rev. Pow is due to arrive in Fort St. John in mid-January.

There was discussion around the future of the “Caledonia Times” and the Future of Commu-nications within the Diocese: Some time was giv-en to discussing the ongoing work of the Caledonia Times. There has been an going concern amongst the diocesan editors that the Anglican Journal may change its format from the current newspaper for-mat published 10 times each year to (1) an elec-tronic/web based reporting or (2) more recently to a quarterly magazine or (3) publishing fewer pa-pers, down to every other month or six times a year from ten issues per annum. Our editor is working on a plan that would see the Cal Times become a journal/magazine that could be produced and mailed more easily from within the diocese should the new format of the Anglican Journal not allow us to publish with them. The largest challenge for the Cal Times is the lack of stories from the papers. The editor will update the situation when there are more developments.

Page 2 Caledonia Times — January 2014

As we begin this New Year, a date in the church’s calendar may slip past without many knowing of it.

On January 10th, the Church commemorated - that is, it paused and remembered with thanksgiving - an event that occurred 369 years ago, in a place far across the ocean from where we live.

On that day, January 10th, 1645, William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury, was beheaded by order of the Puritan dominated parliament.

The Puritan movement in England emphasized per-sonal and ecclesial austerity as a means of sustain-ing conversion. Laud, like his patron King Charles I, felt that the majesty of God should be reflected in the liturgy of the Church, especially as captured in the Book of Common Prayer. He also had a high view of the Church as God’s creation, and therefore deserving of obedience, a view the Puritans did not share. Since the Puritans had the majority in Parlia-ment they were able to depose, imprison and finally execute the Archbishop.

Reading about these events 369 years later, it is likely difficult for us to imagine being prepared to suffer death and imprisonment in defense of the Book of Common Prayer, let alone the manner in which our Church is governed. Ours tends to be a time of embracing, or tolerating, multiple (and sometimes conflicting) perspectives - at least as long as they are politically correct.

So it can be difficult to imagine the mind of an old man who was prepared to suffer the torment of imprisonment in the dreaded Tower of London, and count down the hours and minutes before his ex-ecution. From the height of power as Archbishop of Canterbury, to the ignominy of a public beheading, why would Laud have gone down such a path?

I actually thought of this shortly after visiting the parish of St. James, Smithers, which was celebrat-ing their centenary. At that event, there was a recounting of the story of the founding priest, who, at the request of Bishop DuVernet, snowshoed from Atlin to the Bulkley Valley in 1906 to begin mission work. Rev. Frederick Stephenson, who had been born in England, was the first missionary into the valley.

Why did he do this? He did this because he heard, in the Bishop’s request, God’s call. This was a call

that had no safety net- no guarantee of success, or of reward. There was no protection against death on the trail from frostbite, or accident. He did it, and records in his diaries, that in bringing the Christian faith to the early settlers in the Bulkley, when offered the choice of free prayer, or the old prayers of the Church, the people he encountered invariably wanted to hear the old prayers of the church – the same prayers from the Book of Com-mon Prayer that Archbishop Laud held so dear.

I understand that for some folks, the Book of Com-mon Prayer language appears dated compared to the more informal language of the Book of Alter-nate Services. And some think that any form of written prayer is cold and lifeless. But I would sug-gest that Laud, and the generations of missionaries such as Rev. Fred Stephenson and Rev. Thomas Marsh (St. Matthew’s, Terrace), found in the Book of Common Prayer something deep and meaning-ful. This is because the Book of Common Prayer is more than a matter of mere words- it has a very carefully worked out theology that was forged over 1600 years, and then refined in the turmoil of the English Reformation. The language may not be what one would find in a 21st century newspaper, but it was capable of speaking, from Laud’s time until recently, to generations of people, many of whom had less than a grade four education. One of my professors once described the Book of Com-mon Prayer as “the Bible at work.”

William Laud’s sacrifice, just as the sacrifices made by missionaries such as Stephenson and Marsh, became the building blocks on which our life within our parishes is possible. They did not build what they did by assuming a “Whatever…” attitude towards the faith, because men and women do not sacrifice and risk all for just a vague ‘anything’. Rather, they acted through well thought out and disciplined conviction and passion, which car-ried them through the trials and hardships of their ministries.

Their legacy lies not in any buildings but in the lives they touched, and the examples they provided.

So in these early days of the New Year, let us cel-ebrate our founders, and those who have inspired and guided us. And let us resolve to leave as rich a legacy to our children and grandchildren.

+William Caledonia

Bishop’s Notes: Bishop William Anderson

Remember our founders and leave a legacy

Getting the Gospel to Caledonia

Episcopal Announcements

The Bishop has appointed the Rev. Dr. Tim John-son, Incumbent of the Parish of the South Peace, as Archdeacon of Caledonia East, effective Novem-ber 22nd, 2013.

The Bishop has appointed the Rev. Enid Pow of the Diocese Chelmsford, England as priest in charge of the Parish of the North Peace, effective January 9th, 2014.

The Diocese of New Westminster on November 30th 2013, elected the Rev. Canon Melissa M. Skelton, Canon for Congregational Development and Leadership & Rector, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Diocese of Olympia, TEC as their 9th Bishop. She succeeds Bishop Michael Ingham who retired in August, 2013. Bishop Elect Skelton will be consecrated to the Episcopacy by the Met-ropolitan, Archbishop John Privett of BC-Yukon on St. David’s Day. March 1st ,2014.

The Diocese of British Columbia on December 7th elected the Dean of British Columbia, the Very Rev. Logan McMenamie, as the 13th Bishop of the Diocese.

Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

“The Old Grey Mare - many of these vans served the life of the dio-cese well as they carried missionar-ies over the rough roads of our rural diocese for many years. Many of our congregations were started from these vans. I can remember riding in one of them as a kid at Camp Cale-donia, bumping along in the back with other campers going some-where and singing at the top of our voices “The old grey Mare, she ain’t what she used to be, she ain’t what she used to be long long time ago.”- Editor.

Surfin’ for the Lord

The official website of The British Monarchy is found at <www.royal.gov.uk>. The top of the home page features a slide show which takes us through five current events involving the royal family. From the home page you can go to articles on The Queen and the UK and the Queen and the Church. You can order congratulations for people with 100th birth-days and 60th wedding anniversaries. You can also see the various royal residences. The website is a veritable encyclopedia for the British Royal Family. So if you are a royal watcher this is the site for you.

Happy surfing,

Ruby

HRM Queen Elizabeth II in 2006 - photo by Ricardo Stuckertvia Wikimedia Commons

Caledonia Times — January 2014 Page 3

Like most at this time of year, I stop to con-sider the year that has past and then look forward to the year that is ahead. It is a mo-ment of beginnings with a new calendar year. It is the start of another year for me as the Editor of the Caledonia Times. It is the start of a new fiscal year for the Diocese and the Parishes therein. Looking back on it all we can see what has been done and what still needs to be done in the lives of the congregations and of the people who participate in those congregations. There are victories and work that need to be cel-ebrated because we can see God in action in us and through us. We also ought to be aware of some of the things that still need to be done. We need to be willing to par-ticipate and actively get involved so that we can look back later and see what was done and giving thanks to the Father for it all.

There is a feast that happens this time of year that should help us focus on such things: the Baptism of Jesus. The synoptic Gospels (synoptic means “same view”) of Mat-thew, Mark and Luke recount the Baptism of Je-sus. And there are many churches across this coun-try that has a large stain glass window recounting the act. But have you ever noticed how little water is actually poured on Jesus? There is such a stain glass window in the church where I first served in Eastern Ontario. There were in fact five windows recounting the life of Jesus from baptism to res-urrection appearances. In reflecting on all those

scenes, it is truly amazing how far someone can go in faith, when there seemingly is so little water.

It flies in direct conflict with the first time I can remember assisting Bishop John Hannen at a bap

tism. The candidates got wet for certain but then so did the bishop, the font and the server. There was a vigourous application of the water. The amounts of water applied were generous to be cer-tain. Yet I have to wonder where those same chil-dren are now and are they living out the promises

Caledonia TimesPublication of the Diocese of Caledonia

Publisher: The Bishop of CaledoniaEditor: The Dean of Caledonia

Published monthly, except July and August by:Diocese of Caledonia,200 – 4th Avenue West

Prince Rupert, BC V8J 1P3(250) 627-1143 or (250) 600-7143

Address correspondence and copy to the address above.

Or to caledoniatimes@gmail.comSubmissions must be received

by the 1st of each month for the following month’s issue.

Send subscription orders, address changesDiocese of Caledonia

c/o Anglican Journal 80 Hayden St.Toronto, Ontario M4Y 3G2

Printed and mailed by:Webnews Inc., North York, Ont.

Wait a Moment here...

Have you considered how you started out?

Caledonia Diocesan ACW President

Elected as National ACW Vice President

picture: Wolf Traut via wikimedia commons

made when Christ was given to them. Where did they go with their water and are they now still living in the water or are they all dried up?

I know that this same congregation is still there. They are still living in the water. I had the chance to go back as a fully trained priest to the place where I came to faith. The building I knew is gone. Most of the people I knew then are now gone, hav-ing either died or moved away. Nevertheless the worship including the music is still as powerful as it was when I was a teen. Jesus is known there. They maintain their worship, their prayer life and their presence as sign posts both of God’s pres-ence and also because of the work and witness of all those who have been there in the past that they might leave a legacy of faith, of prayer and wor-ship for those who would dare to come and get wet - those who would choose to follow the Master on.

In the year that is ahead, is there not a reason for us not to reflect on where we have been, considered how we started ouit and then choose where we need to go next? So let us ask ourselves this simple question: what will your legacy to your family be? What do you want it to be? And most important-ly, what are you willing to do about it in this next year to make at least parts of that legacy a real-ity in the lives of your family and congregations?

Jason+

Editor, the Caledonia Times

Diocesan ACW President Susan Kinney of Ter-race BC was recently elected and installed as the National Anglican Church Women Vice President of Canada This happened at the Fall Conference of the Presidents which at All Saints Cathedral in Halifax, Nova Scotia on October 5th, 2013.

Kinney , a native of New Brunswick, started as a Junior Auxiliary member of the ACW when she was a teenager. She came to Terrace BC in the mid 1970’s. She married her childhood sweetheart Perley Kinney who also grew up in New Brunswick. Together they have worked and raised their family in the Terrace area.

Susan is an active volunteer in her local parish St. Matthew’s, Terrace and in the wider community. Between being a homemaker, wife, grandmother, church volunteer & the Art Gallery work she is kept quite busy! Susan and her husband Perley are now co-owners of Susan’s family Homestead in Bairds-ville NB where they love to spend time seasonally.

Susan learned her devotion to church and ACW through her mother’s example. Susan’s mom Sheila Buchanan, was herself, a devoted ACW member most of her adult life. She served in many different ACW positions in her local branch at St. Georges, Bairdsville NB. and represented her lo-cal branch at her Diocese of Fredericton annuals as well. Kinney gives credit to her mother’s pat-

tern of service and giving as a guiding force and notes that, “without her love, guidance and di-rection all of my life I would not be where I am today in so many church ministries … my mom truly served our Lord daily all her life and I’m very proud to be able to serve God as she taught me”.

Kinney has been active an ACW member for 33 years with St. Matthew’s ACW, Terrace and has been ACW President of the Terrace branch for the past 26 years. She goes on to observe that “Be-ing elected onto the National Anglican Church Women of Canada Executive Board” means a 9 year commitment: 3 years as Vice President; 3 years as President; 3 years as past president.”

Page 4 Caledonia Times — January 2014

Diocesan Life: Bishop & Clergy gather at Camp for ClericusThe Bishop called the clergy together for a “Clericus” at Camp Caledonia in mid Novem-ber. The purpose of the gathering was to look at the next few years, what the clergy hoped to accomplish and to look at the work of the clergy.

A lot of time was spent talking about and doing clergy self care. Discussions included a video on the difficulties of being clergy, the abuse of clergy and how to deal with it in this day and age. There was a lengthy discussion about how to look after and feed one’s self so that the shepherd is enabled to continue feed-ing the sheep.

The Bishop challenged to clergy to say at least one of the daily offices as required. Clergy are expected to say morning and evening payer as part of their own spiritual discipline to support their own ministry. More importantly, the clergy need to make it known when they are doing this so others can join them. The Bishop wants this done so that people are aware that when they pass by the church they know they are being prayed for by their clergy. It was noted that more than 70% of Anglican Clergy in Canada do not say morning or evening office because they are too busy.

One of the main focuses of the gathering was to talk about how we could further mission of the diocese and the financial support thereof. There was a lot of talk about how the differ-ent parishes represented fulfill their current ministries and what might be on the horizon. There was a great variety of things going on in the parishes. It was acknowledged at different points that the clergy need to come together more often to collaborate and for developing relationships with each other.

The clergy were glad to have some time and a meal with the Rev. Daphne Moser while at the Camp. Rev. Mosher resigned from the Bulkley Valley Parish in October for health reasons. There was a time of prayer for her and the Bishop laid hands on her and anointed her with oil. The same was done for the Rev. Roy and the Rev. Gwen Andrews. Rev. Roy is also facing a health challenge right now and is undergoing treatment.

Vestments and other items from the Late Rev. Canon John Martinson were brought from Prince Rupert and the clergy were given a chance to go through and take things they needed for their congregations and ministry. There are a number of vestments left which will be held at the Cathedral for newly or-

dained clergy of the diocese. This helps to cut down on having to purchase the costly gar-ments.

The Clergy send a huge shout out and an even larger thank you to the kindly folks at St. James, Smithers, who did a great job of feed-ing the clergy during the days of the Clericus.

The Rev. Clyde Davis of Aiyansh: awaits the start of another session of the Clericus at the Camp last November.

Congregation ignore homeless man in church then get surprised as to who he really is...

by The WOPR

Pastor Jeremiah Steepek transformed himself into a homeless person and went to the 10,000 member church that he was to be introduced as the head pastor at that morning.He walked around his to be church for 30 minutes while it was filling with people for service, only 3 peo-ple out of the 7-10,000 people said hello to him.

He asked people for change to buy food – no one in the church gave him change. He went into the sanctuary to sit down in the front of the church and was asked by the ushers if he would please sit in the back. He greeted people to be greet-ed back with stares and dirty looks, with people looking down on him and judging him. As he sat in the back of the church, he listened to the church announcements and such. When all that was done, the elders went up and were excited to introduce the new pastor of the church to the congregation.“We would like to introduce to you Pastor Jeremiah Steepek.” The congregation looked around clapping with joy and anticipation.

The homeless man sitting in the back stood up and started walking down the aisle. The clapping

stopped with all eyes on him. He walked up the altar and took the microphone from the elders (who were in on this) and paused for a moment then he recited,

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked af-ter me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

‘The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, what-ever you did for one of the least of these broth-ers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

After he recited this, he looked towards the congre-gation and told them all what he had experienced that morning. Many began to cry and many heads were bowed in shame. He then said, “Today I see a gathering of people, not a church of Jesus Christ. The world has enough people, but not enough dis-ciples. When will YOU decide to become disci-ples?” He then dismissed service until next week.

Following Jesus Christ should be more than just talk. It ought to be a lifestyle that oth-ers around you can love about you and share in.

From the Archives

Do you remember these faces from our past?

Above: The Rev. and Mrs. Charles Harrison on their wedding day. Below: The Rev. Hartley Dent.

Pictures provided by the Caledonia Diocesan Archives

Caledonia Times — January 2014 Page 5

Books on the Way By Ruby McBeth

When the movie “The King’s Speech” won the academy award in 2010 many people became interested in the life of George VI. We were able through the movie to see George VI as as not just a king but as a human being with weaknesses. If that movie left you wanting to know more about the royal family you might enjoy the story of George VI’s wife Elizabeth. Her life story covers all of the 20th century as she was born in 1900 and died in 2002.

William Shawcross was commissioned by Queen Elizabeth II to write the official biog-raphy of her mother Queen Elizabeth. His biography titled Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother : The Official Biography is a historical book. He uses diaries, letters, and archives as well as other history books to show Elizabeth in private as well as public life. The author is extremely diplomatic in his treatment of the royal family. He leaves it to the reader to draw his own conclusions from the facts presented. Elizabeth is shown as a woman who after her marriage always put duty before pleasure. She had learned this in her teenaged years when the family home was used as a convalescent hospi-tal for WWI soldiers. According to the author Elizabeth had a simple but sincere Christian faith. She read her daughters Bible stories in the evening. When she wanted spiritual ad-vice she went to the Archbishop of Canterbury (Cosmo Lang was a friend) and to other bish-ops. Her strength was her social intelligence.

She added warmth to the royal family. After the King’s death she continued to act as an am-bassador for Britain on her many trips abroad.

For the reviewer the book had many high-lights. Firstly, we are given a peek into the private lives of the future George VI and Elizabeth Bowes Lyon from their personal let-ters. Also fascinating are the accounts of the abdication of Edward VIII and Elizabeth’s attitude towards Mrs. Simpson. The wartime meetings between George VI and Churchill which Elizabeth usually attended give a good overview of that period. Quotations from per-sonal letters show the love between Elizabeth II and her mother. Finally, the book gives the reader a picture of how a monarchist sees the changes in British society in the 20th Century.

Following the text we are given family trees for both the Bowes Lyons and the Saxe-Co-burg & Gotha and Windsor families. The 88 pages of reference notes which follow indi-cate how thoroughly the book was researched. There are 32 pages of photographs in the book. Footnotes at the bottom of many pages give bi-ographical information on the many high-pro-file people mentioned. The index at the back can help anyone using the book as a reference.

Recommended for history buffs and Angli-cans wanting to understand the relationship between their religion and the monarchy.

Shawcross, William. Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother: The Official Biography. Lon-don: MacMillan, 2009.

by Abby Stocker

By member size, the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRC) is no powerhouse. Its mem-bership of 251,727 is 16 million fewer than the Southern Baptist Convention, and it’s about a tenth the size of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod. But the CRC is no second-string player when it comes to members’ giving. A new report found that CRC members gave 6.1 percent of their incomes to the church. That’s significantly less than the bib-lical “tithe” (tenth). But it’s dramatically higher than other Protestant denominations’ giving. In its most recent survey, the giving research firm Empty Tomb Inc. found that members in eight other de-nominations belonging to the National Association Of Evangelicals gave, on average, 3.7 percent of their income. Denominations belonging to the Na-tional Council of Churches did even worse, with members giving 2.6 percent.

The CRC wasn’t part of empty tomb’s survey, but the new figures were published in June’s Spiritual and Social Trends and Patterns in the Christian Reformed Church in North America, from Calvin College’s Center for Social Research. And while CRC researcher and Barnabas Foundation consul-tant Rodger Rice is quick to observe that compar-ing statistics—especially medians to means—can be messy, he doesn’t discount the CRC’s strong record of generosity. Giving rates weathered the economic crash; the last CRC survey reported the same median number in 2007.

While celebrating existing stewardship, the CRC wants to make such rates sustainable in the long term. The survey also queried members on their personal and congregational spiritual health (track-ing 11 priorities like “centrality of the Bible” or “disciple making”), and concluded that the denom-ination’s health and giving could suffer years down the road. So what do denominational leaders think is the secret to building long-term giving here and now?

Too often, Rice said, the stewardship leadership teams he consults shy away from setting expec-tations for giving out of “a fear of legalism.” But Rice thinks that standards set by the churches them-selves are a primary key to improving giving. CRC congregations generally don’t encourage members to give 10 percent to the local church. Instead, they encourage givers to split their funds between the church and other ministries. The denomination especially encourages parents to devote part of their income to educating their children at Chris-tian schools. But CRC churches can be serious

and public about the giving standard they do set, which is usually about 5 percent to 6 percent, Rice said. Giving is recorded and broken out by income bracket. Those figures are then regularly distrib-uted to church members on handouts. The survey findings “are a result of this kind of standard,” Rice said. “Lo and behold, it turns out that way, that we usually give about 6 percent.”

Rice said that tithing is expected, but “certainly not mandated” in the CRC. In fact, he says, fo-cusing too much on giving won’t get people to give.”Money follows mission,” he says. The best way to encourage giving, he says, is to focus on congregants’ spiritual development. And that, he notes, is the focus of the new report. It’s also part of the CRC’s Healthy Church initiative, which uses another survey to determine spiritual strengths and weaknesses in each congregation. More devotions, prayer, and congregational unity around God’s purpose drives giving in the CRC, Rice said. Af-ter all, the CRC report found that those who were “daily nourished” by prayer, Bible reading, and similar practices gave 7.7 percent of their income, compared to 5.9 percent for those who were “un-dernourished.” “Generosity,” Rice said, “is just a natural outcome of spiritual health.”

used by permission from Chrisitanity Today Online from September 2013. the article can be found at: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2013/september-web-only/se-crets-of-giving-church.html

The Secrets of a Giving Church

Page 6 Caledonia Times — January 2014

News of the Church beyond...Ottawa offers support for work in Jerusalem

Suheil Dawani, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, told those gathered for the diocese of Ottawa’s fall synod that the dwindling number of Anglicans is the biggest problem facing his dio-cese.

The diocese covers a large territory that includes Palestine, Israel, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon, but the bishop said there are now only about 7,000 An-glicans compared to about 30,000 in 1967.

In order to help support the extensive network of healthcare and educational institutions run by the diocese, Bishop John Chapman presented Dawani with a cheque for $5,000, and Carolyn Vanderlip of the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund presented a $15,000 cheque for the diocese.

Crosstalk (Ottawa)

Bishops decry end-of-life bill

Anglican bishops in Quebec have urged the pro-vincial government to withdraw its controversial “medical aid in dying” bill, saying it could pres-ent risks for the vulnerable, including the elderly, people suffering from clinical depression and those with disabilities.

Bishops Dennis Drainville of Quebec and Barry Clarke of Montreal acknowledged “the emotional and challenging circumstances that have led the government to consider the legalization of physi-cian-assisted suicide.”

They said that while they appreciate the bill’s in-tent to also make palliative care accessible to all, they were unable to support the idea that “care can include an act or omission whose primary intention is to end a person’s life.”

“Both the request for assistance in committing sui-cide, and the provision of such assistance, must be taken seriously as a failure of human community,” they said.

Gazette(Quebec)

Edmonton parish celebrates 120th anniver-sary

Archbishop of York John Sentamu helped Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Edmonton celebrate its 100th anniversary and the 120th anniversary of the parish in October.

“Edmonton is famous for being the gateway to the north, and you are adventurers,” the archbishop told those attending a service celebrating the cen-tennial. Sentamu was on a 10-day visit to the Ca-nadian prairies.

A church rededication ceremony, remembering the parish’s forebears in faith, who in 1893 gathered for an Anglican service in the northernmost rail-way station in North America, was led by Edmon-ton Bishop Jane Alexander, Holy Trinity’s rector Archdeacon Dr. Chris Pappas and church leaders.

The Messenger (Edmonton)

New Brunswick church recovers from oil spill

St. Paul’s Church in Zealand, N.B., now rests on a new foundation and has refurbished footings. Up-dated wiring, a new furnace, new concrete front and vestry steps and a wheelchair ramp are slated to be added soon.

Renovations to the 147-year-old church were re-quired after 700 litres of furnace oil leaked into the basement soil beneath the church. Clean-up costs were about $150,000, and the final tally is expect-ed to be about $200,000.

The parish applied for and received a loan guar-antee from the diocese of Fredericton and has avoided external debt, although it must reimburse its rectory fund for the $75,000 advanced for the cleanup last spring. More than $60,000 in dona-tions has been received.

The New Brunswick Anglican

Council meets in a new way

The meeting of the provincial council of the eccle-siastical province of Canada held in Corner Brook, Nfld., was groundbreaking for two reasons.

The size of the council was reduced by a third, and a number of presenters and guests joined the meeting electronically via Skype Internet video-conferencing.

No face-to-face council meeting is planned for 2014. It is hoped that council members will be able to carry out the work of the province using a num-ber of video conferences, and the council has asked the dioceses to acquire the technology for video teleconferencing to make that possible.

The Diocesan Times

A warm gift for Syrian refugees

Hearing that Canadian Lutheran World Relief (CLWR) was collecting new and gently used sweaters for Syrian refugees living in the Za’atari camp in Jordan, the members of St. James Strat-ford, Ont., got to work. They quickly gathered 349 sweaters that were then folded and packed into 21 boxes to be sent to Jordan. They were expected to arrive there by mid-November.

Huron Church News (Huron)

Nanaimo church aims to raise $2.2 million

St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Nanaimo, B.C., was just finishing repairs to the roof of its 152-year-old church this fall, but Archdeacon Brian Evans is confident that, with faith, the church can raise enough money for its next major renovation Evans says the church hall needs a major facelift with new electrical work and insulation. Instead of investing dollars into an aging building, he sees an opportunity to create a new community space that is larger and more accessible for the more than 40,000 people who visit the church each year—more than half of the visitors attend com-munity events.

St. Paul’s has currently set aside $1.1 million to create a two-level, wheelchair-accessible space with an elevator, meeting rooms and office space, but it will need to fundraise to obtain the estimat-ed $3.3 million cost.The scope of the project will hinge on public support, says Evans.

The Diocesan Post (British Columbia)

Archbishop Miller to retire in June, 2014

Archbishop Claude Mill-er announced his plans to retire in June at a synod in Sussex, New Bruns-wick on Nov. 8.

Archbishop Claude Miller will retire on his 70th birthday, June 26, 2014. National Church canons prohibit bishops to remain after age 70. When he made the announcement at the very end of the one-day synod held at Kingswood University in Sussex on Saturday (Nov. 8), he called his past 10 years as diocesan bishop and more recently as metropoli-tan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Canada, “A wonderful time in my life.” The sustained standing ovation that followed this was in gratitude and cel-ebration of his ministry. A synod to elect a coadju-tor bishop for the diocese will be called for early May. The person elected at that time will assume the diocesan position upon Archbishop Miller’s re-tirement the next month.

Archbishop Miller made the announcement hold-ing an eagle feather in his right hand, something he did during his charge as well. It was a gift from Lt.-Gov. Graydon Nicholas. In Aboriginal culture the gift of an Eagle Feather is a great honour, a mark of distinction, and the person who speaks holding the eagle feather, speaks the truth. The subject of Eagle feathers came up the previous day when Archbishop Miller delivered Bishop Mark MacDonald, National Indigenous Anglican Bishop and a special guest of the synod, to Government House where the lieutenant governor had invited him for lunch. Archbishop Miller was touched by the spiritual meaning of the feather and in his heart wished for one. As he left Government House he looked up into the blue sky and saw a bald eagle soaring over the St. John River. He admired its grace and strength for a moment and decided that encounter would “do” as his eagle feather. Later that afternoon the lieutenant governor took Bishop MacDonald to meet the archbishop at the Synod Office, and presented him with a real eagle feather of his own.

Synod observed Archbishop Miller’s 25th anni-versary of ordination to the diaconate among the significant milestones of many other clergy. He was called to ministry in middle age, following a successful career in structural engineering and real estate appraisal.

The parting blessing, last official act of synod, was delivered by Bishop MacDonald who put his arm around Archbishop Miller and acknowledged his impending retirement.

story & photo by Ana Watts (NB Anglican)

The Very Rev. Lo-gan McMenamie is elected 13th Bishop of BC on December 7th 2013

by Scott McLeod

The Metropoli-tan of the Eccle-siastical Province of BC & Yukon,

Archbishop John Privett has consulted with the Provincial House of Bishops and has re-ported a unanimous concurrence. The Very Rev. Dr. Logan McMenamie, Dean of Colum-bia, and rector of Christ Church Cathedral has been elected as the 13th Bishop of the Diocese of British Columbia.

- taken from the British Columbia Diocesan Website.

Caledonia Times — January 2014 Page 7

First woman bishop for New Westminster

From the Archives

Diocesan Life: Christ the King, Port Ed

Recenlty, St. James Smithers celebrated its 100th Anniversary as a parish. These pictures were part of a group of pitures that were sent from the Archives to the Parish for a bookelt that they were putting together. the Photo on the left is of the Diocesan Synod held at St. James’ in 1942 and the picture on the right is a picture of the members of Synod in 1964. - Ed.

The Bishop recently visited the Parish of Christ the King Port Edward for Confirmation. Pictured above are the Candi-dates for Confirmation, Santori, Breanne, Corey, Kathleen with the service team: the Rev. Ben Hill, Cody Adams, The Rev. Themla Hill, The Rev. Anthony Adams, The Rev. Thelma Hill, and Mrs Lorna Martinson. Photo credit - Charolette Bright.

By Marites N. Sison

An American priest who describes herself as a “Ca-nadian enthusiast” has been elected the first woman bishop in the Anglican diocese of New Westminster and the first woman diocesan bishop in the Ecclesi-astical Province of British Columbia and Yukon. The Rev. Canon Melissa M. Skelton, Canon for Congrega-tional Development and Leadership and Rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, in the Diocese of Olympia, was elected by a special synod on Nov. 30, in Christ Church Cathedral, Vancouver. She succeeds Bishop Michael Ingham, who retired last August. “Stunned,” “humbled” and “exhilarated” were her immediate re-actions when she was elected on the third ballot af-ter receiving a substantial majority of votes from the houses of clergy and lay, Bishop-elect Skelton told the Anglican Journal in a telephone interview.

Bishop-elect Skelton is no stranger to the Vancou-ver-based diocese, having conducted comprehen-sive trainings in congregational development and leadership for its clergy and laity since 2011. It was a relationship that thrived and continued over the years—in 2012, she designed and facilitated New Westminster’s synod, a pivotal time for the diocese that had undergone a traumatic division over same-sex blessings that led all the way to the courts. “I experienced both an interest in and a willingness to engage in a listening process that, from my perspec-tive, was a first step towards the restoration of a sense of unity in New Westminster,” she said in her nomi-nation statement. “This willingness spoke to me, in that these very same listening processes would be a cornerstone of my approach in the creation of unity that is part of the role of bishop.”

With the diocese of New Westminster, however, there was a sense of peace. What feels right about it? “So many things,” she says, in her deep, measured voice. “My experience in the diocesan school for leader-ship and the kind of chemistry with the people and participants—that was very telling to me,” she said. And then there’s the matter of geography. Skelton has found an affinity with the west that has been “pro-found, very freeing and very compelling.” Nine years ago she moved from a small coastal parish in Maine to the diocese of Olympia, also known as the Epis-copal Church in Western Washington. Initially she

was “perplexed” by the transition. The west had “a different character, a dif-ferent style of spiritual-ity,” and the sun and the water appeared on a dif-ferent side... But when she was nominated in the two U.S. episcopal elec-tions, both of them in the northeast, Skelton said she realized that as much

as she loved living in the east, it no longer felt like home. New Westminster has a “common spirit” with the dioceses of Olympia, Oregon and Spokane, and it “really feels like a wonderful match for who I am now,” she said. Congregational development and relationship building will be one of her key priori-ties as new bishop, said Skelton. She is eager to start building relationships “with this new group of people who have been so very enthusiastic and kind to elect me—a woman, a Canadian enthusiast and American-born person who deeply cares about their parishes,” she said. She is also most excited about the cultural diversity of Vancouver. “It’s an amazing place,” she said, adding she has a deep desire to find out how the

church engages the diversity of these cultures. Born in Columbus, Georgia, to a military family of four children, Skelton had lived mostly in southeastern United States and Germany.

Skelton became an Episcopalian in her twenties “from no real church background,” she said in her nomination statement. After she received a Master of Divinity from Virginia Theological Seminary, she became a priest in 1993, while she worked at Procter & Gamble. She later moved to the General Theo-logical Seminary (GTS) where, aside from oversee-ing the seminary’s operations, she taught courses in Christian Education and oversaw the College for New Bishops.Skelton, later became vice-president of consumer and brand development, communications and advertising of Tom’s of Maine. After leaving Tom’s, she became rector of Trinity Church in Cas-tine, Maine, and started her own consulting business, focusing on “in-depth consumer work” and organiza-tional and congregational development. In 2005, she became rector of St. Paul’s, in the diocese of Olym-pia. Skelton has an adult son, Evan, who lives with his wife, Emily, and their two sons, Austin and Evan, in Washington, D.C. God willing, Bishop-elect Skel-ton will be consecrated a bishop on March 1, 2014.

Page 8 Caledonia Times — January 2014

Intercessions List 2013 - Updated January 2014Daily: THE BISHOP: William (Margaret) An-derson

Day 2) PRINCE RUPERT: The Congregation of the Cathedral Church of St. Andrew. The Very Rev. Jason (Nova) Haggstrom, Rector and Dean, the Rev. Dr. Canon James (Bryann) Nuzzo, Honourary Assitant; The Wardens, and other lay leaders

3) PORT EDWARD: The Congregation of Christ The King. The Rev. Sam (The Rev. Bertha) Lewis, Priest in Charge, The Revs. Ben and Thelma Hill, Yvonne Hill, Anthony Adams, Peter Nelson, Asso-ciate Priests; for the Wardens, Lay Readers, Cat-echists and Church Army Officers.

4) KITKATLA: The Congregation of St. Peter’s. for The Rev. Matthew Hill (Joanne), Priest, the Wardens, for the Lay Readers and Church Army Officers.

5) OLD MASSETT, HAIDA GWAII: The Con-gregation of St. John. The Rev. Lily Bell, Priest; for the Wardens, Lay Readers and Church Army Officers.

ST. PAUL, MASSET INLET MISSION: The Congregation of St. Paul. For the Wardens and Lay Readers.

6) KINCOLITH: The Congregation of Christ Church. The Rev. Harry Moore, Priest; for the Wardens, Lay Readers and Church Army Officers.

7) TERRACE: The Congregation of St. Matthew. The Ven. Ernest (Corrina) Buchanan, Priest; Jim Cain, Associate Priest; for the Wardens and Lay Readers.

8) STEWART: The Congregation of St. Mark’s. For the Wardens and Lay Readers.

9) AIYANSH: The Congregation of Holy Trinity. The Rev. Gary Davis, Priest in charge and for the Wardens and Lay Readers.

10) GREENVILLE: The Congregation of St. An-drew. The Rev. James Moore, Priest; for the War-dens, Lay Readers and Church Army Officers.

11) KITIMAT: The Congregation of Christ Church. The Rev. Luke Anker (Sandy), Priest; for

the Wardens and Lay Leaders.

12) HAZELTON: The Congregation of St. Peter. For the Wardens and Lay Readers and leaders.

13) BULKELY VALLEY PARISH: The Con-gregations of St. James, Smithers, St. Clements, Houston and St. John the Divine, Quick. for the Wardens and Lay Readers. and the appointment of a new Rector.

14) STUART NECHAKO LAKES REGION-AL PARISH: The Congregations of Holy Trin-ity, Vanderhoof, St. Patrick’s, Fort St James and St. Wilfrid’s, Fraser Lake. the Rev. Roy Andrews, Priest in Charge; Gwen Andrews, Associate Priest; for the Wardens and Lay Readers.

15) MACKENZIE: The Congregation of Hope-Trinity. The Rev. Henry Dunbar, Priest; for the Wardens and Lay Readers.

16) HUDSON’S HOPE: The Congregation of St. Peter. The Rev. Fay Lavallee, Deacon; for the War-dens and Lay Readers.

17) CHETWYND: The Congregation of Chet-wynd Shared Ministry. Marlene Peck, Lay Mis-sionary; for the Wardens and Lay Readers.

18) NORTH PEACE PARISH: The Congrega-tions of St. Martin, Fort St. John, St. Mathias, Ce-cil Lake and Church of the Good Shepherd, Taylor. The Rev. Enid Pow, preist, for the Wardens and Lay Readers.

19) SOUTH PEACE PARISH: The Congre-gations of St. Mark, Dawson Creek and Christ Church, Pouce Coupe. The Rev. Timothy Johnson (Bev), Priest in Charge; for the Wardens and Lay Readers.

20) DIOCESAN OFFICERS AND SYNOD OFFICE STAFF: Audrey , Secretary-Treasurer (Kevin); Donna Demers Accountant; Cliff Arm-strong, Diocesan Archivist. REGISTRAR: Desiree Read; CHANCELLOR: Deborah O’Leary; A.C.W. PRESIDENT: Susan Kinney

21) DIOCESAN EXECUTIVE AND ALL OTH-ER DIOCESAN COMMITTEES

22) RETIRED CLERGY: Lance Stephens, Mike Monkman, Lorna Janze, Peter Hamel, Mary

Parslow, Charlie Parslow, Fay Lavallee, Ray Fletcher. SPECIAL MINISTRIES: Brent Neu-mann,

23) HONORARY CANONS: Lance Stephens, Peter Hamel, HONORARY LAY CANONS: Jen-nifer Davies, Camilla Haines, Eleanor Kustas.

24) FOR THOSE DISCERNING CALLS TO VARIOUS KINDS OF MINISTRY, especially those considering ordination and those who will discern them; for the Bishop, the Examining Chap-lain, and local clergy.

25) CAMP CALEDONIA: The Rev. Luke Anker, Chairperson and the board members

26) BENEFACTORS AND CONTRIBUTORS OF THE DIOCESE.

27) BISHOPS OF BC -YUKON

Bishop Elect Melissa Skelton - New Westminster

The Rt. Rev. Larry Robertson - Yukon

Bishop Elect Logan McMenamie- BC

The Most Rev. John Privett - Kootenay

The Rt. Rev. Barbara Andrews, - Bishop Suffragan to the Metropolitan (APCI)

28) THE PRIMATE & METROPOLITANS

Archbishop David Ashdown Rupert’s Land

Archbishop Colin Johnson Ontario

Archbishop Claude Miller Canada

Archbishop Fred Hiltz Primate

29) ALL THEOLOGICAL COLLEGES AND TRAINING CENTERS – especially Wycliffe College, and Regent College.

30) THE COUNCIL OF THE NORTH DIO-CESE AND THEIR BISHOPS

31) THE PRIMATE’S WORLD RELIEF AND DEVELOPMENT FUND AND THE ANGLI-CAN FOUNDATION

The Comic Corner