January 2025

"Love casts out fear":

Inauguration Eve Vigil calls all to join for reflection, prayer

The Episcopal Peace Fellowship (EPF) and the Diocese of Massachusetts invite all to join for "Love Casts Out Fear: An Inauguration Eve Vigil"–a special service on Sunday, Jan. 19 offering an opportunity for reflection, prayer and solidarity as the nation prepares for the presidential inauguration. The Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston is hosting the vigil, which begins at 5 p.m. It will be livestreamed via the cathedral's YouTube channel for those unable to attend in person.

The service is open to all, and will lean deeply into the Christian faith, affirming that love casts out fear (1 John 4:18) and calling participants to stand with marginalized communities. It will focus on themes of justice, peace and the transformative power of love in action.

Bishop Julia E. Whitworth will participate, and emphasized, in an EPF news release, the importance of standing in solidarity with those experiencing fear and marginalization. “As we face the unknown in the years ahead, our faith compels us to stand together with courage and compassion, especially for those most vulnerable to oppression. This vigil will provide a time of prayer and renewal, so we may be strengthened in our solidarity and our commitment to love and justice,” she said. 

The service will focus on peace and justice building, with a program featuring reflections and prayers from a variety of faith leaders and a broad range of music. Attendees will also be invited to participate in a time of personal reflection and a shared commitment to justice and peace.

“For 85 years, EPF members have dedicated ourselves to praying, studying and working for reconciliation and peace. In times of uncertainty and fear, it is essential to reaffirm the hope and strength we find in God’s boundless love," the Rev. Kerith Harding, EPF's executive director, said. "We warmly invite everyone, whether in person or virtually, to join us in this holy and hope-filled gathering."

The Episcopal Peace Fellowship, founded in 1939, is a denomination-wide network dedicated to promoting justice, peace and reconciliation through prayer, study and nonviolent action. It aims to provide a voice for Episcopalians committed to peace and advocacy in the church and wider world.

"We believe that love in practice looks like justice, reconciliation and peace. This vigil will create space to pray, lament and commit to working for a world where these values prevail,” said Martha Gardner, who serves on EPF’s National Executive Council. 

Hosting the vigil, Dean Amy McCreath said, is a manifestation of the mission of the Cathedral Church of St. Paul. “Our cathedral exists to serve as a house of prayer for all people, particularly in times of uncertainty and change,” she said. “In the 1910s, Bishop William Lawrence chose St. Paul’s as the cathedral for the Episcopal Diocese because it faces the Massachusetts State House, and he saw as core to the church’s mission the work of praying for and speaking to those elected to public office. This mission is more important now than ever.” Dove image: Istock.com

New priests ordained: The diocesan community rejoices with this season's cohort of priests newly ordained in the Diocese of Massachusetts, pictured (clockwise from top left) with Bishop Julia E. Whitworth and clergy colleagues: The Rev. Faith Mbuthia, ordained on Dec. 7 at Grace Church in New Bedford; The Rev. Sarah Neumann, ordained on Dec. 14 at Christ Church in Cambridge; and the Rev. Molly Minnerath, ordained on Jan. 11 at St. Paul's Church in Bedford.

Congratulations also go out to newly ordained priests affiliated with this diocese, the Rev. Amanda Rice, ordained on Dec. 7 in the Diocese of Missouri, and the Rev. Silas Kotnour, ordained on Dec. 14 in the Diocese of Western Massachusetts. Courtesy photos

"How is God Calling Me?": Ministry Discernment Conference to offer resources for vocations of all kinds: Registration is open until Jan. 29 for the annual Ministry Discernment Conference, which has a broader focus in 2025. Everyone who is interested in discerning calls to ministry in the church and in the world, both lay and ordained, is invited to gather at the Cathedral Church of St. Paul in Boston for the Ministry Discernment Conference on Saturday, Feb. 1, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This gathering, jointly hosted by the Commission on Ministry and the St. Paul Center for Theology and Prayer, will feature Bishop Julia E. Whitworth’s reflections on discernment, a panel discussion with people serving in a variety of Christian vocations and an introduction to resources for individual reflection, communal discernment in congregations and churchwide discernment programs. After lunch, participants will be invited, in smaller groups, to learn more about the programs that most interest them. 

Those who want to learn about the ordination process in the Diocese of Massachusetts are especially encouraged to attend, along with their sponsoring clergy, potential parish discernment committee members and family members. 

Pre-registration is required; find details here.

Boston's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast takes place on Monday, Jan. 20, 9-11 a.m., at the Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport, with professor, author and activist Angela Davis as the keynote speaker. Bishop Julia E. Whitworth will give the benediction. Livestream information is online here.

For 55 years, St. Cyprian’s Episcopal Church and Union United Methodist Church have collaborated to present this memorial breakfast in honor of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The partnership is an incorporated nonprofit organization, which also recognizes extraordinary contributions to diversity and inclusion efforts through service and scholarships.

Winter Dinner for BIPOC Episcopal Community: The BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) Support Committee of the diocesan Racial Justice Commission invites all BIPOC Episcopal clergy and lay people to come together for dinner and fellowship with one another on Sunday, Jan. 26, 5-7 p.m., at the Church of St. Augustine and St. Martin in Boston. Find details and RSVP online here by Jan. 22.

New regional canon for Central Region named: The Rev. Marissa S. Rohrbach has been named regional canon for the Central Region of the Diocese of Massachusetts, which comprises the 60 congregations and other church-related institutions in the Boston Harbor, Alewife, Charles River and Neponset River deaneries. She will begin her new ministry by mid-March.

She comes to the Diocese of Massachusetts from the Episcopal Church in Connecticut, where she has served, most recently, as the rector of St. Matthew’s Church in Wilton.

"She has rich experience as a rector for over 11 years, both in Wilton and in Meriden, as well as extensive leadership at the diocesan level," Bishop Julia E. Whitworth said in her Jan. 3 announcement to congregational and diocesan leadership.

The Rev. Marissa S. Rohrbach

Courtesy photo

She continued, "I am very grateful to the Regional Canon Search Advisory Committee for their hard work on this process: Canons Kelly O’Connell, Greg Perez, and Jean Baptiste Ntagengwa, and Edward Rewolinski and the Rev. Christen Mills. I am also grateful for all who applied for this position. The quality of our candidate pool made me excited not only for the Diocese of Massachusetts, but the whole Church!

"As we head into a season of yet more transition, I give thanks for the whole diocesan staff, for their dedication to God and to every worshiping community in this diocese."

Rohrbach will join the diocesan staff as one of three regional canons, each serving a geographic area of the diocese encompassing four deaneries. Regional canons provide transition ministry with congregations and clergy involved in search processes for new ordained leadership; clergy wellness and family support; and lay leadership support and development in congregations. Rohrbach will work alongside the Rev. Canon Kelly O'Connell (Southern Region) and the Rev. Canon Gregory Perez (Northern and Western Region).

"I am honored by this call from Bishop Whitworth to join her team, and I’m so looking forward to working with her, with my immediate colleagues, Canons Kelly and Greg, the rest of the staff, and the clergy and people of the Diocese of Massachusetts," Rohrbach said in the announcement. "I am especially looking forward to getting to know all of you in the Central Region as we share this next season of life and ministry together. I can see that God is up to new and wonderful things among you." Read the full announcement here.

Bethany House of Prayer announces new co-executive directors: The Executive Board of Bethany House of Prayer in Arlington announced on Jan. 8 that the Rev. Matt Carriker and LaToya Staine Carriker have been hired as new co-executive directors of Bethany House of Prayer, beginning Jan. 28.

The Rev. Matt Carriker is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ (UCC) with a longstanding commitment to retreat leadership, spiritual direction and contemplative practices. He authored the 2022 book, Giving Christianity Back to Agape Love: A New Paradigm for Being Church Together (LifeRich Publishing). LaToya Staine Carriker is an experienced retreat leader and nonprofit manager with a master’s degree in social work.

"Together Matt and LaToya bring a wealth and depth of experience, gifts and commitments, and we could not be more excited to welcome them into this role," the Executive Board said in its announcement. Read more here. Courtesy photo

Outpouring of Episcopal support felt amid wildfires in Southern California:

[Diocese of Los Angeles] Locally and nationally, the Episcopal community has rallied together, in a resilient outpouring of prayers, love and support as the recent out-of-control Southern California wildfires blazed, destroying thousands of acres, homes, schools and an Episcopal church among various houses of worship and historic buildings, forcing mass evacuations.

Assistance to those displaced is underway, Los Angeles Bishop John Harvey Taylor said in a message to his diocese, noting that contributions to the diocesan “One Body, One Spirit Annual Appeal” have been earmarked for fire relief and will be supplemented through aid from Episcopal Relief and Development.

Episcopal chaplain Liz Piraino of Altadena’s MonteCedro retirement community reassures a resident taking emergency shelter at Pasadena Convention Center.

Photo: Bishop John Harvey Taylor

"An emergency such as this is an epochal generational event for our diocese," Taylor said. "In moments such as this, we reclaim our oneness in Christ. We gather at the foot of the cross and enfold one another in our arms and in prayer. And we pledge to continue to glorify God and to care for one another, especially those most at risk and most in need.” Read more.

Jimmy Carter remembered at National Cathedral funeral:

[Episcopal News Service] Family members, friends, former colleagues, members of Congress and all five living U.S. presidents gathered Jan. 9 to pay tribute to former President Jimmy Carter, mourned at his state funeral held at Washington National Cathedral, the landmark Episcopal cathedral in the nation’s capital city.

Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump sat together in the front rows, alongside President Joe Biden. Biden was among several people who gave eulogies for Carter, who died Dec. 29 at age 100.

Washington National Cathedral photo via Facebook

Carter, a lifelong Georgia resident, served for one term as the United States’ 39th president, from 1977-1981, and went on to work for peace and human rights. In 2002, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts,” most notably in the Middle East.

Washington National Cathedral, the seat of both The Episcopal Church’s presiding bishop and the bishop of the Diocese of Washington, had been chosen for several past presidential funerals, including services for Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush. At Carter’s funeral, Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe officiated, with Washington Bishop Mariann Budde and National Cathedral Dean Randy Hollerith.

Read more.

At far right, the 1740 bell at St. Peter's-San Pedro Church in Salem Courtesy photo

Episcopal News Service: Massachusetts church rings one of U.S.’s oldest bells to honor Jimmy Carter: St. Peter’s-San Pedro Church in Salem honored former President Jimmy Carter on Jan. 9 by tolling its 1740 church bell 100 times at 5:20 p.m. Eastern as the late president’s remains were laid to rest at his home in Plains, Ga.

St. Peter’s, Salem’s oldest Anglican church–founded in 1733–has tolled its historic bell in observance of the death of every U.S. president since the nation was founded in 1776.

“We can’t all go and pay our respects at the Capitol Rotunda or Washington National Cathedral because we live so far away, but we can do this,” the Rev. Nathan Ives, the rector of St. Peter’s, told Episcopal News Service. “It’s to honor a human life and their passage from life to death.” Read more.

USA Today: In Massachusetts, frigid temps drive homeless indoors, strain heating budgets: Emmanuel Church, Boston's warming center, a day-space open during winter months for people seeking refuge indoors, features in this USA Today story on the consequences of the region's high cost of housing and heating for those who are most vulnerable. Read more.

Cape Cod Times: St. David's in Yarmouth lends a hand to those that are struggling: In a Dec. 29, 2024, dispatch, Cape Cod Times columnist Lawrence Brown highlighted the helping hand that St. David's Church in South Yarmouth extends to its community: "Once a month, the church holds a 'Food and Paper Pantry' for Cape homeless people and struggling families. They've been serving up the food for eight years now, and offering the paper pantry for 15. ...At St. David's, it was hard to tell who was happier, the people receiving the help that they needed—or the cheerful team of volunteers who served them." Read more.

yourarlingtom.com: Chapel of St. Anne to host "Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Then & Now": On Jan. 16, the public can hear about a benefactor of the Episcopal Church in the Boston area and the Order of St. Anne, at the inaugural presentation of "Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: Then & Now," which will take place in the St. Anne's Chapel.

Historical reenactor Jessa Piaia, as Isabella Stewart Gardner, will recount the storied life of the socialite, art collector and benefactor, and investigative reporter Stephen Kurkjian, author of Master Thieves, will discuss the still-unsolved 1990 theft of priceless art from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston’s Fenway neighborhood and his hopes for a crowd-sourcing campaign to recover the artworks. Read more.

Smithsonian Magazine: Conservators are uncovering elaborate angel murals at a colonial-era church: Conservators are working to restore colorful angels painted nearly 300 years ago at Boston’s Old North Church, a historic house of worship made famous by Paul Revere.

Founded in 1723 in the North End neighborhood, the Old North Church is the oldest surviving church building in Boston. Its congregants were Anglicans, a minority compared to the many Puritans living in Boston during the colonial era. Around the year 1730, church leaders hired a congregation member named John Gibbs to paint 16 angels on the interior upper arches. Gibbs also painted angels on the organ case and an altar panel. “Everywhere you looked in the church, you would have seen angels,” the Rev. Matthew Cadwell, the church’s vicar, said. “It would have been so different from any Puritan church that you would have stepped foot in.” Read more.

Jan 19: "Love Casts Out Fear" Inauguration Eve Vigil, Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Boston, 5:00pm

Jan 19: Organ Concert, St. Michael's Church, Marblehead, 5:00pm

Jan 20: 55th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast, Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport, Boston, 9:00am

Jan 21: Celebration of New Ministry: The Rev. Sarah Mato, St. Andrew's Church, Framingham, 6:00pm

Jan 25: Diocesan Council Retreat, Church of St. John the Evangelist, Duxbury, 10:00am

Jan 26: Bishop Whitworth visits St. Michael's Church in Holliston, with Celebration of New Ministry: The Rev. Christa Moore-Levesque, 10:00am

Jan 26: Winter Dinner for BIPOC Episcopal Community, Church of St. Augustine and St. Martin, Boston, 5:00pm

Jan 27-30: Province I Faith Formation Network/FORMA Conference, Barbara C. Harris Camp and Conference Center, Greenfield, N.H.

Feb 1: 2025 Ministry Discernment Conference, Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Boston, 9:00am

Feb 2: Bishop Whitworth visits All Saints' Church, Ashmont in Dorchester

Feb 2: Choral Evensong and 50th Anniversary Celebration of Fisk Organ, St. Michael's Church, Marblehead, 5:00pm

Feb 4: Celebration of New Ministry: The Rev. Andrew Goldhor, Church of the Good Shepherd, Watertown, 6:00pm

Feb 5: Congregational Consultants Parochial Report Help Session: Financial Section, via Zoom, 9:00am

Feb 8: Congregational Consultants Parochial Report Help Session: Financial Section, via Zoom, 9:00am

Feb 13: Congregational Consultants Parochial Report Help Session: Non-Financial Section, via Zoom, 9:00am

Feb 15: Congregational Consultants Parochial Report Help Session: Non-Financial Section, via Zoom, 9:00am

Feb 16: Bishop Whitworth visits Grace Chapel in Brockton

Feb 20: Diocesan Council Meeting, via Zoom, 6:00pm

Feb 23: Bishop Whitworth visits Grace Church in New Bedford

Feb 27: Clergy Professional Development Day, St. Peter's Church, Weston