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ECCT ENEWS

February 22, 2023

Ash Wednesday

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Save the Date(s):

Mark your Calendars!



  • Church Insurance Agency - Diocese of Connecticut Introduction Workshop

Thursday, March 9, 2023

7PM-8PM online

  • Topic: Getting to know church insurance agency and understanding the services they can provide to parishes 
  • Online via Zoom
  • Meeting Link


  • Art Show & Auction

Tuesday, March 11, 2023

7PM - 9:30PM

  • Where: St. James, Farmington
  • An evening of Art & Hors d'oeuvres


  • Advocacy Workshop

Tuesday, March 21, 2023

6PM - 7PM online

  • Topic: Using your Power to Positively influence U.S. Policy
  • Online via Zoom
  • Register Here


  • Spring Training & Gathering 2023 (#STG23)

April 17-27 online + April 29 in-person

  • 10th Annual Spring Training & Gathering TOGETHER WE LEARN~TOGETHER WE’RE SENT is a Hybrid, offering 10 days of online presentations and a single Saturday, in-person gathering. 


Stay tuned for more details.

Ash Wednesday Lenten Prayer

*Click to Enlarge

ECCT Highlights Cathedral Artist, Deborah Simmons for Black History Month

 

On Monday, January 30th The Rt. Rev. Jeffrey W. Mello. received a gift, an exterior portrait of Christ Church Cathedral, Hartford, from Cathedral artist, Deborah Simmons which led to us learning more about her story as an artist.


Nothing prepared us for the eclectic interwoven aspects of visual arts, music education, and mathematics that cohesively danced to the heartbeat of a rich lineage. Nothing prepared us for the spiritual intergenerational journey that laid down the literal and metaphorical foundation for boatbuilding.


Deborah Simmons, originally from Greensboro, North Carolina is a current Christ Church Cathedral, Hartford attendee and a Music Professor & Program Coordinator of the Music Studies Associated Degree program at Manchester Community College, soon to be CT State Community College-Manchester.


Her notabilia does not end there, she’s also a digital artist that created works coined as “enhanced photographs,” a process in which she draws directly onto photographed images, similarly to the art piece gifted to our Bishop Diocesan, and you probably guessed it, she is also a boat builder!


#ECCTStories

#EpiscopalBlackHistory

#EpiscopalWomensHistory


Read Full Story Here

UPDATE(s)


COVID-19 Guidelines for The Commons



Mandatory Clergy Professional Development

SCHOLARSHIPS AND GRANTS


ECCT SCHOLARSHOPS FOR EPISCOPAL YOUTH

Deadline: March 1

  1. Young people affiliated with Episcopal parishes and communities
  2. Children of clergy


Apply by clicking the above links. Applicants should be attending or planning to attend Episcopal primary or secondary schools; or are enrolling in an undergraduate or vocational training institution in the Fall of 2023.


Contact Rebekah Hatch, Dean of Formation for additional details.

Ideas for how you can practice almsgiving during Lent  


Reflect on your own consumption

Consider examining your consumption habits and looking for ways to reduce waste and make more mindful choices about what you buy and use. Buying from companies that engage in ethical practices and reducing your overall consumption of resources are examples.

  • Try: Using Tools/Resources that discover and uncover ethical & sustainability practices of the brands you use.
  • DoneGood
  • Buycott


Practice acts of kindness

Focus on small acts of kindness every day. This may involve doing a favor for a friend or neighbor, offering a kind word to someone who is struggling, or simply showing appreciation and gratitude to the people around you.


Volunteer your time

Volunteering at a soup kitchen, participating in a community service project, or simply reaching out to someone you know who is in need of assistance.


Give your money

Try setting aside a certain amount of money each week or month to donate to a charitable cause or organization. A local charity, a non-profit that supports a cause you care about, or a global organization that is working to address pressing needs around the world are all possible recipients for your gift.

  • Try: Planning a Trip soon? Positively impact & empower the community you're visiting
  • Kind Traveler
Christ Church Cathedral Lent Invitation
Deacon’s Council Lenten Invitatoin

2023 Ash Wednesday Devotional


Page Pelphrey, a parishioner from Christ Church, Guilford has been selected to write the February entries for Forward Movement, a devotional booklet they publish called Forward Day by Day.

Lenten Reflections with Duo Dickinson


Duo Dickinson FAIA, architect, is a member of Trinity Church on the Green, New Haven where he chairs its Properties and Music 4 Music Concert Series committees.


As a Lenten Resource, we'd like to highlight his talent as a contributing writer for Mockingbird, an organization devoted to “connecting the Christian faith with the realities of everyday life”. Duo explores faith from a contemporary lens in which we can all identify with. His entertaining writing style reveals how simple on-goings, every day people, and God intersect from football to pop singers and bringing the audience back to an overarching Jesus-centered theme steeped within faith. He also posts daily Lenten Reflections on his blog, "Saved by Design," that you can read.

Read Lenten Reflections Here


As a writer, Duo has written eight books on architecture. More on his architecture: he has worked with may ECCT parishes, has helped Camp Washington, served on ECCT’s Mission Council, the Buildings and Grounds Committee, and helped to create The Commons, Meriden and the Christ Church Cathedral, Hartford. Duo is currently on the board of Incarnation Camp in Ivoryton, helping to build or renovate over 20 buildings over the last 35 years.


Quote:

“God has given me everything, so anything I give has been given to me.”

Read Mockingbird Contributions Here

EVENT SPOTLIGHT

The Witness Stones Project Wednesday Workshops for the Youth, March 1-15


Four area faith communities:

  1. St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, Wilton
  2. The Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport
  3. Wilton Presbyterian Church
  4. St. Paul’s on the Green, Norwalk

are collaborating to sponsor a series of workshops presented by The Witness Stones Project, Inc. for area youth to discover and chronicle the local history of slavery through art, story, music, video, or poetry.


Workshop Dates: 6PM - 8PM (free *required registration, light supper provided at 5:30PM)

  • March 1
  • March 8
  • March 15


The Witness Stones Project is an educational initiative whose mission is to restore the history and honor the humanity of the enslaved individuals who helped build our communities. 


Register Here

Read Press Release!

Companions In Mission Network Mission Conference, March 11


Saturday, March 11, 2023 8AM -2PM At Christ Church Cathedral, Hartford,

for a Forum on Human Trafficking in CT, Look Beyond the Church Doors - Let's Face Human Trafficking Together. The forum will feature expert panelists that will discuss the definition of trafficking, what trafficking looks like in CT, the signs and indicators of trafficking, and how we can all help in ending trafficking in all of its forms. $10 donation requested at check-in for lunch.


Workshops:

  • Getting Started in Mission
  • Funding - Available Mission Grants and How to Apply for Them
  • Communicate Your Mission
  • Mission Beyond the Church Doors: Look, Listen, Love
  • The Power of the Faith based Community Engaging in the Anti-Trafficking Movement


Conference Itinerary and Info

Get Tickets Here

Other Upcoming Events

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JOURNAL PROMPT(s):

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  • In what ways are you resistant to moving closer to God, resistant to engaging your journey with Jesus more deeply?


  • Spend the next few days intentionally noting the mundane slivers of your life you see God at work.

 

  • As you move through the season of Lent, what Scripture are you hearing on Sunday mornings (or elsewhere) that is sticking with you? What stories from Scripture are you connecting to your story with God?

Reflection:

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February 22nd is Ash Wednesday


If you’re reading this, you’re likely not a stranger to the season of Lent. And yet, if you’re a human with life demands and commitments, Lent seems to sneak up every year, surprising us with how far into the calendar year we are. Perhaps even tempting us to double down on not-yet-enacted-upon New Year’s resolutions.

 

“I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word. And, to make a right beginning of repentance, and as a mark of our mortal nature, let us now kneel before the Lord, our maker and redeemer.” The Book of Common Prayer, 265, Liturgy of Ash Wednesday


-Written by Rebekah Hatch



Read Full Story Here

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