NORTHEAST REGION MISSIVE

Weekly Check-In:
25 July 2020
You can find the most recent COVID-19 update from our Bishops HERE (plus, earlier letters if you are curious!)
A Word of Encouragment from your NE Region Missionary
Hello dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

One of the blessings of being in Ordinary Time is how our lectionary tracks in a particular way. We will either read through stories in Genesis and Exodus, or we will skip around a bit in the Hebrew Bible and dwell with prophets and old friends. Our lectionary will keep us in the Gospel of Matthew all the way until the first Sunday of Advent.

A few weeks ago we entered the portion of the Gospel of Matthew where we get parable after parable, beginning with the soil and the seeds, moving through the good wheat and the bad weeds, and now the parables shift to start with the words "the kingdom of heaven is like...". What are we to make of these?

The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed (small but full of potential), like yeast (ordinary, useful, necessary), like treasure hidden in a field (surprising), like a pearl of great value (more valuable then anything we can imagine), and like a net that scoops of fish of every kind (inclusive). How can the kingdom of heaven be like all of these things? How can the kingdom of heaven be both ordinary and special? Valuable and small? Inclusive yet with overtones of judgement? Because it can!

Because why not? What I find curious about these particular parables is that they show up in a way that is meaningful to the person in the story - the parable of the yeast makes sense if you are the one baking the bread. The pearl merchant would obviously understand something as significant as the world's best pearl. Maybe the merchant would recognize something of such extreme value that all else becomes unimportant. The mustard seed is significant because of the power it has - a tiny seed that takes little effort to plant becomes the mighty tree that creates sanctuary for many birds. The fishing net that catches all the fish is not a discriminatory net and a reminder that judgement is the responsibility of God and not us. And the hidden treasure is a surprise to the one who stumbles upon in without any knowledge it was there.

I wonder if I was writing a parable what it would sound like. The kingdom of heaven is like...the place I long to be, which isn't this world I am in, but a place I can help to create. The kingdom of heaven looks like justice, equity, love. The kingdom of heaven is the full realization of what God imagined when the world was created. And we have the opportunity to help make it happen. In what ways are we willing to participate in this work? Amen.

Photo by Maggie Breen
Resources for Anti-Racism Work
If you are looking to get involved with Racial Healing, Justice, and Reconciliation and/or Anti-Racism work but aren't sure where to start, below are a few good resources for you to check out that have been curated by either myself or the good folks involved in the Racial Healing, Justice & Reconciliation Ministry Network:

  • HERE is an article from CNN by W. Kamau Bell, who hosts and produces the CNN show "United Shades of America". A good article about changing perspective and learning.

  • Earlier this week I watched The Talk - Race in America on PBS. It's free to watch through the end of this month. I learned more about the experience of being a person of color in this 2 hour film then in all the reading I've been doing. This film is entirely about the intersection of life as a POC and the police.

  • A very short article HERE on how emotional intelligence can help us dismantle white supremacy and racism, brought to us by Ministry Matters. I was particularly drawn to the final lines, where we are encouraged to think of this work as ethical and not political.

  • In case you are wondering about all of the recent calls for police reform and what that means, you can check out the 8 Can't Wait website which is campaigning to bring immediate changes to police departments.

  • Earlier this week The Ney Yorker published an article called The Invention of the Police. It's an interesting read that lays out the foundation for our current policing systems, while comparing it to other European models.
Social Isolation: Staying Connected & Having Fun
This is the space of possibility! A space where we have time to explore what we are curious about. A space where we can figure out how to find joy when we must be apart.

So..........here are some things I've found interesting in the past week: music, projects, art, articles, etc. May they be of service to us so that we can be in service to others.

  • This article came out in March, when quarantine just started. Perhaps this is feeling a little long-in-the-tooth, but there are a few good suggestions on keeping small humans occupied (and even big humans, too!) during the Summer.



  • I'm way behind on the Disney+ boat, so I haven't seen Hamilton yet (sigh), BUT (and that's a but, my friends) HERE is a great ZOOM performance of one of the tunes. In case you don't know, there's some strong language in here.

  • There are some really fantastic artists out there, and here is a list of 20 Trailblazing Artists that have exhibits this year in major museums. We might not be able to go to museums, but we can still appreciate art online!

  • Bonus Content - strange music: ever seen a glass harp? Check it out! (I mean, those are some serious skills right there)
Open Office Hours w/Jasree & Alli
Do you have specific questions about websites or social media or equipment? Is zoom driving you nuts or FB live being finicky? Come to the ECCT Digital Office Hours on Thursday afternoons at 1pm with Jasree & Alli - they will be happy to help answer your questions!

Registration required - click here
What Fuels Us? Both Food & Scripture!
I recently participated in the virtual service for ordinations to the deaconate held by our diocese on a long Saturday Zoom call. As I am discovering for most things in this pandemic time of being the church, there were things I missed, and things I appreciated.

I missed us all being together. I missed the opportunity to hug my newly ordained friends and pass the peace with those around me. I missed traveling to a church and then traveling home, rather than watching on Zoom while I made snacks for my kids and took the dog out.

And I appreciated the gift of space and time to sit with the ordination service, which is not one I know well. I mean, how many ordinations have you been to? The Sunday Eucharist, and now Morning Prayer, is a steady rhythm in my life: a familiar cadence of worship and prayer. This ordination service uses familiar order and words, and yet I fumbled through my Book of Common Prayer to find my place.

In a moment of space, I re-read what the Bishop addresses to the nominees at the Examination, specifically, "As a deacon in the Church, you are to study the Holy Scriptures, to seek nourishment from them, and to model your life upon them." - BCP, 543

I talk a lot about actual, literal, food fueling us to do God's work in the world through my discipline of Eating Liturgically. I call non-Feast, non-Fasting, days “Fierce Days” – days in which I fuel myself healthily and well to go out to do God’s work in the world. It struck me today that before listing all the many things a deacon is to do out in the world, we begin also with nourishment...not from food, but from scripture. From God’s Word.

Whether the source be food or Word, I like that we acknowledge, from the beginning of ordination, from the first decision we make of “what’s for breakfast?,” that it is not our own energy, our own willpower that does this work. It is our nourished self from God's creation, from God's word, that goes forth.

There are so many challenges ahead for us. For our churches, for our schools, for our society. I find myself excited at what God will do with us now that we are more malleable, and aware that being made malleable is exhausting. May we begin with nourishment from scripture, from distanced worship, from healthy food, from self-care, from relationships – and then go forth to be God’s hands and feet in this new world we find ourselves in. There are new deacons in our diocese to help, and there is us, the Church, following our baptismal covenant to show up, renounce evil and trust in Christ, together.

Poto & article by Erika Hagan, a member of St. Stephens, Ridgefield, and a postulant to ordination in the Episcopal Church of CT. You can check out more about Eating Liturgically at eatingliturgically.com, or on social media @eatingliturgically.
Help Your Region Missionary Help You:
Friends - I have created a VERY EASY and QUICK survey that will help me to better help you! Would you mind filling it out?

I hope to use this information to form future activities when I do parish visitations!

Photo by Emily Morter on Unsplash
Resources & Important Information:
  • Governor Lamont issued a press release stating FREE infared thermometers for houses of worship. CLICK HERE to read the release and apply for yours!


  • If you are looking for resources to egnage in work around Racial Healing, Justice & Reconciliation but can't find what you need, consider THIS FORM to help ECCT curate resources that fit your needs!

  • Are you signed up for the ECCT eNews? CLICK HERE to get it delivered to your inbox!
Save The Date: Upcoming Events
NE Region Warden Gathering
Our next NE Region Warden Gathering will be Tuesday, 4 August, at 7pm. Email Maggie for the zoom information if you are a warden and want to attend.
Food Insecurity Call
Join Rev. Jane Hale and Maggie Breen for another call about food insecurity in the NE Region. We've been discussing what programs/services we are involved in and digging deeper into more systematic reasons for hunger.

We welcome you to our next call on Tuesday, 18 August, at 6PM via zoom.

Crafting As Spiritual Practice Event - Coming Soon
The NE Region is happy to announce that there will be an online Crafting As Spiritual Practice day on Saturday, 12 September . Special guest facilitator: artist-priest-life coach Hannah Anderson will lead us through a creative process about Joy. Details coming soon.
Lay Preaching Class 2020
The NE Region will be hosting another Lay Preaching Class, running on Thursday evenings beginning September 24 thru November 5 (skipping October 15th for Convention). Participation in this class is contingent on getting consent from your priest/warden. Questions, or ready to sign up, please contact Maggie at [email protected] or 203-639-3501 x154
NE Region Convocation Coming Soon!
Save the date - Saturday, 3 October - for our next NE Region Convocation. This will be a half-day workshop around racism with a guest facilitator or two. Registration details coming soon!
Convention Is Coming
Join ECCT for our annual convention, which will be totally on-line this year. Dates and information can be found  HERE. The full Call to Convention letter can be found HERE, with lots of detailed information.

*totally free to attend if you are a non-voting member and only $15 if you are a voting member!
You can reach Maggie Breen, NE Region Missionary, the following ways:
PHONE: 203-639-3501 x154