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In this edition of ENews:
- It's Giving Tuesday… help make someone's dreams come true!
- Deadline for West Coast Collaborative Applications is Friday, Dec. 1
- Church of the Incarnation, Santa Rosa to Celebrate 150th Anniversary
- Advent study with the Poetry of Maya Angelou begins Thursday
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Your gift today will make dreams
come true tomorrow.
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Father Bayani Rico Retires from Ascension, Vallejo after 15 years | |
Left: Fr. Bayani with Bishop Megan at the retirement festivities. Right: a photo of the Rev. Bayani Rico as a college chaplain in the Philippines (found by Mark Dibelka at Trinity University of Asia in Manila). | |
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Last Sunday, Bishop Megan traveled to Vallejo to celebrate the birthday and retirement of the Rev. Bayani Rico, beloved rector of Church of the Ascension. Fr. Bayani served as rector from 2008 – 2023. Congratulations on your retirement!
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Friday, December 1 is last day to apply for English language Lay Preaching Cohort | |
The Episcopal Dioceses of El Camino Real, Northern California and San Diego are accepting applications for the 2024 English language cohort to prepare individuals to apply for a Preaching license (the Spanish language cohort will begin recruiting in January). We are seeking adult learners of all ages and educational backgrounds who are actively involved in ministry in their congregations and demonstrate gifts in lay leadership. Participants must be members of a congregation within one of our three partner dioceses. | |
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St. Andrew's Antelope to hold Concluding Service
Sunday, December 3.
With deep appreciation for decades of faithful service to the people of Antelope, we share that the congregation of St. Andrew's, Antelope has decided to suspend worship. A fire in 2021 heavily damaged their sanctuary beyond repair, and Sunday worship has been held at Bethel Lutheran Church in Sacramento for some time now.
A festive evensong and reception were held on July 30, 2023 to mark the retirement of their vicar, the Rev. Peter Rodgers.
Though this will be the final Sunday worship service for the mission congregation, plans are underway to keep the name and ministry of the church alive through a grant program to benefit feeding programs serving those on the margins. (Stay tuned!)
The Rev. Cn. Julie Wakelee will preach and preside.
Date/time: Sunday, December 3, 2023 at 10 am.
Location: Bethel Lutheran Church, 1200 Alamos Avenue, Sacramento
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Thursday, November 30 | 6:30 pm
150th Anniversary Celebration
Church of the Incarnation, Santa Rosa
Read more
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Saturday, December 2 | 8:00 am – 3:00 pm
Christmas Gift and Decor Sale
Church of our Savior, Placerville
Read more
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Saturday, December 2 | 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Sunday, December 3 | 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
110th Annual Christmas Bazaar
St. Luke's, Galt
Read more
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Thursday, December 7 | 6:00 pm
Holden Evening Prayer
St. Francis, Fortuna
Read more
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Sunday, December 10 | 5:00 pm
Christmas Concert
St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Healdsburg
Read more
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Civic Engagement at Trinity Cathedral
On November 16th, Alan Yarborough of the Office of Government Relations came to our Diocese to give a training on civic engagement. In a gathering of about 15 clergy, Alan spoke about the complex relationship clergy have to advocacy and participation in the public square. We discussed how the Gospel calls us to engage political leaders in the work of caring for the poor, widow, and immigrants in our midst. We also talked about how that work can never be partisan. And how walking that tightrope is tricky!
Then in the evening, Alan met with a group of around 25 members of the Diocese to talk about civil discourse. How do we talk to each other across the political aisle in a way that is honest, direct, and compassionate. We explored what deep seated values people of all political persuasions hold, what inner states we need to practice to do this work well, and how fruitful building relationships across the political difference via talking about our political differences can be.
Many walked away inspired by this workshop to continue this work. And so Trinity Cathedral would like to invite anyone in the Diocese interested in building their skills in civil discourse before the 2024 election to join a cohort exploring these skills. We will be using The Episcopal Church's Civil Discourse 5-week course, "Make Me an Instrument of Peace" as our guide. The course is free and can be done in a hybrid manner (zoom & in-person). The cohort will begin sometime in the new year. If you are interested please reach out to the Rev. Alex Leach (aleach@trinitycathedral.org).
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Registration is now open for the Thirty-sixth Annual Diocesan Choir Festival at Trinity Cathedral
The festival is being held on Saturday, January 27, and all choral singers are invited to participate. Our guest conductor is Mr Nigel Groome, Director of Music at St Matthew's/Westminster, London, England.
For complete information including the repertoire to be sung, the schedule for the day, and the online registration link can be found here:
https://sierracanon.wordpress.com/2023/11/08/the-thirty-sixth-annual-diocesan-choir-festival-saturday-january-27-2024/
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Mr. Nigel Groome – Director of Music
at St. Matthew's/Westminster, London, England.
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Episcopal Foundation of Northern California | |
Programs and ministries in our diocese need YOUR support! | |
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Featured Dream from the 2023 Bishop's Book of Dreams:
Conversations in Hope | St. Paul's, Sacramento (Goal: $3,000)
Hope's Space connects the community of St. Paul's Episcopal Church with the broader community of Sacramento and beyond through music, art, conversation, and movement. Within the sanctuary's stone walls, unhoused people, convention-goers, office workers, downtown residents and parishioners from outlying areas gather in fellowship and see Jesus in one another. Conversations in Hope is a new program to launch in 2024. Inspired by the Faith X discussion book Having Nothing, Possessing Everything by Michael Mather, the hope is to tap unrecognized figures in our immediate neighborhood and provide an opportunity for their knowledge to be heard. Speakers will be invited to speak about issues pertinent to the times and to the community. Appeal funds will help pay salary for the Hope's Space Director (a position now funded at just 5 hours/week and only through 2023). The funds will also help being able to offer an honorarium to guest speakers. Read more...
Will you support this dream?
Giving in honor or remembrance of someone you love this holiday season can make for a heartfelt and generous gift. You can download a gift card in English or Spanish to share with them.
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Commission for Intercultural Ministries | |
Racial Justice Audit Executive Summary and Report now Available | |
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The Commission for Intercultural Ministries thanks everyone who participated in this year‘s survey of diocesan leaders and our thanks to the Mission Institute (MI) for conducting the audit. Findings and recommendations are listed in the Executive Summary with details covered in the full report at the links below. This report is not a destination but rather a continued journey on the path toward Beloved Community. Next year MI will conduct the second year of the audit at parish level and issue a final report.
Please contact Lynn Zender, zenderlynn@gmail.com, or Jo Ann Williams, bjwilli@surewest.net, Racial Justice Audit Co-chairs, for questions or comments about the audit report.
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Missioner for Disaster Resilience | |
Disaster Resilience and Community Development Work Together in the Philippines | |
Missioner for Disaster Resilience, Mark Dibelka, stands with fellow students from Australia, Brunei, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and the USA. | |
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It has been a very busy two weeks for me, as I engaged both classroom and field training in Manila, Isabela, Kalinga, and Mountain Province in the Philippines.
The training started with an overview of the philosophy of the Episcopal Church in the Philippines (ECP) regarding non-dependence upon others as a core value and moved into first person training (and a lot of food) at the locations where success has been achieved. It was humbling to learn from those who had generated community and self-sustaining treasuries in areas that were rife with poverty.
Because these locations are all in low-income areas, populated by subsistence farmers, the wonders of what has been accomplished are astounding. In one location, a group of three women came together with 600 Pesos (approximately $10.84) to help a child attend school; through building community focused upon families and education, the church cooperative is now worth nearly 400 Million Pesos (approximately $7.2M) and is the largest, single contributor of funding following disasters in the Philippines.
In another case, a mission of 10 congregants was subject to the whims of a large agro-business to market their rice and other produce, which kept the people living in poverty. The church became their focus, and they built a system to market their own products through the church. 50% of all profit is donated to the church, and because of the fair business practices, the mission is now a self-sustaining parish of over 3,000 members, as well as a global supplier of humanitarian food assistance, free of charge.
These successes came about when the church stopped focusing on what it needs and began focusing on what it has to offer its neighbors.
The greatest lesson with which I left the Philippines is: when we stop focusing on our needs and pay attention to how we can work together with others, great things follow. If we focus only on our needs, we will never move forward, because when one need is filled there is always another need right behind it.
Our focus in disaster resilience should be in building a resilient community every day, not asking for assistance or what we can do after the fact. When your church is ready to build community and become resilient against disaster, please contact me and let’s work together towards the blessings of God’s Kingdom.
Mark Dibelka | Missioner for Disaster Resilience
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Missioner for Church Life | |
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Our next evangelism gathering is Wednesday, November 29 at 5:00 pm. Each month, we gather on Zoom to discuss evangelism resources, share evangelism success stories, and address evangelism challenges. This month, we talk about evangelism opportunities during Advent and Christmas. The Zoom link to attend is here.
Also, be sure to check out the Evangelism Resources on our diocesan website, where you’ll also be able to find recordings of past monthly gatherings. https://www.norcalepiscopal.org/site/evangelism-resources/
“If I have achieved anything in my life, it is because
I have not been embarrassed to talk about God.” Dorothy Day
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Advent Study with Canon Julie and Missioner Mack
This Advent, joins us as we read and pray with the poetry of Maya Angelou.
Thursdays – 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm
November 30 - December 21
On Zoom
Register now: https://form.jotform.com/223255198020147
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This week's poem:
A Plagued Journey
There is no warning rattle at the door
nor heavy feet to stomp the foyer boards.
Safe in the dark prison, I know that
light slides over
the fingered work of a toothless
woman in Pakistan.
Happy prints of
an invisible time are illumined.
My mouth agape
rejects the solid air and
lungs hold. The invader takes
direction and
seeps through the plaster walls.
It is at my chamber, entering
the keyhole, pushing
through the padding of the door.
I cannot scream. A bone
of fear clogs my throat.
It is upon me. It is
sunrise, with Hope
its arrogant rider.
My mind, formerly quiescent
in its snug encasement, is strained
to look upon their rapturous visages,
to let them enter even into me.
I am forced
outside myself to
mount the light and ride joined with Hope.
Through all the bright hours
I cling to expectation, until
darkness comes to reclaim me
as its own. Hope fades, day is gone
into its irredeemable place
and I am thrown back into the familiar
bonds of disconsolation.
Gloom crawls around
lapping lasciviously
between my toes, at my ankles,
and it sucks the strands of my
hair. It forgives my heady
fling with Hope. I am
joined again into its
greedy arms.
– Maya Angelou
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We’re excited to announce that we will have a diocesan-wide New Camino training on February 16 & 17, 2024 at St. John’s, Chico. The Rev. Antony Guillen, the Episcopal Church’s Missioner for Latino/Hispanic ministries will be here to help us explore opportunities for Latino/Hispanic ministry in our diocese.
This training is suitable for individuals as well as church teams.
Please go to: https://form.jotform.com/232965467198170 to indicate your interest in attending and to receive updates regarding lodging and expenses.
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Clergy Openings in The Diocese | |
Job Opportunities in The Diocese | |
Trinity Episcopal Cathedral | Sacramento is seeking a new Director of Cathedral Choristers (Children’s choir). Read the Job Announcement Here. | |
The ENews is published weekly on Tuesdays.
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The Episcopal Diocese of Northern California
Making Disciples, Raising Up Saints & Transforming Communities for Christ
www.norcalepiscopal.org
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