Prayer vigil in San Gabriel will remember victims of Lunar New Year shootings
Church of Our Saviour, 535 W. Roses Road, San Gabriel, invites the community to a candlelight service of prayer and remembrance at 4 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 29 for victims of the Lunar New Year shooting incidents in Monterey Park and Half Moon Bay in Northern California, as well as those injured in a third shooting in Oakland on Jan. 23. The United States has endured 39 mass shootings (those involving three or more victims) since the beginning of 2023; six of them on New Year's Day, according to the Gun Violence Archive website.
The Rev. Katherine Feng will preach at the service, which also will include “A Litany in the Wake of a Mass Shooting” by Bishops/Episcopalians United Against Gun Violence.
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Katherine Feng immigrated from Shanghai, China, to the United States in the 1990s as a young adult. Baptized and confirmed in the Episcopal Church, she was an active lay leader at Church of Our Saviour and assisted in lay leadership training courses at the Li Tim-Oi Center for Chinese ministry, based at Church of Our Saviour. She translated Becoming an Episcopalian by the Rev. Canon Winfred B. Vergara, missioner for Asiamerica Ministries for The Episcopal Church, from English to Chinese. She also served as a Mandarin interpreter at the College of Bishops in 2020 and the 15th Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, England, in 2022. Feng completed her Seminary study at IONA (a collaborative program of Seminary of the Southwest and the Diocese of Los Angeles) in 2021 and was ordained to the diaconate in June 2021 and to the priesthood in January 2022. She now is serving as a supply priest in the diocese and co-secretary of the Chinese Convocation of Episcopal Asiamerica Ministries (EAM).
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Lutheran bishop invites diocesan community to join Jan. 25 discussion, prayer about gun violence
Bishop Brenda Bos of the Southwest California Synod of the Lutheran Church (ELCA) invites clergy and lay leaders of the diocese to a conversation and prayer session about gun violence with members of her synod and ECLA's Orange County-based Pacifica synod.
The discussion will take place via Zoom on Wednesday, Jan. 25 at 7 p.m.
"I know prayer is important but not the only thing faith leaders need to do," Bos (pictured above) wrote in the invitation. "We will talk about advocacy and making appeals to local leaders. I know many of our officials are in support of stricter gun restrictions and improved mental health services, but I do not know what else to do. ... [I]f nothing else, we can remind our leaders we care about this, we have constituencies who would back the work, and perhaps offer voices and resources in their efforts."
To join the Zoom meeting, click here, or use Meeting ID 811 8262 5570 and passcode 035295.
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Online filing open for 2022 Parochial Report; due by March 1
[The Episcopal Church - January 23, 2023] Online filing for the 2022 Parochial Report for all Episcopal Church congregations is now available. Reports must be filed by March 1.
An email was sent to congregations on Monday, Dec. 7. Those who did not receive the email or need help with their login name should contact their diocesan office for assistance.
Additional resources such as video walkthroughs and a workbook with detailed instructions to help guide the process can be found on the Forms and Instructions page on the General Convention website.
Data from the Parochial Report – the oldest, most continuous gathering of data by The Episcopal Church – touches every congregation throughout nine provinces. Together with other data, including that of the recorder of ordinations and the registrar of General Convention, it provides insight into the state of the church.
Read more here.
Leer en español aquí.
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Looking Ahead to Lent: Download study guide to Presiding Bishop Curry's book Love is the Way
As we look ahead to Lent and its call to prayer, study and reflection, the diocesan Engagement Across Difference ministry invites you to download and use a five-part Lenten study guide of Presiding Bishop Michael Curry's best seller, Love Is The Way.
The book provides an inspirational road map for living the way of love through the prism of Curry's faith, ancestry, and personal journey – offering a vision of how America came this far and, more importantly, how it can go a whole lot farther. In the words of reviewer Jon Meacham, “Michael Curry draws on his own remarkable life to show us the way we might make our own lives, and the live of nations, warmer, better and nobler.”
The curriculum includes podcast reflections by diocesan leaders the Rev. Canon Melissa McCarthy, the Rev. Antonio Gallardo, the Very Rev. Canon Gary Hall, Missioner for Youth Gabriel Vasquez-Reyes, and Bishop John Harvey Taylor, and is available in both English and Spanish.
Download the English version of the curriculum (as a PDF) here. The Spanish version is here.
For more information contact the Rev. Canon Susan Russell, canon for Engagement Across Difference, at [email protected].
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Episcopal Church Lent resources available online
[The Episcopal Church] Click here for new and updated resources for individuals, small groups, and congregations, including the following:
- Lent curriculum, sermons, lesson plans, devotionals, and meditations
- Lent Madness
- “Life Transformed: The Way of Love in Lent” – adult forum sessions with videos
- “Prophetic Voices: Preaching and Teaching Beloved Community” podcast series
- Sermons That Work
- 40-day gratitude challenge
- Publicity material, bulletin inserts, and more
Leer en español aquí.
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Bloy House spring formation classes are open to clergy and laity
Bloy House, the Episcopal Theological School at Claremont, has announced several continuing education and formation classes for laity and clergy. The fee for Formation classes is $25. Click here for more information and to register.
Clergy and church administrators: As details are announced, please share information about Bloy House offerings with your congregations in your newsletters and bulletins.
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MONDAYS, FEBRUARY 6, 13, 20 & 27, 7 – 8:30 p.m.
Reading Ruth: The Politics of Identity, Location, and Change
Facilitated by the Rev. Dr. Mary Tororeiy
The book of Ruth is a kind of a Cinderella story. The thing with Cinderella stories is that they have a beautiful ending, something that gives the reader a welcome sigh of relief, a Hollywood ending. But what about the real story? The story before the end? A famine. Migration. Death. Nothingness. A return. Navigating these changes involves negotiating identities, location, and change. No Old Testament book does it better than the story of Ruth. We will examine the story of Ruth whose foreign-ness reshapes the nature of identity in post-exilic Israel. Using the tools of context and authorial intentions, we will carefully read and re-evaluate the narrative by studying its literary function within the Israelite politics of identity and change. Register here.
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TUESDAYS, MARCH 7, 14, 21, and 28, 7 – 8:30 p.m.
The Spiritual Journey: A Lenten Exploration
Facilitated by the Rev. Elizabeth Rechter
This Lent, Bloy House will offer an interactive, contemplative experience that invites participants into a deep exploration of their personal spiritual lives in a safe, small-group setting. It will be a time to reconnect with God in body, mind and spirit to see more clearly the path that is beckoning you. Exploring together the topics of prayer, the sacred in the daily, images of God and theological assumptions that guide us, and our own experiences of God. The Rev. Elizabeth Rechter has since 2015 been executive director of Stillpoint, The Center for Christian Spirituality, an institution of the Diocese of Los Angeles that has been offering programs for spiritual exploration & formation for nearly 40 years.
Coming in April/May
Registration and details are coming soon.
APRIL 29
21st Century Ministry in Multicultural Contexts:
Enjoying our Colorful Tapestry
Ministry - lay or ordained- in our diocese is a multicultural experience. How do we gain skills and insight, not only to understand others' languages and cultures, but to be open to transformative friendships? One day workshop, facilitated by the Rev. Carlos Ruvalcaba and the Rev. Melissa Campbell-Langdell. Note: class will be hybrid in-person and Zoom.
APRIL 29, MAY 6, 13
Deacons: Who, What, Why
Three two-hour sessions will offer a glimpse into the life and history of the diaconate. Facilitated by the Rev. Dennis Sheridan.
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Join webinars on racial reconciliation work of Moravian, Episcopal churches
[The Episcopal Church] “Past Reckoning: Exploring the Racial History of the Moravian and Episcopal Churches,” a webinar series presented by the Moravian-Episcopal Coordinating Committee Racial Reconciliation Working Group, examines racial histories of the two churches and how new methods for racial reconciliation are working in ecumenical contexts.
All webinars will be on Wednesdays, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Eastern.
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January 25: Evangelizing Enslaved People: Good News or Control?
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February 1: The Silent Protest Parade: Responses to Racial Violence and Black Leadership in the Church
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February 8: The Church and the City: Integration, Segregation, and White Flight
Each webinar includes a pre-recorded segment focusing on the specific historic topic, followed by a discussion between the working group and two panelists that expands the focus and connects it to the present, concluding with Q&A with participants.
More information about the Moravian-Episcopal dialogue is here. To register, click here.
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New liturgy resources available on BCLM webpage
The Bishop’s Commission on Liturgy & Music is excited to start the New Year by sharing new and improved liturgical resources now available on its diocesan webpage. Visit the page for everything from links to available liturgical resources authorized and/or published by The Episcopal Church (including Inclusive Marriage Rites approved for trial use) to information on the ongoing process of prayer book revision. The commission has made expanding its online resources a priority for the year ahead, so look for further updates – and contact the Rev. Canon Susan Russell at [email protected] to suggest content for inclusion.
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Kaleidoscope will offer 'Bible Sharing for Preachers' series in February
Kaleidoscope will offer Kaleidoscope Bible Sharing for Preachers
February 7, 14, 21, 28; 9 a.m. The Rev. Canon Eric H.F. Law will lead participants to listen and reflect on a lectionary text for the upcoming Sunday, in preparation for preaching in a multi-contextual community. This weekly gathering of the preaching community will use a combination of the multi-contextual preaching model Law shared in his book The Word at the Crossing, and the Kaleidoscope Bible Sharing process. The gatherings will take place on Zoom. For more information and to register, click here.
As is its usual custom of Graceconomics, KI offers a range of registration fees, and asks that participants contribute the amount that they are able; choosing closer you can pay to the upper range, the more we can use the resources to help others who may not be able to pay as much.
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TEC's Global Partnerships office invites all to Epiphany 2023 Lectio Divina video series
[The Episcopal Church] The Office of Global Partnerships invites individuals, small groups, congregations, and dioceses to use its weekly video series throughout the season of Epiphany. The videos, which include an adaptation of lectio divina with each Sunday’s Gospel, feature Episcopal missionaries who have served around the world through the Young Adult Service Corps (ages 21-30) and Episcopal Volunteers in Mission (over age 30). For information and to view the videos, click here.
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Mental Health First Aid training set for Feb. 4 in Woodland Hills
Course provides practical guidance in addressing mental-health, substance-abuse issues; additional courses planned for 2023 in other areas of diocese
Mental Health First Aid training – practical guidance to help clergy, lay personnel, ushers, volunteers, and parishioners identify and respond appropriately to mental-health and substance-use issues manifested by persons present on church campuses –will be offered Saturday, Feb. 4, at Prince of Peace Episcopal Church, Woodland Hills, with additional sessions to be added in 2023 in other locations around the diocese.
Further training within the diocese is among current outreach priorities of the Bishop’s Commission on Gospel Justice and Community Care, which advocates mental-healthcare responses as alternatives to involvement of law enforcement.
The six-hour course, set for 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., will be offered in-person at Prince of Peace Church, 5700 Rudnick Avenue, Woodland Hills, and facilitated by the Rev. Brian Tucker of the parish, which is also home to the extensive programs of the West Valley Food Pantry. While there is no cost for the course, a $20 per-participant donation is suggested to help defray expenses.
Tucker invites anyone wanting to register or learn more about the course, including scheduling training in other regions, to contact him at [email protected], or 760.880.2696.
More details about Mental Health First Aid training are online at the website of the National Council for Mental Wellbeing. In the coming week, the Feb. 2 Woodland Hills course also will be listed on the national website.
"Mental-health and substance-use issues are at an all-time high, due in large part to the COVID-19 crises and the lack of affordable housing,” notes Sister Patricia Sarah Terry, chair of the Bishop’s Commission on Gospel Justice and Community Care. “Now, more than ever, it is important to understand and identify mental- health and substance-use issues and how to respond to them. That is why the Episcopal Church has asked that all clergy and lay leaders sign up for Mental Health First Aid Training. In the Diocese of Los Angeles, we are taking it a step further by recommending that all consider doing so because this crisis impacts us all."
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Deacons available during Epiphany to visit and preach
Deacons will be on the road again during Epiphany. If you would like your congregation to hear a deacon preach and learn more about what it means to be the bridge between the church and the world, contact Archdeacon Laura Siriani at [email protected].
At left: Archbishop Laura Siriani preaches at Eucharist at the 2021 meeting of Diocesan Convention. Photo: Janet Kawamoto
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New Spanish, French prayer book translations now available
[The Episcopal Church – December 8, 2022] New, certified Spanish and French translations of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer are available online. Printed copies will be available Jan. 20.
The translations were prepared under the supervision of the Task Force for Liturgical Translations, a subcommittee of the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music. The new translations were called for by the 2018 General Convention through resolution A070 and included an opportunity for churchwide feedback last fall.
The Rev. Juan Oliver, who was the custodian of the prayer book when the new translations were being prepared, noted that the new translations were prepared by a team of professional translators with expertise in both literary translation as well as cultural sensitivity.
An additional translation into Haitian Creole is forthcoming.
Read more here.
Leer en español aquí.
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Clergy: Time to consider housing allowance resolutions for 2023
Parochial clergy of the diocese should ask their vestries to pass a resolution designating a portion of their income as a housing allowance for 2023, as required by the IRS. Human Resources Missioner Anilin Collado reminds clergy that the tax code allows for many household items and expenses to be deducted, resulting in significant tax savings. Information about potential tax savings and a sample housing allowance resolution form is here.
For further information, contact Collado at [email protected] or 213.220.5566, ext. 250. (h/t the Rev. Patrick Crear)
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Episcopal Service Corps seeks applicants for 2023-24 service year
[The Episcopal Church - December 1, 2022] The Episcopal Service Corps (ESC) invites young leaders ages 21 to 32 interested in a transformative outreach and discernment experience to apply online for the 2023-24 program year.
To help young adults discern whether a year through ESC is right for them, ESC will host four virtual open houses to answer questions and give participants a chance to hear from current and former corps members. Potential applicants are also encouraged to take ESC’s online discernment quiz.
Those interested can register online to attend a virtual open house on the following days:
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Sunday, Feb. 26, 5 p.m. Eastern
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Thursday, March 2, 8 p.m. Eastern.
Episcopal Service Corps is a network of young adults who commit at least one year to transforming themselves and the world through community building, local collaboration, prayer, and action while living in locally organized intentional communities within the U.S. Each corps member serves at a community-based nonprofit and receives housing, health coverage, spiritual direction, mentorship, and stipends to cover living expenses, transportation, and food.
Many corps members move into positions of leadership within their churches, the wider Episcopal Church, and community organizations.
“Young adults participating in ESC come from all over the United States and all walks of life,” said Wendy Johnson, manager of the ESC network for The Episcopal Church. “For more than 20 years, ESC has been built on the belief that change happens when we bring together diverse teams of committed and passionate young leaders and support them as they tackle some of our nation’s most difficult challenges.”
Questions about Episcopal Service Corps? Visit the ESC website or email [email protected].
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Christian Nationalism: a guide to tackling the truths of a toxic movement
A multi-media study guide is now available for a three-session opportunity to explore the what, why and how of Christian Nationalism using Pamela Cooper-White’s brilliant book The Psychology of Christian Nationalism: Why People Are Drawn In and How to Talk Across the Divide.
Compiled as part of the ongoing commitment to the work of engaging across difference by the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, the study guide includes video introductions to each session by the Rev. Canon Susan Russell, ancillary readings and resources and reflection questions. It is available as a PDF here for those who wish to convene discussion groups in congregational or community settings. For more information, email [email protected]
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“My Way of Love" for small groups is available in English and Spanish
[The Episcopal Church] Focusing on practices to help grow a Jesus-centered life, My Way of Love for Small Groups is ideal for vestries, youth groups, confirmation classes, Bible studies, prayer groups, committees, ministry teams, and more.
This helpful resource, recommended especially for small congregations, includes outlines for nine sessions, prayers, discussion questions, resource links, and promotional materials, provided in English and Spanish (follow links below).
Participants begin by taking a confidential spiritual life inventory online to help assess where they are in their journey. Once they receive their findings, they have the opportunity to sign up for a series of eight emails that offer suggestions and coaching for going deeper in their walk with God and living intentionally each day.
Learn more here.
Leer en español aquí.
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Weekly online study sessions focus on Women's Lectionary
All Saints Church, Pasadena, is hosting a weekly online lectionary study for preachers and anyone using Year A of the Women's Lectionary by Wil Gafney. Sessions are on Mondays at 9 a.m.
Each session begins with a reflection on the readings and Gafney's notes from a noted woman of color who is a theologian, priest, deacon, bishop, biblical scholar, psychologist, etc. in order to ground the conversation in the womanist perspective from which the lectionary was written. Participants will then break into small discussion groups for study and conversation and come back together in a large group at the end of the hour.
A free-will offering will be taken up each week for the speakers to support them and their ministries. The opening and closing portions of each session will be recorded and available for later listening/viewing.
Register in advance here; the link for the meeting (good for the whole year) and additional information will be emailed to each registered participant.
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Important notice for DIT investors: please take heed!
From the Finance Office
Address DIT inquiries to [email protected]
Access your DIT account here
Congregations and institutions with investments in the Diocesan Investment Trust (DIT) must now use a special email address – [email protected]– for questions about their DIT accounts.
NRS is the DIT’s transfer agent and is one of the largest fund administration firms in the country. To facilitate a prompt response, DIT investors are served by a dedicated team of NRS staff working from various locations. For internal controls and security purposes, investor inquiries to NRS (and NRS’s responses) must be in writing. So please use this NRS DIT team email address rather than calling or emailing an individual; you'll get much faster service.
The client access portal for DIT investors is here. You will need your account name and password to log in.
The current DIT page has a link to the new email address and the client portal; it might be a good idea to bookmark it. If you have the old DIT website address (URL) bookmarked, please delete it, as that page is no longer active. The DIT is in the process of updating the web pages; in the meantime, please use ONLY the above-mentioned email address for DIT account inquiries.
Other questions, including how to invest in the DIT, may be directed to Canon Gail Urquidi, canon for Congregational Support, at [email protected].
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Credit Union changes customer service email address
The Episcopal Community Federal Credit Union has changed its customer service email address to [email protected].
The credit union, founded after civil unrest in 1992, offers banking services as well as low-interest loans to people who probably would be turned down by other institutions. It is located at St. Paul's Commons, the ministry and administrative hub of the Diocese of Los Angeles at 840 Echo Park Avenue Los Angeles 90026.
To learn more about the credit union, visit its website here, use the new email address or call 213.482.2040, ext 254
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United Thank Offering invites 2023 annual grants, joins EMM to support immigrants
[The Episcopal Church] The United Thank Offering (UTO) Board is pleased to announce the availability of its 2023 UTO Annual Grants, with a focus on the worldwide incarceration crisis. These grants are awarded for projects in The Episcopal Church and throughout the Anglican Communion, each year with a different focus.
Grant application deadline is 2 p.m. PDT (5 p.m. EDT) March 10 for dioceses of The Episcopal Church.
More information—including criteria for applicants, sample budgets and timelines, and helpful hints—as well as application and other forms are available online in English and Spanish.
The United Thank Offering was founded to support innovative mission and ministry in The Episcopal Church and to promote thankfulness and mission in the whole church. One hundred percent of UTO thank offerings—given by individuals and churches—are granted the following year. These awards support a wide range of projects, positions, educational resources, and more.
For the next three years, the United Thank Offering, in the spirit of Matthew 25:36, will focus on those whom society has left out or behind. The 2023 grant focus will be on innovative mission and ministry projects addressing all aspects of global incarceration, specifically preventative programs and intervention, prisoner support outreach, prison reform, or post-prison re-entry into society.
Learn more about the application process and ask questions during the webinar on Tuesday, Feb. 14 at 12 p.m. Registration link is here.
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Safe Church office provides new modules for abuse prevention curriculum
The Episcopal Church's Safe Church Office has produced three new educational modules – "Pastoral Relationships," "Inclusion," and "Power and Relationships" – as part of its Safe Church, Safe Communities training for the prevention of sexual and other abuse. Completion of the series is mandatory for Episcopal Church clergy and lay leaders, and must be renewed every three years.
Bronwyn Clark Skov is manager of the Safe Church office, which is part of the Faith Formation division of The Episcopal Church. She is also in conversation with leaders of the nine provinces of the church to schedule training for two Safe Church trainers per diocese.
The new training modules bring the total number to nine, all of which can be found on the Praesidium Academy website here.
"Praesidium also includes a link to an especially helpful chart about which persons in your church should take what training," says Canon Serena Beeks, recently retired executive director of the Diocese of Los Angeles' Commission on Schools. "Please note that there is a Mandated Reporter training module that is specific to California and meets the state’s requirements for licensed Early Childhood facilities. The Diocese of Los Angeles is in the process of updating its policies based upon the model policies provided by The Episcopal Church."
Questions about the curriculum may be directed to Skov at [email protected].
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Listings for clergy employment are here. (Scroll down the page.)
Listings for lay employment are here.
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Resource Roundup, a weekly publication for clergy, wardens, church office staff and lay leaders of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, is emailed on Tuesdays. Items for inclusion may be sent to Janet Kawamoto, editor, at [email protected] by noon on Monday. | | | | |
