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Please join us in praying for those confirmed or received on September 20 at St. John's, Bangor: Jennie Haluska, Dillan Lee, Adam Miller-Treat, Anna Nangle, Susanna Pathak, Cuthbert Steadman, and Sophia Steadman. We rejoice in their faith journey and ask the Holy Spirit to be their guide, guardian, and help.

Let us pray for our nation, candidates for office, all who will vote and for those with whom we disagree. Forward Movement offers this resource for daily prayer for the period between October 9 and November 9. Download the booklet here. May we as Christians be a calm, compassionate presence in the midst of political strife.

We offer prayers for those who will attend the 201st Convention of the Diocese of Maine "Nothing Will Separate Us: Being the Body of Christ" October 17-18. May our first online convention be faith-filled as we make decisions that will guide the future of the diocese.

We offer prayers for the Rev. Cn. Larry Weeks upon his retirement. Larry served at both Trinity, Portland and St. Peter's, Portland. St. Peter’s sent him off with a service he celebrated outdoors. (See pictures from the service here.) Give thanks for Larry's ministry among us by posting a message or photo by clicking "Add to Board" here.

We give thanks for the life of the Rev. James A. Trimble Jr. and pray for the repose of his soul. Among his other calls, Rev. Trimble served for 51 years as the July rector at St. Christopher’s-by-the-Sea, Winter Harbor. Full obituary here.

Listen and watch Bishop Brown's recorded sermon for the online worship service compiled by a diocese-wide team of clergy and lay leaders for September 27. The full service and other past services can be viewed here on YouTube.

Thousands of racial justice and healing leaders and practitioners across The Episcopal Church gathered to build community, craft strategy and equip each other for action during a series of “Becoming Beloved Community NOW” online gatherings at the end of July 2020. Now these webinars are available for you to view here.

Every year, Bridging the Gap, a nonprofit program of Emmanuel Lutheran Episcopal Church in Augusta, hosts e-waste collection events to raise funds for the Warming Center. Read more here on Centralmaine.com "E-waste event raises record amount for Augusta's Warming Center".

In order to create consistency with the work of the Office of Government Relations and other dioceses across the church who have established their own advocacy ministries, MENJ is changing its name to the Maine Episcopal Public Policy Network (MEPPN). Read about this change, the diocese's 40+ year partnership with the Maine Council of Churches, and more here in the latest Social Justice and Advocacy Update. Sign up to get these updates in your inbox here. 

Be sure to check out the lovely e-book "What Do Angels Look Like?" created by the Rev. Cn. Nancy Moore and Michael D. Turner leading up to our diocese-wide service on September 27, 2020, which celebrated the feast of St. Michael and All Angels. We asked the children of the diocese to draw angels for inclusion in the service. View the submissions here.

The service will be distributed to our clergy and lay leaders in advance of the service to use as they wish. All are invited to join us on Facebook and YouTube.

Maine Council of Churches calls on communities of faith in Maine to participate in a National COVID Remembrance this weekend. As we grieve and mourn the loss of 200,000 souls here in America and over 1,000,000 globally, faith communities are joining together to hold a Moment of Silence to honor and remember all those lost. People from all traditions are invited to participate as your faith calls you. Here is a toolkit with suggestions for those taking part. Sign up here.

In order to facilitate stewardship, the Diocese of Maine has launched an online giving resource. Visit episcopalmaine.org and click on the "Donate" button in the upper right hand corner. From there, you have options to donate to the congregation or summer chapel of your choice or you can direct your contribution to the Diocesan Hunger Initiative, one of our Jubilee Centers, Camp Bishopswood or UTO. The diocese will transfer the money you give using this online payment system to the fund you've chosen. You have the option to make a one-time or recurring gift. We thank you for all you do to aid our community in these challenging times.

St. Francis Day is this Sunday! St. George's, York Harbor invites you to their Blessing of the Animals in Moulton Park from 2:00 to 4:00 pm. We know many churches are hosting similar events. Please share your photos to social media for this weekend’s blessings – whether in-person, outdoors, drive-by or virtual. When you share your photos, add the tags #episcopalmaine and #EJstfrancis, and they may be featured on episcopaljournal.org!

Trinity Jubilee Center, Lewiston is helping out their homeless and uninsured neighbors by offering free flu shots this Friday, October 2 from 11:00-2:00 pm. Shots will be administered in their courtyard by public health nurses, no appointment needed. Please share with anyone who might benefit.

Cass Wright who serves as Senior Warden at St. James, Old Town was able to enjoy an afternoon reunion at Camp Bishopswood with her family of camp alums. The Wright family, amazingly, has had seven campers, one counselor and two members of the Board of Directors!

Saint Mary's, Falmouth hosted Orangetheory Fitness' first-ever Outdoor Dri-Tri last Saturday. What's a Dri–Tri? It's the fitness studio's version of a triathlon with a 2000 meter row, 300 reps of bodyweight exercises, and a 5k. A unique way to use church grounds to serve the community!

Let us know what's happening in your church! Send to [email protected]!

Episcopal institutions can now apply for the next round of the Episcopal Evangelism Grants Program, designed to fund local and regional evangelism efforts in the Episcopal Church. The application deadline is November 15. The new grant cycle will focus on projects that explore new methods of evangelism during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Even as the pandemic has made it harder to be together in person, people are longing to be part of a community and to know that God is with us,” said the Rev. Devon Anderson, chair of Executive Council’s Episcopal Evangelism Grants Committee. “In this round of grants, we want to fund the best ideas about how Episcopalians can reach out to our communities and invite people to join us in worshipping God and following Jesus with all our hearts and souls.”

Congregations, dioceses, provinces, schools, monastic communities, and other Episcopal organizations are eligible to apply. The grant application, criteria, and additional information is available here. Deadline is November 15.

World Too Beautiful, an earth-conscious service celebrating the beauty of creation, hosted by St. Luke's Cathedral and funded in part by the diocesan New Initiative Fund, expands its circle this October by welcoming reflectors from different faith traditions. On Wednesday, October 7, Nasser and Parivash Rohani, members of Portland's Baha'i community and both active in state and local climate justice, will present a shared reflection. On Wednesday, October 21, the Rev. Circe Moss MacDonald will speak. A graduate of Chaplaincy Institute of Maine, Circe is an educator and eco-chaplain who specializes in ceremony and sacred ritual.

Please plan to join this musical and meditative gathering that focuses on beauty, interconnection, harmony, mutual encouragement, and healing. Have a candle at the ready to light during prayer time. Join here via Zoom on the 7th and 21st at 5:45 pm.