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June 24, 2020

"I do not believe people are afraid of change; they're afraid of loss." -- Bishop Brown

IN THIS EDITION : Update from Bishop Brown, Grant awarded to the Episcopal Church in Delaware, the Rev. Canon Kirkpatrick delivers testimony on Energy Portfolio Act, peaceful march in Delaware involving the Episcopal Church of Sts. Andrew and Matthew, Version 2 of the Regathering Document

You are invited to join Bishop Brown at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, June 28,

for his final regularly scheduled Facebook Live service

from the chapel at St. Albans Center

To allow Bishop Brown to join other churches (electronically) on Sunday mornings, this Sunday, June 28, will be his last regularly scheduled service at St. Albans Chapel. He hopes to join other churches on Sunday mornings beginning in August. You can join Bishop Brown this Sunday on Facebook Live here.

Please know that there are plenty of online worship opportunities with churches across the diocese that will continue to be available. See more information about online services offered in our diocese here.

Again, beginning in August, using technology, Bishop Brown will start taking part in services with parishes across Delaware. More information about these services will be listed in future editions of The Net.

Congratulations to the Rev. Dr. Marta Illueca

upon receiving a grant from United Thank Offering!

United Thank Offering announced the grant recipients for the 2020 granting year, and we are excited to share that the Episcopal Church in Delaware will receive funding for "The Pain and Prayer Scale Project: A prayer tool for drug-free pain control." Prayer joins faith and medicine to offer an alternative pain management tool. As a priest and medical doctor, the Rev. Dr. Marta Illueca, curate at Brandywine Collaborative Ministries, plans to develop and validate a “Pain and Prayer Scale” and this bedside-prayer-tool will connect church and academia in an unprecedented way to offer drug-free alternatives to pain management. Read press release here.

The Rev. Canon Martha Kirkpatrick testified in the Delaware General Assembly in support of Senate Bill 250, an enhancement of the renewable Energy Portfolio Act

The Rev. Canon Martha Kirkpatrick gave virtual testimony at the Stakeholder Meeting held on June 20, 2020. You may read her full testimony here. The testimony referred to a letter of support from interfaith leaders, including Bishop Brown, which may be read here.

Senator Coons and Bishop Brown joined Wilmington churchgoers

in a silent march in light of recent protests after the death of George Floyd

100 congregants from various churches around Wilmington marched in silence on the night of Juneteenth in light of recent protests. Organized by First & Central Presbyterian Church and the Episcopal Church of Saints Andrew & Matthew (SsAM), the “Walk for Justice and Peace” was joined by five other churches to call for an end to racial and social injustice on Friday. The march began at First & Central Presbyterian where Senator Coons addressed the marchers from the steps of the church. The Rt. Rev. Kevin S. Brown joined the Rev. David Andrews, rector of SsAM, on the march, which finished at SsAM. Read full delawareonline article here

In Case You Missed It

Reflection from a high school senior

in time of pandemic



Summer issue of the Delaware Communion magazine includes:

Sexual Misconduct Survey

The Episcopal Church Task Force on Women, Truth, and Reconciliation has invited everyone across the Episcopal Church to take an important survey. The survey is a serious attempt to grasp the breadth of sexual misconduct throughout the church. The survey is completely anonymous and, for it to be most effective, the task force will need to hear from as many persons as possible, whether or not you have witnessed or experienced harassment, violence, or discrimination. Please take the survey by July 1.

Please remember the current suspension of the statute of limitations on reporting past instances of clergy misconduct. See bishop's pastoral letter from April 2019 for more information and instructions on how to file a complaint. This lifting of the statute of limitation is a crucial step toward justice and healing for individuals and for the church. We are half-way through the three-year term of the suspension, which expires at the end of 2021. The more we uncover truth, the better we can make our churches the safe, inviting, and accountable places we demand them to be.

News from the Episcopal Church in Delaware

Cycle of Prayer in the Episcopal Church in Delaware

T his week (week of June 21) we hold up in prayer The Members of Trustees . For Cycle of Prayer Calendar for 2019-2020 click here.

News from the Episcopal Church

Beloved Community “Rapid-Response” Grants available: applications accepted June 19-August 15

T he Presiding Officers’ Advisory Group on Beloved Community Implementation is pleased to announce the availability of grants to address the racial disparities laid bare by the coronavirus pandemic and for groups responding to racist violence and policing reform. Across America, COVID-19 is disproportion-ately affecting people of color in terms of health outcomes, access to testing and treatment, safe work environments, and more. At the same time, many recognize the pandemic of ongoing violence directed against black people and other people of color, especially at the hands of law enforcement personnel in communities in the Americas and beyond. More information in English, More information in Spanish, More information in French .

The Episcopal Church encourages support of the Dream Act

The Episcopal Church has long advocated for legislation that protects Dreamers and offers a pathway to citizenship. Through Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a program that allows those brought to the U.S. as children to remain in the country without fear of deportation, nearly 800,000 Dreamers have come forward, passed background checks, and been granted permission to live and work legally in the U.S. Ending DACA in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic would be detrimental to the health and safety of families and communities around the country. “At this time, the Dream Act is pending before the Congress of the United States,” said Presiding Bishop Michael B. Curry. “I’m asking you as Episcopalians, as people of good will and faith, to write and call members of Congress who represent you to support this Dream Act.” See video and read full announcement in English here and in Spanish here .

Executive Council commits to anti-racism with resolutions and $400K in grants

At its June 8-11 virtual meeting , The Episcopal Church’s Executive Council doubled down on the church’s anti-racism efforts, acknowledging in light of recent events that the church must do more, both to understand its own complicity in white supremacy and to dismantle it.In order for that to happen in a mostly white church, there needs to be a paradigm shift, said House of Deputies Vice President Byron Rushing. During his meditation for Morning Prayer on the final day of the meeting, Rushing shared his perspective as a black man being acutely aware of racism every day and challenged white members of council to have that mindset. Read full Episcopal News Service article here .

Habits of Grace: An invitation for you, from Presiding Bishop Curry

"During this month of June, we find ourselves in the midst of great titanic struggles, hardships, and difficulties. When important things are at stake, when the lives of God's children, and the life of the world in many respects is at stake. Even as I speak, protestors march through our streets, protesting the way we have been. Protesting for the way we could be. Black Lives Matter, protesting in our city streets that we might learn to live the ways of justice, and mercy that reflects the heart of God's love. And even as I speak, this month of June is Pride Month when our LGBTQ siblings remember and recall, and continue their struggle for equality and mutual respect, and human dignity in our society, in our church and throughout the world." See video or read full meditation in English here, and in Spanish here .

Update regarding DFMS offices, staff travel and sponsored meetings during the coronavirus pandemic: a letter from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry to the Church.

Dear Friends in Christ, 

With both public and scientific knowledge of the nature and timing of an effective vaccine and treatment protocol for COVID-19 evolving on seemingly a daily basis; and with the very real possibility of a resurgence of the virus later in the year, the Executive Leadership Team has decided to keep the DFMS offices closed and the suspension of all non-essential travel, meetings, and conferences in place until further notice. Read full letter in English here . Read full letter in Spanish here .

Registration open for upcoming session of Virtual Episcopal Latino Ministry Competency course

Registration is now open for a special Virtual Episcopal Latino Ministry Competency Course (VELMC), an innovative five-day intensive course designed for diocesan staff, clergy, lay leaders, and seminarians to gain practical knowledge and cultural competency for Latino/Hispanic ministry. Originally offered in person at the School of Theology in Sewanee, Tennessee, the course will be conducted online in English, August 10-14, 2020. More information

The Episcopal Church invites participation in Good News Gardens: Join the movement to Plant, Pray, & Proclaim!

What can people do in this moment? One new and sacrificial act of love is to commit to planting more, praying more, and proclaiming more, in order to share the loving, liberating, and life-giving Good News of God’s love with all people. More information

Presiding Bishop Curry told Axios on HBO that "the soul of America is at stake" and "it's time to speak up" against racial injustice and about needed reforms to policing.

"I believe in this country and what it stands for: freedom, justice, equality," the Most Rev. Michael Curry said in the interview. "Those are ideals worth standing for. And when they are challenged, we must speak up." Read full comments here .

United Thank Offering presents the Inaugural Great EpisGOpal Race!

The United Thank Offering (UTO) invites all to support the 2020 Ingathering by joining them in gratitude, grabbing a pair of sneakers, and racing YOUR way in the Great EpisGOpal Virtual Race. Anytime between July 22 - July 31, choose a preferred mode and distance and race to raise money for COVID-19 relief. Participants can bike a 10K, run a half marathon, skate a mile, and more—the options are limitless. All of the funds that are raised will be collected for the 2020 UTO Ingathering and dispersed to ministries responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. More information

News from the Anglican Communion

ACEN - Environmental Racism Statement

The Anglican Communion Environmental Network (ACEN) issued a statement on Friday, June19, on Environmental Racism. That date is known in the United States as Juneteenth - a day which commemorates the end of slavery in the US. The statement has been published in English , French , Spanish , and Portuguese, available on the ACEN webpage: acen.anglicancommunion.org .

Anglican Communion Office at the United Nations

The latest newsletter from the Anglican Communion Office at the United Nations (ACOUN) is now available for downloading from the Anglican Communion website here .

Listening Together: Global Anglican Perspectives on the Renewal of Prayer and the Religious Life

This is the third of a three-book series to help Anglicans and others around the world prepare for the next Lambeth Conference. Produced by Theological Education in the Anglican Communion (TEAC), Listening Together explores global Anglican perspectives on the Renewal of Prayer and the Religious Life - one of three priorities of Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby's ministry. The first two books – on reconciliation and evangelism – were launched at the 17th meeting of the Anglican Consultative Council – ACC17 – in Hong Kong in April 2019. Bishops, provincial secretaries and education officers in the Anglican Communion (apart from those in the USA or Canada) can order a free copy of the book by emailing Muthuraj Swamy: [email protected] . In the United States and Canada, Listening Together is published by Foward Movement and is available as an ebook from amazon.com (ASIN: B086N2PFNM). More at  anglicancommunion.org/theology/theological-education/theological-education-resources.aspx .