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[Episcopal News Service] Dennis Bellars, senior warden of St. Elisabeth’s Chapel-by-the-Sea in Ortley Beach, New Jersey, reflects on Hurricane Sandy and considers the future.

Annie Packard, de 13 años, canta durante la eucaristía de la iglesia episcopal de La Trinidad en Copley Square, en el Templo Israel, que invitó a la congregación a usar su santuario el 12 de abril en Boston. La Trinidad se encontraba dentro de la zona bloqueada cerca de la meta de la maratón de Boston, donde explotaron dos bombas el 15 de abril al final de la carrera. Packard estaba en las gradas cuando explotó la primera bomba y corrió en dirección a la segunda bomba, que explotó diez segundos después. Foto de Julio Cortez para la AP.

[Episcopal News Service] Puede que todos no hayan podido llegar a sus iglesias, pero horas después de que el segundo de los dos sospechosos de los atentados de la Maratón de Boston fuera capturado el 19 de abril, los episcopales de la zona de Boston seguían dándose mutuas muestras de apoyo y ofreciéndoles solidaridad a sus vecinos.

La policía capturó a Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, de 19 años, mientras se encontraba escondido en un bote estacionado en un traspatio a sólo unas pocas cuadras de la iglesia del Buen Pastor [Church of the Good Shepherd] en Watertown, Massachusetts. Se encontraba débil debido a una herida de bala luego de huir a pie de un encuentro a tiros con la policía en que se hicieron unos 200 disparos.

La Rda. Amy McCreath, sacerdote encargada del Buen Pastor, le envió un correo electrónico a su congregación poco después de la captura, en el que llamaba a ésta “un gran regalo”.

“La junta parroquial se reunió mediante una llamada en conferencia mientras tenían lugar los sucesos de anoche, para orar por todos ustedes, por sus hijos y especialmente por nuestros vecinos de la calle Franklin”, escribió ella.

La iglesia del Buen Pastor permaneció abierta el 20 de abril para “oración y compañía” y Angelita Caceda fue uno de los miembros que vino a la iglesia al día siguiente de que tuviera lugar en su barrio el drama que era seguido internacionalmente. La noche antes, ella se había mantenido en el piso de su casa mientras la brillante luz de un helicóptero de la policía iluminaba la habitación.

“Cuando vi que era la calle Franklin, me dije ‘eso es por donde yo acostumbro a caminar. Veo ese bote constantemente’”, contó ella en la página web de Salem Patch.

McCreath dijo que la gente entraba en la iglesia y soltaban sus experiencias del día anterior. “Lo tenían dentro y necesitaban compartirlo”.

Esa noche, alrededor de 300 personas se reunieron en el Campo de la Victoria [Victory Field] de Watertown para una vigilia en memoria de las víctimas de los atentados de la Maratón.

“Ésta es una manera en que el ciudadano común puede realmente dar gracias a todos los que cuidan de nosotros”, dijo Mary Labadini —señora de 56 años que se especializa en el cuidado de ancianos y que asistió a la vigilia— en declaraciones al Boston Globe. “Uno no puede darles las gracias a todos individualmente, pero esto muestra que los sentimientos del público están con ellos”.

Los vecinos que acudieron a la vigilia intercambiaban historias sobre las dramáticas acciones de la policía en sus barrios, incluidos los encuentros a tiros y los metódicos registros casa por casa realizados por los equipos de SWAT.

Voluntarios de una filial local de los Veteranos de Guerras Extranjeras entregaban banderas estadounidenses. Los vecinos cantaron espontáneamente el himno nacional y otros cantos patrióticos, recitaron la Jura de la Bandera, y escucharon en silencio mientras McCreath hacia una improvisada oración de acción de gracias.

Thomas Shaw, SSJE [el obispo de] de la Diócesis de Massachusetts, vino al Buen Pastor el 21 de abril “como una señal para nosotros de las oraciones y la solidaridad de la Iglesia denominacional”, dijo McCreath a sus feligreses.

La iglesia contó con la participación de ministros de sanación que oraron con las personas durante la comunión y orientaron la discusión durante la Liturgia de la Palabra para los niños, “para ayudarles a procesar los eventos de la semana y a recobrar la calma y la esperanza”.

El 21 de abril fue el cuarto domingo de Pascua, se conoce como el Domingo del Buen Pastor, porque el evangelio del día es [el pasaje de] Juan 10:22-30, una porción de la historia en que Jesús se llama a sí mismo el buen pastor que da su vida por sus ovejas. Por tanto, es la fiesta patronal de las congregaciones que están bajo la advocación del Buen Pastor.

No todos los episcopales pudieron asistir a sus iglesias para el Domingo del Buen Pastor. La iglesia de La Trinidad de Copley Square, a sólo yardas de donde ocurrieron los atentados cerca de la meta de la maratón, se encontraba todavía inaccesible, debido a que estaba incluida dentro de los límites de la escena del crimen que los investigadores habían establecido. Según un informe, El FBI le permitió a algunos funcionarios de la iglesia que entraran durante media hora el 20 de abril para recoger vestimentas y el pan y el vino para la eucaristía.

La sinagoga Templo Israel abrió sus puertas a la congregación y ésta llenó el santuario que tiene asientos para 900 personas. El rabino Ronne Friedman dijo a CNN que la sinagoga se sentía honrada de acoger a La Trinidad en una hora de necesidad. “Fue hermoso y conmovedor”, “Y fue un recordatorio de los profundos vínculos que existen entre nosotros. Nos recordó a todos que nuestra proximidad no es sólo geográfica.

“Después del trauma de la semana pasada, estamos en una mutua relación de proximidad, espiritual y psicológicamente. Creo que todos sentimos muy profundamente que era un solo Boston”.

El Rdo. Samuel T. Lloyd III, sacerdote a cargo de La Trinidad, oró por aquellos que fueron asesinados “y por los que deben reconstruir sus vidas sin las piernas con las que corrieron y caminaron la semana pasada”, informó Yahoo News.

“Así, pues, ¿dónde está Dios cuando los terroristas hacen su tarea?”, preguntó Lloyd. “Dios está allí, amparándonos y sosteniéndonos. Dios está en el dolor que sufren las víctimas, y en la restauración que seguirá. Dios está con nosotros mientas tratamos de construir un mundo justo, un mundo donde no haya terroristas haciendo su terribles estragos”.

Aún podían verse escombros en las calles cercanas a la iglesia de La Trinidad de Copley Square, seis días después de las bombas que explotaron en la Maratón de Boston. Foto de la iglesia de La Trinidad.

Lloyd estaba entre esos sacerdotes y pastores que compartieron con la revista Time lo que pensaban de predicar el domingo siguiente a esos seis extraordinarios días en Boston. Él escribió que las personas tenían que mencionar lo que los terroristas trataron de hacerles y “mencionar la manera en que ha afectado nuestro espíritu, y luego hablar de todo para lo cual nos congregamos un domingo, para cuidar los unos de los otros, para recordar la gracia y la misericordia en el centro de todo día por día, y la afirmación del llamado a vivir el aquí y el ahora. Todo eso es nuestra respuesta a los empeños de los terroristas de socavar la estructura de nuestras vidas”.

El oficio en la iglesia catedral de San Pablo [Cathedral Church of St. Paul] contigua al Parque Comunal de Boston [Boston Common] incluyó una oración al “Cristo Señor, víctima resucitada,” que “incluso en la cruz pediste el perdón de los que te asesinaron”. La oración en parte pedía a Cristo “recuérdanos de orar por los que nos persiguen. Mantennos fieles a tu justicia y no a la nuestra. Enséñanos a deshacer los ciclos de la violencia y la venganza y danos el valor de actuar conforme a nuestra fe”.

Y, en Londres, el 20 de abril, la Rda. Jacqueline Cameron,  de la Diócesis de Chicago, predicó en el Oficio de Dedicación de la Maratón de Londres, celebrado en la iglesia de Todos los Santos de la Torre [All Hallows by the Tower]. Al día siguiente, Cameron corrió en la Maratón de Londres por segunda vez, y la 14ª. de su participación en maratones en general.

El evento de Londres atrajo mucha atención por tener lugar seis días después de haberse producido el ataque en Boston y, al igual que en Boston, muchos corredores participaron con promesas de apoyo a varias instituciones benéficas.

“El potencial poder restaurador de eventos tales como la Maratón de Londres es al menos tan impactante como el poder de la violencia”, dijo Cameron durante su sermón. “Sí, debemos recordar el dolor. Sí, debemos recordar el sufrimiento y los muertos de los atentados del lunes y de todos los actos de violencia y destrucción que salpican la historia de la humanidad. Pero también debemos aprender a no cargarnos de amargura ni envenenarnos con un deseo de venganza. Y una de las mejores formas de hacer eso es dejar que nuestro dolor nos estimule a realizar actos de valor, de alegría y de compasión”.

—La Rda. Mary Frances Schjonberg es redactora y reportera de Episcopal News Service.

Traducción de Vicente Echerri

[Diocese of Central Pennsylvania] Sometime this summer, St. Andrew’s in the City will become the Diocese of Central Pennsylvania’s newest mission.

Founded as a mission more than a hundred years ago St. Andrew’s in the City rapidly grew into a parish in the thriving area of Allison Hill in Harrisburg. With movement out of the city during the post-World War II period, St. Andrew’s in the City established a mission church in the Linglestown area of Harrisburg – St. Andrew’s in the Valley.

With the rapid movement of residents out of the city and the economic decline of Harrisburg due to the loss of industry, the demographic of the city changed. Over time, the economic vitality of the city shifted to the more suburban valley. The parish continued to operate as one with one vestry and one rector, but the city church faced increasing challenges as the neighborhood of Allison Hill changed and the parish got older.

St. Andrew’s in the City still provided the endowments to pay off the Valley church’s mortgage and gave significant operating funds to the valley church. But a move grew to collapse the city church into being just the valley church.

Bishop Nathan Baxter, a son of the city of Harrisburg, sent his staff in to see what the city church wanted to do. The staff met with a congregation that had lost hope and felt bad about itself. Members had been told they were a burden on the valley and needed to close, and they were afraid of losing their church.

Through a process of Appreciative Inquiry, the congregants explored their history, mission and new ways of being church. They invited a Baptist church to use their facilities, which generated income as well as making a statement to the community. Later a Mennonite church began using the facility, too.

“Now we are heeding God’s call and re-establishing our church with a new mission to the community,” said Troy Thompson, a lifetime member of St. Andrew’s. “St. Andrew’s has been touched by the Spirit, and our energy and fire have to be replenished to spread God’s word.”

St. Andrew’s in the City is now one of four “enterprise zones” being redeveloped by the diocese. The idea is to assist churches identified as ones where growth might be obtained by thoughtful investment. In the process, the diocese will become a “learning diocese” as it studies each zone and learns from its efforts.

“We expect mistakes. We expect successes,” said the Rev. Ted Babcock, canon to the ordinary. “Each new enterprise zone provides the diocese valuable information on how to go about strengthening our presence in Central Pennsylvania and the city is one of four now redeveloping their ministry.”

At St. Andrew’s, he said, “The Spirit has manifested itself in a call to plan and execute a radical makeover of the parish building. The old is coming out, and the new is coming in.”

The process began April 13 with “D-Day,” or Dumpster Day, when members asked two parishes and the other mission church of the diocese to come and help them clean out the city facilities in preparation of an “extreme makeover” to begin on June 1.

More than 30 people came to help. In less than three hours, they cleaned the entire church and former rectory of years of debris and other “stored” items that had built up. The cleanup filled a large dumpster, and some of the more valuable items were contributed to the Valley for its own tag sale.

On June 1, more than 80 people from throughout the diocese are expected to help with the makeover. The first two floors of the church building will be painted. Old wiring will be replaced and the plumbing repaired. Afterward, new carpeting and a new tile floor will be laid. So far, St. Andrew’s has raised more than $50,000 to begin the makeover.

The church’s neighbors are taking notice of the revitalization. One Dumpster Day, onlooker Sonja, a Hispanic pastor who lives next door to St. Andrews in the City, said, “This restoration is bringing the church back to life in the community.

“I wonder if there is room for our Hispanic neighbors to do Bible study?”

– Linda Arguedas is canon for events, programs and communications in the Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania.

[Diocese of Chicago -- Press Release] The Episcopal Diocese of Chicago announced April 25 that it will share a $10 million gift from Ab Nicholas and his wife, Nancy.

Mr. Nicholas is the founder of Nicholas Company Inc., a Milwaukee-based investment advisory firm that manages the Nicholas mutual funds. The gift is the largest in the diocese’s 187-year history.

The gift will be shared with Living Compass Faith and Wellness Initiative and will create The Nicholas Center, a facility at the St. James Commons in downtown Chicago. The center, expected to open in 2014, will be home to overnight retreats and programs that foster the health and wellness of Episcopal leaders and the vitality of church congregations.

The Nicholas Center will also serve as the headquarters of Living Compass, now located in suburban Milwaukee. Living Compass, led by the Rev. Dr. Scott Stoner and Holly Hughes Stoner, longtime associates of Mr. Nicholas, provides resources, coaching and training to help church leaders, families and teens gain balance and wholeness in their lives.

“Nancy and I are excited to join with and support the exciting energy that is already present in both the Diocese of Chicago and the Living Compass Faith and Wellness Initiative,” said Mr. Nicholas, a lifelong Episcopalian. “In my life in the business world I have seen that effective leadership makes all the difference. I believe it is the same in the church. We are delighted that the Nicholas Center will be a place and a program that will resource the leaders of the church.”

The announcement was made by the Rt. Rev. Jeffrey D. Lee, bishop of Chicago, at the dedication of St. James Commons, the renovated complex at 65 E. Huron St. that is home to the diocesan offices, St. James Cathedral, Episcopal Charities and Community Services and Episcopal Service Corps.

“What we focus on grows,” said Lee. “We need to focus on the health and wellness of our church leaders and the vitality of our congregations so we can do God’s work of feeding the hungry, advocating for the oppressed, and testifying to the power of the risen Christ in our lives and our world. This generous gift from Ab and Nancy Nicholas and our exciting partnership with the Living Compass Faith and Wellness Initiative makes possible outward and visible signs of the interior heart and soul renovation work that is our job as Christians.”

St. James Commons also includes the Pepper Family Plaza, made possible by a $3.2 million gift from Richard and Roxelyn Pepper. Mr. Pepper is chairman of Chicago-based Pepper Construction Group LLC. The gifts from Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas and Mr. and Mrs. Pepper are the two largest gifts in the history of the diocese, which was founded in 1835.

The dedication event was chaired by Kitty Beecken, who, together with her husband, David, established the D. Kyle Beecken Memorial Gallery at St. James Commons in memory of their son. David Beecken is a founding partner of Beecken Petty O’Keefe & Company, a private equity management firm working in the healthcare industry.

In 2011, the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago launched The Campaign for St. James Commons to undertake $12 million in significant and essential renovations to the diocesan center at 65 E. Huron St. in Chicago. The campaign has raised $8 million of its goal and the construction is nearing its end. Of the new $10 million gift from Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas, $1 million has been allocated to the current campaign goal. The remaining $9 million will make possible renovations at St. James Commons and ministry with Living Compass that were beyond the scope of the original plan for the St. James Commons renovation.

The Episcopal Diocese of Chicago comprises 40,000 people in 124 congregations in Northern Illinois. 

Living Compass Faith and Wellness Initiative was founded in 2008 by the Rev. Dr. Scott Stoner, an Episcopal priest, pastoral psychotherapist and spiritual director,and Holly Hughes Stoner, a licensed marriage and family therapist and former teacher. Today Living Compass works across the church providing resources, coaching and training to foster the balance and wholeness of church leaders, families, and teens.

Scott Bader-Saye will become academic dean of the Seminary of the Southwest on June 1. Photo/Seminary of the Southwest

[Seminary of the Southwest -- Press Release] Dean and President elect Cynthia Briggs Kittredge announced on Monday, April 22, her appointment of Dr. Scott Bader-Saye to academic dean beginning June 1, 2013, at Seminary of the Southwest.

“A fine teacher and thoughtful scholar, Scott has shown himself to be a wise, fair, and skilled leader in the faculty and the wider community,” said Kittredge. “I am very excited that Scott has agreed to serve in this role in our common life, and I look forward to working together in the days to come.”

Dr. Bader-Saye holds the Helen and Everett H. Jones Chair of Christian Ethics and Moral Theology. He  joined the seminary faculty as professor in 2009, after teaching undergraduates and graduate students for twelve years at the University of Scranton in Scranton, PA. He holds degrees from Davidson College (AB), Yale Divinity School (MDiv), and Duke University (PhD). His primary teaching interests include economy, ecology, political theology, virtue ethics, and interfaith dialogue. He will continue to teach the core ethics courses at Southwest while serving as academic dean.

Dr. Bader-Saye has authored two books, Following Jesus in a Culture of Fear and Church and Israel After Christendom, and he has contributed to The Blackwell Companion to Christian Ethics and The Cambridge Companion to the Gospels.

Scott and his wife Demery Bader-Saye have three boys. They attend St. Julian of Norwich Episcopal Church in northwest Austin where Scott serves as theologian in residence.

The Rev. Cynthia Briggs Kittredge will take office as dean and president upon the retirement of Douglas Travis on May 31, 2013.

[Lambeth Palace -- Press Release] Since the very first days of the Syrian conflict in March 2011, we have prayed as we watched in horror and sorrow the escalating violence that has rent this country apart. We have grieved with all Syrians – with the families of each and every human life lost and with all communities whose neighbourhoods and livelihoods have suffered from escalating and pervasive violence.

And today, our prayers also go with the ancient communities of our Christian brothers and sisters in Syria. The kidnapping this week of two Metropolitan bishops of Aleppo, Mar Gregorios Ibrahim of the Syriac Orthodox Church and Paul Yazigi of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch, and the killing of their driver while they were carrying out a humanitarian mission, is another telling sign of the terrible circumstances that continue to engulf all Syrians..

We unreservedly support these Christian communities, rooted in and attached to the biblical lands, despite the many hardships. We respond to the call from the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and all the East, and the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and all the East, urging churches worldwide to remain steadfast in the face of challenging realities and to bear witness to their faith in the power of love in this world.

We both continue to pray for a political solution to this tragic conflict that would stem the terrible violence and also empower all Syrians with their fundamental and inalienable freedoms. We also call for urgent humanitarian aid to reach all who are suffering. We pray that Syria can recapture its tradition of tolerance, rooted in faith and respect for faiths living side by side.

+ Justin Welby         

+ Vincent Nichols

[Episcopal Church Office of Public Affairs -- Press Release] In the next four months – May 1 to August 31 – the Episcopal Church will witness the consecration of two bishops, the elections of two bishops, and the canonical consent process underway for two bishops-elect.

Consecrations

Two consecrations of a bishop are slated for May to August.  Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori will officiate at the ordination service.

June 15: Diocese of North Carolina Suffragan consecration – The Rev. Anne Hodges-Copple was elected January 25 (pending completion of successful canonical consent process.

July 20: Diocese of Southwest Virginia consecration – The Rev. Mark Bourlakas was elected March 9 (pending completion of successful canonical consent process).

Elections

During May to August, two bishop elections are scheduled:

May 4: Diocese of New Jersey

May 18: Diocese of Western Michigan

Canonical Consent Process

The canonical consent process is currently underway for two bishops-elect. The deadlines are: 

July 9:  The Rev. Anne Hodges-Copple elected as bishop suffragan of the Dioceses of North Carolina January 25.

August 10: The Rev. Mark Bourlakas elected as Bishop Diocesan of Southwestern Virginia March 9.

A recap of the process                                                  

Upon election, the successful candidate is a Bishop-Elect.  Following some procedural matters including examinations, formal notices are then sent to bishops with jurisdiction (diocesan bishops only) with separate notices to the standing committees of each of the dioceses in the Episcopal Church. These notices require their own actions and signatures.

In order for a Bishop-Elect to become a bishop, under Cannon III.11.4, 6 of the Episcopal Church, a majority of bishops with jurisdiction AND the majority of diocesan standing committees must consent to the bishop-elect’s ordination as bishop within 120 days of receiving notice of the election.  These actions are done separately.

Once the Presiding Bishop receives the necessary consents, she shall “without delay” notify the electing diocese and the bishop-elect without waiting for the expiration of the 120-day period, and “shall,” upon acceptance of the election by the bishop-elect, “take order for the ordination.”

However, if the majority of the Diocesan bishops do not consent, and/or the majority of the standing committees do not consent, the Presiding Bishop, in accordance with Canon III.11.5, is required to declare the election null and void. In those cases, a person elected by the diocese will not be ordained.

[25 de abril de  2013] En los próximos cuatro meses – del 1 de mayo al 31 de agosto – la Iglesia Episcopal será testigo de la consagración de dos obispos, la elección de dos obispos y el progreso del proceso de consentimiento canónigo de dos obispos electos.

Consagraciones
Dos consagraciones de un obispo fueron programadas para mayo hasta agosto. La obispa presidente Katharine Jefferts Schori presidirá el servicio de ordenación.

15 de junio: Consagración sufragánea en la Diócesis de Carolina del Norte – La Rda.  Anne Hodges-Copple fue elegida el 25 de enero (se encuentra pendiente la terminación exitosa del proceso de consentimiento canónico)

20 de julio: Consagración en la Diócesis del Sudoeste de Virginia, el Rdo. Mark Bourlakas fue elegido el 9 de marzo (se encuentra pendiente la terminación exitosa del proceso de consentimiento canónico)

Elecciones
Durante los meses de mayo y agosto, se han programado dos elecciones de obispos.

4 de mayo: Diócesis de Nueva Jersey 

18 de mayo: Diócesis del Oeste de Michigan

Proceso de consentimiento canónico
El proceso de consentimiento canónico se encuentra actualmente en progreso para dos obispos electos. Las fechas límites son:

9 de julio:  la Rda. Anne Hodges-Copple elegida Obispa Sufragánea de la Diócesis deCarolina del Norte el 25 de enero.

10 de agosto:  El Rdo. Mark Bourlakas elegido Obispo de la Diócesis del Sudoeste de Virginia  el 9 de marzo.

Resumen del proceso
Tras la elección el candidato elegido es un obispo electo. Después de algunas cuestiones del procedimiento incluyendo exámenes, se envían avisos formales a los obispos con jurisdicción (solo obispos diocesanos) y avisos separados a los comités permanentes de cada una de la diócesis de la Iglesia Episcopal. Estos avisos requieren sus propias acciones y firmas.

Para que un obispo electo se convierta en obispo, de acuerdo a los cánones de la Iglesia Episcopal III.11.4, 6, la mayoría de los obispos con jurisdicción Y la mayoría de los comités permanentes diocesanos deben dar consentimiento a la ordenación del obispo electo dentro de 120 días de haber recibido el aviso de la elección. Estas medidas son realizadas por separado.

Una vez que la obispa presidente reciba los consentimientos necesarios, ella deberá “sin demora” avisar a la diócesis electa y al obispo electo sin esperar a que se pase el período de los 120 días, y “deberá” tras la aceptación del obispo electo, “tomar órdenes para la ordenación”.

Sin embargo, si la mayoría de los obispos diocesanos no da su consentimiento. y/o la mayoría de los comités permanentes no otorga el consentimiento, la Obispa Presidente, de acuerdo con los cánones III.11.5, deberá declarar la elección nula y sin validez. En esos casos, una persona elegida por la diócesis no será ordenada.

[Episcopal Relief & Development -- Press Release] On April 25, World Malaria Day, Episcopal Relief & Development’s NetsforLife® malaria prevention program is joining with its partners to celebrate the gains made so far in stopping this deadly disease, and call for renewed support from local and international stakeholders to “Invest in the Future. Defeat Malaria.”

Working through local Church and community partners, NetsforLife® has had a major impact on malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.  The program’s methodology of hanging nets in homes has resulted in higher rates of net coverage and a greater reduction in malaria-related deaths than the standard distribution method.  Although the cost of distributing nets directly to households is higher than positioning them at a fixed collection point, coverage and retention rates are much better when the NetsforLife® methodology is implemented, leading to a decline in area mosquito populations and a reduction in malaria-related sickness and death.

“The strengths of our award-winning NetsforLife® model are that we work through local communities and physically hang nets above people’s sleeping areas,” said Gifty Tetteh, Strategic Outreach Officer for NetsforLife®.  “Because we train and work through local volunteers, their neighbors trust them to bring nets into their homes and install them, and later follow-up visits help ensure that the nets are in place and maintained properly.”

In 2012, a study by the University of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo evaluated the effectiveness of the NetsforLife® “hang-up” methodology versus the standard distribution method in two villages of comparable size.  Net possession rates increased from 30% to 98.6% in the village where the NetsforLife® methodology was used (compared to 88.6% in the other village) and five months later 85.5% of homes still had their nets (compared to 68.5%).  Even though the NetsforLife® method requires more personnel and resources to implement, its impact extends beyond typical outcome statistics.  Increased involvement and community engagement gives the program an influence beyond the life span of a single net by creating a “net culture” where malaria prevention is valued and practiced widely.

“Because we work through local churches, we intentionally think long term,” said Abagail Nelson, Senior Vice President for Programs.  “The churches have a deep and lasting presence in the communities, reinforcing the relationships of neighbor helping neighbor, and building up knowledge in the communities and the civil society.  When individuals, families, and neighbors have the knowledge to prevent malaria, wellness becomes a community effort and all are empowered.

Community involvement is the key factor that makes the NetsforLife® methodology so much more impactful than the standard distribution method.  In order to spread the word about malaria and encourage people to protect their families with nets, local Malaria Control Agents and NetsforLife® staff plan fun and creative activities that all generations can enjoy.  For example, in Liberia, NetsforLife® and its local partners are hosting a World Malaria Day event in Riverness County that includes door-to-door education, dramatic skits about malaria prevention, traditional cultural dancers and a soccer match with NetsforLife® and the National Malaria Control Program versus the County Health Team.  In Mozambique, the Anglican Diocese of Lebombo will distribute 100 nets to pregnant women and children under five, as well as flood victims through the hospital in Chókwe.

“It is wonderful to see the creative ways in which communities are gathering to celebrate the progress that has been made in the fight against malaria,” said Rob Radtke, President of Episcopal Relief & Development.  “In my visits throughout Africa, I have enjoyed being in the audience with people watching their friends and neighbors act out skits dramatizing the importance of installing nets over sleeping areas.  The success of NetsforLife® is grounded in this kind of community involvement, and I am thankful to all of the staff and volunteers whose tireless efforts are making such a difference.”

In the United States, as well, community involvement in supporting NetsforLife® through the NetsforLife® Inspiration Fund was key in achieving the campaign’s three-year, $5 million fundraising goal.  Launched after the Episcopal Church’s 2009 General Convention, the NetsforLife® Inspiration Fund was a church-wide, grassroots campaign to educate, engage and unite Episcopalians in the fight against malaria.  The campaign exceeded its goal in early 2013, thanks to local campaigns run by congregations, dioceses, schools and seminaries, and the committed generosity of thousands of Episcopalians and other supporters.

“The NetsforLife® Inspiration Fund was a tremendous effort on the part of Episcopalians to help combat malaria,” said Joy Shigaki, the organization’s Senior Director of Advancement, who headed the Church-wide campaign.  “Every net that was donated will help prevent needless suffering and death due to this disease, and the program’s work to educate people about malaria and early treatment will have a long-lasting impact.  I am grateful to everyone who contributed to the campaign, for helping to empower communities with tools and knowledge to stop malaria.”

Moving forward, NetsforLife®’s 2013 goal is to distribute 3 million nets and influence the national malaria control policies of seven countries in addition to the five that have already adopted the “hang-up” methodology.  The program will also begin piloting net replacement strategies in areas where the three-year life span of the original nets has been exceeded.  Throughout NetsforLife®’s ongoing work, the collection of meaningful data will continue to be a priority, and collaboration with universities and independent institutions will be an area of growth.  It is expected that robust analysis of the program’s impact will further establish NetsforLife® as a key player in the effort to end malaria.

El Rdo. Juan Antonio Rosario, a la derecha, conversa con el Dr. Richard Taft y el Rdo. Diácono Roger Wood, a la izquierda y el centro respectivamente, durante una visita a San Gabriel, en Consuelo. Foto de Lynette Wilson para ENS.

[Episcopal News Service – Santo Domingo, República Dominicana] El minibús que lleva a los episcopales de Michigan y Carolina del Sur bordeaba la línea costera mientras viajaba hacia el este por la Autopista 3 desde Santo Domingo a Boca Chica, la primera de siete escalas para visitar misiones y ministerios de la Iglesia Episcopal Dominicana. En los días siguientes, el minibús tomaría rumbo oeste y luego norte, deteniéndose en iglesias, escuelas, clínicas, guarderías infantiles y hogares de ancianos.

La Iglesia Episcopal Dominicana y sus ministerios están creciendo y prosperando gracias a un pujante liderazgo, a la labor de evangelización y a la ayuda de sus muchos asociados en EE.UU. Sólo en 2012, 70 equipos de misiones estadounidenses visitaron la República Dominicana.

“Tiene mucho que ver con el carácter ‘emprendedor’ del obispo [Julio C. Holguín] y su visión de llevar la Iglesia adelante”, dijo el obispo Wilfrido Ramos-Orench, encargado de asociaciones globales de la Iglesia Episcopal para la IX Provincia.

El clero y el laicado han asumido la responsabilidad y han participado de esa visión junto con el Grupo Dominicano de Desarrollo, añadió él. “El objetivo es ser autosuficiente, a través de la asociación, para 2015”.

La Iglesia Episcopal de la República Dominicana es una de las siete diócesis de la IX Provincia, que se extiende a través del Caribe, América Central y el norte de América del Sur, y es una de las diócesis de más rápido crecimiento en la Iglesia Episcopal. En 1998, se creó el Grupo Dominicano de Desarrollo para ayudar en el desarrollo y la autosuficiencia de la Iglesia Episcopal Dominicana. En 15 años, ha recaudado más de 10 millones de dólares para costear la construcción de infraestructuras, incluidas iglesias, escuelas, guarderías infantiles y clínicas de salud.

Es un modelo, dijo Ramos-Orench, que puede aprenderse a través de la IX Provincia, la cual, en marzo de 2012, adoptó la autosuficiencia como una meta. [La Diócesis de Puerto Rico, que dirige un extenso sistema de atención sanitaria, es la única diócesis autosuficiente de la provincia].

La República Dominicana ocupa los dos tercios orientales de la isla Española. El otro tercio pertenece a Haití, donde se encuentra la diócesis más grande de la Iglesia Episcopal.

La diócesis dominicana ha crecido en un 20 por ciento en los últimos 10 años y ha disminuido su dependencia de la Iglesia Episcopal, de un 84 por ciento a un 18 por ciento en los últimos 20 años. Desde 1991, el número de iglesias ha aumentado de 24 a más de 70 misiones y estaciones de predicación, entre ellas 37 templos, de 13 que había entonces. El número de escuelas ha aumentado de siete a 27, según datos estadísticos del Grupo Dominicano de Desarrollo. Y en 20 años el número de episcopales en la República Dominicana ha aumentado de 2.500 a 8.000.

Prueba de ese crecimiento pude encontrarse en las dos iglesias del Rdo. Adolfo Moronta. En San Pablo y San Lucas, en la ciudad de San Isidro, su congregación de 50 a 60 personas se prepara para comenzar la construcción de una iglesia. En [la iglesia] de La Gracia, en Boca Chica, Moronta aumentó la congregación de dos a 42 personas en seis meses.

La iglesia está creciendo, dijo él, debido a su firme conexión con la gente. “Podemos tener una relación personal con la gente, visitar sus hogares y llegar a conocer sus familias y sus necesidades, y también cuáles son sus talentos [para el liderazgo laico de la Iglesia]”, dijo Moronta a ENS. “No sólo somos saludables espiritualmente, sino pastoralmente”.

El 14 de abril, más de 2.000 personas se reunieron para celebrar, con una eucaristía el crecimiento de la diócesis, 116 años de existencia y 100 años en la Iglesia episcopal. Entre los asistentes había unos 70 estadounidenses que están en relaciones de compañerismo con la diócesis.

Cien años en la Iglesia Episcopal tiene una gran significación, dijo el obispo Holguín a ENS, porque “aunque vivimos en una isla, no estamos aislados”.

“La celebración nos hace avanzar para llevar a cabo la misión de Dios; somos una Iglesia en misión, y eso es lo que estamos celebrando, la misión”, añadió. “Es por eso que decimos ‘encuentro en misión’ y queremos la participación de las diócesis compañeras”.

La diócesis tiene más de una docena de relaciones de compañerismo con diócesis en EE.UU., entre ellas Carolina del Este, Michigan Oriental, Michigan, Michigan Occidental, Georgia, Nebraska, Texas Noroccidental (o del Noroeste), Carolina del Sur, Virginia, Florida Sudoccidental (o del Sudoeste) y Luisiana Occidental. La mayoría, si no todas, estuvieron representadas en la eucaristía y en las jornadas precedentes durante el encuentro de tres días auspiciado por la diócesis para darles a conocer a sus asociados los proyectos de misión de la Iglesia a través del país.

Muchos de los visitantes provenientes de los Estados Unidos se quedaron para  la gira en autobús que los llevaría a visitar iglesias y ministerios diocesanos del 15 al 17 de abril, entre ellos los miembros de las tres diócesis del Bajo Michigan.

Hace unos pocos años, tres obispos que representaban las tres diócesis del extremo inferior de la península de Michigan —Oriental, Occidental y Michigan— viajaron a la República Dominicana en un viaje exploratorio y enseguida se dieron cuenta “que no se trataba de dinero, sino de reunir a personas”, dijo Todd Ousley, obispo de Michigan Oriental, durante el encuentro “Juntos podemos: Encuentro en Misión con Iglepidom” [sigla esta última de la Iglesia Episcopal Dominicana].

“Lo misional tiene que ver con relaciones, y lleva tiempo”, dijo Ousley.

El tiempo dedicado a crear relaciones en la República Dominicana nos ha abierto “los ojos a la posibilidad de un espíritu revitalizado”, afirmó. “Somos una diócesis pequeña y somos iglesias pequeñas, de manera que la relación es fundamental para nosotros. Y aquí es lo mismo, [el obispo] Julio me ayuda a ver eso”.

La Rda. Bonnie Smith, diácona en la iglesia episcopal de San Pablo [St. Paul’s] y la iglesia luterana de El Calvario en Elk Rapids, en la Diócesis de Michigan Occidental, habían visitado antes la República Dominicana como parte de un equipo de profesionales de la medicina. Siendo una enfermera pediátrica, aprovechó la oportunidad de visitar la Iglesia como representante de su diócesis y evaluar la mejor manera en que la diócesis podía participar más estrechamente, dijo.

Se quedó impresionada por los muchos proyectos de construcción que estaban en marcha, así como por su energía y su espíritu [de la Iglesia dominicana], afirmó.

“La evangelización sale del corazón”, dijo Smith. “En los Estados Unidos tendemos a ser más cerebrales”.

Adolescentes juegan baloncesto en Todos los Santos, La Romana. Foto de Lynette Wilson para ENS.

Este año, 60 equipos de misión ya han programado visitar la diócesis, dijo Bill Kunkle, director ejecutivo entrante del Grupo Dominicano de Desarrollo. Él sustituirá a Bob Stevens, que ha dirigido la organización desde su fundación y que seguirá trabajando con la Iglesia como asesor en la IX Provincia.

Kunkle, contratista de obras y miembro de la iglesia de San Marcos [St. Mark’s] en Tampa, Florida, visitó por primera vez la República Dominicana en 2000. A partir de ahí, comentó, la misión fue, poco a poco, abarcándolo todo en su vida.

Parte de su trabajo, dijo él, es seguir creando firmes relaciones de compañerismo en misión, pero él también enfrenta retos. Por ejemplo, la diócesis está buscando nuevos modos de financiar el funcionamiento de la Clínica Esperanza y Caridad, una clínica de salud pública en la ciudad costera de San Pedro de Macorís que atendió a más de 20.000 pacientes el año pasado.

El Ministerio de Salud Pública del gobierno pone el personal de la clínica, pero la administra la diócesis, que también ofrece un programa de VIH/SIDA, al margen de la clínica, dirigido por el Dr. Michael Dohn, que ha sido misionero durante mucho tiempo. Como los fondos para los programas del VIH/SIDA han comenzado a agotarse, la diócesis necesita encontrar otro modo de financiar la clínica, dijo Kunkle.

El 15 de abril, el autobús se detuvo en la clínica. El autobús también paró en varias escuelas y en lugares donde se proyectan escuelas técnicas e iglesias. Los participantes se enteraron de que el turismo, la agricultura y las manufacturas en zonas comerciales brindan la mayoría de las oportunidades de empleo del país, pero en algunas regiones la tasa de desempleo excede al 60 por ciento y puede llegar al 80 por ciento.

Lo más difícil para los estadounidenses que participan en la misión en lugares como la República Dominicana, donde el 18 por ciento de la población vive en extrema pobreza, es reprimir el impulso a hacerse cargo de las cosas, dijo la Rda. Linda Sue Crane, diácona de la iglesia episcopal de la Gracia [Grace Episcopal Church] en Port Huron en la Diócesis de Michigan Oriental.

“Estamos aquí para mostrarles que ellos pueden hacer sus sueños realidad”, dijo ella. “Como diáconos somos iconos de la Iglesia. Nuestra tarea es salir al mundo y traer a los necesitados”.

Loretta Tabor de la iglesia episcopal de Todos los Santos [All Saints Episcopal Church] en Hilton Head en la Iglesia Episcopal de Carolina del Sur, dijo que estaba impresionada por lo que aprendió durante el encuentro y lo que vio en la gira del autobús.

“Estas son personas que realmente viven de al manera que Cristo quería que viviéramos, lo comparten todo”, subrayó. “Lo que podemos hacer realmente es una gota de agua en el balde”.

– Lynette Wilson es redactora y reportera de Episcopal News Service. 

Traducido por Vicente Echerri

[Anglican Communion News Service] Churches and Christians are being urged to mark Sunday May 12 as a special day of prayer for the media – and to contact their local newspaper, radio and TV station to find out what they would like prayer for.

The call comes from Christian charity The Church and Media Network, which works to promote links between the church and the media.
The Day of Prayer is being supported by Archbishop of York John Sentamu and Diocese of Bradford Bishop Nick Baines, who have both provided prayers for the event.

Sentamu’s prayer reads:
Lord Jesus Christ, you speak and bring all that is seen and unseen into being: we give you thanks for the gift of the media to reach the far flung places of the earth with messages of hope and life. We give you thanks for those who risk their security and even their lives to expose injustice and to bring news of hope. May they strive to be the bearers of good news that all people may come to know the abundant life for which we have been created; and yet more wonderfully redeemed in Jesus Christ. We offer our prayer in your name, in the power of the Holy Spirit for the glory of the Father. Amen.

Baines’ prayer reads:
God, whose ‘let there be’ kicked life into being, enliven us who by our word and imageShine light on truth. God, whose ‘word made flesh’ showed us the face of the father, open our eyes to see through your eyes the truth about the world. God, whose breath gives life to creation, breathe through us, that our words and work might bring life and hope in the light of the truth you show us. In the name of the word made flesh who turned flesh into word. Amen.

The Rev. Tony Miles, BBC Radio 2 “Pause for Thought” and Premier Radio broadcaster, chairs the Church and Media Network. He said: “The British media is under scrutiny as never before. Illegal and unethical practices by some journalists have combined with tough economic times and pressures from new technology to make these challenging times for everyone working in the media.”

Miles, a Methodist minister and media chaplain based at Methodist Central Hall, Westminster, added: “As Christians, we want to affirm that the media can be a positive influence for good in society and has a vital role to play in our national, local and international life. We also want to affirm those numerous people of goodwill and of faith working within the media.”

Churches are being encouraged to contact their local media to ask for points for prayer, and to invite local editors to speak at church events.

They are being asked to tweet their support for the Day of Prayer @churchandmedia and use #pray4media.

Materials for the day, written by Peter Crumpler, former director of communications for the Church of England’s Archbishops’ Council, are available on the Church and Media Network’s website here.

[Bexley Seabury -- Press Release] The federation of Bexley Hall and Seabury Western Theological Seminary, now known as Bexley Seabury, will be inaugurated on Saturday at a Festival Eucharist in the chapel of Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis. The Rt. Rev. Catherine Waynick, bishop of the Diocese of Indianapolis will preside and the Very Rev. Ian Markham, dean and president of Virginia Theological Seminary, will preach.

At the service, the Rev. Dr. Roger A. Ferlo will be installed as the federation’s first president and the Rt. Rev. Diane Jardine Bruce, bishop suffragan of the Diocese of Los Angeles, and the Rev. Canon Carlson Gerdau, former canon to Presiding Bishops Frank Griswold and Katharine Jefferts Schori, will be granted the doctor of divinity, honoris causa. Bruce is a 2011 alumna of Seabury’s Doctor of Ministry program, and Gerdau has served on the Bexley board since 1995.

On Friday, the schools will host a free public program titled “Restoring the Biblical Imagination” at Christian Theological Seminary.  “We want to explore the richness of Christian symbols, especially the rich language of Scripture, in a way that encourages honest religious conversation rather than stopping it cold,” said Ferlo, who designed the event and secured support for it from the Henry A. Luce Foundation. “Only by restoring our sense of generosity and beauty in our own scriptural traditions can we participate with integrity in the vibrant pluralism that more and more defines the American religious experience.”

The afternoon’s first workshop, titled “A Muslim, a Jew and a Christian Walk into a Cafe:  Building Relationships through Scriptural Study,” will introduce participants to a method of interfaith study called “Scriptural Reasoning.”

“In Scriptural Reasoning, Christians, Muslims and Jews come together in conversation around our scriptures, but there is no larger agenda,” said the Rev. Dr. Jason Fout, professor at Bexley and organizer of the workshop. “We engage the scriptures for the sake of God, not for the sake of saying, ‘See, we all believe the same thing.’ One of the wonderful things in Scriptural Reasoning is that we come as a Christian, we come as a Jew, we come as a Muslim. It is through the deep particularity of our faith that we come together. We often have a convergence, but we also disagree.”

Fout will lead the workshop with Sarah Snyder of the Cambridge Inter-Faith Programme in Cambridge, England, Joshua Stanton of the Center for Global Judaism at Hebrew College in Massachusetts, and Omar Shaukat, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Virginia.

The second workshop, “The Bible for Nones:  Sights and Sounds of Scripture,” will be an experiential workshop that uses images and sound to explore the Bible.

“Scriptural truth beyond words appeals to the heart as well as the mind,” said the Rev. Dr. John Dally, organizer of the workshop and professor at Seabury. “We will explore ways of reflecting on scripture that can provide openings for conversations with the growing number of Americans who identify with no religious group.”

Joining Dally at the workshop will be the Rev. Dr. Frank Yamada, president of McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago, and the Rev. Shaun Whitehead, associate chaplain at St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York.

“Restoring the Biblical Imagination” will begin with a keynote address by Ferlo and will conclude with a panel discussion that he will moderate.

 

[Anglican Communion News Service] The Anglican Diocese of Southern Malawi has called on all the country’s politicians to avoid “the turncoat habit that is prevalent among them” saying it is “unhelpful for nation building and good governance.”

The sharp rebuke came in a statement following the Diocese’s 7th Holy Synod meeting in Blantyre from April 13 to 14.

“This [habit] exposes their lack of principle and erodes their integrity,” it added. “Being a politician is a calling from God and, as servants of the Almighty for the governance of his people, our politicians are duty-bound to emulate the example of Jesus Christ.”

The synod’s decision to address issues of leadership comes as Malawi prepares for its tripartite elections next year.

“Where are the politicians of nerve and principle? We believe that…the Lord has given us the Holy Spirit as our helper,” the synod said. “Can would-be politicians honestly say that you will do what you do as Christ would have you do it?”

“We are all aware that the race for the next president, next parliament and local government is on through the forthcoming Tripartite Elections 2014. We pray that those would-be politicians would do their electioneering as though they are doing it for Christ,” said the synod.

“It is our prayer that the dignity and integrity of all our politicians will be exhibited in their campaign speeches and behaviour. Hate speech and violence has no place in God-fearing Malawi.”

The synod called upon the church and all people of good will to pray for free and fair elections and for people of integrity to be elected to parliament and local government. “We will set aside a time to pray for our nation and for the elections especially. We pray for all those whose responsibility it is to run the elections and for all our security organs so that they be servants of peace and not of violence.”

While setting their sights on their political leaders, synod members made it clear that all Malawians had a responsibility to work together to address the country’s problems and promote national development.

“We continue to state that failures of development can no longer be attributed solely to the inability of the governments, institutions and people in-charge of implementing it.

“Instead of finger pointing, let us dig into the recesses of our minds and bring out our God-given knowledge and skills and find the answer. In addition it would be prudent for the government to heed the cry of the people over what they perceive to be its tendency to over-expend on the budget.”

Like many other African countries, Malawi has major economic challenges with a very high cost of living and an inflation rate of 37.5%.

The synod also called for the “repositioning of the whole financial sector including the central bank if the country is to create an environment conducive for economic growth.”

It said that the changes are important if the country is “to stimulate large-scale manufacturing, mining and tourism which are capital intensive and which we require to in order to industrialise.”

The synod emphasised that making structural adjustments to the financial sector would spur national economic growth, job creation and price stability.

In recent times, advocacy against gender-based violence has taken center stage within the church in Africa. In the statement, the diocese appealed to all Malawians to take a lead in denouncing all demeaning talk, action and attitudes on gender. It added that all Christians should focus on combating and denouncing violence against women in all its forms.

“We are committed to the physical, psychological, social and economic development of girls and women through education, and organising sports,” said the synod. “We encourage communities to remove barriers and create opportunities for girls and women to live self-determined lives.”

The synod concluded by underscoring the importance of the fight against HIV and AIDS. “The scourge is still with us! We, therefore, plead with all our brothers and sisters to test for HIV,” said the synod.

“We have seen enough suffering and death due to HIV and AIDS. It is time we said no to fear, no to stigma, no to HIV and yes to life. Let the deaths of those who have already died encourage us to desire life.”

The synod’s full statement here.

El 19 de abril, equipos de la SWAT entran en un barrio suburbano de Watertown, Massachusetts, para registrar un apartamento en busca del sospechoso de los atentados de la maratón de Boston que aún no había sido capturado. Reuters/Jessica Rinaldi

[Episcopal News Service] Nota de la redacción: Historia actualizada a las 6:20 P.M. del 19 de abril con nuevos detalles de acerca de la búsqueda del sospechoso.

La Rda. Amy McCreath despertó en Washington, D.C. el 19 de abril, con la noticia de que su parroquia de la iglesia del Buen Pastor [The Good Shepherd] en Watertown, Massachusetts, estaba cerca del epicentro de la búsqueda sin precedentes del segundo de los dos sospechosos del atentado con explosivos de la maratón de Boston. También no tardó en enterarse de que la Iglesia Episcopal a veces es tan sólo una pequeña parroquia.

Poco después de recibir una llamada de su obispo, el Rvdmo. M. Thomas Shaw, SSJE, de la Diócesis de Massachusetts, el teléfono de McCreath siguió sonando.  Y había personas que intentaban conectarse con ella por otras vías.

“He tenido noticias de unos cuantos obispos y de parroquias de todo el país —y de amigos— y me he sentido muy conmovida y asombrada del poder de las redes sociales y de la conectividad que tenemos a través de la Iglesia Episcopal”, le dijo ella a Episcopal News Service.

“A la media hora  de despertarme esta mañana, resultaba realmente obvio que había toda esta nueve de testigos que estaba orando por nosotros —¡que regalo es eso!”, dijo McCreath en una entrevista telefónica mientras su marido, Brian, la llevaba a ella y a sus hijos de regreso a casa luego de pasar el receso de primavera en Washington, D.C.

Tan pronto como se enteró de la noticia, McCreath contó que ella, uno de los guardianes de la parroquia y otro miembro del clero que hace su práctica allí comenzaron a ponerse en contacto con los feligreses. “Todas las personas de la parroquia que llamé para saber de ellas y preguntarles cómo estaban, su primera respuesta fue [preguntar] qué puedo hacer, qué puedo hacer para ayudar”, dijo. “Comenzaron a hacer llamadas telefónicas y comenzaron a orar”.

Varios miembros de la parroquia viven en East Watertown, “una familia en la [misma] calle donde estaban teniendo lugar gran parte de los sucesos” y añadió que ella había hablado brevemente con una mujer de la zona que estaba recibiendo en su casa a vecinos “que intentaban mantenerse a salvo”.

“Le hice saber que estábamos orando por ella y le pedí a varias personas que oraran por los que se encontraban en Watertown,” dijo McCreath.

Antes de llegar al Buen Pastor en 2010, McCreath fue la capellana episcopal del Instituto Tecnológico de Massachusetts (MIT, por su sigla en inglés). Sean Collier, un agente de la policía del MIT, de 26 años y vecino de Somerville, resultó muerto alrededor de las 10:30 P.M. del 18 de abril durante lo que el Boston Globe llamó “una noche violenta y caótica” que precedió a la gran búsqueda del 19 de abril.

“Estoy de corazón con la comunidad del MIT. Siento enorme simpatía por los policías del MIT”, dijo McCreath. “Son de primera. Comparto el duelo con ellos por la pérdida de un magnífico colega”.

Los acontecimientos comenzaron a desarrollarse en la noche del 18 de abril luego que el FBI publicara las fotos de dos hombres, no identificados en ese momento, a los que describieron como “armados y extremadamente peligrosos”. [Las autoridades] pedían la ayuda del público para identificar a los hombres, pero añadían una advertencia cautelar.

Richard DesLauriers, agente especial del FBI a cargo del caso, dijo durante una conferencia de prensa inmediatamente después de las 5 P.M. (Hora Estándar del Este) que “nadie debía acercárseles. Ni nadie debía intentar arrestarlos, salvo los agentes de la ley”.

La policía del MIT recibió informes de un tiroteo a las 10:24 P.M. del 18 de abril, informó el Globe, y cuatro minutos después se produjo la denuncia de un robo en una tienda cercana al MIT. Los primeros informes sobre los hermanos fugitivos el 19 de abril resultaron ser incorrectos. Un minuto después de denunciado el robo, un agente de la policía del MIT fue encontrado muerto a tiros en su auto, según el Boston Globe.

Dos minutos después los hermanos prófugos se hacían sospechosos de haber secuestrado un Mercedes todoterreno (SUV), decía el Globe. El dueño del vehículo había logrado escapar, y dijo que los hermanos se habían identificado como los autores del atentado en la maratón, según varios informes de prensa.

Los dos hombres llevaron a los agentes de la ley a una persecución en la cual dispararon dos veces contra la policía. En uno de estos encuentros resultó herido Richard H. Donahue, de 33 años y agente de la policía de tránsito de la Autoridad de Transporte de la Bahía de Massachusetts. El Globe informó que otros 10 agentes estaban siendo atendidos en el Centro Médico de Santa Isabel [St. Elizabeth], en Brighton, luego de que resultaran lesionados por explosivos lanzados desde el auto [donde huían los fugitivos].

Durante el encuentro, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, de 26 años, al parecer salió del vehículo y resulto herido. En algún momento, su hermano menor, Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev, de 19 años, atropelló a Tamerlan mientras huía en el auto, según informes de varios medios de prensa.

Tamerlan Tsarnaev fue conducido a la sala de urgencias del Centro Médico Beth Israel Deaconess alrededor de la 1:10 A.M. con múltiples lesiones traumáticas. Los médicos le dijeron al Globe que esas lesiones incluían heridas de bala y heridas causadas por explosivos. Se le declaró fallecido a la 1:35 A.M.

Los detalles del caos de esa noche y de la cacería que le siguió se mantuvieron surgiendo y cambiando. El Boston Globe actualiza su cobertura aquí.

El Rdo. Samuel T. Lloyd III, sacerdote a cargo de la iglesia de la Trinidad de la plaza Copley [Trinity Church Copley Square], le informó a su parroquia el 19 de abril que el Rdo. Patrick C. Ward, rector asociado de la Trinidad para el culto y las comunicaciones, y quien reside en Belmont, le había informado “que gran parte del tiroteo de la noche estaba teniendo lugar a sólo unas cuadras de su casa”.

En su carta a la parroquia, Lloyd dijo que “en momentos como éste, es decisivo para nosotros que nos acordemos de quiénes somos y a quién pertenecemos”.

“En medio de las tensiones y la ansiedad del momento, seguimos siendo un pueblo amparado en el amor de Dios, confiado en que su seguridad definitiva reside en el cuidado providencial de Dios, y llamados a ser Cristo los unos para con los otros en nuestra ciudad, incluso en los momentos más difíciles”, escribió él.

A casi un millón de personas en Boston y en las comunidades aledañas de Watertown, Waltham, Newton, Belmont y Cambridge, se les pidió que se mantuvieran “guarecidas en el lugar”, dentro de sus casas y que no le abrieran las puertas a nadie, excepto a la policía con una debida identificación. Miles de agentes de policía han pasado el 19 de abril llevando a cabo una intensa búsqueda, a veces yendo de puerta en puerta, para capturar a Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

La búsqueda también dio lugar a la súbita suspensión del tren de cercanías de la MTBA, así como de los servicios de autobuses y trenes subterráneos. También se suspendió el servicio de taxis. Los funcionarios públicos han pedido a los establecimientos comerciales de la zona que no abran.

La Associated Press informó que los hermanos sospechosos provenían de una región rusa cercana a Chechenia, la cual ha estado plagada de insurgencia islámica. Los dos habían estado viviendo juntos en la calle Norfolk, en Cambridge, a menos de cuatro kilómetros de la Escuela Episcopal de Teología [Episcopal Divinity School].

[El obispo] Shaw pidió que oraran en las primeras horas del 19 de abril mientras la policía llevaba a cabo su búsqueda.

“Dada la presente actividad de la policía que ustedes sin duda están viendo en las noticias, quiero hacerles saber que hemos estado en contacto esta mañana con nuestros capellanes del Instituto Tecnológico de Massachusetts y de Harvard, y con el clero y los guardianes de la iglesia del Buen Pastor en Watertown, y todo el mundo allí, así como en la Escuela Episcopal de Teología, está bien, hasta donde sabemos” le dijo él al clero y al liderazgo de la diócesis el 19 de abril.

“Favor de orar por todos en las comunidades afectadas, y por una solución rápida y libre de violencia para estos perturbadores sucesos. Vela, oh Señor, con aquellos que laboran o vigilan o lloran en este día”.

Las oficinas diocesanas y la oficina de la iglesia catedral de San Pablo [Cathedral Church of St. Paul] cerca del parque comunal de Boston [Boston Common] en la calle Tremont No. 138 en Boston, se mantuvieron cerradas.

Miembros del Buen Pastor y de la iglesia de La Trinidad en la plaza Copley se reunieron para orar por las víctimas de los atentados de la maratón de Boston en las primeras horas de la noche del 18 de abril. Durante su oficio de oración vespertina contemplativa en Hidden Brook, el Buen Pastor incluyó oraciones para las víctimas de los atentados y “apoyo para el resto de nosotros a fin de poder lidiar con la tragedia”.

Lo que Lloyd llamó “un número considerable de feligreses de La Trinidad” se reunió para un oficio de música y oraciones en la intersección de las calles Berkeley y Boylston, que él dijo que se ha convertido en el principal lugar de reunión en el desierto paisaje de la plaza Copley y sus alrededores. La meta de la maratón está en Boylston, a sólo unos metros del lado occidental de la iglesia de La Trinidad.

Durante el oficio, los miembros del coro nos dirigieron en el canto de “Maravillosa gracia” [Amazing Grace] y “América la bella” [America the Beautiful].  Los medios noticiosos sobrevolaron para captar la escena, dijo Lloyd.

“No puedo decirles lo bueno que fue ver las caras de nuestra comunidad de La Trinidad, la fuerza que nos brindó para apoyarnos mutuamente, la seguridad que dio de que todos estamos juntos en esto”.

El 21 de abril, el cuarto domingo de Pascua, se conoce como el Domingo del Buen Pastor, porque el evangelio del día es [el pasaje de] Juan 10:22-30, una porción de la historia en que Jesús se llama a sí mismo el buen pastor que da su vida por sus ovejas. Por tanto, es la fiesta patronal de las congregaciones que están bajo la advocación del Buen Pastor. La iglesia de Watertown había planeado un almuerzo para recién llegados el domingo, y McCreath dijo que la parroquia aún tiene planes de tener la comida.

“Pero creo que se va  convertir en un almuerzo para todos”, dijo ella. “Cualquiera de la comunidad que quisiera estar allí para ser parte de la comunidad y compartir historias y encontrar valor es bienvenido”.

—La Rda. Mary Frances Schjonberg es redactora y reportera de Episcopal News Service.

Traducción de Vicente Echerri

[Episcopal Relief & Development press release] Episcopal Relief & Development has launched a new organizational website featuring an updated look and layout, greater integration with social media and a unified donation pathway to boost interactivity and engagement. In addition to helpful color coding, new icons and special spotlight sections, the redesign also includes improved accessibility and information flow, making it easier for users to learn more and take action to help heal a hurting world.

The new design was developed in line with industry best practices, input received from Episcopal Relief & Development’s staff and board members and feedback from donors and friends of the organization. The update was co-managed by Malaika Kamunanwire, Episcopal Relief & Development’s Senior Director for Marketing & Communications, and Daryn Kobata, the organization’s Social Media and Web Officer, in partnership with digital firm Blue Fountain Media.

“During the development of the new site, we were constantly evaluating our process to make sure that it focused on user needs and interests, while at the same time showcasing who we are as an organization,” said Kamunanwire. “Episcopal Relief & Development serves as a bridge between Episcopalians and communities around the world. The new look and feel of our site matches our ethos, and the content strives to inform and empower our supporters to act and get others involved in our mission.”

Increasing engagement with individuals and institutions is the primary goal of the new site, with robust “What You Can Do” and “Church In Action” sections and an enhanced “Gifts For Life” area. Gifts For Life is Episcopal Relief & Development’s flagship alternative gift catalog, which invites supporters to purchase “items” such as a goat, a share in a community garden or a micro-loan that will benefit families around the world. Gifts For Life items can be used to mark special occasions such as birthdays and holidays, and also make popular fundraisers for Sunday School and youth groups.

“I’m excited about our new Gifts For Life section, in terms of both added functionality and how it’s integrated with the rest of our donation process,” said Kobata. “The design is more colorful and fun, and features ‘related items’ to help people learn about different aspects of our work. Donors can also now make one-time gifts, monthly gifts and Gifts For Life purchases seamlessly through the same portal, which I think will really improve the user experience. Thanks so much to our web team members, staff and friends who helped make this site come to life!”

Along with greatly enriched country and program pages that describe the organization’s work worldwide, the new site also features expanded libraries of resources, photos and videos that supporters can share with friends and fellow church members to get them involved. Social media “share” buttons are conveniently located throughout the site so visitors can share images and stories via Facebook and Twitter. Users can also sign up for press releases, e-newsletters and mailings through the streamlined “Stay Informed” section.

“We worked with the Episcopal Relief & Development team to implement a website based on forward-thinking design techniques, usability-focused information pathways and engaging content,” said Jared Friedman, Business Consultant for Blue Fountain Media. “This has been both a challenge and an awesome undertaking, and together we have created a website that will be a trend setter in the digital non-profit space.”

Episcopal Relief & Development’s new site aligns with its strategic vision for 2013-16, which puts an emphasis on expanding networks of friends and supporters and creating greater opportunities for engagement. Raising visibility and awareness and strengthening the organization’s brand are key components of this strategy, and this is reflected in both the site design and the new domain name, www.episcopalrelief.org.

“I am extremely proud of the efforts that have led to the creation of this new website, and thank everyone whose work has contributed to this success,” said Rob Radtke, President of Episcopal Relief & Development. “There are so many ways for individuals and churches to engage, through giving, volunteering and incorporating Episcopal Relief & Development into congregational life. I believe the new site will help greatly in strengthening the connections between this organization, its supporters and the community-based partners whose efforts are making a lasting impact.”

Episcopal Relief & Development is the international relief and development agency of the Episcopal Church and an independent 501(c)(3) organization. The agency takes its mandate from Jesus’ words found in Matthew 25. Its programs work towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Episcopal Relief & Development works closely with the worldwide Church and ecumenical partners to help rebuild after disasters and to empower local communities to find lasting solutions that fight poverty, hunger and disease, including HIV/AIDS and malaria.

 

[Religion News Service] I wonder if social isolation — not extremist religion or Chechen roots — explains the two brothers who set off bombs during the Boston Marathon, killing three and wounding more than 170.

The older brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was quoted as saying “I don’t have a single American friend, I don’t understand them.” One emerging theory is that, he dealt with isolation in America by seeking his heritage in Chechnya and there, some think, found purpose in violence against his unwelcoming home.

In feeling isolated, the alleged bomber isn’t alone. Isolation is the new normal in America.

More than one in four Americans have no friends for sharing troubles, a recent study of social isolation found. Those who do have friends tend to have only two. Just half of Americans believe they can count on anyone outside their home for support. Less than one in 10 counts the neighbor next door as a confidant.

Researchers blame television, long commutes and long hours at work to make ends meet. Other factors include aging in place and feeling isolated among new and younger neighbors; being immigrants and non-English speakers struggling to assimilate; feeling cut off from society by illness, physical abnormalities, race, gender and sexuality.

Give credit also to rampant sexual abuse and its lifetime consequence of shame and feeling different, as well as social disruption caused by lost marriages and broken families. Unemployment tends to drive people indoors or into part-time jobs away from their usual circles.

It takes an event like the Boston bombings or recent shootings for us to see how some angry, isolated people are taking refuge in weapons, and dream of revenge.

It’s a wonder that we don’t have more outbreaks of rage and violence. If isolation corrodes the soul and stokes the fires of self-loathing and resentment, we shouldn’t be surprised when some loners — from bullied teens to poorly welcomed immigrants to the jobless to desperately lonely elderly — take arms against their troubles.

It makes me sad when I see churches close their doors to protect their assets, when they could be opening themselves to the isolated, and easing the loneliness. Many social service agencies are cutting back because of funding gaps.

Yet it makes me glad when I see people banding together in women’s support groups, small faith communities, lunch buddies, church choirs, cycling groups, exercise circles — the many ways we are able to get outside ourselves.

Small steps can go a long way. For example, as our church prepared to bring gospel music legend Richard Smallwood to New York to direct singers from Park Avenue Church and Marble Collegiate Church, we knew it would sell out.

Three leaders of Lifeline, our recovery ministry, bought a block of 12 tickets for residents of Greenhope Services for Women, an extraordinary residential program in East Harlem for women seeking recovery from addiction. Several attend Lifeline.

We wanted them to feel connected with a world of sobriety and sanity, to know that life offers more than just the rough times and isolation they have known.

Not just by attending a concert, of course. There are no magic bullets in addiction — or in any of life’s agonies — and no single-shot events. “One day at a time” takes work all the time.

Few of us go to the extremes of building bombs or carrying assault rifles into schools. But the acid of isolation is still there, eating away at our social fabric.

– The Rev. Tom Ehrich is a writer, church consultant and Episcopal priest based in New York. He is the author of “Just Wondering, Jesus” and founder of the Church Wellness Project. His website is www.morningwalkmedia.com. Follow Tom on Twitter @tomehrich.

Photo/David Copley

[Episcopal News Service] The following is a blog from David Copley about the Second Anglican World Peace Conference in Okinawa.

A young mother is holding her son,
Watching planes at the airport.
The child is holding a toy plane,
Excited to see and hear the big jets flying back and forth.
They listen to the roar of the engines
And smell the jet fuel in the air.
A scene that could be anywhere in the world

In this case the family is Japanese,
The planes are American
The airport is U.S. military
The land is Okinawan

Mother and child stand on land soaked long ago,
With the blood of Allied and Japanese soldiers,
And the blood of many, many, Okinawan civilians,
Young and old,
Lives violently cut short.

Military stockpiles,
Guns, bombs, and killing machines of terrifying power.
Noise pollution,
Chemical pollution,
Ancient family land no longer their own,
Occupied by a foreign power,
Speaking a foreign language.
Collateral damage?

A constitution pledged to peace,
Japan has no active military,
Lessons learned from past conflicts,
And memories of Hiroshima.
Tension in Korea,
Threats of war,
Safety and security from a friendly neighbor
With powerful deterrents.

What is the price of peace?
Preparing for a just war
Still costs,
And someone has to pay.
Collateral damage?

We pray for peace,
We wait for the blacksmith,
To beat swords into plowshares.
Meanwhile some live with swords,
And others plough the land.

The mother and child leave the planes
To buy ice-cream.
A day out,
A family living in peace.
The mother offers prays of thanks,
While wishing that the war machines would leave,
And military land returned to farmland.

– The Rev. David Copley is the Episcopal Church’s mission personnel officer and team leader for global partnerships. 

[National Council of Churches press release] National Council of Churches leaders and staff expressed shock and sadness April 23 at the sudden death of the Rev. Dr. Bob Edgar, who served as NCC general secretary from 2000 to 2007.

NCC President Kathryn Lohre expressed the council’s condolences to Edgar’s family and many friends.

“He is universally remembered as a man of tireless commitment and boundless energy,” Lohre said. “We are finding it difficult to grasp the sudden loss of this fine church leader.”

Edgar, a former six-term member of Congress and Claremont School of Theology president, left the council in 2007 to take the reins of leadership of Common Cause, the citizen’s advocacy group.

“He was a superb communicator of the moral perspective the churches could bring to critical issues in our society,” said Dr. Antonios Kireopoulos, NCC associate general secretary, Faith & Order and Interfaith Relations.

Kireopoulos worked closely with Edgar and traveled widely with him, including to areas of Indonesia flooded by the devastating tsunami of 2004.

“He liked to summarize the urgent ministries of the Council in a single sentence: ‘Peace, Poverty, Planet Earth,” Kireopoulos said.

Cassandra Carmichael, who Edgar brought to the NCC’s Washington office to direct the eco-justice program, remembered Edgar as a tireless proponent of justice issues.

“There was no greater advocate for persons living in poverty or facing discrimination of any kind,” Carmichael said. “He was fully committed to eliminating the causes of climate change, and he thought of this planet as God’s magnificent creation.”

The Edgar years at the NCC were filled with challenges that included the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, the War in Iraq, the acceleration of global warming, tsunamis and earthquakes, Hurricane Katrina, and crushing worldwide poverty and human rights abuses.

The first challenge Edgar faced as general secretary was the international debate over a Cuban child, Elian Gonzalez, to decide whether the boy should be permitted to live with relatives in Miami, or with his father and grandmothers in Cuba. Citing humanitarian reasons, Edgar said Elian should be returned to the custody of his father in Cuba. The NCC and the Cuban Council of Churches proposed to serve as intermediaries to facilitate the boy’s return home.

In addition, Edgar’s first days on the job in 2000 were consumed by a crippling financial crisis in the NCC that challenged all the skills he had honed as a community organizer, member of Congress, and seminary president.

He brought to his job a prodigious appetite for hard work, an informal style, and a lifelong commitment to the goals of peace, justice and the relief of human suffering. If he felt the stress of the job, he rarely showed it and he often deflected it with a lighthearted joke and occasionally – as his colleagues recalled fondly today– a painful pun.

At the end of his eight-year tenure, the financial emergency had ebbed but the conditions that caused it – including the financial exigency of many of the NCC’s contributing communions – were still in place.

Perhaps his most useful bequest to his NCC successors, colleagues recalled, was a buoyant Christian faith that is contagious enough to infect others with a joyous optimism for whatever the future holds.

When Edgar departed the NCC in 2007, the Council posted this retrospective of his career.

The Very Rev. James Munroe, dean of Christ Church Cathedral in Springfield, Massachusetts, discusses the Apostle Peter during a parish retreat for St. Peter’s Episcopal Church of Morristown, New Jersey. Photo/Sharon Sheridan

[Episcopal News Service] This is the latest in a series of articles about Episcopal cathedral deans

When James Munroe was elected dean of Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral in Springfield, Massachusetts, in late 1997, he told his mother his title would change from “the Rev.” to “the Very Rev.”

“She collapsed on the ground in hysterical laughter,” he recounted recently while leading a parish retreat for St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, Morristown, New Jersey.

Munroe, 66, takes a humble approach to his job as leader of the Diocese of Western Massachusetts cathedral. During the April 19-21 retreat, held at the Tuscarora Inn and Conference Center in Mount Bethel, Pennsylvania, he focused on the grace given to the well-meaning but fallible apostle Peter, who he called an “everyman.”

“He’s a model for me of how the Lord connects to us,” Munroe told ENS. “I’m so thankful for this picture of somebody who’s a good guy [with] a wonderful heart for whom there were disasters and who just totally blew it, who comes to the point of no excuses … and found at that lowest point unconditional forgiveness and love.

“I don’t see the real action of God starting from anywhere but that spot,” he said. “God save me from a church full of victorious Christian saints. Give me a church full of disasters who are finding amazing grace.”

Part of his role as dean is guiding congregants and the community through disasters, both local and more far-reaching. During his time in Springfield, such events have ranged from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001 to a tornado that tore through the city a year ago and a gas explosion that flattened buildings several months ago to the April 15 bombings at the 2013 Boston Marathon.

His first role when such events occur is with the cathedral congregation: “Embrace the experience and address it and provide a place for people to acknowledge the fear and the pain and pay attention to it,” he said. His second role, as dean and often in conjunction with the bishop, is saying: “What can we be doing right away?”

“After 9-11, there were instantaneously some [worship] services at the cathedral, and then in the weeks following lots of gatherings with rabbis and imams talking together,” he said. “So there’s a more diocesanwide role of offering worship and offering forums.”

The importance of interfaith dialogue and cooperation at such times is “huge,” he said. “We’re thankful to have a wonderful local rabbi and a very terrific imam and some other people involved in the mosque who are eager when these things happen to meet with us and to present a front of brotherhood and sisterhood in the face of all the fears that come crashing to the surface instantly.”

The two bomb explosions near the finish line of last week’s Boston Marathon that killed three and maimed or injured more than 150 others resonated in a personal way for the former Marine, who was wounded after serving two uneventful months in an artillery unit in Vietnam.

“All was quiet,” he recalled. “And then one night, completely unexpectedly, our unit was attacked and overrun by a unit of North Vietnam soldiers. I ran out and got in a foxhole, and two grenades were thrown into the foxhole, which exploded.”

The blasts killed the man beside him. “I had a fractured skull, punctured eardrums and shrapnel holes. Everything healed physically except for a loss of hearing in my ears. They’ve rung [since] Feb. 23, 1969.”

“When I saw the videos of the two explosions actually happening [in Boston], I understood that the people within the blast zone were having the experience I had and that it is an experience that is impossible to describe with words,” he said. “I also knew that that moment would be a defining moment that they would seek healing from for the rest of their lives and that it may well be years before they’re even ready to begin that healing. For me, when I came home and got out of the Marine Corps, I went back to college and thought … that chapter’s over.”

Only years later did some of the post-traumatic stress of that experience surface. He told retreatants about his surprise at how profoundly shaken he suddenly became 20 years later after a group he was with was mugged in Nairobi’s “Freedom Park,” and how he found grace and healing in the embrace of a woman who greeted them with song and dance at a church they visited. Although they shared nothing in common except that one encounter, he said, “I count her as one of the greatest gifts I have received.”

Munroe’s role as a guest speaker and preacher dovetails with his work as a member of the Veterans Education Project.

“Our purpose is to speak in public forums about our experience,” he said. “Although we’re apolitical, we’re also a subversive group in that we believe that the reality of our stories of what war and combat are actually like will have the effect of saying, ‘Let’s do eight quadrillion other things before the last resort of war because it is so horrific.’”

Veterans of various wars, they speak at churches, schools and prisons. “That has morphed over into my work as the dean. Those two worlds have had some connections,” Munroe said. “So we have gatherings at the cathedral for peace and war-related events.”

Christ Church is a “mid-size” cathedral downtown in a city struggling with drugs and other urban issues. It supports various outreach programs and is allied with Nehemiah Ministries, an intentional Christian community located in a troubled area of the city.

On Good Friday, Nehemiah joined with the cathedral for Stations of the Cross. “I picked out 14 places on the streets of Springfield where bad and good things have happened,” Munroe said. About 80 people participated in the two-hour service, which started outside the cathedral and included prayers and stories of what happened at each station.

One stop was the steps of Sympathy Hall, where a homeless man froze to death. Another was where a homeless gay man, a “dear sweet friend” who was afraid to go into a shelter, was murdered over a bottle of alcohol. Steve Donohue’s funeral was “bigger than any Easter service,” Munroe recalled.

He created the Stations of the Cross after the new diocesan bishop, the Rt. Rev. Douglas Fisher, told him about doing such a service on the streets of Manhattan.

A team approach and sharing of ideas mark Munroe’s modus operandi as dean.

“I’m no good as a solitary, visionary leader. If I do any leading, it’s because somebody else wants to lead with me,” he said. “I’m always thankful to have around me people who come up with ideas and visions. I really never up with anything on my own.”

As dean, he said, “A large part of my role is to be the pastor of the congregation. … I think probably my gifts are more in being a parish priest than in being a diocesan leader, or at least that’s what I enjoy.”

About 215 people attend services at the cathedral on an average Sunday. “One of the privileges of coming to the cathedral was its extraordinary diversity of black, white, tan – every conceivable skin color. We have a service in Spanish every Sunday, which is a great joy,” he said. For that service, “I’ve even learned how to play the drums a little bit. I am a beginner, but it’s fun.”

He’s also taking Spanish lessons.

“We do not call ourselves two separate congregations,” he noted. “The work we’re called to do is to have these different cultures interact and connect with one another,” preserving what’s unique in their own cultures and ways of worship, he said.

The congregation also includes members from Africa and the Caribbean. “On Pentecost Sunday, we read the story from Acts 2 in about 15 different languages.”

Within the city, Munroe also is secretary and one of two Caucasian clergy belonging to the Pastors Council of Greater Springfield, composed primarily of African-American clergy serving African-American congregations. “These are wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ who welcome me into, as much as is possible, the black experience of worshiping. They come once a year and have a worship [service] at the cathedral.”

The role a cathedral plays in a diocese “depends to a certain degree upon the bishop,” Munroe said. “Our new bishop seems to be eager to have the cathedral play a central role.

And Munroe continues to step outside the cathedral doors.

“I do speak from time to time in different places, and I love preaching,” he said. “I recently gave a forum on preaching for some of the lay leaders of the diocese. “I’ve always thought that in retirement it might be fun to go teach a homiletics course somewhere.”

 – Sharon Sheridan is an ENS correspondent.

 

The Very Rev. John Booty. Photo/Courtesy Duane Dale

[Episcopal News Service] Scholar, teacher, poet, priest, beloved husband, father, and grandad, the Very Rev. John Booty died at age 87 April 17 at his home in Center Sandwich, New Hampshire. He goes joyfully to join his son Peter who died in 2010, and he leaves behind as witness to his love his wife of 62 years, Kitty Lou, his daughter Carol and her husband Ernie, his son Geoffrey and his wife Helen, Peter’s wife Diane, his daughter Jane and her husband Todd, nine grandchildren and four great grandchildren, all of whom gave him much happiness.

John was born in Detroit, Michigan, on May 2, 1925,  earned a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia, and began his life of service to the Episcopal Church as a curate at Christ Church, Dearborn, Michigan. After earning a Ph.D. from Princeton University, John joined the faculty at Virginia Seminary as Professor of Church History, taught at the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and served as Dean of the Seminary at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. A life-long scholar, John was a Fellow of the Folger Shakespeare Library and the National Endowment for the Humanities, and he served as Historiographer of the Episcopal Church. He was awarded Honorary Doctor of Divinity degrees from Virginia Seminary and the University of the South. Also a gifted writer, John had numerous books published, including “The Church in History, Reflections on the Theology of Richard Hooker,” “John Jewel as Apologist of the Church of England, Meditating on Four Quartets,” and “The Christ We Know.” Secular scholars as well as ecclesiastics respected him, and all who were blessed to know him celebrated him.

John Booty was a man of warmth and humor who loved reading, gardening, and tea on the porch. He struggled at times in life and shared himself freely through his writing and preaching as he brought countless disciples to the Gospel. His last days were populated by loving family, devoted “care angels,” lively memories of his past, and his abiding faith in life everlasting. We are grateful for his life with us, and we rejoice that he has gone to God.

A celebration of John’s life will be held this summer at St. Andrew’s-in-the-Valley Episcopal Church, Tamworth, New Hampshire.