ABUNDANT Times -- September 2018

Revive us, Lord!

SEPTEMBER 2018

Abundant Times is the official news publication of The Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts. The diocesan offices are located at: 37 Chestnut Street Springfield, MA, 01103-1787 Call us: (413) 737-4786 Visit us: www.diocesewma.org Follow us: @EpiscopalWMA We welcome the submission of articles via email to the editor, The Rev. Vicki Ix. Email: communications@diocesewma.org

At Diocesan House The Rt. Rev. Douglas J. Fisher, IX Bishop of Western Massachusetts The Rev. Pamela J. Mott, Canon to the Ordinary The Rev. Dr. Richard M. Simpson, Canon to the Ordinary Steven P. Abdow, Canon for Mission Resources

Table of Contents 3 ........... What is an Episcopal revival?

6 .. ”Royal Wedding Preacher” returns 7 ............. Episcopalians rally around ‘Way of Love’ framework for living into Jesus Movement 8 .................. Revival Sunday Schedule 10 ................... Buses, tickets, livestream 11 ........... What happens after revival?

14 ....... A liturgical approach to revival 16 .......... Book Review: Crazy Christians

Missioners

19 ..................................... What’s news?

The Rev. Dr. Margaret Bullitt-Jonas, Missioner for Creation Care The Rev. Hilary Bogert-Winkler, Youth Missioner The Rev. Christopher Carlisle Director, Building Bridges Veterans Initiative The Rev. John Edgar Freeman Missioner to the African Community of Worcester The Rev. Jennifer Gregg, Missioner for Servant Leadership The Rev. José Reyes Missioner for Hispanic/Latino Ministries The Rev. Meredyth Ward, Urban Missioner for Worcester

22 .............................. From the Archives

On the Cover:

Opposite page:

Bishop Fisher at worship with the assembled deputies and bishops at The 79th General Convention, Austin, Texas. Photo: Episcopal Diocese of WMA

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The Most Reverend Michael B. Curry preaching at the 79th General Convention, Austin, Texas.

Photo: Episcopal Diocese of WMA 2

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What is an Episcopal revival?

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The Episcopal Church has hosted several revivals.

As episcopalchurch.org describes it, “A revival is a dedicated series of gatherings that combine inspiring worship, compelling teaching, honest faith-sharing, intensified prayer, and some form of engagement with the mission of God–all for the sake of the spiritual renewal and transformation of people and of society.”

Our hope for the revival is not just that we have a wonderful weekend event, but that it sparks in those who attend a greater passion to be part of the Jesus movement and an opportunity to join in the ongoing ministries to which the church is committed (evangelism, reconciliation, care of creation, church planting, formation, youth outreach, justice in our local communities and beyond).

Our hope is that those who are not involved in church will become motivated to find a community of faith. The hope is that those who do not know the loving presence of Jesus will be inspired to find him in their lives and in the world around them. The hope is that those who simply attend church will be motivated to participate in the movement of God through Jesus Christ at their church and elsewhere in places of need. The hope is that the revival will be inspirational to people at all parts of the journey of faith. When the weekend is over, there will be a renewed sense of mission and spirit in our diocese carrying us on in movement together.

Who can be involved?

Everyone is invited to participate in revival. It is not just “our revival,” but we hope the invitation to the revival will be shared with people near and far. We will provide tools to help you invite both Christians and those who might consider the faith.

Episcopalians or not, those seeking Christ or open to searching, those from other faith backgrounds, this revival is an experience open for all people and something to be shared with them.

We cordially invite our neighbors and partners in the community, those we see and those we interact with regularly, those who attend groups and meetings in our space, and those with whom we serve—all are invited to participate in revival with no expectation that they convert, accept Jesus, make a donation, or receive any follow up from us in any way. We invite them because we see the needs of the world around us. We see the tiredness on people’s faces. We hear the heaviness in people’s hearts. We have a gift we want to share with others. We invite them because we recognize ourselves in them, and we know what we have been given.

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“We see this as a process unfolding over two yearsfrom the initial planning that began one year ago, to the year following revival Sunday.”

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Above: Deputies of the 79th General Convention worshiping with digital worship bulletins. Photo: Episcopal WMA

How has the revival been planned?

The Revival Steering Committee is working with two teams (West & East), led by one or more coordinators. The coordinators and teams are charged with planning events prior to the revival, planning the day of revival, and planning events after revival. We see this as a process unfolding over two years-from the initial planning that began one year ago, to the year following revival Sunday. We hope this issue of ABUNDANT Times gives you everything you need to participate in this moment of spiritual renewal and evangelism.

Members of the Revival Steering Committee The Rev. Samuel J. Smith The Rev. Canon Pamela J. Mott The Rev. Nancy Webb Stroud Mr. Craig Hammond Ms. Alexizendria Link

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Ms. Kathy Clausen The Very Rev. Tom Callard The Rev. Jose Reyes The Rev. Vicki Ix Mr. Milton Barnes

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“Royal Wedding Preacher” returns to Western Massachusetts Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Michael Curry gives an address during the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle in Windsor, Britain, May 19, 2018.

Owen Humphreys/Pool via REUTERS

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle listen to an address by Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Michael Curry in St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle during their wedding service in Windsor, Britain, May 19, 2018. Owen Humphreys/Pool via REUTERS

BY THE REV. VICKI IX The Most Reverend Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church, will return to our diocese for our revival. Curry will preach at the Sunday Eucharist to be held at First United Methodist Church in Pittsfield—one of the largest sanctuaries in Western Massachusetts.

The Presiding Bishop wil travel to Worcester, later that afternoon, to preach at The Hanover Theater. This will be Curry’s second official visit to our diocese.

In the fall of 2017, the people of Christ Church Cathedral celebrated two hundred years as a community of faith in the Episcopal tradtion. The Presiding Bishop preached at the bicentennial Holy Communion on Sunday, October 15th and preached that evening at the Choral Evensong. Our clergy had the joy of spending Fall Clergy Day with Curry as presenter, as well. It was a significant visit in terms of time and context.

Wherever he goes, the Presiding Bishop offers his vision of the Jesus Movement. No preaching moment has been more visible than his address at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle this past spring. Curry is no longer just our PB. Following the wedding, Curry was invited to do interviews with major media outlets and visit all the morning shows. This unprecedented exposure is both challenge and opportunity for the Church. Most agree that this unexpected “15 minutes of fame” has been a boost for evangelism. “Love is the way,” Curry proclaimed to a spellbound assembly of royals, nobles and celebrities. Millions more heard the message via livestream. What can we expect when our famous spiritual leader returns to Western Massachusetts? We can expect Presiding Bishop Curry to preach the Way of Love (see opposite) at our revival. We can also expect Michael—the humble country preacher we met twelve months ago.

Vicki is communications director and editor of ABUNDANT Times magazine.

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Episcopalians rally around ‘Way of Love’ framework for living into Jesus Movement

BY DAVID PAULSEN The following article was published on August 15, 2018 by Episcopal News Service. Used with permission.

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry spent much of his first three years as head of the Episcopal Church talking about Episcopalians being part of the Jesus movement. He has called them to follow Jesus into loving, liberating and life-giving communion with God, with God’s creation and with each other.

“Pretty early on, people started saying, ‘How do we do that?’” said the Rev. Stephanie Spellers, the presiding bishop’s canon for evangelism, reconciliation and creation care. “So, the presiding bishop really took that to heart.”

Curry provided an answer last month by launching a “rule of life” framework dubbed “The Way of Love,” featuring seven practices for Jesus-centered living. The churchwide response to the initiative so far has been overwhelmingly positive, Spellers said, and efforts to promote The Way of Love have just begun.

“You want to be people of the Jesus movement? You want to follow Jesus and to live his way? Well, his way is the way of love,” Spellers said. “And if we as a whole church commit to living a set of spiritual practices with conviction and in community, we will more and more live as Jesus’ people in this world.”

Curry first spoke of The Way of Love in his sermon July 5 for the opening Eucharist of the 79th General Convention in Austin, Texas. Since then, Spellers and her staff have produced more than 100,000 wallet cards for the initiative and posted ABUN DANT TIMES

additional print-ready materials to The Way of Love website. Those materials have begun showing up in church bulletins across the church, and Episcopal partners, including Church Publishing, Forward Movement and Forma, are developing and releasing their own Way of Love resources for congregations. Some bishops, meanwhile, have issued personalized messages to their dioceses inviting them to follow The Way of Love practices.

Those practices, hardly revolutionary, should be familiar to most Christians.

•TURN: Pause, listen and choose to follow Jesus.

•LEARN: Reflect on Scripture each day, especially on Jesus’ life and teachings.

•PRAY: Dwell intentionally with God each day.

•WORSHIP: Gather in community weekly to thank, praise and dwell with God. •BLESS: Share faith and unselfishly give and serve.

•GO: Cross boundaries, listen deeply and live like Jesus.

•REST: Receive the gift of God’s grace, peace and restoration.

Continues page 12 7

Revival Sunday

Revival WEST will begin with Holy Eucharist at 1:00 pm at First United Methodist Church in Pittsfield.

Our bishop, the Rt. Rev. Douglas Fisher, will preside. The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop & Primate, will preach. *Doors open at noon.

Music and videos from 12-1 pm.

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Scan the QR code for Google Maps directions to FUMC Pittsfield.

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y is October 21

Revival EAST will begin at 5:00 pm at the Hanover Theater in Worcester.

Music, testimonies, and our Presiding Bishop preaching the Way of Love.

Scan the QR code for Google Maps directions to the Hanover Theater.

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*There will be a procession to the theater beginning at 4:30 pm from Fuller Park.

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Buses from Pioneer Valley Free buses to and from the revival sites have been coordinated for Pioneer Valley congregations.

Reserve a seat on a bus, and you will automatically be given a ticket for admission when you board.

BUS TO PITTSFIELD Departs: The Episcopal Church of the Atonement, Westfield @ 11am Departs: All Saints’ Episcopal Church, South Hadley @11 am

BUS TO WORCESTER

Bus & ticket registration links were Departs: St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, sent to our congregations on Longmeadow @ 3:15 pm September 5. You may also go to the Departs: Christ the King-Epiphany Church, revival website: www.wma.org.

Wilbraham @ 3:15 pm

Ticket information: They’re free!

Tickets to enter both FUMC in Pittsfield and The Hanover Theater in Worcester will be available on the revival website for the general public on September 17. Scan the code or visit: www.wmarevival.org.

Watch livestream from revival sites courtesy of The Episcopal Church Digital evangelists from the Church Center in New York will be setting up shop at both revival sites. If you can’t be with us in person, you can experience revival via livestream on your computer or smart TV. Go to: 10

https://livestream.com/accounts/12656718

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What happens after revival?

BY THE REV. JENNIFER GREGG

An Opportunity to Dream: A World of Love “Think and imagine a world when love is the way.... Because when love is the way, we actually treat each other like we are actually family. When love is the way, we know that God is the source of us all. And we are brothers and sisters, children of God. My brothers and sisters, that’s a new Heaven, a new Earth, a new world, a new human family.”

-The Most Rev. Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop (Royal Wedding Homily) What do you imagine when you see a world where love is the way? How do we consistently live this way of love Jesus embodied? What get’s in the way? How could we make manifest this love as an outward and visible sign in our communities? Join us as we explore these questions and as a community and and begin to co-create with God a piece of God’s dream here in the Berkshires. Time will also be taken to reflect on what has stayed with us from the Presiding Bishop’s sermon. Families and children are most welcome. Activities for children/teens will also be available. Hearty snacks and refreshments will be provided.

Jenny is Missioner for Servant Leadership.

Wed., October 24 St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, Pittsfield 5:30-7:30 pm

Sunday, November 4th Grace Church In the Southern Berkshires, Great Barrington 1:00-3:00pm

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‘Way of Love” cont. from p. 7

“One of the questions The Way of Lov Curry, his staff and a group of outside advisers known as his “kitchen cabinet” began working on the framework in December. “We realized that we already have what we need in the tradition of the church going back centuries,” Curry said in his July 5 sermon, citing monastic traditions that have long relied on rules of life.

The presiding bishop also drew a comparison to the set of practices followed by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and other leaders of the civil rights movement to focus their efforts. The Jesus movement, then, is built on the practices of The Way of Love, and Curry’s initiative aims to refocus Episcopalians on what it means to be a Christian in today’s world.

“I know and I believe that we in this church can help Christianity to reclaim its soul and re-center its life in the way of love, the way of the cross, which is the way of Jesus,” he said.

Spellers called this “an invitation to come home again.”

“If you look at what it takes to really grow spiritually vital Christian community, it’s not rocket science, but it does take commitment,” Spellers said. She thinks The Way of Love has been an early success because church members are hungry for spiritual formation and eager as Jesus’ followers to work for justice.

Church leaders also emphasize this isn’t a solitary journey. The shared commitment to The Way of Love echoes Episcopalians’ commitment to their baptismal covenant, a way of saying “yes” to God. “That’s powerful, and it’s also what movements do,” Spellers said.

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Spellers’ team plans to begin a major push on social media soon in support of The Way of Love, while encouraging local congregations to share their experiences, using the hashtag #WayOfLove. The team also is developing Way of Love liturgical materials that will be ready in time for Advent in December.

Wallet cards and brochures explaining The Way of Love can be downloaded from the website and printed for distribution locally. Spanishlanguage resources are being prepared.

Congregations also are encouraged to experiment in how they incorporate The Way of Love into their parish life, part of an “opensource” approach to developing the initiative.

“You want to be people of the Jesus movement? You want to follow Jesus and to live his way? Well, his way is the way of love,” Spellers said.

The Rev. Canon Stephanie Spellers is Canon to the Presiding Bishop for Evangelism, Reconciliation and Creation Care. Stephanie has been supporting the work of the Steering Committee. She will be with us for our revival in October.

Photo: episcopalchurch.org

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ve asks is ‘Who will you walk with?’”

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Conway, Arkansas, has paired each of the seven practices with a different liturgical season over the coming year, and The Way of Love will help shape all ministries, from the youth group to the senior citizen book club.

Jerusalem Greer, the minister of formation and connection at St. Peter’s, is active in Forma and was part of the group Curry assembled to develop The Way of Love.

“One of the things that makes this really necessary right now is, as a culture, we feel a little free-floating, a little lost,” Greer said. “And I think this helps us create a trellis, to try to kind of cling to and grow up.”

And as Curry inspires more and more people with his talk of being part of the Jesus movement, “people want to know how do you do that,” Greer said. “I think it’s that ageold question, how then shall we live? … I want to figure out how to be light and hope in a very dark world.”

One of the questions The Way of Love asks is “Who will you walk with?” Forming discipleship groups will be an important step, to support each other and share experiences of spiritual growth, Spellers said. Parishioners may choose to form small Bible study groups, and several Episcopal seminaries have committed to developing on-campus gatherings centered on The Way of Love, including Virginia Theological Seminary, General Theological Seminary and the seminary at Sewanee: The University of the South.

priest in Canada wrote recently to Spellers saying he’d like to print Way of Love posters for his church. A similar inquiry came from someone in the Anglican Church of Mexico.

Curry’s team conceived of The Way of Love as part of the Anglican Communion’s Season of Intentional Discipleship, an initiative following the theme of “living a Jesus-shaped life.” That language and vision pair with how Curry describes the Episcopal branch of the Jesus movement.

“I want to ask not only you, but every Episcopalian, to make a commitment to throw yourself into the hands of Jesus, and then live life out of that,” Curry said in his sermon at General Convention. “These tools may help you.”

Others in the Episcopal Church are helping to spread the word about The Way of Love.

“Any rule of life takes practice, and really that’s the point, practice. In a sense we never stop practicing,” Diocese of Olympia Bishop Greg Rickel said in a video message encouraging Episcopalians there to take up The Way of Love. “It’s a lifelong practice, one most of us never get to be perfect, but in this, the practice is the gift.”

David Paulsen is an editor and reporter for the Episcopal News Service. He can be reached at dpaulsen@episcopalchurch.org.

“That gives us the chance to shape the leadership of the church and to deepen the spiritual roots for the next generation of Episcopal leaders,” Spellers said.

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A liturgical approach to revival

BY SCOTT BAILEY

SHARING LIGHT From Christmas through the season of Epiphany, our focus shifts to the light of Christ.

The light bursts forth into this world. The light illuminates the darkness and shows us the way of Jesus.

Recently, I happened to stumble upon an interesting idea that I felt could be helpful to our diocese in our liturgical planning this year. It seems to me that our revival slogan “Rekindling Hope, Sharing Light, Loving Jesus” fits neatly over our liturgical calendar from fall to spring. What this might mean to any individual congregation depends on their own planning process. I offer it as a conversation starter for how we might continue the spirit of revival throughout the year.

“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.’” John 8:12 We follow the light of the star which brings us to Jesus. We walk in the light of Christ through the gathering of his disciples and through his teaching. We end our season on the mountaintop where Christ is transfigured before his disciples, with his face shining like the sun and his clothes becoming dazzling white. Light permeates this season and we are called to share light in the world.

REKINDLING HOPE

LOVING JESUS

The scriptures in the fall, particularly from mid-October to late November, are about the coming of the Kingdom of God. Jesus challenges us to take up our cross and follow him, he foretells his death and resurrection, and he shares the keys to the kingdom of God and the promise of everlasting life to those who follow him. As we progress into the darkest time of the year in the season of Advent, out of that darkness God promises to send us God’s son, who is to come into this world as a human child and change the world from the nightmare it so often is, to the dream that God intends. God is rekindling hope among us; the hope of Jesus, the hope of the coming of the kingdom of God, and the hope of everlasting life.

The season of Lent, our journey through Holy Week, and the season of Easter are when we come to know the true love of Jesus, the one who gave his life so that we can live, the lamb slain for the redemption of our sin, the one who suffered death on a cross and then rose victorious over the grave. When we know that all-powerful love, we can love others in return.

“So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” Hebrews 9:28

“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:3435

This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine!

LEVAS II, #221

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O how I love Jesus, O how I love Jesus.

O how I love Jesus, Because he first loved me.

LEVAS II, #95

We wash the feet of our friends and anoint them with oil. We feed the hungry, we take in the stranger, we clothe the naked, and we visit the prisoner. We love Jesus when we love others, and that love can change the world.

With this template laid out over our calendar, we can begin to have conversations about how this might shape our revival work in our local churches. We can carry our congregations through a continuous revival as the seasons change, drawing on the themes of the season to guide our planning.

Perhaps it will inform our musical selections or create new outreach opportunities. We can collaborate with neighbor churches and generate new thematic programs to draw others into the revival. In these ways, our revival can be long-lasting and continuously fruitful.

Scott Bailey is Director of Music at The Episcopal Church of the Atonement, Westfield.

Hope of the world, thou Christ of great compassion, speak to our fearful hearts by conflict rent.

Save us, thy people, from consuming passion, who by our own false hopes and aims are spent.

The Hymnal 1982, #472

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Book Review: Crazy Christians Crazy Christians: A Call to Follow Jesus.

By Michael B. Curry. Church Publishing, 160 pp., $18.95 Review by J. Scott Jackson Millions of people around the world tuned in this spring to watch Prince Harry and Meghan Markle wed, but the homily on the nature of love delivered by the Most Rev. Michael B. Curry stole the show, to some extent, stunning viewers who expected a more pro forma reflection, and eliciting commentary from media outlets ranging from The Washington Post to Saturday Night Live. Still, when I finally watched it for myself, I was struck by how subdued his delivery was—recalling when I heard this spirited preacher hold forth at our own Christ Church Cathedral last fall, half-way expecting his booming voice to blow out our modest sound system.

Long before he was courted by English royalty, though, Curry was already a renowned homilist, who weaves together strands from the Anglican, black church, and prophetic social gospel traditions with rhetorical verve (for a rich sampling, check out the links at www. episcopalchurch.org/library/topics/michaelcurry). But much more crucial than the delivery, or even the messenger, is his message itself: The God who loves us into being and redeems us envisions more for us than we can imagine; our call, in faith and hope, is to live in to that dream by following in the footsteps of Jesus—not just in our heads, but with our hearts, and with our feet.

A book like Crazy Christians, the first of three books by Curry, cannot do justice to the warmth and urgency of the spoken word. Still, this collection of thirteen short essays, based upon convention addresses delivered in North Carolina and at a national meeting, glisten with gems drawn from Curry’s passion, wide reading, and pastoral insight. Several main threads run through these pieces: Christians, like their Savior, are embedded in a world vexed by chaos, and strife, and inequalities. Nonetheless, he writes: 16

We are here to love the God who created us and to love and care for each other as children of the one God, as the human family of God. We are here to transform what often is a nightmare of sin and death, hatred and violence, animosity and bigotry into something more closely resembling God’s dream of a renewed and transformed human family and creation (p. 132).

J. Scott Jackson Photo: submitted

No formal biography of Curry exists, to my knowledge. The the national church website (see www.episcopalchurch.org/ biography-most-rev-michael-curry) and vignettes throughout this book together paint a picture of how the man and his vocation have developed. Michael Curry was born in Chicago in 1953 and later was schooled in Buffalo, New York. His parents, originally Baptists, were drawn into the Episcopal Church by the common communion cup they were offered at a time rife, throughout much of the country, with both legal and cultural segregation.

Michael’s father, later ordained as a priest, was an organizer during the Civil Rights movement. A profound and abiding faith—that “we are part of something greater than ourselves” (p.

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the untimely death of his mother, after which he and his sister were raised by their father and grandmother.

In Crazy Christians, Curry mentions other key mentors that helped form him. During high school, Curry volunteered with Robert F. Kennedy’s ill-fated presidential campaign.

From the Massachusetts Senator, he learned to parlay the wearied apathy of cynicism with a bold “why not?”—why not imagine and strive for a society where hunger, poverty, exploitation, and violence are a distant memory? Why not the “Beloved Community” envisioned by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.? Curry’s faith, he admits, began to flag during his undergraduate years at Hobart College. He was jolted to attention when a friend nearly died from a drug overdose. He sought out the counsel of a wise college chaplain and began to reawaken to the gracious presence of God. ”For me, it was a kind of coming home to knowing God again, to being a believer, but as if it were for the first time,” he writes (p. 47).

Curry would go on to graduate from Yale Divinity School and receive Holy Orders. He and his wife, the former Sharon Clement, would raise two daughters (now adults). Curry served parishes in New York state, Ohio, and North Carolina. A visit by Verna J. Dozier, a distinguished religious educator, to Curry’s Ohio parish spurred him to search the scriptures more deeply, with discernment, charting the ABUN DANT TIMES

“He began to understand that being a Christian is not about being nice or respectable, but rather means being empowered by the Spirit to follow Jesus’ example and teachings wherever they lead.” liberating message within. He began to understand that being a Christian is not about being nice or respectable, but rather means being empowered by the Spirit to follow Jesus’ example and teachings wherever they lead. Following his own particular calling, Curry served as bishop of the diocese of North Carolina for 15 years, until he was elected Presiding Bishop in 2015, the first African American to hold that post.

The book’s title comes from an address he gave at the General Convention in 2012. Here Curry evokes the abandon and boldness that marks authentic discipleship: 17

“What the Church needs, what this world needs, are some Christians who are as crazy as the Lord. Crazy enough to love like Jesus, to give like Jesus, to forgive like Jesus, to do justice, love mercy, walk humbly with God—like Jesus” (p. 3). This adventure of faith begins with an inward turn, nurtured by such spiritual practices as prayer and Bible study, which transforms the heart and flows outward in acts of self-giving, and public service. Icons of divine craziness abound throughout church history—from a griefstricken yet tenacious Mary Magdalene, who becomes the first to encounter the risen Lord, to the indomitable abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe, whose “Battle Hymn of the Republic” is a constant source of inspiration for Curry’s preaching.

Jesus did not found an institution, Curry insists, but rather a “movement of the Spirit”—a “missionary movement of people committed to being not members of some social club but baptized disciples in community, following in his footsteps” (p. 114). In this vein, the early disciples patterned their common life after Jesus’ teachings, strove to eradicate poverty within the community by sharing all they had with each other, and appointed deacons to provide service among the broader community. Analogous to the perilous hill country Jesus and his disciples criss-crossed, we today face our own Galilees—anxiety, strife and division, the threat of terrorism and looming ecological disasters. Civic and religious institutions once deemed rock solid are teetering, while our cultural context grows increasingly secular.

The fastest growing religious demographic is the “Nones,” the religiously unaffiliated who might show intense interest in personal spirituality, though they might never darken the doors of a house of worship.

In the face of such challenges, Curry writes, Christians as a whole and Episcopalians in particular are bid to serve as repairers of the world (tikkun olam, as Jewish tradition names it). But what of the ideological and cultural differences within the household of God itself? Curry recalls the sadness he felt at the 2008 Lambeth conference, from which Bishop Eugene Robinson, the first openly 18

gay prelate in the Anglican Communion, had been excluded, but also which bishops from conservative African provinces had boycotted because of the presence of the U.S. province. The only hope in the face of such divisions is the unity forged by the Lord who, through his sacrifice, proclaims peace to those who are far and those who are near (Eph. 2:17).

As this message gets harder to convey at home and abroad, we must concentrate on having the “accent” of Jesus—just as the young girl in the high priest’s courtyard discerned Peter’s manner of speech on the night of the trial. Curry admonishes us to resist an untoward anxiety about the future of the denomination and its material infrastructure but, instead, to live more fully into our mandate to make disciples among all the nations. Curry draws an analogy between the contemporary churches and the surprising career of King George of England (as portrayed in the film The King’s Speech) —a stuttering and bungling public speaker who, in a time of grave crisis, found his voice to lead his country against the Nazis. Curry writes: Maybe we already have what we need.

A God to worship. A loving and liberating Lord to follow. A gospel that is good news to proclaim. A way of being Christian that is faithful and orthodox, loving and compassionate, open and generous, alive to the mystery of God. A way of following Jesus that is radically welcoming toward all, radically committed to serving the downtrodden and the oppressed, and radically unafraid to proclaim, as the saying goes, that “God loves you, no exceptions!” (p. 140).

J. Scott Jackson is an independent scholar and theologian who lives in Northampton. He and his wife, Leah, and son, Jacob, are members of Christ Church Cathedral in Springfield.

Check out the new Crazy Christians parish curriculum. Go to: www. wmarevival.org ABU ND ANT TIMES

WMA News...

Four congregations celebrate new ministry The Reverend Vicki Ix St. John’s Episcopal Church Ashfield September 14 @ 5:00 pm

The Reverend Bernie Poppe All Saints Episcopal Church Worcester September 30 @ 5:00 pm

The Reverend Nathaniel Anderson St. John’s Episcopal Church Williamstown October 2 @ 7:00 pm

The Reverend Karen Safstrom Christ the King - Epiphany Wilbraham November 7 @ 7:00 pm

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Long-time WMA warden ordained priest in New Hampshire

BY DICK FISH On a cool June evening at St. Barnabas Church, in the far northern town of Berlin, New Hampshire, The Rev. Dr. Betsy Hess was ordained priest by Bishop Rob Hirschfeld.

Hess, a clinical psychologist, was the long-time Senior Warden at St.John’s, Northampton. Bishop Rob is former rector of Grace Episcopal Church, Amherst.

The celebration included The Rev. Dan Weir, out-going rector of St. Barnabas and former rector of Holy Trinity, Southbridge and The Rev. Dr. Elinor McLaughlin, former rector of St. Barnabas and former chaplain to Mt. Holyoke College. Having served the Berlin congregation as deacon, The Rev. Dr. Betsy Hess now serves as rector of St.Barnabas.

Dick is a member of St. John’s Episcopal Church, Northampton

Left to right: The Rev. Dan Weir, Bishop Hirschfeld, Betsy and The Rev, Dr. Elinor McLaughlin photo: Lisa Thompson

Amherst congregation welcomes new curate In May Megan McDermott graduated from Yale Divinity School with a Master’s of Divinity degree, a diploma in Anglican Studies, and a certificate from Yale’s Institute of Sacred Music. She was ordained to the transitional deacon on August 4, and looks forward to ordination to the priesthood in 2019.

The Rev. Megan McDermott Photo: submitted

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Du Bois commemoration marked by Beloved Community Commision

BY THE REV. DR. HARVEY HILL On Saturday, August 4 our Diocese commemorated Civil Rights pioneer W.E.B. Du Bois with a pilgrimage in Great Barrington.

Du Bois was raised in Great Barrington, and he returned throughout his long life, eventually burying both his children and his first wife in the local cemetery. Du Bois went on to a distinguished career as an academic and activist. He is probably most known for his work founding the NAACP and editing their newsletter “The Crisis”. His enduring collection of essays, The Souls of Black Folk, has helped generations of readers understand what it means to live on one side of the “color line,” under the “veil” that makes descendants of African slaves live with a double consciousness.

Our day began at 9:30 am at the Du Bois Center in Great Barrington. Center Director Randy Weinstein made an incredibly informative presentation, with ample time for questions and commentary. Randy then led us to the gravesite of Du Bois’ family members.

He called the cemetery truly sacred ground.

From the Du Bois Center, we went to the Macedonia Baptist Church, founded in 1944, which is now the only remaining historically African-American Church in Great Barrington.

There we celebrated Eucharist and heard a sermon by Lee Cheek. Our small congregation was blessed with many excellent voices, so we also made a joyful noise to the Lord!

Our pilgrimage ended with a light lunch and time for fellowship. Afterwards, a few of us went on a walking tour of Du Bois’ childhood home, and then viewed the plaque at the place where he was born.

One participant commented that she learned a lot on the pilgrimage. Even better, she added, was being reminded about the ongoing quest for social justice. She said she felt inspired to continue Dr. Du Bois’ work. From her lips to God’s ear! Amen!

Harvey is co-chair of the Beloved Community Commission, and serves as rector of St. David’s, Agawam. Photo: submitted

We donated our offering to the Macedonia Baptist Church. Lee and her husband John attended their Sunday services to deliver the money and to share our experiences on the pilgrimage. In her view, the growing relationship between Episcopalians and Black Baptists in the southern Berkshires has been one of the great benefits of the pilgrimage.

ABUN DANT TIMES

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From the Archives

BY KAREN WARREN

A box labeled Tanzania Part One

BY KAREN WARREN

The slower pace of the administrative offices of the Diocese over the summer allows me to catch up on archiving some materials that have been tucked away in closets here for many years. Behind a closet door in our Common Room, a ‘fruit’ box labeled ‘Tanzania’ in magic marker finally reached its turn to be opened, reviewed, sorted, organized, inventoried and archived!

The box contained a number of newspaper articles from the 1970s and 80s; personal correspondence between the Rt. Rev. Alexander D. Stewart, 5th Bishop of our Diocese, and several officials of the Anglican Church in East Africa; and pamphlets and programs related to the Inauguration of the Diocese of Mount Kilimanjaro in 1982.

Review of the contents of the box shows that Bishop Stewart had a strong interest in missionary and ecumenical work, and a global perspective. During his tenure in our diocese he developed a Companion Relationship with the Diocese of Mount Kilimanjaro (DMK) in Tanzania, attending the Inaugural festivities. Letters addressed to Bishop Stewart and the people of our diocese show that warm friendships were forged with several of our brothers and sisters in East Africa, including the Rt. Rev. Amos Betungura, Bishop of East Ankole Diocese; the Rt. Rev. Yohana Madinda, Bishop of the Diocese of Central Tanganyika (DCT); and Archbishop Musa Kahurananga of the Church of the Province of Tanzania.

News clippings and pamphlets demonstrate that Bishop Stewart invested a great deal of time in learning about African countries, especially Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania (Tanzania was formerly known 22

The Rt. Rev. Alexander D. Stewart, 5th Bishop of Western Massachusetts Photo: official portrait

as Tanganyika—a learning for me!).

Correspondence suggests that Bishop Stewart met East African bishops at the Lambeth Conference in 1978. Also in this box were brochures on Apartheid; newsletters from the DCT; a guidebook dated 1982 from the United Society for the Propagation of the Gospel; a copy of a liturgy from the Province of Tanzania; and a 1981 World Vision publication on the crisis of hunger in Ethiopia.

There were also news clippings on the terror inflicted on the Ugandan people when military officer and politician Idi Amin overthrew the elected government of Milton Obote in 1971, declaring himself President.

During Amin’s eight-year reign an estimated 300,000 civilians, many of them Christians, were massacred. An article dated 1979 reports hope of reconstruction and renewal as Bishop Festo Kivengere returned to the region following Amin’s exile.

ABU ND ANT TIMES

Invitation to the inauguration of the new Diocese of Mount Kililanjarp. Photo: Episcopal WMA

A letter dated April 27, 1979 from Bishop Betungura to Bishop Stewart reveals an established friendship between the two.

Bishop Betungura speaks of the devastation caused by the Amin regime, and offers thanks to the people of our Diocese for prayer support during the years of suffering there. Bishop Betungura thanks God the people are free again—Amin is overthrown!

In addition to his request for continued prayer support, Bishop Betungura asks for financial assistance to help rebuild their Diocesan offices, which were partially destroyed and entirely looted.

Also included in the box was a handwritten list of medications/immunizations needed for a planned visit to the African continent; airline pamphlets; a flight itinerary; and an informative article from the June 1982 issue of Emergency Medicine discussing international travel concerns such as drinking or swimming in the water; mountain sickness; cholera; hepatitis; yellow fever; and ABUN DANT TIMES

avoidance of mosquitoes. There were some scribbled notes, perhaps a sermon Bishop Stewart was preparing to give when he attended the Inauguration of the Diocese of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Part Two of this article will appear in the next issue of Abundant Times, and will look deeper into the correspondence and interchange of visits between the people of the two dioceses.

Karen has served as diocesan archivist since 2010.

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