Huron CHurCH newsANGLICAN DIOCESE OF HURON • Huron Church News is a section of the Anglican Journal • A P R I L 2 0 1 7

Knitters warming up London's needy

APPORTIONMENT REPORTS FOR 2016Apportionment revenues slightly higher than in 2015. Pages 8-11

MINISTRY ON A HOCKEY RINKStratford Warriors and their team chaplain: from "Hockey for Hunger " to winning the championship. Page 6

EASTER 2017Bishop Linda Nicholls: Death overcome by life is the beating heart of the Church. Page 2

See Page 3

Birthday cake for every childBy Cynthia Connell

On Saturday, February 25, around 25 volunteers came to-gether at St. James Roseland in Windsor to package up the birthday cake kit bags in sup-port of “Every Child Should Have Their Birthday Celebrated with a Cake” project.

Jessica Flammia, a youth at St. James Roseland in Wind-sor, came up with the idea to start the project after her youth group had raised some funds to purchase food to be donated to local food banks. They had purchased some cake mixes that were on sale. When they were delivered the response was overwhelming, and Jessica found out many families access-ing service don’t have cakes for their children’s birthday.

When Jessica first came to St. James’ with the idea, she had a goal of 365 cake kits, the num-ber representing the days of the year and everyone has a birth-day every day. At the parish, the idea was seen as an amazing op-portunity for true community outreach and a very unique way

to bring the gospel to families in need.

So, as several parishes in the Deanery of Essex worshipped and celebrated Epiphany, boxes, baskets and shopping carts were filled with cake mixes, icing, candles, balloons and other par-ty supplies. For four weeks pa-rishioners around Windsor- Es-sex were asked to come together and collect items to make birth-day cake kits to be delivered to area food banks and food cup-boards.

Finally, on February 25, the volunteers (children, teens, adults and seniors) packaged more than 480 kits and enjoyed a birthday cake donated by a lo-cal bakery. The completed bags were delivered the first week of March to food banks and food cupboards around Windsor Es-sex County.

A huge thank you to the parishes in the Deanery that participated collecting items. To CAKES ETC. for donating a cake, Champion Paper for helping with bags and Nathalie McFadden our photographer for the event. But most impor-tantly a special thank you to Jes-sica for sharing her dream and vision, for allowing us to reach out to families in our Deanery and spread some cheer, hope, love and the gospel, to families in need.Cynthia Connell is Children & Youth Coordinator, Deanery of Essex

Photos: Jessica (far left in the last row) with her friends. They prepared 480 birthday cake kits.

“Birthdays are always a

big deal with my family.

Everyone gets together,

we spend time and of

course there’s always cake.

So I couldn’t imagine not

being able to have a cake

if I was a young child.”

Jessica Flammia

By Stacey Clark

T he Knitting For Peace group at St. Paul’s

Cathedral celebrated its fifth anniversary on Saturday, February 25.

Forty people attended the festivities, including current and past members of the group, and those interested in meeting the volunteers and learning more about this life-changing ministry. Bishop Barry Clarke, interim dean, and Gordon Russell, director of shelters with Mission Services of London, extended their sincere thanks to this team who have given so generously of their time and talents.

Heather Clark of St. Paul’s Cathedral launched this initiative in February of 2012 as a Lenten activity, inviting people from across London to join with members of our Cathedral family in this special project. Upon the conclusion of the period of reflection and service, all of the participants agreed wholeheartedly that the ministry should continue.

In the five years since the group was founded, 50 volun-teers from across London have hand-made over 5,000 items which have been distributed around our community.

The motto of this group is “Warm Up London”, and these committed artisans have been doing so one heartwarming, cozy item at a time. Members of Knitting For Peace (women

and men!) represent different faiths and denominations, but all share a common concern for their fellow Londoners and a passion for helping others. Not only do the products of their

work contribute to the health and well-being of the recipients, but in working together they have, at the same time, knitted a rich, welcoming community.

From September through June, 12 to 15 knitters attend the weekly gathering at St. Paul’s on Saturday mornings (10am-noon); of these about one third are members of the Cathedral. At weekly meet-ings knitters receive updates on community appeals, learn new knitting skills, stock up on supplies and patterns, hand in finished projects and enjoy a time of fellowship. Through the thank-you notes they’ve received, they know that their ministry has deeply touched the lives of the many peo-ple who have received their hand-knitted items.

Those who participate have also spoken of how their in-volvement has enriched their lives as well. They have learned or taught new skills, formed friendships, shared experiences, and supported causes that are close to their hearts.

"Knitting for Peace" at St. Paul's (left to right): Teresa Eaton (with Moses), Marg Egan, Maureen Legue, Liz Bow, Mary Anne Madry, Lynn Watson, Lesley Harding, Lyn Atchison, Osleen Barrington,

Susan Day, Chris Scott, Heather Clark, Noemi Perzia, Michelle Sauvé, Stacey Clark

P A G E 2 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S A P R I L 2 0 1 7

HuronChurch

NewsVolume 67, Number 4

SubmissionsHuron Church News welcomes news articles, commentaries, photographs and story ideas. Publication is at the discretion

of the editor.

EditorDavor Milicevic

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London, ONN6A 6H7

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Anglican Church.

PublisherThe Right Reverend

Linda Nicholls Bishop of Huron

Diocese of Huron Huron Church House 190 Queens Avenue

London, Ontario N6A 6H7 Phone: 519-434-6893

Huron Church News is published by the Diocese

of Huron as a section of the Anglican Journal.

Approximate circulation 12,000

HCN Board of Trustees Canon Robert Towler, Chair

PrinterPrinted and mailed by

Webnews PrintingNorth York, Ontario

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O f all the seasons of the Church year the one I

look forward to most is before us now. Holy Week and Easter define us as Christians.

Without the passion and resurrection of Jesus Christ we would not exist as a commu-nity of faith, for the disciples would simply have scattered in profound disillusionment. No one would care where and how Jesus was born as he would sim-ply have been one more messi-anic figure killed by a political elite. A few might have remem-bered aspects of Jesus’ teaching and tried to share it but that would not have lasted long.

The Christian church exists and has its being because Jesus faced the darkness of betrayal and suffering, accepting the in-justice of his accusers, bearing a horrific death and was raised to life again. Out of that death and despair God raised Jesus to new life, proving that nothing, not even death itself, is beyond the power of God’s love and renewal. It is this moment of death overcome by life that is the beating heart of the church.

The resurrection power of the Spirit in our midst gave the disciples what they needed to proclaim God’s good news in the face of their own persecu-tion and death and proclaimed it with joy! It is the engine for faith, forgiveness, grace and compassion.

Every year I find my own spiritual life strengthened and renewed as I walk with Jesus through those final days from acclamation at Palm Sunday to a final meal with friends offer-ing his body and blood in bread and wine to his betrayal, an-

guish, trial and crucifixion. All of the pain and suffering of our world, all the injustices, all the cruelty hang on that cross even as we know we too, like the disciples, want to run away or hide in despair. Then - we come to Easter Vigil or Easter Day when we, with the disciples, are amazed at the possibility that death is not the final word, that life can be and is renewed. The power of the resurrection is

the power of God’s life in and through us.

It is this journey that gives power and hope to our lives now and hope beyond this life for the future. It is this journey that every Anglican needs to remember by walking through it again and again every year.

I urge you to clear your calendar in this week - share the journey in your parish by being present on Palm Sun-day, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Vigil and/or Easter Day. To miss any one of these moments is to miss a crit-ical step in understanding our identity and our journey with God. Hearing the scriptures and participating in the litur-gies brings us, body, mind and soul, into the heart of God.

May your journey this year renew in you the depth and power of God’s love shown to us in the life, death and resur-rection of Jesus!

+Linda

Holy Week and Easter define us as Christians

AnglicAn Fellowship oF prAyer

Bishop lindA nicholls

A time in the WildernessBy Rev. Kimberly Metelka

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be

tempted by the devil. 2 He fasted for forty days and forty nights,”

Matthew 4:1-2a

F or many the thought of being in the wilderness

alone for 40 days and 40 nights can be quite daunting especially if you are an extrovert.

The imagery we can build in our minds as we think of being in the wilderness is being deserted and left alone. The wilderness is not often seen as a place we want to visit. I am sure many of us don’t want to spend that much time alone with our own thoughts.

As you continue your obser-vance of Lent have you been willing to enter the wilderness with your own ‘demons’? Have you been able to take time from the usual hustle and bustle of life to search your heart to see if you are living fully into your discipleship as a follower of Jesus Christ?

Lent is a gift from God to us. We have been given permission to slow down and to take the time to reflect and also make changes or renew ourselves. You may be reading this saying I have tried this before and I was unable to do it; I don’t have the time to add one more thing

to my busy life; I don’t know what to do or how to do it? It is never too late to try something again or something new.

Have you ever tried Fasting: Wake up 15-30 minutes earlier and before you break your eve-ning fast, spend time in God’s word, read a devotion, or medi-tate. If you are able to fast for a full day, choose a day when you

will have time to meditate and reflect on your life and your relationship with the Lord.

Prayer is vital to us, as Christians. There are so many different ways to pray: The Lord’s Prayer, Lectio Divina – praying the scriptures; praying with music; praying with your body in dance. There is Con-templative prayer – listening

to scripture or a devotion and focusing on a word or phrase during your time of meditation. One prayer that is great to be-gin your morning is a prayer of thanksgiving – give thanks for all of the blessings in your life, and if those meet your needs, there are many more. Prayer can be done while you are ex-ercising, preparing your meals, sitting in traffic or standing in line at the grocery store. The Lord is always ready to have a conversation.

Meditation is great way to help focus yourself for the day. There are different ways. Using a mantra, sitting in silence, listening to a guided medita-tion or listening to music. As I said earlier, meditation is great when added to prayer.

The time in the wilderness for Jesus was preparation for his ministry while he was here on earth. It can also be the same for us. A time to build good habits of communing with the Lord in different ways so we can fulfil our call to ministry.

It is never too late to start. Embrace the wilderness this year as you continue your Lent-en journey. Rev. Kimberly Metelka is AFP executive and Rector of St. John in the Wilderness, Bright's Grove.

Resurrection. St. John the Evangelist Church, Kitchener.

Psalm Sunday. Church of St. Jude, London, Ontario.

A P R I L 2 0 1 7 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S P A G E 3

St. Paul's cathedral: getting ready for Easter service

Knitting for peace continuesFrom Page 1

By Melissa BroadfootHolding services in the Ca-

thedral for Holy Week and Eas-ter – that is our goal!

With the help of a resto-ration company, we continue to repair God’s house. This has been a complex project, but we are pleased to report that great progress is being made thanks to the generous donations and support from the London community and the entire Di-ocese.

It has been challenging to get the heavy steel brackets in place. All of the five truss-es have had upper brackets installed and about half have the bearing brackets installed – this is the reinforcing of the joints at the Queen posts and the truss ends that was nec-essary to strengthen them to support the roof. The brackets are being painted to look like the wood grain so it blends

into the hammer beam con-struction of the trusses them-selves.

Once the truss repairs are done and safety inspections completed, the scaffolding and

the 25 shores can come down and the pews put back in place, ready to hold those who join in

worship in this beautiful bless-ed building. Our hope is to be ready for Easter service.

St Paul’s Cathedral’s will once again open its doors to the London community. The Cathedral is a gathering place for celebration, sanctuary, ar-tistic expression, outreach, and worship. It is the church of the entire Diocese and the home of the Bishop. It is a historic part of London’s history.

God is walking with us on this journey. Thank you to those of you who have also walked with us and who con-tinue to support the Cathedral. Our journey is not over but the end is in sight.

Thank you for your contin-ued support.Melissa Broadfoot is a member of Project Jericho Team.

A number of partici-pants-at-large are unable to come to weekly meetings due to illness or infirmity, work schedules or family commit-ments, and so knit as their schedule or health permits. Heather and other members of the team have delivered yarn, needles and supplies to shut-ins, and often co-ordinate members’ exchanges of yarn for finished items at times that are more convenient for partici-pants.

During this season of Lent the knitters will continue to craft hats, mittens, scarves and neck warmers to be distribut-ed to guests of the Fellowship Centre here at St. Paul’s, to shel-ters in the city, and to children at local schools. In addition to preparing these much needed items, however, some partici-pants will be working on a spe-cial project as this year’s Lenten discipline: they will be knitting Trauma Blankets for children who are treated in the Emer-gency department at the Chil-

dren’s Hospital, in response to a request recently received from the London Health Sciences Centre. These blankets will stay with the child throughout their treatment, and will be theirs to take home with them during their recovery. The blankets will offer a warm hug to serious-ly ill, injured or traumatized children.

Knitting For Peace is grateful to have received support from St. Paul’s parishioners and Lon-doners in the form of donations of yarn or funds for supplies. If you happen to have yarn that you can’t use, or are willing to make a small contribution for supplies, these would be grate-fully received. Your gift will be transformed into a tangible blessing, a heart-felt gift that will be long-cherished by the recipient.

Come along and learn to knit yourself if you wish! All are welcome to join this life-chang-ing ministry. Stacey Clark is a member of the Knitting for Peace group, and a parishioner of St. Paul's Cathedral.

Local Charities Supported by Knitting For Peace

• St. Paul’s Social Services: hats, mittens, scarves and facecloths (with toiletry items) for guests of the Fellowship Centre;• The Salvation Army Centre of Hope: blankets for people moving out of the shelter into their own home;• The John Howard Society: blankets, mittens, hats, scarves, socks, and slippers for at-risk youth;• London Health Sciences Centre: Purple Hats for newborns, to educate parents and caregivers about ‘purple crying’, in hopes of avoiding in-stances of shaken baby syndrome, and Trauma Blankets for injured or traumatized children treated at the Children’s Hospital;• St. Joseph’s Hospital: visually and tactilely stimulating ‘Twiddle Muffs’ for Alzheimer’s pa-tients, which also provide comfort and security;• Knitted Knockers of Canada: soft, comfort-able, knit prosthetics for breast cancer survi-vors;• The Men’s Mission & Rehabilitation Centre (through Mission Services of London): mittens, hats and scarves for men staying in their emer-gency shelter, and hygiene kits for guests using “crashbeds” when shelters are full;

• London HIV/AIDS Connection: scarves for the Red Scarf Project, to raise awareness of the local significance of HIV/AIDS and educate the broader London community;• My Sister’s Place: hats, scarves, cowls, mittens, socks, facecloths and tote bags, supporting women and their children as they seek safety and shelter;• Three public schools in London distribute hats, mitts and neck warmers to children from low-income families;• McCormick Home: lap blankets for long-term care residents;• Women's Community House: hats, scarves, mittens and hygiene packs for women and their children who have suffered physical and emo-tional crises;• Rotholme Women’s & Family Shelter (through Mission Services of London): baby blankets, slippers for children and adults, hats, mitts for adults and children, scarves for adults, neck warmers for children and hygiene packs;• Warm clothing for St. Paul’s two Syrian refu-gee families; • During winter months the Knitting For Peace team make sure that Tim and other St. Paul’s staff always have a few pair of mittens available to hand out to anyone in need passing by the Cathedral.

By Rose LangleyTrinity Anglican Church,

Simcoe started a Prayer Shawl Ministry this year to offer sup-port to those who are unable to attend church due to illness or mobility limitations.

When the call went out to parishioners, we had an over-whelmingly positive response. More than 20 parishioners, both knitters and crocheters, showed a keen interest and are busily creating their individual shawls. This only proves what

we already knew - that we have a talented and creative parish who rise up to meet the chal-lenge and surpass it.

A shawl is like a warm hug letting you know someone cares about you.

Rose Langley is an Outreach projects member at Trinity, Simcoe Photo (left to right): Rose Langley, Anne Mitton, Grace Brubacher and Monica Sullivan

Prayer shawl ministry at Trinity, Simcoe

One London Place255 Queens Avenue

Suite 1400London, ON

N6A 5R8Tel: 519-433-3441Fax: 519-433-3853

Insurance Brokerage • Risk Management

P A G E 4 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S A P R I L 2 0 1 7

By Rev. Canon Nick Wells

W alter Allward’s Vimy memorial can be

seen from kilometers away across the Douai Plain. The great Canadian monument to Canada’s fallen, with Mother Canada mourning her dead. On a much smaller scale but every bit as grand are the hundreds if not thousands of monuments found in churches, hospitals, high schools and universities from coast to coast to coast in Canada.

Joanathan F. Vance wrote:"Some of the densest collec-

tions of memorials are to be found in Canada’s churches; indeed, it is not uncommon to find dozens of separates, memorials within the walls of a single church. Of the welter of memorials, which include monuments, plaques, furnish-ings, tablets, and liturgical objects, the most striking were executed in stained glass…” (Sacrifice in Stained Glass)

Trinity Anglican Church in St. Thomas has a chapel ded-icated to the 91st Regiment, with retired Regimental flags, furnishings, tablet and plaques. Every Remembrance Day the congregations reads aloud the names of all those killed in action during the Great War, all 182 of them.

St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Tyrconnell has a window dedicated to Ellis Wellwood Sifton who died on April 9th 1917 during the battle of Vimy and who was awarded a Vic-toria Cross posthumously. The bottom panel of the window

depicts his cap badge on the left and a V.C. on the right.

Christ Church Port Stanley has a window dedicated to a young private killed when his weapon discharged the day af-ter the armistice was declared.

A window in Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Burford, erected as a memorial to Captain Allan Gray, who was killed in action in 1918, has the inscription “This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased” and “Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world.” A window which com-memorates the figure of Christ with the church’s fallen.

The memorial window de-picted in this article was orig-inally created for the chapel in the Amasa Wood and Memo-rial Hospital in St. Thomas Ontario, following the Great War. This explains the Canadi-an Nursing Sister (a Bluebird) on the left and the patriotic wounded soldier on the right, with St. George in the centre.

The window is 15 feet by 30 feet and is part of a much larger memorial that included a life sized statue of a soldier installed on the grounds at the entrance to the hospital, as well as two bronze plaques, beneath the window, listing the fallen.

Between 1924 and 1930 the 25th Regiment Chapter of the IODE, Women’s Institutes, and Granges diligently col-lected the names and details of the 2,250 men and women who served in Elgin County during the Great War, in the Elgin County Book of Remem-brance. The book is hand-made, and leather bound, with vellum pages, each person’s military record beautifully recorded in calligraphy.

The entire memorial, win-dow, statute, bronze plaques, and book of remembrance was-removed and transferred to the Elgin General Hospital when

the old Memorial Hospital was demolished.

By the time this article is published it will be April. Easter weekend in 1917, one hundred years ago, was also in April. The Battle of Vimy start-ed on April 9th (Palm Sunday this year).

As Canadians we seem to pride ourselves that we are a country without myths regard-ing our founding. A persistent myth about Canada is that we came of age or became a country all because of what happened at Vimy. This may be due to sentiment or the contin-ual sacrifice of the more than 61,000 who laid down their lives, not only at Vimy, but also at Passchendale, Amiens, Canal du Nord, Cambrai, and Mons. To the surviving veterans, and the men, women and children of Canada, the memory of the war to end all wars had to be preserved, so that future gen-erations would never forget the loss or the sacrifice made.

In this our Sesquicentennial year, take the time to look at the walls and windows in your congregation. Find your roll of honour, or a memorial window, or plaque, research those who made the supreme sacrifice and share that information in your congregation/parish, so that “We shall remember them.” Rev. Canon Nick Wells is currently Priest-in-Charge of the Parish of Tyrconnell and a member of History Matters and the Great War Association.

On Founders Day, Feb 22, 2017, the Scouting and Guiding groups renewed their promises at St. James’ Church in Paris, Ontario. Father Victor Kischak gave a great history of how the groups originally started at St. James’ Church back in the 1800s. Pictured here are Maddie Pritchard, Ashley Pritchard, Queenie (Brown Owl) MacCormack and Alec McRae, representing St. James’ Church. Dave Gabriel

The second event in the year long celebration of the 150th Anniversary of Christ Church in Oxford Centre, on which we reported in the March edition of the Huron Church News, was held in February. Pictured here are the wedding party portraying the Feb. 10, 1876 wedding of Isabella Margaret Lampman and Charles William Hawden, the first wedding to be held in Christ Church Oxford Centre. Witnesses at the original wedding were William Mighton and Martha Lampman with the priest being the Rev. Edward Softley. Parents of the Bride were Peter and Charlotte Lampman (original founders). The wedding re-enactment was staged by present members of Christ Church Oxford Centre and led by Rev. Derek Perry. A wedding banquet followed the service with food and customs of the era.”Marg Alyea, 150th Anniversary Committee Chair, Christ Church Oxford Centre

Revisiting the past continues in Oxford Centre ...

... and also at St. James', Paris, on Founders Day, going back to the 1800s

Vimy commemoration: sacrifice in stained glass

Memorial window originally created for the chapel in the Amasa Wood and Memorial Hospital in St. Thomas.

Memorial windows in Huron churches dedicated to heroism and casualties in climactice battle in April 1917.

A P R I L 2 0 1 7 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S P A G E 5

Wondering What It’s All About?

 

Licentiate in Theology

April – July 2017 Courses

Parish Administration*

April 1 & 2; 9 am-9 pm; Huron

Christian Initiation Tuesdays, May 2, 9, 16, 23, 6:30-9:30 pm, & Saturday, May 20, 10 am-4 pm; Huron

Pastoral Care & Christian Education* May 6 & 7; 9 am-9pm; Huron

Sex, Marriage, & Family in the Hebrew Bible May 16, 18, 23, 25, 30, & June 1; 6:30-9:30 pm; Huron

Spiritual Formation Retreat July 2-5; Disciple Conference Grounds, Haldimand

Religion & Nature Tuesdays, June 6-July 11; 6:30-9:30 pm; Huron

*Also qualifies for Priests for Specialized Ministries Program

More details about these classes and others are online. Course Cost: $300 each

Trip to Rome & Area! Guides: Dr. Murray Watson, Rev. Janet Anstead See online for complete details and itinerary. Dates: May 12-21, 2017

Each course is a wonderful educational experience that stands alone or can be used toward LTh Diploma. More online at Huron, at Renison University College, and at Canterbury College!

For More Information about the LTh & To Register for Courses www.huronuc.ca/LTh Faculty of Theology, Huron University College 1349 Western Road, London, Ontario N6G 1H3 519.438.7224, ext. 289; janstead@uwo.ca

Seeking deeper understanding of faith in this world?  Contemplating Ordained Ministry as priest or deacon?  Or simply interested in further education for personal development? 

Join us in Rome!

The Anglican Fellowship of Prayer Huron

PresentsThe Bishop of Huron’s Prayer

Conference

GOSPEL IN FOURDIRECTIONS

Reverend Canon Virginia Doctor

Mohawk, Turtle Clan & Coordinator of Indigenous Ministry of the Anglican

Church of Canada

Saturday, May 6, 2017 10am-3pm

Church of the Ascension2060 Dundas St., E. London

$20.00 (lunch provided)

Join us for a day with Rev’d Ginny as she shares an indigenous perspective of the Gospel in Four Directions.

Rev Ginny will speak to us in the morning as well as offer a homily during the Eucharist. After a de-licious lunch and time to browse resources that will be available, Rev Ginny will guide us through an afternoon study.

To register please contact: Rev’d Kim Metelka kametelka@gmail.com; 2896 Old Lakeshore Road, Bright’s Grove, ON, N0N 1C0; 519-869-2403 or text info to 519-464-8892.

Once again you are invited to attend the Ninth Annual Soup and Sandwich Dinner with a Silent Auction on Monday May 15, 2017. The dinner will help us to raise funds for St. Paul’s Cathedral Social Services.

Despite the major repairs which the Cathedral has had to undertake, those of us who are involved with the Food Bank and the Fellowship Centre are anxious to continue to reach out to those in our community who struggle to meet the basic needs of life.

We rely totally on donations from churches, organizations, community grants and individuals. In 2016 we received 1,880 units (24 case beer size boxes) of food and $243,929.

We also rely on the many volunteers from all walks of life who freely give thousands of hours to support this vital work. The Food Bank served 13,390 individuals of whom approximately 40% were children. The Fellowship Centre served 9,542 healthy lunches.

Please join us this year with our speaker The Rev. Canon Ken Brooks who will help us to engage in recognizing how hospitality can be at the heart of real change and can also be a source of joy as we live in this complex and troubling world.

Monday May 15, 2017

The London Club, 177 Queen’s Avenue, London

Time: 6:30 pm

Cost: $75.00 per person which includes a $50.00 Income Tax Receipt

Tickets: can be purchased by phoning St. Paul’s Cathedral Social Service

Office - at 519-434-8979 from 9:30 am – 3:30 pm or in person

during the hours listed above

Hot Line Number: 519 – 521-2000

Payment can be made using Visa, MasterCard, Cheque or cash.

behold a new statement of identity a new application process annual request for proposalsYOUR REVITALIZED FOUNDATION WITH YOU IN MIND

anglicanfoundation.org

P A G E 6 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S A P R I L 2 0 1 7

Ministry on a hockey rink in StratfordBy Davor Milicevic

A young man’s love for hockey and his

unfulfilled wish to work in sport administration found their way to become a part of his ministry in a manner that helped a wider community.

Rev. Daniel Bowyer, Rector at Stratford’s St. Paul’s Anglican Church, has been involved with Stratford’s Warriors Junior B team as the team chaplain for more than two years.

“When I came to Stratford, in February 2014, I realized that the Junior B team was quite a big thing in the community. I al-ways ask myself what makes the community tick. In Stratford, there is a festival and there is a hockey team”, says Bowyer.

It was during his second week at St. Paul’s when someone came and said they wanted a rector who would announce the hock-ey scores. And he found out that there were quite a few ticket holders in the congregation.

“At the same time someone came to me with the concerns about the funding level for the Food Bank, so we started St. Paul’s ‘Hockey for Hunger’. The challenge is for the members of the congregation to donate one dollar for every goal the War-riors score to the Food Bank. So, every month the number of goals is reported on our wor-ship bulletin. And it has never been less than 25”, remembers Bowyer.

The next step was to push this further within the community. Rev. Bowyer approached the hockey team, told them what they were doing at St. Paul’s and asked them if they would like to do a variation of this for an outreach in Stratford of their choice. The team got back to him and said that they would like to do it for the House of Blessing, one of the major outreach agencies. The winter 2014 saw the first “Hockey for Hunger” campaign in the com-munity with the team.

“That is of course how I met all the people involved with the Warriors and then I asked them if they would like to have a team chaplain. They thought it might be a good idea, so I came officially as the team chaplain in January 2015”, says Bowyer.

And what do the players say about their chaplain? Here is how the Warriors see his role.

“He is a great guy to talk to, an easy listener. If you have an issue and don’t want to go to your team-mates or man-agement, he is always there

with open arms and clear conscience. We can talk to him about anything, it does not have to be anything religious but any problem that we may face”, says the Warriors number 10 Jack Scanlan.

His chaplain helped him to get integrated into the team and he also appreciates Rev. Bowyer's involvement in the community:

“The work Dan does goes far beyond the usual definition of the team chaplain. He provides us with great avenues to devel-op the opportunities in town

and our effort to give back to the community.”

Dylan Lebold (number 11) also thinks that Dan is a great guy to have as a mediator, but much more than that: “We can talk to him about life, even about the Bible and how it relates to our lives. The hockey is not going to be there for us, you realize that there are other, bigger things ahead of us.”

Sam Dallas, the goalie, has always had a strong spiritual connection with God through his family. But he also appre-ciates his chaplain’s work from

the life’s perspective in general: “I’ve met with Chaplain Dan two or three times a month for the past three months, it really helped me getting grounded, to look at my life and every-thing I’ve been going through. Whatever happens – happens, you just have to be the best per-son you can be, and overcome whatever obstacles you have on your path. It gives you that spiritual centre and the guide you need. Having a chaplain – it really is a humble blessing.”

It is obvious that Rev. Dan Bowyer’s service as the team chaplain developed over time.

“There are three facets to the chaplaincy. One is to provide the pastoral presence for the team and the coaches, for the families of the players. The second facet was a request from some of the players who asked me to come and lead the Bible Study once a month. We usually look at a passage of the Scriptures that helps in developing character. The third facet is going out into the community and assisting in the community outreach – the job I do with the team management. Just last week we went to the Community Living, which is an organization here in Stratford that assists people with devel-opmental disabilities. Every year we take a tour at House of Blessing, so that they can see the outreach we are support-ing”, explains Bowyer.

Rev. Bowyer’s efforts have been appreciated within the team. “Father Dan has been an integral member of the Stratford Warriors Hockey Club while serving in his role as Team Chaplain”, as the head coach of the Warriors Dave Williams says. After all, in Dan’s first season as the team chaplain, the Warriors won the championship.

As for Dan, he is not hiding that he feels blessed he was able to bring together hockey and his ministry, two things he loves.

Rev. Dan Bowyer with the Stratford Warriors players (from left): Dylan Lebold, Jack Scanlan and Sam Dallas.

The Stratford Warriors’ community outreach since January 2015:• Hockey for Hunger: A two-week initiative around the Christmas season that challenges fans and businesses in the wider community to donate $1 per Stratford Warriors goal for a five game stretch to the Stratford House of Blessing. It has resulted in approximately $8000. The team also tours the Stratford House of Blessing each year as part of the initiative. • To Stratford With Love: The Warrior players serve and sign autographs at the annual "To Strat-ford With Love" outreach meal that 1000 people attend each year.• Salvation Army Kettles: Players volunteer to accept donations at Salvation Army Kettles each Christmas season.• Community Visits: players visit and sign autographs at Spruce Lodge Long-Term Care Facility, Romeo School and Community Living Stratford and Area.

The Diocese of Huron Golf Tournament Planning Committee

is preparing to make distribution of the proceeds

of the 2016 Diocesan Golf Tournament. Proceeds from the Golf Tournament support outreach ministry offered through parishes or community organizations in the Diocese

through the Faith-in-Action Trust Fund.

Please send requests for funding of outreach ministry in your parish or community

on letterhead outlining the details of the outreach ministry to the attention of

the Diocese of Huron Golf Tournament Planning Committee c/o Church House

190 Queens Avenue London, ON N6A 6H7.

The deadline for request submissions is May 1st, 2017.

Diocesan ninth annual golf tournament:

Saturday, June 17th, 2017

Pine Knot Golf and Country Club, Dorchester, Ontario

Come and join us in support of outreach, mission and ministry in our communities in Southwestern OntarioTo register and for further information, or if you would like to help volunteer, contact: The Rev.’d Daniel Bowyer at 519-301-9873 or hurongolf@gmail.com orvisit our Diocese of Huron website: www.diohuron.org

A P R I L 2 0 1 7 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S P A G E 7

An ancient way to prayBy Rev. Canon

Dr. Lorne Mitchell

I ona is not a place you arrive at by mistake.

It’s true, more and more people are discovering how to get there, but to do so requires considerable effort and com-mitment. From Glasgow you take an early morning train that winds along Loch Lomond and eventually reaches the west coast at Oban. From there you take a ferry to the Isle of Mull.

By the time you are twisting through the mountains of Mull you begin to feel as though you have left all traces of civilization behind and you are heading out to the edge of the world. When the bus stops, there you can see Iona and the Abbey off in the distance about a mile across the water.

Iona is a mere three miles long and yet this little island was the cradle of Celtic Christi-anity in Scotland. This was the place of abbots, monks, farm-ers, craftsmen, artists, sculp-tors, teachers, scholars, Kings and Queens; generations of Christian prayer and learning.

The ferry that brings you to Iona arrives at a very sim-ple dock. To the left is the only pub on the island and straight-ahead are the ruins of the Augustinian Nunnery. It was about four o’clock when the ferry landed but my day’s journey wasn’t over yet. Rather than staying at the Abbey I had

decided to lead a hermits life. The hermit’s hut, owned by a farmer at the north end of the island, was a further 30-minute walk.

A Thin PlaceAs I walked down the only

road on Iona, I really did start to feel as though I was walking to the very edge of the world. While walking, I began to notice how quiet it was. There were no human noises. No cars. No machines. No phones. No voices. I became very aware of everything along the road. There were crags of rugged rock, worn like old faces; sheep grazing in the field; flowers blooming; corncrakes honking in the distance and always the ever-present wind blowing.

By the time I was half way along the road I had the over-whelming feeling that every-

thing was gently speaking to me. In fact the whole island seemed to want to say some-thing. This took me by surprise and I certainly don’t know how to explain it. But I do know that many people have described Iona as “a thin place”; a place where the barrier between the earthly realm and the spiritual realm is very thin.

Hermit HutEventually, the road I was on

went from rough pavement to gravel, and then simply came to an end. I took the only drive-way there was and made my way to the farmhouse. There,

I was greeted by the farmer’s helper who led me along a narrow path to the hermit’s hut. It was a comfy little hobbit hut: A bed, a chair, a table, a kettle and a view of the ocean. This little bothy would be my home for the week.

A daily routine seemed to naturally occur: morning prayer at the Abbey followed by a social justice training workshop. The afternoons were spent walking to various parts of the island. After supper was a time for reading. The day would end with evening prayers at the Abbey at 9:30 pm and then a quiet walk home in the twilight.

An Ancient Way to PrayBefore I left Canada, I had

started to read a book called The Celtic Way of Prayer by Es-ther De Waal. It was very inter-esting reading, but truthfully it wasn’t until I was living on Iona that I truly understood what the Celtic way of prayer feels like. In our western civilization, when people decide to pray, it often feels as though God is far off at a distance and one is left feeling uncertain if God has heard our prayer. It also gen-erally feels as though this long distance prayer involves just you and God and not the rest of creation.

The gentle rhythm of praying, reading and walking around the island started to open up a way of prayer that feels differ-ent. I became keenly aware that God is not distant and hidden; God is actually very close and personal; so much so that it feels as though God is intent-ly listening to my heartbeat. Furthermore, I could see with clarity that my relationship with God is not just about God and me; in actual fact, it involves my relationship with all of God’s creation.

The Celtic Theologian John Scotus Eriugena, living almost 1200 years ago, wrote:

“Now the divine light man-ifests itself to the world in two ways, through the Bible and through Creation… Learn the words of scripture and under-stand their meaning in your soul; there you will discover the

Word of God. Know the forms and beauty of creation by your physical senses; and see there the Word of God. He himself is the being of all things.”

Since I have returned from my Celtic pilgrimage, I have begun my Sunday sermons with two short phrases: The Kingdom of God is near; Let the God of all life speak to us. For me this is not theoretical or philosophical; this is very real. The Celtic way of prayer is deeply rooted in the truth that we are in a personal rela-tionship with God and God’s creation - both the earthly realm and the heavenly realm. Not only that, we are called to be aware of this reality and let it be reflected in our words and actions.

For me, this little prayer for awareness has become import-ant. It’s important because there are so many reasons for why we might not to be attentive and so miss out on the nearness of God and what God can reveal to us.

For example, we may simply be too busy with the various tasks in our day; we might be angry or overly worried about something and having heated conversations in our head; it might be that we are being bombarded by too much infor-mation; or we might be living too much in the internet world of Facebook or Twitter. Social media actually cuts us off from interacting with the creation that is all around us.

All these are common situa-tions that can drastically reduce our attentiveness to God’s presence. They are moments when the Kingdom of God is near but we are not letting the God of all Life speak to us. But there is something quite beau-tiful I have discovered. In the months since my visit to Iona, I have come to the happy reali-zation that if one fully engages in this ancient form of Celtic prayerfulness, then it is possible for any moment in your life to become a “thin place”.

(Next: Prophetic for the future)

A Celtic Pilgrimage (3)

Hermit Hut: a bed, a chair, a table, a kettle and a view of the ocean.

Iona Abbey Cloister

May 4, 2017 - Mitchell Golf & Country ClubPlease join us for fun and friendship

6pm: Mix & mingle reception7pm: Dinner and Silent Auction followed with Conversation

with Bishop Linda and entertainment by Tim Elliott

Tickets available through your church office Everyone welcome

$30 Dinner – cheques payable to the Huron & Perth Deanery

Third annual Bishop’s Friends Event for Huron & Perth Deanery is in support of

The Empowered Leadership Funda priority of the Diocesan Renew Initiative

which assists clergy and their families in time of need

Gifts to the Fund may be made at the event with cheques made payable to the Diocese of Huron.

Thank you for your support!

St. Martin's Cross, standing here for 1200 years

P A G E 8 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S A P R I L 2 0 1 7

Apportionment reportsBy Canon Paul RathboneOn behalf of the Diocese of

Huron, thank you to all of our congregations for their gener-ous financial support this past year to our missional budget as a diocese.

Enclosed is a reporting of apportionment received from our congregations during this past financial year.

For the Diocese of Huron in 2016, apportionment revenues received totalled $3,236,461. Our budget was $3,411,392. We achieved 95% of our bud-get for 2016.

This shortfall of $174,931 was less than the provision we made in our budget for a shortfall of $196,130.

Against apportionment re-ceived in 2015, our revenues were higher by $107,092.

Thank you for this financial support this past year in sup-port of the breadth of ministry that is undertaken in Huron.

As the financial year 2016 is drawing towards a close at the time of this publication, early signs are pointing towards a small surplus for 2016.

Final financial results will not be concluded until after our external audit is complet-ed in April.

These results in 2016 were the result of your generous support of our diocesan bud-get, along with our net (of revenues) operating expen-

ditures bettering budget by approximately $17,000, large-ly through the receipt of pri-or-year apportionment short-falls from closed churches' remaining assets.

As this financial year clos-es, it is anticipated that our accumulated diocesan deficit will slightly reduce to approxi-mately $305,000.

Thank you again for your continued support of the work of our Church here in Huron.Paul Rathbone is Secretary-Treasurer for the Diocese of Huron.

DEANERY OF BRANT Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent of/NORFOLK Budget Requests Received Apportionment

Brantford, Grace 28,863.00 31,749.00 28,863.00 100%Brantford, St. James 17,105.00 18,816.00 17,105.00 100%Brantford, St. Jude's 21,123.00 23,235.00 2,536.72 12%Brantford, St. John's 8,887.00 9,776.00 4,562.59 51% Mt. Pleasant, All Saints 6,472.00 7,119.00 5,500.00 85%Brantford, St. Mark's 46,020.00 50,622.00 46,020.00 100%Burford, Holy Trinity 15,345.00 16,880.00 8,440.02 55%Scotland, St. Mark's 1,050.00 1,155.00 1,155.00 110%Paris, St. James 32,857.00 36,143.00 33,344.38 101%Port Dover, St. Paul's 23,465.00 25,812.00 23,465.00 100%Port Rowan, St. John's 11,128.00 12,241.00 11,128.00 100% Simcoe, St. John's (Woodhouse) 7,741.00 8,515.00 7,741.00 100% Port Ryerse, Memorial 4,378.00 4,816.00 4,378.00 100%St. George, Holy Trinity 18,236.00 20,060.00 18,236.00 100%Simcoe, Trinity 33,976.00 37,374.00 33,976.44 100%Six Nations, Christ ChurchSix Nations, St. Luke's 1,670.00 1,837.00 600.00 36%Six Nations, St. Peter'sSix Nations, St. Paul's 2,981.00 3,279.00 2,981.04 100%Waterford, Trinity 9,531.00 10,484.00 10,486.00 110%

TOTALS 290,828.00 319,913.00 260,518.19 90%

DEANERY OF DELAWARE Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent ofBudget Requests Received Apportionment

Aylmer, Trinity 15,076.00 16,584.00 14,000.00 93%Port Burwell, Trinity 8,832.00 9,715.00 8,832.00 100% Vienna, St. Luke's 3,509.00 3,860.00 3,503.04 100%Glencoe, St. John's 7,516.00 8,268.00 7,516.00 100% Mt. Brydges, St. Jude's 5,541.00 6,095.00 6,372.12 115%Muncey, St. Andrew's 1,716.00 1,888.00 600.00 35% Oneida, Zion 1,284.00 1,412.00 1,391.00 108%Port Stanley, Christ Church 8,175.00 8,993.00 8,175.01 100%St. Thomas, St. Hilda's-St. Luke's 21,242.00 23,366.00 21,254.49 100%St. Thomas, St. John's 32,155.00 35,371.00 32,155.00 100%St. Thomas, Trinity 35,872.00 39,459.00 35,872.00 100%Tyrconnell, St. Peter's&Nativity 6,787.00 7,466.00 6,800.00 100% Burwell Park, St. Stephen's 800.00 880.00 800.00 100% West Lorne, Grace 3,687.00 4,056.00 4,056.00 110%

TOTALS 152,192.00 167,413.00 151,326.66 99%

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Apportionment reports

DEANERY OF KENT Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent ofBudget Requests Received Apportionment

Parish of Rondeau Bay Blenheim, Trinity 20,168.00 22,185.00 20,168.00 100% Erieau, St. Pauls 7,256.00 7,982.00 7,256.00 100% Rondeau, Grace Summer ParishChatham, Christ Church 40,484.00 44,532.00 40,484.00 100%Chatham, Holy Trinity 38,037.00 41,841.00 38,037.01 100%Chatham, St. Paul's 8,567.00 9,424.00 9,497.40 111%Dover Twp., St. Thomas 3,470.00 3,817.00 3,470.04 100%Moraviantown, St. Peter's 767.00 844.00 844.00 110%Parish of the Transfiguration Ridgetown, Advent 8,873.00 9,760.00 8,873.00 100% Highgate, Redeemer 2,118.00 2,330.00 2,118.00 100% Thamesville, St. Stephen's 2,415.00 2,657.00 2,415.00 100% Dresden, Christ Church 6,308.00 6,939.00 6,311.00 100% Florence, St. Matthew's 4,045.00 4,450.00 4,045.08 100% Aughrim, St. John's 3,055.00 3,361.00 3,361.00 110%Comber, Ascension 3,118.00 3,430.00 3,118.00 100%Wallaceburg, St. James the Apostle 18,770.00 20,647.00 18,770.00 100% Port Lambton, St. James 6,405.00 7,046.00 6,405.00 100%

TOTALS 173,856.00 191,245.00 175,172.53 101%

DEANERY OF LAMBTON Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent ofBudget Requests Received Apportionment

Bright's Grove, St. John's 17,919.00 19,711.00 17,919.00 100%Courtright, St. Stephen's 5,201.00 5,721.00 - 0%Forest, Christ Church 13,232.00 14,555.00 13,232.00 100% Kettle Point, St. John's 1,544.00 1,698.00 900.00 58%Petrolia, Christ Church 19,857.00 21,843.00 19,857.00 100% Wyoming, St. John's 4,434.00 4,877.00 1,100.00 25%Point Edward, St. Paul's 18,267.00 20,094.00 18,264.00 100%Sarnia, All Saints 58,332.00 64,165.00 58,332.00 100%Sarnia, Canon Davis Memorial 17,502.00 19,252.00 17,502.00 100%Sarnia, St. Bartholomew's 27,019.00 29,721.00 27,018.96 100%Sarnia, Trinity 71,860.00 79,046.00 33,750.00 47%Strathroy, St. John the Evang. 25,478.00 28,026.00 25,478.04 100% Parkhill, St. James' * 6,381.00 7,019.00 5,943.00 93%Watford, Trinity 11,779.00 12,957.00 11,779.00 100% Kerwood, St. Paul's 5,108.00 5,619.00 5,108.00 100%Walpole Isl, St. John the Baptist 9,004.00 9,904.00 7,292.04 81%

TOTALS 312,917.00 344,208.00 263,475.04 84%* Note: St. James' paid %100 of correct apportionment budget $ for 2016: $5,943

Deanery of Huron/Perth continued

P A G E 1 0 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S A P R I L 2 0 1 7

DEANERY OF OXFORD Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent ofBudget Requests Received Apportionment

Delhi, St. Alban's 7,271.00 7,998.00 7,271.00 100% Otterville, St. John's 7,522.00 8,274.00 7,522.00 100%Dorchester, St. Peter's 20,154.00 22,169.00 20,154.00 100%Ingersoll, St. James' 26,838.00 29,522.00 26,838.00 100%Oxford Centre, Christ Church 4,240.00 4,664.00 4,664.00 110% Eastwood, St. John's 4,402.00 4,842.00 4,842.00 110% Princeton, St. Paul's 5,616.00 6,178.00 6,178.00 110%Tillsonburg, St. John's 33,613.00 36,974.00 33,612.96 100%Woodstock, Epiphany 44,309.00 48,740.00 44,370.58 100%Woodstock, Good Shepherd 15,665.00 17,232.00 15,665.04 100% Huntingford, Christ Church 11,196.00 12,316.00 11,196.00 100%Woodstock, Old St. Paul's * 20,369.00 22,406.00 20,223.96 99%London, St. Luke's, Crumlin 3,995.00 4,395.00 3,996.00 100%Thamesford, St. John's 6,871.00 7,558.00 5,496.80 80%Thorndale, St. George's 9,334.00 10,267.00 9,334.00 100%

TOTALS 221,395.00 243,535.00 221,364.34 100%* Note: Old St. Paul's paid the remainder short in Feb. 2017

Apportionment reportsDEANERY OF LONDON Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent of

Budget Requests Received Apportionment

London, All Saints 21,701.00 23,871.00 27,556.70 127%London, Church of the Ascension 39,090.00 42,999.00 16,185.00 41%London, Christ Church, Glanworth 5,071.00 5,578.00 5,070.96 100%London, Epiphany 15,661.00 17,227.00 6,000.00 38%London, Holy Trinity 21,175.00 23,293.00 21,174.96 100%London, St. Aidan's 46,367.00 51,004.00 46,367.04 100%London, St. Alban's 24,451.00 26,896.00 18,342.00 75%London, St. Andrew Memorial 24,914.00 27,405.00 24,914.00 100%London, St. Anne's, Byron 37,682.00 41,450.00 37,682.00 100%London, St. George's 52,950.00 58,245.00 52,950.00 100%London, St. James' Westminster 76,578.00 84,236.00 76,578.00 100%London, St. John the Divine, Arva 26,867.00 29,554.00 26,867.04 100%London, St. John the Evangelist 72,141.00 79,355.00 72,141.00 100%London, St. Jude's 40,059.00 44,065.00 40,059.03 100%London, St. Luke's, Broughdale 20,740.00 22,814.00 20,740.00 100%London, St. Mark's 8,151.00 8,966.00 8,151.00 100%London, St. Martin-in-the Field 21,752.00 23,927.00 21,752.04 100%London, St. Michael & All Angels 38,882.00 42,770.00 38,789.32 100%London, St. Paul's Cathedral 128,511.00 141,362.00 128,511.00 100%London, St. Stephen's Memorial 28,168.00 30,985.00 28,164.00 100%London, Transfiguration 7,840.00 8,624.00 7,840.00 100%London, Trinity, Lambeth 8,796.00 9,676.00 9,499.00 108%Middlesex Ctre., St. George's 11,332.00 12,465.00 11,331.96 100% Ilderton, Grace 6,749.00 7,424.00 3,920.00 58%

TOTALS 785,628.00 864,191.00 750,586.05 96%

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Apportionment reportsDEANERY OF SAUGEENS Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent of

Budget Requests Received Apportionment

Tara, Christ 22,950.00 25,245.00 15,000.00 65%Clarksburg, St. George's 37,926.00 41,719.00 40,800.00 108%Hanover,St. James 12,224.00 13,446.00 12,224.00 100% Durham, Trinity 14,639.00 16,103.00 14,639.00 100%Kincardine, Messiah 24,745.00 27,220.00 24,744.96 100% Kingarf, St. Matthew's 2,914.00 3,205.00 2,914.00 100% Kinlough, Ascension 2,304.00 2,534.00 2,429.00 105% Pine River, St. Luke's 3,456.00 3,802.00 3,802.00 110%Walkerton, St. Thomas' 8,153.00 8,968.00 8,153.02 100%Markdale, Christ Church 16,808.00 18,489.00 16,807.56 100%Meaford, Christ Church 17,655.00 19,421.00 18,000.00 102% Fairmount, St. James 2,856.00 3,142.00 2,856.00 100%Owen Sound, St. George's 42,733.00 47,006.00 42,732.00 100%Owen Sound, St. Thomas' 21,481.00 23,629.00 21,502.00 100%Southampton, St. Paul's 9,326.00 10,259.00 9,326.04 100% Port Elgin, St. John's 8,339.00 9,173.00 9,173.00 110%Parish of Bruce Peninsula 20,684.00 22,752.00 20,884.00 101%

TOTALS 269,193.00 296,113.00 265,986.58 99%

DEANERY OF WATERLOO Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent ofBudget Requests Received Apportionment

Cambridge, St. Thomas * 20,687.00 22,756.00 18,939.93 92%Cambridge, St. James' 35,937.00 39,531.00 35,937.00 100%Cambridge, St. John's 33,322.00 36,654.00 33,322.00 100%Cambridge, St. Luke's 10,368.00 11,405.00 10,368.00 100%Cambridge, Trinity 63,900.00 70,290.00 63,900.00 100%Kitchener, Holy Trinity 25,259.00 27,785.00 - 0%Kitchener, St. Andrew's Memorial 27,489.00 30,238.00 10,634.65 39%Kitchener, St. George's 41,024.00 45,126.00 41,024.00 100%Kitchener, St. John the Evang. 59,431.00 65,374.00 59,430.96 100%New Hamburg, St. George's ** 20,485.00 22,534.00 20,412.96 100% Ayr, Christ Church 8,599.00 9,459.00 9,459.00 110%Waterloo, All Saints 37,524.00 41,276.00 39,458.04 105%Waterloo, Holy Saviour 43,803.00 48,183.00 44,563.00 102%Waterloo, St. Columba's 18,178.00 19,996.00 18,178.00 100%

TOTALS 446,006.00 490,607.00 405,627.54 0.91* Note: St. Thomas - correct apportionment budget $ for 2016 is $ 18,040 ** Note: St. George's paid the remainder short in Feb. 2017

SUMMARY OF DEANERIES Apportionment Extra Mile Jan-Dec 2016 Percent ofBudget Requests Received Apportionment

BRANT/NORFOLK 290,828.00 319,913.00 260,518.19 90%DELAWARE 152,192.00 167,413.00 151,326.66 99%ESSEX 449,340.00 494,279.00 441,461.10 98%HURON/PERTH 310,037.00 341,042.00 301,164.16 97%KENT 173,856.00 191,245.00 175,172.53 101%LAMBTON 312,917.00 344,208.00 263,475.04 84%LONDON 785,628.00 864,191.00 750,586.05 96%OXFORD 221,395.00 243,535.00 221,364.34 100%SAUGEENS 269,193.00 296,113.00 265,986.58 99%WATERLOO 446,006.00 490,607.00 405,627.54 91%

TOTALS FOR DEANERIES 3,411,392.00 3,752,546.00 3,236,682.19 95%

A.C.W. Fair Share 30,000.00 30,000.00 35,547.97 118%

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AnglicAn church womenA message from your President

As I write this, I am also preparing for the World Day of Prayer being hosted at our church.

As you know, on WDOP we focus on a country besieged with challenges. This year it is The Philippines, the programme for the day being written by the wom-en of the Philippines to highlight their particular problems. The theme is "Am I Being Unfair to You?" It deals with children, overseas workers, indigenous people, farmers and labourers who are all seeking justice and fairness in their lives.

Because the harvest is all important to them, we are asked to distribute bags of rice to each participant.

I was looking for an appropriate piece of scripture to attach to each bag and I found this one: "God is not unfair. He will not forget the work you did or the love you showed for Him in the help you

gave and are still giving to your fellow Christians." Hebrews 5:10-11)

Are we being FAIR to our fellow man? Are we willing to give of ourselves to the marginalized in our world?

As the scripture says, if we are fair to them, then God will be fair to us! To me, that seems like a very good deal FOR US! If we are giving and caring to those in need, God will deal fairly with us. I think this is what you call a win/win situation.

Use your talents and abilities to aid those who seek justice and long to be treated fairly. Even when we complain about things being unfair (taxes, rela-tionships, government etc.), deep down we know how rich we are, maybe not monetarily but in our fortunate situa-tions. Let's make it our mission to spread that around.

Brenda Clingersmith

ANGLICAN CHURCH WOMENANGLICAN CHURCH WOMEN

Celebrating What is Right in the World

THURSDAY, MAY 18, 2017ST. JOHN’S ANGLICAN CHURCH

516 MILL STREET, PORT ELGIN, ON

REGISTRATION: 9 AM$10 LUNCH

RSVP: ELLEN WAYE 519-395-2427 ellen.waye@hurontel.on.ca

In MemoryEssex Deanery

St. John the Evangelist, Leamington

Francis Benson-Acott Laura Brown

Mary Jane Cree Ruby Reid

Lydia Toyne

Trinity, Lambeth

Doris Astbury

London DeaneryTrinity, Lucan

Norma Dunbar-Skillen Lena Harvy Rita Moor

A P R I L 2 0 1 7 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S P A G E 1 3

Make your Mark @ HCC, 2017

Come, gather in a circle of faith, fun and friends

See how God works in us and through us, here in this place

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One Week Camps ages 6-4, grades 1-8 $480 + $62.40 HST

Session 1 July 9-15 Mission PossibleSession 2 July 16-22 Creation MattersSession 3 July 23-29 Do Justice, Love Kindness, Walk HumblySession 4 August 6-12 Everything is Awesome!Session 5 August 13-19 Peace AbleSession 6 August 20–26 Highways and Byways

Senior Camp graduating from grade 8 $1010 + $131.10 HST

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www.huronchurchcamp.ca or call 519-434-6893 ext 217

or email huronchurchcamp.ca

By Faye ViscountOn February 22, 2017 thir-

ty-eight women came together to celebrate the 61st anniversary of the Ethyl M. Blackwell A.C.W. at the Church of Epiphany in Kings-ville, Ontario. The event was held in the parish hall in the form of a buffet dinner.

A brief history was told of the eleven young women who came together at the first meeting, drawing names out of a hat to fill their slate of officers. These wom-en concerned themselves with sending bales to northern mis-sions, visiting shut-ins and sup-porting other missionary needs within our deanery and beyond. Monies were raised in a variety of ways such as hosting rummage sales & catering banquets and weddings. Especially noteworthy, the annual Pancake Supper held in the old parish hall basement.

The present A.C.W. group con-tinues to commit its fair share to assist the parish of Epiphany Development Fund. We are also

able to donate to many charities in Essex County. Monies are still raised by hosting two rummage sales per year along with the an-nual pancake supper in our new parish hall and other events. Our biggest fund raiser is the making of meat and fruit pies which be-gan in 1989.

Ladies of all different ages ex-perience great fellowship and

good fun while working together on all our worthy fund-raising ac-tivities….all in God’s name.

Pictured above is Mrs. Doreen Plancke on the left who is one of two “Charter Member‘s” still in our group with Mrs. Mildred Adams (member at large) Our second “Charter Member” Mrs. Pauline White was absent.

pAstorAl progressionsBishop Linda Nicholls has

accepted the request of the Rev-erend Dr. Len Myers to retire effective August 31, 2017 with his last Sunday in the parish be-ing July 30, 2017. Len was dea-coned on November 14, 1999 and priested on December 7, 1999. He served the parish of St. Paul’s, Wingham and St. Pe-

ter’s, Lucknow and the parish of St. James the Apostle, Walla-ceburg and St. James the Apos-tle, Port Lambton, the position from which he will retire. Len has also served as the Region-al Dean of Huron and of Kent, on the Diocesan Council and on the Diocesan Nominating Committee. Len will be hon-

oured with the other retirees at Synod 2017.

Bishop Linda Nicholls ap-points the Rev’d Victor Kischak as the rector of Holy Saviour, Waterloo effective May 1, 2017. Victor is currently the rector of St. James’, Paris.

IMPORTANT NOTICE

This year the Council of the Anglican Church Womenwill hold a catered luncheon

in the CHURCH OF ASCENSION (Dundas Street East)

at theUpcoming A.C.W. Annual

Saturday 29th April 2017

This will be catered by a local restaurant“NOONERS”

The lunch will include assorted sandwiches, wraps, vegetable & fruit trays & cookiesCoffee & tea will be provided

The cost of the lunch is $10.00 – per personPAYABLE IN ADVANCE

(Prepaid tickets available @ Registration)

Please fill in the following information & return toAnglican Church Women

Synod Office – 190 Queens AvenueAttn: Ellie

Office SecretaryLondon, Ontario N6A 6H7

NAME: __________________________Home Address______________________________

Postal Code ______________Telephone Number _____________________________

Church/Deanery ___________________________________________________________________________

Please make cheque or money order PAYABLE to Anglican Church Women

Number of luncheon tickets ordered ________ Paid by Cheque ___________

Money Order ___________

RSVP for lunch ticket – no later than 14th April 2017. Thank you.

61st anniversary of Epiphany, Kingsville A.C.W.

P A G E 1 4 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S A P R I L 2 0 1 7

Church history collectionBy John Lutman

T he Church History Collection provides

a wealth of information for church historians.

Each church within the Diocese has its own file or set of files, which are stored in Hollinger boxes arranged alphabetically by location and then alphabetically within the box by church if the location has more than one church. Files exist for functioning churches, chapels of ease, closed churches and, indeed, demolished churches.

The contents of a church history file will commonly hold published histories; photo-copies of pages from heritage publications which feature Anglican church buildings; photocopies of church history articles appearing in The Huron Church News; photographs both exterior and interior of the buildings (including a selec-tion of prints from the recent church buildings survey) as well as of church events; photo-copies of handwritten histories occasionally found in the his-tory section of parish registers; promotional literature for special campaigns (e.g., fund-raising efforts for restoration of the church building); church bulletins issued for special services such a church conse-crations and de-consecrations, significant anniversaries, funer-als of important church figures (e.g., bishops, a long-serving parish priest, noted congre-gants, royalty), national and international events (e.g., VE Day, 9/11); heritage events such as plaque unveilings and Doors Open tours; programmes from non-religious events such as organ and/or choir concerts, sports events held in the gym-

nasium, and heritage tours. Other history documents are described below.

Patrons who request access to the Archives’ church history holdings comprise both core and non-core users.

Among the Archives core users are priests and/or con-gregants researching a history of their church, preparing for a special church event such as a significant anniversary or simply reviewing the contents of their church history file.

Researchers commonly access their church history holdings for photos to create a permanent history display. Huron Church House officials have also requested copies of photos to grace their walls or to include as scans in issues of The Huron Church News or on the diocesan website.

Non-core users include regional historians and church historians. Regional histori-ans access the Church History Collection to determine the history of the congregation and the building within the context of the history of the specific community or region in which the church is located.

Published church histories, anniversary bulletins and photocopied articles from The Huron Church News are particularly useful sources in this regard. Newspaper articles clipped from area newspa-pers, some even from the 19th century, may provide at great length a history of the church, its past priests and congre-gants, and brief biographies of the pioneers buried in the

cemetery which may surround the church. Information in the church history files has assisted historians in compiling walking and/or video guides to promote tourism and such events as Doors Open.

The file cards compiled by former archivist Charles Addington provide referenc-es to newspaper and journal titles, some even as early as the 1830s, with a brief summary of the subject matter, dates and specific page numbers that can be accessed on microfilm or, more rarely, in paper format. Western Libraries hold most of the titles referenced on the cards. The cards make refer-ence to the names of architects, dates of consecration, special church events, disasters such as fires and infinite other subject matter.

Church historians express interest most particularly in the architecture of the building, be it the church, church hall, Syn-od Hall, Sunday School build-ing and/or rectory, especially if the design is by a prominent architect. Over its history, the church building may have un-dergone alterations, additions or rebuilding within the walls or after a fire. Aided by photo-graphs and postcards in the file, the church historian will ask: What of the structure compris-es the original building? Has the design of the building been influenced by the 19th century ecclesiological movement? (The Archives database will refer the patron to architectural draw-ings where they exist.)

Art historians will research

church history files for photo-graphs that illustrate interior decorative elements such as stenciling, mosaics and wall paintings and the artists who executed them.

Their interest may also ex-tend to stained glass windows and the companies that de-signed and made them. (Some churches have published guides to their church windows.) Church furniture such as pews, altars, pulpits and baptismal fonts cannot be excluded, most especially if there is a reference in the file to a local manufac-turer.

Pipe organs are of a particu-lar focus for music historians. Dedication service programmes for the organ may include the organ company which built or rebuilt the instrument, photos of the pipes and consoles, and, most importantly, the specifica-tions of the organ.

The Archives will arrange to have photos copied; Ar-chives staff will also photocopy documents. For core users, the Archives does not charge for photocopies; requestors, however, will be invoiced for copies of photographs. The photocopying of documents is governed by the condition of the document and its size. Personal photography (camera and cell phone) is allowed on completion of a form and with the approval of the Archivist. Patrons should be aware of copyright issues before publish-ing a copied photograph in a history, using it in a display or on a website.

As you have read, the Church History Collection has a mul-tiplicity of research uses for historians. Understandably, the Archives happily accepts transfers of history materials from the parishes and gifts

from private donors, know-ing that they will strengthen the Collection’s holdings. The subsequent publications and church and website displays thereby contribute to a wider understanding of the role of the Diocese of Huron in the history of Southwestern Ontario and provide evidence of God’s work in the Diocese.

(As a cautionary note: I ask the clergy, wardens and congregants of the Diocese to be mindful of historic photo-graphs and/or original docu-ments framed and hung on the walls of the sanctuary, church hall or rectory. Original photos and documents are in danger of fading if exposed to light. To protect them and to ensure their permanence, they should be deposited with the Archives. The Archives will provide cop-ies for reframing.) John Lutman is archivist for the Diocese of Huron.

From the Archives

On the lighter side... I

noticed a new billboard on my way into my office,

and it reads, ‘Is a Big Mac with bacon still a Big Mac?’. For me the answer is implicit in the question. It’s not a Big Mac. It is a Big Mac with bacon.

Surprisingly, I am on the los-ing side of the argument. A poll on this very question places the no votes at only 35% (as of writing this article).

How can that be? Everyone knows that a Big Mac is two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, on-ions – on a sesame seed bun! A comrade in arms suggested the

new burger be called a Pig Mac.What is happening to leaving

well enough alone? According to sources, the addition of ba-con to the iconic Big Mac is the very first change to the sand-wich in Canada in 50 years.

My mind is being dragged back to the jaw-dropping intro-duction of dark roast coffee at Tim’s. My coffee stop has never felt the same, and, I admit, I’m not just a little disoriented.

The familiar fabric of my younger years is being stretched. Vague are the memories of being loaded in the Fairlane, taken for our monthly Big Mac in my home town’s first-built MacDonald’s located in the far corner of the Woolco parking lot… or was it Zellers…not sure now. And I remember with fading pleasure how, after I cleaned my cheeks of the ketchup and salt, we would slip over to Tim Horton’s (the only one within 50 miles)

for some anticipated dessert.Now it's all been retired and

replaced. Not just the car and the department stores, but so too such memorable characters as Mayor McCheese, the Ham-burglar, Grimace, Birdie the Early Bird, and The Fry Kids. And I’m stuck trying to re-member the last time I enjoyed a rich tasting Boston Cream donut…or for that matter, a satisfying Peanut Crunch.

I don’t think I’m overly stuck in the past but nostalgia seems to be creeping in like the extra weight around my belly. Without some caution I fear getting old before my time. So I looked around Google to find out more about this dreaded onslaught….here are a few sure indicators (see Ceren Senkul); • You used to live for the week-end (and you still do, but now it’s more for the eating and sleeping than it is for the drink-ing and dancing),

• You are increasing the num-ber of two-part dramas you’ve watched on TV (and you are al-ways home to watch them),• You live vicariously through reality TV,• On the off chance that you do go out, the music is too loud,• You’re the designated driver (by choice),• You have strict rules about going outside in the winter months (if it's too cold every-thing can wait),• You appreciate different types of tea (and chamomile is really working for you),• You’re drinking less (pri-marily because your body has stopped being able to deal with hangovers).

I won’t say how many of these signs I am familiar with, but my losing the Big Mac (or Pig Mac) controversy is but one more

nail in the coffin. And I won’t deny that my use of the phrase “back in the day” has become a form of camaraderie. Like… do you remember, “back in the day”, when McDonald’s spe-cial sauce was a secret recipe, and a ‘regular’ coffee meant 1 sugar and cream? Or… do you remember, “back in the day”, when beef was far more expen-sive then chicken, and wings were something you threw away?

“Is a Big Mac with bacon a Big Mac?” Give me a break! As I see it, best to leave such de-licious musings to the thinner (and apparently wiser)…better I stick to lean foods, so to live long enough to hear my kids say “I sound just like my father.” Rev. Jim Innes is the rector of the Regional Ministry of South Huron. Rev.jiminnes@gmail.com

rev. Jim innes

As i see it

Pipe organs in Anglican churches are of a particular focus for music historians.

A P R I L 2 0 1 7 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S P A G E 1 5

By Rev. Chris Brouillard-Coyle

S he is a gifted computer programmer; knowled-

geable, skilled and an excellent manager. But she is a minority in her profession. In her office, men outnumber women 10 to 1.

She is a woman in a man’s world and is advised to hide her feminine side – to not talk about her love of sewing or cooking – lest she alienate her male colleagues or somehow undermine her authority. She hits a ceiling. Promotions stop happening for her. Eventual-ly they can find no place for someone as skilled as she is and she is let go.

He receives a text. Plans have changed. She needs to go to the States to pick up her sister’s cat and a few other things. It would seem that after 10 years of working as a nurse in the Detroit area, her work visa has been denied and she was immediately deported back to Canada.

She applied for a job at a

local thrift shop. The interview went well. They were impressed by her people skills and her energy. They invite her to work for a day to see how things go. When she signs the documents with her legal name the manag-er realises she was born a male. Suddenly things go cold. She is not surprised when she is told at the end of the shift that she will not be needed after all.

“I have nothing against helping others, but shouldn’t we take care of our own first?” Ev-eryone has a definition of who they consider to be ‘our own’. The specifics may divide by gender, race, ability, nationality, colour, socio-economic status and more. Those who fit within that definition are given prefer-ential treatment while the rest are set aside, considered ‘others’

or worse. In some cases, those beyond our special circles can be painted as enemies whose mere presence is thought to undermine our circumstances and threaten our well-being.

The consequences of these kinds of attitudes show up in subtle and not so subtle ways. All too often those who are on the receiving edge of this kind of exclusion feel it.

Take a certain woman who chooses to go to the public well in the heat of the day (see John 4:5-42). She has a questionable background which could easily have contributed to her feelings of being excluded and perhaps even ridiculed. It may be that she intentionally chose to go to the well at this time to avoid having to hear the comments and feel the scorn.

When she arrives, she en-counters a man, a Jew no less. Within her cultural context she is triply disadvantaged: by gender, race and the social judgement related to her situ-ation. It is clear he knows this too. In fact, he knows all about her circumstances and the ways in which these do not fit with cultural expectations. Despite all of this, he not only asks for water from her but offers her

life-giving water. She is trans-formed by this encounter and becomes a voice proclaiming the Good News.

As Christians we are called to love as Jesus loved. Two thousand years later, there continues to be a lesson for us in this story.Rev. Chris Brouillard-Coyle is Co-Chair, Social Justice Huron.

Treating "others" as "our owns"

Photo by Alexandre Chambonf, Unsplash

sociAl Justice huron

"I am so busy..."

rev. cAnon christopher

B. J. prAtt

A view From the BAck pew

“I am too busy….” What is your excuse?

For some, the constraints of employment responsibilities or health issues present insur-mountable obstacles which stand in the way of responding

to the invitation of worship. For others, the excuses offered may be less precise. Excuses offered as the soft sounds of violins are heard playing in the back-ground enhance the drama of the moment. What rationale do you use to excuse yourself from sharing in the life and worship of your community of faith?

Woody Allen once quipped, "80% of life is just showing up.” What percentage of life experi-ence and your spiritual jour-ney have you missed, by not, “showing up…”?

As the Christian faith commu-nity observes the days of Holy Week, the stories associated with the last days of Jesus’ earthly ministry are shared within the context of worship. The stories of the Palm Sunday procession, through the experiences of Jesus’ ministry in Jerusalem during the week, to a meal shared with his disciples, the Garden of Geth-semane, his Trial, the Way of the Cross, the Crucifixion and Entombment are presented with

a purpose. To hear those stories, to witness that journey, as a part of a worshipping community, is to prepare to fully experience the fulfilment of the promises of God in the person of our Risen Lord.

At the heart of that spiritual pilgrimage is the Triduum, the last three days of the time we know as Holy Week. During that time the community of faith has as its focus the experi-ence of sharing the story of The Last Supper, and the Passion and Death of Jesus. As the sun sets on Saturday evening a New Fire begins to blaze, a Paschal Candle is lit, and brought into the midst of the place of worship as the person carrying it sings,” The Light of Christ”. As the Light of Christ breaks through the darkness, those gathered for worship respond: “Thanks be to God”.

The liturgy of the Easter Vigil creates an opportunity for the community of faith to hear,

once again, the Biblical sto-ries of Creation, the prophetic promises of divine Redemption and the joy – filled message of the Resurrection.

In response to that Scriptural proclamation of Divine Love, the community of faith has the opportunity to declare its faith in Jesus, renew its Baptismal vows and begin to experience the joy of the Easter Season.

Who would not want to be a part of that celebration?

The concept of actually participating in community worship is an essential element in the commitment of the Bap-tismal Covenant. The question is asked: “Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and in the prayers”? To paraphrase that exchange, the question may be heard as: “When the community of faith gathers for worship, will you show up?” The answer is one which reflects commitment. “I

will, with God’s help.” Worship is not an opportu-

nity of being entertained. It is a moment of divine mystery, when our relationship with our Lord is being nurtured. The stories of faith are Spirit – filled words which carry a power of their own. Scripture in the midst of worship is not boring.

No matter how many times we read words of Scripture or how often we hear the stories of faith, we have the opportunity to experience them in new and different ways.

Each day of Holy Week is a step along the way of faith. The journey allows us the oppor-tunity to bear witness to the power of Divine Love at work in the person we know as Jesus.

The Gospels indicate that after Jesus was seized in the Garden of Gethsemane, by the soldiers of the High Priest, the disciples of Jesus made their choice, “Then the disciples all deserted him and ran away.” (Matthew 26: 56) We have the opportunity of making a differ-ent choice.

Gathering for worship, in Canada, in 2017, is not simply

an act of devotion. Sharing in worship with other Anglicans in our parish, our deanery or our diocese, declares to the community at large who we are as people of faith. We believe that the redeeming love of God, expressed in the person of Je-sus, is that which can transform the lives of individuals and have an impact in God’s world. What statement do we make when we claim that the normal pattern of activity in our lives renders us helpless and leads us to choose to shy away from the opportunity to share in worship, especially during Holy Week and Easter.

The exuberance of the decla-ration, “Christ Is Risen”, which permeates the Season of Easter, can only be truly valued and appreciated when we trace the pilgrimage that leads us to that expression of joy. In order to follow that Way, all of us need to, “…show up…”, and share the journey.Rev. Canon Christopher B. J. Pratt has retired from full time parish ministry, but continues to offer priestly ministry in the Diocese of Huron.

Photo by Mike Wilson, Unsplash

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P A G E 1 6 A N G L I C A N D I O C E S E O F H U R O N C H U R C H N E W S A P R I L 2 0 1 7

Venture into the wider Anglican world!I

n January, the Deanery of London held a Deanery

wide Bible Study.

Now you are probably think-ing that is hardly a revelation. But ask yourself this question: Have you ever taken part in a Deanery wide Bible Study? I have no way of knowing how many of these have taken place in the Diocese, but I'm willing to bet the number is rather small.

We used a study from the Anglican Communion Of-fice and while there were five scheduled segments, we only planned four weeks. The fact that we ended up extending the study to the full five weeks by popular request, is a good

indication of just how success-ful this venture was, especially given that it was our first foray into the world of Deanery Bible studies. We drew close to 40 people for each of the eve-nings, which included a catered dinner, worship and the study. While I didn't count, I would guess that we had more than a dozen different churches repre-sented.

There is much more to being an Anglican

than just going to “your” church each

Sunday. My favourite comment from

one of the participants (I have to paraphrase as I didn't write it down) went like this. “I thought we would just read a passage and the ministers would tell us what it meant. I never imagined that we would compare pas-sages and work in small groups and all get to express our thoughts. It was wonderful!”

There seems to be something in the Anglican ethos that leads people to believe that they need to stay within the walls of their own church. I would go so far as to suggest that at times it seems people are afraid to venture into the wider Angli-can world. Now, I understand the desire to stay with the familiar. I am one of the most routine-oriented people you will ever meet. But a long time ago I learned that when we step out and meet new people in new places within new expe-riences we all grow in leaps and bounds. The first time it can be a little frightening, but believe it; most of the folks in this wonderful world we call Anglicanism are nice people who are most willing to engage in spirited conversations.

So what should we do now? Check Deanery Bible Study off our bucket list and never visit it again? Or perhaps we would be better served to use this as a jump off point to encourage people in the Deanery and in fact across the Diocese to open

new doors to learning oppor-tunities. We can hunker down in our mantra of not knowing enough to be part of a wider study or we can celebrate the wonderful gift that God has given us in other members of our wider church family.

I had the privilege of leading four of the five sessions of our study and each week I found it harder and harder to stick to the agenda and call people out of their small groups into the wider circle. Each week the decibel level increased in the small groups as people found their voice and began to express their passion for Jesus with their new found friends. People were not just engaged in the study, they were exhilarated by it. Now exhilarated is not a word that I might normally express in connection with a group of Anglicans, but it was spot on in this situation.

There is much more to being an Anglican than just going to “your” church each Sunday. So many people in this group expressed joy in having an

opportunity to visit several churches other than their own for this study. This is something that we need to encourage, pro-mote, celebrate! We are all one big family! Yet sometimes we might actually give the impres-sion that we are in fact many small independent units. We can blame this on the “other” churches or we can look inside ourselves and decide to lead the way into new experiences.

We are already talking about doing this again in the Deanery of London. How about your Deanery? Maybe you could suggest a joint study group? Maybe there are other projects you might do together?

What we experienced in the Deanery of London early this year is that we are much greater than the sum of our parts. We experienced new relationships, new ways to learn, new excite-ment for our faith! That can only be a good thing!Rev. Canon Keith Nethery is Rector at Holy Trinity St. Stephen’s Memorial, London.

rev. cAnon keith

nethery

mostly ABout

religion

I had a good FridayI

had a good Friday a few weeks ago.

Now, don’t go running to the calendar, because you have not missed the Good Friday. I had a good day and it happened to be a Friday.

While listening to the news and events of the world I usu-ally exhaust myself by solving them all inside my head. How about you? Do you solve all the world’s problems inside

your head? Have an opinion for anything and everything? It’s exhausting isn’t it? I can run out of steam and I haven’t even let any of these ideas out of my head.

My behaviour for running out of steam is to assume my retreat pose. Reluctant to admit it but my go to method of re-treat is the nearest blanket and nap. Flannel pajamas if extreme measures are needed. Only flannel will work in the retreat pose.

The world has become so political that it has actually fil-tered all the way down to where we buy our coffee and even to the type of antiperspirant we use. We can now make a statement about the state of the world by our chosen antiper-

spirant. Seriously?! Now I don’t know about you but if a person really wants to be noticed and to make a statement why don’t they just forgo deodorant all together. They will get noticed in the crowd.

Anyways, moving on about my good day. I was out of steam and e-mailed the editor of HCN that perhaps I would pass on April’s article.

He may be a dragon to you but his reply was delightful and encouraging to me. Permission granted for a “bye” in April.

I felt a little like Alice Coo-per’s song “Schools Out for Summer”. So feeling relieved, instead of assuming my usual retreat posture, I went to my art space and began painting.

The art studio has many win-

dows and looks out onto trees and our bird feeders. I have secretly named this space the “Hazelnut Hermitage” but keep that under your hat.

Looking out I noticed that the sun had come out shining which is always a delight to see in winter. Before you know it I am singing that old Beat-les tune by George Harrison “Here Comes the Sun”. Do you remember the words to this? It goes something like this.

Here comes the sunda da da da (or your equiva-

lent to mine here) Here comes the sunAnd it’s all rightAnd being who I am and

can’t leave anything alone I made a slight change to the spelling in my head.

Here comes the Sonda da da daHere comes the Son And it’s all right.And it will be all right! Poet

Robert Browning agrees with his words “God’s in His heaven -- All’s right with the world” (poem Pippa’s Song). No matter what time we live in, Robert Browning’s or ours. No mat-ter what coffee we drink or deodorant we wear. It will be all right. No matter how out of steam we feel, we have been given God’s Son and it’s all right. God’s Son could not be contained in the tomb. And it’s all right. May you have a bless-ed and peaceful Easter.Laurel Pattenden fills the pew at All Saints’, Corunna.

lAurel pAttenden

E mail is King. All hail the king!

I know that sounds flippant, but in P2P communication no platform has yet managed to supplant email. As popular as Facebook and Twitter have be-come, the largest P2P commu-nication channel remains email.

In 2015, 205 billion emails, on average, were sent each day.

Meanwhile, only 23 billion text messages are sent each day, 500 million Tweets and 55 million status updates are created on Facebook. The numbers are staggering, I know. Yet, the vol-ume of emails dwarfs all others players in the field.

The power of email cannot be understated. While some people may resist signing up to Facebook or Twitter, or under-take a Lenten fast from social media, the one channel that even the latest adopters usually have is email. This means email is central to any parish’s com-munication strategy.

My current favourite applica-tion to help with email and par-ish ministry is MailChimp. The

Forever Free plan at Mailchimp allows for up to 2000 subscrib-ers and 12,000 emails to be sent each month free of charge. The multiple list feature allows for different communications to reach different audiences. Customizable templates can

be updated with a parish logo, pictures and text, or, with a lit-tle HTML knowledge, you can create your own.

Regular communications like announcements and news-letters can be created easily and unexpected messages such as obituaries and emer-gency announcements can be quickly shared with the entire community or just a small group. MailChimp can also be integrated with tools such as Facebook, Wordpress, Raiser’s Edge and more.

This free platform allows churches to use email to build community and fellowship and keep in touch with those that may otherwise only connect a

few times a year. By having the entire parish list only a click away, communities are able to come together in times of crisis and share the Good News of God’s Spirit working in the world.

You can read more about how MailChimp can help manage your church communications by reading their guide for non-profits here: https://mailchimp.com/resources/guides/mailchimp-for-nonprofits. Rev. Marty Levesque is the diocesan social media officer and Rector of All Saints’ in Waterloo. marty.r.levesque@gmail.com

Email - central to your parish's communications strategy

rev. mArty levesque

mediA Bytes