Taizé: Pilgrimage and Prayer All Around Rhode Island

The Taizé Community is an ecumenical monastic order in France made up of over 100 brothers from various countries and Christian backgrounds. The community has been around since the 1940’s, but these days it has become one of the most important sites of pilgrimage in modern Christianity, welcoming over 100,000 young pilgrims from around the world each year.

Rhode Island is no exception to this. Bishop Wolf has a long history with Taizé, and for quite some time now the Diocese of Rhode Island has sponsored a Taizé pilgrimage for 18-30 year olds at the end of each May. (Taizé caters their programs to this age group, but there is always room for a few “adults” to come along on the trip).

But what is all this Taizé fuss about? Well, to best serve the throngs of linguistically diverse pilgrims who find their way to the community, the brothers have developed a fantastic form of multilingual prayer and chant. Their website explains their simple chants as follows:

“Using just a few words they express a basic reality of faith, quickly grasped by the mind. As the words are sung over many times, this reality gradually penetrates the whole being. Meditative singing thus becomes a way of listening to God. It allows everyone to take part in a time of prayer together and to remain together in attentive waiting on God… To open the gates of trust in God, nothing can replace the beauty of human voices united in song.”

At the monastery, these sung prayers accompany a program of bible study, fellowship, and communal work. It is the repetition of the words within the songs and the repetition of the songs within the thrice-daily prayer services that keep the prayers repeating in the silence of your heart throughout the day’s activities. As you can probably imagine, the simple, kind, and contemplative Taizé prayer experience has been so wildly meaningful to so many pilgrims, that many have brought Taizé prayer home to be a part of their lives and parishes.

In Rhode Island we now have four parishes that hold prayer services at least loosely inspired by Taizé. The Diocese sponsors one at the Cathedral of St. John, at 4pm on the second Sunday of each month. Christ Church in Westerly and St Paul’s in Pawtucket both also offer regular evening services, and St. Ann’s on Block Island was recently featured in the Block Island Times for their service in the Taizé style. Check out the article, titled In Taize, Less is More. Keep an eye on your eRISEN newsletter to find out when and where the next Taizé service is happening. Don’t receive it? You can sign up here.

If you would like to learn more about bringing Taizé to your parish or would like to come along on this year’s pilgrimage, please email ty@episcopalri.org  or visit the RI Taizé Facebook page.

Lay Leadership Development Day

Register by Monday March 22nd at midnight using the form at the bottom of this post.

This year in addition to Convocation, the Diocese of Rhode Island is offering a Leadership Development Day on March 27th, for all lay leaders in our parishes. The program is free and will include presentations and workshops tailored to specifically support the ministries of Wardens, Vestries, Treasurers, and all other Lay Leadership. Are you a Lay Leader? ...register now to come fill your Lay leadership toolkit. Are you Clergy?... please let your Lay Leaders know about this opportunity!

Schedule
8:00-9:00 Check in
9:00 Opening Plenaries
10:00 Workshop Breakout Sessions
        -Warden Time with Bishop Wolf
        -The Treasurer’s Workshop (all afternoon, may go later than 1pm)
        -Christian Leadership in Times of Change, for Vestry Members and all other Lay Leaders
11:00 Plenary: Panel discussion “Times of Change, Stories from the Real World”
12:00 Lunch
12:45 Closings


For more information contact Ty Creason

The Latest eRISEN

You can view the latest issue of eRISEN, our biweekly email events calendar, at the link below:

eRISEN February 25th 2010 issue

Want to sign up to the eRISEN mailing list? Want to submit your event? Just visit our website

Convocation Resources on our Website

This year's Convocation took place on Saturday February 27th, 2010, and well over 200 people gathered to hear Reggie McNeal speak about the Missional future of the Church!  He offered some exciting ideas on how to look at our Church from a different angle, how to better partner with God in His mission. It was a day full of energy and excitement about possibility and the future.

Did you miss Convocation this year? Do you want some resources to bring the excitement home to your parish?

Check out the follow-up links we've posted on the convocation page of our website to find out what the day was all about, and use these resources to help bring some of the excitement home to your parish! You can also watch the video below in which Reggie does a quick 9 minute summary of the most important points from his talk at Convocation.

Episcopal Charities is Now Taking Online Donations

The Episcopal Charities Fund of Rhode Island has moved into the 21st Century this week, to help you help others as quickly as possible when the need arises! Online donations are now live at www.episcopalri.org/charities.

Whether you want to help Rhode Islanders who struggle daily to make ends meet, or to contribute towards saving lives and healing in the wake of a disaster such as the recent earthquake in Haiti, you can now put your dollars to work for a higher cause in an instant.

Visit www.episcopalri.org/charities for more information about Episcopal Charities, and keep an eye out for the donate button which appears on the lefthand side of each page. Or, if you are feeling generous at the moment you can simply click the button here and now. Thanks and God bless.

eRISEN, The Latest Issue

You can view the latest issue of eRISEN, our biweekly email events calendar, at the link below:
eRISEN February 8th 2010 issue
 
Want to sign up to the eRISEN mailing list? Want to submit your event? Just visit our website

REGISTER NOW for Diocesan Convocation 2010; A Day with Reggie McNeal

Saturday, Feb. 27th, 9AM-3PM

The Marriott Hotel, One Orms Street, Providence, RI

All are welcome and encouraged to attend.

Use the form at the bottom of this page to Register Online by February 19th! Buffet lunch is included in the registration fee.

Reggie McNeal is an acclaimed author and lecturer who challenges Christian leaders to re-think the way we live into our missions and congregational development.

At this year's Diocesan Convocation, Reggie will be spending the entire day with us discussing his latest two books. The Present Future: Six tough Questions for the Church raises questions about why we do church the way we do and whether or not it works. Missonial Renaissance: Changing the Scorecard for the Church follows up on the questions raised in "The Present Future", and details the three shifts that church leaders must make to engage the missional movement. It offers suggestions for a different scorecard to reflect missional ministry. Follow the above links to read googlebooks' extensive excerpts, for a taste of what Reggie will be speaking about. Googlebooks will also give you links to buy Reggie's books from your favorite online retail store.

Reggie received his M.Div. and Ph.D. degrees both from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has over a decade of experience as a Church leadership development coach, has himself served in congregational leadership for more than twenty years, and has lectured or taught as adjunct faculty for multiple seminaries, including Fuller Theological Seminary.

Come prepared for a revolutiounary outlook on our future as a church. This is a day not to be missed! Register online using the widget below, or by clicking here.

Benefit Concert: Music and Prayers for Haiti

Come hear powerful music performed by the Choirs of Grace Church, Providence, St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Pawtucket and St Paul's Episcopal Church in Wickford. The evening will also feature the prayers and comments of Sister Marie-Claire, a Hatian member of the Sisters of St. Margaret. The Sisters lost their convent building in the earthquake, but are alive and pressing on with their ministry in this especially difficult time.

All are invited to Attend, and all donations are welcome.

Proceeds will benefit the earthquake relief initiatives of Episcopal Relief & Development and The Society of St. Margaret In Haiti.

Checks should be made payable to "The Episcopal Charities Fund of Rhode Island", Noting “Haiti relief” on the memo line.

Visit www.facebook.com/episcopalri  to RSVP for the event and see more details

Meningitis Outbreak in Ezo

Friends,

This week we received an email from Levi, the person with whom we have regular contact for messages, mail and planning with our brothers and sisters in Ezo. It was a difficult email to read, because he told us of a medical crisis and illness in the area which is killing and frightening many people. Our hearts are deeply saddened by this news. In response to this email, Tom Bair, co-chair of the Companion Diocese Committee quickly contacted Janette O’Neill from Episcopal Relief and Development. This is what he informed Committee Members after that conversation.

Dear Fellow Committee Members

I spoke today to Janette O'Neill of ERD. They are aware of the crisis medical situation in Ezo. Her sources have told her that the medical condition that is causing these deaths is meningitis. She explains that there is nothing that anyone can do, save flying to Ezo with bales of penicillin.

I am afraid that there is little that we can offer beyond prayer on this one.


I have communicated to Levi our concern and that we are doing what we can. I will inform him also that Janette O'Neill is aware of the situation.

Thanks
Tom Bair


Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Ezo.
-The Companion Diocese Committee

Episcopal Church in Haiti: Your Prayers and Aid Needed

[1.15.2010]

Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Haiti who now need our aid more than ever, in the wake of Tuesday’s 7.0 magnitude quake.

Recent estimates indicate that the quake has affected one in three Haitians, or about three million people. Casualties are expected to reach the tens of thousands, possibly even the hundreds of thousands. Roads and other infrastructure of Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince, including the cathedral and Diocesan offices, are in ruins and the situation on the ground is dire.

As Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori said in a statement Wednesday morning, “Even under ‘normal’ circumstances Haiti struggles to care for her 9 million people. The nation is the poorest in the western hemisphere, and this latest disaster will set back many recent efforts at development”.

Haiti is also the largest and fastest-growing diocese in The Episcopal Church. There are over 83,000 Episcopalians, over 100 Episcopal Churches, and over 200 Episcopal schools in Haiti.

Episcopal Relief and Development (ERD) has a long-standing partnership with the growing Episcopal Church there, and is committed to providing care to the Haitian people under normal circumstances, as well as in this new wave of devastation.

ERD has already disbursed emergency funding to help the diocese of Haiti meet immediate needs for shelter, food and water, and “stands ready to support their ongoing recovery as they rebuild their ministries" according to Rob Radtke, President of ERD. "As communication improves and recovery plans develop, Episcopal Relief & Development will continue to provide updates."

So far we know the Episcopal Church in Haiti has lost a cathedral, the Society of St. Margaret Convent, Holy Trinity Complex, College St. Pierre, and a Jubilee Center. The Bishop is alive, but has no place to live. The four missionaries are all accounted for - Mallory Holding, Jude Harmon, Oge Beauvoir and his wife Serette. The three sisters of St. Margaret who were at the convent are also alive, unhurt, and doing what they can to help in the football field of what used to be College St. Pierre.

How can Rhode Island help?

• Join us for “Music and Prayers for Haiti; A Benefit for Earthquake Relief” at 4pm on Sunday January 24th at the Cathedral of St. John, 271 North Main Street, Providence, RI. The evening will include music from a variety of Episcopal Choirs and brief comments from two Haitian speakers. Donation offerings will be collected, make all checks out to Episcopal Charities, with “Haiti” noted on the Memo line. Email liz@episcopalri.org for more information. All proceeds will go to the earthquake relief initiatives of Episcopal Relief & Development and the Society of St. Margaret in Haiti.

Recommended Places to Donate:

• Donate to Episcopal Relief & Development online at https://www.er-d.org/donate-select.php  or by calling 800-334-7626 ext 5129. ERD has a four star rating on Charity Navigator and meets all 20 standards of the Better Business Bureau.

• Donate to The Episcopal Charities of Rhode Island’s Haiti Fund by calling (401)-274-4500 x234 peggy@episcopalri.org

• Donate to the Sisters of St. Margaret, http://www.ssmbos.com/Pages/Haiti.html  or mail a check to The Society of St. Margaret, 17 Highland Park Street, Boston, MA 02119

Raise Awareness in your parish and beyond:

• Place a link to Episcopal Relief & Development on your congregation's home page. http://www.er-d.org/

• Check for updates on the Haiti page on Episcopal Relief & Development website http://www.er-d.org/HaitiEarthquakeResponse  and our Diocesan blog www.episcopalri.blogspot.com

• Share this information on Sunday and in your bulletin inserts. Bulletin inserts from Episcopal Relief & Development are available in both Spanish and English. http://www.er-d.org/BulletinInsertsCT/

• Please do not encourage anyone to travel to Haiti, as priority must be given to first responders and a few relief agencies so as not to over-burden the already compromised infrastructure.

Thank you for all that you do in our Church.

Peace,
Ruth Meteer
Communications Officer
The Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island