Bicycles for Ezo!

There are smiles on both sides of the ocean celebrating the purchase of 16 bicycles for the Clergy of the Diocese of Ezo!  Bishop John Zawo (Diocese of Ezo) and the clergy of Ezo identified bicycles as a pressing need in discussions of their goals and priorities with Bishop Wolf. 

Until now the Clergy of Ezo have had to walk ten miles or more to visit parishioners in need, or to meet with their Bishop. The bicycles will greatly enable the ministry of these devoted men, and we hope they will offer some relief to Clergy families as well. Since the Clergy in Ezo recieve no compensation for their service it has been difficult for them to help keep their families fed while spending so much time in transit.

The money for the bicycles was raised through the "Mango Tree" project started by Bishop Wolf and Tom Bair when they returned home from their trip to Ezo in Southern Sudan last December. After being collected, the money was wired to the people of the Diocese of Ezo, for them to purchase the Chinese bicycles that are common in their area and have plenty of replacement parts available. Thanks to all who have contributed!

If you would like to learn more about the "Mango tree" project or to make a contribution, email liz@episcopalri.org

Our Newest Deacon, Anne Burke

Prayers and congratulations are due to Anne Burke, who was ordained to the Sacred order of Deacons on the 12th of September 2009, at the Church of the Ascension in Cranston. Bishop Wolf officiated, and gave a touching sermon. She spoke on Act 6 where the disciples appointed the first deacons, seven people full of wisdom and the Spirit, who were chosen to serve and feed the needy so that the disciples could focus on prayer and the ministry of the Word. Bishop Wolf pointed out the sacrificial nature of the Diaconate, an order full of givers who recieve no compensation and yet must be ready to go to wherever their service and support is most needed. She offered a word of thanks to the Deacons of this Diocese for their vital ministry, and to Anne for the compassionate nature and servant's heart that makes her so well suited for this vocation.

There wasn't a seat to be had in the building that day, and the event was followed by a lively reception in the Parish Hall.

You can view a photoalbum of the event here!

Religion reporting is losing its prominence in American newspapers - The Boston Globe

An interesting article Bishop Wolf found in the Globe, about the decline in religion reporting by major media outlets, and how Churches are taking more initiative to get their message out despite the lack of media coverage.



Religion reporting is losing its prominence in American newspapers - The Boston Globe

Phone system update

UPDATE!

As of 2:30 pm the system is up and running. There will be some bugs to work through, so bear with us and let us know if you run in to any problems when calling in.

New phone system for the Diocesan office

After 15 years of service, our old phone system has been on its last legs this summer. As of this morning we are in the process of installing a new system that will be much more agile for us to customize to our needs and much easier and more pleasant for callers to interact with.

The installation was to have been completed last night, but our technician ran across several issues in our existing telephone wiring that we hope to have fixed by this afternoon. In the mean time our email is working just fine!

The Rev. Deacon Michael Tuck; Curate for St. Stephen's, and Chaplain for Brown/RISD

We are delighted to welcome The Rev. Deacon Michael Tuck to our diocese as he begins his ministry as Chaplain to Brown/RISD, and as Curate at St. Stephen’s Church, Providence.

Dcn. Tuck is very familiar with Providence and the campus communities that he will serve. He graduated from Brown in 1999 where he majored in Medieval Studies and Mathematics, and took classes in ceramic art at RISD. Upon graduation from Brown, Dcn. Tuck returned to the Philadelphia area, where he worked for two years at Synergy Inc as a compensation consultant, and for six years at Hay Group as a management consultant. In 2007 Michael went to England to study at the College of the Resurrection in Mirfield, where he received a Post-Baccalaureate Diploma, and at the University of Leeds where he received an MA in theology. He was ordained deacon at Wakefield Cathedral on July 4 shortly before returning to the United States.

We welcome Michael, his wife Annemarie, and their two small children aged three years and three months. Some of you may remember his father, also Michael Tuck, who served for a brief period as priest-in-charge at St. John’s, Newport.

ECC Moves Forward Economically, A Letter From the Bishop

Dear Brothers & Sisters

The Episcopal Conference Center is one of the four stated mission priorities of the Diocese and the single largest “domestic” line item in our budget (our apportionment to The Episcopal Church being the biggest line item over-all).

In response to current economic challenges and in our commitment to maintain high quality programs, in particular our summer camp program, the staff of ECC has created a new and imaginative way to move forward.

After studying the staffing patterns in other Dioceses, we have decided to make the summer camp and other youth programming a part of the position of Director of Christian Formation. The position and job description are being reworked to reflect these changes. I am delighted that Maryann Kolakowski, Director of Christian Formation, has accepted my invitation to this expanded ministry. This is a model used by several other Dioceses and seems to make great sense in our context as well. This will result in significant financial savings, and deploys existing resources more efficiently and effective

Lance Roberts will continue to have responsibility for the physical plant, grounds, and safety as Facilities Manager, and Joyce Roberts will continue as Resident Manager with responsibility for logistical support of offered programs and non summer bookings. The camp registrar will be a seasonal position.


Yours faithfully,

Geralyn Wolf
Bishop of RI

A New Rector for St. John the Evangelist

The Dicoese of Rhode Island bids welcome to the Rev. R. Trent Fraser, the new Rector of St. John the Evangelist in Newport! Fr. Fraser was instituted as Rector on June 29th 2009 in all the Beauty of Holiness true to the Anglo-Catholic tradition. You can view a slideshow of the glorious event here.

Fr. Fraser's Biography on the website of St. John's states “Fr. Fraser’s ministry as a priest begins and ends at the Altar of God. His sense is that the closer to the Altar a priest is, the stronger the ministry will be.” As a celibate priest Fr. Fraser prefers to live this mission out through a life on parish grounds to be available to meet pastoral and sacramental needs whenever they may arrise.

The Rev'd R. Trent Fraser was ordained priest in 1993. He comes to St John's from the Church of the Redeemer in Southfield, Michigan, where he also served as Rector. During his tenure at Church of the Redeemer, he developed what was once a Sunday-only parish into a full and active community complete with Adult formation opportunities, and the celebration of Daily Mass.

Fr. Fraser has high hopes for the future of St John’s. He is expectant that as a Parish they will be able to deepen their spiritual and sacramental life, and knows that a strong emphasis on education for adults, youth, and children will be important for the continued health of the community. "Liturgical excellence, incarnational teaching, and preaching, can be effective only if there is also a welcoming community" Fr. Frasier has been known to say.

According to the St Johns’ website, Fr. Fraser believes that “The work of the Parish must ultimately rest with the energies of the faithful, and Fr. Fraser is looking forward to being in a Parish that feels as passionately as he does about doing the Lord's work ‘in the beauty of holiness’ and, consequently, seeing the beauty of the Lord in others.”

For more information on the Rev. R. Trent Fraser, visit http://www.saintjohns-newport.org

Calling All Episcopalians: TEC Strategic Planning Committee Wants Your Opinion

The Episcopal Church
Office of Public Affairs


[June 24, 2009] A newly named Strategic Planning Committee has already set to work, announcing that its first step will be to solicit opinions from throughout The Episcopal Church.

The Strategic Planning Committee was established by Executive Council in January 2009 to develop a strategic plan for the Episcopal Church Center and the Executive Council which addresses mission and ministry, growth, finance, challenges and opportunities, issues and concerns, and to map a way to address all these topics.

To do so, the Strategic Planning Committee has developed a survey and, encourages all Episcopalians to complete it. The survey is currently in English; Spanish and French will be available shortly.

Among the areas addressed in the survey are: evangelism; multicultural issues, worship, music, and liturgy; youth and young adults; mission; leadership; congregational development; church administration; stewardship; advocacy and social justice. Additionally, there are a series of options and possible responses to the question: “To achieve your vision of a vital Episcopal Church in 2019, how much effort needs to be given to each of the following paths or strategies?"

To access the survey visit : http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=Wu5I75KPqOhmGku87xaL6A_3d_3d

The survey will also be available to be completed at the Episcopal Church Center booth at General Convention in Anaheim, California July 8-17.

The deadline to complete the survey is July 28, 2009.

Proposed Budget Completed

The proposed narrative budget for 2010-2012 is now available for download. This document will form the basis for discussion at the upcoming Program and Budget area meetings. As a reminder, those meetings are scheduled for:

Wednesday, June 3 at Trinity, North Scituate 7 pm
Tuesday, June 9 at St. Matthew’s, Jamestown 7 pm
Saturday June 13 at the Cathedral, Providence 9 am