Integrity to meet at LGBT Center of Hampton Roads

Integrity is now meeting monthly at the LGBT Center of Hampton Roads. The next meeting will be held Tuesday, November 19. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. and includes a potluck dinner. The LGBT Center is located at 247 West 25th Street, Norfolk, VA 23517. Integrity meets the third Tuesday of each month. For more information contact Integrity, integrityvb@gmail.com. Follow them on Facebook.

Service of Repentance, Reconciliation & Healing

Our diocesan Service of Repentance, Reconciliation & Healing for the sin of racism was held on Saturday, November 2 at Christ and St. Luke's, Norfolk. Bishop Hollerith read a Formal Apology on Behalf of the Diocese of Southern Virginia. The Reverend Canon Stephanie Spellers, Canon for Missional Vitality in the Diocese of Long Island and Chaplain to the Episcopal House of Bishops, was the preacher. An inter-parish diocesan choir, drawn from 10 parishes and led by Christ & St. Luke's Music Director Kevin Kwan, led the music. Click here to see more pictures from the service. Click here for our Repairing the Breach resources, including a video and study guide. 

 

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Cross-diocesan School for Deacons    

The Gathering Place outdoor service in Richmond - organized by Deacon Becki Dean of St. Michael's, Bon Air. This time of worship and community is geared to meet the needs of those who might not find their way into a church on Sunday morning.

In January, postulants will be entering the new Cross Diocesan School for Deacons. The school is an exciting collaboration between our diocese and the Diocese of Virginia.

This new school has been created specifically for the training of deacons. A total of twelve to fifteen postulants, recommended by the Commission on Ministry of their respective diocese and approved by their bishop, will attend. The school will meet at Chanco on the James and at Shalom House in the Diocese of Virginia. The school's teachers and staff come from both dioceses, as well as from around the Episcopal Church. When postulants complete the school and receive candidacy, they will be ordained to the diaconate and assigned to a parish by their bishop for a certain period of time.

Although deacons can be seen assisting at the liturgy, the liturgical function is just one part of a deacon's ministry. Deacons often serve among those who are anxious, fearful or live in the shadows of life - particularly the poor, sick and oppressed. In those shadows, deacons serve with compassion to help bring about healing, hope and restoration where possible.

In ministry, deacons visibly represent the Church proclaiming the Risen Lord is alive and walks among us. In so doing, they also seek to inspire each one of us to serve in our own unique way as best our strengths and gifts will permit. A deacon's ministry is one that weaves together the Church, the world and the Risen Christ into the fabric of everyday common life that wraps around us.

Your diocesan pledge makes possible this gift to the Episcopal Church in Southern Virginia and indeed the whole of God's Church.

Covenant Players visit Jackson-Feild

The Covenant Players made their annual visit to Jackson-Feild Homes October 29. This traveling repertory theatre company has been entertaining audiences since 1963. It is comprised of over 100 teams that travel worldwide to share the message of the love of God and the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Dr. Bill Bowling, Principal of the Hayden Gwaltney School, welcomed the group to the campus. Their performance was held in the Robinson/Withers Recreation Building.

Three members of The Covenant Players used the medium of drama to bring hope, encouragement and a positive message to the students. Their efforts were well received and much appreciated.

The troupe will soon be traveling to Haiti for performances in tent cities. It will be the first time that the Covenant Players have ever performed in Haiti. They hope to spread their message of dealing with the complexities of the human condition while respecting the separation of church and state to a new audience.

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New and vital communities   

Bishop Holly has invited us to think about our Diocese as "The Episcopal Church in Southern Virginia", meaning that together, we are the church, and each congregation is a mission outpost or ministry center carrying out our common mission of sharing the Good News of Jesus. The Mission Network, the team focusing on Congregational Development and Vitality, Outreach, and Mission, looks for ways to enhance the ministry of local congregations, and to strategize for new mission opportunities.

Two new Mission Network initiatives are particularly exciting. Plans are underway to deploy an ordained Ministry Developer / Regional Priest to work with some of our small congregations in Convocations 8 and 9 who are interested in collaborative ministry. The Ministry Developer will help train lay ministers in worship, formation, and pastoral care ministries, and help the congregations coordinate regional formation and outreach activities. The Ministry Developer will grow a team of lay leaders and supply clergy who, together, minister to the needs of the congregations, and equip the congregations for expanded ministry in their communities. We hope to expand this ministry from one part-time ministry developer to two full-time ministry developers over the next three years.

Another exciting initiative is to reach out to the growing Hispanic population in our diocese. Our demographics show that the South Richmond area and the Chesapeake area both have large numbers of Latino/Latina residents, many of whom are not connected to a faith community. Convocation 7 will be using their recently approved Mission Initiative Grant to host a regional and diocesan workshop on Hispanic ministry in early 2014. Then, as funding becomes available, we are looking to hire a bi-lingual, bi-cultural Hispanic missioner who can plant a new Hispanic or multi-cultural ministry.

Meanwhile, the Mission Network continues to encourage vital mission locally through congregational consultations, the administration of the Seeds of Hope Grants for social justice ministries, and the Mission Initiative Grants for evangelistic ministry.

St. Thomas, Freeman's Youth Empowerment Program and Senior Pals Program, both supported with recent Seeds of Hope Grants, continues to make a significant impact in their rural community. The Senior Pal program focused on computer literacy for community seniors as well as needed socialization and fellowship to prevent isolation. The Youth empowerment program encouraged local young people in their academic achievement and participation. Coordinator Iris Jones of St. Thomas said, "Our Youth Empowerment ministry was a huge success this year. As a result, we had 7 youth to be baptized...and [besides the academic and cultural enrichment activities] our Sunday School grew from 10 to 20 participants." Senior Velma Jackson wrote a thank you note to the church saying, "This class was a God-sent resource to me. I've learned lots of new things and feel so much more comfortable searching the internet." Another participant, Berthemia Callis, wrote, "It was beautiful fellowship." Another senior wrote, "I thank God for St. Thomas being the kind of church that opens its doors always with their hearts to us all."

Open Enrollment for healthcare and dental plans is Oct. 31-Nov. 21

2014 Open Enrollment for clergy and lay employees participating in medical and dental plans is October 31 through November 21. During the Medical Trust's Open Enrollment period:

• Current plan members may change their plan selections for the following year
• Eligible non-participating employees have the option to join a plan
• Eligible non-participating dependents may be added to a member's plan without the need of a qualifying event

Click here for complete information, including costs and plan comparisons.

 

If you have questions about Open Enrollment, please contact Canon for Administration the Rev. Canon Ed Tracy, 757-213-3378 or etracy@diosova.org. 

Your diocesan pledge makes it possible: Transition Ministry

What is "Transition Ministry?" Every church goes through times of change - growing or declining, finding new energy, developing new ministries, seeking God's will for the future. When there is a change in clergy leadership, the diocese engages in a discernment and assessment process to assist in moving forward toward continued health and vitality, to help weather the normal anxiety that emerges from a new situation, and to provide stability in the interim time between the leaving of one priest and the arrival of another. As a part of this process, lay and clergy consultants or "coaches" are used to be companions to vestries and search committees. Here is how two members of parish committees experienced the ministry provided by the Diocese in their own recent transitions.

Eastern Shore Chapel, Virginia Beach - By Elise Balcom

I found myself on the newly-formed Eastern Shore Chapel Discernment Committee in January, 2012. Picking a new rector - how hard could that be for our savvy group of 10 parishioners? But, then, I wondered, where do we start? Do we post a want ad somewhere and wait for resumes? How would we pick the "one"? Hmmmm. Enter the Transition and Pastoral Consultant, and the Canon for Transition Ministries and Clergy Development. We learned there was a method to finding a new rector, and the hard work was just beginning.  

The process started with discerning what the parish wanted for the future of ESC. This gave the Discernment Committee what it needed to post both its online profile on the ESC webpage, and to write what became a kind of want-ad. All of this formed the basis for the questions we would later ask of candidates, both in Skype interviews, and in person for the finalists. Without this orderly process, it is unlikely we would have had our new rector in just one year. It is also possible we might not have found a rector who was like-minded and had a skill set matched to what we need. Without the leadership provided by the Diocese, we likely would have floundered in trying to figure out how to proceed.

 

No process is perfect, and we certainly encountered our share of bumps in the road, but we called our new rector. Our parish is now working with him to reach our long term goals set forth by the congregation in its discernment process a year and a half earlier. Time will tell how good the match is, but the process used, and the help of the consultant and the Diocese were certainly valuable to ESC in its search.

St. Augustine's, Newport News - By Joyce Douglas

My experience as a member of the Discernment Committee was both challenging and rewarding. I learned to listen to the parishioners and to give them the feedback that engendered a relationship of trust and respect. Because I learned so much about the Episcopal Church, our parish, and the process, my question was, "How may I use my experience to help parishes going through transition?"

The assistance of a knowledgeable, patient, and caring consultant was essential to our success. He guided us through the steps of the search process, which made me a believer because it works! In addition, our diocese made sure that we were financially stable, that our profile was a reflection of our parish, and that we were prepared for the interview process. As a result, we were able to call a priest who was (and still is) an answer to our search prayer.

Your Diocesan budget supports the training of our consultants and diocesan staff who focus in this important area of church life and mission.