National Acolyte Festival is Oct. 7

Join acolytes from across the United States at the National Cathedral in Washington DC for the National Acolyte Festival. This event includes a festival Holy Eucharist with re-dedication of service, workshops, tours and Acolyte Games. Bring your processional crosses, banners, torches, thuribles, flags, and streamers for a festive procession of acolytes, clergy, and vergers. Click here for more info and registration.

Faithful Dissent: A free class from ChurchNext

In this time of divisiveness and fear, ChurchNext is offering some encouragement - another free class for you and/or your congregation - Faithful Dissent: Loving Our Way into a Brighter Tomorrow, led by Ed Bacon and Stanley Hauerwas.

You can register for the course now, but it will not be available to take until Monday, September 11. It will remain open and free through Monday, September 25 - that means you can take it for free anytime, 24/7, during that time period. If you register today ChurchNext will send you an email to remind you.

Resources for Congregational use, including downloadable posters, bulletin inserts and a Launch Guide can be found on the registration page as well. 

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry: Where do we go from here - chaos or Community?

In his message for those gathering to worship on August 20, occasioned by the events in Charlottesville, and the readings of scripture Episcopalians will hear this weekend, Presiding Bishop Michael Curry asks, "Where do we go from here: chaos or community?"

Noting that "the stain of bigotry has once again covered our land" and that "hope, frankly, sometimes seems far away," Presiding Bishop Curry says the way of Jesus of Nazareth shows the way through the chaos to the Beloved Community of God. Commitment to that way, he says, "is our only hope."

Text and video of Bishop Curry's message, along with helpful resources, are here.

Registration open for October session of Episcpoal Latino Ministry Competency

Registration is now open for the October session of the Episcopal Latino Ministry Competency, an innovative nine-day intensive course designed for diocesan staff, clergy, lay leaders, and seminarians to learn cultural competency for Latino ministry.

Offered by the Episcopal Church Office of Latino/Hispanic Ministries, the course will be held at St. James Commons, Episcopal Diocese of Chicago, Chicago, IL, Sunday to Tuesday, October 15 to 24.  The course will be taught by seminary faculty, lay church leaders, and clergy with extensive experience in Latino and intercultural ministry. Registration deadline is September 29. Click here for more info and registration.

The October session marks the second offering of the Episcopal Latino Ministry. A future offering will be held at Bloy House, the Episcopal Theological School at Claremont, CA on June 10-19, 2018.

UTO celebrates founder Julia Chester Emery's birthday in September

The United Thank Offering is extending an invitation for the Episcopal Church to join in a special celebration honoring the life and work of Julia Chester Emery for her 40 years promoting and establishing the United Thank Offering.

September 25 marks the 165th birthday of Julia Chester Emery. Starting as a young adult leader in the Episcopal Church, she is best known for dedicating 40 years to leadership and promotion of the spiritual discipline of gratitude and for tirelessly supporting mission and ministry all while championing the role of women's work in the church.

Congregations, groups and organizations can sponsor a birthday party for Julia on Sunday, September 24 complete with downloadable photo booth props, with a special thank offering to support the annual Ingathering for United Thank Offering. There are resources available here for your celebration 

Plan now to participate in the Good Book Club during Lent 2018

Forward Movement is excited to announce the Good Book Club - a church-wide invitation to all Episcopalians to read Luke and Acts during Lent-Easter 2018. Participants in the Good Book Club will begin reading Luke the Sunday before Lent, February 11, 2018, and finish up the Book of Acts on the Day of Pentecost, May 20, 2018. We hope you'll join us, and the many churches, individuals and organizations who will be a part of this special project.

Several organizations have already announced partnerships with Forward Movement on the Good Book Club, including Episcopal Church Foundation, ChurchNext, Episcopal Migration Ministries, and The Episcopal Church and Presiding Bishop Michael B. Curry. Partner organizations are creating resources or encouraging their constituents to take part in the effort. A list of current partners can be found  here.

The Good Book Club website (goodbookclub.org) lists the daily readings, as well as available resources to support people as they read the scriptures. Resources also will be available in Spanish at clubbiblico.org.

And a note to Forward Day by Day readers: Forward Day by Day will use Good Book Club readings during Lent-Easter 2018, instead of the usual daily lectionary.

For now, you can sign up for updates or learn more about partnering with us at goodbookclub.org. We hope you'll read along with us, and Episcopalians around the globe!

Update from Diocesan Stewardship Commission

Stewardship is a ministry in the Episcopal Church that supports the mission and ministry of the entire church. Though often thought of as the annual fund raising typically done in the fall each year, good stewardship actually reaches into every aspect of everything done every day in every parish. The question is, how can the diocese help its parishes to actually become good stewards in all the different ways out there?

This exciting and somewhat daunting task is the focus of the Diocesan Stewardship Department. Reinvigorated by the leadership of Bishop Hollerith and the Executive Committee, this group re-formed itself in 2016, with Bob Motley and Mike McGraw serving as co-chairs. To learn what was needed, parishes were surveyed on stewardship issues, and a series of informal gatherings took place around the diocese. These results now guide us in our work for 2017-18. To these two dedicated individuals - thank you for all you have done and accomplished!

The Stewardship Department is pleased to announce new co-chairs:

Mr. Al Louer (Bruton Parish, Williamsburg) 
757-253-1209, cnwry@verizon.net 

Mrs. Elise Balcom (Eastern Shore Chapel, Virginia Beach)
757-404-2451, emblaw@aol.com

We are looking for new members to join us beginning in September, 2017. If you or anyone you know is interested in joining this dynamic group, please have that person contact one the co-chairs!