6 traits people value in online faith communities

By The Rt. Rev. Susan Haynes

When the COVID pandemic caused us to close our buildings back in March, church leadership scrambled in order to bring experiences of worship and community to their flocks. These experiences went from in-person to on-line, and the learning curve in most cases was extraordinarily steep. Churches have responded well and have learned that even when we return fully to in-person worship, the church will still exists online. Recently the Leadership Institute of the College for Bishops issued the following article: "6 Traits People Value in Online Faith Communities" by Heidi A. Campbell. The experience of our churches who have ventured into the online realm underscores what people really want in their Christian walk - connection, community and communication!

These traits are:

1. Relationships
2. Support and encouragement
3. A sense of being appreciated
4. Trusted connections
5. A safe place for intimate communication
6. Shared beliefs and purpose

You may read the full article here.

Repairers of the Breach speaker series: "Unlawful for Any Christian"? Slave-owning Anglican and Episcopal Churches in Early Virginia

Repairers of the Breach, our diocesan task force for dismantling racism, begins a speaker series on September 29 with a talk by Dr. Jennifer Oast, professor of history at Bloomsburg University. Continuing the work of Becoming Beloved Community, the Episcopal Church's long-term commitment to racial healing and justice, this series will build on the learning of our March pilgrimage, "Walking Toward Truth," which visited sites of memory in Hampton, Jamestown and Williamsburg.  

 

Dr. Oast, author of Institutional Slavery: Slaveholding Churches, Schools, Colleges, and Businesses in Virginia, 1680-1860 (Cambridge, 2016), has titled her talk "Unlawful for Any Christian"? Slave-owning Anglican and Episcopal Churches in Early Virginia."  Anglican parishes were the first institutions in Virginia to own slaves, which were acquired initially through donations and later through deliberate purchase. The parishes became the masters of slaves with little hesitation; while one eighteenth-century minister declared he thought it was "unlawful for any Christian and in particular for a clergyman" to employ slaves, his view was the minority one in the early eighteenth century, when few Englishmen, either in the colonies or back in England, questioned the existence or morality of slavery. The Anglicans' success with institutional slaveholding sent Virginians the message that not only was slaveholding not "unlawful" for a Christian, but that it could be of great benefit to them.  

 

This talk explores how slavery was used and thought about in Anglican and Episcopal parishes. It also examines the lives of individual African Americans who were enslaved to the churches. Join us via Zoom for this informative session on September 29 from 6:30 to 7:30. Click here to register and access the Zoom link. And check out the updated links on our Justice & Advocacy page, www.diosova.org/justice-advocacy.

CE-Net online gathering: Let's Talk Confirmation!

Join CE-Net for a Zoom meeting conversation on Thursday, September 10, 6:00 to 7:30 pm.  COVID restrictions have impacted formation planning for the immediate future. As a result many formation leaders are asking -  what will confirmation look like during COVID?  We'll spend time sharing and listening to what you may be planning,  or are currently doing, for confirmation. And if you've not thought about it, we'll also spend time brainstorming possibilities for what a confirmation program might look like in the "new normal".   If you are interested in participating, please register in advance for this meeting here. You will receive the Zoom link after registering. 

Clergy retreat registration open

On Monday through Wednesday, September 28-30, the Diocese is offering a clergy retreat for a time of rest and reflection. The retreat may be experienced in person at Chanco on the James and will also offer a virtual option for those who wish to experience retreat in their homes. Bishop Haynes will offer times of meditation and times of prayer and silence. We will also offer opportunities for waterfront activities including swimming, paddle-boarding and kayaking. Compline will be conducted each night around the campfire. Click here for more information and registration.  

This is NOT Sunday School

ChurchNext is hosting a new weekly program offering called "This is NOT Sunday School". The course will run from September 16th-December 20th .  It is designed to be a free weekly, inter-generational Christian learning opportunity to help participants draw closed to Jesus Christ. Click here for more information and registration.

New "Way of Love, Practices for a Jesus-Centered Life" resources support building an intentional small group ministry

The Episcopal Church continues to offer new resources for congregations interested in following the Way of Love as a way of life by starting small group ministries. New resources include the Building an Intentional Small Group Ministry information packet, an infographic, video compilations, and social media graphics. These resources are available in English, Spanish and French. For more information and resources visit iam.ec/smallgroups or email wayoflove@episcopalchurch.org

Come away with me and rest a while

Clergy retreat September 28-30

In this exhortation from Mark, Jesus bids his disciples to break loose from the demands on their physical time and energies in order to go to a place to rejuvenate and recreate. Bishop Susan would like to invite all clergy to such a time.   As the pandemic lingers longer than anyone would have anticipated, many clergy are finding themselves close to a point of burnout. The learning curve experienced from moving from in-person worship to virtual worship and then a to hybrid worship including both kinds of worship, has exacted a toll on our time and energies. A bit of rest is necessary.

 

On Monday through Wednesday, September 28-30, the Diocese is offering a clergy retreat for a time of rest and reflection. The retreat may be experienced in person at Chanco on the James for those who feel ready to venture out to that sort of gathering (Rooming options will be limited to single occupancy except for clergy couples or others who currently quarantine together). It will also offer a virtual option for those who wish to experience retreat in their homes. The goal of this retreat is to rest. Bishop Haynes will offer times of meditation and times of prayer and silence. Outside experts on church programming, worship and evangelism will be saved for another gathering. The focus, once again, is rest. We will also offer opportunities for waterfront activities including swimming, paddle-boarding and kayaking. Compline will be conducted each night around the campfire.

 

More information will be forthcoming in the next weeks, including cost and how to register. For now, please hold the dates on your calendar: September 28-30.