Tuesday February 10, 2009

Hello and welcome to the February 6 edition of the eSpirit of Wyoming on February 10! Sorry for the delay! I was in Des Moines at Living Stones and then had sick kids to deal with upon returning. Back in the office now (and kids are back in school) so all is well.

A reminder that if you have articles you would like to share with the rest of the Diocese, please email them (and a picture if you have one) to info@wyomingdiocese.org. It doesn’t have to be earth-shattering news or events, but anything you would like to share.

Also, I would like to respond to some comments I have received about the eSpirit being too small. Sorry for that! That is actually the format it is sent in and I can't change it (if I could, I would!). BUT you CAN make it bigger. If you are viewing the eSpirit in your email, you should be able to increase the size of the entire message. Normally this is in one of the drop down menus and called something like “zoom”. If you are viewing this on the web, the same principle. Normally this is a drop down menu and “zoom” is probably what it is called (or something that describes zooming in). I hope that helps.

God’s peace,

-Andrew

Email: andrew@wyomingdiocese.org or call (+1) 307.265.5200

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Bishop Bruce Caldwell sat down with Andrew Kerr for an interview about the Living Stones meeting going on right now in Des Moines. This link is posted in Diocese's account with MyPodcast http://wyomingdiocese.mypodcast.com/

Give it some time to load...it may take a few minutes. OR, click on one of the many podcast options, including sending the file directly to iTunes.

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St Matthew’s has a great Super Bowl tradition…Super Bowl Stoles! The Rev Dick Naumann and the Very Rev Marilyn Engstrom are pictured here wearing this year’s stoles with Pittsburg Steelers on one side and the Arizona Cardinals on the other! Marilyn had this to say about it, “Every year my sister makes us stoles with one side for each team. They are loads of fun for us; but the little boys are the ones who get most excited about seeing them.”

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By the Rev Warren Frelund.

Today's church is being led into the ministry of social awareness and action. In today's world the church finds itself in a situation that demands the cultivation of sacrificial service,
(Diakonia). I believe this service is essential to the church's being. Jesus presents to us the biblical basis for the diaconal nature of the church's worship. In all of his teachings he speaks of serving the needs of others.

The servant church simply being what it is ministers to the needs of the world. In recent years we have begun to rethink the church as Diakonia. The mutuality of ministry is being discussed and emphasized in a variety of applications. The three orders of Bishop, Priest,and Deacon are being reviewed in relation to Diakonia. I believe it is time for the church to address the Diaconate in the light of the Diaconal nature of the church.

I refer to Deacons not as a token order of Deacons and not simply as to a Transitional Diaconate, but to a permanent order. And as such the church since the Second Vatican Council, has viewed the establishment of a permanent Diaconate as a restoration that rectifies a lack within the ordained ministries of the church.

Up to the Council of Nicea (325) the Diaconate enjoyed its golden age. Deacons were Deacons, serving under and at the direction of Bishops, dedicated to work of charity, with special responsibilities in relation to the worship of the church. From that time on the order was in decline. However, in recent times the restoration of the Diaconate in a time when the church and the world desperately need Diakonia seems reasonable.

In my travels around the Diocese of Wyoming I have experienced many congregations who exemplify Diakonia. Many members live into the teachings of Jesus. It is this willingness and ability to perceive Christ in the world which calls us into ministry.

It is also clear, as in other dioceses, that there is a tension and misunderstanding of the role of Deacons. I believe that most of this tension is caused by a lack of understanding of the Diakonate. A Deacon as a symbol is powerful or weak according to the degree to which he or she participates in Diakonia and mirrors the image of Jesus, the sacrificial servant.

As John Collins says in his book, Deacons and the Church, Deacons are to reflect on this ancient perception that just as Jesus spent his life in total commitment (Diakonia), to the Messianic role had received from his Father, so the Deacons live lives of total commitment (Diakonia) to their diaconal role in the congregation and of the Church leadership.

Over the next few months, Deacons in the Diocese of Wyoming will be offering articles describing their roles in the church and the world. I always welcome a good conversation about diaconal ministry and the role of Deacons, so please contact me if you would like more of this conversation.
Email: warren@wyomingdiocese.org

Much thought in this article comes from John Collins book, Deacons and the Church: http://tinyurl.com/akenq7

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By the Rev Joe E. Galligan. Email: joe@wyomingdiocese.org

Big news from the Big Horn Basin!! At their annual meetings in January, both St. Alban’s, Worland and Holy Trinity, Thermopolis voted to PARTNER with the diocese as Shared Ministry Congregations. This decision followed extensive conversations and study during the last several years, including working through the ROOTED IN GOD process. Both congregations now look forward to their next steps in shared ministry, building on many ministries already identified and in place with further discernment and formation.

Six members of Holy Trinity’s Pastoral Care Team participated in a EUCHARISTIC VISITORS workshop on Sunday afternoon, February 8th.

The Rev Ed Farmer, local priest at St. Andrew’s, Meeteetse , made his first visit as an Associated Priest to St. Andrew’s, Basin on Sunday, January 18th. We’re looking forward to this new phase in Ed’s ministry in the BH Basin.

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By the Rev Kathy Robinson. Email: kathy@wyomingdiocese.org

Apostolic Team Meeting, 25 Jan 09

I see God’s family when people from different ways of life and different perspectives come together with the expectation that they have much to learn from one another.

Someone once said that Wyoming is one town with very long streets. The reality is that the distances and difficulty of travel have made us a state of rugged individualists where people, towns and churches have favored self sufficiency over community. And yet….I fundamentally believe in my mind and heart that God calls us into community – to become one family in his love. This is why the idea of connecting people from the churches in the regions together is exciting to me.

Last Saturday a group of over twenty people from all over the south/central part of our diocese met at St. John the Baptist in Glendo, Wyoming. It was a time of renewed friendships for some, but many of us were strangers to one another. It also pointed out how different we all really are: rural folk and city folk, senior citizens and youth, members of large churches and very small, people with post college degrees and those who were still in junior high and high school, etc. At one point a rancher was sharing his idea of community by talking about branding where it takes a team of people to get the job done. As part of his story he told about someone dragging a cow through the coals of a fire. All the ranchers there knew what the person was talking about, but there were people there who had never been to a branding. One city person was horrified to learn that cows are routinely dragged through fires as part of their branding.

You might think that after one such meeting people would shrug their shoulders and go back to the comfort of their home towns, cities, and churches. But that is not what happened. Instead over and over people saw this as a reason to meet again…. “Let’s take more time to really get to know each other and learn about the different church communities.” “Let’s find out what all of us can be together.” All of this, not so that we lose our individuality, for that is our greatest strength here in Wyoming….but so that we can help one another grow in new and wonderful ways.

Now that is God’s family for me. Kathy Robinson
 

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By the Rev Doug Wasinger. 

Hey, did anybody see where January went? It seemed like 2009 just arrived and now, as one person put it 1/12th of the year is now in the record books. A quick glimpse around Carbon County looks like this, St. Paul has entered a discernment process for a local priest; St. Thomas demonstrated the “flex” of Shared Ministry and was able to make a last minute worship schedule change; St. James is plugging along and I anticipate hearing from Medicine Bow some time this week. I hope this letter finds you well.

Last Wednesday the Ministry Developers had their weekly web/phone conference and we debriefed on our workshop the week before. That evening I was a participant on another web/phone conference with the Evangelism leadership team in which we shared stories of where we discovered God for the past month. The Evangelism work is one of sharing and connecting at this point in our lives together with the expectation that a theme will emerge over time in which God is calling the Diocese of Wyoming into this work.

Thursday I meet with Karen and discussed Title IV of the National Church Canons. Title IV is the Disciplinarian Canons of the church. A couple of things became very clear. One, there is a process of discipline within the Episcopal Church and it is detailed. Another insight that was made is that when a person takes vows of Holy Orders they accept this process of discipline and (if at all) the civil courts have a very limited role in this process. The Church is prepared to take care of matters of discipline in an orderly and systematic way. That evening I drove over to Green River and spent some time with the Rooted In God folks. We are getting well placed in the process and are beginning to dive deeper into the personal aspects of power for transformation.

On Friday I spend a couple of hours at Kraft Hall in Rawlins. During that time I did some preparation work for St. Paul’s up-coming discernment and started the process of gathering a Ministry Support Team for St. Thomas. That afternoon I headed to Laramie to work on a personal project.

Talk about how connected we are in this state I want share a story with you all. On Saturday morning I was backing my car out of the driveway so that Kellie could go to work and I ran out of gas in the middle of street. Not to worry I found a gas can in my garage and put in enough gas to get to the gas station. One of my neighbors up the street was standing by to make sure that I make it. On Sunday I was celebrating at St. Paul’s in Dixon and Meg asked me if I was having some trouble with purchasing fuel (with a smile on her face). I laughed and said, “Oh, you heard about that.” It was her daughter and son-in-law who were standing by to make sure that I get out of the street safety. I realized that people may know the distance between Rawlins and Dixon. It is about 170 miles round trip. See how quickly information travels? LOL (Laugh Out Loud). I love this state of Wyoming!

Last Sunday was DISCERNMENT Sunday for St. Paul’s. They have entered a period of discerning a local priest in which the period will conclude at the end of this month. It is an exciting time for St. Paul for they have been working faithfully on their formational and preparation for this event since 2003 or perhaps sooner.

Some of you may know this, but I will be out of the country starting Feb 9th and will be back on Feb 19th, so this will be the last letter for a couple of weeks. Don’t be alarmed it you don’t hear from me for a couple of weeks. All shall be well.

The remainder of the week looks like this – Monday I will be attending a make-up session at St. Thomas, with a group of people who are working with Karen and her formation to the priesthood, as they study the book from the original Church Teaching series The Bible for Today’s Church starting at 9am. That evening I will be on a web/phone conference with the Regional Reps of the Diocese of Wyoming. On Wednesday there is the weekly web/phone conference with the Ministry Developers at 8am. Thursday I will meet with the folks of Green River to continue to work on the Rooted In God formation process starting at 6:30pm. Friday I will be in Kraft Hall in Rawlins from 10am to 12pm. This up-coming Sunday I will travel to Fort Bridger and Green River for Sunday services.

Be well,

Doug 

Email: doug@wyomingdiocese.org

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Last week, Wyoming Wilderness Camp Director Pat Walsh took a group of students up to the Big Horn Mountains for some snowshoeing. The Revs Tom Fiske and Russ Murphy had arranged for the Wyoming Wilderness Camp team to lead a youth outing outside of of Buffallo. Tom's son, Simon, had this to say about the trip:

"We planned the trip for weeks - every Sunday it was in the bulletin "Youth: Snow shoeing in the Big Horns Jan 31" the gang from Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Gillette got into our car and drove to Buffalo Wyoming. I was not entirely sure what to expect. I had heard about HR camp before and had heard great things about it. But when we met in Buffalo, I got the feeling that everyone who came from HR camp cared deeply for what they were doing as well as greatly enjoyed it as well. Pat talked to us about what HR camp did and what it was about. The emphasis on outdoor sports and activities along with the different other programs. The representatives from HR camp wanted us to know what HR camp is, were it is and what we would do if we went. Then we drove into the bighorns and Pat brought out the Snowshoes and told us the basic gist of the sport and what it basically entailed. We got the shoes on and off we went. Pat and the others talked to us often, keeping it engaging and interesting, telling us about some useful tips about survival skills and the use of these skills in any outdoor activity. They kept God in the trip the whole time and tried to keep it tune with the trip; where we see God, how we see God. This added a more spiritual gist and a more uplifting feel."

The students had never been snowshoeing before and Tom had his vintage cross country skis with him for the outing, too. After a couple of hours on the mountain the group warmed up and reflected at the local Pizza Hut. Simon had this to say about the trip overall: "I loved the emphasis of how one can see God in nature and the emphasis on outdoor sports and activities (being an outdoorsman myself). I feel that HR camp is a unique establishment and it has a lot of potential."

To get Wyoming Wilderness Camp involved in your next church event, call or email Pat Walsh: pat@wyomingdiocese.org or 307.351.7006

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Diocese of Wyoming
Mission Trip to Honduras 2009

When: June 20 – July 2, 2009

Where: La Ceiba, Honduras – on the north coast of Honduras

What: We will be painting the interior of a new clinic, helping with medical wellness clinics, treating patients in the new hyperbaric chamber, and doing community surveys for HIV, malaria, women’s issues

Who: We are fielding a team of 20, to include up to 5 teens. We will have need of medical personnel, M.Ds and nurses, folks with construction experience and people with a desire to just pitch in and do what needs to be done. Expect long days, hard work and a wonderful sense of fulfillment as we work together to make a difference.

Contact: The Rev. Kay Rohde, kay@wyomingdiocese.org , (307) 265-5200

Applications available: email the Diocesan Office at office@wyomingdiocese.org or call (307) 265-5200.

• We estimate the cost will be around $1700 per person, we are still working out the details of the trip, which will determine actual costs.
• A valid U.S. passport is required.
• Applications due March 15, 2009
 

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