We Are Epiok.org

July 6, 2012

Issue 27

77th General Convention Has Begun - Indianapolis, IN 

77th General Convention of the Episcopal Church is underway, and we want to provide you with lots of ways to stay connected! 

This link will connect you to the General Convention Media hub where you can watch live streaming of worship, legislative proceedings in the House of Deputies and House of Bishops, daily features produced for and at General Convention, and press briefings on the events of the day.  http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/gc2012/ 

Our Diocesan web page http://www.epiok.org  has a link to General Convention information, which has other links and information in addition to a blog with posting from our deputation. 

Please pray for General Convention, our Bishop and our deputies.

 A Walk in the Woods - St. Crispin's Conference Center

You might think that being at St. Crispin's on the 4th of July would be just another day in paradise! But it was much more than that! Starting with their own parade, campers were invited to  participate in the costume of their choice, provide dance routines, music and singing, and even floats! Macy's has nothing on St. Crispin's. 
  

After a wonderful red, white, and blue cool dessert, (thanks cooks for helping us stay in the 4th Spirit!)

they waited until dark to host their own fireworks display!

A short video can be found on the St. Crispin's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/St-Crispins-Episcopal-Conference-Center/219023541499142. 

Episcopal Night at the Red Hawks is Back! 

We will be turning in our order for tickets on Monday, July 16. If your congregation wants to participate in the Episcopal Night at the Red Hawks game on July 27, we must have your ticket numbers!  Seats are on the 3rd base side IN THE SHADE and cost only $8 per person.  Send your order to Sabrina Evans at the Diocese, checks made payable to Diocese of OK.

Education for Ministry (EfM) Registrations Now Open for Fall 

Thinking about your personal commitment? Your personal ministry? Why not consider Education for Ministry from the Sewanee University of the South. This four year program explores the origin and development of the Hebrew scriptures and New Testament; church history from the Apostles forward; and the great theologians and the issues they discussed. Enrollment for the fall at all congregations that have an EfM program is now open. For more information on the program and sample lessons, please visit http://www.sewanee.edu/EFM/EFMAboutUs.htm

St. Michael's, Norman

Trinity, Guthrie

Emmanuel, Shawnee

St. Paul's Cathedral, OKC
 All Saint's, McAlester

St. John's, Norman

St. Dunstan's, Tulsa

St. Philips, Ardmore

St. Luke's, Ada

St. Patrick's, Broken Arrow

St. Andrew's, Grove

St. Andrew's, Stillwater

St. John's, OKC

Trinity, Tulsa

Grace, Muskogee

St. Paul's, Clinton

You can also go to http://www.epiok.org/Christian%20Formation/education-for-ministry.htmlget a listing of mentors for the above locations.

Happening #60 Set For August 

 
Happening is designed for those who have completed the 10th - 12th grade and are looking for an intense, amazing and inspirational retreat. It is a time set apart to learn a little bit more about who we are, what we think and how we can carry that in to the world.

Happening #60 will be held at Christ Church, Tulsa, August 3-5th. It will start at 7 p.m. Cost is $50 for participants, $25 for staff. For Registration form, click here.  

Got Happening questions? Contact Ashley Haggard at 918 527 6743. Lay Rector for this event will be Philip Newcomer.

Whole Creation Community

St. Crispin's Summer Camp

Summer Camp Sessions officially have begun! We ask your prayers over each of our youth groups, staff, deans, and nurses.

Please pray for these individuals:  Summer Camp Director:  Aaron Mooney.  Full-time summer staff:  Evelyn Langley, Katherine Whalen, Noah Allen, Hannah Hutchison, Kirsten Rysted, Phillip Bedford, Josh Keegan, Libby Fosmire, Emily Bibens, John Putnam, and Austin Woodliff.

Staff for July 8 - 14

Deans:  Scott Helton and Robert Bibens

Chaplain:  Hal Greenwood

Nurse:  Dr. Megan Hanner

CIT's:  Molly Routon, Emma Hutchison, Will Bernston, Ben Abla

Staff for July 15 - 21 (our final week of camp for 2012)

Deans:  Rev. Blake and Laura Beth Woods

Nurse:   Linda Newcomer, Janie Hill

CIT's:     Abby Langley, Hailey Engle, Sydney Hinds, Will Bernston

Volunteers:  Megan Shepherd, Matt Jewett-Williams

Camp Wish List

Check in those miscellaneous drawers and closets around your house and see if you have any of the items requested from camp! If you do and would like to donate to the supply closet, we'd love to have them. Donations can be dropped off at the Diocesan Offices for delivery to camp.

Box Fans

Bibles (New, Hardcover, all versions)

Embroidery Thread (for friendship bracelets)

Clean Glass Jars (with or without lids)

Scrabble Letters

Large Fake Jewels

Dominoes

Magnetic Tape (self-adhesive)

Children's Fishing Poles, fishing line, hooks, bobbers

Children's and Young Adult's Toothbrushes

Mini Toothpastes

Scissors

Single Hole Punches

Sidewalk Chalk

Jewelry Clasps

Jewelry Wire

Sharpies (Black and Colors, Fine Point)

Masking Tape

Oklahoma Episcopal Youth

We are pleased to announce the launch of the Episcopal Youth Leadership Academy (E.Y.L.A.) for the Diocese of Oklahoma. This program is open to youth grades 6 - 10. It will provide opportunities to learn to be a leader not only in your congregation, diocese and beyond but these skills will apply to school and other organizations. Go to:

http://www.epiok.org/Christian%20Formation/e-y-l-a-launches-2012-13-program.html and download a brochure! 

Making Communion Meaningful for Children 

In the second season of the TV drama Mad Men, young and rising advertising copywriter Peggy Olson lands the Popsicle account by comparing a mother's act of taking a twin pop from the freezer, breaking it in two and giving it to her children to the ritual of sharing in the Sacrament of Communion. Sharing a Popsicle, she tells the executives, is not just something that you do in the summer heat, but a ritual that is enacted all year around. No matter if it came from the freezer or from the ice cream truck, each time you: take it, break it, share it, love it.

Communion is unique in that it is not just a story that we tell or a service that we attend, but a fully sensory experience that we have together as a community. Clearly these are the kinds of experiences that can be especially meaningful to children.

How can we make the Sacrament of Communion a memorable and meaningful ritual for children as they grow in their faith and in their understanding of their Christian identity? Here are some ways.

1. Allow your child to receive Communion. 

I work with parents who remember not being allowed to take Communion as a child, and who wonder if their child is old enough to participate in the sacrament. Often the standard for when a child is "old enough" is held to be the ability to understand the meaning of the sacrament. I am 36, and I continue to work on understanding what it means.

Children come to understand the meaning of the sacrament best by actually participating in it. That being said, while there is no definitive age at which a child should start taking Communion, whenever a child does start we should make it a special occasion and actively talk about it ahead of time.

2. Read feeding stories from the Bible with children.

Whether it is the story of the Last Super or the story of Jesus' walk to Emmaus after the resurrection, the gospels provide a number of stories of Jesus sitting at table with his closest friends. From there one can branch out to other biblical feeding stories, such as the story of God feeding the Israelites with manna in the wilderness or the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000.

Help children understand that Jesus ate with his disciples, friends and even strangers all the time. It is also helpful to connect our faith practices to stories from the Old Testament. The stories of the unleavened bread at Passover, Abraham entertaining angels outside his tent, or Ruth gathering grain to feed her family can be linked to Communion for children. One of the best children's resources for this purpose (besides the Bible itself) is the book God Speaks to Us in Feeding Stories.

3. Talk with your children during Communion, just as you would if you were taking them to their first baseball game.You wouldn't make a child sit through an entire sporting event without helping them understand who is doing what when and why. Point out to them what is happening, who is saying what words and what they mean, what elements/objects are on the Communion table, how the pastor breaks the bread and pours the cup. Explain who is serving the congregation, whether is it pastors, elders or deacons.

Take it, break it, share it, love it.

What I like most about Peggy Olson's comparison between sharing a twin pop and sharing Communion is the joy that it invokes. Too often Communion is treated as a somber event, but in truth it is the joyful feast of the people of God. And nothing is more joyful than sharing Communion with a child.

May our children remember breaking and sharing in the bread and cup with as much fondness as they remember the cold, sticky stains of the first grape popsicle of the summer.

This article is an excerpt from the blog Bread not Stones by Rebecca Kirkpatrick, a pastor in the Presbyterian Church (USA) for ten years, serving a vibrant congregation in South Bend, Indiana. 

Godly Play Training Coming Back to OKC 

We are pleased to be offering a Godly Play Training here in OKC for August 24 - 26. NOTE WE CHANGED THE DATE TO BEGIN ON FRIDAY, 3 P.M. AND END ON SUNDAY AT 4:30 P.M. Registration is now on line. If this is something you are interested in attending, please let me know. Training is limited to 12 people. Click here for information and registration

Sabrina (christianformation@epiok.org)

Closing Prayer for July 

 
God of eternal light, though the heat of summer may be too much sometimes, we thank you for the gift of summer, especially summer camp, fresh food from the garden, swimming, trips to grandparents' houses, and vacations with families. Bless the rest of this summer, that it, too, may be filled with fun and rest, to the glory of Your name. Amen.

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