Summer Schedule - The Diocesan House hours for July & August will be Monday - Thursday from 8:30am to 4:30pm, closed Fridays.

Discernment Program- The Commission on Ministry is offering a seven-month Discernment Program. The program is open to any adult in the Diocese who may wish to explore their call to serve within the Body of Christ, whether it be lay or ordained ministry. The program is a prerequisite for anyone who may feel called to ordained ministry. Please speak with your parish clergy as they have the information on the program.
Join us for an introductory dinner at Hallworth House on Thursday, September 14th.

CHURCH VITALITY-The Rev. Ben Helmer. Introduction to the basics of church health and growth
When: Saturday October 7, 2006 8:30am- 2:30pm
Where: The Cathedral of St. John, 271 N. Main Street, Providence
Cost: $15 per person
Registration Deadline: September 22, 2006
Limited to 80 people
Contact: The Rev. Cn. Dr. Rich Bardusch, 274-4500 Rich@EpiscopalRi.org; Betsy Fornal, 274-4500, Betsy@EpiscopalRi.org. A curriculum brochure is available.
More Info: The Rev. Ben Helmer, recently retired from the Office of Congregational Development of the Episcopal Church is presenting an all day workshop focusing on church health and growth. Participants will learn about the cycle that every congregation experiences; how churches begin; how parishes reach stability; and what to focus on when your congregation is no longer growing.

DEALING WITH CONFLICT-The Rev. Patricia Liberty. Identifying, Understanding, Managing Conflict
When: Saturday November 4, 2006 8:30am- 2:30pm
Where: The Cathedral of St. John, 271 N. Main Street, Providence
Cost: $15 per person
Registration Deadline: October 20, 2006
Limited to 80 people
Contact: The Rev. Cn. Dr. Rich Bardusch, 274-4500 Rich@EpiscopalRi.org; Betsy Fornal, 274-4500, Betsy@EpiscopalRi.org. A curriculum brochure is available.
More Info: Healthy churches are not congregations where there is an absence of troubles, they are congregations which actively and responsibly address and heal its disturbances. Pat will help you understand, identify, take responsibility for, and learn how to manage conflict.

The 216th Annual Convention of the Dicese of Rhode Island
When: Friday & Saturday, October 27-28, 2006
Where: Rhodes on the Pawtuxet in Cranston.
Info: This year's theme, "Lighten the World" will focus on the Millennium Development Goals (MDG's). Friday evening's guest speaker will be the Rev. Michael Kinman, Executive Director, Episcopalians for Global Reconciliation.
The deadline to submit a Resolution is Friday, September 22nd
Dinner Reservation deadline is October 20th.
Additional information will be made available as Convention plans progress!

"Sabbath-by-the-Sea" for Clergy & Families
Where: Cape Cod
When: October 8th-10th
The Diocesan Counsil Leadership Committtee announces a 3-day retreat on Cape Cod from October 8th - 10th (Columbus Day Weekend) at the Ocean Edge Resort in Brewster, Mass. Event is scheduled to help build teamwork and wellness among Diocesan clergy and their families. Members of the Diocesan Council Leadership Committee will be happy to provide additional information: Mr. Ben West (Chair), The Rev. David Ames, the Rev. John Lawrence, the Rev. Daryl Stahl, the Rev. Jennifer Pedrick and the Rev. Bob Anthony.

Community Festival of Sacred Choral Music in search of singers
What: Emmanuel Church announces its inaugural Emmanuel Summer Festival of Great Choral Music.
Where: Emmanuel Church, 42 Dearborn Street, Newport, RI 02840
When: Begins August 23rd and ends September 10th, 2006.
Who: Choral singers from southern New England are invited and encouraged to participate.
Info: Three choral Masses and anthems will be rehearsed and presented during three Sunday morning worship services. Singers can sign up for each Festival Week. Information about Festival rehearsal schedules, requirements and fees can be found at www.emmanuelchoralfestival.org

St. Augustine's Autumn Festival- Featuring 4th Annual Silent Auction, Raffle, and Harvest Dinner
When: Saturday, October 20, 2006 at 5pm
Cost: $20, includes dinner and 5 raffle tickets
Info: Additional raffle tickets are $1 Tickets will go on sale in late September.

What's Happening and When? October 20-22, 2006 at the LaSalette Retreat Center in Attleboro, MA for any teen in grade 10-12. Check out what's Happening! Deadline for applications will be October 4, 2006 The total cost of this weekend is $110 with a $25 non-refundable deposit.

Learn more about the Happening experience from their national website: www.happening.org.

Strive for Peace & Justice! Be an Intern at the Episcopal Church Office of Government Relations, Home of the EPPN.
WHO? We welcome volunteers, students, seminarians, bishops, laity and Anglican partners. While it is preferred that applicants be Episcopalian, it is not required.
WHAT? Interns will have the opportunity to work closely with our grassroots coordinator and policy analysts, provide administrative support, contribute to policy research, work with ecumenical and secular coalitions, and attend Congressional committee hearings.
WHEN? At least 12 weeks in the spring, fall or summer.
WHERE? Washington, DC on Capitol Hill conveniently situated near Metro rail and bus lines.
WHY? You will gain a general understanding of Congressional procedure as well as how staff and members of the Episcopal Public Policy Network (EPPN) effectively advocate the positions of the General Convention and Executive Council of the Episcopal Church. Weekly staff meetings keep interns updated on the status of key legislation and advocacy strategy.
INFO? Visit www.episcopalchurch.org/eppn/ to learn how to apply Or Call 1-800-228-0515

Once again, the Commission on Ministry is happy to come to you with our Discernment Program for the coming year. This is a wonderful opportunity for adult members of the Body of Christ in Rhode Island to reflect and grow in their faith. It is also the first step in the process leading to ordination for the diaconate and the priesthood.

The program is very similar to the one offered last year. As a result of feedback we received from last year’s participants, we are including a presentation on lay ministry, in addition to the presentations on the diaconate and priesthood.

The first session is an Introductory Dinner that is being held at the Hallworth House on September 14, 2006 at 6 PM. All clergy have information on the program, so please speak with your parish clergy if you are interested.

The calendar of Lesser Feasts and Fasts is a way that the Episcopal Church celebrates the life and ministry of many people who have been an example of Christ like behavior in the world. On August 14th about twenty people gathered at the Church of the Epiphany in Providence to celebrate the feast day of Jonathan Myrick Daniels. Jonathan Daniels was a young seminarian who in the 1960s went to Alabama to march with Martin Luther King Jr. and fight for the right to vote for African Americans. One day Jonathan was walking with two young African American girls, after being released form prision. They were going to get a drink from a store and the owner was at the door telling them that they could not come in. In his hands he held a shot gun. The store owner then went to shoot one of the young African American girls, and Jonathan pushed her out of the way taking the fatal bullet himself. Jonathan spent some time working at Christ Church in Providence, which is no longer standing.

As we gathered for the remembrance celebration on the 14th, I learned that there were a few people there who knew Jonathan making what we were doing that much more personal. To hear the stories of his life was extremely inspiring. At 6.30 we gathered in the mission house for the beginning part of the Eucharist up until the homily. We then left the mission house and marched around the block singing the zimbabwe alleluia. As we marched we were lead by the cross. There were also two banners that some of the kids there carried.

Also Rev. Al Barnaby carried an icon of Jonathan that he had made. We finally gather in the back of the church for the prayer of consecration. As we were concluding out Eucharist the sun was setting. We gathered in the mission house and shared a meal and some wonderful fellowship.

As a young person, myself and my peers, so often take all that we have for granted. Taking part in an event like this celebration really put things into perspective for me. To be in a community where several had been personally affected by this man was remarkable. Someone had even brought two pieces of the old Christ Church, the parish Jonathan worked at, with them.

There have been a small handful of Eucharists that I have been to that I will never forget. Gathering around the icon of Jonathan, the pieces of Christ Church, sharing in the Eucharist, with the sun setting in the background was a truly unforgetable sacramental moment. This is just a small thing that we can do to celebrate the life of Jonathan and all the Civil Rights Martyrs who dedicated their lives to ensuring equality for all.

[ENS] One of my great privileges serving as your Presiding Bishop and Primate, and indeed one of the things I will miss most once I relinquish this ministry in November, is my unusual opportunity to come to know something of how God acts in the lives of fellow Christians who are seeking, in a wide variety of contexts, to be ministers of Christ's reconciling love.

Near the end of July, I participated in a conversation with a cross-section of other heads of provinces of the Anglican Communion. We gathered at Coventry Cathedral under the auspices of the Community of the Cross of Nails, a worldwide organization committed to the ministry of reconciliation. On November 14, 1940, this industrial city in the Midlands of England was almost obliterated by bombs and the cathedral was reduced to ruins. Its ancient walls still stand, but beside them a new cathedral has risen up as a sign of and center for reconciliation.

The conversation amongst the Primates was first conceived last January as a way to reflect upon the future of our shared life of communion and ways in which we within and among our provinces can enable an ongoing ministry of reconciliation. Over the course of several days, we spoke candidly and listened carefully to one another.