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THE MONTHLY CAUCUS
A NEW YEAR BEGINS: 2016 |
The Episcopal Women's Caucus: Advocating for women since 1971,
theologically, spiritually and politically.
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As we begin a new year we are reminded that space in our hearts is still needed for all who yearn for their own place, a safe place. We offer for reflection this poem from Kenyan-born Somali poet Warsan Shire:
no one leaves home unless
home is the mouth of a shark
you only run for the border
when you see the whole city running as well
your neighbors running faster than you
breath bloody in their throats
the boy you went to school with
who kissed you dizzy behind the old tin factory is holding a gun bigger than his body
you only leave home
when home won't let you stay.
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Message from the Convener
Refugee Resettlement
Can you help? This was the somewhat desperate question asked of me by the refugee resettlement agency. A family of six was scheduled to arrive within 24 hours and the house they were going to live in had not received clearance by the city inspectors.
The family, a mother with four kids and a grandmother, were refugees from Rwanda who had fled to Cameroon. After years in a refugee camp they had been transported to the Sudan and were in route from the Sudan to Paris and then to Chicago, they'd be here the next day, after a grueling 36 hours of travel. The church and I, having participated in refugee resettlement for a couple of years, decided that we could house this family for a few days. It was summer, no Sunday School, and the building was mostly unused during the day. We set up six beds in one long room. Next door was a living room like space with a television. Downstairs was a fully stocked kitchen and bathrooms with showers. In short order we had everything ready, including food in the refrigerator. The family arrived, along with staff from the refugee agency, about 4pm on a warm sunny afternoon. After the trauma and the challenges of travel, the family was nearly catatonic. Over the next week the church was filled with the sounds of a family coming back to life - kids playing outside in the playground, food being prepared in the kitchen, and faces that began to smile with eyes that shone from rest and hope. By the end of the week the agency had the house ready and the family moved on, but the members of that church, who had opened their doors, were forever changed.
'Come, you that are blessed by God, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me (Matthew 25:34-35).
Who is the stranger?
Did you know that there are about 60 million forcibly displaced people in the world today, and the number is growing daily. Forcibly Displaced people fall into several categories:
IDP's: Internally Displaced Persons: about 40 million people have been forcibly uprooted and displaced within their own country due to violence and conflict. They remain in their country but not in their homes. They are not protected by the government and have no access to resources.
Asylum Seekers: In 2014 1.66 million people submitted applications for asylum. A potentially even larger number of people are waiting to make it through the legal system to apply. Asylum seekers are at a distinct disadvantage in that they have zero resources available to them. A number of agencies focus solely on helping asylum seekers, such as Freedom House in Detroit. The criteria that grants one asylum are: cannot return to home country because of a real risk of being killed due to one's race, religion, ethnicity, politics, or because one is a member of a particular group such as the LGBTQ community.
Refugee: a refugee is someone who has been forced out their home and country because of a real risk of death and violence. There are about 20 million refugees in camps around the world today. Most refugees today are fleeing Syria, followed by those fleeing Afghanistan as well as Africa, South and Central America, and other countries in the world that are experiencing conflict. Refugee resettlement is a long, arduous process. A number of international agencies, often affiliated with the United Nations, work with the governments that have created refugee camps with the intent of resettling as many people as possible. Each person considered for resettlement undergoes intense back ground checks, health and psychological evaluations. Refugee status can take years to acquire and even longer to receive the needed approval to be resettled in another country.
Migrants - a term used frequently, all individuals who cross a border into another county is a migrant. However migrant differs from IDP's, asylum seekers, and refugees in that a migrant can still seek the protection of its home government.
Here in Southeast Michigan the largest resettlement agency is LSSM - Lutheran Social Services of Michigan. They have partner affiliates with other agencies, such as EMM - the Episcopal Migration Ministries. It is anticipated that we will receive nearly 1000 refugees, beginning in about 18 months, or as soon as President Obama gives the clearance for resettlement to begin.
Refugees are resettled first in countries and cities where they already have family members. If there are no family members with whom to be reunited, refugees are resettled in regions where there are other people with whom they can form community.
Every effort is made to ensure that refugees are resettled into community, for it is with community that people are able to rebuild their lives and move from despair to hope.
How can you help? To find your local refugee resettlement agency or for other information on how you can help, contact Allison Duvall | MANAGER for CHURCH RELATIONS and ENGAGEMENT | Episcopal Migration Ministries | The Episcopal Church | 212-716-6027 or email her at aduvall@episcopalchurch.org.
As refugees begin to arrive there will be a request for immediate action: a team of youth or adults to greet a refugee family at the airport, a team of people who can set up a house or apartment including making beds and organizing a kitchen, a team of people who can acquire new or gently used clothing or household items, a team of people who will go to the grocery store a stock the kitchen with culturally appropriate food for the family. Some churches may choose to take on a larger, more expensive portion of resettlement, such as sponsoring a family by paying for the expenses to migrate including Visas, airfare, the items in their new home, and so forth.
We are informed and formed not only from Jesus' words in the Gospel, to help the stranger, but also from Deuteronomy we are reminded that we are to help the stranger for we too were once strangers in a strange land. If we reach into the resources of our corporate soul, there resonates a grief from a common loss of home, may this grief inform our compassion and inspire us to heal the broken and the wounded with love. May we do this with God's help.
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Episcopal Women's Caucus Statement on Violence
The Episcopal Women's Caucus recognizes that women have been on the forefront of gun control measures for over a hundred years.
Julia Ward Howe, abolitionist, suffragette, and author of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, is often recognized as the person who started Mother's Day. She called for a day to honor women and for the start of a movement in response to the deaths of young men during the Civil War. Julia pleaded that we would come to know a time when no mother's son killed another mother's son. In the years since mothers, women, have sought safer gun control legislation. Yet, even with a hundred plus years of effort, gun killings, especially mass gun killings, in this country are on the rise.
The Episcopal Women's Caucus encourages its membership to be proactive in finding long term solutions and supporting legislation that does the same. It is clear that gun control measures that limit or eliminate access to AK47 (fully automatic) and semi-automatic weapons reduce gun deaths. We also need to address the systemic issues that have led to the decay of human relationships in which some people fail to value the lives of other people and choose to resolve conflict with gun violence.
Let us stand again in the words of Julia Ward Howe and work for the day when no mother's child will ever kill another mother's child.
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EPISCOPAL WOMEN'S CAUCUS- NEW BOARD MEMBERS
The Reverend Amy Haynie is an Episcopal Priest in the Episcopal Diocese of Ft Worth. She is currently pursuing a certificate in Alternative Dispute Resolution and filling in as supply clergy as needed. Amy serves on the board of RevGalBlogPals as treasurer, and on the editorial team of the Episcopal Cafe Magazine feature.
Amy and David, have two sons - Sam (20) and Ben (17) - and a houseful of teenagers every weekend.
 The Rev. Canon Janet Waggoner is the Canon to the Ordinary and Transition Ministry Officer for the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth. She and her husband, Dr. Ed Waggoner, who is the first Right Rev. Sam B. Hulsey Chair at Brite Divinity School, moved to Fort Worth in 2012. Janet is a member of the U.S. board of directors supporting Nambale Magnet School in Kenya and mentor of a 4th grader in the Academy 4 leadership program in public schools in Fort Worth. She is also a PhD student in the Pastoral Theology program at Brite Divinity School, with an emphasis on theologies of welcome and inclusion.
The Waggoners have two children, Wynne (13) and Ben (10).
Robin Woods Sumners, Ph.D., a cradle Episcopalian, has served the Episcopal church and the wider community in a variety of roles. In the Diocese of Colorado she served on the Standing Committee and as President of the Episcopal Church Women, ECW Representative to Province VI, United Thank Offering Coordinator, and Communications Convener for The United Thank Offering.
Robin lives in Cuero, Texas, where she is a member of the Chamber of Commerce Board, and also a member of the Board of Directors of the Boys and Girls Club of Dewitt County
Robin and her husband The Rev. Charles A. Sumners, married in 2000 and between the two of them have seven children. Charles is Priest-in-Charge of Grace Episcopal Church, Cuero. |
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The EWC Board
Convener:Terri Pilarski
Members: Amy Peden Haynie , Margo McMahon, Robin Woods Sumners, and Janet Waggoner
L. Zoe Cole, Consultant
Past Convener:Elizabeth Kaeton
Staff: Business Manager:Chris Mackey
Publications Editor:Karen D. Bota, ENews, Gigi Conner
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 NOTE TO READERS FROM
MONTHLY CAUCUS EDITOR
We need your help. If you have information about positions that are open - or want to share an experience you've had - or want to let us know about a new position to which you've been called - please do write in and let us know. We want to be a resource and we want to continue to be an advocate for all who are seeking their way in the Episcopal Church.
You can email your news to me revgigiconner@gmail.com
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Trinity Institute: Listen for a Change
An annual theological conference
January 21-23, 2016
This conference is booked but you can attend at a Partner Site
to find the nearest location.
Presiding Bishop Michael Curry will preach on the opening night of this conference about race.
Racial justice is a matter of life or death; we can't afford to stay silent and tacitly accept the (mostly) invisible systems that support inequalities, create suffering, and deny human dignity. Rather, we need to have an open dialogue-a process that starts with listening.
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The Latest RUACHQuick Lin
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Christmas Shopping? Link to what you can find at the new Women's Caucus online store
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CAST WIDE THE NET RESOURCES FOR WOMEN
from
THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH WEBSITE
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Use this form to join the EWC, renew your membership, or make a donation. Make check out to EWC and mail to: Episcopal Women's Caucus, 1103 Magnolia St., South Pasadena, CA 91030
attn: Chris Mackey-Mason, Please indicate if this a:
___new application
___renewal
___donation to the EWC
Amount: $________
For new and renewing members, please select the appropriate membership level below.
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POSITION OPEN
Do you love complex systems and working with volunteer constituencies?
This may be for you.
Dean, Washington Cathedral
The Washington National Cathedral occupies a unique place in the Episcopal Church and in the nation. Often referred to in its history as a "great church for national purposes" and "a national house of prayer for all people," the Cathedral's ministry is a unique mix of local and national mission priorities.
The new Dean should possess:
● Compelling vision of the Gospel and personal identification with the mission of the Cathedral;
● Joyful presence and delight in building relationships with a broad and diverse constituency;
● Mature leadership and a management approach focused on building a collaborative team;
● Love of complex systems and ability to work well with volunteer constituencies
● Demonstrated ability to lead an organization through change;
● Passionate commitment to the ministries of stewardship and fundraising;
● Willingness to learn and ability to grow in the job
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BISHOP SEARCHES
As of Sept 2015, these dioceses are in search (with nomination and election date if known)
Dio Western North Carolina - nominations by Dec 3; election June 25, 2016
Diocese Los Angeles: Bishop Coadjutor Search
Nominations by January 15 Nomination deadline: February 15
Diocese of Easton
Nomination deadline: January 15
Dio Spokane - maybe Oct 2016;
Dio North Carolina - not set;
Federal Ministries - not set.
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The Rev. Stephanie Spellers named as Canon to the Presiding Bishop for Evangelism and Reconciliation
Spellers will be responsible for supporting the ministry of the Presiding Bishop and Primate as it pertains to evangelism and reconciliation efforts at the local, congregational, diocesan, and churchwide levels.
She graduated from Episcopal Divinity School with a Masters of Divinity; Harvard Divinity School with a Masters of Theological Studies; and Wake Forest University with a Bachelors in Religion, where she began organizing for justice and peace.
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Leading Women 2016
Leading Women is a three-day conference for ordained women who sense that they may have a vocation to senior leadership roles in The Episcopal Church. It is designed for networking, support, and to nurture the skills and confidence of women who have the call and aptitude for leadership positions.
The keynote speaker will be the 26th Presiding Bishop, The Rt. Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori.
The conference will be a mixture of plenary sessions, teaching, and small group discussion, as well as worship. There will be generous time for informal conversation and meals together where women who inhabit these senior roles will be able to talk about the day-to-day reality of what they "do".
Here is a portion of what Bp Mary Gray-Reeves wrote to the HOB: "This application will also be openly available to anyone seeking to attend the conference. It would be wonderful if you were able to identify women in your dioceses in whom you see skills and gifts suitable for such ministries. An encouraging conversation and an endorsement from you would support their process of discernment and pursuit of such a call. Together, we can develop leadership strength for the future of our church."
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The Chicago Consultation
The Episcopal Women's Caucus is part of the Chicago Consultation and will lead the next two group conversations.
The Chicago Consultation is a group of Episcopal and Anglican lay people, clergy and bishops, which supports the full inclusion of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Christians in the Episcopal Church and the worldwide Anglican Communion.
Formed in 2007 in the wake of dramatic setbacks at the Episcopal Church's 2006 General Convention, the Chicago Consultation has been instrumental in securing significant legislative victories at General Convention in 2009 and 2012. These include:
- a resolution affirming that all orders of ministry, including the episcopate, are open to LGBT people
- resolutions that eliminate canonical discrimination against transgender people
- resolutions that provide the Episcopal Church with a liturgy for blessing same sex unions and a path toward marriage equality.
In between General Conventions, our meetings, network, and theological publications have been instrumental in helping congregations and dioceses move toward full inclusion of LGBT people in the life and ministry of the Episcopal Church.
Steering Committee of the Chicago Consultation:
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