ABOVE: The Episcopal Youth Community gets Saturday morning of Annual Council going by leading clergy and delegates in a song familiar to most generations. Youth activities are burgeoning. Learn more in the youth e-news here.
Photo: Nan Ross
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PRAYERS FOR PEACE. Bishop Rob Wright pauses with Imam Plemon El-Amin of Atlanta Nov. 15 after meeting to pray for peace the day after the killings in Paris. El-Amin is the resident imam of the Atlanta Masjid of Al-Islam, considered one of the largest and most progressive mosques in the United States. Photo: Don Plummer |
+ Assistant Bishop Keith Whitmore has a birthday on Saturday, Nov. 28. To send him a greeting, click here >
+ There are no parish visits on Sunday, Nov. 29, because of the Thanksgiving holidays.
+ Bishop Whitmore will visit St. Dunstan's, Atlanta, on Sunday, Dec. 6. The Rev. Patricia Templeton is rector. All are welcome.
Recalling
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RESOURCES
Deadline for submitting news items for Connecting is noon Fridays before the next week's publication. Send news and photos to
Please include location address for all events and a web link to the full story.
This newsletter is published biweekly by the Diocese of Atlanta except for occasions involving Thanksgiving, Christmas and the editor's vacation. It is distributed on alternating Tuesday evenings.
Nan Ross, Editor
Office of the Bishop 404-601-5348
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109th Council articulates diocese's purpose:
'to challenge ourselves and the world
to love like Jesus...'
"Why Jesus? Why the Episcopal Church? And, why now?" Those were questions pondered by Episcopalians in Middle and North Georgia for almost two years, Bishop Rob Wright said during a worship service that opened the 109th Annual Council of the Diocese of Atlanta Nov. 13-14 meeting in Duluth's Infinite Energy Form. And to be able to articulate that purpose is crucial, Wright told more than 500 lay delegates and guests. For a visual message, presented during the meeting, click and watch this:
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| | Watch "Living Into Our Purpose" |
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+ The Rev. Ricardo Bailey will be installed as vicar of Emmaus House Chapel and neighborhood missioner at noon Saturday, Dec. 12, at the chapel. Clergy vest in cassock, surplice and white stole. A reception will follow. All are welcome.
+ Five seminarians will be ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacons at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, at the Cathedral of St. Philip, Atlanta. They are Aelred Dean, Christopher Miller, Lori O'Riley, Gretchen Ratterree and Timothy Seamans. All are welcome.
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After-school enrichment program opens 10th site
 Path To Shine, an after-school enrichment program, has welcomed its 10th program location. With volunteers from Holy Trinity Episcopal Parish in Decatur, as well as volunteers from the community, children from Avondale Estates Elementary School met with their new adult friends for the first time in early November. Deacon Lesley-Ann Drake, founder of Path To Shine, said, "Wide-eyed apprehension at the beginning of the session was replaced with joy and hugs just two-and-a-half hours later." To find out more about this program, visit www.pathtoshine.org
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 Get the latest news from the Episcopal Youth Community here >
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Attend an Interfaith Call to End the Death Penalty
Bishop Rob Wright is a panelist for "Justice and Mercy: An Interfaith Call to End the Death Penalty" at 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 10, at the Catholic Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, 48 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive SW, Atlanta. The educational summit and prayer vigil also features three other speakers: Norman Fletcher, retired Georgia Supreme Court justice; Kayla Gissendaner, daughter of Kelly Gissendaner, executed Sept. 30; and former Ambassador Andrew Young of Atlanta. A procession and prayer vigil at the Liberty Plaza follows. Admission is free, and registration is required. To register, click HERE >
Program informs clergy about immigration issues
Priests and deacons of the Diocese of Atlanta will have an opportunity to learn more about immigration issues at a Clergy Day hosted by Bishop Rob Wright from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 9, at St. Anne's Episcopal Church, Atlanta. The day will feature speakers P. J. Edwards of Smyrna and the Rev. Fabio Sotelo, a Hispanic missioner serving parishes in Tucker and Lawrenceville. Edwards is a former business executive who now works on behalf of immigrants. more >
Nativity scenes from around globe on display
An exhibit of more than 300 nativity scenes from around the world will be on display soon at Episcopal Church of the Epiphany, Atlanta. Many of the nativities are accompanied by scriptural quotes and hymn texts. Exhibit dates are Saturday, Dec. 5, and Sunday, Dec. 6, and from Wednesday, Dec. 9 through Sunday, Dec. 13.
2 Episcopal schools plan tours and open houses Open houses are scheduled next week at two Episcopal schools. Holy Innocents' School in Sandy Springs will host an open house at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 5. It serves age 3 through grade 12. St. Benedict's School in Smyrna will be open from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, and again Jan. 24.
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+ An Advent Procession of Lessons and Carols sung by the Cathedral Choir begins at 4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 29, at the Cathedral of St. Philip.
+ An Ordination to the Sacred Order of Deacons will be at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, at the Cathedral of St. Philip, Atlanta. All are welcome. Bishop Wright will preside. The names of those to be ordained are listed in the People section above.
+ Advent Lessons and Carols is scheduled at 6 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, at the Episcopal Church of the Epiphany, Atlanta. The Epiphany Choir, along with the Hildegard Ensemble, the Junior Choir, the Intermediate and Beginning Choristers, and the Epiphany Ringers will perform. |
Chamber music for Advent and Christmas Dec. 5
Harmonie Universelle presents a concert of cantatas and chamber music for Advent and Christmas at 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5, at St. Bede's Episcopal Church, Atlanta. The ensemble is joined by vocalists Wanda Yang Temko and Arietha Lockhart, Holly McCarren, Steven Johnstone, and Matthew Hoch. Admission is free; donations welcome.
Soprano performs seasonal music Dec. 6 in Marietta
 Soprano Maggie Taylor will sing a program of seasonal music, both popular and classical, and bring along some friends for duets and trios, at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 12, at St. Catherine's Episcopal Church, Marietta. Taylor is youth artistic director for Act3 Playhouse in Sandy Springs and assistant choral director at Walton High School. A graduate of Samford University, she is becoming well known around the South for her roles in opera and musical theater.
St. Paul's choral ensembles present Christmas concert
St. Paul's Episcopal Church offers its 12th annual Christmas Concert, "Festival Sounds of the Season," at 6 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 13, at Sisters Chapel on the Spelman College campus. Trey Clegg is the director and conductor. Tickets are $25 and may be purchased here >
Benefit Advent & Choral Concert Dec. 1
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Spotlight: A way of 'doing church' for young adults
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This year's fellows with The Road gather for a training soon after their arrival in Atlanta. Learn more about the Episcopal Service Corps here > Photo: Nan Ross |
The Road Fellows live, work for a year in service to others
The Road Episcopal Service Corps is a community of young adults gathered in Atlanta for a year of mission, service, and building beloved community. Road Fellows live together on the campus of Emmaus House and share a regular rhythm of meals and prayer together while serving and advocating for people living on the margins in the city of Atlanta.
The 10 Road Fellows for this year serve full time with ministries and nonprofit agencies such as Church of the Common Ground, Holy Comforter, Georgia Justice Project, L'Arche Atlanta, and Refugee Resettlement Services. more >
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Advent means time for reflection
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| | The Annunciation by Henry Ossawa Tanner
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+ An Advent Quiet Day: Praying with the Magnificat is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec.5, at the Julian of Norwich Center at St. Bede's Episcopal Church, Atlanta. The day will be guided by the Rev. Lynnsay A. Buehler and Lea Robinson, RN, MSN. Cost is $40; the fee is negotiable. Call 770-938-9797 ext. 27 to register.
+ "Waiting, Watching, and Wondering," an Advent Quiet Day of Reflection and Anticipation, is planned from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5, at St. Augustine's Episcopal Church, Morrow. Bring a sack lunch and join with others in an atmosphere of silence, reflection, sharing, and prayer. Melise Fathi will facilitate. To register, write to Dr. Catherine Meeks, kayma53@att.net. Gathering time begins at 9:30 a.m.
+ An Advent Spiritual Retreat will be from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Dec. 5, at St. James Episcopal Church, Marietta. The retreat will be led by the Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, rector at Grace Episcopal Church in Gainesville. This retreat is designed to instill within you the deeper meaning of Advent. Cost is $20. Register with Ruth Hepler at 770-919-9357 or grhep@aol.com. The day is sponsored by The Pilgrimage at St. James Episcopal Church.
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For those who work with children:
- Saturday, Dec. 12 | Decatur
9 a.m. to noon, Holy Trinity
For those who work with adults:
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+ ORGANIST (full time) for Grace, Gainesville
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For updates from the Episcopal News Service, click here >
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