[from the Wisconsin Conference of Churches]  Last year over 700 local faith leaders throughout our state met in five regional forums (Madison, Milwaukee, Appleton, Stevens Point and Eau Claire) to discuss the scope and shape of poverty in Wisconsin and the role of the religious community in alleviating poverty long term.

This year, the four original sponsors of the 2014 forums-the Wisconsin Council of Churches, WISDOM, the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families, and the Citizen Action Education Fund of Wisconsin - are planning to host a second round of forums for local faith and community leaders. Five poverty forums are planned for the greater Milwaukee area (see below).

Bass reverberates through the auditorium floor as a heavily bearded worship leader pauses to invite the congregation, bathed in the light of two giant screens, to tweet using #JesusLives. The scent of freshly brewed coffee wafts in from the lobby, where you can order macchiatos and purchase mugs boasting a sleek church logo. The chairs are comfortable, and the music sounds like something from the top of the charts. At the end of the service, someone will win an iPad.

This, in the view of many churches, is what millennials like me want. And no wonder pastors think so. Church attendance has plummeted among young adults.  continue reading 

The Commission on Mission and Development is pleased to announce the 2015 Spring Grants awarded:

• All Saints Cathedral for their work in providing meals in the Community Meal Partnership
• Lake Country Churches to help defray costs for the continuation of their local Lecture Series
• St. Aidan's in Hartford for further development of their Community Garden
• St. Luke's in Bay View for creating a Community Garden
• St. Paul's in Watertown is sprucing up their welcome area to invite newcomers and community members into the building.
• St. James in Milwaukee's grant is to buy additional Sundries for people in need in the Milwaukee area.
• Zion in Oconomowoc is continuing their outreach to the local area during events and festivities in the town.
• St. Luke's in Racine is planning on participating in the City of Racine's First Friday events during the summer. They are bringing awareness to the wider community.
• St. Dunstan's in Madison is in the third year of a new worship opportunity called the Sandbox. The grant is helping to support this weekly worship where people can be relaxed and have a bit more open space for spiritual connecting.

We thank all of these leaders for sharing with us these ministries of connecting their mission with their wider community. We are happy to provide some financial support for these efforts. Another cycle of grants will be awarded in November. The second due date is October 15th. Look for the application in the E-NEWS in the coming weeks.

"Surprised by Joy"  

The 39th Miniweek for Women August 13-16

The 39th annual Miniweek for Women will be held at Camp Lakotah, Wautoma (center of the state) from evening meal Thursday, August 13 through brunch Sunday, August 16. 

This event is open to all women with the theme this year being "Surprised by Joy". The weekend contains presentations, workshops, entertainment, good food, beach time, worship, naps, conversation, laughter. The participants can go to everything - or nothing - it is your weekend. There are a variety of housing choices from rustic cabins to inside facilities with amenities. Scholarships are available.

The chaplain will be The Rev. Anna Doherty from St. Aidan's, Hartford. The keynoter is Mary Fran Crist, Province V health ministry committee member speaking on the theme. There will be some new workshops including opportunity to learn how to play bells, making fingerless mittens, overview of General Convention, and archery. The labyrinth will return, along with choir, book study, exercise to music, Taize and talent show. And much much more.

Go to www.womensminiweek.org, for registration and other info.

THE EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT DEADLINE IS MAY 15, 2015. Gift certificates in any amount for Mother's Day available from Barb McFadden at  feltedsoaplady@gmail.com.  

The General Convention is the governing body of the Episcopal Church. The Convention is a bicameral legislature that includes the House of Deputies, which has more than 800 members, and the House of Bishops, which is comprised of nearly 300 active and retired bishops. The Convention meets every three years and has the authority to amend the Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Church; adopt the budget for the church for the next three years; authorize liturgical texts and amend the Book of Common Prayer; adopt communions and covenants with other churches; set qualifications for orders of ministry and office-holders; elect officers of the General Convention, the Executive Council, and members of boards; and delegate responsibilities to the committees, commissions, agencies, and boards of the Episcopal Church.

Follow the work of the Diocese of Milwaukee's deputation to the 2015 General Convention at the deputation WEBSITE  and  FACEBOOK page.  If you have questions, concerns, or ideas you wish to communicate to the deputation, you may do so on their website's  Contact page.  

In addition, members of the diocese are invited to attend two information sessions that the Milwaukee Deputation and Bishop Miller will conduct in the diocese in June to present topics, potential legislation and events scheduled for the convention. Come to meet some of the deputies and to learn what they and the Bishop will be working on this summer in Salt Lake City. Note, information sessions are identical, so there is no need to attend both.  The two sessions are set for:

   June 1 at St. Dunstan's Madison at 6:30 PM  

June 3 at Trinity Wauwatosa at 6:30 PM  

Camp Webb Summer 2015 registration is closed. We are looking forward to a terrific summer!

Please keep staff and campers in your prayers, especially June 7-21.

Parishes and individuals - thank you for your scholarship gifts. Many of our campers depend on camp scholarships and you help make that possible!

Staff can still apply - http://www.diomil.org/forming-disciples/camp-webb/ 

Click HERE  to register online to take a class or any of our online trainings offered by our diocese in Safeguarding God's Children (SGC) and Safeguarding God's People (SGP).

Our next class with a trainer will be in the fall - see dates below.

Online classes - registration due on or before June 30th. There will be on online registrations accepted in the month of July. Registration begins again in August.

FALL Classes with Trainer:

Sat, Sept 19th, 9am-Noon at 2 locations: St. Luke's, Madison and St. John the Divine, Burlington.  

L.E.V. are required to complete SGP and anyone who is in ministry with children and youth are required to complete SGC. All certificates need to be renewed every 5 years.  See our website for details on trainings, to register for trainings and to see the Master List of all who have completed trainings since 2003.

The four names will be formally submitted to the General Convention during a joint session on June 26, the day prior to the day set for the election by the House of Bishops of the 27th presiding bishop.   The nominees are: 

• The Rt. Rev. Thomas Breidenthal, 64, Diocese of Southern Ohio 
• The Rt. Rev. Michael Curry, 62, Diocese of North Carolina 
• The Rt. Rev. Ian Douglas, 56, Diocese of Connecticut 
• The Rt. Rev. Dabney Smith, 61, Diocese of Southwest Florida

read  more 

Attention!  Informational Meetings for those interested in discerning a call to ordained ministry, professional chaplaincy, or to clarify a call to lay ministry. 

These meetings are the required first step for individuals and their parish priest.

Meetings will be held on Thursday, June 4th at 6:30 pm at Trinity, Wauwatosa and St. Dunstan's, Madison.

Please notify The Rev. Martha Berger, President of the Commission on Ministry at martha.branson.berger@gmail.com if you would like to sign up to attend.

Read about the Haiti Project:  April 2015 Haiti Project E-News link: http://p0.vresp.com/EiWt2x   

Go to Haiti Project website to sign up to receive Haiti Project E-News: http://www.haitiproject.org/newsletter.html  

Students at the school supported by Haiti Project

Would you like to schedule a Haiti Project visit at your church?  Please contact Heidi Ropa at info@haitiproject.org or haitiproject14@gmail.com for scheduling. 

Next Haiti Project trip: July 24- Aug 2.  An October trip is being planned.   

Contact Mary Alice Eschweiler for information 414-614-6564.

Seventy percent of Jesus' ministry was Healing.  Luke 9:12 states that we are to preach the Kingdom and Heal the sick.  Healing ministries offer listening, love, anointing and prayer for our body, mind and spirit.  The laying on of hands and anointing with Holy Oil can be a powerful part of healing prayer.

St. Bartholomew's has a Healing Service every Wednesday evening at 6:15 P.M. (please note New Time).  The service lasts approximately one/half hour.  

The Healing Ministry of Jesus is to make people whole, not just physically, but spiritually, mentally and emotionally.  The healing Ministry was such an essential part of Jesus' Ministry that I believe He imparted that responsibility to us in the Church who continues His work.

Mark your calendars for Sunday,  

May 17, 2015. St. Mark's, Milwaukee, will be having its 13th Annual Flower Sale. The Spring Flower Sale benefits the Outreach Ministries of St. Mark's Church, including Common Ground, Eastside Senior Services, Episcopal Relief and Development, The Gathering, Haiti Project, Hunger Task Force, Our Next  Generation,  and Sojourner Family Peace Center.  

The sale will feature the usual assortment of high quality annuals, perennials, and hanging baskets from the Flower Source in Germantown. New this year will be vegetables and herbs from Northern Sunset Perennials.  

Order forms are available now -- click HERE for form and more information! You may print the form, complete your order, and return it to St. Mark's office. Orders are due by May 1, 2015. Flowers and plants will be ready for pick at St. Mark's, 2618 N. Hackett Ave., on Sunday, May 17, 2015, from 9 a.m. to noon.

Training, Encouraging, Nurturing, Supporting  (TENS)

TENS' vision is to provide training and resources for stewardship leaders across The Episcopal Church and beyond, around the following core competencies:

• Training clergy and lay leaders in the spirituality of money, and the skills required to address questions of money in the congregation;
• Providing targeted stewardship leadership training for clergy and seminarians, at seminaries and at the diocesan level, including both the theology and the practice of stewardship;
• Mentoring a new generation of stewardship leaders, with special attention to youth, young adults, Generation Xers, and newly ordained clergy;
• Developing and utilizing methods of providing resources using web-based and other electronic techniques.

The Diocese of Milwaukee is a member of TENS and you can participate and obtain resources by clicking on the link:

http://www.tens.org/resources/member-resources/     

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