From the Field
News & Events of the Church in Georgia
February 12, 2013Volume 3, Number 25
In This Issue
Diocesan Office Update
Diocesan Community Update
Convention Actions
Convention Awards
Green Convention
Convention Photos
Convention Videos
Toil & Sweat
Cursillo
New Beginnings
Summer Camp
Absolom Jones
Loose Canon
Pastoral Needs
Confirmation Retreat
Street Angels
St. James Quitman
Lenten Retreat
Web Links
 
 
 
Ash Wednesday Readings
February 17 Readings
First Sunday in Lent

Convention 2013
A Challenge to Re-Imagine Our Church
"What must we look like to those outside the Church for them to recognize us as truly 'a dwelling-place for God?'" Bishop Benhase challenged the 192nd Convention to take a hard look at our church practices so that we move beyond simply trying to do what we have always done, only better.
  
Bishop Benhase was clear in his sermon about what must remain the same saying, "Of course, any dwelling has to have a basic structure or it cannot stand. So, what must we have to be a dwelling-place for God? Our classic Anglican "must have" is this: the Scriptures, Creeds, Sacraments, and Holy Orders, the so-called four pillars of the faith. Everything else, I believe, needs to be adiaphora - not essential."
 
This look at how we might be transformed to better live into the mission of God was woven through the convention. From the Rev. Bill Stewart's sermon at Evening Prayer on Thursday through an opening presentation by Canon Logue to the Bishop's Address and then the sermon for the Convention Eucharist, clergy and delegates were challenged to re-imagine "the entire model of ministry where the clergy perform the faith on Sundays to audience members."
The full text of the Bishop's Address and Sermon are archived online at the convention website.
 
 

Diocesan Office Update 

The entire diocesan staff is following up on the many items that stacked up in the last rush of preparing for convention.

 

Bishop Benhase will make his visitation to St. John's, Bainbridge, this Sunday. At 2 p.m., he will gather with Episcopalians in Moultrie for a meeting.

Diocesan Community Update 

 

 The vestry of St. Paul's, Albany, is pleased to announce that they have called the Rev. Lee Lowery to serve as their next Rector. Lowery currently serves as the church planter for the Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit in Alabaster, Alabama, a suburb Birmingham. He started the church in a storefront ten yars ago. They are now in their own building on their own land.

 

 

The vestry of Christ Church, Frederica, is pleased to announce that they have called the Rev. Thomas Purdy as their next Rector. Since 2008, Purdy has served as the Rector of St. Peter's in Poolesville, Maryland, a parish of the Diocese of Washington. He previously served in the Diocese of Central Pennsylvania, having grown up in Lancaster, PA.

 

 

 

Bishop Benhase has assigned the Rev. Deacon Patricia "Patti" Rhoads Davis to Christ Church, Savannah. Patti grew up on Isle of Hope in Savannah. She married her husband, Rod, a Naval Aviator at St. Paul's, Savannah, in 1971. They have two grown, married daughters and four grandchildren. She was ordained to the diaconate in 1999 by Bishop David Bayne. She served as archdeacon of Southern Virginia for six years. She is a published poet and author and in 2006 she was given the John Hines Preaching Award by the Virginia Theological Seminary. She is pictured here reading the Gospel at Christ Church this past Sunday, her first to serve at the Mother Church of Georgia.

The Actions of the 192nd Convention

The 192nd Convention of the Diocese of Georgia met in Tifton, Georgia from February 7-9. During the meeting, the convention elected persons to diocesan offices, passed the 2013 budget without ammendment, passed two resolutions and four changes to the Canons of the Diocese.

   

Elections
Tattnall Thompson IV was re-elected to the Board of the Corporation of the Diocese. Victoria Logue was elected to Diocesan Council as an at-large member. Neil Dickert and the Revs. Cynthia Taylor and John West were elected to the Disciplinary Board. The Very Rev. Billy Alford and Charlie Hough were elected to the Standing Committee and Dr. Deborah Thomas was re-elected as a Sewanee Trustee.

 

Resolutions
The convention unanimously passed the resolution to move the normative date of the convention to the second full weekend of November beginning with the 2014 convention to be held at the convention center on Jekyll Island. The convention also unanimnously voted in favor of a resolution requesting "that the Special Task Force on Church Structural Reform, created by the 77th General Convention of the Episcopal Church" include as one of its recommendations a proposal the the 78th General Convention of the Episcopal Church adopt the tithe as the standard of giving and as the funding formula for diocesan support of the budget of the Episcopal Church.

 

Canonical Changes
The convention unanimously passed three canonical changes. The first changed the name of the Department of Finance to the Finance Committee and altered both its duties and the selection process for members to bring this group in line with other diocesan committees and commissions. Then the body unanimously voted to remove the canon calling for an executive committee to Docesan Council and added language making it clear that any member of the Diocese may address the group with advanced permission of the President of the Council. Then the move to change the threshold for an annual CPA audit of church finances for congregations with a $200,000 budget to those with a budget of $500,000 or more.

 

The last action of the convention occured with debate and passed with a clear majority. The Rev. Sam Buice, Rector of St. Pater's Savannah, proposed an substitute resolution from the floor to eliminate the diocesan ethical standards canon instead of replacing the current standard with a new one as proposed prior to convention. Buice's substitute resolution cited the ordination rite in the Book of Common Prayer and the national canons on discipline as a sufficient ethical standard for the clergy of the Diocese. The resolution, the now deleted canon and the proposed change remain online at the Convention Resolutions page.

Saussy, Patterson and Baker Honored at Convention

The Diocese honored three persons during the convention with the Deacons' Award, the Dean's Award, and the Bishop's Award. The Deacons' Award went to Carolyn Baker of St. Andrew's, Darien, for her commitment to ministries which have benefitted the surrounding community. Angie Patterson of St. Margaret of Scotland, Moultrie, received the award from our six convocation Deans for her long-term dedicated service to her congregation. Bishop Benhase honored David Saussy of St. Paul the Apostle, Savannah, for his service to the Diocese which has included 16 years as diocesan treasurer and founding the Legacy Society of the Diocese of Georgia.

 
 

In the photo at left, Carolyn Baker is shown holding her Deacons' Award for community service. In the photo at right. the Very Rev. Denise Ronn and Bishop Benhase with Angie Patterson of St. Margaret of Scotland Moultrie, the recipient of the Deans' Award..

 

 
Bishop Benhase present the Bishop's Award to David Saussy in thanksgiving for his longstanding commitment to the Diocese of Georgia.

 

 
The convention also recognized Buck Crosby of St. Athanasius, Brunswick (pictured at left above) who was honored with the Bishop's Award in 2012, but was not able to receive the award in person.

 

Green Team Kept Us Environmentally Friendly

Thanks to Leeann Culbreath and her Green Team from St. Anne's, Tifton, the 192nd Convention produced very little waste. Instead, the trash was recycled and composted. At left, Leeann is pictured with the only trash for the landfill generated by box lunches for 300 people.

 

Above is pictured the waste going into the compost bins at the Wiregrass Farmer's Market where the more than 500 gallons of compostable items -food waste; biodegradable containers, cups, utensils, plates; papers; wooden stir sticks, and more-will have manure and other compost items added to get the products to start biodegrading. A humorous look at this effot by the convention is found in the Code Green Alert video created for the convention.

 

The closing prayer of the Convention captured by Julius Ariail is one of hundreds of photos available for your congregation's use.

 

Convention Photos Available to Use Freely

A photo album is online with a set of pictures of our diocesan convention. Most were taken by our diocesan photographers, Julius and Julia Ariail of Christ Church Valdosta with some photos of events at St. Anne's culled from the congregation's Facebook album. All of these photos are gathered in one place for your free use in your newsletters and for any other means of communicating with your congregation, such as your own Facebook page. Many congregations will find their delegates pictured and should take advantage of this resource.

 

 

Join the Adventure. Be an Acolyte!
Join the Adventure. Be an Acolyte!

 

Convention Videos Now Available Online

For the third year, videos played an important role in our annual convention. Thanks to the inspiration and creativity of Jay Lacy the videos this year also included some that were made just for fun to add levity to the meeting. A prime example is the video linked above with a minute-long advertisement for acolyting that shows that while we take our faith seriously, we do not have to take ourselves seriously. All 13 of the videos are online here: Convention Videos 

 

These include serious videos on the rebirth of Cursillo in the Diocese, the work of Episcopal Youth and Children Services, progress on our peer coaching initiative and more.

 

A High School Retreat at Honey Creek

We've all gotten a little dirty and definitely sweaty while at Honey Creek, but now we're doing it on purpose!  Come to Toil & Sweat, a youth work weekend for high school students, will give us the opportunity to give back to the Honey Creek we all know and love.  We'll work on projects around the property, but also get to enjoy all that Honey Creek has to offer.
  

We'll also explore what it means when life gets dirty.  What do we do when things don't go our way? Come get dirty and have a great time with us! Questions? Send an email to the coordinator for Toil and Sweat, Elizabeth Williams, at [email protected]

 
$112 each for High School Students
March 15-17 
  
  
  
 

Brochure Online for Diocesan Ultreya

Cursillo transparent backgroundThe Diocese Commission of Cursillo is holding a Diocesan Ultreya for all of our cursillistas, March 15-16, at Honey Creek. There will be workshops, information on the upcoming November 2013 Cursillo, special guests as well as other activities. Full particulars are in the Diocesan Ultreya Brochure now online. For an update on Cursillo in the Diocese of Georgia, also watch the 5-minute Cursillo Commission Video for Convention 2013.

 

To register and to make reservations please contact Carolyn Middleton, Office Manager at Honey Creek. Her e-mail is [email protected], or call 912-265-9218. This will be a time of renewal, fellowship and education. Please make every effort to come and enjoy this experience.

New Beginnings & Happening in the Diocese of Georgia
The video above gives a glimpse into our two foundational youth programs
- New Beginnings and Happening.

7-9 Graders, Register Now for New Beginnings

New Beginnings is a weekend retreat for teenagers in grades 7-9. The weekend is led by a team of mostly teenagers, a few adults, and a spiritual director or two. The weekend takes us through a discovery about ourselves, our friends, our families, our faith, and how to live out our faith in our daily lives. New Beginnings #42 will take place during the weekend of March 1-3, 2013 at Honey Creek. The cost to attend as a participant is $110. 

 

Participant Applications (for both youth and adult participants) can be found here:
The registration deadline is Friday, February 22. Participants are to arrive between 5-6:30 p.m. on March 1. If you cannot arrive by then, please contact Jason Peaslee, New Beginnings Coordinator ([email protected], 229.563.3963).

The End Is Near!

Deadline nears for early Summer Camp registration discount

We don't want to put the fear of higher fees in you, but the dealine for the early registration discount is Thursday, February 28. Why pay more? Reserve your spot now and save money on the summer experience your kids will enjoy.

 


Camp Staff Applications

3rd coolest job ever: 5 Star/5 Diamond Resort Tester
2nd coolest job ever: Quality Control Agent at Ben & Jerry's
COOLEST JOB EVER: Summer Camp Staff at Honey Creek

St. Augustine's, Augusta

Community-wide Liturgy Celebrating Absolom Jones
 
This Sunday, February 17th at 4 p.m., St. Augustine of Canterbury will host a service of Evensong commemorating the life and ministry of the Rev. Absalom Jones, the first African-American priest in the Episcopal Church.   The Evensong choir will be composed of the choirs of St. Augustine's, St. Alban's Episcopal, and St. Mark United Methodist Churches, directed by Dr. J. William Hobbins of Georgia Regents University, and accompanied by V. Franklin Deese II, Organist and Choirmaster of St. Augustine's.  The Very Rev. Billy Alford, Rector of St. Alban's and Dean of the Augusta convocation, will be the preacher for the service.  A reception will follow in the Parish Hall.  Episcopalians from around the area are encouraged to attend.

 
The Loose Canon
A story of our Diocese that needs to be heard
Above is a chart of the past ten years of membership, attendance and giving for the Diocese of Georgia. It looks relatively flat and honestly it looks better than data from many parts of The Episcopal Church. But when we zoom in on the data, we see that we lost nearly 1,500 worshipers on a typical Sunday across the decade. We dropped from an Average Sunday Attendance of 7,577 to 6,109, from 67 adult baptisms to 44, and from 461 to 260 confirmations.

  

But don't lose hope. There is another story and we all need to hear it. Episcopal churches still grow in south Georgia. Our congregations grow in our cities and in our small towns and they grow when they lean a bit liberal and when they lean conservative. Though everything I just said is true, we have examples in our midst of healthy congregations growing in a variety of ways in diverse places. In fact, growth is more common than decline in our churches at present. For the two years in which we have the most recent data, more than half of our churches remained steady or grew. And nine of our congregations posted growth of more than 20% in attendance as they posted two years in a row of increasing attendance from 2009 to 2010 and on into 2011. These churches all grew more than 20% across those 24 months: All Saints Tybee Island (pictured above), Christ Church St. Marys, Christ Church, Savannah, St. Andrews Douglas, St. Anne's Tifton, St. Elizabeths Richmond Hill, St. Luke's Rincon, St. Patrick's Albany, and St. Thomas, Thomasville.

  

A prime example is Christ Church Savannah which has grown in attendance by 162% from 2007 to 2012 with average Sunday attendance climbing from 75 to 199. Now, of course, their story is unique, but don't dismiss their growth too quickly as they gained momentum while worshiping on Sunday evenings in another church and so had no signs by the road or ongoing space. And yes, they have grown forty percent while back in their historic home on Johnson Square, but lots of downtown churches would find that growth something to envy and it simply can not be explained by the building alone. It can better be explained by the joy found in the community that gathers there. Joy that built when their future was uncertain and has been sustained in a new setting.

 

A second key example is our host congregation of St. Anne's here in Tifton is also a place of great energy and joy and they grew fifty-five percent as attendance went from 98 to 151 from 2008 to 2011.

 

Do not hear me saying that Sunday attendance is the only sign of health or that if your church is not gaining members that you are not being faithful. But I do hope that you will see plainly that Episcopal Churches can and do grow in our diocese right now from Tybee to Thomasville and Augusta to St. Marys. Our churches grow in the discipleship of their members and they grow numerically in attendance and in financial giving and most importantly in sharing the faith with people who didn't know that Christianity really does live up to its promise and potential when we live out our faith in community.

  

Your diocesan staff travels a lot. Bishop Benhase is not the only one out in the byways. I have been in most of your churches and Canon Willoughby and I have been in every region talking with leaders. We do see the problems. We know how clergy compensation is a challenge and how benefits are even more difficult as insurance prices rise. Thanks to Mary's hard work, we've actually seen our insurance prices drop, but they are still a challenge. We know the anxiety of a congregation with less than 25 people of Sunday that is one uninsured major building issue away from going under and the congregations under 50 people on Sunday working to figure out how to arrange a priest so they can have the sacraments reliably when there is no way to pay a full-time priest. Then there are the congregations under 120 on Sunday who are in varying ways struggling with keeping a full time priest, a part-time organist and secretary and a barely functioning copier. As our churches get larger there are problems in providing the programs people expect without the staffing that the Baptist and Methodist churches nearby can afford and then the issues with connecting with people meaningfully so that they don't wander out the back door of the church without anyone noticing. There are issues with pledge drives and fewer people willing to commit to the pledge and fewer still who give like their parents and grandparents did.

 

This Loose Canon is a portion of the Opening Presentation I made to the 192nd Convention, the full text is online here: Convention 2013 Opening Presentation in which I name some of what we are doing to help congregations to be more vital.

 

The Rev. Frank Logue

Canon to the Ordinary

 

The Loose Canon columns are archived online at http://loosecanon.georgiaepiscopal.org

Members of the Georgia State Patrol honor guard served as pall bearers for Jack Connell.

 
Congregation Life Does Not Stop for Convention

 While the Diocese of Georgia sets aside time for its annual meeting, the needs of our churches continue. This was seen particularly this year as two of our churches had unusually large funerals on the Saturday of convention. While most of the clergy and delegates were gathered to discuss and vote on the matters before the convention, the new Interim Rector of St. Paul's Augusta, the Rev. George Muir, presided over perhaps the largest funeral in the congregation's history for Jack Connell, an Augusta native who served more than 30 years in the Georgia Legislature. Connell died Wednesday at the age of 93.

 

At the same time hour, Christ Church Savannah was filled to capacity with mourners celebrating the life of the congregation's oldest member, Celia Williams who died at 99 years of age. She had been a faithful member of Christ Church since her 1938 marriage and move to Savannah. She was confirmed by our fifth bishop, the Rt. Rev. Middleton Stuart Barnwell the year after his consecration. The Revs. Michael White and Sierra Wilkinson had to leave our convention to attend to this liturgy.

 

These were, of course, not the only pastoral needs during the convention and other clergy and members also had to respond to various concerns. In addition hundreds of lay persons took off time from work and family for our meeting. All of this highklights the commitment we share to our common life in making the effort to gather as a diocesan community. Thank you to all who made sacrifices to be at the 192nd Convention of the Diocese of Georgia.

 

 

The funeral for Celia William's filled Christ Church Savannah on Saturday.

Youth 

Confirmation Retreat Set for February 22-24

What is this? This is a wonderful weekend of self discovery. Focusing on our faith, we will think about what we really mean when we say the Lord's Prayer and the Nicene Creed. We will consider questions like, Who is the church? What does it mean to be Episcopalian? We hope to send you back to your church with new knowledge and self understanding.

 

When? February 22 - 24, 2012. Arrive between 6:30p - 7:30p Friday, February 22nd. The retreat will conclude Sunday at 1:00pm.

 

Who can attend? The age range for this event is 14-years-old through 12th grade. Please note that all participants must have their priest's permission to attend the Confirmation Retreat. 

 

What do I bring? Please bring blankets, sheets or sleeping bag and a pillow, etc. They are not provided by the conference center. Students will also bring towels, washcloths, soaps, toiletries, casual clothing, pajamas, a Bible, and the Book of Common Prayer. Students will also need to bring Confirmation Retreat form signed by their priest.

 

Where? Honey Creek Camp and Conference Center, 299 GA Episcopal Conference Center Rd., Waverly, GA 31565+2428, 912.265.9218

 

How much? $110

 

Who should I contact? Ms. Maggie Bloodworth. See below for contact information.  

 

Ms. Maggie Bloodworth
Minister to Children & Youth, St. Luke's, Hawkinsville
[email protected]
478.892.9373
 

Sign me up! Register online here.  Click here to download the permission form (PDF format).

Street Angel Envelopes 

 

"Street Angels" Sharing Grace this Lent in Savannah

During Lent, some women in a Cursillo Reunion Group in Savannah, are giving away free bus passes and fast food gift certificates to people on the streets of Savannah. They have named their effort a "Street Angel Ministry".

 

  
  

Happy Birthday St. James!

 

The congregation of St. James, Quitman, celebrated its 115th birthday this past Sunday. The congregation is shown gathered on the front steps following the Sunday Eucharist.

Lenten Retreat Planned for Honey Creek

Deep Springs is a Lenten Retreat being offered March 8-9at Honey Creek for those who long for time and space set apart to be with God during this season of preparation for Easter.
First and foremost, the brief overnight retreat offers quiet from the noise of day to day life to listen to God. There is no conference aspect to the retreat in that there is no time whose primary task is teaching, but rather times to give those making their retreat something new to contemplate and some real work of self examination opened up by centuries old wisdom about living the Christian life. Full information is online here: http://gaepiscopal.org/docs/lentenretreatbrochure.pdf

 

The all-inclusive cost for this retreat is $96.99 per person (based on double room occupancy) and $68.99 for commuters. Single rooms are available for $136.99. This includes the retreat, lodging, and all meals.


All fees go directly to the camp and conference center. To register, contact Honey Creek at (912) 265-9218 or [email protected]

Thank You St. Anne's

   

The host parish for the 192nd Convention of the Diocese of Georgia was St. Anne's, Tifton. They threw open wide the doors of their church and welcomed the diocesan community to their community in our most gracious southern tradition. A heartfelt thank you from the whole Diocese goes to the many members of St. Anne's who joined with their clergy and staff in making the convention a memorable event.

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Sincerely,                                      
            

Diocesan Staff                                
The Episcopal Diocese of Georgia