Katharine Jefferts Schori comes to San Diego

June 26, 2017                                                                   Bishop Transition #4

To All the Faithful of Our Diocese: We are excited to announce the selection of the Rt. Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori as our assisting bishop. Bishop Jefferts Schori will begin her tenure with us on August 13. She will serve three-quarters time performing episcopal functions such as visitations, confirmations, ordinations, and receptions. She will share with the standing committee the task of providing leadership and vision for the diocese and shall generally perform the functions of a diocesan bishop as delegated to her by the standing committee in its capacity as the ecclesiastical authority during the transition. She will work closely with the executive council as well. Bishop Jefferts Schori served as the presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church from 2006 until 2015. Prior to her role as primate, she was the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada. She earned a biology degree from Stanford in 1974, followed by a master's in oceanography in 1977, and a doctorate, also in oceanography in 1983 from Oregon State University. In 1994 she earned a master's in divinity from Church Divinity School of the Pacific. She is married to Richard Schori, a retired topology professor. Their daughter, Katharine, served ten years in the US Air Force; she separated as a major. Bishop Jefferts Schori is an instrument-rated pilot and is fluent in Spanish.

We thank you for your continued prayers as we move forward with this transition.

Faithfully,

The Standing Committee

The Rev. Dr. Simon Mainwaring, President
Mr. Jim Stiven, President-Designate

The Rev. Gwynn Lynch,  Secretary

Brother John Charles Westaway
The Rev. Kathleen Kelly
Ms. Helen Astleford
The Rev. Laura Sheridan-Campbell
Mr. Jose "Joe" Gamboa

Bishop Jefferts Schori's Biography

Supreme Court rules for Missouri church

Supreme Court will hear travel ban case
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Supreme Court to take case on baker who refused to sell wedding cake to gay couple
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Supreme Court rules for Missouri church in playground case
The Associated Press
Breaking with tradition, Trump White House forgoes Ramadan dinner
CNN
Planned Parenthood battle could sway fortunes of GOP health bill
The New York Times *
Illinois bishop decrees no Communion, funeral rites for same-sex spouses
NPR
Authorities delayed investigating gay ‘demons’ case
The Associated Press
Conversions gradually transforming Orthodox Christianity
The Baltimore Sun *
Officials investigate possible hate crimes at Islamic centers in Sacramento, Davis
The Sacramento Bee *
 

International Headlines

Jewish group cancels meeting with Netanyahu in protest over Western Wall decision
The Associated Press
Is a Buddhist group changing China? Or is China changing it?
The New York Times *
Voices grow louder in Turkey to convert Hagia Sophia from a museum back to mosque
Los Angeles Times *
Turkey to stop teaching evolution in high school
CNN
Turkey LGBT: Police stifle Istanbul Gay Pride rally
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Mosul celebrates first Eid without Islamic State in years
Reuters
In embattled Nigeria, displaced families still celebrate Ramadan’s end in style
NPR
Muslims in Birmingham celebrate Eid al-Fitr amid increased security
The Guardian
Christian-style weddings grow popular in Japan, but allure is more about optics than religion
The Japan Times
 

Analysis & Commentary

The Democrats’ religion problem
The New York Times *
How CrossFit acts like a religion
The Atlantic
Sikhs, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, and Christians showed us what they wear when they worship
BuzzFeed
What it’s like to observe Ramadan as a refugee
HuffPost
Does God want you to spend $300,000 for college?
The New York Times *
 

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The Church's Biggest Challenge in 2017

WHERE WE STAND

The Church's Biggest Challenge in 2017
Let's get unchurched evangelicals back into church, and prejudiced evangelicals back to the Bible.
MARK GALLI
Every week, we are treated to another revelation about the alarming attitudes of white evangelical Christians. You would think that a people steeped in the Bible — which commands and exemplifies concern for refugees and others in dire straits — would find President Trump's closing the door to the world's neediest refugees repulsive. But white evangelicals support Trump's exclusionary policy by a whopping 75 percent. continue reading >>

News Supreme Court to Decide If Christian Businesses Must Serve Gay Weddings Colorado baker faces fines for refusing cakes for same-sex couples. Kate Shellnutt

News Play On: Supreme Court Gives Christian Schools a Big Victory Ruling defends religious institutions against discrimination in certain public benefits and funding. Kate Shellnutt

News Judge Halts Deportations of Detroit Christians to Iraq Court order gives 100-plus Chaldeans two weeks to make their case. Kate Shellnutt

Women The Turquoise Table Movement Wants You Kristin Schell invites believers to trade entertaining for simple front-yard hospitality. Jessy Shelton

The Exchange Character: The Secret to Leading for the Long Term D.L. Moody described character as "what you are in the dark." Ed Stetzer

Farewell to Episcopal Church Bishop Mathes

Join us in bidding farewell to Bishop Mathes after 12 years of strong leadership. In August he begins his new role as associate dean of Virginia Theological Seminary. 

While Jim and Terri have insisted on no tangible gifts, you may give an offering of thanks to the Clergy Mentorship Fund.   Or to Vida Joven, a foster home for prisoners' children in Tijuana, where Terri has been an active leader.   Or to The North Park Project, an innovative ministry endeavor at St. Luke's, a multicultural center in a bustling millennial neighborhood.

Clergy: vest in white stoles

Please contact the Rev. Canon Nancy Holland with any questions.

Saturday, July 1, 1 to 3 pm, St. Paul’s Cathedral, San Diego.

Conversions gradually transforming Orthodox Christianity

Conversions gradually transforming Orthodox Christianity
The Baltimore Sun: A gradual wave of conversion is turning a tradition long rooted in ethnic heritage into a more varied and, some say, more American movement.

Abused by a priest, now a champion of the church
Cincinnati Enquirer: Michael Vanderburgh's journey of faith.

I preached about a gun rights advocate. He wasn't who I thought.
USA Today: Amy Butler is a liberal. Todd Underwood is a conservative. But they found common ground in the Bible and the idea that nobody is the stereotype we believe they are.

Does God want you to spend $300,000 for college?
The New York Times: Notre Dame president addresses the question of just how much hustle, sweat and sacrifice families should expect of themselves to put a child through college.

Catholic church gives out heroin antidote Narcan at family festival
People: An Ohio church hosting a family festival added a new element to the festivities this year: handing out Narcan, the nasal spray used as an antidote for people overdosing on heroin and other opioids.

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Judge halts deportations of Chaldean Christians to Iraq

Francis urges Serrans to 'keep moving forward' promoting vocations

How Catholic culture can thrive on the internet

US Senate healthcare bill 'unacceptable as written', bishops warn

How the Church is helping Christians return to Aleppo

A doctor prescribed a procedure, but insurance offered death

Dating apps and the death of romance – what's a Catholic to do?

Daily Readings

Saint of the Day

On the Life of the Missionary Disciple

“The Disciple Is Called to Conform Himself to Christ’s Own Life, Who Was Persecuted by Men, Knew Rejection, Abandonment and Death on the Cross”

 

June 25, 2017

 

 ZENIT StaffAngelus/Regina Caeli

Dear Brothers and Sisters, good morning!

In today’s Gospel (Cf. Matthew 10:26-33), the Lord Jesus, after calling and sending His disciples on mission, He instructed and prepared them to face the trials and persecutions they would encounter. To go on mission is not to engage in tourism, and Jesus admonishes His disciples: “You will encounter persecutions.” Thus He exhorts them: “Have no fear of them; for nothing is covered that will not be revealed [. . .] What I tell you in the dark, utter in the light [. . .] And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul” (vv. 26-28). They can only kill the body, but they do not have power to kill the soul: have no fear of them. Jesus’ sending the disciples on mission does not guarantee them success, as it does not shelter them from failures and sufferings. They must take into account be it the possibility of rejection be it that of persecution. This is somewhat frightening, but it is the truth.

The disciple is called to conform himself to Christ’s own life, who was persecuted by men, knew rejection, abandonment and death on the cross. Christian mission dominated by tranquillity does to exist. Difficulties and tribulations are part of the work of evangelization, and we are called to find in them the occasion to verify the authenticity of our faith and of our relationship with Jesus. We must regard these difficulties as the possibility to be even more missionaries and to grow in that trust of God, our Father, who does not abandon His children in the hour of the storm. In the difficulties of Christian witness in the world, we are never forgotten, but always helped by the Father’s loving concern. Therefore, in today’s Gospel, for a good three times Jesus reassures the disciples saying: “Have no fear!”

In our days also, brothers and sisters, persecution against Christians is present. We pray for our brothers and sisters who are persecuted and we praise God because, despite this, they continue to witness their faith with courage and fidelity. May their example help us to not hesitate in taking a position in favor of Christ, witnessing Him courageously in everyday situations, even in apparently tranquil contexts. In fact, a form of test could also be the absence of hostilities and tribulations. In addition to being “sheep in the midst of wolves,” in our time also the Lord sends us as watchmen in the midst of people who do not want to be awakened from worldly torpor, who ignore the words of Truth of the Gospel, constructing their own ephemeral truths. And if we move and live in these contexts and say the Words of the Gospel, this annoys and we will not be looked at well.

However, in all of this the Lord continues to say to us, as He said to the disciples of His time: “Have no fear!” Let us not forget this word: When we have some tribulation, some persecution, something that makes us suffer, we must always listen to Jesus’ voice in our heart: “Have no fear! Have no fear; go on! I am with you!”  Have no fear of one who derides you and mistreats you; and have no fear of one who ignores or honors you “before” others but “behind” you combats the Gospel. There are so many that smile before us but behind us they combat the Gospel. We all know them. Jesus does not leave us alone: each one is precious for Jesus, and He accompanies us.

May the Virgin Mary, model of humble and courageous adherence to the Word of God, help us to understand that, in witnessing the faith, successes do not count but fidelity, fidelity to Christ, recognizing in any circumstances, even the most problematic, the inestimable gift of being His missionary disciples.

[Original text: Italian]  [Translation by Virginia M. Forrester]

Catholics and Protestants into closer union

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"Peter Kreeft has a remarkable gift for expressing complex issues in lucid, accurate, and pithy ways. He also has the fairness and insight needed to undertake a tractate to bring Catholics and Protestants into closer union. This book will no doubt help understanding and dialog between both." — Robert J. Spitzer, S.J., Author, The Soul's Upward Yearning -------------------------------------------- "No one has taught me more about what healthy ecumenism looks like than the brilliant and eloquent Peter Kreeft. He is a peerless apologist for truth and has been an inspiration to me for over two decades on the happy and vital connections between serious Catholic and evangelical faith." — Eric Metaxas, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author, Bonhoeffer; Host of the Eric Metaxas Show

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