Posts from 2013 (Page 5)
Learning opportunities offered
The coming weeks bring opportunities for learning and growing in mission and ministry. Take advantage of one or more: Effectively Responding To Domestic Violence: Resources for Clergy — A Seminar for Clergy & Congregational Leaders – Domestic abuse abuse (physical, verbal and emotional) devastates lives. Dealing with it is difficult. Not dealing with it can be disastrous. Can you spot the signs? Are you equipped to address them when you see them among members of your congregation? Join Tarrant Area Community of Churches, Safe Haven…
September Spotlight on Congregations
What has the diocese and the larger church done for your congregation lately? Check out the worship leader training detailed above – and be sure to attend. And register to come to the diocesan convention, Nov. 8-9 in Wichita Falls. All are welcome!
Transition Trainings postponed – ministry continues
Last week’s news from the Texas Supreme Court made clear that resolution of litigation will not be soon. Because of the change in situation, the Transition Trainings scheduled for Sept. 12 and 14 will be postponed. Leaders who had RSVP’ed have been contacted, and plans are in the works for adapting these trainings to the longer timeframe that the decision has given us. Said Bishop Rayford High, “We have plenty of work to do being the church and sharing God’s good news.”
Resolutions and nominations for convention due September 9
Resolutions to be considered at diocesan convention (Nov. 8-9) are due to convention secretary Bruce Coggin (bruce.coggin@edotn.org) by Sept. 9. That is also the last day for online nominations for elective offices to be filled at convention.
Registration begins for Nov. 8-9 diocesan convention – UPDATED
Registration for delegates and alternates to convention, and for clergy and visitors, will be opening within days. This year, congregations have been asked to register and pay for their representatives prior to the Oct. 4 cut-off for the “early bird” rate.
Letter from Bishop Rayford High on next steps after Texas Supreme Court opinion
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, After a day and a half back in the office, I want to share with you several very important things about our diocese. First, I will be meeting with our legal team and we are actively working on the next steps forward in the litigation. I have heard that some folks think we are giving up. That is not true. We will keep you as informed as possible as these plans unfold while still…
Ministry developer and stewardship officer Demi Prentiss contributes stewardship article to ECF Vital Practices
Demi Prentiss, diocesan ministry developer and stewardship officer, contributed the article “Liberating Stewardship ” to the September Vestry Papers of the Episcopal Church Foundation Vital Practices. Nancy Davidge, editor, said, “I’’m thrilled to have Demi as an occasional contributor to Vestry Papers; I appreciate her willingness to share her knowledge, experience, and writing skills with others in our church.”
Statement from the Episcopal Diocese of Northwest Texas regarding the Texas Supreme Court opinon in the Masterson case
The Episcopal Diocese of Northwest Texas and the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd issued this statement on August 31, 2013 following the Texas Supreme Court’s opinion in the Masterson case. In Masterson, a San Angelo trial court and the Austin Court of Appeals both found that breakaway parties had no right to take historic Episcopal Church property that they had sworn to protect, just as the Fort Worth trial court found in our diocesan case. Dear Friends in Christ, We wanted to let you…
Report from Standing Committee meeting on June 10, 2013
The Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth convened on Monday, June 10, 2013, at 3:30 p.m., at Trinity Episcopal Church, Fort Worth. Mrs. Martha Fagley presided. Ms. Elinor Normand opened the meeting with a short meditation. The following members were in attendance: Mrs. Martha Fagley, the Rev. Curt Norman, Ms. Elinor Normand, the Rev. Susan Slaughter, Mr. Norm Snyder, and the Rev. Bill Stanford. Also present were Ms. Kathleen Wells, Chancellor for the diocese, the Rev. Janet Waggoner, Canon to…
President of Standing Committee seeks more nominees for open positions
A letter from the president of the Standing Committee about nominations: We are coming to the end of the nominating process for the open positions that will be filled at Diocesan Convention November 8-9 in Wichita Falls. The Nominations Committee informs me that five lay and two clergy nominations have been received for deputy to General Convention. It is heartening to see that so many are interested in representing the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth at the 78th General Convention…
Prayer for Labor Day
Almighty God, you have so linked our lives one with another that all we do affects, for good or ill, all other lives: So guide us in the work we do, that we may do it not for self alone, but for the common good; and, as we seek a proper return for our own labor, make us mindful of the rightful aspirations of other workers, and arouse our concern for those who are out of work; through Jesus Christ…
Episcopalians pray, gather after the Texas Supreme Court Opinion
Bishop Rayford High has asked Episcopalians to stay focused on the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ in the wake of the opinion from the Texas Supreme Court. Several parishes will open their doors tonight (Friday, August 30, 2013) for people to gather, pray, and sing. All are welcome.
A letter from Bishop Rayford High following the opinion from the Texas Supreme Court
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, On August 30, 2013 the Texas Supreme Court issued an opinion that sent our case back to the lower court for reconsideration. While it is a disappointment not to have a definitive decision, as followers of Jesus Christ, we live in hope. Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori joins me in acknowledging our disappointment and urging all of us to be gentle with one another during this trying time, with the important goal of continuing…
Episcopalians react to Texas Supreme Court opinion
The Rt. Rev. Rayford B. High, Jr., bishop of Fort Worth; the Standing Committee, and the Board of Trustees of the Corporation of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth are disappointed by the August 30, 2013 opinion of the Texas Supreme Court that failed to uphold the summary judgment of the 141st District Court, Tarrant County, Texas. That judgment granted the Local Episcopal Parties’ and The Episcopal Church’s Motions for Summary Judgments.
Prayer for those who Work
O God, your unfailing providence sustains the world we live in and the life we live: Watch over those, both night and day, who work while others sleep, and grant that we may never forget that our common life depends upon each other’s toil; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen — from an Order for Compline, The Book of Common Prayer, p. 132
Prayer for the Start of School
Dear God, bless the start of school. Bless all those of any age who walk into a classroom. Bless those who teach. Bless those who learn. Bless our intellect and our freedom. Help us remember that you did not make us to never question, but so fashioned us that we cannot stop asking, cannot stop learning. School us not to follow blindly, but to think the what and why, to search each sacred mystery, to discover what we cannot deny. –The Rt. Rev.…