COMING EVENTS:

Hispanic Heritage Celebration - Oct. 13, 9 a.m.-10 p.m., St. James in the Hills, Hollywood

Children's Sunday Celebration - Oct. 14, 4 p.m., Historic St. Agnes, Miami

POSTPONED Nehemiah Clergy Retreat - Oct. 14-16, Lake Placid Retreat & Conference Center

Celebration of Bishop Frade's 30^th Anniversary of Ordination to the Priesthood - Oct. 17, noon, Holy Cross, Miami

“Telling Our Stories” Anti-racism Workshop  - Oct. 27, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Grace Church, West Palm Beach

Daughters of the King Assembly - Oct. 27, 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., St. Benedict's, Plantation

Diocesan Convention - Nov. 2-3, Trinity Cathedral

Episcopal Lawyers of Miami-Dade - Nov. 7, 8 a.m., Northern Trust Bank, Miami

Installation of New Head of School - Nov. 9, Saint Andrew's School, Boca Raton

Ordination & Consecration of Mary Gray-Reeves as  Third Bishop of El Camino Real    -  Nov. 10, St. Andrew's, Saratoga, Calif.

Clergy Christmas Party - Dec. 3, 6:30 p.m., St. Bernard de Clairvaux, North Miami Beach

Youth Christmas Ball - Dec. 8, All Souls', Miami Beach

 

Looking ahead to 2008:

ECW Sunday Service - Feb. 10, 4 p.m., All Saints, Ft. Lauderdale

Clergy Retreat - Feb. 11-14

Absalom Jones Service - Feb. 16, Historic St. Agnes, Miami

Bishop's Spring Conference - Feb. 29-Mar. 1, Duncan Center

Clergy and Clergy Spouses Cruise - Mar. 24-28

Presiding Bishop's visit     - Apr. 15-17, details TBA

Diocesan Acolyte Festival - Apr. 19, St. Martin's, Pompano Beach

ECW Annual Meeting - Apr. 25-26, details TBA

Women's Cursillo - Jul. 17-20, Duncan Center

Men's Cursillo - Sept. 25-28, Duncan Center

 

Reports from the House of Bishops—The statement issued by the House of Bishops at the close of their fall meeting is posted at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_90457_ENG_HTM.htm, and additional coverage of the House of Bishops meeting is at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/89878_ENG_HTM.htm 

Help for Louisiana and Mississippi—In response to a request from the Presiding Bishop for a donation of $10,000 per diocese to help the Dioceses of Louisiana and Mississippi in their continuing recovery efforts after Hurricane Katrina, bishops presented $931,000 at the House of Bishops meeting in New Orleans. Our diocese has not yet made its contribution, so Bishop Frade is asking for donations between now and Thanksgiving for Hurricane Katrina recovery. Send checks to Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida, 8895 N. Military Trail, Suite 205-C, Palm Beach Gardens, FL  33410. You may also donate online at www.diosef.org; click on “donations” and then designate your contribution for “Episcopal Charities--Hurricane Katrina Recovery” under “other contribution”. The Dioceses of Louisiana and Mississippi also still need volunteer teams—especially volunteers with construction skills--for the work of rehabbing and rebuilding homes. For information go to http://www.edola.org/odr_volunteer_main.php (Louisiana) or http://www.dioms.org/katrina/index.html (Mississippi).

Webcast with the Presiding Bishop - There will be a live webcast with Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori on October 16, beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern time. It is planned to feature the Presiding Bishop's responses to questions asked via telephone and email during the program. Access will be available through the websites of both the Episcopal Church and Trinity Wall Street .

Diocesan Convention—“Make Us One” is the theme for the 2007 Diocesan Convention, to be held Nov. 2-3 at Trinity Cathedral, Miami. The speaker will be Bishop Timothy Whitaker of the Florida Council of the United Methodist Church, providing an opportunity for our diocese to experience the new relationship of Interim Sharing of the Eucharist between the United Methodist Church and the Episcopal Church approved by General Convention 2006. The convention will begin at 1 p.m. on Friday, but there will be three optional workshops on Friday morning from 10 a.m.-noon. There will be a dinner and dance Friday evening at Jungle Island. Click here for details on the workshops and the dinner. Registration is now available online at www.diosef.org/register.html for convention, the dinner, parking vouchers and childcare. Click here for information on lodging, parking and childcare.

Translation available for Diocesan Convention - The diocese will be offering simultaneous translation in Spanish and French or Creole during both the Friday and Saturday sessions of Diocesan Convention, as well as at the Convention Eucharist. The equipment can accommodate up to 15 users during each of those sessions; preference will be given to voting clergy and delegates. If you or anyone you know wants this translation service - or can volunteer to be a translator - contact the Rev. Christina Encinosa, revencinosa@bellsouth.net .

Resolutions and nominations for Diocesan Convention—Nominations for positions to be filled by convention (with a short biography of the nominee) must be submitted by Oct. 19. Nominations not received by that date, as well as any resolutions not submitted by Sept. 18, must be offered from the floor of convention. Nominations are needed for the following positions: four clergy deputies, four clergy alternates, four lay deputies and four lay alternates to General Convention 2009; one clergy member and two lay members of the diocesan Standing Committee; two clergy members and one lay member of the Ecclesiastical Trial Court; one lay trustee of the University of the South; and one clergy member of the Cathedral Chapter. Proposed resolutions and nominations should be sent by email to the secretary of convention, Mr. Thomas G. O'Brien III at tgobrien@comcast.net, copied to gail@diosef.org, or by mail to Gail McShane, Diocese of Southeast Florida, 525 NE 15 St., Miami, FL  33132. 

Methodist-Episcopal Study Guide--General Convention 2006 approved a relationship of Interim Sharing of the Eucharist between the United Methodist Church and the Episcopal Church. “Make Us One in Christ”, a study guide for facilitating this relationship, has been sent to all parishes, was distributed at the Clergy Conference last month and can be found online at http://episcopalchurch.org/documents/MUOCFINAL.pdf.  As part of this ongoing relationship, the speaker for our Diocesan convention in November will be Bishop Timothy Whitaker of the Florida Council of the United Methodist Church.

Interfaith Fast for an End to the Iraq War--Leaders from many religious communities, including the Episcopal Church, are urging Americans of all faiths to fast from dawn to dusk on Monday, October 8 to call for an end to the war in Iraq. Bishop Christopher Epting, the Episcopal Church's ecumenical and interfaith officer, is among the religious leaders supporting the event. The religious leaders are inviting millions of Americans to organize joint interfaith events in local communities to fast and break the fast together. More information on the fast and how to organize such an event can be found at http://www.interfaithfast.org.

CEUs—Clergy can earn required Continuing Education Units (CEUs) by attending a variety of workshops, courses and conferences. Go to http://www.diosef.org/faq/clergy_education.html for diocesan guidelines for clergy continuing education and to http://www.diosef.org/forms/clergy.html for reporting forms and continuing education grant applications.

Safeguarding God's Children—Bethesda-by-the-Sea, Palm Beach, has scheduled two Safeguarding God's Children workshops: Oct. 13 and Dec. 15, 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Call Kim at 561-655-4554 to register.

Hispanic Heritage Month celebration--The diocesan Hispanic Commission is holding an all-day celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month Saturday, Oct. 13, at St. James in-the-Hills, Hollywood. Events are scheduled from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., including praise music by an Hispanic Christian band and a combined choir from the Hispanic congregations of the diocese, a service in thanksgiving for the uniqueness and diversity of the Hispanic cultures represented in our diocese, dinner with traditional Latin foods and dancing to Latin music. All events are open to the public and are free 

Children's Sunday—The annual ECW-sponsored Children's Sunday Service will be held Sunday, Oct. 14, at 4 p.m., at Historic St. Agnes', Miami.  The theme is "Live in the Light". All children in the diocese are invited to participate, and are encouraged to write prayers to read at the service and/or to be placed in a basket on the altar to be blessed by the bishop. Each participating congregation is asked to bring its banner, and banner-stand. Winners of the annual children's essay contest will be announced. Special recognition will go to the congregation with the largest group of children participating. Refreshments will be served after the service.

Nehemiah Clergy Retreat—All diocesan clergy are invited to the Nehemiah Clergy Retreat, Oct. 14-16, at the Lake Placid Retreat Center, Lake Placid, Fla. The theme is “Dreaming and Planning Ahead to Stay Ahead!”--18 Months into the Future. The cost is $70. To register contact Linda Schlepp-Gray at linda98@bellsouth.net or call 954-450-7247. Lake Placid is approximately a 2 1/2 hour drive from Miami and one hour from Palm Beach. 

Bishop Frade's 30^th anniversary of ordination—On Wednesday, Oct. 17, Bishop Frade will celebrate the 30^th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood at Holy Cross, Miami, where he was ordained. There will be a Eucharist at noon, followed by a light lunch. In order to have an accurate count for the lunch, please respond to Jackie Fernandez, Jackie@diosef.org or 800-268-9993 or 305-373-0881, ext. 20, by Oct. 3 if you plan to attend.

Episcopal Business Administration Conference--The Church Pension Group is sponsoring its third annual Episcopal Business Administration Conference (EBAC) for Parishes and Institutions on Oct. 18-19 in New York City and Nov. 1-2 in Orlando. The conference is a short course in “Everything you ever wanted to know about the Church Pension Group.” Administrators, office managers, treasurers, and other persons charged with the financial and administrative functions of a parish or institution will find this conference beneficial. Conference information is available online at www.cpg.org/ebacparish. For additional information, contact Linda Puckett at the Church Pension Group at lpuckett@cpg.org or 800-223-6602, x6260.

“Telling Our Stories” Anti-racism Workshop—The diocesan Anti-racism Commission will offer a workshop on “Telling Our Stories” on Oct 27, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Grace Church, West Palm Beach. The day will include an exhibit on African-American life in Palm Beach County and a panel discussion, as well as individuals telling their own stories. A continental breakfast and catered lunch will be provided. There is no charge for this event. For information contact Dr. Gay Outler, 305-621-3751, or Margaret Newton, 561-315-9595, or kipsaigi@aol.com or newton@palmbeach.k12.fl.us.

Daughters of the King Fall Assembly—The Fall Assembly of Daughters of the King will be held Oct. 27, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at St. Benedict's, Plantation. The spiritual leader for the assembly will be Fr. Bob Libby, author of The Forgiveness Book, who will lead the group in a workshop on “Living with Forgiveness”. All DoK members are encouraged to attend. For additional information contact Ale Edwards, 305-693-1441.

Episcopal Lawyers of Miami-Dade County—A chapter of Episcopal Lawyers is being formed in Miami-Dade County. The inaugural meeting will be a breakfast with Bishop Frade on Nov. 7 at 8 a.m. at Northern Trust Bank on Brickell Avenue in Miami. For information about joining this group or about the breakfast meeting contact Tom Cookson at Akerman Senterfitt, 305-982-5560 or tcookson@akerman.com.

Minority Student Assistance—A diocesan committee has been formed to address the need to recruit more black and Hispanic persons in our diocese for the ordained ministry. If you are interested in participating in this work, either with raising funds to assist minority students with the cost of seminary education or with mentoring persons of color and/or of Hispanic/Latino background seeking ordination, contact the Rev. Dr. Ronald Fox, 305-945-1461 or stbernard@bellsouth.net.

Holy Land Pilgrimage—Time is running out to join Bishop Frade's pilgrimage to the Holy Land scheduled for Jan. 15-29, 2008. The pilgrimage will include visits to Jerusalem, Nazareth, Cana, Capernaum, Mt. Nebo, Jericho and other significant biblical sites, as well as a day in Jordan and a day in the historic city of Petra. The cost is $3,845 per person, double occupancy (additional $595 for single accommodations); included in the cost is a $200 tax-deductible donation to Our Little Roses Ministries. Click here for complete details 

Our Little Roses on YouTube—Seven short videos about Our Little Roses Ministries in Honduras are now posted on YouTube. These are excerpts from a documentary film about OLR made by Matthew Wilt, the son of Fr. David Wilt, rector of St. Paul's, Key West. Go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dm3rPcK6ZhM, which gives an overview of conditions in Honduras contrasted with the life of the girls at Our Little Roses, and also look for the other six videos under “related”.   

Vacation exchange opportunity--The New Episcopal Vacation Exchange (NEVE) is now accepting proposed home exchanges for the 2008 Vacation Exchange Newsletter. NEVE facilitates home exchanges among Episcopal and Anglican clergy for vacations. For details go to http://www.saintnicks.com/NEVE.php

Revised Common Lectionary materials--Church Publishing Incorporated (CPI), official publisher of the worship materials of the Episcopal Church, is introducing a complete line of Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) resources, including lectionary books, gospel books, music and electronic resources. The 2006 General Convention authorized a transition to the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) for Sunday use beginning the first Sunday of Advent (Dec. 2) 2007. Go to www.churchpublishing.org and click on Revised Common Lectionary Resources to see what's available or to place an order.

Bible map—Here's a useful website--it allows you to see the geographical location of any place referenced in the Bible: http://www.biblemap.org/

Prayers for the Millennium Development Goals—A group called Counting Prayers is asking congregations and individuals to pray regularly this prayer-- “The world now has the means to end extreme poverty; we pray we will have the will”—until the Millennium Development Goals are achieved. For information on this project, go to http://www.countingprayers.org/other/homepage/.

Bishop Gray Inn Foundation--Scholarship funds are available from the Bishop Gray Inn Foundation to Episcopalians 62 and older who have been active parishioners in any of the three dioceses that were part of the former Diocese of South Florida, and who have very limited assets and income. Visit the BGI website, http://www.bgifoundation.com, for additional information on what's offered by the Foundation and details of the qualifications for assistance, or contact Ginger Van Valkenburgh, Bishop Gray Inns Foundation, 319 Raintree Court, Winter Park, Fla. 32789, 407-644-9866, gvanvalkenburgh@earthlink.net.

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CLICK HERE TO VIEW UPCOMING PARISH EVENTS

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CLERGY CHANGES

No clergy changes for this month.

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Parishes in Transition:

St. Mark the Evangelist, Ft. Lauderdale—Fr. Gary Hamp, interim; search process continuing

Holy Trinity, West Palm Beach—Fr. Perry Fuller, interim; no longer receiving names

St. Christopher's, Key Biscayne—Fr. Tom Bruttell, interim; receiving names

St. Andrew's, Miami—Fr. Gary Verell, interim; beginning search process

Guardian Angels, Lantana—Fr. David Kennedy, interim; search process continuing

Transfiguration, Miami Gardens—Fr. Tom Shepherd, interim

St. Peter's, Key West—Using supply clergy; Fr. Donald Sullivan beginning as vicar 10/7/07.

St. Faith's, Cutler Bay—Rector announced retirement effective 10/1/07.

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F.Y.I.—Information from our Parishes and Around the Church

St. Martin's, Pompano Beach, is accepting applications now for the position of Parish Administrator. Please send your resume to the rector: The Reverend Bernard J. Pecaro, email: fpecaro@stmartinchurch.org, fax: 954-941-4519; mail: St. Martin Episcopal Church, 140 S.E. 28^th Ave. Pompano Beach0, FL  33062. For additional information call 954-941-4843.

The Daughters of the King chapters at Church of the Atonement, Lauderdale Lakes, will offer a Quiet Day, Saturday, Oct. 6, from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. for information, call the church office, 954- 731-6100.

Les Petits Chanteurs and the Chamber Orchestra of Holy Trinity Music School in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, will perform at two churches in our diocese during their fall tour: Oct. 7, 7 p.m., at Bethesda-by-the-Sea, Palm Beach, and Oct. 9, 7 p.m., at Resurrection, Biscayne Park. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students and children under 12. Click here for more information.

On October 13 Church of the Intercession, Ft. Lauderdale , will join with the South Middle River Civic Association for the Annual Home and Garden Show in the Community Garden adjacent to the church at 501 NW 17 St., Ft. Lauderdale. There will be food, vendors, prizes and a judging for the best sweet potato pie. Call 954-763-5986 for information.

Any One of Us: Words from Prison: Miami will be presented Oct. 18 at 8 p.m. at Gusman Center for the Performing Arts, Miami. Based on writings by women in prison, the performance will feature some of the material from the Bridging the Gap writing workshops led by Vicki Lopez Lukis, a member of St. Philip's, Coral Gables, at two local correctional institutions. The event will benefit various programs for incarcerated women and at-risk girls. Tickets range from $50 to $250, and sponsorships are available. Click here for more information or call 305-274-4772 or email ventures@aol.com.

On Saturday, Oct. 20, the Christian rock band “Offering'” (http://www.offeringband.com/) from Richmond, Va., will perform at St. Stephen's, Coconut Grove (Miami). The band will provide music for the 5:30 p.m. Mass, with a 90-minute concert to follow at 7 p.m. Both are free and open to the public.

On Thursday October 25 at 7.30pm, St. Thomas, Coral Gables, welcomes back the popular Ensemble Amarcord, an award-winning group from Leipzig in Germany. Tickets are $30 for adults, $20 for seniors and $15 for students and group discounts are available. Call 305-661-3436 for ticket reservations and further details.

On Saturday, Nov. 10, there will be a second annual “Night in Nairobi” co-hosted by St. Benedict's, Plantation, to raise funds for Marafiki Global Aids Ministry. In addition to a dinner, entertainment and silent auction, the evening will feature a book-signing by Fr. John Nganga, whose memoir of the founding and growth of Marafiki, A Covenant with God, will be published this fall. Click here for more details.

The Chapel of St. Andrew, Boca Raton will host the Rev. Pasty McGregor, our missionary in Kenya , at a Mission Guest Sunday on Nov. 11. She will speak at both services, 8 and 10:30 a.m., and there will be a brunch following the second service. For more information call 561-483-8044.

The Chapel of the Good Shepherd at The Crossings (formerly Bishop Gray Inn) in Lake Wroth has a number of lectionary books (pre-Revised Common Lectionary) and hymnals to give away in preparation for switching to the Revised Common Lectionary on the First Sunday of Advent, Dec. 2. Click here for a list of what's available. Call Fr. Bob Carlson at 561-357-5591 for additional information or to make arrangements to pick up any of these items.

Church of the Atonement, Lauderdale Lakes, is seeking a part-time organist/choir director. Call the church office at 954-731-6100 for information, or send resume to Church of the Atonement, 4401 W. Oakland Park Blvd., Lauderdale Lakes, FL  33313.

St. Stephen's, Miami, has brand new Ricoh Type M1 ink cartridges (three black, one magenta, one cyan and one yellow) that the parish no longer needs, and which they'd like to offer at a discount to a parish that can use them. Call Deacon Charles Humphries at St. Stephen's, 305-448-2601, for information 

St. Joseph's, Boyton Beach, is seeking a full-time youth minister.  Salary based on experience, with individual medical and pension benefits. For complete job description go to:  www.stjosephboyntonbeach.org.

Are you interested in a fall 2008 tour of sacred and cultural sites in France? Pamela de Fina, a parishioner at Bethesda-by-the-Sea, Palm Beach, hopes to organize a 10-day tour (either Sept. 29-Oct. 7 or Oct. 20-30, 2008) that would begin in Paris and include: five days in Versailles, including the Baroque Music Festival at the Chateau of Versailles; a day trip from Paris to Mont St. Michel; train trip from Gare de Lyon to Aix-les-bains Savoie for visits to the Monastery of Abbaye Hautecombe, the medieval village of Abbaye St. Antoine (the early Christian site of the Knights of St. Antoine) and the ancient Roman Baths. The tour would conclude with two days in Paris for visits to museums and cathedrals. Round-trip airfare from either Miami or New York would be approximately $600. Hotels range from 50 to 140 euros, and the cost of food and ground transportation would be approximately $100 per day. For more information contact Pamela at 561-627-1047 or pameladefin78@yahoo.fr or definap07@aol.com.

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Additional Events and Opportunities
(click on links below for more information!)

• Reviving Our Souls, Restoring Our Politics"--Oct. 19-21, Cleveland, Ohio
• The Summer Collegium 2008 (conference on small church ministry) - at Virginia
  Theological Seminary
• "Everyone Everywhere" World Mission Conference, June 5-8, 2008

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