Posts from June 2018
Enjoy General Convention Bingo!
From the team that offered #RoyalWedding Bingo for Michael Curry’s sermon… In the spirit of Bonnie Ball… For your Episcopal General Convention pleasure… enjoy #GC79 Bingo! Get a card, read the rules, play at General Convention or at home…
Meet up with Episcopalians at Saturday march and rally
On June 30, people across the country are rallying to demand an end to family separation. In Fort Worth the “Families Belong Together and Free” March and Rally” is at 10 am Saturday, June 30, at the Tarrant County Courthouse. It is organized by Indivisible Fort Worth, United Fort Worth, RAICES, Faith in Texas, and Mavericks United. To meet with other Episcopalians at this event, gather on the east lawn of the courthouse, and wear a red “Love God, Love Your…
Donate toward gift for Carlye Hughes, bishop-elect of Newark
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, As we prepare to bid a very fond farewell to Bishop-elect Carlye Hughes, we congratulate her on her election and wish her many blessings and god-speed in her new position in the Diocese of Newark. The Standing Committee invites all who are interested to help provide Carlye with her Pectoral Cross. This important piece of episcopal regalia is a symbol of the office of bishop and is an outward and visible sign of the…
Interfaith prayer service for the children draws hundreds
An Interfaith Prayer Service for the Children organized by United Fort Worth, Tarrant Churches Together, and the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth at University Christian Church drew hundreds Thursday, June 21, as well as significant local news coverage. During the service Jewish, Muslim, and Christian faith leaders spoke about how our various faiths call us to act in love, led prayers, and in the case of Cantor Sheri Allen of Congregation Beth Shalom, led the congregation in singing. The gathered…
One asylum seeker’s story
Crossing the Rio Grande is one of the scariest things I have ever done. It happened about 20 years ago, a day after learning that the Iranian embassy in Mexico discovered we were in Mexico City. We rose early the next morning and set out to cross the border to apply for asylum in the U.S. In desperation, we found two Mexican men who said they could get us across the border. They told us that we could only carry…
What to do in addition to prayer
Resource list compiled for the Interfaith Prayer Service for the Children Providing Direct Help for Those in Need HUMANITARIAN RESPITE CENTER http://catholiccharitiesrgv.org/HumanitarianRespiteCenter.shtml The Humanitarian Crisis Relief was an effort which began in 2014 due to the influx of immigrants crossing the border who didn’t have an adequate place to rest. The center provides a place for the countless men, women, children, and infant refugees to rest, have a warm meal, a shower, and change into clean clothing as well as…
Thursday, June 21, a day of prayer for the children
Thursday, June 21, is the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year. The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, the Episcopal Public Policy Network, and The Episcopal Church are joining with others across the country to offer prayers for the children of families being separated at our border. If you want to gather with others in prayer locally, an Interfaith Prayer Service for the Children will be at 7 pm Thursday, June 21 at University Christian Church, 2720 S University Dr, Fort Worth, TX…
Good Shepherd, Granbury, to host Prayers for the Innocents
Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, worshiping in the Seventh Day Adventist Church, 2016 Acton Hwy (FM4) Granbury, 76049, is hosting a community wide “Prayers for the Innocents With 2000 Lights,” at 7 pm, Thursday June 21. It will include prayers, readings and hymns for children, specifically those being held by our government. The Rev. Suzi Robertson will be the celebrant, the Rev. Hunter Ruffin will preach. See the Facebook Event page.
Reading the Bible through the lens of Jesus’ teachings
Bishop Scott Mayer shares a statement in response to recent events: There has been a lot of attention paid to Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ recent reference to Romans 13 to justify the Administration’s policy of separating children from their parents at the border, with many religious leaders speaking out. (Our own Presiding Bishop Michael Curry signed an ecumenical and interfaith statement expressing concerns over this policy.) It is not my intent here to address that particular passage in Romans, nor…
Transgender Support Group says don’t let the unfamiliar scare you
St. Stephen’s, Hurst, is hosting a monthly Transgender Support Group on the last Sunday of each month. The next meeting is at 3 pm Sunday, June 24, Village Plaza Shopping Center, 463 W. Harwood Road, Hurst. The meetings are held in a safe comfortable environment so transgender issues can be discussed openly. Transgender individuals are invited to attend along with family members and friends. While transgender people represent a tiny segment of the population, they and the entire LGBTQ community are…
Independence Day – Collects for ALL in our nation
Every year, Byron Rushing, vice-president of The Episcopal Church’s House of Deputies, shares this about the prayers our Church and people pray on Independence Day. We offer it as a wider perspective on history and as an encouragement to think more critically about the long, hard road to freedom that many in our country have faced. Rushing writes: “July 4 lands on a Wednesday this year; I write this for those who will be commemorating Independence Day then or on Sunday, July 1. “Let me take this…
Bishop Mayer visits Trinity, Fort Worth
Bishop Scott Mayer visited Trinity, Fort Worth, on Sunday, May 20, 2018. He confirmed 12 people, received four into The Episcopal Church, and reaffirmed the baptismal vows of two. He confirmed Catherine Celeste Normand, Nicholas Matthew Parker, Brianna Alexandra Cano, Samuel Luke Ferguson, William Calhoun James, William Shackleford Gillett, Landa Sloan Orrick, John Richard Conard, Gabriel Allen Jagush, Isabella Sanchez Leo, and Jeffry Paul Faircloth. He received Andrew Philip Gardos, Clayton Lewis Geran and Patricia Marie Geran, and reaffirmed…
Prayer Formats: the Collect
The prayer format perhaps most characteristic of the Book of Common Prayer is the collect. A collect is a brief prayer that brings together several ideas succinctly. Though not a common word now, it’s just the noun version of the verb “to collect.” A collect often follows a format something like this: Address – the prayer begins with a name for God and often a description of God’s character or actions. Petition & Purpose – this section asks for something and…
A Prayer for Fridays
Lord Jesus Christ, by your death you took away the sting of death: Grant to us your servants so to follow in faith where you have led the way, that we may at length fall asleep peacefully in you and wake up in your likeness; for your tender mercies’ sake. Amen.
Apply for mission and outreach grants
Do you have an idea for making a positive impact in your community with the church’s help? Is there a project your church would like to develop that could use a little extra funding? Apply now for mission and outreach grants. The Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, through its Mission and Outreach Committee, will be awarding grants to programs that assist those who are underserved in our communities, strongly involve personal participation by our congregations, and that will be strengthened…