News Brief
Episcopal News Service. March 15, 1979 [79085]
The General Synod of the Church of England at its winter session here unanimously accepted a resolution which said that the three Agreed Statements prepared by the Anglican/Roman Catholic International Commission are "sufficiently congruent with Anglican teaching to provide a theological basis for further dialogue." The statements were all produced within the last decade and covered the Eucharist, the Ministry and Ordination, and Authority. The Synod's decision will be forwarded to the Anglican Consultative Council's meeting in London, Ontario, in May, which will consider it along with views from other churches and provinces of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
Presidents of the nine Episcopal colleges will speak in St. Louis parishes on Sunday, April 29 as part of the annual Episcopal College Day celebrations. A dinner in their honor will take place the preceding evening when Mrs. George K. Conant, Jr., a St. Louis civic leader, will be honored for her contributions to church and society, Presiding Bishop John M. Allin of the Episcopal Church has designated the second Sunday after Easter for honoring the colleges. The purpose of the celebration is to encourage Episcopalians to consider the importance of religion in higher education and to support their church-related institutions. Bishop William A. Jones, Jr., of the Diocese of Missouri, extended the invitations to the nine presidents.
Unequivocal support for the World Council of Churches' Program to Combat Racism and the Special Fund of the program was expressed by the Lesotho Anglican Diocesan Synod at its recent meeting. The resolution called for gathering donations for the fund and urged the Church of the Province of South Africa to reconsider its critical stand on the program. Priests of the diocese also wrote an open letter to the Most Rev. Bill Burnett, Anglican Archbishop of Capetown, asking that the province make a "more tangible commitment to the struggle of the oppressed people of South Africa for a life of dignity and justice."
A regional conference for ordained women, those considering ordination, lay women committed to their ministries, and the spouses of each will be held here at the Church of the Epiphany on April 20-22. About 75 women have been contacted in Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana and planning is for 50 participants. The Rev. Helen M. Havens of Houston, acting chairperson, said of the conference: "We are forming a new network for total ministry, in which lay and ordained will explore the ministry each has by virtue of her baptism. To the extent that labels such as 'lay' and 'ordained' dissolve into a new understanding of mutual ministry which upholds each person in her search for her part in the Body of Christ, we will count our conference a success." An outgrowth of the conference is expected to be a new Southwestern Network for Women's Ministries.
A series of informative newspaper ads on the Episcopal Church which was developed by the Diocese of Northwest Texas several years ago is still available for use by parishes. "Those Crazy Episcopalians" is a 14-week series addressed primarily to people who have no church. The sets of mats and proofs come in one- and two- and three-column widths. The drawings and copy are also available in booklet form for distribution to those who have no church but who have indicated some interest in the Episcopal Church. A sample kit and further details may be secured by writing Freeland and Associates, Inc., 219 West Fourth Street, Odessa, Tex. 79761.
The property of the dissident Holy Spirit Church here has been returned to the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida by order of Circuit Court Judge William Rutter. The congregation had voted 185 to 14 in October, 1977, to withdraw from the Episcopal Church and then voted 192 to O to join the Diocese of the Holy Trinity which has since become part of the Anglican Catholic Church. A group of Holy Spirit parishioners had remained loyal to the Episcopal Church and continued to hold services in another church. The judge ruled that the Holy Spirit Church property is owned and controlled by the Diocese of Southeast Florida because the Episcopal Church has a "hierarchical" rather than "congregational" form of government. In the non-jury trial Judge Rutter stated that submitted documents demonstrated that "the founders of the Holy Spirit (Church) intended it to be a constituent part of the Episcopal Church."
A North American Event for Christian Educators, a project sponsored by the interdenominational Joint Educational Development, has been announced to meet here January 26-31, 1980. Educators from the Episcopal Church will convene January 26-27 with the joint conference of representatives of the 12 member-churches of JED beginning on January 28.
Three practical aids to the production of parish newsletters are being made available to local Episcopal churches by the Center for Parish Communications, an independent and interdenominational resource organization. The first is a newsletter for parish paper editors and clergy, called, "newsLETTER TO THE EDITOR" ($8.95/year), which includes information on production, writing, layout, etc. The second aid is a monthly digest of news of the Episcopal Church called "Within the Fellowship" ($9.95/year), for use in local newletters. (The combined rate for the two is $14.95,) A third resource which is available is a 64-page manual on how to produce better church newsletters, entitled "Words Ring Louder Than Bells," at $4. 50 per copy, postpaid. For further information or subscription/book orders, write to The Center for Parish Communications, 207 West Kenneth Road, Glendale, Calif. 91202.