The Episcopal Cafe

Heis on the right track - but also the problem is the idea that the congregation must have its own ordained clergy in order to do ministry........and the need for that is the issue of providing a sacramental ministry in the Episcopal Church particularly.....

Though the Episcopal system has some advantages too. Since a priest could consecrate bread & wine to be used later, it seems to me that small-town parishes could be served, perhaps, by a "circuit-riding" priest who could stop by, consecrate the bread & wine, then designate a deacon to lead services. And of course my denomination (the ELCA) is in full communion-- so if a small town had both a Lutheran and Episcopal congregation, there may be opportunities for collaboration/cooperation.

At our church I attend a weekly Eucharist where a priest isn't always able to be present. they just make sure there is an ample supply of consecrated material in the sacristry and a lay person who has been trained can do the Eucharist. So, it can be done with some planning.

We should have come to your party! We had shrimp, sausage and cheese, candy and sangria. Jamie took over and was hostess seeing to it no one cheated and took anything early and serving stuff. It was a great night.

Right Peter- most hits of any Episco-site!

I agree with Katie Sherrod, the Continuing Episcopal Diocese of Ft. Worth, a breath of fresh air. "This is the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes" (Ps 118:23 NRSV).

@Kyle: Sometimes attraction is preferable(sp?) to promotion. That's how I got here and a lot of others as well. Also, if evangelism is understood as action, then I would say TEC's actions speak louder than words; from that standpoint TEC is all about kerygma.

@Kyle, "become ourselves ambassadors" is a phrase that would resonate with a lot of Episcopalians. We remember the words of St. Francis --"preach often and sometimes use words." It is the example of Christ that we seek to promote in the world, not a string of scripture taken out of context and used quite often as a battering ram. A lot of us came ... See Moreto TEC simply because of that reticence to quote scripture and encourage people to get "saved". Episcopalians believe that we don't wait for heaven after death; Jesus told us to create it here and now, including care for those less fortunate. That doesn't mean preaching at them, it means feeding, housing, clothing, tending and visiting them, seeing their needs and doing our best to meet those needs NOW, not in the hereafter.

Beautiful and inspiring. But realistic? Jesus, Mary and Joseph were Middle Easterners not English or Swedes. But the beauty of the good news is that we all receive it in our own culture. True incarnation.

I wish for better communication between Asian ministry parishes and non-Asian ministry parishes in the Episcopal Church.

I also wish for young adults carrying on the momentum that was generated from this year's GC.

Lastly, I hope all things would go well in the EAM strategic meeting some time next year, for the future of Asian ministries in the Episcopal Church.

I wish for people to close their mouths, listen, and think. In other words, return to an understanding of democracy long lost...?