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The purpose of the Christian Education Network is to review the most current work of Christian education and to provide linkage between national, provincial, and diocesan leadership for the enhancement and development of an ongoing vision of education. In order to do this our tasks are:
Each diocese in our province is asked to select two educators as their working representatives to this network so that there is always a representative from each diocese at each of our meetings and a partner at home to help provide a communication link to the rest of the diocese.
To provide national linkage, we also support the work of the Provincial Partners for Catechesis. Our provincial catechist meets with the representative educators of the other eight provinces and Howard Williams of the Children's Ministries and Education office of the national church. This group meets twice yearly.
A recent meeting of this group included Joe Russell, who is in the process of designing a study guide to be used to promote the vision of education of the Episcopal Church as stated in Called To Teach and Learn. This education statement, the result of a mandate from General Convention 1988, along with the study guide, will be an asset for the education of people of all generations. The study guide should be available in early 1997. Copies of Called To Teach and Learn are available for $10.00 through Episcopal Parish Services at 1-800-903-5544.
This educational material for Episcopalians is intended to be a part of the "ongoing process whose purpose is to support the people of God as they seek to live out the Baptismal Covenant and to express their unique calling as followers of Jesus Christ." It will be a tool by which the leadership of the church can empower "all Christians through both formal and informal learning opportunities." This manual is intended to be a focal point to assist leadership "to establish and to develop an environment which enables people to discover themselves as God's people and to carry out the ministries to which they are called. It is through this vision and leadership that the whole congregation comes to feel its responsibility for the community and total ministry within the life of the Church."
The Christian Education Network diocesan representatives will be meeting with the education leaders of our host, the Diocese of Western New York, on November 14-16. This group meets twice a year and combines meeting time for conducting the ongoing business of the network with an opportunity to meet with the bishop of the host diocese. We also meet with the educators in a forum setting where we have the opportunity to hear what is happening, what the needs of the local educators are, what is working, and what is not. The information and new materials we glean at these forums help shape our direction.
This network asks your prayers and input as we endeavor to serve the dioceses of our province to promote, encourage, and enable the growth in knowledge and understanding of the members of all of our congregations.
Contact: Sandra Pacyga, tel:716-225-4366, e-mail on the Internet: SANDRA.PACYGA@ECUNET.org or Ecunet: SANDRA PACYGA.
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Our young people and young adults continue to take the lead in activities, having held a very successful picnic at Flushing Meadow Park in July. More than fifty people attended.
Several of our youth took part in the Episcopal Youth Event held in Terre Haute, Indiana, this past summer, and then flew further west to join us for the annual Asiamerica Ministry Consultation held this year in Kauai, Hawaii. Our theme was "Intergenerational and Intercultural Relationships" dealing with all the issues of tension over cultural differences between generations. These issues included immigration, children, differences in cultures in business and social contacts, and in sharing church space. It was a very successful and useful training conference for all who attended.
At the consultation, Miss Grace Kwan of St. George's Church, Flushing, New York, was elected convener of the youth and young adult convocation. She will not only lead and help plan their sessions, but will also serve as their representative on the Episcopal Asiamerica Ministries Council. The Rev. Peter Lam of the Church of the Holy Spirit, Brooklyn, chairs the Province II Asiamerica Ministries Committee.
At the end of the consultation, Archdeacon L. Roper Shamhart of Long Island, was given the Asiamerica Ministries Cross for his service to Asiamerica Ministries in the church and the Rev. Ninian Yong Gul Kim of Trinity/St.Joseph's Church, Astoria, was given the Asiamerica Ministries Cross for his service as convener of the Korean Convocation.
Contact: the Rev. Peter Lam, tel: 718-837-0412 or the Ven. L. Roper Shamhart, tel: 718-457-7919.
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"I don't see how we could have a Justice Summit without talking about our own homes and our own lives. That means talking about over-consumption and living simply on the earth." That is how one of the participants at last November's Episcopal "Visions of Justice" conference captured a hope for the Summit on Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation planned for February 27 to March 1, 1997, in Cincinnati, Ohio. (See "Coming Events on page 15.)
The JPIC Summit will address such issues as wealth and poverty, equal justice and access for all people, peace among the nations, and responsible stewardship of the earth. The intent of the Summit is to encourage and strengthen Episcopalians in efforts to live into the Baptismal Covenant to "strive for justice and peace among all people and respect the dignity of every human being." The Summit will serve as a public witness that calls this church and the nations to walk in the way of justice, peace, and integrity of creation.
Through dynamic and exciting worship; stimulating presentations and other events; meeting to share stories, concerns, and hopes; sharing and offering technical assistance; and training in workshops, the planning committee hopes that participants will renew their commitment to follow Christ by living and acting for peace and justice in their personal lives, in the church, and in the world.
The Summit will be a task-oriented event. By developing specific strategies for action by the coming General Convention, participants will help shape the peace and justice agenda for the Episcopal Church for the next triennium and beyond.
Contact: the Rev. Canon Lloyd Casson, tel: 1-800-334-7626.
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