Bishop Suffragan, Council 2017, General Information

Nominations for Bishop Suffragan End Sept 30

Following the timeline adopted by the Diocesan Council, the nomination period for Bishop Suffragan opened on July 1, and nominations will be received through September 30, 2016. Names may only be submitted by canonically resident clergy and delegates/alternates to the 2016 Diocesan Council. Each submission requires two (2) clergy and two (2) delegate/alternate signatures. The nomination form, election timeline, and other information regarding the election process may be found at www.dwtx.org/bishop-suffragan or on this website at Bishop Suffragan.

All congregations are invited to remain in prayer for the discernment of our next Bishop Suffragan.

Almighty God, we give you thanks for calling leaders throughout the generations who boldly proclaim your love. Call through us now a bishop who will proclaim Christ’s resurrection, faithfully interpret the Gospel, and lead us into the world to love and serve the Lord, encouraging the saints and nourishing us from the riches of your grace. So guide the hearts and minds of those who will discern the person you are calling to be our Bishop Suffragan, that we may receive a faithful pastor who will guard and govern the church, sustain the presbyters, care for your people, and equip us to serve the world in Christ’s Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For questions regarding nominations or the election process, please contact Laura Woodall at laura.woodall@dwtx.org or (210) 824-5387.

Rev. David G. Read,
Standing Committee President
rector@stlukes-sa.net
210) 828-6425.

Council 2017, Hotels, Nominations, Pre-council

Council 2017 Website Ready for Business

Diocesan Council 2017 will be held February 23 – 25, 2017 at the AmericanBank CENTER in Corpus Christi, and hosted by Church of the Good Shepherd.  The website, http://www.Council-dwtx.org, is now being updated as new information becomes available.  Of current interest are the following pages:

  • Hotel – “Episcopal Diocesan Council Meeting” has a block of 400 rooms for the Thursday and Friday nights of Council at the Omni Corpus Christi Hotel.  Please accurately anticipate your needs and make your reservations as early as possible.  Details for online or phone reservations are here.
  • Nominations – The 2017 Nominations Instruction Packet PDF format  has been sent by e-mail to churchofficelist on August 23, 2016 and is available here.  Nominations will be accepted through Nov. 1, 2016.
  • Bishop Suffragan Election – Information and timeline for the Bishop Suffragan Election to be held on the Saturday of Council is available here.
  • Discernment Forums (PreCouncil) – The Discernment Process for a new Bishop Suffragan includes three Forums that will replace the seven annual convocational Pre-council meetings for 2017. Dates, times and locations here. Please add this important event to your church calendar.
General Information

Until Next Year

The 112th Diocesan Council has come to a close, but you can still access all the reports and documents. Every post is available on this home page, or you may scroll down, and on the right-hand side, choose “audio reports” or “video reports.”

Many of the reports given at Diocesan Council are available in audio format. Videos available include Bishop Lillibridge’s address, Bishop Reed’s address, Bishop Reed’s Eucharist sermon, and Ministry Moments, as well as a few other reports.

All documents distributed at Council are on the Go Green page, including the election results, resources for Sharing Faith Dinners, and the Diocesan Profile for the election of a Bishop Suffragan. Also available are copies of both bishops’ addresses.

Stay tuned for details regarding the 113th Diocesan Council, to be held in Corpus Christi on February 23-25, 2017. The election of a Bishop Suffragan will be held on Saturday, Feb. 25.

Audio, Council 2016

Order of Naucratius: Prayer, Charity, and Conservation

Audio

The Rev. Rod Clark shared about the Order of Naucratius in which members follow the words of Jesus when he said, “The people are hungry, and you feed them.”

The Order of Naucratius focuses on holy hunting and fishing where men and women donate a significant portion of their catch or kill to feed hungry neighbors.

Those involved in the Order believe, “We have known God and His glory in nature. And, we believe that our pastimes can become ministry when we live our lives by three rules: prayer, charity, and conservation.”

Hear the full report here:

For more information, go to www.naurcratius.org.

General Information

Christian Formation Report

Audio

Sarah Kates, chair of the diocesan Christian Formation Department, suggested to Council that there are many ways to do Christian formation and that “Church is not only happening in a building, it is happening all over the place whether or not we are there – at Mission Road Foundation in San Antonio, at Camp Capers, in homes of hungry families, in hospitals and during lunch hour in high school.”

She spoke of work being done at St. David’s Church and School through a program called “Snack Pak 4-Kids” in which volunteers gather food pack to send home with hungry children for weekends and school breaks.

Kates said that to be better followers of Jesus we must eat his word: learn about his life and his teachings and how it all fits together in God’s big story. “We need to walk alongside one another sharing stories and experiences about how the gospel is lived out.”

Recently the Christian Formation Department contacted 25 churches in the diocese to learn about the strengths and challenges of their Christian formation programs.  They learned such things as doing a 30-minute Christian formation time with breakfast right before Eucharist on Sunday, doing a week-long VBS for ‘tweens in the community, distributing Ash Wednesday ashes in the drop-off line at school.

The Christian Formation Department is gathering these and other ideas and will post them on the diocesan website in the near future. Churches will be able to search through the information, contact sister churches, and adapt it for their own communities.

Kates encouraged churches to go find new opportunities and new places to spread the gospel, and not to be hampered by “what we have always done.”

Hear the full audio, here:

Episcopal Diocese of West Texas