News & Messages

A Day of Action for Episcopalians United Against Gun Violence

Today our partners at Brady are holding a day of action to encourage senators to act. Bishop Miller and Episcopalians United Against Gun Violence encourage you to take part in this day of action with Brady.

The Background Check Expansion Act pending in the Senate (S. 42) expands background checks to cover all gun transactions with limited exceptions. In February, the House of Representatives passed a companion bill, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act (H.R. 8). But in the 114 days since then the Senate has failed even to hold a debate.

Please contact your senators today and encourage them to support S. 42. Contact information is here.

Alternately, you may text S42 to 877-877 to contact your senators and urge them to support S.42, the Background Check Expansion Act.

Book of Occasional Services 2018 Available

New liturgical resource: The Book of Occasional Services 2018

Download available in English & Spanish

The Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music (SCLM) is pleased to announce the release of The Book of Occasional Services 2018. The availability of this liturgical resource is the result of action taken at last summer’s 79th General Convention of The Episcopal Church.

The Book of Occasional Services 2018, a companion volume to The Book of Common Prayer, is a collection of liturgical resources related to occasions which do not occur with sufficient frequency to warrant their inclusion in The Book of Common Prayer. Designed to give congregations resources that form our members in the Episcopal faith, the rites and ceremonies contained in this book are to be understood, interpreted, and used in light of the theology, structure, and directions of The Book of Common Prayer.

The material included in this collection comes from a variety of sources, generally arising out of the specific use of worshipping communities engaged in the process of creating liturgical responses to particular occasions in the life of the church. Included are St. Francis Day animal blessings and rites for December 12, Día de la Virgen de Guadalupe. 

Where it seems appropriate, instead of complete rites, the Book of Occasional Services 2018 includes paragraphs of stated principles and guidelines for crafting liturgies in particular contexts. For instance, the resources for Día de Muertos are offered in outline form. A part of the outline format is an expressed desire that those congregations wishing to develop and use the rite will do so in collaboration with communities for whom the celebration is already a culturally significant event, creating opportunities for deeper appreciation and love in congregations. 

This material included in Book of Occasional Services 2018 is authorized by the General Convention for use throughout The Episcopal Church.

The Book of Occasional Services 2018, offered in both English and Spanish, is available as a free download from the publications page of the General Convention website, at https://www.generalconvention.org/publications#liturgy. 

Additional Liturgical Resources available on the General Convention website include:

Expansive Language Liturgies

Text of Expansive Language Liturgies from resolution 2018-D078--docx
Text of Expansive Language Liturgies from resolution 2018-D078--pdf

Share the Way of Love at Easter

Share the Way of Love at Easter

Continuing the invitation to connect The Way of Love, Practices for a Jesus-Centered Life more deeply to the Liturgical Year, The Episcopal Church offers free, downloadable resources for congregations, dioceses, and communities of faith this Easter.

Resources include: A poster with space on the bottom portion for congregations to add their own logo, service information, and web address; a postcard to send to recent visitors or local neighbors; a social media ready graphic; a Facebook Cover image; and the Presiding Bishop’s Easter Message video (available April 15). All evangelism resources are available here.

“We hope that these digital resources will help congregations easily share information about their Easter services,” said Jerusalem Greer, staff officer for evangelism for The Episcopal Church, “Services that celebrate the greatest love of all – the love of Jesus. A love we are called to share and celebrate that love with friends and neighbors.”

More than a program or curriculum, The Way of Love is an intentional commitment to a set of practices –Turn, Learn, Pray, Worship, Bless, Go, Rest – that form us into the likeness of Jesus. Congregations have engaged with Way of Love practices by organizing ministry fairs around the seven practices, setting up semi-public prayer stations with one station per practice, and organizing inquirer’s classes around each topic.

“As Episcopalians we value life-long learning – something that the Liturgical Calendar helps us to do – guiding us through lessons of our faith, connecting our story to God’s story, year after year. The Way of Love is made up of practices that help us move through those lessons with greater intention and understanding, which in turn helps us grow in love and service.”  says Greer. “As an example, during the season of Easter, people are invited to dig deeper into the practice of Go through the Life Transformed: 50-day Eastertide Test Kitchen group on Facebook .”

Digital Invitation Kits similar to the Easter resources are planned for the seasons of Advent, Christmas, Epiphany and Back-to-School.  They will be offered Spanish, French, and English. 

If your ministry has developed a seasonal Way of Love offering, please share at  . We’d love to feature it on the website and pray for our shared journey into new life. 

Lisa Webb  ASSOCIATE OFFICER, PUBLIC AFFAIRS  Office of Communication | The Episcopal Church | 212-716-6138