The Diocese of The Arctic

If your Parish is celebrating a special event let the synod office know and we will include it in the next issue.

- go out to Capt. Rus Blanchet on Aug 15^th, Rev. Georgina Baldwin on the 24^th, and Rev. Lucassie Nakoolak on the 31^st. For September, there’s Rev. Mike Shouldice on the 10^th, Rev. Josie Enuaraq on the 11^th, Rev. Hannah Alexie on the 15^th, Rev. Ikey Nashooraituk on the 18^th, Rev. Vivian Smith on the 27^th, Rev. Georgina Bassett on the 28^th, Bishop Ben Arreak on the 29^th, and Rev. Lucy Netser on the 30^th.

Hay River - Mrs. Georgina Bassett of Hay River is to be ordained a deacon on September 6^th at St. Andrew’s in Hay River. Georgina is the first Slavey person to be ordained. Please keep her and her family in prayer as she prepares for this new ministry.

You will be pleased to learn that this book is now at the printers and will be available for purchase September 1. The cost of the hymnbook will be approximately $26.99 + shipping.

Thank you to everyone who has sent in their annual reports. A reminder to those who have not yet sent them in, please do so as quickly as possible as a report to the national church must be done before mid June. If your report is not sent in then the report sent to National will not be complete. Thank you.

The month of September has been designated by the Anglican Appeal as Council of the North month. Please watch for special events that you could have in your parish to share our stories with the rest of the Anglican Church and to build up our relationships.

The Center for Rural Community Leadership and Ministry (CiRCLe M) is hosting its first annual conference on Rural Ministry and Community Development. It’s called “Rooted in Faith: Celebrating Rural Churches in Community” and will take place from Oct. 15-17, 2009 at the Best Western Wayside Inn in Lloydminster, Alberta.

~~ * A place where clergy and lay leaders can get training that is specifically geared to rural contexts

~~ * Rural congregations well-equipped to work with businesses, schools, health care facilities and other churches to address the needs of their communities.

~~ * Rural church leaders having useful tools to help change the “palliative care” “we're just hanging in there till we die” mindset of some congregations into a vital mission-oriented perspective

~~ * Solid research being done on the ways in which rural churches are already catalysts for hope and health in their communities

~~ * A Centre that helps church governance structures to recognize and value rural churches and develop sustainable models for rural ministry.

~~ * Remote aboriginal churches able to get training for their leadership in an accessible distance format

~~ * Seminaries and Bible Schools having a resource they can draw on to give their students a solid theoretical and practical introduction to rural ministry.

~~ * Clergy new to rural settings having a trained rural mentor to help them learn the possibilities and pitfalls of rural ministry and to understand key rural issues.

~~ * A place where the best practices and resources for rural ministry that have been developed in all Christian denominations and parachurch organizations are gathered and shared.

~ Lecture 1: “You have healed the wounds of my people lightly…”~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This lecture will explore how ~clergy and lay together have to examine the depth of the wounds inflicted on land and community, so that their ministry can generate genuine hope rather than false optimism, and provide genuine healing rather than surface band-aids.~

Since “health is membership”( Wendell Berry), churches have a crucial role in strengthening and restoring membership with land and community. Before we can participate in the healing of creation, which is both nature and society, we must let creation heal us and free us from destructive “dreams of endless economic progress.”

This will look at what forces have led to declining economic and community vitality in rural communities including the faith community and what forces church outreach and creativity can strengthen the forces of effective community development.

~Lecture 2:~ Spirituality for Sustainability: Heart and Soul for the Long Haul Exploring dimensions for deeper sustainability, beyond the push and pull of the moment with a focus on inherent and authenticity, the persona depth and conviction that is important for long term leadership and community building.

#4~ Reaching Beyond the Walls of Your Church: A Response of the Local Church to~Community Needs: Mike Hoeft

For More Information and Promotional PR Visit: www.circle-m.ca/conferences-and-events/

If you have a church or rural development conference for which you would like a poster(s) or pamphlets please let us know how many you need and we will mail them out to you.

Bishop Andrew: Sept. 4^th – 6^th, Hay River (Georgina’s ordination); Sept.7^th-11^th, Yellowknife; Sept. 11^th – 14^th, Fort Simpson; and Sept. 17^th – 21^st, Council of the North Conference in Sorrento, BC

Bishop Larry: Sept. 17^th – 21^st, Council of the North Conference in Sorrento, BC.

Bishop Benjamin: Sept. 17^th – 21^st, Council of the North Conference in Sorrento, BC.

Please continue to pray for our cathedral rebuilding project. Pray for the Council of the North, PWRDF, our Primate Fred, the new Archbishop David Ashdown, and continue to use the diocese prayer cycle daily.

[Peter] said to Him ”Lord…. You know that I love you”. Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.”

When Peter failed Jesus by denying Him thrice, that failure would have caused him to quit – but because Jesus didn’t give up on him, Peter went to bat for the Gospel. And with God’s help, he brought a lot of people “home.”