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Posted: June 3, 2020 by adotsadmin 1 Comment

Prayers for A Week of Prayer and Fasting for North America

Archbishop Beach has commended the following prayers for this week of Prayer and Fasting for North America from BCP 2019.

FOR OUR NATION

Almighty God, who hast given us this good land for our heritage: We humbly beseech thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of thy favor and glad to do thy will. Bless our land with honorable industry, sound learning, and pure conduct. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion; from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endue with the spirit of wisdom those to whom, in thy Name, we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that, through obedience to thy law, we may show forth thy praise among the nations of the earth. In the time of prosperity, fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in thee to fail; all of which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR ALL SORTS AND CONDITIONS OF MEN

O God, the creator and preserver of all mankind, we humbly beseech thee for all sorts and conditions of men; that thou wouldest be pleased to make thy ways known unto them, thy saving health unto all nations. More especially we pray for thy holy Church universal, that it may be so guided and governed by thy good Spirit, that all who profess and call themselves Christians may be led into the way of truth, and hold the faith in unity of spirit, in the bond of peace, and in righteousness of life. Finally, we commend to thy fatherly goodness all those who are in any ways afflicted or distressed, in mind, body, or estate, [especially those for whom our prayers are desired]; that it may please thee to comfort and relieve them according to their several necessities, giving them patience under their sufferings, and a happy issue out of all their afflictions. And this we beg for Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen.

FOR CITIES, TOWNS, AND OTHER COMMUNITIES

Heavenly Father, you sent your Son among us to proclaim the kingdom of God in cities, towns, villages, and lonely places. Behold and visit, we pray, the community of ________. Renew the bonds of charity that uphold our civic life. Send us honest and able leaders. Deliver us from poverty, prejudice, and oppression, that peace may prevail with righteousness, and justice with mercy. And at the last, bring us to your Holy City, the new Jerusalem, where we shall know perfect unity and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR THE HUMAN FAMILY

O God, you made us in your own image, and you have redeemed us through your Son Jesus Christ: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE

Almighty God, you created us in your own image: Grant us grace to contend fearlessly against evil and to make no peace with oppression; and help us to use our freedom rightly in the establishment of justice in our communities and among the nations, to the glory of your holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

IN TIMES OF SOCIAL CONFLICT OR DISTRESS

Increase, O God, the spirit of neighborliness among us, that in peril we may uphold one another, in suffering tend to one another, and in homelessness, loneliness, or exile befriend one another. Grant us brave and enduring hearts that we may strengthen one another, until the disciplines and testing of these days are ended, and you again give peace in our time; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR THOSE WHO SERVE OTHERS

O Lord our heavenly Father, whose blessed Son came not to be served, but to serve: We ask you to bless all who, following in his steps, give themselves to the service of others [especially _________]; endue them with wisdom, patience, and courage, that they may strengthen the weak and raise up those who fall, and, being inspired by your love, may worthily minister to the suffering, the friendless, and the needy; for the sake of him who laid down his life for us, your Son our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

FOR COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY

O Lord Jesus Christ, in your earthly life you shared our toil and hallowed our labor: Guide those who maintain the commerce and industries of this land, and give to all who labor pride in their work, a just reward, and joy both in supplying need and in serving you; who with the Father and the Holy Spirit live and reign, one God, world without end. Amen.

FOR THE UNEMPLOYED

Heavenly Father, we remember before you those who suffer want and anxiety from lack of work. Guide the people of this land so to use our public and private wealth that all may find suitable and fulfilling employment, and receive a just reward for their labor; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR AGRICULTURE AND FARMING

Almighty God, we thank you for making the earth fruitful, so that it may produce what is needed to sustain our life: Bless those who work in the fields; give us seasonable weather; and grant that we may all share the fruits of the earth, rejoicing in your goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR SCHOOLS, COLLEGES, AND UNIVERSITIES

Almighty God, by your gift alone we come to wisdom and true understanding: Look with favor, we pray, on our universities, colleges, and schools, [especially ________,] that knowledge may be increased among us, and wholesome learning flourish and abound. Bless those who teach and those who learn; and grant that in humility of heart they may ever look to you, the fountain of all wisdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR THE MEDICAL PROFESSIONS

Almighty God, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ went about doing good, and healing all manner of sickness and disease among the people: Continue in our hospitals his gracious work among us [especially in __________]; console and heal the sick; grant to the physicians, nurses, and assisting staff wisdom and skill, diligence and patience; prosper their work, O Lord, and send down your blessing upon all who serve the suffering; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

FOR THOSE WHO INFORM PUBLIC OPINION

Almighty God, your truth endures from age to age: Direct in our time, we pray, those who speak where many listen and write what many read; that they may speak your truth to make the heart of this people wise, its mind discerning, and its will righteous; to the honor of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Last Updated: June 1, 2020 by adotsadmin

Many Serving as One: The Legacy of Light of Christ

“Light of Christ has been a family, quite literally. I’ve been in many churches where visitors were made to feel like outsiders, but Light of Christ was different.”

Like its signature sanctuary cross — one large cross made up of many individual crosses — Light of Christ Anglican Church in Marietta, GA brought together many with one mission to be the light of Christ to their community.

Fr. Scott Hammond (L) with Bishop Frank Lyons

“The church has welcomed all sorts of people, and in every case the congregation made an effort to reach out to them,” says Fr. Scott Hammond, Rector of Light of Christ. “In every case, the congregation pulled together to love and minister to those in need, even the folks who were not regular members and turned to Light of Christ in a crisis.”

After 16 years of ministry in Marietta, the fellowship of Light of Christ made the decision to close. The congregation held its last worship service on March 15, 2020.

“There was sadness that day, but because we planned ahead and made sure the congregation was emotionally prepared for the final service, it was truly more like a celebration of service to Christ than a gloomy, funereal ending,” says Fr. Scott.

The Light of Christ community was especially glad to have ADOTS Bishop Frank Lyons attending the final service, as he has a special connection with the church and with Fr. Scott.

“This was especially poignant because he had also been Light of Christ’s first bishop when it was founded in 2005, when he was the Anglican Bishop of Bolivia. In 2007 he received me as a deacon into the Anglican Church, and in 2009 ordained me into the priesthood,” says Fr. Scott. “So the church and I have a long history with Bishop Lyons.”

Over the years, those at Light of Christ journeyed with individuals, families, and visitors through all sorts of life-changing situations, and Fr. Scott remembers how the fellowship ministered during times of need, and also celebrated life well.

“I was especially blessed by the way the people of Light of Christ made the effort to minister to my family and me when my mother passed away in 2018. I remember the annual picnics and Christmas parties. These were always times of joy and fellowship.”

In recent years, Fr. Scott says the Light of Christ children’s ministry was a tremendous joy and a crucial service to young people.

“I had a great time training acolytes, a thing that was important to all of the church, but I also wanted it to be fun,” he says. “Seeing young people participating in the main service, the music, the assorted children’s presentations, and hearing of their enjoyment in Children’s Church, always made me remember Jesus’ words, ‘Permit the little children and do not forbid them to come to me; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.’ (Matt. 19:14)”

An incredible and beautiful work of art, the Light of Christ “Cross of Crosses” (pictured left) is just one of the legacies of the church. The church’s first rector, Fr. Charles Osborne, collected all the many pieces of Christian memorabilia during his travels.

“He owned scores of authenticated relics, a huge variety of Christian icons, and another huge variety of crosses and crucifixes,” says Fr. Scott.

Then in 2011, Fr. Charles’ wife Myra – “a very ingenious and innovative lady” – skillfully crafted the sanctuary cross from this collection after Fr. Charles’ passing in 2010.

“She did all of the design and work by herself. Not only was the cross eye-catching, it focused attention in our irregular-shaped nave toward the altar,” says Fr. Scott.

While there was discussion of giving away each of the crosses, it is Myra’s desire that the individual pieces not be separated. Light of Christ is looking for another church that can accommodate their sanctuary cross and maintain it in a good location. It is currently in storage, and it’s their desire to see the many crosses out of the boxes and rebuilt in another church building.

Because as Fr. Scott has said, “Our final dismissal: ‘Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.’ Our service doesn’t end.”

If your church is interested in displaying the Cross of Crosses, please email news@adots.org and we will get you in touch with Fr. Scott!

by Rachel Moorman
Communications Associate
news@adots.org

Last Updated: May 28, 2020 by adotsadmin

What is a Deacon?

L to R: Fr. Jack King, Fr. Aaron Wright, Archbp. Foley Beach, Dcn. Brad Guilford, Dcn. Joy Guilford.

It belongs to the Office of a Deacon, to assist the Priest in public worship, especially in the administration of Holy Communion; to lead in public prayer; to read the Gospel, and to instruct both young and old in the Catechism; and at the direction of the Priest, to baptize and to preach. Furthermore, it is the Deacon’s Office to work with the laity in searching for the sick, the poor, and the helpless, that they may be relieved.

-ACNA Ordinal

Visit our Deacon’s Ministry Page for learning and resources

“Almost no one asks what a deacon does,” says Deacon Brad Guilford, who has served as a vocational deacon at Old North Abbey in Knoxville, TN since his ordination three years ago.

Instead, he says, they almost always ask how a deacon is different than a priest – since the role of a priest is generally more well-known. “I find there is a group of people that seem to think that a deacon functions as an assistant to the priest, primarily during the worship service. There is another group of people that can’t quite wrap their minds around the idea of a vocational deacon, seeing the role of a deacon only as a stepping stone on the path to be a priest,” says Dcn. Brad.

However, limiting the role to Sunday mornings – or to a rung on a ministerial ladder – does a great disservice to the scope of deacons’ ministry.

“In one sense, there is nothing particularly unique about the role of a deacon, because a deacon should be living out the greatest commandments: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself,” says Dcn. Brad. “On the other hand, a deacon is uniquely called to be particularly mindful of the church’s call to love our neighbors, and to invite the parish into that practice. Their ministry is explicitly intended to extend beyond the service to help bridge the gap between the church and the world… I believe the specific functions of a deacon in the worship service reflect that dual presence.”

Dcn. Brad likens reading the Gospel and instructing in Catechism as a reflection of taking God’s truth into the world. Assisting with the sacraments and prayers is part of reminding people what God says is true about themselves: that through the Eucharist, we are invited to commune with God at all times through prayer. And dismissing the congregation to “go out into the world rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit” reminds everyone that what we receive from Christ is meant to be shared.

“Those actions in the worship service model what a deacon is to be outside of the worship service, which in turn models what the entire church is intended to be,” he says.

After three years, Dcn. Brad is still exploring what his role looks like in his context, but has come to recognize four areas that shape his ministry. The first encompasses the traditional roles of the deacon during a worship service. The second: “Reminding the people in our parish of God’s truth and his infinite love for his children, which might involve anything from delivering the homily during a worship service, to leading Catechism classes, to meeting with a parishioner individually to talk about questions or life challenges.”

A third part is serving behind the scenes, taking some of the tasks and chores that help the parish function smoothly and lighten the load for the priest. And fourth, outreach to specific groups outside the church, “with my physical neighbors in my ethnically and economically diverse neighborhood, and with my co-workers in my full-time job outside of the church.”

Dcn. Brad serves alongside his wife, Dcn. Joy Guilford, who is also a vocational deacon at Old North Abbey.

“There are unique challenges to parish ministry, and it’s wonderful to have a marriage partner who truly understands those issues. I think that shared understanding allows us to lift one another up when one of us is working through something particularly difficult,” says Dcn. Brad.

The nature of serving together also means their children become very involved in ministry, although it has required them to set boundaries in order to parent well.

“That boundary is something we continue to explore and revisit, and sometimes we draw it in better places than others, but by grace we’re learning how to balance caring for our marriage, our children, and our parish in a healthy and God-honoring way.”

Dcn. Brad says his favorite part of being a deacon is the privilege of reminding people of God’s truth: How we as people, the Church, and the world all fit into God’s story of love and redemption throughout history.

“My very favorite moments in my ministry are the conversations I’ve had with people who don’t want anything to do with the church because of negative experiences they’ve had in the past,” he says. “I love the opportunity to re-frame their view of Christ and his church in a way they perhaps haven’t thought about before, and to sometimes see a glimmer of hope or curiosity that what they really wanted the church to be might be real after all.”

Originally posted May, 2018.

Last Updated: May 28, 2020 by adotsadmin

When We Forget Who We Are

Deacon Erin Moniz shares a moment with a student at Berry College

By Rev. Dcn. Erin Moniz, Assistant Chaplain, Office of the Chaplain, Berry College

“His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”
2 Peter 1:3-4

Working with college students means that from day to day or hour to hour, I might be speaking theologically about relationships, identity, justice, depression, the authority of Scripture, the division of different denominations, parents, freedom, God in the Old Testament, or politics; and this is just by 2 pm on a Tuesday. I read constantly in order to stay informed on the range of topics I might need to speak to on any given day. The demands of student ministry truly stretch the spiritual imagination and keep me happily on my toes.

Upon reflection though, the passage of Scripture I quote most frequently in sessions with students is 2 Peter 1:3. It usually comes up like this: “Right now, in this very moment, because of Christ, you are full, complete, lacking nothing for life and godliness. That is who you are. You are adopted, chosen, and loved. You don’t have to earn it or achieve it through some ladder of good deeds. Your identity right now is a child of God, dearly beloved and filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Sounds good, right?

But the next thing we recognize almost immediately is: “Chaplain, that might be true, but I don’t feel full or complete.”

I can’t argue with this. In my own life, even as a minister who knows the truth of the gospel, my actions reflect that I am a functional atheist who does not believe that I have everything I need for life and godliness. I forget that “he has granted to us his precious and very great promises” and I live like an orphan trying to siphon my identity through work, relationships, or grand presentation.

About 15 years ago, I read about a man in New York who died leaving his millions to his only living relative: his estranged brother. The lawyers had to hire a private detective because it had been years since anyone had spoken to or seen the brother. It took nearly two months, but the detective finally found him living out in California. He was homeless, living on the streets, and sleeping under bridges.

What struck me most about the article was not the astonishing revelation that this homeless man was delivered such good news that he was now a millionaire. What struck me was the fact that for two months, this homeless man was legally a millionaire. All those nights, he slept under bridges and ate out of dumpsters even though there were millions in his bank account.

Sometimes, not knowing you have something amounts to living like you don’t have it.

He had millions! Yet, he ate out of dumpsters because he didn’t know that he was a millionaire. Day to day, when I forget the promises of God, I forget that I have money in the bank. I forget that I have been adopted and brought to the big house with all the food and love I could ever need or want. Many mornings, like my students, I wake up forming a plan on how I am going to get what I feel I lack and when I think it is all up to me, I resign myself to rooting through dumpsters and sleeping under bridges because I have forgotten that I am rich. I have forgotten who I am.

My college students struggle with this regularly. The great promises of God and the abundance of His Presence slip into spiritual amnesia and we begin to live out of want and lack. However, one of the great blessings of my work is that I get to sit day after day and share this message with students. And as I tell them who they are in Christ, I am also reminding myself. I speak the gospel back into my own ears with every ministry opportunity.

Our students need this, but so do I. I tell them they need to surround themselves with people who will remind them regularly of what Christ has done and who they are. As Stanley Hauerwas articulates: “Saints cannot exist without a community, as they require, like all of us, nurturance by a people who, while often unfaithful, preserve the habits necessary to learn the story of God.”

Originally published April, 2019. Editorial assistance, Rachel Moorman, news@adots.org

Last Updated: May 21, 2020 by adotsadmin

Congratulations to New Seminary Graduates

Please join ADOTS in congratulating two new seminary graduates who answered a call to ministry through the care and mentorship from those at St. Patrick’s, Murfreesboro, TN. Congratulations to Rev. Cliff and Rev. Adam!

Rev. Cliff Syner

About five years ago, our family was introduced to the Anglican way and felt immediately at home. We felt Christ drawing us closer to Him and to His Church in a way that we had never experienced before. One evening during a catechism class, I felt a calling to the priesthood. Over the next year, Fr. Ray Kasch and the faithful laity of St. Patrick’s helped to confirm that calling. I spent a year at Gordon-Conwell and the last two in residence at Nashotah House, where I completed my Masters of Divinity. I am thankful for the strong biblical, theological, and prayerful formation that I have been blessed to receive. Our family is excited to be reconnecting to our community in Clarksville, TN.

My wife, Lisa, is finishing up her Masters in Clinical Mental Health and starts an internship in the Fall. I am starting a non-profit functional medicine clinic, where everyone will have the opportunity to flourish in God’s design for their life. As a family, we will explore creative ways to gather a body of believers around the shared vision to make Christ’s redemption and His nourishment known to our community. I will be serving as a Diocesan Church Planter under direction of Canon Chris. I am hoping to be ordained to the priesthood in November. We love and appreciate the Anglican Diocese of the South and are looking forward to serving there soon!

Rev. Adam James Gadomski

I am a former Baptist who was brought into the Anglican Tradition at St. Patrick’s Anglican Church in Smyrna/Murfreesboro, Tennessee. For the past three years I have been attending Trinity School for Ministry, where my education and spiritual formation has been blessed immensely. As of now, I am looking at moving to California this summer, where I will be an Associate Rector under Presiding Bishop Ray Sutton of the Reformed Episcopal Church, as well as a third grade teacher at a Classical Christian school there.