Inspires Online Welcome to inspires online – the electronic newsletter from the Scottish Episcopal Church. Inspires online highlights news and events from across the Church and includes news from organisations related to the Scottish Episcopal Church. It is good to hear from our readers so please do let me know of any feedback you may have – you can email me on [email protected] Lorna Finley Director of Communications 1 New rites for Lent, Holy Week, and Easter Dr John Davies, Convener of the Liturgy Committee of the Scottish Episcopal Church explains: “The Paschal mystery – the passion, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ – is central to our Christian faith, and therefore to the liturgical year. “For this reason the Liturgy Committee was asked to produce new rites for Lent, Holy Week, and Easter, which would work more naturally with the Scottish Liturgy 1982 than the current authorised provision, Services and Ceremonies for Ash Wednesday and Holy Week 1967. After scrutiny by the Faith and Order Board, the College of Bishops has now approved a new set of rites for the beginning of Lent (Ash Wednesday), Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Vigil of Easter. These rites have been authorised for use by all churches in the Scottish Episcopal Church for an experimental period until they are submitted to the General Synod for the formal canonical process of permanent authorisation. “The Good News of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and the triumph of the Cross, are at the centre of these rites. The experience of forgiveness that comes with the Resurrection of Jesus – forgiveness, the healing of injury, guilt, and failure – the principle of living together as a community of forgiven people, a community of Love, reborn through Baptism, are echoed in all the liturgies from Ash Wednesday to Easter. “The rite for the beginning of Lent, whether observed on Ash Wednesday or on another day when the congregation gathers to celebrate the Eucharist, emphasises Christians’ identification as members of the redeemed people of God, through Baptism and through the Passion of Christ. The liturgy focuses our Lenten observance on the realisation of identification with Christ in our lives, so that our celebration of the Passion can hold together both the recollection of historical events and their continuing significance for our Christian lives today. “The liturgies, which are now available on the Scottish Episcopal Church website , are intended to enable us to worship during Lent, Holy Week, and Easter as a community of 2 faith, full of hope in a world marked by suffering; a community focused on sacrificial love and thanksgiving in the light of the Cross and Resurrection.” Read in browser » Share: Anglican Communion – Lent Resources The Office of the Anglican Communion is collating details of Lent resources issued by the provinces, networks and agencies of the Anglican Communion and partner organisations. You can reach their composite list by clicking here. Read in browser » Share: Thy Kingdom Come The College of Bishops of the Scottish Episcopal Church (SEC) is endorsing the global prayer initiative ‘Thy Kingdom Come’ which invites people to pledge to pray, following various themes, during the 10 days between Ascension and Pentecost (this year the dates are 10-20 May). Various people from across the SEC will be invited to offer a particular prayer for each of the 10 days which will be shared on the SEC’s website and Facebook page. In supporting this initiative, the Most Rev Mark Strange, Bishop of Moray, Ross and Caithness and Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church says “each diocese, each church community and each individual can join in and allow the power of prayer to flow over the people and communities of Scotland. Please join in and pray ‘Lord Thy Kingdom Come’. 3 Read in browser » Share: Episcopal Elections The Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church has now issued new Mandates for the Episcopal Vacancies in the Diocese of Brechin and the Diocese of St Andrew’s, Dunkeld & Dunblane. Further details will be announced in due course. Meantime the College of Bishops asks that both dioceses and especially those involved in the election process be held in prayer. Read in browser » Share: Winner of the Alastair Haggart Bursary Award 2018 announced 4 The winner of this year’s Alastair Haggart Bursary Award is Mrs Kate Sainsbury, Lay Reader in the Strathearn Group of Churches, Diocese of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane. Kate’s study leave will be spent considering how an ‘intentional emergent community’ and a fresh expression of Church might be created through the foundation and nurturing of the Appletree Community, and how Scottish and international L’Arche communities might inform this development. The Appletree Community is a residential community for people with complex and profound learning disabilities currently being developed in the Diocese of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane, modelled on the L’Arche communities. It will also be a research hub; conversations with the Scottish Government and individuals within the research community in Scotland are already making that a reality. The core of the study programme is a series of visits to Jean Vanier and the founding L’Arche community of Troisly in Northern France, to Professor Jonas Ruskus and the Lithuanian L’Arche community – Professor Ruskus is a member of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities – and to Professor John Swinton and the new L’Arche-like community on the campus of Aberdeen University. Such visits and subsequent study will contribute to the theological dimension of the book Kate is proposing to write, describing the founding of ‘Appletree Community’, and to a 5 presentation in 2019 at the International Association for the Scientific Study of Developmental Disability, Glasgow. In receiving this Bursary, Kate says “I hope that my leadership of the project, identified as part of my missional role to all of God’s people, will bring credit to the Scottish Episcopal Church. I hope that my focus of ministry on those on the outside who are amongst the most marginalised will demonstrate a credibility of the gospel in our time. I am thrilled that the Trustees of the Alastair Haggart Bursary Award are supporting the development of Appletree Community through this award: my thanks to them, to Bishop Mark Strange who prompted me to apply, and to all those who have prayed for and encouraged the vision; this invites people with profound learning disabilities into the heart of the Scottish Episcopal Church, for which I am profoundly grateful.” Bishop Mark said: “I am delighted that Kate has received this Bursary. She has dedicated so much of her life and ministry to the inclusion of those with profound learning disabilities. When Kate shared her vision of the Appletree Community, I was aware that I was glimpsing something very powerful and potentially life-changing for some of the most vulnerable in society”. The Bursary is awarded annually in memory of Bishop Haggart, Principal of Coates Hall 1971-1975, Bishop of Edinburgh 1975 – 1985 and Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church 1977 – 1985, through the kindness and generosity of Mary, his widow, and the family. It is awarded to help the financing of sabbaticals or other similar leave of absence for ministers of the Scottish Episcopal Church, at a stage in the person’s ministerial life when the project will significantly enhance his or her development. Read in browser » Share: Bishop Elect prepares for consecration 6 Preparations are well underway for the consecration of the Rev Canon Anne Dyer as the Bishop of Aberdeen and Orkney. The consecration service will take place in St Andrew’s Cathedral, Aberdeen on Thursday 1 March at 1pm. It is anticipated that the service will be live-streamed; further details of this and the service itself will be available shortly. In addition to a large number of clergy trained by Canon Dyer in both Scotland and England, the Cathedral is also looking forward to welcoming a good representation of people from the churches across the diocese – both mainland and island – to the consecration service. Joining them will be representatives from civic, political, business and education interests across the city of Aberdeen and beyond. In preparing for consecration Canon Dyer says “I continue to look forward to my consecration and ministry as Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney with great anticipation. As the date approaches I am becoming increasingly aware of the demands of leadership in the diocese and of my new role within the wider church, and am grateful for the prayerful support in my preparation for this.” A video produced for Candlemas of the Bishop Elect reflecting on taking up Office as Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney can be viewed here 7 Read in browser » Share: Scottish Episcopal Institute – February newsletter The February newsletter from the Scottish Episcopal Institute is now available February 2018 Newsletter from SEI Read in browser » Share: Primus appoints Chaplain The Most Rev Mark Strange, Bishop of Moray, Ross and Caithness in his role as Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church has appointed the Rev Canon Mel Langille as his Chaplain. Canon Mel, who is originally from Nova Scotia, has been a priest in the Diocese of Moray, Ross and Caithness since 2003. He has served as Synod Clerk of the Diocese and has also served on General Synod and Provincial Committees. The Primus says “Canon Mel has a love for the liturgy of the Church and finding ways of using that liturgy to inspire and encourage others in their worship, he is also very good at telling the Bishop when to stand and when to sit.” The role of Chaplain to the Primus requires providing support to the Primus during various services of worship including consecrations and the General Synod Eucharist .