Bishop Lucinda leading "Tuesdays in Lent" online prayers
Join Bishop Lucinda and the diocesan staff for a weekly series of brief noonday prayers for Lent every Tuesday. Each prayer, which will include a reflection from Bishop Lucinda and staff members, will be streamed live at the diocesan YouTube page at 12 pm noon. The most recent prayer is available here. Subscribe to the YouTube pageto get alerts.
St. Paul's-San Pablo Episcopal Church, Salinas, was featured last month in a story by the Salinas Californian about how local churches held Ash Wednensday services during the Covid-19 pandemic. Read the Californian's story online, which included the above photo of parishioners Heriberto and Tomasa Aldana Garcia taken during online services.
Saint Andrew's, Saratoga, held an outdoor service for Ash Wednesday, seen here with The Rev. Jani Wild preaching. (Tim Gee photo)
Diocesan service for Great Vigil of Easter
Join with others throughout the Diocese of El Camino Real in a joyful celebration of Easter! An online Vigil will be presented the evening of April 3 – a wonderful, multi-lingual service of fire and light, story and music, remembrance and hope. Bishop Lucinda will preach and we will renew our baptismal covenant in community. The service will be available beginning at 6 pm on Saturday, April 3, at the diocesan YouTube page. Subscribe to the page to get an alert when it is posted.
Vestry & Treasurer Training workshops
Vestry members, treasurers, and church leaders across the Diocese of El Camino Real are invited to attend a free online workshop explaining the ins and outs of the diocese, who to call for support, and an overview of resources. Diocesan leaders will present on their areas of expertise, pose questions for break out room discussions, and allow time for participants to ask their own burning questions!
Registerhere.The workshops will all be held via Zoom from 9:00 am to 12 noon on the following dates:
Saturday, March 6: San Luis Obispo Deanery Saturday, March 13: Santa Clara Valley Deanery Saturday, March 27: Monterey Deanery
The fourth stage of “A Storied Pilgrimage with Race” will be available to view tomorrow -- Friday, March 5. A unique curriculum and approach to exploring issues of race in our diocese, the Pilgrimage uses personal video interviews, supported by education materials, action items, and reflections to engage sharing and conversations. Eventually this new curriculum will feature twelve stages. Completion of this pilgrimage will fulfill the requirement for Anti-Racism training in the Diocese of El Camino Real. Visit the Pilgrimage with Race page.
Board of Trustees' meeting highlights
Three highlights from the February 25, 2021, meeting of the diocesan Board of Trustees:
Bishop Lucinda reported that the Canon to the Ordinary position announcement has been published (see below) and has already generated interest.
The Board accepted the updated diocesan Personnel Policies & Procedures Manual and recommends its adaptation to congregational needs.
The Board extended exclusion of Paycheck Protection Program funds from a congregation’s calculation of their Net Disposable Budgeted Income for 2021.
Join Episcopal government advocacy
At decision points for policy and legislation, the Office of Govt. Relations (OGR) alerts Episcopalians to contact their representatives and let them know what policies they support. This ongoing column will highlight current issues you may want to advocate for, with links for you to take action.
DioCal Evensong honors first female Episcopal bishop
The Diocese of California is offering a virtual Evensong on Saturday, March 13, at 2:00 pm PT, the one-year anniversary of the death of The Rt. Rev. Barbara Harris, first woman bishop ordained in the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. The Officiant will be the Rt. Rev. Dr. Marc Andrus. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry will share his fond reminiscences of Bishop Barbara. Download the announcement.
Online forum: Russia expert discusses its future
Church of the Good Shepherd & Preschool will host Professor Aleksandar Matovski, Naval Postgraduate School, on March 10 at 12 noon on Zoom. Professor Matovski’s talk, “Russia Since the End of the Cold War,” will cover the key patterns of Russia’s trajectory over the past 30 years and its possible future directions. Please join us for what promises to be an interesting, informative online discussion! To join us on Wednesday, March 10, visit the Good Shepherd Monthly Forum page where you will find details and the sign-in button.
Healing Hearts grief support group
Healing Hearts is a virtual grief support group led by clergy and lay people from Saint Andrew's Episcopal Church and meets the second Wednesday of each month starting in March from 11:00am to 12:30pm. We want to provide a safe and compassionate place for you to feel supported, listened to and understood as you talk about your experience with loss, whether recently or years ago. For questions, contact jwild@st-andrews.org or Pbryan@st-andrews.org.
Zoom link Meeting ID: 847 2087 0971
Password: 425708
JOB OPPORTUNITIES
The Episcopal Diocese of El Camino Real seeks a Canon to the Ordinary to work in the areas of Transition Ministry, Leadership Development, and Administration. The Canon must be a solid team player, creative and willing to adapt to many circumstances in a multi-cultural environment, with large and small church communities, urban and rural. The Canon must be able to travel, communicate well, and desire to be connected with people of the diocese. This is a full-time position; ordained and bilingual (Spanish/English) preferred. Read the detailed job description in English and in Espanol.
Good Samaritan Episcopal Church in San Jose is receiving applications for a part-time Priest-in-Charge. You may view their OTM Portfolio here and their Parish Profile here. For questions or to submit your resume and application for consideration, email kirstin@realepiscopal.org or call the office at 831-394-4465.
Follow ECR on social media for photos, news, links & more
Please stay informed about COVID-19 news by visiting your local county public health website. The five county sites in our diocese are listed at right.
Real Episcopal is published on the first and third Thursday of the month. News and event submissions must be received by 12 pm noon on the Friday before publication date. Please limit submissions to 150 words in text format (unless agreed to in advance) and include the "who-what-where-when-why" information in the first paragraph.
Photos are welcome. Please send jpeg files with a minimum size of 1100 pixels wide (for phone images, select "original size" when sending).
EVENTS: Announcements must be in text form, no more than 100 words,and must be accompanied by a link to a web page with full information (flyers may be included with submission). All submissions will be edited for clarity and space needs. Church-specific event submissions will appear in no more than three issues per event.
News and/or story ideas should be emailed to Elrond Lawrence, diocesan communications director, at elrond@realepiscopal.org.