Caledonia Times The
Diocesan Section of the Anglican Journal February, 2017 Edition Volume 49 Issue #2
Bishop William and Margaret Anderson take time after the Christmas Eve Service for pictures with members of the Cathedral Congregation. The Bishop celebrated his last Eucharist on Christmas Eve. Then there was a leave taking liturgy led by the Dean which included a blessing for the Andersons as they transition into retirement. Pictured above from left to right: Nova and Dean Jason Haggstrom; Lucy Luscombe, People’s Warden; Bishop William and Margaret Anderson.
Bishop Anderson finishes his Episcopate, retiring at the end of December after 15 years At the end of last year, on Christmas Eve, Bishop William came to the Cathedral for his final service as our Bishop and for a leave taking liturgy with the Dean and the Congregation. The Christmas Eve Service was full of pageantry with the procession of the Choir, the Servers and the Clergy from the Chancel to the Crèche. Here, the Dean blessed the Advent wreath and lit the Christ Candle to signify the coming of the light into the world. Next, the Bishop blessed the Crèche while involving the congregation in a piece of liturgy. The server then led the procession back to the Chancel and others to their seats.
throughout the diocese this fall.
sexual conduct policy.
Bishop Anderson was elected the 9th Bishop of Caledonia in October 2001 and was consecrated and installed as Bishop on a snowy and slippery day in February 2002. A social worker with the Government of British Columbia for 20 years, Bishop-elect Anderson has been an associate with a consulting firm which offers training in organizational development, stress management and team building since 1997. He recently helped the Diocese of Caledonia develop its
He has served as a non-stipendiary priest 1977 to 2001, providing liturgical and pastoral services to various parishes in the western part of the diocese. Caledonia is the largest geographical diocese in British Columbia, encompassing the northern-most 2/3rds of the province. It is second in land mass only to the Diocese of the Arctic.
The rest of the Eucharist was as we are used to in the Church. The Bishop celebrated the Liturgy and preached the sermon. During the Dismissal at the end of the Eucharist, The Dean called the Andersons to the Chancel stairs. The Dean spoke briefly to the Andersons, thanking them for their years of service to Caledonia and the Church; for all that had been offered and shared. Then the Dean led the Andersons and the congregation through a series of prayers and responses that concluded with a blessing for the Andersons as they moved into retirement. After the service, the Bishop spoke of how kind folks had been with gifts and cards for him, for retirement. He asked that his thanks be passed along to everyone again for all the kindness and graces that he and Margaret have received as they have travel together
Bishop Anderson poses for another picture Margaret (right) and Canon (Lay) Jennifer Davies (left).
Bishop Anderson was 52 years old when he was consecrated the 9th Bishop of Caledonia in 2002. He retires from the Episcopate at the age of 66 and just a couple of months short of the 16th anniversary of his consecration. He was ordained deacon in the Diocese of Montreal in 1975 and subsequently priested the same year in Cariboo. He holds a Diploma in Ministry from Montreal Diocesan Theological College, a Master of Arts in theology from McGill University and a Bachelor of Arts in religious studies and philosophy from the University of Windsor.
“For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and selfdiscipline.” (2nd Timothy 1.6-7)
The Caledonia Times: Informing and Inspiring the faithful in Northern BC since 1905
The Archbishop Notes... To the Beloved People of God in Caledonia, Change is such a constant in our lives. I am very aware of the number of people experiencing changes in their lives – young people preparing for graduation, couples planning for married life, others newly retired, and still others mourning the loss of a job or the death of a dear one. And so also in the life of the church there are many changes – congregations in decline and wondering what the future will bring; the loss of comfortable patterns of worship or the introduction of new prayers; the departure of a much loved priest and the anxiety of what a new one will bring; new members appearing in the pews with faces and ideas that we might not recognize. And in the world around us – there are new political realities, new faces in leadership, changing patterns of communication, old ways of doing things giving way to new policies and procedures. I am reminded of the wisdom of the Greek philosopher Heraclitus who in the 6th century before Christ wrote, “No one steps into the same river twice” meaning that the river keeps flowing and so it is new with every step we take. I am also deeply aware of the change that you are experiencing as a diocese during this time of transition. Such a time can bring a variety of responses: hope, uncertainty, anxiety, jockeying for influence, worry. I take heart that the dynamics of transitions are written deep into our Biblical tradition. The story of the Exodus is so foundational to the scriptures that it echoes in various passages throughout the Old and New Testaments. It is a story of a people leaving the life of slavery and oppression in Egypt and escaping to freedom in the wilderness on a long journey that would take them to the promised land. William Bridges in his popular book “Managing Transitions” uses this familiar story as a way of thinking about what happens in a transition. He writes of the three stages in every transition: letting go of the past, the “neutral zone” where the past is gone and the new is not fully present, and finally embarking on
a new beginning. He notes that the first thing that happens in a transition is that we become aware that an ending is about to occur or has already occurred. The People have fled Egypt and they have left the familiar structures, as bad as they were, of a former life. When we face a transition in our lives we are aware that an ending has come upon us – sometimes we choose the ending, and sometimes the ending happens to us. Either way, we know that things are no longer the way they once were. As God’s people leave the land of Egypt and its past behind them they begin to turn their faces toward the new beginning and start to travel toward the land of promise. It is not always an easy shift and some of them long for the life they once knew in Egypt. It sometimes takes a great deal of time to let go of what was. The Hebrew people struggle to trust that God is leading them into a new future which they will soon inhabit. Bridges says that in all transitions we know that there is a new beginning ahead of us. We are moving toward something new. Sometimes we know what that is even if we don’t know all the details – we graduate from school and are looking forward to college or university or a new job. Sometimes we have no idea what the future will bring – we lose our job, or a dear one has died and we don’t know what our new life will look like although we know something is being thrust upon us. Sometimes a Bishop retires and a new Bishop will be elected, although we cannot know what God has in store for us. The new beginning really happens after the election when we are ready to embrace that new direction. And then Bridges turns his attention to a part of a transition that is often overlooked – the middle or neutral ground between an ending and a new
beginning. He says that this is often the most important, the most fruitful time, in a transition. In this in-between time, the People of Israel wandered in the desert for 40 years. It was a time of anxiety, uncertainty and at times fear. Many of the Israelites wished to return to the life that they had left behind. Others questioned their leaders. Some questioned their God. But it was also in the wilderness that they deepened their faith and discovered their identity – who they were before God. It was in the wilderness that Moses received the 10 Commandments and it was in the time of wilderness wandering that the patterns of life that defined them as a holy people were solidified. Bridges notes that we are often tempted to rush through this time of uncertainty, but he cautions us to take our time – take time to mourn what we have left behind, take time to listen to God as we journey toward a new future, take time to receive what unexpected gifts there may be in store along the way. It is in this in-between time that we can be open to what God is doing in our midst and how God is preparing us for the future. Following William Bridges then, here are three stages in a transition – an ending, an in-between time, and a future new beginning. Each is important. The people of Israel needed to leave behind a life in Egypt and discover who they were as God’s people before they could enter the Promised Land. In the wilderness the seeds of the future were planted and began to grow. Bridges work is a very helpful model for thinking about the transitions in our lives – whether it be in our personal lives, our work lives or in our life as a church. I pray that this model might serve you as you navigate this journey as you prepare for an episcopal election. At the heart of any transition is the recognition that it is God who journeys with us, God who prepares the way, and God who goes before us. With Boethius, a 6th century Christian, we can pray: “To see thee is the end, and the beginning, Thou carriest us, and Thou dost go before, Thou art the journey, and the journey’s end.” Amen. Faithfully,
Archbishop John
Parish Life: Christ the King. Port Ed
The Caledonia Times Publication of the Diocese of Caledonia Publisher: The Diocese of Caledonia Editor: The Dean of Caledonia Associate Editor: Audrey Wagner
Published monthly, except July and August by: Diocese of Caledonia, 200 – 4th Avenue West Prince Rupert, BC V8J 1P3 (250) 635-6016 or (250) 600-7143 Address correspondence and copy to the address above. Or to caledoniatimes@gmail.com Submissions must be received by the first day of the month for the following month’s issue. Send subscription orders, address changes Diocese of Caledonia c/o Anglican Journal 80 Hayden St. Toronto, Ontario M4Y 3G2 On December 18th, the Parish of Christ the King, Port Edward, had a visit from Santa Claus. the Children received a gift from their visitor and the congregation enjoyed a great turkey dinner. Photo Creds to Nova Haggstrom.
Page 2
Printed and mailed by: Webnews Inc., North York, Ont.
Caledonia Times — February, 2017
offer to come and see him. We need to accpet his four fold way of living.
Skypilot Moments What desevers our amazement?
This is the time of the year in the Church, where the message of the kingdom gains its momentum. It is not what Jesus is teaching that is surprising people, it is how he is teaching it. He does not refer to other people. He does not have specific prayers, tricks or incantations. What Jesus has, is a simple and direct command to a demon or a sick or otherwise infirm person. No bargaining, no pleading. Just a simple command “Stop talking and come out of him,” or He aids them to rise up without a word.
Jesus’ teaching is declarative not just deliberative. His teaching declares the nearness of the presence of God and the kingdom and how things are in the presence of God rather than asking the people simply to believe that God cares. Jesus’ teaching doesn’t just talk about peace and healing – it becomes a reality the sight of the nation. Jesus preaching is the kind of teaching that breaks the boundaries of the old system which has benefited another kind of rule and allowed evil to thrive. The presence of God and the preaching of Jesus come to make God’s blessings flow “far as the curse (of sin and death) is found”. God has come in the person of Jesus, to break down all that entangles and ensures us and the rest of creation so that we can grow and flourish as we are created to. Jesus comes to show us the Father and to make known in people’s lives the healing and hope that exists because God desires us and wants us to love him. This season of Epiphany is a time for us to look at this very thing so that we are ready to enter into Lent and participate in Christ as he walks, suffers and dies and then rise again with him at Easter time. And because of this, we need to decide whether we can accept the way that life is around us, and live the status quo or if we are going to take the risk and believe in and follow Jesus to the cross; the same Jesus who is commissioned by
God to bring the life of the kingdom to the people of God who are in need of it. We are challenged by the message to discover if there is something more beyond what we have become familiar and satisfied with: to figure out what deserves our attention and amazement. One way to help us do that is to be in worship on a regular basis. We need worship, eucharistic worship to help us to deal with what is going on inside. Worship and prayer are the foundation of how God reorders our lives so that we can be free. The four fold action of the Eucharist (Take, bless, break and give) teaches us the order in which we are to live our lives. We receive and take for ourselves, what God has given – because the Father gives good gifts to his children. We bless what we have received because what is given, life and all it holds is sacred. We break it to savour all that the gift holds for us. Then we share it, because it is a matter of life and death for each and for all of us. Why is his important? Because many of us are still leading lives that are bound up by sin.We seem to think that we can take what we want and hoard it for ourselves; for personal use. And becuase we take what God has given us and withheld it, this creates sin through personal idolatries and shame at the misuse of what God has given us becuase it is holy.
We must learn to live in this fourfold way because lives within the Church and beyond the Church depend on it. We as the community of God’s faithful people need to learn it and live it whole heartedly precisely because when people come to the Church looking for, hoping for a miracle, they often leave frustrated because they think God isn’t listening or does not care. The Church needs to be apart of that miracle that so many in the world are looking for. We need to participate. We are Christ’s hands, his feet, his eyes and his voice. It is okay to be afraid. It is okay to not have it all down. It is okay to not have all the answers. We are not called to be God. You and I are called of God and are being drawn in to be witnesses of the power of God’s message of Good News because it is in us and through us, that others might be set free, physically and spiritually. Will you come and see him? Jason+
We need to renew the proper use of words like sin and idol. To often we use lesser words like sick, hurt or broken instead of sin and death. We have allowed our “stuff” our possessions and our lives to become personal idols. In turn, these idols have created personal and corporate hells for each of us which have separated us from God and from each other. The way out of this mess is to take up Jesus on his
Books on the Way By Ruby McBeth
children’s book is a treat for adults as well.
When I was a child my father took the sheep into the high mountain pastures for the summer. Sometimes Mom and us kids got to go too. I came to love the coolness and stillness - the untouched beauty of that high country. Paul Goble also appreciates the beauty of the high country. This famous illustrator of children’s books lives in the Black Hills area of South Dakota. He has shown his appreciation of God’s beauty in nature in his book Song of Creation. Goble’s watercolour drawings in this large format children’s book give us a view into his home area. If you haven’t heard of Paul Goble he is the author/ illustrator of several books featuring stories from Indians of the western United States. He won the Coldicott medal in 1979 for his book The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses.
An example will show the approach Goble has taken to this work. The first two page spread is covered with pictures: magpies, buffalo standing in dandelions, a marmot eating grass, a meadowlark singing, and a deer looking out of a grove of birches as well as a few butterflies flying around. The main writing (in a fairly large print) says the familiar: “O all you works of the Lord, bless you the Lord: praise him and magnify him forever.” Then on these two pages in smaller print we read: “O you magpies bless you the Lord: praise him and magnify him forever”, O you dandelions..., O you meadowlarks.... and the author’s dedication: “O all my ancestors bless you the Lord...” As Goble states in a note opposite the cover page, while he is true to the original song he adds where it suits his purpose. He also deletes some lines and changes the order somewhat. The illustrations are whimsical and charming. They show a nonthreatening world of plants and animals, birds and fish - no people and no pollution. This is a book definitely suitable for children. Even on the last page which begins “O let all people bless the Lord” and gives four verses about people, the background picture is of a mountain in winter with snow falling - serene and untouched by man.
Song of Creation is Paul Goble’s interpretation of “The Song of the Three Young Men” from the Apocryphal additions to the book of Daniel. This hymn appears in the Book of Common Prayer as the canticle called the “Benedicite.” In this book Goble is reconnecting with his early years. He was born in England and went to a Church of England school in Oxford. His mother was a professional musician. Goble has linked the praise of creation written over 2,000 years ago in the Middle East with his own praise of creation in his backyard in America. The resulting book while written as a Caledonia Times — February, 2017
ommended for reading to children. This would be an ideal gift for a godparent to give at a child’s baptism. Also recommended to seasoned Anglican choir people who remember this canticle from the days when we used the Book of Common Prayer. Like the reviewer they can hum along as they turn the pages. Goble, Paul. Song of Creation. Grand Rapids, Michagan: Eerdmans, 2004.
Paul Goble has produced a beautiful picture book which truly is an artistic “Song of Creation.” RecPage 3
Wider Church Life: Canada in brief by Tali Folkins, Journal Staff
—Saskatchewan Anglican
Canada’s first female archdeacon remembered as ‘pioneering saint’
New Brunswick Anglican couple asks for prayers for toddler son
The Rev. Betty Garrett, a Saskatchewan priest recognized as a trailblazer for female Anglican clergy in Canada, died Nov. 17 at a hospital in Moosomin, Sask. She was 87.
A New Brunswick priest and his wife are asking for prayers after brain surgery on their three-year-old son this fall delivered mixed results.
“Betty Garrett will be remembered as one of the pioneering saints of the Diocese of Qu’Appelle,” said Bishop Rob Hardwick, at a funeral for Garrett held in Moosomin Nov. 25. Hardwick was quoting Archbishop David Ashdown, former metropolitan of Rupert’s Land. “The way she patterned ministry has prepared the way for women in the church.” Garrett was ordained a deacon in 1975, then became the diocese of Qu’Appelle’s first female priest in 1979. In 1992, she became the first female archdeacon in Canada. Garrett was born Betty Maud Hawkins in rural Saskatchewan, and grew up on a small family farm. She is said to have preached to her dolls and chickens as a child. She attended high school in Moose Jaw and Edmonton. In 1949, she began studies in theology at the Anglican Women’s Training College in Toronto. Garrett also studied at Wycliffe College, University of Toronto, but was unable to earn a degree because she was a woman. She moved back to Saskatchewan, where she met and married Bob Garrett, a rancher and church warden. The couple had five children, two of whom died before reaching adulthood. Garrett was made an honorary fellow of Saskatoon’s College of Emmanuel and St. Chad in 1993. She retired in 1994, but remained active in the church.
Surgeons operating on Colin Ranson Nov. 18 at Texas Children’s Hospital were unable to completely remove a tumor in his brain. However, he did seem to experience a lessening in the frequency of seizures associated with the tumour, according to his family. The family is now waiting to see whether Colin’s seizures return, in which case he will need more surgery. Colin had flown to Texas accompanied by his brother, his sister and his parents, Kimberly and the Rev. Paul Ranson, rector at St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church in Fredericton. The hospital is considered a centre of excellence in the treatment of Pallister-Hall Syndrome, a rare condition from which Colin suffers, which has led to the growth of the tumour and the seizures. Colin had already undergone surgery for the tumour in March, when doctors succeeded in removing part of it. Both trips were funded partly by a gift of $170,000 from the diocese, the result of a fundraising campaign for Colin. The money helped with the cost of the surgery as well as accommodation, meals and time off work. The New Brunswick government also paid some medical costs. The Ransons are asking for continued prayers for Colin. —The New Brunswick Anglican
Day 1 and every day) THE ARCHBISHOP: The Most Rev. John Privett, acting Bishop. 3) PORT EDWARD: The Congregation of Christ The King. The Rev. Sam Lewis, Priest in Charge, The Revs. Thelma Hill, Yvonne Hill, Anthony Adams, Associate Priests; for the Wardens, Lay Readers, and Church Army Officers.
Work to retrofit at least 20 more homes in the beleaguered Indigenous community of Pikangikum, Ont. is set to begin this spring, partly as a result of efforts by the Anglican Church of Canada’s relief and development arm. The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF) will be partnering with Habitat for Humanity Manitoba, non-profit organization that provides homes for people who would be otherwise unable to afford them, to install water facilities and retrofit homes in the community early next year. The work involves, among other things, installing water holding tanks, water heaters, pumps and fixtures for bathrooms and kitchen sinks. In addition, seven young people in the community will receive training in plumbing and electricity. The work is the second phase of a project begun by PWRDF in 2012; the first saw 10 homes retrofitted with new water facilities and the training of six community members as full-time plumbers and
electricians.
Pikangikum made national news headlines in 2008 after a series of youth suicides. Within two years, 16 people in the community between the ages of 10 and 19 committed suicide. In 2011, a group of volunteers was formed to provide help to the community, which also suffers from poor access to clean water. Most homes have had to rely on outdoor taps for water and outhouses instead of indoor toilets. The federal government estimated it would cost $180,000 to supply each home with water, but the Anglican-supported Pikangikum First Nation Working Group has been able to retrofit homes at a cost of $20,000 each. PWRDF has raised $400,000 for this and other work in Pikangikum.
—The Messenger
Updates to the Diocesan Prayer List Please note the following changes to the Diocesan Prayer List for some of the days of the Calendar. They are as follows:
PWRDF to retrofit 20 more homes in Pikangikum,
Comic Life
22) RETIRED CLERGY: Lance Stephens, Mike Monkman, Lorna Janze, Peter Hamel, Mary Parslow, Charlie Parslow, Fay Lavallee, Ray Fletcher, Bishop William Anderson. 23) HONORARY CANONS: Lance Stephens, Peter Hamel, James Nuzzo, Gary Davis; HONORARY LAY CANONS: Jennifer Davies, Camilla Haines, Eleanor Kustas, Audrey Bennett.
21) DIOCESAN EXECUTIVE, THE SEARCH COMMITTEE AND ALL OTHER DIOCESAN COMMITTEES
Page 4
Caledonia Times — February, 2017