Operation Noah Ash Wednesday Declaration

The Ash Wednesday Declaration was launched by Operation Noah, a British Group.  Our Anglican Environmental Network asked that it be distributed so that others might be encouraged to join in.  I present their statement with a link to the declaration.

Climate change and the purposes of God: a call to the Church

Operation Noah launched The Ash Wednesday Declaration on 22nd February 2012 at the start of the Christian season of Lent. The Declaration, written by Operation Noah’s theology think tank, challenges the church to realise that care for God’s creation – and concern about climate change – is foundational to the Christian gospel and central to the church’s mission.

Operation Noah see this Declaration as a call of considerable significance. It marks a definitive line for the church: if we are Christians these are key issues which we need to respond to – as individuals, as local churches and as a national Church.

Here http://www.operationnoah.org/ you can:

•  Read the full Text of the Declaration,
• Download the Declaration in various forms (or order copies), and
•  Sign the Declaration for yourself, your church or organization

If you are inspired to take this further, the Theology Resources section provides a wide range of theological resources to unpack the significance of this Declaration with bible study and sermons, while our For Churches section gives you ideas on how to introduce the Declaration and its significance to your church fellowship.

Just one idea for a Lenten focus!

Blessings,

+Greg

Southern Philippines, February 7 and 8, 2012

Dear Ones,

February 7th was one of the most spectacular days and at the end, one of the saddest.  I probably shot more film on this day than any other, but for some reason, when I got back to the house that night, no films on the camera.   They were there throughout the day so something happened, most likely operator error, but I am still sick about it.   The people I met this day, and the projects we saw were really special and I hate that I lost most of it visually.  But I do have it in my mind and heart and will try to give you what I can that way.

On February 7th we arose early, that was about every day, and we headed to Upi, Maguindanao a long municipality outside of Cotabato City.   As we got out onto the street to take the two of us and the car to our drivers house, the truck stopped, in the middle of the busy streets I have shown you, but the Bishop got it going and soon we were on our way.  The truck tried to continue to die during the day, but in the end, we made it through a long day!

First stop was St. Francis School, Upi.  This municipality is where the largest concentration of Episcopalians reside in the Southern Philippines.  An American soldier from Boston, Captain Irving Bryant Edwards, an Episcopalian, planted churches all over this area.  He is well known and revered.  His statue and name you will find in many places.   There are about 40 churches in all, served right now by ONE priest.  There are a few more at St. Francis.  There are only 26 priests in this whole diocese!

St. Francis School has the full 10 grades, with about 600 students.  Like most of the schools here the students are predominantly Muslim. Due to the truck problem we were late for the flag ceremony where we were supposed to join, but the principal brought the kids out again and I addressed them for a short time, taking questions afterward.  The first one of which was “How old are you?”  I asked the young man back, “how old do you think I am”  After looking at me for a while, he said, 57!   That will teach me to ask!

We had a good time there and then moved to see several tree planting projects and meeting the families and farmers along the way.  Eventually we made our way back to St. Francis for a tour of the Rice Dryer and the site right behind it for the proposed Rubber Tree Nursery, which we, Olympia, hope to have a major part of.  The Rice Dryer is very successful and ERD was a major player in this.  It now employs 7 people and it offers a much less expensive alternative to farmers in the area.  It is sustainable as well, and well run.   Bong, the outreach and development coordinator on Bishop Bustamante’s staff was instrumental in this and will be in the nursery as well.  I interviewed him the next day about this, after the Flip was working again, and that movie is below, about 5 minutes long.

Southern Philippines, February 5th and 6th, 2012

Dear Ones,

On Sunday, February 5th, after a good breakfast at the Hotel Lantanka in Zamboanga, we headed to the Church of the Good Shepherd in that same city.  This was the parish where Bishop Bustamante was Rector when he was elected bishop and the town where he grew up.   On this day it was my great honor to preach, at his invitation, and it was the place we would sign the new covenant we have just entered into.   We did that in the course of our worship and I sent the video of that out in my first post of the Philippines.

Afterwards, we were treated to another great feast, and more music, and good fellowship, and then Bishop Bustamante and I headed for the airport for out trip to Davao.  We took Cebu Airlines this time, and although a bit behind they did get us there, across to the more eastern part of the island with not too much delay.  We had to fly through Manila, and then connect, about 1.5 hours on each flight.

I should explain now that the Diocese of the Southern Philippines will be splitting in two, officially announced at the convention at the end of this month.  Davao will be the Cathedral City of the new diocese.  We flew in and were hosted by the St. Philip and St. James Parish which is also part of the Davao Episcopal Mission Center, which is a very nice retreat center/meeting center, with rooms for a good size group.  We spent a very restful night here.  Davao and surrounding area is known for its rich agriculture and especially fruit.  I ate things here I have never seen before and they were excellent!  We had a very good meeting with the Vestry and leadership, then to bed.

The Southern Philippines Post Report: Day 1 and 2

I arrived in Manila on their February 2nd, Western Washington’s February 1st.   I was met by Betsy Reodica and Fray DeGay, both employed by the National Episcopal Church of the Philippines.  They were so gracious and saw me to my hotel, the Sulo Hotel, which I was very glad to see.   I had a good first night and good breakfast, then off to the national offices to meet with the Prime Bishop Edward Malecdan and his staff.  After a good sharing that morning, we all went to lunch together and then Fray took me back to the airport for my plane trip, 1.5 hours south to Zamboanga City.   Unfortunately, it was delayed more than two hours, but we did finally take off.

The first thing I could not help but notice was that, on a Airbus 320, I was the only Anglo face.  This was an experience I was going to have quite a bit, and it was daunting at times, but also quite good for me.  I think of those among us that have to deal with the same every day, in some form or fashion.   This is made so by many things but mostly by the fact that this part of the Philippines is now under several travel warnings.  In fact, the most recent one on the State Department Website regarding Philippines mentions most of the areas I traveled and stayed in as places where Americans are discouraged from traveling.

All of that aside, I was warmly welcomed by Bishop Bustamante and some of his staff at the airport. They had gotten special permission to enter the airport secured area to meet me right off the plane.  We had a good evening meal and then off to my first night in the Lantanka Hotel, on the water.  And old but venerable place.  I was well taken care of here.  The next morning I was up early and picked up by Bong, another staff member and excellent driver for us during my stay, and taken to Brent School, named after Charles Henry Brent, the first missionary bishop to the Philippines after the US acquired the islands in the Spanish-American War.  Brent set up many schools and his name is on many of them.  Brent School is Zamboanga is Chaired by Bishop Bustamante, and I was fortunate to be there for the 98th Anniversary of the school.  So, an early morning Eucharist, breakfast with diocesan clergy and school staff.

After that, Bishop Bustamante chaired the Board meeting as several area residents and clergy took me up to see several tree planting environmental projects they put on steep hillsides to mitigate earlier slash and burn tactics.  The local parish and diocese worked extensively with local farmers to help in this area.   We also visited the Church of the Good Shepherd in Zamboanga where I would preach the next morning and where Bishop Bustamante and I would sign the covenant I posted last night.  I had a scrumptious lunch, the first of many great meals, in the gazebo at Good Shepherd, where this is also a school, all 10 grades, with about 400 students.

With a full stomach and still reeling from jet lag I was blessedly given a chance to rest a bit at the hotel and this also gave me time to work on my sermon.  In late afternoon I was picked up again for a dinner at Brent School and then a front row seat at the Faculty Appreciation and 98th Anniversary Show!  There are videos below of some of the truly great acts put on by students and faculty.   Wonderful night!  So much fun!  After a later night than we first thought, back to the hotel for a night’s rest.

More tomorrow!

Blessings,

+Greg

The Book for Lent, 2012

Dear Ones,

As you well know over the last few years I have selected a book to encourage our diocese to read together.  This year I have a novel idea, no pun intended.  My book selection for the Lent is ….the Bible.  As Episcopalians, we hear the Bible, if in church, quite frequently, but putting it in a continuous context, focusing on it more as to story and study, and increasing our biblical literacy, we do not often major in that.  This would be my hope in our journey in Lent.   I have to say I was inspired by a new project I was invited into, The Center for Biblical Studies, started by the Rev. Merek Zibriskie, Episcopal priest and Rector of St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church, Fort Washington, PA,  The basic focus of this Center is described by them as the following:

The Center for Biblical Studies has designed a one-year reading schedule to help those who commit as individuals or as members of a church, a church school or a diocese to read successfully through the entire Bible in a year’s time.  The CBS intentionally focuses on reading the entire Bible, reading the books of the Bible in sequence and ensuring that a psalm and a portion of the New Testament are read each day in order to provide strong spiritual daily content to sustain readers working through the entire Bible.

A New Covenant with the Southern Philippines

There’s a cowboy in the jungle

And he looks so out of place

With his shrimpskin boots and his cheap Cheroots

And his skin as white as paste…Jimmy Buffett

Over the last 10 days, I have been in the Philippines.  I am sure there are many questions why, and so today, and in the days to come I want to answer that question in as much detail as I can.  This actually goes all the way back to the last General Convention when I met Floyd Lawlet, National Development Officer for the Episcopal Church in the Philippines.  He briefly stated that he hoped we could develop a closer relationship between the Diocese of Olympia and the Church in the Philippines.  From there Mike Schutt, Environmental Officer for the Episcopal Church, who resides in Seattle, got into the picture posing a possible companion relationship based on the environment.  One day, along the way, I received an email from the Rt. Rev. Danilo Bustamante, Bishop of the Southern Philippines, hoping we might explore a partnership.

Over the last two years we have emailed often, we have visited, first JB Hoover and Nancy McConnell of our Diocesan Committee on the Environment, and then in this last week or so, finally, me.  The Diocese of the Southern Philippines is basically the entire island of Mindanao, which if you read State Department briefings, is clearly on the list of places Americans should not visit or travel.  That is understood when you are there, and yet they yearn for connection.  The Cathedral and Bishop’s residence, where I stayed for two nights, is in Cotobato City, which is currently under a state of emergency due to bombings and unrest due to Muslim extremists.  Bishop Bustamante was always very understanding of this, and clear as well, and yet also committed to providing security and a good experience of the diversity and great energy of the diocese.  This is exactly what I experienced.

In the Diocese of the Southern Philippines the environmental concerns are many with two specific concerns, great deforestation and mining, which both are taking a toll on the land.  You may remember the recent floods, which were in EDSP, and much of the landslide and death experienced in that event, which had never happened before in that region, occurred because of climate change, whatever its cause, and the affects of mining.  EDSP has been a leader in the area in planting trees especially and reclaiming land for the good.

Our relationship had to start with some stark realities, not the least of which is the security situation there, but also the restriction on travel by those residing there.  It is not at all easy for them to come see us here.  The other reality is ours to own, that being that the harm we cause the environment is so great, the magnitude of which makes some there less willing to mitigate their damage.   We have worked on that, and have developed a covenant which calls on us to reduce our carbon footprint and calls on EDSP to increase their efforts in tree planting.

So, in these last days that is where I have traveled and learned, and have seen so many of their projects of the past, projects ongoing now, and the plans and dreams for projects of the future.

I was so inspired by the people.  I come home with new friends and excited for the possibility of this relationship for the years to come.  I decided, due to the lack of internet connection in some places, and the need to focus my time and energy, not to try to blog during the trip, but do intend, over these next days, to relive it day by day on this blog.  I hope, in those days, to introduce you to this remarkable place, serving our Lord in difficult circumstance, but with great joy and commitment.  This will come in story, video, and pictures.

Today, I begin with two videos of the signing of the covenant between Olympia and EDSP.  This occurred last Sunday at Church of the Good Shepherd in Zamboanga City.    I will never be able to fully convey to you how meaningful my presence, and that prior of JB and Nancy, were to our brothers and sisters there or how meaningful it was to them to actually sign a companion document in their diocese, where in all other cases it had happened somewhere else.

I quoted the lyrics at the beginning of this writing from one of my favorite songs, that, in a way, came true on this trip.  At one point Bishop Dan declared me a “cowboy”, I am sure mostly because of my accent, but there it was, and my skin, now living in this part of the world, is surely white as paste, and I started this trip feeling very much out of place, but it certainly did not end that way!

So, I give you the first videos

Marriage Equality: A Conservative Proposal

It is expected that our Washington state legislators will very soon, perhaps even tomorrow begin floor deliberations on HB2516 & SB6239 with the Senate to begin.  Passage of these bills or a version of them would make same sex marriage law in our state.   Our Episcopal Church, after a long discussion about this over the years is poised to do roughly the same this summer at our General Convention.

While I am careful about wading into our legislator’s business, I would say this is the church’s business too.  I have been asked by many about my feelings on it, and I have decided to share them.  The ideas are not new,  I have shared them openly in the walk-abouts before becoming your bishop and in many venues before and since.

Christianity has held, when considering relationships of all sorts, but especially in relation to two people in marriage, fidelity to be our value.   Fidelity is the value in most all our sacraments and also in our life as Christians.

It seems to me we have held our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters in a “catch-22″.  We say they cannot live up to our value because they cannot be married, or even blessed in their union.  While many of them have begged for this, it is still not possible.    What they ask of us, the church and the government, is to put boundaries around their relationship, to hold them in the same regard and with the same respect, which would also mean that we expect the same from them.  They are not asking for special treatment.  They are asking for equal treatment.   They are asking to be accountable, as a couple, in community.  To me, this is a conservative proposal.  I am for it, and I hope we will finally make way for this to happen, not only in our society, but also in our church.

Faithfully,

The Rt. Rev. Gregory H. Rickel