News

I vividly recall watching Nelson Mandela being released from the Victor Verster Prison near Cape Town after being transferred from Robben Island, where he was incarcerated for 27 years. That day, in 1990, the nation and the world were glued to television sets with joyful but uncertain anticipation…

The Brookline Food Pantry, housed at St. Paul's Church in Brookline, is experiencing the busiest era in its history as demand continues to skyrocket, according to a Brookline Tab story posted at Wicked Local Brookline.  Recent cuts to the food stamps program may make matters worse, food pantry…

Inspired by the Gospel imperative to feed the hungry, the food pantry at St. Martin's Church in New Bedford has grown to serve 150 families a month, SouthCoastToday.com reports.  "Hunger doesn't seem to be ending," food pantry director Libby Davenport says in the story. "It does affect…

As part of their Christmas gift giving this year, members of the Church of the Good Shepherd in Watertown are turning off lights in unused rooms, air drying laundry and carpooling--just a few of the relatively inexpensive carbon-emission-saving acts that are part of the parish's holiday Give-to-the…

A friend of mine, the rector of a lively parish, tells the story of an older parishioner, a reserved Episcopalian who never spoke of her faith publicly, but who had shared with her priest a dramatic moment of God's spirit in her life. The rector (of course!) tried to get her to share this…

Marcus Garraud remembers waking up and knowing that Santa came, and how excited he was to open presents on Christmas morning. As part of the Christmas Presents Project for Kids (CPPK) at St. Stephen’s Church in Lynn, he wants to help make sure that every child in Lynn has gifts to open on Christmas…

12/06/2013:  Bishop Suffragan Gayle E. Harris and retired bishops suffragan Bud Cederholm and Barbara C. Harris issued the following statement today in remembrance of Nelson Mandela: With breaking hearts, love and prayers, we join with millions upon…

On the nine evenings leading up to Christmas, one group of Episcopalians will be gathering in homes to sing, pray and share a meal. Gathering around a nativity scene, they will meditate and pray in preparation for Christmas. This is Las Posadas and the Novena, traditional Advent festivals from…

Pope Francis (real name: Jorge Mario Bergoglio) has shaken up the Catholic church with some plain speaking about faith and about life in the 21st century. He has had an impact on other faiths, as well. Welcome to “pope envy.”I first encountered the term in an essay by Jana Riess, a liberal Mormon…

Updated 12/09/2013:  Bishop Tom Shaw was released from the hospital this afternoon and has returned home to the monastery.  He has reiterated his appreciation for continued prayers, as well as the cards and notes that continue to buoy his spirits. …