News

More than 200 people from St. Peter's [in South Dartmouth] and St. Martin's in New Bedford gathered at the church for the first Breakfast With Santa organized by Pastor Scott Ciosek. "We just wanted to do something to bring families together. I think it's one of the things the world needs more of,…

I grew up in a family that bought the Christmas tree, brought out the Christmas decorations, and whipped the house into holiday splendor on Christmas Eve. Our trees often looked like Charlie Brown trees because the good ones had already found homes by the time we shopped; sometimes we even got the…

12/16/2013:  The Standing Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts today sent the following update to clergy, wardens, Diocesan Convention deputies and leadership of the diocese.“The Night Is Far Gone; The Day Is Near.Let Us Then Lay Aside The Works Of DarknessAnd Put On The Armor…

The Vineyard Gazette features the Rev. Robert Hensley, Rector of Grace Church in Vineyard Haven, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood.  To seekers, he says it "doesn’t matter where you’re coming from or where you’re going or how many times you’ve been…

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…