Episcopal Diocese of Albany

Business Office: 68 South Swan Street - Albany, NY 12210 - (518) 465-4737
Christ the King Spiritual Life Center: 575 Burton Road - Greenwich, NY 12834 - (518) 692-9550

January 3, 2009

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I pray that you and your family are having a blessed and joyful Christmas and New Year. I am a firm believer in celebrating all twelve days of Christmas. (It usually takes me that long to get all the Christmas Cards mailed, which I must admit I was negligent in sending out this year.) The kids and I began our Christmas celebration at the Cathedral of All Saints where I was honored to celebrate and preach at the early Christmas Eve Service. The children's Christmas Pageant was outstanding. Bishop Ball did a great job as a shepherd. Christmas morning, the kids and I enjoyed a quiet Christmas service at The Church of the Good Shepherd in Chestertown. Karen was not able to join us until the day after Christmas, having been in Nashville with her mom and dad, due to her father, Fabian's illness. He died shortly after Karen returned home. This Christmas has been both joyful as well as somewhat sad. Yet even in the times of sadness, there is a joy knowing that we are not going through it alone. God is with us, as we are so wonderfully reminded by the remembrance of the birth of God's Son, our Lord Jesus Christ and the never ceasing blessing of God's love as revealed in so many ways through His Son and the presence of the Holy Spirit. We are so blessed to have a God that loves us so much that He would go to such extraordinary means to be with us and ultimately to save us.

I am writing this update, looking out upon a beautiful white canopy of fresh fallen snow at our home near Loon Lake. Karen and the kids and I have been richly blessed having been able to spend most of the past week hibernating together, enjoying long walks in the snow, visiting around the dinner table, playing board games, laughing and enjoying one another's company, listening to Christmas music, reading and praying together, catching up on being apart so much of the rest of the year. As with many this year, we tried to cut down on the amount of material gifts we shared. In so doing, we began what I hope will become a regular Christmas tradition. As many of you know, I have often said that the greatest gift we can share with others is the gift of faith and God's love. This year our family decided to put that into practice in a very real and special way. Christmas night, we sat around the Christmas tree with all the lights out, except those on the tree, and shared with each other a special moment or experience where Christ touched our heart and soul and mind in a very real way, helping us to grow in faith and love for the Lord. We each took turns sharing our story. It turned out to be one of the most special parts of our Christmas celebration. I heard stories and learned things about my kids that I didn't know. Sharing our faith story can be such a blessing to others as well as our selves.

While giving thanks to God for the many blessings my family and I have, I am very conscious that many in our own Diocese as well as brothers and sisters in Christ from around the world are far less fortunate. Difficult economic times have taken their toll. Illness and loss of family have also been a real burden and struggle for many. I have been particularly grieved by the reports coming out of the Diocese of Maridi in Southern Sudan, as well as those from the Diocese of Jos in Nigeria, where our brothers and sisters in Christ have come under attack and persecution, primarily because of their faith in Christ. Following is an excerpt from an email I just received from Bishop Justin Badi, Bishop of our sister diocese of Maridi:

"Last night (January 1st) the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army) came in Nzumara village which is three miles south of Maridi town. They chopped seven people to death, destroyed properties, tortured people and have taken over twenty to the bush. It is a very miserable situation here in Maridi. We very much value your prayers for us."

Bishop Justin and his wife, Joyce, visited the Diocese of Albany a few years ago and attended our Diocesan Convention. Karen and I were blessed with being able to spend time with them last summer at Lambeth.

In a similar report, Archbishop Ben Kwashi, Archbishop of Jos, recently spoke of the attacks directed primarily against Christians in and around Jos, a few weeks ago. He stated, "From amongst our own members, nine were killed, eight injured, 42 adults displaced, three churches destroyed, 56 homes destroyed or looted, 57 businesses destroyed or looted, and 26 vehicles destroyed." Archbishop Ben has stated that much of the reporting on the situation in Jos by international media is inaccurate and full of propaganda. Like Bishop Justin and Joyce, Archbishop Ben and his wife Gloria are also friends of the Diocese of Albany. We were greatly blessed by their visit and powerful testimony at last summer's Diocesan Convention.

I ask all the clergy and laity of the Diocese of Albany to join me in fasting and holding our brothers and sisters in Christ from the dioceses of Maridi and Jos up in prayer, asking our Lord Jesus Christ to send His holy angels to watch over, protect and minister to them. May the Holy Spirit come upon them mightily, giving them the strength, courage, wisdom, comfort and faith they so desperately need during this very difficult and uncertain time. May the Lord give them His perfect peace. Amen!

In addition to praying and fasting, I would invite anyone who can, to make a financial gift in support of the people of the Dioceses of Maridi and Jos. All financial gifts may be sent to the Diocese of Albany individually or through your parish. Upon receipt at the Diocesan Office, they will be forwarded to special accounts that have been set up for the two Dioceses. Please make all checks out to the Diocese of Albany, annotating in the memo section what it is for. Any gift you can make is greatly appreciated.

In a few days, on January 6th, The Feast of the Epiphany, we will shift our attention from the celebration of Christmas - the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, God incarnate, to the Epiphany - the manifestation of Christ. I challenge each of us to seek the Lord's guidance in knowing how we might do a better job manifesting or making known the love and Good News of Jesus Christ, in this broken and hurting world in which we live. Questions we might want to ponder: Do we take our faith and relationship with Jesus Christ seriously? Do we truly appreciate all that Christ has done for us? How are we living out the Great Commandment and the Great Commission? When we speak of one's faith, we are truly speaking of life and death issues! The state of our soul and that of our loved ones is at stake. I encourage each parish and each individual in the Diocese of Albany to do all we can through the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit to make known the love and Good News of Jesus Christ to ALL people, those we like as well as those we may struggle with.

One of the most important and effective ways we can help people grow in their faith is in and through relationships. To assist us along those lines, I have invited Dr. Joel Comiskey, a gifted author and leading authority on Bible studies and small group ministry to come and lead a two-day seminar entitled, "How to Use Small Groups to Grow Your Church Both Spiritually and Numerically." The seminar will be held Monday and Tuesday, January 12th and 13th at Christ the King Spiritual Life Center. Clergy and lay leaders from each parish are invited and encouraged to come. If you have not already registered on line at http://www.albanyepiscopaldiocese.org/news/events/2009calendar.html , please do so as soon as possible. Small group ministry is one of the best ways to build relationships and help people grow in their faith. Dr. Comiskey has much that we can learn. Please join me for the conference. Financial assistance is available. Don't let the lack of funds keep you from coming.

Speaking of lack of funds, as we all know, the U.S. and world economy has taken a major down turn, creating great financial difficulty and stress for many in our parishes and local communities. Not only can financial difficulties lead to problems paying the bills, but financial stress can lead to a number of other problems as well, not the least of which are marriage and family issues as well as health concerns. As Christians, we have a responsibility to help those less fortunate as best we can, through the grace of God. One of the best ways the Church can help others during these difficult economic times is to help one another be better stewards of that which we do have. If your parish is not currently offering the Crown Financial Ministries Ten Week Study, I encourage you as strongly as possible, to do so, or join forces with another nearby parish in offering it. I have not heard one person who has completed the program say they wished they had not taken it. But rather, they have spoken of what a blessing it has been in their life. If you and your parish truly want to make a difference, helping people during these difficult economic times - offer Crown Ministries. If you have a better program, please share it. The important thing is to do something and not just talk about how difficult things are. In so doing, you may very well help someone, perhaps your self, keep food on the table, have a warm place to come home to, cut down on family stress and save a marriage, not to mention help one to grow in faith, learning to trust God in ways they had never been able to before.

On one final note concerning finances, I want to say a very special thank you to all of you who have and continue to give so generously to the Church in support of God's work. Each of our parishes, the diocese and the larger Church are blessed through the generous giving of your time, talent and financial resources. I am very appreciative to those parishes who have paid their assessments in full. I am all too aware that for some it was truly a sacrificial gift. THANK YOU!. I would encourage those who have not yet honored your assessments, to do all that you can to do so. The books for 2008 will be closed out this next week. Again all your efforts are greatly appreciated.

I give thanks to God for each of you, my brothers and sisters in Christ. May the Light of Christ shine forth brightly in and through each of us as we approach The Epiphany.

Faithfully in Christ's Love,
+Bill

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