• Those who are sick, suffering, or in need: Lorelei, Rhea, Paul, Bob, Jen, Alexandra, Anne and Roger, Iona, and Greta.
• Those who have died and those who mourn.
• Archbishop Sixbert and the Diocese of Buyé (Updated list of Twinned Parishes).  
• Our relations in Christ from Treaty 6 and Treaty 8 First Nations, from the Métis Nation of Alberta, and from the Métis Settlements in Alberta.
• Click here if you would like someone's name included in this prayer list. We will use first names only. Names are kept on the list for two weeks unless intentionally renewed.

Please hold Bishop Stephen London in your prayers as he serves parishes throughout the diocese and connects with our partners and friends beyond the diocese.

• February 5: St. Faith's, Edmonton
• February 7-9: Clergy Conference
• February 12: St. Matthew's, St. Albert
• Feburary 19: Holy Trinity, Edson
• February 26: St. Peter's Filipino Congregation at St. Matthias', Edmonton

Tuesday of this week (January 31) was Thomas Merton’s birthday. To say that he was influential for me would be a vast understatement. It is because of Thomas Merton that I am a Christian today. In my early 20’s, for a whole host of reasons, I was angry at God, angry at the church, angry at the presentation of the Gospel that I had been given in religious school and had walked away from the church several years before. Then one day I was browsing in a used bookstore and noticed a book by an author I didn’t know named Thomas Merton....

Walk through Lent with Bishop Steve as he explores the call to justice at the core of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Every Wednesday in March, from 7:00-8:00pm, Bishop Steve will guide discussions of biblical justice as we hear stories from people doing justice work and discover ways to practice justice in our own lives. POSTER

World Interfaith Harmony Week gets underway Wednesday, February 1. This is an annual observance of the UN first proposed in 2010. Bishop Steve would like to encourage all in the diocese to connect with WIHW resources and take part in local activities.

Visit the Edmonton Interfaith Centre website for information on a series of events at various times during the week.

The Venerable Susan Oliver, Archdeacon for Children, Family and Youth Ministries, will lead two training sessions for Sunday school teachers, youth leaders and all who work with children and youth in parishes. We will discuss Safe Church best practices and how to keep our children safe while in our church spaces and involved in church activities. These training sessions will be held via Zoom on February 14 at 1 pm, here is the Zoom link; and February 15 at 7 pm, here is the Zoom link. Please let the synod office (churched@edmonton.anglican.ca) know if you will be attending by Friday, February 10. 

St. Timothy’s Anglican Church celebrated the confirmation of two of its members on Sunday, January 30th. Bishop Stephen London was pleased to confirm both Linda Payne and Gillian Appleyard. “One of the great things about confirmation,” says the Bishop, “is hearing people’s stories of why they want to come forward to be confirmed in the faith. They come from different backgrounds and every story is unique. I always appreciate it when people have the courage to confirm their faith publicly. And I think it re-grounds all of us in our faith as well.”

Download the February 2023 edition of The Messenger or view it online as a flipbook.

Click here to receive a print subscription to The Messenger or to change your subscription address. The Messenger and Anglican Journal are mailed to subscribers for a suggested donation of $15/year.

The Messenger welcomes story ideas, opinions (Letter to Editor) and photo submissions relating to news and events of the Athabasca and Edmonton dioceses. Written content should be limited to 500 words. Pictures must be high resolution, a minimum of 1 MB (300 dpi), and include the photographer's name and a brief description of the subject matter.

Note: The Messenger is published 10 times/year. Please send submissions for the April 2023 edition to anglicanmessenger@gmail.com by March 1.

Clergy of the Diocese of Edmonton will gather for their annual conference February 7-9. They will engage in training and dialogue on how to identify the cause and impacts of racism and how to address racism in the context of parish life and ministry. The theme is: Respecting the Dignity of Every Human Being: Equipping Clergy to Build Anti-Racist Communities. This is the first time clergy have been able to gather for a conference since the clergy retreat held in January 2020.

Archdeacon Jordan invites you to join our Wednesday morning Lectionary Bible Study, which began last week. Each week we will study the readings for the upcoming Sunday. This is a great time to really lean into the lessons of our services, to connect more deeply with our traditions and practices, and reflect on why these particular readings might have been selected. Lectionary Bible Study will be happening shortly after our Wednesday Eucharist service and coffee hour. You are welcome to stop by for the service at 9:00 am, and join us for coffee and fellowship before the bible study starts at 11:00 am. Good Shepherd Anglican Church is located at 15495 Castle Downs Road in Edmonton.

Immanuel ACW is presenting "Stepping Outside the Shadows: Domestic Violence -The Ongoing Pandemic" on Saturday, February 11, from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm. Learn more about domestic violence, associated behaviours and helping someone in trouble… and what we can do to lead change. Guest presenters to include:

• Jill Shillibeer & Joe Campbell, Alberta Council on Women’s Shelters
• Helga Edwards, Domestic Violence and the Church
• Gloria Rogers, Moss Bag Teachings and Indigenous Peoples
• Nora-Lee Rear, Camrose Women’s Shelter Society

For tickets ($20 each), contact Fiona at 780-312-9070. POSTER

This group meets on the third Monday of the month at 2:00 pm at Good Shepherd Anglican Church, 15495 Castle Downs Road, Edmonton. From Greek, Klaio means to mourn, weep, or lament. Grief and loss are difficult burdens to carry, and the support of others can help lighten the load. Klaio is a drop-in, grief support group open to all members of the community who are coping with loss. If you are looking to connect with others to share your experiences with grief and loss, please join us. The next meeting is on February 20. 

Join us for one of two Lenten Quiet Days that will be held on Zoom and led by Sister Doreen of the SSJD. These will be held February 25 and March 4. The registration deadlines for each respectively will be February 18 and February 25. Our theme will be the deep desire to listen to the call to be more of myself: to be prayer, to be gift, to be whole. Email Dorothy Dahli at dorothydahli@shaw.ca to sign up. Zoom information will be forwarded by email once registrations are complete. POSTER

Last year at the beginning of Lent we began the diocesan Remembering the Children weaving project. At the summer solstice, National Indigenous Peoples Day, we blessed the finished project at a special service at the Cathedral. We now have the weaving available to visit parishes. You might think the only good time to have the weaving visit your parish is in September or October. Not true! Anytime you want to deepen your parish's connection to the ministry of reconciliation in our diocese is a good time to do it. Please contact Fiona at f.brownlee@edmonton.anglican.ca for more information or to ask if a particular date is available.

Let us help you promote your upcoming event in Synod Scene, our weekly e-newsletter to clergy, parishes and subscribers. Please click the link to the form below to tell us about your event (ie. youth gathering, parish fundraiser, worship service, community outreach, public lecture). Upload a graphic or picture (horizontal / landscape orientation; 1500x784 px), and your event poster. Events must be submitted by Tuesday at noon for inclusion in the current week's newsletter. Have Questions? Send us an email: churched@edmonton.anglican.ca

CBS is always in need of donations! To book your lifesaving appointment call: 1-888-236-6283 or visit Canadian Blood Services.

The diocese also invites you to consider joining Team Anglican. First check your eligibility, then click here to enter our Partner ID: ANGL696986. The Edmonton diocese continues to hold in gratitude all those who helped us reach our CBS donation target of 120 units donated through 2022. Stay tuned for an updated 2023 goal.

Donate a Car Canada will turn vehicle donations into generous support for ministry in the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton. Working on our behalf, Donate a Car will accept your vehicle for a donation -- running, or not! Old or new! There is no cost to you, and the process is simple. Donate a Car Canada will facilitate all aspects of your car donation from the pick up to the final sale, ensuring that your vehicle will be sold for the highest sale outcome possible. They will then forward the net proceeds to us here at the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton and you will receive a tax-deductible receipt within two weeks of us receiving your donation. 

St. Timothy’s Anglican Church in the Laurier Heights neighbourhood of Edmonton is seeking a leader for our Sunday Morning “Kids’ Church” program.  We are using the sermons4kids resource. This provides a short sermon, colouring sheet, activity pages, song suggestions to accompany the weekly Lectionary Gospel. The leader would be supported by volunteers to maintain the necessary Safe Church ratios of children:adults and to provide musical support. This is a paid position. For more information, please contact the Rev. Clare L. Stewart at clare@sttimothy-edm.ca or 587.687.1490 

Star of the North Retreat Centre has a number of offerings over the coming months. Visit their website to learn about the Courage to Teach series held one Saturday a month from January 28 to May 27, the Bridges to Contemplative Living series held Wednesdays in February and March, and a Reconciliation through Justice evening, February 16.

Providence Renewal Centre is offering a number of retreats over the coming months. Visit their website to learn about an Enneagram retreat February 10-12 and a Lenten retreat March 17-19, among others.

Jeannette Austin-Odina Thursday, a member of All Saints' Cathedral, will lead the public learning event “Me? Racist?” at the Norquest College Library on February 9, 10:00 to 11:30 am. This interactive presentation will explore personal /individual examples of racism by allowing participants to examine their own experiences and understand why it is important to know their history. Participants will have the opportunity to explore complex definitions of racism by identifying
· Individual vs. systemic racism (including White Privilege)
· Intersectionality and why it is important
· Ways that we all participate in Racism (unwittingly or intentionally)
· Suggestions for how to become anti-racist
Jeannette is an Elder on the Board of the Council of Canadians of African and Caribbean Heritage (CCACH), where she has held the position of Director of Education. 

The Rev. Brenda Haggett, an ordained minister with the Free Methodist Church in Canada,  doing research on ministers’ awareness of the impact of trauma not only on themselves but for the people in their respective parish settings. She has developed a survey and will make the findings available upon request once her degree has been conferred. Read More Here