• Those who are sick, suffering, or in need: Anne and Roger, Holly, Paul, Jen, Megan and Rhea; Karen, Bob, Lorelei, Marie, Cathryn, Sue, Connie, Doreen.
• Those who have died. Those who mourn.
• Those affected by conflict or natural disasters around the world.
• 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 at the end of those two weeks.

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. The following service dates have been scheduled:

• January 7: Baptism and Confirmation Service, St. Paul's Edmonton
• January 14: St. Mary's, Edmonton
• January 21: Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Ecumenical Service, St. Joachim's Catholic Church, Edmonton

The Diocese of Edmonton is offering the Revive Discipleship Program (at no cost to participants), both in-person at St. Matthias, Edmonton; and virtually on Zoom, beginning on January 13, 2024. Revive Schedule

• To participate online, register by January 10: Virtual Attendance
• To participate in person, register by January 10: In-Person Attendance

The diocesan courses will be led by the Rev. Canon Dr. Scott Sharman, Canon to the Ordinary, and a team of Revive Animators including the Rev. Madeleine Urion, St. George’s, Edmonton; the Rev. Andreas Sigrist, St. Matthias, Edmonton; the Rev. Stephanie London, St. Columba, Beaumont.

What is Revive and who is it for? Click Here to learn more.

The Edmonton diocese is now accepting applications for the 2024-25 Lay Evangelist Formation Program. The formation will be led by the Rev. Tim Chesterton, Warden of Lay Evangelists, over 10 Saturday modules (approximate time frame 10 am to 3 pm), at Good Shepherd Anglican Church, 15495 Castle Downs Rd, Edmonton. We anticipate completing seven modules in 2024, and the remaining three in early 2025, concluding with a licensing of new evangelists later in the spring of 2025. If interested, please see the following documents and application forms:

1. Lay Evangelists in the Diocese of Edmonton
2. Lay Evangelists Outline of Modules 2024-25
3. Lay Evangelists Application Process 2024
4. Lay Evangelist Application Form 2024
5. Rector Endorsement Form 2024
6. Vestry Endorsement Form 2024

On December 7, 2023, it is believed that an arsonist/s set fire to two churches both with significant history and affiliation with the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton and to the community of Barrhead. 

St. Mary Abbots, Barrhead and St. Aidan’s Glenreagh were established in 1911 and 1913 respectively by the Reverend W.L. Seymour Dallas, as part of the Paddle River Mission. 

St. Mary Abbots was named after the Rev. Dallas’ home parish in Kensington, England. The church was built in 1912 east of the current town of Barrhead. With the coming of the railroad, the church was moved into Barrhead, in 1928, to make way for a railway siding. 

It came down to the last week of 2023, but Team Anglican reached and exceeded our goal of 130 blood and plasma donations in 2023. Let's see what we can do in 2024! Will you help save a life this year? 

To book your lifesaving appointment, call 1-888-236-6283 or visit Canadian Blood Services. Check your eligibility, then click here and enter our Partner ID: ANGL696986 to join Team Anglican. You won't just make a difference. You can make all the difference.

Read about the Edmonton diocese's ministry of sponsoring refugees, the Revive Discipleship program, the first-ever Lovefeast service at Holy Trinity, Edmonton and more in the January 2024 edition of The Messenger

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.

You are invited to the next installment of the Holy Trinity Speaker Series on Saturday, January 13, 11 am, HTAC, 10037 84 Avenue NW, Edmonton. The Rev. Robin Walker, honorary assistant at Holy Trinity, will address the topic of tradition vs change. You don't want to miss "Is It Tradition Demands Change, Tradition Forbids Change, or Both?"

The Edmonton District Council of Churches (EDCC) invites you to the annual Ecumenical Prayer Service for the Week of Christian Unity, to be held on Sunday, January 21, at 7 pm, at St. Joachim’s Catholic Church, located at 9920 110 St NW, Edmonton.

The theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (January 18 to 25, 2024) and the supporting materials were prepared by an ecumenical team from Burkina Faso (in western Africa) facilitated by the local Chemin Neuf Community. While Burkina Faso is predominantly a Muslim country, about 26 percent of the population is Christian (20 percent Catholic, 6 percent Protestant).

We are hoping to have as many faith communities represented at the prayer service as possible. For any questions please contact the Rev. Danielle Key at danielle@holytrinity.ab.ca 

You are invited to join All Saints', Drayton Valley on Thursday, February 1, 6:30 pm, for a Paint Night with Creative Spark. Get creative and make beautiful art you can take home in support of All Saints' refugee ministry. To reserve your spot, $50/seat, email office@allsaintsdraytonvalley.ca . POSTER

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? Email Margaret Glidden, communications@edmonton.anglican.ca; or call 780-439-7344

For 45 years, the Inner City Pastoral Ministry (ICPM) has responded with compassion and grace to the needs of Edmonton’s most vulnerable citizens in the urban core. The following is an excerpt from Pastor Quinn Strikwerda's Advent Appeal letter.

"Our goal is to nurture hope and to help build a more inclusive society. We strive to see Jesus in the faces of those who are hungry, thirsty, recently released from prison, or without proper housing and clothing. But we need your help. We provide emergency grocery cards, bus tickets, and warm winter clothing and blankets on the street. Our ministry team encourages and listens to people. We offer inspiring and relevant worship, Bible study, and men’s and women’s groups in the Bissell Centre. All of this and more are provided by ICPM every day..."

• Checks may be made out to Inner City Pastoral Ministry and mailed to: Inner City Pastoral Ministry, 10527 – 96 Street, Edmonton AB, T5H 2H6
• Donations may also be made via canadahelps or through e-transfer at icpmgiving@gmail.com.

Diocesan communications is looking for four to six people to contribute ideas as part of a Creativity Exchange.

The exchange is a new thing we are doing to explore communications through our gifts of art, poetry, writing, photography, videography, podcasting, you name it.

We will plan to meet four times per year, for a half-day workshop. We will likely have an inaugural, in-person meeting, with subsequent meetings to take place virtually on Zoom. This will be a chance to brainstorm story ideas, and different methods of sharing those stories.

We want to connect with passionate storytellers, no professional experience is necessary. If interested, please get in touch with Margaret Glidden by email at communications@edmonton.anglican.ca, or call the Synod Office at 780-439-7344.

We will form our Creativity Exchange early in the new year.

The Mustard Seed needs volunteers for its Coffee Connect program in the basement of Strathcona Baptist Church, 8318 104 St NW, Edmonton. We need people to simply hang out and have a cup of coffee with folks who are experiencing poverty or homelessness. This program offering emergency food/clothing, chaplaincy, and addictions support, runs most Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9 am to 2 pm. Anyone who is interested must complete Safe Church screening before volunteering. You will also be trained/supported by Mustard Seed staff. For more information, please contact Chaplain Eric at ericjkregel@gmail.com.     

Hosting the Remembering the Children Weaving is one of many ideas Fiona Brownlee, Aboriginal and Rural Communities Liaison, Diocese of Edmonton, has for parishes to continue to move forward on our journey of reconciliation. If your parish would like to host the weaving (perhaps during Lent?), and/or a presentation by Fiona, either in-person or via Zoom, please contact her at f.brownlee@edmonton.anglican.ca or 780-312-9070. 

Diocese of Edmonton 

The Altar Guild of St. John the Evangelist, Edmonton is offering a set of altar clothes to a parish that can use them. The following items have been consecrated and the Guild would like to see them find a good home:

• White Damask – 34.5” in length (finished hems 4” on bottom and 2.5” on top) X 188” in width (with 1” hem). This cloth was made to fit an altar that had extra fabric that must have gone over or around something.  The dimension for the extra pieces (2) is 16”x46”. This fabric has been well used but has no rips or stains.   

Cold and flu season is upon us, and COVID persists in all its variations. As we spend more time indoors, it is becoming more difficult to contain germs and protect vulnerable members of our communities. Please remember that a minor infection for one person can develop into a major sickness for someone else. If you are feeling unwell (ie. have a cough, runny nose, sore throat, chest congestion, fever...), please stay home.

The Micah Centre invites justice-seekers, church communities, and people of faith concerned about our changing climate to an evening of personal and biblical exploration with Dr. Sylvia Keesmaat on Monday, January 22, 7:30 PM, in Room N102 at The King’s University. In "The Lament of the Land and the Tears of God,"  Dr. Keesmaat, a biblical scholar and farmer, will explore the themes of creational destruction, God’s lament, and faithful human response in the biblical text and our own lives. Keesmaat’s reflections will be followed by a panel discussion, hosted by Dr. John Hiemstra, with the Rev. Jonathan Crane, rector of St. Augustine of Canterbury, Edmonton; Dr. Gerda Kits, an economist; and Céline Chuang, an artist and activist. All are welcome. POSTER