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From Michigan-
His views are echoed by three Episcopal bishops in Michigan who wrote
an open letter last week titled: “We believe in Jesus, science and
staying home.”
“As the Episcopal Bishops of the State of Michigan
and as a people of faith, we follow the commandment Jesus gave us – to
‘love our neighbors as ourselves,’ “ wrote the Rt. Rev. Bonnie Perry,
Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, the Rt. Rev. Whayne
Hougland, Bishop of the Episcopal Dioceses of Eastern & Western
Michigan, and the Rt. Rev. Rayford Ray, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese
of Northern Michigan. “Loving our neighbors these days in the midst of
the COVID-19 pandemic means setting limits: quarantining, refraining
from traveling, physical distancing when in public, and closing down
places of gathering where transmission is likely. This is how we love
our neighbors – by working to slow the spread of this extremely
contagious, life-threatening virus.”
The letter noted that they
have shut down all the Episcopal churches in Michigan, saying they
support Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-home order. They also said
“this pandemic has exposed injustices already present in our society:
racism, hunger, health care, a living wage, housing insecurity and
access to education.”
More here-
https://www.grandhaventribune.com/lifestyles/faith/detroit-pastors-keep-the-faith-after-getting-coronavirus/article_f6721572-b73c-5bab-8229-ce841f4a7333.html
From Western Michigan-
One church in Kalamazoo made sure that
people are not forgotten or left behind in death by collecting cremated
remains that were never claimed.
"Every person deserves to be
recognized. They lived. They loved. They worked. They deserve to be
remembered," said Mother Mary Perrin, rector at the St. Martin of Tours
Episcopal Church.
St. Martin of Tours Episcopal Church in
Kalamazoo worked with local funeral homes and state medical examiner's
office to collect the unclaimed remains.
The church then buries the cremains in a garden during a ceremony where they "claim the unclaimed."
"In
God's name, not in the name of our church or our faith or anything, and
in God's name we receive them, and respect them, and try to bury them
with dignity, to give their life some kind of closure," Mother Mary
Perrin said.
Some of the cremains date back to the 1800s.
https://wwmt.com/news/local/kalamazoo-church-collects-cremated-remains-that-were-left-behind-or-forgotten
From Western Michigan-
It has been quite a journey from Bogota, Colombia, to Grand Haven, Michigan, for the Rev. John Infante, soon to be the first Latino priest ordained in the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan.
Born into the Episcopal Church in Colombia, Infante’s career path took him from a large hotel chain in Colombia, to law school in the evenings, and then a career as an attorney where he worked in Internal Affairs for the police in Colombia. During this time, he served as junior warden and then senior warden of his parish and eventually as legal counsel for Province 9 of the Episcopal Church.
However, Infante had a deeper sense of calling for pastoral ministry in the church. He sensed a calling to priestly ministry and began the process of discernment and formation for the priesthood. He was licensed as a lay pastoral minister in 2008 and appointed to work at St. Patrick’s Mission, outside of Bogota. In 2009, he began his studies at the Center for Theological Studies in Bogota, receiving a licentiate in theological studies. He was ordained a transitional deacon in 2012 and assigned to continue his work at St. Patrick’s Mission.
More here-
http://www.grandhaventribune.com/Local/2017/10/15/First-Latino-Priest-to-be-Ordained-in-the-Episcopal-Diocese-of-Western-Michigan.html?ci=stream&lp=1&p=1
From Michigan-
It looks like Donald Trump's honeymoon may be over before he has even gotten a chance to say "I do" and put on the ring.
They protested in Detroit election night, yelling nasty comments and chanting "not my president" for three hours. Police were there to keep order. Similar protests erupted around the same time in New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago.
Protestors appeared at the White House, Texas, southern California and Seattle. There was violence and the destruction of property and businesses in Oakland.
There will be a protest Thursday evening in Grand Rapids. Grand Valley State University students are the organizers. They have plans to converge on Rosa Parks Circle in downtown Grand Rapids at 5 p.m.
On Facebook, several hundred have indicated they will attend.
Kalamazoo went in a different direction, with a communal interfaith prayer for peace.
Over a half-dozen religious leaders from all different beliefs convened at St Luke's Episcopal Church in downtown Kalamazoo to share religious writings and music all with a theme emphasizing peace.
More here-
http://wsau.com/news/articles/2016/nov/10/trumps-victory-sparks-protests-and-prayers/
From Michigan-
A judge sentenced a former interim priest at Grace Episcopal Church to jail for trying to sexually touch a parishioner.
Accusations from three women prompted prosecutors in March to charge the Rev. Bryant Whitman Dennison Jr., 70, of Ann Arbor, with a sex crime. He eventually pleaded guilty to one count of attempted fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct, a misdemeanor.
Eighty-sixth District Court Judge Thomas J. Phillips on Thursday sentenced Dennison to a 180-day jail term and two years of probation.
"The victims from our conversations with them were very satisfied with this sentence," said Grand Traverse County Prosecutor Bob Cooney.More here-
http://www.record-eagle.com/news/local_news/former-interim-priest-sentenced-to-days-in-jail/article_014c0926-b7b8-5e34-bf69-5f069b606acc.html
From Michigan-
Members of Grace Episcopal Church in Traverse City learned over the weekend that a former interim priest had sexually harassed three female members of the congregation in 2008-09.
Two of the three women came forward with the news last month after learning the Rev. Bry Dennison had been reinstated "as a priest in good standing" by the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, based in Detroit.
At the time of the incidents, church leaders notified the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan and "after a prolonged process," which also involved the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, Dennison was suspended and prohibited from preaching in the Episcopal Church for five years. He was released from that suspension on July 15, 2015.
The news of Dennison's reinstatement "opened emotional wounds and they reached out," says John Strickler, a member of the church vestry – the church's lay governing board – and appointed by the parish to speak on its behalf. The nature of the harassment was detailed by one of the victims, who also was an employee of the church at the time. She described it as "invasion of personal space, unwelcome embraces and some unwelcome kisses," according to Strickler.
More here-
http://www.traverseticker.com/story/church
From Michigan-
Eight years later, a Traverse City church is trying to address a sexual harassment situation involving a former interim priest and several church members.
7&4 News received an anonymous email on Monday that contained a letter from Grace Episcopal Church. The letter is dated for January 6th. Church spokesperson, John Strickler, says the letter was recently sent out to the entire congregation.
"Dear People of Grace," the letter begins.
It's followed by a bible passage, and continues on with, "It is with a heavy heart that we send this letter to you. But we know it is the right thing to do."
More here-
http://upnorthlive.com/news/local/church-letter-addresses-sexual-harassment-involving-former-priest
From ENS-
The Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan consecrated its ninth bishop, the Rt. Rev. Whayne M. Hougland, Jr., a Kentucky native, on Saturday, Sept. 28. He succeeds the Rt. Rev. Robert Gepert, who retired in August after serving the diocese for 12 years.
An estimated 1,000 people filled Van Noord Arena at Calvin College in Grand Rapids as Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori ordained and consecrated Hougland as the 1077th bishop in the Episcopal Church succession. Co-consecrators were the Rt. Rev. Stacy Sauls, chief operating officer of the Episcopal Church, Bishop Donald Kreiss of the Southeast Michigan Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and Bishop Michael Curry of North Carolina, who preached a message about witness and discipleship. In addition to those in attendance, 569 people watched the event online through the new diocesan website.
More here-
http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/ens/2013/10/02/western-michigan-whayne-m-hougland-ordained-as-ninth-bishop/
From Western Michigan-
The Rev. Whayne M. Hougland Jr., has been elected the ninth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan at an electing convention held earlier this month. The Rev. Hougland, currently rector of St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Salisbury, N.C., was elected on the eighth ballot out of a field of four candidates. To be elected, a candidate must have received a majority of the votes in both the lay order and the clergy order. He received 87 of 139 votes cast in the lay order and 34 of 65 votes cast in the clergy order.
Under the canons (III.11.4) of the Episcopal Church, the election of a bishop requires the consent from a majority of bishops with jurisdiction and Standing Committees of the Episcopal Church. Assuming that consent is received, The Most Reverend Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church, will consecrate The Rev. Whayne Hougland, Jr., as the ninth Bishop of Western Michigan on Sept. 28, at the Van Noord Arena on the campus of Calvin College, Grand Rapids.
The election, which was held at Grace Church in Grand Rapids, followed a year-long search process in which three candidates were selected by the diocesan search committee; the fourth was nominated through a petition process. Prior to the election, the four candidates spent the first weekend in May traversing the diocese, meeting the people, and answering questions in a series of three "walkabouts."
Read more:
http://www.hollandsentinel.com/features/lifestyle_religion/x83402914/Episcopal-Diocese-of-Western-Michigan-elects-Ninth-bishop#ixzz2UxY07uQC
From Grand Rapids-
The Rev. Whayne Hougland, Jr., was elected at a special electing convention May 18 to be the ninth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan.
Hougland, currently rector of St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Salisbury, N.C., was elected on the eighth ballot out of a field of four candidates. To be elected, a candidate must have received a majority of the votes in both the lay order and the clergy order. He received 87 of 139 votes cast in the lay order and 34 of 65 votes cast in the clergy order.
Under Episcopal Church canons, the election of a bishop requires the consent from a majority of bishops with jurisdiction and standing committees of the Episcopal Church. Assuming that consent is received, The Most Rev. Katharine Jefferts Schori, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, will consecrate Hougland as the ninth bishop of Western Michigan on Sept. 28 at the Van Noord Arena on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids.
The election, which was held at Grace Church in Grand Rapids, followed a year-long search process.
More here-
http://www.sentinel-standard.com/article/20130518/NEWS/130519473
From Michigan-
