Describing marks of healthy Christian congregations is an attempt to give the broad outlines of what a community of Christians living out their faith in the triune God, revealed in Jesus Christ and sustained and empowered by the Holy Spirit, looks like. Here is one of these characteristics.

Catechesis/Formation Teaching/Formation/Discipleship (Greek Didache) – to have our lives, attitudes, beliefs, and actions shaped by the Apostolic Teaching contained in the Scriptures and in the teaching Tradition of the Church.

It involves the reading and study of Scripture and the honest and humble reception of the Apostolic witness as the trustworthy word which reveals to us God’s own Word in Jesus. It shapes our choices and priorities both as a community of the Church and personally as individual believers. Most often accomplished through Bible studies and other Christian Education offerings.

How does this look?

When formation is vibrant, a majority of parishioners are engaged in communal and personal formation. Catechesis begins with basic instruction on the Christian faith which prepares individuals for the mission of God. We deepen our faith through study of the Scriptures. We enrich our lives through Christian spiritual direction and disciplines. We then live out the mission of God in every area of our lives.

How is this missional?

Parishioners learn who God is and how they relate to God & others, to form and train their heart, mind, soul, and strength for God’s mission in the world.

Mark your calendars for our June Synod

Location: Heritage Inn, High River

Dates: June 5-7

Speaker: The Right Reverend Jenny Andison, Area Bishop of York-Credit Valley, Ontario 

Note: Booking by phone will get best rates and will include breakfast (upon request only) 1-888-888-4374
NO elevator in the hotel. Anyone with agility issues should prioritize booking as soon as possible in order to have a main floor room.
No booking code needed. Please just mention that you are booking for the Anglican Diocese meetings.

Please note that we plan to publish this Newsletter on Wednesdays (instead of Thursdays) beginning with the March 4th edition. This will allow those parishes that publish their newsletters on Thursdays and Fridays to have the benefit of the Diocesan news items earlier. 

Another change in the format, you will note in this edition, are the sections for the regional Deaneries so that it is easier for you to find the relevant events and news from your region. Please send David your region's items for next week's Newsletter by Tuesday.

We are also considering what the most effective ways are to highlight new items to help you as a reader easily navigate the Newsletter.  Your suggestions are invited by emailing David at communications@calgary.anglican.ca

March 7     Calgary,  Good Shepherd Church 

March 14   Red Deer,   St. Luke's Church

March 28   Lethbridge, St. Augustine's Church

Missional Coaches will be coming to share their learning and offer opportunities for parishes to sign up for workshops.

All are welcome! We are excited to come and share the great information we learned!

Time 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

Lunch will be provided

Please register with Carol at ctubman@calgary.anglican.ca  with any food restrictions

Anglican Laity Retreat at Mount St Francis Retreat Centre, Cochrane, Alberta.

March 20-22. 

Town Halls in March:

We will again be having our Town Hall meetings. This year we are excited to come and bring some of our Missional Coaches who will share their newly acquired training in mission in six different areas. Click here for more information and registration. 

Clergy Conference:

78th Convention of Synod:

Archbishop Greg Kerr-Wilson along with the Diocesan Council has announced that the 78th Convention of Synod has been called for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, June 5, 6 and 7, 2020. 

AFP Diocesan Committee requests Parishes to pray for our upcoming Synod on June 5-7.

There are prayers for Synod in the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) on page 42, prayer #7 or the Book of Alternative Services (BAS) on page 676, prayer #4 that may be used.

Tuesday, February 25 - Mission Action Plan Committee, 2:00 pm

Wednesday, February 26 - Synod Steering Committee, 3:00 pm

Wednesday, March 4 - Strategic Communications Committee, 1:00 pm

Wednesday, March 4 - Calgary School for Mission & Ministry, 4:30 pm

Wednesday, March 11 — Property Committee Meeting, 3:00 pm

Tuesday, March 24 — BARDS, 10:00 am

Wednesday, March 25 — Management Committee Meeting, 10:30 am

This year's conference will take place May 4-7, at Waterton Lakes Lodge.

Our guest speaker is The Rev. Dr. John Stafford.

The Rev. Dr. John Stafford is an ordained Anglican priest and served various parishes in Manitoba.

He was the Dean of Theology and Chaplain at St. John’s College at the University of Manitoba for 16 years.  He was also an Associate Professor of Biblical Studies at Providence University College in Otterburne, Manitoba.

— Six Week Lenten Lecture Series on "Living in a Secular Age" at St. Augustine, Lethbridge: Begins February 25 at 7:00 pm, ends March 31 Instructors: Dr. René Boeré and The Rev. Steve Bateman

— St. Barnabas in Medicine Hat, has the following events:

     Monday, February 24 – Annual Meeting of Parishioners

     Tuesday, February 25 – Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper

     Wednesday, February 26 – Ash Wednesday service at 7:00

     and click here for their Ecumenical Lenten Worship services at various churches lead by “not their minister” during the Wednesdays in Lent.

Do you have news and events from your parish for next week's newsletter? Click here to send them to David by Tuesday noon.

— The Rev. Rob Cowie and The Rev. Gerry Skeet were appointed on January 5th as Co-incumbents of Christ Church in Nanton. Mr. Dave Williams has been named as their joint Rector's Warden.

— St. George, Turner Valley: Pancake Supper is on Tuesday, February 25 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. The cost is by donation only. Everyone is welcome.

Do you have news and events from your parish for next week's newsletter? Click here to send them to David by Tuesday noon.

Do you have news and events from your parish for next week's newsletter? Click here to send them to David by Tuesday noon.

— We thank The Rev. Natasha Brubaker, Incumbent at St. Martin's, for her service as the Regional Dean of Glenmore over the past three years. The Deanery of Glenmore will choose the next Regional Dean at their next meeting.

Do you have news and events from your parish for next week's newsletter? Click here to send them to David by Tuesday noon.

— Lectio Divina at Holy Cross, Calgary: All are invited to an evening of silence, prayer and biblical meditation.   An Evening of Lectio Divina is held on the second Tuesday of every month, starting at 6:30 pm.  Everyone is welcome. 

 Do you have news and events from your parish for next week's newsletter? Click here to send them to David by Tuesday noon.

The Missional Footprint is on the website under “Resources | Documents  | Downloads”.  In the Missional Footprint, each Parish is invited to highlight their activities. The template has been updated and the format is much easier to fill out and to work through.

The Annual Returns can also be accessed here and scrolling to the bottom of the page.

St. Stephen, Calgary: Incumbent, full time; Job Posting here, Parish Profile here

Holy Trinity, Calgary: Pastor of Youth Ministries, part-time

For more information on these positions, please contact pgateman@calgary.anglican.ca

Did you know that since 2015 our Diocese has welcomed and hosted 430 refugees?  In 2019 the parishes of the Anglican Diocese of Calgary sponsored 79 refugees and hosted 46 who arrived. 

For more information click the Read More button below.

Friends in Christ,    

The Primates’ Task Group, on which I served, presented its final report to the Primates’ meeting in January.   Included in its work was a key recommendation to ask Anglicans worldwide to enter a season of repentance.   

We are deeply aware of the pain of division in our midst.    All have shared in hurts given and received.   In the spirit of Matthew 7:3-5, a call to prayer and self-reflection in repentance has been made for Lent 5 – March 29, 2020.     

Click "Read More" for the letter.

Three Anglican parishes (St. Andrew's, St. Barnabas and Holy Cross) will take part in the annual World Day of Prayer on March 6th at St. David's United Church.  The service, which was written this year by women in Zimbabwe, begins at 2:00 pm.

St. James Anglican Church youth group invites others to join them this year at the HistoryMaker2020 conference, which is held annually in Chilliwack, BC for youth 12-18.

The St. James Anglican youth group has gone the last two years and had a great experience! The conference involves lots of great music and worship, speakers, and workshops that all serve to show youth the person of Jesus and encourage them in their faith.

After twenty years of seeking to have a new permanent home on the western edge of Calgary, St. Martin’s has successfully concluded the purchase for a church building.  Their new space is located in the Patterson Heights neighbourhood and allows us to be west of Sarcee Trail, the only Anglican parish to be located in that area of the city. 

In 2020, there will be a pilgrimage from Calgary to Taizé and Paris for young adults aged 18-35 from June 26 to July 10, 2020 led by Rev. Clara King.  

Taizé is a wonderful place for young adults to explore their faith, meet other young people from all around the world, and discover more about themselves. After a week in Taize, we'll spend 5 days in Paris. If you have young people in your congregation or in your wider connections, please help spread word of this opportunity.

Click the Read More button for more information and promotional tools.

Reduced price early bird registration closes on February 24.

Calling all old friends of the Sorrento Centre! Welcome to new friends! Come to a free, family-friend event and experience a day-in-the-life of our beloved Centre.

Sarah Williams, who is one of the Sorrento Centre’s loyal Board members, is hosting a very special family-friendly evening on March 21st at St Stephen’s in Calgary.

This is the fourth year for Anglicans on the Move participating in the walk to raise funds for Feed the Hungry and Kairos low-income housing in Calgary. The date is February 22, and the Anglicans on the Move team will be joining hundreds of other walkers in Calgary and thousands of Canadians across the country to support and serve hungry, homeless, and hurting people and families in our community.

Dan Hines: Wayfinding and Leadership  Friday, March 6 to Sunday, March 8

Friday, 7:00 pm: Wayfinding as Life: Disorientation and Reorientation  Wayfinding is the traditional art and skill of navigation over water or land.  Dan will share what he has been learning with the blessing of Hawaiian navigators, as the art of wayfinding experiences an ongoing cultural rediscovery in the Pacific.  Wayfinding offers profound insights for how to live a human life.  Dan teaches 'sandbox style' with the use of visual imagination, storytelling, scientific knowledge, and meditations.

Saturday, 9:30 - 3:00: The Courage to Lead: Navigating Complexity  Courage is a virtue celebrated all around us as brave heroism, as bold acts of willpower in dangerous moments.  Yet, there is a more subtle form of daily courage that arises from a deeper source, by simply honoring what is true.  A life of courage is following the guidance of the quiet voice of inner knowing.  Guided by small group practices inspired by the teaching of activist and writer Parker J. Palmer, we will explore in storytelling, evocative readings, visual images, inner reflection, guided meditations, and facilitated discussions what traditional wisdom, our spiritual teachings, and open-ocean navigational learning may reveal to us.

Sunday: Preaching at the 10:00 am service  As co-founder of the intentional community RareBirds Housing Cooperative, Dan has a passion for exploring alternative living, innovative housing, and a more sustainable relationship to the land.

Early-bird Tickets (until February 20): Whole event - $80; Friday only - $15; Saturday only - $75.  Register here.

Save the dates:

[SOLD OUT] Matthew Wright, May 5-8: "Holy Wisdom, Mother of God" Four-day Retreat at Kingsfold Retreat Centre

Pip Nicolls, September 17-20: Three-day Retreat at Kingsfold Retreat Centre

For more information on the Wisdom Centre, click here.

The All Saints Family Centre Society is a registered non-profit society connected to All Saints Anglican Church in Cochrane, providing community outreach.  We offer a variety of courses, workshops and retreats, as well as space for rent for courses, speakers and retreat days.  For more information or a tour of the facility, please contact Elizabeth Short at (403) 660-5636, or email Karen and Elizabeth at allsaintsretreatcentre@outlook.com

What's Happening Next Door at the Retreat Centre?: 

Sacred Space CoWorking: We have opened an ecumenical sacred co-working space for those who need a professional work setting free of distractions. The start date for our free pilot project has begun, with the space opening up for a fee starting in January.  If you are interested or would like a tour of the facility, please contact Elizabeth Short at (403) 660-5636 or send an email to allsaintsretreatcentre@outlook.com. You can also click here for more detailed information, pictures and pricing.

Spiritual Direction: We are excited to introduce Karen Wold who is a Spiritual Director and part of the Ministry Team for All Saints Retreat Centre.  For more information on what she has to offer or to get her contact information, please click here.

The Wycliffe Institute of Evangelism has excellent resources for both the parish and individuals.

Click here to access their web page.

Please remember in your prayers:

- Archbishop Greg, during this time of sabbatical;

- our colleague Carol and her family on the passing of her mother;

- those who are sick or suffering, remembering those suffering from the Coronavirus and their caregivers;

- those who have died and those who mourn; 

- the victims of the violence and natural disasters;   

- our Companion Diocese of the Windward Islands, and their Bishop Leopold Friday.

Request a prayer:

Send prayer requests to ctubman@calgary.anglican.ca to let us know how we can pray for you.  We will only use first names which will be removed after two or three weeks.  We will also pray for you during our regular Chapel services each week.  Please ensure that you have permission from those whose names you are submitting for prayer, and that they understand their name will be made public to all who subscribe to the Newsletter.

We are interested in what is happening in your parish and would love to highlight those events and news in our newsfeed.

We look forward to your contributions - feel free to forward your event announcements, your parish news, your stories.  Send in your details and pictures to communications@calgary.anglican.ca.