Welcome to the first edition of our new format for our Newsletter.  This combines the best of our two previous bi-monthly newsletters, the DCNS and the DCIN, bringing you information on both the Diocesan and Parish news and events on a weekly basis.  

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 ctubman@calgary.anglican.ca.

We are thrilled to announce that we have, so far, reached donations of over $36,000 toward our 125th Anniversary fundraising goal for Habitat for Humanity!   THANK YOU to all of the churches and individuals who have contributed to this worthy cause.  Please feel free to send in your donation if over the Christmas festivities you have forgotten to send them in to us. We will have a final total by the end of January.  The Diocese will not only match funds received but complete our commitment promised.  We thank you again for your generosity and helping us celebrate in this way!

It's that time again - to complete the Diocesan Annual Returns.  The Returns can be found here on our website under Resources/Documents/Annual Return Forms, and we offer fillable forms as well that can be emailed in to the office.  For the Financial Reports, parishes can submit an Income Statement and a Balance Sheet.  Any questions can be directed to the Director of Finance, Lorraine Betts at lbetts@calgary.anglican.ca

The Coldest Night of the Year Sponsored Walk is on Saturday, February 23, this year. There are various ways to support this effort to help the vulnerable and needy in our city.  All funds raised go to Feed the Hungry and KAIROS.  Parishes can register their own team, individuals can walk themselves or with friends, or anyone can join Marlene Wiens who has already registered a team Anglicans on the Move. Marlene says, ”CNOY is a lot of fun and so valuable - would you join me? Invite your friends as well. Just click this team page link to begin.”  

Of course if you are unable to walk you are encouraged to sponsor a team or individual.

If you have any questions please contact Alison Longson at pwrdfcalgary.@telus.net  or Marlene Wiens at wiens.me@gmail.com  

P.S. Last year, over 21,000 walkers across Canada joined this event raising just under $5 million dollars - it's Canada's National Walk for Homelessness.

A look at Archbishop Greg's activities over the month of January:

Sunday, Jan. 13 - Tri-Parish Service, at All Saints, Medicine Hat   

January 14 - 18 - House of Bishops, Toronto

Sunday, Jan. 20 - St. Theodore, Taber - Stained Glass window dedication    

This event will be simultaneously broadcast to three Parish locations: Calgary, Red Deer and Taber on Saturday, February 23.

Hosted by the Diocese and organized by Elizabeth McLennan, we will view the message from speaker Rev. Dr. Jesse Zink, President of the Montreal Theological College.  Contact Elizabeth for more details at eliz.mclennan@gmail.com.

South - March 2, 2019 - St. Augustine, Lethbridge

Calgary - March 9 - Holy Trinity, Calgary

North - March 16 - St. Luke, Red Deer

There will be a brief presentations from our Archbishop, Executive Officer, Director of Finance and Rural Missioner, followed by a Q&A.

9:30 am start and ending around 3:00 pm.  Lunch will be provided.

We encourage Wardens, Treasurers, and Lay Ministers or those seeking to be Lay Ministers to please attend, particularly if you are new to this role.

Please RSVP with the date and/or location you would like to attend to pgateman@calgary.anglican.ca so we have correct numbers for food.

Thursday, Jan. 10 - Anglican Fellowship of Prayer

Saturday, Jan. 19 - Diocesan Council study day

Tuesday, Jan. 29 - BARDs

Thursday, Jan. 31 - Committee on Ministry - Diaconate 

The Rev. Oz Lorentzen has been appointed Regional Dean for Lethbridge-Medicine Hat as of January 1.

The Rev. Bryan Beveridge is now the Interim Priest for St. Peter, Calgary, as of January 1.

The Rev. Peter Norman will be retiring as Incumbent of St. Luke, Calgary as of February 28.

Please keep Oz, Bryan and Peter in your prayers as they begin new phases of their ministries.

Travis Enright - Reconciliation and Worldview February 8 to 10, 2019: The Wisdom Centre and Christ Church, Calgary, look forward to welcoming The Ven. Travis Enright for a three-day event on Reconciliation and Worldview.  Travis comes to us from the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton where he serves both as Archdeacon for Indigenous Ministry and Rector of St. Faith's.

Friday, February 8, 7:30 pm:  Travis will give a public lecture entitled An Invitation to Common Ground, at St. Laurence.

Saturday, February 9: He will lead a workshop at Christ Church (3602 - 8th Street SW).

Sunday, February 10, 10:30 am: He will preach at Christ Church.   

Early-bird pricing (until February 1) is $60 for Friday/Saturday, lunch included on Saturday. Friday only is $15.  To register, click here.  

John Bell - Ancient and Ever-New: Spirituality in the 21st Century March 22 to 24, 2019

John L. Bell is a preacher, hymnwriter, composer, lecturer and broadcaster.  An ordained minister of the Church of Scotland and a member of the Iona Community, John is a member of the committee that produced the ground-breaking Church Hymnary 4.  He has produced many collections of liturgy, scripts, sermons and reflections, original hymns and songs, and three collections of songs of the World Church, and is primarily concerned with the renewal of congregational worship at a grass-roots level.  He will give a Friday evening lecture, "Ancient and Ever New...an Introduction to Celtic Spirituality" on March 22, a Saturday workshop entitled "Music, Liturgy and Imagination" on March 23, and will preach at St. Laurence on Sunday, March 24 at 10:00 am.  Early-bird pricing (until March 1) is $100 for Friday and Saturday, with Saturday's lunch included; $25 for Friday only, and $90 for Saturday only.  To register, click here.

For both above events, register can also be done by calling (403) 249-6184 ext 2.

Interfaith Bible Study - The Book of Exodus

Wednesdays, until February 27, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm, at Beth Tzedec (1325 Glenmore Trail SW).  Bring a Bible and a sense of adventure.

The Cathedral Church of the Redeemer: 

Diocesan Choirs Festival 2019: The Cathedral will host a Diocesan Choirs Festival on Saturday, February 2, 2019.  The Dean, Clergy and Choir of The Cathedral Church of the Redeemer invite choirs and choral singers from the Diocese of Calgary to participate in a special service of Choral Evensong on that day.  Further information is available here.  

Cathedral Concert Series 2019:  The next concert in the Cathedral's series of Saturday evening musical events will take place on January 26.  Dr. Neil Cockburn (Director of Music) will perform a solo organ concert inspired by the theme of water, including works by Michael Praetorius, Olivier Messiaen, and J.S. Bach.  The following concerts will be on March 16 (Solo organ, Neil Cockburn); May 4 (Voice and Harp, performed by Lizz Windnagel and Olivia Ritchey); and June 1 (the Cathedral Choir performing works for choir and organ). All concerts begin at 5:45 pm and will last approximately one hour.  General admission is $10.00 (cash only), payable at the door.  Programme details are posted on the Cathedral website here For further information, please call the Cathedral Office: (403) 269-1905.

Holy Cross, Calgary: 

Lectio Divina: All are invited to The Anglican Parish of Holy Cross for an evening of silence, prayer and biblical meditation. Lectio Divina (literally, Divine Reading) is a practice deeply rooted in Christian history.  In Lectio Divina, we sit with a biblical text for the purpose of discerning the voice of Jesus as He speaks into our lives.  This spiritual practice is perfect for anyone who has ever struggled with questions such as: Is God speaking to me?  How do I know what God's voice is like? or How can I discern where God is leading me?   An Evening of Lectio Divina will be held on the second Tuesday of every month, starting at 6:30 pm, next on February 1.  Everyone is welcome.  

The Alpha Course:  Got questions?  Holy Cross will be hosting the Alpha course beginning February 12, 2019 and running for 12 weeks.  Alpha is an opportunity to explore life, faith and God in a friendly, open and informal environment, an honest space to think about and discuss life's big questions together.  All are welcome to join.  To register, email Kyle.Norman@holycrosscalgary.org

St. Stephen, Calgary: 

Live at Steve's presents The Pearson Family - Farewell (For Now) Tour, featuring Brian Pearson, along with BP and The Gas, Dr. Space (aka Ben Pearson) and Rob Pearson, on January 19.  Doors open at 7:00 pm.  General Admission will be $20 in advance and $25 at the door.  Advance tickets are available from ststephenyyc.com.

St. Andrew, Calgary: 

Theological Shifts, Shake-Ups and Rumblings in the 21st Century: Wednesdays from March 13 to April 10, 1:00 - 2:30 pm   Led by The Rev. Anna Greenwood-Lee and The Rev. Christine Conkin,  this series will start with the premise outlined by Phyllis Tickle in her book, The Great Emergence that the Church and society today are undergoing a shift of the size and significance which we have not seen since the Reformation.  We will then talk about some of the changes already happening and some that might be coming.  We look at writings and videos from some of the biggest voices on the religious landscape today: Richard Rohr, Desmond Tutu, Nadia Bolz-Weber, Peter Rollins, Brian McLaren, Cynthia Bourgeault, and Ilia Delio.  We will talk about what these shifts and changes might mean to how we understand the authority of the Bible, the authority of science, the authority of Jesus, and the authority of the head and the heart. No charge but please register by emailing adminassist@stlaurence.