An Invitation from Bishop Councell

We received this email from the Diocese today:

Dear Friends in Christ,

I would love to see you at Vespers at the Cathedral next Saturday, January31st, at 3:00 p.m. The Rt. Rev. Eugene Sutton, Bishop of Maryland will be our preacher at this diocesan gathering. Our purpose is "to praise, to proclaim, to celebrate and to claim the Vision which is ours by the gift of the Holy Spirit, by the victory of Christ and by the will of God." Please see the more detailed information below. For all rectors, vicars, and clergy in charge of congregations, I ask that you make an announcement of this gathering at all services this Sunday.Please take note of the challenge for each congregation to send at least a tithe of its average Sunday attendance. Let's rally and let's rock the walls and raise the roof with our prayers and praises so that we may go Right Onward. May our Lord continue to bless and uphold you in His service. Faithfully yours,
The Rt. Rev. George E. Councell

We are inviting you to a Right Onward Worship dedicated for 31 January 2009 at 3 pm and being offered at Trinity Cathedral. Our preacher will be the Rt. Rev. Eugene T. Sutton who was elected the 14th Bishop of Maryland on 29 March 2008 and also served as assistant to the bishop in the Diocese of New Jersey among his many endeavors.We are entering a second year of our Right Onward experience. For the previous twelve months, we have shared ideas and experiences of welcoming and including ministries. We are applying these experiences and insights as we move forward to celebrating a common vision as citizens of the Kingdom of God.One of the primary items learned from a two-year listening process was a yearning for common worship-gatherings of the whole Body of our Diocese. Diocesan Convention liturgies are always a blessing even within the context of annual meeting format. This service is something other. Our purpose is to praise, to proclaim, to celebrate, and this year, to claim the Vision which is ours by the gift of the Holy Spirit, by the victory of Christ and by the will of God.We offer an occasion of worship with an expectation and essential enthusiasm that God is working His purpose out in our midst. Bring those who, when inspired, can pass that enthusiasm on to your local community of faith.We believe this will be of such blessing that we will be calling round to invite each church's clergy, wardens, musicians and others. Spread the word with us.

Yours in Christ, The Right Onward Committee

1 January 2009

Dear Friends in Christ,
I am writing to you on my first day back from a sabbatical leave. In my time away I have enjoyed physical exercise and adventure travel; time for prayer and study, for reflection and renewal; and a Christmas holiday season spent with family but without church responsibilities-the only one in 33 years of ordained ministry. I am enormously grateful to the Diocese of New Jersey for this extraordinary gift and privilege. I thank God for Bishop Romero and the diocesan staff and for all of the diocesan leaders who labored while I rested. I am blessed.The great blessing of this time, however, is to feel again the joy and delight of being a bishop here and now in the Diocese of New Jersey. As grateful as I am for a sabbatical, I am all the more grateful to be your bishop and to feel ready and eager to engage our "Right Onward!" vision together even (especially) in the face of many daunting challenges. I love Jesus and I love Jersey and I love the work that lies before us. In a word that I learned while growing up among surfers near the beaches of Southern California, I am stoked. According to my dictionary, the word stoked means, "to stir up and feed amply." It seems clear enough that our beloved Church and all our people need to be stirred up and amply fed in order to be revived for our mission in the world. So, it strikes me as an amazing grace that, upon my return to this ministry, the first diocesan event is a rally where we may be stirred and stoked and strengthened for the living of our vision. On Saturday, January 31st, at 3:00 pm at Trinity Cathedral, 801 West State Street in Trenton our Diocese will gather in a celebration of that vision. Our preacher will be the Rt. Rev. Eugene T. Sutton-the 14th Bishop of Maryland and a son of this Diocese. In a setting of beauty, with creative and imaginative liturgy well suited to the theme of mission we shall rally for Jesus and be stoked for His mission. Here, in the "bleak, mid-winter," come and be warmed in the fire of the Holy Spirit. I appeal to you, by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that every one of our 158 congregations send a deputation to attend this service. As a goal, let each church send at least a tithe of its average Sunday attendance. That is a challenge, but mission is challenging. We need a strong, empowering, joyous and uplifting rally so that we may be lifted up and encouraged. Come, let us rejoice and give thanks for the gift and challenge of doing mission together. We need the Spirit and we need each other. I will hope to see our Cathedral filled on the 31st. In the name of Christ, let us go forth in peace and stoked with the fire of the Spirit. Right Onward!

The Rt. Rev. George E. Councell
XI Bishop of New Jersey

Here is a link from our website where you can download a flyer about this event: <http://newjersey.anglican.org/MI/Spring2009/Visionserviceflyer.pdf%3Ehttp://newjersey.anglican.org/MI/Spring2009/Visionserviceflyer.pdfhttp://newjersey.anglican.org/MI/Spring2009/Visionserviceflyer.pdf

Please prayerfully consider making this pilgrimage to Trenton on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2009. We can carpool for even more fun! See you then.