Circles of Color Weekly Newsletter

Ethnic Ministries Circles of Color

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Diocese of Olympia

Weekly Newsletter

November 25, 2022

A Word from the Canon

Last Friday I met with the Rev. Mary Bol and the Rev. Paul Karume in the evening. We discussed a number of things happening with our African ministries.

Rev. Mary Bol serves with the Rev. James Ayuen as the priests of St John South Sudanese Church.

They are currently meeting for worship at The Church by the Side of the Road. However that facility no longer meets the needs of the congregation. They are growing and need a place where they can do children and youth formation. They also need a place where they can worship at a time that is more suitable for the community. We are looking to move them out of their current facility and into a new location.

The Rev. Paul Karume is the priest at All Saints Goshen, a Kenyan worshipping community in Tacoma.

That community is starting a new mission in Puyallup. The new mission is looking to have its first worship service in January.

More news from our African siblings--the Rev. Agnes Kuria has gathered a community that is worshipping at St James, Kent. I look forward to visiting them when I'm at St James early next year.

And, as I reported earlier in the month, the Rev. Hilary Njoroge's orders have been received by Bishop Rickel, so he joins the ranks of African priests in our Diocese.

On Saturday I was at St Hilda St Patrick in Edmunds for their annual commemoration of Transgender Day of Remembrance. Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) is an annual observance on November 20 that honors the memory of the transgender people whose lives were lost in acts of anti-transgender violence. My thanks to Christine Cummings who has been the driving force behind this commemoration at St Hilda St Patrick for many years.

It has been my honor to be a speaker at this event several times.

On Sunday I was at Holy Cross, Redmond as the guest preacher. My thanks to the Rev. Tim Eichner and the Rev. Malcolm McLaurin for the invitation. I was delighted to preach about Thanksgiving and to share in a wonderful breakfast (which included grits, hoppel poppel, and biscuits and gravy) between services.

Monday I rested. Tuesday was the regular monthly meeting for the bishop's staff. Tuesday I also met with Bishop Greg and other staff leaders to talk about how we will wrap up the year and these last few week's of Bishop Greg's time with us in the diocese.

Wednesday was quiet day at the office. I worked on a number of administrative tasks and tied up some loose ends before the holiday. And I spent Thursday and Friday with my family.

In love and service,

Carla+

December 4 - St Paul/Resurreccion, Mt Vernon

(visiting, not preaching)

December 25 - St Matthew San Mateo, Auburn

January 8 - 1st Service of New Mission at Christ Church, Puyallup

January 15 - St Mark's Cathedral

(Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. commemoration)

January 22 - Christ Church, Puyallup

January 29 - Christ Church, Puyallup (yes, again)

February 12 - St Anthony's, Silverdale

February 19 - St James, Kent

Events

Upcoming webinar led by the Rev. Rachel Taber Hamilton

Click here to register

Follow the Star: The Ballad of the Brown King

December 10 @ 8:00pm at St Mark's Cathedral, Seattle

This special annual holiday event will amplify messages of diversity and hope for this festive season. "The Ballad of the Brown King," a Christmas cantata composed by Margaret Bonds, in collaboration with the Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes, will be performed in Seattle for the first time.

Winner of the President Joseph R. Biden Lifetime Achievement Award, Dr. Catherine Meeks is the Executive Director of the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing in Atlanta, GA. The event will feature prolific leaders from across the Church as they come together to look inward and reflect on the meaning of social justice and what it means to love one another.

Click here to register