Letter to Clergy
Bishop James Mathes
Letter to Clergy
Tuesday, November 1, 2005
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
As we move into the season of Advent, we are always challenged to convey this rich beginning of our liturgical year as a time of preparation for the coming of the Lord as the dominate culture focuses so intently on the commercial interpretation of the season of Christmas that follows. During this season of Advent, I have designated that the Third Sunday of Advent, December 11, will be Episcopal Relief and Development (ERD) “Gifts for Life” Sunday in our diocese. I sense that there is something more Christ centered and preparatory of the Advent of Christ in this sort of giving.
Congregations and individuals in the diocese have generously contributed to Episcopal Relief and Development’s disaster relief work in response to the tsunami, hurricanes and earthquakes this year. This has been an extraordinary year of natural calamities. In the meantime, the ongoing development programs of ERD are continuing and need funding. These include educational supplies and food for children orphaned by HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, mosquito bed nets to help prevent malaria in Zambia, and drought-resistant seeds, tools and training to feed and support families in El Salvador.
Individuals and congregations can continue to change lives by supporting those in need around the world. M embers can be involved in addressing a range of issues such as poverty, access to clean water, and diseases like malaria and HIV/AIDS. While December 11 will be our annual Episcopal Relief and Development Sunday, a time to give thanks for the generosity of our congregations in the past year and to focus on the needs of the coming year, you may choose a different Sunday in Advent, if that is more convenient.
You and your parish representative should have already received an informational packet from Episcopal Relief and Development with promotional materials and the 2005 Gifts for Life catalog. There are over 25 projects to support.
I have enclosed an information sheet with suggestions, helpful web links and contact information. Please contact our ERD Diocesan Co-coordinators, Laury Graves ( lsgraves@pacbell.net) or Stephen Velez-Confer ( Sconfer@aol.com), if you have any questions.
I thank you for helping your members and congregation to assist those in great need.
Faithfully,
The Rt. Rev. James R. Mathes
Episcopal Bishop of San Diego
Information on Episcopal Relief and Development
Gifts for Life Sunday
December 11, 2005
Congregations can promote this by :
-Selecting a theme or particular project from Gifts for Life to support.
-Educating members in Sunday bulletins, newsletters and websites. Hope Chests (mite boxes) are also available.
-Holding an Alternative Gifts Fair and use the Gifts for Life catalog from ERD so congregation members can order gifts for family and others. The Gifts for Life catalog makes it easy to give meaningful gifts on Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries and other special occasions gift in honor of a loved one, friend or business associate while helping children and families survive disasters and climb out of poverty.
- Church organizations such as youth groups, ECW, Sunday School classes and men’s groups can select a specific project to fund such as drought-resistant seeds, a flock of chickens or a home in tsunami-affected countries.
-Have a special ingathering on December 11 to fund the projects.
-Send all contributions directly to ERD, P.O. Box 12043, Newark, NJ 07101-5043.
Online donations can be made at http://erd.servicenetwork.com/Store/CatalogList.asp.
For more information and to order materials such as the Gifts for Life catalog and the Hope Chests, please visit the ERD website: http://www.er-d.org/fallchurch/. There is no charge for the items. You only pay for the shipping. A bulletin insert is also available for downloading.
Please contact our ERD Diocesan Co-coordinators, Laury Graves ( lsgraves@pacbell.net) or Stephen Velez-Confer ( Sconfer@aol.com), if you have any questions.