Diocesan News
On Haiti . . .
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Read Upper SC's newest letter from Haiti |
Beware of fraudulent emails! |
Upper SC's ministry in Haiti: 30 years and counting
What follows is a slightly shortened version of
a 2007 article by Christ Church parishioner Reggie Brooker offering a
comprehensive overview of our ministries in Haiti until that time. In
2008 Upper SC's World Mission Committee launched the Bread and Water
Campaign to ensure the viability of the water system at Cange and move
ongoing ministries there forward.
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Giving to Haiti relief |
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The diocesan "Bread & Water Fund - Rescue, Cange, Haiti" will ensure the viability of the local water supply, which is a mainstay of our ministries there, and support immediate needs in Cange as necessary, including the hospital, which is now receiving an immense influx of injured. |
In 1979
a chance meeting took place between two Episcopal priests, Fritz
Lafontant and William A. Beckham, later sixth bishop of Upper South
Carolina, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. This meeting was the spark that led
to the Cange mission development and the friendship between the people
of the Diocese of Upper South Carolina and those of Cange, on Haiti’s
central plateau.
Together with Fr. Lafontant and Harvard physician Dr.
Paul Farmer, a founder of Partners in Health, our diocese has been
involved in rural Haiti for some 30 years. The heart of this connection
has been cooperation, solidarity, and long-term commitment in
partnership with Fr. Lafontant and the Episcopal Church at Cange, Église
Bon Sauveur.
Church on the hillside
Cange is a small village 45 miles northeast of Port-au-Prince. In 1979 Fr. Lafontant built the church on a dry, barren hillside. This church was the first building constructed at Cange, and the religious orientation of the community has remained central to all subsequent activities.
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The Episcopal Church built at Cange in 1979, now, following the earthquake, in use as an extension of the hospital constructed in 1996 with Upper SC support |
The soil was hard-packed and barely arable. Water was available only some hundreds of feet below and reachable only by a steep and dangerous trail. Poverty and disease accompanied the people, and life was hard and short.
In 1981 our diocese began its active involvement at Cange. Medical people, doctors, nurses, and helpers carried medicines in suitcases. Hundreds of people came on foot or by horseback from miles around and over mountains seeking help. Clinics were held outdoors under the trees or in the church using benches for tables and the altar for the pharmacy. And this went on during the reign, and under the watchful eyes, of “Papa Doc” Duvalier, then Haiti’s president
Who's minding the store, or . . .
How does the diocese work in the absence of a sitting bishop?
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Photo: Roger Hutchison, Trinity Cathedral |
Ever wonder how the diocese functions in the absence of a diocesan bishop? The short answer is through the coordinated efforts of the diocesan Standing Committee and the diocesan staff.
The Constitution and Canons of the Episcopal Church assign many
specific responsibilities to diocesan Standing Committees (SC). Among
the better known are certifying that canonical requirements have been
met prior to ordinations of priests and deacons; consenting to the
election of bishops; consenting to the alienation or encumbrance of
church properties; and serving as a council of advice to the Bishop.
The Constitution also authorizes the SC to be the “Ecclesiastical
Authority of the Diocese for all purposes declared by the General
Convention” when there is no Bishop authorized to act (Art. IV). The SC
of our diocese is presently fulfilling its role as the Ecclesiastical
Authority and will continue in that capacity until the consecration of
Bishop-elect Waldo on May 22. What does that role entail?
The SC took up that question at its yearly orientation meeting in
September. As a result of that meeting, the SC has been coordinating
with diocesan commissions and committees in order to oversee a smooth
transition. As one might expect, SC relies on the diocesan staff for the
day-to-day operations of the diocese, and to keep SC informed as they
would the bishop. A subcommittee of the SC is in place to facilitate
communication by serving as liaison between the diocesan staff and the
SC.
Among the important areas the SC is addressing are the following:
ensuring that necessary bishops’ visitations occur, ordination processes
continue without hindrance, clergy deployment occurs without delay,
approval of marital judgments are handled expeditiously, and issues of
clergy-congregation conflict are handled with care and sensitivity.
Matthew 25 grants for 2010 now available
Matthew 25 grants support outreach programs in congregations and
convocations of the diocese that are serving these least of Jesus’
family in our own communities. The programs supported and nurtured by
Matthew 25 grants are the work of Upper South Carolinians striving to
manifest the reality of God’s kingdom in their local communities.
Congregations and convocations are invited to apply for grants to be
made during 2010. Information,
guidelines, and
application forms
are available on the diocesan Web site.
For additional information on the grant process, please contact Matthew 25 chair, the Rev. Timothy Ervolina, 803.929.1000.
The Matthew 25 Committee, which administers the grants, draws its name and vision from the words of our Lord in the Gospel of Matthew 25:40: "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me." The committee is made up of the Council of Deacons, who serve on it as part of their diaconal ministry, along with the lay wardens of each diocesan convocation.
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Matthew 25:37-40: “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food or thirsty and gave you something to drink.?...Truly I tell you, just as you did to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” |
Youth Deputy Nominations now being accepted
Youth Deputies will be elected at the first Convocation meetings of the year—all of these occur in February. Please be thinking about youth from your church that would benefit from the experience of being able to serve the diocese as deputies to the convention.
Each convocation is allowed to elect two youth who are confirmed and in high school for all of 2010. These youth are expected to be present at convocation meetings (usually held quarterly on Sunday afternoons) and at the Diocesan Convention in October. The form for nomination is now available online.
Completed forms should be submitted via e-mail to The Rev. Sue von Rautenkranz. You may also mail the form to
The Rev. Sue von Rautenkranz
1115 Marion Street
Columbia, SC 29201
If you have trouble downloading the form, please contact Bethany Human, 803.771.7800 x 19.