New Jersey priest gives last rites to coronavirus patient through window

From New Jersey-

A New Jersey priest was unable to perform last rites on a coronavirus patient in person or over the phone, due to a bad connection — so he decided to administer the prayer through the window of the man’s nursing home room, according to a report.

“I was shaking as I was doing it. I didn’t expect to be. I knew that the sacrament was there whether or not I felt it,” the Rev. Michael Way of Christ Episcopal Church in Middletown told NJ.com.
“I didn’t expect to feel it as powerfully as I did,” he added.

Way, who wore a mask as he recited the sacrament, said he could hear the patient mouthing the words to the prayer as the priest held up his hand to the window on April 21.

The patient, his parishioner at Christ Episcopal, was moved to the nursing home in the fall and later contracted the disease. As of Saturday night, the man was still alive, the news outlet reported.

More here-

https://nypost.com/2020/04/27/nj-priest-gives-last-rites-to-coronavirus-patient-through-window/ 

and here-

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/coronavirus/article242319876.html

Episcopal Church mourns leader from Franklin Lakes who fought for women's rights

From Newark-

The Episcopal Church is mourning the loss of Marge Christie, a relentless activist for the rights of women and other excluded groups in the church.

Christie, who resided in Franklin Lakes, died on April 14 at age 90 of natural causes, said her family.

The mother of four never worked in a formal career: Her life's passion was the church, and her mission was inclusivity, a crusade that gave her national recognition.

Over six decades, she served the Episcopal Church in numerous capacities, including as lay deputy at 12 national General Conventions, where church policy is decided. She was part of the first group of women to be seated in the House of Deputies — one of two legislative houses in a General Convention — and was the first woman to sit on the national church's Executive Council, a body that administers policies adopted by a General Convention.

She was also founder of The Diocese of Newark's LGBTQ ministry and its Dismantling Racism Commission.

More here-

https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/2019/05/03/episcopal-church-mourns-leader-franklin-lakes-fought-women/3610233002/

New bishop starts with Hudson visit

From Newark-

"I get up with butterflies," the Right Rev. Carlyle J. Hughes admitted. "This is a fun time for me. ... There is a lot of excitement."

It is understandable because she was elected on May 19 as the 11th bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark on the first ballot and consecrated at NJPAC last month as the first woman and African American to serve as bishop of this diocese.

At 51, the former corporate trainer will have to summon all her past experience to shepherd her 26,000 parishioners in 98 parishes over most of northern New Jersey to take ownership of a new way of being an Episcopalian in the 21st century.

"I also have 200 priests to get to know quickly," she said. "And to build relationships among churches, clergy and lay leaders."

Hughes' vision of the diocese is "as a hub and network of support for those seeking a loving, compassionate, and just way of life."

More here-

https://www.nj.com/jjournal-news/index.ssf/2018/10/new_bishop_starts_with_hudson.html

New leader of Episcopal diocese brings a corporate background and church heart

From Newark-

"I get up with butterflies," the Most Rev. Carlyle J. Hughes admitted. "This is a fun time for me. ... There is a lot of excitement."  

It is understandable because she was elected on May 19 as the 11th bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark on the first ballot and consecrated at NJPAC last weekend as the first woman and African American to serve as bishop of this diocese.

At 51, the former corporate trainer will have to summon all her past experience to shepherd her 26,000 parishioners in 98 parishes over most of northern New Jersey to take ownership of a new way of being an Episcopalian in the 21^st century.

"I also have 200 priests to get to know quickly," she said.  "And to build relationships among churches, clergy and lay leaders." 

More here-

https://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2018/09/new_leader_of_episcopal_diocese_brings_a_corporate.html

Episcopal Diocese of Newark to make history with consecration of 11th Bishop

From Newark-

The Rev. Carlye J. Hughes will be consecrated the 11th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark on Saturday, September 22, at 11 AM, at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark. She was elected on May 19, 2018 on the first ballot and will be the first woman and first African-American to serve the Diocese of Newark as diocesan bishop.

The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, will officiate as Chief Consecrator. On the same day Hughes was elected bishop, Presiding Bishop Curry made headlines around the world for his sermon at the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

More here-

https://dioceseofnewark.org/content/media-advisory-episcopal-diocese-newark-consecration-11th-bishop

Diocese of Newark notified of successful canonical consent process for bishop-elect

From ENS-

The Episcopal Diocese of Newark has received notification from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry and the Rev. Michael Barlowe, registrar of General Convention, that Bishop-Elect Carlye J. Hughes has received the required majority of consents in the canonical consent process detailed in Canon III.11.3. 

In giving consent to her ordination and consecration, standing committees and bishops with jurisdiction attest to knowing of “no impediment on account of which” Bishop-Elect Hughes ought to be ordained to the office of bishop and believing that her election was conducted in accordance with the Canons.

More here-

https://www.episcopalnewsservice.org/2018/08/22/diocese-of-newark-notified-of-successful-canonical-consent-process-for-bishop-elect/#comments

Newark Episcopal Diocese votes in Morristown to elect first black bishop

From New Jersey-

Some history was made Saturday at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Morristown, where members of the Diocese of Newark elected the Rev. Carlye J. Hughes as their next bishop.

Hughes, 59, is the first African American, and the first woman, to serve in that role. She will succeed retiring Bishop Mark Beckwith in September.

The matter was decided on the first ballot, with Hughes garnering 62 of 116 clergy votes and 141 of 241 lay votes, according to the Diocese.

The other nominees were the Rev. Lisa W. Hunt, rector of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Houston, and the Rev. Canon Scott G. Slater, from the Diocese of Maryland.

More here-

https://morristowngreen.com/2018/05/19/newark-episcopal-diocese-votes-in-morristown-to-elect-first-black-bishop/

Standing Committee announces candidates for XI Bishop, opens Petition Process

From Newark-

 The Standing Committee of the Diocese of Newark is pleased to announce a slate of four candidates who will stand for election as XI Bishop of Newark at a special convention on May 19, 2018.

The candidates are:

The Rev. Canon John Harmon, Diocese of Washington, D.C.
The Rev. Carlye Hughes, Diocese of Fort Worth
The Rev. Lisa Hunt, Diocese of Texas
The Rev. Canon Scott Slater, Diocese of Maryland

The Bishop Search/Nominating Committee, after careful and prayerful discernment, recommended these candidates to the Standing Committee, which voted to approve the slate.

"We believe these individuals possess the skills, qualities, experience and spiritual grounding necessary for the office of Bishop, and we are excited to commend them to the Diocese of Newark," said the Rev. Joseph Harmon, President of the Standing Committee. (Note: The Rev. Joseph Harmon and the Rev. Canon John Harmon are not related.)

More here-

https://dioceseofnewark.org/content/standing-committee-announces-candidates-xi-bishop-opens-petition-process

Youth Leader Stole Donations From Glen Rock Church

From New Jersey-

The youth director at All Saints Episcopal Church and Preschool was arrested Sunday after he allegedly stole nearly $600 in donations from the church.

Church officials went to police headquarters Sunday afternoon with surveillance footage of a man, later identified as Sean M. Massaro, 24, of New Milford, stealing donation envelopes from the church's Sunday collection, said Chief Dean Ackermann.

Massaro, who used to live in Glen Rock, began working for the church part time in September, police said.

The church suspected that money was being taken since the beginning of the year when one collection had no cash donations at all, which was very unusual, Ackermann said.

More here-

https://patch.com/new-jersey/ridgewood/youth-director-stole-donations-glen-rock-church-police

Diocese rallies to assist stranded West Coast teens

From Newark-

It started with a Facebook post and a chance cross-country friendship. It turned into what became a very long email chain on the Newark list. By the time it was over, a bunch of Episcopalians in northern New Jersey had helped feed a group of high school kids from the West Coast, because the kids had left their shoes in a foreign country. There’s also a Connecticut angle.

Follow closely now.

Last Thursday, as a severe winter snow storm was creating brutal conditions for much of the East Coast, Selene Nesland and four other chaperones were leading a group of 20 kids from five high schools home to Vancouver, Washington, a suburb of Portland, Oregon. The group had traveled to the Dominican Republic with Courts for Kids, a nonprofit organization founded by Nesland and her husband, which brings volunteers to impoverished areas to build or repair courts used for sports.

The group spent more than a week in shirt-sleeve weather at Red Misericordia, a Christian orphanage in Santiago, whose name translates roughly as “Mercy Network.” They built an outdoor basketball/volleyball court – “just a simple, concrete structure, but something [the orphanage] wouldn’t have been able to do on their own,” Nesland said.

More here-

https://dioceseofnewark.org/content/diocese-rallies-assist-stranded-west-coast-teens

Actor Matthew Broderick, cleric sister shimmer with 'A Christmas Memory' reading

From New Jersey-

Actor Matthew Broderick couldn't keep a grin off his face as he watched his sister, the Rev. Janet Broderick, give a credible performance as his whiskey-soused, middle-aged cousin.

The siblings united Friday night as a cast of two in a free, dramatic reading of Truman Capote's short story "A Christmas Memory" in the parish hall of Saint Peter's Episcopal Church in Morristown, where Janet Broderick has been rector for nine years.

"The Broderick family players!" church musical director Joshua Stafford announced to the sold-out house as the siblings walked down an aisle to a simple stage set 5 feet from the front-row audience seats.

They sat on chairs beside each other, their scripts before them on music stands, before Matthew Broderick plunged into the opening lines of Capote's endearing, semi-autobiographical story from the 1930s about the bonds of love and companionship between a 7-year-old boy and his dotty, middle-aged cousin.

More here-

http://www.dailyrecord.com/story/news/2018/01/06/actor-matthew-broderick-cleric-sister-dazzle-crowd/1001525001/

Bishop Search on Hold Due to Plagerism.

From Newark-

The Diocese of Newark is revising the diocesan profile it published to guide the search for its next bishop after discovering that a section of the profile was plagiarized from the profile of the Diocese of Bethlehem.

The Rev. Joseph Harmon, interim vice president of the diocesan Standing Committee, announced today that the search process is paused until January 2, 2018 at which time the application process, which had closed on November 17, will be reopened until January 10 to accommodate candidates who might wish to apply based on the revised profile.

This delay in the search process will not necessitate a change in dates for the episcopal election on May 19, or the consecration of the eleventh bishop of Newark on September 22, Harmon said.

Bishop Mark Beckwith, who has led the diocese since 2007, called for the election of a successor when he announced in February that he planned to retire.

More here-

https://dioceseofnewark.org/content/bishop-search-hold-will-reopen-january-2-revised-profile

Newark Seeks 11th Bishop

From The Living Church-

The Diocese of Newark is accepting nominations in the search for its 11th bishop, and has posted its profile. Interested parties have until Nov. 3 to nominates themselves, but anyone intending to nominate another person must do so by Oct. 20.

The profile acknowledges the central role played in recent decades by the Rt. Rev. John S. Spong, its eighth bishop:

Our most familiar and controversial figure is The Rt. Rev. John Shelby Spong, elected and consecrated in 1976. Bishop Spong became a prolific author and advocate for progressive causes both nationally and within The Episcopal Church. He led our Diocese to champion women’s ordination and later, gay rights, far earlier than most other Episcopal Dioceses. One result of Bishop Spong’s 24-year tenure was an ongoing and transformative dialogue on issues that would later threaten schism within the larger church. Women and gay clergy found this Diocese to be a safe place to explore ministry, which influenced change in other dioceses. All this contributed to Newark’s reputation as a progressive Diocese.
More here-

http://livingchurch.org/2017/10/17/newark-seeks-11th-bishop/

First African-American woman on New York’s highest court, Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam, found dead on Hudson River shore

From The Daily News-

Abdus-Salaam and the Rev. Gregory Jacobs wed last June at the Greater Newark Conservancy, according to a marriage announcement.

Jacobs, who works for the Episcopal Archdiocese of Newark, stopped by Abdus-Salaam’s Harlem brownstone Wednesday evening, accompanied by detectives.

Neighbor and friend Deborah Audate said the couple maintained separate residences, but spent time together on weekends.

“Even though she was an appellate judge, which is a position of high authority, she was just an ordinary person on the block,” Audate said. “She’s just very smart. She really was a very humble person.

“She’s very well respected on this block. I think we’re still stunned by it,” she added.

More here-

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/appeals-court-judge-found-dead-hudson-river-article-1.3049391

Judge sides with Morris County for historic preservation of churches

From Newark-

Morris County can continue awarding historic preservation grants to churches in Morristown and across the county, a state judge has ruled.

Sitting in Somerset County, Superior Court Judge Margaret Goodzeit last week dismissed a lawsuit by the Freedom from Religion Foundation and Madison resident David Steketee, who charged that millions of grant dollars since 2002 have violated separations of church and state outlined by the state and federal Constitutions.

“Excluding historical churches from receipt of reimbursements available to all historical buildings would be tantamount to impermissibly withholding of general benefits to certain citizens on the basis of their religion…and would be inconsistent with the spirit of our state and federal Constitutions,” ruled state Superior Court Judge Margaret Goodzeit, sitting in Somerville.

The Morris freeholders welcomed the decision in a statement:

“In Morris County, as in all counties in New Jersey and across the nation, churches and other religious buildings are a vital part of the historic fabric of where we live, interwoven with the history of how our county developed.

More here-

http://morristowngreen.com/2017/01/15/judge-sides-with-morris-county-for-historic-preservation-of-churches/

Former Newark Episcopal bishop Spong suffers stroke

From New Jersey-

 Rt. Rev. John Shelby Spong is recuperating after suffering a stroke before a planned speaking engagement in Michigan Saturday, the Episcopal Diocese of Newark said on its Facebook page.

"Many thanks to all of you who have been praying for Bishop Jack Spong and his family since we received the news that he suffered a stroke last Saturday morning. Bishop Beckwith is in contact with the Spong family, and reports that Bishop Spong is stable and talking, and that our prayers offer hope and help. Updates will be provided as they become available," the diocese said Monday.

More here-

http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2016/09/former_newark_episcopal_bishop_suffers_stroke.html

Fire Severely Damages Historic Church In West Orange, NJ

From Newark- with video-

A large fire severely damaged a historic church in West Orange, New Jersey.

The blaze broke out around 5 a.m. Friday at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on Main Street. Video from the scene showed massive flames piercing through the windows and the roof of the church.

“First arriving company encountered heavy smoke and a large body of fire on the second floor,” said West Orange Deputy Fire Chief Albert Souza.

The church has been there for more than 150 years, CBS2’s Christine Sloan reported.

“It’s horrible,” said resident Jim Rose. “This was a church that’s been here as long as I have been here.”

More here-

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/01/01/west-orange-church-fire/

'We've had enough!' — pastors say Jersey City is 'in a crisis' over violence

From New Jersey-

 Enough.

That was the message a group of nearly three dozen religious and community leaders sent today about the violence that has plagued Jersey City's southern neighborhoods in the last two months.

Standing outside a deli at the corner of Old Bergen Road and Neptune Avenue — where Markice Hatten, 33, was fatally shot on Nov. 23 in the city's most recent homicide — the pastors led a prayer service and demanded city police officials meet with them to discuss the violence.

"The police don't seem to have the sense of urgency that we share," the Rev. Mona Fitch-Elliot, of St. John's Lutheran Church, said today. 

More here-

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2015/12/weve_had_enough_jersey_city_pastors_denounce_viole.html

Catholic dissident group to ordain women priests in Morristown, April 25

From New Jersey-

Catholics who thought they never would live to see the ordination of women priests can witness it right here in Morristown, on Saturday, April 25, 2015.

A dissident organization called Roman Catholic Womenpriests will ordain seven women at 2 pm, at the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer.

The Vatican does not recognize females as priests, and has warned women that the ritual amounts to automatic excommunication, according to the Rev. Marellen Mayers, who has traveled from Baltimore for Saturday’s ceremony.

“Jesus calls both men and women,” Mayers countered.

Established in Germany in 2002, Roman Catholic Womenpriests now numbers about 200 women priests, mostly in the U.S., Mayers said.  They have staked a claim to “apostolic succession” — theological  legitimacy — based on ordinations they say were performed by Catholic bishops who they decline to name.

More here-

http://morristowngreen.com/2015/04/25/catholic-dissident-group-to-ordain-women-priests-in-morristown-april-25/

Candlelight vigil for peace in Newark, where people are 'upset and confused'

From Newark-

Sirens wailed as police and fire equipment rushed past the place of worship Sunday night where people gathered for the Prayer Vigil for Peace at Trinity and St. Philip's Cathedral in Newark.

“We needed to have a witness in response to Ferguson and Staten Island,” said Episcopal Bishop Mark Beckwith. “People are upset and confused and we offer hope, together, in a commitment to a more just world,” Beckwith added.

Dozens came to the church, which traces its history to the early 18th century. Some wore a bulls-eye on their backs.

More here-

http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2014/12/candlelight_vigil_for_peace.html