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16 from previous page are the men, children and young people. Likewise vocation to the ordained ministry is depleting. “There is also the question if the present church structure is viable?’ Where have all the members gone? Where have all the clergy gone? Brothers and Sisters keeper is very much a Mission of the church. Growth. All over the world, there are hundreds of millions which can be reach by the churches. The growth somewhere is viable, but the problem is how. Initiatives have met challenges in terms of sustainability. Sponsors, institutions and societies have declined dramatically leaving initiatives stranded and at worst frustrations on the part of the new growth areas. Economic Viability/ Poverty. Dioceses and parishes are challenge with financial viability as well as their institutions. The communities are faced with poverty and people are just simply surviving. Over and above these, are people are getting dispossessed of their lands and livelihood. Land is getting concentrated all the more on the hands of the few and corporate entities. Wealth and resources are not distributed either but concentrated in the hands of the already rich. What is mission in these context? Indigenous People. The presence of Indigenous peoples in almost all countries is something the church had not taken seriously. They have a great wealth of theological insight as well as spirituality which can impact on the Churches understanding of God, Christ, Creation etc…They live in mountain ranges, mountain valleys, hill sides and slopes, along rivers. Incidentally, these are the places where the earth resources are concentrated. The face dislocation, displacement, harassments and eventually get marginalized. What is mission among the indigenous peoples? Nos. 3 &10 – are my additions Are these Context Relevant? I submit that these contexts upon which the five marks of mission were defined are very much relevant. Nothing of these context were change, in-fact became more profound and severe. Other Faith is a reality, however we have not yet arrived at a situation prevailing in some countries where there is open conflict with the other faith. The rise of “fundamentalism” is a reality as well. Migrant, refugees and displaced people is a long reality. It is said that the biggest refugees seekers because of poverty is the Philippines. Filipinos are all over the world sometimes not as a choice but the force of grinding poverty especially in the rural and urban poor areas. Displacement is a tragedy as a result of the aggressive development projects as Mines, Logging, Mega Dams and Agri-business projects. HIV/ AIDs is not profound due to cultural values as “hiya” and social implications which is why it is being toned down but it is a reality and a real head ache of the department of Health. Disasters/ Emergencies abound due to natural The Philippine EPISCOPALIAN calamities compounded by human greed. The Government is not keen on solution but on risk reduction. The situation of our young people exposed not to the desired Christian culture but to the Pop culture of the times. If they are the church leaders in the future, how much is the church addressing these concerns. Reconciliation. There is so much division in our midst and there more exercise of getting divided than getting united. There is so much erosion of the values that enhances brotherhood of all men. Decline is a reality in churches our church included. The question arises, Is the institutional church still relevant or is there need of a shifting in terms of mission now a days? Decline is also very evident in the recruitment to the vocation to the ordained ministry. While there is great opportunity of growth out into the world, we are tied down with economic viability and sustainability. With the poverty prevailing in the rural communities (which happens to be our favorite communities) there seems to be no hope at expanding to the less economic viable communities. Perhaps this is something to reflect upon, Is Mission all about drawing something from the communities or sharing something with the communities? Where have all the missionary zeal gone? Indigenous People. Our church is basically Indigenous and likewise our leadership. As the saying goes “familiarity breeds contempt”. One challenge is how to draw lessons out from the stored wisdom of our people for mission? Second challenge is how to overcome “ethnocentrism” and opening up to new and fresh desirable values to be able to do mission in a pluralistic society? The Diocesan Strategic Growth Plan (Year A). Looking back in retrospect at SGP Year A. are the following Strategic Growth Plans as well as Imperatives. We tried to be very focus, deliberate and participatory in terms of planning and implementation and evaluation. While far from perfect, we have attained most of what we launched to undertake. Strategic Membership Growth Plan: Membership Data and Profile (MBDP);Deliberate entry into new Pastoral Areas (DPA); Bring your brothers and sisters (BBS); Strategic Churchmanship Growth Plan; Deliberate Recruitment to the ordained and Lay Ministry (DREAM); Preferential Deployment Initiative (PADI); Campaign for Renewal (CARE); Strategic Self Reliance and Support Facilities Growth Plan:Systematized Accounting in all LCUs as an Act of Thanksgiving (SALAMAT); Greater incentives to Viable Enterprises (GIVE) Diocesan Strategic Growth Plan Year B. Looking forward at Year B. we intend to repeat the same, however continued on p16
from page 10 Paul, faith is meaningless if it does not impact in a Christ-like life to the believer. Christian behavior or conduct springs from an intimate association with faith. There has to be unity of thought and action, a correlation between creed and deed. The letter from James chapter 2 verse 17 aptly states, “faith without works is dead.” Something is amiss if our faith doesn’t have a positive impact in our lives. And the response for the believer in Christ must be expressed in concrete behavioral terms. One of the known practices of man since the beginning of human existence is to offer sacrifices to the deity for the expiation of sins and/or to please the gods. In the case of Israel, the practice of sacred assemblies and sacrifices came with a call to righteousness as championed by the prophets Amos and Isaiah who rejected the Israelites’ burnt offerings and grain offerings and instead called for justice and righteousness to run down like a mighty stream. The practice of animal sacrifices and offerings was also a lucrative and extortive business in the temple in new testament times. Remember, it made Jesus very very angry. Jesus the perfect sacrifice for the remission of our sins has done it once and for all. There’s this story of three friends who died in a car accident and were in the gates of heaven undergoing orientation. They were all asked the same question: When you are lying in your casket with friends and family mourning over you, what would you like to hear them say about you? The first guy immediately responds, “I would like to hear them say that I was one the great engineers of my time, a builder, and a generous provider for my family.” The second guy says, “I would like to hear that I was loving husband and a great teacher who made a difference in the lives of many young people.” The third guy thinks a minute and says, “I would like to hear them say, . . . . HEY LOOK, HE IS MOVING!!! NATATAGO PET NA!!! He is alive!!! We all want to stay alive, don’t we? We all want to go to heaven but not just yet. Alive alive forevermore we sing. Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice. St. Paul here is talking of living persons not dead animals for a sacrifice. God does not like deadwoods. A deadwood is a useless person or material according to Webster. No commitment, no action, and no output. The worst thing is, they blame others for their non-performance. God doesn’t like dead ducks or goners who might as well be cut off like the branch that doesn’t bear fruit. God doesn’t delight in dead beats who persistently fail in their obligation to God and their neighbor. God doesn’t delight in dead ends for you can’t go any further with them in service. They even stifle the productivity of others. Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice. This is a call for all us to submit ourselves completely to God though an unwavering faith and committed service. It is said that “anyone can serve leftovers. Only those who love God more than anything else will serve up the best for Him.” That best is ourselves and the best that we can offer for the Glory of God, the best that we can do to share our faith and demonstrate God’s abounding love to others. Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice. Christ wants to abide in us. “He wants to use our eyes to behold what’s happening in our communities and in our congregations. He wants to use our ears to hear the cry of those who are in distress and those in need. He wants to use our lips to tell others the good news. He wants to use our hearts to express compassion and love to everyone. He wants to use our minds to think through situations and to have something to say to the people involved. He wants to use our hands to do His work and our feet to go to the places He wants to go to help others through us. Our bodies include the soul which is the seat of our intellect, emotions and will. Christ wants to think His thoughts through us.” (Theodore Epp). Bishop Brent Harry Alawas, Diocese of Northern Philippines Let us pray: Almighty God, you give us new life, new hope, and new opportunities with each returning day: Help us to use these blessings to the best of our capacity in doing the work which we have to do; devoting ourselves wholly to your service, and putting our selfish interests aside to seek the welfare of our fellowmen human beings; for the sake of him who came among us as one who serve, your son Jesus Christ our lour Lord. Amen. The Philippine EPISCOPALIAN 17
Page 1 and 2: Episcopalian “Why seek ye the liv
Page 3 and 4: “Will you go and do likewise?”
Page 5 and 6: NBW AT THE MISSION CENTER Cathedral
Page 7 and 8: from previous page The words Jesus
Page 9 and 10: 18 Graduates from Saint Andrew’s
Page 11 and 12: DIOCESE OF SANTIAGO “Keep on the
Page 13 and 14: from page 11 (Misio Dei). For the A
Page 15: from previous page Naimbag a Damag
Page 19 and 20: DIOCESE OF SOUTHERN PHILIPPINES “
Page 21 and 22: THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION Archbishop o
Page 23 and 24: OPINION/REFLECTIONS Thirty two year
Page 25 and 26: from previous page domains of the i
Page 27 and 28: EDNCP from page 14 completing requi

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