Archbishop Linda Nicholls, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, has announced that she will step down from her role on September 15, 2024.

The canons of the Anglican Church of Canada require primates to retire upon reaching their 70^th birthday. Archbishop Nicholls will reach mandatory retirement age in October.

Archbishop Nicholls was elected as the 14th Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada on July 13, 2019. She was the first woman to hold the office in Canada and only the second in the Anglican Communion.

“The greatest joy has been to share in the relationship between God and God’s people through pastoral care, preaching, teaching and sacramental ministries and advocate for justice and compassion for all,” Archbishop Nicholls writes in her retirement announcement. “To see God at work bringing healing and hope in the midst of the sorrows, pain and joy of daily life for individuals, families, communities and our wider world is a privilege that cannot be measured.”

The full announcement can be found HERE.

Archbishop Linda Nicholls Theological Education Fund

In recognition of her service as 14th Primate of the Anglian Church of Canada, the National House of Bishops, in partnership with the Anglican Foundation of Canada, has established the Archbishop Linda Nicholls Theological Education Fund to support the theological training of women in Canada, both lay and ordained.  Donations in honour of Archbishop Linda Nicholls may be sent to the Anglican Foundation of Canada, with a message line indicating the ‘Linda Nicholls bursary fund’.

Deadline for submissions is Tuesdays by 5:00 pm. Please Email Trisha at office@nspeidiocese.ca with your requests. 

Thank you.

Monday April 8 to Friday April 12 – Meeting with the House of Bishops in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Friday April 12 to Sunday April 14 – MRI at 60 Conference, A conference to mark the 60th anniversary of the 1963 Toronto Anglican Congress, St. Paul’s Toronto.

Monday April 15 – Day Off

Tuesday April 16 – Appointments and meetings in office.

Wednesday April 17 – Appointments in office and Leadership Team meeting.

Anglicans often refer to ourselves as 'Easter people.'  We embrace and celebrate what resurrection activity God is always doing. This evolution is challenging, yet exciting.

In the Alban Institute article, written by Shannon Hopkins, writes, 
"As new forms of mission and ministry are taking shape, this is a moment of hope as well as pain. Just like the messy but beautiful process of giving birth, the re-imagining of the landscape of the church is an intricate dance of pain and promise."

Read more of the article, The church isn’t dying. It’s being remade, below:

Engage: Transforming Parish Dynamics is an opportunity to gather with other faith-based leaders as we develop strategies and build skills and experience to navigate the changing waves of parish dynamics. If you feel called, clergy or lay people, to a volunteer ministry of working with parishes as they identify areas of opportunity and growth, and to journey with these same parishes through dynamic times of change and conflict management, then this may be an enriching opportunity for you.

Parish leaders are passionately interested and seeking more training related to funeral ministry. More than 200 people participated in GUIDING LIGHT funeral ministry workshops. Ten regional gatherings were held over the last 6 months. Now several follow-up and specific learning sessions are being hosted on Zoom.

TOPIC: PRAYERS AT THE TIME OF DEATH and VISITATION PRAYERS

            (liturgies for the wake/at the funeral home).

DATE: Monday, April 15

TIME: 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

PRESENTER:  The Rev'd. Laurie Omstead, former hospital chaplain, priest and Interim Director

Re-Imagining Formation/Anglican Accompaniment at AST. 

TOPIC: GREEN BURIALS

         (practicalities of officiating at a funeral for someone who has chosen Green Burial)

DATE: Monday, April 29

TIME: 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

PRESENTER: Louisa Horne, Epilog Transition Services CIC, Halifax. She is a founder, Transition Specialist, Celebrant, and End-of-Life Doula.

 
REGISTRATION:

If you already signed up for the Regional Workshops, you will receive an invitation with the Zoom link via e-mail.

If you have not registered for GUIDING LIGHT already, SIGN UP HERE -   www.surveymonkey.com/r/GUIDINGLIGHT

We celebrate what the Holy Spirit is doing as we embrace more fully the ministry of all the baptized.

Got questions?  Contact Lisa -  lvaughn@nspeidiocese.ca or 902-789-4840

REGISTRATION is OPEN!
Early Bird DISCOUNT Rate! 

See also - Special Rate for Hotel guest rooms too.
And there is FUNDING SUPPORT for Anglicans from PEI and NS.

DETAILS and to REGISTER:   https://www.nspeidiocese.ca/pages/vital-church-martimes-2024-conference

VCM 2024 conference features the story arc of mission – from Acts 2, through to the present realities of Churchland today. Participants will explore their church’s missional beginnings and reflect on emerging growth possibilities.

Keynote speaker David Robinson guides leaders from ‘What is,’ to ‘What could be’, on to ‘What will be.’
A congregational consultant for more than 30 years, Dave has been on the leading edge of mission in the Canadian Anglican church. He has worked in the Dioceses of Toronto, Rupert’s Land (Manitoba) and Montreal. He specializes in priority planning, church planting (starting new congregations), rural ministry support, congregational health, and youth ministry.

Vital Church Maritimes includes talks on understanding our cultural context, leadership and gifting, working within ministry teams and more! There will be plenty of practical resources and applicable takeaways for parishes of all shapes and sizes.

St. Paul’s Anglican Church, downtown in The Grand Parade is looking to hire a Parish Sexton to service both the church building (1749 Argyle St.) and the Parish House (1706 Argyle St.) across the street, (both interior and exterior).

Every year the Church of England kicks off a campaign of mission-edged prayer called, Thy Kingdom Come. It is a global ecumenical prayer movement that invites Christians around the world to pray from Ascension to Pentecost for more people to come to know and experience Christ. This 'global wave of prayer' starts May 9 and runs until May 19.

This is a great way to energize long-time parishioners to PRAY, LISTEN and DISCERN how God is at work in our local neighbourhoods. There are a variety of resources, especially for community engagement, private or small group devotion and Sunday worship times. INCLUDES a free downloadable Novena Devotional, and MORE! 

Thy Kingdom Come | Thy Kingdom Come

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work – A panel discussion on collaborating with community partners.

There are oodles of organizations in our communities who are also working to serve children, youth, and families. Sign up now to join us for stories, tips, and conversation on April 10 at 7 pm.
 

Say Yes! To Kids 2024 – Raising money for children’s and youth ministry

Get all the details about this year’s campaign here: https://www.anglicanfoundation.org/sytk2024/
If you’ve still got questions, join us for an info session on May 7- details here!

Let’s Chat! – Meet with Allie.

It’s so great to be back in the swing of things and to be reconnecting with folks! If there are things happening in your parish with children, youth, or families, or you’d like to make some things happen, I’d be happy to resource and support you. Email me at youthandfamily@nspeidiocese.ca to find a time to chat!

We’d like to invite you to a space of nurture for those in rural congregations and for the communities in which they live. Rural Routes is a gathering with time for both structured and informal conversations, worship, education, play, prayer, and table fellowship. We’d like to share our stories and to hear yours; what is working well and what you lament or long for, what brings you joy and who is your neighbour. We’d like to imagine together ways in which members of small, rural congregations might remain grounded in and able to share the Gospel despite sometimes challenging circumstances.  These resources may also help

When: Thursday, June 13th at 10:00 to Saturday, June 15th at 2:00

Where: Orchard Valley United Church, New Minas, NS

Theme: Beautiful to Behold: Broken Open Church

Theme Presenter:  Rev. Dr. Catherine Smith

Follow the link below to register

Parish of Mahone Bay (St. James’ Mahone Bay, Christ Church Maitland)

Position Overview

The Parish Administrator is the public face of our parish community. We seek a compassionate person with strong of ice management skills, who is able to welcome visitors in person and on the phone, support the clergy, wardens, and parish council, prepare print and online materials, maintain the website and parish list, schedule the use of church facilities, maintain con<identiality, manage time well and meet deadlines, and work effectively both independently and as part of a team.

St Timothy's Hatchet Lake has: Mission Praise, Common Praise, large print red hymn books, a red hymn book with music to gift.

We also have a set of wooden pavement candle holders.

Please contact  stspoffice@gmail.com if you are interested in any or all.

Manager, Philanthropy

The primary function of the Manager, Philanthropy is to develop and implement an overall fundraising strategy of Atlantic School of Theology (AST) in alignment with university priorities and the University’s strategic plan. This position, reporting to the CAO, will provide leadership and support to the President and CAO by managing all fundraising appeals including Annual Fund, Special Funds, Major Gifts, Capital Giving and Planned Gifts. Please see the full job description on our website (link below) for more details on the position and instructions on how to apply.

Deadline for applications: April 16, 2024

Two sessions with Peter Misiaszek, Director of Stewardship Development, Anglican Diocese of Toronto

12:00pm - Lunch and Learn session - A soup and sandwich lunch will be provided.

Five things you can do right now. Following three years of pandemic induced hunkering down and readapting, parish leaders are looking for “easy wins” to help rejuvenate deflated parish budgets and help parishioner reengaged. This conversation will explore 5 stewardship strategies that can be incorporated right now as they are proven best practices. 

To register:

Stewardship in the Post-Pandemic Time Tickets, Wed, May 8, 2024 at 12:00 PM | Eventbrite

2:00 pm - An Afternoon Conversation (free, no registration required)

If Resources Were Unlimited – stewardship strategies that contribute to long-term stability and growth.With the wolf at bay, let’s explore long-term strategies that will require leadership, time and patience to bear fruit in the parish. Our discussion will focus on disciple-making, long term planning, introducing an annual covenanted giving program, promoting legacy giving, parish twinning to share experiences and identifying new outreach opportunities.

Peter Misiaszek, CFRE Peter Misiaszek is the Director of Stewardship Development for the Anglican Diocese of Toronto – a position he has held since 2003. He is responsible for parish stewardship education, annual giving, legacy giving, The Bishop’s Company of Toronto, FaithWorks and oversight of The Anglican Diocese of Toronto Foundation.Peter is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) and has been a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) since 2002. 

The Dartmouth Region is running a Marriage Success program on 13 April 2024. The course is designed to meet the requirements of marriage preparation in the Anglican Church of Canada, but is also useful to couples looking to improve communication. This program supports marriage equality and welcomes participants from the LGBTQIA2S+ community.
 
Registration forms are due by March 28 - (we must have at least 4 couples to offer the course). Cost $60 per couple (covers lunch, snacks and printing costs). 

Contact marriagesuccess@outlook.com for more information.

At 7:00 PM, Dr. Amy Peeler of Wheaton College will speak on “Mary: Central Evidence for God’s Honoring and Empowering of Women.” At approximately 8:00 PM, we will hold our ASBE business meeting via Zoom. Watch for more information about the AGM coming soon.

Everyone is invited to join DEN for the People's Parade for Life on Earth April 20 at 2 pm (rain date: April 21) at Sackville Landing on the Halifax Waterfront. 

If you can, wear something green. (Clergy might want to wear their shirt and collar.) 

Email: endionspei@gmail.com to let us know that you are coming or just show up at the last minute and bring family and friends.  

Join us at St Peter's Anglican Church (3 Dakin Dr, Halifax) for a special worship service to remember a poignant event in history. Our special guest speaker will be Rebekah Maxner.

April 14th at 10am, service is also livestreamed

The Diocese of NS and PEI Heating Oil Program with Irving Oil offers Churches of the Diocese and eligible Diocesan Clergy and Diocesan Staff a discounted rate based on non-profit status. This rate is not offered to individual Anglican parishioners. For more information, please contact: The Centralized Commercial Account Manager for the Diocesan Heating Oil Program, Ms. Jennifer Bishop by name at 1-888-310-1924 or by email at Jennifer.Bishop@IrvingOil.com

The Furnace Oil price for the period April 06, 2024 - April 12, 2024

Nova Scotia                    $0.9926

Prince Edward Island   $0.9926