Beginning September 2, Net News will have a stronger focus on diocesan-wide announcements, information, resources, and opportunities that are of interest to our whole Diocese of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.

We know that there is an incredible amount of wonderful work happening in our parishes, and we are grateful to everyone who takes the time to share events, activities, and opportunities with us. Your contributions help us celebrate and stay connected to the life of our wider diocesan community.

As we look at our overall communications approach, we are making some changes to ensure that we are using our communications resources as effectively as possible and focusing on information that will be most useful across the Diocese. This means that parish-specific event listings will no longer be a regular feature of Net News.

Instead, we encourage parishes to use their own bulletins, websites, social media, newsletters, and other local communication channels to promote parish events and activities. These local channels are often the best way to reach the people who are most likely to participate in your events and engage with your parish community.

This change will also allow us to put greater focus on developing communications and resources that support the wider work of our Diocese. For example, we are exploring a new publication specifically for Treasurers and Wardens, providing information and resources that can support those serving in these important roles.

We recognize that communicating effectively can sometimes be challenging, particularly when deciding which tools and approaches will work best for your parish. If you would like ideas or support in promoting an event, connecting with your community, or sharing your parish’s story in other ways, please reach out to our Director for Mission and Ministry, Rev’d Canon Lisa Vaughn (missiondirector@nspeidiocese.ca). She would be happy to help you explore some options.

Thank you for your understanding, and especially for all that you do to share the life, ministry, and good news of your parish and community. We look forward to continuing to use Net News to help keep our whole diocesan community connected, informed, and engaged.

Schedule

Wednesday, September 2nd - Online Meetings

Thursday, September 3rd - Senior Leadership Team Meeting (am), Out of Office and Online Meetings (pm)

Friday, September 4th - In Office Meeting (am)

Sunday, September 6th - Parish Visit - Parish of Seaforth (All Apostles by the Sea, Seaforth - 10 am)

Monday, September 7th - Day Off

Tuesday, September 8th - Administration/Catch up (am), Community of Deacons Meeting, Episcopal visit to Northumbria Region (Fellowship Dinner - St. Bee's Anglican Church, Westville)

Announcements

Bishop Sandra is pleased to announce the appointment of The Reverend Esther Deng as Rector for the Parish of St. John's, Halifax, Effective September 1, 2026

Ordinations

God willing and the people consenting,

on Saturday, September 26th, 2026 at 2:00pm

at The Cathedral Church of All Saints, Halifax,

Bishop Sandra will ordain:

Deborah Beck

Annie MacQueen

Natasha Tobin-Bejarano

to the Sacred Order of Deacons

Your prayers and presence are requested for Deborah, Annie, and Natasha

as the prepare for their ordination and the vows and promises they will make

before God and the gathered community.

Clergy and Licensed Lay Ministers are invited to vest and process.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

God willing and people consenting,

on Monday, September 28th

- The Eve of St, Michael and All Angels - 

at 3:00 pm at the Church of St. Peter and St. Thomas, Weymouth

Bishop Sandra will ordain:

Christopher Ryan Tidd

to the Sacred Order of Priests

Your prayers and presence are requested for Christopher

as he prepares for his ordination and the vows and promises he will make

before God and the gathered community.

Clergy and Licensed Lay Ministers are invited to vest and process.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

God willing and people consenting,

on Thursday, October 15th

at 4:30 pm at Christ Church, Berwick

Bishop Sandra will ordain:

Kenneth MacIntosh

to the Sacred Order of Deacons

Your prayers and presence are requested for Ken

as he prepares for his ordination and the vows and promises he will make

before God and the gathered community.

Clergy and Licensed Lay Ministers are invited to vest and process.

 

Openings

Full-Time Rector - Parish of Christ Church, Amherst

Full-Time Incumbent - Parish of St. Luke's Hubbards & Parish of Blandford

Shared Ministry of the Parish of Digby, The Anglican Church of Canada and Rivers of Grace Pastoral Charge, The United Church of Canada

Full-Time Rector - Parish of St. Stephen's, Chester

Our church people know their way around a kitchen. Here's an idea to explore that uses our strengths - cooking and our well-equipped kitchen facilities. The Raw Carrot creates supported employment for people facing barriers to traditional workplaces by making handcrafted soups and breakfast products. Because we believe everyone deserves a hand up in life.

Check out this free webinar Wednesday, October 28, 1 p.m. (Atlantic)/ 12-noon (Eastern).

Explore how your organization can create permanent, part-time supported jobs that build financial stability, purpose, and belonging for people facing barriers to traditional employment.

https://www.therawcarrot.com/launch

Parish leaders are often looking for practical, easy ways to help people connect Sunday faith with everyday life. Next week, we begin rolling out ready-to-use "Flourishing Faith in Daily Life" mini-resources.

These "micro practice' faith inserts are designed to be plug-and-play, adaptable across multiple settings with zero extra preparation:

• Sunday Leaflets: Print-ready, vertical half-sheet bulletin inserts.
• Parish Newsletters: Compact reflections ready to paste straight into your digital or print communications.
• Social Media: Short, engaging snippets formatted for Facebook.
• Parish Meetings: Built-in devotional starters to ground Parish Council or committee meetings.

Each 1/2-page insert is paired with an optional 30-second pulpit script to make introducing the weekly practice effortless. Keep an eye on your inbox each Tuesday for that week's downloadable package. Available weekly from the Net News too.

For info, email: missiondirector@nspeidiocese.ca

On November 30 at 6 pm our diocese will gather in All Saints Cathedral, Halifax, to celebrate with an exuberant service of Holy Eucharist the 50

anniversary of our Church ordaining women to the priesthood. And because that date also happens to be the 6th anniversary of Bishop Sandra's consecration as bishop, an event that had no real public celebration as it took place under Covid restrictions, we will also celebrate her ministry among us.  A reception will precede the worship.

We hope every parish in the diocese will join in preparing for this celebration. More information will be coming throughout the summer, but here are some of the ways to get involved: 

• Make a list of the women ordained in or from your parish and female rectors – and also those who felt called and were not welcomed into ordained ministry; those stories are part of the fabric too. 

• Collect the stories of these women, and those who supported them

• Create artwork depicting your parish’s women clergy and stories (a template and instructions will be sent out in advance so these are the same size and material; these will be gathered and hung in the Cathedral for the service)

• a collect will be sent for prayer during October and November)  

• Host a parish watch party for the national celebration being held November 25 in Victoria

• If you are too far from Halifax to attend, host a parish watch party for our diocesan celebration. 

We are making resources available to assist those who want to attend the national celebration in Victoria and need financial help to do so; please contact Lawrence Roche at financialcontroller@nspeidiocese.ca if you ware interested in going. 

And watch for further announcements about ways to participate in this grand celebration!

The next Anglican Foundation Grant deadline is September 15th, 2026.

Complete applications must be received by the Executive Secretary of Synod by those dates. execsecsynod@nspeidiocese.ca

**Once your application has been submitted, you will receive a confirmation email from the Executive Secretary of Synod acknowledging its receipt**

Information for our Diocese in addition to the requirements from the Anglican Foundation

- The motion to move forward with this initiative from the minutes of council are required

- The Bishop does not compose her letter of support until after Diocesan Executive Council votes to forward the application.  This is taken care of within the Synod Office.

- The deadlines for applying are earlier than the dates on the Anglican Foundation website, as our applications must vetted by the committee, then brought to Diocesan Executive Council before they are sent to the foundation. Our dates are based on the dates the Diocesan Executive Council meets.

- If the grant application includes working with youth your vulnerable sector policies must be included in the application. 

To apply for a grant please go to the website  https://www.anglicanfoundation.org/apply/ 

and download all of the information to insure your application is complete.

Please feel free to send any questions to the

Executive Secretary of Synod, execsecsynod@nspeidiocese.ca

Looking for an accessible, low-pressure way to dive into scripture this fall?

Joine us for Lessons from Paul: Living a Christ-Centered Life, a Zoom Bible study series co-hosted across three dioceses (Calgary, Algoma and Nova Scotia & Prince Edward Island) and Thorneloe University, Sudbury, ON.

Each session follows a simple, open format: a passage of Scripture is read twice, followed by a wide-ranging, accessible discussion on how Paul's writings apply to our daily lives.

Event details

When: Thursdays from Sept. 3 to Oct. 8 at 9:00pm Atlantic Time

Where: Online via Zoom

• Meeting ID: 827 3436 6468
• Passcode: 830537

Weekly Reading Schedule

• Sept. 3 - Colossians 3:12-17
• Sept. 10 - Ephesians 4:29-32
• Sept. 17 - Romans 12:1-13
• Sept. 24 - Romans 12-14-21
• Oct. 1 - Romans 13:1-7
• Oct. 8 - Romans 13:8-14

Co-Leaders

Mike Hobson - Postulant, Church of St. Andrew, Cole Harbour, NS (Diocese of NS & PEI)

Coery Brunatti - Parish of Trinity Muskoka Lakes, ON (Diocese of Algoma)

Rev. Mike Black - Parish of St. Martin's, Calgary, AB (Diocese of Calgary)

All are welcome! Grab your bible and join the conversation from wherever you are.

See what your parish offers in the way of prayer programs, contemplative gatherings, or quiet prayer times.

 Explore prayer gatherings from other parishes, perhaps not available at your church, or held at a time more convenient for your schedule; in person and on ZOOM.

Summer updates  

Now that we are officially in the Season of Creation (Sept. 1 - Oct. 4), there is an understandable draw to the natural world, as well as a strong sense of honouring how our food is harvested.

Anglicans Powering Potential remind Net News readers that the United Nations has declared 2026 as the International Year of the Women Farmer (IYWF 2026) to recognize and celebrate the essential contributions of women in agrifood systems worldwide. The Year spotlights the essential roles women play across agrifood systems, from production to trade, while often going unrecognized. Women farmers are central to food security, nutrition, and economic resilience. The International Year of the Woman Farmer raises awareness and promotes actions to close the gender gaps and improve women's livlihoods worldwide.

Here are some interesting International Days for the first week of September:

Sept 5 - International Day of Charity

Sept 7 - International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies

Sept 7 - International Day of Police Cooperation

Sept 8 - International Literacy Day

Sept 9 - International Day to Protect Education from Attack

God willing, Archbishop David Edward intends to ordain deacons Rick Cunningham, Dr. J. F., Rob Pitman and Virginia (Ginny) Wilmhoff to the priesthood and Ellen Kelly, Samuel Landry and Tyler Joseph McKenna to the (transitional) diaconate.

Ginny Wilmhoff and Samuel Landry studied at Atlantic School of Theology, Halifax, and have served in several of our Diocesan parishes. 

Please keep them in your prayers during this sacred time.

For more information on the ordination service visit: https://nb.anglican.ca/events/ordinations-to-the-priesthood-and-diaconate/2026-09-12

Learn about the types of beach plants, how to identify them, and how to protect them. 

Workshops are presented by DEN and ESCOM, with the support of RCFNS.

Registration is available at: https://tinyurl.com/3hxbaun8

Any questions, please email healthycoast00@gmail.com

Atlantic School of Theology’s Certificate in Stewardship is a program that explores stewardship as a faithful response to God's gifts. 

Through engaging discussions, practical application, and theological reflection, participants will develop skills and perspectives to foster generous, healthy, and mission-focused faith communities.

This program is designed for clergy, lay leaders, church volunteers, and simply those who are interested in stewardship.

The Fall 2026 cohort begins Tuesday, September 8, 2026. Sessions will be online via Zoom from 7-9 p.m. and run over seven weeks.  

The cohort is facilitated by Rev. Cathy Lee Cunningham, an experienced ministry leader with a passion for helping congregations cultivate a vibrant culture of stewardship.

Whether you are looking to strengthen your congregation’s stewardship practices, grow in your own understanding of faithful generosity, or gain practical tools for ministry, this certificate offers a supportive learning community grounded in theological reflection and real-world application.

Cost: $600 per person. Limited bursary support is available for eligible participants.

Registration is now open - Click here to Register

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. Sharon Williston by name at 1-888-310-1924 or by email Sharon.Williston@irvingoil.com 

The Furnace Oil price for the period  - August 29, 2026 - September 4, 2026

Nova Scotia - $1.6180 Prince Edward Island - $1.6180