Dear People of the Diocese of Olympia and beyond, At our Diocesan Convention last October you overwhelmingly passed a resolution supporting the Anti-Racism Covenant put forth initially by the Rt. Rev. Deon Johnson, Bishop of Missouri, and co-sponsored by many other bishops. My name has been on this covenant since just after its posting, however, I have now, on your behalf, added not just my name and office but the entire Diocese of Olympia. I provide a link below
Dear Ones, As many of you know, I am part of Bishops United Against Gun Violence, group of more than 100 Episcopal bishops working to curtail the epidemic of gun violence in the United States, and together we have issued the followed statement regarding Tuesday’s hate crime and horrific act of violence and terrorism which claimed the lives of eight persons of Asian descent. On Tuesday, another white man who should not have had a gun shot and killed seven
“So much of what has helped the US become the 9th worst per capita death rate in the world, out of 201 countries, is, what I like to call, the ‘pull up the gangplank, I’m onboard’ syndrome. Or ‘I got mine, you get yours if you can, I’m good!’ We will live, in the next few months, in a real liminal space, an ‘in-between space’ with those vaccinated, and those not. Please be careful with the syndrome I lay out
English “Estas tragedias nos han recordado que las palabras importan y que el poder de la vida y la muerte está en la lengua”. Capellán del Senado, el Rvdo. Barry Black. 6 de enero. El día de Reyes según nuestro calendario cristiano. Gran parte de todo eso desapareció en casi todo el territorio de los Estados Unidos el miércoles. En mi caso, el día comenzó con oración, ya que la época navideña finalmente llegaba a su fin. También terminó en
Español “These tragedies have reminded us that words matter and that the power of life and death is in the tongue.” Chaplain to the Senate, The Rev. Barry Black. January 6th. The Feast of the Epiphany in our Christian calendar. Much of that was lost on most people in the United States on Wednesday. For me, the day started with prayer, our Christmas season finally coming to its end. It also ended in prayer, a prayer offered by the Chaplain
Dear Ones, The scenes from our nation’s capital today are surreal, appalling, and unprecedented. In our Christian calendar today is the Feast of the Epiphany, the day the Magi arrived to be in the presence of the baby Jesus and for us then, the physical manifestation of Jesus to us all. There is no small irony that this chaos and unrest happen on this day. As Christians, it is in this reality, the reality of Jesus Christ, a real person,
Dear People of the Diocese of Olympia and beyond, At our most recent Diocesan Convention you overwhelmingly passed a resolution supporting the Anti-Racism Covenant put forth initially by the Rt. Rev. Deon Johnson, Bishop of Missouri, and co-sponsored by many other bishops. My name has been on this covenant since just after its posting, however, I have now, on your behalf, added not just my name and office but the entire Diocese of Olympia. I provide a link below which
The following address was presented virtually by Bishop Rickel at the 110th Convention of the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia: Let us pray: Holy One, as we gather together, we thank you for this day and for adding it to our lives. We ask you to reset our agendas, and to know you, even in our physical separation, ever present at the center of our gathering. You assure us that where two or more gather in your name you are here,
Bishop Rickel’s sermon on stewardship from October 4 is now available to view below. A written version of the sermon is also available below in English, Spanish, Arabic, Simplified Chinese, Dinka, Japanese, and Khmer. BISHOP RICKEL’S SERMON (ENGLISH) BISHOP RICKEL’S SERMON (SPANISH) BISHOP RICKEL’S SERMON (ARABIC) BISHOP RICKEL’S SERMON (SIMPLIFIED CHINESE) BISHOP RICKEL’S SERMON (DINKA) BISHOP RICKEL’S SERMON (JAPANESE) BISHOP RICKEL’S SERMON (KHMER) Bishop Rickel’s Stewardship Introduction is also available below for churches to use as part of their own
Dear Ones, These are trying times for everyone, but none more than the people of color of this country, who have never achieved equality or justice though a light has been shined on that disparity so many times, before our lifetimes, and in our lifetimes. The responsibility for changing this is on us all, but most especially the white person. We have the greatest responsibility to use our privilege to work toward a solution. I thank you all, so many
