Bishop Rickel’s Statements

Updated Friday, July 2, 2021 (Bishop Rickel’s Letter Announcing the Lifting of COVID Restrictions in the Diocese of Olympia; New Reopening Page from the Office of the Governor) LIFTING OF COVID RESTRICTIONS IN THE DIOCESE OF OLYMPIA (July 2, 2021) OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR’S COVID-19 REOPENING GUIDANCE (July 2, 2021) VIEW OR DOWNLOAD THE DOCUMENT (April 2020 – Where information in the Diocese of Olympia’s Phase-In Plan conflicts with the governor’s orders, please follow the most recent governor’s orders.) VIEW OR DOWNLOAD THE

“To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” Romans 8:6 Today is my son’s 24th birthday. He lives in New Orleans, which has become one of the COVID-19 hotspots right now. Several weeks ago, and for months before that, we had planned to leave today to be in New Orleans for his birthday and to spend the weekend with him. Of course, all of that has changed.

From Bishop Rickel: These are parameters. Every local context will require some adjustments, or different set up, but please stay within these guidelines. The main point, at this point, is to have the least amount of contact you can with others even in the course of filming. If you feel you cannot live within these guidelines we should discuss it. The maximum number of people assisting with the live-stream worship is eight.  There are a lot of lists like this

1From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2The people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” 3But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us

The Office of the Bishop celebrated the Rev. Canon Dr. Marda Steedman Sanborn’s tenure as Canon to the Ordinary in the Diocese of Olympia this week, and Bishop Rickel appointed her Honorary Canon to Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral in Seattle. We’re presenting Bishop Rickel’s letter accompanying this appointment in full below: I write to you today with the appointment of the Rev. Canon Marda Steedman Sanborn as an Honorary Canon of Saint Mark’s Cathedral. Marda has served me, and this

Dear Ones, Once again, our houses of worship have been violated by senseless violence as three people were shot at the West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, Texas this morning. Two of the individuals are dead, one of those believed to be the shooter, and as is always the case in situations like this, there is much that we do not and will never know. We mourn the loss of life and pray for the families of everyone

Printable PDF Version | En Español Dear Ones, A little over a year ago we embarked together on a journey of discernment and listening. This journey was sparked by a vow I made in the episcopate election of 2007 in which I stated I would probably leave this position in 10-12 years. If you have watched the videos I have made about this, and/or attended many of the “Walk Again” listening sessions of this past year, you know about how

Dear Ones, I am deeply saddened by news of the shooting this morning at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, CA that has claimed the lives of two teenagers and injured three more. As is often the case in the immediate aftermath of such horrific events, we know very little about the shooter’s motivations and more details will doubtless be revealed in the coming days and weeks. And as is often the case, we will hear the usual litany of