ADGL March 2026 Newsletter

FROM THE DESK OF BISHOP MARK

March 7, 2026

Season of Lent

“I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your

grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure,

dwells in you as well.” (2 Timothy 1:5)

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

On Wednesday, I officiated at the funeral service for my mother Priscilla Engel. She lived a long (nearly 97 years) and impactful life as a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother. She kept a prayer list and interceded daily for those she loved and the needs of others. (I have attached her obituary here.) Thank you all for your love, prayers, and expressions of sympathy.

At her memorial service, I shared that I am the youngest of her three boys and I am her prodigal son. Mom and dad never gave up on me, loved me, and prayed for me. My two older brothers celebrated my conversion to Christ and accepted me when I returned to the fold fifty years ago. As I read Paul’s words to Timothy cited above, I realize I have been truly blessed by the prayers not only of my mother Priscilla, and my grandmother Pauline, but also my great grandmother Clara that availed for me to become firmly founded in my faith in Christ.

My father died nearly twenty-one years ago on a Saturday evening. The next day I preached on Psalm 90. I recalled dad’s testimony to God’s saving goodness and the reality that the Lord has been “...our dwelling place in all generations.” (Psalm 90:1) Mom’s funeral was the sixth one in our family of generational believers (both sets of grandparents and both of my parents) over which I officiated in the same small town. How grateful I am for this godly heritage.

As I reflect on the events of the past few weeks in light of Psalm 90 and the approach of the coming Easter celebration, I pray that each one of you will…

Thank God for whatever godly heritage you have experienced biologically or otherwise,

Commit to continue or begin living a life that builds a godly heritage for your descendants that God’s glorious power will be shown to our children,

Be satisfied afresh by the steadfast love of God that makes us glad all of our days,

Will wisely number your days to attain a heart of wisdom, and

Experience the favor of the Lord upon you to establish the work of your hands as a testimony to the only one who truly saves and gives new life, Jesus Christ.

Please pray with me:

“Heavenly Father, help us to entrust our loved ones to your care.

Though sorrow darkens our lives, help us to look up to you,

remembering the cloud of witnesses by which we are surrounded.

And grant that we on earth, rejoicing ever in your presence,

may share with them the rest and peace which your presence gives;

Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.”

Your servant for Jesus’ sake,

+Mark

Bishop Mark

BISHOP ALLEN’S POETRY CORNER

Octave

In a world of dominants,

augmented, and suspended chords

--not to mention disharmonies--

it is cheering to note

the existence of the octave.

Seven steps up the ladder

we find ourselves covering

the same ground we were,

recapitulating the same resonances

just farther up the scale.

Each Lord's Day

I find myself

in the same timeless space

up and open to eternity

--even when we meet in a new location

we are singing with the Seraphim,

Cherubim, Archangels, Angels, Saints

Holy, Holy, Holy,

is the Lord God Almighty!

The furniture does not matter

nor the perfection of our voices

nor the state of the figures under our clothes

as on each day of light

before the throne

we are transposed.

STAY CONNECTED

BISHOP MARK IS OUT OF THE OFFICE EVERY WEDNESDAY

Please note: Bishop Mark is out of the office every Wednesday. If you need anything from him or the diocesan office on a Wednesday, please contact Canon Andrea Orchard at aorchard@adgl.us rather than Bishop Mark. Thank you!

See Bishop Mark's Winter Schedule Here

FOLLOW BISHOP MARK ON FACEBOOK

Click here to follow Bishop Engel via social media as he travels around the diocese and province!

BISHOP’S DISCRETIONARY FUND

Thank you for your ongoing giving to our Bishops’ discretionary funds! Just a note of clarification on these: When sending a check to the diocesan office, please be sure to note in the check’s memo line to whose discretionary fund (Bishop Engel or BIshop Kannapell) you wish your donation to go. You can always give via our website as well and select the desired fund in the first dropdown menu. Thank you!!

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Thank you for your prayers as we search for a Bishop Coadjutor who will serve as the fourth Bishop Ordinary of the ADGL upon Bishop Mark’s retirement.

In consultation with the Nominations (Search) Committee, the Standing Committee has decided to extend the window for nominations by two weeks, until March 14th. The Nominations (Search) Committee has already received a number of godly candidates that they are interviewing. Given the fact that our search timeline has sufficient space built in for this brief extension, we feel it is prudent to do so in the event that there may yet be nominees to be prayerfully put forward for consideration.

We ask you to be in prayer for the committee, the candidates, and to ask God if there are godly priests that you know, whether in the ADGL or outside of it, that would be a good fit for consideration to lead the churches and clergy of our diocese.

Prayerfully,

The ADGL Standing Committee

2026 Cycle of Prayer

Click the link below to access the 2025 Cycle of Prayer for the Anglican Diocese of the Great Lakes. Please check this document often as changes are made to the cycle of prayer throughout the year. Thank you for your faithfulness to pray for our people.

2026 Cycle of Prayer

AROUND THE DIOCESE

ORDINATION TO THE PRESBYTERATE -

ESTEBAN CRAWFORD

What a wonderful Ordination Eucharist on Sunday, February 15, at Union Chapel United Methodist Church in Indianapolis, IN. May God bless Fr. Esteban Crawford as he serves Christ’s Church.

Clergy pictured above (left to right, front row to back row): Row 1 - Rev. Dr. David Ney, Bishop Mark Engel, Rev. Esteban Crawford Row 2 - Rev. Dcn. Andrea Buettner, Rev. Dr. Dennett Buettner, Rev. Ethan Harrison, Rev. Dave Kulchar, Very Rev. Dr. Joe Murphy Row 3 - Rev. Dcn. Garrett Saul, Rev. Dcn. Joe Hoffert, Very Rev. David Trujillo, Rev. Dcn. Micah Wolfe

REGISTER TODAY FOR CLERGY RETREAT!!!

This year our ADGL Clergy Retreat will truly be a time of getting away together for renewal. We are heading back to Maumee Bay Lodge and Conference Center and are planning to have generous space and time to be renewed in our relationships to one another, our common vocation, and our communion with our good God, not to mention great food and beverages, lots of laughter, and mutual support.

Clergy, be sure to check your email for details on how to register and book your stay for this year’s Clergy Retreat. Registration is due THIS THURSDAY, March 12!!

If you have any questions regarding registration or are in need of financial assistance, please contact Canon Joy Unger at bpexecutiveassistant@adgl.us or 234.466.0426.

GLOBAL MISSIONS

Thank you for participating in the 2026 World Mission Sunday. Please make sure to complete the survey if you haven't already.

ADGL Global Missions - World Mission Sunday Survey – Fill out form

The next World Mission Sunday will be on January 31, 2027. See the details here

If your congregation is ready to build a relationship with a missionary and support someone who has been vetted and connected to our diocese, please contact Canon Joshua Ajayi at jajayi@adgl.us or call him at 585.439.4679. Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions about missions.

NEXT GEN MINISTRIES

**REGISTER BEFORE MARCH 15 FOR $50 OFF TRIP COST!**

Hurricane Helene devastated communities across the southeastern United States in late September 2024. The Tropical Storm particularly affected western North Carolina, Eastern Tennessee, and southwestern Virginia, and is one of the deadliest storms on record.

ARDF’s Domestic Disaster Response Network helped to coordinate relief in efforts between various churches and communities. We will be spending a week serving with their partner organizations on the ground in North Carolina to help bring aid to this region that is still reeling from the hurricane.

Contact Canon Andrew (aunger@adgl.us) and he will get you connected to the ARDF registration page.

IN OUR CONGREGATIONS

Please keep in prayer the churches in our diocese who are currently in the search process for leadership/staff in their congregation:

St. Andrew’s Anglican, Lewis Center, OH
St. Timothy’s Anglican, Radcliff, KY

The ADGL Offices are also in the search process for one part-time position:

Office Manager

You can find job descriptions on the Jobs page of the ADGL website.

JOIN THE SUPPLY CLERGY LIST!

If you are willing to be Supply Clergy and are not currently on the list, please contact Canon Mark at canonordinary@adgl.us to be added. Thank you for your faithfulness and willingness to serve!

ADGL DIRECTORY OF CHURCHES

Visit the Clergy Resources page (Quick Links) on the ADGL website to view our diocesan directory of churches. If you notice that updates should be made to your congregation’s info, please email Ms. Kate Krumreig, Communications Director, at kkrumreig@adgl.us.

RESOURCES AND MORE

MATTHEW 25

This Fall: Live Out Isaiah 58 Together

This fall, The Matthew 25 Initiative is inviting churches in our diocese to engage with Living Isaiah 58, a six-week course created by M25i in partnership with the Fuller Center for Spiritual Formation.

Through Scripture, stories, and spiritual practices, the course explores what it means to become a church that is present with the poor, rooted in mercy, and committed to justice.

Whether you're new to this work or have been on this journey for a while, Living Isaiah 58 offers a space to grow together as disciples who seek to repair, restore, and rebuild.

Interested in running the course in your parish? Reach out to M25i at communications.m25initiative@gmail.com

Learn more or sign up here → https://www.anglicanjusticeandmercy.org/living-isa58

ANGLICAN FRONTIER MISSIONS

Anglican Frontier Missions (AFM) has recently released two new curricula: Adult Missions Curriculum and Frontier Missions Kids.

Learn more about AFM’s newly released curricula here!

DAILY OFFICE BOOKLET

Click here to access the Daily Office Booklet for January-April 2026!

Are you passionate about seeing people come to faith in Christ?
Do you desire to see people grow as disciples?
Do you long to see the cities of our nation bring glory to God?
Did you know that the single most effective strategy for reaching people for Christ and making new disciples is church planting?

Donate to the ADGL Flourish Fund here. All gifts will go towards church planting, revitalization, and curacies. The goal of the Flourish Fund is to raise $1,000,000 over the next three years to plant and revitalize churches and raise up the next generation of clergy and leaders through curacies in the Anglican Diocese of the Great Lakes. You can learn more and make a gift at our website: https://www.adgl.us/flourish.

RECOMMENDED TEXTS

BCP 2019 To Be A Christian: An Anglican Catechism The Gospels of the Year