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FROM THE DESK OF BISHOP MARK February 28, 2025 Feast of John Cassian, the Ascetic Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ Next week on Ash Wednesday, we will once again be called “...to the observance of
FROM THE DESK OF BISHOP MARK
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February 28, 2025 Feast of John Cassian, the Ascetic
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ
Next week on Ash Wednesday, we will once again be called “...to the observance of a holy Lent…by prayer, fasting, and alms-giving…” (BCP 2019, p.544) These three spiritual disciplines have been deeply embedded for centuries in the life of the Church, not only during the season of Lent, but as foundational practices of Christian discipleship. Many Bible scholars consider Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount recorded in Matthew 5 - 7 to be a Manifesto of the Kingdom of God. His authoritative teaching culminates with Jesus commending the wisdom of the person who “...hears these words of mine and does them [puts them into practice]...” (Matthew 7:24) In the heart of this passage, Jesus teaches on these three foundational practices of Kingdom believers…“When you give to the needy…when you pray…when you fast…” (Matthew 6:2, 5, 16) Jesus describes how these practices grace-fully shape us in Kingdom living. “...If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?” (Luke 9:23-26) Do you see it? When we are willing to say “no” to something (“loses”), then we are enabled to say “yes” (“save…gain”) something else…something greater…something more life-giving…something that helps form us more fully into the image of Christ. The writer to the Hebrews describes how this principle was not only manifestly present in the sufferings and deprivations of Jesus’ earthly life from his temptation in the wilderness to the Garden of Gethsemane (Hebrews 5:7-9), but also how it was at the heart of Jesus’ atoning work on the cross (Hebrews 12:2). Jesus said “no” to personal safety including life itself, comfort, and pleasure so he could say “yes” to the glorious joy of bringing many sons and daughters like you and me to glory! (Hebrews 2:10) This Lenten season I invite you to join me in listening to the Spirit for what God may ask us to “give up” to “give over”... To “give up” some time in our day (leisure activity, social media/entertainment, etc.) to give a bit more time over to prayer,
We don’t have to be of the ascetical stature of a noted monastic like Saint John Cassian. We simply need to rely on God’s gracious enabling favor to strengthen us to faithfully put into practice a bit more of these foundational disciplines of Kingdom life. Please pray with me. “O God, your blessed Son became poor for our sake, and chose the cross over the kingdoms of this world: Deliver us from the inordinate love of worldly things, that we, inspired by the devotion of your servant John Cassian, may seek you with singleness of heart, behold your glory by faith, and attain to the riches of your everlasting kingdom, where we shall be united with our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.” Your servant for Jesus’ sake, +Mark—————————————
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BISHOP’S VISITATIONSMission Cincinnati - Cincinnati, OHThe Rev. William Eavenson, Priest in Charge
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Bishop Mark and Terri visited The Mission Cincinnati in Cincinnati, OH, on Sunday, February 9, where he preached, celebrated communion, and confirmed/received 5 members. Blessings to them and all at The Mission Cincinnati! ————————————— |
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Institution of Rector - The Rev. Chad SannerSt. John’s Anglican - N. Canton, OH
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Clergy pictured above (left to right): Very Rev. Cn. Dr. Bryan Hollon, Rev. Cn. Dr. David Beer, Rev. Chad Sanner, Bishop Mark Engel, Rev. Cn. Mark Hottel What a wonderful service at St. John's Anglican in N. Canton, OH on Sunday, February 16, as Fr. Chad Sanner was instituted as rector! May God bless Fr. Chad and his wife, Maria, the clergy of St. John's, and the congregation in this new chapter of the church's life. ————————————— |
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We are launching a new portion of the monthly newsletter! Today we introduce for the first time a ministry spotlight highlighting work that the diocese is doing through the members of our various parishes. As we launch this section of the newsletter, we are also excited to have an audio interview to begin these testimonies and encouragements. We are looking forward from time to time to bring you recordings of teaching and interviews as part of this spotlight.
Today’s interview explores the work being done at The Garden Christian Academy, a classical Christian school located in the Clark-Fulton neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio. The founders, Stephen and Danielle Piscura, along with several of the teachers at the school are members of one of the diocesan parishes, St. Anselm Anglican Church in Lakewood, OH. In the audio section of this month’s spotlight, The Rev. Cn. Mark Hottel had a chance to sit down with Stephen, the Academy’s head of school, and learn about how the academy came to be in 2019 and the work God is doing through the school.
Read more and listen to the interview here! ————————————— Support Christian Education
Throughout the diocese there are various Christian schools who, like The Garden Christian Academy from this month’s Voices of Lively Faith, are seeking to care for and equip our children and the children of our communities with Christ centered educations. For many of those schools, obtaining financial support is a major key to being able to continue caring for their students.
One way of supporting Christian education in Ohio is to make use of the recent tax law which allows you to fund scholarships for those schools using taxes you owe. The State of Ohio has established a method where your tax money, dollar for dollar, can be used to establish scholarships for the Christian school of your choice through the Ohio Christian Education Network.
You can watch a 2 minute overview video about this program here (https://youtu.be/fqZG4-j7k2E?si=fgjcA2H2KBBQnn4e).
You can visit the website of the Ohio Christian Education Network here (https://ohiocen.org/).
Please find out if there are children from your parish who are attending a local Christian school and talk to their parents about this program. If the school is already a member of the Ohio Christian Education Network, you can help fund scholarships for the children of that school right now as part of your 2024 tax filing process!
If you don’t have a school in your local area or they aren’t a member of the Ohio Christian Education Network, please consider supporting The Garden Christian Academy (GCA) this year by funding scholarships with you tax money as they serve the children of their neighborhood!
Enrollment priority at GCA is given to students from disadvantaged backgrounds. While most families pay a small, affordable fee based on household income, the vast majority of operating costs are supplied by a combination of state dollars and the generosity of the school’s partner-donors. The tax credit described above is an unprecedented opportunity to financially sustain the mission of the school for years to come while making eternal investments in the lives of Cleveland’s children.
GCA has established a very thorough website to walk scholarship donors through the giving process which you can visit here (OhioTaxRedirect.org). ————————————— |
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Bishop Mark is Out of the Office Every WednesdayPlease 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 February-April Schedule Here |
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————————————— DEANERY CLERGY RETREATS
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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. ————————————— |
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BISHOP’S DISCRETIONARY FUND
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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!! ————————————— |
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March Ember Days - March 6-8Please Pray for those in the Discernment Process towards Ordination Ember Days are special days of prayer for those in various places in the ADGL Discernment Process towards ordination. The Lord has blessed us with many people investigating and entering the process to become an ordained deacon or presbyter in our diocese. We want to join together in prayer, asking the Lord to guide, strengthen, and protect them as they walk this path to determine if they are called by God to ordained ministry in his Church. This process is not quick or easy as they seriously consider the cost to both them and their families, and then take the steps to undergo assessments and develop competencies that are essential for future ministry.
Please pray for and support all the Aspirants, Seminarians, Postulants, and Transitional Deacons in our process: Kory Stearns, Peter Gross, Ellen Vosburg, Wesley Custer, Amelia Schmotzer, Michael Davis, Micah Wolfe, Esteban Crawford, Erin Zonio, Jeffrey Tabone, Mike Jorgensen, Samuel Hood, Kelsie Meyers, Liam Graham, Bradley Miller, Adam Bottiglia, Joy Unger, Steve Stasson, Joe Hoffert, Josiah Spencer, and Sylvia Maike. Pray especially for those taking their Canonical Exams this year and those making inquiries about ordination. Please pray that the Lord continues to send us such amazing, committed people as future leaders of his Church.
Thank you so much. We appreciate you and covet your intercession on our behalf. ————————————— |
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Save the Date! ADGL Youth Mission Trip - July 6-12Use the links below to learn more about this summer’s Youth Mission Trip and to register by April 1! Be sure to reach out to Rev. Canon Andrew Unger, Canon for NextGen Ministries, with any questions! |
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Congregational Leadership Searches
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Please keep in prayer the churches in our diocese who are currently in the search process for leadership/staff in their congregation: All Saints Anglican Church, Holland, MI Apostles Anglican Church, Lexington, KY Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Hudson, OH Mission Cincinnati - Cincinnati, OH St. Timothy’s Anglican, Elizabethtown, KY
You can find job descriptions on the Jobs page of the ADGL website. |
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————————————— Diocesan Event Photo Albums
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2025 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.
2025 Cycle of Prayer |
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