Diocesan News

Bishop Alan M. Gates sent the following message on the evening of Oct. 9 to the diocesan community:Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,I invite you to join me in lifting prayers for Bishop Tom Shaw as he nears the end of his earthly pilgrimage.Bishop Tom's presence with us at the Consecration on…

The first diocesan green loan was awarded to St. John’s Church in Charlestown this summer, and the parish is now close to completing a major renovation that will make the church buildings more energy efficient.The loan of $100,000 is being used to finance the installation of a new heating system,…

As Question 3 to repeal the state's casino gambling law comes before Massachusetts voters in November, Bishop Alan M. Gates of the Diocese of Massachusetts voiced his opposition to expanded casino gambling at an Oct. 9 press conference at Old South Church in Boston, and he commends to those who may…

Judith M. Lidberg, former canon for ordained vocations for the Diocese of Massachusetts, died at her home in South Windsor, Conn., on Sept. 23 as a result of ovarian cancer.For more than seven years prior to her retirement in February 2013, Lidberg helped to raise up …

Students at Esperanza Academy returned to classes as usual on Monday, Sept. 22, following a small fire at the school. The electrical fire started in an unoccupied room at about 2 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 15. The Lawrence fire department quickly contained the fire and limited damage to an area of the…

Area Episcopalians joined an estimated 311,000 people for the People's Climate March in New York City on Saturday, Sept. 20 (New York Times).  The march coincided with the build-up to a UN summit on climate change, which is slated to take place on Tuesday, Sept. 23.  …

The House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church is meeting in the Diocese of Taiwan from Sept. 17 to Sept. 23. Bishop Alan M. Gates is in attendance, and sent this update from Taipei.  For full coverage of the meeting of the House of Bishops, visit Episcopal News Service.   …

During the Sept. 13 service of consecration of the new bishop of the Diocese of Massachusetts, colleagues and friends presented the Rt. Rev. Alan M. Gates with numerous vestments and symbols of his new office.These included a Bible, presented by the chief consecrator, the Rt. Rev. Stephen T. Lane,…

With screens and banners hung, an altar built, carpets, candles and chairs placed, and hundreds of flowers arranged by dozens of hands in the days leading up to the occasion, it was liturgy—the work of God’s people for the glory of God—that transformed Boston University’s Agganis Arena from…

The following is a message from the Rt. Rev. Alan M. Gates, which appeared in the Sept. 13 consecration liturgy booklet. A French proverb attributed to Jean Massieu says that “Gratitude is the memory of the heart.”My heart is full of recent memories of the untold hours offered by those who have…