Entertaining Angels Unaware was Great

What is it like to learn about angels in the midst of a group of fun, interested, and interesting women? It is "Entertaining Angels Unaware", the Women's Ministry weekend just past. 

There was Birthday Cake! (Happy Birthday Kathleen) There was Food and Fellowship.

There was worship, including music by Santa Fe Music Works led by Dr. Mary Badarak. Pat's sermon was an Ignatian-like reflection of Gabriel's thoughts on his visit to Zechariah and Mary. You can read it here.

There was information. The Rev. Pat Green led the 50 women present in an informative series of teachings about angels. You can watch videos of a couple of the teachings on the Women's Ministry Facebook page. 
Did you know that angels are mentioned 273 times in the Bible? And mentions of the 'hosts of heaven' are encountered over 300 times. The Apocryphal and non-canonical books have even more mentions of angel interactions. We only have three angels named in the Bible itself: Gabriel and Michael, and the fallen angel, Lucifer. Uriel and Raphael are two that are named in the Apocrypha.

What are angels? Supernatural beings outside of time and space who proclaim God's Holiness. They, like everything else, are created and therefore under the authority of God and Jesus. Because angels, like all creation (and us) have free will, we know that 1/3 of them rebelled against that authority and 'fell' from heaven. There is, as far as we know, no redemption plan for fallen angels. There is a finite number of angels (an immense, even innumerable, number, but no new angels are created).
We humans don't become angels when we go to heaven, despite popular culture. We are now and continue to be saints who join with the angels in glorifying God. We CAN act in angelic ways with and for other people, of course.



Angels were an important part of Jesus' earthly life. From the Annunciation and Birth narratives (including the Flight to Egypt), to Jesus being ministered to by angels in the wilderness and in the Garden, angels were with Jesus. Then at the Tomb, angels made the grand announcement of the Resurrection. After Jesus ascended, angels tell the disciples to 'quit looking up to heaven'!

Do you know how many Ranks, or Choirs, of angels there are? (Nine-you can download the handout to learn more.)
Angels serve as Worshippers of God, as Warriors of God, and as Witnesses to God's work in all Creation. We can ask for God to send angelic aid, and like the case of Elisha we can sometimes even see the horses and chariots of fire that God sends. (2 Kings 6:15-23)

There was a workshop on Praying with Icons. The Rev. Pat Green and Pat Catlett of St. Mark's, ABQ shared how icons are 'written' or 'painted', and then how to 'read' them. Icons are not worshipped themselves, they are a tool to bring us to an awareness of God's presence. We shared a time of quiet meditation while resting in the presence of icons brought by Pat Catlett.

The final question is one that we can all ponder: If you believe in angels, what difference does it make in how you live and pray?
For our closing worship we shared and blessed items that reminded us of Angels, and then went forth blessed to act like angels-to glorify God, and witness to God's work in our lives and in the world. 

Entertaining Angels Unawares: Annual Bosque Center Weekend for Women

All women, lay and ordained, are invited to the Annual Women’s Ministry Weekend at the Bosque Center on November 15-16. The theme is Entertaining Angels Unaware. 

Who are the angels named in the Bible? 

What exactly are angels? 

Have you met an angel (heavenly or human) in your life? 

How can each of us be an angel? 

The Rev. Pat Green will be our speaker and help us answer these and other questions. We will look at Hebrews 13 and other scripture during our conversations. 

Come to learn, share, enjoy time at the Bosque Center with sisters in Christ from across the diocese! Women from all corners of the diocese are encouraged to attend.  

The weekend will start on Friday evening with dinner and an introductory talk by the Rev. Pat Green. The event will end mid-afternoon on Saturday. 

Registration is $60 for the weekend, including 3 meals. 
Saturday only registration is $40 and includes 2 meals. 
Rooms at the Bosque Center are available for $52/night for Friday night. Room registration is in the dropdown menu below. (To stay at Bosque Center on Saturday night, contact Catherine Lind.)

Register online below or download the registration form. (Use the dropdown menu to request a room, and for Saturday only registration.) Deadline is November 8. 

Entertaining Angels Registration

Entertaining Angels $60.00 USD Saturday Only $40.00 USD Bosque Room $52.00 USD

Boldly Forward: Bible Women Inspire Our Lives: August 17-18

 The Women’s Ministry of the Diocese is holding their 7^th Annual Bosque Center event on August 17--18. Starting with the Crazy Quilt Conversations event in 2012, we have met annually at the Bosque Center for fellowship, inspiration, and shared learning. All women are invited to join the conversation this year as we vision how to continue enriching the lives and ministries of women in the Diocese of the Rio Grande.

Entitled Boldly Forward, this year’s event will explore the lives of some Biblical women and what they can teach us about our vision for living our ministries in Christ in the Diocese of the Rio Grande. By looking at the lives of women like Mary of Nazareth, Mary Magdalene, Judith, and others, we will see that these women are much more than the meek, mild, and quiet persons, as they are often portrayed. They were obedient to God’s call and are powerful servants of God in their own right. These women are mentors and inspiration for our own day-to-day lives. Come and be inspired to live more fully and boldly as a woman of God.

Online registration for the event is below. The cost is $50 to cover supplies and 3 meals, provided by the Bosque Center chef. As always, some partial scholarships are available for registration*. Rooms are available at the Bosque Center for $52/night for a single room (shared bathroom). If you live in Albuquerque, you may commute. 

Carpools from Alamogordo, Santa Fe, Farmington are planned or form your own.
Some in-home lodging is available*

Register for Event and Bosque Center room using the dropdown menu below.
Or download the registration form and mail in your reservation.
*Contact Cindy Davis, Coordinator of Women’s Ministries (cynthiadavisauthor@gmail.com) if you need a scholarship, in-home lodging, or have questions. 

Registration

Boldly Forward $50.00 USD Bosque Room $52.00 USD

Exploring Sabbath Retreat

Exploring Sabbath,
the 6^th Annual Bosque Weekend
The Women’s Ministry of the Diocese of the Rio Grande invites all women, lay and ordained, to the Exploring Sabbath Retreat on November 17-18 at the Bosque Center. The Rev. Monica Whitaker, formerly of the Diocese of the Rio Grande, and now rector of St. Andrew’s, Sedona AZ will be our retreat leader. The Rev. Sylvia Miller-Mutia of St. Thomas of Canterbury and Women’s Ministry chaplain, the Rev. Pat Green will assist her. We’ll start on Friday at 5:30PM with registration, dinner, and an intro to Sabbath. Saturday will give us more time to experience many forms of Sabbath. We will end after Eucharist at 4PM on Saturday.
This will be a time to learn that Sabbath is not just about worship and quiet.
Sabbath is Gift from God
Sabbath is Refreshment
Sabbath is Thanksgiving
Sabbath is Rejoicing
As busy Christian women, it is important to take time for Sabbath, and this weekend is a perfect way to do that. Registration info available on the Women’s Ministry website. Registration, including 3 meals, is $30. (Some 1/2 scholarships are available, contact Cindy.) Single rooms at the Bosque Center are $52/night and must be reserved when you register. (A couple of queen rooms are available for slightly more/night. Contact Cindy for info.) If you live in ABQ you may commute.
Register below; or download the registration and mail it in.
Contact Cindy Davis, Coordinator of Women’s Ministries if you have questions.

To register for just retreat select "Add to Cart". If you want room and retreat, drop down the menu and choose that option.

Register here for retreat & room

Retreat, includes 3 meals $30.00 USD Retreat plus Bosque Room $82.00 USD

5th Annual Bosque Retreat Registration Available Now!

The 5th Annual Bosque Center Gathering on November 18-19 offers a unique opportunity for fellowship, worship, and delving into YOU...Yearning, Owning, Understanding the Puzzle Pieces of your Life under the guidance of Elaine Wilson. Because God is active in our lives, we all have Yearnings. Some of these have come to fullness, others have not.  We must Own and recognize where we are on our journey. This will help us Understand how everything that happens is part of the Puzzle of Our Life. Through sharing, worship, and quiet, we will travel together through an examination of how personal life dreams can become reality in everyday life, using some basic tools (e.g. BCP, Bible) of our Christian heritage.

Bring yourself, your Bible, a Book of Common Prayer (BCP), and friends to explore ways for strengthening your personal worship to undergird our daily life. We’ll begin at 5:30 PM on Friday evening with check-in, followed by dinner and our first exploration. On Saturday, breakfast will be at 8 AM and our time together will conclude by 3PM.

Registration, including supplies and 3 meals, is $30. (Some 1/2 scholarships are available, contact Cindy.)

Single rooms at the Bosque Center are $52/night and must be reserved on the registration form. (A couple of queen rooms are available for slightly more/night. Contact Cindy for info.)

Download the registration or online at PuzzlePieces.eventsbot.com.

Elaine Wilson, an active, life-long laywoman in the Episcopal Church, a member of your Cathedral, and a graduate of Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, she spent many years as a professional liturgical artist. She enjoys teaching on numerous Bible and Church history topics, and encourages you to bring your questions on any church-related topic that's had you puzzled.

Puzzle Pieces-coming in November

The 5th Annual Bosque Center Gathering on November 18-19 offers a unique opportunity for fellowship, worship, and delving into YOU...Yearning, Owning, Understanding the Puzzle Pieces of your Life.  Bring yourself, your Bible, Book of Common Prayer, and friends to share in exploring ways to "hands on" strengthen your personal worship undergirding your daily life.

Because God is active in our lives, we all have Yearnings.  Some of these have come to fullness, others have not.  We must Own and recognize where we are on our journey.  This will help us Understand how everything that happens is part of the Puzzle of our life.  Set within the structure of collective group-worship, we will journey together through an examination of how long-sought, personal life-dreams can become reality in everyday life with the efficient use of the basic tools used across centuries within our Christian heritage. 

Our guide on this personal spiritual quest will be Elaine Wilson, an active life-long laywoman in the Episcopal Church, a member of your Cathedral, and a graduate of Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.  God's inspiration in her life led her beyond 25 years as a professional, creative liturgical artist into the presentation of a variety of classes on Bible and Church history topics.  Her easy-to-understand background information has become part of the weekly email Bible study created by the Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande.  (Send your email address to  wdrgstudy@gmail.com  to receive this free, one-of-a-kind data available to both men and women.)

Coming in 2017 is an exciting collaboration of the Women of the Diocese and the Brotherhood of St. Andrew for a Lent Retreat in the Big Bend area. This will include a chance to visit Big Bend National Park as an inspirational way to explore the wildernesses of our lives. Mark your calendar now for March 23-27, so you can attend. 

Taste and See Retreat: Coming in November

All women (lay and ordained) are invited to the Third Annual Women’s Retreat at the Bosque Center on November 14-15.
Come for a weekend of fellowship, fun, faith, and a bit of learning starting on Friday night with registration at 5:30 PM and light supper, followed by a fun introduction to ‘spiritual types’. The retreat will end by 3:00 PM on Saturday. Plan to stay at the Bosque Center and enjoy a real retreat away from family obligations.
If you attended last year or in 2012, you know how much fun this retreat is. Invite a friend to come with you this year!!

Kathleen Pittman of St. Andrew’s in Roswell will lead us in an exploration of the Enneagram. Kathleen has many years’ experience teaching the Enneagram. She will share how the Enneagram can help us find balance and wake up to our true selves as we grow faith and build community. Come and learn how this tool can help you understand your own, and others’, ‘spiritual types’. Kathleen is an Education for Ministry (EFM) mentor, professor at ENMU, member of the Daughters of the King in Roswell, and past member of the Diocesan Women’s Council. If you would like to learn something about the Enneagram before the retreat, the book Wisdom of the Enneagram by Riso & Hudson is suggested (not required). It is available from Amazon for about $12.

 

Registration of $75/person covers a room at the Bosque Center, supplies and 3 meals. Commuter fee is $35 to cover supplies and 3 meals. (Registration is $5 more after November 1.) You can download the registration or register online for the retreat via the links on the Women’s calendar page. Each parish will also have registration forms. (Some 1/2 scholarships are available. Contact Cindy)

 

The Women’s Council continues to work on ways to make it easier to attend events. If you would like to carpool from the Southern part of the state, contact Amiee. The cost/person for this will be determined by response.

Abide in Me Retreat

The 2nd Annual Women's Retreat at the Bosque Center, "Abide in Me", was attended by 3 dozen women from across the Diocese and even a guest from California! We came from Carlsbad and Roswell, from Silver City and Farmington, from Taos and Albuquerque to gather in the lovely, peaceful setting of the Bosque Center for a time of reflection and fellowship. A case of supplies for Operation Soldier Smiles was collected through the generosity of those who came.

The event started on Friday evening with a time of introductions and sharing. The Rev. Pat Green from St. Mark's was our keynote speaker for the retreat. On Friday she asked us to consider what the word "Abide" means. We shared synonyms for the word that ranged from 'stay' and 'wait' to 'endure' and 'relationship'.
Pat noted that in modern parlance, the word translated "Abide" in the KJV could likely be written as "plugged-in", "wired", or "connected" in the sense of a power strip or other electronics. The vital connection to the vine is necessary for us to live and grow, just as a phone or i-pad will eventually quit working if not recharged regularly. Pat reminded us that we are each uniquely gifted to be our own special part of the Body so we can use our gifts for the church. However, it is essential that we stay connected to the Vine.
On Saturday, we shared our gifts and current ministries. This was an amazing experience of seeing the diversity of gifts and ministries present in those gathered. Morning Prayer was a fitting conclusion to the blessing of this heart-felt sharing.
After worship, Pat continued her keynote talk by asking us what Fruit Jesus might be talking about in John 14-15. She had us consider what exactly 'fruit' is. We realized that fruit is many things and comes in many kinds. Some fruit may produce seed that doesn't germinate immediately, too. It may lay fallow for awhile. Other fruit may never ripen because it doesn't remain attached to the Vine. Ultimately, the fruit we are called to bear is the Fruit of Love-to "love one another as I have loved you."

All our ways of Abiding in the Vine, therefore in Christ, are ways of loving one another and bearing fruit. These are things like obedience, prayer, study, service, fellowship, thanksgiving, listening, practicing our call, acceptance and by expecting God to act. The Retreat offered a time to stepping out of the day-to-day in order to be refreshed and reconnected to the Living Vine.
During the retreat we had a chance to try different Prayer Experiences as ways of Abiding. Sue Ellen Rael presented a session on Icons and how they are a prayer aid. Shirin McArthur taught a group the first steps of Embodied Prayer. Elaine Wilson offered an overview of using the Book of Common Prayer more fully. Quiet time after lunch afforded participants the chance to enjoy the Bosque Center, visit, and to pause to vision where our personal Abiding might take us in the next months and years. These thoughts became our offering for the Eucharist which ended the day and retreat.
This holy time apart with one another and Christ is an experience we'll treasure and meditate on in the days and weeks to come. Next year's Bosque Retreat is already booked at the Center for the weekend of November 14-15.  

Registration Available-Abide in Me Retreat

The 2nd Annual Diocesan Women's Retreat (and Day Camp for Children)
at the Bosque Center is coming November 8-9. 

"Abide in Me" 

Mark it on your calendar!

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower…Abide in me as I abide in you.” John 15

The Women’s Council is certain you'll find this to be a spiritual and empowering experience. Based on John 15:1-11 the retreat will provide time to hear Jesus say “Abide in Me…Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me.” This retreat will empower women to explore individual spiritual gifts and nourish our spirits through break-out groups, conversation, and sharing together how we are part of, and nourished by, the True Vine.

The retreat starts on Friday, November 8 at 5:30PM with registration and light dinner. You can stay at the Bosque Center if you wish. Everyone is encouraged to come for the entire retreat. However, the format will allow you to just come on Saturday! On Saturday, November 9 registration opens at 8AM. The retreat will end mid-afternoon Saturday.

Retreat cost is $75 if you stay at the Bosque Center (includes 3 meals and a room) or $35 for commuters (includes dinner & lunch) and/or to attend Saturday only (includes lunch). Registration forms available now!

A simultaneous track for children (3-12) and youth helpers will be held in the conference room of the Bosque Center on Saturday to allow moms to attend without having to find child care. The young people will explore the same theme with crafts, games, and other activities.
There is no cost for the children’s camp. Children should bring a sack lunch.

 

Retreats Nourish the Soul

Last week we looked at some study opportunities for Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande. Study is one way to enrich our lives as women. Learning about the work and word of God gives us new insight into our own lives.

Another important way to nourish our spirit is taking the opportunity to go on a retreat. There are many retreat centers around New Mexico that are wonderful places to go on a personal retreat. Getting away from the day-to-day busy-ness is more important than we may realize until we take time for a retreat.

Some retreat centers are: the Canossian Center & Norbertine Center in Albuquerque, Christ in the Desert Monastery near Chama and the Pecos Monastery east of Santa Fe. In the southern part of the Diocese you can visit the Holy Cross Center in Mesilla Park. Of course, you can take a personal retreat by finding a favorite place in nature and being still with God there. There are also other retreat centers around the state and in TX. Comment with your own favorite retreat locale.

Quiet and private retreats are certainly important. Equally important is taking the time to go on a retreat with other women (and men). There are retreats around the Diocese at various times that appeal to a variety of interests. Earlier in June there was a retreat in Santa Fe, sponsored by the Frederick B. Howden Chapter of the Daughters of the King.

Coming up in July is a week-long Icon Painting retreat in Santa Fe. You can get information about that here.

Mark your calendar for the “Crazy Quilt Conversation” retreat at the Bosque Center on Nov. 9-10. This will be an opportunity for women around the Diocese to share our stories and gifts with each other. Watch your mail and Together for more information.

Next spring, watch for a Lenten Retreat and a ‘Mind, Body, Spirit’ retreat in the summer of 2013 in Taos!

Some groups have special retreats, like the upcoming Back to the Mountain retreat for people who have attended Cursillo. Next year we hope to have a Cursillo weekend. The Daughters of the King will be holding their annual Assembly and Retreat in early August, too.

One goal of this blog is to help all Women of the DRG keep track of retreat opportunities, so send me information about retreats your churches or groups are sponsoring! Check the “What’s Happening” link regularly for new opportunities for retreats and studies.