PEPtalk Provides Essential Reading at Critical Moment in Diocese's History

PEPtalk Provides Essential Reading at Critical Moment in Diocese’s History

June 24, 2007. After an unusually long break between issues, PEP’s newsletter PEPtalk is again providing perspective on the The Episcopal Church (TEC) from the vantage point of the Diocese of Pittsburgh.

The June 2007 issue was released last week and mailed to members, friends, Pittsburgh parishes, and TEC dioceses. As our own diocese contemplates its future (see “Diocese Asks: What Next?”), the latest issue provides a context for understanding why Bishop Duncan and his allies are so alarmed and and what may be in store for TEC and for its members in the Diocese of Pittsburgh.

Publication of PEPtalk admittedly has been sporadic since the departure of its first editor, Charles Robideau. Bob Senay took over as editor last year, but health problems and obligations at his own parish required him to step down. Lionel Deimel completed the September 2006 issue and assumed the editorship for the current issue. We hope that future publication will be more regular.

Here is a complete table of contents for the June 2007 issue. Stories with links are available here on ordinary Web pages. The entire 8-page issue can be read in PDF format.

Story	Page	Description
Church update: Church reaches turning point	1	A summary, by Lionel Deimel, of major developments in the Anglican world since the General Convention of last summer.
Diocese asks: What next?	1	At a May retreat for diocesan leaders, an air of disappointment suffused a discussion of whether the diocese should continue on its present course, “submit” to TEC, or whether much of the diocese should leave TEC, either together or singly. District meetings are planned to discuss the future.
Late-breaking news: Executive Council reasserts GC authority	1	A beleaguered diocesan leadership (see above story) received more bad news from the June meeting of the church's Executive Council, which passed a resolution naming Pittsburgh and three other dioceses as having illegally amended their constitutions.
Issues explored at St. Andrew’s	2	St. Andrew’s, Highland Park, parishioner Al Mann describes recent discussions held at his church on current church controversies.
Historical Scrapbook: The development of the role of Presiding Bishop	3	Historian and PEP president Joan Gundersen reviews how the role of Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church has changed over the years. The Presiding Bishop is more powerful than ever, but is still not very powerful.
Budget Adjusted	4	Diocesan Council has adjusted the diocesan budget approved by the November convention. The changes are interesting indeed.
“Somewhere near you ...”	4	Celebrating 400 years of Anglican worship in what is now the U.S., TEC recently placed an ad beginning with those words on the op-ed page of The New York Times. The ad is reproduced in PEPtalk by permission.
Legal update: Calvary suit status	5	Ken Stiles explains both the origin of Calvary’s controversial lawsuit against diocesan leaders and its current status.
PEP facilitates covenant response	6	The Executive Council published a Study Guide to the proposed Anglican covenant and asked Episcopalians to answer specific questions about the covenant. This story tells how PEP helped church members do that.
Editorial: A time for talking	7	PEP welcomes a frank discussion about the future of the Diocese of Pittsburgh and invites Pittsburgh Episcopalians to commit to staying in TEC.
Via Media USA News	7	PEP vice president and Via Media USA facilitator Christopher Wilkins describes activities sponsored by other Via Media groups.

PEPtalk also includes a list of Web references relevant to its stories and a notice about the upcoming annual PEP picnic. More information about the August 6 picnic will be posted later on the PEP Web site.