Welcome to the Holy Women, Holy Men blog! We invite you to read about this commemoration, use the collect and lessons in prayer, whether individually or in corporate worship, then tell us what you think. For more information about this project, click here.
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About this commemoration:
The presence of Anglicans in Brazil is first recorded in the early
nineteenth century and took the form of chaplaincies for English
expatriates. It was not, however, until 1890 when missionary efforts
among the Brazilian people began under the care of two Episcopal
Church missionaries, Lucien Lee Kinsolving and James Watson
Morris. They held the first service on Trinity Sunday 1890 in Porto
Alegre. Within a year, three additional missionaries—William Cabell
Brown, John Gaw Meem, and Mary Packard—arrived and joined
the work. These five missionaries are the pioneers and considered the
founders of the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil.
In 1899, Kinsolving was made missionary bishop for the work in
Brazil by the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church, and in 1907
the missionary district of Brazil was established by The General
Convention. The number of parishes and institutions continued to
increase. The bishops were raised up from among Episcopal Church
missionaries who were serving in the missionary district. Fifty years
after the work first began, in 1940, the first native Brazilian was
elected to the episcopate, Athalício Theodoro Pithan.
By 1950, the work had increased to the point that the missionary
district was too large and it was divided into three dioceses. This set
the stage for the continued development of the church in Brazil, which
eventually led to the formation of the Episcopal Anglican Church of
Brazil as an autonomous Province of the Anglican Communion in
1965. Complete financial independence from the Episcopal Church
was completed by 1982, although the two churches continue to
have strong bonds of affection and united mission efforts through
companion diocese relationships and coordination at the church-wide
level.
Collects
I O God, who didst send thy Son to preach peace to those
who are far off and to those who are near: we bless thee
for the missionaries from the Episcopal Church and those
who first responded to their message, joining together to
establish the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil; and we
pray that we, like them, may be ready to preach Christ
crucified and risen, and to encourage and support those
who pioneer new missions in him; who liveth and reigneth
with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen.
II O God, who sent your Son to preach peace to those who
are far off and to those who are near: we bless you for
the missionaries from the Episcopal Church and those
who first responded to their message, joining together to
establish the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil; and we
pray that we, like them, may be ready to preach Christ
crucified and risen, and to encourage and support those
who pioneer new missions in him; who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Amen.
Psalm 125
Lessons
2 Esdras 2:42–48
1 Peter 1:18–25
Luke 4:14–21
Preface of All Saints
From Holy, Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints © 2010 by The Church Pension Fund. Used by permission.
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We invite your reflections about this commemoration and its suitability for the official calendar and worship of The Episcopal Church. How did this person’s life witness to the Gospel? How does this person inspire us in Christian life today?
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