AskCathy.ai (Cathy = "Churchy answers that help you") is a new AI chatbot for use in The Episcopal Church (and on Episcopal church websites) that searches its own library of resources including the Book of Common Prayer and Forward Movement publications before sending the question/context to ChatGPT to craft its answerFor more on Ask Cathy, a project of TryTank Research Institute at Virginia Theological Seminary and the Innovative Ministry Centre, based at the Toronto United Church Council, see this Episcopal News Service article: bit.ly/3X0T1tl or listen to the latest TryTank podcast: trytank.org/podcast.html
The Spring 2024 edition of European Anglicans, the quarterly magazine of the Church of England's Diocese in Europe, is now available to read online: online.fliphtml5.com/cfrvk/uxlh/.It focuses on mission and growth, with stories of new worshipping communities from Marseille, which in recent years has seen new congregations added in the Luberon & in Manosque; from Vienna, where the German-speaking CityKirche was planted in 2021; and from the Het Gooi region, east of Amsterdam, where the Church of the Ascension, a new congregation in the Anglican High Church tradition, began in September 2022.There are also stories of continuing growth in the church community on Ibiza, which has a very active outreach programme; and of online work, begun during COVID at Holy Trinity, Maisons Laffitte in France to prepare young people for confirmation, which has since been replicated at La Côte Church in Switzerland and which has also helped to build friendships and community.For the Diocese in Europe news item about this edition of European Anglicans, see: www.europe.anglican.org/news/latest-news/european-anglicans-spring-2024
An Easter message from 'the other Anglican Bishop in Europe', the Rt Rev Mark Edington, Paris-based Bishop in Charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in EuropeYes, Easter comes to assure us of life after death. But even more, Easter comes to rouse us out of prisons of darkness and to live the life we have been given before death. “The glory of God is a human being fully alive,” Irenaeus preached. So let us all go search for what God has set out for us to find. And when we do, let us rejoice that we share in the glory God has intended for us.To view and subscribe to the Bishop's Letters from Europe and other messaging from the Convocation, see this link
Of the many different self-study Lent courses and resources offered this year by dioceses in the Church of England (see: twitter.com/anglicanspb/status/1754159397473865759), a couple that are worth exploring are:* Diocese of Blackburn's "Journey to Freedom" Lent 2024 Devotional booklet (tinyurl.com/23b3an8m) which explores the Book of Exodus and can be read in conjunction with +Philip North's Lent course of the same name, which is in 5 parts (Slavery/Call/Rescue/Hunger/Mountain): tinyurl.com/2c9k828l; and* Diocese of Chichester's "Jesus the Lord" course, which 'invites us to consider the vital question of who Jesus is'; each part comprises biblical references, BCP prayers, a reflection on the theme and a reflection on an image from Martin Earle’s depiction of the cross of Jesus tinyurl.com/254tfhjn
