When Thomas Nisbett was 16 years old, Campus Crusades came to the island of Bermuda where he lived, and his family hosted one of the leaders.

This visitor spoke prophetic words to Thomas while there: 'I think you have a very good future in ministry.'

But this son of a Bermudian Anglican priest disagreed: “No way! I’m going to be a businessman.”

And that’s just what Thomas did. For decades he excelled in business. But God had his way eventually.

We live in a time of unprecedented change in our church communities - a change that often takes place in the midst of personal life-transitions. Join Christine MacMillan and Aileen Van Ginkel in exploring personal and communal discernment practices that will help you gain:
· Assurance that God is leading through hard times
· Unity within the Body of Christ
· Clarity in steps for the future
· Focus on following Jesus into our neighbourhoods

Christine MacMillan is Senior Advisor, Social Justice with the World Evangelical Alliance; Aileen Van Ginkel is outgoing Vice-President, Ministry Services with the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada and newly appointed Executive Director of Christian Higher Education Canada.

**The series will be recorded and a link sent out to all registered participants for those unable to be present during the live session.

Dr Nancy Nason-Clark will present personal reflections on 25 years of Research and Activism on Intimate Partner Violence in Families of Faith.

About Nancy Nason-Clark
Nancy Nason-Clark is a recently retired professor of Sociology at the University of New Brunswick and the PI of the RAVE Project, a research initiative that was funded by the Lilly Endowment. She received her PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science in England. She is the author or editor of 15 books, including Religion and Intimate Partner Violence (with Fisher-Townsend, Holtmann and McMullin; Oxford University Press, 2017), and Men Who Batter (with Fisher-Townsend; Oxford University Press, 2015).
She has served as President of three professional organizations—the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, the Association for the Sociology of Religion, and the Religious Research Association—and two terms as editor of Sociology of Religion: A Quarterly Review. She has been the recipient of numerous honours and awards including induction as a member of the Royal Society of Canada. Her speaking engagements have taken her across Canada and the US, the Caribbean, Asia, Eastern Europe and the UK.

This webinar is co-sponsored by the Anglican Diocese of Fredericton and the Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre for Family Violence Research (MMFC).

The Rev. Dr. Andrew Louth will deliver the 2021 Robert Crouse Memorial Lecture, entitled “The Necessity of Platonism for Christian Theology” on Sunday, January 17 at 4 p.m.

The Platonic foundations of Christian theology was a central theme of the scholarship of Fr. Crouse. For him, the wisdom of the Greeks was not superseded by Christian revelation, but built upon and brought to its fulfillment.

Building on his recent work on the writings of Hans Urs von Balthasar, Fr. Louth will explore this theme in honour of Fr. Crouse, he says, “hoping this will be a fitting tribute to one I much admire.”

The lecture will be delivered remotely, as Father Louth lives in England. All are welcome to join on Zoom from wherever they are, including for the Q&A session which follows the lecture. To sign up to receive the Zoom link, please pre-register for this event at kingschapel.ca/crouse. Registration will close at 4 p.m. on Saturday, January 16.
Further information about our much-celebrated speaker, or about Robert Crouse, in whose memory the lecture will be given, can also be found at kingschapel.ca/crouse.

Click the link for more information.

With Abp. David's concurrence, the Council Spiritual Development Team is recommending the book Hide This In Your Heart (Memorizing Scripture for Kingdom Impact) as our diocesan Lenten study book for 2021.

The book, by Michael Frost and Graham Joseph Hill, includes five chapters which present a rationale for how memorizing key Scripture verses empowers discipleship and mission, and presents a system for memorizing 40 kingdom theme verses over a 20-week period. The book is a good follow-up to Michael Frost's Surprise the World.

We are able to purchase this book in bulk for $12 (including tax). If you are interested in using this for Lent, please call Cheryl Jacobs (506-459-1801, ext 1001) with an approximate number of books you'll need. Please order by early January to enable distribution in time for Lent.

Under the direction of the Primate, the national office is preparing a series of videos to offer an ecumenical service in observance of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (WPCU). The WPCU kicks off next week on January 18, the Feast of the Confession of St. Peter, continuing through the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul (January 25).

Video components of the service will be available for download at http://www.anglican.ca/weekofprayer  by end of day on Jan. 18. Dioceses and parishes are welcome to use the videos to supplement and/or replace services during the WPCU.

The website is also collecting email addresses, for those who would like to receive a notification of when the videos are available for download.

Walk, volunteer or support a walker to help the homeless and hurting in New Brunswick.  Check out this national fundraiser and/or the location nearest you at https://cnoy.org/

A Synod office team - Anglican Energy - is walking in Fredericton.  Sponsor the team or a member here.

Love your neighbour!