Bishop Hughes

Dear Companions on the Journey,

As I’m sure you well recall, I put emergency measures into place for this pandemic in March of this year, with in-person worship being suspended in most churches on March 15 and in all churches by March 22. This emergency approach stayed in place into the summer, even as Journey Forward guidelines were issued in June. These guidelines permitted a return to in-person worship for congregations interested and able to do so. Staying completely online or remote continues to be an absolutely acceptable way to worship.

Bishop Hughes wrote this article at the invitation of The Church of England Newspaper, where it will be published on Friday, September 25.

"I think if Episcopalians will do what we do – pick up our prayer books and say our prayers faithfully – then we have done an important act of service for the entire nation," says Bishop Hughes.

Bishop Hughes talks about the rite of confession and forgiveness in our Book of Common Prayer, and how it can be a means letting go of grudges and wounds and going forth changed and blessed.

“Who knows? Perhaps you have come to royal dignity for just such a time as this.”
Esther 4:14b

Bishop Hughes offers words of encouragement: "God will be with us every step of this pandemic, every bit of economic insecurity, every moment of protesting in our work to end racism and end white supremacy – God will continue to be with us."

For most of us, faith doesn’t just happen – it takes practice. Bishop Hughes says that the good news for us in the Diocese of Newark is that over the last four months, we have gotten a lot of practice.

The guidelines and planning forms published this week are important tools for helping every congregation to decide when and how to begin in-person worship.

Bishop Hughes' sermon at the diocesan Memorial Service on June 13, 2020, at which we mourned online those whom we could not mourn in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic.