Recently, Polly and I joined the many in our country who have immediate family members in the military. Our oldest son is now a Captain in the U.S. Army, serving as a doctor at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.. … HERE
Dear friends,
Grace and Peace be with you in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
I want to speak about the re-emergence of the COVID 19 virus in our state. There are new facts and trends of the coronavirus that now confront us. And there is troubling news in the short-term, even if we have been given real hope of an effective vaccine on its way in the coming months.
O Jesus of Nazareth in Galilee, I’m just beginning to see how little I have known you.
Bishop Rob has just published a new meditation and prayer companion for those who struggle with depression, With Sighs Too Deep For Words.
The stigma around mental illness in our culture has had a damaging effect on those who suffer from its grip. As a priest and bishop, Bishop Rob has quietly been in treatment for depression for decades. In his book, he now shares his own experience publicly. The Bishop offers short meditations, prayers, and suggestions about how one can follow and call upon Jesus for strength and peace during times of emotional upheaval. For more,
As the state of New Hampshire announces its “Safer at Home Advisory” and continues on the path of re-opening for business, employment, and services, Bishop Rob shares this “3.0” document to provide continued guidance regarding how we may go about regathering in our churches.
New England Episcopal bishops respond with one voice to President’s “cynical” photo-op by calling out “the abomination of continued oppression of and violence against people of color in this nation”
What President Trump did in front of St. John’s Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square on the evening of June 1 was disgraceful and morally repugnant. Displaying a Bible from which he did not quote, using as a mere backdrop an Episcopal church where he did not pray, and – more callously – ordering law enforcement to clear, with force and tear gas, a path through demonstrators who had gathered in peace, President Trump distorted for his own purposes the cherished symbols of our faith to condone and stoke yet more violence.
Each year on this day we celebrate the birthday of the church. Normally it is a day of joy and exuberance as we open ourselves to the possibility for God’s renewal, for a fresh inhale of God’s life-giving, light bearing Spirit. The Holy Spirit, the breath of God, that brooded over the chaos before the creation, that shapes a random mess of particles into atoms and mass, and life, and meaning and purpose. The Holy Spirit that invades all boundaries and isolated individual interests to form communities of love and concern and compassion. For more, click HERE
As bishop, I invite the membership of our parishes to listen to this list of these individuals, each created in the beautiful and strong image of God. I don’t care if you learn about the Parthians, the Medes, the Elamites, the Phrygians and all the rest this year. I urge you to listen to these names As you hear or read these names, please invite the Holy Spirit to choose a name for you to come alongside in the coming weeks of what may be a long summer. Say the name in your daily prayers. Learn who that person was. Learn when and where they were born. To read more, click HERE
May 30, 2020
On Friday May 29, Governor Chris Sununu shared a document, Stay at Home 2.0: Places of Worship, that ostensibly allows houses of worship to begin re-admitting worshippers to their sacred spaces for religious services only. I am grateful that the Governor takes seriously the particular complexities of risk and demand that we all face as we contemplate gathering again for religious services. The Governor’s order is informed by the advice of health professionals, immunologists, as well as members of various religious communities in New Hampshire. To read more, Click HERE.
Dear Clergy and Lay Leaders,
As the state of New Hampshire begins to walk towards a gradual "re-opening" of the state - for business, employment, and services - while maintaining important public health measures to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, I am sharing this document to provide guidance about how we might think about "re-opening" our churches.
Following The Good Shepherd On The Path Ahead
As always, the diocesan staff and I welcome your questions and concerns and we stand ready to pray, consult and partner with you now and in the days ahead.
Yours in the Risen Christ,
+Rob
The. Rt. Rev. A. Robert Hirschfeld
Bishop of New Hampshire
