blog.diosef.org

“For our waste and pollution of your creation, and our lack of concern for those who come after us.
Accept our repentance, Lord.”

Every Ash Wednesday in our Litany of Repentance we are reminded of our failures and sins that by our own fault in thought, word and deed we have done, and also have left undone.

Little did we know that only two months after praying for forgiveness for our “waste and pollution of [God’s] creation” we were going to see firsthand that waste and pollution at such magnitude as the environmental catastrophe we are witnessing now in the Gulf of Mexico. With no end in sight to the flow on oil into the Gulf waters, an area the size of a small country is totally contaminated, destroying God’s creation and ruining the livelihood—and lives–of thousands of Americans living in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and perhaps also in our own beautiful State of Florida.

What amazes me is that they keep calling this major spill of oil “unprecedented,” as something that has never before occurred. Unfortunately for our planet, although this disaster is perhaps indeed unprecedented in scope, accidents like this are not unique.

When the voices of greed kept shouting, “Drill, baby, drill,” other voices were raised warning of the consequences of drilling off the coasts of Florida. “Nothing to worry about,” the proponents of offshore drilling kept insisting, ignoring the various accidents around the globe.

Just two examples of these are the blowout in 1979 of Ixtoc I, an offshore drilling station operated by Pemex in the western Gulf that dumped into the Gulf of Mexico an estimated 138 million gallons of crude over a nine-month period. Last August an oil spill in Montara, off the northern coast of Australia, also gushed for nine months before it was contained, spilling as many as 84,000 gallons of oil.

I know that some politicians have recently said that “accidents happen,” and that we should not blame BP for what has occurred. Maybe so, but there are more than 3,500 offshore oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico at this time, and many more have been planned.

I believe that we need to take a hard look at the current cozy arrangement between the oil companies and the regulatory agencies and revamp the way that we have been handling the process of granting drilling permits.

God has given us “dominion” over creation, which means that the Creator has made us responsible for caring for all things on earth. We are intended to be God’s fellow workers in creation, but it seems that our ecological disregard and greed for oil has turned us into workers of destruction.

The Book of Common Prayer has a beautiful prayer that asks God to give us “wisdom and reverence so to use the resources of nature, that no one may suffer from our abuse of them, and that generations yet to come may continue to praise God for his bounty.”

I ask your prayers for God to give us the wisdom not simply to find a way to stop this disastrous oil spill, but also to develop policies and lifestyles that will preserve our ecosystem and save the many species including birds, dolphins, turtles, oysters, sea snakes and the great variety of fish along our coast.

“Repentance” means “turning around,” changing our ways. If we indeed repent of our “waste and pollution,” we need to ask God to grant us a new wisdom and determination to make provision for the future of our planet in accordance to his will.

Let us pray also for our neighbors on the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, who are already suffering severe damage to their environment and their economy. As this disaster spreads, our diocese will continue to look for practical ways in which we might offer support to those directly affected.

Please continue to check the “Disaster Preparedness and Response” link on our diocesan website, www.diosef.org, for information.

I know that with God’s help we will be able to heal the damage that is being done now, but my hope is that we will be able to prevent future catastrophes like this by preserving the eastern coast of Florida free of oil drilling.

(This message from Bishop Leo Frade appears in the June 2010 issue of the diocesan newspaper, The Net.)

June 9, 2010

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

I want to share with you the results of our visit with Bishop Jean Zaché Duracin on June 3 in Port-au-Prince and Leogane, two areas that suffered the worst damage from the January earthquake.

Archdeacon Fritz Bazin, Archdeacon Bryan Hobbs and I met for about eight hours with Bishop Duracin, traveling with him as he showed us some of the places where destruction was major and where our churches, rectories, schools, hospitals and other facilities are in immediate need of help.

One of our stops was at what used to be his home, which was connected to two apartment buildings that were also property of the Diocese of Haiti. Both his home and the apartments were completely destroyed; they still haven’t been able to recover the body of one of the nine people killed there.

Mercifully, the bishop had just stepped out of his home to receive a visitor when the earthquake happened. His daughters were able to run out in time, but his wife was trapped by an iron gate. As they dragged her out of the rubble, she received a deep cut in her leg that later became infected. After being treated at the hospital in Cange, she had to be flown first to the US Navy’s hospital ship and then to Tampa General Hospital for several operations. She is still in our neighboring Diocese of Southwest Florida, recovering and undergoing therapy.

As you probably know Cathedrale Ste. Trinité–Trinity Cathedral–in Port-au-Prince was completely destroyed, as well as the adjacent school, where many students died. The diocese has built some temporary wooden classrooms so that the children can complete the school year.

While we visited the grounds where the cathedral used to stand we were able to see and hear the Haiti Symphonic Orchestra, which was rehearsing under a temporary shelter. It was startling to hear classical music coming from a run-down temporary shelter in the midst of the ruins of the cathedral.

The Eglise Episcopale d’Haiti has always taken justifiable pride in its involvement with and encouragement of the arts. Our church made it possible for Haitians gifted in music, the visual arts and other forms of expression to share their talents with the world, as well as with their own people. As a result of this support for the arts, Trinity Cathedral had the most beautiful murals of Bible stories on all of its walls. Fragments of these remain, and UNESCO is now interested in trying to rescue this patrimony of humanity that was so badly damaged in the earthquake.

It was also very sad for me to see the empty lot where St. Vincent School for the Handicapped, where perhaps thousands of children with disabilities had been helped. Many of the children died when the building collapsed.

As we drove around we could see not only the apocalyptic destruction of Port-au-Prince, but also the sturdiness and valor of the Haitian people. Children continue going to school and the few businesses left are open and functioning; but we also saw the tremendous danger in which the population finds itself. It’s hard to describe how fragile and crowded are the tents where people are living at present. I pray that God will spare Haiti from a hurricane this season because even a Category One storm will endanger thousands and thousands of people.

We drove to Leogane, the birthplace of many Episcopalians in our diocese, including the Rev. Smith Milien, the priest-in-charge of St. Paul et les Martyrs d’Haiti, Miami. The work of the Episcopal Church in Leogane began in the 19th century, and expanded over the years to provide Ste. Croix Hospital, severely damaged in the earthquake, and a nursing school, which miraculously survived the earthquake and is now serving the tent hospital where doctors currently live and treat patients.

Today there are several Episcopal churches in and around Leogane, but unfortunately they are damaged.

One of them, Ste. Croix (Holy Cross), is just an empty shell. We met Father Kelwin Delicat, the vicar of that congregation, at his home; the rectory is unsafe, and like so many Haitians, he currently lives in a small tent.

Holy Cross School was also destroyed and children are studying in tents.

The bishop of Haiti, Jean Zaché Duracin, is very appreciative for all the help that we have been able to provide and for our generous contribution for the relief of the people and the church.

The Diocese of Haiti is now developing a reconstruction plan to provide housing, restore our churches, and of course, to continue feeding the hungry and healing the sick.

I commend the work that several of our congregations are continuing in partnerships in Haiti established long before Jan. 12. But I want you to know that as I told you when I first asked in January for your help for our sisters and brothers in Haiti, the funds donated to Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida for our diocesan Haiti Fund are being disbursed at the direction of Bishop Duracin and his diocese, and will go primarily for immediate aid and rebuilding in Port-au-Prince and Leogane, where the damage is most severe and the needs are great.

To date we have given close to $100,000, most of it for direct, immediate needs, including several trailers, many tents, medical equipment and other relief supplies. We will continue to provide funds to the Diocese of Haiti to help our sister and brother Episcopalians serve their neighbors and begin to rebuild their ministries.

Haiti and the Haitian Episcopal Church need your prayers and help. We are their only lifeline, and I know we will not fail them.

Blessings,

+Leo Frade
Bishop of Southeast Florida

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Like many of you, I am deeply troubled and concerned about the potential environmental catastrophe our nation and South Florida may experience from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Our government officials and scientists are beginning to alert us in South Florida to the potential ecological and economic impact the oil spill might have on all our shores within the next few weeks.

Linda Schlepp-Gray and Archdeacon Bryan Hobbs have been in touch with Volunteer Florida and are monitoring the latest information and resources available.

Here is a brief summary of the most current information found at the Volunteer Florida’s website:

“ All oil-contaminated materials will only be handled by Qualified Community Responders (QCR) and not by volunteers.”

“…The complex nature of this incident coupled with health and safety concerns limits the roles of volunteers to non-hazardous activities within their local communities. Volunteers will not be engaged in any activity that puts them in direct contact with oil or oil-contaminated materials. These materials will only be handled by trained responders.”

“BP is providing training through PEC/Premier Safety Management. However, the BP training modules are of use primarily to individuals interested in employment and not volunteers”.

Volunteer Florida is encouraging everyone “to get involved in their local community. Volunteers can support the oil cleanup effort through appropriate activities such as Coast Watch, pre-oil landfall beach cleanups, fundraising, and meeting other needs of responding organizations”.

Oil spill volunteer opportunities as well as other links with volunteer opportunities are available at Volunteer Florida’s website at: http://www.volunteerfloridadisaster.org/

Watch your local news media for information on additional opportunities to help in your community.

Above all, we need to pray for all who are or will be affected by this disaster; for the success of efforts to stop the spill and contain the damage; for those engaged in this work; and for wisdom, discipline and courage to make choices as individuals, communities and nations that will enable us all to live as good stewards of creation.

I urge you to include in all your regular worship services prayers for the fragile ecosystems around us and specifically for this present threat to our environment. You may want to use this prayer, adapted from the Prayer for conservation of Natural Resources (BCP, p. 827) by the Rev. Canon Beverly Gibson, sub-dean of Christ Church Cathedral, Mobile, Ala.:

We pray today for the preservation of our natural environment, especially the Gulf of Mexico and the lands and waters it touches: Guide those who labor to contain the oil that endangers the creatures of sea and land; strengthen those who work to protect them; have mercy on those whose livelihoods will suffer; Forgive us for our carelessness in using the resources of nature, and give us wisdom and reverence so to manage them in the future, that no one may suffer from our abuse of them, and that generations yet to come may continue to praise you for your bounty; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Blessings,

+Leo Frade

It has been a long time since I was a young lad and heard my parents making sure I understood that I had to return home at a decent hour. Those were the teen years when I had just stopped being a child and was slowly moving toward maturity, so of course, I thought I knew everything and didn’t need my parents trying to control my life. 

 

I imagine that we pay for our own past behavior when we have our own children, and in their teen years they begin to act the same way we did.

 

A few times as a teenager I had to face a “come to Jesus” talk from my parents—a conversation that made sure that whatever I had done wrong would not be repeated again. I hated those talks, but they made me a better person and guided my life during very difficult years.

 

Every Lenten Season we face our “come to Jesus” talk from his Body, our church, as we are invited to “…the observance of a holy Lent, by self examination and repentance, by prayer and fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word. And, to make a right beginning of repentance….”

 

I like to compare Lent to the On-Star service that came with my car. You may have seen the ads in which the On-Star system calls for help in an emergency; but the system also helps me prevent emergencies, because it makes sure I know that my car is in good condition and is running safely. I get a monthly report that tells me all about my engine, whether my tires are properly inflated, if the brake fluid or the oil needs to be changed or if any other part of the car needs attention.

 

Make sure that during this Lenten Season you examine your innermost soul to see if your spiritual life is running well: Maybe you need a spiritual oil change, or perhaps a soul tune-up, or maybe you need to inflate your faith to a higher level in order to make you function better and live closer to the Lord Christ.

 

I pray that God will bless you richly on Ash Wednesday and all through the Lenten Season until we meet to celebrate that holy night when Jesus passed over from the death to life and be able to rejoice with the heavenly hosts for the victory of our mighty King.

 

Blessings,

 

+ Leo Frade

January 18, 2010

Dear sisters and brothers:

Just a quick note to let you know that I was able to speak today with the Bishop of Haiti, Jean Zache Duracin. He wanted to make sure that you all knew how thankful he is for all of your efforts to help Haiti and our wounded church.

He has met twice with Fr Smith Milien to share with him the present needs.

Please continue praying for the Bishop and the clergy and laity of Haiti and for the whole suffering country.

Blessings,

+Leo

January 15, 2010

Dear Sisters and Brothers:

I want to let you know that I have asked Fr. Smith Milien to go to Haiti today with the purpose of communicating with the Bishop of Haiti Jean Zaché Duracin and to evaluate the best way that we can serve the Episcopal Church of Haiti and the Haitian people during this time of tragedy. I think that it is important to let Bishop Duracin know of our support and prayers. It was my experience in Honduras after the destruction of Hurricane Mitch that it is very important for the morale of the suffering church to know that they are not forgotten and that we care for them.

I am asking for your prayers for this missionary endeavor that Fr. Milien is doing for all of us. He will fly to the Dominican Republic Friday night and will join a team from that diocese on Saturday and then travel by surface to the border with Haiti and from there find transportation to Port au Prince. It is now a time of sickness and uncertainty so he needs to be covered by our prayers.

I encourage you to do your best to make our congregations understand the seriousness and desperation of the situation. We can make a difference in the life of many.

Blessings,

+Leo

January 13, 2010

Dear Sisters and Brothers:

I have been able to receive some news from Haiti. First the good news. We were able to confirm that my friend Bishop Jean Zaché Duracin survived the earthquake, though his wife, Marie-Edithe, injured her foot. The bad news is that now they are homeless.

The diocesan cathedral, Cathédrale Sainte Trinité, and the entire cathedral complex, including the entire Holy Trinity School complex adjacent to the cathedral, are also gone. The Sisters of the Society of St. Margaret are safe, but their convent was destroyed. The College of St. Pierre is gone, although the apartment for the college is still standing. St. Vincent’s School for the Handicapped in Port-au-Prince, a diocesan residential school and the only one of its kind in Haiti, was reportedly destroyed.

We have also heard that Roman Catholic Archbishop Joseph Serge Miot of Port-au-Prince died in the earthquake.

In Trouin four people were killed during a service at St. Mark’s. In Grand Colline St. Matthew’s Church is gone, as well as the church in St. Etienne. The church in Les Cayes is OK, but some people were injured trying to get out of the building during the quake. The rectory in Les Cayes is in very bad condition.

I spoke with Bishop Julio Holguin from the Dominican Republic, who said his diocese is beginning to coordinate its help for the Church in Haiti. He said that he was able to see Bishop Duracin in a news report that showed him trying to dig people out of the ruins.

I will keep you posted as soon as I receive further reports. Please pray for the people of Haiti, and don’t forget your brothers and sisters of our Haitian congregations in Southeast Florida that have no news from their families on the island. Archdeacon Fritz Bazin and other Haitian clergy are working very hard trying to make contact with our church and families in Haiti.

We are planning a diocesan service of prayer for Haiti on Jan. 23 at 4:30 p.m. at Holy Sacrament, Pembroke Pines.

Also stress to your congregations the immediate need for financial help for the church and people of Haiti. Your contributions can be sent to either online at www.ecsefl.org, or mailed to Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida, 8895 North Military Trail #205C, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410. and we will make sure that it gets there as soon as humanly possible.

Blessings,

+Leo

An appeal from Bishop Frade for Haiti
Dearly beloved:

As a member of the board of Food for the Poor, I was planning to visit Port-au-Prince next week with other board members. After today’s 7.0 magnitude earthquake just off the coast near Port-au-Prince, we have canceled the trip, because both the facilities of Food for the Poor and the places where we were to stay have been damaged.

The situation in Haiti was critical before, but after the earthquake what was a nightmare has turned into a living hell. Just the initial report of casualties has started with over a thousand dead and thousands of persons injured and homeless.

I am sending out this appeal so that you can challenge your congregations to respond to this crisis in a country that needs our prayers and help. I am asking you to encourage our people to be generous at this time in order that somehow we may be conduits to alleviate the pain of our brothers and sisters in Haiti.

I encourage you to send your contributions to Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida, either online at www.ecsefl.org, or mailed to Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida, 8895 North Military Trail #205C, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410. I will make sure that our contributions reach Haiti as soon as possible.

I have been trying to contact Bishop Duracin since we first got news of the earthquake, but there is still very little direct communication with Haiti. As soon as I can reach him, I will share whatever information he can give us.

While we wait for more details of how we can help, let us surround the people of Haiti—and their anxious family members in our midst—with our prayers.

Blessings,

+Leo

During the month of December we usually get more than a few Christmas cards. Some will show a jolly Santa Claus, others a calm, snowy landscape, and of course we get our share of religious cards with the manger scene, the Virgin Mary holding baby Jesus, the Three Kings in adoration, angels, shepherds and sheep galore.

But there is one Christmas character that probably will never make it onto a Christmas card. Secular society has hijacked the Christmas story in many ways, but nobody has dared to touch John the Baptist in any shape or form.

Can you imagine walking into a mall on your way to Macy’s, and instead of seeing good old Santa, all of a sudden you encounter John the Baptist, dressed with clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, eating locusts with wild honey? Or perhaps imagine opening your mail and reading a card that says: “Repent! You brood of Vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of repentance.”

I am sure that this is not going to happen anytime soon. The secularism and materialism that permeate the very core of our existence reject anything that may interfere with our urge to fulfill our every desire and to buy every product that advertisers promote. For them, Advent and the Christmas 2009 mean just a time to party, to try to forget the pain around this world of ours and to ignore the very least among us. They want us to believe that this is just a time for us, forget the rest. A time to buy and buy because the person who dies with the most toys is bound to be the winner.

But instead, during Advent we are called to prepare to receive our Savior, to make room for the Christ in our hearts and in the world. Now that Christmas is upon us, let us not forget the message of John the Baptist. This is a time to share with others, a time to be content with what we have, a time to care and a time for peace.

Let us not lose sight of the fact that there are many around us who won’t have a roof over their heads that they can call their own, and many around the world who suffer from the hunger and disease that are the result of extreme poverty. Much of this suffering could be alleviated, if only we were willing to share what we have.

Allow me to be a John the Baptist and invite you to “bear fruit worthy of repentance” this Christmas season–to open your hearts and checkbooks and share a portion of the bounty God has given you with those who are in such great need.

In our diocese, Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida is committed during this coming year to expand their ministry of helping the poor—and especially the hungry–in our midst. Consider making a donation this Christmas to join in this ministry to the growing number of our neighbors who are in need.

The shepherds came and offered what they possessed; the three Wise Men brought gifts to the baby in the manger. I am sure that you don’t want to be found empty handed as you come to worship Jesus, the Christ, this Christmas.

+Leo Frade

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“Fruto de Arrepentimiento” – Comparta con Otros – Navidad 2009

Durante el mes de diciembre, normalmente nos llegan más de unas cuantas tarjetas de Navidad. Algunas muestran un alegre Santa Claus, otras son paisajes de nieve, y por supuesto nosotros mandamos tarjetas religiosas con el nacimiento, la Virgen Maria cargando al niño Jesús, los tres Reyes Magos en adoración, ángeles, pastores y muchas ovejas.

Pero hay una figura de Navidad que jamás llegara a estar en la portada de una tarjeta de Navidad. La sociedad secular ha secuestrado la historia de la Navidad en muchas formas, pero nadie se ha atrevido a lidiar con Juan el Bautista en cualquier forma.

¿Puedes imaginarte ir caminando al centro comercial en camino a Macy’s, y en vez de ver a Santa, de repente te encuentras con Juan el Bautista, vestido en ropa hecha de pelo de camello con un cinturón de cuero alrededor de su cintura, comiendo langostas con miel silvestre? O quizás abriendo su correo e encontrando una tarjeta que dice: “¡Arrepiéntanse! ¡Camada de víboras! ¿Quién les enseñó a huir de la ira que vendrá? Por tanto, de frutos dignos de arrepentimiento”

Estoy seguro de que esto no va a pasar dentro de poco. El secularismo y el materialismo que impregnan el mero centro de nuestra existencia rechazan cualquier cosa que se entrometen con nuestro impulso a cumplir con cada uno de nuestros deseos y de comprar cada producto que los publicistas promueven. Para ellos, Adviento y la Navidad 2009 significan solamente un tiempo para festejar, un tiempo para olvidar el dolor alrededor de nuestro mundo e ignorar los desafortunados entre nosotros. Quieren que creamos que esto es solo un tiempo para nosotros mismos, y que olvidemos a los demás. Un tiempo para comprar y comprar porque el que muere con más juguetes seguramente será el ganador.

En cambio, durante Adviento estamos llamados a prepararnos para recibir a nuestro Salvador, para hacer espacio para Cristo in nuestros corazones y en el mundo. Ahora que la Navidad esta aquí, vamos a no olvidar el mensaje de Juan el Bautista. Este es el tiempo para compartir con otros, el tiempo para estar satisfechos con lo que tenemos, el tiempo para preocuparse y el tiempo para la paz.

Vamos a no perder de vista el hecho de que hay muchos alrededor de nosotros que no tendrán un techo que pueden llamar suyos, y que hay muchos alrededor del mundo que sufren de hambre y enfermedades que son resultados de la pobreza. Mucho de este sufrimiento se pudiera aliviar, si solamente estuviéramos dispuestos a compartir lo que tenemos.

Permíteme ser un Juan Bautista e invitarles a dar “frutos dignos de arrepentimiento” en esta época de Navidad – a abrir sus corazones y chequeras y compartir una porción de la munificencia que Dios les ha dado con los que están en tanta necesidad.

En nuestra diócesis Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida esta comprometido durante el próximo año a expandir su ministerio de ayudar a los pobres – especialmente los que tienen hambre – entre nosotros. Considera hacer una donación esta Navidad para unirse a este ministerio ayudando la cada vez mayor numero de nuestros vecinos con necesidad.

Los pastores vinieron y ofrecieron lo que poseían; los Reyes Magos trajeron regalos al niño en el pesebre. Estoy seguro de que no se quisiera encontrar con las manos vacías al venir a adorar a Jesús, el Cristo, esta Navidad.

+Leo Frade

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“Fruit de repentance” – Partager avec les autres – Noel 2009

Au cours du mois de Décembre, nous avons coutume de recevoir des cartes de Noel. Quelques unes exhiberont un Joli “Tonton Noel”, d’autres un calme gazon couvert de neige, et éventuellement, nous partageons nos cartes religieuses avec: la crêche, la Vierge Marie tenant dans ses bras l’enfant Jésus, les trois Rois Mages en adoration, des anges, des bergers et des brebis galeuses.

Mais, il existe un caractère unique de la Noel que probablement ne será jamais contenu á l’intérieur d’aucune carte. La société séculaire a distortionné l’histoire de la Noel en divers aspects, mais personne a osé toucher Jean le Baptiste sous quelque forme que ce soit.

Pouvez-vous imaginer en marchant á l’intérieur d’un “mall”, en direction de Macy’s, et au lieu de voir un vieux et sympathique “Tonton Noel”, soudainnement vous rencontreriez Jean le Baptiste, vêtu de poil de chameau, avec une ceinture de cuir autour des reins, se nourrissant de sauterelle et de miel sauvage? Ou peut-être, imaginez-vous, ouvrant une correspondance et lisant une carte qui dirait: “Repentez-vous! Race de vipères! Qui vous a appris le moyen d’échapper á la colère qui vient, produisez donc des fruits de repentance!”

Je suis sur que cela ne va pas passer en ce présent moment. Le sécularisme et le mercantilisme qui pénetrent le fond noyau de notre existence rejettent toute chose qui pourrait interferrer avec notre impulsion de contenter notre propre désir et acheter tous les produits promotionnés par les annonceurs. Pour eux, l’Avent et la Noel 2009 signifient simplement une période de fête, pour essayer d’oublier la douleur autour de notre monde, et ignorer le plus petit qui se trouve tout près de nous. Ils veulent nous faire croire que justement c’est un temps pour nous, oublions les autres. Un temps pour acheter et acheter parceque celui qui serait mort avec le plus de jouets possible, ¡voilá le vainqueur!

Mais au lieu de tout cela, durant l’Avent nous sommes appelés á nous préparer pour recevoir notre Sauveur, á faire une place pour le Christ dans notre Coeur et dans le monde. Maintennat que la Noel est sur nous, n’oublions pas le message de Jean le Baptiste. C’est un temps pour partager avec les autres, un temps pour être satisfait de ce qu’on a, un temps pour se soucier, et un temps pour la paix.
Ne perdons pas de vu de ce qu’autour de nous il y a beaucoup de personnes qui ne seront pas sous un troit qui leur est propre; et beaucoup dans le monde qui souffrent de faim et de maladies, causées par l’extrème pauvreté. Bonne partie de cette souffrance aurait pu être soulagée, si seulement nous aurions voulu partager ce que nous avons.

Permetez-moi d’être Jean Baptiste, et vous inviter á “porter des fruits de conversión” au cours de cette saison de Noel, á ouvrir vos coeurs et vos livrets de banque et partager une portion de ce que la bonté divine vous a donné, avec ceux-lá qui se trouvent dans de grande necessité.

Dans notre diocèse, Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida, s’est engagé durant l’année qui s’approche á dédier son ministère pour aider le pauvre – et spécialement l’affamé – dans notre milieu. Considérez donc de faire un don cette Noel, tout en vous joignant á ce ministère, a fin de pouvoir atteindre un plus grand nombre de prochains, lesquels se trouvent dans le besoin

Les bergers venaient et offraient ce qu’ils possedaient, les trios sages portaient des cadeaux á l’enfant dans la crèche. Je suis certain que vous ne voulez pas vous présentez avec les mains vides lorsque vous viendrez adorer Jésus le Christ, au cours de cette Noel.

+Leo Frade

Key West, Florida
November 13, 2009

Before I start my address I want to thank Bishop Mary Gray-Reeves for being with us. I know the sacrifice a bishop has to make in order to find time to be away from the diocese. But it is a real blessing to welcome my dear former Archdeacon for Deployment, who is now one of the outstanding bishops of the Church.

I also want to thank the Rt. Rev. Todd McGregor, the area bishop for Tulear, in the Diocese of Antananarivo in Madagascar—and his wife, the always right Rev. Patsy McGregor. We continue with enthusiasm our companion relationship with Madagascar, and next year we hope to send a mission team to learn more of the great work that Todd and Patsy are doing in Tulear.

Many thanks also to Larry Hooper, rector of St. Paul’s, and Dean Don Sullivan, vicar of St. Peter’s, and to all from the Keys Deanery who have worked so hard to welcome us here in Key West for this 40th Convention of the Diocese of Southeast Florida.

Yes, today at this Diocesan Convention we are celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the creation of our Diocese as one of the 110 dioceses of the Episcopal Church. Prior to 1969 we were part of the Diocese of South Florida. In 1969 our General Convention approved the division of that diocese into three dioceses–Southeast, Southwest and Central Florida.

I also would like to point out that we are gathered here today at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, a congregation that was established 177 years ago and is the oldest congregation of this diocese and also among the most ancient congregations of the State of Florida.

We can indeed say with the author of the 12th chapter of the Letter to the Hebrews: “we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses…. therefore let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.”

We are celebrating our 40th year, and we are moving forward.

But as we move forward, let us remember and thank God for the lives of men and women, lay and ordained, who in the past through their sacrifice and obedience to our Lord established our church in this part of the world; men and women who, under leadership of their bishops, were able to endure whatever came their way in the midst of the uncertainty of their times.

We have a debt of gratitude to those who have preceded us, among them Bishop Henry Loutitt, Bishop of South Florida; Bishop James Duncan, first bishop of our diocese; Bishop Calvin Schofield, our second Diocesan Bishop; and Bishop John Said, who served with Bishop Schofield as his Bishop Suffragan.

Let’s not forget their work and the work of many laypersons, priests and deacons who labored together with those bishops and were able to plant our church in this part of Florida.

Today we celebrate 40 years of ministry as the Diocese of Southeast Florida, and now is the time that God has given you and me as ministers of the Church to carry on its mission, which is to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ.

This Diocesan Convention is my second in Key West, and the 10th Convention that I chair as your Diocesan Bishop. Time flies indeed when you are having fun!

I say all of this to remind you, as we are gathered as a big family, that whatever we do in each of our individual congregations is much greater, and has a bigger impact that blesses the rest of the diocese and the Church, than we can imagine. Each Episcopal congregation of this diocese is interconnected with the rest of the congregations and institutions of Southeast Florida.

Just like the Deanery of the Keys, made up of individual congregations on separate islands that are interconnected by bridges that unite them in one community, we are all interconnected with one another in this diocese.

We are gathered here today, people of God who call ourselves Episcopalians, part of the Anglican Communion. We come from many different places, different theological positions, different colors of skin, different languages, different sexual orientations, different socio-economic classes, different political positions and different worship styles; but regardless of those differences we become one through the power of the Holy Spirit, and through our common belief that Jesus Christ is Lord.

It is he, our Lord Jesus, who is the bridge that interconnects each one of us, regardless of our differences, and it is through him that we can find our unity.

As I reflect back on my years with you as your bishop, I must say that we have lived through very interesting times, and some of those times, we all know, have been quite challenging.

The terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, just one year after my enthronement, was one of those challenges, not only for our country but for the Church itself. The consequences of this major terrorist attack have caused many changes and turmoil in the life of our country and the Church.

General Convention 2003 and the consecration of the Bishop of New Hampshire also caused divisions in our Church, and we need to own that, in order to be reminded that there is always a price to pay when you stand for justice and equality.

In the past The Episcopal Church paid dearly for our stand for justice; we paid for our stand on Civil Rights that led to the loss of many members of our Church, especially in dioceses in the Southern part of the United States.

Another recurring challenge for us in this part of the United States is that we are in the path of the hurricanes. In recent years we have gone through quite a distressing number of hurricanes.
Each hurricane affects the life and the proper functioning of our churches.

Also during my time as your bishop we have faced the avian flu and at present, the swine flu.

And sadly, during these past years the United States has been involved in two wars that seem endless and that have caused many casualties and affected our economy.

Distressing also have been the two collapses of our economy that we have encountered during this past decade. One of them happened after September 11, and the other one during the past year and a half, the effects of which have caused great pain in all of our communities. At present the financial outlook seems to be improving, and our prayers are that unemployment, foreclosures and depression will become soon a thing of the past.

No one could say that we have gone through easy times.

Yes, it has been hard; yes, these crises and challenges have affected all of us; but we have endured and we have persevered with our mission. We can indeed do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

You see, this is the time that God has given us to live, and this is the time that God has set in front of us in which to do our mission. It is up to us to persevere, regardless of what may come.

But let us not lose sight of the fact that all of the above calamities that we have encountered during these past years are nothing new.

Those who lived before us never hesitated to do the mission that God had given them. During the time that God gave them, they experienced two major world wars, plus the Korean and Vietnam wars; they persevered during the worst Wall Street financial collapse of American history in the 1930s and through the major unemployment of those days.

They also had to deal with various strains of influenza, like swine flu, and other pandemics like polio; they lived through horrible, devastating hurricanes that repeatedly damaged their church buildings. They also had to face several conflicts in our church that brought division, as we took a stand against slavery, against discrimination and segregation based on race; when marriage was forbidden between persons of different races who loved each other. Divisions took place due to our acceptance of birth control and our pastoral stand on the remarriage of previously divorced persons, and 33 years ago a major conflict took place due to our approval of the ordination of women to the priesthood and the episcopate.

That was the time that those who preceded us had to face, but now is the time that God has given for us to live. Are we going to respond to the challenges that we are facing and those that may await us in the future like an ostrich that hides its head in the sand and waits until all the danger goes away, or are we going to be like a tiger that when threatened is willing to fight and persevere?

You and I as ministers of the Church have a mission to do as we face the next 40 years. Are we going to face the future with vigor, in order to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ, or do you prefer to wait for the better times that may never come in the future?

Well, let me tell you something: That time in the future is for others to fulfill, others that will come after us, but for you and me this is the time that God has given us to do his mission.

I will never forget what the late Bishop Herb Thompson of Southern Ohio said to me in his sermon the day of my enthronement as your diocesan bishop, September 16, 2000.

Bishop Thompson said that I must never forget the fact that in the end the reality is that I am only the interim bishop between the second and the fourth bishop of this diocese. You see, this is the time that God has given me as the third diocesan bishop of Southeast Florida, and my mission is to continue building upon the work of those that were here before me and to prepare the way and strengthen the church in order that someday the fourth bishop will continue building upon our common work.

In the same manner, most of us here come from churches that are the fruit of the work of a cloud of witnesses that in the past ran with perseverance the race that was set before them by our Lord Christ.

We have received a gift from the labor of others, and it is now our turn to run with perseverance the race that is set before us by Christ.

I give thanks to God that he has given me the strength to serve you and this diocese as the interim bishop between the second and the fourth bishop, but I am also aware that time passes quickly. Therefore, I want to make sure that the years I have ahead as your bishop will be used in a creative way.

I have some clear ideas of how to proceed, but I want us to work together in discovering God’s will for us on how to proceed, and to determine what kind of diocese we want to hand to the fourth bishop when he or she gets here.

I am in the process of preparing four Visioning Days to take place in 2010 in different parts of the diocese. The dates and venues will be announced before the end of this year, and anyone in the diocese will be welcome to participate in whichever one of the gatherings is most convenient.

What I am proposing is for us to concentrate on what we believe that God is calling us to do during this time, yours and mine, as interim ministers of this diocese, especially during the immediate future, the years from 2011 until 2015.

I am aware that some of this visioning has already been taking place.

We know that the creativity of many in this diocese has allowed us to develop regional ministries, such as the shared ministry of All Saints, Ft. Lauderdale, with the Church of the Intercession and El Centro Episcopal Todos Los Santos.

In the Deanery of South Palm Beach we laud the cooperation of two Boca Raton congregations, St. Gregory’s and the Chapel of St. Andrew. In the North Palm Beach Deanery, St. Mark’s, Palm Beach Gardens, is sharing ministry with St. George’s, Riviera Beach.

I know there are other collaborative ministries that are developing—these are only a few examples of the creative work happening in our diocese.

Let me also share with you an initiative that has taken a long time to get here. I spoke of it at my very first diocesan gathering, called First Step, at St. Andrew’s School in Boca early in 2001. There I talked about my desire to start a ministry among the many Brazilians that live in our diocese.

I don’t know if you know that the three towns in the United States with the largest populations of Brazilians are found in our diocese, more specifically in and around Pompano Beach. We have been working with Fr. Tim Thomas and Dean Bernie Pecaro, both rectors of churches in the Pompano Beach area, in order to coordinate the beginning of this ministry. We now have a Portuguese- speaking person to start this ministry. He is the Rev. Jose de Jesus Sanchez, who is here with his wife Glenda. I ask your prayers for the success of this ministry.

I also want to commend the ministry that has taken place in several Hispanic congregations of our diocese. Todos Los Santos, Miami, this past year became a self-supporting parish. In addition to that, the growth of places like Holy Cross, Miami, and Holy Comforter, Miami, are exciting as they, too, move closer to self-supporting parish status.

It is good to share with you the news that in addition to Todos Los Santos, two other churches, All Souls’, Miami Beach, and All Saints’, Jensen Beach, have become self-supporting parishes.

I also would like to mention the strengthening and revitalization of our Cursillo Movement. I want to thank many that have made this possible, and in particular I want to thank Dede Lewis for her effort and support to make this possible.

I am also happy to announce that with the approval of Bishop Alfred Reid we are in the process of exporting the Cursillo Movement to the Diocese of Jamaica, with the cooperation of the Diocese of the Bahamas and Turk and Caicos, which also has a strong Cursillo Movement. This is indeed an exciting day.

And now let me say something about our Duncan Center. I am very happy to share with you the good news that it continues in the black and is flourishing indeed. The occupancy keeps increasing and our Duncan Center has become a vital part of our ministry. We are now in the process of starting a new effort to raise the funds for a swimming pool and gardens.

In the past you named the Duncan Center to honor our first Diocesan Bishop James L. Duncan; you also named the chapel for Calvin O. Schofield, Jr., to honor our second Diocesan Bishop. Well, I don’t want to be left out: I would like us to have a pool and name it the TGIF Swimming Pool and TGIF stands for: “Thank God it’s Frade.” At the exhibit hall next to the church you will find a model of the proposed TGIF Pool and Gardens, so please make an effort to go and see the proposed project that will make the Duncan Center more attractive and marketable.

I also want to invite you to a birthday party next year; on April 18 we will celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Duncan Center.

And while you have your Blackberries, iPhones and pencils out, put on your calendar another event that will take place March 12 and 13 at the Duncan Center: another in our series of opportunities for growth and learning that have been held annually since that “First Step” in 2001—the Bishop’s Spring Conference.

I am happy to announce that our conference speaker next March will be Father Matthew Moretz of Rye, New York. If you don’t know who he is, I urge you to move into the 21st Century and find out how you can do ministry through the internet, as well as by using new ways of communicating like YouTube.com. “Father Matthew Presents” is considered among the most popular Christian sites of the Web. Tomorrow we will be showing a sample of his work. This will be an extraordinary opportunity to experience the X & Y Generation of the 21st Century.

I also want to announce that I will be naming the Rev. Dr. Carlos Sandoval as Canon for Health. As I mentioned earlier, we have been facing one pandemic after another—HIV/AIDS, avian flu and now the “swine flu,” H1N1. Today’s issue of USA Today reported that swine flu has swept thorugh about 22 million Americans from April through October of this year, killing an estimated 3,900 people, 540 of them children, according to the Center for Disease Control.

Dr. Sandoval is a medical doctor and a psychiatrist, as well as a priest of our diocese, and we will work with him to make sure that we protect ourselves from illness during these days ahead of us.

I would be remiss if I did not mention an organization in our diocese that has been working very hard to help the needy in our midst. I am referring to Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida, which under the guidance of its new director, the Rev. Donna Dambrot, and a very dynamic board, has brought new energy to its ministries in recent months. I thank Episcopal Charities for the initiative asking delegates to bring to convention a donation of food for those in need in the Keys.

And now I will ask the Venerable Doctor Bryan Hobbs, senior archdeacon of our diocese and in charge of Congregational Development, to share with you other initiatives that we are undertaking. Then he will introduce Archdeacon Bruttell to tell you about some of the transitions that have taken place in our congregations and those still to be completed.

I want to thank the archdeacons for sharing with you the other work that we do. Believe me, the three archdeacons work very hard to carry out our mission to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ.

We rejoice in the ongoing recovery of Archdeacon Bazin from surgery on his vocal cords, and are glad to have him here with us, although he is still unable to speak. He has provided for us a written report on his ministries as Archdeacon for Immigration and Social Justice.

Before I end, allow me to make some comments about other important issues.

First let me say to you that during this coming triennium we will be involved in discussing the Anglican Covenant that eventually will be presented to the Anglican Communion. Some have already come out to support the Covenant and others to attack it. Well, the proposed Covenant is not out yet and we will wait to have the complete draft in our hands in order to study and analyze it after it comes out.

I also want to mention something that has been in the news recently in reference to the invitation of the Pope in Rome for Anglicans to join their church. One of the newspapers of Miami came out with a headline that read: “Stampede of Anglicans and Episcopalians to join the Catholic Church.”

Well, the rumor of our demise has been greatly exaggerated. The reports from around the world where our Communion has flourished show that even the most conservative groups have declined the invitation. As I check around other dioceses the report shows a lack of enthusiasm to the invitation.

But let me say this, too, not to brag, but because it needs to be said: The number of Roman Catholics, lay and ordained, that are received into our church continues increasing. Our doors will remain open to those who want to come to our church.

My wife, Diana, and I continually give thanks for all the support and love that you have shown us. We especially want to thank the several congregations that have been helping a project that is very dear to our hearts: Our Little Roses, in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, which Diana founded as a home and school for abandoned, abused and orphaned girls. There is an exhibit about this ministry in the parish hall, which I urge you to visit.

Thank you, and may God bless you.

+Leo Frade