episcodon.net Press Release

A Better Social Media Experience for Episcopalians

As dissatisfaction with Twitter and other centralized social media platforms grows, one Episcopalian has responded by launching a Mastodon server geared for Episcopalians.

“episcodon.net is designed to be a safe and pleasant community for all individuals and groups connected to The Episcopal Church,” said John Clinton Bradley, the administrator of episcodon.net. “Our server rules discourage many types of harmful behavior found on other social media platforms. Members are in complete control of what content they see and with whom they interact.”

Mastodon is a decentralized platform of independent servers. Founded in 2016 by Eugen Rochko, Mastodon has steadily grown in popularity. During the last month, thousands of new servers and millions of new members have joined the network. Members of episcodon.net can read, follow, and interact with members of other Mastodon servers if they wish.

Visit https://episcodon.net to join. Membership is free. It is not supported by advertising, but members are welcome to make recurring donations using Patreon. Members can participate in episcodon.net through a web browser or a mobile app.

Historic Bath Church to Begin Roof Repairs

I was interviewed by WETM 18 News about St. Thomas' roof repair project. This is the story they broadcast.


This is the raw footage. I made several mistakes. My worst error was saying that Dudley Moore (the actor) was the architect rather than Henry C. Dudley.

D.C. Bishop To Bless Same-Sex Union

This article is about our blessing service.

D.C. bishop to bless same-sex union

WASHINGTON, May 29 (UPI) -- Bishop John Bryson Chane, head of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, was to formally bless the relationship of a gay priest and his partner Saturday.

The Washington Post reported same-sex union blessing ceremony for the Rev. Michael Hopkins, rector of St. George's Episcopal Church in Maryland's Prince George's County, and his partner, John Clinton Bradley, will be a first for Chane.

Covenant relationships, in which two people commit themselves to spending their lives together, "are holy and deserve to be blessed, deserve to be held up by the community and they deserve to be called what they are: sacred," said James Naughton, Chane's spokesman.

Hopkins is a friend of Chane's and is well regarded in the diocese. "So in blessing this relationship, the bishop wasn't looking for an opening to make some type of statement -- he was celebrating the life of a friend as anyone would do," Naughton said.

Traditionalist Episcopalians who oppose same-sex partnerships said they were unhappy with Chane's participation in the ceremony. 

© 2004 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

A House Divided

 I'm briefly mentioned in this article. Michael is quoted and paraphrased.

Greenbelt Interfaith News
World
September 1998

A House Divided

Gay and Ex-Gay Anglicans React to Resolutions on Homosexuality

By Heather Elizabeth Peterson
Greenbelt Interfaith News

It was the beginning of a triumph – or the beginning of a tragedy, depending on who was speaking. No Episcopalians denied, though, that the summer of 1997 would bring tremendous changes to the denomination that forms the American contribution to the worldwide Anglican Communion. Around the world, the events in the Episcopal Church during July 1997 would spark debate in other Anglican churches around the world. The focus of the debate was on homosexuality, a subject that was causing increasing divisions between conservative and liberal Anglicans. For Anglicans living in the United States, the Episcopal Church appeared at the beginning of July 1997 to be on the brink of something tremendous. But whether the Episcopal Church was headed toward destruction or toward a realization of its greatest promise was another matter for argument between conservatives and liberals.

Two American Anglicans would watch the events of July 1997 and be stunned by what happened. Two Anglicans would watch with concern a year later as the events of July 1997 were eclipsed and nearly overturned by the events of July and August 1998. Both Anglicans were in a position to be greatly concerned about what was happening. Both knew that Anglican attitudes toward homosexuality would shape the lives of people like themselves. Both believed that the decisions of the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion could result in more heartbreak and tragedy in the lives of same-gender-attracted people, or else the decisions could bring those same people to spiritual fulfillment and the peace of God.

One of the Anglicans was a leader in the gay ministry Integrity. The other was the leader of the ex-gay ministry Regeneration.

Eye Of The Storm

 This article mentions me and quotes Michael.

EYE OF THE STORM 

By Megan Rosenfeld
The Washington Post
March 31, 1996

The Washington National Cathedral is a vast, vaulted cavity, designed to make humans feel tiny. Into the echoing nave came Washington-area Episcopalians, both laity and clergy, for the annual diocesan conference. They came from the high churches perfumed by swinging censers to the low churches where the pews have been replaced by chairs that can be moved aside for parties. They came from liberal suburban churches, and conservative urban ones, and vice versa. There were priests who are women and priests who are gay, and others who opposed their very existence as ordained interpreters of God's word.

Presiding over all was the bishop, the Right Rev. Ronald H. Haines, a tall, 61-year-old grandfather who for six years has guided this prominent and contentious flock. Looking down from the dais at the 200 or so representatives of the Washington diocese's 41,000 Episcopalians, he tried to preclude the discord that was sure to come. This was not to be a debate, he said, but "a time of Christian sharing."

Right.