Virginia Episcopalian Magazine Spring 2014 Issue | Page 23

A recent Region II Clericus meeting brought about something of a Holy Spirit moment. The Rt. Rev. John Lupaa, bishop of the Diocese of the Rift Valley in Tanzania, and his wife, Devota, were visiting the clergy meeting at Grace, Kilmarnock. The Lupaas spent over two months in Virginia as part of the bishop’s sabbatical. They met with Virginia clergy at the Bishop’s Fall Clergy Retreat at Shrine Mont and spent time at Virginia Theological Seminary. Several parishes across the Diocese hosted the Lupaas during the course of their stay. On this particular visit with the clergy of Region II in the Northern Neck, Lupaa told the group about the Rift Valley’s Church and Community Mobilization Program, in which priests travel to the widespread parishes of the region to train people on how to eradicate poverty using their local resources. One obstacle that stood in the way of this program was transportation. The priests were in need of pikipiki – motorbikes – to travel from one church to the next. When the clergy of Region II heard of this need, they decided to act on the spot. The Rev. Torrence Harman of St. Mary’s Whitechapel, Lively, and Trinity, Lancaster, started talking with the Rev. David May of Grace, Kilmarnock. Before too long, Harman was going from person to person, collecting pledges and donations. “And so in 10 or 15 minutes, we had collected commitments for enough to pay for two motorcycles,” said May. “We don’t need to meet with a committee. We don’t need to process this. We were just able Mission Beyond Ourselves A Prayer for Pikipiki Two priests in the Rift Valley of Tanzania have new motorbikes to equip them for ministry thanks to the clergy of Region II in Virginia. to say to him, ‘Let us do this, please.’” May and his congregation have an existing relationship with Lupaa and the Rift Valley, and provide annual support from their outreach budget. “What gave me joy was … the direct and immediate effect,” said May. “It was beautiful. The spirit of it was great.” t Mission Ministry Teams One of the things that makes Virginia’s approach to mission and outreach effective – and unique – is how folks from churches across Virginia partner together around areas of passion. So whether that’s a certain country, or a particular of cause, they can collaborate and share resources across church and regional boundaries. Want to get involved? Contact Buck Blanchard ([email protected]) or Mary Anne Bryant ([email protected]) in the diocesan Mission and Outreach Office. Here’s a look at the active Mission Ministry Teams in the Diocese of Virginia. Learn more at thediocese.net/Ministries/MissionTeams. Disaster Preparedness and Response Dominican Republic Ministry Food Ministry Haiti Ministry Honduras Ministry Liberia Ministry Middle East Ministry Millennium Development Goals/ONE Campaign Native American Ministry Prison Ministry South Africa Ministry Sudan Ministry Tanzania Ministry Women-to-Women DR Congo Partnership Spring 2014 / Virginia Episcopalian 21