Pentecost

Sunday was Pentecost and the end of the centennial celebrations for the Diocese of Edmonton. In the morning Canon Bibiane and Rev Dominique visited St Augustine's, Parkland, in Spruce Grove. Dominique's parish is twinned with St Augustine's, and also named St Augustine's. 

 

Rev Dominique

Canon Bibiane

 

We were welcomed by Archdeacon Joanne Webster, Deacon Cheryl Boulet, and the whole parish. It was a wonderful opportunity to worship together as Dominique preached.

St Augustine's Parish family

Meanwhile, Bishop Sixbert worshiped at All Saints' Cathedral, coincidentally bearing the same dedication as his own cathedral, All Saints' in Buyé.

The afternoon saw a wonderful celebration at All Saints' cathedral, with the ordination of two deacons and a priest, the blessing of trees to be planted in every parish as symbols of reconciliation with our First Nations, welcoming a priest from Sudan, and the inauguration of a new Sudanese parish in Edmonton. It was a splendid celebration for the Diocese of Edmonton, and a joy to have our partners from Burundi sharing our joy!

ACW

Saturday was the annual meeting and centennial celebration of the Diocesan Anglican Church Women in the Diocese of Edmonton. The ACW had invited Clotilde, in her capacity as President of the Diocese of Buyé Mothers' Union, and Canon Bibiane, Mothers' Union Chaplain, to be the keynote speakers, sharing what the Mothers' Union does in Buyé. They marked the occasion by inducting Clotilde and Canon Bibiane as honorary life members of the ACW.

Clotilde outlined the history of the Mothers' Union in Buyé and shared some of the programmes the Mothers' Union currently offers, such as literacy training, micro credit, home economics training for women, as well as faith development, family support and a variety of ways of empowering women in Church and in society.

Gifts were exchanged, including a quilted hanging for Clotilde and a stole for Canon Bibiane, and the ACW offered to fund the training of a woman for priestly ministry in Buyé.

Saturday evening, the clergy of the Diocese of Edmonton and our guests from Buyé gathered for an informal evening at Bishop Jane's home. It was a wonderful opportunity to get to know each other and build the relationship between our two dioceses.

Clotilde, Canon Bibiane, Bishop Sixbert and Rev Dominique share a song

First Day

Friday dawned sunny and warm. Our guests came to the Synod Office and met the staff and had a brief tour of the Cathedral. The it was off to Christ Church where we were greeted by Archdeacon Michael Rolph.

During our visit we heard a little about the various mission activities the parish engages in, such as the Oliver Community Festival, community dinners and the new Ascend Leadership Project.

After lunch it was back to the Synod Office for a conversation with our Communications Director, and then home for a much needed rest to fend off the jet lag.

Friday evening we attended the Anglican Church Women (ACW) centennial banquet, where Bishop Sixbert brought greetings and told us a bit about his own diocese.

Bishop Sixbert

The banquet was an opportunity for our guests to renew some acquaintances and to meet new people, and for many members of the Diocese of Edmonton to meet our guests for the first time.

Bishop Sixbert and Clotilde

Having made some acquaintances, we were ready for a good night's sleep to prepare for Saturday's ACW conference.

Canon Bibiane and Rev Dominique

Amahoro!

Today our friends from Burundi arrived in Edmonton for a visit. Bishop Sixbert, his wife Clotilde, Diocesan Secretary the Rev Dominique, and his wife, Canon Bibiane, arrived after a long journey from our companion diocese of Buyé. Bishop Jane and Tim waited anxiously for our guests to emerge from immigration, and when they finally arrived it was all smiles!

Amahoro!

Over the next week our friends will be attending the diocesan ACW conference, participating in an ordination, visiting a few parts of the diocese and meeting a variety of clergy and lay people in our diocese. Maybe you will be one of them!

Watch this space for more updates. For a taste of our companion diocese, please refer to older posts on this blog.