Central Florida Episcopal Church Women Take Active Role in June Province IV Meeting

For more than 150 years, National Episcopal Church Women, or ECW, has been a prominent organization within The Episcopal Church that strives, per its purpose statement, to “empower the women of The Episcopal Church to carry out Christ’s work throughout the world.”

As part of a national ministry, ECW members within the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida consistently share not only their love for Christ, but also their passion for spreading the gospel with others through missions, advocacy and other projects.

At its annual Province IV meeting, held June 1-3 in Live Oak, Florida, ECW gathered 40 women from 11 states to discuss issues important to the ministry and how they might further the organization’s kingdom mission through their efforts.

“As women working within the church, we want to find our voice in the church,” said Dr. Christine Allen of St. Simon the Cyrenian, Ft. Pierce, who was elected to the executive board of the Province IV ECW during the recent meeting. “We want to be able to aid in any ministries that are going on in the church. We want to also – and let me underscore this – enhance spiritual journeys of women and children in particular.”

Through new projects like Creation Care, a push for environmental justice, ECW looks to connect the gospel with the biblical standard in Psalm 24:1, which reads, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein.”

“Not only did God give us his only begotten Son, but he gave us this earth to treasure as well,” Allen said. “When he returns – whether it’s tomorrow, next year or anytime after – we need to show that we’ve been good stewards of this planet. What we’re trying to do is to contact people within the Episcopal camps throughout the nation and have them do some programming on creation care. They put me in charge because my minor in college was in environmental science. We’re trying to raise the consciousness across the nation.”

Going forward, Allen said ECW members will encourage others to “be good stewards of our Mother Earth.” She said members within the group are currently conducting research to employ Sunday school curriculum that lends itself to the topic, as well as creating inner-city and Episcopalian camps that do the same.

“Our aim is to execute the creation care program in all provinces across the nation,” she said.

Yet another project close to the hearts of ECW members within Province IV and diocese is social justice, which includes the emotional and financial support of indigenous women of Alaska. Allen said these women are 10 times more likely to be abducted and murdered than women in the lower 48 states, and ECW members voted to continue their involvement in the project.

“It’s a sin that this is happening, and it’s unconscionable,” Allen said.

Allen said she’s thrilled that projects like these, through ECW, have gained support of the diocese, including the Rt. Rev. Dr. Justin S. Holcomb, as a direct connection with his mission to spread the good news of Christ.

“He is very relatable,” Allen said of Bishop Holcomb. “He’s relatable to everyone, and that is very appealing. You want to be attentive to the gospel that he is preaching. It has to be a top-down mentality. I think it is filtering down, and I can feel that, especially when I talk to my colleagues at the Province IV event and at my church as well. I believe Bishop Holcomb supports the ECW and what we’re doing, the things we are passionate about.”

During the meeting, it was announced that two new ECW groups have been established within the Diocese of Central Florida: one at Christ Church, Longwood, and the other at Holy Faith, Port St. Lucie. The diocese also received the award for the most attendees and earned praise from Province IV President Andrea Geiger.

“The women of the Diocese of Central Florida really work hard not only on the projects they have undertaken, but they represent the gospel very well,” Geiger said. “I’m very proud of the work they do, and it is representative of the hands and feet of Jesus and is a tremendous reflection on the leadership within their diocese.”