Jay Haug

The fight to stop pornography and sexual addiction has come to congregations worldwide, and the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida is on the front lines.

Dozens of clergy learned more about the socially powerful topic of sex addiction at the first Clergy Day of the 2017 calendar year at Canterbury Retreat and Conference Center in Oviedo.

Jay Haug, executive director of Jacob’s Well, and two other guests from his organization spoke at the first clergy day on Feb. 28, which drew approximately 50 people.

“Jacob’s Well is a ministry seeking to combat compulsion to pornography and sexual addiction,” said the Rev. Andrew Petiprin, rector of St. Mary of the Angels Episcopal Church in Orlando.

Haug, who authored “The Rest of God: Finding Freedom from Lust in the Internet Age,” has been in the sexual addiction recovery movement for more than two decades. At Jacob’s Well, he directs a fellowship that focuses on complete sexual sobriety as a means of honoring God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

“I was very pleased with how Jay Haug and his team from Jacob’s Well did,” Petiprin said. “They spoke about a topic that is usually swept under the rug, but it turns out many people have to deal with it on a daily basis. Many of the clergy in attendance said they (now) felt better equipped to handle pastoral crises related to pornography and sexual addiction.”

Rev. Dr. Robert Heaney

Clergy members also had the benefit of hearing the Rev. Dr. Robert Heaney at the second Clergy Day of the year on March 21. Heaney, who studied and became a priest abroad, serves as director of the Center of Anglican Communion Studies and associate professor of Christian mission at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia.

Heaney’s day-long teaching was entitled “The Hope of Mission as the Future of the Church.” He covered topics including the readings of John 4, inter-cultural theology and going beyond the five marks of mission. Heaney also gave an update on the Lambeth 2020 Design Group, which, he reported, has begun its work planning the July 2020 Lambeth Conference to be held in Canterbury, England, with the theme of “God’s Church for God’s World.”

“Robert (Heaney) is an important voice in the Anglican Communion,” Petiprin said. He added that the diocese usually has three or four clergy days per year, as well as its biggest clergy event—the Clergy Conference—each October.

“All canonically resident, as well as licensed priests and deacons (active and retired), are welcome to attend all clergy events,” Petiprin said. “(We) send out announcements about events to our cleric e-mail list. Basically, anyone on the list is welcome to attend, and we usually include a link to register for events from there.

“Bishop Brewer often invites others to attend as well, sometimes clergy from outside of the diocese who have a special interest in what we do here, and sometimes seminarians or other lay people who may have a special interest in a particular topic,” Petiprin said. “That is completely up to the bishop and not to me or the Clergy Events Committee.” He added that the Diocese of Central Florida has held Clergy Days many years, offering participants a wide variety of subject matter.

“We try to have a good mix of topics throughout each year,” Petiprin said. “Our big Clergy Conference, which is mandatory for all canonically resident active priests, is usually a bit more academic in nature. The Clergy Days are sometimes academic, but usually a little more practical.”

Petiprin also said Clergy Days have left a positive impact on attendees.

“Generally, I hear positive feedback,” he said. “In the busy lives of parish clergy, it can be a big challenge to slow down, take a day away and sit at the feet of someone who has something to teach you. Those who attend our gatherings usually report that it is like having a miniature retreat.”

For more information on Clergy Days or the upcoming Clergy Conference, call Canterbury at 407-365-5571.