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A Deep Dive into Countering Christian Nationalism in our Churches and Beyond |
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Join us for learning on the topic of understanding and countering Christian Nationalism. On Wednesday, January 28, 2026, from 7-8 pm Pamela Cooper-White, author of The Psychology of Christian Nationalism: Why People are Drawn in and How to Talk across the Divide, will be hosted by our provincial formation ministry team to provide insights from her research.
Then, on Wednesday, February 11also from 7-8 pm, the Rev. Jenny Williams, Faith Organizer for the ACLU of West Virginia, will help us think about how to engage students around Christian Nationalism in schools and beyond. You’ll walk away with resources for pedagogy and further exploration of Christian Nationalist concepts.
The cost is $10/session. You can register for one or both sessions using the button below:
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| Province III is again a sponsor of Forma in 2026.Forma is only in-person in 2026, meeting January 26-29 at St. John’s Cathedral in Denver, CO.
If you plan to attend and are a resident of Province III: And you are NOT a member of Forma, use the following discount code to receive 10% off: sponsy10-fc26 If you ARE a member of Forma, use this discount code to receive 10% off in addition to your 10% membership discount: forma26-reveal20
You can register for the conference and find more information HERE. Additionally, Forma has secured a discounted block of room at the Hampton Inn—Denver Downtown for $155/night plus taxes and fees. Use this link to make your room reservation. |
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| | AND following up on Forma…Save-the-Date:Province III is holding its annualFormation Retreatat the Claggett CenterFebruary 9-12
Registration details and more information will be coming soon. Contact Amanda Akes-Cardwell with any questions. |
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| | Provincial Youth Event 2026 |
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| For more information, contact Patricia Cope-Levy, especially if you have High School Juniors or Seniors who might be interested in being on the leadership team. |
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Come January 1, 2026, Province III will only have 12 member dioceses, not 13. At their joint conventions in October, the dioceses of Bethlehem and Central Pennsylvania voted to reunify into the Diocese of the Susquehanna. The Rt. Rev. Audrey Scanlan was unanimously elected to serve as the first Diocesan Bishop, and her first act was to appoint Bp. Kevin Nichols Assistant Bishop. |
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| | Provincial Council met online October 27 |
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| to approve the 2027 allocation formula and the 2026 budget, which includes funding for a provincial formation retreat in February, the annual PYE: Provincial Youth Event, a webinar series on Christian Nationalism and how to talk to young people about it, and more. Representatives of each of our dioceses reported on what was happening on the ground in their part of the province. We learned about Pennsylvania’s harm reduction work in the Kensington area of Philadelphia. We also heard from our “legacy dioceses”—Bethlehem and Central Pennsylvania—about their successful reunification vote. We also began discussing plans for Synod May 3-4, 2026, which you will not want to miss! Mark your calendars now. |
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| | Two new Eco-regions located within parts of Province III |
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The Ven. Joshua Saxe, Rector of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church and Archdeacon for Community Resilience & Disaster Response Ministries in the Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia, recently attended a gathering on these new Eco-Regions and explains a bit more about them:
The 2024 General Convention authorized the creation of Eco-Region Creation Networks. Instead of limiting these initiatives to a specific diocese, an Eco-Region exists as a regional collaboration of dioceses that share ecosystems or watersheds. These networks aim to link people, projects, and properties to implement nature-based solutions in response to our call to faithfully care for creation. The work could take many forms: restoring native plant communities, modeling regenerative food systems, safeguarding water quality, or nurturing local biodiversity.
Within Province III, the Diocese of West Virginia is a partner in the newly established Appalachian Eco-Region, along with the Dioceses of Lexington and East Tennessee. Another Eco-Region that overlaps with Province III is the Mid-Atlantic/Chesapeake Bay Region. These regions are still in a formative stage, and as leaders are identified and frameworks put into place, my hope is that we will have more to share—and more to celebrate—as we work to be better stewards of the earth.
I do not view these initiatives as merely environmental work; there is a sacred dimension to them. The created world reveals divine wisdom through the rhythms of nature. The Christian tradition reminds us that God’s presence can be breathed in, tasted, touched, and seen. To participate in these creative initiatives is to practice sacred seeing—learning to behold creation with reverence and gratitude. When we plant, restore, protect, and renew, we are not only stewarding resources; we are responding to, and participating in, God’s own work of redeeming, restoring, and repairing creation. |
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| | Legacy Diocese of Central Pennsylvania makes apilgrimage to the Carlisle Indian Industrial School
On Saturday November 16, members of the Diocese of CPA met at the site of Carlisle School where indigenous children lived, and died, under the U.S. plan to “kill the Indian” and “save the man.” The pilgrimage is a start toward truth-telling and repair. You can read more about the event HERE. |
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| | Provincial Ministries looking for leaders
The National Altar Guild Board is seeking a Province III representative to the board. If you are interested, or know someone who might be, contact David Hawley-Lowry.
Province III is also seeking a representative for Young Adult and Campus Ministry to liaison with provincial leadership and the campus ministry of Province II, with whom we connect with on events and retreats. |
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| | | Have you always wanted to visit the Holy Land? |
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| | You have the chance to join the Rt. Rev. Carrie Scofield-Broadbent (MD) and the Rt. Rev. Gayle Harris (VA) on pilgrimage in April 6-17, 2026
Co-sponsored by the Dioceses of Maryland and Virginia, your local guides will be Canon Iyad Qumri and Rami Qumri. Estimated cost of the pilgrimage is $5,000. For more information, contact: Sally K. Goss |
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| | News from VTS Lifelong Learning
Virginia Theological Seminary’s Lifelong Learning ministry seeks to form leaders who connect, nurture, and build communities of faithful practice. It offers onsite, online, and on-demand programming. To learn about their offerings, check out their webpage.
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| | UTO 2026 Grant Applications open |
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| United Thank Offering has announced the opening of their 2026 granting cycle. The 2026-2029 triennium will fund projects focused on justice and bridging divides, inspired by Scripture and Tradition:
“Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” Amos 5:24
“In love we escape from our self into one another. In the moral sphere every act of justice or charity involves putting ourselves in the other person’s place and thus transcending our own competitive particularity. In coming to understand anything we are rejecting the facts as they are for us in favor of the facts as they are. The primary impulse of each is to maintain and aggrandize himself. The secondary impulse is to go out of the self, to correct its provincialism and heal its loneliness.”
C.S. Lewis, An Experiment in Criticism
Find more information on the granting process and deadline, go to the UTO website. |
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| Episcopal Migration Ministries suggests ways we can support refugees and immigrants in this time:Connect with a local resettlement affiliate. Reach out to the closest affiliate in your area to learn about their current needs for donations, volunteers, and financial support. Engage in education and advocacy. Knowledge has the power to change hearts and minds. Explore and share the Immigration Action Toolkit Engage with our book discussion guides covering topics like refugee resettlement, asylum, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, and the immigration system. Join EMM and UTO this Lent for 40 Days of Welcome and Gratitude, a journey of reflection on how we experience welcome in the world and how we extend it to others. Our five-session book club featuring The Ungrateful Refugee by Dina Nayeri is underway, and three sessions remain. You’re invited to join for any of them. Learn more and register here. Sign up for and send action alerts, including:
Make a gift to support EMM’s ministry. Hold our refugee and immigrant siblings in prayer: Join the Public Policy and Witness Weekly Prayers. We invite you to join us as we share new prayers each week for the vulnerable among us facing challenges, fears, and threats. We will name many of the harms unfolding around us and acknowledge what is being erased, lost, and threatened. We are one church united in prayer, naming reality in the face of lies, creating space for grief in the face of denial, and freeing space in our souls for hope. We gather to be the body of Christ for one another—bearing one another’s burdens—and pointing the world to the cross and its redemptive power already at work through our witness (even when it may not feel like it).
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An uplifting devotional for those seeking comfort and hope during the seasons of Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany. This inspiring devotional invites Christians to reflect on the wonder of God’s presence in everyday life. With meaningful scripture, heartfelt prayers, and thought-provoking reflection questions, each devotion draws readers closer to the divine and will help them find comfort, hope, and renewed faith during Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany.
“This is a great book that will strengthen your faith and enrich your walk with God and each other.”—The Rt. Rev. Mark Van Koevering, Bishop of Lexington, The Episcopal Diocese of Lexington
Order from any Episcopal bookstore, Amazon, Cokesbury, or your favorite bookseller. Paperback | 9781640658233 | List Price: $18.95 |
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