March 2019
Becoming Disciples

Editor's Letter April 2019

Dear Friends,

While discipleship can be a deeply personal journey for many of us, our faith communities often play a crucial role in that journey. In this issue, we bring you articles on the intersection of community and discipleship, sharing how the experience of becoming and being disciples together with others is both powerful and lasting.

What does the experience of being baptized in the world look like for you? In Walking Wet, Lisa Kimball explains what baptism means in her everyday life and invites us to be disciples who are perpetually ‘wet’ in the waters of baptism.

Are you thinking about ways to practice intergenerational discipleship in your community? In 7 Steps Toward Intergenerational Discipleship, Eduardo Solomón Rivera lists the ways all members of a parish can worship, learn and grow together, drawing on his personal experience to share the benefits of this model for community discipleship.This article is available in English and Spanish.

How significant is spiritual growth for a parish community? In When ‘Fine’ Isn’t Enough, Brenda Husson and Ryan Fleenor share their experience of partnering with RenewalWorks to markedly deepen and transform the spiritual lives of their parishioners.

Parents who want their children to have an active life of faith must start thinking about their child’s discipleship journey early. In Beginning Before Baptism, Melissa Rau explains how new parents and churches can partner to create rites of passage and traditions for children in different stages of life to strengthen their faith development.

What is the relationship between discipleship and stewardship? In Dollars and Discipleship, Julie Simonton delves into the phrase: “Using the gifts God gives us to do the work God calls us to do”
and explores how the transactional nature of money can become transformational when viewed through the lens of discipleship.

Many of our Episcopal institutions exist because past generations cared about the future of the Episcopal Church and expressed their caring by creating planned gifts. ECF has provided planned giving services to the Episcopal Church since 1995. We have distributed more than $25 million in planned gifts to Episcopal dioceses, congregations and organizations nationwide, and we manage over $45 million in charitable gifts. To learn more about ECF’s Planned Giving program, click here.

To learn more about ECF and our programs, please visit our website.

Faithfully,

Charis Bhagianathan
Editor, ECF Vital Practices

This article is part of the March 2019 Vestry Papers issue on Becoming Disciples