Bishop Burgess met with the Bishop’s Committee of St. Barnabas’ in Havana on Saturday, November 15th where he learned about the great strides that have been made within this Church Calendar year. It was reported that all of their established priorities have been accomplished, including final preparatory plans for a columbarium being situated within their Marian Chapel, the update of their Constitution and By-Laws, and the placement of a new outdoor sign. The Diocesan Appeal was introduced, inviting the participation of their congregation and Bishop’s Committee. Additional opportunities for outreach were discussed with the intention of being visible in their community while treating their beautifully maintained buildings and grounds as the endowment to future generations that they are.

The XXIII Sunday after Pentecost was observed quite appropriately with a beautiful Rite I sung Mass. Those of at least four generations offered their voices to common prayer and their open arms to cradling Father and Erin Anglin’s beautiful twin girls. A reception within their assembly hall was offered as time to catch-up, express appreciation, rejoice in being the redeemed of Christ, and enjoy some really, really good fried chicken. The laity of St. Barnabas’ do a tremendous job of offering their particular ministry to the glory of God. Thank you to Father Dante Anglin, Erin Anglin and the lay leaders for the sacrifices that they make before the altar of St. Barnabas’ in Havana, having an impact on behalf of the kingdom of God in our Northern Deanery and throughout our Diocese.

Oh, how good and pleasant it is, *

when brethren live together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

The Sunday after All Saints’ Day was observed before the historic altar of St. John’s in Albion. This gem of our Diocese is recognized as the most historic Episcopal Church in the State of Illinois as they will observe their 183rd year this Christmas. One “duly prepared” adult was presented for the Sacrament of Confirmation, inviting many family members and friends from their community to make their Holy Communion together. Fr. Bill Howard encourages and engages in tremendous lay leadership, both liturgically and evangelically. This month’s outreach priorities consist of Thanksgiving Day meal starter kits and a fall themed packet of apple cider and microwavable popcorn. The former is distributed by communicants to those who would benefit from such a reach and the latter is taken (a different theme monthly) to local first responders, school teachers, and medical professionals within their local hospital.  Each packet contains a printed invitation to complete their voice of common prayer before the altar of St. John’s.

The reception within their parish hall following the Dismissal and retiring Hymn was complete with announcements and invitations pertaining to upcoming opportunities for lay leadership to be the Church out in the community. Bravo! to Senior Warden Kathy Land, David Land, and Richard Tribe for their lay leadership. They fully expect themselves and those who follow their lead to be winded as they run the race that is set before them in Albion (Hebrews 12:1).

Five days of traveling Wisconsin brought Bishop Burgess to Nashotah House Theological Seminary for its Annual Board Meeting and to Grace Church in Sheboygan for the Annual Pilgrimage to the American Proto-Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham and the Annual Mass of the Society of Mary. The schedule of meetings on the campus of Nashotah House, in the interest of receiving reports and the election of new officers, was augmented with regular times of worship within St. Mary’s Chapel and meals in the Refectory with students, faculty and staff. During a service of Solemn Evensong at Grace Church in Sheboygan, Bishop Burgess was seated as Bishop Visitor to the Guardians of the Shrine. Three new oblates were inducted and Fr. William Bulson, Rector of Grace Church, was recognized as the Oblate Prior. Bishop Burgess was also presented with a medallion at his seating, which is a replica of the seal found at Walsingham when excavation around the original location of the Holy House was being done. This seal was the only evidence found of what the statue of Our Lady looked like in the medieval Walsingham Shrine.

Many from our Diocese were part of this week of travel, to include: Bishop Daniel Martins; Canon R. Brien and Terry Koehler; Canon Mark Evans; Fr. Fred and Linda Robinson; Postulants Andrew Meade (Whitney, Alexander, and Elowyn) and Zachary Busher (Bethany and Martha); Father Robert and Mother Hannah Armidon.

Deo gratias.

posted 10/20/2025

The Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost was observed by entering into Holy Eucharist with the saints of Trinity Church in Mattoon. This congregation went to great lengths to prepare for such a celebratory day, including spending Saturday sprucing up their landscaping and cleaning up their buildings and grounds. Trinity Church is the oldest Church in Mattoon and has triumphed over a great many challenges for the sake of living the Gospel and telling the story of the risen Lord. It was nice processing from the sacristy, out to the sidewalk and around to the principal doors of the church as the means of communicating liturgically how we are still on exodus together.

The two choral scholars (Diane Eckert, soprano and Makayla McPherson, mezzo soprano) did a very respectable job of not only composing and offering descants for the processional hymns, but also in preparing the Anthem “O Lord, Increase Our Faith” by Henry Loosemore (1607-1670) and edited by Watkins Shaw (1911-1996). 

Bible study within the parish hall on Sundays and Wednesdays within the Jackson Avenue Café in Charleston are regular offerings that remain popular among parishioners and inquirers alike. Dean David Knox works alongside his dedicated parish leadership, Deacon Sontochena St. Jean and musician (Andrew Weber) to offer the best possible offering of Anglican prayer book liturgy, formation, outreach and fellowship. They are ready to share with you what they know and what they have seen when it comes to their faith in our risen and living Lord, Jesus Christ.

In order to address growing safety concerns, asphalt paving work will begin on Monday, September 29th and conclude late in the afternoon on Tuesday, September 30th in interest of resurfacing the drive and parking area between the Diocesan Center and our Cathedral. Those needing to visit the Diocesan Center during that time are invited to park in the lot owned by The Inn at 835 immediately to the south of the Diocesan Center. Please enter through the front doors facing South Second Street.

Thank you for your patience and for your faithful stewardship.

Postulants Len Harris (L - Church of the Redeemer in Cairo) and Jeff Wenzel (R - The Cathedral of St. Paul the Apostle in Springfield) took part in the week-long residential portion of the four-week intensive course on Practical Liturgics for the Parish Priest taught by The Reverend Dr. Matthew Olver, Senior Lecturer in Liturgics. The goals of this course are “to prepare those intending to serve as priests in the Anglican tradition in all aspects of liturgical priestcraft. We will focus on the principles undergirding Western ceremonial and its application to Anglican liturgies, along with vestments, the furnishings of a church, the liturgical calendar, and lectionaries. The centerpiece of the course will be the celebration of the Mass in all its possible varieties (sung and spoken, ad orientem and versus populum, traditional and contemporary language), along with Christian initiation (baptism and confirmation), Holy Matrimony, Christian Burial, and the special liturgies of the liturgical year.” Two weeks of course readings are expected ahead of attending the residential portion with a week of project completion once the student returns home.

Students who register for the summer term are expected to participate in the complete rhythm of seminary life, including regular chapel worship, community happenings, and dining together in the refectory.

Len is a hybrid student taking online courses offered by Johnson University in Knoxville, Tennessee and intensive course offerings on the campus of Nashotah House. He is discerning a call to the Vocational Diaconate. Jeff is an Anglican Studies student pursuing an MDiv. degree at United Lutheran Seminary in Germantown, Pennsylvania discerning a call to the Sacred Priesthood.

Please continue to pray for an increase of properly-discerned vocations within our Church and Diocese:

O God, who didst lead thy holy apostles to ordain ministers in every place: Grant that thy Church, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, may choose suitable persons for the ministry of Word and Sacrament, and may uphold them in their work for the extension of thy kingdom; through him who is the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (BCP pg. 205)

The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost began the evening before while meeting the Vestry of St. John’s Episcopal Church and Redeemer Lutheran Church of Centralia for a catered lasagna dinner in the lower assembly room. The discussion centered around outreach and a particular voice of evangelism that resonates throughout their community. It was agreed that taking a detailed inventory of the gifts, blessings, and skills of their combined parish would help guide them as they set realistic priorities within any Church Calendar year. Toward the top of that list should be the academic background and teaching gifts of their priest. Fr. Matthew Kemp is a very skilled and capable teacher who lives as it is he prays. Just as a matter of course, he has prepared for parish use and distribution A Commentary on the Nicene Creed. Community events such as the Annual Balloon Festival invite the opportunity for these combined traditions to bring glory to God. This is a very attentive congregation that understands planning in great detail is needed to be intentional with their invitation.

The Sunday morning Eucharist was beautifully orchestrated while using both The Book of Common Prayer (1979) and the Lutheran Book of Worship. The Eucharistic rite and Hymnody came from our tradition while the Prayers of the People and the service music came from the Lutheran tradition. This is a congregation that loves to sing out robustly. Following Episcopal Blessing, Dismissal, and Processional Hymn, all gathered in the lower assembly room for a wonderful brunch. Beyond being a beautiful church, these are beautiful people who love our Lord Jesus Christ and who drink deeply from both the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Altar. There are quite a few Diocesan leaders who hail from this celebrated church, especially from our Camp Board, who ensure the success of our summer camp program. The family of Fr. Matthew and Alethia Kemp (pictured with Bishop Brian and Denise Burgess) add a great deal of vitality, not only to this parish church, but to our Diocese as well. This is a congregation that can identify both verb and subject within the sentence “Let a little water be brought [by one of my servants], and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.” (Genesis 18:5)

posted 7/21/2025

During the Week of IV Pentecost, Bishop and Mrs. Burgess traveled to Grace Church in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Bishop Burgess has been invited by Fr. William Bulson, the Rector of Grace Church and Master of the Guardians of the American Proto-Shrine of Our Lady of Walshingham, to serve as Episcopal Visitor of the Shrine. Over the course of the last few years, renewed attention is being given to the American Proto-Shrine to include regular devotions and an annual pilgrimage in October. The Guardians protect and increase devotion to Our Lady of Walsingham at the Proto-Shrine through daily prayer and through the ministries of pilgrimage, healing, hospitality, and education.

The Shrine within the north transept of the Neo-Gothic Church is beautifully maintained and open for prayer, votive Masses, and meditation. The entire experience of Grace Church Sheboygan is one intended on drawing you into their history while including you in the devotions of the Church today. Being an Anglican proto-shrine, the Daily Offices are regularly said, as is expected by our prayer book Calendar and clock.

In 1061, the Lady Richeldis de Faverches, lady of the manor near the village of Walsingham, Norfolk, England, was taken in spirit to Nazareth. There, Our Lady asked her to build a replica, in Norfolk, of the Holy House where she had been born, grew up, and received the Annunciation of Christ's impending birth. Lady Richeldis immediately constructed a house, 23' 6" x 12' 10", according to the plan given to her. Its fame slowly spread and in 1150 a group of Augustinian Canons built a priory beside it. Its fame continued to grow and for centuries it was a point of pilgrimage for all classes and the recipient of many expensive gifts.

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By order of King Henry VIII during the Reformation in 1538, the House was stripped of its valuables and its statue of the Virgin taken to London to be burned. The present statue of Our Lady was enshrined in Walsingham in 1922, beginning an era of renewed pilgrimage and cooperation at the shrine between Catholics and Anglicans.

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In 1929 the parish priest, Fr. A. Parker Curtiss, launched the installation of the first exact copy of Our Lady of Walsingham at Grace Church. Since that time, there have been daily prayers said at our American Proto-Shrine referencing the prayer requests brought by our parishioners and by the many annual pilgrims that visit every fall when the Grace Walsingham Pilgrimage is held.

For more information on the Grace Church Walsingham Pilgrimage, click here.

Bishop Burgess had the opportunity to join our Community of Episcopal Fellowship in Effingham for the celebration of Holy Eucharist on Wednesday, June 18th within the Chapel of The Cross. Called The Cross at the Crossroads, this 198 feet cross towers above traffic traveling Interstates I57 & I70 at Exit 159. This Community of Episcopal Fellowship has been meeting for 2 ½ years to worship, participate in social events, and to join in fellowship and mission outreach. Having previously been restricted to worship within the Chapel only on Wednesday evenings due to it being occupied by a Presbyterian congregation on Sundays, that option is now open and these faithful people are considering plans to move to a Sunday expression of worship. Bishop Burgess expressed his deep appreciation toward postulant Danny Shuler, pianist Becky Lusting, Father Mike Clark, and Dean David Knox for their constant offering in sanctifying this place. This is the same congregation and (Eastern) Deanery that did such an exceptional job of hosting the 147th Annual Synod of our Diocese this past October. Following Dismissal, Eucharistic fellowship was extended by filling the seats around a long-table within the Gabby Goat American Pub and Grill in Effingham. “Come and See.”

posted 6/20/2025

Bishop Burgess had the opportunity to be with a celebrated parish church of our Diocese on The Day of Pentecost. St. Paul’s in Carlinville is historic, faithful, bold, engaged, and setting an example of post-pandemic progress (rather than just recovery). All was in place for absolutely beautiful worship. A Cantor offered a well-rehearsed setting of Psalm 104 and the 8 or 9 voice Choir prepared an anthem appropriate to the day of observance. This is a parish that works hard, leans into the needs of their community, maintains proper stewardship over tremendous gifts, appreciates authentic fellowship, takes risks when it comes to evangelism, and worships with gusto, bringing glory to God in Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. 

Fr. Carter Aikin duly prepared five candidates for Confirmation. This was meet and right as each is already assuming leadership in certain parish and missional responsibilities. If you have the opportunity to be near Carlinville, consider treating yourself to a truly wonderful parish experience by joining your voice with them in Common Prayer. The priority here is noticeably, “When the Day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.”  (Acts 2:1)

posted 6/11/2025