The Cry Volume 1 Number 3 Pentecost 2020

‘Every tribe, nation, people and tongue’

$45,000 for food, travel, training and salary for Cuban

clergy

$50,000 for support of our missionaries in Germany

$20,000 for church planting in Croatia

$5,000 for repair of Kapelna, Croatia, church roof

$15,000 for funding REC parish mobilization

$15,000 for BFM travel, printing and other expenses

As Bp. Grote knew so well, "It is too small a thing that You

should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and

to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also make

You a light of the nations so that My salvation may reach

to the end of the earth" (Isa 49:6).

On the Inside

2 Zooming in Germany, and other news

3 Requiesce in pace: Bp. Robert Harold Booth

4 Charles Darwin, loyal mission supporter

6 In Cuba, Rev. Enrique is staying put

7 Join the work of publishing the good news

8 Here’s how to pray for our works abroad

I will pour out my Spirit

Doubtless by Advent, the com-peting verdicts interpreting COVID-19 will continue to clash, and with some new clarity. But will the Church have moved ahead? Will the gates of hell have lost territory? Will Christianity be known for its deeds of love, its voice of wisdom, its se-

renity of spirit and its unbroken worship? May God be so kind!

During his Pentecost sermon, St. Peter quotes a lesser known prophet and saint, the “minor prophet” Joel, that in the latter days the LORD God of Israel will pour out His Holy Spirit upon all flesh, all nations. Not just

(Continued on page 7)

That all may hear: the legacy of Bp. Grote First as missionary bishop and then as ordinary for the Dio-

cese of Mid-America and finally as presiding bishop of the

Reformed Episcopal Church, Royal U. Grote Jr. oversaw

robust domestic growth in his diocese and in the REC over-

all. He left a distinguished legacy.

But that’s not all of it. Bp. Grote also kept front and center

our Lord’s mandate to publish the gospel to the ends of

the earth. He was especially keen to see the flourishing of

our churches in Cuba and Croatia.

Before the Lord called him home in 2016 in what seemed

to us a most untimely fashion, our beloved bishop blew his

trumpet: “I call on each parish to set aside a minimum of

$500 per year for the work of the Board of Foreign Mis-

sions.” Many parishes, he noted, are able to contribute at

a much higher level. His dear friend and successor, Presid-

ing Bishop Ray R. Sutton, has restated that call resounding-

ly.

In recent days the work in Germany is expanding and the

COVID-19 pandemic has put churches in poor countries

under intense pressure merely to hold steady at their cur-

rent levels of operations. Our Canadian parishes, which

have spearheaded assistance for the Cuba initiative, are

engaged in raising tens of thousands of dollars in desper-

ately needed support for Cuban clergy. In light of the ur-

gent needs abroad, the BFM has set these goals and ex-

horts parishes and members to give liberally with a view to

fulfilling them:

2

Missions Roundup

Germany Fr. David Ayres reports from Berlin:

During our six weeks of meeting restrictions, Christ

Church Berlin participated in Zoom services offered by

our colleague Fr. Marc Jankowski and St. Thomas Mission

in Mönchengladbach (on the other side of Germany). This

was a blessing, since we hardly ever have contact with

Marc and his wife, Athitaya. Under normal circumstances

we also would never meet parishioners from western

Germany. Colleagues from other cities in Germany have

also participated in recent weeks. We have taken turns

preaching for the various services. We have had regular

attendance from people in the Netherlands and the U.K.,

and someone even joined a service from Mississippi.

A few weeks ago, Dcn. Jared Wensyel began assisting

Bishop Gerhard and the Christusgemeinde in Schwarzen-

born to conduct Sunday Zoom services, so, in recent

weeks, there have been multiple Zoom Sunday worship

services of the AKD North and South.

Prayer points:

That Fr. David and Patricia will be able to build a team

of prayer and financial support partners in the

coming months while also maintaining Christ

Church in Berlin. They are entering into "active"

support- raising this month and they are looking

for churches, families and individuals willing to

pray, work and give for the spread of God's king-

dom in the heart of Europe. Any church or indi-

vidual interested in setting up a Zoom meeting

with Fr. David and Patricia to learn more about

their church planting efforts and how they can be

a part of the team, please send an email

to david.ayres@christchurchberlin.de

That Patricia's job with Lufthansa will remain secure

despite the current crisis in the airline industry

and that she might be able to navigate all the un-

certainties in that regard in the coming months.

That Christ Church will be able to transition back to

weekly Eucharistic services in the near future and

to have wisdom for how to do that with sensitivi-

ty in a post-Corona world.

That Christ Church might see God's blessings as mem-

bers of our tiny congregation focus on being disci-

ples who make disciples.

That the enemy, who is actively engaged on many

fronts in Germany, might flee before the onslaught

of the prayers of the saints.

Croatia The roof of the church in Kapelna is very bad and should be

thoroughly repaired. The beams under the tiles are old and

sagging and the tiles are old and bad so the water leaks

into the church in places. We need about $ 5,000 to repair

the roof. The roof is very important for the survival of the

entire building.

England

Bishop Primus John Fenwick sends these notices and pray-

er points from the Free Church of England and her mission

in South America:

Bp. Kenneth Powell and his wife Edna have gone to the

Lord within a few months of each other (not coro-

navirus related). Bp. Ken was 89. He had been a

lifelong member of the FCE and served as bishop

primus for several years. We thank God for his min-

istry.

All our churches have closed because of the pandemic

but most have managed to make provision for

some form of online ministry and for keeping in

contact with vulnerable members.

We give thanks that in some cases the numbers engag-

ing online are greater than those who used to

attend physically.

In South America we understand that some members

have died of COVID-19 and that there is real hard-

ship for some clergy and congregations.

Please pray for guidance as to the form our ministry

should take when lockdown restrictions are eased.

An updated edition of Bp. Fenwick's history of the FCE,

“The Free Church of England: Introduction to an

Evangelical Catholic Tradition,” has just been pub-

lished (Teneo Publishing House, Portugal).

3

Requiesce in pace: Bp. Robert Harold Booth Bishop Robert Harold Booth went home to be with his

Lord on Easter Even 2020 at the age of 90. Bishop Booth

was born in Ellenville, N.Y., on October 12, 1929. He was

married to the late Jean (Crowell) Booth for 57 years

until her death on Easter Sunday 2013.

The Rt. Rev. Booth graduated from

Providence (R.I.) Bible Institute in

1953 and earned his bachelor of

divinity at Reformed Episcopal Semi-

nary in Philadelphia in 1957. He

served as assistant pastor at Grace

REC (Collingdale, Pa.) until leaving

for the mission field.

In 1957, the Booths joined other

REC missionaries (Beattys, Olsens,

Betty Wilson) in Sudan as that coun-

try gained independence with the

hope of establishing an REC toehold

in the nation. The national govern-

ment, however, soon made it im-

possible for Christian missionaries

to remain. Our REC missionaries

scattered throughout Africa. The

Booths went to Uganda in 1960 and remained until

1977. They served with Africa Inland Mission and the

developing Anglican Church in Uganda in theological

training for church leaders, organizing youth outreach,

language translation and other ministries.

I first had contact with missionaries Bob and Jean Booth

when they spoke as missionary candidates at a mission

conference in my parish, Calvary REC, Philadelphia. My

previous contacts with missionaries were with people

who had stories from years on the field. I was intrigued

by this couple who were then just planning a missionary

career. A few years later, the Booths came to South Car-

olina to present their ministry and participate in the REC

summer camp program. They stayed for about a week in

my home on their first deputation visit after beginning

their service in Africa.

Then in 1969, the Booths were again in the U.S. for dep-

utation when I was ordained into REC ministry. Planning

for future mission service myself, I asked Bob if he would

be my presenter in the ordination service. I am honored

that he participated in my ordination in this way. Bob

Booth was always a popular mission speaker at the Four

Brooks Camps while on deputation. He knew how to mix

humor with serious mission teaching

Following his departure from Uganda, the Rev. Booth was

called in 1978 as rector of Trinity REC

(Kensington-Philadelphia) where he

served for 25 years. Seeing the chang-

ing neighborhood around the parish,

Booth tried unsuccessfully to launch a

Hispanic ministry.

The General Council elected both Bob

and Jean Booth to the Board of For-

eign Missions. The Board made Rev.

Booth general secretary to coordinate

REC mission activity. In 1990, Re-

formed Episcopal Seminary honored

him with the doctor of divinity degree

and he was elected missionary bishop

by the whole church to oversee REC

world missions. He continued in that

ministry until retirement in 2005, vis-

iting our missionaries and mission

partnerships in India, Brazil, Liberia, Germany and France.

The Booths moved to Quakertown, Pa., for their retire-

ment and attended Emmanuel REC in Pipersville, Pa.

Bishop Booth was a friend and counselor to many around

the world and gave insight from his experience to those of

us serving internationally. He was always ready with sto-

ries, jokes and a comforting word.

He is survived by two daughters, Elizabeth (and husband,

Rev. Paul Tweedy, of Madison, Ind.); Carolyn (and hus-

band, Rev. Ronald Hammack, of Philadelphia); son, Peter

Booth and wife, Linda, of Harleysville, Pa.; seven grandchil-

dren, and six great-grandchildren. In addition to his be-

loved wife Jean and his parents, Bishop Booth was preced-

ed in death by his dear grandson Aaron Daniel Hammack.

If COVID-19 issues permit gatherings, the Booth family

hopes to hold a memorial service on October 10, close to

Bishop Booth’s birthday. Information will be posted on REC

Mission Facebook, Twitter and email.

The Rev. Canon Bill Jerdan

4

Anglican Global Mission Partners portrait: Charles Darwin gave SAMS a boost, and we Fr. David and Patricia Ayres in Berlin and Dcn. Jared

and Abbi Wensyel in Frankfurt have more in common than

Germany.

The REC missionary couples are both supported by

the atheist icon Charles Darwin. Well,

indirectly.

The couples are on the field

through a seconding arrangement the

REC maintains with the Society of Angli-

can Missionaries and Senders.

(Associate missionaries Rev. Dr. Matt

and Sora Colvin, now living in Canada,

served in the Philippines and Indonesia

under the REC and SAMS banners as

well.)

SAMS partners with about 30

organizations, including the REC, the

Anglican Church in North America and

provinces in a number of countries in

shepherding missionaries through se-

lection, discernment, training, relation-

ships with receiving churches, care on the field and, eventu-

ally, transition to re-entry into their home nations. It has

more than 90 workers on the field in 25 countries.

In 2009, SAMS broadened its scope and, while re-

taining the acronym, changed its name. Back in 1844, in

England, it had been baptized the South American Mission-

ary Society. The U.S. branch absorbed the Church Mission

Society, which operated outside Latin America, in the wake

of The Episcopal Church’s consecration of a homosexual as

bishop. Episcopal missionaries who wanted to remain on

the field but flee the jurisdiction found in SAMS a feather

bed in which to land. The reconstituted mission agency

dovetailed as well with the newly organized ACNA.

Darwin, as you might have guessed, walked into the

picture sometime earlier. On the long South America leg of

his famous journey on the “Beagle” in the early 1830s, the

22-year-old naturalist encountered the indigenous peoples

of Tierra del Fuego, the islands off the tip of the continent.

Encyclopedia Britannica

On the same voyage he met a young second lieutenant

who would “evolve” into Admiral Sir James Sulivan.

The naval officer and the scientist formed a

friendship that kept them in correspondence throughout

their lifetime – even though they dis-

agreed sharply on the spiritual condi-

tion of the Yaghan, one of four tribes

that dwelt in that southernmost in-

habited region on earth.

The Yaghan numbered about

3,000. Despite dwelling 600 miles

from Antarctica, they lived – and

swam – naked. They slept rough,

slathering themselves with animal fat

for insulation against the cold.

(Curiously, they made canoes of

leather.) Darwin was fascinated –

and aghast. “Viewing such men,” he

wrote, “one can hardly make oneself

believe they are fellow creatures and

inhabitants of the same world.”

Darwin deemed them subhumans and, as such,

evidence of his theory of evolution.

Sulivan, meanwhile, would be a lifelong supporter

of Christian mission. He argued the Yaghan bore within

them the imago Dei and so were capable of civilization as

well as redemption.

Another young naval officer of the same period

also took an interest in the Yaghan. Captain Allen Gardi-

ner retired from the service to respond to his calling as a

missionary. He made his first foray into Bolivia, where a

fever left him prostrate and near death in an abandoned

hut. He finally made his way on horseback to the nearest

city, recovered and wrote to his family a letter concluding

with, “Do not be anxious about me. You know who has

said, ‘I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.’”

On his return to England he launched the South

American Missionary Society, training his focus on the

Yaghan. After raising support and recruiting fellow be-

Charles Darwin, water color

5

years . . . he wrote to me that recent

accounts of the Mission proved to him

that he had been wrong and I right in

our estimates of the native character

and the possibility of doing them good

through Missionaries; and he requested

me to forward to the Society an en-

closed checque for £5, as a testimony of

the interest he took in their good work.”

Adjusted for inflation and converted to

U.S. currency, that sum at the beginning

of 2020 amounted to $515.48. You will find scant mention

of it in secular accounts of Darwin’s life but the renowned

scientist contributed to SAMS annually from 1867 until his

death in 1882. In 1870 he wrote to Sulivan, “The success

of the Tierra del Fuego Mission is most wonderful, and

charms me, as I had always prophesied utter failure. I shall

feel proud if your Committee think fit to elect me an hon-

orary member of your society.”

SAMS reciprocated his affection. On his death the

society’s journal lamented that “a great man has gone

from amongst us . . . of most unblemished character, of

the highest intellectual power . . . a sincere and persever-

ing searcher into truth . . . never prone to dogmatise or

force his conclusion on others with a view to assail their

convictions or to attack existing systems.”

So it is that the pioneer of evolutionary theory

helped to sustain the work of SAMS, which today helps to

sustain the work of two REC missionary couples in Germa-

ny and many others. We see once again that we serve a

God who works in ways beyond our human imagining.

Join us in praying with Allen Gardiner a prayer he recorded

in his journal:

Grant, O Lord, that we may be instrumental in

commencing this great and blessed work, but shouldest

Thou see fit in Thy providence to hedge up our way, and

that we should even languish and die here, I beseech Thee

to raise up others, and send forth labourers into this har-

vest.

The Rev. Edward W. Fowler

Anglican Global Mission Partners portrait: Charles Darwin gave SAMS a boost, and we’re glad to accept his help lievers, he set sail in 1844 for that utter-

most part of the earth where they

lived. And he died there.

Dropped on a barren shore

short of gunpowder and finding a sur-

prising scarcity of fish in those waters,

Gardiner and his party starved to

death. Officers of HMS “Dido” found

his body with those of six companions,

some in graves and some uncovered,

on a beach in January 1852.

In London, “The Times” branded the enterprise a

fool’s errand. Gardiner, however, had planted seeds back

home and others took up the cause. In 1854, a schooner

named the “Allen Gardiner” set sail on a course for that

frigid tail of South America.

The most effective evangelist proved to be a 17-

year-old named Thomas Bridges whom the Yaghan found

so callow as to be unthreatening. From him, they accept-

ed the gospel. Some of the natives he baptized had killed

several of his fellow missionaries before their conversion.

Darwin had scoffed at the Yaghan language – “it

scarcely deserves to be called articulate” – but Bridges

compiled a dictionary with 321,000 entries. So radical

was their conversion that a tribe that had plundered dis-

tressed ships and murdered sailors in the treacherous

Strait of Magellan now turned to rescue operations when

a vessel encountered trouble.

Word reached Darwin, who never relinquished

his interest in the Yaghan and had corresponded with

Bridges and others as well as Sulivan about them. In a

letter published on April 4, 1885 by the “Daily News,” the

admiral wrote:

“Mr. Darwin had often expressed to me his con-

viction that it was utterly useless to send Missionaries to

such a set of savages as the Fuegians, probably the lowest

of the human race. I had always replied that I did not be-

lieve any human beings existed too low to comprehend

the simple message of the Gospel of Christ. After many

https://cdn.britannica.com/45/182345-050-E620ECE8/map-journeys-Charles-Darwin-South-American-September-1835.jpg

6

In Cuba, God shows His hand in the still of the pandemic

Rev. Enrique keeps a lonely vigil. Havana, that faded gem

of the Caribbean that seemed stuck in a 1950s American

gangster movie, has metamorphosed into a ghost town.

Rev. Enrique rides his scooter through once-teeming

streets in which not a soul is stirring.

With much of the rest of the

world, Cuba has gone on lock-

down. By late April, COVID-

19 had claimed 74 lives on

the island. It’s a modest toll

but the economy, always

wobbly, has taken a punch in

the gut. The nation suspend-

ed international flights on

April 1, thus strangling tour-

ism, the island’s primary reve-

nue source.

Chronic shortages have wors-

ened. In the capital, people

stand in line five hours to acquire one chicken. Travel

between provinces is banned, imports cut off, schools

closed, medical services suffocated.

A few churches have managed to hold meetings for small

groups via an app but for the most part church activity is

suspended. Because Internet service is spotty and expen-

sive, services are not possible either by live stream or rec-

orded video.

Rev. Enrique presses on. He had accepted a call to pastor

a church in Tijuana, Mexico. That move proved another

fatality of the pandemic, which forced the Mexican

church out of its building and scattered the flock due to a

deteriorating economy. Even if not, Cuba’s travel prohibi-

tion would have dictated Rev. Enrique and his family re-

main in place.

He is reconciled. “God is in control of everything,” he told

The Cry. “He will open doors again. He always has.”

Indeed, God’s hand has already appeared. Rev. Enrique

will gather his flock and resume services at El Olivo

Church in Havana after the lockdown. The crisis obviated

the need to replace the church facility that would have

been lost had he departed. The Board of Foreign Mis-

sions now can train scarce dollars on intensifying efforts

of visiting clergy from Canada and the U.S. in training

Cuban clergy in the Anglican way of worship, pastoral

theology and the discipling of their flocks in a life under

God which flows from the al-

tar of God.

To that end, and to make

better use of time and money,

the BFM has conceived a plan

under which clergy training

will take place with four short-

er visits annually to Havana

with teams of three to five

people. The Rev. Dr. Benjamin

Bernier, rector of Providence

REC in Corpus Christi, Texas, is

coordinating this program.

Classes recorded in Havana, in

the west of the island, will be

passed on for use in Cranmer Theological Seminary clas-

ses in Moa, in the east.

This is an essential component for the further develop-

ment of the Diocese of Cuba to grow not only in size but

in maturity, with a goal of functioning as a self-sustaining

diocese in the REC. This goal may be far off for a number

of reasons, but it must be the long-term aim as the ob-

stacles are overcome.

Please support this effort with prayer that the necessary

religious visas can be secured for these trips. Pray for a

related initiative as well and support it as you are able.

To compensate for pandemic-caused disruption, the REC

Council of Bishops has approved the REC Women of the

Church to extend their fundraising for electric scooters

for one more year. A total of $20,000 is required to pro-

vide such reliable transportation for Cuban clergy to

multiply their ministry to the many scattered house

churches.

The Rt. Rev. Walter Banek

A man strolls a deserted street near Havana harbor

7

room, nestled against the hill of the LORD—and thus began the early harvest of the world.

Man breathes by God’s Spirit, and lives by His breath. Fear, panic and disease — plague, pestilence, famine and sudden death — have not yet run their course. In every tribe, na-tion, people and tongue, COVID-19 has sussed out what each believes and fears. Yet also in each of these lands live the men, women and children of Christ’s Body, God’s Isra-el, and the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.

Thus we continue to pray. Will you, the faithful Church, pray during this Trinitytide for a new Great Awakening in our culture? For our Reformed Episcopal clergy and BFM missionaries? For God’s Spirit to be poured out still more upon all flesh through them and their ministries? Within both this issue and your heart, find where your prayers and gifts can do the most good — that none should perish and that whoever calls on the Name of the Lord may be saved.

Canon John Peter Boonzaaijer

• Visit our Donations page, which provides a method for online giving. • Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter: @REC-BFM • Ask your Rector to appoint a “Mission Advocate” to share BFM news in your parish and have your Mission Advocate sign up for our email list and indicate that he or she is a Mission Advocate.

A Prayer for Missions

O GOD, who hast made of one blood all na-tions of men for to dwell on the face of the whole earth, and didst send thy blessed Son to preach peace to them that are far off and to them that are nigh; Grant that all men everywhere may seek after thee and find thee. Bring the nations into thy fold, pour out thy Spirit upon all flesh, and hasten thy king-dom; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Convinced that mission is an essential activity of the Church, the Reformed Episcopal Church Board of Foreign Missions encourages the participation of Reformed Episco-

palians in ministry and ser-vice throughout the world. The Board challenges every Reformed Episcopalian to take part in ministry and service as you are able, and to pray for and support all who serve Christ through-out the world. Our website, rec-bfm.org, focuses on REC mission efforts outside North Amer-ica. Here are some specific ways you can become in-volved in supporting the work of the Board of For-eign Missions: • Learn more about the

REC BFM by visiting the "About Us" page and following the links to missionary biographies. • Sign up to be added to our email list.

Join the BFM in the vital work of publishing the gospel to all the nations

‘God gave the Law to Israel that the world might be saved’

into Adam at the Creation. Not only upon Samson in battle. Not only upon Josiah to reform the Kingdom or Nehemiah to rebuild Jerusalem. But upon all flesh, all men, all nations — for the salvation of immortal souls.

On the 50th day after the Offering of the First Fruits (Passover/Easter), Israel celebrated the Feast of Weeks, or the early harvest of late spring. The Feast also com-memorated the giving of the Law, which Israel was to pro-claim and endow to the whole world, a revelation grander and more comprehensive even than the glory of the heav-ens in the panoply of innumerable stars (Psalm 19).

God gave the Law to Israel that the world might be saved. But the law of sin and death required a Second Adam and a New Israel before salvation could come to pass. Fifty days after the resurrection of the Passover Lamb, God poured out His Holy and life-giving Spirit upon His Beloved in the persons of the 120 souls gathered in an upper

(Continued from page 1)

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8

Cycle of Prayer for

Reformed Episcopal Foreign Mission Works

Trinitytide 2020

(Download from website)

The Cry is a publication of the Board of Foreign Mis-sions of the Reformed Episcopal Church. Publisher: The Rev. Canon John Peter Boonzaaijer Editor: The Rev. Edward W. Fowler To support the work of the BFM: You can give online at: http://www.rec-bfm.org/donate/default.html You can give by check: Reformed Episcopal Church 23501 Cinco Ranch Blvd Ste H120 #642 Katy, TX 77494 (Please enclose the form available on the website.) You may also contact Canon Jason Grote by mail or tele-phone (281-463-9454) about other giving options, in-cluding securities/stock, real estate, life insurance or be-quests in your will.

Welcome to the 2020 Trinitytide Cycle of Prayer for REC Missions. Reformed Episcopalians have parishes, dioceses and ministry partners in several countries around the world. We invite Reformed Episcopalians to pray individually, together in small groups and as parish-es for these overseas parishes and ministries. After such a Lent and Easter 2020, our missions and lands need God’s merciful providence more than ever! After COVID-19, the fields surely have whitened and ripened for harvest. This Cycle organizes prayer for one or more ministries per week, throughout Trinitytide, including clergy with the missions. A new cycle will be issued at the beginning of Advent. The Board of Foreign Missions thanks Mr. Joshua Bloom, a member of the Church of our Saviour at Oat-lands (Leesburg, Va.) for his extensive work first gather-ing information for this calendar of prayer. You will find prayer resources at the end of the calendar, including a Litany for use in worship services. News can also be tracked through the website for the REC Board of Foreign Missions, www.rec-bfm.org, where you can also sign up for newsletters and support parish BFM mission works: mission churches, missionaries and REC parish mobilizing.

Thank you for using this REC Mission Cycle of Prayer. While our Father in heaven knows our needs be-fore we ask, He loves to be asked and returns no stones when petitioned for bread! Further, “the prayer of right-eous man availeth much.” May God answer our prayers together during this season of Trinitytide.

Canon John Peter Boonzaaijer President, Board of Foreign Missions

http://www.recbfm.org/donate/default.html