St. Stephen's Center

On the feast day of St. Stephen, 12/26, bishop David Lai consecrated the opening of St. Stephen's Center in Keelung; a service attended by the North Deanery clergy.



Keelung is a city about 60 miles north of Taipei. Not only is the weather constantly gray and dreary, so is the economy there. There is a high rate of poverty in Keelung, and with poverty and unemployment comes also drug addiction and alcoholism. So St. Stephen's Center opens with the vision of helping the local residents in Keelung stay on the right path, giving them a sense of hope, and giving them an alternative to dealing with everyday problems.




Right now St. Stephen's Center offers after school classes from 4-7 p.m. during the week for children, a recreation program for children on Saturday morning, aand baptism classes for adults and youth on Saturday afternoons. But the Rev. Richard Lee, who oversees the center, hopes that in the future, the center is able to provide resources for those looking for employment, and financial assistance to families and individuals in need. So the center is looking for funding from the local government, the diocese, and also the parishioners of Trinity Church in Keelung.

Please pray for the ministry of the center and also the people who look to the center for hope and support.

Special Christmas Guests

This Christmas Christ came to our diocese in a very special way. A children's choir, 38 voices strong, from the East Kowloon diocese of the Hong Kong Anglican Church, visited Taipei and sang at 3 of our parishes.

On 12/24, the choir sang at the Christmas Eve service at St. John's Cathedral which was also attended by bishop David Lai. On Christmas day, the choir sang at the English service at Church of the Good Shepherd; and together with their parents and choir leaders, 112 people attended the English service. Right after the service, our guests, which filled 3 tour buses, went to St. John's University and performed there.

We thank them for their visit, and for adding added much Christmas joy and meaning to this special day.

Visitors from CMS, Great Britain

On November 22nd, 4 visitors of CMS arrived in Taipei for a 5-day visit of Taiwan, as part of their more extended visit of the region of Asia. The delegation was made up of the Rev. Canon Tim Dakin, General Secretary of CMS; the Rev. Philip Simpson, Eurasia Director, CMS; Rev. Canon Chye Ann Soh, East Asia Director, CMA; and the Rev. Simon Na, North East Asis Manager, CMS, based in South Korea.

Apart from visiting St. John’s University, Danshui, and Church of the Good Shepherd, Shihlin, both in the Taipei area, our guests also visited churches in the central and southern regions of Taiwan. On the night of November 23rd, bishop David Lai hosted our guests to a sumptuous dinner in Taipei. The following morning, they were able to attend the consecration of a new education building of St. James, Taichung.

We are thankful for their visit and pray that this would be a fruitful trip for the mission work of CMS, and that saw new and different ways of sharing Christ’s presence in the world and in this region.

Inter-congregation Fellowship

For this past year, the English speaking congregation of Good Shepherd, Taipei, and the English speaking congregation at St. James, Taichung, have been strengthening their relationship and developing their fellowship together. Since March the Good Shepherd English congregation has gone down twice to visit and celebrate Eucharist with the St. James English congregation; and in return the St. James congregation has also come up to Taipei and will be coming up in December for the New Year celebration..

These mutual visits and fellowship opportunities are a time of enjoyment for both congregations when they share similar experiences and challenges of membership fluctuation, and thus support each another. The fact that these 2 congregations travel 2 ½ hours to be in communion with each other is a powerful act that shows they are one body of Christ.

With the support of bishop David Lai and the Mission Office of the Episcopal Church, may God’s love, energy, and faithfulness fill these two congregations in their worship of God and their shepherding of God’s people.

House of Bishops Meeting

Bishop David Lai attended the House of Bishops meeting held in New Orleans from Sept 19th – 25th. Apart from the intense discussion on the relationship between the Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion, the bishops had a meaningful opportunity to participate in the reconstruction efforts for areas destroyed by hurricane Katrina.

Bishop and Mrs. Lai were among the group that serviced a historical area in New Orleans. An area with high unemployment rate and populated by immigrants from Africa, it is still the most damaged area in New Orleans.

At the closing Eucharist, a special collection was made and was designated for the reconstruction work in New Orleans or Mississippi. A total of US$1 million was collected, and the diocese of Taiwan contributed US$21,500 to the cause.

(The picture to the left shows Bishop and Mrs. David Lai with Mr. Irvin Mayfield Quarted, holding the Elysian Trumpet which he uses to comfort the victims of Hurricane Katrina.)

Visitors from Episcopal Church Center

The Rev. Douglas Fenton and Mr. Peter Ng visited the diocese the last week of September as part of a continuing effort to help start campus ministry in Taipei City. St. John's Cathedral is within walking distance from National Taiwan University, and therefore has great potential to minister and outreach to the university students there.

During this visit, Douglas and Peter also visited Kaoshung, a city at the southern end of Taiwan. Kaoshung is the site for the 2008 Episcopal Asiamerian Ministry (EAM) convocation.

Douglas and Peter also visited Church of the Good Shepherd, Shihlin, Taipei. Picture below is taken at the Senior Care Center at Good Shepherd with Rev. Diane Wong, a missionary priest from Massachusetts.

2007 Fall Clergy Conference / Retreat

The 2007 fall clergy conference/retreat took place on Sept. 10-12, in Bunun,. Taitung; an area that is home to one of the aborigine tribes of Taiwan; and under the pastoral care of the Rev. Jerry Bai, a Taiwan Presbyterian priest.

During these 2 ½ days, clergy and some of the clergy's families had the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful scenery of Taitung, as well as immerse in the hot springs there. Clergy and their families also had meaningful small group conversations on their personal relationships, relationships with local communities and neighborhoods, and relationship with the church. These small group conversations helped to reflect not only on the challenges of their ministries and the effects they have on their personal relationships, but also reaffirmed the importance of a more balanced lifestyle and a more collaborative style of ministry within the diocese.

The group was able to listen to Rev. Jerry Bai share his love for the people of Bunun, the challenges of ministry, and the fruits of his 20 years of dedication to the people there.

The next clergy conference/retreat will be in early June, 2008.