Dear Friends,
At this year's annual Diocesan Council, I challenged each congregation in this diocese to look at ways that they could be involved in overseas mission work. We are in the midst of developing new overseas relationships in Uganda, Sudan and the Virgin Islands that will complement our long standing relationships with the dioceses of Panama and Honduras. It is my expectation that by the 2011 Diocesan Council in Jackson every congregation will have initiated a relationship with one of these ministries, or in an area / region of their own choosing.
We are enriched and our faith deepened when we encounter the Christian faith in a culture distinct from our own. We also begin to understand in a deeper and broader way what it means to be "One Church". Another benefit to such relationships is to strengthen the bonds of our common mission through the Anglican Communion.
I have recently returned from a visit to the Sudan. The purpose of that trip was to deepen this emerging relationship between the dioceses of Twic East and Mississippi for all the reasons given above. Elsewhere you will find a fuller description of my journey. It was a very important time for me and I look forward to sharing my learnings and reflections after being among these very faithful people.
Yours in Christ,
The Rt. Rev. Duncan M. Gray III
Bishop of Mississippi
