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| 88 Claremont Road Bernardsville, NJ 07924 908.766.0602 info@saintbernardsnj.org |
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The Episcopal Church
OF NEW JERSEY In the autumn of 2003 a new era began for the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey with the arrival and consecration as diocesan bishop of The Right Reverend George Edward Councell. A pastoral servant of vision and integrity from the Diocese of Chicago, Bishop Councell now leads the 160-plus congregations of his jurisdiction in New Jersey that make up the second oldest Episcopal diocese in the United States. Our oldest churches are colonial foundations, missions of the Church of England that took root in the new soil of North America long before the emergence of our nationhood, and our newest are only a few decades young. We are to be distinguished from the Episcopal Diocese of Newark that now makes up the northern region of the state, based in the city of Newark. Founded in 1785, the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey has been meeting in annual convention for over 220 years. Its first diocesan bishop began to serve in 1815. The diocesan headquarters, including the offices of the bishop and his staff, are located in our Diocesan House in Trenton, near Trinity Cathedral, the Episcopal seat. Saint Bernard’s Church, founded in the 1890s as a mission church, became an independent parish of the Diocese of New Jersey in 1948. As such, we share in the governance of the diocese through delegates sent to the annual Diocesan Convention, through the collegial work of our clergy with the bishop and his staff, and through the participation of our lay members who serve on various committees, boards and commissions. Like all the churches, we seek to support the diocese financially through the giving of our annual Fair Share Pledge.
Trinity Cathedral in Trenton, New Jersey, is the bishop’s church. Confirmation services are held in the cathedral, as well as a host of clergy and lay gatherings throughout the course of the church year. Our new Cathedral Dean is The Very Reverend Rene John, elected in 2006 and come to us from the Episcopal Diocese of Long Island. The Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey is currently working on a visioning process intended to produce a new statement of mission for its member churches on the future of our life and ministry together. Bishop Councell, from the outset of his ministry among us in 2003, has stressed the importance of vitality in our common life in Christ and emphasized the mandate to grow and move forward as a people of faith. For more information about the Diocese of New Jersey via its web site, click Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey.
The Watchung Convocation is a group of 16 Episcopal churches of the greater Watchung region in central New Jersey. The Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey is divided into 8 convocations, Watchung being the northwestern most. The work of the convocations can be as expansive or as limited as each convocation wishes. The purpose includes the facilitation of communication between parishes and the diocese, the sharing of ministries and cooperative ventures (confirmation services, youth groups, outreach, etc.), and mutual support. The diocesan canons describe this purpose as “for mutual assistance, for conference, and for consideration of and cooperative action upon matters in the Diocese” (Canon 30). A Convocation Dean is elected from among the clergy (3 year term) and, together with a Secretary and Executive Committee, organizes periodic meetings of the convocation clergy and laity. In recent years, the clergy have met monthly (September – May) and the clergy and laity combined have met twice annually. The annual meetings of the convocation usually include a dinner and business meeting (discussion, election of officers, etc.). The deans meet with the bishop regularly. The bishop and members of his staff have visited with our convocation annually in recent years (one of the two meetings of clergy and laity combined). Convocation Deputies from each parish (3 elected at the Annual Meeting in January) are expected to attend the meetings (typically 2 per year) and take an active role in the work of the convocation. Convocation Deputies from the parish stand for election each year and the number of terms they are permitted to serve is not specified. Churches of the Watchung Convocation – 15 parishes, 1 mission
The Conover Parish Churches are so named because of the support they received in the early years of their development from The Reverend Thomas Anderson Conover (1868-1943), the second Rector of Saint Bernard’s Church (Rector 1899-1939). He was instrumental in the founding of three of the five churches, as well as supporting the further growth of the two others toward independent parish status. For more information about Conover himself, see A Brief History of the Parish. The Five Conover Churches are: Saint Mark's Episcopal Church, Basking Ridge (1852) Saint Bernard’s Episcopal Church, Bernardsville (1896) Saint Luke's Episcopal Church, Gladstone (1904) All Saints' Episcopal Church, Millington (1906) The Church of Saint John on the Mountain, Bernardsville (1907) In keeping with their unified origins, the clergy and people of the Conover Parishes continue to cooperate in ministry ventures in the Somerset Hills and beyond, and to celebrate together facets of a shared regional mission. Clergy labor together in mutually supportive clergy groups, cooperate in ministry to Fellowship Village in Basking Ridge, administer the funds of Saint Martin’s Retreat House, and have in the recent past sponsored joint services of worship. Many parishioners of the various churches enjoy long-time friendships and family ties, springing from years of residency in the nearby and socially interconnected communities of the Hills. Saint Bernard’s Church in particular currently cooperates with The Church of Saint John on the Mountain in programs of middle school and high school youth ministry, as well as special children’s events. Clergy and staff share resources and engage in mutual ministry. Saint Bernard’s also continues its leadership role in the administration of grants from Saint Martin’s House, now a board that meets bi-annually. The Rector of All Saints' Church, Millington, currently serves as President and the Interim Rector of Saint Bernard’s serves as Vice President. To learn more about the individual Conover Parishes, their ministries, and the work of Saint Martin’s House via their web sites, click on the prompts above and Saint Martin's House.
Saint Bernard’s Church, as an Episcopal Parish of the Diocese of New Jersey, belongs ipso facto to the National Church, the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA). Made up of all the dioceses in the United States (divided regionally into Provinces), ECUSA maintains its national offices in New York City and a National Cathedral, The Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, in Washington, D.C. A number of theological seminaries and other institutions also serve ECUSA. The Episcopal Church has flourished on American soil since the colonial period when clergy missioners and people of the Church of England built houses of worship in the English colonies up and down the east coast. In the early years these churches were known as Anglican, or simply Church of England (C of E). After the American Revolution, a conflict that constituted a period of crisis for American Anglicans owing to their diverse views on loyalty to England, the parishes of the English Church re-organized themselves as The Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America, eventually developing a ministry of bishops and forming dioceses. Today the Episcopal Church has parishes and mission churches in every state and territory, tended by her bishops and served by clergy and people, who meet in General Convention every three years. ECUSA can indeed look back on a rich history of mission and ministry covering four centuries (1607-2007).
The Episcopal Church manages and promotes numerous ministries and programs on the national and international levels, including Episcopal Relief and Development, a global service organization. Under the leadership of Jefferts Schori ECUSA and ERD will doubtless continue to support the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations and other crucial humanitarian projects. The Episcopal Church stands in close ecumenical relationship with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Mutual ministry and mission has been strengthened in recent years by the signing of a Concordat between the two churches. To read more about the Episcopal Church, we suggest:
To learn more about ECUSA and ERD via their web sites, click Episcopal Church USA and Episcopal Relief & Development.
The Anglican World Communion
As English Christianity spread world-wide from the 16th century onwards, it took root in many cultures and among many peoples. In England, from the beginning, the preeminent spiritual leader was the Archbishop of Canterbury. This continued as the Church of England grew internationally.
The Archbishop of Canterbury also convenes the Lambeth Conference every ten years, welcoming to Lambeth Palace in London the bishops of the Anglican churches. Through these instruments of unity and others, the fabric of the Anglican religious tradition throughout the world is strengthened and renewed. To learn more about the Anglican World Communion and the Archbishop of Canterbury via their web sites, click Anglican World Communion and The Archbishop of Canterbury.
LinksEpiscopal Church & Anglican World Communion Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Episcopal Educational Resources & Publishers
The General Theological Seminary, NYC The Conover Parishes Episcopal Church of Saint John on the Mountain, Bernardsville, NJ Saint Luke's Episcopal Church, Gladstone, NJ Saint Mark's Episcopal Church, Basking Ridge, NJ All Saints' Episcopal Church, Millington, NJ Episcopal Parishes in the Region NJ DIOCESE Saint Andrew's Church, New Providence, NJ Grace Episcopal Church, Plainfield, NJ Saint John's Episcopal Church, Somerville, NJ Saint Martin's Episcopal Church, Bridgewater, NJ Holy Spirit Episcopal Church, Lebanon, NJ Saint Thomas' Episcopal Church. Alexandria, NJ Calvary Episcopal Church, Flemington, NJ NEWARK DIOCESE Saint Peter's Episcopal Church, Morristown, NJ Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, Morristown, NJ Calvary Episcopal Church, Summit, NJ Grace Episcopal Church, Madison, NJ Saint Paul's Episcopal Church, Chatam, NJ Saint Mark's Episcopal Church, Mendham, NJ Nearby Episcopal Dioceses Episcopal Diocese of Newark, NJ Episcopal Diocese of Long Island, NY Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem, PA Local Community & Region Alcoholics Anonymous Recovery Groups Cathedrals & Historic Churches Canterbury Cathedral, Kent, England The Washington National Cathedral of Saint Peter & Saint Paul
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The most basic unit of Church governance in the Episcopal Church is the diocese. We are organized spiritually and institutionally around our bishops, who convene as a leadership body at the national and international levels. Hence the name Episcopal, derived from the term episcopos, meaning “bishop”. 
A Presiding Bishop is chosen from among our bishops to lead in that role for a term of 9 years (3 conventions). Our current Presiding Bishop, whose office is in New York, is The Right Reverend Katherine Jefferts Schori, formerly Bishop of Nevada. The next General Convention will be held in 2009. 
As a descendant of the Church of England, the Episcopal Church in the United States is part of the Anglican World Communion, a global fellowship of affiliated primatial provinces, all of which owe their origins to the mission efforts of the English Church. 
The current Archbishop of Canterbury The Most Reverend Rowan Douglas Williams represents for Anglicans the world over the center of our unity and tradition. The Primates of the many provinces of the World Communion gather regularly to confer with the Archbishop of Canterbury and with one another on matters of faith and order. The Presiding Bishop of ECUSA is one such Primate.