December 21, 2007

All editions of the Fresno Bee and the Los Angeles Times on December 22 are scheduled to carry a display advertisement detailing the "historic, continuing mission" of the Episcopal Church in the state's six dioceses.

Placed by the Office of Public Affairs at the Episcopal Church Center in New York, the half-page advertisement features websites and photographs reflecting ministries in the dioceses of California (based in San Francisco), El Camino Real (based in Monterey), Los Angeles, Northern California (based in Sacramento), San Diego and San Joaquin (based in Fresno). Due to recent legislative actions in the Diocese of San Joaquin, web addresses point to the organization "Remain Episcopal," and Holy Family Church, Fresno.

The ad focuses on the Episcopal Church's history in the state of California, noting that "It was along California's coast that common prayer in the Anglican tradition was first observed in the Americas – in 1579 when Sir Francis Drake's explorer ship made landfall near Point Reyes just north of San Francisco."

The ad continues that the state's parishioners are "united in community outreach serving thousands of recipients of much-needed food, shelter, medical care, and other social services annually."

A PDF of the ad is available at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/documents/12-22_Calif_Ad.pdf.

Episcopal News Service