Today’s the day! The Episcopal Cafe has gone live.
Link: The Lead article for the Cafe.
Welcome to the Episcopal Café, a ministry of the Diocese of Washington in partnership with The Episcopal Church in the Visual Arts.
The Café is collaborative effort by more than two dozen writers and editors, and an ever-growing list of visual artists. Together, we aspire to create a visually appealing, intellectually stimulating, spiritually enriching and at least occasionally amusing site where Episcopalians and those interested in our church can read, watch, listen and reflect upon contemporary life in a context informed by faith and animated by the spirit of charity.
I believe Jim Naughton and I started talking about the concept behind this site at least two years ago. There are a group of us who’ve been working in way or another since then to bring the idea into production form. But the real driving force behind this has been Jim Naughton and he deserves every accolade I can think of.
I’m very excited by the group of authors and artists that we’ve been able to gather for this project. The aim frankly is to create a salon or cafe for good, open and honest conversation between Episcopalians and their friends. You’ll soon notice one of the unusual aspects of the site – we, the editorial board, decided that people will need to use their real names if they want to leave a comment. We believe that a policy like this will create an accountable christian community. It’s a going to be a grand experiment – here’s hoping for a long and successful run.
And I’m more than a little honored that I’ve been allowed to serve as one of the regular monthly authors as well… watch that space.
we, the editorial board, decided that people will need to use their real names if they want to leave a comment.
Oh, bah! I’ve been using this nick for about 5 years. And I only very rarely act the troll.
We are having technical problems with the comment function today. But you can still come for a visit, look at the art, feel your way around and read good pieces by the Revs. Marshall Scott and Greg Jones.
And I believe the dean of the cathedral in Phoenix will have an article on the site within the next day or two.
Ruidh: Don’t think of it as losing a nickname – think of it as having a chance to develop a whole new online persona! Grin.
Unfortunately, under my real name, I’m not nearly as interesting as ruidh is.
I realize, startled, that I’ve just spent the past 70 minutes musing in the E-Cafe. (What an aptly named meeting-and-mulling place.) Thank you for the care you and your friends-and-colleagues have invested to make this a welcoming place to explore and linger in. Even inadvertently. (grin).