Along with several special visitors, St. Timothy's celebrated its various ministries in a worship service on Sunday, November 8. Guest preacher Christopher Johnson, Program Officer for Jubilee Ministries, designated and commissioned the parish a Jubilee Ministry Center on behalf of the Episcopal Church Center and the Diocese.  A certificate of recognition was presented by Leslee Sandberg, Jubilee Officer for the Diocese of Iowa.

Jubilee Ministry Centers are congregations or agencies with connections to the Episcopal Church that are engaged in active mission and ministry among and with poor and oppressed people.  By its simplest description, Jubilee Ministry is faith in action:  Faith that grows from loving God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength, and action that complels us to love our neighbors as ourselves.  By creating a direct and dynamic link between our theology and our ethics -- the talk and walk of our faith -- Jubilee Ministry involves congregations in the important work of empowering people to change their lives.

Jubilee Ministry seeks to empowere people to "do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly before their God" (Micah 6:8).

St. Timothy's was selected as a Jubilee Center because of our work with and through the FreeStore, Salvation Army Casseroles, support of the Family Violence Center plus partnering with various communities like New Orleans, St. Paul's Indian Mission, and Bishop Samuel.

Becoming a Jubilee Ministry Center provides the opportunity to expand our ministries in at least two tangible ways.  First, as a Jubilee Center we join a network of experienced justice and charity ministries that shares best practices and proven techniques in working with neighbors in need, to lift up and empower individuals and communities.  And, second, we are then encouraged to take our response a step further as we begin to address the causes of poverty, violence and inequity which violate human dignity, thereby connecting our responses of charity with responses of justice.

Other Iowa Jubilee Centers:
These churches have made the commitment to serve people in need through their own unique ways.  These include food pantries, domestic violence prevention, a summer reading camp, medical lending closets, meal programs and baby's closet.

• Grace Church in Cedar Rapids
• Agape Cafe in Iowa City
• Trinity Church in Muscatine
• St. Thomas Church & St. Paul's Indian Mission in Sioux City
• St. Andrew's Church in Waverly
• St. Mark's Church in Ft. Dodge