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Bishop’s Son-in-law, Jason Hamshaw to be Ordained May 26; Prince George, Winyah, Episcopal Church, Georgetown


Jason Hamshaw; photo by Chelsea HamshawJason Hamshaw stands out. It isn’t just the height of the 6’5” 31-year old, who is set to be ordained a transitional deacon in the Diocese of South Carolina at a service in Prince George Winyah on Tuesday, May 26 at 6 p.m. It isn’t his soft-spoken English accent. Hamshaw was born and raised in London, England. Nor is it simply his family connections. Hamshaw is married to Chelsea Lawrence, the youngest daughter of Bishop Mark and Allison Lawrence.

Hamshaw stands out, and has for some time, for his out-spoken passion for Jesus Christ and for leading others into a deeper relationship with Him.

“I’ve always been fairly visible about my faith,” says Hamshaw. “God got a hold of me young. Growing up in England helped in some ways because it’s not considered a good thing to be a Christian. I was bullied for bringing my Bible to recess. Kids would pick on me. But at the same time my public faith seemed to be a strength for other Christians at the school.”

At age 11 he began helping with children’s ministry and by the time he was 13 Hamshaw was leading his own Bible Studies.

“By around age 15 I had three or four Bible study groups I was leading and when I was 16 I started three Christian Union groups in my high school. I was always involved in evangelistic missions, talking to people on the streets about Jesus. He’s given me this passion in the clearest way. It’s a hard world. There’s a real enemy out there and the only solution is Christ.”

While a teenager Hamshaw read the testimonies of Christian martyrs and the Scripture verse Philippians 1:21 – “To live is Christ, to die is gain,” made an impact. “I used to think and pray, ‘Lord, I would die for you!’” says Hamshaw. “And I would hear Jesus say, ‘Yes. You’re willing to die for me, but are you willing to live for me?”

“When I’ve gone astray I’ve felt God’s crook bringing me back,” says Hamshaw. “I have strong convictions and long for deeper intimacy with God. I know when it’s there and when things are not right, there’s a deep emptiness.”

Hamshaw attended seminary at the Oak Hill Theological College in London and through a series of mission trips he established a friendship with the Rev. Andy Morgan who was the then-youth minister at Prince George, Winyah. When Morgan was transitioning into a job as assistant Rector he told Jason that the youth ministry position would be opening up. Within two weeks of finishing seminary Hamshaw found himself interning and then a year later youth minister at Prince George.

Hamshaw bumped into his wife-to-be, Chelsea Lawrence, for the first time when he had taken the Prince George youth group to Brookgreen Gardens’ ‘Night of a Thousand Candles.’ Chelsea was there, on a separate visit, with her parents, the Bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina and his wife, Mark and Allison Lawrence.

“I had heard Allison was praying about setting me up with one of her daughters,” says Hamshaw. “And her mother had been telling her about me on that same trip (to Brookgreen Gardens.)

“We had recently had our confirmation,” says Hamshaw, “so when the kids saw the Bishop they all shouted out to him. I told them not to bother him, but we all stopped and talked.

“When I saw her, God put it in my heart – ‘Could this be my wife?’”

Jason and Chelsea Hamshaw and their familyTheir first date was an arranged group event with Chelsea’s mother, the Fueners (the Very Rev. Paul Fuener, Rector of Prince George’s and his wife, Becky) and the Rt. Rev. FitzSimons Allison (the 12th Bishop of the Diocese of South Carolina) and his wife, Martha, all attending.

“We dated for six months before becoming engaged,” says Hamshaw. “We connected and then pursued each other in front of the youth group, trying to be role models for how it can be done.”

Now married for 5 ½ years the Hamshaws have three sons, Benjamin (4), Mark Peter (3) and Lawrence Simon (8 months).

Asked if being the Bishop’s son-in-law puts more pressure on him, Hamshaw laughs, “It’s more a privilege,” he says. “It’s a blessing to have his wisdom. Mark and Allison are both great role models for our children. That’s a great blessing. It’s also a great blessing to see the fruits of being married to someone from a Godly household, reaping the benefits of growing together with Chelsea’s maturity. I hold leadership very highly and I greatly respect my Bishop, who also holds the office of Father. Of course there is pressure, good pressure, but none compared with that of God, my highest authority. But I find great comfort in the verse “perfect love casts out all fear,” which I have found to be true.”

Though evangelism is a passion for Hamshaw, when he moved to the United States, he sensed a greater call toward pastoral care.

“As God’s moved me more into a shepherding role in working full time in ministry there’s been a shift. Instead of just going out, I’m sensing a deep love for his people and coming amidst them, caring for people and leading them deeper into His word (the Bible).”

Hamshaw feels the weight of the upcoming ordination. “I’m looking forward to greater fulfillment in this journey of God’s call to Christian leadership. The big thing really though is living into the office that Jesus laid out as the Good Shepherd and modeling that for people so we all can be moving toward Christ together. Seeing God transform lives is an immense privilege and honor.”

The ordination will also be an answer to the prayers of one very special family member. Hamshaw’s maternal grandmother Florie D’Souza, who he describes as a “faithful, prayerful woman” has been “praying for many, many years for a priest in the family.” His ordination is, in part, an answer to that prayer.

The Very Rev. Paul Fuener, Rector of Prince George Winyah, will be preaching at the Ordination. The Very Rev. Mark J. Lawrence, the 14th Bishop of the Diocese, which separated from the Episcopal Church in 2012, will ordain his son-in-law. Clergy from around the Diocese, which has 53 member churches, have been invited to participate in the procession.

The service is public and all are welcome. The church will host a reception afterward.

Download a high resolution image of Jason Hamshaw. Photo by Chelsea Hamshaw

Coffee and Conversation with Presiding Bishop Tito Zavala, May 20


Archbishop Tito Zavala; photo by Sue Careless


The Most Rev. Hector “Tito” Zavala, Bishop of Chile and Presiding Bishop of the Anglican Province of South America, comprising the countries of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay, who serves as the Diocese of South Carolina’s liaison to the Global South Primates Steering Committee, will be holding two meetings with the Bishop, clergy and parishioners in the Diocese of South Carolina May 20, 2015. One will be held at St. Matthias in Summerton from 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. and the other will be at the Cathedral of St. Luke and St. Paul, Charleston from 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

As one of 40 primates of the 80 million member worldwide Anglican Communion, Bishop Zavala will be in South Carolina specifically to encourage and support fellow Bishop, The Rt. Rev. Mark J. Lawrence, and the clergy and lay people of the Diocese of South Carolina.

“We’re grateful for the strong support we’ve received from Anglicans around the world and are especially thankful for this time we’ll have with Bishop Zavala,” said the Rt. Rev. Mark J. Lawrence, XIV Bishop of South Carolina. “The Global South Primates have assured us of their prayers and their stand with us.”
Though the visits are open, attendees are asked to pre-register, see link below:

FBI Director James Comey presents Dallas Wilson with Award.CHARLESTON, SC – May 5, 2015. On May 1, 2015, The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) honored the Rev. Dr. Dallas H. Wilson, Jr., a priest in the Diocese of South Carolina, and the Vicar of St. John’s Chapel, Charleston, for his work creating and implementing ministries and programs to prevent at-risk youths from engaging in violent activities, spiraling into crime, drug and alcohol use, and incarceration.

The Bureau has been presenting its Director’s Community Leadership Awards (DCLA) for more than two decades to ordinary citizens and organizations striving to build stronger, safer, and more cohesive communities

Brother Dallas was one of 57 national recipients recognized by Director James Comey in the ceremony at FBI Headquarters in Washington DC.

A statement released by the FBI said in part, “This year’s honorees have distinguished themselves in remarkable ways through their hard work, their leadership, and their strength of character. They are ordinary citizens, but what they have accomplished is nothing short of extraordinary. Time and again today’s award recipients have put others before themselves as they strive to protect the innocent and rescue the vulnerable. Today we not only recognize your achievements, but we also offer our sincerest gratitude for dedicating yourselves to your fellow citizens and to the principles of fairness, justice and equality. Public service is about what we can do to help one another. And we all know, we are at our best when we work together. We at the FBI are proud to partner with you.”



Leaders from the Diocese of South Carolina and the Anglican Church in North America, led by Bishop Mark Lawrence and Archbishop Foley Beach, came together at St. Christopher Camp and Conference Center, South Carolina on April 28-29, 2015 for prayer, fellowship, and conversation.

The Diocese of South Carolina was represented by Bishop Mark Lawrence, Mr. Wade Logan, Mr. Alan Runyan, The Rev. Craige Borrett, The Rev. Kendall Harmon, The Rev. Jeffrey Miller, Mrs. Boo Pennewill, and The Rev. Jim Lewis.

The Anglican Church in North America was represented by Archbishop Foley Beach, Bishop Ray Sutton, Bishop John Guernsey, Bishop Bill Atwood, Bishop Terrell Glenn, The Rev. Phil Ashey, The Rev. Jack Lumanog, Mr. Scott Ward, and Mr. Tad Brenner.

Our conversations reflected the mutual respect and sincere affection that we share as fellow Anglicans, and we appreciated the opportunity to speak candidly together about topics that affect our common life.

We had frank exchanges that examined the possible compatibility of the ecclesiologies of the Anglican Church in North America and the Diocese of South Carolina.

There is a wide spectrum of polities in the provinces of the Anglican Communion and these differences affect the ways in which dioceses relate to their respective provinces. Provinces such as Nigeria are more hierarchical, while provinces such as South America are more conciliar. Our conversations began exploring the practical dimensions of how a diocese and province relate in the structure of the Anglican Church in North America.

Today, April 29, 2015, the Federal 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond denied our motion for a rehearing of their decision to return to the District court the case of vonRosenberg vs. Lawrence, which asserted that this was a case of Federal trademark violations. 
The case will now go back to the Charleston court for further action. Several things remain true about this action. While the Fourth Circuit said that Judge Houck used the incorrect procedural standard to grant our Motion for Dismissal, it expressed no opinion on the merits of Bishop vonRosenberg’s claims. It was certainly not a ruling in their favor on the merits. It simply means that the court believes the standard used to make his decision to dismiss was the wrong one and should be reconsidered using the appropriate standard. The question is one of procedure and not the merit of the complaint itself. The judge could in fact reach the same conclusion, using the new standard. To that point, the standard called for by the court, exceptional circumstances, is arguably well met by the facts that we now have both a strong trial court ruling in our favor, as well as a date certain for the case to be heard by the South Carolina Supreme Court. All the issues at stake in the Federal complaint will be essentially resolved by that decision. 


 

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