E 

Easter Vigil ~ An ancient liturgy dating to at least the second century, the Easter Vigil, sometimes referred to as the Great Vigil, is the first celebration of Easter. In ancient times, the Vigil would have begun at sunset on the night before Easter and continued through sunrise on Easter Morning. Today, the service generally begins sometime in the evening and lasts for just a few hour. It consists of four parts: The Service of the Light, which begins in darkness and moves to light; the Service of Lessons, Christian Initiation (baptism and the renewal of vows), and Holy Eucharist (Easter Communion).

ECS ~ See Episcopal Community Services.

Ecumenical ~ A service, event or project made possible through cooperation between various Christian denominations.

Ecumenical Resource Center ~ A lending library of books, video and audiotapes and curricula jointly sponsored by various churches in Western New York and located at 300 North Forest Road in Williamsville.  Also sponsors a variety of educational workshops at various locations throughout the year.

ECUSA ~ Acronym for The Episcopal Church in the United States of America (AKA The Episcopal Church).  Headquartered at The Episcopal Church Center, 815 Second Ave., New York, New York.  Incorporated as the Domestic & Foreign Mission Society. (See: Episcopal)

ECW ~ See Episcopal Church Women

Education for Ministry ~ A four-year program designed to provide the participant with knowledge of Scripture, theology, church history and other areas of the church relevant to ministry in today's church.  The process of theological reflection is emphasized.

EFM ~ See Education for Ministry

Endowment Funds ~ A fund in which the principal is permanently restricted. Income from the endowed funds can be either designated or undesignated.

Epiphany ~ January 6; a feast celebrating the visit of the Wisemen to the infant Jesus; the end of the Christmas season.

Episcopal ~ The term was used as an unofficial descriptor for the kind of church that we had, long before there was a need to have an official name.

Originally, clergy of the Church of England (or Anglican Church) were required to swear allegiance to the Queen of England. This became a problem in the American colonies in the mid 1700s as the mood of the colonies turned towards independence. Bishops serving here returned to England. Because bishops in the church must be consecrated by other bishops in apostolic succession, the problem climaxed after the war's end when, due to the temper of the times, no English bishops would consecrate an American. To solve the problem, the American turned to the Scottish Episcopal Church, another branch of the Anglican Church.

Rather than call itself the Anglican, the name The Episcopal Church of the United States of America was adopted. 

Episcopal Church Home & Affiliates, INC. (ECH) ~ A group of companies providing a continuum of health care.  Sponsor of Canterbury Woods, a life-care community. Founded by a group of Episcopal women.

Episcopal Church Women (ECW) ~ A parish, diocesan and national level organization of Episcopal women dedicated to doing good works, raising money for special projects and supporting the church in various ways. Sponsor of the United Thank Offering.

Episcopal Community Services (ECS) ~ An outreach ministry of the Diocese of WNY. ECS provides annual grant funding to member agencies that provide food, shelter, clothing, counseling, health care, mentoring and other human services to needy men, women and children throughout WNY without regard to race, religion or ethnic origin.  ECS is governed by a board of lay people and clergy elected by Diocesan Convention.  It conducts an annual diocesan-wide campaign during Lent to raise funds.

Episcopal Relief & Development ~ A national program which funds disaster relief and community development projects in the United States and around the world.  Formerly called the Presiding Bishop‚s Fund for World Relief.

Episcopate ~ The office, position or tenure of a bishop; bishops as a group.

Episcopate Fund ~ A diocesan endowment fund the income of which is used in support of the bishop.

Epistle, The ~ A reading from the New Testament other than from the Gospels.

Ephphatha (pronounced: ef' a tha) ~ The name of the diocese's deaf congregation.

ERD ~ See Episcopal Relief & Development

Ethics Committee ~ A group of lay and ordained persons appointed by the bishop and charged with investigating complaints of clergy misconduct, chiefly in sexual and financial matters.

Eucharist ~ A service of Holy Communion, or the consecrated bread and wine used in Holy Communion. Derived from the Greek word meaning thanksgiving.

Eucharistic Minister ~ A lay person licensed by the bishop to assist clergy with the distribution of the Eucharist during the service.

Eucharistic Visitor ~ A lay person licensed by the bishop to distribute the Eucharist to homebound members of the congregation immediately following the service.

Evensong ~ An evening worship service featuring a choir.

Extra Mile ~ A voluntary contribution by a congregation in support of the wider church. It is 3% higher than the Fair Share amount.

EYE ~ Acronym for Episcopal Youth Event, a national youth conference.