Following are the opening remarks, as prepared for delivery, by Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe to the Executive Council of The Episcopal Church, meeting June 23-25 in Linthicum Heights, Maryland.

Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe received the following letter on May 14 from the Most Rev. Thabo Makgoba, archbishop of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa (ACSA). On May 12, Bishop Rowe announced that The Episcopal Church would end its refugee resettlement grant agreements with the U.S. government after being asked to resettle white Afrikaners from South Africa.

Dear People of God in The Episcopal Church: I am writing today with some significant news about Episcopal Migration Ministries, the organization that leads The Episcopal Church’s refugee resettlement ministry.

Dear People of God in The Episcopal Church:
Early this Palm Sunday morning, we received confirmation that al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, was hit last night by Israeli missiles. The diocese and many media outlets report that the emergency department, the pharmacy, the chapel, and other essential facilities have been severely damaged, and patients are without shelter or medical care. Read more about the attack from the American Friends of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem.

Dear Friends in Christ:

Luke’s Gospel tells us that on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Joanna went to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus. When they got there, the stone had been rolled away, and they heard the message that transformed their world—and ours: “He is not here. He is risen.”