The Apostolic Johannite Church is proud to present the twenty-third annual AJC Conclave – May 26 – 28, 2023

After a review of costs involved for attendance at our host cities, the Apostolic Johannite Church has opted in favour of accessibility and affordability – Conclave 2023 will be entirely online. 

Each year the people of the AJC, friends and family gather together to socialize, learn, build our skills and deepen our community. It is an amazing opportunity for spiritual growth and insight to modern Gnostic practice. Conclave is a rich opportunity to deepen your practice, education and experience of Gnosticism, Spirituality, Esotericism and the Apostolic Johannite Church. 

Conclave offers lectures, workshops and panel discussions selected to develop ministry skills, support the work of church leaders both lay and ordained and deepen and enrich the spiritual lives of attendees. 

As always, we welcome you, no matter who you are or what your spiritual path, to join us for this unique week. You can come for all or part and participate as much or as little as you’d like. However you choose, we welcome you into our household.

Our theme this year is Saints, Demi-Gods and Intercessors

Our Guest Speakers

Keynote – M. David Litwa on the Hermetica

The Apostolic Johannite Church is excited to welcome and present Dr. M. David Litwa as our Keynote speaker- and he will be presenting on Hermetica

M. David Litwa, PhD, is a scholar of ancient Mediterranean religions with a focus on early Christianity. He has taught courses at the University of Virginia (Religion and Classics), the College of William & Mary (Classics), and Virginia Tech (Religion and Culture). His current appointment is at the Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry (ACU Melbourne). He is a member of the steering committee of the Bible, Myth, and Myth Theory Group at the Society of Biblical Literature. His recent publications include How the Gospels Became History: Jesus and Mediterranean Myth (Yale University Press, 2019), Desiring Divinity (Oxford University Press, 2016), and Iesus Deus: The Early Christian Depiction of Jesus as a Mediterranean God (Fortress, 2014)

The Dr. Juliana Eimer Memorial Lecture – Eimear Burke on Brighid of Ireland

The Apostolic Johannite Church is excited to welcome and present Eimear Burke as our Dr. Juliana Eimer Memorial Lecture presenter.  She will be presenting on Brigid of Ireland. 

Eimear is the Chosen Chief of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD) and lives in Kilkenny, Ireland.

Eimear has private practice as a Counselling Psychologist and her interests in Druidry and psychology have led her to act as a Celebrant, helping people to design and enact meaningful rites of passage. She is licensed to perform legal weddings in the Republic of Ireland and can also offer non legal ceremonies. 

Eimear has a deep love of the ancient Irish tales and has a passion for storytelling.  She brings the old tales to new audiences, and – while remaining faithful to the stories – often examines them from new perspectives, so that listeners experience them as fresh and relevant.  She particularly enjoys showing people the sacred sites of Ireland and telling the ancient tales right where they happened.

Eimear is also a Priestess dedicated to Danú in the Fellowship of Isis. She is an Arch Druidess in the Druid Clan of Dana and a member of the Noble Order of Tara.

For several years, the Rev. Subdeacon Juliana Eimer, Ph.D was an active presenter and participant at our Conclaves- speaking on a variety of topics, from female Saints to the nature of Divinity. Her passing a mere months after Conclave 2016 was difficult for our community, and the Apostolic Johannite Church has chosen to remember her work here with us through a lecture series in her name.

Bridget Jeffries on The Apostle Vanishes: Junia and the Reception History of Romans 16:7

Bridget Jack Jeffries is a PhD student in church history at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. She has written for The Hill, RELEVANT magazine, and Priscilla Papers, and her interviews on religion have appeared in The Washington Post and Religion & Ethics Newsweekly. She likes church history, hamsters, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

She will be presenting on St  Junia

Program of Conclave Lectures and Workshops

In addition to our featured talks, we are also excited to bring you an engaging list of speakers and activities throughout the Conclave program.

Without further preamble- here are some of the talks and workshops we have at the time of this announcement:

The Most Rev. Dr. William Behun – Daimon Love: Plato’s Symposium and Intercession
The Most Rev. Dr. William Behun – The Sacred Cycle: An Introduction to the Liturgical Year (New Series)
The Most Rev. Scott Rassbach: The Role of the Saints in the Johannite Tradition
Rev. Fr. John DiGilio: Echoes of the Apocalypse: The Enduring Legacy of St. Joachim of Fiore
The Rev. Fr. Brenden Humberdross: The Cult of the Saints
The Rev. Deacon Jonathan Stewart: Saint Expedite: Magic, History and Devotion
The Rev. Deacon Angie Wisk-Nowell: Women in Church Leadership- A Reclamation
Joanne Leone: In the image of God: Angelic creation of the psychic body in the Apocryphon of John

Costs and Registration

Full Registration: All Talks and Workshops – 100 USD
Student Registration: All Talks and Workshops – 50 USD
Individual Talk or Workshop – 25 USD

Refund Policy

Full Refund Available until May 26, 2023 (Start of Conclave)

We look forward to seeing you there and sharing your journey. Register at https://www.johannite.org/conclave/

Effective immediately, the Apostolic Johannite Church announces the involuntary dismissal of Joseph Revels from the clerical state.  Mr. Revels is released from all obligations commensurate with his ordination and is divested of all privileges and offices previously accorded him by his former ministry in the Church.  

Anyone having questions or concerns is asked to please direct them to Most Rev. Scott Rassbach at [email protected]

The Apostolic Johannite Church is pleased to announce the upcoming Ordination of the Rev. Angie Wisk-Nowell to the Sacred Order of the Priesthood for service with the Parish of St. Joseph of Arimathea.

Angie was raised in a non-religious family but has been captivated by spirituality for as long as she can remember. She has practiced in a variety of forms of Christianity ranging from Evangelical, Mysticism, and Gnosticism.

When she discovered the concept of the feminine divine in Christianity she was hooked and has been exploring this deeply since 2006.  Angie has been a member of the Parish of St. Joseph of Arimathea since 2017 and was ordained to the Diaconate in September 2020. She holds a B.A. in History and an MBA. She lives with her husband and two small children in Calgary, Alberta.

The Rev. Angie Wisk-Nowell will be ordained to the Priesthood by the Patriarch of the Apostolic Johannite Church, the Most Rev. Shaun McCann, in ecclesia IOHANNES IV, during a celebration of the Johannite Gnostic Mass on July 22nd, the Feast of St. Mary Magdalene at 1:30pm.

Venue and concelebrants to be announced later on in the year. 

After fifteen years of service as both priest and bishop, the Most Rev. Tim Mansfield will be retiring from the role he pioneered, that of Bishop of the Diocese of New South Wales on January 1st 2023. 

Widely respected and loved within our community as an engaging teacher of Gnosticism and Contemplative spirituality with a pastoral heart and great humour, the Most Rev. Tim Mansfield has served as a pillar of the AJC throughout his time, with significant contributions that will continue to flourish beyond his initiative. 

From Johannite School, to the Office of the Hours, the revamped Seminary site and curriculum, to everyone’s favourite guest on Talk Gnosis, more times than anyone can count- enumerating Mar TImotheos’ contribution to the spiritual life, structure and work of the Apostolic Johannite Church is a significant task in its own right. 

The Most Rev. Tim Mansfield put in his request to change to Retired status as a result of his own discernment on his own spiritual path, well-being and the effects that the duty of leadership bring to each of these. Knowing these challenges and effects all too well, the Patriarch of the Apostolic Johannite Church has approved this change in status. 

As is its practice, Retired Clergy remain listed with the Apostolic Johannite Church as appropriate to their Order, with title confirmed by the Patriarch, and may undertake sacramental work with prior authorization

On behalf of a grateful Church and for his many years of selfless service, pastoral skill and a seeker’s heart, the Patriarch of the Apostolic Johannite Church will confirm Mar Timotheos as Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of New South Wales effective January 1st, 2023 and His Excellency will continue to advise the Patriarch in the years to come, in addition to remaining a dear friend and brother. 

Until the time that the Patriarch and Apostolic Council confirms a successor, the Rev. Fr. Brenden Humberdross will serve as Episcopal Vicar for Australia on behalf of the Patriarchate. 

The Parish of St. Joseph of Arimathea (Calgary, Alberta) is pleased to announce the return of in-person Liturgy after a long hiatus due to the Covid-19 Pandemic.

This resumption will begin subject to availability of space and schedule – with location and time information available for attendees of our regular discussion nights held on 2nd and 4th Wednesdays. This is owing to our transitional location being private meeting space in a complex which is not open to the public.

Eventually, St. Joseph’s will either return to our previous home with the Unitarian Church, provided it meets any reevaluated needs of availability and accessibility, or settle on a new space in consultation with the needs of the community. 

While we are pleased to be on the other side of the in-person hiatus, our time online has created a few opportunities that might not have been explored otherwise. St. Joseph’s has been fortunate to see several members participate and contribute regularly who would not otherwise be able to do so, and this has been a blessing.

So rather than eliminate those meetings from our schedule or scale back to pre-pandemic activity, we’ve elected to maintain our current online schedule in addition to in-person meetings as we are able to schedule them.

Whether you’re local or have no local community, we hope we can become a community for you, to share your journey and be enriched in turn by the journeys of others. For more information on the Parish of St. Joseph of Arimathea please visit – https://calgary.johannite.org

+ Most Rev. Shaun McCann
Parish of St. Joseph of Arimathea