Mid-Week Message - May 21

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be always with you!

Last night was our monthly gathering for Asking the Big Questions; and as always, we had lots of great conversations - thank you to Ken for taking the facilitation lead this month.  (And the group has decided that they want to gather in June before breaking for the summer, so mark your calendars for June 17!)

This month's question was "So what do we do about the E-Word*?" (*Evangelism). Our opening question to the group was "What is the first thing that pops into your head when you hear the word "evangelism" and while there was some variation in the answers, many of them centered around pushiness or money.

But I think that this is maybe a word that the church needs to re-claim.  The word "evangelism" comes from ancient Greek (eu-angelion) and literally means "good news."  When was the last time that you got a piece of news that was just so good that you couldn't keep it to yourself?  The birth of a grandchild? Acceptance into your top-choice school?  A job offer after a long search?  When we get good news, we don't want to keep it to ourself - we want to tell everybody!

And so one of our focus discussions last night was around what part of your faith, what part of your God-story, what part of churching makes you so excited that you just can't keep it to yourself, but you have to share it with the world?

Last week, I mentioned that I was saving my favourite Diana Butler Bass quotes (from my study leave a couple of weeks ago) for Asking the Big Questions, and here it is:  "The church is currently trapped between two ugly narratives:  the first says that the church is corrupt and beyond saving; the second says that Christian Nationalism is the only way forward.  But we have a different story – stories that are too beautiful to keep within the walls of our buildings."

Depending on the circles you move in, there are two main things that you will hear the world say about the church - either it is corrupt and beyond saving (whether due to various abuse scandals, or Residential Schools, or homophobia/transphobia, or financial scandals or...); or the church is equated with Christian Nationalism (the politicization of religion - the story that says "God wanted me to win this election" or "God especially loves my country more than others" or "The only way we will make our country succeed is by forcing everyone in it to be Christian - especially my flavour of Christianity").

But if you are reading this newsletter, I suspect that you know as well as I do that the church is not defined by either of these narratives.  There is a third way.  We are the keepers of some beautiful "stories" - stories that are too beautiful to keep within the walls of our buildings.  Stories like "God loves you, unconditionally."  Stories like "All people are beautifully created in God's image."  Stories like "I have more than I need - let me share with you."  Stories like "You seem to be having a rough time - can I accompany you through your struggles?"

Even when the world (and the media) say otherwise, we do have beautiful stories like these - stories of love and kindness and generosity and compassion and justice - and when we share these stories with others, when we refuse to keep these stories within the walls of our buildings, then this is evangelism.  We are sharing the "good news" of God with the world.

So that dreaded "E-word" doesn't have to be scary - it can be beautiful, and may be more important in the world today than it ever was before.

Moving on to announcements this week:

• Worship on Sunday will be at 9:15 at Long Reach and 11:15 at Westfield and on Facebook Live. Our story this week is maybe one of my favourite stories from the Book of Acts, the story of Lydia - Acts 16:9-15. She was a wealthy dealer of purple cloth (ie the cloth used by royalty) who heard the Apostle Paul speak and invited him into her home (note: her home, not the home of her father or husband), and founded the first church in Europe. A story of evangelism, perhaps?

• Long Reach Families (and families from other churches who want to join in) - a reminder that this Sunday is the annual Sunday School Fishing excursion to Whites Bluff Wharf, across the road from the church. After the Story for All Ages, the children (and anyone else who would prefer to fish rather than listening to a sermon) will be invited to head down to the wharf. You can bring your own gear if you have it, or there will be some equipment you can borrow. Remember to dress for the outdoor weather!

• Shredding Event! After a couple of months of announcements, the date is almost here! The industrial shredder will be set up in the Westfield United Church Parking Lot from 9am - 1pm, and Cindy has a crew of volunteers lined up to direct traffic and lift heavy boxes and bags from cars. Bring anything that needs to be shredded, and in exchange for a free-will offering to the church, you can get rid of whatever you need to get rid of! (Except for binders, batteries, and hazardous materials.) For a reminder of what you can and can't bring, click here for the full poster.

• Joanne Yorke's Burial - Jim asked me to let all of you know that Joanne's ashes will be buried on Saturday morning at 11am at the Cedar Hill Extension Cemetery (Manawaganish Rd). We had Joanne's funeral at the church back in February, but anyone who would like to come and say a final goodbye is welcome to join us.

• Westfield United Church Choir Concert Series - if you were at Westfield last Sunday (in-person or online), you heard Kathy's exciting announcement - the choir is launching an ambitious concert series in the 25/26 season with 4 concerts spaced through the year. The dates will be:

  Thursday October 9, 2025, 7pm - "My Grateful Spirit Sings: Songs of Praise & Thanksgiving"

  Thursday December 18, 2025, 7pm - "What Did the Star See? An Evening of Advent & Christmas Selections"

  Thursday March 19, 2026, 7pm - "The Best of the Best - Our Handpicked Favourite Anthems"

  Thursday June 4, 2026, 7pm - "Hold Me, Rock Me: A Concert of Gospel Tunes"

  A Subscription that will get you in to all 4 concerts is only $100, and can be purchased through any choir member between now and October 9.  (Peninsula folks - I will be carrying tickets with me!) Individual concert tickets will be available at the door at each concert for $30.  All money raised supports the work of the church. (And a thank you to series sponsors Paige Danaher, Realtor and Emergency Solutions International; and to concert sponsors Grand Bay Home Hardware and Starkey's Garage!)

• Ida's Memorial Walk - Saturday June 7, 10am, Sea Dog Cove Nature Preserve. Donations to the work of Bayswater-Summerville United Church will be gratefully recieved! You can click here for the full poster.

• Strawberry Drive-Through Dinner - we don't have a date for it yet (we don't know when the strawberries will be ripe this year!), but keep your ears open as the Westfield UCW will be doing this dinner for another year, likely in early July.

• Next week - I will be on Study Leave ahead of the Regional Meeting in Sackville, so there won't be a Mid-Week Message next week, and our next Bible Study gathering will be on Wednesday June 4.
  

Even as we move towards a quieter season in the church (July and August), I'm always amazed at how much is going on in all three of our churches!

Thank you Corner - This week's thank you goes to Cindy Patstone! (I would have waited to thank her next week, after the big shredding event, but there isn't going to be a mid-week message next week.) This shredding fundraiser has been an idea of hers for many months (years?) and she has pulled together all of the logistics to make it happen - from renting the shredder to making the poster to tracking down a sponsor to enlisting volunteers to getting the word out to people and businesses. And in the middle of all of this, she also managed to recruit sponsors for the upcoming choir concert series! I know that she normally likes to fly a little bit under the radar, but thank you Cindy for all that you do!

For a closing thought this week, I'm going to put in a plug for another concert that I am going to be a part of (as will others from our churches - Joan, Shirley, Gail, Brenda) - the Saint John Chorale spring concert will be on Monday May 26 at 7pm at St. Mark's United Church (50 Dexter Drive) - tickets will be available at the door and are $20 for adults and $10 for students. The theme is "Let Love Sing" and you can view the poster by clicking here.

The opening song from this concert has been a constant earworm for me all winter/spring - it is "A Song of Night" by Laura Farnell. You can listen to a recording (not by us!) by clicking here.

Blessings to you and yours, today and always!

Kate.

Rev. Kate Jones

Two Rivers Pastoral Charge

(506) 757-2201 (office)

(506) 343-1307 (mobile)

www.tworiverspastoralcharge.com

Pronouns:  she/her/hers

"Teacher, what is the greatest commandment in the law?"

Jesus replied, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: "You must love your neighbour as you love yourself."

(Matthew 22:36-39)