May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be always with you!
With the shift in temperature overnight, today I've been thinking about seasons - it feels like something has shifted between yesterday and today, and now we are into "proper" fall moving towards winter.
But as well as a shift in the season outside my window, we are also about to shift seasons in the church year. The church year starts with the season of Advent, the 4 Sundays leading up to Christmas, which begins on December 1 this year. This is a season of preparation for the coming of Jesus - in the words of one of my favourite Advent songs, "Ready my heart for the birth of Immanuel / Ready my heart for the Prince of Peace / Heap the straw of my life for his body to lie on."
Advent is followed by Christmas, when we remember the birth of Jesus and God choosing to become flesh and blood. Christmas is followed by Epiphany (Jan. 6) with magi, a star, and the dawning recognition that Jesus is someone special. After Epiphany comes the first season of "Ordinary Time" with stories about how Jesus becomes recognized more and more widely in the world.
Then we come to another season of preparation - Lent, when we have a chance to do some self-examination and turn our hearts and lives back towards God. Lent is followed by Easter and the reminder that God is a God of new beginnings and resurrection. The season of Easter lasts for 50 day and is followed by Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit in power to all the world. Then we come to the second season of "Ordinary Time" and stories of how God is working in the world in the ordinary times of life between the ordinary feast days.
To me, there is an increasing sense of urgency in the bible stories assigned to the last couple of weeks/months of Ordinary Time which is where we are right now in the church year. The last Sunday of the church year (this year, on November 24) is recognized as Reign of Christ Sunday, or Christ the King Sunday - a day when we are reminded that when we give Christ top priority in our lives, we can't give that allegiance to anyone or anything else. Because Jesus reigns in our heart, nationalism can't take that top billing, the economy or money can't take that top spot, becoming famous can't be our top priority.
And then the year begins again with Advent and the season of preparing for the arrival of Jesus!
So with only two Sundays between now and a new year, this might be a time to start thinking about "new year's resolutions." What direction do you want your faith life to take in the next year? Are there any spiritual practices or disciplines that you want to try? What about as a whole church? Working together, where do we want to go as a church in the new year that is laid out in front of us? Where is God calling us to take our ministry?
Lots of questions to ponder in this time of changing seasons!
In terms of announcements for this week (and the next couple of weeks):
Worship on Sunday will be at 9:15 at Summerville and 11:15 at Westfield and on FB Live. This week, we'll be hearing one of those "urgent" readings from towards the end of Ordinary Time - Mark 13:1-8 - but in the sermon we'll be hearing about Rendez-vous and other youth and young adult programming in the church from Natalie Parish.
Asking the Big Questions - our November gathering will be next week, on Tuesday November 19, from 4:30 - 6:00 in the parlour at Westfield United Church. As in previous months, there will be pizza at the end of the gathering (thank you, UCW!), so you don't need to worry about cooking supper that night. This month's "big question" will be: "What happens to us when we die?" This gathering is a time that we can share with each other and explore the big questions of life in a safe space.
A huge Thank You to everyone who helped with Biddy Coy's funeral at Long Reach on Friday, as well as at Oriole Titus's funeral at Westfield yesterday. I hope that it doesn't sound too macabre if I say that I think that the church is maybe at its best at funerals, when the community comes together to support a family in a time of grief. Thank you to all of you who share in this ministry.
Diversity: How Can Our Churches Be Radical, Intentional, Welcoming, & Inclusive in Today's Global Village - this is a free workshop being held for all United Churches in the Saint John area on Sunday November 24 at 1:30pm at Quispamsis United Church. As an Affirming church, we are encouraged to always be learning and exploring more ways that we can be expansive in our welcome, and this workshop is an opportunity to continue our Affirming journey. For more details, you can view the poster by clicking here - I encourage you all to take advantage of this great opportunity!
Christmas Countdown Candles - Cindy Patstone has once again ordered in Advent Candles that you burn down a little bit each day as we move through the Advent season towards Christmas. There is a new design for the 2024 countdown! They are $15 each, or two for $25 - this is a fundraiser for Westfield United Church. If you would like to buy one, you can see Cindy after church or contact her at 506-xxx-xxxx (call or text) or [email redacted]. For more information, you can see the poster by clicking here. (Peninsula peeps - I'll try to get a box to keep in my car in case any of you want to buy one too!)
Christmas Families:
Westfield - This year, we will be sponsoring 8 families through Christmas Exchange. Please bring any grocery store gift cards that you would like to donate and place them in the offering plate clearly marked "Christmas Families." Deadline: Sunday December 8 (for delivery on December 12).
Long Reach - This year, we will be sponsoring a family through MacDonald Consolidated School. Please bring gift cards (e.g. grocery stores, Wal-Mart, gas station, Tims) and give them to Anne Titus by December 8. (Anne has offered to convert cash to gift cards for you, if you aren't going to be somewhere that sells gift cards before December 8.)
Summerville - This year, we will be sponsoring a family through Macdonald Consolidated School. Please bring gift cards (e.g. grocery stores, Wal-Mart, gas station, Tims) and give them to Bette Ashely by December 15. (Bette has offered to convert cash to gift cards for you, if you aren't going to be somewhere that sells gift cards before December 15.)
A lot going on this week! Elaine is busy stuffing the Christmas letters into envelopes, and they will be available for picking up at both Summerville and Westfield this Sunday, and Long Reach for next week. (Please help us to save postage costs... and the uncertainty of a possible Canada Post strike... by delivering letters to your neighbours if possible.) The Christmas Letter will include all of the details of our December schedule!
For a closing thought this week, even though it's not Advent quite yet, here is a link to that Advent song I mentioned earlier - "Ready my Heart" sung by Steve Bell. You can listen to it 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)
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)
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