We celebrate the Eucharist at 10:00, as we do every week. The scriptures include the passage from Exodus in which God gives what we call the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai. They set out some basics about loving God and loving our neighbors. The second reading is St. Paul bursting with love for Jesus and Paul's desire to know Christ more deeply. HIs language is passionate, even intimate. I wonder if words like that make us nervous or possibly embarrassed. The gospel continues what we've been hearing from Matthew: the religious leaders doubt Jesus' authority but the crowds do not. The leaders fear the crowds. For the full texts, click here.

The Adamsons will provide refreshments after the service, and then we'll gather for a Congregational Forum downstairs. 

 

 

A famous piece of advice to preachers is to hold the newspaper (or now, your smartphone or iPad or laptop) in one hand and the Bible in the other. We will have the chance to do that as a group at the forum time after refreshments each Sunday. 

 

Using a new resource called The Wired Word, each week we will look at a significant issue from the news in light of some related Bible passages. This week the issue is the execution of Troy Davis. He was executed on Wednesday by Georgia's Department of Corrections despite doubts about his guilt.

 

During the forum time last week, participants looked at several approaches to the forum time, including Bible study with DVDs, an online curriculum called Faithful Citizenship, and a workshop called Financial Sanity whose motto is "The choices we make with our money can change the world. The group decided to explore The Wired Word first, because it seemed the most promising avenue for adults and young people to gather on common ground and learn from each other as well as from the content. Another reason for choosing it was that anyone can join in the discussion any Sunday; that is, if you can come one Sunday but not the next, you don't have to worry that you'll be behind or out of step. We'll see how it goes. The other possibilities will stay on the table for later exploration.

 

Here's how The Wired Word works: The editors will send the church office an email about the week's topic, with some background and related scriptures, every Thursday. We will send it out to our email list. You can read it in preparation for the forum conversation. If you are unable to participate in the forum, I hope you will still find it useful for thinking about how we practice love of God and love of neighbors. If you do not wish to receive that weekly email, please email Bob House and he will take you off the list. This week the email is going out today (Friday).

 

Tuesday, October 4, is the Feast of St. Francis. Our school celebrates this day with a Pet Blessing, and the people of Grace are most welcome. It's at 9:30, Tuesday, October 4, in the playground of Grace Montessori at 8th and Linden (behind the parking garage). Bring your pet or just yourself, praise God for animals and all creation, and delight in our children and their parents and pets. If it rains, we cancel the event.

Sunday, October 9, is our annual visit from one of our bishops. This year, as last, it is Bishop Jack Croneberger. He will preside at the Eucharist and preach, we will have a light luncheon and time to converse with him, and he will meet with the vestry. To prepare for this celebration, Chuck Milostiz is organizing the cleaning of the worship space. All willing helpers will gather at tomorrow, October 1, at 9:30.  Please email Chuck if you plan to come.

 

The IMPACT Project is a local agency that helps first-time juvenile offenders. If young people are arrested and are deemed suitable for this program by the arresting officer or the court, they are referred to a Community Justice Panel of The IMPACT Project. A panel meets in Grace's conference room every other Wednesday evening, and two parishioners, Bob House and Lynn Wentzel, serve on the panel with the coordinator, Abby Neff. 

 

The panel meets with the young person and hears his or her account of what happened. The panel then develops a contract that helps the young person remedy the mistake and move forward. The panel prescribes specific activities, tailored to each situation, that the young person needs to complete within six weeks. Requirements can include writing apology letters, performing community service hours, and researching next steps toward further education or possible careers. If the young people complete all their work, their police records are wiped clean. I attended a panel for the first time last week; a young man brought in his completed work and talked about the new direction in his life. 

 

This is Grace in action, as I see it. To learn more or to participate, click here.

 

 

The Diocese of Bethlehem (the larger unit of the church of which we are a part) requires its clergy to take part in periodic meetings and trainings. Last Sunday through Tuesday was the annual clergy retreat. Two priests of this diocese led the national church's curriculum for anti-racism training. 

 

Over four sessions, we looked at white privilege, various kinds of power and who has access to them, and manifestations of institutional racism. We thought about how our parishes do and don't include people of color and what some next steps could be to becoming more inclusive and more anti-racist. This is the second time I had such training, and I found it enriching and inspiring. The trainers are available to parishes and other groups throughout the diocese. Would you find such training helpful? Email me if you'd like to pursue this further.