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November 26, the Last
Sunday after Pentecost, is the
Sunday set aside by the Church as a day of "prayer,
fasting, education and advocacy for the Millennium
Development Goals."
It's the feast
of Christ the King, a perfect fit for
lifting up the breaking in of the realm of God in
all the ways Christ said it would break in --
bringing
good news to the poor, release to the captives,
recovery of sight to the blind, proclaiming the year
of Jubilee ... everything the
Millennium
Development Goals are about.
If you go to the EGR
website, you'll see a link at
the top of the homepage to resources for your
congregation to celebrate our common mission that
Sunday. There are litanies, prayers of the people,
bulletin inserts and more. Coming very soon is a
lessons and carols type service perfect for that
Sunday or any Sunday you wish to draw attention to
God's mission of global reconciliation.
And as you come up with your own resources and
ideas, be sure and send them to us
so we can get
them on the site for all to share.
The two Gospel options for Christ the King Sunday
are full of opportunities to preach Christ's call to
embrace him in the poorest of the poor:
In John
18:33-37, Jesus goes before Pilate and talks
about his kingdom. "My kingdom is not form this
world," he says. What does the coming of his kingdom
look like? If we are about a kingdom, a realm that
is not of this world, what does that look like and
how do we continue to usher it in? What does that
look like in terms of power? What does it look like
in terms of the poorest of the poor. You could also
consider asking verse
38: "Pilate asked him, 'What is truth?'"-- a
great question to wrestle with as
we prepare for Advent I.
If you're using Mark
11:1-11 (the triumphal entry
into Jerusalem), it's a good chance to talk about
contronting systems of power and political advocacy.
What does it mean to go to the seat of power with a
message of transformation? Also there's the whole
image of "the Lord has need of it" with the colt. If
Jesus is to get into Jerusalem, if the new realm is
to be ushered in, we need to get him there. What of
us is being asked with the words "the Lord has need
of it!"
Also, this is a good Gospel to talk about how the
movement around the MDGs is a triumph -- it's a
celebration! This is not a chore but a chance for us
to be heralds of Christ's realm breaking into the
world. A chance to sing "Hosanna!"
As always, keep sharing your ideas, questions and
resources. Together, and with God's help, a new day
is dawning.
| Fun Facts about the MDG Movement |
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Snapshots from around the church (and more) about
What One is Doing for the MDGs:
*Last October, 23,542,614 people worldwide
participated in the "Stand Up
Against Poverty" event. According to Carol
Welch of The
Milennium Campaign, "the Episcopal Church was
the single biggest constituency in the United States
to stand up!" Great job, everybody!
*As you read this, a team of three men are
running 4,000 miles across the Sahara Desert to
raise awareness for the 1.2 billion people around
the world without access to clean water. Find
out more here!
*The offering taken at the Diocese of
Chicago convention Eucharist raised more than
$23,000 for works of global reconciliation!
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| Quote of the Week |
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"I want to invite the Diocese of Atlanta to be a
leader among the dioceses of the Episcopal Church
and the Anglican Communion in support of the
Millennium Development Goals......This is about a
great deal more
than putting a rather modest amount of money on the
table. It is about education. It is about
spirituality. It is about faith. It is about
discipleship. Can we seriously call ourselves
disciples of Jesus and not be about the business of
changing the world? I don't think so."
-The Rt. Rev. J. Neil Alexander, Bishop of
Atlanta, in his Bishop's
address to the Diocese of
Atlanta's Annual Council, November 10, 2006.
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What One
Congregation
Can Do |
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The MDG wave is sweeping through the Church, and
Grace
Episcopal Church in Providence, RI, is riding
high on the tide.
Earlier this year, they had a U2charist
that drew
350 people and raised $1800 for the MDGs.
And that
was just the beginning. Here's what's happening
next:
*Tomorrow night there will be a special
service at
Grace and the displaying of panels from the International
AIDS Memorial Quilt.
*On Nov. 29 & 30, the church will be
screening two
films on global HIV/AIDS -- Pills,
Profits, Protest: Chronicle of the Global AIDS
Movement and A Closer
Walk, narrated by Glenn Close and Wil Smith
and, finally,
*On December 1 (World
AIDS Day), Grace will be
hosting another U2charist to raise awareness about
the MDGs and particularly What One Can Do to stop
the global AIDS pandemic.
Think that's a lot? They're just getting warmed
up!
Grace has been invited to participate in a trip to
South Africa from March 6-15, 2007. The trip
coincides with the TEAM
Anglican Communion Conference on the MDGs (with
special focus on
HIV/AIDS) outside of Johannesburg. Participants will
learn firsthand about the effects of HIV/AIDS on
the people of South Africa -- particularly the
impact on youth, as they will spend the majority of
their time with them learning about their hopes and
struggles in their fight against AIDS.
For more information on What this One Congregation
is Doing for the MDGs, contact the Rev. Bob
Brooks,
rector of Grace Church or visit
their website.
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