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Blessings to you as we begin the busy month of September | |
Dear friends,
September has arrived and I want to write and make sure everyone knows the 'plan' for the coming month. This Sunday, September 9th, will be our last Sunday at the Church of the Good Shepherd (408 38th St SW). Please join us for a special 'thank-you and good-bye- 10 am service. We will have combined nursery, Sunday School and Youth Group during the service.
Sunday, September 16 will be our first Sunday 'on our own' at 9:15 at Christ Church (3602 8th St. SW). Apart from being in a different building at a different time we're hoping to make things feel as much like 'normal' as usual. St. Laurence choir, Sunday School and Youth Group will all start up that Sunday and we'll also resume our practice of having 'Conversations' after coffee hour.
It is also my great pleasure to invite you to two parties during the month of September. This coming Saturday at 6 pm Good Shepherd invites us to a BBQ. Bring a salad and dessert and a bit of cash for the bar and enjoy a time to visit with our friends at Good Shepherd.
On Saturday, September 22nd St. Laurence will be hosting a 'Golden Calf' party at 7:30 pm at Christ Church. Tickets will be $10 at the door (free for kids and youth) with all proceeds towards asbestos removal. This will be an 'all ages' party with a silly photo booth, games, dancing, snacks and drinks. It is an opportunity for us to get together and blow off some 'renovation steam.' In the spirit of the golden calf please wear all your 'bling' but we promise not to melt it down!
Finally, I point you to the short article below introducing the spiritual practice for the 2012/13 year. We're going to look at justice and celebrate the many ways the people of St. Laurence live out their faith by working in the Church and the larger community for justice.
Blessings,
Anna
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| The Spiritual Practice of Justice | |
As you may have noticed I often end our worship services saying, "Go now into the world, the holiness of our worship matched only by the holiness of our lives." These words are important to me as I think we miss the point of church, worship, our faith, all of it, if we forget that all the prayers, all the music, all the words must always lead us to live lives of love, justice and mercy. If it is about anything it must always be about loving God with all our heart and mind and soul and strength and loving our neighbors as ourselves. It must always be about acting justly, loving mercy and walking humbly with our God. All of the great mystics and 'spiritual probationers' know this. Richard Rohr, one of the preeminent Christian writers and speakers of our day runs what he calls the "Centre for Action and Contemplation." He knows that there is no point in becoming an 'expert' in prayer or meditation if it does not lead to actions of love, mercy and justice.
This coming year I invite us all to consider our call to lives of justice. As we watch our lovely house of worship be renovated and improved, let us never forget that our building, our life together as a congregation, must always be but the impetus of our call to love, mercy and justice.
Have a look in this month's Leader for an excellent article by Peter Meiring about his work in South Africa serving the most vulnerable. Think about if you or someone you know might be encouraged to write about how they work for justice in upcoming issues of this newsletter. I'd love to hear from you.
Anna |
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This month at St. Laurence | |
Saturday, September 8th 6 pm. BBQ at Good Shepherd.
Sunday, September 9th 10 am "Thank-you and Good-Bye' Service at Good Shepherd. Kersi to celebrate and Anna to preach.
Sunday, September 16 9:15 am Service at Christ Church. Anna to celebrate and preach. Sunday School, Youth Group, Nursery, Choir and Conversations all start up.
Saturday, September 22 7:30 pm Golden Calf party at Christ Church
Sunday, September 23 9:15 am
Service at Christ Church. Don McLeod to preach.
Sunday, September 30th 9:15 am
Service at Christ Church. Anna to celebrate and preach.
Saint Laurence Renovation Blog - for pictures and updates on the renovation or to register to receive the blog by email
click here
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