Keeping in Touch - February 9
Good afternoon, James Bay United Church,
What a delight, these sun drenched afternoons! It’s exactly the kind of day we’ll be hoping for next week, for our Shrove Tuesday extravaganza. It’s a joint venture, shared with our closest neighbours, the Red Barn Market and Discovery Coffee … offering a pancake supper to all and sundry in the neighbourhood. We’ll have a team of people setting up and serving in the downstairs hall of the church (enter by way of the patio around the back of the building) and outside under a canopy on Michigan Street. Donations of fruit for the fruit salad or of cash will be a welcome thing. This Tuesday, February 13, 5 -6:30 pm.
The sweet of Shrove Tuesday is followed by the more sobering of Ash Wednesday. Nothing syrupy about this event, where we receive the marking of an ashen cross on our forehead, with the words remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return. While we might be inclined to give it a pass, dismiss it as morbid or a slap in the face, it deserves our curiosity at least! It’s one of the practices the Christian Tradition offers us that grounds us in the reality that there will come a day when we die … so what are we making of our life? And then there’s this: for those of us who are burdened by regret or expect more of ourselves than is humanly possible, remember you are dust declares a liberating corrective, reminding us that we are not God! And here’s one more thing … the marking is not made of ash alone but of oil as well. Oil of healing, oil of blessing, oil of gladness. And so the marking of the ashen cross signifies we belong to God who breathes us into life, whose mercy never comes to an end, who out of the ash, raises up new life. There will be two half hour services on Wednesday, one at noon, and again at 5pm; both will take place upstairs in the sanctuary. And yes, it happens also to be Valentine’s Day. Quite a thing to imagine heading out at 12:30 or 5:30 with friends or sweethearts, sharing a special meal together, sitting opposite each other, the ashen cross unavoidably lending a certain gravity to the conversation … inviting your reflection on the quality of your life, together … on the what it is you are doing with your one wild a precious life. If you haven’t participated in this Ash Wednesday practice before, here’s your invitation. It’s a pretty powerful way to enter the Season of Lent.
There’s been a wonderful response to the book study I’m proposing for Lent. 23 people have already signed up to read Weird Church, by Beth Ann Estock and Paul Nixon. There will be a daytime and evening mid-week opportunity to gather for conversation. If you are interested and haven’t signed up please be in touch with me ASAP.
Coming up in a couple of weeks time is our Annual Meeting, Sunday February 25th.
It will be incorporated into the flow of our service that day. The annual report will be available on-line and in printed form as of next Sunday. In preparation for this important gathering, here’s an invitation for you to consider:
As you think about this past year, what has transpired in your life that you would attribute to your participation within the life of this congregation? It would be a gift to us all if you would share something of that with us in the course of our service on Feb 25th.
Please be in touch with me if you have something to share.
Grace and Peace,
Karen