How was church today?

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Nancy said:
I love that idea @Mrs.Anteater ! After a recent funeral of a church member I realized how little I knew him….even though I thought I knew him! The eulogy revealed a fascinating and innovative life. I think your church’s idea helps get to know people better.
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Can you believe all that is said in eulogies? Many do not lodge well ... I know many times I've heard people say they believed they were at the wrong burial ... as things were Putin bad order ... and the proposed winner missed trump ... the house collapsed ... de card antes? Some say decay Dan's ... Ducky?

Observe much and soon you well be depressed at mortal righteous & ess ... messy?
 
Rev. Dr. Cathy Hamilton had a great message today based on the John version of the cleansing of the temple. She pointed out Judeans had gotten used to the abuses of the market place outside the temple without noticing how it impacted poor people. She went on to explore how we can be blind to problems for some people with our churches and how we include or not people. She also included two of my favourite hymns, lLet Us Build a House and Go Make a Diff'rence.

Also talked a little before the service about the opportunities for evangelism among Francophones paired with the existence of only two francophone congregations in the region.
 
I'm afraid today was a write off for me at church. Had a bad night, the big guy is away until Monday, and when I texted the friend I drive to church she, unexpectedly for her, begged off. Decided that was a sign that I should have a stay in bed morning, which I did. Might watch the service during the week.
 
A few of us had an interesting discussion after church today. We talked about the 'volunteer hours' question at the end of the Stats Report that all United Churches fill in. It turns out that almost everyone has a different idea of what a volunteer is! For example, some thought that choir members would not be considered volunteers. Nor would members of the quilting group who donates the money from their quilts to the church. The leaders of any group, if they were not paid, would be considered volunteers. I carried the discussion home and both husband and daughter had differing views. Interesting.
 
It was a busy day at church today. First off, our minister has encouraged me to knit in church. Today was the first time I considered bring knitting. If I'd had a pair of socks on the go, I would have brought them. So, Tif's message was about creative rest. She spoke of different creative endeavours that are part of rest. (Rest is the theme for Lent). Of course knitting was one creative endeavour. Too bad I wasn't knitting today. We had a few minutes to talk among ourselves about our creative rest. It was nice.

Church was followed by a build your own sandwich lunch where there was great discussion. We had a visioning session this afternoon. I enjoyed the facilitator. We talked about discernment. Each small group had a bible verse to discuss during our time. We discussed how god showed god's presence to people like Moses, Esther, Ezekiel, etc. It was a good session.

I'm pooped now.
 
Nancy said:
A few of us had an interesting discussion after church today. We talked about the 'volunteer hours' question at the end of the Stats Report that all United Churches fill in. It turns out that almost everyone has a different idea of what a volunteer is! For example, some thought that choir members would not be considered volunteers. Nor would members of the quilting group who donates the money from their quilts to the church. The leaders of any group, if they were not paid, would be considered volunteers. I carried the discussion home and both husband and daughter had differing views. Interesting.
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Imagine the diversity of this divine intervention of what was earlier conceived!
 
Northwind said:
It was a busy day at church today. First off, our minister has encouraged me to knit in church. Today was the first time I considered bring knitting. If I'd had a pair of socks on the go, I would have brought them. So, Tif's message was about creative rest. She spoke of different creative endeavours that are part of rest. (Rest is the theme for Lent). Of course knitting was one creative endeavour. Too bad I wasn't knitting today. We had a few minutes to talk among ourselves about our creative rest. It was nice.

Church was followed by a build your own sandwich lunch where there was great discussion. We had a visioning session this afternoon. I enjoyed the facilitator. We talked about discernment. Each small group had a bible verse to discuss during our time. We discussed how god showed god's presence to people like Moses, Esther, Ezekiel, etc. It was a good session.

I'm pooped now.
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Lay off, rest ... in the literal forces the powers get rid of labor ... and thus they expect the oppressed to go underground?

Moses went into relief in a cave as an unseen Muse ... powers do not like musing as it is too much like psyche gnawing ... chew it over! It is all in the enlightened digest but buried ... because of the urge to displace knowledge ... and it went uninhibited ... some observed it from dark corners!
 
We had a lovely service today. A mime "storyteller" with a lot of symbols to place, two narrators (I was one, the golden-voiced R____ was the other). Congregational participation, both in the on-going hymns, and as speakers in parts of the drama. Well done. Lots of kudos. The Rev is a dramatic genius, I swear.
 
I watched two church services today. It was good.

My current church was bittersweet. The minister will be leaving at the end of June because her husband got a full-time job in Smithers. They've been living apart since they got married in July and want to live together. Go figure. I will miss her because she's pretty awesome. At the same time, I wish her well.
 
At church Sunday my plans for next Sunday changed for the better. The pastor for the LAM needs to do the services at the other side of LAM next Sunday so I will be doing the services for Grenville and La Chute instead for Easter including communion. I need to add communion to the service I prepared Our daughter and grand children are staying with us next weekend so I will have about 3 more hours of time with them. The pastor was taking classes in Saskatoon the last few weeks so it was good to have her back. She is working on getting her DLM (Designated Lay Ministry. I was glad she put the emphasis on Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday was my favourite as a child because it was boistrously celebratory. As a minister, I resented the change to Palm/Passion Sunday. Every church I served had Good Friday services and several had Maundy Thursday services as well. The decision by liturgists that everyone had to experience Good Friday before Easter Sunday feels patronizing and disrespectful to me.
 
Northwind said:
They've been living apart since they got married in July and want to live together. Go figure.
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The UU fellowship went through something similar with their last fulltime minister. His wife was also a UU minister at a church in Michigan. In the end, though, he ended up moving back to the States because it had become clear that the fellowship could no longer sustainably support a fulltime minister. Too bad. He was a pretty good minister.

Right now, the fellowship has a part-time Director of Congregational Life who is a ministry student, but no ordained minister. Not sure what happens when she finishes her degree, though. If they ordain her, they should start paying her at ordained minister rates even if she remains part-time.

I have been eyeing a return to church (the UUs) but my weekends always seem to fill up. And I am not sure I am good fit there anymore. The services seem very focussed on social action, UU life, and things like that and I am not sure how my more spiritual approach of looking into images, myths and stories for meaning will be received now. The more liberal/progressive Christian churches are more spiritual, but have the disadvantage of still being very focussed on the Christian stories, without the broader approach that I value from UU.
 
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