A new perspective on Holy

There were lots of religious conventions Jesus turned upside down. The last shall be first, for example. Or the rich shall be poor. If someone strikes you, turn the other cheek. But I'd never really thought about the concept of HOLY being flipped.

Rev. Bill MacLellan talked to us this morning about the power of holy. We read from Ezekiel where some of the laws regarding clean and unclean are described. They are numerous and they are specific! These rules, says Ezekiel,  "shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean."

Rev. Bill reminded us that we know about the concept of holy. It's something to be guarded and protected, something that can be broken. We tell our kids, don't run or speak too loudly in the sanctuary, it's a holy place! But Jesus taught us it's the other way around - the holiness has the power to break the unholy.

Jesus was not afraid to get his hands dirty. We read about him getting close to the man with so many demons his name was Legion (Luke 8:26-39). And we know there are so many other examples of Jesus spreading holiness, rather than trying to keep the holiness pure and separate. He dined with sinners and he spoke with tax collectors and prostitutes. Jesus knew that the holy wouldn't get tainted by touching the unholy, instead it would overcome the unholy!

Christine talked with the kids about a vanilla bean, and how it looks unremarkable but flavours so many of the good things we like to eat. And similarly, a little vanilla in a cake doesn't change the nature of the vanilla (it's not the vanilla that tastes like cake!) instead it's the cake that is improved by the vanilla.

Did you read the Lighthouse article in the most recent Presbyterian Record? I happened to read it with my coffee before church this morning, so it may have reflected strongly on how I heard the sermon. But I heard Rev. Bill telling us that we don't need to fear preserving the HOLY, instead we need to open the doors and let the Holy out. We have been given great gifts of mercy and love and forgiveness and it's important that we spread our arms wide to share the love of God.

Maureen R.

Sunday June 12

Today's service was invigorating, with a particularly moving vocal and trumpet solo to open it, and the great new energy brought in by the ordination of eleven new elders.  It was of particular interest for me to hear Rob R. read out the passage from St. Paul's letter to the Romans in contemporary language. 

Much as going to weddings reminds us our own wedding vows, attending a service of ordination of elders is a helpful reminder for us, whether we are elders, members, adherents or visitors to this church, of how our role involves bringing integrity to all of our work and life roles, and in that integrity seeking to do justice and follow the way of the Lord.  On a more mundane level, it is certainly encouraging to see the infusion of new energy that our substantial contingent of new elders can bring to the workings of our day-to-day worship, Christian education, and fellowship.  So, welcome, all!

Rebecca B.

June 5, Celebration of the Lord's Supper

Communion. A time to remember a time for thanks.

Each time we take communion together the words “do this in remembrance of me” come rolling off our tongues. Sometimes it seems we hear the words and remember the loss of our lord and the pain and suffering of his final hours. This is the sad part of the words do this in remembrance of me. These are the reality of his loss but do we take the time to remember how much we gained from his life?

Karen spoke today about Bread from Heaven. Now when we read in Exodus about manna or bread from heaven we take it literally as food for the body. Of course one may also view it as food for the soul and the spirit. Both meanings are quite reasonable and necessary for survival.

However have we narrowed the meaning of the word bread too far? Bread is of course food and is a means of sustaining our life. Can a person be the bread? Is it possible that like in Exodus manna from heaven was sent to us and we simply did not recognize it?

Jesus brought us the Word in flesh. He gave us the strength of conviction and faith to make the blind see the, sick cured, the disabled walk and the afflicted clean. More than that however he gave us the word to sustain us, the faith to fill us. His very life was the bread of our souls. Is it possible when he took the bread and the wine he meant us to see that he was the word in flesh to sustain us. Not to makes us sad at his loss but happy at his presence. Like anyone important in our life, their death can makes us sad but it was their life that gave us life. Let us share joy at his being not sadness at his going.

So each time we eat or drink in his memory, let us celebrate the life that was.

“Do this in remembrance of me.”

Noral R.

Trinity Sunday

It was Trinity Sunday today and I appreciated Rev. Sandy Scott talking with us about the Holy Spirit and being a Spirit filled church. As Presbyterians, we (or maybe it's just me?) tend to shy away from talking about the Spirit. I prefer a Christianity that fits in my intellect, one that I can pretend to understand.

But Rev. Scott talked about how the Spirit guides us and helps us understand God's wisdom. He spoke about the spiritual exercises of Ignatius of Loyola and using his method of reading, prayer and meditation to listen for God's truth and the movement of the Holy Spirit. One comment in the sermon that will stick with me throughout this week was when he suggested we picture ourselves in the well-known story of Lazarus. Are we comforting his sisters? Are we at the back of the crowd, trying to get in close enough to see in the tomb? What if we're Lazarus?

What if we're Lazarus? How do you live after being raised from the dead? Everything he did from that day on would be affected by that single event of God in his life.

Guided by the truth shown through the Spirit, we are empowered to live the ministry and teachings of Jesus. I was encouraged this morning to make room for the Spirit, and to listen with open ears.

Maureen R.

Pentecost Sunday

Today is Pentecost Sunday, the day on which the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles, the day on which was launched the large-scale spreading of the Gospel after Jesus' ascension, the day which is considered the "birthday" of the church and which is marked by the colour red, symbolizing the fire of the Holy Spirit. It was a joy to see so much red scattered here and there in the congregation.

During today's time with the children, Christine spoke about birthdays and what sorts of things are associated with them.  The children talked about cake and ice cream and presents and friends and balloons.  Christine took them up on this theme and presented them with a deflated balloon.  It had the right shape and the right form, of course, but was flat...something was missing!  She walked the children through the recitation of the fruit of the Spirit which she likened to the breath of joy and life needed to inflate the balloon and by the same token, needed to bring joy and life to the church. A remarkable reminder of what is needed to keep us all from bringing lip-service only or being "flat" and of the glory of a full life of worship and service. 

May I reiterate the words of Galatians 5:22, 23a: The fruit of the Spirit is joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. And may I humbly ask God to grant each of us the fruit of the Spirit today and always. 

Laura M.

How will we understand?

Rev. Karen began her sermon with a real life example of understanding - or not.  We can all sympathize with those who have been faced with assembling something like a BBQ. Often the diagrams are difficult to interpret, sometimes there is a piece missing and other times there is an extra piece with no apparent place to go.

As she pointed out, a lot can be learned from this experience.   We should ask ourselves what have we learned from other life experiences. Sometimes we miss seeing the big picture when we are so focused on the assembly diagrams and steps.

At some point, we realize we need assistance - even if we hate to admit it!  Using the readings from Acts, Rev. Karen focused on Philip and what did he really understand when he met the Ethiopian on the road. The early church was spreading out and conversations like this one were becoming more important.  Philip was the first missionary.

"The Way" was not what had been figured out in the time of Philip but he recognized he was on the way - but not there yet. We are all on our way and along with all the detours, changes and dead ends there are lots of people to assist.  We should not let our fear of not knowing (whether it is a BBQ or the scriptures) stop us from asking for help.

It is better if we all take a risk.  We are called to do this in God's church.  It is better to learn and to travel together in faith. As Karen concluded, "It is an amazing journey."

Jeanie H.

Message from the Moderator of the PCC: Pray for the People of Fort McMurray.

We are deeply saddened by the fires of Fort McMurray. We cannot begin to imagine the stress and panic that many must be feeling as they sit helplessly watching these unfolding events. We are also mindful of the exhaustion firefighters on the front lines must be feeling. Our prayers are clearly with everyone facing these challenges. May God’s strength uphold all those seeking to cope with this tragedy and may the desperately needed rains come quickly.

The Rev. Karen Horst
Moderator, 2015 General Assembly

Donations to relief efforts can be made through Presbyterian World Service & Development.
Please mark your donation as Alberta Fires.

From: http://presbyterian.ca/2016/05/04/moderator-calls-to-pray-fort-mcmurray