Second Sunday of Advent

On this, the second week of Advent, we lit a candle for peace. This was done of course on Sunday morning, the morning after the church's annual "Round the World" potluck, which Rev. Dimock referred to in her sermon when she talked about family trees and how we are all part of God's family.  The sermon also referred to the lion laying down with the lamb. This made me think about how the radical ideas of Jesus relate to over-riding tribalism and going beyond the cruelty of the evolutionary survival of the fittest, about "do unto others" rather than "might makes right."

These themes resonated wonderfully with the historic commemoration of the 50 year anniversary of the ordination of women in the Presbyterian Church, with communion served entirely by women.  It was a great honour and an electric feeling to be part of this celebration of the Lord's supper and a wonderful moment to see all of the men in the sanctuary, larger then us, for the most part, and stronger, encouraging us to walk equally with them, and for us all to acknowledge the support by our church of the equality of women with men. It gave me a feeling, indeed, of peace. 

Rebecca B.
 

White Gift Sunday - December 18

Each year at St. Andrew's we collect books, wrap them in white paper, and donate them to a local school. This year, White Gift Sunday is December 18, when we dedicate the books we're donating. Below is a letter from the librarian of Queen Mary Public School, where our donations will be going this year.

---

Dear St. Andreans

Thank you so much for including Queen Mary Public School in the December 18, 2016 WHITE GIFT SUNDAY.

 We ALWAYS have a wish list for library books: 

• Puppies and kittens (non-fiction)
• Space (non-fiction)
• Joke books
• Star Wars (stories or character encyclopedias/visual dictionaries)
• Superheroes (stories or character encyclopedias/visual dictionaries)
• How to Draw anime or superheroes
• Origami (easy)
• Sports (hockey and soccer)
• Paw Patrol
• Barbie
• World record books
• Pretty much anything from the hot and new section

Thank you so very much.

Best,
Petra Alince
Librarian, Queen Mary Public School

Gathering of Solidarity, November 20th 2016

Over the past 6 days, hateful, racist messages have been spray-painted on 5 places of worship in Ottawa:  Parkdale United Church (for the second time since January), a synagogue, the home of a rabbi, a mosque and a Jewish Community Centre.

Yesterday, Karen and I and other members of St. Andrew’s joined 100’s and 100’s of others at the Machzikel Hadas Synagogue for a solidarity gathering.  Muslims, Jews and Christians came together to respond together to this vandalism.  As Rev. Anthony Bailey of Parkdale United Church said:  “Such behaviour must never, ever, be the norm – for any group.” 

As part of this service of solidarity yesterday, the whole congregation stood and read these words together, affirming our united stand against racism and our commitment to love, peace and acceptance.

Today, congregations all over Ottawa will be reading these words together as well.

Please stand with me, if you are able, and let us here at St. Andrew’s read these words together.

Here are the words of solidarity, written by members of the congregation of the Machzikel Hadas Synagogue.                      

                                     Expression of Solidarity and Gratitude
                                          Congregation Machzikel Hadas
                                                     November 19th, 2016

We gather together as a united community to express in words what we feel in our hearts.     Painful events of the past week have proven a number of important points.
Words of concern and empathy are more powerful than graffiti.
Expressions of love are more potent than expressions of hate.
The power of togetherness is stronger than the power of divisiveness.
A community standing together negates evil intentions.
Words of comfort heal the wounds of verbal assault.
A common commitment to everyone protects against an attack on anyone.

We are strong because we are resolute in our togetherness.
We are even stronger because we are cooperative in our diversity
We gather to focus on the good that inheres in all of us.
We gather to extol the mosaic that defines who we are.
We gather to celebrate the beauty of our community.
We gather to express our gratitude for the wonderful people who comprise this great city, our Nation’s Capital.
We gather to be thankful for living in this caring country, Canada.

We resolve, individually and collectively, to do all within our power to assure that this
Is the Canada that our children and theirs will inherit. 

Amen.

What are you waiting for?

I think that, sometimes, we Christians use prayer as a bit of a cop out. We think that, in praying for something, we have done all we can and that God will take care of the rest. We can check that off the list. Particularly at this time of year... "Come, Lord Jesus!" we cry over and over again, into the darkness. And then we sit back and wait for God to come into our midst and clean up our mess.

And yet the mess is still there on Boxing Day, isn't it?

Karen suggested a different kind of prayer to us this morning, though. A different way to be people of faith in this time of waiting. Basically, we need to get moving! Like the spy glass in her story, Micah and the other prophets show us that a different world is possible. Despite the fact that we are a mess, they remind us of God's love and show us the possibilities for our world.

And so it is up to us to carry the light of the candle of hope with us this week. There is so much darkness out there (literally and figuratively!), but that light is shining in us. It is up to us to go out and do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with our God.

"You pray for the hungry. Then you feed them. This is how prayer works."
Pope Francis

Laura S.

Celebrating Church

This morning I arrived in the Sanctuary as the choir was rehearsing, and between their joyous notes and the balloons at the front I knew we were in for a celebration. These last few weeks I've been especially yearning for church on Sundays and today it was definitely good to be in the house of the Lord.

Karen spoke to us today about Jeremiah. She told us how he was a prophet for years and years, and how when the nation was doing well Jeremiah was responsible to tell the king they were on the wrong path. And then at our point in the reading today, when things are grim, Jeremiah shows the people what hope looks like: he bought a field in soon-to-be occupied territory - and he showed people how to hold on to their hope in God's plan.

I've needed hope lately. It feels like the world is getting darker, and sometimes it feels like it's easier to see hate than love. But being in church always reminds me that we are God's people, we carry hope in Jesus Christ and we can trust God's good plan for us. Being in church reminds me that there are other people looking for what I'm looking for: connection with God. And being in church this morning, with the responsive readings, I appreciated hearing our voices raised together in unity, proclaiming what we believe in and refusing to give in to the darkness around us.

Jeremiah showed Baruch how to hold on to the deed claiming God's promise, to store it well and make sure it lasted through the years. This morning I felt the valuable gift God has given us in St. Andrew's church, and I understood why we need to work to make it last. Despite the difficulties around us, this Sunday church was a gratitude and hope-filled celebration, and that is a valuable gift.

Maureen R.

Reflections on November 11

I sat beside a veteran travelling alone on the bus to the Remembrance Day ceremony downtown this morning. He seemed very old; in fact he was well over ninety, he told me in an Indian accent. Tiny and brown-skinned, he wore a Sikh turban and beard net. There were four or five medals hanging on the left side of his navy blue uniform. I noticed that his shoes were very well polished. 

I wanted to take and post a photo of this amazing character, but I worried that it might be disrespectful. I wasn't even sure from our discussion in which conflict he had served.  It sounded to me like he had been with a Sikh unit during Partition, but I suppose if he was far enough into his nineties it could well have been WWII. He said there were lots of deaths where he served and he came to the Remembrance ceremonies whenever he could. 

After getting off the bus at Metcalfe Street I lost sight of him for a bit in the crowd heading toward the War Memorial. I lost sight because I was worriedly checking for him BEHIND me when he was actually well AHEAD, and when I saw him next he was executing a flawless slow-motion sprint across Elgin to beat the traffic light. 

Today, November 11, I'd like to say thank you to my remarkable bus buddy, thank you to all our veterans and thank you to all our serving members. Huddled at the Memorial in a cold wind watching our Prime Minister and his wife, the Vice-Regal couple and this year's Silver Cross mother lay their wreaths in front of a beautifully diverse assembly of faces and uniforms, I was reminded yet again of how blessed we Canadians are. Thank you, Lord, for the incomparable gift of peace. 

Joan R.

November 13, 2016

As I listened to Dr. Rev. Dimock’s meditation this morning my first thought was “Wow! I picked a tough week to write a blog post.”  But as I continued to listen, the idea that some parts of the Bible are a mirror in which we see ourselves while others act as a guide really resonated with me.  I often struggle to reconcile the violence in some of the Old Testament stories with a merciful and loving God.  I struggle to see God in the story of Esther which ends in the death of thousands of people. 

But as Dr. Rev. Dimock went on to discuss the tension between power and vulnerability it occurred to me that although we live in very different times, in some ways things are not so different.  Our own times are far from peaceful.  There is still hatred and intolerance in the world and it is still all too easy to let fear, anger, resentment and mistrust guide us rather than the lessons Jesus taught. 

When we feel threatened and vulnerable it is far too easy to begin thinking in terms of “us” versus “them” and to use what power we have to lash out at those who threaten us.  If Esther is the mirror, Matthew is the guide – “Let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven."  As I left church this morning, I left with a renewed resolve to work harder to apply the teachings of Christ in my own life, and the belief that in such a time as this His message of love, patience and forgiveness is more important than ever.

Melanie A.