Thursday, October 19, 2023
Hello everyone,
I am a little late with these musings this week. It has been a very full week at St. Andrew’s. I want to take the time to share a couple things we can celebrate right now:
Session spent time with Jackee Arlein-Roth last night talking about Camp K. It was beautiful – characterized by a quote from Jackee – ‘The laughter of children is the joy of God’. What a beautiful sentiment and a deep reality. We are fortunate to have people like Jackee offer their leadership here at St. Andrew’s.
Last Sunday four churches worshipped within our building. We welcomed St. Peter’s for the first time. They met at 10 am in Covenant Chapel and all went well. St. Peter’s will be with us for the next year as they continue in the adventure of restructuring their building with the addition of 41 low cost housing units being added to their building. Nexus Church met at 10 am in Iona Hall. They are still locked out of their meeting place at the Conrad Centre. They have deeply appreciated our hospitality and want to make a presentation to St. Andrew’s on a Sunday morning. They have expressed interest in possible conversations with us about a longer term relationship to use our building once their contract at the Conrad Centre is complete (June 2024). Please pray for both congregations. The third and fourth congregations meeting in the church this past Sunday were of course ourselves at 10 pm and the Hungarian congregation at 12 pm in Covenant Chapel. For those who were present on Sunday there was a beautiful feeling in the air – a mixture of excitement, love, unity, care, and hospitality. I swear I heard the building shouting out with
joy! 😊 Having four or even five congregations using our building on a regular basis may indeed be the exciting future God has in store for us.
Lauren Wasyluk has been working on a Communication and Engagement policy and manual that will help us to stay focused on our purpose as a congregation, as well as communicate more effectively both internally and out into the community. The work Lauren is doing is instrumental. It will set the groundwork for deeper engagement in the life and mission of the church. I am very excited about this. Lauren is doing a great job. The month of November has been chosen as the month we will try to roll all of this out to the congregation. At the same time we are working hard to match that initiative with worship services that help us to focus ourselves as a congregation ready to meet the challenges of being a church in society today. More about that in future musings. But for now it is good to remind ourselves that God is at work in our world. God is actively at work within St. Andrew’s. God is at work in each of our lives.
Andrew, Diana and myself had a meeting with Sheena Merling yesterday about her vision for healing and reconciliation as St. Andrew’s and the Children and Youth Healing Space headed up by Sheena explore options. Sheena is a powerful visionary – sometimes it is hard to keep up with her because her ideas flow so freely and so quickly. But it is exciting. Sheena has a vision that we can work together to create strong healing relationships in the lives of people right at the doorstep of the church. It is daunting. It is thrilling. It seems impossible. But we need to remember that the Creator is at work in our midst. Where there is a vision, things will happen. We need to review Sheena’s proposals and consider appropriate timelines. Sheena has connections to youth in the community that will provide volunteers. Already 7 people have signed up to support Candy Jam organized by Andrew Hight on October 29. This may just be the beginning.
The session created a task force to address the annual budget deficits we experienced last year and may well experience again this year. On Tuesday morning, October 24 we are meeting with representatives from Trinity Presbyterian Church in York Mills. They were able to utilize their building to create funding that not only addressed their deficit but allowed for increased mission and ministry opportunities by adding to staff. This ties into the new mission statement approved by the session for the building itself. It also ties into the idea of having multiple congregations using our facility. And it also involves offering Covenant Chapel for use by a number of groups for day retreats, meetings and other activities. Again this is all very exciting and we will keep you posted.
As you can see there is lots happening within St. Andrew’s. There is rarely a dull moment. Please keep the church in your prayers. And as you pray, please remember the horrific conflict in Israel and Palestine. A prayer circulated by the Mennonite Central Committee is helpful here. Please pray with me:
O God of life and love and peace,
We witness the violence and injustice in your Holy Land
And our hearts break.
Our hearts break for the people of Israel—
For the victims of violent attacks by Hamas
For those who live with fear and insecurity
For those who suffer from the inter-generational trauma of violence.
Our hearts break for Palestinians—
For the victims of violent attacks by the Israeli military
For those being denied water, electricity and medical care
For those who are refugees, long displaced from their homes.
We especially pray—
That weapons of war be laid down
That walls of separation be dismantled
That prisoners be released
That demonizing of “the other” cease
That political leaders seek the good of all people in Palestine and Israel.
O God, whose heart breaks for the world,
May your justice dwell in the land
May your righteousness abide in fruitful fields
May the effect of righteousness be quietness and trust forever
May the effect of justice be peace—enduring peace.
Amen.
Marty