May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be always with you! This is going to be a shorter-than-usual mid-week message this week as I am getting ready to head to PEI for the Annual Meeting of the Fundy St. Lawrence Dawning Waters Regional Council of the United Church of Canada this weekend, along with Bette Ashley who will be representing our churches. (This is the meeting that replaces Maritime Conference since the church restructured in 2019.) This is also our first in-person meeting since 2019 - Zoom was good when we needed it, but it is very hard to network and build relationships when you have a couple hundred people on a Zoom call. And so on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday we will be in meetings that discuss who we are and plan for what we want to do as a region, we will attend workshops, we will worship together (it is so energizing to worship with such a large group), and we will all probably stay up far too late in the common areas of the dorms solving all of the world's problems. I sit on the Region's Pastoral Relations Committee (the committee that oversees the relationship between churches and their ministers across NB, PEI, and the Gaspé), and because I joined this committee in January 2021, I have only met the others on the Zoom screen. I look forward to meeting them in real life this weekend! In terms of announcements this week:
Worship on Sunday will be at Long Reach at 9:15 and Westfield and on FB Live at 11:15. Kathy Roy will be our worship leader as I will still be on PEI, and the scripture reading is the Pentecost Story - Acts 2:1-21. Feel free to wear your reds and oranges and yellows on Sunday to mirror the flames and wind of the Holy Spirit in the story!
We had the draw on Sunday morning for the two pairs of tickets to "Rock Around the Clock" - congratulations to Ticket Gillan and JoAnne Downton (from Patterson United Church)! For all of you who didn't win the free tickets, they are still available for purchase on Eventbrite. Please note that tickets will not be available at the door for this concert and must be purchased in advance. (For those of you unfamiliar with Eventbrite, you can either print off the ticket that they issue and show that at the door, or you can show it on your phone/tablet - whichever is easiest for you.) https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/rock-around-the-clock-a-musical-game-show-and-costume-party-tickets-622034270247
Bible Study has ended for the summer and will reconvene in the fall!
A reminder of the workshop next Monday, May 29, at Quispamsis United Church, all about pronouns - how to respect people by using their correct pronouns. This will be from 7-9, and will be led by Tori (they/them).
We had an Official Board Meeting last Wednesday with a full agenda. I put a summary on the Two Rivers Facebook Page, but in case you missed it there, here are some of the major discussion items we explored:
1) A discussion around what the future church might look like. What will Two Rivers Pastoral Charge look like in 2033? What will the world around us look like in 2033?
2) A few minor changes are coming to the worship livestreaming beginning last Sunday. (Check out our new camera angle, for one thing!)
3) Blessings were given to Rev. Kate's 3-month sabbatical in the winter of 2024. Planning is now underway.
4) Our masking policy was reviewed - we will continue to have masks and hand sanitizer available at the church door, but masking during worship will now be optional. (We continue to strongly encourage you to either wear a mask or worship at home via the livestream if you have any cold or 'flu symptoms.)
5) A remit (denomination-wide vote) was introduced regarding establishing an Autonomous Indigenous Church. More information will be shared with Official Board members for discussion and voting in the fall.
6) The board agreed to send a letter to the provincial government expressing our concern over the current review of Policy 713. You can read a copy of this letter on the Two Rivers Pastoral Charge Facebook Page.
I tried to keep this message short and sweet, I promise!
Blessings to you and yours, today and always,
Kate.
PS: If you think that this e-mail looks different than the emails usually look, you are correct - MailChimp, the site I usually send these from so as to prevent gmail from flagging me as spamming people, has recently implemented monthly e-mail limits. I am fine in months with 4 Wednesdays, but in months with 5 Wednesdays I will have to send out one message straight from my gmail account. Technology; sigh.
Rev. Kate Jones
Two Rivers Pastoral Charge
(506) 757-2201 (office)
(506) 343-1307 (mobile)
www.tworiverspastoralcharge.com
Pronouns: she/her/hers "Teacher, what is the greatest commandment in the law?" Jesus replied, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: "You must love your neighbour as you love yourself." (Matthew 22:36-39)
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