- when I think of global perspective, it seems overwhelming....I don't know where to start

- I like having different cultures in the church, but sometimes I feel awkward talking to someone of another culture

- part of global awareness means recognizing how what we purchase can affect people in other parts of the world....buying from Ten Thousand Villages may help someone have a living, a pair of pants bought at the mall may have been made in a setting with deplorable living conditions 

Other comments?

I would really like us to plan for a Peace Vespers again next year and already have a few ideas:

- this year, we had already started planning Peace Vespers, and then thought it would be a good start to the Arts & Peace Festival, but I'd like us to be more deliberate about the connection between the two--maybe instead of having our own choir, could we be more deliberate in having a Peace Vespers choir where we would actually issue a broad invitation to anyone in other churches and in the community to take part

- in the prayer for the world, I'd like to include Australia next year--it wasn't include in our original source material so we simply left it this time, but for me it was a noticeable gap, and for next year I'd like to plan for Australia too

- could we further develop the prayer for the world by asking people from different areas to prepare a prayer in their own language along with an English translation that we could print in the folder.  That process of preparation would be a wonderful way to engage people in thinking about peace and what it means to pray for peace.

These are just a few ideas I have for next year that I wanted to set down while they're still fresh.  Were you at Peace Vespers this year?  Would you like to see one next year?  If you have a reading, a prayer, a piece of art, a poem, a liturgical dance, or something else you'd like to contribute, please keep it in mind for next year, or let me know and I'll remember for you :-)

So if you're looking for a good night out, there's still time to catch one of the remaining performances.  Gallery 7 has come a long way from the basement of the Eben-Ezer Mennonite Church to the stage at MEI--congratulations on a great production and a fun nght out! 

I like the Scripture quotations scattered throughout the book, the clear explanations of Bible stories, the discussion of various interpretative and historical issues involved in understanding the Bible--these are all over-simplified by the author's own admission since any one of these could fill an entire book on its own, but it's done very fairly I think and  makes for a very entertaining and informative read.

This book could only have been written by a man--you'll see why when you see the beard he grows as part of his quest and hear his account of dancing in religious celebration with several hundred Hasidic men--but it makes me ask questions about my own faith and the writing process.  How do I understand and interpret the Bible and live it out in my own life?  If I were to write a book about living biblically--if you were to write a book about living biblically--what would it say?

Have any of you read this book? 

I gave him a ride home after the service, since he and his family have moved a little further away from the church.  And then he insisted that I come in to say a prayer of blessing on his family for Thanksgiving; so I could see how much his grandson had grown; so I could greet his wife, whom I had visited and prayed over at their request once before when she was recovering from eye surgery.  And then of course, I must have a glass of apple juice and a chocolate chip cookie and visit with him and his wife and daughter, who hugged me and said thank you and they will think about coming to one of our English classes.

I got home from church a bit later than I expected that Sunday, but at the same time I was glad to spend the time with them and to receive their blessing of thanks and hospitality in return.  Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

We're not quite sure where all this leaves greeters who normally shake hands with people as they welcome them to the church, and I'm not quite sure what I should do since I normally also shake hands with people as they leave the sanctuary.  To shake or not to shake, that is a question!  Shall we rub elbows instead as some suggest? (although since people are being told to sneeze into their arms, I wonder about that!)  Or bow as my husband suggests?  Offer hand sanitizer to each another?  Wave?  Dismiss all this as an over-reaction?  

We're not banning handshaking as some churches have done--beyond the few suggestions I've outlined here, our deacons and Worship Committee are leaving it up to individuals to decide what they will do.  Let's do that with sensitivity and care for others--if you extend your hand and receive a bow in return, I hope you'll understand, and if no one reaches out to you, I hope you'll still feel welcomed and cared for in the church.

One of the songs we sang was "Teach Me Kingdom Ways" and if you're familiar with that song, you might have noticed that there was a slight change in wording.  One line of the original song was "In a world of masks, teach me how to be me"--which seemed so 70s to me, and also not quite in the spirit of community, so we changed it to "In a world of masks, teach me how to be real"--it doesn't quite rhyme the way it should and unfortunately we weren't able to track down the original author for permission, but I hope it was ok this one time to clarify that particular line as a call for authenticity. 

Earlier this year, one of our adult Sunday school classes identified these three core values for our congregation:  Anabaptism, Community, Global Perspective.  What do these things really mean?  Do they adequately define who we are? Do we agree with this list?  Or is there some other value that should be listed in the top three, and if so, which of these gets demoted?   

Thanks to the clerk at the post office who carried the almost 50 lb box of books to the car for me, thanks to Trent for carrying the box from my car to the Welcome Centre, and thanks to Gary for being at the Welcome Centre!

For some, the talk-about time was too short (which was a good thing, since they could continue their conversation later), or too long (I’m sorry, it WAS longer than the two minutes as advertised), something to definitely try again (although not next Sunday!), or not (I noticed that some preferred to continue reflecting on their own, which was fine too).

I actually found the morning to be very energizing (which some would say defines me as a classic extrovert) but also tiring (which is my introvert side). For me it was a great start to a new year! 
 

So I’ve been thinking….why not actually add some small group discussion time to the service immediately after the sermon? A couple of weeks ago, we had some quiet time for reflection after my sermon on church unity. As I said at that time, “A sermon isn’t really finished until you’ve had a chance to think about it, to talk about it, and most important to live it out during the week. That’s the real sermon.” So instead of simply reflecting quietly on our own as we did to close the sermon time that Sunday, why not go a step further and actually talk with one another about it? Our time is limited, but why not at least try a two-minute talk-about?  That at least gives us a chance to say something beyond hello and could spark further conversation and interaction after the service too.

I realize this may be scary for some, but I know that others will welcome the chance to say something more than good morning to whoever is sitting beside them. So I’d like us to try it on our Back to Church Sunday, Sept. 13. Are you willing to give it a go?