Good day!

First, an important note for all those who make sure the colour we see in the church is the correct colour for the day:  The Anglican Church calendar contains a blooper…Sunday, June 9th is not Father’s Day and it is not white.  Sorry, gentlemen. As saintly as some of you may be, we do not have white hangings in the church for Father’s Day. White is nearly exclusively reserved for those Holy Days associated with the salvation given to us through Jesus Christ. So, if June the 9th were Father’s Day, it would not be white. And June 16 – which is Father’s Day – is not white either. 

Lots happening…

Wednesday, June 12 at St. Vincent Place: The Algoma Angels will be providing the Wednesday meal for people of our community and for the men who currently live at St. Vincent Place. Want to be an angel?  Your help would be appreciated. We gather between 1:30 – 2pm at St. Vincent Place to assemble the meals for distribution. 

Thursday, June 13, 7pm at St. Luke’s Cathedral: The Very Rev. Dr. Jay Koyle will be installed as the Dean of our diocese and incumbent of the cathedral parish. See you there…

Tuesday, June 25, 6pm -8pm at St. Luke’s Cathedral: “The Bible: Hearing it Again for the First Time”.  Jay and Susan Koyle will be exploring with us fascinating and insightful stats and viewpoints to help us engage meaningfully with our most sacred text. Why bother with this? Well, engaging with Scripture is at the top of the list of the characteristics of healthy, thriving congregations (along with well done worship, of course). Supper is provided. Please have a look at the poster below for more information. (People will be able to join in electronically…more info to follow).

Coming Soon…Stuff-a-Stocking fundraiser for Christmas gifts. The Algoma Angels will soon be gearing up for the Christmas gift ministry we undertake each year for struggling families in our community. We provide gifts for many of the families enrolled in the Lunches for Learning programme that is run by St. Vincent Place. A few dollars from you will go a long way…Stay tuned for more information. 

A Liturgical Note For You:

It’s that time again…here is a reminder: We are now in “Ordinary Time” which means the colour on the altar and other hangings will change from white to green.  There really is nothing “ordinary” about it:  “ordinary” doesn’t mean “usual” or “normal” in church use. Ordinary comes from the Latin word meaning orderly or numbered.  (The Latin word ordinalis, which refers to numbers in a series, stems from the Latin word ordo, from which we get the English word “order”.) 

So, the Sundays in “Ordinary Time” are numbered after an important Sunday that has just passed, that is, Sundays after the Epiphany and Sundays after Pentecost. It is the use of the word “after” that tells you they aren’t a part of the other seasons of the church (Christmas and Easter; and their times of preparation – Advent and Lent). Ordinary time is when we hear the teachings of Jesus as he lived his mission among us and, with this as our guide, it is our time to renew our focus on the mission of the Church under his Lordship.  

This year, we will mostly be traveling through the story of Jesus’ mission as written by Mark.  An adventure lies ahead… 

For Your Devotions:

Monday, May 27th is the commemoration of John Charles Roper, Archbishop of Ottawa, died 1940. The Archbishop was not only a great scholar but was also able to put his ideas into action. He was highly influential in the Anglican Church during the Prayer Book reform of 1918, the depression of the 1930’s, and at the Lausanne Conference on Faith and Order in 1927 (which was a step towards the foundation of the World Council of Churches). He was deeply devoted to prayer and provided an amazing example as he readily shared his spiritual gifts. For more info…  https://friardavidop.blogspot.com/2010/05/john-charles-roper.html

Thursday, May 30th is the commemoration of Roberta Elizabeth Tilton, the founder of the Women’s Auxiliary of the Canadian Church. Roberta Elizabeth was born into a world where women did not have the right to vote and, in fact, were not legally considered persons. They were not even allowed to have a bank account.  I am thankful for women like her!  She was a champion not only for women but also worked endlessly against all ills in society…  https://www.acwcanada.com/our-history.html

Friday, May 31st is the Holy Day of The Visit of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Elizabeth. This is the moment when, even before his birth, John the Baptist witnesses to Jesus Christ. This story is only found in the Gospel of Luke and Luke uses it to bring together the old and new…the covenant made by God with Abraham and Moses is about to be fulfilled in Jesus Christ. This is what John the Baptist will be born to proclaim. See p.180 for more…  http://c2892002f453b41e8581-48246336d122ce2b0bccb7a98e224e96.r74.cf2.rackcdn.com/ForAlltheSaints.pdf

Saturday, June 1st is the memorial of Justin, Martyr at Rome, Teacher, died about 167. Justin was a pagan who delved deeply into philosophy, particularly that of Plato. He had a mysterious encounter with an old man on a beach one day. This old man showed to Justin the contradictions of his philosophy and the truth of Christianity. Justin was baptized a Christian and sought to show the pagans the main points of contact between philosophy and Christianity (and then moved on to demonstrate how Christianity was the complete truth).He is one of the most important Christian teachers/writers of our Church. Justin made the mistake of publicly besting a well-known pagan philosopher in a debate. That philosopher then made a point of bringing Justin to the attention of the Roman authorities who killed not only him but several of his students as well. To read more… https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Justin-Martyr

In the joy of the risen Christ,

Susan