Good day,

Bursting at the seams with joy is something that I mentioned in my sermon yesterday and, I’ve mentioned it here because it fits with our continuation of learning about The Holy Eucharist. More below…

First, here’s what’s happening:

Saturday, September 14, 8:30am at the Trinity Centre is the Guild of St. Joseph breakfast. Come enjoy a fabulous, hearty breakfast, great fellowship, and some spiritual wisdom. (Parking in the Northern Avenue lot marked “Tenant Parking” – also has church parking available.You can also park in the visitor spots in the lot off Garden River Road and then walk between the construction fence and the building to get to the Trinity Centre.)

Beginning Friday, October 4 is the annual Lay Readers’ Conference (anyone interested can attend – you don’t have to be a Lay Reader). It is in Parry Sound this year. More information on the conference and how to register is here: https://www.dioceseofalgoma.com/2024/08/22/layreaders-conference-october-4-6-2024-2/

A Big Heads Up…Saturday, November 23, 9:30am – noon in the Trinity Centre we will have an Advent Retreat for Lay Readers and other interested people. It will be our opportunity to gain fresh strength and inspiration before entering into Advent (which society pushes as a very busy time of year so we’ll need all of the refreshing we can get…)

A Liturgical Note For You:

A reminder first…All of our Christian liturgies hold for us, and form in us, theology and spirituality. The worship service of The Holy Eucharist does even more for us. The Holy Eucharist is covenant renewal, transformation in Christ, and affirmation of our identity as the body of Christ together.  Let me put these within our context as God’s people…

We are an Easter people, a resurrection people! When we come together to celebrate the Holy Eucharist we are coming together to rejoice. We are coming together in victory, in triumph! God has won the day through the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. The party has started, the victory is being celebrated in heaven. This is why we raise our voices along with the saints and angels and all who have gone before – we give thanks and glory to God for what has already been done. 

You could read some church-world greats like Tom Long and N.T. Wright and Harold Percy and Lesslie Newbiggin…and you’ll see they back up what I’m saying but, really, all you need to do is read through our Eucharistic Prayers. For starters…they are eucharistic prayers. That Greek word means “thanksgiving”.  These prayers are bursting at the seams with joy and hope and praise and thanksgiving…we have “life for evermore”, we are reconciled to God, we proclaim with joy and hope that we await his coming again, we feast at God’s kingdom table, and so on…These prayers, and the rest of the liturgy, are saturated with hope and joy.

It is such an incredibly joy-filled time as heaven and earth meet together and we bask in the fullness of God’s kingdom.  Jesus brought the kingdom. We live in the kingdom. The worship service of The Holy Eucharist is when we experience the fullness of that kingdom.  The meal that Jesus shared with his disciples, on the night he was betrayed, was the meal of the “new covenant”, the kingdom-feast. We renew our baptismal promises – to live life in God’s kingdom according to God’s ways – each and every time we share this meal together. We share together in our kingdom feast in God’s kingdom in our small gathering as a foretaste – and reminder – that one day everyone will be sharing God’s kingdom feast in the fullness of God’s kingdom throughout the entire world. 

Now, if that’s not a reason for joy and celebration, I don’t know what is. Rejoice! God reigns! Fill yourself with the deep joy of knowing God’s kingdom will come on earth as in heaven – let it renew and invigorate you and sustain you amid the brokenness still around us. And then, at the end of our worship time together, let it send you into the world as a coworker to hasten the coming fullness.  

For Your Devotions:

Monday, September 9 is the memorial of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. First, let me say that, actually, Sept.9 is not the day we celebrate Mary’s birth but it is this year. Why? Because it was yesterday – a Sunday – and that goes to reinforce the importance of our weekly celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ…even his mum’s birthday gets bumped when it lands on a Sunday. 🙂  Although information like this is not in our Scriptures, there is a writing dating from about 150 AD which says that Mary’s mother, Anna, was barren until visited by an angel after which, Mary was conceived. You may have noticed that our calendar celebrations are marked on the day of the death of the person being acknowledged but Mary is one of just three people whose birthday is celebrated. To find out why, follow this link:  https://www.thoughtco.com/nativity-of-the-blessed-virgin-mary-542466

 Tuesday, September 10th is the memorial of Edmund James Peck, a priest and missionary to the Inuit who died in 1924. His life in England got off to a rough start…When he was just 10 years old, his mother died and so he left school to work in a printing plant. His father died three years later. Peck joined the navy and eventually became a missionary headed for the Canadian North. He stayed among the Inuit from 1876-1884 then again in 1885-1892. His three children were born during this second stay. Peck is remembered not only for his evangelism but also for the Gospel texts he distributed in the native language of the Inuit. He notably chose many shamans to become the first Inuit ministers. For more info:  http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/peck_edmund_james_15E.html

Friday, September 13th is the memorial of Cyprian, the Bishop of Carthage, martyred in 258. Cyprian has a fascinating and complicated story but I’ll give you a few tidbits. He was born around 200 to wealthy pagan parents and practiced as a lawyer before his conversion to Christianity.  He faced several persecutions from Rome during his time as bishop – during the first one, Cyprian went into hiding and lost his authority and much of his credibility. However, he did redeem himself in the years that followed and in subsequent persecutions. Cyprian did much to establish our current views on the Church and he laid out a convincing position on the importance/authority of bishops within the Church. One of his most famous quotes is, “He no longer has God for his Father, who does not have the Church for his mother.” This is found in his treatise On the Unity of the Catholic Church which was actually used later by bishops of Rome to pull rank on other bishops even though Cyprian had not supported that position. To read more:  https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Cyprian-Christian-bishop

Saturday, September 14th is the feast of Holy Cross Day. (By the way, the 14th is the actual day of Cyprian’s martyrdom but we move it one day earlier because of the conflict with this Holy Day). Back in 335, the Emperor Constantine was building structures in Jerusalem on sites associated with Jesus’ crucifixion and tomb. Apparently, Constantine’s mother, Helena, discovered what was believed to be Jesus’ cross. To find out more about the history of this day – and why dishes heavy on basil are cooked today – you can go here: http://www.holidayscalendar.com/event/holy-cross-day/

In the joy of Christ,

Susan