Hello,
It certainly is a beautiful day in the Soo…
Coming Up:
In Person Easter Book Study: The Meal that Jesus Gave Us: Understanding Holy Communion by N.T. Wright. Thursday, Apr.23 & Tuesday, Apr.28 at 4pm (this is a time change from the original) in the Trinity Centre. What better time than during Easter, just following Jesus’ institution of this meal with his disciples, than to learn more about this astounding gift. You don’t need to have the book to benefit from the discussion. More dates to be announced soon…
Elvis has been postponed! Unfortunately, “Elvis” has pneumonia and his show will be moved into May – I believe it’s now scheduled for May 2…Stay tuned for confirmation of the new date. Still $5 entry; $2 hotdogs; other snacks and drinks will be available too. Email susan.montague2@gmail.com or phone 705-254-1692 to get a ticket.
Movie Night: “I Can Only Imagine”, Friday, April 24, 6pm in the Trinity Centre. ($5 entry; free snacks)
$5 Monthly Meal: Perogies and coleslaw and dessert…Friday, May 1, 5pm take out; 5:30pm eat-in. Email susan.montague2@gmail.com or phone 705-254-1692 to order.
A Liturgical Note For You: Good Shepherd Sunday…Jesus and Us
The Gospel reading for this upcoming Sunday (April 26) is the beginning of the Good Shepherd discourse (John 10:1-10). Interestingly, Jesus names himself as the gate in this part of the discourse, not as the shepherd. (I hope you hear a good sermon on why this may be the case). Also, what I find curious is that, rather than continue this discourse over consecutive Sundays so that we hear all of it in a row, this discourse is continued over consecutive years. On each of our Fourth Sundays of Easter in Years A, B, and C, we hear a chunk of this Good Shepherd discourse (the Roman Catholic, Lutheran, and United Methodist congregations do this, too). Because of these Gospel readings, the Fourth Sunday of Easter has come to be known as Good Shepherd Sunday. This eventually led us to pray for the vocations of all the ordained and those who have dedicated their lives to the church by becoming Sisters and Brothers of various religious orders. In fact, this Sunday is now the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. It would be very appropriate then to acknowledge this in The Prayers of the People. We should include, too, the ministries of all the baptized in our prayers this day. It is through baptism that we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit who equips us with the spiritual gifts that enable us to walk with God toward the fulfillment of God’s purpose…(God’s will, God’s kingdom on earth as in heaven). We all know that, without the dedicated members of Christ’s body who are not ordained, the church would be a pale shadow of what we are meant to be. So let’s celebrate Jesus – our Good Shepherd – and let’s celebrate who we are together in him…and let the baptismal water flow!
For Your Devotions:
Tuesday, April 21st is the memorial of Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury, Teacher of the Faith, died 1109. Anselm contributed a lot to our faith as we know it. He coined the phrase “Faith Seeking Understanding” in reference to theology (yes, faith and reason are compatible) and he formed the model of atonement known as “The Satisfaction Theory of Atonement” based on the feudal system he was a part of. In this theory, Anselm says Jesus gave himself as a gift to appease an angry God so that we wouldn’t have to die. Although his theory has merit in certain respects, many scholars take issue with a few points – especially the angry God part. I could say an awful lot but let me just point out that, throughout the entirety of the passion narrative – no matter which Gospel you read – the only anger on display is that of humankind. To read more p.146: https://www.anglican.ca/wp-content/uploads/For-All-The-Saints.pdf
Thursday, April 23rd is the commemoration of George, Patron of England, Martyr in the 4th century. George was a Roman soldier and a Christian. In those days, that was not allowed – Christians could not be soldiers and Roman Emperors didn’t want Christians in their armies…in fact, some Roman Emperors didn’t want Christians around – period. So, you know this story isn’t going to end well. George actually died without having been baptized as a Christian. This was a very common practice because people believed that if they sinned after their baptism then those sins stayed with them. As a soldier who was expected to kill people, George didn’t want that sin within him when he died and so he planned to be baptized when he retired from the army. He didn’t get the chance. The emperor, Diocletian, wanted to purge Christianity from his empire and so embarked on one of the bloodiest persecutions ever. George was tortured and decapitated but his martyrdom was seen as a baptism in itself – suffering for his beliefs just as Christ had. To read more p.148: https://www.anglican.ca/wp-content/uploads/For-All-The-Saints.pdf
Friday, April 24th is the memorial of the Martyrs of the Twentieth Century. This may seem hard to believe but, in the 20th century, there were more martyrs – those who died for their belief in Christ and the way of God’s kingdom – than at any other time in our history. There are too many to list here…those who died in the Soviet Union, in Germany, and in dozens of other places around the globe…so please read more on p.150: https://www.anglican.ca/wp-content/uploads/For-All-The-Saints.pdf
Saturday, April 25th is the Holy Day of St. Mark the Evangelist. Mark – the author of our earliest Gospel, in the 60’s AD – is a name mentioned a number of times in the New Testament. He is believed to have been a traveling companion of Paul. Scholars also speculate that he was one of Jesus’ 72 disciples as well as the young man who runs away at the time of Jesus’ arrest. The Egyptian church names Mark as its founder and legend has it that Mark died in Alexandria. His symbol is a lion. It is believed that Mark was writing during the first period of really intense Christian persecutions so for some interesting thoughts on how this shaped his Gospel, please read p.152: https://www.anglican.ca/wp-content/uploads/For-All-The-Saints.pdf
In the joy and hope of the risen Christ,
Susan
Deanery of Algoma 