Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship

02/03/2023

THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Feb 5, 2023, Fifth Sunday of Epiphany, Holy Holiday. If you have any questions, or are interested in a conversation, contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell 919-444-9111; [email protected] and visit www.communityofpilgrims.com.
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Dear Community of Pilgrims,

Check your calendar and be sure to join us on Sunday, Feb. 12, at 12 noon for a Town Hall meeting of The Community of Pilgrims. We are holding it at 12 noon because there is a Super Bowl game on that same day. This Town Hall meeting is a chance for the members of the Community of Pilgrims to talk about our thoughts and feelings about moving forward. We will discuss our options, service projects in the possible future, and Fellowship days and times, whether we will continue to meet weekly or monthly. What does our future look like as the Community of Pilgrims? What are our options? Leadership? Why have we all been coming, Sunday after Sunday, for almost six years? What do we not want to lose? What do we want to see in the future? Join us for this Town Hall gathering!

The week’s Scripture focus is Matthew 5:13-20. It is all about being salt of the earth, and light of the world; a city on a hill, which cannot be hidden. It is all part of the Beatitudes, which stretches over two chapters in Matthew. It is both an invitation—want to be salt of the earth? Light of the world? And it is affirmation and statement of fact: You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world! And here’s the thing to remember. The “you” in this passage is “you” plural. In other words, it isn’t about each individual being salt and light. We are the salt of the earth. We are the light of the world. Why? How? Because Christ’s Spirit is in each one of us, making the world in which we live that much more sassy, with a zing for truth and justice. Christ’s Spirit of light shines through us, as if we were stained glass windows, casting light upon the hidden injustices and oppression in this world. Friends: Be Salt! Be Light!

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Events!



Feb. 5, Holy Holiday.

Feb. 12, 12 noon, Gather and Devotion on Zoom.

Feb. 19, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church. Pastor Brett’s last Sunday.




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Prayers of Celebration and Concern

We pray to the Creator of all creation:

We are thankful for:

· The opportunity that Brett has to serve La Mesa Presbyterian Church in Albuquerque, NM;

· For Christian’s mom’s successful transition to assisted living, with supportive family;

· Hazel Fergus Anderson’s third week of life;

· Chuck and Bill’s birthdays!

· A pastoral selection at Eastwoods Presbyterian Church in Vancouver, WA;

We are concerned for:

· Chuck’s son, Jim, who fell and has a concussion and other injuries from a fall;

· Ukraine, Yemen, Syria, Israel, Palestinian lands, Peru, Iran, Myanmar, Syria, Afghanistan, and Ethiopia, to name a few places where there is war and strife;

· Cathy Ross’ loss of a dear friend, Joyce, who passed away in the past week;

· The family of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, TN, and gun control in the US;

· Transgender youth and drag queens;

· The Quesnels.

· Family’s struggling with COVID, RSV, and the flu.



God in your love, receive and attend our prayers. Amen



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Poem

Blessing of Salt, Blessing of Light, by Jan Richardson

By the time you come

To the end of this blessing

These words will be barely enough

To fit in the palm of your hand



But fold your fingers around them

And take them

As an offering

A sacrament

A sing:



Touch the words to your tongue

And taste how

They have traveled

Through marrow and bone

To reach you,

How they have passed

Through each chamber

Of the heart,

How they have come

Through the layers

That make up the soul:

The strata of stories

And questions,

Longings and

Dreams.



Savor the way the words

Are not mere residue

Or dross,

The bitter leavings from the refining.



By their taste

You will know instead

They are the essence

They are the core

They are what has come

Through the burning.



Holding still

The memory of fire

And the imprint of light;

Holding the clarity that comes

When all that is not needful

Passes away.



So take these words

As a blessing; touch them

To your mouth

(may you taste)

Your eyes

(may you see)

Your ears

(may you hear)



And then let them go,

Let them fall to earth

Where all salt finally goes.

See the path they make

For you,

The path that blazes

Inside of you

Lighting the way

Ahead of you

That only you

Can go.




Buen Camino! Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell and Karen Cornwell Fortlander

01/26/2023

THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Jan. 29, 2023, Fourth Sunday of Epiphany, 4 pm, Rise Church (10445 SW Canterbury Ln., Tigard, OR 97224), or on Zoom. Contact Pastor Brett for Zoom link. If you have any questions, or are interested in a conversation, contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell 919-444-9111; [email protected] and visit www.communityofpilgrims.com.
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Dear Community of Pilgrims,

I want to begin with a few words that play off of “Thank you!” Thank you, Community of Pilgrims (CoP) Presbyterian Fellowship for showing up, Sunday after Sunday in this new venture in which we practice the old habit of meeting and eating together, with the Eucharist and a pot-luck supper as part of our gatherings! Thank you for engaging me and each other with new thoughts and ideas about Scripture and theology. Thank you for caring for one another. Thank you for caring for the world in which we live. Thank you for caring for immigrants and refugees who have moved to Portland. Thank you for working with other churches in addressing issues of homelessness and hunger in Portland. Thank you for showing up for protests, doing justice, and causing some “good trouble.” Thank you for letting me visit you in your homes and work places. And thank you for being an example of God’s love in the world today. Thank you!

The Scripture focus this week is Matthew 5:1-12. It is commonly called “The Beatitudes” or “The Blesseds,” because there is a string of the words, “blessed are.” As I read and re-read them, I am reminded how Jesus is setting us apart from some of the people in the world in which we live. Jesus promises us comfort when we are feeling poorly, either figuratively or literally; mourn; are overwhelmed by the sense of being meek in an angry world; and have a hunger for justice and righteousness in a world that has sought another dangerous path. And then there is that call to be peacemakers in the world in which we find ourselves almost constantly at war or confronting civil strife. In the end, Jesus reminds us which side God is on. We just need to be reminded of this truth from time to time, like this upcoming Sunday. Join us this Sunday as we hear and receive this story, again, reminded that, as Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “we must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God.”

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Events!


Jan. 29, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Feb. 5, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Feb. 12, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Feb. 19, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.




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Prayers of Celebration and Concern

We pray to the Creator of all creation:

God, we are thankful for:

· We are thankful for The Community of Pilgrims;

· Thankful for the new call to La Mesa Presbyterian Church for Brett;

· Celebrating Hazel Fergus Anderson’s second week of life;

· Chuck Stilson out of the hospital;

· Jan Peterson of Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church being out of the hospital;

· Ron Fortlander’s birthday;

· April’s new grandchild;

· Kathy Fukuyama’s son’s wedding in Jan., 2023;

· Laura Faulkner’s new grandchild;

· Roxanne and husband’s upcoming trip to Israel;

Holy One, receive our prayers of concern:

· Marily’s ongoing health crisis;

· Christian’s mom’s move to assisted care;

· Maureen’s health struggle with cancer;

· Gun violence and mass shootings in the US, that they may cease and desist;

· Transgender youth and Drag Queens;

· Voting rights;

· Women’s reproductive rights;

· Climate changes;

· Immigrants and refugees around the world… that they may have a home;



God in your love, receive and attend our prayers. Amen



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Poem

Beatitudes, by Malcolm Guite

We bless you, who have spelt your blessings out,

And set this lovely lantern on a hill

Lightening darkness and dispelling doubt

By lifting for a little while the veil.

For longing is the veil of satisfaction

And grief the veil of future happiness

We glimpse beneath the veil of persecution

The coming kingdom’s overflowing bliss



Oh make us pure of heart and help us see

Amongst the shadows and amidst the mourning

The promised Comforter, alive and free,

The kingdom coming and the Son returning,

That even in this pre-dawn dark we might

At once reveal and revel in your light.



Buen Camino! Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell and Karen Cornwell Fortlander

01/20/2023

THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Jan. 22, 2023, Third Sunday of Epiphany, 4 pm, Rise Church (10445 SW Canterbury Ln., Tigard, OR 97224), or on Zoom. Contact Pastor Brett for Zoom link. If you have any questions, or are interested in a conversation, contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell 919-444-9111; [email protected] and visit www.communityofpilgrims.com.
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Dear Community of Pilgrims,

Even in these short days and long nights of winter, there are buds and shoots all around gardens and forests. Even amid bare limbs of trees, which are in slumber, they continue to feed on the moisture caught by the wet leaves that fill our yards. On my daily walks of late, I’m glad to see such small signs of life which will soon turn to more obvious buds and blossoms. If all life is a miracle, I am thankful for such miracles.

The passage from Matthew’s Gospel this week seems to be set in two parts (Matthew 4:12-23). In the first half, we understand that Jesus makes his home in Capernaum, which is on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. If he actually had a home there, we don’t know. Matthew’s Jesus then talks about the future realm of God’s love, calling people to repent, for the realm is near, embodied in the very life of Jesus. Knowing that he could not do this mission alone, and that it would “take a village” to do it, Jesus starts to call out the twelve who would be his primary community. His first disciple is Andrew, who he calls from his work as a fisherman. And Jesus tells him, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people” (4:19). And Andrew “immediately” dropped his fishing nets and followed Jesus. Then he called brothers James and John, sons of Zebedee, to leave their nets and follow him, and they did the same thing that Andrew did. They "immediately" dropped their nets and followed Jesus. Here’s the question for us: When have you heard Jesus call you to do something? To be somewhere? Does Christ’s Spirit continue to do this kind of calling, in this day and age, asking us to pick up and leave what we are doing and follow Jesus to the ends of the earth? Do we do so "immediately?" Join us Sunday as we discuss this thing called “calling.”

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Events!



Jan. 22, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Jan. 29, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Feb. 5, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Feb. 12, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.



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Prayers of Celebration and Concern

We pray to the Creator of all creation:

We give you thanks God for:

· Chuck being home;

· Jan at Portsmouth Trinity who is now in rehab;

· Hazel Fergus Anderson’s birth;

· Sarah and Ellen’s wedding;

· For Community of Pilgrims, as a community of faith;

· For a young person at Home Plate who got a full-time job!

· Todd, who is fighting cancer, who is doing well during treatments;

· Thanks for rain;

· All those fighting cancer;

· Thanks for modern medicine.

O God, we pray for:

· Carolyn Getty, with a dairy farm in NY, widow, near the end of her life;

· Sarah’s mother who is still in hospice;

· Marily Quesnal’s slowly improving health;

· Yarrow Halstead’s fight against cancer;

· For Larry Cobb and Charles Flaum, who both are fighting chronic health conditions;

· Christian’s mom, who is moving to assisted care;

· Sue Malter;

· For those nations engaged in war or civil strife, including Ukraine; Afghanistan; Iran; Syria; Yemen; Sri Lanka; and Myanmar;

· Gun safety in the US;

· Global climate change;

· Transgender young people who are targets of conservative politicians;

· Women’s reproductive rights;

· Voting rights in heavily gerrymandered districts and states;

· Discrimination in the workplace;

· The ongoing refugee and homeless situation around the world;

· Homelessness and gun violence on Portland’s city streets.

God in your love, receive and attend our prayers. Amen

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Poem

A Prayer (author unknown)

So many things wash up to my shore

In course of the day, a year, a lifetime;



Valuable gifts;

Luminous events.



Yet the smallest thoughtless word

Can throw me off my bearings.



Listen to the small

Voice within,



Calling you back to the Center.

Reminding you of what really matters.

Asking you to reserve judgment.



Wait on Time

To understand the shape of things.



Look within for strength

And the patience to endure.



Look without.

You are not alone.



Buen Camino! Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell and Karen Cornwell Fortlander

A New Presbyterian Fellowship in Portland, OR! Community of Pilgrims PRESBYTERIAN FELLOWSHIP  

01/15/2023

THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Jan. 15, 2023, 4 pm, Rise Church (10445 SW Canterbury Ln., Tigard, OR 97224), or on Zoom. Contact Pastor Brett for Zoom link. If you have any questions, or are interested in a conversation, contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell 919-444-9111; [email protected] and visit www.communityofpilgrims.com.
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Dear Community of Pilgrims,

This coming Sunday, Jan. 15, 2023, the focus is on the baptism of Jesus, in which we celebrate and remember this important initiation ritual in the life of the Church. In Matthew 3:13-17, the event of Jesus’ baptism happens rather quickly, filled with spiritual overtones, and the first presence of the Trinity, which would be echoed in the readings towards the end of Matthew’s Gospel. To begin, we have Jesus coming to John on the shores of the muddy Jordan River. Even though John insisted that he be baptized by Jesus, realizing who was in front of him, nevertheless John gives in to Jesus’ request to be baptized. And with that act of submission on Jesus’ part, being baptized by John, his relative, in coming out of the water, an epiphany was made about who was just baptized. First, there was the Spirit of God in the form of a dove descending and actually alighting—landing—on Jesus! Then there was the third part of the Trinity: Creator. Father. Parent. And the words spoken here from the heavens are important as they locate who Jesus is in the Trinity of faith: “This is my son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” Wow. Succinct. Terse. To the point. But powerful. And since that first baptism, we’ve been baptizing people for over 2,000 years. Join us this Sunday as we discuss the power of the ritual of baptism in the life of the Church.


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Events!


Jan. 15, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Jan. 22, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Jan. 29, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.


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Prayers of Celebration and Concern

We pray to the Creator of all creation:

We give you thanks God for:

· The birth of Hazel Fergus Anderson, daughter of Adrianne and Scott Anderson, sister to Edie, and granddaughter to Christian and Brett;

· For modern science and medical health care;

· For the birth of Henry Deporre, Christian’s great-grandchild;

· For Melissa and Ken in Santa Rosa, CA;

God, we pray for:

· For Chuck, who was in the hospital the last week;

· For Carole’s cousin Becky who lost her husband Same in the past weeks;

· Prayers for Becky and her family;

· For a friend’s brother, Al, discharged from the hospital and in need of rehab;

· For Roberta’s nephew, Sam;

· For Katie returning to U of O;

· For California, confronted by storm after storm;

· For gun safety;

· For the US House of Representatives dysfunction;

· Youth at HomePlate and Outside In;

· For those abused in the Church;

· Sally, who will be in assisted living facility (friend of Roxanne’s)

· Christian’s mom who is moving to assisted care;

· Jan, at Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church, who was in the hospital;

· For Sue Malter.

God in your love, attend our prayers. Amen

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Poem

Beloved, by Jan Richardson

Is there any other word

Needs saying,

Any other blessing

Could compare

With this name,

This knowing?



Beloved.



Comes like a mercy

To the ear that has never

Heard it.

Comes like a river

To the body that has never

Seen such grace.



Beloved.



Comes holy to the heart

Aching to be new.

Comes healing to the soul

Wanting to begin

Again.



Beloved.



Keep saying it

And though it may

Sound strange at first,

Watch how it becomes

Part of you,

How it becomes you,

As if you never

Could have known yourself

Anything else,

As if you could ever

Have been other

Than this.



Beloved.

Buen Camino! Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell and Karen Cornwell Fortlander

A New Presbyterian Fellowship in Portland, OR! Community of Pilgrims PRESBYTERIAN FELLOWSHIP  

01/06/2023

THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Jan. 8, 2023. Epiphany! 4 pm, Rise Church (10445 SW Canterbury Ln., Tigard, OR 97224), or on Zoom. Contact Pastor Brett for the Zoom link. If you have any questions, or are interested in a conversation, contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell 919-444-9111; [email protected] and visit www.communityofpilgrims.com.
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Dear Community of Pilgrims,

Happy Feast of the Epiphany! This is Three Kings Day!

I began writing this newsletter on the 12th and last day of Christmas, Jan. 5, 2023. I hope you all enjoyed the season of Christmas, which included, in the midst of this holiday season, the turning over into a new year. Slowly, I took down the Christmas wreaths in the front of our home today, acknowledging that we are in a new season of the Church's life. We are no longer in Christmas but Epiphany, which ends on Feb. 22, 2023, Ash Wednesday.

The Scripture reading for Epiphany is Matthew 2:1-12. The primary verses that stand out to me as I read this passage is this: “When they (the Magi) saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh”(vv. 10-11). This is the very definition of the word “epiphany”: The “manifestation of a divine or supernatural being; a moment of sudden revelation or insight” (dictionary.com). The Magi, a group of pilgrims from the East, found the one that they had been seeking, lying in a manger, in Bethlehem. It is the very definition of an “Aha!” moment. They knew that this child, this one, was the one they were called to seek and find. When have we felt this kind of epiphanic experience in our daily lives? In other words, when were we caught surprised at the presence of the Holy in our daily routine of life? Join us Sunday as we focus on such moments of divine revelation in our lives today. And Happy Epiphany!

**
Our story of sharing Advent/Christmas blessings with families from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, working with Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church, was published in this week's Presbytery's Cascades Connection. The story is half way down the Cascades Connection. Just click on or copy and paste this hyperlink: https://mailchi.mp/cascadespresbytery/january-5-2023?e=d2d6e7b533. And thank you, all, for this gift of love.

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Events!


Jan. 8, 4 pm, Epiphany! Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Jan. 15, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Jan. 22, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.

Jan. 29, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.


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Prayers of Celebration and Concern

We pray to the Creator of all creation:

For these things we are thankful:

· For the body of Christ in this season of Christmastide;

· For good health;

· For a shelter, food, and clothes;

· For the freedom to worship;

· For modes of transportation to move around;

· For the means to help others in need;

· For health care, and the advancements in science;

· For significant relationships and our families who provide us a web of care;

· For the grace that makes possible our participation in the body of Christ.

We pray for:

· The world. We especially pray for places around the world in which global climate change is making a big impact this winter, such as northern CA, which has received heavier than usual rains;

· For leaders of civil government, and that they would focus on the common good rather than ill-gotten gains. We especially pray for the US House of Representatives;

· For gun control, climate control, equality with the LGBTQIA2S+ community; women’s reproductive rights, voting rights, and new immigration policies that welcome the stranger;

· For those places and people caught up in war, including Ukraine; Ethiopia; Syria; Yemen; Afghanistan; Iran; China; and Myanmar. We pray for peace and love to prevail;

· For the worldwide church, that there would be peace and understanding among us all;

· For the cities in which we live, and that there may be a way to end homelessness, poverty, and hunger;

· For those immigrants and refugees in this world;

· The those in hospice and palliative care, that there may be comfort;

· For our families and significant relationships where there is tension or deep sadness.

God in your love, attend our prayers. Amen

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Poem

For Those Stars That Turn in Us, A Blessing, by Jan Richardson

I do not know

How to keep it all together

Or by what patterns

This world might finally hold.



What I know is that

Our hearts are bigger

Than this sky

That wheels above us.



And what shines

Through all this darkness

Shines through us,

Setting every shattered thing

Into a new constellation



And we can turn

Our faces

To that light,

To the grace of

Those stars

That turn in us.



Buen Camino! Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell and Karen Cornwell Fortlander

A New Presbyterian Fellowship in Portland, OR! Community of Pilgrims PRESBYTERIAN FELLOWSHIP  

12/22/2022

THIS SATURDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022, Christmas Eve! Joint worship service at Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church, 7119 N. Portsmouth Ave., Portland, OR, 97203. 5 pm. We will not meet on Sunday, Dec. 25, 2022. If you have any questions, or are interested in a conversation, contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; [email protected] and visit www.communityofpilgrims.com.
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Dear Community of Pilgrims,

“The reason for the season of Christmas” is almost here! After the four weeks of Advent, focusing on the movement of God in our world’s story, in which justice, peace, hope, joy, and love prevail in the world that is always teetering on the edge of rejecting these characteristics of a well-lived moral life, we remember the change agent extraordinaire who is born in a town outside of Jerusalem, in Bethlehem. The couple that welcomes the birth of Jesus are not well known. They are of the lineage of the house of King David, but besides that, not too much is known of the family. And the setting for the story is not beautiful and serene. It was an ad hoc situation at best. And right after the birth, the pilgrimage of Jesus’ life begins in earnest, to escape the horror show unleashed by Herod.

There is a refrain in the song, “O Holy Night,” with lyrics by French poet Placide Cappeau in 1843, based on the “divine midnight hour” of Christ’s birth, that speaks to us well today, as it did when it was first written, as well as about the night of Christ’s birth: “O holy night! The stars are brightly shining, it is the night of our dear Savior’s birth. Long lay the world in sin and error, pining, until he appears and the soul felt its worth. A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices, for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.” At the time of Christ’s birth, the world around Jesus’ birth was weary with being occupied territory of the Roman Empire. Sin and error abounded. Weirdly enough, the world feels similar today in some very real ways. We live in a weary and heavy-laden world. God’s faithfulness, in the birth of Emmanuel, God with us, shows up with wonder and surprise. It catches us off guard. There is nothing rational about this birth, or news of it. It came from left field. Off the grid. Out of the framework of our way of knowing the world, and God. And for that gift, let us give thanks. Join us as we read Luke 2:1-20, and remember, again, what God has done, is doing, and will always do in securing the realm of love in our midst today.

**
Pledge Time! Thank you! Thank you, one and all, for making a pledge for 2023 for the Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship. Your pledge supports the ongoing work of the Community of Pilgrims, including the salary and housing for the pastor, as well as making it possible for us to work together to meet weekly on Zoom or at Rise for worship and prayer, education and discipleship, and continue our work of service and fellowship in the greater community in which we live as we follow Jesus and embrace all. Know, also, that at the end of the year you may contribute the rest of your pledge for 2022, and, if interested, send more funds for the Community of Pilgrims as a charitable contribution for this tax year.

**
Advent-Christmas Service Project: Thank you! Thanks to the Community of Pilgrims and Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church for sharing funds to purchase nine Fred Meyer gift cards for people from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, who have re-settled in east Portland/Gresham. Together, both churches raised over $1,000! Thank you so much for making Christmas special in the lives of those who are making their new home in Portland.
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Events!


Dec. 24, 5 pm, Christmas Eve worship at Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church.

Dec. 25, 2022, and Jan. 1, 2023, Holy Holidays!

Jan. 8, 4 pm, Epiphany! Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church

Jan. 15, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church


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Prayers of Celebration and Concern

We pray to the Creator of all creation:

Prayers of thanksgiving for:

Kathy and her commitment to Community of Pilgrims
The traditional Christmas Pageant at East Woods Church this morning narrated by a special needs young man.
The Respect for Marriage Act signed by President Biden.
Brett's experience being Santa.
Chuck's grandson Mike is visiting from Norway.
Chuck for being a wonderful grandfather.
Friends and family.
The lovely service at St. Andrew's to honor Marge Stockwell.
Christian had a safe trip to visit his family.
Midterm elections were fair and safe.
The gifts we have collected for the two adopted families from Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Prayers of concern for:

Roberta's friend who just lost her husband.
Those dealing with dementia.
Paddler Larry Cobb who is in palliative care, and Charles Flaum who has cancer.
France is disappointed they could not successfully defend their World Cup crown after losing to Argentina in the final.
Roberta's former advisor who has been diagnosed with a form of leukemia.
Hot spots around the world including Syria, Yemen, China, North Korea, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Russia, Peru, and parts of the US.
Rise of violence in this country against the LGBTQIA2S+ community, specifically transgender community, and the Jewish community.
Global climate concerns including increased carbon dioxide levels, global warming, and pollution.
The epidemic of gun violence in this country.
Germany where last week police arrested far-right extremists on suspicion of plotting a coup.
Those in palliative care and hospice.
Those on death row and prayers that this country abolish capital punishment.
States where voting rights are suppressed.
Safe return to Norway for Chuck's grandson Mike.
May the Christmas spirit spread and prevail.


God in your love, attend our prayers. Amen

_____

Poem

How the Light Comes (A Blessing for Christmas Day) by Jan Richardson

I cannot tell you
how the light comes.

What I know
is that it is more ancient
than imagining.

That it travels
across an astounding expanse
to reach us.

That it loves
searching out
what is hidden
what is lost
what is forgotten
or in peril
or in pain.

That it has a fondness
for the body
for finding its way
toward flesh
for tracing the edges
of form
for shining forth
through the eye,
the hand,
the heart.

I cannot tell you
how the light comes,
but that it does.
That it will.
That it works its way
into the deepest dark
that enfolds you,
though it may seem
long ages in coming
or arrive in a shape
you did not foresee.

And so
may we this day
turn ourselves toward it.
May we lift our faces
to let it find us.
May we bend our bodies
to follow the arc it makes.
May we open
and open more
and open still

to the blessed light
that comes.






Buen Camino! Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell and Karen Cornwell Fortlander