 Presented by: The 2020 European Peace Colloquy Thursday, October 1 2 p.m. Eastern Dr. Sarah James and Dr. Hannah Langford will explore both spiritually and psychologically. Sarah and Hannah are sisters who grew up in South Wales as members of Community of Christ. Sarah is now back in Cardiff, along with her medical doctor husband, Declan. She is a postdoctoral researcher at University College London (UCL) studying mental and cognitive health. Hannah lives in Leicestershire with her husband, Dave, and daughter, Ffion. She has worked in Special Educational Needs for years and works as a Child, Education and Community Psychologist in Warwickshire. They bring together psychological insight and spirituality in a wholistic way. Sarah and Hannah will be hosted by Henning Mueller from Munich, Germany and Andrew Bolton, Leicester, UK. The session will last formally an hour, plus another 30 minutes to hang out and ask more questions. Click the button for more details and to receive the ZOOM meeting link for the webinar: Click here for the flier about the whole series.
Click here for a list of past webinars and podcasts in case you missed a webinar or would like to go deeper in a topic through the podcast. Our last webinar is on Sunday, October 11 with the presentation of the first Community of Christ European Peace Award to Keith Hebden and his keynote on Spirituality and Social Change. It will be at the same time and with the same Zoom link. Please direct any questions to Andrew Bolton. We look forward to you joining us! Andrew Bolton and Elray Henriksen Coordinators: Online European Peace Colloquy 2020 [email protected]  Nancy Jean Stanlick
1956-2020 Nancy (Campbell) Stanlick passed away peacefully in her 65th year on Thursday September 24th, 2020 at Hospice Wellington in Guelph. Daughter of Doris Harvey (predeceased by Don Harvey) and predeceased by her father John Campbell. Dear wife of Tim Stanlick. Loving mother of Jason (Janine) of Fergus, Jeff (Tanya) of Guelph, Jennifer Dorsey (Ross) of Ithaca, NY. Loving grandmother to Ben, Rowen, Emersyn, Kapriah, Kashus, and Kaari. An Aunt to many nieces and nephews as well as a great aunt to many. Will be sadly missed by her sister Lynda Cerenzia (Glen), B (C), sister-in-law to Robert Stanlick (Nancy) and M (N). Predeceased by her brother-in-law Ron Smith. Nancy was a Library Assistant at the University of Guelph for over 26 years where she will be fondly remembered. The family would like to thank the staff and volunteers at Hospice Wellington for the exceptional care Nancy received in her last days, their compassion will not be forgotten. Memorial contributions to Hospice Wellington or the charity of your choice would be appreciated. The family will be having a private graveside service. Arrangements entrusted to GILCHRIST CHAPEL – McIntyre & Wilkie Funeral Home, One Delhi Street, Guelph, (519-824-0031). We invite you to leave your memories and donations online at www.gilchristchapel.com and they will be forwarded to the family.  Beyond the Walls - "Thirst for the Lord" You’re invited to join with hundreds of participants from around the world for an inclusive church service on the theme “Thirst for the Lord.” Sunday, September 27th, 12 p.m. EDT. Apostle Art Smith will give our Sunday message on the stories of Exodus of God providing manna and water to the children of Israel as they wandered in the desert (Exodus 16:2-4, 11-15, 31 and 17:2-7). The lectionary will be read by Brian Fuller of Whitewater, Wisconsin. The invocation will be given by Jhon Miranda of Bogotá, Colombia. Retired Apostle Andrew Bolton of Leicester, England, will share our peace lesson and Roger Dodson of Whitby, Ontario, will lead our Disciples’ Generous Response. Tiona Horning of Independence, Missouri, will give our Call to Worship. Join the Beyond the Walls Choir in singing three hymns, CCS#227 “Come Now, You Hungry,” CCS#5 “Bring Many Names,” and CCS#325 “Blest Be the Tie that Binds.” SLIM (Sharing Love in Mission) - 2 p.m. Former Apostle Len Young will be our guest speaker. All are welcome. Contact Don Robb for Zoom info.
Port Elgin Congregation - 10 a.m. Kevin Mercer will be the speaker. Contact Larry Buchanan for Zoom details. La Salle Road Congregation - Social time from 10:15-10:30. Worship 10:30 a.m. Contact Pastor Vonda den Boer for Zoom details. Reaching Out - Generally meets twice a month. Please sign up for email notices by clicking here. Kitchener Congregation - Sunday evenings at 7:00 p.m. Contact Carman Thompson for details. First People Community of Christ (FPCC) - Reaching out to Native People across North America and the World! Online Prayer and Testimonies Wednesdays at 8:30 p.m. and Worship Sundays at 7 p.m. Contact Larry Buchanan for ZOOM details. Other Online Ministries are available from many varied places for you to connect with.   October 24-25 "Disciples and Seekers Blessing Sacred Community" Many of us look forward to gathering for Mission Conference to greet friends who we have not seen in awhile, to learn what's happening in CEM and to participate in important decisions for our mission. This year, gathering safely means gathering virtually. Response to 2020 CEM Special Conference has been great! Have you registered yet? Generally, Melissa opens our meeting with a bundle of announcements. Here's this year's announcements for those of you joining from home…
Plan to Have Lunch with Our Mystery Guests When you join the ZOOM meeting on Saturday, October 24 starting at 11:30 a.m., Delegates and Ex-officio will check in with Melissa to be included in the Credentials Report. Then we will all have lunch together with special guest ministers from CEM and beyond. Join the conversation! You can also look forward to ministry from...  Conference is for Everyone It's for everyone (not just delegates and ex-officios). Business brings us together but we are enriched by our engagement with each other. A special campfire is being planned for everyone with Apostle Art Smith on Saturday evening. You won't want to miss the fun and laughter or the warmth of the gathering. Ron Harmon is our special guest speaker on Sunday. Stay tuned to be uplifted and encouraged for the road ahead. New Procedures Pastors have received a package of information regarding how many delegates your congregation is allotted, how to select delegates and how to register. Once congregational lists are submitted, delegates and ex-officio will receive further information. The conference booklet will be made available electronically. Training Sessions for Voting Conducting a virtual business meeting will require a learning curve. Training sessions are scheduled to familiarize everyone with ZOOM and Poll Everywhere, the platform we will use to vote on resolutions:
Pre-legislative Sessions Delegates and ex-officios will be equipped with an understanding of the business to be presented to the conference body.
Plan to attend for business and pleasure, connection and worship. EXPECT TO BE INSPIRED Invite others in your congregation to participate too!  On September 30, people from across Canada will wear orange shirts to remember and honour Indigenous children who attended Residential Schools. You are encouraged to participate in Orange Shirt Day!
We’re asking you to join the national observance on September 30, but also to wear orange to your worship gathering on September 27. Why orange? Because of Phyllis Jack Webstad from the Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation, who went to St. Joseph Mission Residential School. On her first day of school, Phyllis wore an orange shirt that her grandmother had given her. It was immediately taken away and that marked the beginning of Phyllis’s long separation from her family and community, a separation caused by actions of the church and the federal government. Orange Shirt Day is a time for us all to remember those events, their ongoing impact, and just as importantly, the continuing strength and resilience of Indigenous peoples. What can you do? 1. Mark Orange Shirt Day in your worship service on September 27 Whether you are meeting in person or online, please ask people to wear orange for a community picture, whether that’s a safely distanced group photo, a Zoom call screen shot, or a collage. Share your photos on Facebook and Twitter and send them to info@communityofchrist for use on our social media pages. 2. Wear an orange shirt on Wednesday, September 30 Whether you’re at work, at school, or at home, get out that orange shirt! Make sure you take a picture to share on Facebook and Twitter and challenge your friends and family to do the same. You can also send your pictures to [email protected] for use on our social media pages. Learn more about Orange Shirt Day>>>  We have all encountered a year of anything but normalcy. Our calendar of typical events has morphed through new lenses into different forms and often diverse new audiences. We are on a learning curve that is accelerated by the critical mass of so many traversing newness simultaneously. Just some reflections I am encountering.
We still have congregational business meetings to conduct as 2021 approaches and I suspect for most it will be on-line using Zoom. In order to prepare Pastoral teams to navigate the online logistics and voting, we are offering two workshops in November. These will simplify the process and acquaint leadership teams with the online skillsets to conduct a congregational business meeting for essential operations of the congregation. The dates selected are Sunday, November 8 at 3p.m. and Sunday, November 22 at 7p.m. Each of these workshops will be identical so, Pastoral teams, please choose the one that best fits your schedule to attend. This will enable each congregation to enter the New Year with leadership confirmed and finances reported and adjusted in this period of church building closures. Of course, we recognize that on-line encounters have remained a blessing in our lives. Please confirm your attendance with Melissa Freer. Thanks. Kerry Richards CEM President  September 19, 2020
In lieu of an in-person update to the media, Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's Chief Public Health Officer, issued the following statement: "There have been 141,911 cases of COVID-19 in Canada, including 9,205 deaths. 87% of people have now recovered. Labs across Canada tested an average of 47,111 people daily over the past week with 1.4% testing positive. As of Friday September 18th, 2020, the average daily case count was reported as 849 cases being reported daily across Canada during the previous 7 days. As some provinces and territories do not report new cases over the weekend, the next update for the average daily case count will be provided next Tuesday, once these numbers have been compiled. As I discussed in my remarks on Friday, the ongoing increase in the Canada's daily case count is an indicator of accelerated epidemic growth. This increases the demand on local public health authorities whose work is vital to interrupting new chains of transmission and managing the epidemic. Hence, accelerated growth increases the risk of COVID-19 spreading beyond manageable levels in areas where the virus is surging. Find out what you can do to slow the spread. Click here for the full article >>> September 19, 2020  Beyond the Walls Let’s celebrate Heritage Sunday with hundreds of participants from around the world and ministers joining us live from the USA and Canada. David Howlett will bring the sermon on Matthew 20:1-16: "The Laborers in the Vineyard" and our theme “Fed by God.” David is visiting professor at Smith College in Northampton, MA, and author of “Kirtland Temple: The Biography of a Shared Mormon Sacred Space.” From Indianapolis, IN, Barbara Walden will offer a Lesson and Prayer for Peace. Barb is the Executive Director of the Community of Christ Historic Sites Foundation, and co-author of “Community of Christ: An Illustrated History.” From Independence, MO, Rachel Killebrew will bring the DGR. Rachel is Community of Christ’s Librarian-Archivist and is a past president of the John Whitmer Historical Association. The Beyond the Walls choir will premiere CCS 180 - “We Thank You, O God, for Our Prophets” and CCS 344 - “Creator of the Intertwined” with Michael Karpowicz on keyboard. We invite you to build a community Beyond the Walls with hundreds of participants from around the world this Sunday, September 20th, 12 p.m. EDT. SLIM (Sharing Love in Mission) - 2 p.m.Special guest will be Carol Caplinger, who is the First People's Field Specialist for Community of Christ. In support of the residential school victims, you are asked to wear orange and also to have a small rock, just big enough to write someone's name on it and so you can carry it in a pocket, etc. or, in lieu of a rock, draw a picture of a small rock. If you have a drum or something to drum on please bring it also. All are welcome. Contact Don Robb for Zoom info.
Port Elgin Congregation - 10 a.m. Twyla Glassford is the speaker. The theme is "Fed by God". Contact Larry Buchanan for Zoom details. La Salle Road Congregation - Social time from 10:15-10:30. Worship 10:30 a.m. Contact Pastor Vonda den Boer for Zoom details. Reaching Out - Generally meets twice a month. Please sign up for email notices by clicking here. Kitchener Congregation - Sunday evenings at 7:00 p.m. Contact Carman Thompson for details. Other Online Ministries are available from many varied places for you to connect with.  On Monday, 21 September, Community of Christ will observe International Day of Peace with a live Prayer for Peace.
Participants will join thousands in other cities to create an international wave of peace. Please join us as Apostle Janné Grover shares the Daily Prayer for Peace from the Temple sanctuary, live on the church's Facebook page at 1 p.m. (CDT). Community of Christ and Independence have several connections to the international peace effort. Among them:
Generosity at a Glance
Your generosity is making a difference! Stassi Cramm, Community of Christ presiding bishop, recently recorded this message thanking all for their continued support despite the ongoing unpredictability of the COVID-19 pandemic. After viewing the video, check out this mid-year review for examples of how tithing dollars were spent in the first months of 2020. |
Categories
All
Archives
January 2025
|
RSS Feed