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
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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:

• A twelve-foot statue, “Girl with Dove” by Tom Corbin, stands on the United Nations Peace Plaza near the Community of Christ Auditorium.
• The church presents its International Peace Award at World Conference every three years. It has been awarded to Jane Goodall and Ela Gandhi, among others. The most recent recipients were local: Sister Andrea Kantner at Franciscan Mission Warehouse and Gary White of Water.org.
• On 27 June 1945, President Harry Truman arrived in Independence and addressed thousands of onlookers in the Auditorium. He had signed the United Nations Charter just the day before in San Francisco. The brand-new UN was the subject of his speech in Independence.
• On 11 December 2006, after his final speech as UN secretary-general, delivered at the Truman Presidential Library in Independence, Kofi Annan visited the Peace Plaza for a wreath-laying ceremony.
  
  

The UN promotes the International Day of Peace. 

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.

October 4 or November 1Presented by:
Community of Christ Diversity and Inclusion Team

Congregations, mission centers, and members are invited to a free online event from the Community of Christ Diversity and Inclusion Team.

Participants in "Resisting Unconscious Bias and Building Inclusiveness" will choose a date to participate: October 4 or November 1. The same program will be offered on each date.
Cathi Cackler-Veazey and Gwendolyn Hawks-Blue are team co-leaders. To register for the event, contact either ccacklerveazey@cofchrist.org or gblue@CofChrist.org.
The Diversity and Inclusion Team upholds the worth of persons and supports sharing the peace of Jesus Christ. It provides an underpinning to the church’s foundation by upholding inclusive beliefs and behaviors in relation to human interactions. Its focus is upon education, advocacy, inclusion, and organizational change in support of justice and covenant with one another and God.

Click for more information.

Beyond the Walls - Our Unprecedented Journey

An online communion service. A virtual tour of Western Canada. Beyond the Walls and Canada West Mission invite you to an unprecedented worship experience.  

Members and friends will bring live ministry from across Canada West Mission, from Vancouver to Winnipeg. Western Europe Mission Center President Joey Williams will speak on the theme “Our Unprecedented Journey”. Apostle Art Smith will offer a Prayer for Peace. The Bishop of Canada, Dar Shepherdson, will bring the Disciples Generous Response.

The Canada West Singers will perform CCS 350 - “We Are a Family of Faith,” and the Beyond the Walls choir will premiere CCS 209 - “Lord, Lead Me by Your Spirit,” with Michael Karpowicz on keyboards.

Let us sit at this virtual communion table together, gathering from locations around the world with hundreds of participants this Sunday, September 13th, 12 p.m. EDT. 

SLIM (Sharing Love in Mission) - 2 p.m.The theme will be "The Journey". We will look at the dreams we have for the future and the journey we have been on to achieve thsoe dreams. Special testimony by our own Anthony Smith. All are welcome. Contact Don Robb for Zoom info.

Port Elgin Congregation - 10 a.m. This will be an interactive service led by Darrell Belrose on the theme "The Exodus Journey". 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.

Come join us in the third conversation about the Sacredness of Creation as we practice noticing and cherishing nature in its beauty and as we acknowledge the evidence of creation increasingly out of balance. Share your story of intentional moments when you have noticed and gazed upon the sacredness of creation. Share your awareness of the need to courageously “gaze even here,” at the devastation humans have caused to the planet. Invite your friends to join as well. All sessions are free. Participation in previous conversations in the series is not necessary to join in this opportunity.
 
Further conversations in our Phase one series will include “Hope for a New Creation,” during the month of October. In addition, President Steve Veazey will join us for worship on October 11, to share a special message about the climate crises we face and our response as a faith community.

During the winter of 2020 and 2021, there will be six more conversations/presentations, which will constitute Phase Two. We will explore the unraveling of God’s sacred creation, the re-weaving of the web of life, climate change and the Community of Christ, and lifestyle practices that foster hope. Dates for these subsequent conversations will be publicized in your mission center news briefs and on the website below. Watch for them!

​Once registered, you will be sent a Zoom link a few days before each session of the series.


Sacredness of Creation is an online ministry sponsored by the Greater Pacific Northwest USA Mission Center for Community of Christ. The North American Climate Justice Team includes members from GPNWMC, Canada East, Canada West, Inland West, Sierra Pacific Mission Center and Southwest Pacific International Mission Center.

​How are you building connections during the global pandemic? In his most recent video, President Steve Veazey encourages us to explore innovative ways to grow communities of joy, hope, love, and peace. President Veazey recommends a book by Vivek Murthy, Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World.

Upcoming Sessions:

Holy Attention to Awaken the Heart
Sunday September 20, 3:00 - 4:30 PM PDT
Thursday September 24, 6:00 - 7:30 PM PDT

Envision Hope, Build Bridges to the Future
Thursday October 22, 6:00 - 7:30 PM PDT
Sunday October 25, 3:00 - 4:30 PM PDT

During the winter of 2020 and 2021, there will be six more conversations/presentations, which will constitute Phase Two. We will explore the unraveling of God’s sacred creation, the re-weaving of the web of life, climate change and the Community of Christ, and lifestyle practices that foster hope.
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​Dates for these subsequent conversations will be publicized and available on this website. All sessions are free and will also include world-class scientists (a UN IPCC author, and possibly someone from NASA) and people with wide-ranging experiences on the topic.

Oct 14, 21, 28, 2020

Facilitator: Brian Carwana
 
You will learn lots! Here's what it includes:Mornings: Three talks that provide background on each tradition. Learn about history, beliefs and practices. 

• ​​Wicca: Channeling Nature's Mysteries
• Evangelicalism: A Modern Religion
• Sikhism: Disciples of the True Name

Afternoons: Three interviews with Guides from each tradition. The Guide will speak briefly and then we'll open for Q&A.
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Extra Sessions: We will have a chance for group discussion to process all that you're learning, and an extended question session with Brian.  
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In Addition: You will get:
An electronic coursepack that contains extra information

• Summary pages of the class presentations
• Pre-class videos to watch. Short clips totaling perhaps 15 mins per class to show ritual, etc. 
• All sessions recorded and available for a week afterwards to fit your schedule.

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All sessions will be conducted via Zoom. Early Bird Price $120 until Sept 14.