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January 30 Exploring a Post-Pandemic Church: Discern, Plan and Act in Hope-Online
January 31 and February 7, 14, 21, 28 Community of Christ Lessons-Online February 6 Canada West Mission Ordination Service-Online February 26-28 Nurturing Spirit Retreat-Online February 27 Satsang: Singing into Silence-Online February 26-28 CWM Winter Retreat (Junior High)-Online March 5-7 CWM Winter Retreat (Senior High)-Online March 20-21 CWM Women's Retreat-Online View full Canada West Events Calendar Dates are subject to change. Please register early to avoid cancellation of your event on Reggie. Sundays
BC Community of Christ Online Gathering Hosted by the Vancouver Congregation Sunday mornings 9:30am Pacific Time - Visiting and gathering 10am Pacific Time - Service Contact Chris Phelps at cphelps@shaw.ca for Zoom links. Inclusive Church Hosted by the Toronto Congregation and Beyond the Walls Community Sundays at 12pm (EDT), 11am (CDT), 10am (MDT), 9am (PDT). For more information please visit their website, Facebook page and YouTube channel to watch the service. Mondays Creating Connection Book Club Third Monday of every month at 7PM (BC), 8PM (AB-SK), 9PM (MB). To join please visit the Creating Connection Meetup group. For details about the next session click here. Tuesdays Virtual Visiting Fellowship Tuesday mornings at 11am CDT (Manitoba), 10am MDT (Alberta and Saskatchewan), 9am PDT (BC). Please send an email to steve@communityofchrist.ca to participate. For more details click here. Wednesdays Creating Connection presents: An Afternoon of Nurturing Spirit Wednesdays from 3pm to 4:30pm Pacific Time. To join please visit the Creating Connection Meetup group. Thursdays Creating Connection presents: Coffee and Conversation Thursdays from 10:30am to noon Pacific Time. To join please visit the Creating Connection Meetup group. Virtual Visiting Fellowship Thursday evenings at 9pm CDT (Manitoba), 8pm MDT (Alberta and Saskatchewan), 7pm PDT (BC). Please send an email to steve@communityofchrist.ca to participate. For more details click here. For a list of Online Ministries please click here.  Have you checked out Canada West Mission Centre’s “Virtual Visiting Fellowship”? This is a “program” that has truly become a “community;” actually, two communities! Participants have become real friends in these online communities that include people from across the mission centre and beyond. Two sessions are offered each week. At least one of them will surely fit into your schedule:
Our Mission Centre President, Steve Thompson, plans and facilitates these sessions. We share in some introductions and opening comments to set up our time together. Then we engage in a general discussion with reference to topics that have included current events, articles in various periodicals, as well as hymns or scriptures. We conclude with a prayer for peace, for each other, and for others who need our support. Each session lasts about an hour. This has proven to be an upbeat, positive opportunity to help make up for not being able to visit “live and in person” with our congregation on Sundays. How to participate:
Mark one (or both) of these virtual gatherings on your calendar and plan to attend. We look forward to your participation!  Black Lives Matter
Indigenous Lives Matter Lives of People of Colour Matter New Reading for a New Year Might you be interested in some new books for your reading pleasure in 2021? Let me share some titles that have recently appeared on the Herald House website. Exploring Community of Christ Basic Beliefs: A Commentary is a contemporary successor to two previous editions of Exploring the Faith texts that were published in the 1970’s and 1980’s. The introduction to the book makes it clear that this work has been in the making for many years. The “commentary” is on the statement of Basic Beliefs of the church that was first released in 2009. This is part 1 of a 2-part series. It is currently only available as an e-book for purchase from Amazon.ca here. Of interest to Canada West readers will be that Shannon McAdam (Vancouver) is acknowledged as writing one of the chapters, and Kat Goheen (also from Vancouver) is acknowledged as a co-editor of a previous draft of the chapters. Commentary on the Community of Christ Doctrine and Covenants, Volume 2, by the late former Apostle Dale Luffman, has just been released. This is a “must-have” for preachers, teachers, and students of church history and theology. This volume covers sections of the Doctrine and Covenants from 1860 to the present. Volume 1 covers earlier sections originating with Joseph Smith, Jr. Just a warning: there is a “double-sticker shock” effect on these books. First, they are on the expensive side and the currency exchange rate only makes that worse for Canadian purchasers. Second, the shipping charges from Independence make the total expense nearly double the purchase price (that might be mitigated somewhat if you are ordering both books at the same time). Sadly, until we can travel into the U.S. again, we cannot just ask someone going to headquarters to pick them up for us. Mail-order is the only option. The Non-Violent Life is written by John Dear (not a Community of Christ author). In follow up to the motion on non-violence approved by the 2019 World Conference, this text is an important resource for gaining some perspective on the issues surrounding the idea of non-violence and how individuals can pursue a lifestyle that actively supports non-violence. It is available in e-book and paperback format on Amazon.ca here, which enables avoiding U.S. dollar exchange and those shipping rates! I will also just mention three other slightly older titles in case you missed them somehow. God All Round is a book of personal stories and testimonies from former Apostle Linda Booth. It is also a manual that emphasizes the importance of storytelling in ministry and teaching. It is available as an e-book from Amazon.ca here. A Way of Life: Understanding our Christian Faith, by Anthony Chvala-Smith, is a very readable theological consideration of Community of Christ faith. I am currently using this text as a discussion guide for our “Virtual Visiting Fellowship Meetings” each week (a shameless plug, just in case you are interested). The e-book version is on Amazon.ca here. Choose Generosity: Discovering Whole-Life Stewardship, as you might expect, has been prepared by the Presiding Bishopric to promote a reasonable and faithful stewardship perspective among church members and friends. I could not find this book on Amazon in either Canada or the U.S. I hope there is something here that “tweaks your interest” either for personal reading or perhaps for a study group at some point in the future. As always, I pray for you God’s blessings of joy, hope, love, and peace in these challenging times. Steve Thompson Canada West Mission Centre President steve@communityofchrist.ca  Mark this special service on your calendars and plan to attend this virtual service which will be made available via Zoom.
We will celebrate the ordination of Brenda Senga (Saskatoon) to the office of High Priest/Evangelist and Doug Hayden (Calgary) to the office of High Priest. Both calls were approved at the 2019 Mission Conference in Edmonton. Ordinations had been delayed due to the COVID pandemic. Apostle Art Smith will bring the ordination message and officiate for both ordinations. Mission Centre President Steve Thompson will preside. Several others will participate in this special service to celebrate the call of these two servants to further service in the church. The service will begin at the following time in each time zone:
Zoom logon information will be made available during the week before the service on the Weekly Wire and through notices to congregations via Pastors.  Harmony, a non-profit advocating for full participation of Queer/LGBTQIA2S+ individuals in Community of Christ, is compiling a current list of ordained Community of Christ
ministers willing and excited to officiate Queer/LGBTQIA2S+ wedding ceremonies. WHY? Harmony is committed to providing its members with current, reliable contact information in order that they might be connected with affirming, kind, and inclusive individuals in their area wherever they are on their journey. This has historically been managed organically, but as they continue to grow, they are seeking out more formal ways of maintaining such records. In this case, Harmony hopes this database will be viewed as a valuable resource to its membership around the world as they plan one of the most important events of their lives: their wedding ceremony. IS THIS YOU? If so, please add your name to their database by clicking the button below. As always, Harmony pledges to safeguard your details and will only share them with interested individuals pursuing marriage.  Apostle Ron Harmon joins three family members: Zac and Katie Harmon-McLaughlin, with Emily Rose. Mark your calendars for Sunday, February 14, 2pm PT, 3pm MT, 4pm CT, 5pm ET! Join participatory exercises in advocacy led by Emily Rose on these following dates:
For more information about the series please visit the Climate Change Colloquy website.
 SCHEDULE
(All times are in Pacific Time) Friday February 26 5:00 PM Community Dinner - Join when you can! Saturday February 27 7:45 AM Zoom opens, log in now 8:00 AM Welcoming meditation – Vickie MacArthur 8:10 AM Welcome and Introductions to your team – Debra Donohue 8:20 AM Five Rhythms Spiritual Practice and Guided Meditation - Kat Goheen 9:20 AM Break 9:30 AM Journaling – Jeri Mortimore 10:30 AM Listening for the Soul – Shannon McAdam 11:30 AM Lunch 12:30 PM Wonder and Mental Health: Immediate Practices with Powerful Impact – Lana Cullis 1:30 PM Yoga Nidra – Vickie MacArthur 3:00 PM Break 3:30 PM Listening for the Soul – Shannon McAdam 4:00 PM Q&A with Facilitators – Jeri Mortimore 4:30 PM Dinner 5:30 PM Satsang: Singing into Silence – Vickie and Doug MacArthur with Drumming Guest Mary Jean Belrose 7:00 PM Goodnight Sunday February 28 10:00 AM Closing Gathering – Shannon McAdam  When: The fourth Saturday of each month.
Our next session is on Saturday, February 27 5:30 p.m. BC/ 6:30 p.m. AB /7:30 p.m. MB-SK. RSVP on our meetup page to receive the Zoom link or contact debra@communityofchrist.ca Satsang is a sanskrit word that describes a way of coming together in community to experience the pure truth and love that is beyond religion or culture. During these lonely and isolating times, it is so important to find creative ways of coming together to do this. Even online, the simple act of joining together to sing can touch places within us that spoken words cannot. It is not about performance or perfection. It is every voice remembering that singing is a universal language as ancient and natural as language itself. Singing together dissolves boundaries and opens our hearts to the silent truth that is beyond words. Doug and Vickie will share simple songs and chants from various spiritual traditions you can sing in your own space, from the silence of “Om” to a joyful “Alleluia”. Clap your hands with lively rhythms and the beat of a drum, and let soulful melodies guide you into the silence that connects our hearts as one united voice. Together we will create a vibration of peace to fill the world. We welcome all voices, all cultures and all traditions.  We will focus on our new steps forward. We will have fun, play games, and chat about what can be next for us all. Let’s be that Something New!
A Women's Retreat with Susan Oxley March 20 with a worship service on March 21 (online event). For more information and online registration: www.cwm.events Registration fee: $20.00 Director: Amanda Senga View Schedule   While gathering in person is not possible in many locations, these lessons offer resources for online gatherings, sunday school, study groups, or even for personal or family reflection.
Community of Christ lessons are available for children (ages 6–11), youth (ages 12–18), and adults. Weekly lessons connect the Lectionary text with Community of Christ identity, mission, message, and beliefs. Lessons through November 2021 are now available for download. Visit the Lessons page for more information.  The COVID-19 pandemic continues to reduce opportunities for the church to provide in-person pastoral-care ministries and to gather physically for fellowship, worship, and community formation. After extended consideration, the Presidency is providing principles and guidelines for offering the sacraments through online means during the pandemic. These principles and guidelines may be refined in the future as the church lives into its experiences with online ministries.
It is our hope that providing for the sacraments to be shared through online experiences will continue the pastoral-care ministries the church is called to extend into human life, even during this time of physical distancing. It also will provide the church learnings for how to share the sacraments in a world that is becoming more borderless through online connections. May blessings abound as you offer these gifts. Information about upcoming Canada West Mission Centre programs for the early part of 2021 has just been released. Click here for details. All of these programs will be offered online. Please consult the details for each program and follow the instructions for registration and fees.
Programming will be announced throughout the year which we hope will meet a variety of interests from general to specific to leadership development. We do not know yet what the new year will hold for us in terms of the opportunity for holding in-person retreats at our campgrounds or congregation buildings. In 2020 we quickly adapted in-person programs to an online format. For 2021 we are using this experience to improve the online program environment and hope you will enjoy the programs to be offered. There is still hope we may be able to offer in-person programs by the summer of 2021 but this is far from certain. Canada West Mission Centre staff will follow the progress on reducing the risks of COVID-19 throughout the mission centre. We will also be following the progress in Washington State and the eventual opening of the Canada/U.S. border in relation to potential events at Samish Campground and Retreat Center. Watch for announcements about summer camps and retreats as we get closer to those months. I encourage you to check out our upcoming programs and to get involved. We all look forward to in-person events again. Until then the online events will give you an opportunity to re-connect with friends and to continue in your faith journey in Community of Christ. Grace and Peace, Steve Thompson Canada West Mission Centre President steve@communityofchrist.ca This occasional feature is intended to ensure that people across the mission centre are aware of the passing of persons in other congregations in a timely manner.
Information provided here is restricted to the name of the deceased person, the city where they lived (or congregation they attended), and the date of death (if it is provided). If an online version of a detailed obituary is available, the name of the person will be underlined indicating that it is a link to that source of information. In a “catch-up” entry, we highlight the following persons who have died in the time since our last Mission Conference. If you are aware of other church members who have passed away and whose names do not appear here or in our archive, please advise sandra@communityofchrist.ca. Please support in thought and prayer the family and friends of the following persons who passed away this year: For a list of persons who have passed away last year, please click here. Black Lives Matter
Indigenous Lives Matter Lives of People of Colour Matter Last week I provided information about programs and activities from Canada West Mission Centre coming up in the next two months. You can review that entry here. It includes summary program information and links to more details about each one. I want to repeat the notice for this program coming up this weekend:
Now on with THIS week’s message: Have you noticed that we are in a new year? The theme scripture for this past Sunday from the church’s worship resources was the first five verses of the Bible: 1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. --Genesis 1:1-5, Authorized King James Version What if we were to approach the new year as if it is a new creation? A new beginning? An opportunity to do things differently – and better? This analogy may go sideways sooner than later, but bear with me for just a few more sentences… If we are leaving 2020 behind us and consider it to have been a less-than-ideal year, might we consider 2020 analogous to being “without form, and void” and perhaps even a place of darkness? And can we pray that the Spirit of God might move upon the face of our waters. And, oh, that God might command, “Let there be light!” And that “there (would be) light” to help show us the way through this new year. Surely, we would celebrate that evening and that morning being the divinely promising first day. And surely, we could promise God that we would celebrate that new creation and build the new year so much better than the last as each day succeeded the other. Well – certainly, we can pray. And, most definitely, we can conduct our lives in this new year so as to recognize the points of joy that come our way as we are privileged to enjoy them. And may we give thanks to God for this new beginning and for the blessings that will come from it. You can judge how well that hopeful and well-intentioned analogy worked for you. My intent and my conclusion is that 2021 is now upon us with a “blank slate” ahead for the next twelve months. It is up to us to make it a better year than the last one and, come next December, to be able to look back on it and declare with God that “it was good!” As always, I pray for you God’s blessings of joy, hope, love, and peace in these challenging times. Steve Thompson Canada West Mission Centre President steve@communityofchrist.ca  Barrie Community of Christ and the Bahá’í Community of Barrie presents:
Each year on the 3rd Sunday in January, religions of the world and the community gather in an observance of unity, celebrating the shared values and principles common among diverse faith traditions. Due to COVID-19, this year’s event takes place by Zoom and Facebook Live this coming Sunday, January 17 at 10 AM PST/ 11 AM MST/ 12 PM CST and 1 PM EST. Never more than this past year has there been a need to help create pathways in the world for peace, and, with your help, this event promises to bring greater awareness to the common goals, principles and values shared across all faith traditions, while fostering closer bonds of unity, cooperation and understanding amongst such diversity. The theme for this year is “I AM” (Interconnected, Aware, Mindful), and will include participation and attendance by many faith traditions from the Barrie area, around Ontario, and potentially across the world, united in compassion and hope. Representatives from each religion will share how their tradition understands and embraces this year’s theme, followed by a sacred reading or prayer. Moments of music videos, interactive chat, on-screen engagement, and a closing Q&A will also be part of the program.  Come join us for a monthly “get together” for casual discussion of books from a wide range of genres. Open to all book lovers (some books may not be suitable for younger readers). When: Third Monday of every month at 7 PM (BC), 8PM (AB-SK), 9PM (MB). Our next meetup is on January 18!  Book: The First Lady by James Patterson & Brendan Dubois
“One secret could bring down the government when the President’s memorable affair becomes a nightmare he longs to forget in this page-turner from James Patterson that will keep you up reading all night long. Sally Grissom is a top Secret Service agent in charge of the Presidential Protection team. She knows that something is amiss when she’s summoned to a private meeting with the President and his Chief of Staff without any witnesses. But she couldn’t have predicted that she’d be forced to take on an investigation surrounding the mysterious disappearance of the First Lady — with strict orders to keep it a secret. The First Lady’s absence comes in the wake of the scandalous, public revelation of the president’s affair, so at first it seems as though she is simply cutting off all contact as she recuperates at a horse farm in Virginia. What begins as an innocent respite quickly turns into a twisted case when the White House receives a ransom note along with the First Lady’s finger.”
Meet our host Kelly Duff has loved reading from an early age. In recent years, she has especially loved the opportunities she's had to read stories by brand new authors through her volunteer work with Filidh Publishing; where she assists with preliminary edits of new manuscripts, as well as helps with planning/running book launches and open mic events. She enjoys reading books from many genres, and she looks forward to exploring the worlds of fiction and non-fiction with other avid readers! |
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