Lent is a season of preparing ourselves to enter into the central story of the gospels: Holy Week. We know that story so well, and we hear it afresh every year, the painful story of Jesus' last days. It's at the heart of who we are as a Christian community just as it is central to all the four gospels. It is so important that we spend a whole 5 Sundays, and the weeks in between, getting ready to enter into the story again.
A group of your worship leaders gathered recently to plan together for how we might live this season this year. We pondered some traditions from our founding congregations, and someone said “It’s also one of our traditions to be open to new ways of doing things, isn’t it?” The theme that came to mind was of gardeners in a beloved garden, re-working the old soil, renewing it and preparing it so that it is ready for new seed.
So we invite you to an exercise of imagination as we wonder, for ourselves individually and for our community of faith: what debris needs to be cleared out of our garden? What is going into compost this year? In what areas has the soil of our hearts and our life together become too hard packed for new seed to take root? What do we need to add into that soil to prepare it to nourish the hope that God offers?
And we wonder if there is a spiritual practice that you might undertake this Lent, a practice of prayer and the journey inward or one that expresses reverence for the earth or one that involves giving time, talents or treasure away?
February 13 Shrove Tuesday- Crescent Site Come and Go Pancake Supper 5:30-6:45
February 14 Ash Wednesday- Sunnyside Site 1:30-2:30
February 24 Prayers of the People Workshop 9:30-noon Crescent Site Flex Room
A workshop to learn more about leading Prayers of the People and an opportunity to encourage one another. It is for those who are already part of the prayer team and for those who are interested in checking out whether this is a ministry to which you might be called. Contact Rev. Janice if you would like to attend.
March 10 9:30-2:30 Centering Prayer Workshop Cost $40 (lunch, handouts, honourarium) Sunnyside Site
Centering Prayer is an ancient form of contemplation that has been reinvigorated in the Christian church in the past 50 years. The introductory program will help us to better understand the Indwelling Presence of God within each of us and our intimate relationship with that Presence. In addition to the background presentations, we will experience two periods of Centering Prayer—silent prayer for about twenty minutes. Four follow-up sessions will be held Thursdays evenings, 7 pm, March 15, 22 and April 5 and 12th.
After the workshop, you are invirws to continue your practice with a Centering Prayer group of early birds that has been meeting for 2 years on Tuesdays at 7:30 am at the Crescent site.
We hope to form another Centering Prayer group for non-early birds, day and time to be determined.
Those who are familiar with Centering Prayer and those who are new to the practice are welcome to attend. Sign up sheet is available in the narthex at the Crescent site.