LENT BEGINS ON FEBRUARY 17, ASH WEDNESDAY

Lent (a word from Germanic roots referring to the time of lengthening days or springtime) is the Christian season of forty weekdays (Sundays excluded) extending from Ash Wednesday, February 17 this year, to Easter Eve, April 3. Based on the story of Jesus' forty-day ordeal of testing in the wilderness at the beginning of his public ministry, this is a period for personal and community re-evaluation of our Christian commitment. Bill is making available again this year "An invitation for the season of Lent", his suggestions for particular practices or commitments you might choose to undertake during this spiritual season. Feel free to ask him for a copy.

During Lent this year Bill will be presenting during Sunday sermon time stories of vitality and transformation in various churches, as recounted in the book Christianity for the Rest of Us: How the Neighborhood Church is Transforming the Faith, by Diana Butler Bass. The hope is that these experiences from other churches may help us continue to discern what we might yet be and do as a church seeking to serve our own neighbourhood. Each chapter of the book is devoted to a different area of church experience, and Bill will focus on one of these areas each Sunday, providing also questions and resources for reflection on each of the themes. The plan is as follows:

February 21 Hospitality When have you been offered hospitality in a way that was spiritually meaningful to you? Who are the strangers around or near you?... your church? What would it mean to welcome these people into your life?... your congregation? Resources: The book Radical Hospitality: Benedict's Way of Love, by Father Daniel Homan, O.S.B., and Lonni Collins Pratt. Or try searching on the internet 'Christian hospitality' or 'Benedictine hospitality'.

February 28 Contemplation Have you experienced contemplative silence in the context of worship? How did it affect you? What do you think about the culture of sound in which we live? What do you think is the role of silence in the spiritual life? Resources: The book Open Mind, Open Heart: The Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel, by Thomas Keating. See also the website www.contemplativeoutreach.org; and Judy Wootten in our own congregation can speak from extensive experience and training in this area.

March 7 Worship What do you value about worship in our congregation? What do you think could enhance our worship experience further? Could music or other artistic expressions be more fully developed to make worship better?

March 14 Diversity What do you think of the idea of diversity as spiritual practice? Can you identify biblical stories or texts that speak to a spiritual practice of diversity? What kinds of diversities are present in our congregation?... our neighbourhood? Could we be doing more ministry based on our diversities? Resources: The books The Rainbow People of God and God Has A Dream: A Vision of Hope for our Time, by Archbishop Desmond Tutu. And check out Toronto's DiverseCity project at www.diversecitytoronto.ca.

March 21 Intellectual reflection How do you understand the Christian life of the mind? Do you consider intellectual curiosity a spiritual practice? Does our church encourage or discourage theological reflection - including doubts and unanswered questions - as an important part of the faith journey? Could we do more to enable people to engage with the big questions of life and faith? Resources: The book The Heart of Christianity, by Marcus Borg. See also the websites for: Interfaith Voices at www.interfaithradio.org; CBC Radio's spirituality program Tapestry at www.cbc.ca/tapestry, and on Sundays at 2:05 pm at 99.1 FM.

March 28 Justice Diana Butler Bass contrasts two models: One is the practice of Christian charity which means "sending money to the poor, taking care of people's needs at a distance. the church as a kind of United Way with prayer." The other is "doing justice that involve[s] hands-on service, linking social concerns and spirituality in local mission and activism." She observes further that "doing justice goes beyond fixing unfair and oppressive structures. Doing justice means engaging the powers - transforming the 'inner spirit' of all systems of injustice, violence, and exclusion." What is your own view on "doing justice"? Is it a difficult challenge? How could our church respond more fully to the Jewish prophet Micah's appeal to to "do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:6-8)? Resources: The book The Powers That Be: Theology for a New Millenium, by Walter Wink. See also the websites for: Citizens for Public Justice at www.cpj.ca; KAIROS Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives at www.kairoscanada.org; the Presbyterian Church Justice Ministries at www.presbyterian.ca/ministry/justice.

Each Sunday at 10:30 a.m. we meet at the church for worship.  You are always welcome to join us.

One of the special features of our church is that the seating in our sanctuary is arranged “in the round”.  The baptismal font and the communion table – important ritual symbols in our faith community – are placed at the centre.  And the minister and other leaders speak from a lectern on floor level as part of the circle.  We find that this arrangement enhances the sense of community in our gatherings.

We use a number of musical refrains and responses to involve everyone more fully in the flow of the service.  These are changed from season to season of the Christian year (Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, and so on). 

We read weekly from the Bible; and introductory notes are provided for each reading to give an idea of the original context of the writing, as well as themes to be noticed as the passage is read aloud.