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If you have a Mac or the links are not working,
please try clicking on 'View it in your browser'.
Thank you.
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At the crossroads...
Dividing family inheritance, thwarted business plans, a man on his deathbed, we find Jesus in the midst of life and death.
Sunday Worship
with Holy Communion at 10:00 am
Welcome Everyone!
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Summer hours for the Church Office during the months of July and August:
Tuesday to Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Closed Mondays & Fridays.
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  Worshiping with Friends We will once again join in shared worship on
Sunday, August 18 at 10:30 am at St. Luke Cedar Hill.
As is our practice at joint services, the loose offering collected will be donated to
the Shelbourne Community Kitchen. All are welcome!
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Changes to Rotunda
In preparation for Sunday School programming this fall, there is a new kids corner
taking shape in the rotunda nook around the bookshelves. Clutter has been removed and some of the larger chairs have been substituted with folding chairs to add greater flexibility. These changes will have minimal impact on all groups already using this space. The changes have already been greeted with positive responses from many folks, including organizers of Perk Me Up. There are still tables and chairs for holding meetings, a media cart available for DVD Bible Series and iPad Group. It’s about maintaining current accessibility while increasing our welcome to children and families, who have been identified as a key demographic for outreach. It is important that when people walk into the church immediately they see that spaces have been arranged with children in mind.
Pastor Lyndon
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Directory Postal Code Update:
Marge Adams has new contact information:
414-1521 Church Ave. Victoria, BC V8P 5T7
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Chris McDonald selected for Young Theologians Conference
Chris McDonald has been selected to present a paper at a prestigious theology
conference for young Lutheran theologians this fall in Ethiopia. The conference is part of a larger theme of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF). We share our
congratulations with Chris. Check out details below:
From 2019-2022 LWF will engage in a global study of contemporary Lutheran
identities as they are lived in the local contexts of Lutheran churches.
The process will begin with a consultation on the theme ‘We Believe in the Holy
Spirit: global perspectives on Lutheran identity’, hosted by the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus in Addis Ababa, 22-28 October, 2019. It will feature dynamic, participatory theological reflection aimed at listening for creative ways in which we express our shared Lutheran heritage among the diverse contexts across our
communion.
The Holy Spirit shapes us as we practice our faith in our local church. Spirituality forms our Lutheran identity and informs our engagement with the world. Some LWF Member churches call for renewal by reviving a sense of spirituality. Some churches struggle to understand the myriad expressions of spiritual gifts that sometimes call into question their experience of faith in the Lutheran Church. So what can you say about Lutheran identity in your context? [Lutheran World Federation, ‘Call for Papers from Youth and Young Theologians’ Spring 2019]
Stay tuned as we hear more about Chris' essay and other submissions later this fall.
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 Seeking Integrity of Creation
Thinking about the Time of Creation coming up in September, and how our Social Justice Committee can participate, I decided to write about Earth Justice for
Crossroads. I spent time reading and gathering information for this article and a quick review of just a few sites, electronic and paper based, yielded a disproportionate distribution of the number of articles on climate change to other single topics. That’s a good indication of the urgency of the state of things, from pollution, to bio-consumption, to ecological destruction. Here’s a sampling of just a few articles I found.
As I wrote this on July 29th, I discovered today is Earth Overshoot Day. That’s the day each year on which “humanity’s demand for ecological resources and services in a given year exceed what earth can regenerate in that year,” according to the Global Footprint Network. In other words, it is the day on which our overall Ecological
Footprint (EF) exceeds the carrying capacity of the Earth. The EF looks at demand for food, fiber products, timber, land for urban development, and forest to absorb carbon emissions from fossil fuels, against what the land and sea area needed to meet that demand. Consider that it is July 29, and each day until Dec. 31 we will use more than the earth can renew. Working together humans need to push earth overshoot day back by 5 days each year before 2050. This is a BIG challenge but then, so was getting to the moon 50 years ago.
Another aspect of climate change I hadn’t considered was the adverse effects
catastrophic events have on the elderly, and women and girls. These vulnerable
populations are more likely to experience higher mortality rates in such events as flooding, women often do not know how to swim, nor are they willing to leave their enclosure partially clad. During periods of intense heat, such as in Montreal a few years ago, or now in Europe, the elderly succumb to the effects of extreme heat more quickly. And research shows that in catastrophic desertification or other events that create food shortages, women will cut their own consumption ahead of other family members.
It is not hard to gather information, but knowing how to make sense out of it is
difficult. And not feeling overwhelmed, as Canadians, we are part of the problem. But as Citizens for Public Justice, notes, “As people of faith, we can be part of the solution. God calls us to love and care for all the Earth. To respond to the issues with love and justice.”
Or as one of our pastors said, “seek human flourishing and integrity of creation as a faithful response to God’s call for love and justice”.
Susan Beiderwieden
Social Justice Committee |
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News from the Social Justice Committee
VINTAGE JEWELRY & CLOTHING REQUEST - SAVE the DATE
The Social Justice Committee is hosting a fundraising event to help with refugee sponsorships. An upcoming Vintage Jewelry & Clothing Sale with English Tea is scheduled for Saturday November 2nd, from 10 am - 2 pm.
We are collecting vintage jewelry and good quality clothing from now until October. Please bring your items to the church, a secure collection box will be available. If you have any questions , please call me at 250.999.2547 or the church office.
With thanks and appreciation for your ongoing support,
Susan Beiderwieden, The Social Justice Committee
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Flower Chart for 2019
If you would like to bring flowers for worship for a special occasion or remembrance,
please sign up on the Flower Chart, posted on the bulletin board.
A reminder will be emailed to you as your date approaches.
If you have any questions, please call the church office.
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 The Shelbourne Community Kitchen
As we go about our weekly shopping, let us consider our blessings. Add an extra item or two to our shopping carts, and donate them to the Shelbourne Community Kitchen.
Items will be picked up from the Church of the Cross regularly.
Thank you for your generousity but please know that we cannot accept items passed the date of expiration.
Thank you for helping our neighbours as you are able.
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Hoekstra joins Grizzlies
