Weekly Newsletter Coming from Evening Church, Samuel Palmer, 1830 A Note from Rev'd Holly Dear St. George's, Each day, as August draws on, the sun appears to be withdrawing slightly to the south again. The flowers have for the most part seen their blooms flourish, are setting seeds and drying. The acorns are dropping and the dew is heavier in the mornings after the cool of the night. It is difficult, for folks like many of us older ones, not to see in this change of season some reflection of...
10 days ago • 4 min read
Weekly Newsletter Woman of Canaan, Sadao Wantanabe, ca. 1940-1996, Watanabe placed biblical subjects in a Japanese context rendered in the mingei (folk art) approach. A Note from Rev'd Heather Dear St. George's, Many of you have heard me refer to Ordinary time as the Green and Growing Season - a title that comes from a catechetical system called Godly Play. This framing invites us to spend the season after Pentecost (and the shorter season between Christmas and Lent) as a time of slow growth...
17 days ago • 3 min read
Weekly Newsletter Edie Mae Herrel, 1986 A Note from Rev'd John Dear St. George's, Life has a way of narrowing our vision. When we are anxious, disappointed, acutely ill, or overwhelmed, the present moment can become all that we see. It is easy to believe that today's challenge will define tomorrow. This Sunday's readings remind us that there is often more to our lives than we can presently see. Again and again, Scripture invites us to recognize that our lives are part of something larger than...
24 days ago • 4 min read
Weekly Newsletter Helen Moloney created the stained glass window inside the church at Creeslough, County Donegal, designed by Liam McCormick. 1971 A Note from Rev'd Heather Dear St. George's, I don’t know about you but I am finding it hard to believe that August is just around the corner. Planning for our Fall Programming at St George’s is well under way and I’d like to take this opportunity to highlight the call for submissions to the Fall Digest that has been featured in our newsletter for...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Weekly Newsletter Love from the Cradle to the Cross, Edie Mae Herrel, based on Romans 8:26-39 A Note from Rev'd Ben Dear St. George's, This coming Sunday, we will read one of my most favourite passages in Scripture: the end of Romans 8. We've been reading from Romans as our Epistle reading since the Second Sunday After Pentecost. Paul has taken us from a discussion of sin to an exposition of justification by faith alone (that it is by our faith, not by our works, that we are acceptable in...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Weekly Newsletter Jacob's Ladder, William Blake, 1805 A Note from Rev'd Holly Gene Tucker has written: One does not simply choose a place and make it holy, for example, by building a sanctuary or an altar. Its sacredness must be either discovered or disclosed, and then recognized. This truth is certainly borne out in the reading from Genesis 28 this coming Sunday. Jacob is in the wilderness both literally and figuratively. Jacob’s lies, greed and self-interest have led him into a relational...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Weekly Newsletter Sower at Sunset, Vincent Van Gogh, 1888 A Note from Rev'd John This Sunday's readings remind us that the deepest questions of faith are not simply about right beliefs or right actions, but about the orientation of the human heart. Esau's impulsive bargain, Paul's assurance that we are called to live by the Spirit, and Jesus' parable of the sower all invite us to ask: What is shaping our deepest desires? Our culture often assumes that the answer to dissatisfaction is to...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Weekly Newsletter Rebecca at the Well, On the left Abraham's servant meets Rebecca at a well in Mesopotamia. Date:1140-1170, Mosaic. A Note from Rev'd Heather Dear St George’s, I hope this newsletter finds you well and that you were able to make the most of the past two weeks. Two Holiday Wednesdays in a row is a rare treat! This week, it is important to draw our attention once again to those most vulnerable in our communities. We are officially in the first Heat Wave of the summer. To that...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Weekly Newsletter A Note from Rev'd Heather Dear St George’s, I would be remiss not to begin this newsletter by acknowledging the collective grief and outrage that enveloped our city this week. On Monday three people died in Cote-de-neige due to gun violence. Our prayers go out to everyone affected by this horrific incident. To the bystanders, to the families of those who died, and to all those whose fragile sense of safety have been scarred. The celebrations of this year's Jean-Baptiste Day,...
2 months ago • 4 min read