THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Aug. 29, 2021, Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Gather and Devotion on Zoom. If you have any questions, or are interested in a conversation, contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com and visit www.communityofpilgrims.com.
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Dear Community of Pilgrims,
Greetings from sunny and hot southern California. Christian and I planned on a few days of “reviving" our souls a bit before I dive into being pastor of the Community of Pilgrims and Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church in North Portland this September by doing one of the things I love most and give me space to contemplate and be rejuvenated: walking in well-manicured gardens, visiting sculpture parks, strolling through countless art museums, and listening to live symphonic music in the Hollywood Bowl. Los Angeles area has delivered, along with good food and some down time to simply vacate.
This Sunday’s focus is on a passage from James 1:17-27. We know that John Calvin wasn’t wild about James, because there is such a strong emphasis on faith-in-action with nary a word said about grace. Nevertheless, the main focus is simply this one verse: “(B)e doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves” (v. 22). We read these words in a day in which we watch, listen, hear, and absorb so much that it is hard to know where to begin to do something. Even while on a mini-vacation, I’m fully aware of what is going on in the world, no matter how much I may try to stop the news: Afghanistan refugee status amid death of US troops and Afghan citizens; evictions allowed to continue in COVID 19 pandemic; the rising number of COVID 19 infections throughout parts of the country, including southern and eastern OR; mask mandates; vaccine booster shots; spreading chasm between the “haves” and “have nots”, and the homeless crisis in Portland, along with spreading gun violence in our city’s streets. Yes, words of “hope,” “justice,” “peace,” and “love” are needed, as is action. This Sunday we will have a more or less a discussion of what does it mean for us to be “doers of the word (namely loving God and neighbor), and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. See you all on Zoom Sunday!
** Reminder: On Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021, we will gather together on Zoom and maybe (just maybe) in person if you are living in the Portland area, to celebrate our anniversary. We will be gathering via Zoom, thanks, in no part, to the presence of the Delta variant, which re-configures so much of the world in which we live. So here’s a task for you to consider: Think of one powerful memory or meaningful way, or comedic way, that being part of this growing, evolving, ever changing community of faith has touched your life, the life of others around you, or the world in which we live. For example, I still remember the night we re-poured pounds of rice into smaller bags for family who needed food in Portland. Now, your turn. We will share these memories on Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021. We will share Communion on that day as well, and a toast afterwards with your favorite libation.
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Events!
Aug. 29, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
Sept. 5, Holy Holiday! (Labor Day Weekend)
Sept. 12, Celebrating the Fourth Anniversary of the Community of Pilgrims! 4 pm, Gather and Devotion and Holy Communion on Zoom! Huzzah!
Sept. 19, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
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Prayers of Celebration and Concern
· The people of Afghanistan, Haiti, and victims of Hurricane Henri threatening the Atlantic coast with heavy rain and flooding.
· People in COVID hot spots including Oregon.
· Doctors and nurses who are traumatized and burned out from treating COVID.
· Certain governors to wake up and fight COVID as infection, transmission, and hospitalization spike in their states.
· The overflow of families coming across our southern border.
· The unrest in the streets of Portland, Seattle, and other cities.
· All those traveling in the next couple of weeks.
· Luke and Dayna as they prepare for their wedding.
· Diana and Amy as they prepare for their wedding in ten days.
· Continued prayers for the youth at Home Plate.
· Roxanne's cousin who has lost her family and may she feel welcome in Roxanne's home.
· Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church as it assesses and discerns where it wants to go.
· Continued prayers for Linda's brother Gary.
· The electoral process in the United States.
· Control over wildfires burning actively in California, the Northwest, and other states.
· Sam Scruggs who has been hospitalized with a stroke and for his family.
· Chris as she shows her sheep on Thursday afternoon.
· Roxanne's 36th wedding anniversary.
· Safe travels for Brett and Christian to California.
· Yarrow Halstead, Christian’s sister, who has been recently diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer.
· Those who US troops and Afghan citizens in Kabul, trying
“God, in your love, attend our prayers…”
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Poem
Peace, by Malcolm Guite
Not as the world gives, not the victor’s peace,
Not to be fought for, hard-won, or achieved,
Just grace and mercy, gratefully received:
An undeserved and unforeseen release,
As the cold chains of memory and wrath
Fall from our hearts before we are aware,
Their rusty locks all picked by patient prayer,
Till closed doors open, and we see a path
Descending from a source we cannot see;
A path that must be taken, hand in hand,
Only by those, forgiving and forgiven,
Who see their savior in their enemy.
So reach for me. We’ll cross our broken land,
And make each other bridges back to Heaven.
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Buen Camino! Pastors Brett & Karen Cornwell Fortlander.