THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022, 4 pm, First Sunday after Epiphany/Baptism of Jesus Sunday. Zoom. Contact me, Pastor Brett, if you need the Zoom link. 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!
Happy Epiphany!
In our western Christian tradition, this is a day of celebrating the arrival of the Magi to visit, honor, and bestow gifts upon the Christ-child. In Louisiana, today there may be a “King Cake,” a puff pastry confection served on Epiphany to commemorate the arrival of the Three Kings at the stable where Jesus was born. There may be a small, plastic baby in the King cake. Whoever gets the baby child in a slice of cake is king or queen for the day. In some parts of Appalachian mountain communities, today is seen as “Old Christmas,” in which some families and communities of faith followed the older Julian calendar, which makes Christmas fall on Jan. 6, in resistance to the more “modern” Gregorian calendar, in which Christmas falls on Dec. 25th. Whatever we call this day, and whatever we eat, let us, as pilgrims, one and all, continue to follow the star, the light, of God.
As I write this newsletter on Epiphany I am caught in the creative tension of the day. Much of the news I heard and read this morning had to do with the anniversary of the Washington, DC Capitol riots, in which there was an assault on our democracy and the democratic process of electing people, and the smooth, peaceful, transfer of power, based upon the agreed upon laws of this land. I can see the US flag fluttering outside our home, which I put up this morning, as a sign to the community who walk or drive by that we, in this household, live with hope that, one day, we will be a people who work together towards making this nation a more “perfect union.” Behind me, in the living room, our Christmas tree is lit up because this is Epiphany in the Christian calendar, the day the Magi showed up bearing fits of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Long before the former President and the insurrectionists attacked democracy, and long after, there was, is, and will still be, Epiphany. And here are the words of daily Scripture that I woke up to and read this morning, which lifted me out of the agonizing tension: “Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. Christ existed before everything else began, and Christ holds all creation together” (Col. 1:15, 17).
Happy Epiphany, everyone! And splurge! Eat a slice of sweet cake today!
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Join us this Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022, in which we will focus on the baptism of Jesus.
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Great poem at the end of this newsletter! Please keep reading.
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Events!
Jan. 6, Epiphany!
Jan. 9, 4 pm, Baptism of Jesus Sunday! Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
Jan. 16, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
Jan. 23, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom!
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Prayers of Celebration and Concern
We pray to the Creator of all creation:
· Katie, Karen’s daughter, who was just diagnosed as living with COVID. The other three members of the family are getting tested.
· Prayer for healing for Mary Kistka, a relative of Christian Halstead, who is ill.
· Thanksgiving that Brittany who experienced severe reactions to her COVID vaccine several months ago is finally able to walk.
· Strength and courage for Roxanne's stepson and his family as they face difficult challenges of living with two severely autistic children.
· Scott who needed a bone marrow transplant and is now in serious condition and being transferred to the Mayo Clinic for treatment.
· Foster nephew Jason who is developmentally delayed and damaged and doctors have found a tumor on his kidney.
· Deborah's Kevin who is dealing with cancer.
· Celebrations that everyone here today is healthy.
· Nephew Jeff who has COVID and has a high fever.
· Linda's niece caught in the exhaustion of the "sandwich generation" caring for her ill parent and at the same time concerned about her youngest daughter who has serious emotional problems.
· Daughter Mariko who tested positive for COVID on Friday and prayers the rest of the family can avoid infection.
· Karen's daughter Katie back in Eugene and for all students returning to school that they do not have to return to virtual learning.
· Common sense.
· Celebrations for a friend's brother who had been in ICU but was able to return home last week.
· Countries at civil war such as Ethiopia, Yemen, Syria, parts of Turkey, and Myanmar and for those left behind in Afghanistan facing the risk of starvation as a result of harsh winter conditions and economic collapse.
· Connecting refugees to the services that will help them build a better life for themselves and their families.
· Our country as Congress reconvenes this week in Washington to address several critical pieces of legislation.
· Thanksgiving for Betty White, a life well-lived.
· Our friends in their late-80's and 90's including Ray, Chuck, and Sue Malter.
“God, in your love, attend our prayers…”
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Poem
WHERE THE MAP BEGINS
A Blessing for Epiphany
By Jan Richardson
This is not
any map you know.
Forget longitude.
Forget latitude.
Do not think
of distances
or of plotting
the most direct route.
Astrolabe, sextant, compass:
these will not help you here.
This is the map
that begins with a star.
This is the chart
that starts with fire,
with blazing,
with an ancient light
that has outlasted
generations, empires,
cultures, wars.
Look starward once,
then look away.
Close your eyes
and see how the map
begins to blossom
behind your lids,
how it constellates,
its lines stretching out
from where you stand.
You cannot see it all,
cannot divine the way
it will turn and spiral,
cannot perceive how
the road you walk
will lead you finally inside,
through the labyrinth
of your own heart
and belly
and lungs.
But step out
and you will know
what the wise who traveled
this path before you
knew:
the treasure in this map
is buried not at journey’s end
but at its beginning.
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Buen Camino! Pastors Brett & Karen Cornwell Fortlander.