THIS SUNDAY: The Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship, Jan. 8, 2023. Epiphany! 4 pm, Rise Church (10445 SW Canterbury Ln., Tigard, OR 97224), or on Zoom. Contact Pastor Brett for 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 Feast of the Epiphany! This is Three Kings Day!
I began writing this newsletter on the 12th and last day of Christmas, Jan. 5, 2023. I hope you all enjoyed the season of Christmas, which included, in the midst of this holiday season, the turning over into a new year. Slowly, I took down the Christmas wreaths in the front of our home today, acknowledging that we are in a new season of the Church's life. We are no longer in Christmas but Epiphany, which ends on Feb. 22, 2023, Ash Wednesday.
The Scripture reading for Epiphany is Matthew 2:1-12. The primary verses that stand out to me as I read this passage is this: “When they (the Magi) saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh”(vv. 10-11). This is the very definition of the word “epiphany”: The “manifestation of a divine or supernatural being; a moment of sudden revelation or insight” (dictionary.com). The Magi, a group of pilgrims from the East, found the one that they had been seeking, lying in a manger, in Bethlehem. It is the very definition of an “Aha!” moment. They knew that this child, this one, was the one they were called to seek and find. When have we felt this kind of epiphanic experience in our daily lives? In other words, when were we caught surprised at the presence of the Holy in our daily routine of life? Join us Sunday as we focus on such moments of divine revelation in our lives today. And Happy Epiphany!
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Our story of sharing Advent/Christmas blessings with families from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, working with Portsmouth Trinity Lutheran Church, was published in this week's Presbytery's Cascades Connection. The story is half way down the Cascades Connection. Just click on or copy and paste this hyperlink: https://mailchi.mp/cascadespresbytery/january-5-2023?e=d2d6e7b533. And thank you, all, for this gift of love.
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Events!
Jan. 8, 4 pm, Epiphany! Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.
Jan. 15, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.
Jan. 22, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.
Jan. 29, 4 pm, Gather and Devotion on Zoom or at Rise Church.
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Prayers of Celebration and Concern
We pray to the Creator of all creation:
For these things we are thankful:
· For the body of Christ in this season of Christmastide;
· For good health;
· For a shelter, food, and clothes;
· For the freedom to worship;
· For modes of transportation to move around;
· For the means to help others in need;
· For health care, and the advancements in science;
· For significant relationships and our families who provide us a web of care;
· For the grace that makes possible our participation in the body of Christ.
We pray for:
· The world. We especially pray for places around the world in which global climate change is making a big impact this winter, such as northern CA, which has received heavier than usual rains;
· For leaders of civil government, and that they would focus on the common good rather than ill-gotten gains. We especially pray for the US House of Representatives;
· For gun control, climate control, equality with the LGBTQIA2S+ community; women’s reproductive rights, voting rights, and new immigration policies that welcome the stranger;
· For those places and people caught up in war, including Ukraine; Ethiopia; Syria; Yemen; Afghanistan; Iran; China; and Myanmar. We pray for peace and love to prevail;
· For the worldwide church, that there would be peace and understanding among us all;
· For the cities in which we live, and that there may be a way to end homelessness, poverty, and hunger;
· For those immigrants and refugees in this world;
· The those in hospice and palliative care, that there may be comfort;
· For our families and significant relationships where there is tension or deep sadness.
God in your love, attend our prayers. Amen
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Poem
For Those Stars That Turn in Us, A Blessing, by Jan Richardson
I do not know
How to keep it all together
Or by what patterns
This world might finally hold.
What I know is that
Our hearts are bigger
Than this sky
That wheels above us.
And what shines
Through all this darkness
Shines through us,
Setting every shattered thing
Into a new constellation
And we can turn
Our faces
To that light,
To the grace of
Those stars
That turn in us.
Buen Camino! Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell and Karen Cornwell Fortlander