Newsletter, Community of Pilgrims, April 5, 2020

THIS SUNDAY: Palm Sunday, April 5, Zoom; Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com

_____

Dear Pilgrims of Palm Sunday, 

On this Wednesday morning, the clouds that brought the rain that saturated the ground earlier today are starting to slowly disperse. Much like this virus, I look forward to the cloud of COVID 19 to disperse, and for the warmth of a big communityhug to happen. In time, with time, that will happen. Hopefully, wherever we live, may we begin to at least “flatten the curve” of this pandemic, and work as a community to bring an end to the current plague.

The Scripture focus this Sunday is one we know well on Palm Sunday, from Matt. 21:1-11. This is commonly known as the Liturgy of the Palms, which is followed by Matthew 26:14-27; 66, which is the Liturgy of the Passion, going into the events that come hurtling at Jesus, with little room to breathe. Focusing on Palm Sunday, the place where we find Jesus is Jerusalem, and the time is Passover, when the Jewish people remember and celebrate God’s deliverance of them from slavery in Egypt. Jerusalem was a city of both hunger and hope, in which everyone had a deep memory of heroic King David. The one they were celebrating was the son of David, the one they hoped would be the new king of Israel, a nation that had lived under the heel of one oppressive, violent empire after another. I always had an image of the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem to be similar to one of the grand entrances made by a “Star Wars” heroic character before a major battle took place, bringing hope and a sense of relief to the beleaguered people. Likewise, into the city comes Jesus, sun shining, people shouting with joy as he rode through the city riding on a simple donkey. He was riding into a city in which the people would reject him in just a few days. In this one person, people dreamt of a time with no more hunger. No more war. He was the embodiment of people’s dreams of a new day, which we remember at the beginning of another Holy Week, finding ourselves in this story, finding ourselves in one procession or another. Join us this Sunday, via Zoom, as we consider all the events that are wrapped up in this one week, from a grand entry into Jerusalem, to a trial, being executed by the state, to, finally, resurrection wonder in place of the empty tomb. And in this time of the COVID 19 pandemic, let us be inspired by God-filled hope, which is what we need today.

** 

Keep collecting clothes! 40 items of clothing for Lent, in which, when the pandemic “shelter in place” order will be lifted, and we can take these items to SnowCap. 

**

While we are not meeting in person, the Community of Pilgrims will still welcome your financial contribution. Please make a check out to "Community of Pilgrims," and mail it to: Brett Webb-Mitchell, 9460 SW Martha St., Tigard, OR 97224. Many thanks!

____

Events!

April 5, Palm Sunday! Zoom!

April 12, Easter! Zoom!

April 19, Gather and Devotion, Zoom!

April 26, Gather and Devotion, Zoom!

____

Requests

* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!

* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Daily by Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 

* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbook by David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.

____

Poem

Blessing in the Chaos, by Jan Richardson

To all that is chaotic

In you,

Let there come silence.

Let there be

A calming

Of the clamoring,

A stilling

Of the voices that

Have laid their claim

On you,

That have made their 

Home in you,

That go with you

Even to the 

Holy places

But will not

Let you rest,

Will not let you

Hear your life

With wholeness

Or feel the grace

That fashioned you.

Let what distracts you 

Cease.

Let what divides you

Cease.

Let there come an end

To what diminishes 

And demeans

And let depart

All that keeps you

In its cage.

Let there be

An opening

Into the quiet

That lies beneath

The chaos,

Where you find

The peace

You did not think

Possible

And see what shimmers

Within the storm.

_____

Buen Camino!

Pastors Brett & Chris 

Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com Rev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com 

Newsletter, Community of Pilgrims, March 29, 2020

THIS SUNDAY: March 29, 2020, Zoom; Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com

_____

Dear Pilgrims of Lent,

What a wonderful gift it was to see many of you this past Sunday afternoon! From OR to NM, we gathered together. Thank you, all, for tuning in on Zoom this past Sunday. We will connect again this coming Sunday, March 29, 2020, 4-5 pm, via Zoom. I will send out the link to Zoom on Saturday night, and look forward to checking in and seeing all of you again as we move forward on our pilgrimage to Easter.

This Sunday is the fifth Sunday of Lent, or the last Sunday before Palm Sunday, and then Easter. The focus Scripture is John 11:1-45. Jesus and his disciples are drawing near to Jerusalem, and Calvary, and to the cross. The text actually says that they are “two miles away” from Jesus’ death and mourning, to the tomb, and soon enough, to the empty tomb. Jesus and his disciples had gathered in Bethany, where Jesus’ best friends—Mary, Martha, and Lazarus—lived. This is a powerful story, a foretelling of the death and resurrection of Jesus, in which friend Lazarus has died, and Jesus raises him from his own death. What cannot be missed in this reading is the sorrow and grief that consumes the family and friends of Lazarus at his passing. As many in our Fellowship have been touched recently by the passing away of loved ones, we can relate to the sorrow that everyone around the grieving family is experiencing. In my grief, I re-read portions of Yale theologian Nicholas Wolterstorff’s book, Lament for a Son, the story of his experience of grief when his 25-year-old son, Eric, unexpectedly died: “God is not only the God of the sufferers but the God who suffers…It is said of God that no one can behold his face and live. I always thought this meant that no one could see his splendor and live. A friend said perhaps it meant that no one could see his sorrow and live. Or perhaps his sorrow is splendor…Instead of explaining our suffering God shares it.” This idea of God being the suffering God who shares in the suffering of others is embodied in Jesus, who openly wept on hearing of Lazarus' death. Join us this Sunday as we explores the contours of faith in the heart that suffers.

**

Our service project this Lent is gathering 40 pieces of clothing (for the 40 days of Lent), and donating them to SnowCap, a non-profit that will gladly take our clothes for those in need. Still collect these clothes, and when we meet again, bring them, and we will take them to SnowCap.

____

Events!

March 29, 4-5 pm,  Zoom Conference Call

April 5, Palm Sunday! 4-5 pm Zoom Conference Call

April 12, Easter! TBD

April 19, 4-5 pm Zoom Conference Call

April 26 4-5 pm Zoom Conference Call

____

Requests

* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!

* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Daily by Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 

* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbook by David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.

____

Prayers of Celebration and Concern

For people with kids at home unexpectedly.

For those who have lost their jobs or are unable to work.

For first-responders and medical personnel.

For the high-school seniors who are missing out on key transitional moments like prom and graduation.

For the prison population, who might be at higher risk due to close quarters.

For those of Asian descent facing the added burden of racial prejudice.

 ____ 

Poem

Blackbirds, by Julie Cadwallader-Staub

I am 52 years old, and have spent

Truly the better part

Of my life out-of-doors

But yesterday I heard a new sound above my head

A rustle, ruffling quietness in the spring air.

And when I turned my face upward

I saw a flock of blackbirds

Rounding a curve I didn’t know was there

And the sound was simply all those wings

Just feathers against air, against gravity

And such a beautiful winning

The whole flock taking a long, wide turn

As if of one body and one mind.

How do they do that?

Oh, if we lived only in

Human society

With its cruelty and fear

Its apathy and exhaustion

What a puny existence

That would be

But instead we live and love and have

Our being

Here, in this curving and soaring world

So that when, every now and then,

Mercy and tenderness triumph in our lives

And when, even more rarely, we manage to unite

And move together

Toward a common good,

We can think to ourselves:

Ah yes, this is how it’s meant to be. 

_____

Buen Camino!

Pastors Brett & Chris 

Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com Rev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com 

Newsletter, Community of Pilgrims, Dec. 1, 2019

THIS SUNDAY: Nov. 24, 2019, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 1907 NE 45thAve., Portland, OR 97213; Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com

_____

Dear Pilgrims of Hope,

Greetings from the chilly and beautiful Oregon coast on the day after Thanksgiving! I hope that everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving, and the chance to be with family and friends, joined together in a spirit of gratitude!

This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent, and usually “hope” is the theme for this Sunday as we light what is commonly called the Prophet’s Candle. The Scriptural focus is the prophet Isaiah 2:1-5, in which the prophet calls for a future that feels and sounds like a dream of a world yet-to-come of a savior who is also yet-to-come to the people of Israel: “He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” The image of swords of war being beaten into ploughshares and spears turning into pruning hook is captured in so many paintings and sculptures as symbols of peace, because it is so tangible that all people, of all lands, throughout time, can grasp the meaning of this image as the ultimate sign of peace. In this day, too, in which there is much rattling of swords in some lands, and smaller wars and civil strife around the world—from Hong Kong to Syria—may Isaiah’s word-image strike a light of hope even in the darkest of hearts, minds, and bodies. Join us this Sunday for a discussion of being people of hope and peace in a world that continues to defer to violence.

Finally: Pledge Sunday! On Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019, we will be celebrating both the First Sunday of Advent (hard to believe), and Pledge Sunday! We will have Pledge forms at the Gathering this coming Sunday!

____

Events!

Dec. 1, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.

Dec. 8, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.

Dec. 15, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.

Dec. 22, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.

Dec. 24, Christmas Eve! Plans TBA!

____

Requests

* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!

* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Dailyby Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 

* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbookby David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.

* Finally, Community and Growthby Jean Vanier will be picked up as a book for us to read together.

____

_____

Poem

Advent, by Rae Armantrout

In front of the craft shop,

a small nativity,

mother, baby, sheep

made of white

and blue balloons.

                  *

Sky

           god

                      girl.

Pick out the one

that doesn’t belong.

                  *

Some thing

close to nothing

                               flat

from which,

fatherless,

everything has come.

_____

Buen Camino!

Pastors Brett & Chris 

Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.comRev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com 

Newsletter, Community of Pilgrims, Nov. 24, 2019

THIS SUNDAY: Nov. 24, 2019, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 1907 NE 45thAve., Portland, OR 97213; Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com
_____
Dear Pilgrims of Peace,

The sun is out on a blue sky yet slightly chillier day as we move forward in the Church calendar. We are coming to the end of our Church year, with Reign of Christ Sunday on Nov. 24! The first Sunday of the new year of the Church calendar is Dec. 1! So, auld lang syne, folks! And before we know it, it'll be 2020!

The focus passage this Sunday Luke 1:68-79. It is known in Christian circles as Zechariah’s song, which Zechariah blurts out when his son John was born. Before his birth, Zechariah had been, um, quiet for several months (read Luke 1 for a brush up course on what's happening). Zechariah was married to Elizabeth, John the Baptist’s mom, and Elizabeth was related to Mary, Jesus' mom. Both Zechariah and Elizabeth were of old age, beyond child-bearing years, and yet God gives them a son, John, whose life will be caught up in the audaciously magnificent designs of God. And we know that John is going to be great in God’s purview, turning many of the people of Israel to God. This passage, which can also be a poem or song (we will sing it this Sunday), is an echo of a passage from Isaiah, calling people to be “people of the way of peace.” Indeed, the word, “peace,” is written more often in the Gospel of Luke than in any of the other Gospels combined (fun fact!). This is because God’s peace is a message that frames the beginning and end of this Gospel and permeates its message throughout. Join us this Sunday as we reflect and discuss the power of this beautiful song sung by Zechariah for all the ages to receive.

Finally: Pledge Sunday! On Sunday, Dec. 1, 2019, we will be celebrating both the First Sunday of Advent (hard to believe), and Pledge Sunday! Stay tuned for more information!

____

Events!

Nov. 24, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Dec. 1, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Dec. 8, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Dec. 15, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Dec. 22, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Dec. 24, Christmas Eve! Plans TBA!
____

Requests

* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!
* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Dailyby Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 
* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbookby David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.
* Finally, Community and Growthby Jean Vanier will be picked up as a book for us to read together.
____

Thanks!

A big thank you to the Community of Pilgrims from Snow Cap, both for the tremendous collection of clothes on one Sunday, and for the gift of packing bigger bags of rice into smaller bags of rice for families who will be in need of food this winter. What a fabulous gift we have been blessed to give for those in need! Thanks to all who made this possible, especially Kathy and Linda, who helped transport the clothes and rice, and organized us!

.

_____

Poem

PONTIUS PILATE POSTS TO HIS WEBLOG, by Andrew King
(John 18: 33-37 (38a))
Had someone before me today
who some claimed
that he claimed
to be a king.
Some kind of Jewish messiah.

He did say he had a kingdom,
but one “not from this world”. 

For a moment – a moment of weakness –
I wondered what that could mean, and if,
whatever it meant, it could be true.
Or partly true, or, of course, not true at all. 

But then I remembered
I don’t care much about truth –
though lies can be a really useful tool.
But I don’t believe
that much truth really matters.

What matters is domination.
Power, however you keep it.
The legions I command.
The fear I can inspire.
The crosses I can nail my enemies to.

So who cares what kind of kingdom
this Jesus fellow has –
not I, unless
it comes backed up with swords.

He’s on a cross right now.
As I write this, he’s dying.
I doubt for him
any truth
could matter more.

_____

Buen Camino!
Pastors Brett & Chris 
Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.comRev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com

Newsletter, Community of Pilgrims, Nov. 17, 2019

Hi All,

Today, Sunday, Nov. 17, we are meeting at Colonial Heights Presbyterian Church! 2828 SE Stephens St., Portland, OR, 97214.

Meet at the front of the church building, not the back, because we are going to be stuffing bags of rice with recipes for families in need today in the church's Narthex! Please bring measuring cups!

That will be followed by the Lord's Supper and Potluck, wishing Lee a bon voyage as he moves to AZ to be with Tom!

See you then and there!

Buen Camino! Brett and Chris

Newsletter Community of Pilgrims, Nov. 3, 2019

THIS SUNDAY: Nov. 3, 2019, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 1907 NE 45thAve., Portland, OR, 97213 Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com
_____
Dear Pilgrims of Community of Pilgrims, and the Company of Pilgrims Surrounding Us,

Happy All Hallows’ Eve!

These three upcoming days—All Hallows’ Eve, All Saints’ Day, and All Souls’ Day—are truly unique in the Christian calendar. The artist Jan Richardson wrote that, for her, these days represent a thin place in the year; a space where a door opens between worlds that often seem terribly apart. This concept of "thin times" is part of pilgrimage. This concept of “thin" in terms of places is also a part of pilgrimage. I first ran across it with the writings of religious scholar Mircea Eliade, who wrote that “Some parts of space are qualitatively different from others.” Those who are followers of the Celtic traditions know that there is the belief that there are certain locales where the distance between heaven and earth collapse, and that we are able to catch a glimpse of the Divine, or the transcendent, or the "Infinite Whatever." Again, this idea of a thin time and a thin place is one of the major characteristics of pilgrimage! Pilgrims is a thin time in a pilgrim’s life, in which our senses are aware that we are accompanied by the Spirit as we walk on holy ground, visiting holy sites, thin places. In these places, these shrines or churches or temples, we are more able, more aware, of the presence of the Holy in our living. My hope and prayer as I write this email on All Hallows’ Eve is that the Community of Pilgrim would be a people who experience such thin times and places. And perhaps by our very existence, where we meet and the time we meet are a “thin," in which we are more aware of the Holy in and among and around us! May it be so! Amen.

Join us this Sunday, as the Rev. Tom Letts brings the Good News to life! 

____

Events!

Nov. 1-3, Time with Tom Letts, Church Coach! More news TBA!
Nov. 3, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm; Tom Letts preaching.
Nov. 10, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Nov. 17, Gather and Worship, Colonial Heights Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
____
Requests
* There will be a gathering of clothes on Sunday, Nov. 10, for Snow Cap, along with packing of rice and such on that Sunday for Snow Cap! Start collecting your clothes for being sent to Snow Cap!
* Regarding the CoP t-shirts: Please pick up your t-shirt this Sunday, and bring cash or a check made out to Community of Pilgrims, in the amount of $8 for adult M, L, and XL, and youth; and $12 for adult 2XL. Thank you!
* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!
* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Dailyby Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 
* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbookby David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.
* Finally, Community and Growthby Jean Vanier will be picked up as a book for us to read together.

_____

Poem

God of the Living: A Blessing, by Jan Richardson

When the wall

Between the worlds

Is too firm,

Too close.

When it seems all solidity

And sharp edges.

When every morning 

You wake as if

Flattened against it,

Its forbidding presence

Fairly pressing the breath

From you

All over again.

Then may you be given

A glimpse

Of how weak the wall

And how strong what stirs

On the other side,

Breathing with you

And blessing you

Still,

Forever bound to you

But freeing you

Into this living,

Into this world

So much wider

Than you ever knew.

_____

Buen Camino!
Pastors Brett & Chris 
Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.comRev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com

Newsletter, Community of Pilgrims, Sept. 15, 2019

THIS SUNDAY: Sept. 15, 2019, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 1907 NE 45thAve., Portland, OR, 97213 Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com
_____
Dear Pilgrims of Summer,

As I write this email letter, it is currently 81 degrees, and the cloudless blue sky is wonderful to behold. This is tomato-harvest season, and there is something about a thick slice of a home-grown tomato, sprinkled with a little salt and pepper, that is out of this world. And the root beer floats we had last week to celebrate our second anniversary was a wonderful reminder of other delicious summer treats! Praise God of rich, juicy tomatoes and root beer floats! !

As we venture forth this Sunday into our third year of being a Christian community of faith in the Portland-Vancouver metro area, the focus Scripture is Luke 15:1-10, with Jesus telling us the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin. All of us can relate to “misplacing” sunglasses, keys, money, credit cards, wallets, cell phones, purses, backpacks, and the list can go on and on… and we all well know the intensity of the search for said-misplaced items. We also know the sweet sense of relief and moment of celebration that occurs after we find that item which once was lost but now is found. It is written by many commentary writers that these parables demonstrate God in Christ’s love for each of us and our community of faiths, that the Spirit would search for the lost sheep and the lost coin—and the lost person—until one is found. The sheep and coin are symbols of you and me; of us. And when we are found by the Spirit, “there will be so much joy” says Jesus. Why? Because we are loved. Or as the late-Henri Nouwen reminds us, “we are not loved because we are precious, but we are precious because we are loved."Join us this Sunday for a discussion of our lost and found occasions in life, and the grace and love of God in Christ that fills us with such amazing joy.

_____
Events!
Sept. 8, Pastor Brett preaches at First UMC, Hillsboro, 10 am;
Sept. 8, Second Anniversary of Community of Pilgrims! Rose City Park! 4-6 pm!
Sept. 15, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Sept. 22, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Sept 25-29, 2019, Pastor Brett in southern Idaho, working with UMC churches.
Sept. 29, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Oct. 6, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Oct. 13, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm. 
Oct. 20, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
____
Requests
* There will be a gathering of clothes on Sunday, Nov. 10, for Snow Cap, along with packing of rice and such on that Sunday for Snow Cap! Start collecting your clothes for being sent to Snow Cap!
* Regarding the CoP t-shirts: Please pick up your t-shirt this Sunday, and bring cash or a check made out to Community of Pilgrims, in the amount of $8 for adult M, L, and XL, and youth; and $12 for adult 2XL. Thank you!
* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!
* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Dailyby Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 
* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbookby David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.
* Finally, Community and Growthby Jean Vanier will be picked up as a book for us to read together.

____

Poem

Welcoming Blessing, by Jan Richardson

(In this time of changes in our life, let us take a moment reflect on God’s goodness)

When you are lost
in your own life.
When the landscape
you have known
falls away.
When your familiar path
becomes foreign
and you find yourself
a stranger
in the story you had held
most dear.
Then let yourself
be lost.
Let yourself leave
for a place
whose contours
you do not already know,
whose cadences
you have not learned
by heart.
Let yourself land
on a threshold
that mirrors the mystery
of your own
bewildered soul.
It will come
as a surprise,
what arrives
to welcome you
through the door,
making a place for you
at the table
and calling you
by your name.
Let what comes,
come.
Let the glass
be filled.
Let the light
be tended.
Let the hands
lay before you
what will meet you
in your hunger.
Let the laughter.
Let the sweetness
that enters
the sorrow.
Let the solace
that comes
as sustenance
and sudden, unbidden
grace.
For what comes,
offer gladness.
For what greets you
with kindly welcome,
offer thanks.
Offer blessing
for those
who gathered you in
and will not
be forgotten—
those who,
when you were
a stranger,
made a place for you
at the table
and called you
by your name. 
_____

Buen Camino!
Pastors Brett & Chris 
Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com; Rev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com

Newsletter, Community of Pilgrims, Sept. 8, 2019

THIS SUNDAY: Sept. 8, 2019, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 1907 NE 45thAve., Portland, OR, 97213 Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com
_____
Happy 2ndAnniversary, Community of Pilgrims!

On Sunday, Sept. 10th, 2017, we began meeting as a Community of Pilgrims Presbyterian Fellowship! We had a lot of people visiting us that day, wishing us well on our first Sunday together. According to the etiquette books and blogs, “while the perfect two-year anniversary gift, if you want to pick something that follows custom, is cotton, with the more modern take being china or porcelain,” joining us this Sunday, dear friends, would be a wonderful gift. Your joining us as a Community of Pilgrims would be a godsend. As you know, we always have a potluck at the end of our gathering and worship time together, and we would love to see you all as we celebrate the second anniversary of Community of Pilgrims! And our dessert that evening is root beer floats! Join us in this celebration of our being a new faith community in the Portland-Vancouver area!

The focus Scripture for us this week is the letter of Paul to Philemon, about Philemon welcoming back his slave Onesimus. This is a fascinating letter, given the politics of slavery in those days of Roman occupation, in which we find Paul struggling to be faithful to the Gospel, which liberates us, while confronting the ancient (and modern) tradition of slavery. After all, in the baptismal formula of Galatians 3:28, slavery is abolished as the old distinctions between Jew and Greek, male and female, slave and master, are secondary to our first allegiance as members of the body of Christ, in which we are all equals with one another as members of Christ’s beloved community. As was true with Paul is true for us today. The struggle in Paul’s day and today is this: being faithful to the Gospel, as followers of Jesus Christ, which might mean we have no choice but to confront modern rituals and social practices that are antithetical to that very same Gospel. Join us this Sunday, our second anniversary Sunday, as we explore what it means to practice faithfulness in our world today as a community of faith!  
_____
Events!
Sept. 8, Pastor Brett preaches at First UMC, Hillsboro, 10 am;
Sept. 8, Second Anniversary of Community of Pilgrims! Rose City Park! 4-6 pm!
Sept. 15, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Sept. 22, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Sept 25-29, 2019, Pastor Brett in southern Idaho, working with UMC churches.
Sept. 29, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Oct. 6, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Oct. 13, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm. 
____
Requests
* Regarding the CoP t-shirts: Please pick up your t-shirt this Sunday, and bring cash or a check made out to Community of Pilgrims, in the amount of $8 for adult M, L, and XL, and youth; and $12 for adult 2XL. Thank you!
* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!
* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Dailyby Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 
* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbookby David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.
* Finally, Community and Growthby Jean Vanier will be picked up as a book for us to read together.

____

Poem

Praise Song for the Day, by Elizabeth Alexander

(In honor of our 2ndAnniversary)

Each day we go about our business,
walking past each other, catching each other’s
eyes or not, about to speak or speaking.

All about us is noise. All about us is
noise and bramble, thorn and din, each
one of our ancestors on our tongues.

Someone is stitching up a hem, darning
a hole in a uniform, patching a tire,
repairing the things in need of repair.

Someone is trying to make music somewhere,
with a pair of wooden spoons on an oil drum,
with cello, boom box, harmonica, voice.

A woman and her son wait for the bus.
A farmer considers the changing sky.
A teacher says, Take out your pencils. Begin.

We encounter each other in words, words
spiny or smooth, whispered or declaimed,
words to consider, reconsider.

We cross dirt roads and highways that mark
the will of someone and then others, who said
I need to see what’s on the other side.

I know there’s something better down the road.
We need to find a place where we are safe.
We walk into that which we cannot yet see.

Say it plain: that many have died for this day.
Sing the names of the dead who brought us here,
who laid the train tracks, raised the bridges,

picked the cotton and the lettuce, built
brick by brick the glittering edifices
they would then keep clean and work inside of.

Praise song for struggle, praise song for the day.
Praise song for every hand-lettered sign,
the figuring-it-out at kitchen tables.

Some live by love thy neighbor as thyself,
others by first do no harm or take no more
than you need. What if the mightiest word is love?

Love beyond marital, filial, national,
love that casts a widening pool of light,
love with no need to pre-empt grievance.

In today’s sharp sparkle, this winter air,
anything can be made, any sentence begun.
On the brink, on the brim, on the cusp,

praise song for walking forward in that light.

_____

Buen Camino!
Pastors Brett & Chris 
Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.comRev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com

Newsletter, Community of Pilgrims, Sept. 1, 2019

THIS SUNDAY: Sept. 1, 2019, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 1907 NE 45thAve., Portland, OR, 97213 Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com
_____
Dear Pilgrims All! Welcome to God's Banquet Feast!

These glorious days of summer heat are something to enjoy, O Oregonians! For we know full well what is around the corner in the coming months! We have truly been blessed with great summer days!

The Scripture focus this week, according to the Revised Common Lectionary, is from Luke 14:1, 7-14. I’m going to move it to Luke 14:15-24, which is the powerful and meaningful Parable of the Great Banquet. It was also the central text for my book, Unexpected Guests at God’s Banquet, which focused on practices of integration of people labeled “disabled” in this society into the Church. The story has much to do with Middle East etiquette, hospitality, and the unexpected integration of people considered disabled--hidden in the by-ways and highways of a town--to a divine banquet feast. It is said that there are more meal-time illustrations and parables in Luke than in any of the other gospel accounts. What the parable reveals is the fabulous company of those who are invited to God’s Banquet Feast. And who are these blessed folk? To paraphrase one of my favorite writers Frederick Buechner, the “beautiful people” all sent in their excuses (real estate, livestock, and sex lives), so the host sends out invitations to the streets to welcome those who are poor, those people who are disabled, and those who are blind, and those who are deaf. “The string ensemble strikes up the overture to The Bartered Bride, champagne glasses are filled, cold pheasant is passed around, and there they sit, with white canes, empty sleeves, orthopedic shoes, and aluminum walkers…rose petals float in the finger bowls. The strings shift into The Liebestod.” Join us this Sunday for a discussion on the nature of the Banquet Feast, the realm of God, and daily discipleship!

_____
Events!
Sept. 1, Gathering and Worship, Rose City Park PCUSA;
Sept. 4, Film Night @ Moreland Presbyterian Church. We will join the folks at Moreland for the debut of a film on the Dreamers in the US. This is a documentary film focused on the stories of young people who were born in the US, whose parents migrated to this country. It will be shown at 7 pm in their Fellowship Hall, 1814 SE Bybee Blvd, Portland, OR 97202.
Sept. 8, Pastor Brett preaches at First UMC, Hillsboro;
Sept. 8, Second Anniversary of Community of Pilgrims! Rose City Park! 4-6 pm!
Sept. 15, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Sept. 22, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Sept 25-29, 2019, Pastor Brett in southern Idaho, working with UMC churches.
Sept. 29, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church, 4-6 pm.
Oct. 6, Gather and Worship, Rose City Park Presbyterian Church 4-6 pm.
____
Requests
* Regarding the CoP t-shirts: Please pick up your t-shirt this Sunday, and bring cash or a check made out to Community of Pilgrims, in the amount of $8 for adult M, L, and XL, and youth; and $12 for adult 2XL. Thank you!
* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!
* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Dailyby Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 
* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbookby David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.
* Finally, Community and Growthby Jean Vanier will be picked up as a book for us to read together.

_____

Poem

And the Table Will Be Wide, by Jan Richardson

And the table will be wide.

And the welcome will be wide.

And the arms will open wide

To gather us in.

And our hearts

Will open wide 

To receive.

And we will come 

As children who trust

There is enough.

And we will come

Unhindered and free.

And our aching 

Will be met

With bread.

And our sorrow 

Will be met

With wine.

And we will open our hands

To the feast

Without shame.

And we will turn

Toward each other

Without fear.

And we will give up

Our appetite

For despair.

And we will taste

And know 

Of delight.

And we will become bread

For a hungering world.

And we will become drink

For those who thirst.

And the blessed 

Will become the blessing.

And everywhere 

Will be the feast.

_____

Buen Camino!
Pastors Brett & Chris 
Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.comRev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com

Newsletter, CoP, Aug. 4, 2019

THIS SUNDAY: Aug. 4, 2019, 4:00-6:00 p.m., Chapel, Rose City Park PCUSA, 1907 NE 45thAve., Portland, OR 97213 Questions? Contact Pastor Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.com
_____
Dear Pilgrims of Hope!

Welcome, August! I’m not sure whatever happened to July, but it seems to have gone by so quickly. Let’s continue to savor this summer’s warm weather in August, O Oregonians!

The Scriptural focus this week is Ez. 37:1-14. This is a little bit of a change of focus in terms of following the story-line in Luke, but there is a story here in this tale of a valley of dry bones, in which the Prophet Ezekiel is challenged to bring the bones to life that come to life, to “prophecy to the breath,” and the bones become human beings once again, and where there was once no hope, hope is now alive. In this season of this nation’s life, and the life of the world, there is, as always, a need for a message of hope. We are in an age that feels like the dawning of a new apocalypse, with violence all around us, climate change turning to climate crisis, and the poor and the weak are being threatened like never before. However, in a recent photo I saw, taken on our southern border, with the large metal fence that is found in portions of the border, two California professors built pink seesaws that fit in the slats of the border wall. It is a vision worthy of ancient prophets like Ezekiel and the dry bones becoming alive. The image of children from the two nations playing at the very wall designed to enforce a discrepancy of wealth and power between them is all we need to know about who deserves our allegiance and who does not. The pink seesaws are a picture of hope, of joy, of whimsy, with a total disregard of the latest version of the tower of Babylon built by this and other nations. Join us this Sunday for more stories of hope, like pink seesaws, in this day and age of violence and oppression! God’s message to us? Keep hope alive!
_____
Events!
Aug. 4, Pastor Brett preaching at Portsmouth Union Church, Portland, OR;
Aug. 4, Gathering and Worship, Rose City Park PCUSA;
Aug. 11, Gathering and Worship, Rose City Park PCUSA;
Aug. 18, Holy Vacation Day: do something in the afternoon at the 4-6 pm that glorifies God and our life in God, like a walk through the Portland rose gardens, a swim in cool water, watching a movie that challenges our faith, or gathering with family and friends and strangers for a picnic and a life band concert!
Aug. 25, Pastor Brett preaches at First UMC, Gresham;
Aug. 25, Gathering and Worship, Rose City Park PCUSA;
Sept. 1, Gathering and Worship, Rose City Park PCUSA;
Sept. 8, Pastor Brett preaches at First UMC, Hillsboro;
Sept. 8, Second Anniversary of Community of Pilgrims! Rose City Park! 4-6 pm!
____
Requests
* Regarding the CoP t-shirts: Please pick up your t-shirt this Sunday, and bring cash or a check made out to Community of Pilgrims, in the amount of $8 for adult M, L, and XL, and youth; and $12 for adult 2XL. Thank you!
* We also have plenty of beautiful leather bracelets for each member of the community! Pick one up this Sunday!
* In the coming months, Pastor Chris and I will be quoting from and referencing sections from the book, Wisdom Distilled from the Dailyby Joan Chittister, a Benedictine monk, who, in this book, focuses on the nature of living life in an intentional Christian community, which is our aim as Community of Pilgrims. We can either order books for those interested and sending in a request for so-many copies, or feel free to order it or buy it from your favorite book distributor. Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, Joan Chittister, San Francisco: Harper One. 
* Another book for our consideration: The Intentional Christian Community Handbookby David Janzen (Paraclete Press, 2013). We may use this book as we delve deeper into understanding what it means to be an intentional Christian community of faith.
* Finally, Community and Growthby Jean Vanier will be picked up as a book for us to read together.

_____

Poem

August Morning, by Albert Garcia

In honor of a month with a kind of still and steady heat.

It’s ripe, the melon 
by our sink. Yellow, 
bee-bitten, soft, it perfumes 
the house too sweetly. 
At five I wake, the air 
mournful in its quiet. 
My wife’s eyes swim calmly 
under their lids, her mouth and jaw 
relaxed, different. 
What is happening in the silence 
of this house? Curtains 
hang heavily from their rods. 
Ficus leaves tremble 
at my footsteps. Yet 
the colors outside are perfect-- 
orange geranium, blue lobelia. 
I wander from room to room 
like a man in a museum: 
wife, children, books, flowers, 
melon. Such still air. Soon 
the mid-morning breeze will float in 
like tepid water, then hot. 
How do I start this day, 
I who am unsure 
of how my life has happened 
or how to proceed 
amid this warm and steady sweetness?
_____

Buen Camino!
Pastors Brett & Chris 
Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell (919) 444-9111; brettwebbmitchell@gmail.comRev. Chris Dungan chrisdungan1@msn.com