Advent Plans

Worship Committee met briefly last week to discuss how this very unusual Christmas season would look.

Firstly, it was decided that, barring any new government restriction, in-person Sunday worship would continue at SouthWest. Attendance remains limited to 25 persons, with protocols in place including hand sanitizing, the wearing of masks and social distancing.

Believe it or not, next week, November 29th, is the beginning of Advent! There will be communion at that service and at the 4th of Advent, on December 20th. There will not be communion on Christmas Eve.

The church will be decorated for the season and we are even going to attempt a bit of a food drive in aid of Manna Verdun. We are waiting for them to tell us if there are any non-perishable items they can not accept or if there is a need for a particular item. For now, if you wish to contribute, please bring canned goods. The collection box will be set up in the entranceway. For now, we will only be accepting donations on Sunday morning, but we may add some collection times in December.

UPDATE: MANNA WOULD WELCOME ANY AND ALL NON-PERISHABLE FOOD ITEMS. JUST NO CLOTHING.

No decisions have been made yet about the Candlelight Carol Service (Chantons Noel) but news will be coming soon.

As mentioned elsewhere, there will be a service (maybe even two) on Christmas Eve. As Christmas Day is on Friday, there will be no worship service offered for Sunday, the 27th December.

We will celebrate Epiphany on January 3rd, but unfortunately, no pot luck this year.

New Testament 101: 1, 2 and 3 John

[This week, Pastor Beryl addresses the three short letters from John in a single post.]

1 John:

John wants Christian believers to know that when we tell God about our sins, God will forgive us and take them away (1:9).

The true test of faith is love for each other (3: 1124).  Because God is love, his people must be like him (4: 1-21).  For a complete victory over sin, we must not only love others, but we must believe that Jesus, the Son of God, is truly Christ and that his death for us was real (5: 1-12).  Remember:

The Word that give life was from the beginning, and is the one
our message is about  (1: 1a)

A Quick Look at This Letter

1.The Word that Gives Life (1: 1-4)  
2. God is Light and Christ our Example (1:5-2:6)
3. The New Commandment (2: 7-17)   
4. The Enemies of Christ and God’s Children (2:18-3:10)
5. God’s Love and Our Love (3:11-4:21)
6.Victory Over the World (5: 1-21)

 

2 John:

John writes again about the importance of love in a Christian’s life.  He points out that truth and love must go together.  We must also believe that Christ was truly human and we must love each other.


A Quick Look at This Letter

1. Greetings and Prayer (1-3)
2. Truth and Love (4-11)
3. Final Greetings (12, 13)

 

3 John:

In this letter the writer reminds Christian readers that they should help support those who go to other parts of the world to tell others about the Lord.  The letter is written to an important church member called Gaius, who had been very helpful to Christians wo traveled around and preached the good news.

A Quick Look at This Letter

1. Greetings to Gaius (1-4)
2. The Importance of Working Together (5-12)
3. Final Greetings (13-15)

 

Order of service for November 15, 2020

The Gospel reading this week is Matthew 25: 14-30, The Parable of the Talents.
Here is the bulletin for this Sunday as well as the printed hymns, both available to download.

HYMNS : November 15, 2020

 

Gathering : Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us With Your Love (VU 593)


Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
Show us how to serve the neighbours we have from you.

Neighbours are rich and poor, varied in colour and race,
Neighbours are near and far away.

 

HYMN : Shadow and Substance (MV 44)


Shadow and substance, wonder and mystery,
spell-binding spinner of atoms and earth;
soul of the cosmos, person and energy,
source of our being, we sing of your worth.

We are your image, formed in community;
sisters and brothers of Adam and Eve.
You gave us colour, custom and history;
teach us to honour what others receive.

Naming the nameless Spirit of unity,
scanning the heavens for signs of your care;
God of the ages, give us humility;
guide us to mystical union in prayer.

 

HYMN: All the Way My Saviour Leads Me (VU 635)

All the way my Saviour leads me; what have I to ask beside?
Can I doubt his tender mercy who through life has been my guide?
Heavenly peace, divinest comfort, here by faith in him to dwell,
for I know, whate’er befall me, Jesus doeth all things well.

All the way my Saviour leads me, cheers each winding path I tread,
gives me grace for every trial, feeds me with the living bread.
Though my weary steps may falter, and my soul athirst may be,
gushing from the rock before me, lo, a spring of joy I see!

All the way my Saviour leads me; O the fullness of his love!
Perfect rest to me is promised in my Father’s house above.
When my spirit, clothed immortal, wings its flight to realms of day,
this my song through endless ages, “Jesus led me all the way!”



HYMN: Here I Am, Lord (VU 509)


I, the Lord of sea and sky, I have heard my people cry.
All who dwell in deepest sin my hand will save.
I who made the stars of night, I will make their darkness bright.
Who will bear my light to them? Whom shall I send?

Refrain:
Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me.
I will hold your people in my heart.

I, the Lord of snow and rain, I have borne my people’s pain,
I have wept for love of them; they turn away.
I will break their hearts of stone, give them hearts for love alone.
I will speak my word to them. Whom shall I send?

Refrain

I, the Lord of wind and flame, I will tend the poor and lame,
I will set a feast for them, my hand will save.
Finest bread I will provide till their hearts be satisfied.
I will give my life to them. Whom shall I send?

Refrain

 

Beryl's Blog: Remembrance

soldiers.png

They were our great grandfathers, our grandfathers, our fathers, our uncles and our friends.  They were wives, sisters and nurses.  Some left never to come back, some came back broken in body and in spirit.  The horrors they witnessed were seldom, if ever, spoken of.  But their lives were changed and, hence, changed the lives of those who loved and lived with them. Mothers who mourned husbands and/or sons; siblings who would never forget, wives and mothers who raised children on their own, sweethearts who lived in sorrow, even beloved pets who waited for their master’s return.  The bad dreams which woke wives, the angry outbursts which frightened children, the unexplained behaviour which alienated friends.  The periods of binge drinking or stone silence, the days of retreat into somewhere else. Like a pebble thrown into a pond, the ripples were far reaching, touching everyone and everything for years to come.  War changes everything.
Pastor Beryl

A poem written by Maria Cassee

On a cold November morn, an old man sits a while,
Looking through old photographs, he cannot help but smile
They’re all there, all the boys, with hair cut short and neat
Uniforms of khaki, strong black boots upon their feet.
They met as strangers, but became brothers to the end,
Smiling at the camera there could be no truer friends
They all took the Queen’s shilling, went off to fight on the run,
Soon learnt the pain of loss once the fighting had begun.
So many never made it home, lost on foreign shores,
Many more were injured and would be the same no more.
The old man’s eyes mist with tears as he remembers every face
Each of his fallen brothers and the killing which took place
He proudly dons his beret, his blazer and his tie
For today he will remember the ones who fell and died.
On his chest there is a poppy, a blaze of scarlet on the blue
He steps out into the cold; he has a duty he must do
Once at the cenotaph he stands amongst the ranks
Of those who marched to war and those who manned the tanks
He bows his head in reverence as the last post begins to play
And he wonders what will happen at the ending of his days.
Will anyone remember?  Will anybody care?
About the lads so far from home whose life was ended there?
I wish that I could tell him that he should fear not
For this soldier and his brothers will NEVER be forgot.
We owe a debt of gratitude that we can never pay
And this country WILL remember, on each Remembrance Day.

A Special Baptism

Even during a pandemic, babies are born, and children grow.

Sarah and Derrick had planned to have their son baptized at SouthWest United last March. Instead, there was lockdown and the celebration was postponed to an unspecified date. As the months wore on and baby Gryffin’s first birthday came and went, Pastor Beryl proposed a more private ceremony.

This baptism took place on October 10th with a small number of friends and family members in attendance, but without the traditional presence of the regular congregation. Pastor Beryl poured water on the baby’s head, but did not carry him out to present him to the community. In fact, she never held him at all. Just another instance of doing things differently in this age of Covid-19. The family was presented with a baptismal candle and a facecloth embroidered with the name and date made by our own Anna Christe.

Congratulations to Gryffin Ronan Miele, age 14 1/2 months, and his parents Sarah Allaire and Derrick Miele. Sarah is the daughter of Melissa Brushett, niece of Doreen, and a grand niece of Shirley Wood. She kindly shared these photos of the celebration with us.

Although we could not be present, we nevertheless take seriously the Congregational Commitment to “support and nurture this family within a community which worships God, loves and serves others, seeks justice, and resists evil.”

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SouthWest Remembrance Day Service 2020

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Here is a link to our Remembrance Day service filmed live this morning, November 8, 2020. Many thanks to our visitors from Verdun Legion #4: Stan Kirkoff, President, and Anthony J. Bruce, Sergeant at Arms, as well as our own Douglas Hastie, for the laying of the wreaths.

The Gathering hymn is VU 682, O Day of Peace, and is sung to the tune of Jerusalem by C. Hubert H. Parry.

O day of peace that dimly shines
through all our hopes and prayers and dreams,
guide us to justice, truth and love,
delivered from our selfish schemes.
May swords of hate fall from our hands,
our hearts from envy find release
till by God’s grace our warring world
shall see Christ’s promised reign of peace.

Then shall the wolf dwell with the lamb,
nor shall the fierce devour the small,
as beasts and cattle calmly graze,
a little child shall lead them all.
Then enemies shall learn to love,
all creatures find their true accord,
the hope of peace shall be fulfilled,
for all the earth shall know the Lord.

Remembrance Day 2020

Sunday, November 8th, we will celebrate Remembrance Day.

Attendance at in-person services must be capped at 25, so I encourage you to call the office and let us know if you plan to attend. Please don’t arrive more than 15 minutes early. There will be bulletins and other handouts, all of which you are asked to take with you at the end of the service.

We have often read a few lines from this poem by John Binyan at our service of Remembrance. I think it’s worth quoting the whole thing:


For the Fallen

BY LAURENCE BINYON

With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,

England mourns for her dead across the sea.

Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,

Fallen in the cause of the free.

 

Solemn the drums thrill; Death august and royal 

Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres,

There is music in the midst of desolation

And a glory that shines upon our tears.

 

They went with songs to the battle, they were young,

Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.

They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted;

They fell with their faces to the foe.

 

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: 

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

 

They mingle not with their laughing comrades again; 

They sit no more at familiar tables of home;

They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;

They sleep beyond England's foam.

 

But where our desires are and our hopes profound, 

Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,

To the innermost heart of their own land they are known

As the stars are known to the Night;

 

As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust, 

Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;

As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness, 

To the end, to the end, they remain.



Singing Through the Storm

Did you know that, during Shakespeare’s time, the city of London was on “lockdown” numerous times due to outbreaks of the plague? At one point, London theatres – along with churches, inns and pubs – were closed for 14 months straight. I know many performing artists who, like the players of Shakespeare’s time, have seen their livelihoods dry up since March.

I know you’re probably thinking, “haven’t we heard enough about outbreaks and lockdowns? Do we really need to hear about 16th Century ones?!” I guess I’m trying to focus on the upside: the theatres did eventually reopen, and during the closure, Will Shakespeare had penned a little diversion called Romeo and Juliet!

Believe me, I have been struggling this week to find hope amid the encroaching darkness and the American election. At the time I am writing this the outcome is still unknown and I’m worried. But the darker things get, the more we need hope. The more we need to connect with the things that can still give us joy.

You may know that for several years now, I have been singing with Montreal Gospel Choir. You have probably also gathered that singing in public is about as popular these days as coughing or sneezing on people.
Choir practice was shut down last spring when the shutdown was declared. Obviously, there was no spring concert for us, and, much like church, we waited and hoped for the ‘okay’ to start meeting again in the fall. We have been rehearsing partly online, partly in person since September. Normally we would be preparing a huge Christmas concert in front of close to 2000 people…. We’ve had to scale back our ambitions, while simultaneously challenging ourselves to find new ways forward. Again, a lot like church.

This week, 50 members of Montreal Gospel Choir are making individual videos of themselves to be combined into a “virtual choir” project. For me personally this is proving very challenging. It’s like getting ready for a concert, except that in addition to knowing your music and lyrics, you’re responsible for your own sound and lighting! I’m not sure how my video will turn out, but I feel confident the whole project will be a success.

And I find myself deeply grateful for the song we are putting together. Lift Every Voice and Sing is known informally as the African American National Anthem. The original poem was written in 1900 by James Weldon Johnson and set to music several years later by his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson. It is both a plea for unity and a beacon of hope in a truly unnerving time.  - Amy


Lift ev’ry voice and sing,
‘Til earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise
High as the list’ning skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on ’til victory is won.

God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
Thou who has brought us thus far on the way;
Thou who has by Thy might
Led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee,
Lest, our hearts drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee;
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,
May we forever stand,
True to our God,
True to our native land.

New Testament 101: 2 Peter

Note: The Second Epistle of Peter, often referred to as Second Peter and written 2 Peter or in Roman numerals II Peter (especially in older references), is a book of the New Testament, traditionally held to have been written by Saint Peter. Most critical biblical scholars have concluded Peter is not the author, considering the epistle pseudepigrapha.  Pseudepigrapha (also anglicized as "pseudepigraph" or "pseudepigraphs") are falsely attributed works, texts whose claimed author is not the true author, or a work whose real author attributed it to a figure of the past.

 The writer of this letter wants the readers to know that Christians must live in a way which pleases God (1:3) and hold firmly to the truth they were given (1: 12). 

He warns them that false prophets and teachers had entered the Christian community and were trying to lead the Lord’s followers away from the truth.  But they will be punished for their evil deeds (2: 1-22).  When false teachers are at work, Christians must stick to their faith and be examples for others of right living.  They must have understanding, self-control and patience and they should show love for all God’s people.

The readers must never forget that the Lord’s return is certain, no matter what others may say. (3: 1-18);

Don’t forget that for the Lord, one day is the same as a thousand years, and a thousand years is the same as one day.  The Lord isn’t slow about keeping his promises, as some people might think he is.  In fact, God is patient because he wants everyone to turn from sin and no one to be lost.   (3: 8,9)

 A Quick Look at This Letter

1.  Greetings and Prayer (1: 1, 2)
2.  How the Lord’s Followers Should Live (1: 3-15)
3.  The Glory of Christ (1: 16-21)
4.  False Prophets and Teachers (2: 1-22)
5.  The Lord’s Return is Certain (3: 1-18)

Beryl

 

 

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