Seeing The Face Of God In Each Other

Seeing the Face of God in Each Other: Eliminate Racism Workshop

On Saturday, January 12 from 9 a.m to 5 p.m., the Whitaker School of Theology will host an Eliminate Racism workshop at St. Matthew's/St. Joseph's, Detroit. The cost of the all-day workshop is $40 per person, and scholarships are available. Plan now to send a team from your congregation! Deadline for registration is extended into January. Contact Nanette Lutz at nlutz@edomi.org [mailto:nlutz@edomi.org] or call 313/ 833-4423 for additional information.

The notice above is from the Record Weekly Online News. You can see archived issues here.

Good News

"God of good news,

help us to find you again

in the hidden place."

From Advent Readings from Iona by Brian Woodcock and Jan Sutch Pickard (Wild Goose Publications, 2000). Read the entire prayer here.

His Presence Saved Them

It was no messenger or angel
but his presence that saved them;
in his love and in his pity he redeemed them;
he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old. Isaiah 63:9

We Need Jesus

"The story of the Bible is that of God searching for us. The Hebrew Scriptures or Old Testament is full of stories of God searching for us, trying to restore the relationship broken by Adam and Eve. For hundreds of years, kings and prophets came to the Israelites trying to bring God’s people back to God. But then God decided to come to us himself, in the form of the infant Jesus. This baby would change lives, this baby would be the answer to the emptiness we so often feel, this baby would fill that void, this baby would bring us back to God. There are no human beings who can always be there for us. Even the best of friends, even a caring colleague or even the most loving spouse cannot always be there for us all of the time. Even the best of us have moments when we are unable to be present to the needs of another person. Most of us have bad days or at the very least, bad moments. But Jesus does not have bad days, Jesus is always there regardless of the time day or night or location in the world. "

From the Christmas 2007 sermon by the Rev. Dorian McGlannan. To read the entire sermon, click here.

The Second Day Of Christmas

It is only recently that I've discovered the joy of the "Twelve Days of Christmas." After the day of feasting and music a calm descends on the house. Lights are softer, peaceful.

Sitting quietly on this "ordinary" day, I receive the gift of the Nativity closer to my heart. I begin to see how this miracle of Christmas might live with me in every day.

The Miraculous Paradox

"Today is a day where we celebrate, celebrate the fact that God’s love is so strong that God was willing to give up all his power, all his glory, all his heavenly host, and trade it in for swaddling clothes and the powerlessness of infancy. God’s love for you and for me is so great that just to reach out to humanity, just to guide us, teach us, to bring us back into a life-giving relationship with God, God was willing to be born a human, to know our frailties and weaknesses. This is the miraculous paradox that we celebrate on this joyful day. This is the miracle that lies behind all of our Christmas preparation and celebrations whether we realize it or not."

From the Christmas Day sermon at St. John's Episcopal Church by the Rev. Peter Swarr. Read the entire sermon here.

Canon for Lifelong Learning

From the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan comes this news:

Jo Gantzer was installed on Wednesday, December 19, 2007, as the Canon for Lifelong Learning. Bishop Wendell Gibbs explained that Gantzer will assist the bishop in education and Christian formation for all ages, support the laity and clergy, and encourage the whole church in its ministry. Gantzer serves as a member of the bishop's senior staff.

You can receive The Record Weekly Online News in your e-mail; read more here.

Merry Christmas

Welcome to St. John's Bridge, a blog from St. John's Episcopal Church in Plymouth, Michigan.