eNews for Thursday, August 26, 2021
In the end it's all that matters
We have a close cousin in our family who is 45 years old. He has four young children at home. Amazing partner. Exciting law career. Everything going for him.
A few months ago while working, he had a seizure. They rushed him to the hospital. “You have glioblastoma,” the doctor said. “It’s a fast-growing form of brain cancer. We will do everything we can.”
Yesterday we learned that the treatment so far hasn’t worked. The cancer is growing. Time is running out.
So many of you have walked this road with people you love. It’s a roller-coaster of hope and heartbreak. You do everything you can think to do—change diets, enter trials, research medical journals, talk to survivors, talk to the families of those who didn’t survive—trying to navigate through this confusing horror that threatens the one you love.
I often think of the first lines of the Grail Legends:
“Here is the Book of thy Decent,
Here begins the Book of the Holy Grail,
Here begin the terrors,
Here begin the miracles.”
In this journey of terror and miracles, the ending is still unclear.
These experiences strip us down to what is finally essential. When all of the distractions and drama of life fall away, it seems that the point of it all is simply who you loved and how well you loved them.
My grandfather used to tell me as a young girl, “Cameron, life is about relationships. The quality of your life depends on the quality of your relationships.” I now know he was gifting me with the key to it all. He was trying to help me not waste precious, sacred time.
Grief is heavy and thick and around us everywhere these days. We are watching the ending of so much that we loved in ourselves and our world. But that was always part of the deal, wasn’t it? Nothing goes on forever.
That’s where the miracles come. I’ve written in past meditations about the Japanese art of Kintsugi. Artists take broken pieces of pottery and join the pieces using melted gold to shape beautiful new creations.
I don’t believe for one second that God breaks us. God does not make bad things happen. God did not give my cousin cancer. But here we are, breaking into pieces because cancer exists in the world.
My deepest hope, the hope upon which I base my trust in a kind and just world, is that from the pain that breaks us apart, somehow the Spirit shapes us into new, beautiful creations. In the end, I hope we can be more beautiful for having been broken. But also…I wouldn’t wish this on anyone. Cancer sucks.
We are in this together,
Rev. Cameron Trimble, author of Piloting Church
Blessing for the Week
Wholly Present God, we yearn for a day when the needs of our planet and all creatures are met. We long for nourishing food, clean water, bodily safety, rejuvenating rest, and ordinary delight for all beings everywhere. Until we make it so, hold us in our grief and guide us in our transformation.
Amen.
—enfleshed, spiritual nourishment for collective liberation
Speaking out on Afghanistan
From UCC Leadership
“As he came near and saw the city, Jesus wept over it, saying, “If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.” (Luke 19:41-2)
We write with profound grief at the news of the Taliban takeover of Kabul and fall of the Afghan government. Images like those of people clinging to U.S. planes are haunting, and they point to the desperation and fear of our Afghan siblings. After 20 years of military intervention, it is clear that U.S. and international approaches have not brought about a Just Peace for the people of Afghanistan. Twenty more years of the same approach would not have done more. The cycle of violence and endless war had to end. As we have said for years in the United Church of Christ, peace is not the absence of conflict but the presence of justice. We need new approaches to address the root causes of unrest that lead to radicalization, and to break the cycle of violence.
To the resilient people of Afghanistan, we grieve with you and stand by you. Your country and lives have already been devastated by years of conflict which have claimed the lives of over 40,000 Afghan civilians and 60,000 military and security officers. The cost you have borne already is unimaginable, and now probable life under a Taliban rule brings the likelihood of more violence, brutality, and a constriction of human and civil rights, particularly for your women and girls. We confess our nation’s failure in not centering Afghan leadership more and finding a way to build a durable peace over these twenty years. We repent our contribution to this cycle of violence, and we will not turn away from your suffering. We commit to actively engage our policymakers to see to it that our nation does not abandon you.
To our policymakers, now is not the time for partisan finger-pointing. America’s longest war spanned across four administrations and several changes of power in Congress. We all must collectively own failure to draw this conflict to an end sooner and with a greater possibility for success. While we support the end of U.S. military occupation and operations, we must not turn our back on Afghanistan now or in the years to come. As a nation, we have invested billions in over-militarized approaches that have not succeeded in bringing about the true security or restoration needed for peace. We call for a long-term surge of investment in the “things that make for peace” such as peace-building, humanitarian support, diplomatic engagement, and expansion of access to the U.S. resettlement program to provide refuge for Afghans fleeing violence and persecution.
To our active military, veterans, peace-builders, aid workers, and civil servants who have served and worked to aid Afghanistan, we are grateful for your service and sacrifice. Because of your efforts, many benefited from improved security, education, and a more robust civil society that included the leadership of women. We call on our congregations to extend a compassionate welcome to support you in your grief and trauma. We pray the seeds of hope and progress planted over these last 20 years continue to take root.
As a Just Peace Church, we proclaim with prophetic hope that “peace is possible.” We are not about to stop believing that today. Let us hold on to the hope that peace is possible and commit ourselves not only to keeping our Afghan siblings in prayer, but also to committing: our churches to welcome refugees; our voices to engage in advocacy; our hearts to establish partnerships; and our minds and bodies to support the “things that make for peace.”
Faithfully,
The National Officers of the United Church of Christ
The Rev. John C. Dorhauer
General Minister and President
The Rev. Karen Georgia Thompson
Associate General Minister, Wider Church Ministries and Operations
The Rev. Traci Blackmon
Associate General Minister, Justice and Local Church Ministries
Memorial Service for Gene Shull
Longtime Pilgrim member Gene Shull passed away on August 16. A memorial service will be held at Pilgrim this Saturday at 1:00 pm. You can read an obituary at the Duluth News Tribune.
Volunteers Needed at Mentor North
Mentor North is in need of volunteers for two programs beginning this fall. They are looking for volunteers to support middle school youth with homework help and social emotional support. They are also looking for volunteers 65+ for a mutual mentoring program where they are supporting (and being supported by) young adult college students for the academic school year.
If you'd like to help, contact info@mentornorth.org or (218) 722-3600. Visit mentornorth.org for more information on their programs.
Fall Outdoor Ministry Events
Registration is open for Fall Outdoor Ministry Events from the Minneosta Conference.
- Men's Retreat: "Overwhelmed by Life: An Invitation to Reconnect and Remember," September 24-26 at Osprey Wilds Environmental Learning Center, Sandstone
- Women's Retreat: October 15-17 at Camp Onomia, Onamia
- Conference Youth Event: October 8-10 at Osprey Wilds Environmental Learning Center, Sandstone
Pilgrim Women's Book Club
Monday, September 13 | 4:00 pm
The Pilgrim Book Group will meet on September 13 at 4:00 pm. Our book will be Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. All are welcome to participate. We will meet via Zoom again because of the mask recommendation at our church. We’re hopeful that sometime soon we can begin meeting in person in the church parlor.
Meeting ID: 856 8820 1294
Passcode: 260291
Duluth Superior Pride
There will be a table for People of Faith at the Bayfront Park Pride Festival on Saturday, September 4, 9:00 am-6:00 pm. We would like to have representatives from many inclusive and affirming congregations to be present at the table to greet and talk with people at the festival. There will also be opportunities to hand out literature about Pilgrim.
Additionally we would like to have “pastor of the hour” to talk with, pray, and bear witness to the lives of LGBTQ+ people.
We will be passing out rainbow colored peace necklaces and passing out water at the table in compostable cups.
If you'd like to volunteer, please get in touch with the office to sign up for a time slot!
Upcoming Worship
Here are some dates to watch out for:
- Sunday, August 29, will be Pastor Judith's last Sunday with us. Come join us to wish her well.
- On Sunday, September 5, there will be an interfaith worship service at Coppertop Church at 10:00 am. All Pilgrims are welcome to attend. There will not be a worship service at Pilgrim that day.
- Sunday, October 3, will be Pastor Carla's first Sunday at Pilgrim.
Sunday Worship at Pilgrim
Join us Sunday at 10:00 am for Sunday Worship at Pilgrim, in person or online. You can view the service on Pilgrim's YouTube channel and Facebook page.
You can download a Bulletin here.
This Sunday's scripture readings:
- Psalm 15
- James 1:17-27
- Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
If you have an announcement that you would like read during a Sunday service, please get it to the office by Thursday each week.
In case you missed it, you can view last Sunday's worship service on YouTube.
8/15 attendance: 36
8/22 attendance: 80
Prayers and Condolences
Keep in your prayers:
- The Shull family after Gene's passing
- Kay Slack and her family on the passing of her husband, Bill
- Joyce Young's son Michael Rookey as he receives care for cancer
- Bob Reichert as he undergoes treatment
- Anita and her family as she undergoes medical treatment
- Wanda and her family as she continues to receive treatment
Show Us Your Walks
From the Setterlunds, deer waiting for sunset at Enger
We're lucky to live in a community with so much beauty and access to nature. Send Patrick your photos to share your walks with us in future emails! It's another way to stay connected in these troubled times.
What Patrick's Listening To
The lovely folks at Early Music Sources discuss and perform the "Ricercar del nono tono" by one of my favorite seventeenth-century composers, Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck.