eNews for Thursday, May 13, 2021
From the Pastor's Desk…
Today is Ascension Day in the Christian tradition. The fortieth day after Easter, on which Christ's Ascension is celebrated. The story is told in Acts 1:1-11.
It is a thought-provoking story for me. I imagine myself following someone, a mentor perhaps who shows by word and deed how I should be when the mentoring days are through. I think about a pastor who was assigned to mentor me in seminary. The night before I was ordained, we took a long walk and talked. She asked me how I was feeling and what I was thinking. I answered: “I don’t know enough.” “I haven’t read enough books yet.” “I need more time.”
Imagine the disciples watching their mentor disappear from view. He would no longer be with them and yet they would not be alone. They had work to be done “to the ends of the earth.” There would be a Spirit to guide and guard them. The Spirit would come on the day of Pentecost as tongues of fire. The Spirit would embolden them. It would strengthen them in times of fear. Strengthen them in times when words failed to come. It would abide with them to the ends of the earth.
Two years ago, I flew to Seattle to be with my mentor pastor on Pentecost. It was her day of retirement from pastoral ministry. We took a long walk the night before her last Sunday. We talked about her ministry and her mentors. We prayed together and celebrated all that had been—the good and the not so good. The next day we said good-bye.
I give thanks for the mentors in my life. I give thanks for the Spirit that binds us. I give thanks for the stories of Jesus who then as now loves us into new life.
Grace and peace,
PJ
A poem from Maren Tirabassi for Ascension Day, 2021
They seem petulant, those disciples,
looking up, as if
demanding a map of Google Heaven,
with the coordinates
for where the Teacher is going,
hopefully tagged,
“if you see this, you’ve gone too far.”
Mostly our hearts ache for Jesus,
who already misses talking to people,
touching them, breathing in their faces,
putting mud on their eyes,
feeding them his personal recipe
for broiled fish on the beach.
The whole Incarnation
defined God as “in-person,”
from manger-straw to stone-rolling.
Then this day comes with a new message
about masking clouds
and the physical distance guidelines
of “right hand of God,”
a Zoom away from all the boxes
which are our lives.
And we, who are just as petulant
as disciples long ago, say,
“what’s not in-person isn’t real,”
need this ascension day story,
so we realize the Holy Spirit must arrive
in just those virtual or outdoors,
indoor temperature-checking,
pre-pack communion, name-tagged-pews,
masks with the church-logo…
places where a wind can blow
and we sit tentatively
at God’s left-hand,
carefully offering to be the Body of Christ
in every possible way for others.
Ascension, Mural of Christ ascending to heaven on a graffiti wall in Bristol, England graffiti / mural, Bristol, United Kingdom from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=54351
Into the Cloud
A Daily Devotional by the Rev. Vicki Kemper is the Pastor of First Congregational, UCC, of Amherst, Massachusetts
The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day God called to Moses out of the cloud.—Exodus 24:16 (NRSV)
People have been making pilgrimages to the summit of Ireland’s Croagh Patrick for 5,000 years, since pagans first gathered there to celebrate the harvest. According to tradition, Saint Patrick prayed and fasted there for 40 days in the year 441.
Now more than a million people each year make the climb—for the adventure or as a form of penance. Some walk the rocky path barefoot or crawl over the sharp stones on their knees.
My friend and I wanted a mystical mountaintop experience. Besides that, the guidebooks promised magnificent views of Clew Bay. And so we began the steep ascent.
By the time we reached the top, my shirt was soaked with perspiration… and the sparkling blue waters of the bay were nowhere to be seen. The summit was socked in by fog so completely enveloped that it felt like we were in a cloud. What a disappointment!
Or not.
We are, many of us, goal-setting people. We set our sights on what we hope to achieve. When difficulties arise or obstacles appear, we think all is lost.
But experience tells us that transformation happens in the obstacles and how we handle them. Tradition tells us that God is in the cloud itself.
As my friend and I stared into the thick gray cloud at the summit of Croagh Patrick, an opening appeared. Through the veiled window we could see the brightness cast by the sun and captured by the cloud. The glory of God was all around us.
Prayer
When I think I’ve hit a dead end, remind me that is where you do your best work.
Moderator's Report
This past Tuesday, the Church Council met to plan for the Annual Meeting of Pilgrim Church. The date has been set for Sunday, June 13, 2021 following the regular church service. The meeting will be lived-streamed and can also be viewed over ZOOM. The agenda will include discussion of the annual budget, voting on officers and committee members and a brainstorming session on conflict resolution in our church. Following the meeting, we will honor Bob Reichert, Church Treasurer and Mary Sopoci, church business manager who will both be retiring from their positions at the end of June.
Each Pilgrim member will be sent a ballot to vote on the 2021-2022 church budget as well as officers and committee members. Following the presentations on June 13, the council asks that members mail that ballot to the church office by Friday, June 18.
Please mark June 13 on your calendars for this important meeting. Thank you!
Julie Johnson, Church Moderator
A Warm Invitation to the Annual Meeting from the Conference Minister
Have you ever found yourself wondering what the future may look like for your congregation?
Do you feel sometimes as if everything’s uncertain and you have no idea how to get from point A to point B?
Are you longing to gather with your siblings in Christ across the Conference, and spend some time hearing how others have endured the pandemic?
Is your heart heavy thinking about the killing of George Floyd & Daunte Wright, and do you want to be part of creating change?
Are you a pastor who wants time to think with clergy peers about how to lead through this time filled with so many questions & possibilities?
Do you long for us to be a courageous church?
If you answered “YES!” to any of the above questions, I strongly encourage you to register for our Annual Meeting, June 7-13. We have four days of amazing workshops with topics sure to interest you, keynote speaker Susan Beaumont who can perfectly speak to this moment of change and uncertainty, and a phenomenal Sunday preacher, Rev. Dr. Karen Georgia Thompson, who serves as one of our national UCC officers and will inspire and challenge us.
In addition, clergy have an opportunity to gather on Friday morning for a seminar specially designed for them with Susan Beaumont—free for those registered for Annual Meeting! And I’ll deliver my State of the Conference address, “How is it with our Souls?,” on Friday evening, reflecting on how we as a Conference of congregations have navigated this unparalleled last year.
We’ll hear updates on the Damascus Project and Outdoor Ministries, & be greeted by the new Interim President of United Theological Seminary, Rev. Dr. Molly Marshall. We will also elect new leaders of the Conference and ask for your approval of a proposed budget for the next fiscal year. And it’s all virtual, so you don’t have to travel or leave your own comfy beds!
Please make sure your congregation is represented as we gather as the wider church, in blessed communion together. It’s never been more obvious that we can’t make this journey of being Church alone. We need each other. We’re stronger when we travel side by side.
See you at Annual Meeting!
Blessings,
Reverend Shari Prestemon, Conference Minister
P.S. Have questions about Annual Meeting? Find all the answers here!
A Requiem of Healing
Honoring the Spirit of George Floyd, One Year Later
The Amos Task Force of the Minnesota Conference UCC is hosting a “requiem of healing” on Sunday, May 23, 7-8:30 pm, to remember the death of George Floyd one year later and to honor the legacy of transformation his death has inspired. Local activists and artists will grace this time together, including: Rev. Lawrence Tanner Richardson (Linden Hills UCC), Rev. DeWayne Davis (Plymouth Congregational), Rev. Jim Bear Jacobs (Racial Justice Coordinator, MN Council of Churches), Nekima Levy Armstrong, poet Shá Cage, visual artist Cadex Herrera, Imam Mohamed Omar (Dar Al-Farooq Center), and Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman (Temple Israel). REGISTRATION is required.
Purple Church
May 18, 2021 | 3:30 pm-4:30 pm
The United Church of Christ contains people with a wide spectrum of theological belief, and political alignment. People who choose to be in a church that holds difference of opinion often do so with a few different strategies of love, and conflict management. On this conversation, we will hear from leaders of Purple Churches, or churches that have members across the theological/social/political lines, about how they show up authentically with each other in the midst of difference.
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:
- Acts 1:15-17, 21-26
- Psalm 1
- 1 John 5:9-13
- John 17:6-19
If you have an announcement that you would like read during a Sunday service, please get it to the office or directly to Pastor Judith by Monday each week.
Please send in your prayer requests to include in Sunday services. Send your prayer requests, joys, and concerns to Pastor Judith via email by Friday each week to be included. We will use only first names during the service in order to maintain confidentiality, and your prayer requests will be passed along to Marge Fraser and Pilgrim's Prayer Chain.
In case you missed it, you can view last Sunday's worship service on YouTube.
Attendance: 39
YouTube views: 28
Facebook reach: 41
Morning Coffee
Wednesdays | 10:00 am
Join Pastor Judith for your morning coffee! We'll have a time for checking in with each
other, prayers, and perhaps a brief meditation. Grab the beverage of your choice and
join us on Zoom.
Meeting ID: 497 627 641
Passcode: 926781
Prayers and Condolences
Keep in your prayers:
- Anita and her family as she undergoes medical treatment
- Wanda and Carol and their families as they recover from surgery
- Betty and her family as her son undergoes medical treatment
Condolences to Steve and Cindy Grindy and their family after the recent passing of Steve's father, and longtime member, Cliff Grindy. A service for Cliff will be held at Pilgrim on Friday, July 9, at 1:30 pm.
Show Us Your Walks
A sunny day along Miller Creek
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
Woody Herman and his orchestra play "Lady McGowan's Dream" arranged by the incomparable Ralph Burns.