Good morning church,
We are approaching Holy Trinity Sunday. I know, I know, we can hardly keep track of the days of the week and so I don’t expect you to be up-to-date on the liturgical calendar. In our Adult Faith Class, we recently talked about the concept of the Holy Trinity, one of the more advanced and complex teachings of the church. So complex in fact, that not all Christians agree with it, hence there are Unitarians… To me personally, the teaching has held significant value for a long time. If I were to boil it down to a simple statement I would say, “God is community.” I could also boil it down to another meaningful statement: “God is unity in diversity.” Both statements are hugely important in the face of all that we are going through as a country right now. The United States is one of the most diverse countries on Earth. But, as should be expected, we have our troubles with unity and a sense of community that includes everybody, reaching beyond the many groups, “tribes” and divisions. Ever since I served as a pastor in a city congregation that was traditionally white and very German-American, but surrounded by people of color – Hispanics, Haitians, Africans, African-Americans and many more, I know that finding unity in diversity is a lofty and idealistic goal, never easy, but possible. It is a holy experiment in our ability to listen, expand horizons, and accept people who are different from us as members of our own human family. Here is where the old philosophical teaching of the Holy Trinity takes on new meaning in a diverse world: God-likeness never happens in total isolation; it always leads us to people, leads us to love, leads us to transformation. When we celebrate Holy Trinity this Sunday, let us remember that God is the very epitome of this miracle of unity in diversity. For us, as human beings, it’s much harder to live in that reality, and it often requires work and deliberate outreach. Therefore, for this Holy Trinity Sunday we are planning to include messages and contributions from our African-American brothers and sisters. It is my feeling that one of the best ways of responding to the racial tensions of our time is to model the type of community the early Christians talked about: there is no Jew or Gentile, male or female, slave or free (black or white, gay or straight)… We are all one in Christ!
We have moved our Youth Sunday (originally June 7) to June 14; it will coincide with the graduation celebration. Mrs. B. is STILL ACCEPTING PICTURES. She asked me to print this in bold letters!
Here is the story of one of our college students who graduated three years ago from high school. During her senior year, Cate H. joined us on a Mission trip to Belize, and I remember how meaningful this experience was for her. The 2017 Belize trip was our first Mission Trip and led us to a small village with Mayan roots in the countryside. Our accommodations were extremely basic and we lived and ate in the same humble way our hosts did. There was a wonderful palpable sense of community and love in that place. And I think Cate appreciated it as a counter-experience to that individualistic, hectic, stressful, goal-oriented, high octane suburban life so many of our people are accustomed to. She really enjoyed that week working in the hot sun and meeting so many children. After graduation, Cate went to Emerson College in Boston. This is how she has experienced this unusual college year. Also, see the attached picture above…
“I returned home from school at Emerson College in mid-March due to the pandemic, and I finished my semester online at the end of April. I was planning on staying in Boston and working after the semester ended, but unfortunately, my plans for this summer are now up in the air. On the bright side, I now have a lot of free time to do things I love. I’ve been reading lots of books (you’d think I read a lot because I am a publishing major, but I don’t often have time to read for fun) and I’ve started running as a result of the gyms being closed. I still have one more semester left at Emerson before I graduate in December, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we will be able to return in September to campus.
Hope everyone is staying safe and healthy during these uncertain months!”
The SEPA Synod Anti-racism Team invites you to online conversations about race based on the book – “America’s Original Sin” by Jim Wallis. These interactive discussions will take place on Tuesday evenings, from 7pm-8:15pm on June 9th, June 16th, June 23th, June 30th, July 7th and July 14th. They will be led by members of the SEPA Synod Anti- racism Team. You may participate in one or all of the conversations. The Team encourages you to read the book. An excerpt of “America’s Original Sin” can be found here: https://americasoriginalsin.com/read-an-excerpt-of-americas-original-sin/ I will share the link to participate in this discussion.
And this Friday we have a BASIC Zoom Gathering to explore “Learning To Walk in the Dark,” something that we have all practiced over the last several weeks as we have dealt with so much uncertainty and being “in the dark” about many things during this pandemic. Join us via Zoom and with a beverage of your choice on Friday night at 7:00 p.m.
Mrs. B’s Children’s Hour will take place every Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m., starting next week on June 10. We encourage our families with young children to take advantage of this interactive program and to tell your neighbors with children about it.
Also, please don’t forget the Red Cross Blood Drive on June 8. Specific precautions are being taken and have been described in recent emails. Drive Details: Date: June 8th, Times: 2 – 7 PM;
TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT, PLEASE GO TO WWW.REDCROSS.ORG, ENTER SPONSOR CODE St. Peters North Wales or CLICK ON
Today is another popular birthdate at St. Peter’s! Happy birthday, Charlene B., Maryann L., Nora O., and Bailee C.!!!
As always, be blessed and be safe! Pastor Andreas Wagner