Posted on

Be mindful! Feb 10th we will have Worship at Holy Cross at 9:30am

Folks, its very possible that conditions could change, but at the moment the weather predictions look prettty good for us to be able to join for worship at Holy Cross tomorrow, February 10th at 9:30 am.

Use your own judgement! Every neighborhood seems to be its own climate system! But there is no predicted precipitation for tonights below freezing hours. So, if that continues there would not be a problem with ice on the roadways. Watch the weather, and the news and make the choice best for you.

We have a full day planned at Holy Cross with a 10:45 conversation time in the gym that will be focused on hearing the voices of the congregation about the way we are called to move forward in mission.  Also, Confirmation is at 12:30 pm. And the youth group is collecting refundable cans and bottles after worship! So, I am hoping for a productive busy Holy Cross Sunday.

But, hear this well, make the best decision for you based on safety!  God’s blessings – Pastor Patricia+ (In consultation with the Holy Cross Council)

Posted on

Synagogues

The Gospel for February 3rd features Jesus reading in a synagogue – a place of worship for Jews like him. I think it is important to picture him in this space. A man of faith, in his place of worship. Like us. Every Sunday.

IMG_3015So, I went to the Holy Land this past week, and the stories will be pouring out of me in the weeks to come.

But I saw a synagogue. The synagogue in Capernaum that is referenced in Luke’s gospel. (Not this sunday’s passage, though).

And I stood looking out, at the archeological  remnants of the 4th century synagogue, and underneath that, the archeological remnants of the 1st century synagogue – the one Jesus stood in. It’s not huge. Its about as big as the church I serve now, Holy Cross. And I could imagine Jesus feeling good about worshipping there, even though he was not roundly accepted, even though he needed to talk to them about a faith that would change everything for them. IMG_3018

Look at the pictures, if you have a chance. And picture yourself there. In the synagogue. Just one of the townspeople, at their place of worship. And Jesus just starts to talk.

Wouldn’t that have been something?

IMG_3016I know Jesus lived a long time ago, in a world and a time where things were very different. But sometimes, it is good to imagine ourselves in the same spot and the same time as Jesus. Would we have listened to him? Would we have been insulted at what he said? Maybe. Who knows?

Just imagine for awhile my friends. Look at the pictures and imagine. God bless you.

Pastor Patricia+IMG_3013

Posted on

Our Future Mission

a special blog from our Council President, Doug Odell

In an email to the bishop last December I described how the Holy Spirit has worked through Holy Cross to connect us with our neighbors:

We took an empty building and made La Casita, a place for the neighborhood to meet, to check out children’s books, and to learn in our garden. We built a relationship with Washington Elementary, providing school supplies, volunteers, and food for 30 homeless kids on the weekends. The neighborhood comes to our gym for movie nights, coat giveaways, and clothing exchanges. Our building is used for basketball, wedding receptions and zumba. Roughly 150 people attended our last Thanksgiving Eve potluck, with 90 staying for the service. They weren’t all church members, from either Holy Cross or Manantial de Aguas Vivas. Many were our neighbors, who heard good things were going on at our church. Continue reading “Our Future Mission”

Posted on

The Lord Bless you

IMG_3086

We are blessed people. Today our lives hit a wrinkle (Pastor Joe and Pastor Patricia). We made a choice to go on a continuing Education adventure to see the Holy Land! And, we are presently stuck in Istanbul on a 7 hour delay. Well, darn. But we have food, and water, and wifi (!) so maybe we should suck it up and make the best of it.

But today I write to my friends out there enduring change, and worry, and also, imagining new things, and dreaming of possibilities for ministry. Because the Annual Meeting is at hand, and I will miss it!

Continue reading “The Lord Bless you”

Posted on

Deathbed advice

This is us is back on tv. Its a show about a family of triplets – yes it is a LONG story. But in this week’s episode, Randall, who is the voice of morality, the voice of his father (both of them) the voice of vision, spoke to a pastor in a diner.

The pastor said this – “I give a lot of deathbed advice.”  And then he said, (ok I didn’t take it all down word for word), “when you make a hard decision, think about you, old and gray, laying with a pink nursing home blanket over you. Think about what you did in your life that makes you smile. That makes your dad proud.”  Well, yes. Continue reading “Deathbed advice”