What really matters

Posted on October 10, 2009
Filed under Getting ready for Sunday, Worship | by Don Leave a Comment

To members and friends of St. James UCC…
…a few words in getting ready for tomorrow and the week…

Starting with tomorrow: If we utilized all of our lectionary options tomorrow we would look at Psalm 90, a reflection dealing with human mortality, reminding us of an average life span of seventy years, or if we’re fortunate to have good health maybe eighty… and we’re still recalling those seventy-five years given to Susanne George. The bottom line of the Psalm is that since life can be a very fleeting thing we need to offer a continuing prayer: Teach us to count how few days we have so that we might apply our hearts (and minds) to wisdom. So we keep turning to the wisdom of Jesus in getting at what really matters in life. And in a reading from Mark (10:17-31) – with an assist from Amos (5:6-15)– we are reminded that eternal life… a life of quality, meaning, and purpose… is about investing our lives in concerns for justice – in all of the contexts of life! Check it all out as we get ready to reflect on investing our lives in economic justice.

And during the week: The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later. Monday, Oct 12, 8:00 p.m. The Reston Community Players will present a stage reading of The Tectonic Theatre Project’s epilogue to their award-winning docudrama, The Laramie Project, a dramatic portrait of people involved with and affected by the 1998 murder of gay college student Matthew Shepard. Last year, the creators of the play returned to Laramie, Wyoming, to write an epilogue. This evening will feature a stage reading of the epilogue by The Reston Community Players as well as other activities that will explore this tragic event, its aftermath and the nature of hate. The death of Matthew Shepard was horrifying and The Laramie Project showed the power of theater to powerfully contextualize the story for audiences. Tickets are $15 for Reston residents and people who work in Reston, and $25 for non-residents. For more information, visit: www.restoncommunitycenter.com or call the Reston Community Center Box Office: (703) 476-4500

And then on Thursday, Oct 15: We will hold our second FAITH & LIFE FORUM around Pursuing Faithful Conversation Around The Economy and Health Care Reform. It will be held at the Balch Library, Leesburg, and will feature some highly creative video clips to help frame our conversation, questions and concerns. Then we will hear from Dr. David Baltierra, Director of a Rural Family Medicine Program and a member of PHYSICIANS FOR A NATIONAL HEALTH PROGRAM. He was with us this past Thursday in Lovettsville and is very eloquent and loaded with facts and information about our health care system… and what makes him so authentic for us is that he comes out of a very deep and sensitive spirituality around moral and ethical concerns. Make every effort to attend and share the word with friends and neighbors.

So rest up tonight… take a look at Mark and Amos for tomorrow… and hope to see you then…

don prange

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