Send questions and comments to
ware605040@gmail.com
This Week
Sunday November 9, Worship at Marden
Tuesday November 11, Discussion group at Wares'
Advanced notice:
Nov 16, business meeting,
election and budget
For future plans see the >> Meetings << page.
The Foyer
Nov 16, business meeting,
election and budget
For future plans see the >> Meetings << page.
The Foyer
Sacrament
We met as is our custom for the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper last Sunday.
We congratulate our sister congregation in Toronto, Centre Place, on their tenth anniversary. Ane we read with interest your question as to the meaning of “communion.” We spent our hour together reflecting on your questions. What dos it mean? What is its significance to us? We marveled at the richness of the symbols of the sacrament. We dug deeper into the poetry of this ancient ritual. As usual we found much to discuss. I’ll share one of my poems based on that great metaphor.
Becoming Bread
Who can tell
when bread begins?
Is it with swelling seed
atop the waving grain
in summer sun,
Or scattered kernel
buried under soil that also
speaks to us of death?
Perhaps it’s harvest time
and promises fulfilled.
Or as the stone grinds to dust
the gathered seeds;
future harvests
sacrificed for food today.
Mixing, melding, joining
with the yeast that holds
the spark of life
to make it bread.
And salt – of sweat or tears –
from mine or ocean depths.
And water
pure and clean.
These three with flour
no longer wheat
or yeast or water
or salt
But kneaded into something new
though not yet bread—
not without the fire.
Bread at last and now
transformed again.
Take, break, bless, eat.
Becoming sacrament.
Where indeed does bread begin?
And who in covenant community
can but become the bread
to bless each one?
MS/2001
**********************
Some >> Useful Links <<**********************
Last week we talked about getting ready for winter. And I referred to bringing in my houseplants. One way I get through the dark days of winter is to surround myself with plants. Sharing my home with Nature gives me joy when it’s dark and cold and snowy outside. My Christmas cactus is up to the task for sure.
One other thing that gives me joy is the report I received about the music program we support. Carmen tells me that we have helped twenty-one families this year! And that there are currently three classes running with one-third of those participating receiving help from our bursary. We’re looking for ways to expand to assist even more. If you know a family with babies or toddlers who would love to add more music to their lives by all means get in touch with Guelph Youth Music Centre. They’re waiting for them, and they’ve got funds to help with registration if you need it.
And finally: what we’ve been waiting for all summer. This is the weekend we get that hour of sleep back. Don’t forget to change your clock this weekend. We return to Standard Time overnight this Saturday. You wouldn’t want to make a mistake and get to church an hour early.
Winter’s coming
There is a very busy little red squirrel spending every day stacking up a supply of walnuts and pinecones under my deck. He only stops to scan the landscape for any interlopers, black or grey squirrels chipmunks, even bluejays or grackles stopping by the birdbath on their migration tour. He’ll chase them all. Nobody is too big for him, and he puts the fear in any intruder. Winter preparation is a full time serious job for this little guy.
We may resist but we cannot deny that those falling leaves and chilly nights send the clear message to us all: winter IS coming. And if we’re smart we too are getting ready.
Of course there are the obvious things to do. Bring out the boots and coats, the flannel sheets, the snow tires, the winter windshield wipers. Outdoor plants have come inside. Gardeners have tended to those seasonal tasks; but not too much cleanup in concern for the overwintering insects and birds who need the seed heads and hollow stems for hiding.
Maybe there are a few things you haven’t thought about. We reminded you last week that there are those neighbours who need some help. We’ll be donating to Adopt a Family for some who struggle with Christmas planning. (Get your donations in soon guelpheloracofc@gmail.com)
But don’t forget the campaigns to collect warm clothes. There are lots of places collecting stuff that will be desperately needed by our unhoused neighbours. We’ll also be paying attention to the ongoing conversation by our local politicians, institutions working to solve the bigger issues so when we can offer supportive input we’re ready.
The dark season is often a time that some of us go into hibernation mode. And sometimes it takes active planning to not let ourselves sink into a depressing solitude. Our congregation will keep planning weekly worship experiences on Sundays and discussion/conversations on Tuesdays. We’re pairing up to plan getting together. Christmas caroling, a participatory Advent celebration. We’ll be checking in with some of our community partners to see what they’re doing with funds we’ve donated.
You might be registering for Zoom get-togethers, educations events, crafting, prayer shawls, book clubs. And the list goes on. My point being that NOW is the time to prepare for the cold dark days. Let’s be intentional and plan for a good winter season. After all it’s Canada and there will always be winter. Let’s plan now to have a good one.
*************
Thanksgiving
We began this week in an attitude of gratitude. We gave thanks for all we have, for relationships, and shared experiences. We prayed over feasts, thankful to have our food that is still bountiful at this harvest time in this prosperous country we live in. Perhaps we turned off the news so as not to think about the peace that still eludes so many in our troubled world.
This week was also time for our regular leadership team meeting. We’re putting together the budget for our next year. We looked at the record of our giving for last year and considered how we’ll spend the resources we anticipate for the coming year. Our attitude of gratitude appeared again. We are grateful for the projects we supported in 2025 and for all the good our partners were able to do with our support.
Soon we’ll be getting ready for Christmas. Time flies and these warm autumn days can’t last. December will be here before we know it. And many, many families among our neighbours do NOT look forward to Christmas with joy. They know they don’t have the resources to plan the joyous feasts, the colourful trimmings of trees and homes. Most of all they realize there won’t be the gifts their children are anticipating. Those letters to Santa only serve to create heartaches for parents struggling to meet even basic needs.
So our next month we’re dedicating to Adopt a Family. This local program helped almost 2000 families last year have a holiday season they would not have had without it. Let’s see if we can stretch our Thanksgiving feelings into the rest of the season. Let’s see if we can at least match our last year’s target of $3000 and give our neighbours a December to plan a real Christmas for their families too.
We plan to make our donation by November 23 or 30 so Adopt a Family can get help into neediest hands and we can all look forward to Christmas with joy. Please consider how generous you can be as you write your cheque or prepare to your e-transfer to
guelpheloracofc@gmail.com and mark your donation Adopt a Family. Merry Christmas everyone!
We began this week in an attitude of gratitude. We gave thanks for all we have, for relationships, and shared experiences. We prayed over feasts, thankful to have our food that is still bountiful at this harvest time in this prosperous country we live in. Perhaps we turned off the news so as not to think about the peace that still eludes so many in our troubled world.
This week was also time for our regular leadership team meeting. We’re putting together the budget for our next year. We looked at the record of our giving for last year and considered how we’ll spend the resources we anticipate for the coming year. Our attitude of gratitude appeared again. We are grateful for the projects we supported in 2025 and for all the good our partners were able to do with our support.
Soon we’ll be getting ready for Christmas. Time flies and these warm autumn days can’t last. December will be here before we know it. And many, many families among our neighbours do NOT look forward to Christmas with joy. They know they don’t have the resources to plan the joyous feasts, the colourful trimmings of trees and homes. Most of all they realize there won’t be the gifts their children are anticipating. Those letters to Santa only serve to create heartaches for parents struggling to meet even basic needs.
So our next month we’re dedicating to Adopt a Family. This local program helped almost 2000 families last year have a holiday season they would not have had without it. Let’s see if we can stretch our Thanksgiving feelings into the rest of the season. Let’s see if we can at least match our last year’s target of $3000 and give our neighbours a December to plan a real Christmas for their families too.
We plan to make our donation by November 23 or 30 so Adopt a Family can get help into neediest hands and we can all look forward to Christmas with joy. Please consider how generous you can be as you write your cheque or prepare to your e-transfer to
guelpheloracofc@gmail.com and mark your donation Adopt a Family. Merry Christmas everyone!
****************
Let’s go…
A lot of folks are happily wearing their Blue Jays hats and jerseys today. Everybody has hi-fives and broad grins as they identify with the community of winners. And it’s a big community.
Sports teams all have their hats and jerseys and logos that they flog to their followers and we all know them and see them everywhere. I remember the hats the farmers wore with the John Deer and the Pioneer trademarks. Even those red MAGA hats loudly mark a connected community.
For awhile I kept a list of personalized license plates that said “This is who I am and I’m proud to announce it wherever I go.” I tried to imagine the story behind each one.
“BLUJ 92” was an easy one. I liked “SUZY RN” and “2 SKI BUMS” and “CATS RUL” all of which identified an obvious community of shared interests. I swear I did see with my own eyes “EZEDZIT” and “YUDIDIT” and ‘WHATEVUR.” I’m not sure what these signify, but they are fun.
Another very popular way folks today support causes or advocate for people or call out to communities is by way of their T-shirts. Pat brought her collection of shirts to share on Sunday. They had lovely messages such as “Expect Miracles” and “Pay it forward.” Our conversation was about how we choose to wear or not wear such ideas. Do we want to have a conversation with a stranger, whether they agree or disagree with our slogan? Are we calling out to our own community with the shirt on our backs? Does our T-shirt hold us accountable for our own behavior? Are we ready with the answer when our shirt provokes a question?
When our group struck out in a new direction we toyed with the idea of a slogan to identify our new brand. But we rejected “Nomads for Jesus” after we googled it and discovered that some other community (whose values didn’t match) showed up high in the list. So I guess you can say we decided to go with the line in the familiar song “We are One In the Spirit” and hope always to live by “they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”
It's harder than putting on a hat or a T-shirt but more true to the community we belong to.
A lot of folks are happily wearing their Blue Jays hats and jerseys today. Everybody has hi-fives and broad grins as they identify with the community of winners. And it’s a big community.
Sports teams all have their hats and jerseys and logos that they flog to their followers and we all know them and see them everywhere. I remember the hats the farmers wore with the John Deer and the Pioneer trademarks. Even those red MAGA hats loudly mark a connected community.
For awhile I kept a list of personalized license plates that said “This is who I am and I’m proud to announce it wherever I go.” I tried to imagine the story behind each one.
“BLUJ 92” was an easy one. I liked “SUZY RN” and “2 SKI BUMS” and “CATS RUL” all of which identified an obvious community of shared interests. I swear I did see with my own eyes “EZEDZIT” and “YUDIDIT” and ‘WHATEVUR.” I’m not sure what these signify, but they are fun.
Another very popular way folks today support causes or advocate for people or call out to communities is by way of their T-shirts. Pat brought her collection of shirts to share on Sunday. They had lovely messages such as “Expect Miracles” and “Pay it forward.” Our conversation was about how we choose to wear or not wear such ideas. Do we want to have a conversation with a stranger, whether they agree or disagree with our slogan? Are we calling out to our own community with the shirt on our backs? Does our T-shirt hold us accountable for our own behavior? Are we ready with the answer when our shirt provokes a question?
When our group struck out in a new direction we toyed with the idea of a slogan to identify our new brand. But we rejected “Nomads for Jesus” after we googled it and discovered that some other community (whose values didn’t match) showed up high in the list. So I guess you can say we decided to go with the line in the familiar song “We are One In the Spirit” and hope always to live by “they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”
It's harder than putting on a hat or a T-shirt but more true to the community we belong to.
