The Newsletter of Riverside United Church Riverside United Church 3191 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1V 8N8 (613) 733-7735 Rev. Paul Dillman: rucrev@rogers.com Sunday School Coordinator: Jessica Baird Youth Coordinator: Stacey Simpson riversideuc.youth@gmail.com Office Administrator: Lou Madaire ruc@rogers.com Newsletter Editor: Anne Sanagan asanagan@hotmail.com Website: www.riversideunitedottawa.ca Office Hours: Monday - Thursday 8:30 to 12:30 MARK YOUR CALENDARS Join us for a Pot Luck Lunch at 12:00 p.m. followed by our Annual Congregational Meeting at 1:00 p.m. Sunday February 22 nd February 2015 PAUL’S PONDERINGS W hat Matters in The United Church of Canada? I have been invited by Galilee Centre in Arnprior to offer an evening presentation in March on what matters in the United Church. It is part of a monthly series of various faith groups presenting their values and perspectives. Help! It is an interesting process to begin to think about such a question, even when I have been part of the United Church all my life. (Maybe that is why it is a harder exercise!) I have been reflecting on it for a while and my thinking was propelled along as I responded to questions from a woman in an airport lobby recently. She was a lapsed Catholic who described herself as spiritual, but was realizing that part of spirituality is community. So, she was asking about the United Church because there was one near where she lived. It was an interesting conversation and she was particularly intrigued that she would be welcome at communion in the United Church. I think openness is one of the themes of what matters in the United Church. If anyone has other ideas or thoughts, please let me know. As we move into the season of Lent, it is a time of reflection on what matters in our lives and 2. in our faith story. One of my Lenten activities this year will be to spend 8 days in Jamaica with our partner church - Providence Methodist Church in Kingston. On March 1st, I will be preaching at their worship service. While in our calendar, we refer to March 1st as the 2nd Sunday of Lent, in the schedule sent to me from Providence, it is listed as “5 Sundays until Resurrection”. It is a reminder that Lent leads us to Easter, and that the hope of resurrection is what matters in the Christian faith. Hope is needed in so many aspects of our lives and world. At times despair seems so prevalent. The challenge of faith is to nurture hope in various aspects and issues in our time. With openness and hope, let us engage the world in faith and love. Children and Youth Coordinators! Since September, Jessica Baird has been working with us and focusing on the Children’s Worship program. She has limited hours to offer and so not much was happening with youth. So, beginning in January 2015, we have brought Stacey Simpson on board to focus on ministry with youth. Truth and Reconciliation Commission Closing - May 31 to June 3, 2015 For the past 5 years, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission has been at work in Canada as part of the apology to First Nations people for the Residential School system. The closing of the Commission’s work will be here in Ottawa this spring. As we prepare to be part of this event, two opportunities for learning and discussion will be held here at Riverside: 1. Sunday, April 12th at 10 a.m. - Rev. Jamie Scott will be the guest preacher at the combined service with the Church of the Resurrection. Jamie is a United Church minister who has worked for a number of years on the response of the church to the reality of residential schools. 2. Sunday, April 26th at 7:15 p.m. - Book Club will discuss the book, The Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King. A Time to Mourn ... continued In October, we had a discussion session on changing and evolving practices held at the time of the death of a loved one. About 35 people attended and there were several ideas for follow up discussions. One idea was to have a Funeral Director come and respond to questions about some practical matters about what can and can’t be done, etc. So, on April 12th at 4 p.m., we will welcome Tom Flood, a semi-retired Funeral Director, into our ongoing conversation. We will have about 90 minutes of discussion, followed by a finger food potluck supper. There will be an opportunity to submit questions ahead of time. MISSION AND SERVICE D o you wonder where the money we give to Mission and Service goes? In 2014 Mission and Service givings supported 86 Congregations, 37 Presbyteries, 13 Conferences, 6 Theological Schools, 3 Education Centres, 39 Chaplaincies, 75 community and justice ministries, 15 overseas personnel and 97 funded global partners in 25 countries. Not all of the projects M&S money supports are in faraway places. Here in Ottawa Presbytery support goes to Aylwin Pastoral Charge, West End Community Chaplaincy, Carlington Community Chaplaincy, Centre 507, Carleton University Chaplaincy and Algonquin College Chaplaincy. 3. To see the details pick up a copy of "God's Mission, Our Gifts" in the Narthex. Or better yet view the video "A Call to Action", narrated by our United Church Moderator at www.stewardshiptoolkit.ca OUTREACH R everse Offering The reverse offering is held four times each year, and the most recent one, for Centre 507, was a big success. The collection of winter clothing (which also was taken to Centre 507), will provide many people with much-needed warmth in this cold winter. People at Centre 507 are very grateful for all this. Thank you for your continuing generosity. The next reverse offering will be for the Heron Emergency Food Centre, and will be March 22nd (slips given out) and March 29th (items brought to church). Heron Emergency Food Centre We are encouraged to continue to pick up an item or two each week when we are getting groceries, and put it in the yellow bin in the narthex. The need at the Food Bank is ongoing, year round. Non-perishable items only, please. How about a “tin in the bin” once a week? Jamaica Outreach In the latest edition of the “Observer”, the editor, David Wilson, talks about philanthropy as roughly meaning “love of humanity”. With our outreach work at Riverside, we strive to build community relationships, both local and international. Love of humanity is a large part of this. Five people will be going to Jamaica for eight days, leaving February 24th and returning March 4th. Those going are Paul Dillman, Carolyn Malchy, Cecile Logan, Meridith Douglas, and Marie Hackett. We will be getting to know Providence Methodist Church people, and have a taste of Jamaican life in Kingston. There will be a visit to the Wesley Basic School, and other visits and activities, experiencing the warmth of the sunshine and flowers, and the warmth of the Jamaican people. This trip will greatly help to develop our community relationship with the people of Providence Methodist Church. CHRISTIAN EDUCATION Easter Messy Church Saturday, March 28th - 4:00-6:00 p.m. ew Life comes to us at Easter and on the day before Palm Sunday, March 28th, we will gather to celebrate together at Messy Church. The stories, crafts and songs will share the Lenten and Easter themes. These will be followed by a simple supper. Please mark the date on your calendar and plan to come and share in the wonderful community experience which is Messy Church. N LEARNING IN RETIREMENT C arleton University is offering a non-credit course on young adult spirituality. Tom Sherwood gives a series of six presentations based on his Listening To The Echo research: over 700 statements from young adults across Canada discussing religion, spirituality, God, god and gods. Most have left the religious traditions of their families. Many identify as SBNR – Spiritual But Not Religious. Tom brings their voices into the presentations, as they talk about their religious upbringing (including the United Church), religion in general, environmental concerns, attitudes toward gender and sexuality issues, and their personal spiritualities. Wednesdays from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. from April 22nd to May 27th. No homework, no required readings, no tests; but 4. QUILTING AND CRAFT GROUP there is a fee. Go to the website for further information and to register: http://carleton.ca/linr http://carleton.ca/linr/lecture-series/latespring-session-2015/ WELCOMING AND FELLOWSHIP T he Welcoming and Fellowship committee would like to recruit more participants in the work of our committee. We welcome any interested people to join us in helping to make our congregation a friendly place. Either as members of the committee or as helpers at Sunday morning coffee time and special functions, you would be providing a valuable service. We can provide instruction and we work together as a team. A special need is on Sunday mornings to prepare for coffee time or to clean up afterwards. The congregation gives us lots of support when we ask for food donations for special events. If you would like to join us please speak to Margaret Copeland or Molly Colwell. APRIL GARAGE SALE E very year there is always someone who says "I have a basement (or cupboard, or garage) full of stuff, but I just didn't have time to sort through it". February and March might be the time! More information about the drop-off times for the April 25th Garage Sale will be upcoming, but the home sorting process could start NOW. Take advantage of these cold days and get that closet cleaned out. You'll be glad you did. T he Quilting and Craft Group is working on a number of projects and welcomes anyone who might enjoy learning to do simple knitting or sewing. Beginners are quite welcome. We are working on tied quilts and simple knitted items for the neonatal unit of the General Hospital. A proposed new project will be to sew “pillowcase dresses” for orphanages in various countries. So far 25 dresses have been made to send along with those going on the upcoming trip to Jamaica. A workshop to learn how to make these will be held in late February. Come and see what we have been doing and enjoy a cup of tea before the afternoon is over. Mason Jars & M&M Boxes The ladies who do all the great baking for our fundraisers are looking for mason jelly jars and M&M boxes. Up-to-date Safety tips for preserving Do you make jams, jellies, pickles or other preserves? Are you aware of the most up-todate recommendations for the safe preserving of these items? Current recommendations are to use a new self-sealing lid each time. That way the products you keep at home, those you give as gifts, and those you donate for sale at the bazaar will be properly sealed. These will be provided free of charge for bazaar jams and pickles, by Riverside United. Please feel free to take as many as you need. The screw band can be reused as long as it is not bent or rusty. Jars: must be free from nicks or cracks. The Certo insert says jars can be sterilized in the oven at 225 degrees F for 10 min, and should be kept warm until filling time, but the lids should be kept in boiling water until use. 5. There are a few organisms that can grow in high sugar foods, and high acid foods therefore it is currently recommended to immerse the sealed jars for 10 minutes into a pot of boiling water with a rack in it, with enough room so the jars don’t touch, and at least 1” of water deeper than the jars. The screw lids should be left untouched until consumption. When labeling your product, please include the month and year it was made. Here is a link to more detailed safety tips provided by the government of Canada if you want to further explore. http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/eatingnutrition/safety-salubrite/food-canningconserve-aliment-eng.php#a2 Some printed copies will be available at the church. If you have any questions or concerns, you may contact Wendy Graham at 613-5232244, or Marg Lyon at 613-731-4010. Happy Preserving! Save all Wilson’s Independent Grocer (Alta Vista at Bank) receipts and those of your friends and good neighbours. For every $100.00 of purchases, the Heron Emergency Food Centre (HEFC) receives $1.00. One year this totalled up to $1,700.00 NOTES FROM THE MUSIC DIRECTOR T here is scarcely ever a Sunday when the question of style and substance in music does not arise. Hmm. Substance and style, sense and sensibility, semantics and pragmatics...these are sometimes regarded as dichotomies, but might just as well be understood as intersecting, interactive, mutually contributory elements of one thing not in conflict with the other. For some church- goers, the traditional hymns with their seemly, poetically coloured and unobtrusive words are in complete balance with the musical idiom. Indeed, it would be un-seemly to race through the words, trampling over the carefully crafted metaphors and delicate fabric of sensibility. Others may profess a more modern approach, preferring the exhilarating “lift” of an uptempo singing that needs to move, the words having been once and forever inwardly digested and understood. At Thursday rehearsals, I check with the group to get a “pulse” – literally and musically – to what represents the current, or in-house trend of substance and style. The thematic and stylistic diversity represented in More Voices, as well as Voices United, is quite wide, eliciting grumblings of discontent as well as cheers of assent. Timehonoured symmetries in structure, prosody, harmonic language, four-part vocal medium are all changed or stretched to new purpose. How much of this change detracts from or adds to the act of worship for you? I suspect as much or as many as are people in the pews. Perhaps even the music director struggles to find peace and harmony with new substance (topical diversity), and style (pop and rock music influences represented in modern hymnals). Hugging is good. It is a simple act of connection and transmission. Poetically, it can outgrow symbol and metaphor quickly and invite allegory, a self-sufficient narrative “putting symbols into sustained and consistent action.” Sunday to Sunday we are invited to embrace subjects, to be engaged in the acts of listening, contemplation – and singing through a wide breadth of styles. We seek to connect one with another, to uplift, support, enrich. This is our narrative, this is our story, this is our song. 6. require transportation, we need more drivers to bring them. CHOIR NOTES W e are still in the throes of winter but Easter is not too far away, and we will soon begin practicing our Easter music. You will have noticed, on recent Sundays, that although we can still 'make a joyful noise' our numbers have been somewhat depleted. Vacations, flu season, family issues etc. all take their toll on our limited resources. In the past year we have been pleased to welcome some new members, but we do have room in the choir loft for more! You love to sing, but perhaps you feel that you are unable to make the commitment to join the choir full time, so why not come along for the short term? We will be singing music relating to the whole spectrum of the Lent, Passion and Easter seasons. If you have choral experience you will be able to take it all in your stride, or if you have never sung in a choir before, we will take you under our collective wing and guide you along. Speak to Wayne - our Director, or any of us if you would like to participate in the Ministry of Music. PASTORAL CARE TEAM O ver the last little while we have been quite active, and we would like to thank all those who volunteered their help. We greatly appreciate everyone's assistance. Although it is still some time in the future and the date has yet to be set, our Spring Communion and Tea will be our next planned event. Unfortunately last fall's service had to be cancelled, so this time we want to be doubly sure that we invite all those who would like to participate. Let us know of anyone who should be included. Please keep in mind that as more of our members become less mobile and As always we appreciate when we are informed of new pastoral care needs, and thank those of you who also reach out to care for others in our congregation. To keep us updated or ask any questions, speak to any of the Team members or call Mary Shaw (613733-4600). AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL UPDATE T he writing group has been involved in a major campaign in Saudi Arabia. Although Raif Badawi has not been flogged over the past 3 weeks, the brutal sentence of 1000 lashes remains. There has been an international campaign to have this sentence commuted. His wife and children are living in Canada. In Colombia, the paramilitary organizations are again threatening all workers involved in the land settlement. There has been some success in Azerbaijan with the release of four of the NIDA activists held in in detention. We are still petitioning for the release of the others. These, and other cases are posted regularly on the church's website, thanks to Brian Davis. Anyone interested in participating in any of these campaigns can contact us at pn.mcleod@sympatico.ca SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT “Spring passes innocence. Summer passes exuberance. Autumn passes reverence. Winter passes perseverance.” and one remembers one's and one remembers one's and one remembers one's and one remembers one's Yoko Ono REPORT FROM THE FINANCE COMMITTEE OPERATING INCOME Jan – Dec 2014 Offering (includes PAR) Fundraising (for RUC) Directed Capital Fund & Gifts Bank Interest Investment Income Realized Weddings & Funerals Total $ 152,958.90 25,243.00 140.00 437.93 1,486.48 1,080.00 181,346.31 149,102.06 22,441.08 600.00 391.34 2,197.77 500.00 175,232.25 24,603.58 7,276.00 137,344.73 4,675.48 4,165.10 178,064.89 33,558.87 7,116.99 138,534.32 5,775.72 7,053.43 192,039.33 OPERATING EXPENSES Joint Building Presbytery Ministry & Personnel Office Committees Total NET OPERATING OTHER INCOME Flow Thru M&S Jamaica Project Jamaica Trip Other NEW Investment Capital Total Other Income Increase/Decrease Market Value Of Investment Fund 3,281.42 30,673.10 4,823.00 3,319.51 1,121.00 39,936.61 14,391.00 43,141.61 Jan. – Dec 2013 – 16,807.08 30,786.06 6,273.00 3,654.90 40,713.96 7,315.00 48,028.96 + 10,614. GROCERY CARDS – YEAR ROUND FUNDRAISER Good news ! In 2014 we made a profit of $4,457.00 on our grocery card program – that is $6.00 for every $100 spent. Loblaws/Independent, Metro/Basics, Farm Boy or Produce Depot cards are available. You can still collect Air Miles, PC points etc. when you use your grocery cards. Invest in RUC without spending any new money!!! Cards are available from the Office Monday – Thurs 1-12 p.m., after church Sundays or by calling Joan at 613-733-6552. WINTER 2015 - Calendar of Events Date and Time Sundays Description of Event 11 a.m. Heart Sunday – Defibrillator will be available for review during the fellowship time. Ash Wednesday Sunday, Feb. 15 Wednesday, Feb. 18 Saturday, Feb. 21 Sunday, Feb. 22 Sunday Worship and program for children and youth 12:00 p.m. 1:00 p.m. Out of the Cold - Youth/adults serving a meal at Southminster United Church Pot Luck Lunch Annual Congregational Meeting Feb. 24 – March 4 Jamaica Trip Feb. 27 & 28 John Bell event at Kanata United Church Sunday, March 8 Daylight Savings time begins - don’t be late for church! Sunday, March 15 7:15 p.m. Book Club: “All My Puny Sorrows” by Miriam Toews 9-12 p.m. Inside work party. Come and help with small maintenance jobs around the Church building. Saturday, March 28 4–6 p.m. Messy Church Theme: Lent & Easter Tuesday, March 17 Sunday, March 29 12:00 p.m. Faith Conversation Luncheon following the service. “What question do you have about the Holy Week story?” Bring a lunch and join the circle of discussion. Friday, April 3 10:00 a.m. Good Friday service Sunday, April 5 7:00 a.m. 11:00 a.m. Easter Sonrise service, followed by breakfast Easter worship Combined worship with COR - Rev. Jamie Scott preaching “There is a Time to Mourn” - discussion with Tom Flood, 4:00 p.m. funeral director Saturday, April 25 9–12 p.m. Garage Sale Sunday, April 12 10:00 a.m. Sunday, April 26 7:15 p.m. Sunday, May 3 Book Club – “The Inconvenient Indian” by Thomas King 12:00 p.m. Faith Conversation Luncheon following the service. A Nooma video will be shown, followed by discussion. Bring a lunch and join the circle of discussion.