This morning we celebrate the Reign of Christ on the last Sunday of the church year. 

It is fitting somehow that this is also the first Sunday in our newest set of restrictions to in-person gatherings.

We hear today of a King not of power or might, but a shepherd leading their sheep, a kingdom that calls the lost and welcomes them home, a reign that puts first those who are hurting or grieving or sick or isolated. 

It is this King we celebrate today and that we incarnate every time we care for another, give a quick call to one of our more isolated community members or send a word of gratitude. It is this reign of justice and peace and joy that we point to when we serve at the mustard seed or support our local food banks, threshold housing and other important organizations or ring our bells for frontline workers.

It is this King we hold close when we are feeling weary or discouraged - when we just want this pandemic to end so we can embrace our friends or come together in worship - when we can feel the ground steady under our feet again.   

Into this wilderness, God says "I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land. I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep" (EZEKIEL 34:11-15)

God is with us! The one who knelt and washed the disciples' feet, the one who reaches out a hand to comfort and gather us in, the one who challenges systems of oppression and who weeps alongside grieving friends. This is the God we worship today and who comes alongside us in this time of hope and uncertainty. 

Beloved congregants and friends of St. Matthias, know you are held by this good shepherd and that you are held by the prayers and love of myself and this congregation. 

As we move toward this holy season of Advent may we set our hearts on this inner pilgrimage, creating room in our lives for this humble king to illuminate our hearts and set our feet onto the ways of peace.

-The Reverend Meagan Crosby-Shearer 

My child,
I see you weary and weighed
in the slow catastrophe,
carrying the wreckage with you.
I know your longing,
the loneliness, the empty place.

Beloved, you are doing a hard thing.
Try to be as kind to yourself as I am.
Forgive yourself. Appreciate your resilience.
Give thanks for what has sustained you.

You are weary, as you ought to be.
Give yourself permission
to savour what renews you.

You are grieving, for a horizon
that always walks ahead of you,
for a touch you can't have.
Let yourself mourn, let the sky hear.
The earth knows your song.

Be gentle with yourself, Beloved.
You are doing a hard thing.
I am with you. I believe in you.
This is my word to you, on this long road:
we will make it through.
We will make it through.

-Steve Garnaas-Holmes
www.unfoldinglight.net

In compliance with the BC provincial health officer's November 19 order, the diocesan administrator, Dean Ansley Tucker has suspended in-person public worship and community gatherings taking place in our facilities until at least December 7. All our worship services will continue at 10 am via Zoom. Download a copy of the letter issued to clergy on November 19 by the diocesan administrator.

Watch our website and the provincial government website for updates as this situation develops.

Sunday Readings can be found at https://www.stmatthiasvictoria.ca/events/sunday-worship--206/2020-11-22

With great sadness, we have had to put our latest chapel gallery show on hold for the moment. This has come both from the requirement of the Provincial Health order and the direction from the Synod office to move all of our events in the church online. 

We are so very grateful to Mary and Donna for their hard work in preparing for this show as well as to Nicky and Arifin and all the chapel gallery volunteers. 

We are looking forward to the time when we can all enjoy their amazing work!  

This year our Advent Spiral will head outside. 

Stay tuned for more information as we creatively re-vision our advent spiral and stations of the Nativity.

If you have a tree that might spare a few boughs, drop incumbent@stmatthiasvictoria.ca a line for a drop off time! 

On November 1 we celebrated All Saints Day and we were reminded that the ministry of all the baptized is central to our shared vocation as the church. Baptism is a rite that unites us as Christians through our commitment to the way of Jesus and is a means of God's grace.

The World Council of Churches Faith and Order Paper No 111 names five elements of what takes place in baptism: Participation in Christ’s Death and Resurrection Conversion, Pardoning and Cleansing The Gift of the Spirit Incorporation into the Body of Christ The Sign of the Kingdom   

Each of these is worthy of remembering, as well as ongoing reflection and meditation.  In our baptismal liturgy in the Book of Alternative Services, each candidate for baptism is asked six questions:   

Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers? 

Will you persevere in resisting evil and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?  

Will you proclaim by word and example the good news of God in Christ?  

Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbour as yourself?  

Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?

Will you strive to safeguard the integrity of God’s creation and respect, sustain, and renew the life of the earth?  

Each of these questions is answered with " I will, with God’s help."   Held over three Fridays, participants will join two panellists each week who will each reflect briefly on one of these questions to help us all remember our covenant, understand some of its depth, and reflect on its significance in this time and place.   

SESSION 1 Travis O’Brian has been incumbent at St Barnabas in Victoria since 2007. He holds a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Leuven, Belgium. A father of four and avid fly-fisher, he was ordained in 2004. Travis has also recently held the position of director of Anglican Studies at the Vancouver School of Theology.

Ansley Tucker is the dean of Christ Church Cathedral in Victoria and currently serving as administrator of the diocese. She has served in ordained ministry for 40 years and was privileged to participate in the Anglican Church of Canada’s leadership in the review and revision of our baptismal practice and discipline.

SESSION 2

John J. Thatamanil is an associate professor of theology and world religions at Union Theological Seminary. When possible, he lives in Victoria and attends Christ Church Cathedral. John is the author of Circling the Elephant: A Comparative Theology of Religious Diversity and The Immanent Divine: God, Creation, and the Human Predicament.

Sulin Milne is the incumbent at St Peter in Comox and previously served as pioneer priest in the Church in Wales. She moved to Vancouver Island in September 2019, bringing with her three children and a dog.

SESSION 3 Juli Mallett serves as an associate priest at St Andrew in Sidney, and as convener of the Fellowship of St. Gregory of Nyssa, Salt Spring Island. She speaks and writes on the natural world as a source for theological imagination, the Internet as a site of community and sacramental spirituality. She is a member of the diocesan council and president of DAISSI, Salt Spring's LGBTQ2SIA+ society. Juli lives on Salt Spring with her partner, surrounded by a young forest filled with mushrooms and other wonderful things.

Jane Morley is a lawyer by profession, a mediator by inclination, and has become a leader and facilitator of organizational and social change. She is the strategic coordinator of Access to Justice BC, a network of justice system leaders, headed by the chief justice of BC, that seeks to improve access to justice in BC. She is a principal of Restorative Solutions, a group that offers a constructive and systemic approach to conflict within organizations and systems. She is a member of the parish council of the Parish of Pender and Saturna Islands and attends St Peter on Pender.

Tanya Clarmont of the Victoria Native Friendship Centre will host a dialogue that builds on concepts presented in the film Doctrine of Discovery and how this doctrine continues to impact the lives of Indigenous people today, such as through the Indian Act, multigenerational trauma, and land disputes.  There will be a question period where people are encouraged to raise additional inquiries about information presented in the film.

Watch the Doctrine of Discovery documentary (66 min.). 

The Truth and Reconciliation committee at Lutheran Church of the Cross, Victoria, BC, invites you to their next virtual dialogue on Colonization in the 21^st Century with guest presenter Tanya Claremont. Colonization continues to be a core issue in the ongoing work of Truth and Reconciliation.  Tanya will provide her personal experience and insights as to how colonization manifests in the present as well as how it influenced Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal relations in Canadian history.
 
Tanya is Teme-Augama Anishnabi and French Canadian.  She embraces both sides of her cultural background.  She currently lives on the traditional territory of he Lewungen peoples in Victoria, BC.  She works for the Victoria Native Friendship Centere and has been active in the Friendship[ Centre Movemengy ata booth the national and provincial level.
 
She works as a consultant on the issues of Reconciliation, UNFRIP, cultural safety and Indigenous Financial Literacy.  Tanya is a member of the  Camosun College Board of Governors and a member of the Oasis Society of Spiritual Health.

Email the Lutheran Church of the Cross church office to receive a copy of the Zoom link to participate in this event.

Threshold Housing Society is unable to host their annual Winter Carnival and Tree lighting event in Bastion Square due to COVID-19, but Threshold is embarking on a different way to raise funds doing this holiday season.    

Threshold Housing has partnered with Silk Road Tea to create the perfect gift box and it includes 12 different flavours of tea. These make the perfect gift for the holiday season. Gift boxes are $20.00 each and all proceeds come to Threshold Housing.  Your purchase will help Threshold Housing continue providing safe housing, support services, and community to at risk youth. Tea boxes can be purchased on the Threshold website, or by clicking on the link below:

www.thresholdhousing.ca/product/tea  

 

Threshold Housing Society believes that every youth deserves a safe place to call home, to find acceptance and sanctuary.  According to the 2018 Greater Victoria Point in Time Count on the night of March 15, 2018 there were at least 156 homeless youth in our region. There are countless more youth who have not been captured in this count, those couch surfing, living in unsafe homes, or are aging out of foster care. More than half of the respondents of 2018 Point in Time Count had their first experience of homelessness under the age of 25. Youth homelessness is an issue in our community that often goes hidden, however it is essential that the vulnerable youth in our community have a place to call home.  

St. Matthias has long cherished its association with Threshold Housing and we are delighted to share this information with you.  

 

Christmas Baskets:

In an aged-old monastic tradition, Emmaus Community are making available home-made, home-spun Christmas baskets as a fundraiser for the community.  Most of the items are donated and created by members and friends of the Emmaus Community. 

Some of the items in the baskets may include chocolate, tea light and jar, scottish oatcakes, smoked salmon pate, Advent "Reader", Christmas ornament, plum chutney, hand-made face mask, coaster, art card, elixir (ginger berry), roibos chai tea, granola, vanilla extract and music card with download info.

These are great to enjoy at home or as gifts for family, neighbours, co-workers or service providers.  

Suggested donation of $100 each.  Only 50 will be available.  Reserve yours by emailing mspence@shaw.ca

 

Beer:

We also have 40 bottles of our strong Belgian-styled Christmas Warmer beer available by donation.  Suggested donation of $10+ per bottle.  Email admin@emmauscommunity.ca  to reserve!

 

Creator,
as I prepare to go into the world,
help me to see the sacrament
in the wearing of this cloth –
let it be “an outward sign
of an inward grace” –
a tangible and visible way
of living love for my neighbours,
as I love myself.

Christ,
since my lips will be covered,
uncover my heart,
that people would see my smile
in the crinkles around my eyes.
Since my voice may be muffled,
help me to speak clearly,
not only with my words,
but with my actions.

Holy Spirit,
as the elastic touches my ears,
remind me to listen carefully –
and full of care –
to all those I meet.
May this simple piece of cloth
be shield and banner,
and each breath that it holds,
be filled with your love.

In your Name
and in that love,
I pray.

May it be so.
May it be so.

The Rt. Rev. Dr. Richard Bott, Moderator  - The United Church of Canada