As President of the Regional Council, I extend warm Christmas greetings to all. In this season of hope and reflection, let us remember the profound words of Matthew 1:23: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel (which means, God with us)." May the presence of Jesus inspire unity, compassion, and peace throughout our Region and the world in these very difficult times. Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones. Marc A. Grenon President, Conseil...
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Based on readings from Isaiah 40:1-11 and Mark 1:1-8 Préparez le chemin pour le Seigneur… À chaque année on a l’occasion d’entendre Jean crier dans le désert… préparez le chemin! Rendez les sentiers droits! Et Ésaïe qui nous parle d’abaisser les montagnes et de lever les vallées pour rendre le chemin plus facile d’accès. Dans chacune des quatre évangiles… dans les livres des prophètes… Préparez-vous! C’est tellement commun qu’on risque perdre le sens de cette préparation qui nous incombe. Et...
A few weeks ago, I came to Ayer’s Cliff with two members of the Partner Council of the United Church… these are people who come from outside the church and offer their perspective on the church and our ways of doing things. This Regional Council, which covers most of Quebec, was chosen as one of two across Canada to host members. The two people I was travelling with were from India and from the Middle East. When I put together the agenda for the tour, I wanted to give a fuller picture of what...
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be the response to the Word that you hope to hear from us O God. And we humbly ask for your corrective whispers in our ears so that we might adjust the trajectory of our journey in a way that aligns with your life-giving wish for us. Amen. The scripture story we’ve just heard is filled with impatience. There is a sense that this journey through the desert is just taking far too long and isn’t providing the promised result that the...
What comes first; children in church or a space to welcome them in church? How do we create appropriate spaces in our sanctuaries, in our worship, in congregational life in general? What makes a space truly welcoming for children? These are some of the questions that the First Third Ministries Leadership Team is actively exploring. The goal is to provide communities of faith with ideas and resources to create and maintain family friendly spaces. Shanna Bernier (Regional Council), Martha Randy...
(shared by Natacha Sanson, St. Lambert United Church) A crew of gardeners started off in the spring by transplanting a huge “old growth” peony from the Mercille side of the church to a flower bed near the entrance on the Notre Dame side. The sheer joy of noticing, seeing then touching earthworms was our reward, a sign of how nature is present in the soil. In May, we found several smart pots in our shed and filled them with annuals purchased in La Prairie and many geraniums that had been cared...
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