In many ways, Christmas is a time of celebration and joy. However, it can also be a difficult season of the year. The realities of grief, loss, depression, anxiety, financial stress and illness can weigh especially heavily on us. And the absence of a loved one who’s no longer with us can make these days especially hard.
That’s why it can be comforting to take time to remember and give thanks for those who have touched our lives with love and grace. So I encourage you to attend the special “Service of Lights, Lessons, Carols and Christmas Memories” that will be held this coming Sunday, Dec 1, at 7 pm at St. Mark’s. We’ll gather to remember the lives of those whose memories we still cherish, to give thanks for those loved ones who once brightened our days and lit up our lives, and to cherish the love that we still hold dear. A special Christmas light will be lit for each person whose name is read, and the Memory Tree will remain lit during the Advent season. In all our living may we never lose the memory of our most cherished relationships, and may we know that God’s grace, mercy and peace is with us always.
This past Wednesday evening, our Unified Board heard a powerful presentation
on the work of The New Brunswick Medical Education Foundation.
This non- profit organization funds return-to-service scholarships for New Brunswick residents who are enrolled in a recognized medical school and are training to be primary care providers. Students who receive a scholarship are required tocommit to practice in New Brunswick following the completion of their studies (one year of service for every year of scholarship money) – and history shows that doctors who begin a practice in a particular community often are inclined to remain. So the goal is to create a pipeline of world-class medical professionals who will live and work in New Brunswick, and who will help ease the acute shortage of doctors and other medical practitioners that now exists.
The Foundation was established in 2010 by Dr. Donald Craig, a (now retired) Saint John doctor (whose family was once connected to St. Mark’s.) Since its inception, 313 New Brunswick students have received scholarships, and have promised 700 years of medical service to the province. In 2024 alone, 149scholarships were awarded, totalling $1.1 million.
This is a significant achievement. However, the Medical Education Foundation doesn’t yet have enough money to provide scholarships to all those who apply.
So it’s actively looking for additional funds, and reached out to the United Church of Canada Foundation in Toronto to see if it might qualify. UCC staff expressed real interest in the program, but stated that the NB Foundation should find a congregation in New Brunswick that would be willing to co-sponsor their application. So two reps from the Medical Education Foundation met with the Board on Wednesday evening to see if Saint Mark’s be willing to offer this support. In doing so, the congregation would not incur any financial obligations. The Board responded with a unanimous “yes!” It’s a small but tangible thing we can do to try and increase access to healthcare for all New Brunswickers. And, if the United Church Foundation approves the application, Saint Mark’s would also have the opportunity to build a relationship with the student who’d receive this scholarship and support that person in other ways. A positive spirit was evident on Wednesday night. And I believe it’s another sign that the Spirit of God IS alive and at work at Saint Mark’s United Church!
“What’s the Spirit of God up to here at St. Mark’s United Church?” That’s a question I posed to the Search Committee last spring, and it’s one I continue to ponder. It’s the type of query that can be difficult to answer, but over these last few months I’ve begun to see several signs of where and how it’s alive and at work in this place.
It was evident in the warm and gracious way you welcomed the folk from Elections New Brunswick into the building.
It was clearly present at the recent “Harvest Hoedown” as we gathered to dance, eat, and enjoy the great hospitality offered by the Seniors Adult Ministry group.
It was evident last Sunday as Gene Mason placed a wreath on behalf of St. Mark’s Veterans, and we gathered to remember those who had sacrificed and died to help secure our peace and freedom. It’s been clearly seen in the recent efforts to publicize our church’s activities through some new signage, an updated website, and a renewed Facebook page and the positive support that’s been given to these initiatives.
It’s evident in the fact that I’ve never heard even one person say “we don’t do things that way” when I’ve offered a new suggestion or idea; And it’s also seen in the helpful feedback many of you offered when you completed the congregational questionnaire that was circulated a couple of weeks ago. These are some of the signs of the Spirit’s presence I see here at St. Mark’s. And these are elements we can build on as we continue discerning where the Spirit is leading us, and what a viable and sustainable ministry plan for the future might look like.
So, if you haven’t yet completed your questionnaire, please do so. If you have some suggestions about what you’d like to see happen here, please share them. Any and all ideas you may have are welcome, because we’re all in this together! As the Scripture passage we’ll be reading this Sunday reminds us, the contours of religious life inevitably change over time. But the Spirit that brought those religious institutions into being continues to live on. So I pray that that the Spirit will continue to guide us and give us the courage and grace we need to face the future with confidence and hope.
In the small farming community of Domain Manitoba where I was raised, the annual Remembrance Day service – held on the Sunday before November 11 – was one of the holiest days of the year. They began with a procession of veterans, including my dad, dressed in grey flannel trousers and navy-blue Legion blazers, who marched down the centre aisle and filled the front few pews. The music for the day was somber, wreaths were laid, a minute of silence was observed, and the sanctuary became eerily quiet as a Legion member read the names of those from our community who had fought and died during the two world wars. As I looked around at the packed sanctuary and saw some of my adult neighbours become visibly shaken as the name of a brother, uncle, cousin or friend who never returned was spoken, I understood that war was a painful, costly, but sometimes necessary business.
Those memories and lessons have remained with me, and I’ve continued to believe Remembrance Day services are very special occasions. So I invite you to join us this coming Sunday at 10:30 am as we remember and give thanks for those who sacrificed and served so that we might live in the kind of country we do. And the day will be made extra-special by the fact that a WW2 veteran – 98-year-old Gene Mason (Donna Henderson’s father and Angela Phelps grandfather) – will be present to lay a wreath. It will be a special day, and I look forward to seeing you this coming Sunday morning.
In preparing for our All Saints service this coming Sunday, I picked up a book written by a saint who I was privileged to know – the late former United Church moderator Lois Wilson.
It’s entitled I Want to Be in That Number: Cool Saints I Have Known, and it contains a great definition of sainthood. Quoting from a letter she once received from Anglican Bishop K.H. Ting of China, Lois writes: “The saints in each generation, joined to those who have gone before and filled them with light, become a golden chain, in which each saint is a separate link, united to the next by faith and works and love.” Or, to put it another way, saints are self-giving individuals who continue the tradition of freely shared their gifts of faith and love so the life of both the church and the world would be enriched in meaningful and significant ways.
Of course, no two saints are alike. Some, like Mother Theresa of Calcutta and Francis of Assisi, are famous. But many are not. Indeed, most of the 40 short profiles in Lois’s book are of family members, classmates and former colleagues whose names would be unknown in most Canadian households. But all of them were unique individuals with strong and distinctive personalities. And each of them touched her life, and the lives of many others, in significant ways. So she writes – not only to tell their stories – but to encourage us to remember the “saints” who we have known, and who have helped us on our way.
So, this Sunday, we’ll try to do just that. Who helped to nurture your faith and show you what loving God and loving your neighbour could look like? Who gave you the guidance and encouragement you may have needed at a particular point in your life, or inspired you to pursue a certain calling or vocation? Who are the people who taught you some vitally important lessons, and whose memories you cherish?
No two saints are alike. So let’s give thanks for all those we’ve known “who’ve been filled with the light” of faith, works, and love.
As I was thinking about this week’s gospel reading the other day, I was reminded of a story in which a girl asked her Sunday school teacher a question. “Why did it take the Magi so long to find the baby Jesus,” shewondered. “That’s easy,” said the teacher. “It was three MEN who were traveling, and they never thought to ask anyone for directions!”
I too have been known to have that problem – on more than one occasion. But over these last weeks, I’ve been impressed by the fact that assistance is quickly forthcoming at St. Mark’s when it’s requested. This happy reality has helped make my first few months here both pleasant and productive.
Important assistance has come from many corners. Two Saturdays ago, Tom and Dick did a great job of putting our new signs in place the day after I picked them up – even in the rain! Yesterday, Ralph helped review the website and identified some ways it can be updated and improved. And the work of the “Transition Support Team” has also been especially important over this last while. The members of this group – Grace, Ralph, Nancy, Angie, Lora, Joyce and Bonnie – were part of the Search Committee you established last year to look for a new minister. Their explorations led them to me – and we had several fruitful conversations last spring about what a year of “interim ministry” might look like and how we might develop a faithful and realistic ministry plan for the church’s future. An initial approach was agreed to, and I asked if a few people might be willing to be part of an “advisory team” that would offer some advice and help keep this process on track. “We can do that,” everyone said. And they’ve all done it very very well! In the near future, you’ll receive a further update about this piece of work and where we’re at. Meanwhile, let’s all give thanks for the helpful spirit that abides here at St. Mark’s, and our part to keep it strong!
If you’ve dropped by the church in recent days, you’ll have seen that it’s been a busy place. Part of the reason is that the Returning Office for the Saint John – Lancaster riding has been located in our building since early September, and over 1900 people (1901 actually!) dropped in to vote at the two Advance Polls on Saturday and Tuesday. More will be in the building this coming Monday, so the place will again be busy. This activity is welcome, and the Elections New Brunswick staff have been great to have around. So thanks to all of you for helping make everyone feel welcome.
Of course, this is only one of many ways that the church is being used by members of the surrounding community. Even when it’s not election season, it’s estimated that about 400 people from the neighbourhood come here every week – to drop their kids off, to sing, or to engage in other activities. In providing space for these endeavours, St. Mark’s is offering a very important service to the community – which I know is appreciated.
These realities have led our Unified Board to authorize the installation of some new signage around the church. We want to send a clear message that “all are welcome here,” and also to let people know the time of our Sunday morning worship service. So some signage was designed and ordered. Two new outside signs were put up this past Saturday, along with an inside banner over the doors into the sanctuary. As well, photos of some church activities have been posted in a display cases in the foyer, along with a striking advertisement for the upcoming “Harvest Hoedown.” I think it all looks great – and am most grateful to all those who have worked hard to make these projects happen. To be sure, all this is a work in progress – and additional signage and advertising possibilities are now being explored. For the goal is to do everything we can to spread the world that St. Mark’s is alive and well, and is a place where all are welcome.
And you can also help to share this message. Church signage is important. But so too is speaking to friends, family members and neighbours about what we’re doing. Indeed, all of us can help to strengthen our church by letting our friends know about an upcoming social event. By sharing the church’s Facebook posts (including my little sermon “teasers”). Or by inviting someone to come to church with us on a Sunday morning. By working together, we can all do our part to ensure that St. Mark’s remains a strong, relevant and welcoming community of faith.
At a meeting a few days ago, one of my colleagues, Rev. Kelly Burke in Fredericton, offered a devotional that focused on the following question: “what is making your heart sing these days?” I think it’s a great question. For it encourages us to focus on the elements of life that bring joy, delight and peace to our lives.
Such a focus is important – especially today. Bad news seems to abound. We’ve seen images this week of all the destruction caused by Hurricane Milton. There continues to be too many horrific pictures of shattered bodies and bombed-out buildings in Gaza, Lebanon and Ukraine, and of heart wrenching stories of loss and sorrow. And then there are the various challenges that all of us must deal with. Sometimes it’s hard not to feel depressed. So it’s important to remember that signs of light and hope can still be seen, and that our hearts can still be made to sing.
Indeed, Jesus’ disciples also needed that same reminder. They too often complained that life wasn’t unfolding the way they’d hoped. So, one day, Jesus offered a few simple pieces of advice. “Do not worry, saying “what will we eat” or “what will we drink” or “what will we wear.” And don’t worry if things don’t turn out the way you’d envisioned. Instead, remember that “if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, you of little faith?”
Here as elsewhere, Jesus affirms that the world has been created with the intent that we too can flourish. This is God’s desire – for us and everyone. Of course, that doesn’t always happen, and things don’t always turn out the way we want. But this weekend we have the opportunity to reflect on, and give thanks for, the ways our hearts have been made to sing, and for the blessings we have received.
So let’s try and take time to give thanks for the special moments and special people that bring love, joy and peace into our lives. For the opportunities we have to enjoy the fall colours and celebrate the gifts of nature. For family members and friends who offer a listening ear and a caring touch, and who have the knack for speaking just the right word at just the right time. For individuals and organizations that encourage us to share our particular gifts and make a difference. And for all those who bring beauty, joy and peace into our midst.
May you and those you love enjoy a peaceful and blessed Thanksgiving.
Over the last several years, I’ve had the opportunity to work with several congregations that have been in times of transition. Every church has its own rituals and routines, so I’ve enjoyed a unique opportunity to experience some new ways of doing things. Consequently, the Search Committee has encouraged me to introduce some different elements into our worship services during this interim period, Therefore, this coming Sunday, you’ll see a couple of new things taking place.
First, you’ll notice a small table in front of the pulpit with a large white candle and some small votive ones around it. This will give you the opportunity, if you wish, to come up before the service begins and silently light a candle in memory of someone, or for a person you care about. I’ve discovered that some people find this little ritual to be very meaningful, and perhaps this will also be the case for you.
Secondly, you’ll see me greeting you before the service with a “prayer request” sheet. You’ll be invited to write down the FIRST name (to protect privacy) of someone you’d like us to pray for, and I’ll mention all these names in the Pastoral Prayers during the service. Once again, sharing a name is entirely optional. But including specific references in our prayers can remind us that all people are important to God, and that, together, we’re asking God’s blessing on these particular individuals.
Therefore, these two new elements will be part of our worship service for the next several weeks. The Worship Committee will then review them and determine whether we want to continue them.
Of course, certain practices resonate more deeply in some churches than in others. So there’s no one “correct” way to do things. But by exploring some different worship possibilities and expanding our horizons, we can continue discerning the Spirit’s presence in our midst – while deepening and enriching our life together.
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