~Cheryl Perry This month marked the 95th anniversary of our denomination, which was founded on June 10, 1925 when The United Church of Canada was inaugurated at a large worship service at Toronto’s Mutual Street Arena. The motto “Ut omnes unum sint” appears on the crest that was designed for the new church; the Latin […]
~Cheryl Perry It feels almost like a confession to admit it: before COVID19, I was a hugger. Quite suddenly in mid-March that habit had to change. We know the importance of touch. It is thought to be one of the first senses humans develop and it is so important that studies have shown babies who […]
~Cheryl Perry & Bob Wallace Last Sunday we began the nearly six-month season of “Ordinary Time”, during which this year we move chronologically through Genesis, week after week. In this context “Ordinary” doesn’t mean typical or humdrum – rather, it comes from the word “ordinal,” meaning “related to a series.” Throughout the summer we will […]
~Cheryl Perry A couple of weeks ago we celebrated Pentecost —the birthday of the church. We have been celebrating birthdays in different ways during this time of COVID19—not gathering for parties, doing drive-by celebrations, etc. This Sunday we are recognizing some other people who have had a significant moment in their lives—graduation—happen in this time […]
~Cheryl Perry On a phone call recently some colleagues were sharing their experiences of having Communion over Zoom. Eric Hamlyn of Lynn Valley United, who does ministry with youth, shared that he had simply told group members: bring something to have Communion with. He didn’t prescribe bread and grape juice, though most youth would understand […]
~Cheryl Perry With the weather becoming warmer we have moved our operations into the sunshine and fresh air—placing a table across the doors at the back entrance and serving sandwiches and handing out bags of groceries from the vestibule between the doors. This now only requires two volunteers—one to handle sandwiches and another to hand […]
As one of our contemporary hymns, written by Jim Manley, invites us: “Come in, come in and sit down for you are a part of the family!” On Sunday mornings I usually log on around 9:45 and one of my favourite things is watching people enter worship which—when we are worshipping in the sanctuary—I rarely […]
Nope, that wasn’t a typo. You may already know that Easter is not simply one Sunday–but a whole season–sometimes referred to as “the Great 50 days of Easter.” But I meant to write 50 years because I turned 50 this year and, as I was thinking about it today, there probably hasn’t been an Easter […]
We continue our 1-hour outreach hour where people are invited into the building one at a time. Those who have housing are offered a bag of groceries and those who are homeless are offered a “to go” bag with sandwich and juice and ready-to-eat items (granola bars, pull top applesauce & protein, oranges). Many thanks […]
The help we can offer others through the trend of care-mongering can feel “like a hug” at a time when we can’t throw our arms around people. As I greeted people at the door on Tuesday and Thursday this week I asked: how are you? What’s your stress level like? Several admitted they felt very […]
