GC 41 (Day 2) Working hard...

Today's post will be a short one as I am so tired - and - it will center around a photograph that I took this morning of Commissioner knitting for one of projects identified by the Council.  She caught my eye because of her deep concentration and the fact that she poked her tongue between her teeth as she worked so hard.  This caught my eye and brought a smile to my face for a number of reasons.

First, I smiled because members of my family have this same trait.  Deep concentration leads them to such focus, such intensity that... well... they stick there tongue out.  Its a testament to their focus and to their commitment to the task at hand.  The trait marks them at the same time as unique - and coming from the same gene pool.  And to me it is endearing.

Second, I smiled because it is to young faithful persons such as this young woman that we can entrust the church to - knowing it will be in good hands.  For the nurturing of the community of faith into the future will take such dedication and determination, a willingness to learn new things and a commitment to mastering tasks that knit that which is apart - together.

We did some knitting today - knitting the colours of the medicine wheel into the United Church Crest, casting an stitches that draw persons of diverse cultures and languages together in worship.  In an historic action, we drew old and new threads of faith together as we voted to include the 1940 Statement of Faith, the New Creed and A Song of Faith into the Basis of Union.

We lost our focus becoming bogged down in where to place the semi-colon and commas and periods a couple of times and we struggled with what it would look like to have the General Council Executive explore what it would be to live out its work as an Affirming ministry... and we sang and worshipped.

We met the nominees for Moderator (all 15 of them) and we met as a Maritime caucus of sorts...



And tomorrow we will get back at it... and may we all be deep in concentration, focused on the task, knitting decisions and statements to heal a broken world, open to the spirit and as gracious and filled with light as the young woman picture above was when I told her how I was touched by the image of her knitting away...

On the Sabbath Road...

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