Dearly Beloved,
Our autumn worship theme is "Back to the Basics." What does that mean? Well, every once in a while, it's great to re-visit the things that are fundamental about our faith: who we believe God to be; how the Holy Spirit moves; what it means to be church; what we understand about sin and forgiveness; how we read the Bible, oh! And who Jesus Christ is. We'll be looking at these various topics through the autumn season with some special worship services sprinkled in.
This first Sunday of our autumn season is our Living Water worship. We'll be collecting water from our various travels and adventures this summer to bless and use in sacred rituals (like baptisms, house blessings, etc) throughout the year. We'll have our first baptism on Sunday as well! And we will be welcoming new members! What a joy! I first experienced the water gathering tradition at University Church in Chicago -- the church where my parents were married and my brother baptized. I hope you'll bring some water for us to share!
As we collect ourselves, drawing ourselves back into this community
and uniting ourselves anew as God’s gathered people,
we bring water from our varied summer activities and travels.
Whether it’s water from your garden hose or from the Pacific Ocean,
from your neighborhood pool or the Mississippi River,
we bring water and share stories of that water.
In doing so, we gather. As one people. God’s people.
And we remember that all water comes from one source: the God of all life.
We recall Christ’s baptism and our own --
that we are named and claimed as God’s beloved.
I'm so grateful to get to journey with you.
In love and gratitude,
Thandiwe
