NEWS AND UPDATES FROM REGIONAL COUNCIL 15 (RC15)
Please send announcements to trose@united-church.ca
www.ucceast.ca
Staff Directory
Emergency Response Memo’s Regional Council 15 (RC15)
Making Hope Visible – Podcast
To view upcoming programs at the Tatamagouche Centre please click here.
To view upcoming events at the Atlantic School of Theology please click here.
To view upcoming programs at the United Theological College please click here.
Regional Council 15 (RC15) Committee Volunteer form.
Annual Meeting Registration is Now Open
Registration is now open for the annual meeting. Please read the memo sent on March 8, 2021 from the Executive Minister. Visit the annual meeting webpage regularly for the latest updates and information on the upcoming meeting.
Passionate about leading music?
Are you passionate about leading music? The Annual Meeting Planning Committee for Regional Council 15 is looking for a music leader for our Worship Team for this years virtual meeting. The leader of the Music Team will be responsible to gather musicians from around the region virtually. The leader will be a member of the Worship Team for the annual meeting. If this is of interest to you please send an email expressing your experience to Jennifer Whittemore at jwhittemore@united-church.ca by March 21, 2021.
Pastoral Charge Information Form
The 2021 Pastoral Charge Information Form can be found on our Regional Council website under forms.
If you have had your annual congregational meeting and have elected your governing body for 2021, please click on the below link to complete. If you have not had your annual meeting, and have the same people serving in the governing body, we kindly ask you to still fill out the information forms.
As a reminder please also email your annual reports to the Regional office. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to be in contact with the Regional Council Office.
Vacancy – Harmony Pastoral Charge, Saint John, NB
Position: Full time minister (40 hrs per week)
At Harmony United, we are a forward thinking and engaging church that is filled with anticipation and hope of what is yet to come in our ministry. We believe the main role of the Minister at Harmony is to lead the congregation as it continues to give life to its vision of being “Compassionate, inclusive Spirit-filled followers of the Way”. We look to a Minister to provide innovative and creative ways of worship through use of technology and different mediums that engage all the senses (i.e. fabric, colour, symbols, PowerPoint, video, etc.). We are looking for your leadership in moving us toward being an Affirming church. We recognize the need to focus on growth and development and we need your wisdom and guidance to make that happen. We need our Minister to provide leadership in exploring ways to connect and grow both within the church and by leveraging our diverse neighbourhood and the wider community. We need a Minister that will build upon a vibrant and Spirit-filled ministry. See further details
New Stewardship Program: Called to Be the Church: The Journey
To support the mission of your community of faith, as you dive into the vital work of stewardship, we are excited to announce the newest, most comprehensive approach to stewardship training: Called to Be the Church: The Journey; a series of tailored and topical modules with coaching and ongoing support to meet your stewardship needs.
Called to Be the Church: The Journey module 1 will start the second series of sessions in your Region in early May!
Module 1: Stewardship Best Practices consists of four 2-hour online sessions to dive into these vital best practices:
Claim Your Mission – it is really why people give to you, Cultivate Generosity – practical ways to increase giving, Create A Culture of Gratitude – saying thank-you is critical, Stewardship Is Discipleship – integrating stewardship in your spiritual growth programming.
Module 1 also includes a Stewardship Analysis report, customized with your community of faith’s giving and stewardship data. Along with ongoing coaching and support after the four classes, the recommendations in the report will help you set solid, achievable, stewardship next steps. Sound interesting? Wondering what to do next? Start gathering your team of three participants (plus the minister!). Subscribe to the monthly e-newsletter “God’s Mission-Our Gifts” at https://united-church.ca/e-newsletters Contact Roger Janes (rjanes@united-church.ca) to sign up, or to seek more information.
Spring Book Study: Rachel Held Evans’ Inspired
The Region 15 Faith Formation and Leadership Development Committee will be leading an online book study at 10am on Wednesdays, April 21st – May 12th. Our title is Rachel Held Evans’ Inspired: Slaying Giants, Walking on Water, and Loving the Bible Again, selected for its youthful voice, accessible approach to the interpretation of scripture, and imaginative retellings of well-known stories. Participants are asked to obtain their own copy in advance, but no reading is required for the first session. Lay people and ministry personnel across the Regions are invited to join us, please register by April 13th for what is sure to be a lively and inspiring group: https://ucceast.ca/61453-rc15-inspired-book-club/
Rural Routes Atlantic
Rural Routes Atlantic is offering some simple practices for Lent in Covid days. Check out the third and final of our Three for Free, this time on making music in rural places.
Soul of the Preacher, beginning April 15 on Zoom.
I am very grateful to the three Regional Ministers for the eastern Regions for their support of the Soul of the Preacher program and for financial support for the program. Use this coupon code to claim a 25% discount for this program: Soul25
You can find the program description and more information here: https://prayerbench.ca/product/soul-of-the-preacher-zoom/
This program is open to all who offer worship leadership. Already an international group is gathering. Places are limited. Read reviews here or for more information contact Janice at Janice@prayerbench.ca
Holy Week Daily Email Series, Soul Songs
Each day in our Holy Week series, we contemplate a Psalm that holds something of the journey of the day. We draw close to the One who also prayed these prayers. We seek comfort and insight in the ancient words, images, and cries of the heart. These evocative Soul Songs are a source of wisdom and awaken the spiritual heart. Because of our immersion in them, we hope to arrive in Easter without bypassing the suffering, and clothed in compassion and deeper in Joy. Learn more here: https://prayerbench.ca/product/holy-week-email-series-2/
Network of Biblical Storytellers Canada – Festival of Biblical Storytelling
This Changes Everything – The Peacebuilding Power or Scripture Telling. This ecumenical festival is a place where those new to telling scripture by heart can get started, and those who are experienced can further their skills, all in a supportive environment. Find more information here.
Linnea Good (United Church) is leading the team who have been working to make this festival a very special event.
