NEWS AND UPDATES FROM FUNDY ST. LAWRENCE DAWNING WATERS (FSLDW)
Submission Request for Weekly Announcements
www.ucceast.ca
Staff Directory
Emergency Response Memos for Fundy St. Lawrence Dawning Waters (FSLDW)
It’s Your Call – Podcast
Spark Newsletter
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 Continuing Education opportunities at the Atlantic School of Theology please click here.
Fundy St. Lawrence Dawning Waters (FSLDW) Committee Interest form.
Condolences: Charlotte Campbell
Condolences are extended to Rev. Mac Campbell and family on the passing of his wife Charlotte Campbell on March 5, 2023. The obituary can be viewed here.
Condolences: Dorothy Gillis
Condolences are extended to the family of Dorothy Gillis who passed away March 6, 2023. Dorothy was the wife of the late Rev. George Gillis. The obituary can be viewed here.
Condolences: Doreen Kissick
Condolences are extended to the family of Doreen Kissick who passed away March 8, 2023. The obituary can be viewed here.
Registration for Regional Annual Meeting
Plans are well under way for our annual meeting and we are excited to be able to gather in person in beautiful PEI. We are currently working on the logistics and aim to have registration go live on March 24. Please keep a look out for the letter with all the registration and accommodations details.
Continue to visit the Regional Annual Meeting webpage for updates and reports.
Annual Meeting Teller Volunteers Needed
Coming to the Annual Meeting? Do you like to be involved and active while still being present at the meeting? Then please consider being a teller, where you’ll get to help with activities like voting, distributing materials and taking up the offering. No experience necessary. Please fill out the form to let us know of your interest.
United Church Manual 2023
You can now pre-order your new United Church Manual 2023 and pick it up at the Annual Meetings in PEI or Halifax. The cost is $24.95 tax included. If you wish to have it shipped out shipping will be extra. Contact Leona at llaundry@united-church.ca or 1-800-268-3781 ext. 6141. Orders are due by March 17, 2023.
Invitation to Online Clergy Gatherings
Reminder that the Thursday 10:00am conversations with Kendall Harrison, the Regional Minister, and ministry personnel are ongoing. Please click here for information and the link to join.
Bulletin Covers
Central United Church has a number of bulletin cover packages which we did not use. We no longer print a bulletin for our Sunday morning gatherings so would like to pass these along to anyone who might want them. We are offering these for free, but if you are so inclined a donation would be gratefully accepted. Contact our office at centralunitedchurch@nb.aibn.com to discuss further.
Stewardship Update
“We are not alone.”
These words from A New Creed have gained more meaning than ever since the COVID-19 pandemic. Worship delivery has changed; pastoral care has changed; everything has changed—and so has Called to Be the Church your United Church giving program.
Introducing Called to Be the Church: The Journey—tailored and topical modules with coaching and ongoing support to meet your stewardship needs.
Module 1: Stewardship Best Practices is taking place starting the week of March 20, 2023.
As part of a small group experience with 4 other communities of faith, over four 2-hour classes, plan your next steps to help your community of faith increase revenue in order to better fulfil your church’s purpose.
Find out more and register here. I would encourage you to sign up as soon as possible as we anticipate available slots filling us fast. My sessions will take place on Tuesday afternoons and Thursday Evenings.
YOU are not alone.
Affirm Zoom Webinar March 21, 7 pm. “Conversion Therapies. How to recognize them and how to help people in recovery “
Did you know that despite being illegal, conversion therapy continues today by other names? The discussion will outline what Conversion therapy is and the language and modalities that it can be presented in churches and society. Points will be given as to how to listen and acknowledge a person’s journey and provide a welcoming safe harbour.
Guest presenter: Sue King, Registered Nurse, Master’s of Theological Studies
Sue is an Australian Canadian living in New Brunswick. Sue identifies herself as she/her and a cis- gendered Christian lesbian. Sue began her spiritual journey as an early teen and was introduced to Christianity through the Anglican Church and evangelical Methodist summer camps and youth groups. In her late teen years, she identified her sexual orientation as lesbian and hence began a conflict in the circles in which she moved. Both her parents and friends were evangelical fundamentalists and after coming out to one parent at age 22 she was advised to get rid of it and seek healing from it.
Sue found herself in an evangelical charismatic ministry that had a secret circle ordained to do sexual healing. Sue pursued this for 7 years prior to leaving Australia and moving to Canada in 1988.
Sue had many formative changes occur in North America that led to her laying down the pursuit of healing. They included counselling, nursing many persons with AIDS, in 1989 meeting her supportive life partner, in 2003, attending Bangor Theological Seminary (An Affirming seminary) and many friendships along the way.
Sue has been a member of United Church of Canada in New Brunswick for nearly 17 years and is committed to the Affirming process in the United Church in Canada.
This webinar will not be recorded.
To register click here.
Covenanting Service
A service to celebrate the covenant amongst Timothy Wisnicki, the Montague Pastoral Charge and Fundy St. Lawrence Dawning Waters Region will be held on Sunday, March 26th at 7:00 pm at Hillcrest United Church. A reception hosted by Hillcrest UCW and Sturgeon Ladies Aid will follow. The service will be led by the Search Committee, with Sheila Gallant, Past-President, representing the Region. The guest preacher will be the Rev. Martin Dawson.
Hillcrest United Church is located at 50 Wood Islands Hill Road, Montague. The Sanctuary is wheelchair accessible via Door #6 off the back parking lot. All are welcome.
Introduction to Community of Faith Profile Process
The Regional Pastoral Relations Committee is offering an introduction to the Community of Faith Profile Process on April 15 & 22 beginning at 9:30 am and ending at 11:00 am.
This process is proving valuable not only in times of pastoral transition but also in:
* visioning for ministry direction
* assessing our financial viability
* assessing priorities
* gaining a deeper understanding of who we are as a community of faith
* matching our strengths and passions to needs & opportunities
* better understanding who our neighbours really are
We will explore the sections of the profile and how best to use questions and small group discussion to ascertain the most useful and instructive data. We will look at the role of a profile committee and liaison. (when one is assigned) We will introduce you to workshop tools and outlines. We will talk about the 20% challenge and how you and the other leaders in your community might realize a 20% swing in your budget.
We are asking all ministry personnel to make an effort to be at one of these offerings. This introduction training is also open to all lay leaders in communities of faith who may have interest in inviting this type of discussion in your own community or as part of the Regional Pastoral Relations Process.
To register, please click here.
Grant Opportunity – Relief Fund for Thriving Congregations
The United Church of Canada Foundation has sent us the following information for a grant opportunity that your community of faith may benefit from. “Last year an anonymous couple, who have deep love for the church and who have been members of various congregations across the country, created the Relief Fund for Thriving Congregations.
This granting fund will provide the opportunity for congregations that have plans to continue to be of service to their communities and that have vibrant programs and outreach to receive a grant to help alleviate the pressure of debt. Applications are being accepted for this grant from 15 January – 15 April 2023. The application, and additional details, are available here.
Please contact Jenna Yango Leonard, Foundation Coordinator at JYLeonard@united-church.ca or 1-866-340-8223 with any questions you may have and please feel free to share details of this grant with other congregations you think may benefit.
Maritime UCW – Annual Meeting
The annual meeting will be held April 28-29, 2023 at Visions United Church in Moncton. Deadline for registration is March 28, 2023; the registration form can be found here. If you require more information, please contact Ruth Kennedy at ulvashephersns@hotmail.com.
Vacancy
Park Royal United Church in Charlottetown, PEI continues to search for a fulltime ordained or commissioned minister to serve its active congregation. Our profile is available on the Church Hub. We invite interested persons to contact our Search Committee Chairperson Sheri Chislett at sheri.chislett2017@gmail.com.
Leadership Counts
The United Church is blessed to have rich diversity in its leadership. Our diversity makes us more capable of living out God’s mission in our world. In sometimes ground-breaking ways, the United Church has affirmed commitments to supporting the full participation of everyone.
To help us more fully live out these commitments we have been collecting data, since November 2021, as part of the Leadership Counts voluntary survey to learn more about the breadth of identities present among The United Church of Canada’s ministry personnel, General Council office and regional council office staff, and members of national committees. This includes racial identities, gender identities, sexual orientations, disabilities, languages, and more. Click here for more information.
Moderator’s GLI video
Please check out the new video from the Moderator regarding Guaranteed Livable Income. It can be used in any way useful.
The United Network for Justice and Peace in Palestine and Israel (UNJPPI)
UNJPPI brings together United Church members, adherents and friends in partnership with Palestinians and Israelis working for peace. We believe it is important to understand the complex dimensions of the path to peace in Palestine and Israel. In our monthly newsletter, we curate relevant resources such as news articles, advocacy campaigns, webinars, book studies, films screenings and travel opportunities. We hope you will use these resources to learn more and help in the way of peace.
UNJPPI’s March 2023 newsletter includes: a recording of the Toronto worship service with Jonathan Kuttab, advocacy opportunities to address the escalating violence in Israel and Palestine, a link to order fair trade dates, upcoming opportunities for educational tours to Israel Palestine, information to join the upcoming Voices from the Holy Land Film Salon and much more. www.unjppi.org.
Turning Ourselves Inside Out: Late COVID Reflections on Thriving Churches
Monday, April 17th and April 24th via Zoom
8:00 pm Atlantic/7:00 pm Eastern
$20 per person plus Eventbrite Fee
Two evening sessions with Russ Daye and Rob Fennell, co-authors of Turning Ourselves Inside Out: Thriving Christian Communities. Join these two pastor-scholars to learn about their research on thriving churches, and their most recent reflections on church life in the COVID era. These sessions will be interactive and will not be recorded.
These sessions are geared towards anyone who wants to learn how churches can thrive in the post-COVID era.
The first 40 registrants will receive a FREE paperback copy, by post, of the book, Turning Ourselves Inside Out: Thriving Christian Communities. Register soon!
To learn more about this book, go to: https://www.fortresspress.com/store/product/9781506470023/Turning-Ourselves-Inside-Out
To attend, please register at this link: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/turning-ourselves-inside-out-late-covid-reflections-on-thriving-churches-tickets-532118449607
Montreal Conference of the Hymn Society 2023
Every five years, the annual conference of the Hymn Society meets in Canada. The Society enters its second century with the conference being held at McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, July 16 – 19. As always, the event will embrace the wide range of music now included in the worship of today’s churches. It will also feature gifted Canadian music leaders and musicians in the 4-day conference. Please click here for more information.
