Emmaus ECC Newsletter
A Wonderful Way to Be Catholic
August 14, 2015
Come celebrate with us.  Doors open at 9:30, and Mass begins at 10:30 am.
  The Path
In This Issue
John 6: 51-58                                     
 
 
   Not once or twice, but six
 times you tell us
 to eat this
 bread.

O
Christ,
be manna
in our journeys,
food that gives us life.

Infinite love
is what we need, as
the source of all our goings,
strength for what comes our way
every moment of every day.

Be our love-source,
 our life-source.
And we shall
 not ever
die.
 
 
 

The Sunday Website of Saint Louis University
 
  READINGS 
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Bible 101
prayer and scripture
4th Sundays after Mass.

Outline of the classes:

The Bible and where it came from

History and context of the Bible

Biblical genres and form criticism

Overview of Hebrew Scriptures ( the salvation story)

Overview of Christian Scriptures (the Jesus Story)

Interpretation of the Bible

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Read the Pope's Encyclical Laudato Si
On Care for our
Common Home
HERE
Join Our Mailing List
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Remember to view videos of the Synod on our website and on our Facebook Page.
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Remember to bring something for the food bank!
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Please know that you can email us your Prayer Requests.
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Mass at 10:30 am on Sundays.

Contemplative Prayer and Scripture Study
prayer and scripture
  Thursdays from 3:30 to 5:00 pm in the Sacred Space. Meeting every week alternating each week with Contemplative Prayer and Scripture study.  

Recommended books:

Open Mind, Open Heart: a Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel by Rev. Thomas Keating.  

 

Prayer: Our Deepest Longing by Rev. Ronald Rolheiser.  

 

 

For more information contact Fr. David.  

::
Emmaus ECC
Celebrating God's wonderful diversity
Interfaith Works

Urgently Needed...

The Emergency Overnight Shelter located here at First Christian Church needs the following items: 
  • Blankets
  • Socks
  • Gloves and hats
  • Hand warmers
  • Coffee and creamer
  • Plates, bowls, sliverware


Contact Meg Martin by email: info@iwshelter.org  or call:  360-357-7224. 
 
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Good Shepherd Community of the Ecumenical Catholic Communion

New Mass time is 5:00 pm
Sundays. Contemplative prayer at 4:00 pm prior to mass.

In Tacoma WA
Christ Episcopal Church 310 North K street
In Trinity Chapel

Contact Father David.

::
We Celebrate Ordinary Time  

Assumption of Mary It is the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary on Saturday, August 15th. I rather like this quote from Mariam Warner: "Through her, the whole gay crew of wanton, loving, weak humanity finds its way to paradise." 

Pope Francis has announced a World Day of Prayer for September 1st.  Hear and/or read his message HERE. More about this day of prayer below.

There will be an Interfaith Works service, "Creating Hope," in remembrance of the 911 event on September 11th at 7:00 pm.  More later. 

A short business meeting is planned for after mass this Sunday. 

Our next session of Bible 101 will be on August 23, after mass. This is one of my favorite sessions as it is an overview of the Old Testament. We will pay attention to the salvation story.  It is important to understand the Old Testament in order to better understand our Christian scriptures.

Sidewalk is having a fund raising event on August 12th from 5:30 to 7:30 pm.  You must RSVP to attend the event. See the flyer HERE.

Cornelia Jervois has volunteered to attend the Interfaith Works program meetings for our community. I am still seeking one more volunteer to attend the Interfaith Works program meetings. They meet once a month on the third Tuesdays. They are off for the summer, and will begin to meet again on September 15th. Having members from our community go to these meetings is very important.

If you or someone you know is looking for a wonderful way to be Catholic, you can find an authentic Catholicism at Emmaus ECC.  We are a Catholic community that is welcoming of all.  We do our best to follow the teaching and example of Jesus, and welcome everyone into our community, and to our table -- regardless of their race, gender, marital status or sexual orientation. Following the example of Jesus, we believe that everyone is the beloved daughter or son of God, and welcome at the table of the Christ.   No kidding!
20th Sunday of Ordinary Time
 
Tasting in Order to See 
 
The readings this week highlight the importance of wisdom. But what is wisdom? And how do you get it?

In the world of Nazi Germany everyone in the Nazi party got a party badge. Hitler's own party badge was made of gold. To the Nazis, Hitler's badge symbolized all the things in the world most worth having. At the end of his life, Hitler gave that gold badge as a gift to Magda Goebbels and she said that it was the proudest moment of her life when he did.

But he gave her that gold badge in the bunker under Berlin as Germany was losing the war. In that bunker in the last days of the war, Magda killed all six of her children and herself in an appallingly misguided act of loyalty to Hitler. When the invading soldiers of the Allied armies conquered Berlin and found her body, one of them took that little bit of a gold badge from her dress and pocketed it as a souvenir.

Magda shows us what folly is, doesn't she? She couldn't tell the real goods, the real gold, from the fake goods, the things that glitter but are worthless. The gold badge that symbolized what Magda Goebbels lived and died for is a fitting symbol of the terrible foolishness of her life.

Wisdom is the very opposite. It is the ability to discern between the real goods and the shiny fakes. But among the very best of the really good things is the goodness of God. And so wisdom is the ability to see the goodness of God wherever it is to be found in the world.

The Psalm tells us how we get the capacity for seeing the goodness of God, so important for us if we are to live our lives wisely, and not foolishly like Magda Goebbels. We get this capacity by tasting! Taste and see that the Lord is good, the Psalm says.

Taste what?
The Gospel gives us the answer: Christ is the bread from heaven, and every person who tastes this bread will live. He will have the real goods, not the worthless fake goods; and he will see the difference between the two, because he will see God's goodness in Christ.

Here is the end of the story then: taste the bread from heaven and see the goodness of the Lord. Wisdom lies in this!
 
Eleonore Stump is Professor of Philosophy,
Saint Louis University

The Ecumenical Catholic Communion     

ECC is a member of the National Council of Churches. 

Creation Justice Ministries and National Council of Churches USA Celebrate Pope Francis's Call to Observe a World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation

WASHINGTON, DC, August 11, 2015 - Creation Justice Ministries welcomes with joy Pope Francis's call for Roman Catholics to join in Christian unity with the Orthodox Church in observing September 1 as a World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. For the Orthodox community in the United States, September 1 has significance beyond its proximity to back-to-school events and Labor Day weekend. It is the beginning of the liturgical year, which brings symbolism of renewal as well as significance to the date.  The Orthodox Church has observed the Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation since 1989.

Creation Justice Ministries Executive Director Shantha Ready Alonso said, "Prayer is powerful. Uniting in prayer will give us the spiritual strength we need to face the most daunting challenge humanity has known: to heal and restore God's web of creation before it is too late."

Fr. John Chryssavgis, theological advisor to patriarch Bartholomew and member of the ecumenical office of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, commented, "I don't think it is coincidental that Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew are leaders in their respective churches at this critical moment, when our response to the challenge of climate change demands shared responsibility and commitment. This gesture by the Pope is yet another manifestation of his humility, spontaneity, and priority for what truly matters in our world."

In an August 31, 2014 statement preparing Orthodox communities for the Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew said he invites "all people to continued vigilance, consciousness and mobilization of their resources in order to return to the state that reflects - if not the absolute Eucharistic and doxological condition of Adam and Eve - at least the condition inspired by God's grace and mercy."

Creation Justice Ministries urges all Catholic and Orthodox congregations to unite in prayer, and invites more Christian communions to join the ecumenical World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. Creation Justice Ministries stands ready to support faith communities with free ecumenical creation care prayer resources at www.creationjustice.org.

Creation Justice Ministries represents the creation care policies of 38 Christian communions, including Baptist conventions, mainline Protestant, Black Church, Peace Church, and Orthodox communions. 
 

 
ECC:  A wonderful way of being Catholic!
 
Schedule:  

Community Business Meeting:  August 16th, after mass.

Contemplative Prayer/Scripture study -- Thursday afternoon from 3:30 to 5 pm

BIBLE 101:  August 23, after mass. Bring your bibles to Church.  "Overview of Hebrew Scriptures."

World Day of Prayer:  September 1st

Creating Hope:  September 11th, 7:00 pm

Regional ECC Meeting
 
The Ecumenical Catholic Communion has several regions.  We are located in the Pacific Northwest Region.  Bishop Thomas Altepeter is our Vicar.

We need more lay representatives at these meetings! 
For years the laity have complained that they have no voice in the Church. Well, you are invited and encouraged to attend these meetings.  In order to encourage more participation we are going to have our meetings by phone, and not as often as we have been having them.  Our next meeting will be in September, in the evening. Let Mother Kedda know if you are interested in being on the call.
interfaithInterfaith Works
House

 

Volunteer Opportunities:

Would you be willing to volunteer, or to recruit a volunteer, to help with Interfaith Works programs? Lots of opportunities are listed below. IW office staff is ready to offer all kinds of support services to volunteers.  

To get involved, or to request information about any program, please call 357-7224, 9:00am to 2:00pm Monday through Thursday.

  

The Peoples House:  To advance the social inclusion and empowerment of the homeless through innovative practices of sheltering, mental health and emergency basic needs coordination.

The Women's Shelter

The Interfaith Women's Shelter now provides refuge for homeless women throughout the year. Single homeless women in need of shelter should call the SideWalk Advocacy Center Shelter HelpLine at 360-515-5620 Monday through Thursday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to be screened. A shelter volunteer will also be available nightly between 7:00-9:00 pm only to arrange urgent access to the women's shelter.

 

Faith communities house the shelter on a rotating basis and it is staffed by volunteer hosts. Other volunteers do laundry, move shelter materials from location to location and provide transportation. The program welcomes volunteers and donations of new twin sheets and pillowcases, as well as toiletry items.

Go HERE to read more about Interfaith Works, and all their programs.
NOTICE
The Sacraments of Marriage, Reconciliation and Anointing, are available upon request.   Preparation is required for Baptisms -- for parents when children to be baptized are below age seven; for those over age seven, our community supports the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.  Our priests are also happy to meet with you individually, and confidentially, to discuss any spiritual or pastoral concerns you may have.

Email: Mother Kedda
Email:  Father John

We Support Marriage Equality