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From the Rector
Whenever we renew our baptismal vows, we are asked: “Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of the bread, and in the prayers?”
And we answer, every time: “I will, with God’s help.”
The apostles’ teaching is referring to growing in knowledge and understanding of the way of Jesus, and of the Christian faith. It’s what we now call Christian Formation, and it’s a tremendously important part of what it means to be a follower of Jesus, and to be the Church. We have a beautiful ritual that we participate in every week. We break bread, we pray, we sing. We are profoundly formed by the repetition of those actions. But Christian Formation goes beyond the weekly Eucharist and includes Bible study, reading and conversation about the history of the faith, about modern interpretation of the faith that makes it possible for the Christian tradition to endure. It’s important to be part of Bible studies, adult forums, book clubs, or any consistent gathering where questions are posed and engaging conversation challenges everyone to dig deeper and drink fully of the wisdom offered by all of this.
Ivan Martin will speak Sunday on adult Christian Formation. Please make sure to attend and hear his wisdom and ideas about Trinity’s future.
And speaking of continuing in the prayers. Look at the chart above, which is a representation of what the re-visioning groups and the restoration teams have been working on over the past several years. Pick one of those areas—the one that sparks your curiosity—and commit to praying for it over the months ahead. Then prepare to become part of Trinity’s future ministry in that area. (Many thanks to Kay Mackewicz for her skillful design of the chart.)
Blessings,
Pam+
P.S.—Just a reminder: We have an email address for those requesting prayer and for adding people to the prayer list and Prayers of the People each week. It is the BEST way to make sure someone gets on that list. We’ve had it for several years, but it bears repeating that one central location to report these requests is the best way to insure your request gets recorded. Please send your prayer requests to: prayerlist@trinitybeth.org. More information is given below in the Pastoral Care column.
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