Friday Message
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What's Coming!
February 5, 2021
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As part of our celebration of Black History Month, I was asked to find stories and examples of Black historical figures in Canada. Although most of us were not taught their stories, Black people have been present in the land we call Canada since long before Confederation. For the month of February, I will be using this space to highlight a few of them.
Mathieu Da Costa
Mathieu Da Costa is one of the most fascinating and elusive figures in the early history of Canada. Historians consider him the first Black person known to have visited Canada, probably in the company of explorers Pierre Dugua de Mons and Samuel de Champlain. But many aspects of his life remain unclear or unknown.
Da Costa was a Black African who, working as a free man, served as an interpreter for French and Dutch traders and explorers in the early 17th century. He was fluent in French, Dutch and Portuguese, and also became an interpreter for Indigenous peoples in North America.
Although the story of Mathieu Da Costa is not well known in Canada, a number of Canadian heritage sites, museums and cultural organizations commemorate his passage. The Port-Royal National Historic Site, in Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia, celebrates his role as an interpreter between Indigenous peoples and the French explorers. A plaque honouring him has been placed on the Mathieu Da Costa African Heritage Trail, a series of monuments erected and unveiled in 2005 to highlight the history of Black Nova Scotians in the Annapolis Valley.
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UPDATE on WORSHIP SERVICES
The EMUC Sunday and Wednesday Prayer services will continue online using the Zoom platform until further notice. The possibility of returning to the building for worship will be reassessed each month at the Leadership Circle meeting.
Sunday February 7:
10:00 a.m.: Online Worship and Communion led by Rev. Kathi
Monday February 8:
7:00 p.m.: Bible Study via Zoom
Wednesday February 10:
6:45 p.m.: Prayer Service via Zoom
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Wednesday Evening Worship
If you would like to join in the Wednesday Evening Zoom Worship, please email Rev. Kathi at kathi@emuc.ca and she will email you the access code.
Lenten Study
Munn’s and St. Andrews United Churches are giving a Lenten study and are inviting interested EMUC congregants to join them. The study will take place via Zoom for the five Mondays in March (1,8,15,22,29) from 7 to 8 p.m. It’s ok to miss a day; come as you are able. The focus will be the book, Faith on the Move by Julie McGonegal , which is available through the United Church bookstore (online at UCRD). If you are interested, contact Tina at office@emuc.ca who will ensure you receive the ZOOM link. This is the first time these three churches have collaborated on a study group. Rev. Kate Young will lead the discussions.
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An announcement from the Affirming Ministry Working Group and The Interfaith, Justice and Peace Group
THIS EVENT WILL TAKE PLACE ON THURSDAY FEBRUARY 18 AT 7 P.M.
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Are you looking for a new book to read during this time of lockdown? We suggest, “We Have Always Been Here – A Queer Muslim Memoir” by Samra Habib. This is the fascinating story of a young girl’s struggle against a tradition that sought to suppress her hopes and dreams simply because she was female. It’s the story of a young woman’s awakening to her true sexual identity. It’s the story of a woman’s search to find spaces where she could live out her Muslim faith in community with those who shared her sexual identity.
“We Have always Been Here” is the book the Affirming Congregations Working Group and The Interfaith, Justice and Peace Group have chosen for a One Book Read. “What is that?” you may ask. That’s when anyone who is interested reads the book and then joins us over Zoom to talk about the book. The discussion is being planned Thursday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m.
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About Affirming Ministries
Q. What is an Affirming Ministry?
A. Affirming Ministries are communities of faith, or other ministries within the United Church that have completed the process set out by Affirm United and have publicly declared their commitment to inclusion and justice for people of all sexual orientations and gender identities. Although Affirming Ministries make an explicit statement about issues of sexuality and gender, their commitment to justice is far broader. They work on a variety of justice issues. Just as God rejoices in the goodness and diversity of creation, so too Affirming Ministries honour and celebrate diversity.
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Introducing "New to Do"
The Membership and Pastoral Care and Communications committees are jointly launching “New to Do.”
“New to Do” will be placed in the Friday Message each week to share suggestions of a variety of entertainment to enhance your viewing, listening, reading, and doing enjoyment as we remain isolated from many of our normal activities. Anyone may make suggestions. Items on the list will not be previewed before listing, so please exercise your discretion when making suggestions to ensure they are appropriate. Submissions should be emailed to Sandy Hayes (sandyhayes88@gmail.com) by Tuesday each week, with “New to Do” as the subject. Please indicate 'time-sensitive' in the subject line if the event is occurring soon, e.g., a televised concert on (date). As space is limited, we regret we cannot guarantee all suggestions will be printed.
New to Do
Messiah - Netflix miniseries, 10 episodes
The Social Dilemma - Documentary, Netflix
The Dig - Netflix
The Inconvenient Indian: A curious account of Native People in North America - Nonfiction book by Thomas King (also in film) available at the Mississauga Library
Note: EMUC does not endorse any suggestions appearing in “New to Do.”
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Donations to EMUC
Some of you have asked how you can make donations to operations, mission and service, the benevolent fund, and the Deacon’s Cupboard. You can donate through Canada Helps by going to www.emuc.ca or by mailing a cheque to EMUC at 3010 The Collegeway, Mississauga, ON., L5L 4X9. Please mark the envelope "Attention Envelope Secretary".
Please note that Deacon's Cupboard would prefer to receive financial donations rather than actual food donations because the church remains closed so that managing food is difficult. The Cupboard is giving only vouchers to its guests. They are open only on Wednesdays and not on Monday evenings for the duration of the pandemic.
Thank you to everyone for your ongoing support.
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Office Hours:
Following the latest government order, Tina will be working from home and only going in to the church for essential work when needed.
Also she will be retrieving phone messages remotely only for her and Rev Kathi’s voicemail boxes. So if you are leaving a voice message please make sure you don’t leave it in the general EMUC phone voicemail box.
Tina can be reached Monday to Friday; 9:30am-4:00pm. For the quickest response please email office@emuc.ca, If calling to leave a message use (905)820-9466 ext. 23: messages will be picked up remotely.
If you need access to the church, contact the office and Tina is happy to schedule an appointment.
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Erin Mills United Church | 905-820-9466 | emuc.ca |
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