Presbyterian Church USA
United Church of Christ
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Editor's Note: You may notice a somewhat different look to Covenant News. With this issue, it has moved to the new generation software in Constant Contact.
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Pastor Letter
By Rev. Rob Mark, Pastor
Dear Church,
I am writing this pastoral letter to the glow of a candle’s light. While waxed tapers often are important part of my regular spiritual practice (“the light of Christ in one place is in all times and all places”), the candle beside me comes from a place of necessity due to a nearby electrical transformer explosion. My neighborhood has temporarily lost its power.
Perspective. Pause. Peace. As the world seems temporarily hushed, batteries dwindle, wifi gone-by – this candle comes as a form of balm. I see more clearly in its glow, and feel blessed. This image I lift for all of us, on the brink of an election that raises our collective anxiety like no other. It feels as if the very future not only of this nation, but this planet earth we call our island home hangs in the precarious balance.
And so too I lift before us the idea of the true power in a neighborhood or in a community, not vanishing in an explosion, but coalescing like never before. Community power not lost, but generating. This is not only an image that I deeply need to focus in on myself to find grounding in the face of election-anxiety, but it is one deeply affirmed in our faith, and currently embodied in our church.
At the end of the 14th chapter in John’s gospel, Jesus reminds his friends: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, “I am going away, and I am coming to you”…Rise, let us be on our way.” Our faith affirms the presence of Christ with us as an eternal promise. The peace of Christ abides with us, especially in the face of uncertainty and anxiety. And, with the assurance of God-with-us, we are invited to rise up. For God is with us as a community – a community that is infused with power. May we do so in the wake of this election – in the spirit of the Christ of compassion, the Christ of Matthew 25, the great Liberator Christ of solidarity. We all have an essential role to play. Here is a prayer litany I wrote, and one we have prayed during our midweek Evening Prayers, and elsewhere, that you may find helpful in and around the election November 3.
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Community power is realized not only in our faith, but in our congregational life. Among many other gifts, I want to single out and celebrate the incredibly good news that we now have a full and robust staffing structure here at Church of the Covenant. The long searches are over! Thanks be to God! And we celebrate that Rev. Kate Carlisle – an incredibly gifted leader – has joined us as our CYCE Coordinator and Parish Administrator. They join Rev. Joshua now in his seventh week with us as Associate Pastor. And together, with Tom, Bill, Anita, Fred, Chuck, Alan, Simone, and I – we celebrate this beautifully diverse collective of servant leaders who provide stability and support the wider work and ministry of this gifted congregation. Together dear Covenant, we have power to face the challenges that will come in the “facing of this hour” and in the days and months ahead. We pray as we sing: “Grant us wisdom, grant us courage, God of grace and God of glory, on thy people pour thy power!”
In the power of the candled dark of Christ,
Rev. Rob
PS: As we face this election and its wake, consider the following resources:
Thursday Nov. 5, 6-7pm COTC Drop-In-Check-In: Zoom Link:
GBIO Gathering: Thursday, Nov. 5, 7-8pm
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News from the Remote Pews
By Linda Pursley
Home is where…
Sunny Davidson was able to access the library computers for the first time since they closed on March 17 and provided an update. “After a year-long eviction process, I was re-housed on May 1 at Casa Maria Apartments, still here in Boston's North End. My new apartment is sunny, spacious and safe. I slept most of the summer away here with air conditioning for the first time in 25+ years. On October 23-24 my sister Linda and I will have our first getaway together. We're going back to Rockport, where we enjoyed going on day trips with our Grandparents Paradis.”
Charlene and Ed James report that, much to their surprise, they have decided to winter in their Maine cabin. It’s small, yes, but cozy and warm. Come spring, they hope to be looking for an apartment or house a little north of Boston, depending on COVID-19. And their new favorite color is orange. It’s hunting season in Maine and the woods are everywhere!
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Climate Jubilee Celebration:
November 15
By Christine James
Covenant’s Climate Jubilee Team and the Generosity Generators invite everyone to remain tuned into “Zoom Church” after worship on Sunday, November 15, for a celebration of gratitude and jubilation! This November will likely be a time of mixed emotions for all of us—from great joy to overwhelming sadness and everything in between—for many reasons. Mid-way through the month, November 15 will be:
— Twelve days after the most critical election for our nation in over a century, the outcome of which we may or may not yet know;
— About the same number of days away from Thanksgiving, a holiday typically characterized by crowded airports and massive traffic jams as family and friends come together to count their blessings and eat too much. But not this year, thanks to a pandemic that will be well into what has already been dubbed “a third wave” of infections here in the US, claiming even more lives;
—“Dedication of Pledges” Sunday, marking the end of Covenant’s 2020 Season of Generosity and offering us all an opportunity to recommit our time, talents and treasure to ensuring that church continues to happen into the future, whether virtually or in person; and
— A chance to reflect on the exploration of Sabbath, Jubilee and Climate Justice that Rev. Rob and the Climate Jubilee team have led for us since September.
Despite how fraught things feel right now, the Generosity Generators and the Climate Jubilee Team see so many reasons for gratitude and joy, even as we head into the darkest time of the year. Church of the Covenant remains a source of community, caring and consolation for us all, so there is much to celebrate. Please join us after worship on November 15 for music, dancing (!), food, and fun—all together in our separate places.
If you can’t wait until November 15 for reasons to be joyful, have a look at this synopsis of “The Eight Pillars of Joy” as understood by the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
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“We are fragile creatures, and it is from this weakness, not despite it, that we discover the possibility of true joy.”
-- Archbishop Tutu
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Under the Mango Tree
By Tim Groves
Note: This column will be a monthly sharing of stories from our sister church community, Dulce Nombre de Jesus, in northwest Nicaragua.
November is harvest time for the village's second and major harvest. As you may recall, during this summer's time of Covid's scarcity and high prices for food, through our Mission and Advocacy budget, we at Covenant contributed funds for much needed food. Now with the promising harvest and diminishing of Covid's grip in this part of Nicaragua, our brothers and sisters can have the security that comes with sufficient rain and crops.
We through our Nicaragua Companions group have also reached out to Eduardo Valdez and his faith community in Managua to express how inspiring the example of his father, Don Rafael, who recently died, has been to us. Eduardo has returned his community's great thanks and explained how his father has been such a leader to San Pablo Apostál. (You may recall that Eduardo, one of our facilitators through Entre Culturas, shared his reflections with all of us during a September worship service.)
In addition, Eduardo and Luis Agguire of Entre Culturas, visited the village for the first time since the pandemic began and have brought back a Community Letter from the village.
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Community of Dulce Nombre de Jesús, sent via Entre Culturas from September 27, 2020
Translated by Memo Dominguez
On Sunday September 27th Between Cultures met with 15 members of the Community of Dulce Nombre de Jesus after several months of not being able to visit. We began the meeting singing the song "Alegre la Mañana" and with a prayer. This time the Celebracion de la Palabra was not held as is customary every Sunday to take advantage of the time to talk.
Luis shared how Between Cultures has been doing and explained that we have not been able to visit before for fear that we did not know how the pandemic was going to behave.
Dulce Nombre told us that the fear of the pandemic in the region has already passed. During these months when we did not visit, there was the unfortunate loss of Humberto Espinal (Esperanza's husband). Don Aquileo was ill but his health has improved and is quite stable now. Not so with Doña Sarah, Chimino's mother, who is very ill. She can no longer hear, and she does not see at all.
The community has always been thinking about El Hermanamiento. They have been thinking about how you are doing, and how this pandemic has impacted the economy and people's lives in general. Fortunately, in Dulce Nombre, there has been no serious case of coronavirus and no one has died from this new disease. On the other hand, they believe that it is very likely that they have already been infected by the virus because several people in Dulce Nombre were presenting several of the symptoms that are mentioned like loss of taste and smell, high temperature, etc. But as previously stated, no one presented a serious case.
Mildren shared the data that has been collected about the coronavirus throughout the municipality of Somotillo: 220 reported cases and 25 deaths. Of these 25 deaths, 12 were people who suffered from chronic diseases. There are currently no active cases. Two positive cases occurred in Rodeo Grande.
Practically, Dulce Nombre has returned to all of its normal activities. There are baseball games, all the children are going to school, and more people are going shopping at the Somotillo market.
The Celebrations of the Word have not been canceled during the pandemic. Some people stopped attending but almost all the members of the community have been coming on Sundays. The main preventive measure during the Celebration is social distance. Masks are not used during the celebration. The people in the community of Dulce Nombre have not been using masks either. They only use masks when they have to go to run errands in Somotillo.
During these meetings, the community has been asking for Peace and Tranquility in the country and thinking about their relatives who are abroad. Thank God they are all doing fine.
This year the rainy season has been very good for both first and second planting. This has filled the community with great joy.
To conclude the meeting, Luis motivated the community to continue taking preventive measures since this virus is here to stay and we will have to learn to live with it. And then Dulce Nombre asked how the community of 14ce de Septiembre was doing after several relatives of its members had died from the coronavirus and other diseases.
With great joy for having met again and seen each other again, we said goodbye.
And as stated in the letter, Dulce Nombre keeps the community of 10th of September(San Pablo Apostál) in their prayers. Here is Eduardo's message(translated by Memo Dominguez) of continuing hermanamiento and honoring of his father:
Dear Timoteo and brothers and sisters from the Church of the Covenant:
On behalf of my family and my Christian community San Pablo Apóstol, I am deeply grateful to you for keeping in your hearts special affection and memories of the life of my father, our brother and fellow companion in the struggle Rafael Valdez. And what a great joy it gives me to read these lines so close to the 3rd month after his departure and so close to what would have been his 78th birthday on October 24th, traditionally celebrated by the Catholic Church as the day of Saint Raphael the Archangel.
My dad, in all circumstances and stages of his life was a born fighter. He fought against his own poverty and material misery in which he was born, fighting to survive together with his mother, a single mother and his 4 brothers. With the passing of time and as he improved his own material conditions of life, his struggle became one of solidarity, giving himself with deep Christian conviction to building a more just world where the goods of creation are distributed among all the children of God. To this he dedicated his life until his last breath, without giving up, without resting and without asking for a moment to rest.
Rafael was not a solitary fighter, his dedication to the cause for the poor was always lived from the experience of living in community. And this has been the richest legacy he has left us: to continue sharing our life, our dreams, our struggle from the Christian community.
We will continue together making the way as we walk, without looking back.
Hugs full of love and commitment to you.
Your younger brother,
Eduardo Valdez
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Council Report
By Sharon Wright
Council Meeting of October 13, 2020
Council received an update from Pastor Rob who reported on the challenges, demands and opportunities of staff transitions. Rev. Joshua is landing and ramping up – October 25 will be a “coffee with Joshua”. Rob has joined a Boston Public School Affinity group and an Interfaith Election Response Team.
MISSIONAL FOCUS UPDATE
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Congregational Vitality - Pastor Rob reported 80-ish people in worship on 10/04 and we continue to see new faces. There were 3 successful outdoor (socially distanced) evening prayers last month.
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Culture of Compassion and Caring – Assisting the Deacons with reaching out to people including young families.
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The Climate Jubilee Centered Innovative Outreach – There were three Sunday Services rooted in our Jubilee theme in September and hosting an adult ed session with John Walkey of GreenRoots Chelsea to explore a potential partnership.
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A new Climate Jubilee Banner is hanging from our steeple! The new tagline - The sacred movement of liberation for racial and eco-justice.
MOTIONS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS
- Approved that our congregation join into a partnership with GreenRoots Chelsea, and that during Covenant's Season of Generosity we collect a special offering for GreenRoots as they live out our Missional commitment to Climate Jubilee by bringing together environmental activism with advocacy for immigrant folks and people of color.
- Approved to appoint a Pastoral Parish Relations Committee for Rev. Joshua Lazard.
- Approved the hiring of the Rev. Kate Carlisle for the CYCE Coordinator position and the Parish Administrator position subject to the position descriptions.
- The congregation received a presentation on the columbarium on Sunday October 11. Members are asked to fill out the survey.
- The Church Directory has been updated and is ready for distribution.
- The CYCE Committee brought a proposal to Council regarding including young people in more church activities. The rationale for this is to have our young people be more engaged in our wider church and learn more about it. They propose that young people be invited to join some of the church committees and to participate in the music program. These young people would benefit any group they’re in with their energy and fresh perspectives.
- Generosity Season will be Oct. 25-Nov. 15, 2020 under the theme of: “Church Happens. But Ch- - ch doesn’t just happen. What is missing? UR.” Dedication of pledges on Nov. 15, letter to go out Oct. 26.
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most up-to-date church calendar.
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About This Issue
November 2020 Covenant News
Editor and Graphics: Evelyn Kimber
Deadline for the December 2020 Covenant News is Tuesday, November 24. Please email your submissions to Evelyn Kimber at ebkimber@gmail.com .
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