SPOOKY SEASON
Can you feel it? The brisk breeze in the morning and the leaves starting to turn? Pumpkin-spice is being advertised everywhere from our coffee shops to our favorite cereals and football is in full season. For many of us “millennial-minded” folks these changes mean that Spooky Season is upon us.
For those of you who haven’t heard of “Spooky Season” it’s a fairly recent term used to describe the time leading up to Halloween. We all enter Spooky Season at different times. One of my friends entered Spooky season with the arrival of the Pumpkin Spice Latte back in August. For me, I wait until October 1st and Spooky Season coincides with the Halloween Themed sweaters and decorations.
Okay, if I’m being fully truthful, Spooky Season might not be as much of a holiday season to the average person as it is in my Halloween-loving friend group. In preparing this article I took the opportunity to learn more about the traditions around Halloween and have come to the conclusion that some version of Spooky Season is a good fit for preparing for the three-day celebration of Allhallowtide (yes, that is a real word!).
Similar to Christmastide or Eastertide, the Christian church has celebrated the three holidays of Hallow’s Eve, All Saint’s Day, and All Soul’s Day since the 8th century when the vigil for All Saint’s Day was established in Rome by Pope Gregory III. Sometimes called Hallowtide, Allsaintstide, or the Hallowmas Season, these are the three days designated in the church year to enter that threshold space of honoring and remembering those who have gone before us. While some churches continue to celebrate All Saint’s Day to honor the members of that community who have died in the past year, by and large, most white churches in the United States have lost touch with the tradition of this three-day festival and the time of preparation leading up to it.
For those of us without roots to Mexican culture, the Pixar film “Coco” was a beautiful introduction to the Mexican holiday of Dia de los Muertos which celebrates All Saint’s Day through beautifully decorated ofrendas or altars and offerings of beloved dishes as a time set apart to pray for deceased family members and to continue to be in relationship with their spirit. There’s a similar tradition that I learned about from my host family in Hungary that during Allhallowtide the veil between the living and the dead is more permeable than other times of the year. In Hungary, my host family and I gathered for an evening picnic at the graveside of their deceased family members, decorating the grave with flowers and candles and attending a church service.
It’s interesting to me that, for the most part, the Church has left behind Halloween and the spookiness of being in relationship with our own mortality and the spirits of our ancestors. This year, I’ve set myself a new intention to pay attention in October to the saints who have made me who I am. Throughout the month I plan to cultivate a physical space in my home to light a candle to create my own ofrenda and open myself to the workings of the saints in my life.
Embracing Spooky Season and coming to Allhallowstide differently this year invites us into what Scripture talks about in Hebrews 12 “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us”. What might it look like for us to reimagine our place with this great cloud of witnesses and move past the pumpkin spice and football to honor and learn from the departed saints in your life?
Vicar Hope
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LUTEFISK & MEATBALL SUPPER CANCELED
After much careful consideration, it’s been determined that the we will be canceling the 2021 Lutefisk & Meatball Supper. We appreciate your understanding.
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CALL COMMITTEE UPDATE
Your call committee is still searching for the right pastor to bring to Willmar and Raymond. Recently the committee had a very good interview with a promising candidate that would work well with our existing team. Please continue to keep the committee in your prayers as the next steps of this process are discerned. More will be shared with the congregation if all parties agree to move forward.
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OCTOBER QUILTING DATES
Vinje Quilters will meet on October 9th and 23rd at 9:00 am. All are welcome! No experience is needed.
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TRAIL OF TREATS
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29 | 4-6 PM
VINJE CHURCH PARKING LOT
Get your kiddos in their costumes and join us for our second annual Trail of Treats! We’ll have a trail of treats and fun set up in our parking lot for our Vinje kids to walk through!
If you’d like to contribute towards the purchase of candy and supplies for our Trail of Treats, you can donate on our website at the “Give” link, just note “Trail of Treats” in the “Special Gifts” section. Or send a check with “Trail of Treats” in the memo!
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Recycling is one thing each of us can do to support our environment. Recycling does make a difference. Here are some ‘facts’ that support how recycling positively impacts our environment:
- 2.5 million plastic bottles are thrown away every hour in America
- Recycling plastic takes 88% less energy than making it from raw materials
- Recycling one glass bottle saves enough energy to light a 100-watt lightbulb for four hours
- Aluminum can be recycled forever without any loss of quality
- The EPA estimates that 75% of the waste stream is recyclable, but only 30% of it is being recycled
From: “50 Interesting Recycling Facts,” roadrunnerwm.com
Each of us can help our environment by recycling.
Please make use of the recycling opportunity we have here in Kandiyohi County. Recycling does matter!
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Vinje’s Treasure: The Pipe Organ
The organ is the king of instruments and Vinje is fortunate to have such a beautiful instrument in the sanctuary. The versatility of the organ is amazing as it can produce a wide variety of sounds that evoke feelings of calm, excitement, yearning, or celebration.
One of the best ways to learn about the organ is to climb the spiral staircase and see the organ console up close. Watch the organist’s use of hands and feet to produce different sounds. If there a prominent melody, is it being played in the pedals or with the hands? Feel free to watch and, when the organist is done, ask questions. Listen for low notes in the pedals. Listen for sounds like a flute or a trumpet. If you have young children, bring them up to the balcony to watch the organist during the closing songs in Sunday morning worship.
It’s time for the congregation to think about training organists for the future. If you or someone you know can play the piano and read music, encourage them to think about becoming an organ student! Contact me for more information.
NEEDED: Substitute ringers for JuBELLation, Vinje’s handbell choir. Occasionally members of the choir aren’t able to attend a practice, but all the notes are needed for the best rehearsal. If you can read music and help out once in awhile, please contact Karen.
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LOVING ARMS UPDATE
Vinje Leadership is excited to announce that Loving Arms is expanding! We have acquired Praise and Play Preschool from Faith Lutheran Church in Spicer and will take over operations on January 1, 2022. Loving Arms looks forward to working with the existing Praise and Play staff as we add infant and toddler care to this already amazing preschool program. Special thanks to the council leaders who have worked on an agreement that helps address the vital need of childcare in Kandiyohi County.
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COUNCIL MEETING HIGHLIGHTS
- Approved Crystal Lenz to fill the remainder of the term vacated by the resignation of Jennifer Bobbe.
- Approved the Asset Purchase Agreement and Property Lease agreement to finalize the Loving Arms expansion to Faith Lutheran in Spicer.
- Heard updates on the status of the following building projects: kitchen ovens (fully installed and operational), solar panels (seeking bids), sanctuary lighting (seeking bids), columbarium (gauging congregational interest)
- Agreed to prepare the 2022 budget to plan for the continuation of the intern program.
- Other discussions included: the current covid context and proper protocols, a status update from the Call Committee, and the upcoming Stewardship campaign.
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EXPLORING VINJE'S HISTORY
The Fall Bazaar was a big event at Vinje for many years. This month pastor Andrés has asked Char Kingstrom to share some memories of this event. If any other Vinje women have memories about the Bazaar to share, please contact pastor Andrés.
I moved to Willmar with my first husband Joe in 1969 and was involved with the Fall Bazaar at Vinje already in 1970. It was an annual tradition that had been going on for many years, and I was part of it every year until we stopped doing it in the mid 1990’s. The Fall Bazaar was the biggest fundraiser for the Ladies Circle Groups and the Ladies Aid. One or two women were designated to chair the event every year, and I had that responsibility twice.
Normally the Bazaar happened on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. We started setting up on the Thursday before the big day on Saturday.
The main attraction was the Christmas booth where we sold ornaments. We got together at church once a week every Thursday morning the whole year around, except in the summer months, to work on the ornaments. We made new ornaments every year. We had our own room in the church building where we worked and could store our stuff.
Apart from the Christmas booth, we served a lunch for the visitors to purchase, we did a quilt raffle, we had a bake sale, and there was a big thrift section with all kinds of stuff except clothes.
For many years the Fall Bazaar was an event that attracted many people from Vinje and from the Willmar community. It was not unusual that a long line of people eager to come in would form outside the door long before opening time. But little by little the attendance started declining until we decided that the event was not worth all the work that went into it anymore.
I enjoyed being part of this event while it lasted, and it was gratifying to be able to support many of Vinje’s missions and to make it affordable for kids to attend Bible Camp with the money we raised. I would myself buy new ornaments every year, and to this day most of the ornaments on our family’s Christmas tree come from the Vinje Fall Bazaar.
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Make a one-time contribution or set up reoccurring giving here. Need help? Call the church office!
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VINJE ON THE GO!
RADIO Listen on Sundays at 9:30 am on KWLM, 1340 AM.
INTERNET Watch anytime! (go to YouTube and search Vinje Willmar).
TV Watch local access channel, 180 Sundays at 2:30 pm and 8:30 pm and Tuesdays at 8 am and 5 pm.
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