Reflections from your Pastors

November 28, 2023

Sunday we celebrated the Feast of Christ the Servant King. It is a difficult gospel, Matt 25:31-46, about sheep and goats with the sheep going to heaven and the goats going to everlasting flames . This seemed appropriate metaphor for the time of Jesus in the Eastern Mediterranean yet we struggle with it. It doesn't seem to fit our perception of God in the 21st C as love, creating from love, emptying into creation, and the Word becoming human. We are gaining a perception of God as God sharing our life and we sharing the life of God as co-inherant and self-emptying.

From this point, we look back since Vatican II, 60 years and it seems we have struggled to uncover a god that welcomes our world as it is. A god that sees our needs and responds with affection, love, and forgiveness. As the Gospel reading of the goats says: "…when did we see you hungry…?  There has always been a struggle for us humans to accept ourselves as we really are with our faults and vulnerabilities, and our deeply hidden self-delusions. But now, we are in a time of reducing our focus on self and a more frequent tuning to ourselves as part of creation, originating from the same Love Source and the same star dust;  realizing and believing that our experience of God brings  the Light in our Hearts to shining! 

We look to certain guides along the way, Carl Jung, Richard Rohr, IIia Delio, Karl Rahner, Elizabeth Johnson, Julian of Norwich, Joan Chittister, and others. 

Sunday's second reading was from the Spiritual Writings of Karl Rahner (edited by Philip Endean,2004). Here is the second half of Karl Rahner's prayer to Jesus at the beginning of Advent, two more paragraphs than our reading for greater completeness. My prayer is that It help lead us deeper into our experience of God.

"Slowly I am understanding once again what I have always known: you are still in the process of coming, and your appearance in the form of a servant is the beginning of your coming, which brings redemption from the servitude you took on. Ways that you travel along do have an end. Constraints that you take on do become free. The cross that you carry does become a sign of victory. It is not actually that you have come; you are still coming. From your becoming human til the fullness of this time it only a twinkle of an eye -- and this is so even if millennia go by in its course, that thus, blessed by you, become a tiny part of this twinkle -- the one twinkle of an eye that marks your one action, that action that gathers us all, and our whole destiny, into your human life and its fate, and brings us home into the eternal expanses that are the life of God…." 

"People say that you will come again. That is true. But it is not really ‘again,’ since you in your being human, a being that you have taken eternally to yourself as your own, have never left us. It is just that it must become more and more evident that you have come in reality, that the heart of all things is already now transformed because you have taken them to your heart. It is just that this coming must happen more and more, just that it must become more and more evident what has already begun in the ground of all that exists, just that your coming must dissolve into itself the mirage that suggests finitude did not become free when you took it into your life. Behold, you are coming. This is neither past nor future, but present – a present that is just still filling itself out. It is still the one hour of your coming; and when this hour has come to an end, we will also know from experience that you have really come. Let me live in this hour of your coming so that I can live in you, O God who is to come! Amen."  

Peace within,

Pastor Jane

Image used with permission from Get Wallpapers.

Upcoming at Mary of Magdala

Join with us to learn more about the Ecumenical Catholic Communion

Presentation - ECC 101

Discovering our Roots

Wed Nov 29, 6:30 pm / MT

Zoom link HERE

Meeting ID: 830 3313 8207

Passcode: 123456

The Season of Advent and Christmas – 2023

Our theme: ‘God's Gift of Hope--and Ours’

Advent Sunday Masses -

12:30 pm

First Sunday      Dec 3    

Second Sunday                Dec 10

Third Sunday                      Dec 17

Fourth Sunday                   Dec 24

Christmas Services -

On Christmas Eve

3:00 pm and 5:00 pm  

Trinity’s worship services

7:00 pm  

St. Paul’s worship service

Christmas Day Mass

10:30 am - Mary of Magdala

No 12:30 Mass

Simple Supper and Prayer

All three churches are participating in this ‘Taize’ like prayer and song.

Wednesdays - December 6, 13, 20

Soup suppers                               5:45 pm

Holden Evening Prayer              6:30 pm

Mary of Magdala will be hosting the simple supper of soup and bread. We need volunteers to bring a 'crockpot' of soup and help for clean-up. Please call Joan at- 970- 224-0297

Share and Inspire

Reflecting on the week’s readings in our Advent Booklet – Waiting in Joyful Hope. Join Mother Rosean and Reverend Jane via Zoom

Tuesdays – Dec 5, 12, 19 at 7:30 pm

   With Reverend Jane

   Zoom Link HERE

   Meeting ID: 848 5409 9634

   Passcode: Advent

Thursdays – Dec 7, 14, 21 at 10:00 am

   With Mother Rosean

   Zoom Link; HERE

   Meeting ID: 870 8960 1942

   Passcode: Advent

Giving opportunities during the Season of Advent

Mary of Magdala Social Justice Project

• The Social Justice committee will be collecting grocery gift cards to King Soopers in $25 denominations for our pastors to respond to emergency and individual requests for help with gas or groceries. Just drop them in the offertory basket!

301 Faith Partners

• Alternate Giving Fair. Sun Dec 3, 8:30 – 12:30 in the Fellowship Hall. Various charities supported by the 301 Partner communities will be represented to take donations.  Please consider stopping by before our Dec 3 Mass and give a gift on behalf or in memory of someone dear to you.

• Reverse Advent calendar: Food donations go to our Lil Pantry on Stuart street. Non-perishables, low or non-liquid canned or packaged food items are preferred. Click here for information and food suggestions. Donation box in Fellowship Hall



Praying for peace, health and well-being through challenging times.

+Cache and Courtney, family of Jean

+Joanne Gallagher, member

+David Devlin, member

+Joanne Kresl, friend of Suzanne King, member

+Lisa Moos, member

+Jim Carroll, husband of member Dori Carroll

+Kolten Weitzel, grandson of Kerrie Anderson, member

+Sabrina and her two children, currently homeless

+Grandneice of Father Michael Nicosia

+Linda Browell, member

+Sandra Carter, friend of Mary Vogel

+Kris Jenkins, wife of Father Scott Jenkins

+Jen Banks, friend of Mary of Magdala

+Francisco Cruz Antonio, friend of Rev. Jane

+Yvonne Keefe, member

+Jo Anne, friend of Sandra Life, member

+Grace Robinson, member

+Jerry Padilla, father of member Lisa Jones

+Janessa and Hayden, sister and niece of Jen Banks

+Rachel, daughter of Mary Lou Devlin, member.

~~~~~~~~~~~

A blessed and peaceful repose of souls for those who've passed and comfort for the friends and families.

+Daniel, cousin of Pedro Engel

+Juanita Newbre, aunt of MaryLou Devlin, member

+Jeanette Marian Banks (Brown) mother of Jen Banks

+Flavian Reising Jr., Father of Steve Reising, member

+Marge Gruber, friend of Michael Six, member

+Betty Jones, mother-in-law of Lisa Jones, member

+Jean Preslan, friend of Mother Rosean and Yvonne Wootten, member

+Josy Moos, Godmother of Tom Moos

+Fr. Fred Ball, OFR, ECC priest

+Bob Colhour, father of member Mark Colhour.

+Candy Palmer, friend of Mary Lou Devlin, member

+Johnny Berlyn Thomas, friend and benefactor out of his own poverty, of Pastor Jane

+Fr Don Willet, from John XXIII

+Linn Zink, friend of MoM, Social Justice advocate

+Bishop McGrath - RC diocese of San Jose, Friend of Suzanne King

+James Ryan cousin of Mary Lyons, member

+ Rosemary - Fr Michael's mother

+ Mother Sheila Dierks, ECC priest in Boulder

Please send prayer requests to marymagdalafc@gmail.com. Prayers will be listed for one month unless requested for longer. Prayers for the repose of souls will be listed for six months unless requested for a longer time.

Celebrating with the 34th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Celebrate with Pastor Jane Reina presiding on November 26th. The video of the homily and readings is available here.

Social Justice Reflection

Tom Moos, Social Justice Ministry



Today’s Gospel is the very familiar Parable of the Sheep and the Goats. Jesus separates the nations of the earth into groups on his left and right as a shepherd separates sheep from goats. The “sheep” are welcomed into their heavenly inheritance while the “goats” are doomed to eternal punishment. Jesus identifies with those who suffer and praises the “sheep” for their service in feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, welcoming strangers, clothing the naked, caring for the sick and visiting prisoners.

Various interpretations are offered for this parable. Some would say that works of service are essential for eternal life while others argue that such works only demonstrate a sincere faith and that the “sheep” are separated and saved by their faith alone. Some would claim that Jesus only calls his followers “brothers” and “sisters” so this parable only pertains to service to fellow Christians.

In the ECC, we adopt a broader view of who is “sister” and “brother”. We recognize a Divine spark in each and every person, including those with other religious, political or philosophical views. From a social justice perspective, we are called to serve and to love immeasurably especially the “least” – those who are marginalized or suffer the most.

Our Mary of Magdala community is small with limited resources. We allocate our financial and volunteer resources to a broad understanding of “neighbor”. From financial support to Madonna Hospital in Nigeria that treats more than 1000 patients/month regardless of their ability to pay, to volunteer and monetary membership with Family Housing Network’s work with homeless families and ISAAC’s work with immigrants, to assisting our pastors with gift cards to help local individuals with groceries or gas, our community takes seriously Jesus’ identification with the “least” and His call to serve.

During Advent, the Social Justice committee will sponsor a project of collecting grocery cards for our pastors’ ministry to individuals. Next Sunday, Mother Rosean will describe what that ministry means.

Mass Schedule

Weekly Mass Wednesday, Nov 29 at

11:00 am

• Weekly mass in the Fireside Room
• No Zoom available

Sunday Dec 3 at 12:30 pm

• Father Teri Harroun is presiding. In-person and with Zoom.

Weekly Mass Wednesday, Dec 6 at

11:00 am

• Weekly mass in the Fireside Room
• No Zoom available

Sunday Dec 10 at 12:30 pm

• Mother Rosean Amaral is presiding. In-person and with Zoom.

Did you miss an article or announcement?

Past e-bulletins posted here

• Click here to read October/November ECC National Newsletter
• To read the ECC Council of Bishops' statement on the War in Gaza and Israel, click here.
• Ongoing Giving Opportunities in Fellowship hall; see list here
• Dedicating Altar Flowers? Contact Joan Stepleton at JoanStepleton@gmail.com or 864-650-2816. A $25 dollar donation is kindly requested.
• The purpose of the Mary Magdalene Society is to financially support aspiring and current priests and encourage the development of youth in their spiritual journeys. Read more here.

Mary of Magdala Parish Community

Members: Need to view, update information or download a copy of the member directory? Just click here.

If you would like to contribute to Mary of Magdala, here are ways to schedule a single or recurring Sunday offertory.

All are invited and ALL are welcome to join our parish community. Here is the webpage with more information on membership



The ECC Regional Website - View here.

Newsletters of Trinity Lutheran Church and the St. Paul's Episcopal  

Click here for the Trinity Lutheran Church monthly newsletter, "Tidings". And here is St Paul's weekly bulletin.