Spiritual Life
6A
Thursday, June 3, 2021
Relic display: Scriptural,
catechetical and devotional
Event open to all on
June 4 at Our Lady
of the Valley
Catholic Church
MORE
INFORMATION
Treasures of the Church is a min-
istry of evangelization of the
Catholic Church, according to the
organization’s website (https://
treasuresofthechurch.com). Run
by Martins, its purpose is to give
people an experience of the living
God through an encounter with
the relics of his saints. Each expo-
sition begins with a multimedia
presentation on the Church’s use
of relics that is scriptural, catechet-
ical and devotional.
DICK MASON
The Observer
LA GRANDE — An
exposition that will not
soon be forgotten is coming
Friday, June 4, to Our
Lady of the Valley Catholic
Church in La Grande.
A collection of 150 relics
from Vatican City, some
believed to be up to 2,000
years old, will be displayed
at La Grande’s Catholic
Church, 1002 L Ave., during
a program that will start at
6 p.m.
The relics to be displayed
will include those of St.
Joseph, St. Maria Goretti,
St. Francis of Assisi, St.
Anthony of Padua, St.
Thomas Aquinas, St.
Faustina Kowalska and St.
Therese of Lisieux, known
to many as the Little Flower.
There will also be a por-
tion of what is believed to
be a veil St. Mary wore and
a piece of wood reported to
be a part of the cross Jesus
was crucifi ed on. It may
be one of the largest pieces
of the “True Cross” in the
world, according to a press
release from Father Carlos
Martins of the Compan-
ions of the Cross, a Catholic
Church organization based
in Ottawa, Canada. Martins
will be conducting the June
4 exposition.
Relics are physical
objects that have a direct
association with the saints
or with Our Lord. They are
usually broken down into
three classes. First-class
SPIRITUAL LIFE HIGHLIGHTS
From Leviticus: Love
your neighbor as
yourself
LA GRANDE —
“Who’s Your Neighbor?”
is the message pastor
Archie Hook will share
at the La Grande First
Christian Church (Dis-
ciples of Christ) Sunday,
June 6, at 10 a.m.
Hook will speak from
Leviticus 19:18: “Do not
seek revenge or bear a
grudge against anyone
among your people, but
love your neighbor as
yourself. I am the Lord.”
relics are the body or frag-
ments of the body of a saint,
such as pieces of bone or
fl esh. Second-class relics are
something that a saint per-
sonally owned, such as a
shirt or book (or fragments
of those items). Third-class
relics are items that a saint
touched or that have been
touched to a fi rst-, second-
or another third-class relic
of a saint.
Throughout history,
many healings and blessings
have been reported in the
presence of relics, according
to Martins.
A convert from atheism,
Martins discovered Jesus
Christ and the Christian
faith while he was an under-
graduate, according to the
Catholic Answers web-
site (www.catholic.com).
Martins currently serves
as the regional coordinator
of evangelization for the
Archdiocese of Detroit. He
travels internationally as an
itinerant preacher.
Everyone attending the
June 4 exposition will be
able to examine the relics
following a presentation by
Martins.
Working together
brings the best results
LA GRANDE — The
sermon at Faith Lutheran
Church in La Grande
this Sunday, June 6, will
expound upon Jesus’
affi rmation that working
together, unifi ed, will
bring the best results.
Jesus said, “If a kingdom
is divided against itself,
that kingdom cannot
stand. And if a house is
divided against itself, that
house will not be able
to stand” (Mark 3:24-
25). As Jesus’ two exam-
ples demonstrate, this is
true for a large group of
people (“kingdom”) and
for personal situations
(“house”).
Following the Divine
service will be a First
Learning about personal boundaries
ROBERTA
SMYTHE
WALKING WITH
THE SHEPHERD
couple weeks ago, I
was participating in
a boundaries class.
The purpose of such a class
is to help pastors be aware
of both their own bound-
aries and those of others, in
order to protect both. A pas-
tor’s position in the church,
in the community and in our
parishioners’ lives may give
us authority and power we
aren’t even aware of, and so
we might inadvertently step
across a boundary without
realizing it.
A pastor is often in a
position that gives access
to people’s hospital rooms,
family dramas and intimate
moments. We may know
things about people that
no one else knows, and we
must be careful to guard that
information. A former pro-
fessor noted that even our
parishioners’ good news is
not ours to share without
permission.
But pastors aren’t the only
ones who need to uphold
boundaries. Nor it is only the
purview of professionals like
doctors, attorneys, therapists,
etc. All of us may at one time
or another be in a position
to know something about
A
a family member, friend or
co-worker that isn’t widely
known, and we need to be
mindful of what we know
and whether we have per-
mission to share. That can
be hard. We might feel like a
kid with a secret just bursting
to be told. Or, we might feel
special knowing something
others don’t, and the temp-
tation to share that informa-
tion in order to demonstrate
how special we are can be
powerful.
Or we might wonder what
the big deal is. Why not share
that someone is expecting?
Or that someone got a pro-
motion? The main reason is
that it isn’t our news to share.
Telling others without per-
mission may deprive folks of
the joy of sharing the good
news themselves. Or maybe
the news isn’t public yet.
Of course, the need for
holding our tongues is even
more vital when the news
is not good, or when it is
very personal. Sometimes
this comes from a well-in-
tentioned place — we may
put someone on a prayer
chain (with or without their
last name, with or without a
reason). But have we asked
that person’s permission to
do so? Even the best inten-
tioned prayer chains can
become gossip mills if those
involved aren’t exceedingly
careful.
Social media exacerbates
the problem. Many people
share so much about them-
selves that we may assume
we can share everything as
well, about them and about
others.
Still, it is best to ask. Ask
people if their news is some-
thing you can share. Ask
people if you can put them
on a prayer chain (and how
much information you can
share). And when in doubt,
remain silent. Wait until the
person shares the informa-
tion themselves.
———
Roberta Smythe is the
pastor of the Zion Lutheran
Church and St. Peter’s Epis-
copal Church, both in La
Grande.
masks and maintain
social distance from other
households.
SUBMISSIONS
Churches and faith-based groups
are encouraged to submit High-
lights for the Spiritual Life page
by 4 p.m. Tuesday for publica-
tion Thursday. Submit by email
to news@lagrandeobserver.
com (with Highlights in the sub-
ject line).
Masks requested at
Sacrament meeting,
Sunday school
Sunday Potluck followed
by the monthly meeting
of the elders.
Zion’s in-person service
also livestreamed
LA GRANDE — La
Grande’s Zion Lutheran
Church will gather
for in-person wor-
ship Sunday, June 6, at
9 a.m. COVID-19 pre-
cautions will be in place,
including masks and
social distancing. The
service also will be lives-
treamed to YouTube, and
the link for that stream
will be posted June 5 on
Zion’s Facebook page and
website.
Morning Prayer service
planned at St. Peter’s
LA GRANDE —
St. Peter’s Episcopal
Church in La Grande has
resumed in-person wor-
ship and will meet at
11 a.m. Sunday, June 6,
for a service of Morning
Prayer. Those who attend
are required to wear
LA GRANDE — June
6 is Fast Sunday for the
Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints, and all
members are encouraged
to fast for two meals and
to then donate the value of
the meals to help the less
fortunate.
The June 6 meetings
will consist of Sacrament
meeting, where all mem-
bers can share their tes-
timony, and then Sunday
school classes for the
second hour. All meeting
attendees are asked to
continue to wear face
masks.
The “Come, Follow
Me” lesson for the week
of June 7 is based on Doc-
trine & Covenants 63.
This Aug. 30,1831, revela-
tion through Joseph Smith
the Prophet emphasizes
and teaches us about the
sacredness of the name
of our Lord and Savior
and the importance of
always treating his name
with reverence. This sec-
tion also teaches about
the law of chastity and
how it involves our very
thoughts, not just our
physical actions.
— The Observer
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EASTERN OREGON
2021
PHOTO CONTEST
Official Rules:
Photo Contest open now and closes at
11:59 pm Sunday, June 20, 2021.
Staff will choose the top 10. The public can
vote online for People’s Choice from 12:01
am Monday, June 21 through 11:59 pm
Thursday, June 30.
Digital or scanned photos only, uploaded
to the online platform. No physical copies.
Only photographers from Oregon may
participate.
The contest subject matter is wide open but
we’re looking for images that capture life
in Eastern Oregon.
Entrants may crop, tone, adjust saturation
and make minor enhancements, but may
not add or remove objects within the
frame, or doctor images such that the final
product doesn’t represent what’s actually
before the camera.
The winners will appear in the July 8th
edition of Go Magazine; the top 25 will
appear online.
Gift cards to a restaurant of your choice
will be awarded for first, second and third
place.
VISIT US ON THE WEB AT:
www.LaGrandeObserver.com
Submit all photos
online at:
lagrandeobserver.com/photocontest
Northeast Oregon Directory of Churches
Cove United
Methodist Church
1708 Jasper St., Cove, OR
North Powder
United
Methodist Church
390 E. St., North Powder, OR
JOIN US... Catch the Spirit!
First Christian
Church
(Disciples of Christ)
901 Penn Avenue 963-2623
lgdisciples@gmail.com
Worship
10:00 a.m.
Worship: 9:00 a.m. Cove
Worship: 10:00 a.m. N. Powder
~Join us at The Lord’s Table~
SUMMERVILLE
BAPTIST CHURCH
LA GRANDE UNITED
METHODIST CHURCH
Sunday Services:
Sunday School & Adult Bible Classes
9:45AM
Children’s Church & Worship Service
11:00AM
Family Worship Service
6:00PM
Wednesday:
Prayer Mtg, Children’s Bible Club, Youth
Group 7:00PM
A church for your whole family
Visit us at summervillebaptistchurch.org
“OPEN HEARTS, OPEN MINDS, OPEN DOORS”
1612 4th Street – 963-2498
Pastor Taylor Gould
For service information go to
www.lagrandeumc.org
GRACE COMMUNITY
LUTHERAN CHURCH
The Place
62848 Philynda Loop in Island City
“We are called to Serve”
Sunday School for all ages - 9:00 am
Sunday Worship 10:00 am
Phone: 541-568-4230
grace.lutherancove@gmail.com
Zion Lutheran
Church
(an ELCA church)
902 Fourth Street,
La Grande, OR
(541) 963-5998
9:00 am - Worship
10:00 am - Fellowship & Refreshments
10:30 am - Classes
Pastor: Roberta Smythe
www.zionlagrande.org
Imbler
Christian
Church
440 Ruckman, Imbler 534-2201
www.imblercc@gmail.com
Sunday Services
9:00 a.m.
10:00 a.m.
Sunday School
Worship Service
Services
This
Week
La Grande Seventh-day
FIRST LANDMARK
MISSIONARY BAPTIST
CHURCH
Adventist Church
A Place where hope is found in Jesus
Join us in Fellowship & Worship
Saturday all age classes 9:30 am
Saturday Worship 11:00 am
1812 1st St. La Grande
Pastor Dave Tierce • 541-605-0215
2702 Adams Avenue, La Grande
963-4018
lagrandeor.adventistchurch.org
Learning for Today and Eternity
Little Friends
Christian Preschool/Childcare 963-6390
La Grande Adventist Christian School
K-8th Grade 963-6203
We use the King James Version Bible
109 18th Street • 963-3402
Sunday School 9:15 a.m.
Sunday Worship 10:30 a.m.
Sunday School - 10:00 am
Worship 11:00 am
Sunday Evening Bible Study - 3:00 pm (Effective June 10)
Wednesday Evening - 6:30 pm
“Where you can find TRUTH according to the scriptures”
www.flmbclagrande.com