Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (July 1, 2016)
Page 8A FAITH East Oregonian Friday, July 1, 2016 BOARDMAN’S LIMEY PASTOR Celebrating children and the child-like I ’ve been thinking a lot this week about the little ones who come to church. I have been recently blessed with the addition to our church of two families with more Colin children than I could Brown ever imagine. I want Faith to honor them and the other children with something different, in the way of a longer children’s sermon that appeals to their innocence and hunger for Jesus in their lives. Their eyes are so pure, so open to seeing Christ in the gospel stories. There is a space in their hearts for Jesus Christ to be born, as Jesus was born into the manger. Jesus loved children and loved their company. Their lack of guile and basic goodness pleased him. I think that many of the parables he told were meant to slip past the wariness of the grownups, and take root in the minds of his younger audiences to grow into deeper meanings over the years. In Matthew 18:6, Jesus said, “But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.” This is a statement I wholeheartedly agree with, and I have been outraged and shocked by the present scandal in the church. How does a human live with the knowledge of that sin? Even lesser sins, of grownups dominating children because they can do so, outrages our heavenly Father. Even children can dominate other children — bully them terribly. I was the chaplain at a hospital where a young girl singer at high school hung herself. She had a crush on a boy and had been taunted by a gaggle of girls who called her a lesbian and shunned her. I sat with her for some time, her parents sat with her for over two years after she had hung herself. I read her suicide note. After two years, she could communicate with her eyes — and communicated that she wanted to be unplugged. She was. Preaching with children must be in manners of kindness and love, real and sincere interest in their lives, not feigned interest. You must talk softly and gently, much like Mr. Rogers did to the nation’s children. The pastor must also remember that all those other grownups in the narthex are still small children with ears to hear. We don’t grow up inside very much and as such we must be gentle on all including ourselves. I’ve been dealing with homeless ladies today and yesterday — a mother and daughter who have now become homeless. The mother is in her seventies. The daughter apparently has a brain tumor, and her disability was cut off after many years when they became without a mailing address, as that is the policy. They are walking around pushing shopping carts with their ive little dogs in them. They do not want to have their little dogs taken from them and are terriied that might happen. A very nice policeman brought them food and directed them to a park where they could keep in the shade. The next day a passerby gave them money and put them in a motel up to until Friday. I have found a person who may be able to host them in her house. She has dogs too, and her heart, which belongs to Christ, called her to help. I don’t know what will happen but I do know that the love of Christ will surround them in all their fear and will work to bring them to peace. Pray for them. ■ Colin Brown is pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Boardman. Retired pope thanks Francis for his focus on mercy By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press VATICAN CITY — Retired Pope Benedict XVI thanked Pope Francis and endorsed his mercy-illed ministry Tuesday during an unprecedented Vatican cere- mony featuring the reigning pope honoring the retired one on the 65th anniversary of his ordination as a priest. The ceremony served in part to show continuity from Benedict to Francis amid nostalgia from some conservatives for Benedict’s tradition-minded papacy and criticism of Francis’ mercy-over-morals priori- ties. Francis had invited the entire Vatican Curia, or bureaucracy, to celebrate Benedict’s anniversary, and prelates turned out in force for the rare occasion of being able to greet the two men in white. The audience took place in the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace, the same marble- and fresco-illed room where Benedict bid a inal farewell to his cardinals on Feb. 28, 2013, becoming the irst pope in 600 years to resign. While Francis presided over the ceremony, it was Benedict who stole the show with an off-the-cuff, mini-theology lesson on gratitude sprinkled with Greek and Latin that showed that the mind of the German theologian is still sharp at 89. Benedict thanked Francis for letting him live out his inal years in the beauty of the Vatican gardens, where he said he felt “protected.” “Thank you, Holy Father, for your goodness, which from the irst moment of your election has struck me every day of my life,” Benedict said, speaking without notes. “We hope that you can go forward with all of us on this path of divine mercy, showing us the path of Jesus, toward Jesus, toward God.” Benedict’s vote of conidence may help quell conservative criticism of the current pope’s loose theology. Francis has recently dismissed new questions about the implications of Benedict’s resignation by insisting that there is only one pope — himself — and that Benedict had pledged his obedience on the day he resigned. He told reporters this weekend he felt that Bene- dict “had my back” and was continuing to help the church through his prayers. He added he had heard that Benedict had even sent away some nostalgic faithful who had come to him complaining about the “new pope.” During Tuesday’s ceremony, Francis entered the Clementine Hall to applause from the gathered cardinals and went straight L’Osservatore Romano/Pool photo via AP Pope Francis, left, and retired Pope Benedict XVI embrace during a ceremony to celebrate Benedict’s 65th anniversary of his ordination as a priest, in the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace, at the Breakaway Catholic group accuses pope of spreading errors VATICAN CITY (AP) — A breakaway traditionalist Catholic group accused Pope Francis on Wednesday of spreading confusion and errors about the faith, joining a chorus of conservative criticism over his perceived lax doctrine and emphasis on mercy at the expense of morals. A statement from the schismatic Society of St. Pius X suggested that a new attempt at reconciliation with Rome had stalled, or that the society itself was divided over next steps and decided at least to take a hard line against Francis. The statement, issued after a meeting of the society’s superiors, said its members weren’t primarily looking for a legal resolution to their schismatic status but eager to return Catholic tradition to a church where “great and painful confusion” currently reigns. It said errors had made their way into doctrine “that are unfortunately encouraged by a large number of pastors, including the pope himself.” “The Society of St. Pius X prays and does penance for the pope, that he might have the strength to proclaim Catholic faith and morals in their entirety,” it said. The late Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre founded the society in 1969, opposed to the Second Vatican Council’s modernizing reforms. In 1988, the Vatican excommunicated Lefebvre and four other bishops after Lefebvre consecrated them without papal consent. Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI had made reconciling a priority, but three years of doctrinal talks collapsed in 2012. Talks resumed in 2014 and Francis met with the head of the society, Bishop Bernard Fellay, in April, signaling possible progress. But Francis is no friend of Catholic traditionalists. He has riled them and other conservatives with a host of comments they say are sowing confusion about core church teachings on family, sex and other hot-button issues. Francis fueled those criticisms this month during an off-the-cuff session with Rome priests and laity, where he criticized rigid readings of doctrine and suggested that he approved of pre-marital cohabitation so young couples know what they’re getting into when they marry. to embrace Benedict, who stood up and removed his white skullcap in a sign of deference. They embraced several more times during the ceremony. Benedict listened intently as Francis addressed him — as “Your Holiness” — lauding his 65 years of service to the church and saying his decision to retire to a life of quiet prayer to a small monastery in the Vatican gardens was a very “Franciscan” thing to do. The monastery “is nothing like those forgotten corners where today’s ‘throwaway culture’ tends to put those who lose their strength with age,” Francis said. “Quite the contrary!” The monastery, the pope said, is similar to the Porz- inuncola, the small chapel in Assisi where his namesake St. Francis founded his order and then spent his dying days. Benedict has largely kept to his promise to spend his retirement in prayer and meditation, making his appearance in the Vatican on Tuesday all the more rare. Questions about his resignation lared again recently when his secre- tary, Archbishop Georg Gaenswein, claimed that his resignation had actually changed the papal ministry and “expanded” it by having “an active member and a contemplative member.” Church analysts on both the left and right criticized Gaenswein’s interpretation, saying there is one pope, Francis, and one papal ministry. STANFIELD Churches offer outdoor worship East Oregonian Anchor Point Seventh-day Adventist, Stanield Baptist, Crossroads Community and Hope Presbyterian churches are sponsoring a joint outdoor worship service Sunday at 9 a.m. at Bard Park, Stanield. Crossroads Community Church’s worship team will lead in worship, with representatives from other churches also involved. The special speaker for the event, Bill Griggs, will address the theme “Working Together to Serve God in our Community.” The service is free and open to the public. For more information, call Crossroads Community Church at 541-449-3434 or 541-449-1251. Community Com e m eet Jesus a t PEN D LETO N BAPTIST C HU RC H 3202 SW Nye Ave Pen d leton , O R 541-276-7590 Su n d a y M orn in g W orship 11:00 AM Su n d a y Bible Cla sses 9:45 AM Su n d a y Y ou th Grou p 6:00 PM M on . Com m u n ity W om en ’s Stu d y 9:30 AM & 6 PM Aw a n a K id s Clu b (K -6th gra d e) W ed M en ’s Stu d y 6 PM M O PS m eetin g the 1st Thu r of the M on th 6 PM P eace L utheran C hurch 210 NW 9th, Pendleton ELCA Join us Sundays 9:30 am Sunday Worship 9:30 Worship 10:30 am am Sunday Fellowship 11:00 am Sunday School & Adult Class ~Come and be at Peace ~ on 1290 KUMA noon each Sunday NEW HOPE COMMUNITY CHURCH 1350 S. Highway 395, Hermiston Sunday Worship Services English- Pastor Dave Andrus 9:00 & 10:45 am Spanish- Pastor Genaro Loredo 9:00 & 10:15 am Classes for kids during all services For more information call 541-567-8441 Community Presbyterian Churc h 14 Martin Drive, Umatilla, OR 922-3250 Worship: 10 AM Sunday School at 11:30 Faith Center Church Worshiping God Loving People 108 S. Main • 276-9569 Sunday Worship 10:00 am Sr. Pastor, Ray O’Grady pendletonfaithcenter.org Seventh-Day Adventist Church Saturday Services Pendleton 1401 SW Goodwin Place 276-0882 Sabbath School 9:20 am Worship Service 10:45 am FAITH LUTHERAN CHURCH in Mission for Christ LCMC Bible Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9:00 AM Sunday Worship . . . 10:30 AM Red Lion Hotel ( Oregon Trail Room ) www.faithpendleton.org Grace Baptist Church 585 SW Birch, Pilot Rock, OR 97868 (541) 443-2500 prbconline.blogspot.com Sunday School: 9:30 am Worship Service: 10:45 am Kids’ Club: 6:00 pm Wednesday Services: Youth Group: 7:00 pm 555 SW 11th, Hermiston 567-9497 Nursery provided for all services Sunday School - 9:30 AM Worship - 10:45 AM 6:00 pm Wed Prayer & Worship - 7:00 PM “Proclaiming God’s word, growing in God’s grace” St. Johns Episcopal Church All People Are Welcome Scripture, Tradition and Reason Amish growth extended to South America HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The Amish branched out last year with new settlements in Bolivia, Argentina and Canada as their numbers continued to grow and a high percentage of young people opted to remain within the religious community, which eschews many modern conve- niences. The sect’s total current population is about 308,000 and has grown about 18 percent over the past ive years, according to an ongoing popu- lation survey by the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies at Elizabeth- town College in Pennsylvania. The two small South American settlements were both founded last fall after longstanding Mennonite communities in those coun- tries reached out to North American Amish to explore afiliation, said Steven Nolt, a senior scholar at the center who helped coordinate the population survey. Those Old Colony Menno- nites, culturally conservative and with roots in a group that emigrated from the old Russian empire to Canada in the 1800s, left Canada in the 1920s over a dispute about teaching their children in English and landed in Mexico and other parts of Latin America, Nolt said. In recent years, their members in Bolivia and Argentina have faced inan- cial problems and isolation, so they wrote to an Amish publisher in Canada and even- tually got in touch with a New Order Amish group in Ohio that permits its members, under certain circumstances, to make airplane trips. Nearly two-thirds of all Amish live in three U.S. states — Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana — although there are currently settlements in 31 states and three Canadian prov- inces. Two new settlements with a total of about 30 people were established this year in Prince Edward Island, Canada, a irst for that province. Family service 9am Sunday Gladys Ave & 7th Hermiston Fr. Dan Lediard, Priest. PH: 567-6672 OPEN HEARTS – OPEN DOOR www.graceandmercylutheran.org Sunday Worship 9:00 a.m. Sunday School 10:00 a.m. (Nursery Provided) Fellowship, Refreshments & Sunday School Check Out our Facebook Page or Website for More Information 541-289-4535 Tom Inch, Pastor Grace and Mercy Lutheran Church, ELCA 164 E. Main St. / P.O. Box 1108 Hermiston, Oregon 97838 Redeemer Episcopal Church 241 SE Second St. Pendleton (541)276-3809 www.pendletonepiscopal.org Sunday Holy Communion 9:00 a.m. Wednesday Holy Communion Noon Weekly Adults Spiritual Life Group All Are Welcome FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH -Presbyterian Church (USA)- 201 SW Dorion Ave. Pendleton Service of Worship - 10:00 am Children’s Sunday School - 10:20 am Fellowship - 11:00 am www.pendletonpresbyterian.com Open Hearted... Open Minded FIRST SERVICE 8:30 AM SECOND SERVICE 10:30 AM 712 SW 27 TH ST. 541-276-1894 www.fcogpendleton.com First United Methodist Church 352 SE 2nd Street Pendleton, OR 541-276-2616 Sunday Worship 9am Open Hearts, Open Hands, Open Doors Facebook: www.facebook.com/ FUMCPendleton Services are broadcast every Sunday on KUMA-1290 AM @ 11am Rev. Dr. Jim Pierce, pastor Sunday Worship 10:30 AM Mid-Week Children & Youth ~ Weekly Adult Life Groups 1711 SW 44th St. 541-276-6015 www.pendfmc.org To share your worship times call Terri Briggs 541-278-2678
