FAITH
Friday, March 17, 2017
LIMEY PASTOR
Time for
a change
B
e at peace, oh my soul. It is a transitional
week, as I prepare to step away from Good
Shepherd Lutheran Church for a while. For
a while (maybe longer, who knows), relinquishing
the heavenly cockpit to Pastor Paul, my predecessor
at the church. I step away to be surgically reshaped
at Providence Hospital, St. Vincent
in Portland. Three arteries that
hang from my beating heart,
that have become worn-out and
clogged, are to be replaced by
fresher arteries from elsewhere in
my body that, for some reason,
just aren’t as beaten up.
I don’t know why that is. I
don’t know why the design of the
Colin
good stuff is not so much at the
Brown
center, but is out in the regions of
Faith
legs, arms and behinds. This pastor
is going to be reconfigured by
arterial pipes from these nether regions that are just
less clogged up with the glue of French fries, bacon
grease and tallow.
However, I’m not knocking the creator’s
wisdom. I’m the one who enjoyed French fries,
sausages, biscuits and gravy. No one else is
responsible for the torrent of lipids that flooded my
system. No one else is to blame for my disarray. I
read the books. I knew the score.
The church will be in good hands. Pastor Paul
wrangled this congregation for 11 years before
I showed up. I have no doubt as to the pleasure
that my congregation and Pastor Paul will have in
each other’s company. Pastor Paul had retired due
to his own need — and, thanks be to God, he has
regained his health and is now as spry as when he
began at the church.
At Church Council meeting last week I was
saddened to hear that our neighbor school had
decided not to take our offer of leasing one acre of
our land for their use as a parking lot, which would
have provided them with fire brigade access. They
had decided they would only take up the deal if
we sold them the land, which, of course, is not
something a church congregation could do as such
a property has been donated by a congregant for
the benefit of the church. So the deal, as it was, is
now off. We tithe our money to charities here at the
church, but we cannot give away the substance of
our land, which has been entrusted to our care.
But I am still thinking of the discussion we
have had and are still having about developing our
land as a retirement village focusing on assisted
living. We offer five acres of space that could be
used to create a lively situation for our church.
Imagine, people moving into town rather than away
— families visiting and worshiping together. It is
what my prayer is focusing on now. I pray that my
church will find its purpose in the life of God this
Easter — that the promise of Jesus Christ in living
community will become embedded here.
■
Colin Brown is the pastor of Good Shepherd
Lutheran Church, located on Locust Road in
Boardman.
Faith Center to hold dedication
service for new altar space
PENDLETON — A dedication service for
the newly remodeled altar space, platform and
sanctuary of Faith Center Church, 108 S. Main
St., is planned for Sunday’s 10:30 a.m. service.
Visiting guest Dr. Greg Romine of Vancouver,
Wash., will perform the dedication and provide
gospel and Holy Spirit ministry to those attending.
For more information, contact Pastor Ray
O’Grady at 541-276-9569.
East Oregonian
Page 7A
Faith and traditions infuse
St. Patrick’s Day in Savannah
By RUSS BYNUM
Associated Press
SAVANNAH, Ga. — There were
no green beers or gaudy T-shirts when
Savannah first celebrated St. Patrick’s Day,
just a solemn procession of immigrants
seeking to honor their Irish roots more than
3,800 miles from their homeland across the
Atlantic.
Many things have changed in the nearly
two centuries since Georgia’s oldest city
held its inaugural St. Patrick’s Day parade
in 1824. Now thousands of tourists from
across the U.S. flock to Savannah every
March 17 for a sprawling street party that
may be the South’s largest celebration
between Mardi Gras and Spring Break.
Still, many of Savannah’s Irish descen-
dants maintain St. Patrick’s Day traditions
that have nothing to do with beer-swilling
revelry. Here are some of the (mostly) sober
ways Savannah celebrates the Irish holiday
that arrives Friday.
MASS BEFORE MARCHING
Before they join the masses lining
the sidewalks and filling the oak-shaded
squares to watch the St. Patrick’s Day
parade, roughly 1,000 of the Savannah’s
Catholic faithful fill the pews for Mass at
the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist.
Parishioners are typically waiting outside
for the doors to open an hour before the 8
a.m. church service honoring St. Patrick,
who is credited with bringing Christianity to
Ireland. After Mass, they scramble to spots
along the parade route — which passes
in front of the church steps — before the
procession begins.
For those who don’t want to face
the crowds, the St. Patrick’s Mass also
gets broadcast on TV in Savannah and
is streamed live on the internet. More
than 23,000 tuned in to watch last year,
said Barbara King, spokeswoman for the
Diocese of Savannah.
St. Patrick’s Day may be a secular beer-
fest for many. But in Savannah, King said,
“the religious roots are important.”
PROCESSION OF GENERATIONS
Among shamrock-decorated floats,
marching pipe bands and Army units in
formation, Savannah’s parade also features
the Rossiters ... and the Hogans, Halligans,
Staffords, Reardons and many other fami-
lies with deep Irish roots on the Georgia
coast.
Irish families marching in green jackets
and dresses make up a big part of the
Robert S Cooper/Savannah Morning News via AP
An acolyte burns incense during the procession prior to Mass on Sunday,
during the Celtic Cross Ceremony at the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist
in Savannah, Ga.
2.6-mile parade route through Savannah’s
downtown historic district.
Dr. Frank Rossiter, a retired pediatrician,
estimates more than 40 extended family
members will take part in Friday’s parade.
Because Rossiter is a past grand marshal
of the Savannah parade (as his father was
36 years before him), he no longer has to
walk and rides in a convertible. His family
— siblings, cousins, children and grandchil-
dren — will fall in behind him.
“In Savannah, at least with the Irish
families, St. Patrick’s Day is almost like
Christmas,” Rossiter said. “For your chil-
dren and their children, a visit home on St.
Patrick’s Day is almost a must.”
“NO LEPRECHAUNS, NO RAIN-
BOWS”
Occupying a mid-19th century building
on Savannah’s cobblestone riverfront,
Kevin Barry’s is one Irish pub that takes its
heritage seriously.
It’s dark inside, with no TVs and no
Wi-Fi for customers’ phones. There’s no
jukebox playing U2 or Van Morrison tunes.
Instead, live troubadours perform Irish
folk songs every night of the week. The
shepherd’s pie and beef stew on the menu
are based on recipes handed down by the
owner’s Irish ancestors.
And on St. Patrick’s Day, the rule at
Kevin Barry’s is “no leprechauns, no rain-
bows,” said Tara Reese, a manager at the
pub.
“You will never find a shamrock on top
of your Guinness,” Reese said.
Still need convincing? Last fall, the
Irish Pubs Global Federation named Kevin
Barry’s the world’s “Most Authentic Irish
Pub” outside of Ireland.
REFLECTION BEFORE THE
REVELRY
Each year on the Sunday before March
17, Savannahians of Irish stock gather for
a smaller, more somber procession that
echoes the city’s first St. Patrick’s Day
parade in 1824.
The march from the cathedral to the
Celtic cross standing in Emmet Park, near
the downtown riverfront, honors the initial
Irish immigrants who arrived in Savannah
in the 1800s and labored on the waterfront
and railroads after being turned away from
Boston and New York.
At Sunday’s annual Celtic cross cere-
mony, Dennis Counihan, grand marshal
of the St. Patrick’s Day parade this year,
recalled how the early Irish immigrants to
Savannah were “fleeing religious, political
and social persecution.”
“Today in many ways symbolizes the
planting of the Irish seed in American,”
Counihan said during the ceremony, held
five days before the parade.
AP FACT CHECK: Pope didn’t change Ten Commandments
VATICAN CITY (AP) —
Pope Francis didn’t say that
God had told him to revise
the Ten Commandments as
claimed in a widely shared
story. Francis never made the
purported comments and has
not changed or added to the
Ten Commandments. He has
no authority to do that, given
that the core moral teachings of
Christianity and Judaism were
said to have been revealed to
Moses by God and are written
in the Bible.
The story said Francis made
the announcement July 6, 2015,
in Guayaquil, Ecuador, during
his first Mass at the start of a
three-nation South American
tour. It said Francis had revised
the biblical teaching to cover
children raised by same-sex
parents and removed prohibi-
tions on adultery. It said Francis
had added new commandments
to forbid genetic engineering
and self-glorification and said
the Vatican was having a new
set of commandments etched
into marble.
The pope did indeed cele-
brate his first Mass in Ecuador
on July 6, 2015, but his homily
focused on the Virgin Mary and
the joy of families. At no time
during the trip, or at any other
point in his four-year pontifi-
cate, has Francis changed the
Ten Commandments.
The story appeared on a
site called Real News Right
Now, which is listed on media
watch lists as a hoax site. The
purported author, R. Hobbus
J.D., is identified on the website
as an investigative journalist
who has won awards that don’t
exist, including the “Oscar
Mayer Award for Journalistic
Excellence.”
Vatican spokesman Greg
Burke said such stories are
“absurd” and that most people
recognize them as such.
“We’re aware of many of
these fake stories, but most
don’t merit any action on
our part because they’re so
far-fetched,” he said.
Worship Community
OPEN HEARTS – OPEN DOOR
www.graceandmercylutheran.org
Sunday Worship 8:45 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
Redeemer
Episcopal
Church
St. Johns
Episcopal Church
Join Us
On Our Journey
With Jesus.
241 SE Second St. Pendleton
(541)276-3809
www.pendletonepiscopal.org
Scripture, Tradition and Reason
Sunday Holy Communion 9:00 a.m.
Wednesday Holy Communion Noon
Weekly Adults Spiritual Life Group
Family service 9am Sunday
N.E. Gladys Ave & 7th, Hermiston
Fr. Dan Lediard, Priest. PH: 567-6672
We are an all inclusive Church
who welcomes all.
All Are Welcome
Faith Center Church
Worshiping God
Loving People
108 S. Main • 276-9569
Sunday Worship
10:30 am
Sr. Pastor,
Ray O’Grady
pendletonfaithcenter.org
Tom Inch, Pastor
Grace and Mercy Lutheran Church, ELCA (First United Methodist Church)
191 E. Gladys Ave. / P.O. Box 1108 • Hermiston, Oregon 97838
Come meet Jesus at
PENDLETON BAPTIST
CHURCH
3202 SW Nye Ave Pendleton, OR
541-276-7590
Sunday Morning Worship 11:00 AM
Sunday Bible Classes 9:45 AM
Sunday Youth Group 6:00 PM
Mon. Community Women’s Study
9:30 AM & 6 PM
Awana Kids Club (K-6th grade)
Wed Men’s Study 6 PM
MOPS meeting the 1st Thur of the Month 6 PM
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
First United
Methodist Church
Pendleton/Hermiston
Sunday Worship
10:00am
Wednesday Healing School
6:00pm
Youth Classes: Nursery - 6th grade
Sun & Wed
Jr & Sr High Discipleship Program Wed
Overcomer’s Outreach
Tuesday at 6:00pm - Annex
A Christ-centered, 12-Step
Recovery Support Group
Pastor Sharon Miller
401 Northgate, Pendleton
541-278-8082
www.livingwordcc.com
352 SE 2nd Street, Pendleton
Sunday Worship 9am
541-276-2616
Worship Broadcast on
KUMA 1290 @ 11am
191 E. Gladys Ave,Hermiston
Sunday Worship 11am
541-567-3002
Worship Livestream at
herfumc.com
Open Hearts, Open Minds,
Open Doors
Rev. Dr. Jim Pierce, pastor
Grace Baptist Church
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”
Good Shepherd
Lutheran Church
LCMC
Sunday worship at
11:00 AM
Seventh-Day
Adventist
Church
Community
Presbyterian Church
Saturday Services
Pendleton
1401 SW Goodwin Place
276-0882
Sabbath School 9:20 am
Worship Service 10:45 am
P eace L utheran C hurch
210 NW 9th, Pendleton
ELCA
Join us Sundays
9:30
Sunday
Worship
9:30
am am
Sunday
Worship
10:30 am Fellowship
11:00 am Sunday School
& Adult Class
FIRST SERVICE 8:30 AM
SECOND SERVICE 10:30 AM
712 SW 27 TH ST.
541-276-1894
www.fcogpendleton.com
14 Martin Drive,
Umatilla, OR
922-3250
Worship: 10 AM
Sunday School at 11:30
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN
CHURCH
-Presbyterian Church (USA)-
201 SW Dorion Ave.
Pendleton
541-481-6132
~Come and be at Peace ~
Service of Worship - 10:00 am
Children’s Sunday School -
10:20 am
Fellowship - 11:00 am
www.pendletonpresbyterian.com
Colin Brown, Pastor
on 1290 KUMA noon each Sunday
Open Hearted...
Open Minded
420 Locust St. • Boardman, OR
To share your worship times call Terri Briggs 541-278-2678