Rural United Pastoral Charge News

If you do not wish to have photos of your family that are 
taken at church functions posted to the Rural United web page please let your Clerk of Session know.



St. Paul's hosted the
Charge Christmas Dinner
held on Friday, November 29, 2019.
Anyone from Grade 9 up interested in being confirmed
this year, please contact Rev. Wanda. 
A possible date for the class would be on
Family Day, February 17, 2020. 
The logistics will be worked out once we know
​who would like to attend.
We are close to the end of 2019 and that means that it is time to start thinking about Annual Reports. 
The reports are due to Gail or Carol
by Wednesday, January 14, 2020.
​Book Club 
Book Club meets at 2:00 p.m. at St. John's U.C.
Nov. 20 - A Dog's Way Home by W. Bruce Cameron
Dec. - no Book Club
Jan. 22 - The Quintland Sisters by Shelley Woods
​​FundScrip form
 for Turin U.C. and 
​St. Paul's U.C.
Scripture Readings
December 8, 2019
​Isaiah 11:1-10
Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19
Romans 15:4-13
Matthew 3:1-12
Rural United sends sympathy​
to the family of Rev. Lloyd Brown
who passed away on October 24, 2019
in his 90th year.
​Rev. Brown served St. John's, St. Paul's
​and Zion churches.
​“KLUCK” - Kent Leaders of United Church Kommunities 
This is a gathering of leaders - lay and clergy - that take a few hours to support one another,
to talk about what’s happening in the United Church and to share information.
They compare themselves to a bunch of hens and roosters in the barnyard sharing conversation,
so that everyone within Kent remains connected. 
Bible Study will begin on Tuesday, October 15, from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m.
​(note the change in time)
at St. John's Botany.  This is a seven week study. 
We will be using "Revelation for Progressive Christians" by Donald Schmidt. 
If you would like Rev. Wanda to order you a copy of the book, please contact her. 
Official Board met on September 18.
​Read the minutes here.
The gifts with vision catalogue
is available on-line.
Are you looking for meaningful gifts to give?
Shopping here is a great way to make a difference
​and show someone that you care.
​This year’s catalogue is filled with gifts that don’t need wrapping or tags, just your love.
In order to maintain patient confidentiality and privacy,
the Denominational List at CKHA will no longer be available to clergy. 
Please encourage your families to let their church or faith community know when they are in hospital. 
As a result of this change, Rev. Wanda will no longer
be visiting at the hospital unless she knows someone
​from the Pastoral Charge is in hospital. 
Please contact her if you wish a visit.

​​Hurricane Dorian Relief
The United Church of Canada is accepting donations to respond to the needs of those affected by Hurricane Dorian’s devastation. Your support is needed.
Find out more and donate:
 https://www.united-church.ca/hurricane-dorian-relief
A farewell was held for Carol Morton on July 14 at the home of Gary and Judy Houston.
Go to Rural United in the Photo Gallery to see the slideshow.
Carolyn Fraser attended the Annual Regional Meeting in Port Elgin
on May 27, 2019
as the representative for St. Paul's.
​She has written a report outlining what happened during the weekend.
Our Mission &Service partner, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches writes:
“We count ourselves blessed that The United Church of Canada have us in remembrance
as we battle to respond to a crisis that keeps getting worse by the day
as the extent of destruction to lives, property and livelihoods becomes clear.”
Cyclone Idai swept through Southern Africa in March, leaving a terrible disaster in its wake.
Severe flooding and devastation has affected an estimated 2.6 million people in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi.

Our Mission &Service partner, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches writes:
“We count ourselves blessed that The United Church of Canada have us in remembrance
as we battle to respond to a crisis that keeps getting worse by the day
as the extent of destruction to lives, property and livelihoods becomes clear.”

Thank you for your generous response to our Cyclone Idai appeal.
More than $147,850 has been raised for the relief effort. Support is still needed.
Find out how you can help. 
The United Church of Canada is accepting donations to help Mission & Service partners
​provide relief to those affected by Cyclone Idai.
See Faithful Footsteps for more information on police checks.
This came to the Rural United website and Rev. Wanda has approved including it here.

This note is about something I think the people at St. John's, St. Paul's, Turin, and Zion United would find useful, a refreshingly different resource called StoryFest. It’s a set of free videos and other materials that help people appreciate and enjoy the life-giving stories of the Bible. It’s specially designed for use by small, informal groups, with or without trained leadership.

The video presenters are storyteller and musician Linnea Good, storyteller and author Ralph Milton, pastor and Biblical scholar Donald Schmidt, counsellor and storyteller Allison Rennie, and editor and artist Don McNair.

The videos were taken during three storytelling Saturdays at churches in the BC Interior, and edited into nine videos, each focusing on a different Bible story. This is a non-commercial venture financed by the BC Conference of the United Church, Wood Lake Publications, and many volunteers.

There are no lectures and no arguments over doctrinal differences or issues of Biblical interpretation – simply enjoying the stories and how they connect with the lives we live.

Please visit http://www.woodlakebooks.com/storyfest, where you’ll find a short introductory video, the nine session videos, and an assortment of related resources. Most of them free.

If you like what you see, please take a moment to forward this information to your colleagues and friends.

Blessings!

Jacob McNair
StoryFest Publicity