Thriving in the Giving Loop

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If you are in the area, we warmly invite you to join in the worship of God. Have a look at the Order of Service below (and also the announcements – please consider each a personal invitation to join us in Christian worship, community and service).

During the service there is offered a nursery for infants and a programme for young children if desired. There is free parking on the streets around (please note that the time-of-day restrictions on Clergy Street north of Queen are not in effect on Sundays) and in the surface civic lot just behind the church off Queen Street. There is a wheel chair lift available in the doors of the church closest to the manse (the courtyard is entered from the driveway half way along the St. Andrew’s block of Clergy Street) and a wheelchair ramp is available by ramp and door along Princess Street.

If you have any other questions, please call the church office Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m. – noon, or email [email protected] For matters of pastoral care during the Minister’s absence, please contact Alberta Saunders, Clerk of Session – [email protected]

We are grateful for the ministry at St. Andrew’s of the Rev. Dr. Karen Bach during the month of February. Thank you Karen!

The Danger of Laughter

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If you are in the area, we warmly invite you to join in the worship of God. Have a look at the Order of Service below (and also the announcements – please consider each a personal invitation to join us in Christian worship, community and service).

During the service there is offered a nursery for infants and a programme for young children if desired. There is free parking on the streets around (please note that the time-of-day restrictions on Clergy Street north of Queen are not in effect on Sundays) and in the surface civic lot just behind the church off Queen Street. There is a wheel chair lift available in the doors of the church closest to the manse (the courtyard is entered from the driveway half way along the St. Andrew’s block of Clergy Street) and a wheelchair ramp is available by ramp and door along Princess Street.

If you have any other questions, please call the church office Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m. – noon, or email [email protected] For matters of pastoral care during the Minister’s absence, please contact Alberta Saunders, Clerk of Session – [email protected]

A special welcome to the Rev. Dr. Karen Bach. Karen has served as ecumenical chaplain at the University of Toronto, and with the Yonge Street Mission, and as an Interim Moderator of St. Andrew’s. Welcome back Karen!

The Days of Winter – A Seasonal Newsletter

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The wind blows, the snow falls, and oft are the days I find myself singing the old Scottish paraphrase of Psalm 34, Through all the changing scenes of life, in trouble and in joy, the praises of my God shall still my heart and tongue employ.

Have a look at this congregational newsletter that lists the opportunities offered by this community of faith over the next two months. We warmly invite you to join us as you are able, as we continue (200 years +!) in Christian worship, study and service at the heart of this city. There are special preachers, concerts,  studies and meditation groups, community outreach activities and of course pot luck meals! You would be welcome.

(The format of this newsletter looks a bit strange on this digital screen – just imagine it as a double-sided tri-folded paper document!)

Additional insert: 

St. Andrew’s Autumn Study Series

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You are warmly invited to join in a series of Tuesday evenings that will offer a new look at the parables of Jesus. We will be using a DVD resource by the acclaimed Amy-Jill Levine, who teaches at a Christian seminary and highlights the original Jewish context of our Lord’s ministry and teaching – Short Stories by Jesus: The Enigmatic Parables of a Controversial Rabbi by Amy-Jill Levine. No cost. No prior biblical knowledge needed.

Have a look at the promo link for the series –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLkEqKqTN-4

Location – St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, corner of Princess and Clergy: ample free parking after 5:30 along neighbouring streets and in the civic surface lot behind the church off Queen Street. Please enter by the doors at the top of the stairs by the canon (!) along Clergy Street.

Times: Tuesdays 7-8:30 p.m., October 23 to November 20.

Hosted by our Minister – The Rev. Dr. Andrew Johnston

Come for one, come for some, or come for all. St. Andrew’s Hall. Tea provided!

More Information

Jesus was a skilled storyteller and perceptive teacher who used parables from everyday life to effectively convey his message and meaning. Life in first-century Palestine was very different from our world today, and many traditional interpretations of Jesus’ stories ignore this disparity.

In this wise, entertaining, and educational book, Amy-Jill Levine offers a fresh, timely reinterpretation of Jesus’ narratives. In Short Stories by Jesus, she analyzes these “problems with parables,” taking readers back in time to understand how their original Jewish audience understood them. Levine reveals the parables’ connections to first-century economic and agricultural life, social customs and morality, Jewish scriptures and Roman culture. With this revitalized understanding, she interprets these moving stories for the contemporary reader, showing how the parables are not just about Jesus, but are also about us—and when read rightly, still challenge and provoke us two thousand years later.

Amy-Jill Levine is University Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies at Vanderbilt Divinity School Nashville, Tennessee; and Affiliated Professor at the Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations at Cambridge.