Category: Worship

October 23rd & 24th

When it comes to hope, our culture peddles a lot of cheap knockoffs. But that kind of “hope” falls short when things are bleak—which is exactly when we need hope the most.

This new study centers on a book about real hope—a spiritual counternarrative resilient enough to endure crises and crushing defeats without forsaking the here and now. Author MaryAnn McKibben Dana reflects on what hope is not (optimism, toxic positivity, scripty-font platitudes on Instagram), what hope is (a story we live by), and where to find it in hopeless times (in the messiness of our imperfect, flawed, beautiful human bodies).

This six-week study will be offered on Wednesday evenings at 6:00pm via Zoom and on Thursday mornings at 10:30am in-person at the church. The study will begin October 23rd and 24th and books will be available one week prior at a cost of $10.

Join us as we surround ourselves with hope!

Women of all ages are invited to join us for a 24-hour retreat this month at Imago Dei Village Retreat Center in Clintonville, less than an hour’s drive from here. We will begin with dinner on Friday night October 25th and conclude after lunch on Saturday, October 26th.

Accommodations are in a lodge with bedrooms for 2 or 3 women and private bathrooms with showers. Cost will be $75 for each participant, and scholarships are available. There is a full kitchen, so we will share cooking duties and include 3 meals: dinner Friday night, then breakfast and lunch on Saturday.

Our theme for this time together is A Recipe For Connection. We will spend the time thinking about food, family, traditions, and the connections we create as women together. We will view the 2009 movie Julie & Julia, which is a wonderful biographical comedy drama written and directed by Nora Ephron starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams in the title roles. The film contrasts the life of chef Julia Child in the early years of her culinary career with the life of young New Yorker Julie Powell, who aspires to cook all 524 recipes in Child’s cookbook in 365 days, a challenge she described on her popular blog, which made her a published author.

We certainly can’t promise to “master the art of French cooking”, (the title of Julia Childs’ cookbooks) but we might attempt a few fun recipes from it together!

Please let Pastor Katie know if you are interested or sign up on the bulletin board at the church.