The Little White Church on Main Street, Canmore, Alberta
The summer I was 21, I learned the value of praise that has been received from an unexpected source. In my first summer of student Ministry at Shaunavon SK, my supervisor enlisted me to help out at the local rodeo. Once my volunteer shift was over, I sidled over to hang out with a bunch of older ranchers who were standing to one side of the rodeo ring. I’d never seen rodeo up close before, so I was terribly impressed …
Today’s reading from 1st Kings, the encounter of the prophet Elijah and the Widow at Zarephath, is a story that invites us to see the big picture, and to come right up close as well. At first glance, there’s just the three characters, a crucial need, and a moral to the story. There’s the prophet Elijah, a widow and her son, and the desperate need for food. When a perpetual supply of ingredients is provided by God so that there …
This is the day of resurrection. The gloom of Good Friday is replaced by a glorious new day, the body laid in the tomb after the crucifixion is replaced, miraculously, by Christ arisen. And so this morning we celebrate with the Easter response, Alleluia, Christ is Risen! Christ is Risen Indeed, Alleluia! Watch at https://youtu.be/Yw1kuMIHsMM Download PDF: Sermon_17April2022_EasterRundle Those of you who were at our Palm Sunday service one week ago – or saw it online – will recall …
On Sunday, February 6th, 2022 at 11:00 AM Mountain Time, Ralph Connor and Rundle are invited to join in the closing Worship Service of the “A Cup of Hope” event that Rev. Greg has been attending this week. Our preacher will be the Very Rev Richard Bott, Moderator of The United Church of Canada. The livestream link is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kixOHaDB540 . Watch it at 11 AM – or if you prefer to watch later in the day or later in the …
Note: Sunday, November 28, 2021, the congregations of Ralph Connor Memorial UC, Canmore and Rundle Memorial UC, Banff joined to worship, in Banff. For the Ralph Connor congregation, this was the first time in 89 weeks that they had been able to worship in-person, indoors. Each year in the season of Advent, the scriptures lead us to consider what it is to wait expectantly: our expectant waiting for the full emergence of the new realm of love and justice that …
Hope. What an important word for us right now. We need hope. With widespread fatigue and discouragement as public health needs necessitate greater restrictions, and the kinds of emotional and spiritual hopelessness that many people are experiencing, we need things that help us find hope: short term hope, close-to-home hope, as well as bigger, more far-reaching hopes for the world. So long as it brings no harm to self or others, this is a time when we need to be …
We are now in our eighth week of providing Worship through virtual means rather than in-person. While I wouldn’t say there’s a good time for a pandemic to be declared, it was interesting from a preaching standpoint to see how the time of year – the end of the season of Lent, followed by Holy Week and Easter, when we go through very shadowy times before emerging into the light once more– helped us examine how God is present to …
One assumption that I bring to sacred texts, is that these ancient words can always speak into our present situation. Take, for example, today’s reading from John, with the disciples gathered behind closed doors, and Christ suddenly appearing in their midst. click here for PDF In a typical year, I might focus on their being “gathered together” because in a typical year, we would be gathered together, singing together, praying together, seeking grounding and guidance for the days and weeks …
Please note: a live version of this message is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kt3edcbl3kY and a PDF may be downloaded at https://ralphconnor.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Sermon_22March2020_LentIV-online.pdf Sermon: March 20, 2020 – John 9: 1-41 (Lent IV) – virtual worship, online Ralph Connor Memorial United Church, Canmore AB – Rev Greg Wooley We live in a time of questions and answers. Most of the questions we have right now, revolve around the global pandemic, and the most effective responses to it: how socially isolated do I need to …
6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, beloved,[e] whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about[f] these things. 9 Keep on doing the things that …