Note from Nora: Looking back, moving forward

 

September 11, 2020   The Wednesday morning chapel services are one of the things I have treasured in my time at the General Council Office. Different staff colleagues, or sometimes visitors from elsewhere in our church or ecumenical partners, take turns leading worship. Each week is a little bit different, and each chapel service is nourishing to the soul. Since our office has been closed because of the COVID-19 restrictions, we have been gathering weekly by Zoom, and like the rest of the church, we have adapted to worshipping electronically. Although normally we don’t have the chapel services over the summer, this year we continued straight through. It has been an important point of connection for us during this summer when we have been unable to be together in person in the office. This week, something unexpected happened with our chapel service… at least for four of us. A new Zoom link had been posted but not all of us saw the posting. So there we were, the four of us, initially waiting for the others – including the worship leader – to sign on, and then wondering for a few minutes about what to do, as someone tried unsuccessfully to contact the worship leader. After a little time we located this week’s lectionary readings, chose the one from Romans (14:1-12), shared rich time together using the Lectio Divina process (or some approximation of it), and finished with prayer. We were four who had never sat together, just the four of us, before, and yet that brief time of sharing our thoughts about a piece of scripture felt like such a wonderful blessing. Such a good reminder of how simple it can be to worship and deepen our faith together. Was it coincidence that our chapel theme last week was, “Where two or three are gathered, I am there...?" Maybe I am just getting sentimental. These COVID times can be anxious times, but I am also finding that they are times for deep appreciation of small joys. The sharp taste of fresh blueberries, the warmth of a dog lying by my feet, a brief outdoor visit with a cousin… when I stop to notice, there are so many things to be grateful for.   And of course it is natural to get sentimental when preparing to retire. It was such good news when the Executive approved the appointment of Michael Blair as my successor as General Secretary. He brings great vision and wisdom to the role, and more importantly, love of God and of our church. Now that Michael has been appointed, I have an actual retirement date – the end of October – and the transition has begun. In these days, I find myself noting the many things that I have enjoyed so much while in this role, things like Wednesday chapels and time together with colleagues. Blessings, Nora   Nora Sanders is General Secretary of The United Church of Canada.