My sisters and brothers in Christ:
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We worship as usual this weekend: Our convenient community Holy Eucharist service at 5 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday, March 25) and on the Fourth Sunday in Lent at 8 and 10 a.m., when we’ll hear about Jesus healing a man blind since birth — and his rebuke of religious authorities whose claim to superior insight, he says, makes them blind. The beginning of enlightenment, it appears, is recognizing that we spend a lot of our time living in the dark.

For the next two Sundays (March 26 and April 2) at 9 a.m. in the Bishop’s Room, we’ll invite you to spread some light by sharing stories about your own faith journey. The series is entitled “Mining for St. John’s Gold: Sharing Our Faith Stories.” (Remember that “Chrysostom” means “golden-mouthed”!) How and when did we become Christians? Why have we remained Christians? How does St. John’s fill our minds and spirits with love of God and neighbor? What are our hopes and worries for the future? Pam Kelley and I will lead the discussions. This week, we’ll focus on our individual faith stories and next Sunday on our communal life at St. John’s.
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There’s still time to join the men of St. John’s as they gather tomorrow (Saturday, March 25) in the multipurpose room from 8-9:30 a.m. for bagels and plenty of coffee. Charley Wilson (shown here) – executive director of the non-profit SSouthern California Water Committee, water expert, and longtime Santa Margarita Water District director — will be guest speaker. He’ll enlighten us about water supply, water politics in the west, and the outlook in the years to come. If you haven’t signed up and want to attend, please write George Colborn at georgecolborn@yahoo.com.

And if you’re new or relatively new to St. John’s, join us Sunday at our newcomer brunch. We’ll gather in the multipurpose room after the 10 a.m. service. All newcomers are invited. If you haven’t signed up yet, you may do so by replying to this message. Members of the Bishop’s Committee and key ministry leaders will be there to welcome our guests. It’s a great way to get acquainted and become enlightened about why the infinitely wise Holy Spirit has brought us all together.

Yours in the light of Christ’s love,

Fr. John

P.S.: Our neighbors at Community Lutheran Church are hosting an all-churches-on-deck outreach project from noon-3 p.m. this Sunday. Volunteers will package about 10,000 servings of a fortified oatmeal breakfast under the direction of Harvest Pack (www.harvestpack.org). The meals will be donated to the RSM Cares food pantry. Please consider joining the packing party! If you’re able to help (we could use five more volunteers), please email the Rev. Marty Jacobson at pastormarty@clcrsm.org. Again, it begins at noon with lunch (a $5 donation is requested). Orientation is at 12:30 p.m.