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TRINITY UNITED CHURCH

TRINITY TIMES Issue 38 – December 2016

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INDEX

New Editor’s Message............................................................................................................................... 2 What is Advent?........................................................................................................................................ 3 Seasonal Message from our Ministers...................................................................................................... 3 What are Trinity’s Committees up to These Days?................................................................................... 4 Youth Report............................................................................................................................................. 6 Seasonal Worship Services........................................................................................................................ 7 Other Goings On........................................................................................................................................ 8 On the Road to Bethlehem........................................................................................................................ 9 Egg Soufflé Recipe..................................................................................................................................... 10 Some Christmas Humour to Lighten Your Day.......................................................................................... 11 Contact Information.................................................................................................................................. 12

A MESSAGE FROM YOUR NEW EDITOR

Hello Everyone:

I am delighted to have been given the opportunity to edit our wonderful newsletter: Trinity Times. I have big

shoes to fill. On behalf of the whole congregation I want to thank Carolyn Pierson for her many years of hard

work in making Trinity Times such an integral part of the communication within our congregational community.

Bless you Carolyn. Trinity is a richer place because of you and your dedication to our church work. I hope I can

maintain the quality that people have come to expect from Trinity Times. Thank you again so very, very much.

Karen Wall – New Editor of Trinity Times

CAROLYN

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WHAT IS ADVENT?

For many Christians unfamiliar with the liturgical year, there may be some confusion surrounding the

meaning of the Advent season. Some people know that the Advent season focuses on expectation and

think that it serves as an anticipation of Christ’s birth in the season leading up to Christmas. This is part

of the story, but there’s more to Advent.

THE HISTORY OF ADVENT

The word “Advent” is derived from the Latin word adventus, meaning “coming,” which is a translation of

the Greek word parousia. Scholars believe that during the 4th and 5th centuries in Spain and Gaul,

Advent was a season of preparation for the baptism of new Christians at the January feast of Epiphany,

the celebration of God’s incarnation represented by the visit of the Magi to the baby Jesus (Matthew

2:1), his baptism in the Jordan River by John the Baptist (John 1:29), and his first miracle at Cana (John

2:1). During this season of preparation, Christians would spend 40 days in penance, prayer, and fasting

to prepare for this celebration; originally, there was little connection between Advent and Christmas.

By the 6th century, however, Roman Christians had tied Advent to the coming of Christ. But the

“coming” they (the Roman Christians) had in mind was not Christ’s first coming in the manger in

Bethlehem, but his second coming “in the clouds as the judge of the world” (post-resurrection). It was

not until the Middle Ages that the Advent season was explicitly linked to Christ’s first coming at

Christmas.

ADVENT TODAY

Today, the season of Advent lasts for four Sundays leading up to Christmas. At that time, the new

Christian year begins with the twelve-day celebration of Christmastide, which lasts from Christmas Eve

until Epiphany on January 6. Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas.

(Above article is taken, with minor adaptations and editing, from the website: www.christianity.com)

A SEASONAL MESSAGE FROM OUR MINISTERS:

Our thoughts turn now to the Advent season and how we travel “on the way to Bethlehem.” Each year

there are many ways to find meaning and beauty, wonder and joy in our time together. From regular

Sunday worship surrounded by familiar faces, to the Advent Candle lighting ritual, and the different special

services we hope you’ll find a space and place to listen for God’s voice, to experience the presence of God

and to know god’s spirit on our journey.

Elizabeth and Milly

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WHAT ARE TRINITY’S COMMITTEES UP TO THESE DAYS?

FELLOWSHIP COMMITTEE – RUTH GRAHAM

Fellowship hosted a very successful Welcome Back

Lunch in September and will have one more post-

worship Fellowship gathering in 2016 on December

11th. Post-worship Fellowship gatherings will resume

again in the new year. Other groups that fall under the

Fellowship umbrella have also been busy. Caring

Connections who visit shut-ins, those who deliver

“Candles with Care” to bereaved congregants, and

those who knit prayer shawls have all been active over

the fall.

Our committee is always open to new members who

wish to serve on a group that oversees the care and

fellowship of the congregation. Those wishing to get

involved in Caring Connections, Candles with Care, the

Prayer Shawl Ministry, or Fellowship gatherings can

contact one of our committee members: Evelyn Hardy,

Bev Wiens, Denyse Whalley, Wynn Ferguson, Barb

Kendel or Ruth Graham.

THANK YOU to those who have donated cookies to, or

helped serve at, Fellowship gatherings; those who

have delivered candles; and those who have made and

delivered shawls.

If you wish to donate cookies for Fellowship

gatherings, see the sign-up sheet on the green board in

the vestibule. Please remember all cookies must be

NUT, BANANA, and PEANUT BUTTER FREE.

A BLESSED CHRISTMAS TO ALL

FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE –

MARILYN LOAT/ GERTA DEJONG The Fundraising Committee has had a busy fall

again. Our “Guess Who’s Coming for Dinner

Event- 2016” was a tremendous success thanks to

the hard work and commitment of the event’s

organizers: Dale and Barb Kendel. We cannot

thank Dale and Barb enough for their time,

talent, dedication and diligence to this project.

The “Christmas Stars” campaign was a success

again this year as well. The stars are lining our

sanctuary wall and we hope that you will all take

the time over the Christmas season to read the

many messages of remembrance, love and hope

for family, friends and community.

On Saturday, December 3rd Trinity was treated to

a fantastic concert of Christmas music by the

Winnipeg Golden Chordsmen. Singing of old and

new, lively and quiet, religious and secular, and

culturally varied Christmas-themed music filled

our sanctuary. All who attended were filled with

the Christmas spirit by the music and filled with

refreshments and home-baked goodies at the

fellowship gathering of singers and attendees

after.

Church calendars are on sale in the church

narthex before and after services until they are all

sold. Cost is $5/calendar.

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MINISTRY AND PERSONNEL COMMITTEE – DALE KENDEL

The Ministry and Personnel Committee is a

mandatory committee of Trinity as required by

the by-laws of the United Church of Canada for

every pastoral charge. This committee is a

confidential, consultative body that supports the

pastoral relationship through active and open

dialogue with all Ministry personnel and church

staff.

The committee’s goal is to achieve an environment of mutual trust, where clear messages are given and received, and helpful relationships are established that further the Church’s ministry and mission. The committee provides communication to the Board, other committees and the congregation when and where appropriate. The liaison and support to staff at Trinity is organized as follows: Milly Malavsky(Minister) - Liaison: Dale Kendel Elizabeth Brown (Minister) - Liaison: Harry Johnson * To be hired (Office Administration) - Liaison: Irma Nadeau Erica Wiebe (Youth Worker) - Liaison: Nancy Delong Laurence Broadhurst (Choir Director) - Liaison: Jim Dixon Nicola Davis (Accompanist) - Liaison: Jim Dixon Rabi Timsima (Caretaker) - Liaison: Dale Kendel Pat Chabluk has left the office administration position as of November 15th to assume a ministry position in Keewatin/Sioux Narrows, Ontario. Good luck Pat in your new venture.

OUTREACH COMMITTEE – BETH ANDERSON

The Outreach Committee would like to express

their sincere thanks to the people of Trinity for the

generous donations to the Christmas hampers

prepared for local needy families. Five boxes of

gifts were collected and gratefully received at

Dalhousie School. Thank you to all for their

thoughtful, kind gifts!

Once again the Mitten Tree is loaded with

beautifully knit and purchased hats and mittens.

They will all be put to good use to keep the

children in our community warm during the cold

winter months.

Also - a special thanks to those who supported

Atticus and his drive for baby formula and/or 1

Just City. The generosity of Trinity people is

overwhelming!!

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STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE – JACKIE SNARR

Stewardship Prayer:

Generous and loving God, you call us to be disciples of your son, Jesus, and good stewards of your many gifts. Open our minds and hearts to a greater awareness and deeper appreciation of your countless blessings. Transform us through the power of your Spirit to nurture a stewardship way of life for all of our days. Help us to be the salt that brings out the god-flavours of this earth, to bring seasoning to the world! Be with us as we encourage vitality and joy, never losing our saltiness and our purpose. Help us to be a light of community, compassion, and hope in our homes, our community, and the world. We pray this in the name of Jesus, crucified and risen, our judge and our hope. Amen.

Thank you to everyone for your participation in this

year’s Stewardship congregational giving campaign.

Your completed commitment forms can still be

dropped off or mailed to Trinity United Church, even if

the campaign is finished. We are so grateful for the

sharing of your gifts and talents with our church, our

community and the world.

The Stewardship Thank you cards sent by

Stewardship/Board were donated by the United

Church of Canada and the stamps were a gift from

Tony and Michelle McGill. Trinity did not have an

expense for the mailing of the Thank you cards.

2016 Tax Receipts: The cut off date for 2016 donations

to Trinity United Church will be noon on December

29th, 2016.

YOUTH REPORT – ERICA WIEBE

The more things change, the more they stay the

same. The Youth Group has been busy again with

fall start up. The group began meeting on

Mondays instead of Wednesdays and continued to

engage in conversations and activities about a

variety of topics relevant to both the youth and

the Church. The Youth Group has continued to

participate in community outreach through

involvement in the Fort Richmond Baptist Church

Food Bank once a month, and is continuing to

explore the subject of respect; what it looks like,

and how we live it.

The group has participated in many ‘off-site’

activities this fall including: visiting a mosque,

touring the corn maze, and attending the Terry

Fox exhibit at the Manitoba Museum. These

outings continue to cultivate the strong sense of

community among the youth and I am hopeful

that will continue as we prepare for the upcoming

calendar year.

We have many interesting things planned for the

New Year including a book study, and several

exciting outings, so please don't hesitate to come

check us out and join in the enthusiastic

conversation and activities that take place each

Monday night from 6:30pm-8:30pm. For further

information, the calendar of events is posted on

the Youth Group bulletin board for information on

what we’ll be doing each week.

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WORSHIP COMMITTEE AND MINISTERIAL STAFF

SEASONAL WORSHIP SERVICES December 11th - 10:45 am Choir Concert “Night of Silence” December 18th - 10:45 am Worship and Communion December 21st - 7:00 pm Longest Night Service: A quiet time to reflect, especially if you find this season particularly difficult December 24th - 5:30 pm AND 7:30 pm Services for the whole family filled with Christmas music and story and candles! December 25th NO SERVICE January 1st - 10:45 am Worship and Communion

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OTHER GOINGS ON...

WINNIPEG

BLUE BOMBERS

PARKING INITIATIVE The Grey Cup is over; the Ottawa Redblacks are the new CFL champions for 2016; and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are getting ready for next year! We played our part as we helped with parking and crosswalk duties for 10 Bomber games and two outdoor NHL hockey games. It was wonderful to have 59 people volunteering! Together we raised more than $10,000 for Trinity: a wonderful gift of time, energy and commitment. Thank you to all who helped out in any way!

COMING SOON TO

TRINITY

The Outreach Committee will be

hosting a KAIROS Blanket Exercise

in which everyone can participate.

The event will be held on

February 5th following the church

service. Rev. Connie Budd will

lead this meaningful experience

that uses blankets to teach about

Canadian history from an

indigenous perspective. The

blanket exercise was first

developed by the organization

KAIROS as a response to the

report of the Royal Commission

on Aboriginal peoples. It has

been gaining popularity as a

teaching tool in recent years.

Watch for further announcements

in the new year. Please plan to

attend!!

And they recognized him in the breaking of the bread ...

Come to our Community Cafe

Please join us Friday, January 17th, Friday, February 24th and Friday, March 31st from 12:00 to 2:00 for our Community Cafe. This is a chance for folks from all over the city to meet west end residents over a lovely 3 course lunch. A program will help to encourage our conversation. Tickets must be ordered in advance and are $1 or pay what you can. People in our neighbourhood are still buzzing from the first one. You can make a difference in building right relationships by breaking bread together. Call the office 204.774.3957

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“ON THE ROAD TO BETHLEHEM” OPENS THE SEASON OF ADVENT AT TRINITY AND GOOD SHEPHERD

The Breakfast

A new, improvised version of the traditional “Breakfast in Bethlehem” event was held on Sunday,

November 27th. A creative and tasty breakfast, coordinated by Phyllis Marsch and her team of Leslie

Johnson, Marilyn Strukoff, Gerta De Jong, Carolyn Pierson and Milly Malavsky was served in the lower hall

before the worship service. The food was warm, nourishing and plentiful and included a vast variety of

muffins, loaves, pastries, biscuits, toast, fruits, cheeses, juice, coffee and tea... and even a crock pot of hot

porridge and brown sugar to warm your insides! The “hands-down hit” of the meal, however, was the

delicious egg soufflé. It was such a hit that Phyllis has been inundated with requests for the soufflé recipe...

so the recipe is included in this edition of the Trinity Times on the next page.

Phyllis would like to thank Connie Fillion for coordinating the carollers who greeted us that morning with

seasonal music and all who helped with baking, cooking, washing dishes, setting up, taking down, and all

the other little jobs that went into making the breakfast a resounding success. The congregations of both

churches would like to thank Phyllis, her team and all the others who contributed to a lovely breakfast.

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The Worship Service

Following breakfast the two congregations were treated to a humorous, modernized, yet thought-provoking, short

play about Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem at the time of Jesus’ birth. Even with their modern technology

of tablets and I-Pads, Mary and Joseph were unable to find lodgings in Bethlehem, and our congregations were still

able to imagine the couple’s momentous journey of old prior to the birth of Christ. The social media theme of the

play was the brain child of our own Ed Tymofichuk. Barb Tallman, Richard Castro, Marguerite Zaworonok, Peter

Timonin and our congregational ministers Elizabeth Brown, Milly Malavsky and Jennifer Sisson proved they had

excellent acting skills!

Egg Soufflé Recipe

I am happy that so many of you enjoyed the egg soufflé that was served at the breakfast on November 27th. It was

definitely a big hit if the requests for the recipe are any indication. However, I must give credit where credit is due.

The recipe actually originates from a cross country ski lodge called Mapelag, where our family has often made an

annual visit over the past number of years. It was a traditional start of the Maplelag Sunday morning smorgasbord -

hence I felt it was an extra special "easy to make" menu option to offer for our first Sunday in Advent breakfast.

Egg Soufflé:

2 cups grated cheese 1 cup half and half cream 1/2 tsp salt 2 tsp dry mustard 1/2 tsp dill weed (if fresh, use 1 tsp dill) 1 dozen eggs (beaten) Sprinkle of white pepper (if you don't have white pepper, black pepper is also totally fine) 2 tbsp butter (melted)

For ease in clean up, I spray the 9 x 13 inch pan with a vegetable oil (e.g. Pam) first, then cover the bottom of the pan

with the cheese. Pour the beaten eggs over cheese. Combine the half and half and seasonings, and then pour over

the eggs. Pour melted butter over all and refrigerate overnight.

Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 35 - 45 minutes.

Bon appetite!

Phyllis Marsch

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SOME CHRISTMAS HUMOUR TO LIGHTEN YOUR DAY

Pontius Who?

At Sunday school, the younger children were drawing pictures illustrating Biblical stories. The teacher

walked by and noticed one little boy was drawing an airplane! "Oh, what Bible story are you drawing?"

she asked. "This is the flight into Egypt," the little boy answered. "See, here is Mary, Joseph and baby

Jesus. And this," he said, pointing to the front of the plane, "is Pontius. He's the Pilot."

(www.desperatepreacher.com)

Christmas Fireman

In a small Southern town I saw a Nativity Scene and felt that great skill and talent had gone into its creation.

One small feature bothered me. The three wise men were wearing firemen's helmets. Completely unable to

come up with a reason or explanation, I stopped at a convenience store on the edge of town and asked the

lady behind the counter about the helmets. She shook her head in an exasperated manner and said: "Do

you Yankees never read the Bible?" I assured her that I did, but simply couldn't recall anything about

firemen in the Bible. She grabbed her Bible from behind the counter, ruffled through some pages, and

finally jabbed her finger at a passage. "See, it says right here: The three wise men came from afar.'"

(www.humormatters.com)

The Proud Parents

(www.guy-sports.com)

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CONTACT US:

Trinity United Church 933 Summerside Ave. Winnipeg, Manitoba

R3T 4Y1

Phone: 204-269-1632 Fax: 204-269-2499

E-mail: tuc@mymts.net

ONLINE:

www.trinityunitedwinnipeg.com

WE ARE ON FACEBOOK AT:

Trinity United Church Winnipeg

I hope you enjoyed this edition of the

Trinity Times and my first attempt at

editing. Please consider submitting articles

or stories of interest to our congregation

for our Spring 2017 edition. You can e-mail

ideas or submissions directly to me at:

kwall@mymts.net

or telephone me at: 204-269-5550

I wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and

a Happy New Year

Karen Wall Trinity Times Editor