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The Link

A Prayer for September...

10/10/2021

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Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has  gone, the new is here!

​-  2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV  -
​
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Dear Father in heaven,

Open our hearts to see what is good in our lives. 

May the light in our hearts shine clearly so that we see, recognize, and live in accordance with what comes from eternity and belongs to our true  nature, brought to us through Christ.

Keep us from being blinded and
 deafened by experiences that will pass by.

Help us to rise above them
 even in suffering and to wait patiently for what is becoming new and  perfect.

Praise to your name that we too can say, "The old has passed
 away; see, everything has become new!"

​Amen
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"September" ...A Poem

10/10/2021

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Indian summer breezes blow 

The geese are taking flight 

A softly glowing harvest moon 

Lights up the starry night 

The special warmth and happiness 

We feel throughout September 

Will fill our hears all winter long 

​With beauty to remember.

-  Author: Unknown  -
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Church News

10/10/2021

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Constitution changes vote - This has now taken place and the result will  be announced on Sunday 5 September. Thanks to all who helped in  organising this. 

Hall Update - Lesley Donald has done sterling work trying to organise  quotes and workmen to fix the Main Hall floor. Tradesmen and material are hard to pin down in the post Brexit and pandemic world, but we shall  have a resolution very soon. 
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Falcon Road flat – Recently the elders voted to keep the flat on Falcon  Avenue. As advised by the factors, the flat is currently being decorated  and freshened up with new carpeting also. The plan is to re-let it in October. 

Book Group - This begins in the third week of September. Can all who are  interested let the minister know and details will be forwarded to them. 


Children’s work - Rev Steven has been meeting with the Youth advisor from the Synod and we will be announcing details this month of a new  programme for our younger people.

Flowers - If anyone would like to help do the flowers one weekend, either  on Saturday for the service on Sunday or on the Sunday morning itself, please get in contact with Maggie McKenzie. Alternatively, anyone who  would like to contribute money for someone else to do the arrangements please also get in contact. Thank you.  - Maggie McKenzie (0131 261 4908) 

The Guild – In the spirit of Parish clustering and on the initiative of the  Rev Karen Campbell of Marchmont St Giles, the local churches in the  Bruntsfield, Grange, Mayfield and Newington areas are going to relaunch  a joint Guild. We have been invited to join in.  
  • If anyone is interested, please let Rev Steven know so that they can join him and others at the inaugural meeting. It is taking place on Tuesday 14  September at 2pm, Marchmont St Giles’.
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The Edinburgh Bookshop

10/10/2021

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During September, The Edinburgh Bookshop will be holding two Author Events here at Morningside United Church. Tickets are available from the  book shop. ​

Alistair Moffat: The Secret History of Here
Live Event
 : 
Tuesday 14 September 19:00 – 20:30 
Tickets £5-£20 

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Alistair Moffat joins us to talk about his latest non-fiction book, The Secret  History of Here: A Year In The Valley - a personal investigation into the  history that surrounds us, from the historian and award-winning author  of The Hidden Ways and for fans of Robert Macfrlane's Underland. 

​About the Book:
 

The Secret History of Here is the story of the site on which Moffat’s farm  now stands in the Scottish Borders, which has been occupied since pre historic times. In uncovering the history of this one piece of land, Moffat  shows how history is all around us, if only we have the eyes to see it.  Moffat also shows how the history of one physical place can relate to a  much bigger, national picture.

Janie Brown & Jackie Kay: Radical Acts of Love
Live Event
 Wednesday 29 September 19:00 – 20:30 

Tickets £5-£10 

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Award-winning poet laureate of Scotland, Jackie Kay joins Janie Brown in  conversation on her book, Radical Acts of Love: Twenty Conversations to  Inspire Hope at the End of Life. 
​

About the Book: 
In Radical Acts of Love Janie Brown, oncology nurse of thirty years and  counsellor of cancer patients with terminal diagnoses, recounts twenty  conversations she has had with the dying; including those personally close  to her. Each conversation uncovers a different perspective and experience  of death. For readers of Atul Gawande's Being Mortal and Kathryn  Mannix's With the End in Mind, this profoundly moving and hugely life affirming book offers a sensitive and wise insight into our final moments. 
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It's Really Simple... But Demanding

9/10/2021

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A lawyer connected with the congregation shared this short piece from American writer and theologian Frederick Buechner on the theme of “Neighbour”: ​
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When Jesus said to love your neighbor, a lawyer who was present asked him to clarify what he meant by neighbor. He wanted a legal definition he could refer to in case the question of loving one ever happened to come up. He presumably wanted something on the order of: "A neighbor (hereinafter referred to as the party of the first part) is to be construed as meaning a person of Jewish descent whose legal residence is within a radius of no more than three statute miles from one's own legal residence unless there is another person of Jewish descent (hereinafter to be referred to as the party of the second part) living closer to the party of the first part than one is oneself, in which case the party of the second part is to be construed as neighbor to the party of the first part and one is oneself relieved of all responsibility of any sort or kind whatsoever."
​

Instead, Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), the point of which seems to be that your neighbor is to be construed as meaning anybody who needs you. The lawyer's response is left unrecorded

~originally published in Wishful Thinking and later in Beyond Words

Article (https://www.frederickbuechner.com/quote-of-the-day/2016/5/21/neighbor)
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A Saint for September: John Chrysostom

9/10/2021

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On 13 September we remembered the life and work of Saint John Chrysostom ( c.349- 407 AD), the great preacher of Antioch and the archbishop of Constantinople
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Image: Chrysostemos | Carl Christian Peters
John was the Patriarch of Constantinople and one of the most important early theologians. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and political leaders and his ascetic sensibilities.

The
 epithet Χρυσόστομος (Chrysostomos, anglicized as Chrysostom) means  “golden-mouthed” in Greek and points to his celebrated eloquence.  Chrysostom was among the most prolific authors in the early Christian Church, exceeded only by Augustine of Hippo in the quantity of his surviving writings. He emphasised charitable giving and was concerned with the spiritual and temporal needs of the poor. 


“Happiness can only be achieved by looking inward & learning to enjoy whatever life has and this requires transforming greed into gratitude.”
​

― John Chrysostom"

​John spoke against  abuse of wealth and personal property. After he was made Patriarch, he quickly started practicing what he preached. Reforms began with his new house, the Episcopal palace, which had been turned into a place of  extravagant hospitality for the upper class of Constantinople and the clergy. He also reformed his clergy, monastics, budgets, and even sold some precious items stored at the chancery, using the excess money to build a hospital and serve the poor. He angered the wealthy by preaching against the misuse of money, especially while one’s brother goes hungry. His severe criticism of the extravagance of the rulers of his time led to his  banishment and subsequent death.
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A Word From the Manse...

9/10/2021

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What a wonderful world!

Dear friends, 

What a wonderful world! These words will bring a tune to mind for many people. The lyrics sung by the great jazz musician Louis Armstrong speak  to the heart! 
I see trees of green and red roses too... skies of blue and clouds of white, the bright blessed day, the dark sacred night, and I think to myself,  what a wonderful world.
- And, really, when we consider the world, this is primarily how we should view it:  As God’s creation, ours to treasure and care for.

But you may
respond: What about the terrible things going on at present? What about the awful suffering in Afghanistan, in Haiti or the conflicts between Palestine and Israel? Look at the effects  of the pandemic on the economy, the poor, our children, the NHS and our lives. As the COP 26 summit of governments in Glasgow approaches to consider Global warming, we can sense a depressing  urgency in the melting of the ice caps and abuse of fossil fuels.

You're right. It can be hard
 to sing “It’s a wonderful world”. There are catastrophes here, there, and everywhere. It can seem overwhelming,  leaving little room for sentimentality. 


So as Christians, how should we respond?

Let us be people of
optimism! Yes... Collectively as humans, we really have done much to harm the world and its people. Yet, the good surely outweighs the bad. As people of faith, we can count many blessings and discover hope. In our call to care for the world and love humanity, God gives us the means to view everything through a prism of love. This makes a difference.

Love is at
 the heart of our Faith because God is love.

The French philosopher
Simone Weil wrote: "To be rooted is perhaps the most important and least recognized need of the human soul." My advice is to be rooted in God’s love. Not only will the world appear more beautiful, but you will have the means to transform its sorrows into joy. 


With Every Blessing 
Rev Steven


​
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