The
Retreat Offers Discovery and Renewal Register Today!
Retreat
(noun): a period of retirement or seclusion, esp. one
devoted to religious contemplation away from the pressures
of ordinary life, usually as a group activity.
Enchanted Hills Retreat and Conference Center is an ideal
place to get away “from the pressures of ordinary
life.” The wine country retreat is located amid
311 acres of coast redwood, Douglas-fir, madrone and tanbark
oak forest on Mount Veeder, just nine miles west of the
city of Napa. There are miles of nature trails for a long
hike or paved paths for a short stroll. The heated cabins
with built-in baths provide comfortable lodging by a small
lake. Nutritious meals prepared with adult tastes in mind
are served in the dining room. Our meeting space is in
the Kiva, a separate, carpeted meeting center. Owned and
operated by Lighthouse for the Blind, the camp is completely
accessible.
The setting is ideal for a retreat, but there are many
reasons to seek “a period of retirement”:
to relax and enjoy conversations with interesting people,
to be alone and think, to breathe the clean, brisk air,
and to dig a little deeper into the meaning of your faith.
A retreat is a time of discovery and renewal.
The only regret for this retreat is that it is over so
soon—less than 24 hours--but we promise that you
will leave on Saturday with a new understanding of the
wisdom, humor, and imagination in the parables of Jesus.
Don’t delay; register today for the retreat Feb.
24-25. The deadline for registration is February 10. (Form
included in this newsletter.)
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Keneth Graduated
Dear
Community Church of Mill Valley, Let me hope you are all
doing well. And I hope you had a wonderful Christmas.
Happy New Year to you all.
I will be leaving to Uganda on 13th January for my graduation
due to take place on 18th January. I am so happy that
I have finally completed my degree and I will be able
to graduate. This graduation means a lot to my family
and especially my mother since I am last born and first
one to go to university and graduate. It is sad that I
won’t be going with my wife; she has to study so
I will go alone.
I would like to thank you so much for your support both
spiritually and financially during my studies. Thank you
for being part of my life and continuously working with
me in Hope for African Children. I am so lucky that God
used you to make be to be whom I am. May God bless you
all and reward you abundantly.
I will be in Uganda for three months since I have to be
there to prepare for the Yale students who will be visiting
in Spring. Please pray for my safe stay in Uganda and
for my wife as she continues her studies and may God protect
her always.
Happy New Year 2012. God bless you all.
- Keneth Kiyija
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Leadership Training for MOC
On
January 12 sixty leaders from IAF-related organizations
in Marin, Sonoma County and San Francisco gathered at
the Dominican Sisters in San Rafael for training and sharing
information about what is happening in their area. Leading
the meeting were Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF) staff
and lead coordinator for the Bay Area, Anna Eng.
After individual introductions, as customary in all IAF
gatherings, we engaged in one-on-one meetings with someone
from another area that we did not know. I always find
these individual meetings enriching because they enable
me to meet and get to know skilled and socially concerned
individuals from a wide variety of religious and ethnic
backgrounds.
A major part of the morning involved hearing about activities
involving each of the three area organizations. For MOC,
Suzanne Walker of St. Vincent DePaul reported about activities
of the Housing Research Team. Judy Bloomberg from Congregation
Rodef Sholom gave an update about activities of the Towing
and Impoundment Research Team. As a result of pressure
by MOC and other groups in California, legislation was
enacted that will eliminate the towing and impoundment
abuse by the City of San Rafael and other municipalities.
The Towing and Impoundment Committee will redirect its
energy to needs in the Canal neighborhood. Florencia Parada
and Laura Ilerena from Canal member organizations described
major issues that confront Canal residents.
The afternoon session was devoted to an examination of
the overall Bay Area organizational budget and organizational
efforts within the different areas. We then broke into
sub-area caucus groups. I was part of a caucus group that
included Community Congregational Church-Belvedere/Tiburon
and Congregation Kol Shofar.
The meeting concluded with an identification of upcoming
Bay Area activities. You’ll hear more about these
activities in upcoming OGRs.
- Jack Bartlett
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February
Birthdays
February
1 Katrina Shortridge Young
February 7 Cathy Davis
February 7 Sarah Clever
February 11 Rose Taylor
February 27 Claudia Lowder
February 28 Peggy Hewett
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Member Update
Teresa Jenkins Main has a new email: fuegiabasket@live.com
. Her cell phone number 415/672-0673. She no longer has
a landline.
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Participate in one of the Civic Academies on Housing
You are invited to join the conversation with other leaders
and guests from the Marin Organizing Committee (MOC).
• Learn about the real issues concerning housing
in Marin
• Share your personal experiences about housing
in Marin with fellow MOC leaders and guests
Participate in one of the following Civic Academies on
Housing:
Wednesday, February 1, 7:00-9:00pm
Congregation Kol Shofar
215 Blackfield Drive, Tiburon
Wednesday, February 8, 7:00-9:00pm
St. John’s Episcopal Church
14 Lagunitas Ave. at Shady Lane, Ross
Thursday, February 16, 7:00-9:00pm
Congregation Rodef Sholom
170 North San Pedro Road, San Rafael
SAVE THE DATE!
A County-Wide Conversation on Housing:
Tuesday, March 20, 7:00-9:00pm
Presbyterian Church of Novato
710 Wilson Ave., Novato
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Rusty Evans and Ring of Fire Concert
Fairfax
Community Church invites you to come listen and dance
to Rockabilly Hall of Famer, Rusty Evans and his band
Ring of Fire. Proceeds for this event benefit the Fairfax
Food Pantry. Rusty Evans has been burning up the California
festival circuit with his rollicking tribute to country
music icon Johnny Cash. Check out his video at:
www.brownpapertickets.com/event/217689
At Fairfax Community Church, UCC, Fairfax Thursday, Jan.
26th 7:30-9:30pm
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Concert in January At Community Church of Mill Valley
Canceled due to scheduling conflicts.
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World-shattering. Subversive. Earthy. Shameless. Unpredictable.
Work by misdirection. Leave the hearers responsible for
the meaning.
“Jesus taught them many things in parables”
(Gospel of Mark 4:2).
Were Jesus’ parables about theology and ethics?
About the coming reign of God? About subverting the world
of his listeners?
Do they offer more questions than answers?
What do they tell us about Jesus?
How do parables create meaning? Generate tension and consternation?
Defy closure? Disguise themselves as simple stories?
Jesus said, “The Kingdom of God is like a certain
woman who was carrying a jar full of meal. While she was
walking on the road, still some distance from home, the
handle of the jar broke and the meal emptied out behind
her on the
road. She did not realize it; she had noticed no accident.
When she reached her house, she set the jar down and found
it empty” (Gospel of Thomas 97).
Huh?
Turn the page.
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Telling
Our Stories and Making Sense of the Stories Jesus Told
Annual Adult Faith Retreat February 24-25, 2012
What?
Stories told by Jesus rather than stories about Jesus.
An example from John Dominic Crossan: “The good
Samaritan story in Luke told of an ordinary mugging on
the dangerous desert road from Jerusalem down to Jericho.
It told of a priest and a Levite who did not stop to help
and of a third traveler who did more than anyone might
have
expected: bound up the sufferer’s wounds, carried
him to safety, paid for his convalescence, did everything
,in fact, but give him his own donkey. Yet he was a Samaritan,
not kin but a stranger, an ethnic opposite at best and
an ancient enemy at worst. That story must have left behind
it a very unhappy audience, challenged not just to sympathize
with the mugged individual, but to identify with a Samaritan
who had helped a Jew in distress. Parable was a fictional
story with a theological punch, a story created precisely
for that theological, or better, religio-political punch.
It did not ask if you believed in a God who demanded assistance
for opposites or even enemies in terminal need and what
you thought, not just about helping them (which might
make you feel superior), but of their helping you (which
would make you feel inferior).”
Who?
All adults are welcome. The camp accommodates all ages,
singles & couples, and people with limited mobility.
Pam Shortridge will serve as the facilitator.
Where?
Enchanted Hills Camp is a beautiful, secluded site above
the Napa Valley on 311 acres of rolling, wooded hills
with a small lake at the center. The camp is 20 minutes
from the town of Napa at 3410 Mt. Veeder Road Travel time
from Mill Valley is approximately 1¼ to 1½
hours. The camp is fully accessible and is managed by
Lighthouse for the Blind. Lodging is in heated lakeside
cabins with rooms for two, real beds, and an adjoining
bathroom. We meet in the Kiva, a large private building.
Delicious meals—made with adult tastes and appetites
in mind—are served in the Dining Hall.
When?
6:30 p.m., Friday, February 24,
to 2 p.m., Saturday, February 25.
The retreat begins in the Kiva at 6:30 p.m. on Friday;
supper is at 7 p.m. You may check in as early as 5 and
enjoy a walk by the lake or a short hike along one of
the trails, take a nap, or enjoy some coffee in the Kiva.
The retreat ends Saturday at 2 p.m. Please plan to stay
for the full time.
Cost?
The cost for lodging, 3 meals, and materials is $100 per
person. (Partial scholarships up to $55 are available.
Please note on your registration the amount of help you
need and enclose the remainder.)
Why?
To enjoy exploring your faith in good company through
stimulating conversation, prayer and worship, and playful
interactions AND to take the time for a walk in the woods,
to appreciate a good meal, to share stories, and to make
and deepen friendships.
Registration
for Adult Faith Retreat, Feb. 24-25, 2012
(Deadline for registrations is 12 noon, Friday, Feb. 10.)
Name ______________________________ Phone ____________
E-mail ______________
Name ______________________________ Phone ____________
E-mail ______________
Address _________________________________________________
Zip ______________
Scholarship requested $_______ (Up to $55 per person)
Deduct requested scholarship from the full cost ($100).
Total amount enclosed $_______ Make checks payable to
Community Church. Note “Adult Retreat.”
