As a pastor, I believe 2020 has been one of the most difficult years I have lived through. It has opened our eyes to how vulnerable we are. Until this year, I thought that corona was an astronomy term regarding the sun. But as Christians, our focus needs to be on not what the seasons hold, ...
Do you ever wonder what makes the Christmas season feel like - well, Christmas? This past year, especially since we began Advent, this question seems more profound. When we think about all that is occurring, we can be overwhelmed with the negative. The pandemic, violence, isolation, discord, ...
EAST POULTNEY, Vt. (AP) — The autumn leaves crunched underfoot as Netanel Crispe walked uphill, toward the northwest corner of the small cemetery. He stopped and examined a toppled headstone. “The last time I was here this was standing up,” he said, regarding the weathered, gray stone. ...
Volunteers at Pine Street United Methodist Church were busy the weekend before Thanksgiving preparing food for their “Thank Out” meal to send out into the community to be shared with people they are thankful for. According to Pastor James Wooster, the group prepared 275 quarts of soup, ...
A new flag pole was dedicated in St. Boniface Church Cemetery as a final marker for the site for burial of war veterans. In an outdoor ceremony with a little more than 50 people, the flagpole was blessed by the Rev. Bill Corcoran of St. Boniface and St. Lawrence parishes. The ceremony had been postponed from Veterans Day due to weather. On this past Memorial Day, there were veterans flags marking the burial sites but no flagpole. “There is going to be a flagpole,” said Paul Butters, of the council, at the time a few months ago. Butters led the group of donors, raising the money ...
One of my favorite Christmas carols is “O Come, O Come Emmanuel.” I love the haunting melody and the descriptions in the carol of who Jesus is and what He has come to do. Years ago, I researched the various images for Jesus that are used in the carol. From Emmanuel, which reminds us ...
