C L I P S H E E T

Official Newsletter of LUTHERAN CHURCH OF OUR SAVIOUR (LCOS)

Issue N0. 1February 2018 – Bev Grahlman, editor

LCOS Congregational Council has directed that a newsletter be published and electronically mailed to all LCOS members and friends, with some copies in the narthex for those without the services of e-mail. I have volunteered to dothis andit will be published periodically. All are invited to submit articles, news items, tidbits, (including the author’s name) to the editor for inclusion in the newsletter. The editor reserves the right to sensor / edit all articles/information submitted for publication.

Hospital:

If you know that anyone in our church family is in the hospital please leave a voice message at the church (519 376 9710) or call Dianne Jackson, Parish Nurse (519 372 9921) so that we are able to support them.

If Pastoral care is required, call the Church Office 519 376 9710, and / or Dianne Jackson 519 372 9921.

COMING EVENTS:

February 28th – first joint Messy Church (LCOS and St.Georges)

March 14 – ‘NOON’ – Stone Soup Luncheon – (no stones in the soup)

March 25 – 10:30 a.m. Palm Sunday service

March 29 – 5:30 p.m. – Service starts with a Seder Meal at 5:30

March 30 – 10:30 a.m. – Good Friday service

April 1 – 10:30 a.m. Easter Service – reception at 9:30 a.m. followed by worship

Global Encounter 2018, Jordan and the Holy Land

Don Statham

Sylvia and I had the opportunity to join with about 70 other people from across Canada in a trip to Jordan and the Holy Land, hosted by Canadian Lutheran World Relief (CLWR). We travelled to historical sites and also projects that are supported by CLWR. We will be presenting a slide show at coffee hour on Feb. 25th. A list of places we visited and activities we participated in;

  • Landed in Tel Aviv January 19th.
  • Caesarea, a port on the Mediterranean Sea built by Harod
  • Mount of Beatitudes and the church there. We held a worship service in an amphitheatre overlooking the Sea of Galilee.
  • Capernaum, Town of Jesus
  • Boat ride on the Sea of Galilee
  • Nazareth and the Basilica of the Annunciation
  • Crossed into Jordan
  • Visited the town of Madaba and the St. George’s Church to see the mosaics.
  • Arrived in Amman, Jordan
  • Toured two schools that were rehabilitated by LWF and CLWR.
  • The refugee camp, Za’atari to see the oasis project.
  • Reception at the Canadian Embassy in Jordan.
  • Community center in Irbid to help Syrian refugees living in the area.
  • Petra, an old city cut into the rock, very spectacular.
  • River Jordan and the baptismal site of Jesus. We held a church service at the new chapel, Bethany Lutheran Chapel Beyond the Jordan.
  • The Dead Sea, for a float. You can’t really swim in the water, it is so salty that you just lie there and float.
  • Travelled back to Israel / West Bank.
  • The site of the finding of the Dead Sea scrolls.
  • Jerusalem, at the St. George Hotel
  • Church of Nativity, Bethlehem
  • Shepherd’s field church in the area that the shepherds were told of the birth of Jesus.
  • Mount of Olives and the church of the Ascension
  • Garden of Gethsemane
  • Augusta Victoria Hospital, in part funded by CLWR.
  • Worshiped at Ascension Lutheran Church, at Augusta Victoria Hospital.
  • St. John the Baptist church.
  • Stations of the cross, old city of Jerusalem.
  • Vocational Training Center in West Bank
  • Hope School in Ramallah, Kindergarten to grade 12.

Summary of the LWF / CLWR projects.

First two schools

Two primary boys’ schools. The project helped with several items like new washrooms and septic systems, new electrical work, paving stones for the playground to create an even surface, painting and drainage.

Za’atari Refugee Camp

The Oasis project. Here they provide training in some life skills, psycho-social support, sports activities and conflict resolution skills.

Community Center near Irbid (Al Sareeh)

This center provides a safe and welcoming center for to serve all members of the local community. There are a lot of Syrians in the area but the influx has disrupted the society in the area. The center will provide life skills training, job finding, support for youth and vulnerable people and some agricultural training, partly through roof top gardens and some on-site training at farms.

Augusta Victoria Hospital, West Bank

This hospital has recently undergone a transformation from a primary care hospital to a secondary care facility. It treats cancer patients, provides dialysis and has pediatric wards. The facility is very modern in the equipment available but has kept a lot of the old building features. There is a very spectacular church attached to the hospital with a “festival hall” for social events. The original building was built in the early 1900s by Germans in the area. The hospital has about 118 beds at present but there are plans to expand and provide ~150 more elder care and palliative care beds. CLWR is collecting donations toward the permits required for the new building (~$1.7 M). The building costs are covered by the Saudi government but not the permit costs. CLWR is very involved in this project.

Vocational Training Center, West Bank

This center provides training for younger people in various skilled labour jobs. Training is provided in welding, woodworking, plumbing, auto repair, electronics and communication, culinary skills and crafts like ceramic pieces. We were given a lunch prepared by the culinary students.

School of Hope, Ramallah

This is very new school that was moved into, December of 2017. The school goes from kindergarten to grade 12. They are still settling in and there are plans to provide a separate soccer field. They have an area that serves as both a basketball court and soccer field as well as gym area. The children are taught in Arabic, English and German. The kindergarten class we visited sang a song in Arabic and then English. This is supported by CLWR also.

As you can tell, there is a lot I left out. These trips always have an impact on me when I see the good work that CLWR and LWF do in the world. The historical sites also give me some more perspective in my faith, as I see the areas that Jesus frequented. If anyone would like, we can show the slides if you would like to see the pictures. The historical sites need the visual information to be appreciated.

(Ed: slides to be shown Sunday February 25th during coffee hour)

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HAVE you looked at the church website lately – take a look at

Coffee anyone??? – every Sunday after service.

Until next issue …………….God Bless,

Bev Grahlman.

The Clipsheet is published for the members of Lutheran Church of Our Saviour, Owen Sound.

Unless otherwise agreed upon with the Editor, writers consent to the editing of material submitted.

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