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4 August 2010 Issue
2. This Week’s Sermon by Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman
4. Reflections on the Lectionary: Luke 12:13-21 (August 8) – The Problem of Money
1. Activist Feedback
Darina, who leafleted at Ignite Chicago 2010 Christian Rock tour in Schaumburg, IL on July 24-25, writes:
Mark, Mikael, Blythe, and I distributed 470 CVA booklets. This was a great leafleting venue last year, and it was pretty good again this year, especially with the all-star crew on Saturday! We leafleted at the beginning while people were lined up to get in. It was a pleasant, well-mannered crowd (a lot of youth) - virtually NOBODY littered the booklets. A couple people came and gave us the booklet back with "No, thanks" but many were interested. One woman said she had been thinking about this issue, and another woman was thrilled to see us with this message - she and her daughter were trying to be vegan. She was looking for more resources and was happy to give me her mailing address so I could send her recipe books, restaurant guides and such.
Upcoming Outreach Opportunities
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08/13 MD Towson Sleeping Giant Christian Rock Concert
08/13-14 MN Winsted Higher Ground Music Festival 08/14 OH Dayton Sleeping Giant Christian Rock Concert 08/14 IL Peoria Heights Francesca Battistela Christian Concert 08/14 MT Great Falls Addison Road Christian Rock Concert 08/15 CO Denver Faith Day with Jeremy Camp at Coors Field 08/17 MO St. Louis Sleeping Giant Christian Rock Concert 08/19 NC Franklin Stephen Curtis Chapman Christian Concert 08/20-21 IN Indianapolis Women of Faith Conference 08/20-21 TX Dallas Women of Faith Conference 08/21 VA Fairfax DC Fest Christian Rock Festival 08/27-28 CO Denver Women Of Faith Conference 08/27-28 OK Tulsa Women Of Faith Conference 08/28 WA Vancouver Fish Fest Christian Rock Fest 09/2 MN St Paul Minnesota State Fair MercyMe & Jeremy Camp 09/4 TX San Angelo Unite & Conquer Festival 09/4-5 NJ Frenchtown TABLE Revelation Generation Music Fest 09/10 FL Orlando Jars of Clay Christian Rock Concert 09/12 PA Philadelphia TABLE GreenFest Philly 09/17-19 MO Saint Louis Kirkwood Green Tree Festival 09/24-26 IL Rosemont Chicago Harvest Festival 10/2 FL Tampa TABLE Tampa Bay Veg Fest 10/2-3 CA San Francisco TABLE World Vegetarian Festival 10/23 FL Tampa TABLE Central Florida VegFest 11/6 FL Jacksonville TABLE Northeast Florida Veg Fest |
Contact Paris at christian_vegetarian@yahoo.com if you can to help. To find out about all upcoming leafleting and tabling opportunities in your area, join the CVA Calendar Group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/christian_vegetarian/
2. This Week’s Sermon by Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman
Daniel: God’s Man in the Field (Part III)
http://www.all-creatures.org/sermons97/s16jul89.html3. Italian Translator Sought
Jan Fredericks writes:
A few of us with God's Creatures Ministry want to go to Rome to have a demo/rally for all animals, probably in April 2011 (possibly the 9th). If you know of any translators who would like to translate just some short messages for posters, please let me know. We could hand out CVA booklets if there is someone who would bring them in the U.K.
4. Reflections on the Lectionary
Luke 12:13-21 (August 8): The Problem of Money
This passage includes Jesus telling his followers, “Sell your possessions, and give alms; provide yourselves with purses that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.”
I am not sure how proponents of the “Prosperity Gospel” reconcile their message with this passage, but it seems to me clear that Jesus is discouraging followers to amass wealth and instead trust that God will ultimately provide. That being said, we can readily see what happens to many people who do not have sufficient savings to hedge against a period of unemployment. They often lose their cars and their homes and they suffer social humiliation. Many people who articulate trust in God still have money in the bank and 401(k) plans.
I think one reason Christians admire Jesus is that he accepted poverty and even accepted painful death in faithfulness to God. There are at least two major barriers to our emulating Jesus’ path. First, many of us have families who depend on us, and we don’t want our faith in God to result in their suffering. Second, we are tempted by the many available goods and services that promise to make our lives much more pleasant.
I think we should strive to serve God faithfully, which means avoiding consumerism and helping those we can. It is crucial that we do our best to be honest about our motives when our lives are becoming excessively self-indulgent. People are remarkably prone to deceive themselves about their motivations. Some decisions are more difficult to discern than others, but a relatively obvious one is diet. Very few of us need to eat animal products, and avoiding them significantly helps God’s animals, God’s earth, world poverty and hunger, and our God-given bodies. If we sponsor harming God’s creatures unnecessarily, we are clearly seeking the kingdom in our bellies rather than in our hearts.
Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.
Your question and comments are welcome
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