It's the season of bounty from the garden. We always know it's nearing fall, because little bags of cherry tomatoes begin to appear on the coffee table after worship. Then, comes the week when coffee hour is graced with apple crisps galore baked from the fruit off somebody's tree, and finally, the concord grapes start to arrive! By Worldwide Communion Sunday on the first Sunday of October, we'll have home squeezed grape juice to offer at the great feast celebrating the transforming love of Jesus Christ.
Meanwhile, it's also the season of hacking back all that abundant growth over the summer. We see the clear plastic bags all lined up on our neighbours' driveways, proof that the clippers are more powerful than the weeds for one more season! All this pruning is, of course, Biblical, especially when we apply it not just to our gardens but to our spiritual lives. It's time for clearing away the branches that are no longer bearing fruit, readying ourselves for new growth and greening in our relationship with God.
The fall always feels like the start of something new. It's ironic, given that the natural world is turning toward dormancy, but our faith story constantly reminds us: the new beginning is contained in the end. The gathering of the "beloved community" in September, after summer travels, rest, and restoration, is a moment of celebration, hope and anticipation. What fruit will these braches bear in the coming days? What is God calling us to do and to be right here and right now? These questions are always before us, and lay claim to our attention, even in the midst of our service and ministry.
On September 30, God will perform a graft of new branches here at St. John's. New members will be welcomed by transfer of membership (some from the former Oak Avenue United Church) and by reaffirmation of Baptismal Faith, and by Baptism itself. Any time we welcome new members we implicitly affirm that God is setting out to transform us all!
So as we, the branches, prepare for another season of spiritual growth and fruit-bearing ministry, let us stay connected to Jesus Christ, the true vine, by whose grace our roots are fed and we flourish... for the sake of our community and the world.
