E NEWS MAUNDY THURSDAY 17TH APRIL 2025
Talofa lava and warm Pacific greetings. Well, here we are in Holy Week. Tonight about 25 of us will be celebrating the Passover/Last Supper upstairs in Conference rooms 1 & 2 which we will call the Upper Room for tonight. We are pleased that we will have about 5 friends from Te Kakano o Te Aroha joining us which is really great. This year I have tried to create a liturgy which is representative of our SAOTT open Christian tradition and also aspects of the Jewish Passover festival as well. We’ll have to see how it pans out this evening. Adelina and Germaine have done a wonderful job setting everything up for tonight. We will, however, need volunteers from our group to set down and do the dishes etc. No such thing as a free meal ticket!
We farewelled Rev David Douglas on Tuesday at St. Mark’s Uniting Church in Lower Hutt, it was a full church and there was a good turn out from SAOTT. David has been in the Hutt for over 17 years working as a Social Worker, Counsellor, Minister and Psychotherapist. He joined SAOTT about ten years ago. We will miss him and will continue to keep Margaret and the children in our thoughts and prayers.
Last Sunday Mike Wespel Rose led us in our first trial of Exploring Faith using Caleb J. Lines book “Awakened” to explore Progressive Christianity and what it means for each of us. It included a 10 minute meditation and 10 video presentation. I found it very informative and relaxing.
Good Friday service tomorrow is at 10am where we will be carrying out the Stations of the Cross. It will not be a very long service and you will be able to go home and enjoy the rest of Good Friday with your feet up with a cup of tea and a hot cross bun. Sunday Easter Sunday service is at 10am as usual and is a Communion Service to celebrate Resurrection Sunday. With all the busyness going on at the moment the reflection will emerge sometime between now and Sunday morning.
Next Sunday will be my last service before I head off on Sabbatical on the 1st of May 2025. I am very excited. I received an email from Westminster College yesterday which reads: “Dear Rev Dr Fei Taule’ale’ausumai, on behalf of the Cheshunt Foundation, it is my pleasure to formally confirm that you have been awarded a sabbatical stay at Westminster College, Cambridge from 13th May until 25th June 2025. Congratulations! We very much look forward to your presence among us and wish you a fruitful time of research and rest.” So, if you happen to be around Cambridge during those dates please come and visit. Anne Manchester has already booked a lunch date with me in June, Rev Leanne Munro Moderator Central Presbytery will also be in Cambridge at the same time and I hope to catch up with Sue and Jan as well.
Well I’m off home now to roast my leg of lamb for tonight. Do keep safe over this long Easter weekend and hope to see some of you at church this weekend. Ka kite ano. Fei
You can read the full E-news here: https://mailchi.mp/dab882405654/this-weeks-newsletter-from-st-andrews-on-the-terrace-10134231?e=[UNIQID]
