Knox United Church
451 18th St R7A 5A9 Brandon, MB, Canada

Barbar McNish from Samaritan House Ministries will be our guest on the Knox Konnexion tomorrow at 10:30 am. We will talk about the Safe and Warm Shelter and the good work they are doing during this pandemic.

UCC LAUNCHES INCLUSIVE MOTHER’S DAY CAMPAIGN -- This Mother’s Day, The United Church of Canada is running a unique campaign to raise money for families in need and make the holiday itself more inclusive. The campaign called Make Mother’s Day More expands the traditional focus of the holiday to recognize painful mothering relationships, acknowledge loss, and celebrate those who play a mothering role, including transgender and non-binary people. The campaign will support Unit...ed Church partner organizations offering things like parenting classes, medical clinics, safe shelter, and education for children. Donors can send uniquely inclusive e-cards to their loved ones when they make a donation online. The cards say things like, Mother’s Day can be so hard. I made a gift to support families in need as I thought about you today. I hope that knowing you inspire me to make a difference is a comfort, The world needs all kinds of families. You are a blessing! and Happy MotherS Day to the two best moms I know. The campaign is unlike anything I’ve ever seen on Mother’s Day...Our campaign video features same-gendered mothers who are also United Church ministers. You just don’t see that anywhere else. We hope to expand awareness of the joy and pain of Mother’s Day and do some good for families in need at the same time, explains United Church minister the Rev. Trisha Elliott. Visit the UCC's website for more information or to make an online donation. If you are part of the community at Knox, tell them you're donating on behalf of Knox Brandon and help us reach our goal of raising $41,000 for the Mission & Service Fund this year.

How many days have I cried out, "Blah!" while sitting in my office or at home? This article resonated with me. What is the cure for languishing? Or at least a helpful response? Flow! That sounds kind of spiritual to me. See what you think. "A concept called flow may be an antidote to languishing. Flow is that elusive state of absorption in a meaningful challenge or a momentary bond, where your sense of time, place and self melts away. During the early days of the pandemic, the best predictor of well-being wasn’t optimism or mindfulness it was flow. People who became more immersed in their projects managed to avoid languishing and maintained their prepandemic happiness."

Morning everyone, here's a guide to non-gendered language from our amazing Instagram team. Is there anything we've missed? Let us know (Follow https://www.instagram.com/pink_news/ for more fab illustrations)

We are seeking protein donations for the food bank please: canned meats and fish, canned beans, canned chili or other meals in a can, peanut butter, cheese whiz..., etc. Please drop off donations at 820 Pacific Ave or the grocery store bins at Safeway, Superstore and Sobey’s WEST. Please let us know if you’d like to make a monetary donation and we can let you know the ways you can give that way. Thank you Brandon in advance! You always show up when we need you! Please share. See more

The Earth Day walk this Thursday has been cancelled given the new pandemic restrictions on numbers for outdoor gatherings. We encourage you to bring a poster t...o hang on the clothesline. You can still send a postcard or letter to your MP's office noting your concern & what action you'd like to see taken by our Government as they tackle climate change and explaining what you are prepared to do to help climate recovery. Posters below were created by children in the before and after school program of Bran U Day Care at Knox.

Lisa Ramsay from the Brandon Bear Clan will be our guest tomorrow on our Knox Konnexion Livestream at 10:30 am on our Youtube Channel. Our new series is, "A Place to Call Home," and our theme tomorrow is, "You Are Family." HOLY HUMOUR SUNDAY: It's also Holy Humour Sunday and we'd love to have you send us a picture of how you are participating that we can share. My hat will rock you! MORE ABOUT OUR THEME: To feel at home is to know a place and a family where it is safe to... be vulnerable. In another of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances to the disciples, he shows them the wounds on his hands and feet. This week we look at what it means to create a safe space for bringing all of who we arewounds and all. For as we are loved by our Creator, the One Jesus names as Abba, Father, so should we love each other as children of Godkin to one anotheroffering healing community where we may journey together with all our relations toward wholeness. (series adapted from resources at the Worship Design Studio and Marcia McFee) See more

Seeking to Reduce Harm, national series on the idea of drug decriminalization, May 12, May 19, & May 26, 2021, 6:00 pm Central Daylight. Our Regional Council Ex...ecutive is a co-sponsor of this series, which gives us space to talk about this complex issue without taking a position on it. Themes: May 12th Harm Reduction and UCC Engagement; May 19th Decriminalization of Illicit Substances for Personal Use; May 26th The Theology of Harm Reduction. https://www.united-in-learning.com//393-seeking-to-reduce- See more

Here's a new reconciliation/ right relations resource that we can use online or in person (one day! We hope!) It puts Indigenous perspectives front and center, ...and was created with church groups in mind. Come out for the launch of Listening to Indigenous Voices: A Dialogue on Justice and Right Relationships, 28 April, 3:00-4:30PM in AB and SK, 4:00-5:30PM Mountain in MB NW On. This new learning and conversation resource begins by exploring Indigenous worldviews, goes on to examine the history of colonization, and concludes with sessions on righting relationships, decolonization, and indigenization. Register here. https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/launch-of-listening-to-indigeno

This powerful and poignant story from S. Korea reminds us that we must be united globally in our quest for liberation for our kin in the LGBTQ2SIA+ community.

We received word of this event next Wednesday from our friend, Shaun Loney and the Encompass Co-op team. The link for the trailer is in the comment section.

Never doubt as a blessing of the Universe you we are meant to so shine... ________ #ShineOn See more

A day late...but Ramadan Mubarak to our Muslim neighbours.

A happy Lunar New Year to you. The year of the ox and the Tibetan New Year as well. For the Coast Salish Peoples it is the Moon of the Frog.

Looks like a great conversation happening this Sunday

Light a Candle for a Guaranteed Livable Income Vigil - 8 April 2021 -- Members of The United Church of Canada (Betty Kelly, Debby Dandy, Craig Miller) in Brandon, MB joining in a vigil outside the office of MP Larry Maguire. Our thanks to his staff for welcoming us and receiving our letter. We know from our conversation that they are working to support the most vulnerable members of our community. As members of the UCC, we are calling on the government and all parties to bui...ld on the positive experience of the CERB and recent cross-party and jurisdictional cooperation and roll out a guaranteed livable income program. The United Church of Canada has been a supporter of this concept since 1972. We are urging the government to build a program that is universally accessible, preserves human dignity rather than creates stigma, removes discriminatory barriers, does not penalize people for the work that they do, and is available with a minimum of bureaucracy. Particular attention should address the barriers experienced by Indigenous peoples in accessing relief programs related to COVID-19, recognizing that these are manifestations of a system that leaves Indigenous people out of decision-making and denies their rightful place in Canada’s economy. #UCCanlivableincome, #guaranteedlivableincome #basicincome

It’s #redday today in support of our dear friends at United Way of Brandon & District and United Way Canada to promote 211 services. Calling 211 or visiting 21...1.ca will get you connected to services in your area. We are on the list So pop on some red and post your own pictures with #211daycanada #211mb #unitedway to spread the word See more

Two members of Knox will participate in this national action tomorrow at the office of our MP, Larry Maguire. We are not advocating for a particular plan, rather we want to raise up principles upon which any future plan will be based. Our moderator, the Rt. Dr. Rev. Richard Bott, is calling for a plan that is universally accessible, preserves human dignity rather than creates stigma, removes discriminatory barriers, does not penalize people for the work that they do, and is available with a minimum of bureaucracy. Particular attention should address the barriers experienced by Indigenous peoples in accessing relief programs related to COVID-19.

From our Green Team and last week's email news. Just a Green Minute I am quite sure that many of you are aware that single use plastic is an immense problem around the globe. Canadians throw away about 3.3 million tonnes of plastic every year. About 9% of this is recycled. 2.8 million tonnes ends up in our landfills (that is equivalent to the weight of 24 CN Towers!). 29,000 tonnes end up in our lakes, rivers, forests, and city streets. Micro bits of it even end up in our b...odies. Many of you may be aware that Canada plans to ban single-use plastics -- checkout bags, straws, stir sticks, six-pack rings, cutlery and even foodware made from hard-to-recycle plastics -- nationwide by the end of 2021. This is a great step forward and I think it is encouraging industry to re-think the way they do business. This week, Loblaws (a grocery chain that includes Superstore) announced that they will be looking at their use of plastic and working toward reducing, recycling and reusing as much as possible. They are looking at ways to cut unnecessary plastic, to invest in recycling programs and to use recycled plastic in packaging, and to develop new ways to reuse plastic. This is an ambitious plan that works toward a sustainable packaging industry. As consumers, we could be using our purchasing power to help steer other corporations into following this example. Currently, the packaged good industry is responsible for 1/3 of all single use plastic waste. Write to your favorite grocery store. Let them know what Loblaws is promising and ask what they are planning to do about the plastic that they generate. Together, consumers and industry can work together to keep our waterways free of plastic.

We're getting ready for our Easter celebration and now all we need is you! Join us at 10:30 am CST on our Youtube channel, The Knox Konnexion. Happy Easter!

In the first in our final series of podcasts ('Continuing') we look at decolonization - a word that gets used a lot these days, particularly in 'progressive'... circles. But it’s not an easy thing to seriously grapple with. To effectively engage in the external processes of decolonizing, we need first to do some inner work. We need to 'decolonize our hearts' before our brains can really engage or we can act as reliable allies. This episode looks at 6 interior processes that can help ready us to participate meaningfully, respectfully and vulnerably in conversations about what reversing colonization might entail. See more

Good Friday Worship News - "Holy Vessels: Healed and Still Healing" this Friday at 10:28 am on our Youtube Channel - The Knox Konnexion You are invited to create a darkened space at home, perhaps lit only with candles. You will want to have a small bowl of oil with you for the service. It can have (but is not required) sprigs of lavender or other essential oils mixed with it. There will be three rituals of anointing in this service. We will celebrate the Sacrament of Communi...on together and you will want to have bread and wine (juice) with you. The Prelude will begin at 10:28 am.