Richmond Hill United Church
10201 Yonge Street L4C 3B2 Richmond Hill, ON, Canada

Richmond Hill United Church is proud to partner with CAYR Community Connections for World AIDS Day 2020. There will be a Zoom presentation on the support and services given, as well as the keynote topic on HIV self-testing. Please RVSP with Mark Koning at [email protected] if you'd like to join.

Remembrance Day Service for Richmond Hill United Church on November 8, 2020. Reverend James Ravenscroft presiding.

In the midst of everything that's happening now, let us not forget the trans lives that were lost this year. Join us in remembering them.

Hi everyone, Join us on Zoom to worship together! Just message us and we'll get back to you with the meeting ID and password. As always, the service will be uploaded on Facebook shortly after.... Stay warm, stay safe and enjoy the service tomorrow for our second Sunday of Advent.

Hi everyone, Join us and worship together on Zoom! Message us and we'll get back to you with the meeting ID and password. As usual, the service will be uploaded on Facebook shortly after.... Stay warm, stay safe and enjoy the service tomorrow for our first Sunday of Advent.

Service for Sunday, October 18, 2020

Minister’s Message for Friday, November 20 As numbers of people with COVID-19 rapidly rise in the GTA, Toronto and Peel Region have been placed in lockdown. It is only through some political pressure that York Region didn't find itself in the same boat. While government officials have so far said that lockdowns will not include schools and day area, this news only brings partial relief. Many of us go back to March in our minds and we question if we can go through a lockdown a...gain. That fear is understandable. It forgets, however, a crucial difference. The first time around we did not know how long the lockdown would be. We were left feeling lost and unsure, waiting for some news of what was coming next. This time officials are mostly talking about a limited "circuit breaker" to bring infection rates under control. We also know a lot more about this virus and so have a clearer sense of what we need to do to mitigate its spread. Admittedly, it is difficult to consider a lockdown during the holiday season, a time when families and friends traditionally come together. Yet we need to consider why families and friends come together in the first place. We do so because we love one another. The love that normally draws us to one another is what needs to keep us apart during this time of crisis. Staying apart is actually a gift that we can give each other. Plus these months have shown us just how resilient and creative we can be. We have found ways to connect with one another and we can be even more creative this time around. Part of the love we share at this time is the care we take for our own well-being in this time. Our loved ones need us to remain healthy and hearty. With this in mind we need to reclaim some of what we learned the first time around. Watching too much news can raise our stress level so remember to limit it to set times. Be sure to get outside for walks. It may be getting cooler but some fresh air each day is a good tonic to the spirit as well as the body. If you are working from home again, or still are but slipped out of these habits, be sure to keep a schedule, to dress for work, take breaks, even do a "commute" by making a coffee run before you begin your day and taking some time to leave the work day behind. It is disappointing that we are likely heading back in to lockdown but we are not on our own. With support and caring we will once again get on top of this virus. In the meantime may we all stay safe and keep well.

Unfortunately, there is no recording of the worship service from this morning. There is an audio recording of the reading and sermon that will be posted later today. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Hi everyone, If you'd like to worship together with us on Zoom, do join us! Simply drop us a message, and we'll get back to you with the meeting ID and password. As usual, the service will be uploaded on Facebook shortly after.... Stay warm, stay safe and enjoy the service tomorrow.

Minister's Message for Friday, November 6: They say that being forewarned is forearmed, but knowing ahead of time that it would take days, even weeks, to count all of the ballots in the US election has not lessened my stress level. I really need to take my own advice and limit my own news consumption. While many people on both sides of our border were hoping for a decisive outcome, according to at least two columnists I've read over the past few days (like I said, I need to ...limit my news consumption) this tight race may be what we all actually need. As Rick Salutin and Anne Reneau noted in separate columns, a decisive victory for the Democrats would have led many of us to look at the last four years as an anomaly. While both writers point to the need for soul searching, Salutin focused on the Democrats and Reneau on the US as a whole, I believe many more of us need to do the same. After all, the Trump presidency is part of a wider-spread tilt toward populism in our world. The US is not alone in its need to confront racism. Who can forget the clearly xenophobic rhetoric of the "Leave Campaign" that gave us Brexit? And let's not overlook our own context. The nooses placed in construction sites around Toronto understandably invoke fear. They are symbols of lynching meant to intimidate Black Torontonians. Recent events in Nova Scotia and here in Ontario are stark reminders of the racism that undercuts efforts toward right relations with Indigenous peoples. And we're not just impacted by racism. We like to point to economic inequality in the US but it's increasing here. Universal access to healthcare is regularly threatened by companies that want a bigger piece of the pie. And don't get me started on the oil lobby. Difficult as it is to accept, these are all part of our context where we too are increasingly divided. Over the last four years we have all come face to face with our shadow. It hasn't been easy. But confronting one's shadow is a necessary part of growth. The tight race reminds us that the last four years were not an anomaly. Confronting our collecctive shadow will allow us to see ourselves more truthfully. As Jesus tells us, "The truth will set us free". We don't move toward healing and transformation without truthfulness. So as we continue to watch the election results, perhaps it will push all of us toward the soul searching we need, and ultimately the collective healing we need as well.

Sermon from Rev. James Ravenscroft at Richmond Hill United Church

Hi everyone, If you'd like to worship together with us on Zoom, please join us! Just drop us a message, and we'll get back to you with the meeting ID and password. Like we always do, the service will be uploaded on Facebook shortly after.... Be blessed, be safe and enjoy the service tomorrow.

Minister’s Message for Friday, October 16: "Indigenous Lives Matter". Those words need to be repeated as often as "Black Lives Matter". And yet it would seem that people are as reluctant to support Indigenous peoples in Canada as they are Black Canadians. At least that is my impression watching the... news as Mi'kmaq fishers delivering their lobster catch to a certified processing plant are surrounded by a large crowd of non-Indigenous fishers. One Mi'kmaq fisher was told that they were ready to set fire to the plant to force him out. He watched from inside as a group of men urinated inside his van, slashed the tires and set the van alight. Adding to the trauma is that this took place while an inadequate number of RCMP were on the scene. Officials say they tried to mediate the situation but were unable to do so. Similar assurances were offered in Alberta after a protest organized by Black and Indigenous Alliance AB became violent when a white supremacist group showed up. While I sympathize with the officers in both incidents, feeling unable to do more than they could at the time, I question why there were not more police present, why more police didn't come to the scene, especially in regard to the incidents in New Edinburgh and Middle West Pubnico in Southwestern Nova Scotia . The tensions have been escalating for several weeks now as Mi'kmaq fishers have been exercising their treaty right to fish "for a moderate livelihood" as upheld by the Supreme Court in 1999. The various treaties between settlers and Indigenous peoples all have one main value at their heart - for all of us to share this land and its resources in a spirit of respect. For generations Indigenous peoples have neither been given the means to share the land that has been their home for thousands of years, nor the respect that should be theirs, despite the fact that when settlers arrived in Nova Scotia, the Mi'kmaq and other nations offered them help when it became clear they were ill equipped to survive the harsh winter. They had no trouble in that moment saying "Settler Lives Matter", so why has it been so hard for the descendants of those same settlers to reciprocate? It shouldn't be difficult, especially if we are following the teaching of Jesus, grounded in his way of love, respect and justice for all. As I continue to watch coverage of this unfolding situation, I pray that the spirit of the treaties, rooted as they are in spiritual values of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, will finally be lived out in this country, that we will live in such a way that Indigenous lives truly do matter as much as everyone else's.

Hi everyone, If you'd like to worship together with us, join us on Zoom! Drop us a message, and we'll get back to you with the meeting ID and password. As we always do, the service will be uploaded on Facebook shortly after.... Be blessed, be safe and enjoy the service tomorrow. Also wishing everyone an early Thanksgiving!

Hi everyone, Thanksgiving is around the corner, and this year more than ever giving to people in need through Mission & Service is critical. The pandemic has made things difficult for everyone, and an estimated 12,000 people per day could die from hunger due to COVID-19 towards the end of the year. For those who are able, the United Church seeks your assistance to make a difference to those who urgently need help.... You can donate by clicking on the link below. Thank you so much in your help to build a better world. http://united-church.ca/donate https://youtu.be/HwvH9W1jo48

This video is edited so as not to show the portion where participants take communion.

Minister's Message for Thursday, October 1, 2020 Two million. Two-thirds the population of Toronto. More than all of the people who live in the Maritimes. That is the number of COVID-19 cases in both the US and in India. According to the World Health Organization that is the total death count that we're rapidly heading toward. Two million is a monumental number. And yet despite such a large number of deaths, despite that the surge in infections in Ontario means we are likely... to be topping one-thousand cases a day very soon, while many people are again staying home more, doubling down on following protocols, urging that we return to Phase 2, we are also seeing more and more people dropping their guard, questioning the policy of mask-wearing, even claiming that we are not in a pandemic. While it is tempting to shake our heads at this, I would like to suggest that we exercise some compassion and understanding. The trouble with a number like two million is that it is too big for most of us to wrap our heads around. It becomes a big statistic and stays there. People say they don't know anyone who has been infected with SARS-COV-2, don't know anyone whose loved one has died, and use their lack of personal knoweldge to justify their lack of caution. Surprising though it may seem, this is a very human response. We make decisions based on immediate experience rather than abstract ideas. It is the same reason we are collectively not very motivated to tackle climate change. In addition, many of us have simply grown tired and want nothing more than normality again. And that is fair. An extended lockdown begins to adversely affect us mentally not to mention economically. And the more this is the case for someone, the more likely they will fit their reasons to match the outcome they are seeking. So while the actions of others is frustrating, getting angry is not the answer. It is better to listen deeply to their concerns while at the same time sharing your own experiences from your heart. We are social animals and care what those closest to us think. In the meantime, do what you can to stay safe, shrink your social bubble, follow protocols, and if someone isn't wearing their mask properly, be kind and gently teach them the right way. Love goes a long way.

Hi everyone, Join us on Zoom, worship together with us! Just drop a message, and we'll get back to you with the meeting ID and password. As we always do, the service will be uploaded on Facebook shortly after.... Be blessed, be safe and enjoy the service tomorrow!