our journey begins...

Lent 2008. A great opportunity for us to open our eyes in a new way. Come this sunday as we think about ashes, wilderness and bread. "You are invited to a holy lent, a time of self-examination & penitence, prayer & fasting, giving to the poor & works of love, and reading & meditation on the Word of God.”

Lent begins...

Ash Wednesday is this coming Weds, Feb. 6th. We're having a service with imposition of ashes (where we get ashes put on our foreheads and remember that we are but ash and to ash we will return), and communion. The service will be at the Burlington Pres. church at 7:30pm - we'll meet to carpool at 6:30 at the church. Hope to see you there. Come on sunday Feb 10 to learn more about what the season of Lent is all about. And this week, let's keep the nation of Chad in our prayers, as we also continue to pray for Kenya.

"Souper Bowl" of Caring - 6:30pm, sunday Feb 3 / Ash Weds. Service Feb 6, 7:30pm

Friends, we've decided not to compete with Tom Brady & company this sunday, and so we'll gather at 6:30 at the church downstairs to watch the superbowl on our HUGE tv and simply share some fellowship together (be prepared for some serious anti-consumption/ US materialism running commentary from rob during commercials however...). Presbyterians focus in on hunger each year, and call for a Souper Bowl of Caring - so, please bring along some canned goods to donate for the Day Center and our homeless guests. Rob is preaching at the 10:45am service on the transfiguration - so come then for worship if you can.

ALSO- come this sunday to watch the game AND help burn some palms into ashes for our Ash Weds. Service on Weds. Feb 6th at 7:30pm at Burlington Presbyterian Church. We'll carpool from the church at 6:30pm that night.

peace.

Taize

Friends- join us tonight at 7pm for a service in the spirit of Taize. Songs, readings, silence, prayer, candles.
"There are cracks, cracks in everything, that's how the light gets in." -Leonard Cohen

in the name of love

After helping serve a meal downstairs at the Day Center, we had a very meaningful interfaith service monday in honor of MLKjr this monday - thanks to those who came and helped out. Check out this clip we played in the service- http://youtube.com/watch?v=_HY-WfDPm7s - i'm warning you, this one is moving. Let's all continue to work for justice, end the unjust war our country is involved in- and spread peace in our communities. And thanks to Melissa for singing beautifully at watershed on sunday night! If yer interested, come hear me talk about "global warming and you" this Saturday at BU at 10am: http://www.bu.edu/alumni/interests/events/winterfest/schedule/
mountaintop peace.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 1/21, 4pm

In my book, the most important national holiday for the States is this monday, when we remember a true prophet of the 20th century. Come to church at 4pm on Monday for an interfaith prayer service to remember together, and be challenged anew to the call of peace & justice. Check out MLKjr's speach on Vietnam (hear any connections to Iraq??): http://youtube.com/watch?v=92-r05TH9qs&feature=related . Also, come to Watershed on Sunday Jan. 20th at 7pm for regular service. We may just hear from Andrew Mudge sing...

New Year- New TIME - 7:00 PM

Yes- watershed is now starting at 7:00PM - starting Sunday Jan. 13, 2008. We hope to see you this coming sunday! Last night, we lit the Christmas candles for the last time, and we thought together about the coming of the magi. As we each continue to seek out that star and follow it in our own lives, let's remember W.H. Auden's poem, "For the Time Being": "To discover how to be human now... is the reason we follow this star."

new year, new hope

Friends- peace to you this new year! May it bring about deeper realized wholeness and peace in our lives and in our world. Come this sunday Jan 6 for Epiphany. This is a day the church celebrates the wise-folk who showed up to Mary and Jesus, bearing gifts that recognized this child as the one ushering in a new kingdom. Let's come together to share our own gifts and help recognize this new kingdom here and now (and share some organic coffee...)

so, what about mary?

A teenage pregnancy. God becoming a baby. The longest night of the year. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Come this sunday 23rd to think together about Mary, the blues of Christmas, winter solstice and light our last advent candle. We also have a joint Dec. 24 christmas eve service at 6pm (with a coffeehour at 5pm before hand). Come to both and i'll be your best friend...(or at least take you out for coffee:) PEACE ON EARTH! -rob

Snow rocks... :) watershed canceled :(

Friends- what wonderful white stuff all about. We hope you've been able to enjoy this blanketing of God's grace (ah, with a little rain to top things off?!). Since there is still a parking ban here in Waltham, we are CANCELING tonight's watershed service. We're on again for next sunday the 23rd at 7:30pm- and then also a service on Christmas Eve at 6pm. If you happen to get a chance tonight, feel free to light a 3rd candle of advent - and as a devotional on today's scripture, check out: http://www.mtsm.org/preaching/homilies.htm and also, this song from Vienna Teng - called The Atheist's Christmas Carol- and ask yourself how it may speak to us this advent. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4wVRcE5gIs&feature=related Also, the Christmas caroling that was slated for today is postponed until next sunday the 23rd- same bat-time, same place....

wait for the peaceable kingdom

Our second week of advent had us listening to Jason Harrod's "waiting for my day", hearing about Isaiah's vision of a peaceable kingdom where lion and lamb hang out, where the poor are cared for, and asking ourselves where are the contemporary John-the-baptists in our midst - calling us to prepare, turn around, and to wait in hope for something totally new. Come join us next week when we light the third candle...

Eyes Wide Open: advent begins

Join us tonight for the first sunday in advent - a time of waiting and opening our eyes. We'll listen to a little Bono (U2) and help set the tone for a spiritually centered holiday season.

Reign of Christ sunday nov. 25

This Sunday Nov. 25 is Reign of Christ (or Christ the King) Sunday. It is the last sunday in the liturgical year for Christians - as next week sees the beginning of Advent. We'll talk a bit about what kingdom means for us today. As always, Watershed starts at 7:30, but goodies are ready by 7pm. If you are back from thanksgiving visits - please come join us.

Last night we joined in with the Waltham Ministerial Association for an interfaith service focused on gratitude. Gratitude and what it means to radically welcome the stranger in our midst this year as we move through thanksgiving. Did the illegal immigrants we know as "pilgrims" really invite the Wampanoag American Indians to the "table" - or was it the other way around on that first meal of harvest harmony in 1621? And the call to find gratitude even in the midst of difficult life circumstances - check out W.S. Merwin's poem i read during the meditation: http://members.aol.com/notis/ceumc/witness.htm. May we all be grateful, aware, mindful of those who are in need, and at peace this week. See you next week for the regular 7:30 Watershed service.

Gratitude - thanksgiving service 7:00pm

Friends- please note- this sunday, Nov. 18 our Watershed service will join with the Waltham Ministerial Association for their Interfaith Thanksgiving service at 7:00pm - there is no 7:30 watershed service. I've been told I'll be giving the message that night however... so you may feel a bit of watershed anyway! peace, R

children & crow

Thanks to my brother Dave who came and spoke this past sunday. Montana stories and reminders of our true identy as children of God.

And some seriously amazing pumpkin bread...

Remember - next week there is an interfaith thanksgiving service at 7pm instead of regular Watershed worship. Hope to see you there.

saints n' tree climbers

What a special gathering we had last sunday! Thanks for all who came out - and for missing the first few innings of the Red Sox world series win. Thanks to Chris who came from Ecuador to speak to us about his work and that encouraging word that our God is simply all about relationship. Come join us this sunday as we celebrate the saints who have gone before us in this life and hear about a guy who climbed a tree. "How can I keep from singing" "when the saints go marching in!". peace!

la paz

Last sunday we gathered for a service in the spirit of the Taize community in France. And yes, there was some kickin' coffeebread post-service to share. This coming week, come at 7pm for coffee n' baked goods n' such - and then join us as we welcome chris morck from ecuador. He and his family are living and working there with the church and empowering indigenous leaders and doing great community work. We'll examine some Guayasamin (famous Ecuadoran painter who expressed suffering of the people in powerful ways) paintings. Solo Dios basta...

Awareness

Our second Watershed gathering took us to a place of greater awareness. As it was HIV/AIDS awareness sunday, we opened our eyes, we prayed, we sang, we lit candles. The icon we looked at is the Mother of God, Light in All Darkness. Here is a link that may be useful: http://www.bensbuzz.com/africaproject/ - from a theology project I worked on in seminary. Hope to see you next week when we'll gather for a Taize service. peace be with you.

our very first gathering

We had a wonderful first service on sunday oct. 7! We blessed the gathering space by burning some cedar. We talked about God's hesed - steadfast love, in the midst of the laments of life and the call to risky relationships. We also remembered the monks of Burma during this challenging time. And as it was world communion sunday, we focused in on a mahogany cross from Uganda. Hope to see you next sunday at 7:30pm. Come at 7pm for fair trade coffee & tea and homemade banana bread - yummmmm....