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Wonders of the Small Church

The small church has incredible importance and value, although it may not carry the pomp of churches in Europe and elsewhere. I have one particular small church in mind: ours.

The HTOC Book Club met Saturday morning, Sept. 21st, and thoughtfully considered two photocopied articles distributed and read at the meeting.  The first, by Fr. Ted Pisarchuk, vividly compared developed nations having a plentiful supply of food and water, to developing countries experiencing serious scarcity. Although an abundance of God-given natural resources exists on earth, corruption, mismanagement, and indifference on the part of some governments have led to this inequality. While the author encourages young Americans to take mission trips to impoverished countries such as Mexico to see this grim reality for themselves, we felt similar insights could be gained by volunteering in our own cities, here in Connecticut, where small nonprofits and religious based organizations struggle to help growing numbers of the poor:  the need for shelters, soup kitchens, job training, and housing for the homeless is great.

The second article, on the “Importance and Power of Words,” a sermon by Archbishop Sergius Korolev of Prague, argued that the words we hear “have the greatest influence and immense importance in all of our lives.” Yet we often speak without thinking, suspect others wrongfully, and make judgments which can cause separation, corruption, and death.  Instead we need to speak of good, though we fear others may mock us; we need to be aware “when a word is being born inside of us,” and ask God for illuminating help. Discussion of the article included references to the Biblical description of the creation of the world with a Word; the need to avoid speaking angry words in encounters that can cause irremediable damage; and the social implications of condoning unlimited freedom—how and who sets limits--particularly in our schools.

The next meeting of the Book Club will be on Sat., Oct. 19, 9-11 AM.  New members as well as interested inquirers in the Faith are always welcome.

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