By David and Rosene Rohrer, with photo by Karin Shank Having learned from each other about the variety of ways communion is celebrated around the world, we easily adjusted to observing this important practice from our homes during the novel coronavirus pandemic in 2020. One Sunday for our virtual service (via Zoom) we each chose […]
COVID-19
Eyes Fastened – April 26, 2020
Acts 3:1-10 There’s something new in this familiar scene for Peter and John as they encounter a beggar in front of the temple gates. Unlike many times they have walked this way before, they stop and acknowledge this lame man. They really see him. With new eyes, through the Holy Spirit. It’s an invitation for […]
Hard to Find Humor – April 19, 2020
I Corinthians 15:1-26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. But death is roaring all around us these days in the midst of the pandemic. That makes “Holy Humor Sunday,” a tradition of RMC for the last few years, a lot more difficult right now. But in many ways, our times are much less […]
I Have Come for YOU! – April 12, 2020
As we celebrated Easter Sunday together via Zoom, Melissa spoke from the Gospel of John’s account of Jesus’ resurrection. The disciples are huddled together, afraid the Roman soldiers will find them and they too will be killed as Jesus was. Every person in the story recounted in this gospel is alone, in the dark. Only […]
Pulling Back the Curtain – April 5, 2020
It’s Palm Sunday. Instead of processing around the outside of Hope School as we’ve done the past couple of years, we waved our branches from our homes, worshipping together via Zoom. (See raleighmennonite.org/2020/palm-sunday for a link to the video shared during the service of several RMCers waving branches in front of their homes.) Indeed, things […]
Palm Sunday 2020
This Sunday was unique for RMC, just as it was for many others throughout the world during the pandemic we’re living through. But our worship service brought us together in ways we could not have otherwise been together. Each Sunday since holding our services via Zoom we’ve had the opportunity to be joined together with […]
Fasting from Food Waste – Article in Sojourners
Sojourners recently published an article, “Fasting from Food Waste in a Season of Hoarding,” that features a core group from Raleigh Mennonite Church who have made a commitment this Lenten season to reduce food waste as a spiritual practice. Little did the group know when Lent started that this season would land us in the […]
Walking Toward Suffering – March 29, 2020
On our third online worship service during the COVID-19 pandemic, Melissa had some technical challenges so presented her message without notes. The scripture was from John 11, the story of Lazarus being raised from the dead. When Mary and Martha tell Jesus, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died,” Jesus doesn’t […]
The Inability to See – March 22, 2020
We all met from our homes via Zoom as the second week apart due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Melissa preached from John 9:1-41. This is a time of anxiety and fear, but it’s also a time for us to sift through our own lives and for us to think about what it will be like […]
Good News at the Margins – March 15, 2020
On this first Sunday we streamed our service rather than meet in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Melissa preached from John 4:5-42. A small group met at Fletcher to lead worship. “These are unusual and difficult times. But these are opportunities for us to both be and to receive good news. To let our […]