Information Meeting in Parlor after worship on Sunday, September 24
Pilgrimages are those intentional trips to other places (the word itself comes from an ancient pre-Italian word that literally means “away from the land”) whose sacredness and religious value have the potential to change the way one sees the world and to plant a faith journey’s milestone in its wake. The Holy Land, the Vatican, mission trips, and other personal examples contain this theological possibility. Last November, Kendra Plating and I led a pilgrimage to the towns of Birmingham and Montgomery, hubs of the Civil Rights movement and home to the Civil Rights Institute, the Legacy Museum, the Rosa Parks Museum, and the Peace and Justice Memorial. Two other opportunities are upcoming.
Faith and Immigration
El Refugio and Koinonia Farm—November 17-19
This November, I will be leading a pilgrimage to El Refugio in Lumpkin, GA. Through the ministry of hospitality, visitation, support, and advocacy, El Refugio accompanies immigrants at Stewart Detention Center and their loved ones as they are detained. We will have an opportunity to volunteer at their Hospitality House, to learn about the work they do, and reflect on the experience of immigrants being detained at Stewart Detention Center. We will stay two nights (Friday and Saturday, November 17 and 18) at Koinonia Farm, volunteer during the day at El Refugio’s Hospitality House and return to Greenville on Sunday, November 19.
Accompaniment in Cuba
Guanajay, Cuba—May, 2024
In May, Kathy Sharp and I will lead a pilgrimage to visit our sister church, The Baptist Church of the Way, in Guanajay, Cuba. While there, we will celebrate with our brothers and sisters the ordination of their beloved pastor, Javier.
I will discuss costs and other logistical details for both trips at an information meeting in the Parlor after worship on Sunday, September 24. If you have questions before then, email me.
—Matt