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17 August 2011
2. Commentary on the Lectionary: On Self-Sacrifice, Romans 12:1-8
3. This Week’s Sermon from Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman
4. CVA Quiz
1. Activist Feedback
Lorena, who leafleted with Eric and Wendy at Women of Faith in Atlanta on August 13, writes:
We distributed 556 booklets in about 1.5 hours and received many good comments. A few people also shared with us that they were vegetarian. However, we did notice a lot of refusals to take booklets, especially when they’d come in groups and one or 2 of the people in the group would decline, then the rest seem to “follow the leader.” It seemed to be an especially tough crowd (mostly southern conservative middle-aged women and older.)
The lines that seemed to work better were regarding “stewardship” and “compassion for animals” in my view.
Upcoming Activist Opportunities
8/22 KY Louisville Tenth Avenue North Christian Rock Concert
8/25-9/5 MO Branson Southern Gospel Picnic
8/26-27 TX Dallas Women of Faith Conference
8/26-27 DC Washington Women of Faith Conference
8/26-28 FL Panama City Christian Music Festival
8/27 KY Paducah Brandon Heath Christian Concert
9/1-2 PA Pittsburgh Benny Hinn Miracle Services
9/2-4 KS La Cygne Music with a Mission Tour
9/2-4 SD Sioux Falls Lifelight Christian Music Festival
9/3 NC Shelby Seventh Day Slumber Christian Rock
9/5 MO Springfield Music With A Mission Tour
9/7 TX Plainview Music Music With A Mission Tour
9/9 TX Kileen Music With A Mission Tour
9/9-10 FL Orlando Night of Joy Magic Kingdom® Park
9/9-10 CA Anaheim Women Of Faith Conference
9/9-10 PA Philadelphia Women of Faith Conference
9/9-10 FL Orlando Rock The Universe Christian Music Festival
9/10 TX Longview Music With A Mission Tour
9/10 PA Philadelphia GreenFest Philly
9/10 CA Los Angeles Harvest Crusade
9/15-17 MO St. Louis Love Life Women's Conference- Joyce Meyers-
9/16-17 WA Spokane Women Of Faith Conference
9/16-19 MO Kirkwood Greentree Festival
9/16-17 PA Shippensburg Uprise Festival
9/17 OH Sandusky PointFest Christian Music Festival
9/17 OH Mt Vernon SonFest 2011 Christina Rock Festival
9/18 OH Greenville Illumination Festival
9/23-24 NC Charlotte Women Of Faith Conference
9/23-24 VA Middleburg Awakening Festival Christian Music Festival
9/23-24 AZ Phoenix Women Of Faith Conference
9/24 NC Charlottesville TABLE Vegetarian Festival
9/25-26 IL Belleville Our Lady of the Snows Youth Day Celebration
9/29 NJ Ocean City Starfield Christian Concert
9/29-10/1 TX Dallas Benny Hinn Miracle Conference
9/29-10/1 GA Atlanta Joyce Meyers Ministries Conference
9/30 WI Milwaukee Women Of Faith Conference
9/30-10/1 CO Denver Women Of Faith Conference
9/30-10/2 CA San Diego National Youth Workers Convention
10/1-2 CA San Francisco TABLE World Vegetarian Festival
10/7-8 VA Lynchburg Extraordinary Women's Conference
10/7-8 OR Portland Women Of Faith Conference
10/7-8 CO Co. Springs Hearts @ Home- Mom Revolution Women's Conference
10/7-8 MA Amherst Acquire the Fire Christian Youth Conference
10/13-15 CA Long Beach Joyce Meyers Ministries Conference
10/14-15 IN Fort Wayne Extraordinary Women Conference
10/15 FL Tampa TABLE Tampa Bay Veg Fest
10/21-22 MS Tupelo Extraordinary Women Conference
10/29-30 MA Boston Boston Vegetarian Food Festival TABLE
11/3-5 OH Cleveland Joyce Meyers Ministries Conference
11/4-5 IL Rockford Extraordinary Women Conference
11/4-5 MN Rochester Hearts @ Home Mom Revolution Conference
11/18-20 GA Atlanta National Youth Workers Convention
International Events:
8/26-30 England, London Lincolnshire Grapevine Internat. Christian Celebration
10/2 Canada, BC Langley Come to the Well Tour
2. Commentary on the Lectionary: On Self-Sacrifice
Romans 12:1-8
In this passage, Paul’s teaches, “I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God” (12:1). Paul calls on Christians to sacrifice themselves to God, which constitutes a shift from the ancient Hebrew practice of sacrificing nonhuman beings. Almost all the other ancient world religions prescribed sacrificing humans and/or nonhumans in an effort to appease God and be forgiven for sins. The logic of sacrifice involves scapegoating, i.e., the transfer of guilt onto innocent individual(s). In this passage, it appears that Paul rejects this logic.
How do we “present [our] bodies”? I think this involves giving our time and energy to serve God. The Romans passage continues, “Do not be conformed to this world” (12:2), which I take to mean that we should not allow worldly concerns to dictate our lives. Yet I don’t see any problem with addressing our own needs and desires, as long as doing so doesn’t undermine our greater calling to serve God. If we failed to take care of ourselves, we would eventually “burn out,” suffer spiritual or physical death, and be unable to continue to serve God.
I think that salvation includes this transformation from a person dedicated to satisfying one’s own desires to one whose whole being is focused on God. This is why I think that eating animals and animal products is a sign that one is not saved. I don’t think that diet determines salvation; instead, I think diet reflects one’s relationship with God.
Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.
3. This Week’s Sermon from Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman
Is It All Right to Question God?
http://www.all-creatures.org/sermons97/s28aug88.html
4. CVA Quiz
Michelle and Amy were winners by random drawing among those with correct answers to last week’s quiz. The answers were: The year with the greatest Arctic ice melt: 2007; the year with the greatest average July Arctic ice melt: 2011. In August, 2011, the Arctic ice melt has been less than that of 2007, and it is unlikely that 2007’s record will be broken this year. However, data indicate that volume of Arctic ice melt in 2011 will likely be a record. Many climatologists predict that the Arctic ice will completely melt (briefly) sometime in the 2020s.
This week’s quiz – all questions must be answered correctly to win:
A. Carbon dioxide
B. Methane
C. Nitrous Oxide
1. Which of the three gasses is the most potent in terms of global warming?
2. Which of the three gasses has contributed the most to global warming?
3. Animal agriculture contributes heavily to emissions of which of these gas(ses)?
Two of the randomly chosen correct answers will win a prize.
Your question and comments are welcome
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