Wisdom: Deep Calls to Deep

During Lent we create space in our spirits for Wisdom:

• The many faces of Wisdom within the biblical tradition;
• The manifold forms of Wisdom needed for depth in this life;
• The singular footpath when Jesus set his face toward the counterintuitive Wisdom of the cross.

Three dynamics fed into the flow of Wisdom through this worship
series.

The Season of Lent

During the 40 days of Lent, our spiritual journey is to walk
intentionally with Jesus toward the cross. This journey is one of trust
in God’s Wisdom, radically different than what comes naturally. This
journey moves us through the distresses and seeming failure of self-sacrificing love to the regeneration of Christ’s resurrection.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action 

Canada’s settler peoples broke treaties and betrayed Canada’s First Nations. River East Church is finding ways to participate in the lengthy, many-layered process of repentance and healing. We aim to have one preaching series a year dedicated to each of the seven Grandfather Teachings of the Plains First Nations. The goal is to respect both First Nations values and Christian theology for their own sake, to celebrate points of resonance and to deepen our ability for dialogue. In 2018, in the season after Pentecost, we explored Courage. In 2019, during Lent, we explored the grit and grace of Honesty. And now, during Lent 2021, we pick up our COVID-stalled 2020 series to explore Wisdom, visualized in Indigenous teachings as a beaver.

One of River East Church’s Core Values

In 2018, after a considerable journey through prayer, discernment, and
conversation, River East Church named three ways we sense that God keeps showing up through our community: through Wisdom, Prophecy and
Compassion. We describe Wisdom, the first of these values as what unfolds when we seek God’s way through mutual discernment, holding paradox in the midst of complexity.