Hats for Homeless, Hats off to Those who Serve

At Open Table yesterday we celebrated the work of dozens of volunteers who, over many months, knitted hats for men and women in our area who are without homes.  This project was begun and organized and loved along by our own Linda Taylor and her sister, the late Rennie Taylor.  It was an emotional day for us all.  We blessed those hats (and those who made them and those who will receive them) before giving them to Lyn Walters, Executive Director of 15 Place in Mobile, who will be distributing them among the guests served by 15 Place (www.15place.org).  Open Table also made a monetary contribution to 15 Place. Lyn Walters then shared a moving sermon with stories of the women and men who receive meals, yes, but also counseling (psychological counseling, career counseling, etc.) and hot showers and respect and help through the bureaucracy of systems.


The date of this celebration was chosen long before we realized it was Veterans' Day, but since a great percentage of Mobile's (and America's) homeless men and women are veterans, the timing was particularly fitting and poignant.  What a scandal that we as a nation have trained and sent forth soldiers to fight but have not adequately supported them in the recovery from physical and psychological wounds. 

Rather than sharing a sermon today, I'll share a song we sang in yesterday's service, a song from the inimitable Kate Campbell, who will be bringing a FREE social-justice themed concert to Mobile  on April 11, 2013, and sponsored by The Quest for Social Justice. (questforjustice.org)

This ballad shows us two faces of the homeless: a veteran (pictured as a young soldier who actually may or may not have lived to become a veteran) and a mentally ill woman on the street.  Notice that the chorus shifts from a description ("Peace comes stealing slow) to a final plea and prayer ("Peace, come stealing slow). 

peace comes stealing slow  (lyrics are from Kate's website: katecampbell.com)

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Let me close by inviting nearby folks to attend Open Table's one-day retreat this Saturday.  We're extending the registration deadline.  See details below.  Email me if you want to attend:  pastor@opentableucc.org.

Open Table: A Community of Faith (United Church of Christ) is holding a spiritual retreat―Fearfully and Wonderfully Made: An Embodied Prayer Retreat―from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., November 17, at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, in Mobile. Amy Bradley, leader of embodied prayer classes at Church of the Redeemer, will facilitate the retreat.

Men and women participating in the retreat will experience how involving the body in the act of prayer can deepen our connection to the Divine within ourselves, one another, and the world around us. They will explore the ways in which traditional prayer postures, mindful breathing, and gentle movement sequences can enrich our understanding of familiar prayers and scriptures, while also giving us a means of expressing our deepest yearnings and joys when words seem to fall short.

By joining body, mind, and spirit in the act of prayer, we will gain a fresh perspective on what it means to be the body of Christ. The retreat will close with Holy Communion, the quintessentially Christian means of embodied communion with the Sacred. 

All prayer exercises can be modified to suit individual needs and abilities.  All are welcome.