NOVEMBER 28, 2022

ADVENT BLESSINGS

Hi

2022 has been a great year of innovation for CHAT.  We have further developed a flexible system for offering workshops, both in-person and online simultaneously, and for sharing resources from our community across Canada. Some of our activities include:

  • An amazing 4-week Storykeeping workshop led by Patsy Pearce with Tama Ward-Balisky, Dave Morrison and Mary Dickau;
  • A soul-filling 6-week Lenten Devotional retreat led by Stephen Pike and Faye Reynolds;
  • An intensive and hopeful Spiritual Care Series training course led by world-renowned John Swinton, a minister, theologian, founder of the University of Aberdeen Centre for Spirituality, Health and Disability and embassador for Sanctuary Mental Health Ministries.

In the new year, we are partnering with the Institute for Marketplace Transformation and the Anglican Network in Canada.to provide a course entitled Meaningful Aging: Finding Hope in Later Years on Feburary 18th, 2023. Registration details will come in the coming weeks.

We have more online workshops coming in the Spring of 2023. We will also be revisiting the Spiritual Care Series Fall. For more information about the Seres, or to purchase materials for the course, visit spiritualcareseries.ca.

We would like to invite you to partner with us as we continue to facilitate the conversation on healthy aging. If you would like to support the work of CHAT, you may do so through any of the following:

Wishing you and yours the wonder and light of this Advent,

Mary Dickau
Director
CHAT Canada

RECOMMENDED READING

A PENCIL PINE TREE
AN ADVENT REFLECTION 

By Joyce Peasgood

The advantage of living into middle age and elder years, is that we have witnessed the goodness of God and the presence of the inner Spirit of Love within ourselves and others. Has our journey been fraught with difficulties? Yes indeed. Have we been attentive to the places and moments where the inner presence of God has sustained us? I hope so...

CBWC ADVENT RESOURCE & CHRISTMAS READING 

Even people who are not practicing Christians think they are familiar with the story of the nativity. Every Christma,s displays of Baby Jesus resting in a manger decorate lawns and churchyards, and songs about shepherds and angels fill the air. Yet despite the abundance of these Christian references in popular culture, how many of us have examined the hard edges of this biblical story?

AN ADVENT PRAYER

Lord God, we adore you because you have come to us in the past.
You have spoken to us in the Law of Israel.
You have challenged us in the words of the prophets.
You have shown us in Jesus what you are really like.

Lord God, we adore you because you still come to us now.
You come to us through other people and their love and concern for us.
You come to us through men and women who need our help.
You come to us as we worship you with your people.

Lord God, we adore you because you will come to us at the end.
You will be with us at the hour of death.
You will still reign supreme when all human institutions fail.
You will still be God when our history has run its course.

We welcome you, the God who comes.
Come to us now in the power of Jesus Christ our Lord.

- British minister and hymn writer Caryl Micklem, in "Contemporary Prayers for Public Worship" (Caryl Micklem, ed. 1967, SCM Press)

SUPPORT

Please consider financial support towards CHAT Canada. Your donation will go towards developing educational resources and hosting speakers through webinars, podcasts and seminars as we engage topics of aging well from a Christian perspective.

GIVE TO CHAT

Donations to CHAT Canada are collected through Charitable Impact
and administered by Blossoms Charitable Society.

THE CENTRE FOR HEALTHY AGING TRANSITIONS

3350 E 5th Ave, Vancouver, BC V5M 1P4

connect@chatcanada.org | 604.800.2011 | www.chatcanada.org

"We are grateful to Hopehill Community Living Society, C CBWC for their partnership, resources and support.