Canterbury at Cal

Come to the Canterbury House side parking lot on Sunday evening for a cook out.  We will conclude our time with night prayers at 7:30.  There will be vegetarian food as well.

Vespers is the traditional service of evening worship observed on Saturdays as a vigil to the major Christian observance on Sunday.  This is a quiet evening service.  Feel free to drop by before hand for hospitality at the Canterbury House.

Come and pray in the tradition of Taizé at the Canterbury House at 6:30.  Taizé is an ecumenical community of prayer and reconciliation in France.  The brothers welcome people from all over the world, with hundreds of thousands of young adults visiting each year.  The music is contemplative and accessible promoting inner contemplation of texts.

Friday the house will be open for rest and refreshment from 3:30 - 6:30 with evening prayer at 6:30.  Evening prayer will be in the tradition of Taize.

Saturday from 1-3 there is a furniture giveaway for those looking for free items for their new rooms or apartments.

The house will be open from 1 - 6:30 with refreshments.

Vespers will be at 6:30

Wednesday August 26

9:00 AM - Morning Prayer

9:30 - 12:00 open house with free snacks, coffee and tea.

12:00 Lunchtime Simpsons Theology

1- 2:30 PM open house with free snacks, coffee and tea.

Tuesday August 25

There will be various activities throughout the day so feel free to drop in and have a cup of coffee or pray with members of our community.

9:00 AM Morning Prayer

9:30 - 12:30 1:30-6:30 open house with free snacks, coffee and tea.

6:30 - Holy Communion

8:00 - Open house

10:00 Candlelit night prayer

The Canterbury House will be open on Monday night at 6:30 for Evening Prayer followed by hospitality from 7 - 9.  You are welcome to drop by and rest for a bit.

Welcome back students! If you are looking for furniture, the price is right. Saturday the Canterbury House, an agency of the Episcopal Church will be giving away a wide variety of items including beds and bed frames, desks, dressers, sofas, storage containers and kitchen supplies. There will also be ice cream! Please come to 2334 Bancroft Way in the parking lot, it is directly across from the RSF. We will be there from 11-1, all items are free but donations are accepted.

The Collect (prayer) of the Day

O God, who on the holy mount revealed to chosen witnesses your well-beloved Son, wonderfully transfigured, in raiment white and glistening: Mercifully grant that we, being delivered from the disquietude of this world, may by faith behold the King in his beauty; who with you, O Father, and you, O Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Luke 9:28-36

About eight days after Jesus had foretold his death and resurrection, Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”–not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.

Today we remember the event known as the Transfiguration.  Jesus took some of his closest students to the top of a mountain.  While there a bright cloud covered the top of the mountain and two figures from the ancient past of Israel appeared, Moses and Elijah.  Jesus became blazingly white and transformed in appearance.  Many consider this to be a preview of the resurrection of Jesus in which the divine and the human are found visibly together.

What does the transfiguration mean for us?  In the gospel accounts Peter sits up and looks around in a state of discombobulation.  Not really knowing what to do and not heeding the wisdom that when one doesn’t know what to say it’s best to say nothing he begins babbling.  Peter falls prey to a temptation that many of us have.  Peter wants the Holy event to stay in its special place.  The Holy should not descend from the exalted mountain otherwise the Holy becomes a part of our world and we are required to change our own behavior too.  Indeed, when Jesus descends from the mountain he sets out on the road to Jerusalem and his own impending death.

What are the ways that you try to keep the Holy from breaking forth in the world around you?  Does it frighten you to invite the transforming presence of Christ, the light in the darkness, into your own relationships and world?  What might happen if you descend the mountain aware of the Transfiguration in your own heart?

Here’s a link to Sufjan Stevens’ song about the Transfiguration

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSec9TaXHas&feature=related