Reflection
For everything there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill and a time to heal; a time to break down and a time to build up;
a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance;
a time to throw away stones and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek and a time to lose; a time to keep and a time to throw away;
a time to tear and a time to sew; a time to keep silent and a time to speak;
a time to love and a time to hate; a time for war and a time for peace.
—ECCLESIASTES 3:1–8
Questions for Reflection
n This text from Ecclesiastes encourages us to discern what to keep and what to throw away. Reflecting on Sister Susan Francois’ experience of letting go of traditional structures while deepening relationships, how might your community distinguish between practices or traditions that anchor its identity and those that could be reimagined for a new era?
n Ecclesiastes also speaks of a time to break down and a time to build up. In times of change, as many of us are experiencing now in our parishes and faith communities, what will be torn down? What, perhaps should be torn down? What will or could be rebuilt in its place? What parts of your mission or community could be renewed to meet the needs of our world?
n In Ecclesiastes, we read that there is a “time to heal.” In the context of parish mergers, what might this healing look like for the community of faith? Going beyond personal healing, how might this process provide healing for larger societal wounds? What transformation might be possible?
LOOKING BACK
Youth Action Team
IPJC welcomed 15 new interns and two fellows (second-year leaders) to our faith-based organizing program! They have spent the last few months building trust and community with one another and learning about the community organzing cycle. We hosted our annual “Speed Organizing” workshop where students host community organizers and partners for one-to-one relational meetings and receive feedback on their leadership skills. The students are in the midst of their 1-1 campaign with a goal of hosting 135 1-1s by December with their peers, which will determine the issue they work on this coming spring.
Creation Care Network
The Creation Care Network is officially becoming a statewide chapter of the Laudato Si’ Movement. Our first official meeting will be on Zoom in January. If you are interested in joining, please reach out to ipjc@ipjc.org
Women’s Justice Circles
The Women’s Justice Circle in Mattawa, Washington hosted a vigil for gang violence in September and have been working with community stakeholders to establish youth intervention programs in town.
