A new direction

During the last three months, since the passing of our minister, the Rev. Mark Hoogsteen, the congregation has been blessed with the presence with many outstanding preachers, but as we move into September, the direction has been changed as Knox welcomes Rev. John Duff to the pulpit for a five-month period of stated supply.

The agreement as approved by the Hamilton Presbytery in July indicates that Rev. Duff will provide engaged as stated supply on a one-third time basis, to provide regular pulpit supply and essential pastoral care.

John expects to make maximum use of his time at Knox, and so one will not find him in the office, except for the odd occasion, but he will instead devote his time to the needs of the congregation, providing pastoral care as needed in addition to his preaching responsibilities.

John also says he is also looking forward to participating in the worship service at Heritage Place – perhaps better known as Knox North – where Knox has been participating in monthly worship services for the residents of that retirement home.

If anyone needs to reach John for any reason, including pastoral care visits, you can leave a message with Trish at the church office at 905-333-3013, or at contact him directly in Ancaster:

home telephone: (289) 239-9910

cell phone: (905) 973-5984

e-mail:  john.duff105@yahoo.ca

Blogspot and more

A few days ago when I published the first of the congregational blogs, I noted that it was one of three such blogs I was writing for the church – the others being one for session and a second for the community at large.

The community blog was started just before Christmas, 2010, and was designed to inform the community about Christmas services. It was also to be somewhat temporary as session has been working on the introduction of a church website, a project that was initiated by Rev. Mark.

 Rev. Wayne Irwin, a retired United Church minister, has been working on establishing the website through a company called Model T Websites and more news about the website should be forthcoming in the near future.

In the meantime, the Knox blog has had its ups and downs – down for a while, then up for the Easter season, then down again for a short while. Blogs, after all, are time consuming.

But when Rev. Mark passed away, the need for a blog became ever more apparent as large numbers of people were going online to get information about Mark, about Knox, and about our weekly services, and so it has continued on a fairly regular basis.

As the writer and also the administrator for the blog, I am able to get an overview of the usage, and really, it is quite surprising. As Aug. 25, there had been 3,539 page views since its inception, 409 in the last month, and 20 on Wednesday alone. That’s a lot of people looking at Knox Burlington, and so confirms the need to use this form of communication.

There is interesting possibilities woven into the format of this blog, and perhaps in the future they can be developed further. One of the options is for a regular poll, asking readers their views on various church related subjects. Who knows, sometime we might even ask why they log into the Knox blog.

The address for the blog has been listed in the church bulletin on occasion, but for reference, it is: www.knoxburlington.blogspot.com

Communion Sunday

This Sunday, the Rev. Linda Corry will be back in the Knox pulpit as we celebrate the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. As most of the congregation know by now, Rev. Corry has served congregations in both the Presbyterian and Anglican churches and now provides coaching and consulting to clergy and parishioners (corrycoach.com).

Bikes for Malawi

The following information was included in last Sunday’s bulletin, but we pass along this information for those who were perhaps still on holidays and missed this outstanding initiative.

The Quilters at Knox Church with the support of many others within the congregation have been busy this summer with a series of after church events, with ministers serving in Malawi being the recipients of the money raised through these socials.

The group held such events as a Sloppy Joe lunch, Sundae After Sunday, and a Corn
Roast and as a result, a cheque has been sent to purchase three bikes and repair kits for ministers in Malawi in memory of the Rev. Mark. The Quilters are now working on fund raising for the Community Based Orphan Care Centres.  Early in the fall, items made from the fabric from Malawi will be available for purchase with proceeds of those sales also going to the orphan centres in memory of Mark

Why a blog

As a congregation, Knox has been most fortunate with the response from the Presbytery of Hamilton during this sudden vacancy, so that while we grieve the passing of Rev. Mark, the presbytery has stepped in to assure that there is a continuation of the high level of ministry and pastoral care that Knox has experienced in the past.

Rev. Mark was not only the minister of Knox Church, but he was moderator of session, providing leadership in all aspects of church life, so that as a result, various programs and initiatives which were in the planning stages, have been put aside…for the time being.

But with the leadership of our interim moderator, Rev. Thomas Kay of MacNab Street Presbyterian Church in Hamilton, Knox is moving ahead through the summer of interim ministry and with renewed resources for pastoral care and bereavement counselling.

There is a lot happening at Knox, and will be in the months ahead; things which the congregation should know about in a timely fashion.

So, that brings us to this blog.

As clerk of session, I felt it was important to keep the entire congregation as up to date as possible on the current affairs around the church. The blog format is a relatively new way to communicate, and it holds one real advantage: important information can get out to a great number of people…quickly.

You already receive some news in various ways – through the church bulletin, weekly pulpit announcements and Knox Talks. Those are all great resources of information, but if you happen to be away, the bulletin won’t serve it’s purpose, and while Knox Talks provides a lot of information in each issue, it is quarterly, and some information needs to get out now. That being said, there is no doubt that various details contained in the blog will be repeated in Knox Talks so that some items will get maximum coverage.

I already write two blogs for the church – one for the general public, and a second which keeps elders informed about various issues. This one is just for the congregation and the link will be emailed out to an ever growing database, while copies will be made available through the church office for those not on a computer.

And just one more thing. This blog will not be just concentrated on aspects surrounding the vacancy, but will provide timely information about what’s happening at Knox.

Stated supply

 While many of you no doubt have heard the details about the interim ministry at Knox which were announced from the pulpit recently, it is important that everyone knows the direction that is being taken as we approach the start of the new church year.

At the June meeting of session, our interim moderator presented session with three options as far as interim ministry is concerned starting in September.

Session was in total agreement as to what direction they wanted to take, and as a result, Rev. Kay presented that option to a special meeting of the presbytery on July 24^th, which was approved at that time. The motion as presented to presbytery was as follows:

 (a) That the Rev. John Duff be engaged as stated supply at Knox Presbyterian Church, Burlington, on a one-third time basis, to provide regular pulpit supply and essential pastoral care;

(b) That the appointment be for a period of five months, commencing 1 September 2011 and concluding 31 January 2012;

(c) That prior to 31 January 2012, the Session will review the needs of the congregation going forward into the New Year, and make recommendations accordingly;

(d) That the Session of Knox Presbyterian Church, Burlington be given approval to contract with the Rev. Linda Corry to provide bereavement and other pastoral care as agreed to the congregation of Knox, Burlington;

(e) That the appointment be for a period of five months, commencing 1 September 2011 and concluding 31 January 2012.

Session also requested that the Rev. Thomas Kay remain in place as Interim Moderator during the pulpit vacancy and he indicated his willingness to do so, action that was also approved by presbytery.

Rev. John Duff is a retired Presbyterian minister now living in Ancaster and worshipping at MacNab Street Presbyterian Church.

John says that grew up in Burlington but as a child attended MacNab Street Presbyterian Church, where his grandfather, the Rev. Dr. Beverley Ketchen was minister.  Later his family became part of the beginnings for Aldershot Presbyterian Church, under the ministry of the Rev. William Black. As a child he remembers that in the summer months his family sometimes attended Knox Church; and he also remember Cub and Scout church parades that brought him to Knox.

His ministry has taken him to Red Deer, Meaford and Thornbury, Toronto, Saskatoon, Ottawa, Nicaragua; and St. John's Newfoundland.  He officially retired in 2002, but has done some part-time ministerial assignments from time to time since then.

John has already shown special interest in the Knox congregation. You won’t find his name in the guest book, but he was a visitor in early July, worshipping with the Knox congregation to “get the feel of worship at Knox.”

John emailed me while I was on holidays, and subsequent to that, we had a long telephone conversation concerning his ministry here at Knox. He is on extended holidays out West at the present time, but we will be sitting down soon after he returns to discuss Knox, its ministry, pastoral care, and the needs of the congregation.
 As well, further details about bereavement counselling will be announced as they become available.