General News and Announcements

December 23, 2009

Christmas greetings from the General Council Office,

Please note that the General Council Office will be closed for the Christmas/New Year holiday period from 2:30 p.m. (ET) on Wednesday, December 23, 2009, until 8:30 a.m. (ET) on Monday, January 4, 2010. United Church Resource Distribution will be closed for its year-end inventory count and the Christmas break from Monday, December 21, to Wednesday, December 23, 2009, and will reopen with its regular business hours on Monday, January 4, 2010.

If you would like to attend a Christmas service at a local United Church congregation, please use the Find a Church feature to assist you in your search. Service times can usually be found either by visiting a congregation’s website or by contacting the congregation by telephone. Frequently service times are listed as a recorded announcement on a church’s answering machine.

In keeping with the spirit of the season, you will also find a number of recent Christmas-related postings on this website. Among these are:

1. The Moderator’s Christmas 2009 message, posted as a video and in English and French text.
2. A link to the Moderator’s 2009 Christmas reflection, A Season for Stories*, as published in the December issue of The United Church Observer.
3. Advent/Christmas/Epiphany planning: These seasonal resources are offered to help with worship and program planning (e.g., a family Christmas; candle litanies; graces and prayers; offering invitations and dedications; White Gift services)
4. Weekly Reflections for December: Opportunities to open yourself to God’s presence amidst the busyness of daily life.

With best wishes for a blessed Christmas,

• Mary-Frances Denis
  Program Coordinator, Media and Public Relations
  The United Church of Canada
  Tel: 416-231-7680 ext. 2016
  Toll-free: 1-800-268-3781 ext. 2016
  E-mail: Mary-Frances Denis