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Hi Wanda!</div>
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Happy New Year! We returned a week ago from a full week in LA visiting the kids again over the holiday. This was our 3<sup>rd</sup> extended visit in as many months and now we are enjoying being home in Utah again and catching up with appts and things here
for a while! Also catching up on reading emails after being offline over the holiday and I see your Christmas greeting has a different address than we had for you. Hope our card got forwarded and delivered from your older address! This was first time
in years I've sent out cards!!</div>
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Please let me know. Hope you are well-situated and maybe closer to your daughter & family. Are you meeting via zoom at all with the WSR-South group? Our West group met in person in Prescott in the fall and decided we would aim for in person meeting once
a year, and meet virtually at least twice a year. We'll see how that works out. </div>
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Anyway, just wanted to say hi and be sure we now have your correct snail mail address. </div>
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Sending love and hugs,</div>
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Jill</div>
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<div id="divRplyFwdMsg" dir="ltr"><font face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size:11pt" color="#000000"><b>From:</b> Dialogue <dialogue-bounces@lists.wedgeblade.net> on behalf of Holcombe Wanda via Dialogue <dialogue@lists.wedgeblade.net><br>
<b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, December 24, 2024 1:04 PM<br>
<b>To:</b> Order Ecumenical Community <oe@lists.wedgeblade.net><br>
<b>Cc:</b> Holcombe Wanda <wandah70@gmail.com>; Listserve OE <oe@lists.wedgeblade.net>; Colleague Dialogue <dialogue@wedgeblade.net><br>
<b>Subject:</b> Re: [Dialogue] [Oe List ...] A poem for you all</font>
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<div dir="auto">Also I highly recommend you follow Jim Rigby on Facebook who is one of the most prophetic people in the Austin area that I know. His membership is full, but you can still follow him. I will post one of his recent sharings….Wanda
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<div>THE FIRST DUTY OF LOVE</div>
<div>by Jim Rigby</div>
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<div>It was theologian Paul Tillich who said, “The first duty of love is to listen.” The words are beautiful from a counseling viewpoint, but they can be very disturbing to those whose religion is based on belief. </div>
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<div>Listening can be terrifying to those who have learned religion as a parrot song to be recited word for word. Awareness is indeed heretical if one has been taught religion as a trance. When we believe that orthodoxy is the only way to avoid hell we tend
not to ask many questions.</div>
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<div>We must never forget that religion is a means to deeper living and not an end in itself. Religion that has become an end in itself can only betray us in our pursuit of deeper living and wider loving.</div>
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<div>When the unity of our religious group has been established by mindlessly saying the same words at the same time, it can feel divisive to stop talking and actually listen to each other. What kind of “unity” comes from a room full of people reciting holy
words with unshared hearts?</div>
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<div>We cannot love those we have not listened to. To hear another person, we must listen to their heart song. I do not think it is possible to hear another’s heart song if religion has muffled our own eyes and ears. To seek love we must free our own hearts
from the shackles of dogma and moralism. </div>
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<div>Tillich seems right in saying the first duty of love is not to recite a creed without deviation nor to practice an ancient ritual without deviation. If love is our goal then our first duty to each other is to listen.</div>
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<div dir="ltr">Sent from my iPhone</div>
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<blockquote type="cite">On Dec 24, 2024, at 1:55 PM, Holcombe Wanda <wandah70@gmail.com> wrote:<br>
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<div dir="ltr">Thanks Jim for sharing and Happy Holidays to ALL🌎🌍🌏🌠
<div>I share a poem written by Mary Brown who is married to Jim Brown. They live down the hall from me where I live in a 55+ community living in Austin Metroplex. They participated in RS1 Many years ago and one of our colleagues officiated at their wedding.
It’s great to have them living in the same community and participating in a reconciling congregation, In Georgetown, Texas.</div>
<div>In Peace with Justice & Hope,</div>
<div>Wanda & Marcus the Cat 🐈 </div>
<div>Amberlin 55+ Community</div>
<div>5101 North Mays St Apt 6405</div>
<div>Georgetown TX 78626</div>
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<blockquote type="cite">On Dec 24, 2024, at 11:06 AM, James Wiegel via OE <oe@lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:<br>
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<div dir="ltr">With best wishes
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<p class="x_p1" style="margin:0px; font-stretch:normal; line-height:normal; font-size-adjust:none; font-kerning:auto; font-variant-alternates:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-feature-settings:normal">
<span class="x_s1" style="font-family:UICTFontTextStyleEmphasizedItalicBody; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic">Da Capo</span></p>
<p class="x_p1" style="margin:0px; font-stretch:normal; line-height:normal; font-size-adjust:none; font-kerning:auto; font-variant-alternates:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-feature-settings:normal">
<span class="x_s2" style="font-family:UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style:italic">By Jane Hirshfield</span></p>
<p class="x_p1" style="margin:0px; font-stretch:normal; line-height:normal; font-size-adjust:none; font-kerning:auto; font-variant-alternates:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-feature-settings:normal">
<span class="x_s2" style="font-family:UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style:italic">Take the used-up heart like a pebble<br>
and throw it far out.<br>
<br>
Soon there is nothing left.<br>
Soon the last ripple exhausts itself<br>
in the weeds.<br>
<br>
Returning home, slice carrots, onions, celery.<br>
Glaze them in oil before adding<br>
the lentils, water, and herbs.<br>
<br>
Then the roasted chestnuts, a little pepper, the salt.<br>
Finish with goat cheese and parsley. Eat.<br>
<br>
You may do this, I tell you, it is permitted.<br>
Begin again the story of your life.</span></p>
<p class="x_p1" style="margin:0px; font-stretch:normal; line-height:normal; font-size-adjust:none; font-kerning:auto; font-variant-alternates:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-feature-settings:normal">
<span class="x_s1" style="font-family:UICTFontTextStyleEmphasizedItalicBody; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic">Da Capo</span></p>
<p class="x_p1" style="margin:0px; font-stretch:normal; line-height:normal; font-size-adjust:none; font-kerning:auto; font-variant-alternates:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-feature-settings:normal">
<span class="x_s2" style="font-family:UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style:italic">By Jane Hirshfield</span></p>
<p class="x_p1" style="margin:0px; font-stretch:normal; line-height:normal; font-size-adjust:none; font-kerning:auto; font-variant-alternates:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-variant-numeric:normal; font-variant-east-asian:normal; font-feature-settings:normal">
<span class="x_s2" style="font-family:UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style:italic">Take the used-up heart like a pebble<br>
and throw it far out.<br>
<br>
Soon there is nothing left.<br>
Soon the last ripple exhausts itself<br>
in the weeds.<br>
<br>
Returning home, slice carrots, onions, celery.<br>
Glaze them in oil before adding<br>
the lentils, water, and herbs.<br>
<br>
Then the roasted chestnuts, a little pepper, the salt.<br>
Finish with goat cheese and parsley. Eat.<br>
<br>
You may do this, I tell you, it is permitted.<br>
Begin again the story of your life.</span></p>
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<span class="x_s2" style="font-family:UICTFontTextStyleItalicBody; font-style:italic"><br>
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<div dir="ltr"><span style="font-size:13pt">Jim Wiegel</span><br>
<div>
<p class="x_p1"><span class="x_s1" style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0)">“…the long work<br>
of turning their lives<br>
into a celebration<br>
is not easy. Come </span><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0); font-size:19pt">and let us talk</span><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0); font-size:19pt">“. </span></p>
<p class="x_p1"><span style="background-color:rgba(255,255,255,0); font-size:19pt">The Sunflowers. Mary Oliver</span></p>
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