What a busy time we had yesterday! It was Advent IV, and our new Rector's first Sunday with us. In addition, at the 10:15 service, we had our annual Christmas Pageant.
To top this all off, Christine Mont-LaButte of Handcrafting Justice was with us, displaying amazing crafts made by women all over the world. For those of us who were behind in our Christmas shopping (like me!), this was a real Godsend!
They do this by
* Marketing items the women make
* Raising consciousness of the situations in which they live
* Creating opportunities for women and men in the U.S. to get involved
* Telling the stories of women, men and children
* Creating networks of justice and solidarity in search of sustainable economic options for those in the developing world
The crafts were wonderful--handbags made of silk sari scraps,
children's toys, jewelry, linens, scarves.
This year, thanks to Handcrafting Justice and Beads for Life (picture to the right), whose wares we were able to purchase several weeks ago (Thank you, Heather Hesse-Stromberg) I was able to save myself a trip to the mall by purchasing something for nearly everyone on my Christmas list at these two events-- and thus making a difference in the lives of others.Isn't this what this season of giving is all about?
