July 16, 2025
- College Heights
- Jul 16
- 4 min read
Dear Beloved Community,
I am grateful for College Heights Church. Every time we gather as a community in worship, I am reminded of one unshakable truth: God’s love knows no bounds. It crosses borders, breaks barriers, and moves beyond the categories we so often use to divide and label each other. College Heights is not only a reminder of this, but we continue to strive to keep being that reminder.
In a world that still too often insists on drawing lines, between races, genders, sexualities, nationalities, political parties, and economic classes. I believe the gospel calls us to something radical: inclusion. I know we all know this. I know that it is not merely a footnote of our faith but the heartbeat of Jesus’ ministry. He shared meals with outcasts, touched the untouchable, and honored the dignity of people pushed to the margins.
This is not a new idea, it is ancient and holy. From the earliest days of Scripture, we are shown a God who sees the overlooked, who rescues the oppressed, and who calls us to “love our neighbor as ourselves.” That love does not come with disclaimers or fine print. It does not require people to become someone else to be embraced. It affirms them as beloved exactly as they are.
Let us continue to be a church that reflects that divine love: in how we welcome the queer teen seeking hope, the refugee family building a new life, the person battling addiction, the elder who feels forgotten, and the single parent working two jobs to get by.
Let us continue to grow into a community where love is not limited by comfort, where justice is not optional, and where grace flows freely. May we always continue to be reminded and recommit ourselves to the way of Jesus—the way of welcome, courage, compassion, and above all, unconditional love.
Because let us be clear: There is no “other” in the Kingdom of God. There are only brothers, sisters, siblings—each one cherished, made in the image of the Divine.
This Sunday we will be blessed by Rev. Polly, who says:
This Sunday will be my contribution to our summer sermon series on "Encounters with the Sacred." It's the story of the most transcendent, out-of-body experience I've ever had, one which continues to resonate in my life many years later. The text is John 14:1-4, "In my Father's house are many mansions..." We will also be celebrating the Feast Day of Mary Magdalene (two days early), as a wonderful representative of the powerful people (mostly women) whom history has tried to silence.
Peace and blessings!
-Jorge
P. S. July's Giving Sunday offering is for Mission Hospice. This offering helps Mission Hospice & Home Care provide compassionate end-of-life care by supporting patients with serious illness through personalized medical, emotional, and spiritual services, whether at home or in their hospice house. They also offer grief counseling, volunteer support, and community education to help families navigate the challenges of illness and loss with dignity and understanding.
The Church Council recently clarified what monies in the collection plate go to our Giving Sunday recipient each month. On the first Sunday of the month (the "Giving Sunday"), the whole plate goes to the designated nonprofit. Any other time during the month you can contribute by way of a check with the name of the nonprofit in the memo line.
Recent sermons
Check out our YouTube page to see recent sermons. Go to our archive of slides to see bulletins and slides used during recent services.
Recordings of our Taize services are also on the YouTube page.
Upcoming services and events
Instant Choir: Sunday, July 20, rehearsal 9am. We'll sing during the service.
No Council meeting in July.
Thursday Discussion Group: Thursday, July 24, 7pm on Zoom. We're moving on to Laura Lynne Jackson's second book, called "Signs: The Secret Language of the Universe". Any one is invited to the discussion (book-reading is optional). We're continuing the discussion of signs and our stories about signs, and deciding what to read next.
Book Group: Sunday, July 27, 7pm on Zoom. Reading "Open Socrates: The Case for a Philosophical Life" by Agnes Callard. Read chapters 8-11 (Part III). We are spending several months on this book.
Worship & Arts: Sunday, August 3 after worship. Everyone is welcome.
Women's Retreat: Aug 22-24 (weekend before Labor Day) at Pacific Grove. Talk to Polly for more information.
Links and resources
A story from NPR about congregations preparing for ICE visits here.
From the musical history vault... Yo Yo Ma and Bobby McFerrin play "Flight of the Bumblebee" c 1992.
Quote of the week
You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.... You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
--Eleanor Roosevelt
Weekly events
• Meditation group: Wednesdays at 7:30 am.
In person at the church building
• Sunday worship: 10 am
In person at the church building
• Church Office Hours: Thursdays 2:30pm-5:30pm, in person at the church building.
To schedule an appointment please call or text 510-754-6796 or email xicanominister@gmail.com.
