FLC Messages and Reports 2011 - Fellowship of the Least Coin

Dear Sisters,
My greetings come from Switzerland as the new vice-chair
of ICFLC. I am very honoured for having been chosen for
that post. We surely form a good team together with Shirley,
Pat and Cora and shall try to guide the FLC boat safely through the year.
The day I am writing this message is the day of the Twelfth Night, the visit of
the Wise Men to Bethlehem. They followed a star although they did not know
where it would take them. They took along gifts: gold, incense and myrrh.
Gold--heavy and yet soft, symbol of our own softness and heaviness; incense
rising towards heaven, symbol of hope and longing; myrrh, symbol of healing.
For me FLC women very much remind me of the three Wise Men. FLC women
donate their gifts to other women all around their globe, reminding us of our
call to solidarity and healing. In this world in turmoil these donations are
particularly valuable because they bring hope through not only the prayers
but also through the least coin. Thank you to all of you who make it possible
for us in the ICFLC to forward these coins and prayers to our sisters in all
regions of our earth.
I deeply felt solidarity and hope meeting so many Asian women when
participating in the general assembly of ACWC (Asian Church Women’s
Conference). It was overwhelming with how much power and capacity these
women engage in church and social work, get involved with a healthy sense of
reality in the manifold problems of their region. The truth though is that the
problems do not differ very much from other areas in other continents, only
in some cases the focus shifts. The hospitality of the Indonesian congregation
we met and the insight they gave us in their joys and problems made once
again visible how much Christian communities are faced with hostility and
hate in countries where they are a minority. Our prayers should be with them
every day!
As the Wise Men, let us be Wise Women, following the star on our walk
through life, bringing the gift of ourselves through solidarity, hope and healing
not only with our prayers but also with our least coin.
Blessings,
Catherine Gyarmathy
Message and Greetings
from the Vice-Chairperson
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