About the Theme

Have you ever watched a potter work? Maybe you have turned a wet pot on a wheel yourself. Maybe you have worked with clay, sculpting a story with only the earth and your bare hands. In the beginning, according to Genesis, God scooped up clay and shaped and breathed life into the first human.

Much later, Jeremiah hears a voice telling him to “Come, go down to the potter’s house, and there I will let you hear my words” (Jeremiah 18:1). As Jeremiah watches the potter work, he imagines God reshaping our ancestors into a more faithful, justice-loving people. Out of this most basic substance, the earth, God continues to shape and breathe life into creation.

The theme for General Council 40 is “down to the potter’s house.” As a church we will gather in Kelowna, British Columbia, to watch The Potter work. Together we will imagine how we are being shaped as a community of faith, how we being called to respond to Christ in the world.

Some potters speak of the interplay between potter and clay in the process of creation. For some, it is as though the clay itself is engaged in the process of creation. Certainly that is how it is with us. We are both being shaped and shaping. We make decisions and take actions in response to our understanding of the dream and desire of The Potter.

In a very practical, earthy way, what we discern and decide has implications for how we use what God has given from abundance into our care. Our choices will focus how we use energy, creativity, and financial resources.

I would ask for your prayers for those who have gathered for General Council 40. Pray that as we go down to The Potter’s house, our hearts and minds will be open to God’s calling for The United Church of Canada.

The Right Rev. David Giuliano, Moderator