Announcements – 22 July, 2026
Worship … at 9:30am. We hope that you will participate in person. If you are unwell, please join the live streamed service. Pastor James will this week’s service.
To access the live streamed service, please go to the Knox’s YouTube channel or click here.
The printed service will be available before Sunday morning.
Sunday Coffee Hour … the next coffee hour will be on August 2.
Joys & Concerns…may we experience the healing presence of Christ as we uphold one another in prayer – sharing joys and concerns draws us together as a community of faith. Please pray for …
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Please pray for Kittie and Bruce and their family as they grieve the death of Kittie’s brother on July 7th, 2026.
Please let your elder or a member of session know if there are changes to your prayer requests!
Celebrations
August 13 Ian Sturgess
August 22 Joan Hartemink
August 29 Dennis & Lilian Sutherland
August 31 Jim & Wendy Jeatt
or 250-592-6323. Please do NOT use the St. Andrew’s office contact information or your inquiries may not be answered. Additionally, please help Wendy keep her church and work life separate by keeping Knox business limited to her office hours, so she can enjoy her church life to the fullest. Welcome to the office, Wendy!
Lost and Found … please check the lost and found bin in the narthex. It will be emptied at the end of the month.
Knox Book Club … New attendees are always welcome! Here is a list of books and dates for 2026. The next meeting is Saturday August 8 at 1:00pm at Anne’s house. We will be discussing “The Lion Women of Tehran” by Marjan Kamali.
VIP (Victoria Island Presbytery) Summer Camp 2026 … A program of the Presbyterian Church in Canada. This year’s locations and dates are as follows: Rathtrevor Provincial Park July 25 – 30, Rathtrevor Provincial Park July 30 – August 3. For more information go to our website or contact the registrar at [email protected].
Collective 2026 (Aug 12 – 15, 2026 at Brock University) … Collective 2026, an event for youth,young adults, and their leaders. Register here
Journey for Hope … Team ‘Together in Motion & Song’ is raising money for the Journey for Hope, which supports PWS&D’s food security projects. For more information please contact our Team Captain, Patti Jackson. Members of Knox Victoria, Knox Sooke, Saanich Peninsula, Trinity, and St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Churches are invited to join us for the following events:
- Sing for Hope: a charity hymn sing at Trinity (2964 Tillicum Rd.) on Thursday, September 17 at 7:00 PM.
- Walk for Hope: a charity walk at Esquimalt Gorge Park (1070 Tillicum Rd.) on Saturday, September 26 at 9:30 AM.
Sunday, July 26, 2026 – Mission Moment
Conflict can continue to destabilize lives, even after the fighting ends. After the Tigray peace agreement in Ethiopia, communities felt relief from violence, but many families still struggle. The two-year conflict caused food shortages. Ato, a farmer, lost all his household assets in the war, and his family ate once daily. Things changed when Ato’s family participated in an agriculture and livelihoods program where he received training, seeds, goats and hand tools. Equipped with new knowledge and supplies, Ato was able to resume his work. Now he is growing healthy food for his household. The family’s two goats had four kids, one of which the family sold to cover financial gaps. This program was supported by PWS&D and Canadian Foodgrains Bank, in collaboration with Tearfund.
Prayer Partnership
Wednesday, July 22 We pray for the safety, rejuvenation and enjoyment of all children during this time of summer vacation.
Thursday, July 23 We pray for the people, ministries and mission of the Presbytery of Cape Breton.
Friday, July 24 We pray for staff and campers at Camp Kannawin in Sylvan Lake, AB, as they learn and grow together in faith in a Christian camping community.
Saturday, July 25 We pray for the Board of Directors at Crieff Hills Retreat Centre, that their meetings are filled with clear vision, faithful discernment and joyful conversation.
Sunday, July 26 We pray for a wonderful celebration at Mistawasis Presbyterian Church as they celebrate 150 years of ministry together.
Monday, July 27 We pray for staff and campers at Camp Douglas, Roberts Lake, BC, as they learn and grow together in faith in a Christian camping community.
Tuesday, July 28 We pray that the Holy Spirit will guide us as we seek to understand and proclaim God’s truth in ways that are faithful to Scripture and relevant to our time.
Wednesday, July 29 Lord, we praise you for church schools that have raised funds for PWS&D’s development projects in the past 75-plus years, and ask that you inspire church school leaders and all people to respond to Christ’s call to serve those in need.
Thursday, July 30 (World Day Against Trafficking in People) We pray for safety and healing for victims of human trafficking, for human rights advocates working to end all forms of slavery and for those working to protect vulnerable people.
Friday, July 31 We pray for staff and campers at Camp VIP in Nanaimo, BC, as they learn and grow together in faith in a Christian camping community.
Saturday, August 1 (Emancipation Day) Help us to remember and maintain the freedom of all people, especially those who do not share our culture, language, religious beliefs or country of origin.
Social Action Spotlight (July – September 2026): Nuclear disarmament and peacemaking
In our current global climate, it is more critical than ever to work for a world free of the threat of nuclear weapons and to hold to the principle that Canada remain free of nuclear weapons. Advocating for global nuclear disarmament, while also supporting peacemaking efforts that strengthen bonds within and across community difference, builds communities where all God’s creation can flourish.
Peacemaking is an intentional way of relating (to people and the earth) that centers mutual wellbeing. It works against injustice, oppression and anything that diminishes the integrity of God’s creation. Nuclear weapons undermine that work. Catastrophic and indiscriminate, they are incompatible with any vision of a just peace. Words from a report adopted in 1983 by General Assembly remain apt: “no nation, including our own, has the right before God to resort to nuclear weapons, either offensively or defensively.” (A&P 1983, pp. 373, 44).
Peacemaking advocates have worked for decades towards the negotiation of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (Ban Treaty), which passed in 2017 and came into force in 2021. Unfortunately, no NATO members, including Canada, support the Ban Treaty because NATO’s strategy includes nuclear weapons. The Treaty’s significance, however, lies in the audacious collective hope of people, including the 122 nations that supported the Ban Treaty for a world free of nuclear weapons. Living Faith, a subordinate standard of the church, states “We protest against the world arms race that diminishes our ability to fight hunger, ignorance, poverty and disease. We fear nuclear war and the devastation it would bring. We affirm that God is at work when people are ashamed of the inhumanity of war and work for peace with justice.” (8.5.3) That work for peace with justice is no less important today than when Living Faith was written.
Reflection Questions
- The church has repeatedly spoken out against nuclear weapons and as recently as 2018 has advocated that Canada sign and ratify the Ban Treaty (A&P 2018, pp. 286-288, 22). Why do you think the church has taken this position? What do you think about the quote from Living Faith tying the arms race to the diminished collective ability to fight the kinds of things feeding conflict (like “hunger, ignorance, poverty and disease”)?
- What aspects of peacemaking and justice work are most critical in your community and what can you and your church do to support them? A recent study guide, “Peacemaking: a reflective resource” is available online at presbyterian.ca/justice/social-action/peacemaking, under “Educational Resources.”
What can you do?
- Advocate with elected officials for peacemaking initiatives, including supporting the Ban Treaty. Template letters for the Ban Treaty and other topics are on the church’s Advocacy webpage (presbyterian.ca/resources/advocacy) under “International Affairs.”
- Support the work of faith-based peace organization, and church partner, Project Ploughshares (ploughshares.ca).