How to use ZOOM easy!  Try it out!  This is an invite from Resurrection Church in Aptos for their Holy Hour 4/3/2000:
“We invite you to join us tomorrow morning (Friday) at 11 am for our live-stream Holy Hour (Exposition and Adoration of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament) and Stations of the Cross with Women on The Way of the Cross.
“It will also be recorded and be put on our website so you can watch and pray at your convenience if you can’t join us at 11 am.
“To join the Holy Hour, click this link a little before 11 am on Friday morning: Resurrection Holy Hour   If asked, enter Meeting ID # 263-332-736 (no dashes).
If you’ve downloaded the app to your phone or tablet, simply select “Join a Meeting” and enter the Meeting ID#Â 263-332-736 (no dashes).
If you wish to join by any telephone to listen to the Holy Hour, call 1-669-900-6833 (a San Jose number) and when prompted, Meeting ID # 263-332-736 (no dashes).
Click this link to view and/or download the worship aid for the Holy Hour. Holy Hour Worship Aid
If you don’t want to print it out, you can open it in one window and still have the video stream open in another window, then you can look at the worship aid when needed.
For those of you who are new to Zoom, please read the instructions below to help you with the proper “Zoom Etiquette” for being a good “Zoom Neighbor”!
Major face lift and expansion for Resurrection Church’s MARKEY Community Center coming soon? 5 1/2 million needed before construction begins. One million raised so far. MARKEY needs money.
Where is it?  Resurrection Church’s MARKEY Community Center is located in the heart of Aptos, CA. Across from the library with shopping centers on two sides, Due to it’s locaation in Aptos, MARKEY Community Cenrer plays a central role in the life of Aptosia aka Aptos, CA and surrounding areas.
What is MARKEY Community Center (MCC)? It’s where voters go to cast their ballot. It’s the hub for Resurrection Catholic Community, where they live out their Christian faith with programs for Youth, Seniors and vulnerable persons needing showers, socks, food and clothing. Families who cannot pay their electric bill go for help. Families celebrate the lives of their loved ones and the marriages of their children.
Start date for construction? Resurrection’s MARKEY CC planned to start construction last August. But the Catholic Diocese changed the rules of the game and said that all money had to be raised before breaking ground. Opps!
What’s happening now?  Construction will begin at Resurrection’s MARKEY Community Center once they’ve raised $ 5.7 MILLION.   This past year they raised $1 MILLION dollars, all dollars from 60% of the parishioners who give regularly.
Want to know more?  Come to any Mass during the weekend of Feb. 23 -24, 2020 and there will be presentations why now, how the money will be raised and how you can help make the MaARKEY project happen soon  Masses are on Saturday at 5 PM , Sunday morning at 8:15 AM, 10:15 AM and 6 PM. Come and find out how you can help. And for more info, go to:  renewmarkeycommunitycenter.org
Spiritual exercises? How to converse with God?  How can you expand your daily consciousness of God, who is in all and all present.
Catholic priest Father Larry  learned after the death of his wife Joan nineteen years ago how much he needed God as his Friend, the same way as Abraham was God’s friend.
“But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend. ( Isaiah 41:8).
Says Father Larry: There’s one, two three spiritual exercises you can do daily, which take about 5 or so minutes a day.  These spiritual exercises are a way of expanding your consciousness of God who is in all and all present.
1) Think back over the last 24 hours for an interaction or event that went well in your life. Re-experience those moments and hold them in your consciousness. Then, give thanks to God for those moments and event.
2) Next. Now think back over the last 24 hours for an interaction, project or event that did not go well. This time think how it might have gone better and replay in your consciousness how it might have gone. And now, ask God for grace that next time that it will go better.
3) Think ahead to the next 24 hours. Think about what might happen in the next 24 hours, about up-coming  projects, events or interactions which you think will occur.  Pick a particular possible event. And ask God for strength and wisdom as you experience that up-coming event or interaction.
That’s the One, Two , Three spiritual exercises you can utilize to expand your consciousness of God as your Friend and Companion on the Way. Thank Father Larry of Resurrection Catholic Community, for these suggestions.
written by Cameron Jackson  7/29/2019   JAJ48@aol.com
Music from the greats? Love it played and sung the right way?
Come to St. John’s Episcopal — close to Seacliff State Beach in Aptos, CA — for more splendid music.  From today, celebrating 130 years of love for God, Christ his Son and service to all God’s people.
Listen. Come and hear more great music. in Aptos, CA
Catholic child abuse – what & when did Pope Francis & prior Pope Benedict know about USA child abuse? How will there be accountability? By independent verification?
Who protects the children?
What are Catholic parish priests saying from pulpit? The following sermon was preached 9/1/2018 by Fr. Larry at Resurrection Catholic in Aptos, CA. Elaborating on the Lutheran theologian Kierkegard — “It is I to whom the Word speaks.”   published by Cameron Jackson, licensed CA psychologist
What about that supernatural stuff?  Did Jesus Christ –crucified, tortured and hung from a cross – really rise from the dead?
Or is Easter just about sharing eggs and going to the  beach? Sharing time with people? Beer and bongo drums?
What’s politically correct for Aptos CA churches to talk about?
Here’s what persons heard from the pulpit attending Resurrection Catholic Community 3/31/18Â Â and Christ Lutheran Church 4/1/18Â Â in Aptos, CA:
A 3/31/2018 8 PM Catholic service in Aptos, CA:  Two people were “first time visitors” at the Easter service at the church.  The large church of 400-600 was three quarters filled.  The service was a familiar one. Candles lit by a fire with procession. The Word spoken including a homily by the priest.
The priest told his Easter story of a resurrection moment.  As a young priest ( he had been two years a priest) in order to meet families in the Diocese he walked about 2 hours across the Philippine Islands in 100 degree humidity. He was sent out ‘two by two’ without taking food, clothing or provisions. That was back in 2004.
It was very hot and the priest  was quite tired from the two hour journey when he arrived.  When he arrived he was graciously welcomed to a small home by a husband and wife in their late 70’s.
The woman welcoming him — with a hug which is rarely done in the Philippine culture (they shake hands) — and she said it was the most important moment in her life;  this was the first time a priest had entered her home.
This was was a ‘resurrection’ moment  for the priest.  The woman’s words inspired him. He was no longer tired and exhausted.   He experienced God’s love through other people.  Walking two hours home afterwards he was not tired.
Take away from the sermon at Resurrection Catholic Community:   When you get discouraged or depressed, think of ‘resurrection’ moments in your own life said the priest. Think of moments of great joy, peace and love that come through the connections and experiences you share with other people. You have your stories of resurrection to share.
What people heard at Christ Lutheran Church April 1, 2018 could be titled  The Power of Assumptions.
You can hear the sermon via YouTube. When it’s available a link will be included to it here.
Can people make changes from the bottom up instead of top down? The sermon mentioned  Rosa Parks ( 1960s black civil rights) and the Florida students ( 17 students killed by a former student) as examples of people who  make change from the bottom up….
Refugee Resettlement is front and center in the Easter bulletin for Christ Lutheran April 1, 2018:
Per the bulletin, this year’s Easter offering at Christ Lutheran Church in Aptos CAÂ goes to the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) which “has helped over 500,000 refugees”.
Refugee Resettlement Watch (RRW) follows closely the 9 main agencies that resettle people, one of which is LIRS. In 2006 the American taxpayers paid 97% of all the costs incurred by LIRS [18.6 million of the 20.9 million]. Taxpayers also paid roughly 97% of all costs encourage by agencies that do resettlement for the Catholic church and the Episcopal church.
The former CEO for LIRS Linda Hartke was paid a $300,000. package until she was fired by the LIRS board for a variety of reasons.
By the year 300 or so roughly a quarter of the Roman Empire became Christian.
As portrayed in the gospels, Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. No one saw ‘this private act’ done by God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
Later, Jesus appeared to multiple people in many situations yet those people initially did not recognize Christ. Mary Magdalene did not recognize him until he called her by name. Christ told her not to touch him as he was not yet raised.  Doors and windows were locked and Christ showed up.
So what is the  Easter Resurrection? Simple but not simple.
Read the gospels for yourself. Read those stories and let God speak to you directly. The Wall Street Journal article mentioned above [The Easter Effect…] is a good start for thinking about the Christian faith.
What to do? Change Safeway hours of operation to 6 AM – midnight. Safeway in Redding CA reduced hours and saw crime go down. Most crimes occur after midnight at the Redding Safeway store.
And move the booze back near the milk and eggs. That will reduce petty theft of alcohol. Make it as time consuming to get alcohol as getting milk and eggs.
The Safeway store in Aptos, CA places alcohol front and center near the entrance to the Safeway store. Talk to the managers. Ask Safeway to  move the alcohol to the back wall across from the milk.
Aptos Psychologist: The local paper is filled with simple ways how to eat more vegetables at breakfast. How about simple ways to reduce crime — like move the booze to the far end of the Safeway store in Aptos? Close Safeway stores after midnight?
The rainbow was taken by one of our Gardeners JoAnn,  in March, 2018.  Wow!
Some Aptos Community Garden plots are available! Call 831 688-5727 x 2.
Since 2010, the Garden, located at the end of Soquel Avenue in Aptos, CA,  offers small plots for people to grow organic with the opportunity to meet other Gardeners.
You can see the white steeple of Christ Lutheran Church in Aptos, CA in the background.
Lots of things going on at Christ Lutheran. Services are at 10 AM on Sunday.
An advocate for persons seeking asylum from Central America,  attorney John W. Allured (CA bar license #84770) spoke on Immigration and the Law  at Christ Lutheran Church in Aptos, CA on Sunday, February 11, 2018.
Christ Lutheran Church in Aptos, CA supports the AMMPARO program. The church currently provides housing and other support for a  family from El Salvador. The church may assist persons seeking refugee status via advocacy in the legal process as Guardian Angels. Â
AMMPARO was envisioned to accompany children today and in the future who are forced to flee their communities because of complex and interrelated reasons, including chronic violence, poverty, environmental displacement and lack of opportunities in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.
Some of attorney John Allured’s remarks and some questions that were asked:
“Most persons seeking asylum from the Triangle countries (San Salvador, Guatamala & Honduras) seek asylum due to “gang violence”.
 Answer:  “There are no mandatory bars to establishing a credible fear or persecution or torture. However, there are mandatory bars to asylum or withholding of removal. Th e asylum officer does not make a final decision whether you are subject to a mandatory bar to asylum or withholding of removal.Jul 15, 2015
If “credible fear” is found the case moves forward to “removal status”, the juvenille is then “placed” and the case goes before a judge.
“In 2016, 50% of mothers with children lacked counsel;Â of these, 90% were removed.
“The chances of defeating removal increased 5 times when migrant had counsel. So says Attorney Allured.
“How does ‘gang violence” fit into all this? If only “gang violence” you have to do your homework to establish that your case fits within one of five categories.
“Asylum is discretionary. You must show “good character” via employment, church membership, credible witnesses and that you are a deserving person.
There are two Hearings – The first one which is on the Master Calendar is open to the public.
Asylum applicants have no “right” to due process. San Francisco judges (the one he observed) bend over backwards so applicants can establish their case. In San Francisco (his experience),c ases are typically continued 5-6 times before moving on to”removal” status. Which judge hears the case — in what part of the US — matters significantly.
Church congregations can serve as “guardian angels”. There’s nothing to fear. It’s an informal process. Judges do not wear robes. The federal rules of evidence serve as a guide.
Questions asked during and after Mr. Allured’s presentation at Christ Lutheran church in Aptos, CA  included:
 What about economics? If a woman’s kids are starving is that a reason to establish asylum? Answer: No. You have to establish more than economic hardship. You have to show harm, that you were threatened, a family member killed.
 What about domestic violence? Terrorizing woman is very frightening one attendee asked. Answer: There are avenues for women …
There are  reports that persons who enter illegally  do not show up for their first court appearance. Know anything about that? Attorney Allurd replied that he did not know about no shows for court appearances. [One report states that 135,000 go missing and do not show up.]
After the presentation persons attending were encouraged to meet each other.
  Take Away message:  Per this presentation, you better get an attorney if you are from Central America seeking asylum. Persons seeking asylum in the U.S. have no legal right to representation.
Concerning gang violence,  Monterey County (Salinas, CA is the county seat) is ranked as the youth homicide capital of California for four out of the past five years. Gang violence is continually in the news. California has its own gang related problems.
People are not fleeing California for Central America because of ‘gang violence’. That there is economic opportunity, freedom and rule by law here in the U.S. draws people here. Legally and illegally. People who come need to follow the U.S.A. immigration laws that are in place.
written by Cameron Jackson  drcameronjackson@gmail.com
What do you know? Speak up about Aptos CA and enviorns
Free Speech! Know something about Aptos CA or enviorns?
Your VOICE is welcome here on Monterey Bay Forum — a ‘forum’ for all views.
Licensed Psychologist PSY 14762 Dr. Cameron Jackson writes under her own name on issues including autism and psychology.
Other people chose to write under ‘pen names’ — and you can too. So long as you have some expertise on a subject and will be polite — you are welcome!
Speak up! Free speech is precious. And yes there are ‘consequences’ to free speech — people may disagree with you. And that, too, is a precious gift of our Constitution.
Location:Â The Aptos CA and Santa Cruz CA area are located about 75 miles south of San Francisco, CA.
Housing:Â Â The medium price for a home in Santa Cruz just surpassed $850 KÂ — up considerably in the last 3-4 years.
Traffic:Â Â Traffic in this area has become …. impossible …. people now plan their day around traffic conditions.
Sanctuary Cities:  Santa Cruz as well as San Francisco are ‘Sanctuary Cities’ …. which have legal consequences for all.
