Cardinal Quilt
by Sarah Parker
This week’s Offering is a photograph of Sarah Parker’s beautiful cardinal quilt. The cardinal symbolizes many things in various cultures, among them Christian symbolism, in which the cardinal is thought to represent the sacrificial blood of Christ.
Sacrifices can be of many kinds, and in our church life we are asked to sacrifice time, talent, and treasure. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Sarah and her daughter Erica have made hundreds of masks, and Sarah reports that her quilting group has made more than 2,000! St. John’s members Melissa Pederson and Elizabeth Moe have also made and donated masks, and there may be other members of whom we are not aware. Masks have been donated to Abbott and Children’s Hospitals. Also, masks can be delivered on Mondays to fire stations, for distribution to food shelves, congregate living facilities, corner stores, and other places that serve community needs.
The cardinal is a most appropriate symbol for the act of giving oneself for others, an ethic that lives at the very center of our Christian life and work.
