Sunday, September 13, 2026 - Ousted From the Garden
Hello St. Paul's Congregation.
Today was our first Sunday at 1092 Speers Rd. It was wonderful to have so many attend to experience this new space.
September 13, 2026
Deborah Laforet
“Ousted From the Garden”
Let us pray. May the words from my lips and the meditations of my heart be guided by your
Spirit and be words of wisdom for this day. Amen.
September is a time of transition for many, especially young people, with some going to school
for the first time, some switching schools, some moving from home to start university. September is so
full of beginnings that it feels like a new year. I always wondered why calendar aren’t set up from
September to August, rather than January to December.
For us here at St. Paul’s, this definitely feels like a beginning. We’ve come from seventy years
of faithful people gathering and serving, but this is a major transition for this congregation. We have
come from a traditional church building, and we’ve taken the risk to move somewhere new and
different. St. Paul’s isn’t being born, but it definitely feels like a new chapter, maybe even a separate
book all together, a sequel. Being in this space and moving forward in a different way will change us,
especially if we move forward with open minds and open hearts and remaining open to where the Spirit
might take us.
It feels appropriate that we begin our time hear in the Season of Creation. The proposal to
celebrate a "Time for Creation” or a season of creation was introduced to the church in 2007, so it’s
fairly new. It made sense though as many churches began to show concern for the environment and
began to expand their theology of creation and how we care for it. So, from September 1, to October
4th, the Feast of St. Francis in the Catholic Church, we intentionally take time to celebrate creation, to
pray for all life, and advocate for its care.
As we transition and feel this beginning at St. Paul’s, we’re going to explore some of the origin
stories in our Bible, from the first book, the Book of Genesis, which means beginning. We’ll look at
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how beginnings are portrayed through the different stories and characters, beginning with the first two,
Adam and Eve.
The story I chose might today seem unusual. Often we begin the season of Creation with God
announcing, Let there be Light! I decided to try something different this year, and explore the story of
Adam’s and Eve’s exit from the Garden of Eden.
This is often called the Fall, with a capital F. The only command God gave to Adam and Eve in
the garden was to not eat the fruit from the Tree of Good and Evil. Now, we all know what happens
when we are told not to do something. It becomes all we can think about. We wonder why we can’t do
it. We wonder what will happen if we do it. So, Eve is tempted into eating the fruit and then convinces
Adam to eat it too.
Now, there are a lot of theories and ideas around why they were not to eat from this tree, the
consequences for Adam and Eve eating this fruit, and the punishment from God, which would take many
Sundays to unpack. Today, we’re only going to focus on the banishment from the garden. As I said
before, many people deem this eating of the forbidden fruit as the Original Sin (capital letters again)and
the banishment from the garden as the Fall, but some have begun to wonder if the banishment can be
seen through a different light. Might we instead see it as a blessing, a natural consequence of maturing
and growing up. Adam and Eve began as very naive and innocent people, but when they disobeyed
God, they began to see life differently. They saw their nakedness and were ashamed. They felt guilt for
disobeying God. They were suddenly not so innocent and naive, as they were pushed from their safe
place and thrust into a strange new world.
Isn’t this the natural cycle we all go through? We all start as innocent and naive children, and,
hopefully, with lack of trauma in our childhoods, we retain that innocence into our youth. Teenagers are
known for being rebellious, for questioning their parents’ commandments, and even their wisdom, as
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they explore their own ideas and sense of self. It’s one of the ways we learn to become independent and
eventually leave home to create our own families and our own lives. Breaking rules and discovering the
world on our own, which inevitably means making our own mistakes, is how we learn, how we grow,
and how we make our own impressions on the world.
Adam and Eve left, or, more accurately, were banished from their home and their place of
security. It was time to try living on their own and beginning a new life.
We have not left Eden, although some of us may look back at 454 Rebecca Street as a more
secure time, a place full of wonderful memories, and a time of abundance. When St. Paul’s started 70
years ago, the world was a different place, where the church still had influence and was a central
gathering place for the community. The world has changed though and it was time for St. Paul’s to
change with it. We might grieve and look back at 454 Rebecca Street with longing, as Adam and Eve
probably did as they left their garden, but we also look forward. What lies ahead? How do we face the
coming future? Might leaving 454 Rebecca Street also be seen as a blessing, a time to make our own
way in the world, a time to figure out what the community needs of us now.
1092 Speers Road lies in the heart of this community. We are directly across from a hockey
arena where many families gather throughout the week. We are next door to a medical centre, where
many people go to alleviate their pain. We are nestled between a daycare centre and a probation and
parole office, between those just starting out in life and those who have made major mistakes in their
lives, from innocents in the garden to those dealing with the mistakes they’ve made, punished and
sometimes banished. Feels appropriate.
There is lots of opportunity for St. Paul’s and the main goal now is to get the word out to the
community. Come check us out. The Board is in talks with a marketing person who can help us spread
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the word. “We are not your typical church. Come check us out. Looking for space? We might be just
what you need.”
It’s a new world out there, and it’s time for the church to walk out of their lush gardens and take
a look at what’s out there and where the church fits. As Jesus travelled Galilee, exploring the needs of
the people, healing, preaching, advocating, and pushing boundaries, we must do the same. Where are
we needed? Who needs healing? Who needs us to speak up and fight for compassion and justice? Who
needs to hear from us, a fun, Affirming, and justice seeking community? Maybe 1092 Speers Road will
help us to see our community in a different light. Maybe we might see the sale of our old building and
the transition to this space as a blessing. Maybe, with the support of our community, we can continue to
make this a better world, God’s kingdom on earth. May it be so. Amen.