Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Garrett's first day
The Daily Independent had a very nice article about Reverend Garrett Bugg in the newspaper today. Read the article HERE.
Teresa Cassity took some great photos of Garrett and Jennifer. Here they are with members of the choir before worship.
This is during the announcements.
The church presented both ministers with U.K. shirts which they wore proudly during the lunch held in Garrett's honor.
Teresa Cassity took some great photos of Garrett and Jennifer. Here they are with members of the choir before worship.
This is during the announcements.
The church presented both ministers with U.K. shirts which they wore proudly during the lunch held in Garrett's honor.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
christmas play
The Not So Silent Night was based on the premise that the shepherds have been arrested for disturbing the peace. They are brought to trial, and the Christmas story is told through the testimonies of witnesses.
Here are the Baliff and the Assistant Baliff.
Here is the young family: Mary, Joseph, and the Baby Jesus.
Here is the defending attorney questioning one of the shepherds who gave a very compelling testimony.
"In that region there were shepherds keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them"
The defending attorney cleverly makes a case for making some noise on the night in question.
The prosecuting attorney questions Dr. Sigmund Fruitcake who diagnosed the shepherds as having "halitosis psychosis" caused from "inhaling sheep breath" and causes "delusion, confusion, and uncontrollable evangelism."
Here Ms. Shirley Busybody and Ms. Sophia Busybody give their testimonies that the soggy sheep smelling shepherds were running around waking everyone up shouting, "The Savior is born!" It created quite a commotion.
In a surprise move, the judge dismisses the charges. The courtroom erupts in a flurry of activity. "Joy to the World" echoes through the air!
We thank you, Lord, for the talent of our young people who brought the good news to us on Sunday afternoon. We also thank you for the blessing of Teresa Cassity in our midst. She does such a great job with our children, and we praise you for that!
Glory to God in the Highest!
Here are the Baliff and the Assistant Baliff.
Here is the young family: Mary, Joseph, and the Baby Jesus.
Here is the defending attorney questioning one of the shepherds who gave a very compelling testimony.
"In that region there were shepherds keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them"
The defending attorney cleverly makes a case for making some noise on the night in question.
The prosecuting attorney questions Dr. Sigmund Fruitcake who diagnosed the shepherds as having "halitosis psychosis" caused from "inhaling sheep breath" and causes "delusion, confusion, and uncontrollable evangelism."
Here Ms. Shirley Busybody and Ms. Sophia Busybody give their testimonies that the soggy sheep smelling shepherds were running around waking everyone up shouting, "The Savior is born!" It created quite a commotion.
In a surprise move, the judge dismisses the charges. The courtroom erupts in a flurry of activity. "Joy to the World" echoes through the air!
We thank you, Lord, for the talent of our young people who brought the good news to us on Sunday afternoon. We also thank you for the blessing of Teresa Cassity in our midst. She does such a great job with our children, and we praise you for that!
Glory to God in the Highest!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Friday, October 30, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Them's Fightin' Words
Many years ago - about 500 actually - a young priest was tortured by his own sinfulness, and even more tortured by the righteousness of God that terrified and condemned him. For years this priest wrestled with this image of God who expected more than what humanity could do. Then one day this man - named Martin Luther - had an epiphany while reading Romans 1:17. Luther realized that God did not expect us to be righteous, but knew that in the salvific event of Jesus' death we were made righteous with God. That epiphany led Luther to question the practice of selling indulgences which the church was doing. Luther knew that if we were made right in Jesus' death, then it wasn't right to sell forgiveness, even if the Pope said it was.
On October 31, 1517, Luther nailed a letter which came to be known as the 95 Theses on a church door in Wittenberg, Germany. He did this so that people coming in to worship on All Saints Day (November 1) would see the letter and it would engender discussion on the topic. With the letter Luther hoped to invite people to debate about it. But it became much more than a community debate. Word of the letter spread throughout the region, and within a few years Luther had been excommunicated, and the movement gave birth to a movement and a church. The Protestant Church.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Celebrating Calvin
If you haven't been at the Presbyterian Church (USA) website lately, why don't you go by for a visit!
Here's the LINK: http://www.pcusa.org/
As this is the 500th anniversary of Jean Calvin's birth, the site has been posting daily meditations of Calvin's writings. Here is today's reading:
Indeed, because they think no church exists where there are not perfect purity and integrity of life, they depart out of hatred of wickedness from the lawful church, while they fancy themselves turning aside from the faction of the wicked. (4.1.13.)
You can find the daily meditations on the pcusa's site after you scroll down to the bottom of the home page. And this is an interesting article about how one church is celebrating Calvin. I bet you'll learn something interesting!
October 20, 2009
Bowled over
Miami Valley Presbytery’s Calvin celebration goes down a different alley
by Jerry L. Van Marter
Presbyterian News Service
DAYTON, Ohio — Legend has it that when the Scottish reformer John Knox traveled to Geneva to meet his mentor, John Calvin, he was appalled to find the Presbyterian patriarch bowling on the Sabbath.
So offensive a Sabbath activity was (lawn) bowling among many Puritan reformers that the Church of Scotland — which Knox founded — has at times banned the practice.
But John Calvin was an avid bowler ... and any day of the week was good for him.
And so it is for the Presbytery of Miami Valley. So much so, that the presbytery is hosting a bowling-and-birthday-cake party on Reformation Sunday (Oct. 25) to mark the 500th anniversary of Calvin’s birth.
“We tend to ‘over-churchify’ things,” Miami Valley Executive Presbyter Dennis Piermont told the Presbyterian News Service in an Oct. 20 interview. “We know there’s lots of good scholarship and theological events going on around the ‘Calvin 500,’ so we started thinking, ‘What else can we do?’”
The Rev. Julia Wharff, pastor of Dayton’s Sugar Creek Presbyterian Church, had known of the Calvin-Knox bowling-on-Sunday conflict since hearing about it in seminary. Then last winter she went bowling with friends for the first time in many years and the idea stuck like a thumb in a too-tight Ebonite.
“I had been looking around and everything about the Calvin 500th looked so serious, and some of the opportunities, like going to Geneva, were way too expensive,” Wharff said, “so I thought, ‘Why not just celebrated his birthday the way we usually celebrate birthdays — with a party.’”
“We know Calvin was a lawn bowler but we’re in Ohio so that’s a little impractical at this time of year,” Pierpont said of the decision to stage the event at a conventional indoor alley.
“It’s perfect for us Presbyterians,” says presbytery moderator the Rev. Bill Reisenweaver. “We’re used to splits!”
Miami Valleyites apparently like the idea, too. Piermont said upwards of 100 bowlers are expected to attend. “This is a whole new way of walking in Calvin’s shoes,” he said, “in this case for only a small rental fee.”
The wording on the Calvin birthday cake is even going to have a bowling-related theme, but Piermont assured, it won’t be a foul line.
Here's the LINK: http://www.pcusa.org/
As this is the 500th anniversary of Jean Calvin's birth, the site has been posting daily meditations of Calvin's writings. Here is today's reading:
Indeed, because they think no church exists where there are not perfect purity and integrity of life, they depart out of hatred of wickedness from the lawful church, while they fancy themselves turning aside from the faction of the wicked. (4.1.13.)
You can find the daily meditations on the pcusa's site after you scroll down to the bottom of the home page. And this is an interesting article about how one church is celebrating Calvin. I bet you'll learn something interesting!
October 20, 2009
Bowled over
Miami Valley Presbytery’s Calvin celebration goes down a different alley
by Jerry L. Van Marter
Presbyterian News Service
DAYTON, Ohio — Legend has it that when the Scottish reformer John Knox traveled to Geneva to meet his mentor, John Calvin, he was appalled to find the Presbyterian patriarch bowling on the Sabbath.
So offensive a Sabbath activity was (lawn) bowling among many Puritan reformers that the Church of Scotland — which Knox founded — has at times banned the practice.
But John Calvin was an avid bowler ... and any day of the week was good for him.
And so it is for the Presbytery of Miami Valley. So much so, that the presbytery is hosting a bowling-and-birthday-cake party on Reformation Sunday (Oct. 25) to mark the 500th anniversary of Calvin’s birth.
“We tend to ‘over-churchify’ things,” Miami Valley Executive Presbyter Dennis Piermont told the Presbyterian News Service in an Oct. 20 interview. “We know there’s lots of good scholarship and theological events going on around the ‘Calvin 500,’ so we started thinking, ‘What else can we do?’”
The Rev. Julia Wharff, pastor of Dayton’s Sugar Creek Presbyterian Church, had known of the Calvin-Knox bowling-on-Sunday conflict since hearing about it in seminary. Then last winter she went bowling with friends for the first time in many years and the idea stuck like a thumb in a too-tight Ebonite.
“I had been looking around and everything about the Calvin 500th looked so serious, and some of the opportunities, like going to Geneva, were way too expensive,” Wharff said, “so I thought, ‘Why not just celebrated his birthday the way we usually celebrate birthdays — with a party.’”
“We know Calvin was a lawn bowler but we’re in Ohio so that’s a little impractical at this time of year,” Pierpont said of the decision to stage the event at a conventional indoor alley.
“It’s perfect for us Presbyterians,” says presbytery moderator the Rev. Bill Reisenweaver. “We’re used to splits!”
Miami Valleyites apparently like the idea, too. Piermont said upwards of 100 bowlers are expected to attend. “This is a whole new way of walking in Calvin’s shoes,” he said, “in this case for only a small rental fee.”
The wording on the Calvin birthday cake is even going to have a bowling-related theme, but Piermont assured, it won’t be a foul line.
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