Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:23
Eastern
District Watchword 2006
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A
Word from Gary
Greetings to all who receive this
newsletter. As we enter the warmest part of the summer, I send warmest
greetings to each of you as, together, we serve a God who is always seeking a
warm and affirming and uplifting relationship with us. If you have
already been on vacation, I trust that it was a relaxing and renewing time for
you. If you are still looking forward to a vacation time, it is my prayer
that you will have a wonderful family time together, that you will experience
rest and relaxation, and that you will return renewed and re-energized.
One of the
wonderful things to discuss with you this month is the direction into which one
of our district plans is taking us. We are planning an exciting District
Conference to be held on May 4-5 here in the Lehigh Valley. With the
leadership of the Will Sibert and Gary Marsh, we are looking to have Alan
Roxburgh keynote our conference on the evening of May 4. Alan is one of
the authors of "The Missional Leader: Equipping Your Church to Reach a
Changing World." This conference is for all who are interested --
lay and clergy alike. The program will occur at the East Hills
Church. Blocks of rooms have been reserved at area motels. More
information will come but, at this point, please see this conference as a time
when brothers and sisters from congregations throughout the district can come together
to:
Discover again the forces that affect the lives of people in our communities.
Connect congregational
members with their neighborhood, community, nation and world.
Keep
this connection so that missional imagination about the future of the
church becomes a regular part of our thinking.
Connect
all that is happening with the biblical narratives of God's purpose.
Reserve the
dates now. More information will come in the months ahead.
Another exciting
bit of news is that details for our District Clergy Conference next are taking
shape. Our special guest leader will be Dr. Joan Brown Campbell who is
the Director of the Department of Religion at the Chautauqua Institute and who
is known to many of us as the first ordained woman to have served as the
General Secretary of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the
USA. She is a personal friend of Brother Gordon Sommers who was instrumental
in the invitation to her. Our very relaxed program of the 2006 Retreat
will be repeated because it was so well received by all who attended this
year. The dates are January 30 through February 1, 2007, and the place is
the Mary Immaculate Retreat Center.
A very special
welcome to the ordained ranks is extended to Lance Fox who will be ordained at
Mainstreet Moravian Church in Northfield, MN, on August 11 at 5 pm; to Katie
Van Der Linden who will be ordained at Edgeboro Moravian Church in Bethlehem on
August 20 at 3 PM; and to Sayward Green who will be ordained at Graceham
Moravian Church in Thurmont, MD, on August 27 at 2 PM. Lance will be
installed at Church of the Redeemer in Dublin, OH, at 10:30 AM on August
20; Katie will be installed as one of the pastors at Advent Moravian
Church at 9:30 AM on August 27; and Sayward will be installed at First Church
in York, PA, on September 10 at 10:30 AM. We welcome Jeff Van Orden back
to our clergy community as he begins his work at Riverside congregation in
August and will be installed on September 10 at 11 AM. College Hill will
officially welcome the Geyers this month and Cynthia and David will be
officially installed on August 27 at 9:30 AM. One other installation has
been scheduled -- Leon Matthias at 4 PM on September 24 at Tremont Terrace
Moravian Church.
Last
year at this time I reported to you that there were some congregations
that had fallen significantly behind in their giving to the Provincial mission
for the first half of the year. Sister
Theresa has just shared similar news with the PEC for this
year. There are currently seven Eastern District congregations that have
made no payments to either administrative or mission (benevolence) sections of
the district and provincial budgets and fourteen more congregations that are
significantly behind in their 2006 giving. I encourage your board to
check up on the status of your contributions.
The members of the Resources Mission Team (formerly known as the Finance
Committee) at Synod were appalled to learn of the number of congregations that
do not make regular monthly contributions to our district and provincial
ministry (the ministry we do together) and asked that administration do a
better job of communicating this very real dilemma to congregations.
On
a personal note, Amy and I will be on vacation from August 1 through August 7
as we connect with Amy's daughter and her husband. Lucille will also be on vacation on similar dates -- July 28
through August 6. We (Lucille and I)
will be moving our offices down to the first floor of the Church Center about
August 10 as the office layout here begins to get reconfigured. The District Board will be meeting in Ohio at
the Schoenbrunn church on August 18-19 and Joint Board members of the Ohio
congregations are reminded of our gathering together on August 19 at 10 AM.
May
your summer be a blessed one for you. –
Gary
Prayer
Concerns and Joys
Our condolences
to Greg and Lauren Schafer and family on the death of Lauren’s
father, Thomas Barry, on June 28th in North Carolina.
Please hold in
prayer our brothers and sisters dealing with health issues as they move towards
strength and healing
Continue also to
remember those churches attempting to discern God’s will for pastoral
leadership.
Pastoral
Changes & Ordinations
Brother Lance
Fox has accepted the call of the church to serve as pastor of the Church
of the Redeemer Moravian Church, Dublin, OH. Lance is a May graduate of Moravian
Theological Seminary. His ordination is
scheduled for Friday, August 11 at 5:00 pm at the Northfield Moravian Church in
Minnesota. Bishop Kay Ward will
officiate. Lance’s first day in the
pulpit will be July 30. His installation
will be held during morning worship on August 20.
Sister Katie
Van Der Linden has accepted the call of the church to serve in team ministry
at Advent Moravian Church, Bethlehem, PA. Katie is also a May graduate of Moravian Theological Seminary.
Her ordination is scheduled for Sunday, August 20, at 3:00 pm at Edgeboro Moravian
Church with Bishop Doug Kleintop officiating.
Installation at Advent will be August 27.
Sister Sayward
Green’s ordination is scheduled for August 27, 2:00 pm at Graceham Moravian
Church, Thurmont, MD. Bishop Blair
Couch will officiate. Her installation
at York First will be September 10.
Presbyterial
Consecration
Sister Jennika
Borger will be consecrated a presbyter on Sunday, October 29, 4:00 pm, at
Edgeboro Moravian Church, Bethlehem.
Bishop Blair Couch will officiate.
- Schedule of Events
August
6-12 – Primary Conference at Hope Center, www.camphope.org.
Aug.
7-11 – Camp Bethany for grades 3-5 in Nashville, Ohio.
Oct.
4-7 – Quilt Camp at Hope Center.
Oct. 7 (Saturday) - Annual Youth Rally
at United Moravian Church in Manhattan.
The theme for this year is "Youth in Mission"
Nov. 13-15 – PA State Pastors’ Conference,
It’s A Different World: Global Community, Globalization and Our Local
Churches, at the Harrisburg Hilton
in downtown Harrisburg. Moravian
dinner Monday, November 13, 6:00 pm.
Call the Eastern District Office to register for the dinner.
Coming Events
January 22-23, 2007 – The 2007 Ohio Ministries Convocation at the University Plaza Hotel, Columbus, OH.
May 4-5, 2007 - District Conference focusing on the Great Commission, Stewardship, and Mission at East Hills Moravian Church, Bethlehem, PA.
July
2-9, 2007 – Moravian Young Adult Convo – “Make the Moravian Journey
Home…and catch a vision for our future.”
Prague, Czech Republic and Herrnhut, Germany. For ages 18-25.
June
18-21, 2008 – Eastern District Synod at Moravian College.
* F.
Y. I.
Online Courses at MTS
Moravian
Theological Seminary will begin offering online graduate courses during the
Fall 2006 semester. Students can participate from any location via computer
with a broadband connection and a webcamera.
This
fall, Genesis and Gender will be taught by Dr. Julye Bidmead, adjunct faculty
member at Moravian Seminary and assistant professor of Ancient Near Eastern
Religions at Miami University, Ohio. In this 3-credit, online course (description
follows) students will work at their own pace on learning modules that have specific
assignments and deadlines. The class will also meet together online during the
semester via webcam or online chat. (Prerequisite: an introductory course in
Old Testament or Biblical Studies at an accredited seminary.)
Online
discussions will be scheduled during times that are mutually convenient to all
class members. The 2006 fall semester
begins August 28th and ends December 15th.
Contact
Melissa Johnson in the Office of Admissions and Student Life to enroll or
inquire about these programs (800-843-6541) or melissajohnson@moravian.edu.
Visit the Seminary’s website for more information www.moravianseminary.edu.
Birthdays and Anniversaries
August
Birthdays
1 Mrs. Nancy Harstine
Mr. Jim McMahan
4 Mrs. Dorothy Semper
The Rev. Marge Hassler
5 Mrs. Eleanor Adams
The Rev. Richard Michel
8 Mrs. Barbara Caldwell
Ms. Bonnee Voss
10 The Rev. Dr. Mary Matz
11 The Rev. Terry Folk
14 Mr. Thomas Von Boeckmann
16 Mrs. Naomi Foran
17 Mrs. Shelia Clennon
The Rev. Jennika Borger
19 Mrs. Linda Marsh
Mr. Anthony Pula
21 The Rev. Dr. Stephen Nicholas
22 The Rev. Christine Johnson
23 Mrs. Pam Henning
24 The Rev. Aden Ward
30 Mrs. Amy Straughan
31 Mr. Wilton Grannum
August
Anniversaries
3 The Rev. & Mrs. John
Morman
6 The Rev. & Mrs. Kent
Trievel
9 The Rev. & Mrs.
Leslie McKoy
12 The Rev. & Mrs. Jeffrey Gehris
The Revs. David & Cynthia Geyer
16 The Rev. Ian and Dr. Eileen Edwards
22 The Rev. Dr. & Mrs. Stephen Nicholas
27 The Rev. Dr. & Mrs. Claude Knight
28 The Rev. & Mrs. Leon Matthias
30 The Rev. Jennifer & Mr. Greg Bowden
Churches celebrating
anniversaries in Aug.:
13 - 1837 - Newfoundland, PA
31 - 1873 -
Castleton Hill, Staten Island, NY
Please submit
information for publication to the District Office by the 15th of
each month