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 from the District office. November has arrived and we are back to Daylight
Savings Time. U.S. Thanksgiving will
soon be celebrated (Canadian Thanksgiving has already occurred). As usual, the Packers have gotten off to a
terrible start.
As we enter into November, I would point
to a couple of significant events. The
ecumenical Pastors’ Conference sponsored by the PA Council of Churches occurs
on Nov. 13-15 in Harrisburg. This is a
great event and one where we pastors are able to be in touch with each
other. Please consider supporting your
pastor’s attendance. I would remind all
clergy to get their registrations in "el pronto" -- especially for
our Moravian dinner -- because our Moravian contingent seems to, thus far, be
below the reservations we have made.
The other event occurs two weekends previously – the PEC will be joining
with leaders from all denominations in Minnesota to participate in the
Missional Church Consultation. It will
be held at St. Paul's Lutheran Seminary.
Mission Awareness has been a focus across
the province this year. A large contingent
of Eastern District Moravians will be making their way to Mississippi from November
3rd through the 12th as a district-wide mission team to continue our Moravian
efforts there. Thank you to all who are
attending and to all who are helping to support their effort. Special thanks to the Mission office and
Lisa Mixon's leadership in this effort.
We celebrate with Sue Koenig as she
repeats her vows of consecration as a Presbyter at Schoenbrunn Moravian Church
on Sunday, Nov. 4, at 4 PM, and with Marian Boyle who speaks her vows of
consecration at Palmyra on Sunday, Nov. 19, at 4 PM.
We are so grateful for the return of the
Rev. Diane Joseph from her almost year-long disability. She has accepted a new call to again serve
at the Emmaus Moravian Church in team ministry with Kevin Henning. She returned to work on Nov. 1 and she will
be installed on Nov. 26.
Our 2008 District Synod Planning committee,
under the leadership of Sister Barbara Dietterich, will hold its first meeting
at the Nazareth Moravian Church on Saturday, Nov. 11, from 9 AM to 4 PM.
We look forward to our District Clergy Retreat
on January 30-Feb. 1, and I remind all clergy who have not yet registered to
get their registrations in within the next couple of weeks. And do not forget our district conference to
be held at East Hills on May 4-5.
Registration forms will be forthcoming soon from the District Stewardship
Commission.
November is a month in which we are especially
mindful of giving thanks, and we surely can give thanks this month for these
items of news. We continue to be
grateful for a dedicated corps of clergy and a host of laity who serve our church. We are grateful for the vision expressed by
the District Synod of 2004 that affirmed the fact of how important it is to
faithfully live out our faith in order to enable Christ’s ministry to occur and
how that vision was reaffirmed by the Provincial Synod of 2006 as that synod
called upon all congregations and members of the Northern Province to Reclaim
the Great Commission. We are grateful
for congregations that see possibilities for mission and who stretch themselves
to see that mission occurs in ways such as we see in the events listed
above. We are grateful for the work of
our two district staff persons (Chris Giesler and Marie Couts) as they continue
their sharing of the vision in their work in youth ministry and Christian
Education across this district. We are
grateful for the work of our provincial staff person (Gary Marsh) as he leads
congregations in their reclaiming the great commission, especially in the areas
of stewardship and discipleship.
Finally, we are grateful for our vision as a province -- “Christ is
risen! We follow him in faith and
mission.”
Until next month, blessings. -- Gary
Prayer Concerns and Joys
Our condolences
to Sister Pat Honszer and family on the death of her husband, Jim, on
October 18. Services were held at the
Schoeneck Moravian Church, Nazareth.
Pat serves as pastor of the Fry’s Valley Moravian Church, New
Philadelphia, OH.
Baby Jonathan
Frank is home and doing well.
Please continue
to hold in prayer all our brothers and sisters dealing with health issues as
they move towards strength and healing.
Ohio
EDEB member elected
The second ballot for
electing a lay representative from the Ohio region has resulted in an
election. We welcome Sister Marcia Johnston to the EDEB.
Marcia is a member of The Promise congregation and she will begin her
duties immediately. The EDEB is once again at full strength. Thank
you to all pastors and boards for your attention to this matter. Your
prayers of encouragement and support for Marcia and for the entire EDEB
are solicited. If you would wish to send a note of encouragement to
Marcia, her email address is taylorpuppy@columbus.rr.com.
While I write this, I want to say a special word of
appreciation to Jill
Westbrook who served in this position as the Ohio area representative
for the past 10 years. Jill has done a wonderful job and now the PEC
is the beneficiary of her skills and gifts.
- Schedule of Events
Nov. 2, 7:30 pm, Moravian Historical Society
annual business meeting at the Whitefield House in Nazareth.
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.
January 30-February 1, 2007 – 2007 Eastern District Pastors’ Retreat at Mary Immaculate Retreat Center. The Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell, leader.
May 4-5, 2007 - District Conference focusing on the Great Commission, Stewardship, and Mission at East Hills Moravian Church, Bethlehem, PA. Cost $35/person. We are encouraging attendance of at least 5 from every congregation – more are welcome! Registration brochures will be sent in Jan.
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.
News
from the District Youth Ministry Office
Young Adult
Convo 2007 Update
Plans
are continuing to come together for our Young Adult Convo next summer that will
take us to Prague and Herrnhut to celebrate the 550th anniversary of
the founding of the Moravian Church.
This trip is for young adults ages 18-25. Registration forms have been mailed to all congregations, and
they are also available on the web at www.mcnp.org/Convo2007. This event will take place July 1-9, 2007,
and will begin in Bethlehem, PA.
There
is good news on the fund raising front.
The Eastern District Christian Education Commission has approved a
$200.00 grant to each member of an Eastern District Congregation that
will be going to Convo.
Sr. High/Post
High Winter Retreat 2007
The dates for
this year’s winter retreat will be January 12-14, 2007 at the Hope Conference
and Renewal Center. The theme for this
year’s retreat will be “Another 40 Hours” and will deal with the importance of
time. All of time is a gift from God,
how we use the time given to each of us reflects the gratitude that we have for
God’s grace. This retreat is open to
all youth in high school through age 21.
Brochures for the retreat are available on line www.mcnp.org/youth.
Creation 2007
June 27 – June
30, 2007 will be the dates for next summer's Creation Music Festival. Once
again there will be a Moravian Encampment and we invite all congregations to
consider joining us. The Creation Music Festival is basically a Woodstock-type
of event with the big difference being that the music is all performed by
Christian artists for 4 full days of music and worship.
There will be an
organizational/informational meeting on Sunday, November 19 at 3:30 PM at the
Church Center in Bethlehem PA. You can find more information about Creation at
their web site: www.creationfest.com
IBOC
News
Ordering from the Interprovincial Board
of Communication JUST GOT EASIER!
The IBOC is
pleased to announce a new cart system has been added to the www.moravian.org
website. This new system allows you to carefully shop the publications that are
available through the IBOC at your computer any time day or night. Each
publication is described and displayed through an image of the cover so you
know exactly what you are ordering. Check out the online catalog today to see
everything the IBOC has to offer including the most current sales and
promotions. If you have any questions about particular items, Deb Swanson,
Customer Relations, would be glad to assist you by calling 800.732.0591 or by
emailing pubs@mcnp.org.
Speaking of sales
and promotions*, the Moravian Book of Worship pew edition will be
50% off from November 1, 2006 through December 31, 2006. If you've always
wanted a copy of your own or are a congregation looking to replace damaged
copies or to add more for your growing membership, now is the time to
order! The sale applies only to the Pew Edition.
Supply
Preaching Reimbursement
Here is a simple
reminder for all congregations. Please remember that, in the Moravian
Church, a bishop is not salaried for the task of being a bishop. As you
invite any of our bishops to preach or to lead workshops, please remember that,
if they are active pastors, their congregation needs to be reimbursed for their
time away and an honorarium and expense reimbursement would be
appropriate or, if they are retired, an honorarium and expense
reimbursement would be appropriate.
Birthdays
and Anniversaries
November
Birthdays
1 The Rev. Percival Gordon
5 Mr. Warren Gericke
8 The Rev. Gary Straughan
9 The Rev. Thomas
Christianson
The Rev. John Case
10 The Rev. Michael Foran
Mrs. Jill Westbrook
12 The Rev. Carol Reifinger
13 The Rev. David Wickmann
14 The Rev. Dr. Hermann Weinlick
19 The Rev. Philip Lythcott
The Rev. Katie Van Der Linden
21 Mrs. Carole Freeman
Mrs. Theresa Kunda
22 The Rev. Lois Bly
Mr. Bill Hassler
26 The Rev. David Sommers
28 Mrs. Judy Bergmann
30 The Rev. Otto Dreydoppel, Sr.
Ms. Katrina Lehman
The Rev. Chris Giesler
November
Anniversaries
3 The Rev. & Mrs. Ron
Rice
6 The Rev. Dr. & Mrs.
David Schwarz
21 The Rev. & Mrs. Wilfred Dreger
23 Mr. James Reifinger &
The Rev. Carol Reifinger
Mr. Kenneth Mease & The Rev. Lois
Bly
28 The Rev. & Mrs. Dennis Rohn
29 Mr. & Mrs. Wilton Grannum
Churches celebrating
November anniversaries:
9 - 1980 Grace, Queens,
New York
13 - 1965 Covenant, York, PA
30 - 1746 Lancaster, PA
November 13, 1741 - Formal
announcement to the congregations of the Moravian Church of the immediate
Headship of the Lord Jesus Christ in his church on earth.