|
|
Greetings First Church Family and Friends,
Lent, is a precious time, a contemplative time, a time ripe with possibility. With the remains of Ash Wednesday on our foreheads, we turn our attention to our mortality and the dust from which we were formed. What if, additionally, Lent could be for us a retreat to a cocoon-like place, an interior journey in which we use the Lenten tools of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving to deepen our identities as followers of Jesus?
An old spiritual says, "If you want to find Jesus, go in the wilderness." Below, I offer a few practices or disciplines for your 40-days of Lent, your 40-days of seeking Jesus in the healing space of the wilderness:
- Pray daily with Psalm 51.
- Consider fasting from a food type, from alcohol, from media consumption, etc.. Mystics teach us that self-denial heightens our awareness of God.
- Give alms (i.e., money or goods) to those in need. Our church helps those in needs and welcomes your gifts and your giving can reach beyond our faith community.
- Elder Erik Brogger will lead Lenten devotionals on Sunday mornings in Lent with an assist from Eric Thomas. Join them at 10 AM in the Thurman Library.
An expanded list of Lenten practices is available at the church entrance beginning this Sunday along with opportunities to serve at First Church. My prayer is that we will each try on a new discipline between now and Easter and be curious about how God might transform our lives. Good and healing things happen in the wilderness. With this perspective, may your Lenten experience be pregnant with the possibility of renewal and refreshment.
We are blessed to welcome Lent with our ministry partner, Rev. Jose Padin, visiting us from Cuba and preaching on Sunday. The White Rose Ministry will offer a Cuban lunch during the Fellowship Hour that you will not want to miss!
I am looking forward to welcoming you to church and to God's table on Sunday. Please bring non-perishable protein items for the food pantry and your own bottles of wine and loaves of bread for a blessing at the table. Thank you for keeping our church and one another in your prayers. You are in mine and…
You are loved,
|
|
|
|
|
Sunday, March 5th
9:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Nursery is open on the second floor
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Choir Rehearsal in the Sanctuary
10:00 AM - 10:45 AM
Youth Band in the Rose Room
11:00 AM
Worship in the Sanctuary
Sermon: "Here Is Jim, Reporting,"
preached by Rev. Jose Padin
11:15 AM - 12:15 PM
Sunday School in the Gymnasium
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM
Park Plaza Diner, Cadman Plaza West
7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Adult Education in the Elliott Room
Thursday, March 9th
10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Choir rehearsal in the Sanctuary
|
|
|
|
Congregation and Community News
|
Update on the 2017 Pledge Drive
As of March 1st, 2017, we have received 117 pledge cards for a total of $$334,141.
Our goal this year is a commitment of $343,000.
We're now less than $10,000 away from that target. Please help us reach or exceed our goal. Pledge today!
|
Online Lenten Devotional
Out of the friendship and trust in the Women's Ministry comes this offering to one another and to the First Church congregation.
We hope all who read it will experience that "Joyful Is The Dark."
An introduction, and the first devotional, were sent on the morning of Ash Wednesday. The Lenten Devotional can be found online at lentatfirst.tumblr.com. A new reading will appear each day online, or you can choose to have the text of the reading sent to your email by clicking the 'Subscribe via Email' link at the top of that page.
If you choose to receive by email, be sure to reply to the message confirming that you want to subscribe.
|
HOLY MACKERELS THIS FRIDAY - BOWLING AT MELODY LANES
The next meeting of the Holy Mackerels will take place this Friday 6:00 PM - 8:00 P for bowling!
We had such success introducing the youth to Simon and Jennifer at the Youth Retreat, it reminded us how important it is to widen the network of adult role models that our youth can encounter at church functions, so we are thrilled to give the Holy Mackerels this opportunity to get to know Mark better over some bowling!
Meet Mark Elsenheimer at Melody Lanes (461 37th Street Brooklyn, NY 11232). The church will pay for youths' admission and shoe rental. We invite you to send money with your child if they would like to buy snacks or soda at the Snack Bar. Friends are welcome! Please RSVP to cyfdirector@firstchurchbrooklyn.org by 12:00 PM on Friday so we know how many people to expect.
|
SAVE THE DATE
First Church's White Rose Ministry will hold its annual fundraiser on Saturday, April 22nd, from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM at Dick & Dottie Turmail's home. (Before his passing, Dick expressed that he wanted us to have it there.)
ALL ARE WELCOME!
|
"The Spirit of Sanctuary in the Time of Lent"
Every Sunday in Lent, 10:00 AM
How do we find sanctuary? How do we become a sanctuary? The word derives from the Latin "sanctus" meaning "holy," but has political ramifications that echo in our daily headlines during this time of emergency. (And we can't live in the comfort of metaphor when sanctuary is real and urgent.) Join Elder Erik Brogger for a discussion about how Lent may speak to the fugitive in each of us, using Psalm 51 and other poetry. Join us at 10:00 AM in the gym, this Sunday, March 5th, and every Sunday in Lent, for what may be the only journey where the suggested preparation is that we UN-pack!
|
Elder Jim Johnson Running for Governor of New Jersey
Our beloved Elder Jim Johnson has been called into public service and is running for Governor of New Jersey. The campaign is in full swing. If you are interested in joining Elder Jim Johnson and others to improve our schools, give all families a leg up and rebuild an economy that has crumbled along with its roads, bridges, water system and mass transit, please contact Amanda Clarke at amanda@jimjohnson4governor.com to find out about helping with the campaign.
|
Sunday School Volunteers Needed!
It takes a Brooklyn Village to raise our children in the faith. Contact James and Elizabeth to express your interest.
|
Adult Education
Sunday Adult Education
10:00 AM - 10:50 AM
Thurman Room
(Traditional bible study in relation to issues and questions of our times)
Wednesday Adult Education
In celebration of Ash Wednesday there will be no Adult Ed program on March 1. Join us in worship at 7pm in the sanctuary to mark the beginning of Lent.
|
Focus on Hunger
The Mission and Social Action Committee has a goal to educate the entire congregation on the issues around food and hunger in our country and around the world, and why First Presbyterian is involved in alleviating the suffering associated with a lack of food.
|
It is being projected that approximately 50 percent of all U.S. children will be on food stamps at some point in their lives before they reach the age of 18.
|
On Thursday, March 2nd, our Food Pantry served 124 guests with the
help of 19 volunteers.
|
Worship services are streamed live over the Internet. We provide the worship bulletin on the website so that you can follow along. Tune in to worship at 11:00 AM Eastern time.
We have an audio podcast of our Sermons. Click the "Sermon Podcast" icon below to subscribe to audio versions of all the sermons.
|
Like us. Follow us. See us. Hear us.
|
Reminders and Looking Ahead
|
Postive Discipline for Teens
Are you the parent of a teenager? Or are you watching anxiously as your tween moves towards teenage-hood? Whether you are in the stable time that precedes the change-over, or whether you are in it already, this class is for you.
Teens are doing developmentally necessary work to become adults and it can be an arduous experience for the parent(s) too. Come learn how to support your teen's growth and transformation; solve everyday challenges; develop respectful relationships; and find solutions that are right for your family.
Positive Discipline classes provide parents with non-punitive methods to encourage and empower children, and to help them develop important life skills.
We'll meet on Sundays after the worship service. Take a few minutes for coffee time and then proceed to the gym. Classes will be held March 5, 12, 19 & 26, and April 2, 23 and 30. There is a $50 materials fee that includes handouts, and the book Positive Discipline for Teenagers - scholarships available, don't let the fee be an obstacle!
Mary Lynn Fiske is a Positive Discipline Parent Educator and a Positive Discipline Classroom Educator.
|
Call For Artists
Many people experience the Holy in the beauty of our Sanctuary, the sound of our musicians and choirs, and the poetry of our prayers. If you are interested in helping the First Church Brooklyn community to experience God with movement, puppetry, dramatic presentation, fabric, flowers, writing, set design, and more, please share your interest with Pastor Adriene or call the church office. Thank you for your prayerful consideration.
|
Worship Leaders
Interested in taking part as a reader during Sunday service? We welcome volunteers from the congregation to sign up as Worship Leaders. Please contact Annie Solages in the church office at 718-624-3770 or speak to Worship Committee Co-Chairs Edna Asknes or Barbara Cummings.
|
Men's Fellowship Breakfast
Meets Wednesday morning at the Park Plaza Diner, 220 Cadman Plaza West, 7:30-8:30AM. Join the men as they discuss The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World. This is a week-long interview with the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
|
First Presbyterian Church Social Action Committee
Criminal Justice Activities in Concert With the Church of Gethsemane
First Church continues to be active with the Church of Gethsemane with the following activities:
- Monthly group letter to over 200 Project Connect members incarcerated in NYS Prisons
- Monthly Prison Visits to Project Connect members in Women's prisons in Bedford Hills
- Monthly lunch preparation and serving after worship
- Support for family members having incarcerated members pilot project.
- Administrative support
- Project connect Peer Group participation with formerly incarcerated Project Connect members
- Donation of clothes for formerly incarcerated members
- Re-entry support
|
This week's eNewsletter was edited by Ben Cosgrove. Photos from Christina Adorno.
|
Online Donations: Set up a recurring gift to the church through a secure online account. To set up an account or to edit an existing gift, go to First Presbyterian Church's website.
Flower Donations. We welcome flower donations of $30 or more in memory or in honor of friends and loved ones. Call Annie Solages in the Church office at 718-624-3770 or see Barbara Cummings during fellowship hour on Sundays.
|
|
|
|
|
No comments:
Post a Comment