|
|
Creating Loving Community
|
Greetings First Church Family and Friends,
I am super excited about Communion Sunday this month because we also kick-off our People's Supper Potluck – an extension of the warmth and welcome of God's communion table!
Every first Sunday, we will gather around tables to build community through good food and good conversation. I received a small grant through a program at Union Theological Seminary, that will cover the cost of our main dish this year. What I will need from you this Sunday and every first Sunday is:
- Help setting up chairs and tables at 10:00 am – meet in the Elliott Room
- Gifts of salad to serve 6-8 people – please drop off in Elliott Room before worship
- Gifts of desserts to serve 6-8 people – please drop off in Elliott Room before worship
- Gifts of drink to serve 6-8 people – please drop off in Elliott Room before worship
Sunday's scripture reading is a blueprint for creating loving community. You know it as the Ten Commandments. They are also an invitation to a new way of being together after generations of enslavement in Egypt, generations of being stuck in ways of living that no longer serve the people.
We too are being invited to get unstuck and to lean into new ways of being together. With me installed as your pastor for two years, with a third of session comprised of newly ordained elders, with more children and adults filling our pews on Sunday mornings, we are becoming a new community. We want also to be a loving community. A welcoming community. A courageous community. An open to all community. I hope that you will come to the table on Sunday and meet someone you don't know or get to know someone you think you know in a new way. I look forward to being with you.
You are loved,
|
|
|
|
|
Sunday, October 7th
Nursery is open, 2nd floor at top of stairs
9:00 AM
Choir Rehearsal
Sanctuary
11:00 AM
Worship in the Sanctuary
11:45 AM
Sunday School in the Gym
Following Worship
A time for Fellowship in the Peace Garden - Elliott Room (2nd floor) in case of inclement weather
Wednesday, October 10th
7:30 AM - 8:30 AM
Mens Fellowship Breakfast
Park Plaza Diner, Cadman Plaza West
Thursday, October 11th
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Food Pantry
7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
Choir Rehearsal
|
|
|
|
Congregation and Community News
|
Sunday School Teachers Needed
Sunday school starts this week for ages K-5, and we are still looking for volunteers to serve as teachers in the classroom. NO WEEKLY PREP (Rev. April takes care of all of that!) - just show up and be with kids!
|
The People's Supper Potluck
Every first Sunday of the month, we will gather at table to invite belonging, fortify community, and cultivate connection. Please join us October 7th as we kick off The People's Supper Potluck. The church will provide a main dish. Feel free to bring food or drink to share.
|
Seminary intern, Conor Foley, is leading a Christian education series on Mass Incarceration and Spirituality. Join him at 10:00 AM in the Thurman Library through October 7th and then at 1:30 PM on October 14th for a field trip to the Brooklyn Detention Center with our friends from The Brooklyn Heights Synagogue and the Brooklyn Community Bail Fund.
|
INTERNATIONAL PEACEMAKER –
Reverend Alex Awad
The Rev. Alex Awad is a peace and justice advocate and former missionary with the United Methodist church. He has served as Dean of Students and full-time instructor at Bethlehem Bible College in Bethlehem where he served on the faculty for 24 years. He served since 1994 as senior pastor at East Jerusalem Baptist Church. The Rev. Awad is traveling through the U.S. as part of the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program's International Peacemakers initiative. Here are opportunities to hear the Rev. Awad:
Monday, October 8 from 2:00 – 3:30 PM - public presentation on Pathway to Peace in Israel and in Palestine at Church Center for the United Nations, 777 UN Plaza, cosponsored/hosted by Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations and United Methodist Church Global Mission; for more information and to RSVP, contact info.pmun@pcusa.org.
Tuesday, October 9 from 10:00 – 11:30 AM - public presentation on A Biblical Alternative to Christian Zionism at Stockman Lounge, 1st Floor, Interchurch Center, 475 Riverside Drive; RSVP to mkoenig@presbynyc.org
Tuesday, October 9 from 7:00 – 8:30 PM – public presentation on Pathway to Peace in Israel and in Palestine at Rutgers Presbyterian Church
|
Pastoral Care at First Church
First Church Care Ambassadors are church members
who are available to serve as a witness in your life.
So if you are in crisis and are in need of visitation, or if you have a prayer request or a joy to share, look for the First Church Care Ambassadors wearing the white boutonniere during service or email the Care Team at pastoralcare@firstchurchbrooklyn.org.
|
Murder Mystery Dinner Party - Church-wide Fundraiser
Save the Date! Saturday, October 27, 6:00 PM - 10:00 PM. Tickets go on sale Sunday, September 16th, while supplies last. Click the following link for the Flyer with more details.
|
|
Window restoration - Double Your Impact
We are seeking offerings specifically to restore one of our glorious, historic Tiffany windows - the fisherman window on the north side of the sanctuary. A generous anonymous donor has offered to match all gifts made for this purpose, so the donor is willing to cover up to half of the estimated $18,000 cost. This restoration will bring out the incomparable beauty of another of our windows, and is necessary to prevent possible permanent harm. Please note "window restoration" on any check or payment made for this purpose, and submit it with the offering or by sending it to the Church office. Contact Annie, Rev. Adriene, or Stewardship co-chairs Odette Perriel and David Jones for more information.
|
On Thursday, October 4th, our Food Pantry served 117 clients
with the help of 23 dedicated 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.
Missed a week, or want to hear a Sermon again? We have a podcast of Sermon audio (and video, when available). Click the "Sermon Podcast" icon, below, to subscribe.
|
Like us. Follow us. See us. Hear us.
|
Food Bank of NY sent fresh produce for our food pantry guests this week
First Church Youth at Youth Empowerment Day on Broadway: Dear Evan Hansen
Elder's Luncheon at The Manse
|
Reminders and Looking Ahead
|
New Member gatherings
will meet October 14th, 21st, and 28th at 9:45 AM in the gym.
|
The Youthful Fellowship
Our monthly young adult group returns on Thursday, October 11th. Join Pastor Adriene in the Thurman Library for a conversation on life, justice, and Jesus.
8:30 PM- 10 PM every 2nd Thursday.
|
Saturday, October 13th: All-Church Movie Night and Potluck Dinner!
4 PM -7 PM
Have you heard of the Christian holiday of "All Saints Day"? How about Dia de Muertos? Although they fall right after Halloween, these are not days about scary ghosts or hauntings; this is a time set aside as a celebration of our loved ones who have died. The Disney/Pixar movie Coco is set during this holiday (and its particular expression in Mexico) and provides an entertaining and meaningful starting place to have conversations about one of the most important, but difficult topics: death. Join us for a family-friendly evening of food, a great movie, and informal conversation about how and why we remember people we have lost.
|
Bail Reform – Educational Field Trip: Sunday, October 14th
Join us in watching bail hearings at a court in Downtown Brooklyn with our partners at the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue & Brooklyn Community Bail Fund and learn why we push for the elimination of cash bail. Gather at First Church at 1:30 for an introduction to the work and then walk over to the center.
|
Calling all actors, dancers, puppeteers, musicians, visual and fabric artists:
The next meeting of the Worship & the Arts Committee will take place after church on Sunday, October 14. Please join us in the Thurman Room at 1pm. We will be discussing plans for the first Sunday of November, the Advent season and Christmas.
|
Presbytery Advocacy Day
Presbyterian Mission Agency staff from the Office of Public Witness and the Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations will join us on Saturday, November 10 for a day of workshops, training, and worship about advocating for justice in the name of Jesus Christ. The day will be at First Presbyterian Church in the City of New York from 8:30 AM to 3:00 PM on Saturday, November 10. Watch for more details.
|
Men's Fellowship Breakfast at the Park Plaza Diner on 220 Cadman Plaza West is now reading Meeting Jesus Again For the First Time by Marcus Borg. Join them every Wednesday at 7:30 AM.
|
This week's eNewsletter was edited by Caleb Heidebrecht. Photo credits to 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