Juniata Association News!!

FALL GATHERING OF THE JUNITATA ASSOCIATION

October 16^th at St. John’s Martinsburg

“Igniting the Mission Fire!”

Cleaning Bucket Mission Project

The Association is asking the churches to collect cleaning supplies for Disaster Relief and bring them to the Fall Association Meeting in October.

 The list if items needed are:

 5 Gal. Buckets with lids, 5 scouring 5 scouring pads

7 sponges, assorted sizes 1 scrub brush

18 cleaning towels (reusable (Easy Wipes) 1 50 oz. box dry laundry detergent

12 oz. bottle liquid disinfectant dish soap (Dawn) 1 pkg. of 48-50 clothespins

Clothesline, 2 -  50 ft. or  1 – 100ft 5 dust masks

2 pairs latex gloves (like Playtex) 1 pair work gloves

28-bag roll of heavy-duty trash bags (30-45 gal) 1 6-9 oz. bottle of insect repellent (Not aerosol)

 You can also see the list posted on the bulletin board.   The items will be put in 5 gallon buckets with lids.  Let’s see how many buckets we can fill!!!  There is a prize for the church with the most buckets!!!

Association Pulpit Exchange!

This year the Association is offering a Pulpit Exchange!!  It will happen on the October 16^th, same day as the Association Meeting.  The participating churches will find out who is coming to their church in September.

A Challenge has been issued!!

AT the PWC Annual Meeting, a challenged was issued to the Associations, to challenge their churches to send $200.00 earmarked for 1012 Benevolences, above what they already give to the Conference.  The Budget for Conference was been cut to bare bones due to lack of funding.  There is no money allotted for the Benevolent ministries of the Conference at all and there is even a $15,000 deficit budget for just the necessities – salaries, utilities, office supplies.  To say, there is a problem, is putting it mildly.

If each church in the Conference would give $200.00, it would make up the Benevolent portion of the budget.  We would still be running at a $15,000 deficit

St. John’s does do their part – we tithe to the conference and are a 5 for 5 church for the National Setting, however, some churches for one reason or another give nominally or not at all.  This is a sad state of affairs.  No budgetary problem comes at a good time, but this is a particularly bad time since Rev. Alan McLarty, our Conference Minister will be retiring at the end of the year and a search must begin, first for an Interim Conference Minister and then a permanent one.  Having fiscal difficulties isn’t exactly an incentive to take the position.

St. John’s will be sending in at least the additional $200.00 earmarked for 1012 Benevolences, but even more importantly, we need to cover our Conference with prayer.  I ask each of you to please pray daily for our Conference and it’s ministries.  And pray that all the churches in the Conference also accept the Challenge and bring at least part of the budget back into the black.

A Bird's Eye View of the Penn West Conference Annual Meeting

by Audrey Bonebreak 

The 49^th Annual Meeting of the Penn West Conference was held on June 10-11, 2011 at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown.   Beginning at 10 a.m. on Friday morning, we met in Heritage Hall for conversation with two of the speakers. Dr. Susan Smith, is Senior pastor of Advent UCC in Columbus, Ohio and a 1986 graduate of Yale Divinity School. Since becoming pastor of Advent Church, the church’s membership has increased from five members to about 300. She has an outreach ministries to the city’s poor and an urban youth program through an annual summer arts program. Dr. Lee Barrett has taught since September of 1993 at Lancaster Theological Seminary where he is Professor of Theology.

     A bit later we met our third speaker, Rev. Dr. Xiaoling Zhu who was born in 1950 in the People’s     Republic of China, the child of a Christian minister ( Disciples of Christ ). He came to the U.S. to study theology .He was soon offered admission to Bethany College, an offer that was repeated every semester for twelve    semesters until 1986, and he was issued a passport to travel to the United States .He attended Candler School of Theology, Emory University in Atlanta, GA, where he earned three graduate degrees. He is now serving as the Area Executive for East Asia and the Pacific for the Common Global Ministries board of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the USA and Canada, and the United Church of Christ.

     Both the sessions and the worship services were inspiring and interesting.  Dr. Smith had such a contagious enthusiasm when she spoke, that it was easy to see how she had been able to be such a great leader and builder in her parish church. Dr. Barrett was a good balance with a theological       perspective in a calm, delightful, entertaining manner. The sessions had  titles that really gave me a chuckle such as “A Church for Dummies, Christ as the Chef of a Waldorf Salad, At the End of the Day, What? And  Jesus the Glue of Unity or the Source of Diversity? or Both?      

      One of the most interesting ideas was that the church is usually considered as a noun-a building - a place to go to worship.  Dr. Smith brought in the concept that the church is really the people and that we should make the church become a verb. We don’t go to church, “WE DO CHURCH.”  We are churching by doing the will and work of God.   Dr. Zhu (Better known as Charlie”) used the scripture from 1 Corinthians 12:4-13 to speak of the diversity of the   people of God. We all have many different talents and abilities but we are all God’s children. He showed some pictures of the churches in East Asia and how former president Jimmy Carter opened the doors for the  Christian churches and how much they have grown. As we broke into small groups for discussions we were able to meet others, to discuss and learn from one another.

     The business sessions were kept moving on schedule with a vote to allow the Board of Directors and an ad hoc committee to further research the proposal for fracking and drilling on the Weber Memorial property owned by the conference and to accept the Resolution of the Governance team. The budget was presented with a deficit projected and the necessity of eliminating the benevolences of the conference.  The Western  association proposed a challenge to all the churches in our conference to donate $200 this year marked especially for benevolence.  This would restore the Conference ability to donate to the Camp Living Waters,  the Seminary at Lancaster, PA. Council of Churches ,disaster relief, etc. After all, that is the mission of the church- that is part of  “doing” church. St. John’s was recognized for giving to the five designated offerings throughout the year. A certificate was presented for being a 5 for 5 church.

    A beautiful display in the middle of Heritage Hall with three crosses on a table and scripture under glass that explained the meaning behind each cross was a great visual addition to our meetings. The closing with a communion service sent all of us out with a thankful heart.  I enjoyed the conference very much and I really appreciate the consistory allowing me to  represent St John’s.  Next year will be the “50th" anniversary year for the conference so mark your calendar for June 1 & 2 , 2012. Rev. Geoffrey Black, General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ, will be the Preacher and Guest Speaker.    Thank you!