Message to the Conference |
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Members and friends of Penn Central Conference -
While on vacation two weeks ago, I drove with my wife into the small town where my ministry began. There it was, on the hill overlooking the farms that surrounded it: Zion Evangelische Kirche.
After a few minutes of quiet reminiscing, we drove out of town on the dirt roads to the cemetery nearby. Two women, sisters, were buried side by side there: Alma Tauscher and Elsie Jungermann. They were confirmed in that church in 1916, the last two from that church to do so in the German tongue. Alma would go on to serve 40 years as a missionary to India. Elsie would become one of the last two surviving Deaconess sisters.
While at Zion, I came to know the true spirit of the Evangelical and Reformed piety that manifested itself in both the irenic faith and missionary zeal that both Alma and Elsie embodied.
Children of German immigrant families, our E and R ancestors found worship to be a time of quiet and dignified praise of the God who helped them endure hardship, saw them through the challenges of life with blessings abundant, and whose grace alone was sufficient. They knew that the piety they embraced also required of them an outpouring of love, offered in gratitude, that would enable them to feed the hungry, heal the sick, care for the widow and orphan, and shelter the homeless.
Alma and Elsie embodied that irenic pietism with lives in service to the world.
Through the years, that quiet pietism and irenic Evangelical and Reformed spirit remain evident in the denomination it birthed: the United Church of Christ. In the spirit of a Lancaster Seminary or an Elmhurst University we find the ever-present curiosity of an early and abiding E and R faith. In the over 400 mission agencies associated with the Council for Health and Human Service ministries we find that passion for mission. In the rich liturgical traditions instantiated in our Hymnal, in the Book of Worship, and in movements like Mercersberg we see the quiet passion for dignified worship. In camp settings all over the country, in ongoing curricula written for our confirmands, and in ongoing Sunday School classrooms we see the commitment to raise up disciples from among the children and youth.
Perhaps most significantly, though, we are the United Church of Christ because of the early impulses that the German reform movement evidenced towards ecumenism and unity. In November of 2017, I had the honor of speaking in worship at the Berlinerdome for the 200th anniversary of the Prussion Union that birthed the Evangelical Kirche in the motherland of Germany. The desire to unite was something the German immigrants of the mid-19th century brought with them and shared with the earlier migrant families from the Reformed tradition. Naturally, they then became the E and R church; and as naturally the United Church of Christ. That they may all be one was their default mode – and we are today because they were thus yesterday.
I join you in celebrating not just the rich heritage of our E and R ancestors, but the way that heritage continues to define and shape the present and future of a church and a mission now entrusted to us. May our own irenicism, piety, curiosity, and desire to be one be as strong and evident as theirs. That, in partnership with the abiding Holy Spirit of the living God and risen Christ, will be sufficient to move this Church forward into the new and next generations.
Shalom,
Rev. Dr. John C. Dorhauer
General Minister and President
United Church of Christ
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Printable eNews are available. Pastors and secretaries, please feel free to share with your congregation members that don't get this weekly email. Download and print this PDF with the weekly message to the conference, prayers for Penn Central and brief list of events. |
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The 59th Annual Meeting of Penn Central Conference
June 12, 2021
"Called to Covenant"
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General Synod 33
"Rooted In Love"
July 11 – 18, 2021
Important links below
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Scheduling notes:
June 13 - St. John's UCC, Shamokin - Rev. Dr. Carrie Call preaching
June 20 - Church of the Redeemer UCC, Hershey - Rev. Dr. Marisa Laviola preaching
June 27 - Starview UCC, Mt. Wolf - Rev. Dr. Carrie Call preaching
June 27 - St. John's UCC, Boalsburg - Rev. Nora Foust preaching
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Prayers for Penn Central Conference
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. Ephesians 6:18 (NLT)
This week, we pray for each other as we continue to live into God's calling...
Mt. Bethel UCC, Mill Hall
Trinity Reformed UCC, Mountville
Zion (Gosherts) UCC, Lebanon
Myerstown UCC, Myerstown
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COVID-19 Resources
Penn Central Conference has added a special section on our website for COVID-19 resources, including the times and links for Zoom meetings. Find them here: https://pccucc.org/covid-19-resources/
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Penn Central Conference is once again accepting applications for the PCC Innovation Grants which is for PCC churches who are looking for funding for a bold & innovative approach to ministry. Application can be found here, please email completed forms to Paul.
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St. John's UCC, Lebanon Update
As many of you are aware, last year the congregation of St. John's UCC in historic downtown Lebanon closed its doors and merged with St. Mark's congregation a few blocks away. The conference has been working diligently over the past year to find a new organization to take over ownership of the beautiful church campus. Fortunately, a significant "piece" of this historic church will live on in our conference. Recently, the beautiful six-foot Steinway grand piano from St. John's sanctuary found a new home at Colonial Park UCC in Harrisburg. The piano, built in 1900, will be completely restored as part of Colonial Park's three-year "Restore, Renew, Revive!" capital campaign. Colonial Park has an active music and arts program and hosts numerous area choirs and ensembles in their sanctuary for concert events. "We are so grateful to be the new caretakers of such a beautiful, historic instrument, '' shares Rev. Scott Siciliano, Minister of Worship and the Arts at Colonial Park. "I am really enjoying "getting to know" the piano. It is so exceptionally well-built, and has a wonderful personality--powerfully resonant, yet musically sensitive. Once restored it will really be glorious! It's rich sound will be such a gift to our congregation and the broader Harrisburg community." Listen to Scott play "Spirit, Open My Heart" on this piano here.
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Outdoor Ministries
The 2021 summer camp schedule is set! There are camps for all ages and interests at both Kirchenwald and Nawakwa. Check out what is offered online. Full brochure here. Special PCC discounts available on camp registrations! Read more here.
Calling all high school kids, college-age young adults, and adults interested in working at camp this summer! Lutheran Camping Corporation is recruiting now for this summer's camp season. Learn more here.
This will be a week of summer camp dedicated to carrying on the memorable and special experiences at Hartman Center. It will be a week for folks from Penn Central Conference and friends of Hartman Center to come together and celebrate outdoor ministry with familiar faces and through familiar traditions. There are a variety of camp options ranging from coming for a single day to staying the whole week, from bringing your own food to eating all the meals provided! The Conference has scholarships available - please reach out for more info.
Check out the all new Outdoor Ministries page on the PCC website here!
And a history of Hartman Center is hosted on the PCC website here.
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Penn Central Conference Lectionary Discussion Group - This group is open to all clergy, meets weekly on Tuesdays at 1:00PM to discuss upcoming lectionary passages. Us this Zoom link here.
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Go Green Sunday
August 8, 2021
Mt. Zion UCC, York
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St. Thomas UCC, Harrisburg
15th Annual Blueberry Sale
Order deadline June 30, 2021
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UCC Webinars
These webinars are designed to help you enhance your local church ministries. Most are free to attend. Check out the calendar here.
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UCC Musicians Association Conference 2021
July 8-10, 2021
Join us online for workshops, worship services, a wonderful concert, vendors and networking. We will be virtually hosted by the First Church of Christ, Congregational, UCC in the historic town of Glastonbury, Connecticut. From Thursday evening through the Saturday 4 pm closing worship service, we provide a plethora of activities that will enhance your music skills and give you resources and ideas for new ways of expressing God's Spirit in these pandemic times. We also provide glimpses of the historic scenery around the church in Glastonbury, which you would have enjoyed if you had come in person as originally planned. Join us instead online for a mental reset and spiritual refreshment with a taste of Connecticut. Learn more here.
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From our Partners & Friends: |
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The Pennsylvania Academy of Ministry at Lancaster Seminary announces:
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Mt. Gretna Tabernacle
Ecumenical Program
Friday Nights in June - 7:00PM
"GOD'S PRESENCE" is the common theme for Friday night worship services
during June at the historic Mt. Gretna Tabernacle. For speakers and more info, check out the full flyer here.
Parking GPS Address: 41 Boulevard St., Mt. Gretna, PA 17064
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Save the Date! June 13th is ERHS Heritage Sunday
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Parish Resource Center highlights their June webinars:
Intuitive Gifts and Skills will help you identify and enhance your own intuitive ability, allowing you to move beyond your five physical senses into deeper awareness.
Praying in Color is a simple but profound way of praying, using doodling. Connect with God in prayer via creative artistic expression - no artistic talent required!
This workshop will lead you in several mindfulness/contemplative practices that foster connection and awareness, love and imagination, resilience and hope within your family.
Whether you already use Gmail, or if you want to transition, join us. This course will patiently walk you through the basic controls and functions of Gmail.
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Employment Opportunities
The Lebanon Valley Home, a continuing care retirement community affiliated with United Church of Christ Homes, is seeking a compassionate and resident focused team member for the position of Chaplain. This position is Part Time (15 hours per week).
The primary duty of the Chaplain is to provide spiritual support and comfort for the residents of the facility in coordination with the resident’s home congregation.
The chaplain will communicate a caring friendship with a tolerant attitude for multiple cultural traditions and a wide range of spiritual beliefs. The chaplain will offer encouragement and support to clergy and churches as they continue to minister to the needs of their members.
The chaplain will be available to offer comfort to the individual as well as the family. During difficult times, sensitivity and compassion are requisite for the spiritual support needed by all involved; the resident, family, and staff.
Providing comfort for the dying is a key part of the Chaplain's job as well as coordinating and conducting regularly scheduled religious services for residents.
Requirements – Must be an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ with a minimum of one year experience in a pastoral ministry as well as one unit Clinical Pastoral Education.
A resume and letter of interest should be submitted to:
Meredith Schell Fields
Executive Director
The Lebanon Valley Home
550 East Main Street
Annville PA, 17003
mfields@ucc-homes.org
Fax (717) 867-7060
EEOE
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PT Church Office Administrator - Christ UCC, Elizabethtown, an ONA congregation, looking for PT Church Office Administrator—28 hrs/wk. The Office Administrator should have skills, education, and experience in church office administration which includes web site construction, word processing, office management, and inter-personal relationships. Send application letter, résumé, and two references to GalenRussell@etownucc.org or mail to: Christ Church UCC, 247 So. Market Street, Elizabethtown, PA 17022 by May 13, 2021 |
Trinity United Church of Christ in Waynesboro, Pa. is looking for a Director of Faith Formation and Programming. The position is part-time (20-25 hours per week) and is open beginning August 1st, 2021. The Director position will be responsible for developing programs for youth, adults and children from pre-school age through fifth grade. The Director will engage children with exciting and relevant opportunities for learning, serving, and growing towards a meaningful relationship with God. Director will be responsible for providing leadership and effective communication for youth and adult Sunday School classes and other Christian Formation offerings (such as Vacation Bible School, book studies, outdoor education, etc.). The Director will engage all ages with exciting and relevant opportunities for learning, serving, and growing towards a meaningful relationship with God. Full description here.
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PT Director of Music - Christ Church UCC, an ONA congregation in Elizabethtown, PA seeks a candidate to lead worship through music and oversee the church’s music program. The candidate will possess strong skills in music, leadership, cooperation, organization, and recruitment. A music degree or equivalent experience, broad knowledge of church music, and a willingness to grow the music program are required. Salary up to $19,975 depending on background and experience.
The responsibilities include:
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Director of Music (Approx. 3-5 hours required/week)
Oversee and coordinate the overall music ministry of six choirs
Meet regularly with pastors to plan worship
Coordinate special music for worship services
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Chancel Choir Director (Approx. 10 hours required/week)
Direct the adult choir (not during summer)
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PT Musician Position - We're looking for someone to assist with the casual service at St. Thomas UCC in Linglestown. This person would help to plan worship, coordinate musicians, and lead the music for Sunday services by playing (keyboard or guitar) and singing. This is a paid, part-time position; for more information, contact Dan Schmidt (pastor@stthomasucc.net)
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Directory
Rev. Dr. Carrie Call, Ph.D.
Conference Minister
Phone: 717-652-1560 ex. 12
Rev. Nora Driver Foust
Associate Conference Minister
Phone: 717-652-1560 ex.13
Rev. Dr. Marisa Laviola, Ph.D.
Associate Conference Minister
Phone: 717-652-1560 ex. 15
Rev. Dr. Ronnette Comfort-Butler
Facilitator of Care to Clergy & Clergy Families
phone: 717-719-1895
Anne Rankin
Outdoor Ministries Liaison
phone: 717-945-4585
C. Paul Keller
Office Manager
Phone: 717-652-1560 ex. 14
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