In Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, Paul indicates that he cannot yet call the people “spiritual” because they continue to do things that are of the flesh and not of the Spirit. They are still serving themselves, worshiping their teachers, placing a competition between the Christian teachers and in extension between themselves and Jesus.

This was Paul’s third metaphor to describe the local church in Corinth. In his first metaphor, he compared them to a field being planted and watered by himself as well as Apollos as God’s workers. His second metaphor was his comparison of their community of Christians to a building being constructed on the top of the foundation of Jesus by the teachers and the religious leaders. Now Paul uses a third metaphor where Paul compares the church people to the temple of God.

When reading Paul’s third metaphor, we may get an image of a massive temple in which the Spirit of God dwells. However, when Paul wrote the word “you” he intended it to be plural not singular, meaning all the church members.

Although Paul intended his letter to be addressed to the entire church in Corinth, it is just as important for each one of Jesus’ followers to think of their individual bodies as a temple where God’s spirit dwells. Therefore, it is important that we take care of our body, mind and spirit. The question is, how do we do this? Normally life can be quite hard on our bodies, our minds and our spirit. However, during a pandemic where there is much uncertainty, grief and anxiety, self-care cannot be just thought about, it is essential.

There are three practices that can help us to take care of ourselves and nurture our temples.

1. Conserve your energy. Don’t re-invent the wheel or take on really creative and complex tasks when planning worship. (Unless it relaxes you.) There are many resources that have been created and used that can help you to plan worship whether it is with liturgy, prayers or songs and technological information. Developing partnerships whether inside the church or in the community to take charge of specific areas can be beneficial. Church should never be a competition. Talk with other churches in the community and work together.

2. Keep your boundaries. Texting, phone use, emails etc can consume so much time and have negative effects on the temple. Schedule breaks throughout the day. Get up and walk around. Stay hydrated. Get some sunshine. Breathe deeply and relax your body

and mind.

3. Give yourselves some grace and compassion. Pastors and chaplains are so hard on themselves. What your people need most is a healthy YOU. Place a post-it on your bathroom mirror, reminding yourself to give yourself grace just like the grace you would give to others.

Remember the church is the people, not the building. Paul understood just how important it was for the “church” to take care of their temples. Our temples house the Spirit of God. When we think of our bodies, minds and souls in that way, housing the Spirit of our God, how could we not take the best care of ourselves?

October 4: St. Paul's UCC, West Milton at 10:30 AM (via Facebook Live or Youtube) - Rev. Dr. Carrie Call Preaching

October 4: Bethel UCC, Spring Grove at 9:00AM - Rev. Dr. Marisa Laviola preaching

October 4: St. Jacob UCC, York-New Salem at 10:30AM - Rev. Dr. Marisa Laviola preaching

The Penn Conference is organizing a virtual choir to do a virtual cantata or set of anthems for the use of the whole conference during this Advent/Christmas season. If you are a singer or an instrumentalist, whether or not you are part of a choir, please consider signing up for this experience by October 15 at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TX2YSW5 or email bvfofmusic@gmail.com for more information. 

If you are a pastor or music minister wishing to use the resulting files, email bvfofmusic@gmail.com for more information. We are excited about this opportunity, and we invite you to be part of it!

If you missed the workshop on Virtual Choir with Julie Holm, please reach out to Paul for a link to a recording.

We still have a few short months until Hartman Center is shuttered after the new year. So, we've planned a few times to gather together in our Sonshine Place.

10/24 - Fire for Campers 4:00 pm (Getting Started-Middle school adventure) Register here

11/14 - Fire for our High Schoolers, Staff, & Families 4:00 pm Register here

Also, be sure to mark your calendars for December 13th, when we will gather for one last evening Vespers.

12/13 - evening vespers at Hartman Center - 4:00 pm

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 prayer time is open to all clergy and members of UCC congregations within the Conference. We ask you to register only so that we may send you a password directly for the zoom calls. There is no pressure to attend – but this way we can make sure these gatherings remain peaceful and prayerful. Gatherings will be October 7, 14, 21 and 28. Register here.

Penn Central Conference has added a special section on our website for COVID-19 resources, including the times and links for Zoom meetings. Keep checking https://pccucc.org/covid-19-resources/ regularly for updates.

Every church and non-profit organization has its own unique mission and financial objectives. With that understanding, Matthew Wagner, Vice President, Institutional Relationships at United Church Funds, has written a helpful guide that describes the building blocks for customized, workable, and effective investment policy. See it here.

Christ Church in Annville will be hosting a three part workshop series on Taking Action for Anti- Racism. There will be three 90 minute workshops focusing on anti-racism, including understanding of racist attitudes, inner work to combat racism and more. The workshop will be held via Zoom on October 4, 18 & 25. Learn more here.

These webinars are designed to help you enhance your local church ministries. Most are free to attend. Check out the calendar here.

World Communion Voices 2020 - Oct 01, 3:30PM learn more here

Shifting Focus: Youth Ministry in 2020 and Beyond - Oct 06, 3:30PM learn more here

OWL & Racial Justice - Oct 07, 12:00PM learn more here

Lake Institute/UCC Webinar Oct 07, 4:00 PM Planning the Annual Communications and Development Calendar learn more here

UCC Climate Ambassador Training (STILL TIME TO REGISTER!)

Register today for the training!

As part of the training, everyone who registers will be able to receive a free copy of Cathedral on Fire!: A Church Handbook for the Climate Crisis from the Rev. Brooks Berndt, the UCC Minister for Environmental Justice AND, those who complete the training will have the opportunity to become a Certified Blessed Tomorrow Climate Ambassador. 

October 11 - Lebanon Association Fall Meeting - 3:00 PM

October 25 - Harrisburg Association Fall Meeting 2:00 PM

October 25 - Lancaster Association 3:00 PM (Includes E-council at 4:00)

November 1 - Mercersburg Association 3:00 PM

November 8 - York Association 2:00PM

Join with your colleagues on Tuesday, October 20th at 10am or 6pm for a discussion on supply and retired clergy boundaries. Rev. Sally Dries will join Rev. Nora Foust for leadership of this session. 

Register for the 10am-12pm Zoom session here

Register for the 6pm-8pm Zoom session here

Join with your colleagues on Tuesday, November 17th at 10am or 6pm for discussion of a variety of topics including: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Self-Care and Allyship in an Activist Age. Rev. Nora Foust will lead this discussion.

Register for the 10am-12pm Zoom session here

Register for the 6pm-9pm Zoom session here

For online boundary training options, Convergance offers an online course.

The Parish Resource Center is excited to announce that we are accepting applications for a new cohort of the Kairos Spiritual Direction Training program. The next cohort for this two-year certificate program begins in January.

There is an early bird discount of $500 if you register before November 1, 2020. You can find more information and apply online at parishresourcecenter.org/kairos.

General Synod 33 will take place Sunday July 11, 2021 – Sunday July 18, 2021. Pre-Synod events will occur on July 7-10, 2021.

Theology II: “Leadership and Community,” Jan 9–Feb 18, 2021. The Rev. Holly MillerShank offers a six-week online class through the Pennsylvania Academy of Ministry at Lancaster Theological Seminary. The class provides an introduction to Christian theology, focusing on the human condition, Christian hope, the church, ministry, and mission. Students may take this class without having taken Theology I. This 2.5 CEU class starts Saturday, Jan 9, followed by five weeks of asynchronous online instruction. Cost $325. Apply online at https://lancasterseminary.edu/academics/PAM.

Association Links 

Phoebe Messenger 

Lancaster Theological Seminary 

List of PCC Chaplains

Link to the PCC Calendar

Support PCC with a donation to OCWM or shop using Amazon Smile.

Penn Central Conference Ministry Opportunities Page

If you have future eNews stories, please send them to C. Paul Keller. 

Contact information: C. Paul Keller | email: pkeller@pccucc.org | phone: 717-652-1560