Sunday Worship

8:30 Bethesda

11:00 Immanuel

Contact:

Pastor Connie Monson

678-360-6089

connie.monson@gmail.com

Parish Office:

715-779-5611

bethesdachurchbayfield@gmail.com

Immanuel:

715-742-3440

Links

Bethesda/Immanuel Website



Bethesda FACEBOOK 

Immanuel FACEBOOK 

We pray for Ukraine, Israel and Gaza and all those afflicted by war.

 Hello Nancy,

From the Pastor

There are a couple of things that may still be surprising about the Pentecost story (Acts 2:1-41). One is that, even in the first century, Jews lived all over the known world, in those places with tongue-breaking names: Phrygia and Pamphylia were in modern-day Turkey, Cyrene in northeastern Libya, the Arabian Peninsula, Mesopotamia (now Iraq), and the Parthian, Medean, and Elamite kingdoms in what is now Iran. In fact, given the news today, you may not realize that the Middle East's second-largest Jewish population lives in Iran.

But none of those surprises can top what the throng of people gathered in Jerusalem for the harvest festival must have felt when the Holy Spirit blew in. Each of them heard the Good News in their own language. That cacophony must have been the sound of whole-hearted welcome. If you've traveled in places where English is rarely if ever spoken, even if you knew the local language well, you know what relief it is, when you finally meet an English speaker, to talk and listen without strain.

I wonder what welcome might sound like in our congregations? What barriers besides language people may have to strain to overcome? Who has given up on church because the barriers are just too exhausting to scale? The Pentecost story and its aftermath in Acts make clear that God is determined to welcome absolutely everyone (2:17). How are we being called to join in this work? Let's talk!

Joyfully yours in Christ,

Pastor Connie

Reconciling in Christ Statement

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:28

We welcome YOU to Bethesda and Immanuel to participate fully in our congregational life. You who may have experienced exclusion, injustice or racial inequity; You who are young, old, rich, poor; You of all abilities; You from all nations and ethnic backgrounds; You of all sexual orientations, gender identities or gender expression.

We are committed to racial equity, economic equity, gender equity, sexual equity. We are committed to learn, celebrate, advocate and welcome everyone through a series of forums and educational opportunities. May we grow in acceptance and become a voice for inclusion, equity and justice.

No matter where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.

The next meeting of the Reconciling in Christ (RIC) team will be at Bethesda on June 12 at 6 pm. The team's objectives are to work for racial, economic, gender, and sexual equity, to welcome all into the life of the church, and to fully live into our RIC statement above. Everyone is encouraged to attend this meeting; please talk to Pastor Connie or the church office if you need a Zoom link for the meeting.

Continuing Call for Photos for our Bethesda Members and Friends wall.

Our Church Members and Friends photo wall is something each of us looks at over time. These photos help us connect with each other, remember names of those that we haven’t seen for a while, and is a way to welcome our new Pastor Connie. Now that our photo display is over 10 years old, we would like it to be updated.

Therefore, we ask you to send in a picture. This can be a photo doing what you love to do, or with your family at a recent gathering, or on an outing, or with your furry friends, or a selfie. If you have a photo, send it to Nancy at Bethesda either as Digital, bethesdachurchbayfield@gmail.com or as an actual photo which can be mailed to Bethesda, PO Box 724, Bayfield, WI 54814. We will scan in your photo and return the original. If this doesn’t work for you and would like a volunteer to take your picture, please call Dianne Judd at 651-341-9724. We can get a volunteer to take your photo. 

Thank you for being part of our community and participating.

Jane Edwards, Linda Schneider, Sandy Paavola, Dianne Judd, Shirley Hanson, Dee Hendrickson

A message from Alla

Last month, in March, we all took turns getting sick and this coincided with writing our update in the church newsletter. I had neither the strength nor the time to do it,sorry for the silence last month...April brought not only warmer weather, but also changes that we have been waiting for a long time. Pavel was able to establish contact with his mother, and managed to organize a telephone with the Internet for her. We congratulated her on her birthday and were able to talk for the first time since last year without the help of our friends’ phones. And this, of course, had a positive effect on our state of mind.

We keep in touch with my cousin from Ukraine. It was his birthday, after our congratulations Russia fired at Ukraine, it’s very inhumane, what Russia continues to do... and sometimes we all feel sadness and pain from everything that happens there... and from our past too..

Vicky participated in a school concert for the first time and is developing further. Melissa repeats more and more words and links them into phrases. Pavel continues his project, I support him as best I can. Oleg works, lives his own life and helps Pavel (for example, when they were at a local exhibition on unconventional solutions in construction in Red Cliff in early April). 

In general, we all continue to look positively at the future and try to develop as we can. Have a Warm and Happy May to everyone!

The next pancake breakfast will be

May 26, 9:30 - 11:00. All are welcome! This is a free community breakfast. No donations will be accepted.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Bethesda's Annual Fish Fry will be Friday, July 19.

The annual picnic will be Sunday, August 25. Dale Chesley and Will Mowchan will be there as we say our thank yous and goodbyes.

Council Meetings

May 15, 2024

Immanuel Council 6:00

Joint Council 6:30

Bethesda Council 7:00

April Draft Immanuel Council Minutes

February Draft Joint Council Minutes (No April meeting)

March Draft Bethesda Council Minutes (No April meeting)

Monday Book Club

Join us for a Book Study on Zoom

Mondays at 1:00 PM

See our website for the Zoom link

Meeting ID: 851 3905 2851

Passcode: 467574

Dial by your location

    +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)

Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World by the 14th Dalai Lama

Questions? Call Leanne 715.742.3553

Bayfield Presbyterian Book Study

“The Meaning of Life after Death” is a short study is written by Dr. Susan R. Garrett, a professor of New Testament at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary. 

Session 1 (May 8) focuses on Old Testament views on death and afterlife. 

Session 2 (May 15) looks at New Testament views about life after death. 

Session 3 (May 22) considers what constitutes a Presbyterian perspective on death and afterlife.

Pastor Lawrence Lee will be leading these sessions. Handouts will be provided and no preparation is needed for the sessions. The sessions will be held in the Bayfield Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall on Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. and all are welcome. No registration is needed.

For more information contact Pastor Lawrence (pastor.lawerence.lee@gmail.com).

South Shore Quilters

Mondays 9:00 am - Noon at Immanuel

Wednesdays 9:00 am - Noon at Immanuel

The mission-quilt group at Immanuel is always in need of donations of clean usable bed sheets--preferably flat sheets--which we use as backing for the quilts, spools of thread (whether full or not) and fabric.

The Knit Wits

Knitting & Crocheting at the Corny coffee shop Fridays 1:00 - 4:00

Immanuel has a painting group that meets on Thursdays, 10:00 - 1:00.