A Liberal Church, Welcoming of All, Passionately Committed to Social Justice

The Pilgrim - July 25, 2010

Sunday Celebration Notes from Jerry Stinson
Celebrating God’s Love Every Sunday at 10 am.

July 26 marks the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Rev. Harold Wilke, father of the Rev. Kit Wilke, a former member of the staff at First Church, played an important role in the passage of that legislation and was one of the people on the stage when the president signed the bill into law.

Our Sunday service will celebrate what that legislation has meant to those with disabilities. The liturgy for the service will focus on disability awareness.

In place of a sermon, I will engage in a conversation about the ADA and living with disabilities with four people: Cynde Soto, Jerry Kulhavy, Lillibeth Navarro and Lillian Schase.

Because several of the participants in this service are in wheelchairs, most of the service will be led from the ground level in front of the chancel. The conversation sermon will take place with people seated in that location. So you may want to make sure you sit somewhere where you can see those who are participating.

Also during the service, we will commission our young people who are going to Pilgrim Pines Camp this summer. Since the choir will be on vacation in August, this will be the final anthem until after Labor Day. Jim Lumen will provide additional special music during this service.

SERMON: A Dialogue About Living With Disabilities
The Rev. Jerry Stinson, Cynde Soto, Lillibeth Navarro, Jerry Kulhavy and Lillian Schase
LITURGISTS: The Rev. Libby Tigner and Mr. Ben Rockwell

 

Music on Sunday

This Sunday I have the great privilege of conducting the Sanctuary Choir as Tracy will be out of town. The choir will sing a setting by Beverly Mortensen of “Breathe on Me, Breath of God.” The arrangement uses a tune called “America” from The Sacred Harp, a collection of songs that was first published in 1844, although the tune itself can be traced all the way back to 1745. (“Harp” is an antiquated synonym for “hymnal.”)

Sacred Harp singing, also known as the singing-school movement, developed in the southern United States, is always sung a cappella, and is sung by the singers for themselves, not for an audience. The singers typically get into their respective soprano, alto, tenor and bass sections as four sides of a hollow square and then face in toward the center, in other words toward each other. Although we won’t do this on Sunday, to some degree the Sanctuary Choir will emulate an aggressive, outdoorsy, rustic sound that is more characteristic of the singing-school movement rather than the highly polished, richly blended and balanced choral tone we generally aspire to.

The tune used in this arrangement also happens to be a “fuguing tune.” The inner three verses of five are very contrapuntal, and in the second to the last verse the altos begin and are almost immediately musically stepped upon by the tenors and then the sopranos as each section fights to dominate in presenting the melody.

The anthem takes no longer to perform than it took you to read this. I am certain you’ll enjoy this interesting piece in the choir’s final performance before a well-deserved August break.

Marc Dickey, organist

 

In Sunday School

Theme: Shaped by Prayer
Scripture Focus: Luke 11:1-13

 

In Adult Education
Sundays at 8:30 am in the Klar Rooms, upstairs in Pilgrim Hall

Jerry Stinson’s five-week course on “The Heart of Islam” continues this Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m. Those who have the book for the course are encouraged to read pages 201-272.

 

 

Forum on Disability Etiquette
By Jerry Stinson

Cynde Soto, President of the Beachwood Chapter of Californians for Disability Rights, along with other members of that organization will lead a forum focusing on sensitivity and disability etiquette after the Sunday service in the Klar educational rooms in Pilgrim Hall.

The forum will begin a brief video that shows President George H. W. Bush signing the legislation and giving one of the pens to Harold Wilke. It also shows the invocation Rev. Wilke offered at the opening of that ceremony.

 

Last Call: Pink Martini at the Hollywood Bowl, Saturday, September 11
By Cathy Chambers

The boards of Cultural Arts and Parish Life are co-organizing an outing to see Pink Martini at the Hollywood Bowl on Saturday, September 11, and this is your last chance to reserve tickets for the event. Tickets will be approximately $30, including a round-trip bus ticket. If you have not signed up or talked to me (Cathy Chambers) please do so NOW (cathcham@otis.edu or 562-439-6935). Names received after Sunday, July 25 will be placed on a waiting list.

 

Memorial for Ed Reeves - August 13

The memorial service for the Rev. Ed Reeves will be on Friday, August 13 at 2 p.m. in the sanctuary.

 

Stewardship Moment - For Such a Time as This
From Robert Stapp

Recently Jim Deaton was one of our lay leaders in the service, and he shared these words with us about stewardship during an offering invitation:

“I am going to speak for just a few minutes on a subject that I used when I last volunteered for this service. It’s INVESTMENTS.

“We all make investments everyday. We invest in others, in friendships and in relationships … through our time, our caring, our support and our love. We invest in our families, our children, our communities, our government. We invest with our money, our time, our love, our energy and our prayers.

“Our church makes investments on our behalf, through our ministerial services, through our vital and many important programs. Now, I am asking that you invest in your church. Those of you who give with a joyful and giving spirit will receive great dividends. And, no, you will not receive a notice that your investments are due April 15.

“Our collection of your investments will now be taken …"

When we make an investment in our church of our time, out talents or our treasure, we ensure that our many ministries will be supported.

For Such a Time as This … you can make a difference at First Church.

 

Summer Day Camp Rocks
By Nancy Valencia, Chair, Downtown Associated Youth Services

Downtown Associated Youth Services (DAYS) Summer Day Camp just completed its third week. Last Friday, the camp staff created a makeshift water park at Caesar Chavez Park. For four hours our campers enjoyed various water activities. One fourth-grade camper asked his teacher if he could call his mom; the teacher said yes, but asked if something was wrong. He said he wanted to call his mom and tell her how much fun he was having. At the end of the day, two middle-school age youth were helping to put away supplies and they too said that the day at the park was so much fun. Thank you to the members of First Church for allowing these children to have a summer that creates memories, provides a safe place, and encourages them to engage, learn and be challenged. Your support is deeply appreciated.

 

Save the Date! Ninth Annual Golf Tournament - Saturday, October 23

David L. Baker Golf Course, Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley
Total fee: $60. Includes green fees, cart, range balls, lunch and goody bags. For more information, see www.firstchurchlb.org.

 

Get into the Orange County Fair Free This Wednesday!

The Orange County Fair is partnering with the Orange County Food Bank to offer complimentary admission to the fair on Wednesday, July 21 to everyone who brings five cans of food between 12 noon and 6 p.m.

 

Financial and Legal Workshop for Gays and Lesbians - Wednesday, July 21

Do you know about the new rules for domestic partner income? How to make the most of your 401K or IRA? What are the essentials of an estate plan? Free workshop on the many financial and legal issues facing gays and lesbians. We begin at 7 pm on Wednesday, July 21.  Workshops are about two hours long, questions welcomed. Presented by Philip Hoskins, Attorney and Steven Schmitt and Kyle Young, Wells Fargo Certified Financial Planners.

 

Zen Master to Speak on Thursday, July 22

Zen Master Tenshin Fletcher will speak on the essentials of Zen practice this Thursday, July 22, 7 - 8 p.m. in Patterson Hall. A reception with tea and snacks will start at 6 p.m.

Tenshin Roshi (Roshi is the Japanese title for an accomplished Zen Master) is the abbot of Yokoji-Zen Mountain Center, an international Zen meditation center in the local mountains two hours from Long Beach. In his talk, Tenshin Roshi will discuss how Zen can help us lead more satisfying lives, as well as how we can carry the formal meditation practice into daily living. Recommended donation: $5.

Yokoji-Zen Mountain Center hopes to eventually open a city Zen center in Long Beach and has therefore started the Yokoji Long Beach Zen Group which meets at First Church in Sacred Space every Saturday, 9 - 11 a.m.

 

Pilgrim Deadline

The deadline for submitting items for inclusion in the newsletter is Friday at 12 noon for the email going out the following week.

 

 

Parish Concerns

Your thoughts and prayers are requested for Karen Rauch (Cathy Clay's friend); Matt Balin; Tim Himrod (Laura McCrary's grandnephew); José Sánchez-H.; Robert Wilson (Paul Bogdan's friend); Emily and Nick Melzian (Deanna Melzian's children) upon the death of their father; and Neil Weikle (Joe Ernst's friend).

In the armed forces: Laura Anderson (Kathy Young's niece, stationed in Bahrain).

Names on the Parish Concerns list appear in two consecutive editions of the newsletter. Those in the armed forces serving in combat zones are listed until they come home. To put someone on either list, put a note on the Parish Concerns board on the Third Street landing or contact Ruth Warkentin in the church office.

 

Becoming a Member of First Church

Whether you have been attending for a few weeks, a few months or several years, we would like you to consider becoming a member of First Church. When you are ready to take that step, please call or email the Rev. Jerry Stinson at 562-436-2256, ext 230 or revjstinson@verizon.net.

 

Online Calendar

Don’t miss out! Check the online church calendar at www.firstchurchlb.org/calendar.html for details about all church events. You can use the online calendar to email invitations to friends to church events and to set up emailed reminders to yourself. Just click on any event to see information about it.

 

To place an ad in this newsletter, please contact Ruth Warkentin in the church office.

 

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First Congregational Church - 241 Cedar Avenue - Long Beach, California 90802
562-436-2256 - Fax: 562-436-3018 - E-mail: office@firstchurchlb.org