From Our Minister
A woman and her husband interrupted their vacation to go to a dentist. “I want a tooth pulled, and I don’t want gas because I’m in a big hurry,” the woman said, “so just extract the tooth as quickly as possible and we’ll be on our way.”
The dentist was quite impressed and said. “You’re certainly a courageous woman. Which tooth is it?” The woman turned to her husband and said, “Show him your tooth, dear.”
I find it interesting that Jesus never made a painful decision for someone else. Jesus never said, “deal with your affliction” or “pray more and harder and God will take care of you.” Every person that came to Jesus in pain, fear, trembling or hunger found a Jesus that was prepared to help and he never asked if they were deserving.
Sometimes the church becomes tired of the demands of the work and sacrifice expected of us. This, I believe, is normal. I don’t believe Jesus expected us to always be on “high energy”, for he himself had times of exhaustion. What Jesus does seem to expect of us, however, is to remember what following him is about – caring for the same people he cared for and never giving-up on that responsibility.
Peace,
Don
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Open Table January Salute
Open Table is serving 60 dinners every Thursday at the Grange. We have had good attendance despite the dark sometimes icy, late afternoons of winter. We have had excellent volunteers preparing, serving and cleaning up. Guido’s and Berkshire Mountain Bakery continue to make much appreciated weekly donations to our menu.
Kudos to David Pullaro and Cindy, Pete DelGrande, Jackie Hawkins and Anne Fix, Wendy and Joe Nicolosi, KK and John Zutter. These are the chefs: preparing menus, shopping for the best prices and preparing the food during short winter afternoons. Open Table would not be possible without their generous donation of time and talents.
I would be remiss not to salute the holiday dinner 10 days before Christmas when we had wonderful roast beast that would have pleased even the Grinch. That meal was made possible by the donations of money that are made every week by our patrons and the shrewd shopping of David Pullaro.
Christian Education News
Our Lenten Lecture Series, Blessed Are the Peacemakers, Coping with Violence, begins on February 26th. Mark your calendars for that day and the following five Sundays to hear excellent presentations. Each speaker will talk for about thirty minutes, followed by a half hour of comments and questions. The talks begin after church and coffee hour, and a light lunch will be served. The lectures are free and open to the public.
Max Stackhouse, who organized the series says, “The season before Easter according to the biblical record, is laden with violence. John the Baptist is beheaded, Jesus drives the money changers out of the temple, the high priests conspire to kill him, he instructs his disciples to sell their cloaks and buy swords (Lk. 22:38), he is arrested, tortured and crucified and Judas commits suicide. We may never be in a context where we witness any of these, but there is much violence in our world. In our series we will confront contemporary forms of violence which we face in modern societies with particular attention to the resources now we have to deal with them. recommend the following books as background: James Gilligan, Violence: Reflections on a National Epidemic; and Steven Pinker, The Better Angels of our Nature: Why Violence is Declining.”
Click here for dates, topics and speakers.
Jody Powe is taking care of our nursery on Sunday mornings and will be providing childcare during the lectures.
In Sunday School, we are trying out Godly Play lessons. We have some of the lesson kits on loan from the Monterey Church and have recently purchased some since the children love these lessons–and judging from the response to our Christmas Pageant this year, adults do, too. The children performed the Godly Play lesson about the mystery of Christmas during the church service on December 18th, Steve Alsdorf was the “presenter.” Amy Broberg, Les Freeman and baby Mia were a perfect holy family.
Steve Alsdorf, Julie Haagenson, and Ted Randolph have been preparing and presenting the Godly Play lessons we have done so far. On February 12th and February 26th, Barbara Sims will be the presenter. Barbara is a professional actress and teaches Godly Play at the Church-on-the-Hill in Lenox. We have other interesting sessions planned for the children during the month that include music and art and getting ready for Mardi Gras on February 19th. We are also continuing to encourage our youth to participate in the worship service and are beginning a mentoring program for our middle school-age students.
What is Godly Play?
Godly Play teaches children the art of using Christian language – parable, sacred story, silence and liturgical action – helping them become more fully aware of the mystery of God’s presence in their lives.
When Christian language is learned by the Godly Play approach, it is learned as a means to know God and to make meaning of our lives. This approach is quite different from the traditional model in which the teacher tells the children what they need to know. Godly Play is not about things that are that simple. It is not just about learning lessons or keeping children entertained. It is about locating each lesson in the whole system of Christian language and involving the creative process to discover the depths of meaning in them. It’s about understanding how each of the stories of God’s people connects with the child’s own experience and relationship with God. Godly Play respects the innate spirituality of children and encourages curiosity and imagination in experiencing the mystery and joy of God.
The goal of Godly Play is to show how to be open to the Holy Spirit, The Creator, and the Redeemer all at once and all the time in every place. To achieve this goal is to help children become deeply rooted as Christians and yet at the same time use this powerful language and community to be open and creative.
Godly Play is a creative and imaginative approach to Christian nurture.
Godly Play is based on long established, tried and tested approaches.
Godly Play encourages participants to make meaning for themselves by inviting them into stories and providing the opportunity for them to connect the stories with their personal experience.
Godly Play is a non-coercive way to encourage people to move into larger dimensions of belief and faith through wondering questions and open-ended response time.
Godly Play values process, openness and discovery.
Godly Play is a way of preparing children to join in the worship and life of their congregations as they develop a deeper understanding of stories, symbols and rites.
Although it was originally developed as a resource for children, Godly Play is now being used with a wide range of age groups in a diversity of settings.
A Godly Play session includes time to…
Get ready
Tell a story using objects and artifacts
Explore the story more with open questions and discussions
Respond with a free choice using a variety of materials – art, silence, music, writing
Enjoy a simple feast and sharing
Is open to the unexpected
Slows down the pace
Provides the tools and then stands back
Growth & Fellowship in February
A BIG Valentine to all our Coffee Hour providers! Thanks everyone! We’re especially looking forward to Debbie and Don’s Super Bowl layout on Feb. 5. Keep those signups coming…we’re blank after Feb. 19…the signup sheet is in the J.E. Room.
We will resume having Greeters Easter Sunday–when it’s warmer!
Another Valentine to Michelle and Chuck Gillett for our nice new pew tags! Many thanks, you two.
And, a Valentine to Barbara Bracknell…keep on mending, Barbara!
We’re looking greatly forward to our all-church Birthday Party/Mardi Gras Celebration on Feb. 19. We will have our wonderful “Parade of Cakes” from our top bakers and cupcakes decorated by our kids. Please bring a dish to share, other than dessert. Christian Ed. and Growth & Fellowship will co-host this fun event, so “Let the Good Times Roll!”
On Thursday, Feb. 9 at 7 PM at Hevreh of South Berkshire in Great Barrington, will be the next program in the Human Rights Speaker Series, of which our church is a sponsor. This will be Gene Dattel speaking on Cotton and Race in the Making of America, As cotton shaped the nation’s economic landscape, racial oppression and the human suffering of slavery shaped the face of America–a people and a crop became inextricably bonded.
Prayer Shawl Ministry meets in the nursery on Mon., Feb. 13 and Fri., Feb. 24 at 10:15 in the nursery.
Don’t forget to check out our wonderful website at www.stockbridgeucc.org. Thank you, Anne Hutchinson, for your good work there, too!
From the heart,
Mary Hoeltzel
Mission and Action
We have begun doing good works with our newly funded 2012 budget, with donations to the Stockbridge Fire Department, the West Cummington Congregational Church (a tragic fire recently destroyed their historic building), the Western Mass Food Bank, and additional support to the deBesche/Stackhouse family in South Africa.
Thank yous: excerpts from recent thank you notes we have received –
“On behalf of the children and parents in our Pittsfield Family Literacy program, I would like to thank you for your generous donation in support of this valuable service.
…Your gift will have an immediate and future impact on the lives of local families.”
-Berkshire Children & Families
“Your generous gift is very important to our operations as we reach out to more patients… Despite Massachusetts’ “nearly universal” health care system, more than 250,000 people in the Commonwealth remain without coverage. VIM performs a much needed service helping to fill that gap in the Berkshires -Volunteers in Medicine
“I know you will find it satisfying that your donation does more than just provide a weekly food supplement. It has the added benefit of allowing people the opportunity to socialize and form friendships.” -The People’s Pantry
“Your commitment and generosity will help support the programs and services that the Center provides to the immigrant and refugee community of Berkshire County.”
-Berkshire Immigrant Center
“We are most grateful for your Christmas gift to us! We completed our window project this year and are still working on the roof. Your gift is most helpful. God bless you.”
-Sisters of the Visitation, Tyringham
“Thank you for your recent gift to Railroad Street Youth Project… We are especially proud to have had a very strong record of success in impacting the lives of some of the most disengaged local young people thanks to our non-judgmental, welcoming yet structured atmosphere. We have expanded our reach each year since our inception in 2000, and in the 2010 fiscal year we served approximately 400 youth in a meaningful way.” -RSYP, Gt. Barrington
“We sincerely appreciate your support. Your generosity helps Literacy Network’s students to qualify for better jobs, improve their quality of life, and obtain U.S. citizenship or all of these.” -Literacy Network of South Berkshire
“Thank you very much for your incredible support of this year’s WALK. We are so grateful for your wonderful turnout and donations.”
“Thank you all so much for your generous and thoughtful holiday giving of gifts for our families and shelter guests, hockey sticks for the children at Pinewoods and money for the Fuel Fund here at Construct. How many lives you have touched with warmth, laughter, learning, and creative expression (all those art supplies!) Your support + encouragement of our work help us find the strength to go into a new year – and hopefully a better year economically for our neighbors in need. Thank you!
-Cara Davis, Construct, Inc.
From the Service League
We were so excited about the spectacular success of the Holly Fair in December, we just couldn’t wait to get back to work in January and start a new project. Did I hear you say, “What is it? How can we help?” I’m glad you asked! It’s that popular perennial, CHURCH WORLD SERVICE KITS!
I’ll get right to the point: The need is great, ongoing, and worldwide. These kits fly off the shelves of the central warehouse in Maryland and travel around the globe to people in desperate need. We have committed ourselves to a goal of 100 KITS this year – surpassing our own record of sixty last year. There are four kinds of kits:
School Kits – $13.00 each
Health Kits – $11.00 each
Baby Kits – $39.00 each
Clean-up Buckets – $50.00 each
We can purchase and organize most efficiently and cost-effectively when the congregation provides monetary donations. But if you’d like to donate the actual items for the kits, we’ll gladly provide a list of each kits’ contents. Meanwhile, a labeled box will reside in the JE Room, and your checks (made out to Women’s Service League, memo line “kits”) will be very gratefully accepted.
Thank you!
Safe parking: This is a reminder that church members should park only in the designated parking spaces (those within white lines). There have been recent instances of members parking parallel to the building in non-marked spaces. This is a fire hazard and might interfere with the fire department during an emergency. Thank you for your consideration.
Board of Trustees
Mardi Gras Band Seeks Musicians!
The Saints band will play for the postlude again on Mardi Gras Sunday, Feb. 19 this year. We are looking for musicians. The band consists of some seasoned (enough) musicians who have done this before and hold things together. We welcome more folks who actually have mastery of any instrument (and I mean ANY instrument that can play in B flat) as well as rookies (including kids, of course) and folks who played sometime in the past. We play “When the Saints Go Marching In”, which has five notes (though I can write you an arrangement for 2 notes). It’s a lot of fun and quite low-key. We rehearse once, before church that morning (although I’m willing to rehearse you more if that will make you more comfortable). Please let me know soon if you are thinking of joining us so that I can get you some music. As ever, our motto is: Start together, play loud, end together.
Diane Piraino
THANK YOUS
We’d like to thank the Fitzpatrick family and the mailroom crew at Country Curtains for mailing out our Newsletter each month.
A GREAT BIG thank you to the ladies at Riverbrook. Without their help I could never get this Newsletter to you.
HAPPY FEBRUARY BIRTHDAYS
(Please let someone on the Growth Committee know if we have not included your birthday or listed it incorrectly.)
February 6 John Kingston
February 8 Jane Huggins
February 10 Claire Williams
February 12 Eric Youngerman
February 13 Julia Lewis
February 15 Dorothea Miller
February 20 Emma Drew Margaret Bushko
February 23 Kathleen Opperman
February 24 Sophie Randolph Michelle Pixley
February 26 Jim McMenamy Matt McMenamy
February 27 David Hawkins
PLEASE REMEMBER THE FOLLOWING IN YOUR PRAYERS:
DeeDee Brownson, Stockbridge
David Anderegg and his family on the death of his brother-in-law
Martha Voisin, mother of Anne Roy
Tedd and Dorothy Osgood, parents of Tristan
Bill Fuller, Slingerlands, NY
David McKearnan, Stockbridge
Bill & Allie Holmes, Lenox
Joan Selva, Stockbridge
Jan Lindstrom, Sweetbrook Nursing Home, Williamstown
Anne Braman, Village at Laurel Lake, Lee
Pat Martin, Stockbridge