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THE
HISTORIC COMMUNITY CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH |
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Welcome to the on-line edition of your church newsletter of The Good News!
Lent... In the tradition of the Christian church, it is a sacred season for the faithful to prepare for Easter. The length of the Lenten fast, during which an observant eat sparingly, was established in the 4th century as 40 days. In the Eastern churches, where both Saturdays and Sundays are regarded as festival days, the period of Lent is the eight weeks before Easter; in the Western churches, where only Sunday is regarded as a festival, the 40-day period begins on Ash Wednesday and extends, with the omission of Sundays, to the day before Easter. The observance of fasting or other forms of self-denial during Lent varies within Protestant and Anglican churches. These bodies emphasize penitence. The Roman Catholic church has in recent years relaxed its laws on fasting. According to an apostolic constitution issued by Pope Paul VI in February 1966, fasting and abstinence during Lent are obligatory only on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Lent... In our modern Protestant tradition of Christian faith, this is a time for looking at how our faith can shape and improve our daily lives. It is a passage of discipline we travel through, where prayer is perhaps more intentional, personal devotion disciplined and more moments of meditation taken in each of these 40 days that point us to the promise of Resurrection! Lent... in the life of our
church, affords us many opportunities for the good growth of our Christian
faith. The music shared on Sunday morning's are grounded in the
sacred. The great words of scripture tell of the final days of passion and
promise in the life of Jesus. We will come to terms with the reality of
death... and the eternal promise of life! In
Service to His Church,
Ash Wednesday in the tradition of the Christian Church, is a
time of preparation and prayer. Join us at 7:30 p.m. on March 8th for this
moving and memorable evening that begins our 40 day journey through Lent.
There will be quiet music to enjoy, thoughtful words to meditate upon, and an opportunity
to surrender to God those shortcomings or weaknesses that we might want to give
up for Lent. Our spiritual journey will be nourished in a private moment
to kneel at the communion table for the breaking of bread and passing of a
common cup. We hope you will find the time to begin your Lenten pilgrimage
this year at this reflective service that is always well remembered.
You
won’t want to miss church on Sunday, March 12th
MAKING
ROOM FOR GOD’S PEOPLE A
Capital Campaign for Community Congregational Church Our
Capital Campaign goal of 1.3 million is challenging, but no one is asked to do
it alone. This
is an all-church effort which can be accomplished if all of us join together in
regular and generous giving over the next three years. This guideline is
not designed to tell us what we MUST give.
It’s purpose is to help us decide how much we CHOOSE to give.
We are challenged to pray about our decision in stretching toward levels
of giving we’ve never before achieved.
As we respond faithfully to this challenge, choosing a gift that reflects our
gratitude to God and our commitment to Christ’s Church, we can expect not only
to reach our goal, but also to discover new joy in our life together as God’s
people. GUIDELINES
FOR GRATEFUL GIVING
This
level of giving will allow us to MAKE ROOM FOR GOD’S PEOPLE
by reaching our Capital Campaign goal. STEPS
IN GIVING Many of us have been considering how much we can afford to pledge to the Capital Campaign over the next three years. For many of us, our pledge will be met through contributions from our regular income and will involve changing our spending habits and making some changes in our lifestyle. We encourage everyone to consider stretching to reach a pledge level step or two up from where they see themselves on the below giving chart, as a bit more each week means a lot more for the campaign over three years!
WHAT
ARE YOU WILLING TO SACRIFICE?
ONE
GREAT HOUR OF SHARING A special offering for One Great Hour of Sharing will be taken this coming April 2nd. This annual offering sponsored nationwide by our United Church of Christ, helps to provide relief for displaced persons, victims of famine and natural disasters throughout the world. Thank you for reaching out globally through this important ministry of our wider church. Mission and Stewardship Board members for 2000 Barb
& Lou Carpenter (Chairperson)
CONFIRMATION
CLASS OF 2000 To:
All parents of the church with children 5th grade and older What is a Confirmation Class?
Simply put, it is time to learn about matters of Christian faith that
help confirm a young person’s religious beliefs and commitment to walk with
God through life! Confirmation
prepares young minds and spirits to ask faithful questions.
It celebrates the blessings of life that come with faith!
It is a time to look at maters that speak about God, Jesus Christ, the
Bible, our church and the religious traditions, which build character and common
values. Confirmation Class helps a young person be faith-full! This spring our church will offer a
Confirmation Class experience for all young people who are in the 5th
grade and older. They will meet every other Monday evening from 6:30 to 8
o’clock at a different home for food, fun and most importantly faith!
The minister of the church will be meeting with them on a regular basis
to offer religious instruction and guidance.
Our Youth Director will also be on hand to help promote good
relationships and peer support among the group. There will also be a work book
published by our United Church of Christ, that your son or daughter will
complete that covers such topics as “How We Got Our Bible, Why Christians Care
for Others, What Protestants Believe, and Why Is Faith Important” to name but
a few. In short… this
experience will add balance and perspective to your child’s growing Christian
development and faith. This year’s Confirmation Class
will run throughout the spring, summer and fall months.
Along the way there will be special outings, camping trips and retreats
for your child to attend. Shortly
before Christmas all young people who would like to formally join the church –
will be welcomed to do so – having found the ground upon which a lasting faith
can stand. Needless to say… active
participation is essential and mandatory. This
must become a high priority in your life. People
have long said that a church should offer an active and vital youth program to
families. The resources to do just
that are in firmly in place. Your
commitment to be supportive and participate fully is all that is needed to make
great things happen! If you have any question, please
feel free to ask Rev. Hunting, Trevin Bensko-Wecks or a member of the Christian
Education Board. Reservations to be
a part of this year’s Confirmation Class need to be in no later than April 1st.
A simple phone call to the church office by that time will do.
We hope that the time and effort we are willing to put into your child’s life, will fulfill a need that you find important. It will be a privilege to share with them the ways of Christ’s love… that will walk with them for a lifetime! In
Service to the Church
We are once again going to send “Care” packages to our scholarship recipients who are (hopefully) concentrating on their studies and preparing for final exams. We will be stuffing our little packages with tea, cocoa, candies, power bars and other “crunchy-munchies” to get them through this stressful period of their academic year. If you have any ideas on what we can add to these packages, or would like to donate something, please contact Pat Bradley or Ginny Suazo. We will be meeting near the end of March to pack them up and ship them off in time for finals. (Five students currently receive scholarship assistance through our church.) If you are interested in a scholarship application, please contact any member of the Scholarship Board or Patsy Adams in the church office. The deadline for applications, either new or renewal, is April 10, 2000.
Use
the space provided below to share a joy or concern us.
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The
following couples were recently united in Christian marriage. We extend
our best blessings to these happy people, who stood before the altar at our
church, and best wishes to each of 
