The First Presbyterian Church
133 South Main Street
Post Office Box 687
Mount Holly, North Carolina 28120
704 827-0521 704 827-2351 (Fax)
Email: Website: fpcmountholly.org
APRIL 2018
………………...NEWSLETTER……..……..…
With the first day of the month of April comes the first day to celebrate Easter and the resurrection of Jesus. We’re nearly through a meaningful Lenten season and the shadows that brought darkness are soon to be banished again by the light of hope and eternal life. Thanks be to God!
I look forward to worshiping with you on this, our first Easter in Mount Holly. A sunrise service and then worship in our sanctuary, with breakfast in between, will be wonderful ways to express our joy that Christ is alive! What a difference this makes in our lives and in the world.
There is a tradition that I have observed for the last eight years or so of my ministry that serves to continue the joy of Easter worship. It is one that is being used more and more by churches across the country and one that I hope you will find delightful. It is called “Holy Humor Sunday,” and it occurs on the first Sunday after Easter. With the concurrence of the Worship Committee, we will celebrate Holy Humor Sunday on April 8.
Holy Humor Sunday is an “old Easter custom begun by the Greeks in the early centuries of Christianity. For centuries in Eastern Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant countries, the week following Easter Sunday, including "Bright Sunday" (the Sunday after Easter), was observed by the faithful as "days of joy and laughter" with parties and picnics to celebrate Jesus' resurrection. The custom was rooted in the musings of early church theologians (like Augustine, Gregory of Nyssa, and John Chrysostom) that God played a practical joke on the devil by raising Jesus from the dead. ‘Risus paschalis- the Easter laugh,’ the early theologians called it.”
Our worship on April 8 will follow our usual format but will include some light-hearted elements. The choir has something special in mind to contribute to this service, and you are invited to come wearing your brightest and cheeriest Sunday attire as well. Come with your smiles and good humor as we continue our celebration of the risen Christ on this day. You won’t want to miss it! Blessings, Janet
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Sunday, April1 -- 7:00 AM Easter Sunrise Service with breakfast to follow
11:00 AM Easter Worship Service/One Great Hour of Sharing offering
Monday, April 2 -- The Church Office will be closed.
11:00 AM Circle 3 meeting at the Church
Tuesday, April 3 -- 7:00 PM Circle 5 meeting the Church
Wednesday, April 4 -- 10:00 AM Circle 6 meeting at the Church
Saturday, April 7 -- 7:00 PM Raleigh Ringers @ Christ Lutheran Church, Charlotte
Sunday, April 8 -- 11:00 AM Morning Worship Service/Holy Humor Sunday
12:15 PM Session Meeting
Monday, April 9, 16, 23, 30 -- Kid Connections- Connecting Kids to Jesus Christ through Science
Wednesday, April 11, 18, 25 -- 6:00 PM Handbell Practice
7:00 PM Adult Choir Rehearsal
Sunday, April 29 -- 11:00 AM Morning Worship Service/Rev. Kitty Tompkins preaching/5 Cents A Meal
USHER FOR APRIL
Chairperson: Marguerite Randall
PRAYER CHURCHES
April 1 -- Korean (Asheville)
April 8 -- Lenoir, First
April 15 -- Lincolnton, First
April 22 -- Long Creek (Kings Mountain)
April 29 -- Love’s Chapel (Belmont)
And don’t forget to pray for our
Partner Church in Palin, Guatemala.
Let’s keep in our prayers all who are ill or facing challenges, as well as our homebound members. Let us pray for peace in the world.
Rev. Janet DeWater can be reached at the church during the week. Her home phone number is 704 820 8185 or her cell number 425 864 3838 if you need to reach her after hours.
"Facing Racism"- A Report From The Study Group
The Presbyterian Church (USA), which has had a strong conviction regarding the sinfulness of racism, createdThe Churchwide Antiracism Policy Teamto look at this issue. The team created a six week study guide to help promote conversation about race and racism in the Christian faith. Several members of our church met for six weeks to cover and discuss this information. Below is a very brief summary of this study.
Having conversations about race, racism and white supremacy is difficult. It creates room for confusion and defensiveness. So how was the termraceinvented?People have always come in different shapes, sizes and colors. It was not until colonizers lumped whole continents of people into one category, with skin color as the determining factor, that the term began to be used. As people were lumped into categories by skin color, the white Europeans became the hierarchy. This system of categorizing by skin color is calledwhite supremacy .
Racism is the ongoing effects of white supremacy. It is ingrained in almost all of our culture and society. Racism is structural and systemic and does not apply to personal feelings or attitudes. Ill feelings toward other racial groups is bigotry and prejudice. Racism is the original sin of the United States and it seems to be getting worse at times. We have not done enough to change the structures of our society.
There are many systems and structures in place that create inequality in our country. Economics, education, policing, immigration and mass incarceration are all factors that facilitate racism. Mass incarceration falls primarily on people of color. Despite that white and black people use drugs at the same rate, black people are jailed for drug charges 10 times that of white people. The United States has only 5% of the world’s population but houses 25% of the world’s prisoners. The consequences of being incarcerated pushes black people out of the job market, disqualifies them from getting food stamps when needed and in many states felons can never vote again after being released.
These factors and many more keep us from creating a world that more closely reflects God s vision for a Beloved Community. We cannot create the Beloved Community until every person is free, is treated as a person and not athingand is valued as a full member of the human community. Racism is the opposite of what God hopes for humanity. The Bible provides a firm foundation to engage in antiracism work. This begins in the story of the creation where God tells us that we were made in his image and therefore of equal worth, value and dignity. We are interwoven with all of creation.
So what can we do as a church family to meet God’s vision of the Beloved Community? What can our church do to improve the lives of those in our community that are held down by racism?
The study group suggested severalactsthat we felt our church should pursue to counter the racism and white supremacy that is in our community. You should be hearing about those suggestions soon.
We would like to thank Janet for facilitating this study and also for leading us in this meaningful discussion.
Wording and informationin this article was taken from the study material the Presbyterian Church (USA) provided for this six week study.
- Paty and John Byrd
SESSION HIGHLIGHTS
At the March meeting Session:
Entertained an offer from a perspective buyer to purchase two of the sanctuary chandeliers that were purchased for the renovation, but were unable to be used.
Discussed a more cost efficient option for an inside lift and handicap accessible bathroom.
Approved the use of our lawn for a series of City of Mount Holly events.
Accepted Bob Miller’s resignation from the Session.
Approved a request to transfer Linda Patchin’s membership to First Presbyterian Church of Dallas.
Will observe Communion by intinction during the Maundy Thursday service on Thursday, March 29, at 7:00 PM.
Received and approved the current Profit and Loss report.
Approved the use of the church facilities for the wedding of Sylvia Cross and Max Whitley on May 12, 2018.
Received an update regarding our church’s responsibilities for the Community VBS.
Discussed our church’s responsibilities for the Community Easter Egg Hunt, which will be hosted at our church on Sunday, March 25.
Received a list of projects to be completed during our church workday on March 17. Elder Jeff Kaylor will maintain an ongoing, updated list of projects to be completed throughout the year.
Continued dialogue about signage options to promote and advertise church activities and events.
Received information regarding four science focused sessions to be offered as part of our “Kids Connections” community outreach initiative. These sessions will be taught by Tina Springs on consecutive Mondays from April 9 – April 30.
. --Brenda McKinney, Clerk of Session
EASTER SUNDAY
APRIL 1
Easter Morning Sunrise service at 7:00 AM
with a breakfast to follow
11:00 AM Easter Morning Worship Service with special music
“Holy Humor Sunday” April 8
Wear brightly colored attire and join us in worship on April 8 as we continue to celebrate the good news that Christ is alive on this first Sunday after Easter.
Christ Lutheran Church presents
The Raleigh Ringers
Saturday, April 7, 2018 at 7:00 PM
Christ Lutheran Church
4519 Providence Road
Charlotte, NC 28226
Discounts for groups of 10.
(Contact Nelson for more details.)
For ages K – 5th grade
Monday afternoons –April 9, 16, 23, 30 4:00 – 5:15
Session Supply fee: $5.00 (financial assistance available if needed)
This four week session will offer an exciting program focused on connecting kids to
Jesus Christ through Science! Registration is required - spots are limited.
Please return registration form (available on our website or through the church office)
and supply fee by April 3.
Do You Sew?
The Christian Education Committee needs a banner that would hang from the railing on the second floor of the Educational Building. The goal is to create a welcoming message that will be seen by people entering the building by the side door going down to the kitchen. We want a large cloth banner with grommets or ties that would allow us to attach it to the rail. Otherwise, it should be a fairly simple sewing project (a large rectangle with finished edges) with the art to be created later on by our children.
If you sew and would be willing to help us with this project, please contact Donna Love or the Church office. Materials will be furnished.
On Easter Sunday, April 1, our congregation will receive the One Great Hour of Sharing Special Offering.In it we will join with Presbyterians worldwide in sharing God’s love with our neighbors in need by providing relief from disasters, food for the hungry and support for the poor and oppressed. Children are reminded to bring theirOGHS Fish Bankson Easter as well, and to place them in the offering plates as they are passed.
EASTER FLOWER CROSS
We will be creating a flower cross on Easter Sunday. If you have fresh flowers from your garden, please bring them and place them on the cross that will be located on the steps of the sanctuary. Additional flowers will be provided so that everyone can take part in creating this beautiful symbol of Jesus’ resurrection. Special thanks to Nelson for creating the cross.
BIBLE READINGS
FOR APRIL
April 1 – Jeremiah 1-6 (Prophecy)
April 2 – Mark 5-6 (Gospels)
April 3 – I Corinthians 11-12 (Epistles)
April 4 – Exodus 1-4 (The Law)
April 5 – I Samuel 16-20 (History)
April 6 – Psalms 39-41 (Psalms)
April 7 – Job 27-28 (Wisdom)
April 8 – Jeremiah 7-11 (Prophecy)
April 9 – Mark 7-8 (Gospels)
April 10 – I Corinthians 13-14 (Epistles)
April 11 – Exodus 5-8 (The Law)
April 12 – I Samuel 21-25 (History)
April 13 – Psalms 42-44 (Psalms)
April 14 – Job 29-30 (Wisdom)
April 15 – Jeremiah 12-16 (Prophecy)
April 16 – Mark 9-10 (Gospels)
April 17 – I Corinthians 15-16 (Epistles)
April 18 – Exodus 9-11 (The Law)
April 19 – I Samuel 26-31 (History)
April 20 – Psalm 45-47 (Psalms)
April 21 – Job 31-32 (Wisdom)
April 22 – Jeremiah 17-21 (Prophecy)
April 23 – Mark 11-12 (Gospels)
April 24 – II Corinthians 1-3 (Epistles)
April 25 – Exodus 13-16 (The Law)
April 26 – II Samuel 1-4 (History)
April 27 – Psalms 48-50 (Psalms)
April 28 – Job 33-34 (Wisdom)
April 29 – Jeremiah 22-26 (Prophecy)
April 30 – Mark 13-14 (Gospels)
First Presbyterian Church
133 South Main Street
P. O. Box 687
Mount Holly, NC 28120
BIRTHDAYS
FOR APRIL
Alex Faith 1
Amanda Matz 2
Yates Springs 5
April Jessen 6
Becky Lineberger 7
Warren Rhinehart 7
Henry Massey14
Lisa Whitt16
Nancy Stowe17
Tim Matz20
Ralph Webb20
Brody Lineberger25
Allison Lockridge25
MAY BIRTHDAYS
Rachel Brown 4
Len Bergman 4
Thomas Farmer 9
Greg Springs10