Pastor’s Ponderings…
05 Oct 2011 Comments Off
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Robinson Memorial Presbyterian Church is rapidly reaching middle age, as churches go. We were chartered in 1938, 73 years ago. Old churches in the United States generally start claiming their age at 150 years. Many are closed by 200 years old. Most start slowing down by our age. They feel the creeks of the age of the building and of long time members. They are too set in their ways to change much. Some even see death as sweet release.
John Morris, one of our earliest members, used to remind me that Robinson Memorial was named to encourage the membership to recall not only the men for which the church was named (the Robinson family, which included several Moderators of General Assembly), but also the strength and witness of each generation. Both John and Mary Morris are gone now, but there are a number of us who remember them and this admonition well. This is a church that keeps many things in her collective consciousness.
According to the pamphlet published to begin RMPC’s journey in Westvale, the people of the community were very active in asking for a protestant church that could provide both worship and religious instruction for their children. The Caledonia Presbytery sympathized with this request and the Geddes Grange Hall was purchased. The opening worship service was held on March 13,
The church did well. These were the Eisenhower years and Ike and Mamie made being Presbyterian quite the rage.
The war came and ended; children were born – a lot of children. The Sunday school grew, the congregation grew, and soon a larger sanctuary and an expanded education wing became necessary. Pictures of laying the cornerstone for the new sanctuary in 1954 reveal a healthy mixture of children, young adults, middle aged adults, and older folk. Some of us would find familiar faces in the crowd.
As I look at the scrapbook Sharrell Brown made several years ago, I cannot help but notice something about the congregations at every step. There are smiles.
Supposedly, Presbyterians of former generations were to have been baptized in vinegar. This is the tradition I learned from my grandfather. Presbyterians were dour, stern Christians who could fight for weeks about a comma (well, that part, at least, has proven true) and took everything much too seriously. He told the story of the Presbyterian Elder who refused to listen to any jokes on Saturday because he was afraid he might smile or even laugh out loud on Sunday. The RMPC Presbyterians I see, however, are smiling, working together, and sometimes (horrors!) even laughing.
I see a picture of 15 men painting the Grange Hall church together so the task can be finished in one day. Even the 25th anniversary picture of charter members reveals almost as many slight smiles as tight lips. The Session of 1960 looks very approachable, except for the man who seems to be asleep. A picture of the RMPC choir in the mid 1940’s says that Anne Fuller, the choir director, decided to direct the Christmas rehearsal laying full length on the floor, as that is where the members seemed to be looking rather than at her. The smiles continue through Joan Cole and the Christmas puppets, right up to Ed and Natalie Murphy who are engaged in some sort of costumed dispute. I can tell because they both have their tongues sticking out and carefully directed at one another.
On October 30, we will celebrate Heritage Sunday with great fanfare and joy. This service of remembering has been an annual treat as long as I have been here and beyond. The Harvest Dinner will follow with everything one could imagine in a thanksgiving meal. We will hear bagpipes and drums, Kirk in the Bible, sing Amazing Grace, and celebrate our Presbyterian heritage. It is my hope that we will also celebrate our Robinson Memorial heritage.
At RMPC’s 25th anniversary celebration, Rev. Sanbourne challenged our congregation to look back 25 years and to look forward 25 years as well. “Sandy Sanbourne had a lot of dreams including involving adults in Bible study, Evangelism within the community. At the 50th anniversary, Rev. Barbara Willson spoke of similar goals. We have just about two years to go. To what will we dedicate ourselves at out 75th anniversary celebration? I have a few ideas.
-Tracie
A Nibbling from the CHURCH SQUIRREL…
29 Jul 2011 Comments Off
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While Tracie is having some well deserved rest and relaxation, the young squirrel that enjoys the trees outside Robinson Memorial wants to let you know what he has seen lately…
—Have you noticed some extra activity in the Peanut Butter Nursery rooms this summer. MaryAnn and Maureen, who have run the school for many years, have retired. The new owners, Jen Gilmarten and Karen Delano, are spending the summer spiffing up the rooms and preparing for the next evolution of Peanut Butter Nursery. Both Karen and Jen come with extensive experience in nursery teaching. They plan to continue the Peanut Butter tradition of giving each student experiences that will help them succeed as they enter Kindergarten.
—Did you know about the two new Adult Bible Study groups that meet on Mondays?? The afternoon group meets at 2:15 and the evening group gathers at 7:15. The material is based on Biblical commentary and discussion related to a topic in the news during that particular week. Charlotte Goodison and Barbara Bratt are leaders in the afternoon with Eileen Wolfe and Barb Kolarz leading in the evening. You are all welcome to join in — just “come on in” to either class—they’ve be delighted to see you!
—What a great Chicken & Ribs BBQ was held on June 11th— the food was so tasty and the fellowship was wonderful! Following that scrumptious meal was the Concert Series featuring the Tug Hill Players. If you weren’t able to attend, let me tell you, you missed a special treat. Instruments were played that you have never seen before and their beautiful voices filled the air.
—Have a great July!
-CS (Church Squirrel)
Pastor’s Ponderings…Communion Confusion
31 May 2011 Comments Off
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Pastor’s Ponderings for June…Communion Confusion
At one of last night’s meetings someone asked me questions about what we do during Communion and why. Good questions, if you ask me, so here we go.
Why does Tracie call North, South, East and West the magic words?
They will come from the east and from the west……” When I first arrived at RMPC, Edith explained to me that it was good to see people come from all areas of the sanctuary when these words were said. I used the words and found that she was correct. Everyone was quietly seated and as soon as I said North the first server popped up. I liked this! A few months later, I used another invitation to the table – one without the points of the compass. No one popped up! There I stood, all by myself until I found a way to put the words into the beginning of the great Prayer of Thanksgiving. I have not forgotten them since. I call them the “magic words” because they work like magic – I say them and Communion servers appear. I now find it one of the endearing RMPC traditions.
Why do we hold the bread so we can all eat it together and take the juice as we get it?
Our bulletin reminds us that “We hold the bread to express our unity and take the cup when served to express our individual commitment.” Receiving Communion in the pew so we can make these statements with our actions was these statements with our actions was instituted by the English Puritans who received in the pew or moved to tables of 13 around the sanctuary where they sat and received Communion. Each table accommodated one Elder, who officiated and 12 communicants. Before this, almost everyone received Communion standing either by intinction (dipping the bread in the juice) or moving from one server for the bread to the next for the common cup. If you forget and eat your bread before everyone else, do not worry. This is a tradition, not a holy commandment.
Why do we serve from the back instead of the front?
Frankly, this is pretty much my quirk. “The first shall be last and the last shall be first.” Serving from the back streamlines the act of serving and makes it harder to chat with neighbors during the quiet time because no one knows exactly where the servers are. As far as I know, this is the only church that serves in this manner.
Who can take Communion? Visitors? Catholics? Other faiths?
RMPC has an open Communion. During the invitation to the table I regularly say, “Christ invited all who believe in Him and all who are trying to trust in Him to taste.” This tells the congregation that receiving Communion is open to anyone who wants it and will receive it as the Lord’s Supper. If you have any intention of trying to deal faithfully with Jesus; if you are even considering being a Christian – you are invited.
Not every church can make this claim. Some Roman Catholics may choose not to receive because they come from a closed tradition, but there are other Catholics who receive and welcome any Christian to their table. I have served Buddhists and a few Jews. The key here is the individual’s openness to Jesus as Christ and Messiah. No one is expected to be perfect or perfectly aligned with every tenant of the Christian faith. Rather, Communion is one way to strengthen and explore our faith.
There was a time when only members of the church or others who had been examined and found worthy to receive Communion were allowed to participate. Households were examined by either church elders or the pastor and given tokens that were presented to show that recipients were not sinners. In Scotland and England these tokens were generally made of lead. In America many churches had these tokens carved out of wood. This is where the admonition, “Don’t take any wooden nickels” came from.
What about children? When can they receive Communion?
Children receive Communion when their parents decide that they are ready. The time may vary greatly from family to family. I have seen parents offer a taste of juice and a crumb of the bread to infants. I have seen others wait until after Confirmation.
Encouraging children to receive Communion is a somewhat newish idea in the PC USA. It used to be common thought that children needed to be old enough and well enough trained that they could understand what was happening. I do not object to this idea. In fact, I am willing to spend time with any child whose parents are considering allowing Communion. I think it makes sense for the child to see that Communion is something special and important. On the other hand, it must not be made so heavy with importance that children are frightened off.
Why is Communion always the first Sunday of the month?
“Sometimes people do opposite things in response to the same motivation. Presbyterians have long said that they have communion less often because it is so important. Most other traditions have agreed it is important and for that reason prefer to have it every week, some every day. In the 18th century one English minister rejoiced at the effects of revival in his parish because the numbers taking communion increased. Around the same time a Scottish minister rejoiced at the work of the Holy Spirit in the congregation because he had got the number taking communion down to six – the others at last being convinced that they were sinners.” (Source: http://www.roxborogh.com/elders/historyofcommunion.htm)
The Reformed tradition going back to Calvin emphasized the importance of not taking communion lightly or unworthily. This helps explain an Elder of my childhood’s admonition that if one were to take Communion too often it might wear out. It seems to be a longstanding tradition at RMPC to have Communion on the first Sunday of the month and also on special holidays. I am not aware of any special significance of the first Sunday of the month, but most Presbyterian churches that have their own pastor seem to celebrate this way.
- Pastor Tracie
A Pastor Ponders…
21 May 2011 Comments Off
I write this article with a certain amount of trepidation and concern. Christian Doomsday prognosticator Harold Camping and his followers say that the Rapture will occur this Saturday at 6:00 PM. This Saturday true believers will be taken up to heaven according to Camping, and the rest of us – liberals, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Universalists, atheists, agnostics, and anyone who accepts evolution will be left here on earth for another six months while war and pestilence rains down on us. On October 21 the world will end.
According to www.wecanknow.com the date is based on the actual date of Noah’s voyage in the ark (4990 BC) and the actual date of the Cross (April 13, 33 AD) as calculated by – guess who. May 21, 2011 is exactly 7,000 years from Noah and 722,500 days from the cross. Since in 2 Peter 3:8 it says that to God a day is like 1,000 years the date is sealed.
Now this is not the first Rapture I have lived through. When I had the flower shop, a Rapture was scheduled. I remember it well. There were a lot of embarrassed people in Wellsville on the day after. It took a while for them to discern if they had been rejected or if there had been a mistake. As it turned out, the date was miscalculated by a few years.
Then it all happened again in 1994. On Sept. 6, 1994, dozens of Camping’s believers gathered inside Alameda’s Veterans Memorial Building to await the return of Christ, an event Camping had promised for two years. Followers dressed children in their Sunday best and held Bibles open-faced toward heaven.
But the world did not end.
Now, however, we have backup. If the world does not end this Saturday or October 21, we always have the Mayan ending scheduled for December 21, 2012. If that fails, there is always Nostradamus.
Why are folk so determined to end this world? It is, as the American Atheists and the Center for Inquiry have declared, a great excuse for a Rapture party. Lori Lebo of Religion Dispatches suggests that that area chapters will be serving “Death in the Afternoon” a cocktail involving Absinthe and Champagne. For music I suggest “We Gotta Get Outta This Place” by Eric Burdon and the Animals
All joking aside, however, even a lover of the weird and fantastic like me has to acknowledge that time spent worrying the date of the end of the world is time lost making this world a better place. If, in fact the rapture is immanent, wouldn’t we all be better served by helping people who are distracted by poverty, grief, loneliness, fear and loss rather than worrying about myriad petty details of our own salvation? Faith is a noun that acts like a verb. Jesus is the Christ who works with us and for us until the very end – and even after.
It seems to me that the end of the world is the last thing we need to obsess over. There is work to do whether Camping’s belief that the tribulation began 23 years ago (who knew?) and that the formula that 5+10+17= Armageddon or not. If you are reading this article, we still have time to serve (pun intended).
- Pastor Tracie
May Pastor Ponderings
14 May 2011 Comments Off
Pastor’s Ponderings…
Them, four letters that we are in danger of allowing to become a four-letter-word. I just finished an article in The Presbyterian Outlook (Feb 7, 2011) by David W. Davis that really made me think. Republicans, Conservatives, Limbaugh lovers, Liberals, Democrats, Pelosi people. Them. Muslims, Jews, Fundamentalists, Pro-lifers, Carelessly Parked Parents, people who never return their plates, Men (well, it must be men, mustn’t it?) who do not replace the TP roll, Women (ditto) who are constantly flustered, barking dogs, pet owners.
I have watched the debates and newscasts as Washington worked toward a budget, as Health Care became a possibility, as the church has dealt with ordination and human sexuality. I have heard myself and others at Session. I have come to realize that depersonalizing “them” makes it all too easy to treat “them” as non-persons – not just at the national level but here at RMPC as well. It has been difficult to realize how easily annoyance and frustration can overcome a very real need to live, work, and deal together. “They” are just not willing to be part of a solution! Brother!!!
We claim to be Reformed Christians. As Reformed, we come from a tradition of people sharing opinions – especially disagreeing opinions – and remaining in relationship. Most of us find this tradition quite easy from a distance, but when those disagreeing opinions stomp into our offices and impact our already hectic lives it becomes quite another story. Fortunately, as Reformed Christians we also believe in God’s love and forgiving mercy, for us as well as “them.”
When I wrote the Pastor’s information Form that brought me to RMPC, I was asked to address a serious problem in life today. I wrote about isolation. I re-read some of that recently and discovered that I did not go far enough. I targeted the ways computers and television kept us from interacting face to face. I spoke of older adults being left out and ignored
Had I gone further with the discussion I might have come to the realization that this isolation does more than cut people off from each other. It also allows us to wallow in our own thoughts and notions to the point that anyone less enlightened, educated, on top of things, or with it (whatever that means) can all too easily be demonized. The people of God do not have the luxury of adding accidental demons to the many that already plague our society. Even less can we allow ourselves to ignore the very real danger of missing God’s intent for each of God’s people – love, grace, mercy and justice – each offered without the need of merit.
Now just one minute, here! There is a difference between right and wrong, correct and incorrect, good and evil!
True, but the differences might not be as obvious as we think. What if the term “right” had less to do with factual information or value judgments than with being “right” with God? How would the God with whom we need a right relationship feel about considering “them” less loved, less valued?
We all like to be right, but do we remember to pass our “rightness” past God for possible attitude adjustment? Even very disagreeable, sad tasks can be accomplished best with prayer, mercy, and grace.
Here at RMPC, those who would challenge another’s correctness, perfection and even their rights have names. They are real people, people we care about. Have you ever tried to demonize – to Them-onize someone you really care about? Ultimately the love we have as friends and family must overcome the frustration of knowing that others might never see things my way – no matter how correct we might consider ourselves to be. Names and relationships trump distance and isolation every time.
Does this mean that if we really love each other anything goes? Of course not, but the way we hold each other accountable and the ways we deal with differing ideas matters. Remember, in Greek the word “meek” means appropriately dealing with anger and disagreement, not wimpy. Ultimately our ability to deal with each other under difficulty is a better moral compass than our ability to force agreement or to surrender, bottling up the stress.
Davis writes, “There is no room for ‘them’ in the Body of Christ – that word comes with all the intended sinful disdain of humanity’s collective use of the term. God is so much greater than our hearts (1 John). We are no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male or female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus (Galatians). [This is] the unilateral, unrequested, noon-mandated, boundary shattering act of God.”
“Remember, before we were “us” in the story of salvation history…we were “them.”
- Tracie
