the church herald - amazon s3 · december 2013 1 newsletter table of contents 1 pastor’s letter 2...
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The Church HeraldStony Brook Community Church (United Methodist), Stony Brook, New York
STONY BROOKCOMMUNITY CHURCH
216 Christian AvenueStony Brook, NY 11790
Chuck Van Houten, Pastor
Church Office Tel: (631) 751-0574
Church E-mail:[email protected]
Pastor’s Study Tel: (631) 751-0659
Church Website:www.stonybrookcommunitychurch.org
NYAC VISION STATEMENTThe New York Annual Conference, through the grace of God, embodies a beloved
community of hope, building up a healthy Body of Christ, with heartwarmedUnited Methodists in mission for the transformation of the world.
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Newsletter Table of Contents
1 Pastor’s Letter2 Christmas Services3 Lectionary & Stewardship4 MYF News5 5k Run Info6 News from Liz & Wally
Please send updates and information to Newsletter Editor, Bob Retnauer, at
“The Hope of Uncertainty”
“But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father… Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what
day your Lord is coming” (Matthew 24:26, 42).
As the season of Advent is upon us with Christmas looming large on the horizon, I can’t help but feel a bit unsettled. Maybe it’s the fact that we are still living in Centerport for the moment and will be moving into the parsonage in Stony Brook later this month. Maybe it’s the fact that I am getting to experience and learn the Christmas traditions here at SBCC for the first time. Or maybe it’s something more.
The truth is, with all of the change and uncertainty, I am also feeling very hopeful: Hopeful to experience Advent and Christmas here at SBCC for the first time, hope-ful to get settled into the parsonage and become more acquainted with the town and people of Stony Brook, hopeful to continue to get closer to God in Christ Jesus this Advent while becoming closer to all of you as our church family.
Hope and uncertainty: they seem to go together, don’t they? For uncertainty allows room for hope, while hope lives inherently through our uncertainty. If you think of it, this is what we are called to embrace in Advent because of the hope we look toward in Christmas: the birth of something new and wonderful; the birth of some-thing life shaping, life changing, and transforming. I believe we are each called to something that can reshape our lives in hope this advent season because of the an-ticipation we feel as we await the coming of God into the world. But here’s the thing. As Jesus declared in our Gospel lesson this past Sunday, “But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father… Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming” (Mat-thew 24:26, 42).
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Interesting. Yes, we may assume that our Lord is coming on Christmas Eve. But is that the only moment God may enter in? Yes, Christmas is when we celebrate the coming of a savior born in Bethlehem and in our hearts. And for many that may be the moment or one of the moments they feel God tugging on their heart, entering in anew. But the truth is, God will break into our lives when God chooses to do so. That’s what Jesus is talk-ing about in those verses from Matthew’s gospel. It was God’s choice and initiative to break into the world on that first Christmas morn. And it is still God’s gracious choice and unexpected initiative to break into each of our lives and the life of our church fam-ily when we least expect it. That is the uneasiness and yet the good news, the joy and the hope of how God works in this season.
A thrill of hope; the weary world rejoices,For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.Fall on your knees! O hear the angel voices!
O night divine, the night when Christ was Born;O night, O holy night, O night divine!
On Christmas Eve Stony Brook Community Church welcomes all who wish to take a break from our weary world to wel-come the new and glorious morn of Jesus’ birth. Our beautiful candlelight service in our beautiful sanctuary is a wonderful way to start your Christmas celebration, and a wonderful introduction to our church if you wish to invite friends to attend with you. There will be a lawn banner welcoming all who might wish to join us on this most joyous and mysterious night....and on December 15th don’t forget the live nativity led by our children and young people. Following our Christmas pageant and a time of fellowship we’ll go caroling, singing all the beloved old carols. This venerable tradition is a great way to share the true spirit of Christmas with your friends and family.
So, yes this is a time of expectant and even uneasy uncertainty in waiting. But that is why there is also hope: hope born within the uncertainty and the waiting. It is because of that hope, which is the Christ child born anew in us this Christmas season, that there is also joy, peace and love.
I pray you will choose to see this advent and Christmas through new eyes, as if you were experiencing the traditions of our church for the first time ― in unsettling and new ways, filled with hope. As we take time to celebrate and even recreate our tree and wreathe sale, decorate a tree in town with our youth, experience our Holiday Fun Run, our Children’s Christmas Pageant and Christmas caroling, and participate joyfully in our Sunday Advent worship services and even the Christmas Eve service itself, I pray that you will feel the expectant joy and hope of that something new that God is doing in you this Advent season. I pray you will come to know the wonder of Christmas in some new ways through the old, old, story of the birth of the Christ child ― a savior given in our world and in our hearts.
I look forward to sharing these new and old memories with you at this special time of year.
May God bless you and keep you in an awareness of God’s goodness, wonder, and love. For God is good… All the time! Even, and especially in the advent of Christmas!
In God’s love, joy, and certain hopePastor Chuck
Lectionary:
December 1, First Sunday of AdventIsaiah 2:1-5Psalm 122Romans 13:11-14Matthew 24:36-44 December 8, Second Sunday of Advent:Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19 Isaiah 11:1-10Romans 15:4-13Matthew 3:1-12 December 15, Third Sunday of AdventPsalm 146:5-9 Isaiah 35:1-10James 5:7-10Matthew 11:2-11 December 22, Fourth Sunday of AdventPsalm 80: 1-7, 16-18 Isaiah 7:10-16Romans 1:1-7Matthew 1:18-25
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December 25, Christmas Day IPsalm 96Isaiah 9: 2-7Titus 2:11-14Luke 2:1-14(15-20) December 29, First Sunday after ChristmasPsalm 147 Isaiah 61:10— 62:3Galatians 3:23-25; 4:4-7John 1:1-18 January 1, 2008, Holy Name:Psalm 8 Numbers 6:22-27Galatians 4:4-7 Luke 2:15-21 January 5, Second Sunday after Christmas:Psalm 84 Jeremiah 31:7-14Ephesians 1:3-6,15-19a; Matthew 2:1-15,19-23Luke 2:41-52
Thank you to everyone who has made a pledge in support of our church. While all pledges may be changed should circumstances change, knowing what members plan to give allows the church to cre-ate and stick to a realistic budget. If you have not yet pledged and would like to, commitment cards are available in the back of the sanctuary or by calling the church office.
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Pictures from past events: Color me! >
Monster Mash Masquerade MYF BOWLING
Starts: Saturday, March 1st, 2014 at 6:00AM Ends: Sunday March 2nd , 2014 at 12:00PM
Charmus's Great RaceOne day, six starters lined up for a race,
And poor old Charmus came in seventh place.No kidding--Chuck came seventh out of six,And, honest, there were no late-entry tricks.
What happened was, the day was damp and chilly,And who showed up……
Nicarchus, Greek poet first century A.D.
Actually who shows up ought to be you, for our 5-K Fun Run on Saturday, December 14th starting at 9:00 a.m. sharp (registration opens at 7:30). All speeds are welcome (including baby strollers), and you’re sure to be faster than poor old Charmus (who, after all, has now been dead for over 1900 years and who wasn’t very fast when he was alive). Register on-line on our website or by mail, and we promise to keep all satirical poets (especially dead Greeks) away from the event.
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Stony Brook Community Church
StartFinish
N C
ount
ry R
d (R
T 25
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Cedar St
Hollow Rd
Chris t ian A
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Main St
Hawkins Rd
Qu
aker P
ath
Harbo r Rd
Sand St
Woodbin
e Ave
Wells LnBennet t Ln
Hawkins Rd
Lotow an a Ln
Shore Rd
Emm
et Dr
Laure l Dr
Sky view Ln
Kemswick Dr
S ad dl e R d
Stony Brook A
ve
Prepared by M.Rund Sept 2011
Gymnasium Rd
Beacon H i l l Dr
Whitford Rd
W M ead ow L n
µ
PROPOSED RACE ROUTE
From Liz Braddon in “retirement”...
The church received this bit a bit of information on what Liz and Wally have been up to:
“Just a bit of an update. I’m covering a local parish for an extended period of time as a colleague here was just diagnosed with a brain tumor and is going through radiation and chemo as the first courses of action. She is on medical leave. I volunteered to lead worship one Sunday and that led to a conversation with the DS and a request for help. It is a very small congregation and the pastor is currently not more than half time. I will probably keep my part to worship and pastoral care.
“In the meantime, I’ve been in Brooklyn as co-coordinator of our 5 day pastors and spouses clinic. I'll be taking that position over in March. The clinics happen twice a year and about a dozen pastors and spouses participate at each clinic. I am looking forward to that work and having an excuse to be back in Park Slope. Wally is participat-ing in this clinic.”
Liz and Wally’s address in Connecticut is: Rev. Elizabeth Braddon & Wally Robinson9B Lanphiers Cove Road Branford, CT 06405 Liz’s cell: 487-2292 [email protected] Wally’s cell: 316-1898 [email protected]
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