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| Newsletters > Good News > 12-20-06 | ||
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Sunday, December 24 On this Fourth Sunday in Advent, we will celebrate Holy Communion with one service at 9:30 a.m. with Electric Gospel, and with the lighting of the Advent Wreath.
Sunday, December 24 Christmas Eve Worship Holy Communion services will be offered at 4:00 p.m., 6:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m., and 10:00 p.m. Please see the insert in this issue of the Good News for more details.
Sunday, December 31 On this First Sunday after Christmas we will celebrate Holy Communion with one service at 9:30 a.m.
Sunday, January 7 On this Baptism of Our Lord Sunday we return to two services of Holy Communion at 8:30 a.m. and 10:45 a.m.
In early December, my wife and I attended a concert by the Waverly Consort entitled, The Christmas Story. It was a presentation of music from the Middle Ages that told the story of Christ = s birth. The performance was held in the splendor and beauty of the Basilica of St. Josaphat. As the music and Latin verse were enchanting us, I was struck by a particular verse sung during the Adoration by the Three Kings: The wealth of gold and the fragrance of The church has always been far more realistic about life and death than the culture in which it finds itself. Our culture desires to celebrate only the light and life and positive side of Christmas. Our culture does not want to hear the church's reminder that even in the midst of life, we are in death. It is not by accident that the church has established the day after Christmas, December 26th, as the day to remember St. Stephen, the first martyr of the faith. We are remiss if we forget that three days after Christmas is the commemoration of the Massacre of the Innocents by King Herod. And we dare not forget the words of Simeon to Mary: And a sword will pierce through your own soul also. Simeon recognizes the Child as the Messiah of Israel and also knows the painful end he and his mother will face. By now some of you are probably saying, What a downer! Thanks for wrecking my Christmas spirit! I could respond sarcastically, You are welcome! But I would rather respond realistically, as the church has over the ages: I wonder as I wander, out under the sky, One of the hallmarks of the church is that we are a community of pain-sharing. One of the fundamental elements of our mission and ministry is comfort. In this time of great expectation that happiness will be our greatest gift, we dare not ignore the presence of pain and loneliness and grief in our midst. We who know the glory and radiance of the Savior's presence are the most well equipped to deal with the downside of Christmas. We who sing so fervently, Joy to the World, the Lord has come, are most well placed to comfort those who cannot see the stars through their tears. The story of Christmas is incomplete if we fail to include the sorrow and the suffering that our Lord came to redeem. The story of Christmas is not the tinsel and ornaments that we box up and put away until next year. The story of Christmas is the church's living expression of the great risk to love the world as God loves the world: to bring life in the midst of death, joy in the midst of sorrow, and comfort in the midst of pain. ~Pastor Sandy Jacobs
We offer our Christian love to the family of Shirley Reische at her death.
Donuts and Dialogue, our Sunday morning adult forum, is on Christmas break during the month of December. In its place are the following intergenerational events: 12/17: Christmas Program (worship space) 12/24: Christmas Eve (worship at 9:30 am) 12:31: New Year's Eve (worship at 9:30 am) Watch for Donuts and Dialogue's return in the New Year!
Care for Creation The work of the Care for Creation Committee (CCC) is well underway, with plans to increase the number of recycling containers throughout the church building, to provide more books in the church library on the environment, and to reduce the amount of waste generated during church functions, including All Committee Night. In the future we will be working with the various committees of the congregation in order to incorporate care for God = s creation into the whole life of First United Lutheran Church. If you are interested in working with us, please contact Pastor Gail (452-2401) or come to our next meeting on Tuesday, January 2, at 6:30 pm in the Bride's Room.
An Environmentally Safe Merry Christmas ~a message from the Care for Creation Committee _ Use biodegradable paper products, napkins, and paper towels, paper plates and cups. These products are also available in recycled form at health food stores. Avoid Styrofoam products altogether. _ Start the New Year right by switching to biodegradable dishwasher, dish soap and laundry detergents. Just switching one at a time is a step in the right direction. Our Mother Earth did not get this way over-night and we cannot undo overnight what has been done. But one person, one product at a time, is the first tiny step in Caring For Creation. Rejoice in being with family and friends on this blessed occasion and God be with all of us in our effort to Care for his Creation. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Monday Night Books Monday Night Books will take place on Monday, January 22, featuring Pope Joan by Donna Cross. The legend of Pope Joan says that when her older brother died in a Viking attack, Joan assumed his identity and entered a Benedictine monastery. Eventually she is drawn to Rome and, still disguised as a man, rose to rule Christianity for two years. A full book description can be found on the kiosk in the gathering area, along with a sign-up sheet. Even if you have never attended a Monday Night Books group, you are welcome to come join the conversation.
Sister Church in Tanzania Hurray! It has finally happened! The Church Council has approved the establishment of a Sister Church relationship with a congregation in Mt. Meru, Tanzania. We will be partnered with Maangashiny Parish in the Easter District of the Diocese of Meru. The pastor = s name is Rev. Charles Mbise. Our Committee is so excited about this partnership and we are anxious to have a deeper under-standing of the lives and challenges of our fellow Lutherans in Africa. What can they teach us? How does Christ fit into their lives? What are their hardships? This is not about money, but about the power of friendship and caring. I am hoping that you will be as excited as we are about this partner-ship. There is room for many of you to join us in this new and enriching project. Please call the church office to see how you can help and look for more information after the New Year. Blessed holiday, ~Gail Showerman
Good News Deadline The next deadline for Good News articles is this Friday, December 22. With the Christmas holiday this weekend we need the extra time to get the newsletter processed. Thank you for your understanding and your speed in getting your articles to the church office.
Rainbow Kids Rainbow Kids will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2007. A facilitator training will be held on January 8 and 9. For more details, please contact Carol Kieckhafer at 467-6482. The next session for children will be held here at First United from February through May (14 sessions) with an in-service on Thursday, January 18. Call Rainbow Kids at 452-2838 for information, or email them at rainbowkids@excel.net. Rainbow Kids needs a coordinator for the upcoming 14 week session. The coordinator is critical to having a successful experience for the children. Please let the church office know if you need more information or would be interested in attending the Facilitator training in order to serve as a Coordinator. The mission of Rainbow Kids is to provide peer support groups (not counseling) for grieving children and their parents, facilitated by nurturing adult volunteers in a safe place where participants can share their feelings and know acceptance. There is no fee to the families who participate in the program.
The children in Great Beginnings Preschool have been busy! In November they learned about Native Americans and even made their own totem poles. For Thanksgiving they made a delicious Thanksgiving feast for their families, including pumpkin bread, real butter from cream, and English muffin pizzas. In December the kids are focusing on the birth of Jesus and the Christmas season. Please stop by and view our gallery of art work displayed on the walls outside of our classroom.
Special Offerings for the HOLIDAYS As the end of the year approaches, there are many opportunities for congregation members to give to special benevolence. Christmas offerings will be given to several charitable organizations: ELCA Disaster Relief Fund Greater Milwaukee Synod Outreach Fund Sheboygan County Interfaith Organization's Housing Fund First United's Foundation Fund
Year-end giving reminder: Our thanks to those who give securities to First United at the end of the year. As the end of the year approaches, there may be questions about the process for giving gifts of stock. The easiest procedure is to go through your stockbroker and ask them to notify First United of your gift as soon as possible. If you choose to bring the actual certificate to the church office, it is best NOT to sign the certificate. Before we can accept the certificate we need you to sign a special authorization form. It would be very helpful to inform Kori in the church office about your gift. She can then follow-up with the organization distributing your gift if it gets close to December 31. Thank you!
Attention members 70 1/2 years old & older Last summer, the Pension Protection Act of 2006 was signed into law by President George W. Bush. This act allows donors to consider tax-free gifts from IRA's directly to First United Lutheran Church. Tax-free IRA rollover gifts must be made from Traditional or Roth IRAs, not from pension plans, stock option plans, etc. and these gifts can only be made in 2006 and 2007. Contact your IRA Plan Administrator for additional qualification details. For any other questions please call Kori in the church office.
2nd & 3rd graders to receive Bibles On Sunday, January 14, the parents of the Second and Third Graders will present their children with The Kid's Devotional Bible at the 8:30 a.m. service. Old Testament instruction will follow at 9:40 a.m. in Fellowship Hall and in the Chapel. New Testament instruction will take place on Sunday, January 21, at 9:40 a.m. Parents are encouraged to attend both sessions so that they can further help their children understand the scriptures!
A Christmas thank you! Thank you to everyone who supported our Adopt-a-Family program in any way: by shopping, wrapping, sorting, typing, delivering, "adopting" or by giving a financial gift! With your gifts of time and treasure, we were able to bless 304 local individuals in need with Christmas gifts and food cards! Thank you for your generosity of time, talents, and treasure, to help so many in need! It is a tremendous joy to witness the TRUE spirit of Christmas through your many gifts of love! May the love of Christ dwell in your hearts this joyous season! Because the Christmas Service Society disbanded this year, the Christmas Treasures toys and gifts were given to SCIO's Bridgeway House, Lutheran Social Services and to the Salvation Army. Thank you! ~ the Social Ministry Committee
First United can be a Leader in supporting Racial Equality in Sheboygan! I attended an anti-racism training through Lutheran Human Relations in October, during my sabbatical. It was both interesting and revealing. I learned a lot about my own personal struggles and biases, and I learned about systemic racism and oppression. But through this training I became keenly aware that there is so much more I need to learn! Sheboygan has become more and more culturally and racially diverse in the last few years. The majority of non-white people living in the Sheboygan area are either struggling at a low income level or are living in poverty. Our congregation does a good job reaching out to help those in need through many Social Ministry programs such as Adopt-a-Family, Christmas Treasures, Christmas in July, CROP Walk, and through donations to our food barrel. These programs help people in need by providing some kind of temporary assistance such as school supplies, Christmas gifts, food, etc. First United is a congregation of over 1,700 baptized members. Think of how many lives would be changed if we became a leader in supporting racial equality in Sheboygan! Our Church Council has approved that $1,000 be given so that five of our members can attend a three day anti-racism training with me in Milwaukee. The training is called, "Understanding and Analyzing Systemic Racism" , and is led by Crossroads Ministry. This training will be Thursday evening, January 25, through Saturday afternoon, January 27. This training will help participants define racism, understand the presence of and contributing causes of individual, institutional and cultural racism, and will offer strategies to begin dismantling racism in our congregation and community. Our goal is to have a trained anti-racism committee that will actively lead our congregation in taking the steps we need to truly welcome all people, and to make a difference in our community. If you have a passion to learn more and be a part of this new ministry, please plan to attend this training and give me a call (452-2401). Registration forms are on the kiosk. I'm looking forward to hearing from you soon! ~ Deaconess Deb
Help Is Needed at Bridgeway We are in need of two volunteers on Sunday, January 7, to help prepare an evening meal at Bridgeway, 1251 Geele Avenue, a tran-sitional housing facility for women with children, and is run by the Sheboygan County Interfaith Organization (SCIO). First United is a member of SCIO, and has agreed to help with their evening meal program on the seventh of every month. This may include helping the moms prepare, serve and clean up the evening meal, or it might be playing with the children so the moms can make dinner. The food is provided by Bridgeway, and the volunteers are invited and asked to stay for dinner to eat with the family. Can you help? Please sign up on the kiosk or call the office (452-2401). Thank you!
Grief Group to meet January 30 The cold, dark months of winter after Christmas can seem especially difficult and long when you are grieving the loss of a loved one. Well-meaning family and friends may say that you've grieved "long enough" , and that you need to "snap out of it," or If you are grieving the loss of a loved one, please come to a meeting of Grief Support on Tuesday, January 30, from 6:30-8:00 p.m., in the Genszler Room. Our time will include a devotional and prayer, a short video with Rev. Dudley Riggle on the "stages and length" of grief, and lots of time for discussion and sharing. Please feel free to invite family and friends! ~ Deaconess Deb
Volunteers needed for Meals on Wheels Meals on Wheels provides hot, tasty, and nutritious meals to over 300 homebound and disabled people in Sheboygan. These meals are delivered by volunteers who pick up the meals at 11:15 a.m. and deliver them to specific people on a set "route." Volunteers often work in pairs, and are usually finished delivering by 12:30 p.m. The Meals on Wheels organization is in need of more people to deliver meals on Monday and Tuesdays. Can YOU give 90 minutes of your time once a month to help deliver these meals? Please call the church office or sign-up on the kiosk now. Thank you!
Snail Mail It has come to our attention that many of our congregation's members are not receiving their Good News in a timely manner, especially those who live outside Sheboygan, including Kohler, Sheboygan Falls and Plymouth. The Post Office has informed us that their transportation budget has been cut, and now ALL bulk mail (except Sheboygan) is sent to Milwaukee first and then distributed to our outlying cities. The cost to the church to send the Good News first class to those people outside Sheboygan is more than double than what the bulk rate is. The Staff has decided to try and help with this situation by printing articles and dates at least a month in advance. (Unfortunately, that won't happen with this issue as we just discussed this after all articles had been printed.) We hope you will bear with us as we try to work with the Post Office and our own staff to speed delivery to you. If you have the internet, you do have the option of clicking on the church = s web site: www.firstuni.org and clicking on the newsletter tab to get the latest issue of the Good News. Thanks for your patience and understanding!
It's the season of giving Bridgeway, a transitional housing facility for women with children, run by the Sheboygan County Interfaith Organization (SCIO), is looking for assistance at Christmas. The following is a "Wants, Needs & Wishes" list from Bridgeway: Needs: Wants: Foods:
Winter Farmers Market Benefit "Harvest of Hope" Co-sponsors Churches Center for Land and People & the Harvest of Hope Fund are offering a Winter Farmers Market Benefit on Saturday, January 20, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Ebenezer United Church of Christ on Taylor Drive. Products include grass-fed beef, pork, lamb, chicken, eggs, honey, sorghum, several cheese varieties, maple syrup, jelly, baked items, canned/pickled vegetables, Farmstead goat milk soap, wool and wool products, popcorn, potatoes and fall crops. It = s open to the public! The foods and gifts you buy this season can help Wisconsin farm families through a crisis this winter. Farmers donate 10% of their sales to the Harvest of Hope Fund, and they pass ALL donations to farmers in need.
Annual Meeting - Part II The second part of the Annual Meeting of our congregation will take place on Sunday, January 28, 2007, at 9:40 a.m. The purpose of this meeting will be to adopt a budget for 2007. Reports from the ministry committees will be available. The Stewardship Committee will present an update. Your attendance as a voting member is most important!
Join us Monday, January 15, for our annual Soup Luncheon in Fellowship Hall beginning at 12:00 noon. The Trubys will once again treat us to their incredibly delicious homemade soups and bread! Following lunch, we can all sit back and relax with warm soup in our bellies, warm company and enjoy an afternoon movie (yet to be determined) in the warm Genszler Room. Call the church office to make your reservation!
Annual Meeting Results The first part of the Annual Meeting of the congregation was held on Sunday, December 10, and the following persons were elected to office: Jon Bemis, Eric Stuart, Pete Southwick and Robert Leet to the Congregation Council; Kim Meller and Lana Roever to the Nominations Committee; George Dippold and Steve Farwig to the Foundation Fund Board of Directors; Andrew Campbell and Harland Lee to the Long Range Planning Committee; Nancy Mannchen to be our SCIO Representative; and Art & Ruth Perry, Cathy Britton, Charmaine & Earl Kneevers as our Synod Cluster Voting Members. We thank all the members who were willing to serve in positions of leadership at First United!
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