Christ Church Messenger November 2015

CHRIST CHURCH DUANESBURG NEW YORK

RECTORS REFLECTIONS

ear Friends in Christ,

Earlier this year I traveled with a team from Lake Placid and other

parts of our state to the Dominican Republic to bring medical care to the

people of the small village of Gautier in the Dominican Republic. While all

the team members travel at their own expense, we do rely on the support

of others to provide the medical supplies we take with us. Last year the

parish was very generous in supporting this mission.

Next February I will again be traveling to the Dominical Republic to serve

as priest and translator. If you would like to support our efforts, here are

some ideas of the items we will need. The items will be collected between

now and the end of January.

Canes/Walkers/Crutches: We do collect these items. They must be in

good shape of course.

Medicine: We do collect medicines such as antifungal creams, children's

vitamins, adult vitamins, hydrocortisone creams and antibiotic ointments.

We also collect Tylenol, Ibuprofen and aspirin. Any medicine that is collected for the 2016 mission CANNOT

OUTDATE BEFORE MARCH 2017. Our meds have to be a year out as far as outdates go.

Personal Care Items: We collect and make "personal care bags". Use a quart sized zip lock bag. We typically

put one of each of the following in each bag: Travel sized soap, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, toothbrush,

toothpaste and washcloth, or any combination of these items. They don't have to be exact.

Donations of $$: Yes we do need $$$ as well. Donation checks should be made out to "St. Eustace Church"

and mailed to St. Eustace Church 2450 Main St. Lake Placid, NY 12946.

Your prayers and support are appreciated.

Yours in Christ,

Bill

D

NOVEMBER 2015

THE MESSENGER A COMMUNICATION MINISTRY OF

CHRIST CHURCH, DUANESBURG, NEW YORK

Photo by Christine Chandler

INSIDE

Rectors Reflections 1

Operation Christmas 2

View from the Pew 2

Healing Christian Healing 3-4

News & Notes 5

Parish Schedule 5

Ladies Auxiliary Party 6

Calendar 7

The Discovery Series 8

WWW.CHRISTCHURCHDUANESBURG.ORG NOVEMBER 2015

Operation Christmas Child Operation Christmas Child Operation Christmas Child Operation Christmas Child

Collection Date: November 22, 2015 (Shoeboxes available in the Parish Hall.)

And the king will answer

them, 'Truly I tell you, just as

you did it to one of the least of

these who are members of my

family, you did it to me.'

(Matthew 25: 40)

Last year we sent 34 boxes to Last year we sent 34 boxes to Last year we sent 34 boxes to Last year we sent 34 boxes to

children throughout the world! children throughout the world! children throughout the world! children throughout the world!

Lets see if we can beat that Lets see if we can beat that Lets see if we can beat that Lets see if we can beat that

number this year! number this year! number this year! number this year!

Deacon Debbie

VIEW FROM THE PEW Give Back

ovember is National Family Caregivers Month, when we pay tribute to the more than 65 million Americans who provide

care for those unable to care for themselves.

Some are adult children tending to aging parents. Others are private nurses hired to lend a hand. Parent raising kids with disabilities, loving neighbors or close friends In They can be grandparents raising grandchildren, parents raising kids with disabilities, loving neighbors or close friends And whether the caregivers you know come from church groups, local charities or your own backyard, they all deserve at least a months worth of thanks. Without further ado heres a list of ways to celebrate The National Caregivers Association. (NFCA)

1. Offer caregiver a few hours of respite time so he or she can relax or spend time with friends. Enlist local community centers to volunteer support, such as transportation help to help free up a caregivers time.

2. Send a letter or card of appreciation or a bouquet of flowers.

3. Encourage local business to offer a free service to caregivers throughout a month.

4. Help decorate a caregivers home for the holidays or offer to address envelopes for his or her holiday cards.

5. Give a caregiver tickets to a local comedy club, or your favorite funny movie or book.

6. Find 12 photos of the caregivers family and friends. Make a special calendar he or she can use to keep track of appointments and events.

7. Offer to prepare Thanksgiving dinner.

8. Encourage decision makers at your place of worship to ask for prayers for the ill and those who care for them. See if they can create certificates of appreciation to be filled out by care recipients.

9. Start a caregiver support network or buddy system. It would give caregivers in the area an opportunity to meet and lend each other support.

10. Identify the help caregivers need most. Organize a volunteer network to respond to those needs.

11. Encourage a community organization to sponsor a healthcare equipment loan program. Members may have canes, wheelchairs, commodes and other expensive equipment they no longer need.

12. Help a caregiver find new educational materials and support through the NFCA website, thefamilycaregiver.org

13. Honor caregivers with an event that recognizes their contribution and provides them with the opportunity to have some fun

(Your Retirement Advisor, Church Pension Fund)

You are all always in my prayers.

In His love and Peace,

Doris J. Weiler

N


HEALING CHRISTIAN HEALING Moving beyond the cheap hope of miracle cures to a more honestand more biblical

understanding of Christian healing. by Katherine Willis Pershey

hen I hear the word healing, I think of

it in medical terms. I think of doctors

who diagnose sickness, treat injuries,

research diseases, and work to prevent the

onset of pain and illness. I think of state-of-the-

art cardiac units and Doctors without Borders. I

think of amoxicillin (despite the fact that it gives

me hives).

When I hear the phrase Christian healing,

however, my mind switches channels to the

worst of what religious broadcasting has to

offer. A lot of hucksters out there dangle the

promise of miraculous cures to those who would

just summon the faith to buy them.

There is never a lack of suffering in

this world, and with the right

balance of illusion and charisma,

con artists can make big bucks by

exploiting it.

Likewise, I fret about the

theologies that have inculcated in

believers a distrust of traditional

medicine. As much as I want to

tolerateor better yet, honor

different faith traditions, I am

always saddened by stories of

people refusing basic health care interventions

because they believe their sicknesses are part

of Gods planthat God, not the physician,

should be the one to determine whether or not

they will be made well.

Healing as a practice of the Christian faith

well, it needs to be healed.

At the heart of the Christian story is this

conviction: God wants us to be whole. God

wants us to be restored, redeemed, reborn into

the fullness of who we were created to be.

God wants this for each of us, and God

wants this for all of us, for all of creation. We

know this for the same reason we know who

God is: because Gods Son, Jesus Christ,

revealed it through his life and ministry.

Jesus was a preacher, a teacher, and a

healer. Jesus challenged demons to flee and

commanded wounds to close. He empowered

the eyes of blind men to open and leprous skin

to be restored. Though Jesus reputation as a

healer was like a magnet for the suffering

people of Galilee, he resisted easy fame. Jesus

had a God-given authority to heal through

words and touch, and for a very important

reason.

Over the years Ive heard several preachers

declare that Jesus healed for the same reason

he shared parables with the people: he was

showing the nature of Gods

kingdom. Just as the kingdom of

heaven is like the smallest seed

that grows into the largest tree, so

is the kingdom of heaven like a

woman who touched the hem of

Jesus garment.

The womans affliction (Luke

8:4248) affected much more than

her body; her culture had strict

guidelines for cleanliness, and a

bleeding woman was considered

unclean. She could not participate

in the religious life of her community. Whats

more, anyone who came into contact with her

would also be considered ritually unclean. She

had been living in the margins for 12 years.

Barred from religious expression, denied any

human touch, and always on the brink of

death, the chronic hemorrhage had

metaphoricallyand almost literallydrained

the life of out of the woman.

And then she was caught in a radical act:

her hand reached out, clutching the edge of

Jesus garment. Her bold move posed a threat

to Jesus. Because he had been touched by an

untouchable, the very Son of God could be

labeled unclean. But the healing power flowed

from him to her, and the womans life was

saved. Her body and her role in the community

W


were restored. Through her faith, Jesus healed

her. The blood that had flowed from her body

for 12 years slowed and stopped, freeing her

from a life of physical and social anemia.

It bears repeating: the kingdom of heaven is

like a woman who touched the hem of Jesus

garment.

Perhaps, then, the kingdom of heaven is

also like a psychiatrist who helps a patient find

the right combination of antidepressant

medication.

When theologians talk about the kingdom

of God, they often lament that it is already but

not yet. Through his life and ministry, Jesus

planted seeds of Gods reign and expected his

followers to nurture those seeds. We see

glimpses of the kingdom of God in the

Scriptures, as Jesus moved among the people.

We see glimpses of the kingdom of God when

faithful disciples embody the compassionate

wisdom of Christ. And we see glimpses of the

kingdom when we discern Gods work in the

world. Already, but not yet.

The promise of the gospel is that we will be

healed: body, mind, and spirit. The human

community will be made whole. Suffering will

cease, and sins will be wiped away. Creation

will be restored to a realm of justice and

beauty. This is the great work that God began

through the incarnation of Jesus Christ. And in

the fullness of time, this vision of shalom will be a

reality.

As Christian people endeavoring to live a

way of life shaped by our Savior, we have work

to do. We are called to participate in the

unfolding of Gods great plan. We are called to

be healers, even as we are still wounded by loss

and pain ourselves.

The practice of Christian healing is not

about magic, and it is certainly not about

trickery. Not every disease can be cured. Not

every life can be preserved. Healing is never

about cultivating false hope.

One of the most humble healers Ive ever

encountered was a pediatrician at a local

hospital whose specialty was hospice care for

children. Every young patient he treated had

been diagnosed with a terminal illness. He never

saved a single life. His job was to find ways to

alleviate his patients physical pain. It was

grueling work that could easily scour away all

hope. Yet even in a context where physical

cures were out of the question, healing

happened.

Healing moments take place every day, in

ordinary and extraordinary ways. As John

Koenig says in the book Practicing our Faith: A

Way of Life for Searching People, When we

embody Gods healing presence to others

through touch, concern, or liturgy, we take part

in Gods activity of healing the world. Sharing a

plate of cookies with a grieving family. Listening

to a stranger in crisis. Comforting a feverish

grandchild. Praying for a friend fighting cancer.

This is all holy work, healing work. And these

healing ministries, woven with the power of the

Holy Spirit, invite the kingdom of heaven to take

root even in the soil of creation.

Mere moments after his encounter with the

hemorrhaging woman, Jesus was pulled into

another moment that cried out for healing; the

daughter of a synagogue leader had died

before Jesus could intervene (Luke 8:4956). Yet

when Jesus arrived, clearly too late but still

inexplicably offering healing, the mourners

gathered around the dead girls house

laughed. They laughed at Jesus. I can only think

of one other time in the gospels when Jesus was

so blatantly mockedwhen he himself was on

the edge of death, when his own body and

spirit seemed a million miles from wholeness.

And yet the wounds of the cross were healed.

Jesus was made whole again, restored,

resurrected into new life.

Our God is a lover of life. God will transform

every tear of grief into a tear of joy. God will

forge a new beginning out of every ending. The

good news of Jesus Christ is that we will be

redeemed, we will be saved, we will be healed.

In the meantime, we hope and pray and work

for Gods gracious will to be done on earth as it

is in the kingdom of heaven.


NEWS & NOTES Rummage Sale Thank You

The Ladies Auxiliary thanks everyone who volunteered at the fall rummage sale - thanks to all your efforts $1,200 was cleared on the sale, many folks received much needed items, and neighbors enjoyed an unplanned visit.

Thanksgiving Baskets

Over the next few weeks, please sign up to contribute food items to make baskets to be delivered to those who are too elderly or unwell to attend church. Baskets will be prepared Sunday, November 22 during coffee hour and delivered in the following days.

Christmas Outreach

Please join the Vestry and the Ladies Guild in our Christmas outreach. We hope to reach several families in the community by giving them gift cards to provide for Christmas presents and extra food. If you wish to help, please add your contribution to your regular Sunday giving and be sure to mark the outside of your envelope with the amount you wish to designate for this outreach. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Our joint efforts will help those in need.

Christmas Caroling

We are planning a Christmas carol event for Sunday night, December 20th in the Church. Look for more information in the next issue of the Messenger.

Our Lady of Fatima Food Pantry:

The food pantry, which serves up to 80 area families, is in need of the following nonperishable food items:

Canned fruit Pasta Canned sweet potatoes Juice canned or plastic bottle Cranberry sauce Canned gravies Ketchup Mayonnaise Monetary donations if you

wish to make a donation please put a check in the offering with Food Pantry in the memo line.

NOVEMBER 2015 PARISH SCHEDULE

Date Acolyte Greeters Lectors Bell Ringer Sunday School

11/01/2015 Sharon Mericle Andi & Bryan

Salisbury Steve & Sherry Schrade Tony Miller

11/08/2015 Sandra DePoalo Barbara Hinrichs Sandra DePoalo &

John Weiler

Bryan

Salisbury

11/15/2015 John Weiler Kyle & Tonya

Rudolphsen

Marge Cummings &

Tonya Rudolphsen Tony Miller

11/22/2015 Jane Weyers Carm Fusco &

Barbara Heimlich

Cal Weyers &

Doug Fortman

Bryan

Salisbury

11/29/2015 Sharon Mericle Phil & Jenna Sayles Elizabeth Iseman &

Tippe Miller Tony Miller

12/06/2015 Sandra DePoalo Barbara Hinrichs Sharon Mericle &

Barbara Hinrichs

Bryan

Salisbury

Date Chalice Altar Guild DoK

Prayers of the People

Counters

11/01/2015 Sharon Elizabeth Iseman Debbie Judy Breitenstein & Tippe Miller

11/08/2015 Sharon Sharon Mericle Sharon Sharon Mericle & Phil Sayles

11/15/2015 Sharon Sharon Mericle Elizabeth Jane Weyers & Steve Schrade

11/22/2015 Sharon Linda MacDougall & Cheryl Lennox Debbie Andrea Salisbury & Cindy Creasy

11/29/2015 Sharon Linda MacDougall & Cheryl Lennox Sharon Judy Breitenstein & Tippe Miller

12/06/2015 Elizabeth Marge Cummings & Cindy Creasy Debbie Sharon Mericle & Phil Sayles


NOVEMBER 2015 BIRTHDAYS, ANNIVERSARIES & EVENTS

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1 ALL SAINTS Bible Study 9am Holy Eucharist 10am Sunday School 10am

Daniel Menzies, III

2 3

Ryan Moses

Sharon & Bruce Smith

4 5 6

Sarah Langston

7

Cheryl Lennox, Zachary Therrion

8 PENTECOST 24 Bible Study 9am Holy Eucharist 10am Sunday School 10am

9 Discovery Series 7pm

10

Jessie McDougall

11 12 13 14

Cindy Skala



17 18 Vestry Mtg 7pm

19 20 21


Barbara Munson, Jenna Sayles

23 24 25 26 THANKSGIVING

Cindy Creasy

27 28

29 ADVENT 1 Bible Study 9am Holy Eucharist 10am Sunday School 10am

Jeffery Hunt

30 1

Billy Chandler, Phil Sayles

2

Raul Bastiani, Linda MacDougall, Patrick McHugh, Tony Miller

3 4

Barbara Greer

5

Harold Schworm

6 ADVENT 2 Bible Study 9am Holy Eucharist 10am Sunday School 10am

Steve Schrade


8 9 10 11 12


Christ Church P.O. Box 92 Duanesburg, New York 12056-0092

Christ Church is a worshiping community of friends, joyfully serving,

encouraging and healing others in Jesuss name.

THE DISCOVERY SERIES: A Christian Journey

November 9 Path to Spiritual Maturity: Spiritual Maturity & Prayer

November 16 Bible Study & Action

December 7 Our Spiritual Gifts: What Does God Want From Me?

December 14 Getting in SHAPE for Ministry

January 3 The Great Commission: What is Mission? Spreading the Good News & My Lifes Mission

All classes begin at 7pm in the Parish Hall.

The parish is located at: 132 Duanesburg Churches Rd, Duanesburg, NY, on the corner of Rt. 20 and Duanesburg Churches Rd.

Rector Fr. Bill Hinrichs (518) 608-1139

or (518) 221-3425 [email protected]

Wardens: Judy Breitenstein Phil Sayles

Vestry members: Cindy Creasy Sharon Mericle Tippe Miller Andrea Salisbury Steven Schrade Jane Weyers

Deacon: Debbie Beach (518) 372-1352

or (518) 669-1898 [email protected]

Treasurer: Sherry Schrade

Parish Hall Ph.: (518) 895-2383

Documents

Christ Church Messenger November 2015