Click on link above to download this month’s newsletter listing all of our upcoming events…
Travel to Israel next year (April 21-May 1, 2013) with Rev. Rusty & Rabbi Larry Malinger We’ve been offered a rare and exciting opportunity to participate in a joint trip to Israel with Temple Shalom in Aberdeen next year. Rabbi Malinger, who lived and studied in Israel, has invited Rev. Rusty and the rest of us to go on an interfaith Christian/Jewish excursion to the Holy Land – going to sites significant to each religion, while enriching each other with this unique blend. We will traveling to important sites for our faith: Nazareth, Bethlehem, Galilee and, of course, Jerusalem. We’ll see ancient Roman sites and synagogues. We will bath in the Jordan, the sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea; and travel to the fortress at Massada. Plus, we will take a side trip to Petra in Jordan. It is a trip of a lifetime. We will have an initial meeting for those interested on Wednesday, May 23rd at 7:30pm at Temple Shalom (6 Ayrmont Rd. – off of Church Street in Aberdeen); and an after church meeting at our own church on Sunday, May 27th.
Bridges at the Shore – We’ll be sorting clothing for Bridges this Thursday evening (5/17) at 6pm in the sanctuary, for their trip to local communities this coming Friday (5/18). That means that after church today, we need to haul bags of clothing from the shed in the parking lot into the sanctuary. So, if you’re feeling fit and ready, right after the service today, go to the shed and grab some bags!
Congregational Meeting – Sunday, May 20th Please plan to stay for a short while after church for a congregational meeting. We will be voting on our annual budget for our fiscal year which starts on June 1st, and our slate of officers presented by our Nominating Committee. We will also be voting to authorize our Trustees to submit an application for a building loan to the Cornerstone Fund of the United Church of Christ. This is simply a vote to submit the application, and we will need to pass another resolution on June 24th to authorize the loan itself and the amount. We will need a quorum of 25% of our membership in order to vote, so please plan to stay!
Ordination of Doug Brown – Sunday, May 20th at 4pm May 20th will be quite a day! It will include Doug’s ordination into Christian Ministry at 4pm in our church sanctuary. We will be joined by representatives of the NJ Association UCC and members of our sister churches around the state. Stay afterwards for a gala BBQ dinner from Jameson’s, with all the fixings! Please come to celebrate with him, and to pray for his vision of a new UCC church (Asbury Park Community Church).
Thanks and Farewell to Alex Haines This month (also on May 20th!) we will say goodbye to Alex Haines, our seminarian from Princeton Theological School. Alex has done a tremendous amount in his nine months with us, and has gone far beyond the requirements for his “Field Education” placement. He has gone on several youth retreats; he has preached five times, rather than the three required; and he has taught several adult education courses. His work with our Confirmation class has been superb, and his worship leadership has been solid. We will miss him. This summer he will be an intern in a church in the mid-West, and next year he will be working at the United Nations, teaching Presbyterian churches about their ministry there. Please give him well-wishes for his future ministry.