We learned about the three different, main types of Judaism:  Orthodox, Conservative and Reformed.  At one extreme end are the Hasidic and Orthodox who believe in a literal and very conservative interpretation of Torah (the first five books of both the Hebrew and Christian scriptures). They hold firmly to the tradition in dress, lifestyle, and religious observance.  They speak Yiddish and Hebrew in worship services.  At the other end of the spectrum, are the more liberal Reform Jews who interpret Torah as mostly symbolic, not literal.  They emphasize the moral and ethical teachings and ordain women rabbis; and use English in the worship service.  The Conservative Movement is more moderate and less traditional in bible interpretation than the Orthodox but stop short of the Reform position.  Recently they have allowed women to be rabbis and use Hebrew and English in the service.

Judaism is an ethnic religion and as our speaker pointed out, does not emphasize bringing converts into the faith.  It does not pass judgment on other faiths and desires freedom for all to pursue the faith of his or her own understanding.  There is no central authority and no single definition.  Our speaker, for instance, considers himself more culturally Jewish than religiously Jewish, and this points to the central fact that Judaism can be viewed as ethnic, cultural, or historical.  And there are secular and non observant Jews. 

Judaism is more an ethical way of life than a system of beliefs and theology. The place of teaching is both the synagogue and the home.  The home is a prominent place in observing religious holidays and traditions. The first and foremost holiday is the sabbath so between sundown on Friday and sundown on Saturday, Jews do not work.  Work is defined in many ways and there is no “one way” to observe the sabbath.

Mark talked about the notion of “tikkun olam” or repair of the world.  This is an important part of the faith, and in a sense explains the absence of a focus on the afterlife.  There is no notion of actions taken in this life to gain an advantage in the afterlife.  All life is holy, today. (The Hebrew Bible is pretty silent on the notion of an afterlife, until later books such as Daniel.)

From Wikipedia:  The phrase Tikkun olam is included in the Aleinu, a Jewish prayer that is traditionally recited three times daily. The Aleinu, said to have been written by the Biblical Joshua, praises God for allowing the Jewish people to serve God, and expresses hope that the whole world one day will recognize God and abandon idolatry. The phrase tikkun olam is used in the longer expression l’takken olam b’malkhut Shaddai, “to perfect the world under God’s sovereignty.” In other words, when all people of the world abandon false gods and recognize God, the world will have been perfected.

The word tikkun is grammatically in the gerund (meaning “repair” or “perfection”), and olam means “world”; the two words together (tikkun olam) are in the construct (i.e. genitive), and mean “repair of [the] world”. By contrast, the word l’takken (meaning “to repair”) is in the infinitive, and so l’takken olam in the Aleinu prayer means ‘to repair [the] world.’”

The Hebrew Bible has been among the most influential books in human history, and of course both Christians and Jews consider it sacred text.  As Rabbi Telushkin says, several of its major ideas: 1. that there is one God over all human kind, 2. that we are obligated to care for the poor, the widow, the orphan and the stranger, 3. that people should refrain from work one day a week, 4. that there is one standard of morality i.e. love of neighbor as oneself–these ideas have transformed how humans live and how they understand their existence.   The Torah is the single most important document in Jewish life and Jewish law dictates that it be read through in its entirety every year in synagogue.   The Torah reading is the central part of the worship service and it is carried thru the congregation to be revered.

Reform Jews attend worship at at temple.  Conservative Jews pray at a synagogue, and Orthodox Jews pray at a shul.  In the Orthodox worship center, there is a separation between the mens and womens sections,and women play no public role in the service.  In the Reform and Conservative synagogues, men and women sit together.  There would be no musical instruments in an Orthodox shul.

One question for our speaker regarded the notion of the messiah.  Christians believe the messiah has come in Jesus Christ, while the Jews of that time who did not become Christian did not believe that Jesus was the messiah.    Are the Jews still waiting for a messiah? Our speaker said that is not a central preoccupation of the faith.  His perspective is that the repair of the world is more the focus, and for that our own actions are central.

references:

Jewish Literacy by Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, Morrow Press, 1991.

Religions:  Encountering People of Other Faiths, byAbingdon Press.

“Out of Zion, God Shines Forth”

Feb. 19, 2012

I have always had an abiding interest in Scotland, and all things Celtic.  Years ago I had the opportunity to visit Scotland.  I loved everything about it, but was especially taken by the standing stones that appear seemingly out of nowhere, in the middle of a farmer’s field.  They aren’t part of any historic park or set aside with special signs….they’re just there in the place where they were erected several thousand years ago.  These large stones were placed by an ancient and pre-Christian people called the Celts, about whom we know very little.  But it is thought these standing stones mark places that were sacred to these unknown peoples.    It may have been my imagination standing out there on that wind-swept field, but it did feel like a very special place. 

Celtic spirituality is a variety of Christian devotion practiced in Ireland and Scotland since the 5^th century AD.[1]   This tradition builds on the ancient Celtic reverence for the earth, and shares with the ancient Celts the affinity for sacred places.  The term thin places, used in our invocation this morning, was coined by devotees of Celtic spirituality.  It refers to a place where the boundary between heaven and earth is very thin. It’s a place where we can sense the divine more readily.

The term is really getting overused these days, but I like it and feel that it has special application on this Sunday, Transfiguration Sunday. Peter, James and John got an up close and personal glimpse of God on that mountaintop.    But a thin place doesn’t have to be a mountain top, or even a geographical place.  We can think about places along one’s spiritual path where God’s spirit feels especially near.  It could be a moment when one feels that God has revealed a vision of the future or a calling.  A thin place can be a time of communion with God’s wondrous creation.  Certainly the parents among us would say that the birth of a child can feel like a place where the human world meets the divine.

Baptism is one of the thinnest of all the thin places.  We think of the moment in scripture when Jesus was baptized and the sky was torn open and God revealed that this was his beloved Son with whom God was well pleased.  Heaven met earth in that moment.  This morning at the font God revealed that Mark and Noah are part of God’s beloved family, spiritual sons with whom God is well pleased.    We don’t own the land on which this font stands because it is Holy Ground.   It belongs to God just as the one being baptized belongs to God.   We have scriptural authority for the audacious claim of God’s presence here in this moment.

Marcus Borg, in his book The Heart of Christianity, says that the term thin places is deeply rooted in biblical and Christian tradition because it sees God as not somewhere else, but right here.  He goes on to say that it is anyplace that our hearts are opened, where the sacred is available to us and where we can commune with the Holy Spirit.  So perhaps we can say that it is a place of spiritual renewal, where we can go when we are thirsty and need the living water.   Maybe these places seem all too few and far between for you.  Maybe you’ve never felt God’s presence and don’t where to find it.

Jesus himself seemed to seek God’s presence in special places.  A passage we read just a few weeks ago, Mark 1:35, tells us that “in the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed.”  Jesus often withdrew to deserted places to seek refreshment and counsel from his Father.   I guess any place in which we can spend time with the Lord can become a thin place.

But it is useful to realize, though, that Christians did not have designated sacred places, portals if you will, for those of us who have read Harry Potter.   Key places in Jesus’ life did not take on sacred status among his followers.   We have no reason to believe that his birthplace, the tomb, the Garden, the hillside where he fed 5000—none of these places assumed revered status in the early days of the faith.   Mark Roberts remind us that this made the early Christians very different from their neighbors in the Greco-Roman world.   “Virtually every recognized religion in the culture was identified by its holy places, people, and things.” 

Rev. Dr. Mark Roberts [2]has written a wonderful blog on this topic and he examines how Jesus impacts our understanding of thin places.  “If a thin place is a location where God’s presence can be experienced with unusual intensity, then Jesus himself was the ultimate thin place.”  Jesus is the fullest expression of God on earth.  You want to be close to God, get close to Jesus.

The Temple, in the Jewish tradition, was God’s home on earth and the Inner Temple (available only to the high priest) was the thinnest of all the thin places.   But in the Christian tradition Jesus becomes the Temple.  And after the resurrection, from Pentecost onward, the Church becomes the thin place of the world.  “And as the church scattered into the world, it permeated the world with human “thin places” so all people might experience the grace, love, and presence of God through his people.”[3]

As uncomfortable as it may make us feel, as inadequate as we may feel, as unwilling as we may be, Jesus made us his body on earth.  I have no idea why he did it.  But we’re the portal through which the world glimpses the divine.  We’re the stained glass window from which the light pours forth. 

How come we get to have all the fun here at a baptism? How come we get the fun of seeing two dear little twin boys wriggling in their parents arms and getting cold water poured down their necks?   Can’t just be done with the immediate family in their living room, or privately with the pastor at a nice spot down by the stream?   We get to do it because we’re the Body of Christ, and it is among us that God has ordained as the place for this momentous event.   It is among us that God chooses to dwell on this earth.  We are God’s thin place, yesterday, today, and tomorrow.  This is where everything fits in the fullness of time.   

As thin places go, I suppose this church is no more likely than that cow pasture on a Scottish island.  I’m not here to explain it.   I’m just her to proclaim it! 

Yesterday I was walking the dog and using the time to think about our church and to work out some things regarding this message.  I was thinking about the Celtic cross in my office and that I should bring it along to church.  We’d had a nice walk and stopped on our way back at the stream at the end of our road. As always, Dominic stopped to get a drink before we headed back to the house.  The sun was peeking through the trees at the moment and I looked down and saw a remarkable sight.  There before me in the stream, two small branches had fallen and gotten caught in the rocks.  They formed a perfect cross…no lie.  At first I thought someone must have placed them there, then I saw leaves wrapped around the ends and realized that it had naturally occurred.  The sun was coming through in a way that cast a circle in the center of the cross.

A thin place?  Maybe…but one thing is for sure.  Had I never learned about the cross here in the Body of Christ, I would not have recognized it there.   Out of Zion, God shines forth!

Transfiguration Sunday

Visitors:  Welcome to our church.  Please sign our guest book!  If you do not have a church home, we pray that you will find one with us.  We have large-print bulletins available, as well as hearing assistance devices.  Please ask an usher if you require either of these.  Restrooms are located in the church school building.  Go through the door next to the choir loft, and straight ahead.  We also have restrooms downstairs in Fellowship Hall.  Again, exit through the door next to the choir loft, turn left down the hall, and go down the steps. 

We Gather To Worship

Prelude

Announcements

Chime Interlude

 *Call To Worship

 One:        We have come to worship amongst all creation.

All:         It is good that we are here.

One:        We have come to worship in this nation of theUnited States.

All:         It is good that we are here.

One:        We have come to worship in this town ofArendtsville.

All:         It is good that we are here.

One:        We have come to worship in this house of prayer.

All:         It is good that we are here.

One:        And God calls to us, a voice in a cloud.

All:         Jesus is my Beloved; listen.  It is good that we are here to listen together for the Word of God.  Amen.

*Hymn:  “O Word of God Incarnate”………………………… ……#310

*Invocation (We light the Christ Candle.)

Leader:    We climb mountains seeking you, God, but not knowing quite what we are looking for.  Your presence appears as a voice from the clouds, bright as dazzling light, as incomprehensible mystery, the extraordinary breaking through into the ordinary, and we are touched by the holy.  In these high places, in the thin places, we see, we hear, we know you, God—closer, deeper, beyond imagining, beyond expressing.

All:         Take us to the thin places.  Lead us to moments of epiphany, revelation.  Guide us to thin places where holiness touches ordinariness, and where we long to see you face to face.  Amen.

 *Response:  “O Gracious Light, Lord Jesus Christ”……….#359, V 1

 Prayer Of Confession

Leader:    God of compassion, in Jesus Christ we behold your transforming light, yet we continue to live in darkness.  Preoccupied by ourselves, we fail to see your work in the world.  We speak when we should listen; we act when we should reflect.  We fail to see your glory in the people with whom we disagree. 

People:   We confess our sins to you, God of power and might.  Empower us to live in your light and to walk in your ways for the sake of Him who is the Light of the World.  (A time for silent prayers of confession; Music:  “Turn Your Eyes upon Jesus.”)

 Assurance Of God’s Forgiveness

Leader:   Friends, know that God empowers us to rid ourselves of any sense of failure or wrong, and invites us to celebrate that we are nothing less than God’s beloved.  We are a changed people living in the Light of God.   We are a forgiven people, living by the grace of God.

 Affirmation:    “O Splendor of God’s Glory Bright”. . . …..#27, V 1 & 3

 We Hear The Word

 ReadingOf The Scripture:    2 Kings 2: 1-12

Anthem:       “Walkin’ In the Light”       ………………Thomerson

The Sacrament Of Baptism For

Mark And Noah

 Welcome

Leader:    They were bringing children to Jesus that Jesus might touch them; and the disciples rebuked them.  But when Jesus saw it, Jesus was indignant, and said to them,

People:   “Let the children come to me, do not hinder them; for to such belongs the realm of God.  Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the realm of God like a child shall not enter it.”

Leader:    And Jesus took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands upon them.

Address

Leader:    The sacrament of baptism is an outward and visible sign of the grace of God.  Inasmuch as the promise of the gospel is not only to us but also to our children, baptism with water and the Holy Spirit is the mark of their acceptance into the care of Christ’s church, the sign and seal of their participation in God’s forgiveness, and the beginning of their growth into full Christian faith and discipleship.

 People:   This is the water of baptism.  Out of this water we rise with new life, forgiven of sin and one in Christ, members of Christ’s body.

Questions For The Parents

Pastor:     Do you desire to have Mark and Noah baptized into the faith and family of Jesus Christ?

Parents: We do.

Pastor:     Will you encourage Mark and Noah to renounce the powers of evil and to receive the freedom of new life in Christ?

Parents: We will, with the help of God.

Pastor:     Will you teach them that they may be led to profess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior?

Parents: We will, with the help of God.

Pastor:     Do you promise, according to the grace given you, to grow with these children in the Christian faith, to help them to be faithful members of thechurchofJesus Christby celebrating Christ’s presence, by furthering Christ’s mission in all the world, and by offering the nurture of the Christian church so that they may affirm their baptism?

Parents: We do, with the help of God.

*Congregational Assent (please stand)

Leader:    Jesus Christ calls us to make disciples of all nations and to offer them the gift of grace in baptism.  Do you, who witness and celebrate this sacrament, promise your love, support, and care to the ones about to be baptized, as they live and grow in Christ?

People:   We promise our love, support, and care.

 *Blessing Of The Water

Pastor:     Bless by your Holy Spirit, gracious God, this water.  By your Holy Spirit save those who confess the name of Jesus Christ that sin may have no power over them.  Create new life in the ones baptized this day that they may rise in Christ.  Glory to you, eternal God, the one who was, and is, and shall always be, world without end.  Amen.

 Act Of Baptism

Prayer For The Baptized

Pastor:     We give you thanks, O Holy One, mother and father of all the faithful, for these your children and for the grace acknowledged here today in water and the Holy Spirit.  Embrace us all as sons and daughters in the one household of your love.  Grant us grace to receive, nurture, and befriend these new members of the body of Christ.

All:         Give to the newly baptized:  strength for life’s journey, courage in time of suffering, the joy of faith, the freedom of love, and the hope of new life:  through Jesus Christ, who makes us one.  Amen.

*Baptism Hymn:  “I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry”…….(insert)

 Reading Of The Gospel:    Mark 9: 2-9

Message For This Day                                         

 We Respond To God

 *Hymn:  “Christ Is the World’s Light”…………………..#90

Pastoral Prayers And The Lord’s Prayer

   (Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.  Thy kingdom come.  Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread.  And forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.  For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.  Amen.)

 Our Offering

Offertory

*Doxology:  “Praise God from Whom All Blessings”. ……..….#809

*Prayer Of Dedication

Leader:   These gifts are given in response to your never-ending presence with your creation, O God.  Even when we don’t feel you near us, we trust.  We offer ourselves, and our gifts, into that presence, following your voice, and listening for where Jesus will call us.  Amen.

 *Closing Hymn:  “Shine, Jesus, Shine”…. ………………….#721

*Pastoral Benediction

 *Choral Benediction:  “Lord, Now Let Your Servant……#343, V 1 & 3

*Chime Meditation

Postlude

 *Where noted, please stand if able.                                           

February’s  Proverb:  

     When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous.  But dismay to evildoers.           Proverbs 21: 15

 The 2012 Flower Calendar is posted in the vestibule.  Please consider sponsoring the flowers that beautify our sanctuary.   Available dates:   Mar. 4, 25; Apr. 1, 22, 29; June 10, 17; July 15; Oct. 21, 28; and Dec. 2, 30. 

 Join Us After Worship As We Continue Our Series on “Speaking of Faith: Different Expressions of Religious Belief.”  Today, we thank Mark Berg for sharing with us his perspective on the Jewish tradition.  Mark is a community activist involved in several non-profit organizations, a member of the Adams County Planning Commission and Housing Committee, and an AARP Driver Safety instructor. He is the recipient of the 2010 Pennsylvania AARP Andrus Award for Outstanding Community Service.  His columns appear regularly in the Gettysburg Times.  His wife, Dr. Temma F. Berg, is the Graff Professor of English atGettysburgCollege.  All are welcome to attend, downstairs in Fellowship Hall.

 Slate Of Various Sizes Showing Our Church is available for a donation.  The slates are located in the back of the church on a table.  The donations will be used for the window replacement project.

 Our Next Trivia Nite will be Sunday, March 11, starting at 6:00 p.m.  Please consider forming a team and joining us.  Any questions, call or email Gina.

Food Pantry Item for February is canned meat.

The Gettysburg Community Soup Kitchen is holding an Open House at their new location at the Peace House (formerly the old Saint Francis rectory) on February 26 from 1-3 p.m.  The community is invited. There will be an official ribbon cutting with the Mayor at 2 followed by a non-denominational blessing.

 Soup Kitchen Update:  the first Soup Kitchen was held on Tuesday, 1/31; Zion UCC furnished the meal which served approximately 40 attendees.  The next Soup Kitchen will be March 31–Zion will furnish and serve the same day.  Sign-up sheet will be posted on the credenza during the month of March.  Please remember, the church’s side door will be opened beginning at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, 3/31, and will close at 9:30 a.m.–food donations are to be placed in the kitchen for SK Committee to pick-up.  All donations and assistance are welcome. 

 The Book Group meetingwill be on Thursday, February 23, 2012, at 7:00 p.m.   Amish Grace:  How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy by Donald Kraybill, Steven Nolt, and David Weaver-Zercher will be discussed.

 2012 Greeters Needed for Feb. 22 (Ash Wed.); Mar. 4, 11, 25; Apr. 1, 6, 8, 15, 22, 29.

 2012 Bulletin  Sponsors Needed for Feb. 26; Mar. 4, 18, 25; Apr. 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29. 

 A Lenten Supper And Study Series will be held with Trinity UCC Biglerville, Trinity UCC Gettysburg, andZion.  The plan is to rotate the program with each church hosting twice.  We begin at 6 p.m. with a light supper, then devotions and a study on the Lord’s Prayer.  The schedule is as follows:

 An Adult and Child CPR/AED Class will be held at Zion House on Sunday, February 26 from noon until 3 p.m.  The purpose is to help participants recognize and respond appropriately to cardiac and breathing emergencies.  The courses in this program teach skills that participants need to know to give immediate care to a person until more advanced medical personnel arrive to take over.   Please call the church office for sign up or use the sign up sheet on the credenza.

 The Property Committee will meet on Thursday, February 23, 2012, at Zion House beginning at 7:00 p.m.

Knitting/Crocheting Class:  the Fellowship Committee will be holding a knitting and/or crocheting session for anyone interested in learning or for all of those who are experts and wish to help those learning.  Everyone is welcome to attend for the fellowship and snacks; bring your friends, bring your family members, bring your neighbors–the more the merrier!!!   Zion UCC intends to flood the special Olympics this year with scarves, scarves and more scarves!  Val and Betsy have volunteered to be the teachers for the first session.  Tentative dates are Sunday, March 11, after Sunday School (11 a.m.) or Wednesday, March 14 (6 p.m.) before choir practice.  A sign-up sheet is on the credenza….please mark your preference for knitting or crocheting (or both) and for either Sunday or Wednesday. Refreshments will be served.  Depending on the amount of interest and preferences, details will be confirmed by March 1.  Also all experts are needed to help the novices; come to enjoy the fellowship!  Please see Pam with questions.

Coming Up Next Week:

Feb. 19, Children’s Valentine Party,10:15 am

Feb. 22, Ash Wednesday Service,7:30 pm

Feb. 23, Book Club, Mustard Seed Rm, 7:00 pm

Feb. 23, Property Cmte Mtg,ZionHse, 7:00 pm

Feb. 25,SouthMountainHike, 9:00 am

 Looking Forward:

Feb. 26, Adult and Child CPR/AED class, Zion Hse, Noon – 3 pm

Feb. 26, Lenten supper and study series,Gettysburg, 6:00 pm

Feb. 27, Consistory Mtg,ZionHse, 7:00 pm   

Feb. 29, Choir Practice, Sanctuary, 7:30 pm

Mar. 4, Lenten supper and study series,Zion, 6:00 pm

The Buddha lived from about 563 BC to 483 BC.  in the northern part of India.  The young Siddharta Gautama was an Indian prince who knew a life of privilege and pleasure.  He had been shielded from suffering all of his life.  Then one day he ventured out from his sheltered world and confronted for the first time sickness, old age, and death.  He also learned about people who renounced the world in order to search for an answer to the problem of human suffering.

Gautama was a Hindu and eventually he reformed Hinduism, much in the same way as Jesus was a reformer of Judaism.  At the age of 29, Gautama renounced his life of privilege, his wife and child,  and decided to follow the Hindu way of renunciation.  After 6 years of fasting, wandering, meditating…he found the path unsatisfactory and was no closer to the enlightenment that he sought.   After great struggle he “woke up” (Buddha means enlightenment or one who has awakened).  Gautama developed a different path and set of teachings.  He gathered followers and taught them until his very old age.  The tradition is 2600 years old.

Buddha was not divine, but a very human man who attained enlightenment.  Buddhists do not worship Buddha, or idols of Buddha; rather, they revere him as their spiritual teacher.  Buddhism is a way of life more so than a religion.  It is open to anyone who experiences suffering and wishes to find peace of mind.  It is not a church or organization to be joined.  The adherent chooses to walk the “noble” path and conform to the discipline of noble truths.

Central to the teaching is that 1. Life is full of suffering because all is transitory, decaying, and unpredictable.  2. Suffering is due to our attachment to specific outcomes and desires something that life can’t give. 3. Giving up desire and attachment to the things of the world can bring about peace and end suffering.   4. By walking the 8-fold path, one can resolve suffering and attain Nirvana.

The 8-fold path is:

Right Beliefs:

(1.) Right understanding–or knowing the truth   (2.) right intention-purity of mind with no lust, hate or illusion; being generous and compassionate

Right Morality:

( 3. ) Right speech-purity of words with no gossip, lies or meaningless chatter  (4.)  Right action-purity of behavior with ethical precepts such as do not kill, do not lie, do not steal, do not misuse sex, do not use intoxicants  (5.)  Right livelihood-purity of vocation with a job that does not harm anyone.

Right Meditation

(6.)  Right effort-which is setting goals  and striving with energy (7.) Right mindfulness in body, feelings, emotions and thoughts; and being aware in the present moment without judgment  (8.)right concentration-purifying the mind and disciplining the mind and becoming attentive to all that you do.  Being aware of one’s breath.

The hindrances to the above 8-fold path are desire,  running away from things, sloth or lazy mind, agitation or worry, and doubt.  Doubt is what Buddha identified as the most difficult to overcome on the path to enlightenment.  There are no fixed rules or laws in Buddhism.  There are sacred teachings and sacred texts.  However, one must look inside oneself to find the truth.  Buddhists believe that things happen to people according to Karma (the law of cause and effect), not because of God’s punishment or fate.  Buddhists believe that the problems we experience must be solved by oneself.

Buddhism is the only major religion that is non-theistic.  That does not mean atheistic, but rather it means that for the Buddha the question of God’s existence is irrelevant  for ending human suffering.

reference:  Religions: Encountering People of Other Faiths, Abingdon Press, Nashville

Religion and Healing Series (part three):  All our Grief to Bear

Feb 12, 2012, Preached at Zion UCC Arendtsville PA

For the last 3 weeks, our scripture passages have been about healing.  In fact, we’re not even out of the first chapter of Mark yet, and we’ve been reading about one healing miracle after another.    Simon’s mother in law was healed and restored to her rightful place as female head of household. The man with a demon was taken back from the fringe and restored to the synagogue community.   The leper was healed and then sent back to the priests to be pronounced clean so that he could re-join the community. 

In Bible times, illness destroyed the fabric of community because it made you a social outcast.  As Graydon Snyder [1] puts it, even worse than the disease itself was being unclean by the religious standards of the day, because the individual was then isolated from family and community.   The gospel story we read this morning should convince us of an important corrective to this terrible problem.  The touch of Jesus made the leper acceptable.  The touch of Jesus restored the ailing one to community.

Even for a healer like Jesus, there was no quick and easy road to wholeness.  It is a process, and one that involves more than a simple cure.   Wholeness involves restoration to a functioning faith community.  It is there and only there that in the words of Psalm 30 our mourning can be turned into dancing, we can   take off our sackcloth and be clothed with joy.  It is in a worshiping community of believers that  ”my soul may praise you and not be silent.”   The one thing we know for sure is this….healing never happens alone.  It always involves people working together.  And we can especially note the power of touch when someone is hurting.  

Kathy Galloway says “the New Testament evidence is that both Jesus and the Christian community prayed for the sick and laid hands on them when they prayed.  We know in our daily lives that it is often touch, the hand on the shoulder, the hug of a friend …that lets us know we are loved.  Touch, often more than words, is a way of giving physical expression to our prayers and concern for each other.”[2]

There are the many opportunities and ways in which we can support each other.  I think especially of the healing that is needed in times of grief.    Upon coming to Zion for the first time, and getting to know people, I was really struck by the number of tragic deaths that had occurred among our church family.  This is typical, sadly, in a rural area.

One member’s grandson was killed in a hunting accident. I think of another  family who lost a very young son in a tragic accident on the farm. Then of course there is Millie, who lost in separate and equally tragic incidents a husband, a son, and a grandson.  How does one live through such times of sadness  with the grace and equanimity that these members of Zion always demonstrated?  It helps immeasurably to be part of a faith community in which one has learned the hope of the gospel.  It also helps to have friends in the faith community who reach out in caring touch, love, and a willingness to share their belief in the power of the resurrection.   You can’t hear that too often when a loved one is gone, and of course a funeral is the best place to hear that reassurance.

We had a funeral  just yesterday.  A  funeral is an integral part of the healing process.  Funerals confirm and don’t deny the reality of death.  They allow for input from the community that serves as a living memorial to the deceased and helps the mourner form a more complete image and memory of the deceased.   It is a structured and orderly activity that helps to counter the chaotic time that follows a death.  Funerals with a religious orientation give the family a context of meaning into which they can fit the death of the loved one.  We hear words of hope.  And funerals confront us all with the finality of death and a reminder that we do not know the number of our days on earth.  It is the best reminder of the meaning of life we could ever have.    Finally, funerals begin the process of reintegrating the bereaved back into the community. [3]

I would say that churches like ours do funerals very well.  It is in the course of the weeks and months and years that follow, that maybe we could do more.  As a pastor, I certainly feel that way about my pastoral care.  Grief doesn’t go away after the funeral but certainly my attention turns elsewhere, typically to the next crisis.

After the funeral is over,  the flowers are wilted, and the casserole dishes are returned, life does go on.  And sometimes grief can be very isolating.  Years ago, I heard someone who had lost a spouse say something that I have never forgotten.  This person was grateful for the outpouring of sympathy and support but at some point that does go away.  What this person said to me was, “I was really surprised about something.  Lots of people invited me out to a restaurant for lunch after my spouse’s death. But nobody invited me into their home for dinner.  It was like they thought I would contaminate them or something.”    I can see what this person meant.    We like to keep loss at arm’s length because it hits so close to home.  Grief can be very contaminating.

In fact, C.S. Lewis, who grieved for his wife Joy, once said “An odd-by product of my loss is that I’m aware of being an embarrassment  to everyone I meet….perhaps the bereaved ought to be isolated in special settlements like lepers.”  Grief can be awkward and erupts in unpredictable ways and the grieving person may hide the pain from others and even themselves.  [4]  There is no standard timetable by which to say when we are done grieving.  There is no statute of limitations on grief.  It has to run its course and a faith community allows for this and supports it in appropriate ways.

Recently we began an initiative to gather our members who have lost a spouse for a meal and time of fellowship.  Some have lost a spouse within the last year, and for some it has been many years.  It is a way of recognizing that they have a kinship in their loss.  And it is also a way of recognizing that the act of gathering together in our church home has special healing qualities.  We are, after all, the Body of Christ.

We do long for a quick solution for healing of any sort.  We would like a fast remedy for suffering.  I suppose we are like Naaman (2 Kings 5:1-14) in that we want relief and we want it soon.  We don’t want to wash in the Jordan seven times.    For whatever needs healing in our lives, the road to health is neither quick or charted by Map Quest.   Nor can healing happen with a cheerful, “there, there, everything will be all right.    There are things that are not going to be all right, ever again.  Christian hope is not about recovering what has been lost, nor is it simple optimism.  

Paul tells us clearly what Christian hope is all about.  “…we know that in everything God works for good with those who love God, and who are called according to God’s purpose.  We are sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth nor anything else in all of creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

God not only promises to never leave us, God promises the presence of the Holy Spirit within a community of believers.   We are empowered by the One who carries the suffering of the world in his body.  We are now his Body.   And Jesus says to each and every one of us in the Body of Christ, I do choose to heal you.  Thanks be to God.

A Healing Touch

 Visitors:  Welcome to our church.  Please sign our guest book!  If you do not have a church home, we pray that you will find one with us.  We have large-print bulletins available, as well as hearing assistance devices.  Please ask an usher if you require either of these.  Restrooms are located in the church school building.  Go through the door next to the choir loft, and straight ahead.  We also have restrooms downstairs in Fellowship Hall.  Again, exit through the door next to the choir loft, turn left down the hall, and go down the steps. 

 We Gather To Worship

Prelude

 Announcements

Chime Interlude

 *Call To Worship

One:        Sing praises to God.

All:         Sing praises God’s faithful people.

One:        Give thanks to God’s holy name.

All:         Give thanks God’s faithful people.

One:        God’s anger shall pass,

All:         God’s favour will last forever.

One:        We may weep for a season,

All:         yet God promises that we will know joy again.

One:        Sing praises all you people.

All:         Sing praises to God.  Amen.          

 *Hymn:  “Let All Things Now Living”……………. ………………#53

*Invocation (We light the Christ Candle.)

Leader:   Loving God, we thank you for the many psalms and stories that tell us of the turning of life’s seasons:  joy will follow sorrow as warming springtime follows winter and cooling autumn follows summer.  We thank you for being with us in all the seasons of our lives, a steady presence bringing peace in the midst of the changes we must face.  We gladly sing praises to you, Maker of heaven and earth.  Amen.

 *Response:  “O Gracious Light, Lord Jesus Christ”……….#359, V 1

 Prayer Of Confession

Leader:   Faced with sickness we cannot fix, injustice we cannot overturn.

People:  ignorance we cannot change, poverty we cannot solve,

Leader:   war we cannot stop, wrong we cannot undo,

People:  we confess to you, our God, that sometimes we turn away, and do not choose your way of healing love.    (A time for silent prayers of confession; Music:  “He Touched Me.”)

 Assurance Of God’s Forgiveness

One:        Jesus said to those he healed, as God says to us today,

All:         I choose to love you.  Be made whole again.  Amen.

 Affirmation:    “O Splendor of God’s Glory Bright ”. . ………..#27, V 1 & 3

 We Hear The Word

 ReadingOf The Scripture:    2 Kings 5: 1-14

A Time For Children

Anthem:       “Woke Up this Morning”  ………………………Ford/Simms

 Reading Of The Gospel:    Mark 1: 40-45

Message For This Day                                        

 We Respond To God

 *Hymn:  “Jesus’ Hands Were Kind Hands”………………………………..#412

Pastoral Prayers And The Lord’s Prayer

   (Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.  Thy kingdom come.  Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread.  And forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.  For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.  Amen.)

 Our Offering

Offertory

 *Doxology:  “Praise God from Whom All Blessings” ………….….#809

*Prayer Of Dedication

Leader:   We dedicate these gifts of money to your ways of healing, justice, and reconciling love in the world.  May we choose to offer ourselves in service of your way of healing, justice, and love in each moment of each day.  Amen.

 *Closing Hymn:  “O God, Whose Will Is Life and Good” ………….#413

*Blessing

Leader:   May God be healing for you.  May God be justice for you.  May God be reconciling love for you, and through you for all you meet.  Amen.

*Choral Benediction:  “Lord, Now Let Your Servant”………#343, V 1 & 3

*Chime Meditation

Postlude

*Where noted, please stand if able.                                           

February’s  Proverb:  

     When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous.  But dismay to evildoers.           Proverbs 21: 15

 The 2012 Flower Calendar is posted in the vestibule.  Please consider sponsoring the flowers that beautify our sanctuary.   Available dates:   Mar. 4, 25; Apr. 1, 22, 29; June 10, 17; July 15; Oct. 21, 28; and Dec. 2, 30.

Join Us After Worship As We Continue Our Series on “Speaking of Faith: Different Expressions of Religious Belief” with speaker, John Mulligan, on Buddhism.  He has been a practicing Buddhist since 1992.  He was trained and took ordination atBhikkhuTrainingCenter inColombo,Sri Lanka in 1998, and continued studies for two years at Mahabodhi Vihara in Bodhgaya,Bihar,India. He is founder of NOVIS[non-violence intervention service], where he was director and principal teacher for 10 years. NOVIS works with men who have issues of power and control in intimate relations – operating in Adams, Franklin, and Fulton Counties – with programs in both community and prison settings. He is Buddhist Chaplain with the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections and serves Buddhist inmates in PA and NJ state prisons.   Since 2004 he has been resident director of Bodhi House inLittlestown,PA – a post-release residential facility for men who wish to continue study and practice in a lay spiritual community.  He has led a community meditation group inGettysburg for the past 12 years; and teaches meditation atGettysburgCollege for the student Buddhist Sangha.   All are welcome to attend, downstairs in Fellowship Hall.

The Food Pantry Item for February is canned meat.

The Gettysburg Community Soup Kitchen is holding an Open House at their new location at the Peace House (formerly the old Saint Francis rectory) on February 26 from 1-3 p.m.  The community is invited. There will be an official ribbon cutting with the Mayor at 2 followed by a non-denominational blessing.

The Book Group  meetingwill be on Thursday, February 23, 2012, at 7:00 p.m.   Amish Grace:  How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy by Donald Kraybill, Steven Nolt, and David Weaver-Zercher will be discussed.  Synopsis:   On October 2, 2006, a gunman entered a one-room Amish school in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania.  In front of twenty-five horrified pupils, Charles Roberts ordered the boys and the teacher to leave.  He opened fire on the remaining females, killing five and leaving the others critically wounded.  He then shot himself as police stormed the building.  His motivation? “I’m angry at God for taking my little daughter,” he told the children before the massacre.  Within a week of the murders, Amish forgiveness was a central theme in more than 2,400 news stories around the world.  Amish Grace explores the many questions this story raises about the religious beliefs and habits that led the Amish to forgive so quickly. It looks at the ties between forgiveness and membership in a cloistered communal society and asks if Amish practices parallel or diverge from other religious and secular notions of forgiveness. It also addresses the matter of why forgiveness became news.  “All the religions teach it,” mused an observer, “but no one does it like the Amish.”  Regardless of the cultural seedbed that nourished this story, the surprising act of Amish forgiveness begs for a deeper exploration. How could the Amish do this?  What did this act mean to them?  And how might their witness prove useful to the rest of us?

 A Lenten Supper And Study Series will be held with Trinity UCC Biglerville, Trinity UCC Gettysburg, andZion.  The plan is to rotate the program with each church hosting twice.  We begin at 6 p.m. with a light supper, then devotions and a study on the Lord’s Prayer. Gettysburg will host the February 26 supper and study;Zion, the March 4 supper and study. 

An Adult and Child CPR/AED Class will be held in the Main Sunday School Room on Sunday, February 26 from noon until 3 p.m.  The purpose is to help participants recognize and respond appropriately to cardiac and breathing emergencies.  The courses in this program teach skills that participants need to know to give immediate care to a person until more advanced medical personnel arrive to take over.  See the newsletter for further details.

The Property Committee will meet on Thursday, February 23, 2012, at Zion House beginning at 7:00 p.m.

2012 Greeters Needed for Feb. 22 (Ash Wed.); Mar. 4, 11, 25; Apr. 1, 6, 8, 15, 22, 29.

2012 Bulletin  Sponsors Needed for Feb. 19, 26; Mar. 4, 18, 25; Apr. 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29.  (Bulletin Sponsorship is $15 per Sunday)

Coming Up Next Week:

Feb. 12, John Mulligan session regarding Buddhism, Fellowship Hall, 10:15 am

Feb. 15, Bible Discovery, Fellowship Hall, 6:30 pm

Feb. 15, Choir Practice, Sanctuary, 7:30 pm

 Looking Forward:

Feb. 19, Infant Baptisms, Sanctuary, 9:00 am

Feb. 19, Children’s Valentine Party, 10:15 am

Feb. 22, Ash Wednesday Serv, 7:30 pm

Feb. 23, Book Club, Mustard Seed Rm, 7:00 pm

Feb. 23, Property Cmte Mtg,ZionHse, 7:00 pm

Feb. 25, SouthMountainHike, 9:00 am

Feb. 26, Adult and Child CPR/AED class, Main Sunday School Rm, Noon – 3 pm

Feb. 26, Lenten supper and study series,Gettysburg, 6:00 pm

Feb. 27, Consistory Mtg,ZionHse, 7:00 pm   

Mar. 4, Lenten supper and study series,Zion    , 6:00 pm

Mar. 5, Something More, Oakside Park, 12 noon

Mar. 11, Trivia Nite, 6:00 pm

• Worldwide, there are over 14 million Mormons, nearly the same as the number of Jews.
• In the United States the LDS Church is the 4th largest individual denomination with over 5.5 million members, a population about equal to the number of Muslims.
• Only 12% of all Mormons live in Utah. Most Mormons do not live in North America.
• Aside from the United States, other regions with significant numbers of Mormons include Mexico and Asia (1 million members each), South America (3 million members), and Central America and Europe (about half a million each). The rapid growth the Church has been experiencing in Africa, where the number of Mormons already passes a quarter of a million, is particularly striking.
• After Catholics, the LDS Church is the largest religion by number in ten U.S. states.

Through the prophet, Joseph Smith, Jr., The Church of Jesus Christ was organized with only 6 members on April 6, 1830 in Fayette, New York.  In a little over 175 years Church membership has grown exponentially.  Mormons believe in living prophets and don’t think it’s logical that God would only call prophets in ancient, not modern, times.  When Joseph Smith was killed by a mob, Brigham Young, leader of the Church’s Twelve Apostles, became the second prophet-president of the Church.   Mormons believe that additional scriptures exist that enhance the Holy Bible and lend clarification to our knowledge of Christ and the Gospel.

Joseph Smith was directed by God, through the angel Moroni, to a set of ancient records.  These were in the form of hieroglyphics on thin sheets of gold.  These records contained the history of earlier inhabitants of the American continents. This record was called the Book of Mormon.  The tale, as translated by Joseph Smith is of a man called Lehi who left Jerusalem around 600 BC and traveled by boat to Central America with his family.  From there this “lost tribe” migrated throughout the South, Central and North American continents.  There are tales of successive generations, who comprise the ancestors of the Native American peoples.  They passed through periods of righteousness and wickedness, and had prophets appearing at different times.   Mormons views the Book of Mormon as a fifth gospel that records the appearance of Jesus on our continent; visiting this remnant of the House of Israel.  (the 10 lost tribes)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints evangelizes extensively with young missionaries and believes that the truth of this restored gospel is the fast growth of the church, low divorce rate, higher life expectancy, and efficient world-wide welfare system operated by the Church.  Good works among the poor are a key part of the Church activities in the world.

Adherents believe that in a pre-birth life they were with the Heavenly Father.  There as his spirit sons and daughters, they lived until ready to come to earth.  You have no memory of this pre-life.  Every minute of life on earth must be accounted for and one’s eternal reward will be according to one’s choosing here on earth.   Just as you live in this life you will live in eternal life.  After death you emerge into a place of awakening and loved ones wait for you there.  With your loved ones you await the resurrection, which will take place prior to a 1000 year reign of Christ here on earth.  Redemption can happen after death, and you still have the opportunity to hear the gospel.  Mormons believe in both baptism for the dead by proxy, as well as marriage by proxy for the dead.  One cannot know the full glory of heaven as a single person.

Mormons believe in the three general divisions of heaven Paul refers to in Corinthians…celestial-sun, terrestrial-moon, and telestial-star.  All three are kingdoms of glory and the principal punishment of those in lower realms is regret for what they could have done.  In the outer darkness are those who received a sure knowledge and then rejected it thereby sinning against the Holy Ghost.

Within the highest level, Celestial, families will continue.  Thus, in Mormon temples marriages are “for all time and for all eternity.”  This fundamental belief is partly responsible for the strong family orientation of the Mormons.  Civil marriage (till death do you part) is recognized, but “celestial marriage” is preferable because it binds families beyond the grave. This allows the faithful to be more like God who is surrounded by His family in heaven.  Mormons (and in this they are unique among Christians) believe in a Father God who wants his children, in the distant eternities, to become gods themselves.

Points to emphasize:  Mormonism is an American Christianity for whom documents such as the Constitution are considered sacred.  America is the latter day Promised land.  Family is the foundational unit of the Mormon people.  Healthy lifestyles are considered to be an important part of their faith practice.  Local congregations are called wards and are lay-led.  Women are barred from priesthood and almost all men are ordained into lay-priesthood.  LDS adherents are Christian but differ in key ways, including disagreement with: the concept of the Trinity, doctrine of original sin, the traditional concept of the Kingdom of God, and salvation by faith in Jesus Christ.  They do not consider themselves to be Protestants and interpret scripture in ways that differ from classical Christianity.  Most LDS consider the Book of Mormon to be superior to the Bible.

Reference:

How Different Religions View Death and the Afterlife, by Christopher Johnson and Marsha McGee, The Charles Press, 1991.

Religions:  Encountering People of Other Faiths, from the To the Point series by Abingdon Press, 1995.

2/5/2012

 I have a friend who built a very successful business from which he is now retired.  He’s written a book about his experience. One of the points he makes is that being frugal really gave him a competitive edge in business.   He relates an interesting anecdote to illustrate his point.  In the early days of his business he and his wife were selling decorative duck decoys for gift stores. It really took off and soon they needed to hire part-time employees to paint the decoys.   They hired two local couples from the community where they lived in rural Maryland.  One family was from the area, a typical American family.  The other couple were recent immigrants who came here for more opportunities.  Both families had young children and both needed extra income.  The working relationship lasted for several years.

 My friend describes the outcome for these families.  The immigrant family saved every penny they could and eventually bought a modest home in an upscale area where their kids could get into good schools, and eventually bought the farm of their dreams.  The other family didn’t fare so well.  One day the man came to my friend to ask for a loan since they were on the verge of losing their home.  The extra income had been used to buy toys, TVs, fancy appliances, better cars, etc.  Predictably the more they spent the more they wanted, and they got hopelessly snared in debt. 

 One could call it the parable of the two duck painters.  In it I see a metaphor of the current economic crisis.  It is a perfect example of short term versus long term thinking, living beyond one’s means, not discerning between needs and wants, and good old fashioned bad judgment.  It’s a very human story.   And it’s a story fraught with demons.

 For the last two weeks we have read gospel stories in which Jesus, in his healing ministry, confronted and cast out demons.  Jesus could cast out demons because he knew a demon when he saw one.    It’s harder for us to spot a demon, especially when it looks like something we really want.  Something shiny, something new, something our neighbor has!

You might remember I said that the way Jesus healed was by transferring his health to others.  And as we know there are many ways in which we can be healthy in body, mind, and spirit.  There are as many ways to be unhealthy as well.  I bet that if Jesus were walking the earth today, casting out demons, there would be one demon in particular taking up his time and energy.    D.E.B.T. – a true four letter word.

You hear the word “debt” today in every other news story and it always seems to be coupled with the word “crisis.”   The European debt crisis. Our national debt crisis.  Mortgage debt crisis.  Credit card debt crisis.  Debt consumes an unbelievable amount of our disposable income…at a national, international and personal level.  We are drowning in it. O Lord, forgive us our debts…because those who own our debt surely will not!  There are too many making too much off of our weakness, to ever let us go free without a battle.  But we could battle it, with Jesus and common sense on our side.

Here are some perspectives on the scope of the problem, just focusing on consumer debt.

DALLAS, TX, Jan 30, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) — Recent news is reporting lower unemployment and a slow growth in the economy, but forecasters warn of a steady rise in consumer debt. The average household in America is still burdened with just over $15,000 in overall credit card debt. While credit card debt is still the main culprit, student loans are on the rise, the second most frequent form of debt. Regardless of what kind of debt is strapping consumers, many feel they are without options in this current debt-ridden climate.

And if you can stand it, here are more statistics:

• 609.8 million credit cards held by U.S. consumers. (Source: “The Survey of Consumer Payment Choice,” Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, January 2010)
• Total U.S. revolving debt (98 percent of which is made up of credit card debt): $793.1 billion, as of May 2011 (Source: Federal Reserve’s G.19 report on consumer credit, released July 2011)
• On average, today’s consumer has a total of 13 credit obligations on record at a credit bureau.

We know that Jesus came to heal and to save.  Jesus wants the whole of our lives to be healthy.  So the state of our financial health is of concern to the Great Physician.   When we are captives to debt we are slaves in every sense of the term.  Certainly we can fault the rapacious nature of the consumer banking industry, predatory lending practices, and the whole climate of greed.  The scope of the big picture overwhelms.  But let’s just focus on the little picture…like the parable of the two duck painters.  We can change the way in which we personally live, so as to not line the pockets of what has become a very immoral industry.  We have trouble saying no to things.  We want things now, not later. We want what our neighbor has.  In short, we are human and we make mistakes.  We need healing.

 Early on in Jesus’ ministry he quotes the prophet Isaiah by saying that he had come to bring good news to the poor. He was sent to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.  What do those words mean to us, a people who believe in Jesus?  They should mean to us that through the grace and power of Jesus Christ there is a way out of every kind of slavery…every type of “dis-ease.”

There was a story in the Christian Century (Jan 25, 2012, p 10-11) that talked about financial health and financial slavery.    A Brethren in Christ church in Philadelphia began a small group ministry for people trapped in credit card debt.  I’m amazed that people could be honest enough to admit their financial problems.  I think that most of us would rather stand up here naked than talk about our financial matters.  A small group was formed of 5 people willing to admit the power that debt had over their lives, and willing to work towards erasing that debt. 

They had seed money from the church with which they each erased a portion of their debt. Then they each made their minimum payment and an extra payment every month that went into a fund. That fund was then used to pay off a credit card  of one member;  and a process was developed so that eventually  all were either out of debt, or were on their way to being debt free.   Then they were able to share more with others and know the blessing of using money wisely.  The whole community was strengthened by the restoration to health of the people in this small group.

Our communities of faith can be so much more than a place to worship.  It can also be where we learn to live well and wisely.  A faith community is where I can admit my weakness and you can admit yours.  You can help me and I can help you.  Together we can find health, no matter how seemingly intractable is the problem.  God watches over our lives, knows our needs, and stands ready to help us help ourselves.

The great therapist and healer Gerald May has said, “The power of grace is nowhere as brilliant nor as mystical as in communities of faith….Just to be in such an atmosphere is to be bathed in healing power.”[1]   Remember that you are not alone, and all things are possible in Christ.  Those that hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They mount up on wings like eagles; they will walk and not faint.  We move forward together, bathed in healing power.  Amen.