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DECEMBER 2021 VOL 173 NO 4 Post Covid HOW TO TALK ABOUT RACE Steward of Published by CONGREGATIONALISM naccc org news events the congregationalist

Table of CONTENTS Features 4 6 8 12 We handle financial matters So you can pay attention to what really matters For over 100 years MMBB has helped churches and faith based organizations build flexible and affordable retirement benefit plans financial solutions that help clergy find the best path forward With MMBB as your partner you can focus on what you do best Serving God and the spiritual needs of your congregation and community Supporting your calling is our calling www mmbb org what we offer 12 15 18 24 25 ON THE COVER Rhonda and Hannah at Ozaukee A Fifth Century Perspective Congregational Church By Rev Dr Ashley Cook Cleere Climate Change By Paul E Robinson Ph D Post Covid By Rev Ian MacDonald Steward of Congregationalism By Rev Shawn Stapleton Weathering Storms By Carson S Webb Why Christians Should Travel By Rev Dr Chris Surber How to Talk About Race Editor 400 Years of Faith By Rev Bob Hellam The Nativity of Christ By Isaac Watts Departments 8 19 20 26 27 ALONG THE WAY NECROLOGY NEWS NEEDS AND PRAYERS OF OUR MISSIONS PASTORATES AND PULPITS CALENDAR EDITORIAL STATEMENT All content in The Congregationalist appears by the authority of the editor We reserve freedom of expression to our authors and freedom of opinion to our readers Except for service information clearly sponsored by the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches NACCC or its component parts content does not necessarily reflect policies and opinions of the NACCC Neither The Congregationalist nor the NACCC has a creed or holds positions on social or theological issues but we recognize the authority of each local church to do so for itself if and as it wishes and we encourage thoughtful and respectful discussion of our agreements and differences

NAC C C From the desk of Our NACCC Executive Director By Reverend Dr Ashley Cleere Executive Director National Association of Congregational Christian Churches A N N UA L M E E T I NG CO N F E R E NC E J U NE 2 5 2 8 2 0 2 2 W I C H I TA K A N SAS And the Greatest of These is Love A Fifth Century Perspective A friend from seminary who lives in Grand Rapids and her spouse took the ferry across Lake Michigan to visit me in Milwaukee As we sat in the space I had called home for about ten weeks evidence of my recent move lingered curios imprecisely arranged on a mantel where they may not stay a vacant corner awaiting a new couch delayed in the stalling supply chain minor repairs and cosmetic updates on the horizon Other portions of my Wisconsin home will strongly resemble my Atlanta digs A piece of pottery that mimics a still life painting is placed underneath it My lifelong collection of antique etiquette books once again occupies the living room bookshelves 4 A favorite floor lamp belongs next to the leather chair and ottoman so I can curl up with a good book on an overcast day My guests have lived in their Michigan home for twenty five years They are in the throes of preparing for a kitchen makeover Noting the trappings of transition my friend commented We have moved several times in the same house I recalled a recent Christmas letter in which they described repurposing their children s rooms after becoming empty nesters Over the years as their family grew and changed they adapted their home to accommodate shifting needs Since the arrival of the Mayflower in 1620 our faith home Congregationalism has been rearranged Following their momentous trip across the Atlantic the Pilgrims planted the roots of our beloved tradition In New England and across the continent subsequent generations of Congregationalists forged movement and innovation warranted by cultural and societal influences Churches were impacted by Westward Expansion war at home and abroad poverty the Civil Rights movement and more recent historical events Concurrently Congregationalists contributed leading voices to scholarship ecumenism missions liturgical reform and other developments in Christianity Last month marked the four hundredth anniversary of the First Thanksgiving Our predecessors hearty faith and resilient spirits can inspire our journey in the fifth century of American Congregationalism As we sally forth into this new era we too will travel into uncharted waters landing in places we never imagined Our faith is built by the same architect as theirs but the rooms and d cor have changed How will we establish and reestablish ourselves in the years to come As our story unfolds I look forward to reflecting on our progress and future in this column and invite you to hold up your own lens 1 CORINTHIANS 13 13 L ove Ta l ks L ove o f G o d D i a n a B ut l e r B a s s dia na b utlerbass com L ove o f Neighbo r Valar ie Kaur va lari ekau r com Love o f Self Mihee Kim Ko rt mk i mkort com C o n g re gat i o n a l Ta l k A sh l ey C l e e re naccc org new exe cutive d i re cto r Venue D rury Pl aza Hotel Broadview Wichita dr ur y h o tels co m lo c at io n s w ic h it a k s dr ur y pla z a h o te l b ro a d v i ew w i c h i t a HOSTED BY P LY MOU TH CONGR EGATI ONA L CH U RC H U N I V E RS I TY CONGR EGATI ONA L CH URC H 5

CLIMATE CHANGE The Moral Crises of Our Time by Paul E Robinson Ph D I magine Jesus is living in our time Imagine he tells a parable about a good Russian who sees people suffering now and sees that many more yet unborn will suffer too In his new version of the Good Samaritan story Luke 10 30 37 the main character is not a single person suffering or just one person witnessing the suffering Instead it is all of humanity suffering from the effects of climate change especially the least among us and all of humanity bearing witness to that suffering To teach a moral lesson he would ask if you are thinking of the whole of humanity as your neighbor He would delve a little deeper and ask if you will take the time out of your busy schedule to stop and notice their suffering and how you might be contributing to it Would he not challenge you to render aid to the suffering victims and take action to make their lives better People of all faiths as well as those 6 who are not identified with a particular faith are rightly concerned about the morality of our times Issues like gay marriage sexual orientation abortion child pornography child sexual and physical abuse gambling teen pregnancy or other behaviors believed to threaten the moral fabric of our society occupy the time and attention of many religious folks I accept that all of these are important moral issues to some people more than others of course but I will assert that climate change is the most compelling moral issue of our time It is the most compelling moral issue of our time because the wellbeing and physical and mental health of all humanity is at stake with climate change All humanity some seven billion of us 4 2 billion of whom profess a belief in the one God will suffer from the effects of climate change billions as will generations of humans to come Tragically the least among us will suffer the most as they already are Most of humanity does not live or work in air conditioned homes or offices or drive air conditioned vehicles like many of us in advanced nations Neither do they have many of the resources necessary to reduce the effects of global warming on their lives If it gets too hot if their crops are destroyed by flood or drought if their island home falls victim to a rising ocean or if the foundations of their homes collapse because of melting permafrost for example they cannot just turn on an air conditioner tap into their savings collect their home or crop insurance move to a better place or start all over again like the more fortunate of us can People of faith as well as all people should be concerned about the plight of humanity in respect to the effects of global warming and climate change Walter Brueggemann Old Testament scholar wrote The prophetic tasks of the church are to tell the truth in a society that lives in illusion grieve in a society that practices denial and express hope in a society that lives in despair His challenge to us is to accept the reality of anthropogenic man made global warming and get to work to improve conditions which is by the way a great antidote for grief and despair To quote one more church authority The Very Reverend James P Morgan Dean Cathedral of St John the Divine The environment is not just another issue but an inescapable challenge to what it means to be religious Climate change is fundamentally a moral or religious issue not just a political or an economic one To treat it primarily or solely as a political or an economic issue is a moral dodge Climate change is a moral issue on three counts Of the three philosophical moral positions consequentialism virtue ethics and deontology climate change is relevant to all Consequentialism demands that we consider the effects or consequences of our actions or decisions on others I would add especially to the least Matt 25 45 among us and to generations yet unborn Do we have a moral right to ruin the Earth for future generations let alone for the least among us now Virtue ethics demands we take a good look at ourselves what we are doing to our environment and the effects our actions are having on all humanity Virtue ethics asks what kind of people are we Even Jesus wondered what kind of man people thought he was Mark 8 27 Do we care about anyone other than ourselves especially future generations and the least among us To be a disciple of Jesus requires love for others John 15 1213 to which I would add the unborn generations as well as the born From a deontology perspective Immanuel Kant s code of ethics paraphrased applies Act only in such a way that you want your actions to become a universal law Whereas intention forms the crux of deontology we cannot excuse our actions on the environment by saying we did not intend for the Earth to become dangerously hot Of course we did not but the results are life threatening even though they were not intended Do we wish that our irresponsible environmental actions be the rule for all humanity and nations now and in the future Our actions towards the Earth are immoral as they harm countless people and will so in the future as well Climate change is a threat to all humans now internationally those in the future intergenerationally and all living species interspecies We have a moral obligation to all life alive now and not yet born To quote a Native American proverb Treat the Earth well It was not given to you by your parents it was loaned to you by your children When the Lord God made humans stewards of the Earth he did not intend for us to endanger the health and wellbeing of all Earth s creatures Use its resources yes of course But I cannot believe that overheating the earth and thereby making life on Earth more difficult for all God s creation was part of the wonderful design God had in mind I challenge the clergy and members of all faiths to speak out about climate change and get involved in protecting all humanity and other life forms I challenge clergy to provide the leadership for responsible stewardship We all need to scale back our consumption of fossil fuels because our current lifestyles are unsustainable if our children and grandchildren are to live on a more hospitable planet than the one we are creating for them Good Samaritans are also those who are good stewards of the Earth and each other as God wants us to be Paul Robinson Ph D is a psychologist and has been a member of First Congregational Church of Mansfield Ohio for 31 years 7

THE Along WAY T Reverend Raefield Pertet with accompanying course work from Harvard University and Andover Newton Theological Seminary Prior to further theological pursuit at BU Rae served for two years as an associate minister at Vessels of Life church in Lansing Michigan and has been blessed to worship with congregations of various faiths His ministerial philosophy we strive to be better people in order to create a better world and we trust in God for a better afterlife Every time he enters the pulpit his ardent desire is to provide healing and empowerment for the body of Christ First Congregational Church of Salt Lake City Utah is looking for a FULL TIME SENIOR PASTOR Salt Lake City is a vibrant young city that offers a great variety of outdoor activities as well as many opportunities to enjoy music dance and theatre The city is home to colleges and universities museums good schools and hospitals and even professional sports teams Utah s oldest mainline church seeks to Emulate the Pilgrims of Plymouth and survive revive and thrive Model the life of Jesus by loving all people and engaging with our community Find strong pastoral leadership to help us develop a sustainable future and envision new ways of engaging with our community Move forward in new directions and discover new ways of being a church Will you join us and guide us on our faith journey as we continue to be a welcoming community of faith love tolerance and inclusiveness See Church Information Form Profile naccc org or email Ken at kwrockwell yahoo com 8 A tree in his hono Thanking Reverend Stan Preston City Congregational Church Calls New Minister he Reverend Raefield Perteet came on board as the Senior Minister of Preston City Congregational Church this past August Prior to ministry at PCCC Rae served as Pastor of Congregational Church of the Chimes in Sherman Oaks California and spent six years as a senior minister of a Congregational church in Eastern Massachusetts Rae and his wife Kim are excited to continue ministering with the faith family of Preston City Church Ordained at age 18 and no stranger to ministry Rae also holds a master s in Theological Studies from Boston University Rev White surrounded by well wishers I t was a hot summer day Saturday July 17 2021 rain and thunder and lightning had been threatening for two weeks prior to the day we planned to honor the Reverend Stanley E White But the storm passed right over our 40 x 80 tent may God be praised for that The following day the worship service highlighted his time among us with the Reverend Dr Irven A Gammon delivering the morning message The Executive Director of The Fellowship of Northeast Congregational Churches Rev Gammon gave a very inspirational message Honoring a man who spent 36 years of his life devoted to serving God and Preston City Congregational Church was quite a feat What do you do with a pandemic still lurking around In October 2020 a group of eight people began meeting virtually to figure out this awesome task Although because of the pandemic we did not feel it safe to put on a spread of food so known to Congregationalists We did figure out some ways to create a special day in his honor We had make your own sundaes Rev Stan s favorite cookies baked and bagged for favors and cold bottled water available throughout the afternoon The program consisted of speakers from his many years here One who is still an active member today was on the search committee that brought Rev Stan here when he was only in his 20 s another was the organist who worked 30 years with Rev Stan Two of our young people performed a skit that really described Rev Stan to a T going through a Sunday morning in his life It was humorous for sure and enjoyed by all A financial gift and memory box were presented to him that day from the congregation with the hope that he might take a relaxing trip post pandemic The Hot Cat Jazz Band played throughout the afternoon The cost for this was covered by Rev Stan s past Confirmation students who were happy to give back to a man who had done so much for them A dappled willow tree was planted on his special day with a garden sign that reads In Honor of Rev Stanley E White Beloved Minister 1985 2021 A special brochure was created and made available to everyone It began with his baby picture a childhood picture his ordination picture and then pictures of his family His history with us and achievements filled out the pages In his time here Rev Stan had so many accomplishments they would be too numerous to list He was humble and would always give credit to the congregation and more importantly to God for their success Just to name a few of these accomplishments he brought in 899 new members with six more joining in July 2021 250 of these members came in through the Confirmation classes he taught Four and a half acres of land adjacent to the church were purchased and the house on it renovated for church offices The parking lot was Rev White displays certificate enlarged and the Field of Dreams pavilion and barbecue pit became a reality A large Christian Education wing was dedicated on March 24 2002 to accommodate the 225 children that were in the Sunday School at that time A commemorative coin was created as a special honor for Rev Stan An ordination gift given to him a statue of a rooster served as a reminder of how easy it is to deny Christ in our lives The rooster has always had a special meaning for him and was depicted on one side of the coin A view of the church is found on the reverse side On Sunday Rev Stan was presented a framed certificate declaring him as Minister Emeritus of Preston City Congregational Church It was a highlight of the weekend for not only him but for the congregation as well It s quite impossible to describe this man s ministry Yes many honors were bestowed upon him and God granted him many talents which he used to bring others to Christ but anyone that needed him was not denied he would help if he could All of us at the church wish him a long and happy retirement whatever he does we know he will be working for the Lord Respectfully submitted Sandy Dudek Retirement Celebration Chairperson 9

POST COVID The Reverend Ian MacDonald earned his Master of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from California State University Fullerton Ordained in the Congregational Way Rev Ian is an alumnus of the Congregational Fellowship for Theological Studies CFTS and remains active in the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches Since 2010 he has served churches in Michigan and California Prior to answering his call to ministry Rev Ian was an award winning Creative Director for numerous national and international advertising agencies His love for world travel and passion for meeting people became the genesis for his blog Jesus not Jes s My Daily Struggle To Find Christ In Our Midst He currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife Kathleen their three spirited children a dog a tortoise a few guitars and whatever fish are alive in the tank We have been given new wine But we can t put it in the old wine skin There will be things you will have to be willing to let go of and that s okay Did you ever think there might be some traditions that are actually holding you back from growing into something new How do you do it Where do you begin In prayer Lots of prayer And time to discern where God wants your church to be During this time in the wilderness think about the things you do at your church that no longer excite people but turn out to be more work than it s worth Look at your building your sanctuary and fellowship rooms and think about how removing or simply moving the furniture around might help you see your space differently Go out into your community and ask people what they need or would like to see then find ways to make it happen Every great painting began the same way with a blank canvas This is what God has given to you to create a new masterpiece And it shouldn t surprise anyone that God would use something as bleak and tragic as a global pandemic to set that creativity in motion Two millennia ago God took the violent Roman cross and the cold darkness of death to bring us courage hope and life Today I believe God is doing the same Breaking old paradigms to redefine the very body of Christ to be a truly global community that can reach literally every corner of the world Pastoral Opportunity T here is a new church awakening happening one of global proportions And now is the time to begin thinking how you are going to lead your church through it How will you inspire your congregation to begin to reimagine the church your buildings your missions and goals How will you move forward in kingdom building walking with intention to the way of Christ and not the way of traditions This will be an emotionally challenging time There will be people who want to go back to the old way of doing things This has always been the case in church history But that is fear driven action instead of kingdom building action that God has called us towards Have you ever thought how the pandemic the sheltering in place already changed the way you do church Nearly five years ago Rev Dawn Carlson started The Phoenix 10 by Rev Ian MacDonald Congregational Fellowship a wholly online church And a few months after that I built on her idea crafting a house church online church hybrid With their congregations spread far and wide we saw the internet as a way to reach people with the gospel welcoming the church and unchurched into an intimate caring community Long before the pandemic we worked through the difficult tasks of providing communion to our folks to perform weddings and funerals and other sacred rites The hardest part was letting go of what we thought we needed so we could embrace what God was calling us to do We know what it s like to have to wrestle with old paradigms to create new ones As I was worrying about defining membership and getting butts in the pews on Sunday the wonderful Kenyan missionary Geoffrey Lipale reminded me of what Jesus had to say You don t put new wine in old wine skins This is an opportunity for you to serve God in Paradise California We are a small Congregational church that was destroyed in the 2018 Camp Fire We currently meet in the Little Red Church but we are rebuilding and need an energetic and futurethinking pastor to lead us The perfect fit is a pastor who will provide our spiritual guidance and work with the Board on rebuilding the Church and congregation As all Congregational churches we are governed by the congregation The challenges will be interesting and abundant We are financially sound and eager to see where God is leading us Craig Memorial Congregational Church in Paradise California Your letter of interest can be emailed to office craigchurch com and we will forward you a job description and application Our website is craigchurch com 11

STEWARD OF CONGREGATIONALISM By Rev Shawn Stapleton For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures and that he was buried and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures and that he appeared to Cephas then to the twelve Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time most of whom are still alive though some have died Then he appeared to James then to all the apostles Last of all as to one untimely born he appeared also to me A 1 Corinthians 15 3 8 t a recent NACCC staff retreat we were asked to complete the sentence The NACCC is _____ The answers were all excellent highlighting the strength of our relationships our rich history and our distinct way of being the church But one answer stood out to me as a powerful reminder of why we exist The NACCC is a steward of Congregationalism That answer took me immediately to a very sentimental place I thought of the powerful individuals and congregations who have gone before us fighting for the freedom to be who Christ called them to be under His headship They were human and they made mistakes but they leaned on each other for strength and together sought the Holy Spirit for guidance They taught others to do the same who then taught others who eventually taught us The Gospel of Jesus Christ they said deserves to be delivered through churches that are free to follow the Spirit s leading not chained by control from the crown or the Vatican They taught us to take Matthew 18 20 seriously if Jesus is present when we gather in His name then all the power of Christ is present as well That reality they taught us makes bishops popes and other ecclesiastical authorities obsolete But they also taught us that we cannot survive without each other Churches may gather in distinct communities and each exercises the ministry of Christ as they feel led but they need each other for support and guidance Autonomy within relationship you need to keep both in tension they said It s the most biblical way of being the church they told us And today we are the stewards of that along with the United Church of Christ the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference and the Unitarian Universalist Association Our ancestors in the faith have entrusted this beautiful gem to us with a three fold charge Honor our past be thoughtfully engaged in Christian worship and ministry through your Congregational system of governance today and teach others to carry on this legacy That s a powerful reminder to me It reminds me that the walls of our meeting houses are saturated with generations of prayers hopes fears and tears Each church has exercised Congregationalism in a way that was appropriate for their context while holding true to our foundational ideas So each individual expression of our tradition may vary in significant ways but each fellowship is a steward of that which has been handed down to them as of first importance Included in that legacy is our Way of being church and with each new generation the torch and treasure are passed I can t help but wonder if we are handing down this legacy in a way that honors it While I am honored to have been entrusted with this legacy I must also be responsible for fully understanding the thing that has been entrusted to me so I can adequately hand it to those who will carry on after I am gone Sadly there seems to be a diminishing interest in studying the history of Congregationalism and how to apply it in our context both among pastors and among those who are not ordained but just as responsible for caring for understanding and handing on this legacy I have spoken with countless Congregationalists who were surprised to learn about the richness of our tradition The pastors are often coming to the Congregational Way from other denominations Parishioners may or may not have been raised in a Congregational church and may have rarely heard of our history outside of Thanksgiving stories Even then pastors and parishioners alike seem increasingly unable to identify us with those 17th century Pilgrims as foreparents in the faith and not just in making clothing with big buckles fashionable Yet as stewards of our Way we ought to understand it as fully and as widely as possible so that we can accurately and passionately hand it down to our The Reverend Dr Shawn Stapleton is the Workshop Coordinator with the Center for Congregational Leadership He worked closely with the staff and leadership to execute the annual meeting this year and is hopeful that the organization will continue to find new ways to use available technology to enhance fellowship and ministry across the organization and its member churches inheritors In Matthew 25 we see three stewards who receive treasure The stewards who understood the value of the talents and the desire of the Master were praised for their faithfulness Stewards cherish the treasure entrusted to them They understand its worth and seek out ways to amplify it to honor the Master That s the passion with which we must be stewards over this legacy we now engage At it s simplest our stewardship takes its greatest form in three arenas 1 Faith Our first priority is to be faithful followers of Jesus Christ and attuned participants in the ongoing ministry into which the Lord calls us Our pastors teachers education directors and lay leaders all seek to make disciples but are we fully explaining the integration of Christian truths and the distinctive Congregational application of those truths Do we know what they are 2 Freedom We must vigorously protect each local church s right and responsibility to seek the leading of the Spirit in their particular context and their specific understanding of how God is calling them into God s wider ministry We must passionately and vocally celebrate those who exercise this freedom and gently remind others that their present and future ministry is theirs to work out with God Those who intentionally or not try to impose some other agenda on our local churches should be reminded of our legacy and the stewardship role we play in that today We also need to be clear that in our Christian Congregational understanding freedom does not equal independence or solitude Let s talk about that next 3 Fellowship In Congregationalism the tension between freedom and fellowship is never fully resolved Above I described it as autonomy within relationship which is the best way I have found for me to understand this tension Every church is free in Christ to work out its own ministry and methodology but must also be in relationship with other churches As is written in Chapter 15 of the Cambridge Platform one of the most trusted and revered foundational documents of our Way our churches commune with one another the same way as the church of Antioch consulted with the church at Jerusalem in Acts 15 They said it is a way of communion of churches according to the word to meet together by their elders and other messengers in a synod to consider and argue the points in doubt or difference and having found out the way of truth and peace to commend the same by their letters and messengers to the churches whom the same may concern In other words sometimes we need to hear from our friends and colleagues in the faith to make sure we re on the right track Think of it like a group of friends sitting around a fire table talk about one member s relationship issues sometimes you just need to talk it out with your tribe As I write this it s autumn and many churches throughout our association will be talking about stewardship as they prepare their budgets for the coming program year Maybe we need to expand our discussions to include the legacy we care for protect and pass on to others Being vigorous stewards of our Way is much more than simply talking about voting procedures or telling the story about the Pilgrims and the Mayflower in America every November Our history is rich because the Congregational Way is rich Our Way creates opportunities for vibrant ministries as diverse as the settings in which they are engaged while remaining true to one another in unity despite our lack of uniformity Well it will if we seek to understand it and teach it to others Let s do that Why did George Floyd have to die to make us realize Why did Breonna Taylor have to die to make us realize Why did we have to have them die to make us realize The cops killed the ones they should ve protected For some reason we think we stopped racism But in reality we just made it worse We can t stop protesting Even if it hurts Because It helps by Alix Drolet Grade 6 Madison Wisconsin Continued 12 13

The Reverend Dr Chris Surber is pastor of Mt Hope Congregational Church Livonia Michigan He is Executive Director of Supply and Multiply Haiti My Journey Why Christians Should Travel By Rev Curtis Peek A boy was born in hard time Mississippi surrounded by walls that were not so pretty His mother would give him love and affection to keep him strong and going in the right direction In Mississippi as a black boy you had to go in the right direction My mother told me Son you are going to preach and be a servant of God I didn t believe that was my purpose I m glad she lived to see my ordination We all need to remember we have a purpose in life What is your purpose My mother knew mine before I did We all have to get out of the way and let God guide us It took my getting out of the way and letting God guide me and saying yes to God s purpose for my life a life of service We all should remember if service is beneath you then leadership is beyond you My ordination into ministry was me believing and trusting Me believing my mother and trusting God s word Dr Tom Richard was the Interim Minister at Congregational Church Of The Chimes when I was called into ministry I would like to thank him and Congregational Church Of The Chimes for believing in me and trusting me By Rev Dr Chris Surber to do God s work At the present time I serve as Associate Minister at Congregational Church Of The Chimes under the direction of Dr Beth Bingham I will continue to believe and trust the word of God and I ask you to continue to believe and trust in me I pray for you you pray for me and God holds us in the palm of his hands Merry Christmas Reverend Curtis Peek Seeking a Full Time Minister to Serve Our Church Our current pastor is retiring after 10 years of serving our church family First Congregational Church of Wauwatosa is located in a suburban metro area just 15 minutes from downtown Milwaukee The city is home to the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center several universities and colleges We seek a senior minister who will focus on loving and listening shepherding and coaching equipping and facilitating our 400 plus active members so that together we may share in the worship and service of God and make God s will dominant in our lives especially as set forth in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ KEY RESPONSIBILITIES Provide overall visionary and spiritual leadership to the church Conduct worship and preaching Engage and maintain relationships with members and friends of the church Offer pastoral care Support the teaching and spiritual enrichment of the congregation to help them apply the Word in their daily lives Cultivate visibility in the community The people of First Church Tosa have celebrated over 180 years in service to God and our community sharing our Covenant As followers of Jesus Christ we commit ourselves to share in the worship and service of God to grow in the knowledge and expression of our faith to reach out with compassion to those in need to treat each other with love and understanding and to return to God a portion of God s gifts LEARN MORE ABOUT US 14 To express your interest in this position you are invited to send a cover letter and resume to search firstchurchtosa org Visit firstchurchtosa org View our church profile at naccc org The Torre del Reformador Tower of the Reformer in Zone 9 of Guatemala City Built in 1935 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Justo Rufino Barrios who was President of Guatemala and instituted a number of reforms The basic shape of the structure resembles the Eiffel Tower It was originally constructed with a bell on its top which in 1986 was replaced with a beacon I f this broken and beautiful world in its sometimes sinister realities should take my sight in the course of honest living so be it I ll accept the consequence of course But I ll never choose simple minded closed eyed blindness On a recent family trip to Guatemala my youngest daughter said Daddy why do you take us on vacation in places that are like Haiti Because this world is equal parts beauty and brokenness And you need see it touch it taste it and embrace it I ve never met a closed minded closed eyed creature that was wise or courageous or much good for anyone Not even himself The world doesn t get safer by pulling the covers over our head in the morning Staying in bed doesn t make the world go away It just robs the world of your spirit present in it We get stronger by putting our feet on the floor shoes in sandals then learning through pilgrimage The street is the school for pilgrims Jesus calls His disciples Follow Me Where doesn t He go A little raggedy clothed shoeshine boy on the streets of Guatemala City is laughing at my bad Spanish He then offered to shine my flip flops No Zapatos I said No shoes We both laughed I told my wife That favorite word of mine from seventh grade Spanish finally paid off I paid him for the offer We both know I didn t change his life I probably changed his day maybe his week I m more concerned about the sacramental moment we shared laughing Just people Two souls A couple of pilgrims on the path Not more than one hundred feet away is perhaps one of the nicest bakeries in the Americas That s the world Hardship and health Bitter and sweet It won t go away It won t change by closing our eyes Closedeye blindness perpetuates and even strengthens the ignorances upon which the shaky constructs of social separation are built Ignoring those kinds of problems feeds them They are fueled by prejudices Prejudices like many dark damp poisoning things grow best in the darkness The predominant voices the group think the strange megaphone monster media machine would keep us separated closed eyed scared of one another Scared of the world Scared of our neighbors Frightened of the future Alive without breath Breathing with no soul Soulful but alone It s a dangerous thing going out your front door you never know where your feet will take you Isn t that how Bilbo Baggins put it I d rather risk a few dragon battles than lock myself in a dungeon of self imposed ignorance I d rather familiarize myself my family and my friends with the beauty and brokenness of the world I m just a wide eyed pilgrim A fool for Christ A sojourner A soldier A man who hasn t given up hope either in God or His human creation Beautiful and broken That s the world I ll take it on its terms with open eyes Every time I travel I m reminded why Christians should travel Whether it s on a mission trip around the corner or on a family vacation I ll pour as much life and love into the world as I can I ll keep doing it until my sojourner sandals wear completely through Strap on your sandals Pick up your walking stick Follow the Master of Mercy wherever He leads us The Presidential Palace in Zone 1 Guatemala City Pastor Chris purchasing hand spun fabric from a wonderful lady in Antigua Guatemala Two pilgrim souls 15

FEAR FAITH Weathering Storms A s a child growing up in Oklahoma City I didn t know I was supposed to be afraid of bad weather A tornado On our very block you say Meh I m busy playing The grown ups handle such trifles Not much has changed When the storms roll in I tend to find myself going out thunderstruck by fingers of lightning tickling the clouds as they peal with deep laughter while serious people somewhere are handling serious things I may have rather been outdoors but every spring in those early years I could 16 Carson S Webb Ph D holds the Harry R Butman Chair of Religion and Philosophy at Piedmont University He publishes and speaks on philosophy and theology has held fellowships at the University of Georgia St Olaf College and Syracuse University and has received grants from the European Union and the Council of Independent Colleges with support from the Lilly Endowment Carson and his family reside in the misty idyll of north Georgia His current book project is The Audacity of Joy Kierkegaard s Dare By Carson S Webb count on spending a few evenings each month safely wedged with the other four members of my immediate family in the closet under our stairs as we heard the storm raging outside Spring was tornado season and my family faced it like a cluster of penguins huddling in a blizzard but with less legroom Not every storm was a tornado One spring the wind came sweeping down the plain in excess of 100mph strong enough to shatter my oldest sister s bedroom window as she slept One of the shards cleaved her left leg in two just above the knee save a single stubborn tendon To this day I can t hear the word tendentious without picturing that feisty little tendon pleading its case valiantly into the wind accurate etymologies notwithstanding And then there was the unspeakable spring of the bombing Not every storm is a storm at all As I write these words the Gospel readings from the Book of Common Prayer s Daily Office have been coming from the Gospel of Mark a Gospel for a storm if ever there were one None of John s halcyon I am sayings or Luke s good Roman citizens or the Matthean community s struggles over its identity Mark holds up for display a raw fear that so reminds me of spring I can feel it in my sinuses as I turn the pages and sneeze Some of the finest examples of fear in Mark come from the disciples There s their fear during the storm on the Sea of Galilee while Jesus slept 4 40 their fear as Jesus walked on the water 6 50 their fear at the transfiguration 9 6 their fear even to ask Jesus to clarify his comments about suffering 9 32 There s the anonymous young man perhaps Mark himself who runs in such fright after Jesus was arrested that he left his clothes behind 14 51 52 And of course there s the original ending of Mark at 16 8 Some of the disciples who had lovingly gone to anoint Jesus body early that spring morning discovered instead an empty tomb Learning that Jesus had already risen and left for Galilee they ran away in fear And we know just as Mark s first readers knew that the story doesn t end there But if Mark s audience was a group of Christians in Rome undergoing a storm of intense persecution as it may well have been then I can imagine those first readers asking themselves Will we remain cowering in fear or will we like those early disciples finally join Jesus in his ongoing work of redemption Will our lives pick up where the story left off But there s not just raw fear in these tempestuous pages I also find fear s opposite Recklessness Not exactly nor is it quite the more moderate virtue of courage as Aristotle would have it For Mark the opposite of fear is faith and the examples of faith are almost never the disciples who are generally too busy squabbling over things like rank when they aren t quaking in their sandals There s the woman suffering from hemorrhages who boldly touched Jesus cloak and even had the temerity to admit it despite her fear and trembling It was her faith that made her well 5 33 34 Jesus tells Jairus Do not fear only believe before healing his twelve year old daughter 5 36 And there s the son of Timaeus a name that can make a Platonist s heart throb a blind man whose audacious plea for Jesus mercy shouted in defiance of the crowd s jeers is called faith as his sight is restored 10 52 Have faith Mark says not fear But for me this juxtaposition is far from intuitive So what gives At first blush it may seem that fear and faith are just different ways of responding to the unknown I fear the tomorrow I can t pin down just as I might have faith in something or someone I can t see But this won t really help us see why Mark contrasts them I may fear tomorrow when I interpret it as a threat but with an interpretive sleight of hand I can transform that threat into a promise and with it my fear into hope I may have faith in something I can t see but that way of putting it makes faith a kind of belief despite uncertainty and so the opposite not of fear but of disbelief and this I think is the kind of faith the writer of Hebrews has in mind in Hebrews 11 1 but not what Mark meant So bringing fear and faith together as different responses to the unknown gives us fear hope on one hand and belief disbelief on the other and so not really opposites at all This may sometimes be a useful way of thinking about it but I don t think it gets us to the heart of what Mark is trying to tell us about faith as the better alternative to fear Perhaps another way forward would be to see the disciples fear as a necessary but insufficient condition of faith The nineteenth century Danish religious writer S ren Kierkegaard had a sense of this In one of his edifying discourses he paraphrases with approval an earlier observation by the pietist writer Johann Arndt God deals with a human being as the hunter deals with game he chases it weary then he gives it a little time to catch its breath and gather new strength and then the chase begins again I confess I find this image not only terrifying but inaccurate The God I read about in the Bible doesn t hunt us like prey but woos us like a patient lover and if I m wrong then I can only hope God is as lousy a shot as I am Still I concede the point Kierkegaard goes on to make which is that a kind of trepidation is a vital element in the deepening of one s faith because it shows we understand the gravity of drawing near the divine which cannot but inspire in us a reverent fear of the Lord This may satisfy the Christian existentialist in me but it s not what I perceive in Mark s gospel It still doesn t bring us to an understanding of the faith that Mark consistently portrays as obstructed by fear Again what gives here Each of Mark s examples of faith suggests a subtle awareness of and boldness to get on board with the presence of God s kingdom unfolding in our midst despite our fears which are rightly assumed His snapshots of faith show us people who were able to give way as they perceived what gives God in their midst giving a way of love and inviting us to participate And as it turns out What Gives could be a fine if awkward translation of Yahweh not that I m recommending it to any translation committees By contrast fear would suggest I may be still too invested in myself in my projects my plans not in what gives but in what I might lose And if we can give John a word here we could also say that this fear this worry about the tensions between my plans and God s is driven out by perfect love 1 John 4 18 Not morally perfect love as though it were up to you or me to be totally without fault but perfect in the sense of complete Fear is driven out when love is made whole by being shared in community with God and God s imperfect but beloved people Not every storm is a storm It might be a pandemic a congregation in crisis an election the losses that attend aging a loved one s bout with illness or our own It might be all these at once And there are for many of us equivalent squalls aplenty in the troubled waters of our souls numinous nor easters to put us on our mettle But even amid the tornadoed Atlantic of my being as Ishmael puts it in Moby Dick we can each of us disport in mute calm and bathe ourselves in eternal mildness of joy given of course that we do so together Every storm even a cluster of them is an occasion to lean in and weather it fearlessly in a community of mutual love that listens together for deep thunderous laughter a community that responds to what gives by boldly giving of itself to God s ongoing work in the world amid cloudtickling tempests and so an occasion for what Mark calls faith 17

A socially distanced audience took part HOW TO TALK ABOUT RACE Tools for a MEANINGFUL CONVERSATION Rev Steve Erkel WCA Moderator Rhonda and Hannah at Ozaukee Congregational Church Not to speak is to speak Not to act is to act Dietrich Bonhoeffer From the Editor On October 9 as members of Wisconsin Congregational Association WCA converged on Ozaukee Congregational Church for their Fall Summit a heavy fog enveloped the countryside By midmorning the autumn shroud had lifted a perfect metaphor for the event s goal of bringing clarity to how we talk about race The following is a summary of the day s presentation F acilitated by Rhonda Hill and Hannah Uitenbroek the program Bravely Exploring Race and Faith combined discussion video clips and interactive exercises to help WCA members examine the language commonly used by white Americans to discuss race Ms Hill is a founder of Race and Faith a faith based consulting group that offers education professional development and consulting services designed to assist businesses nonprofits and churches that would like to develop an anti racist culture centered on inclusion equity and justice She was joined by Hannah Uitenbroek whose goal is to help white Americans make sense of non white experiences hoping all humans will be given the opportunity to be their full thriving joyful selves She is Marketing and Communications Fellow at the Milwaukee Academy of Science Meaningful discourse requires that we see one another as a child of God At the center of the discussion was Genesis 1 27 So God created humankind in his image in the image of God he created them male and 18 female he created them Imago Dei said the presenters requires that we see God in others as well as in ourselves Throughout our history people of color have been marginalized by the belief that Imago Dei is unique to the white race In a brief video clip the late Richard Twiss a Lakota Sioux and author addressed the history of Jesuit mission schools The schools punished even beat Indian children for speaking their native language or reflecting their own heritage The message Only by adopting white culture could Native American children reflect the image of God As Twiss put it Be more white instead of be like Christ The mission schools are long gone and in a 1979 Pastoral Letter on race U S Catholic Bishops wrote the following God s word proclaims the oneness of the human family from the first words of Genesis to the Come Lord Jesus of the Book of Revelation God s word in Genesis announces that all men and women are created in God s image not just some races and racial types but all bear the imprint of the Creator and are enlivened by the breath of his one Spirit Hill suggested that seeing one another as children of God is different from claiming to be colorblind She cited research that says silence about race aligns with colorblindness which is a common strategy white parents use to teach their children about race Hamm 2001 Hagerman 2014 Kelly 2016 In practice colorblindness effectively exempts people from joining the conversation or taking action Not talking about race in a home or in the church in itself is a form of socialization A failure to mention racial issues communicates race related values and perspective Our racial identity is important said Hill The concept of colorblindness can negate an individual of color by not acknowledging the individual characteristics that make us who we are and impact how we reflect the image of God Part of color blindness is rooted in fear not wanting to talk about racism Uitenbroek added We live in a fallen world in a country that has historical racism in a world where we look at a person of color and think they re different Erasing a person s blackness is not recognizing her whole self Talking About Race in Our Churches Hill suggested that congregations don t talk about racism to keep the peace and stay away from that risky place where we might be shunned She and Uitenbroek laid out various conditions for having effective conversations on race Create a safe space Cultivate an environment that lets people know they will be heard respected and not forced to speak Participants must feel free to speak their truth and all must be willing to accept the inevitable discomfort and non disclosure that will likely occur Be humble and gracious Don t feel the need to offer a rebuttal The conversation isn t about agreeing or disagreeing It s about being present Though it may be well meant it isn t helpful to ask an individual who states a feeling or belief to explain himself That puts the onus on him to justify the statement rather than accepting it Bring one s whole self to the conversation Consider Mark 12 30 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength Individuals understand issues in multiple ways and enter the conversation on race at multiple points with the heart emotions the mind intellect the soul faith and ethics and strength actions When engaging in a conversation on race it s important to check all four aspects of your response to the topic to determine if you are bringing your whole self Distancing behaviors can serve as barriers to a constructive conversation about race Don t dwell on setting clear definitions of racism Don t demand that people of color be present Are poor people present when the church discusses poverty Don t fall into the rut of talking and analyzing the problem and never taking action Don t focus on coming up with an instant solution or single strategy Don t accuse a member of making an inappropriate comment or idea which closes opportunity for meaningful discussion Don t ask people of color to represent all people of color Don t claim that racism isn t a problem for you Most important to a conversation on the topic of race remember that we are all children of God Further resources on starting a conversation about race at your church are available at racendfaith org Dorothy Britcher 1935 2021 Dorothy A Britcher the wife of the Reverend Eric Britcher died on July 28 2021 She and Eric were members of Mayflower Congregational Church in East Grand Rapids Michigan Eric had retired as associate minister at Mayflower Dorothy is survived by her husband her children Curtis Cheryl Dina and Eric B and the grandchildren and great grandchildren who brought her pure joy Donations may be made in her memory to D gag Ministries co founded by Eric which offers help and hope to the homeless and disadvantaged of Grand Rapids Dorothy and Eric continued to volunteer there into their retirement John Kraft 1946 2021 John Andrew Kraft husband of the Reverend Dawn Curlee Carlson died on August 1 2021 He and Dawn were members of Congregational Church of North Manchester Indiana John is survived by his wife Dawn son Alex Carlson nieces nephews and an abundance of friends John who graduated from Baldwin Wallace University with majors in political science and theater acted in theaters in Cleveland the San Francisco Bay Area and Terre Haute His sense of humor and gift for stand up comedy was evident on many stages in the Bay Area and Los Angeles He supported Dawn in her work with his humor listening skills gift for storytelling and love of life bringing the love of God to others He wrote fiction and nonfiction and was an avid blogger Marjorie A Walbridge 1928 2020 Marjorie A Walbridge died on March 31 2020 in Alma Michigan She was a member of First Congregational Church in Roscommon Michigan and actively involved in the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches She was a member of the Credentials Committee 1993 94 Executive Committee 1995 99 Women s Commission 1989 93 Nominating Committee 20002002 and Program Committee 2002 03 Marjorie is survived by her stepson Seth and stepdaughter Amy her brother and many grandchildren and great grandchildren She was preceded in death by her husband Harry Walbridge her brother and her sister Memorials may be made to First Congregational Church of Roscommon 19

News Needs and For more information on NACCC missions or to donate please contact Missions Administrator Julie Robie at 800 262 1620 or 603 642 7270 or email jrobie naccc org National Association of Congregational Christian Churches Missions and Outreach Ministry Council PO Box 288 Oak Creek WI 53154 For a complete listing of NACCC Mission Projects or to donate please visit our website www naccc org and click on Missions Outreach request from our Feeding the hungry CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF MYANMAR From Rev Elvis Sa Do The political unrest is still on going but the numbers of Covid cases have been down Despite many challenges my wife and our relief team were able visit the most needy mission families and Covid victims for the relief efforts We shared rice cooking oil potatoes onions and a small sum of money etc We thank God for the people who have been praying for our Mission Please pray for Relief Grace home children Mission workers and their safety We are in now the most darkest times Distributing supplies WORD ALIVE MISSION GHANA AND THE IVORY COAST School children at the mission school CHRIST TO THE VILLAGES NIGERIA From Matthew Oladele The work of Christ to the Villages continues to focus on the daily activities of the three mission schools Alpha Nursery and Primary Schools in Shao and Olooru Omega College Shao village ministration which includes evangelism visitation and care for the needy Village outreach gives us joy as it also gladdens the heart of the villagers Both young and old are blessed by the word of God that we take to them each time we visit plus the little material gifts we share The schools are doing well From Rev Charles Nyane President and Isaac Boakye treasurer Today happens to be World Youth Day The Headmaster of the school just sent the pictures of students as they went to the community to do a clean up exercise I was so much encouraged by this act as it serves to create an impact in the community God bless you all for putting smiles on the faces of these ones one way or the other Also the church at Ekpu has been able to roof their church building Indeed the church started in a small school classroom then later we bought land and we built a structure with sticks and roofed the stick structure with grass Eventually we started building the main structure with cement blocks It stalled at the roofing level for some years as we needed enough funds to do the roof But by the grace of God the roofing has been done and we at the Mission are grateful for this project Grateful for the sacrifices of the people and the landmark achieved HOSANNA From Katie DeJournette We continued to find ways to engage volunteers while remaining safe and adhering to the CDC guidelines Due to the sensitive and cautious emotions that COVID created we faced several volunteer groups that decided to cancel their prearranged weekly mission trip with us this summer Building material prices continued to increase significantly over the summer months with the expectation that they will continue to increase during the fall and winter seasons The mission continues to try to stay in front of these challenges by advanced calendar planning strategic project scheduling and stewardship of resources ASSOCIACION CIVIL CRISTIANO CONGREGATIONAL ARGENTINA From Rev H Harding Stricker MD Our food supply program has been up graded by not only providing hot meals on Saturdays but also food boxes that contain five different edible products We plan to keep this program running as long as necessary We are in a situation that implies political uncertainty and financial crisis yearly inflation of 51 high unemployment Our Health Service has been refurbished to meet the standards of attention during the pandemic Since we kept attention all through the pandemic many people came to know about our existence and are now regular patients which means that we are seeing more patients than before the pandemic started which is good Only that medicines are growing more and more expensive We have reduced our personnel to just two the nurse Haidee and the physician Our sponsorship program is still providing medical attention food supply school items fees and clothing according to needs and requests received Please keep this very important area in your prayers Children are the future of the mission and of the society they are living in They will have better chances to succeed if they grow up healthy well nourished and receiving education Thank you for all your prayers and support God bless you always MISSION SCHOOL OF HOPE CAMEROON From Rev Charles Sagay We are grateful to God for all he is doing in our community especially changing the mindset and attitude of our community members We have a beautiful culture and tradition however there are some that need to be revised and one of those is the belief that girl s education is a waste since they need to end up in a man s home early One of the ills we have been discouraging is child marriage Child marriage violates children s rights and places them at high risk of violence exploitation abuse diseases and even death End Child Marriage is one of the programs that intends to give a voice to the voiceless girls in our community who have accepted their fate in the hands of cultural beliefs that downgrade them We met Salimatu who comes from a nomadic family and we were sad to know that she had to be betrothed to a man for marriage It was heartbreaking the good news is we talked to her parents especially her father and he cancelled the betrothal and he is making plans for Salimatu to go and live with her aunt who is a teacher in another town so that she can go to school We will never forget the smile on her face when she was informed she will be living with her aunt and she will start school She brought us a bowl of freshy harvested guava to express her gratitude Our gratitude goes to all our wonderful partners who are providing free education for both boys and girls in our community saving Salimatu is your Win Saving Salimatu Broken house in Maniche LOVE WORTH SHARING From Rev Jim Owens In Maniche just one week after the earthquake and while aftershocks were still rocking the area every hour the children came to the Bible Camp and feeding program the tables and chairs were moved outside but the school where we meet is still standing The pictures of broken houses belong to our staff in Maniche the destruction is far and wide but with the Lord s help we will be able to minister to our people and the children we serve We have been blessed that none of our people have perished in the destruction we do have a cook whose foot was broken by cement blocks falling on her her name is Madame Olince Ekpu church gets a new roof 20 21

News Needs and ECHO request from our Continued Homeschool classroom ACMNP From Dave Degler 240 Ministry Team Members have been placed this ministry season and a new seminarian internship was secured with the Bar Harbor Community Church in Bar Harbor Maine near the Acadia National Park The worship leadership book dedicated in honor and memory of Joshua Kendall Yarrow was completed and approximately 1 500 worship books were sent to worship locations An additional 750 1 000 books will be sent to parks in the next 10 months Staff attended memorial services for Amy s family members and stepped in to allow Amy time to tend to family needs Some parks still limited the activity of the worship services due to COVID19 Worship booklet MORGAN SCOTT PROJECT From Crystal Thompkins We provide Food Boxes monthly perishable food every Friday monthly utility support medical copays and educational support We have provided three wheelchair ramps a bathroom rehab had an HVAC system fixed put in a door and a couple of window air conditioners We gave out seeds fertilizer and plants to around 300 families Camp in Community used our office to make craft kits that were later given to kids in the area as well as other communities We are starting to prepare for Thanksgiving as well as a Christmas give away We are continuing to focus on getting wheelchair ramps to those in need Healthy gardening 22 PANAMERICAN INSTITUTE From Juana Santos Coordinator and CFO We started the new school year on August 9th and again due to the pandemic it feels like a roller coaster with new rules for most our school s activities At the end all worked out and our students are taking online classes since August 30th Their schedule is Monday through Friday from 7 30 to 3 10 with two breaks We have 22 new first year students plus the students we already have for second and third year classes We have a total of 68 students at PAI plus 5 studying for a bachelor s degree and one more starting her master s degree in Education Our challenge right now is to get laptops for students who need them Berenice and Oden are pictured with their one year old baby Both parents had Covid and the father lost his job in April 2019 as a trainer at a karate school and has not been able to work since Only odd jobs here and there Faith Premier High School HAPPY LIFE CHILDREN S HOME KENYA From Kenyan Director Peter Ndungu We moved to our new High School Facility last weekend Glory to our God and thanks to all our partners If you would like a downloadable booklet about Happy Life Children s Home please go to https issuu com happylifechildrenshome docs happy_life_prospectus_final_ FISHERS OF MEN From Julie Claassen The work of Fishers of Men has focused mainly on the Ranch since the Covid 19 pandemic continues to prevent us from carrying out any Evangelistic Medical Mission Crusades As always daily life at Refuge Ranch provided the backdrop for intentional transformational living as we seek to personify Christ s love for the children who call Refuge Ranch and our family home While daily living provides structure special activities like family hikes and celebrations like Children s Day on April 30 provide additional ways to enjoy one another Our activities beyond the Ranch continue to be limited due to the COVID 19 pandemic but we keep plenty busy loving learning and growing here From Alyssa Barrett Dr David Mungure who runs clinics for impoverished women men and children expressed his appreciation for ECHO s training Pregnant women are prone to anemia and children under five are suffering from malnutrition and stunting In addition to medical interventions we advise them to eat more vegetables and fruits ECHO facilitated training on producing and preparing perennial vegetables at our clinic for fathers mothers and children There was also a special training day for doctors and nurses so we can motivate those who attend the clinics to produce vegetables and improve their nutrition The training went well and participants were excited about preparing and tasting vegetables like chaya and moringa Taste test MAINE SEACOAST MISSION throughout the Downeast region to From Anna Silver We continued our core work of providing food security health care youth development and related assistance to individuals and families in need during the period We also continued normal programs but with modified delivery to accommodate COVID 19 safety protocols aimed at keeping staff volunteers and those we serve safe and healthy during the ongoing pandemic Continuing a tradition that started more than 100 years ago the Mission in June selected 23 new Mission Scholars for 2021 The program awarded 49 000 in new scholarships and 109 000 in renewed scholarships for students attend college We also completed a series of COVID 19 vaccination clinics that reached several hundred people on seven islands and in mainland Washington County EDGE program participant Seafarers Friend collects ditty bags and knit items SEAFARERS FRIEND From Director Ida MacRae Our Fall 2021 Seafarer Cold Snap collection has begun and continues until November 20th Our goal is to collect 750 Ditty Bags and 750 Knit Hats Balaclavas Neck warmers An updated list of ditty bag instructions and knitting instructions can be found at https www seafarersfriend org get involved How to Participate Pick a goal for you or your team and let Seafarers Friend know of your goal Start your shopping collecting and or knitting Take pictures selfies or videos of you and or your group at various stages of the process shopping knitting putting bags together etc You can track our progress with the thermometer on our website and Facebook www SeafarersFriend org and https www facebook com SeafarersFriend Submitted photos or videos may be featured on our website Facebook page or Twitter page along with your church or individual name next to the thermometer If you do not want your name being used please let us know Please contact us at 617 889 3222 or email us OperationsManager SeafarersFriend org to arrange for pick up or drop off of ditty bags and knitted items If you have questions please call us at 617 889 3222 or email us at OperationsManager SeafarersFriend org Thank you Berenice and Oden with their year old baby 23

By Reverend Bob Hellam F Dear brothers and sisters or nearly two years we have been including those 400 Years of American Congregationalism inserts in our bulletins At least one of our members is very tired of them The good news for her is that the last one was on the Sunday before Thanksgiving this year I think they have been very helpful reminding us that small as Congregationalism is in our country today we belong to a worldwide movement with deep roots in America After we use the last of those inserts we will revert to our previous practice of including in their place a Collect read in unison usually but not always taken from The Book of Common Prayer Using the prayerbook is only one of our practices that would horrify our Pilgrim forebears Another is our including an affirmation of faith or a creed on the back of the bulletin But we don t have to be exactly like our Puritan fathers and mothers The important thing is that we hold to the essential truths of the Congregational Way First the original Congregationalists whom we should follow in this in my view believed absolutely in the truth and dependability of the Holy Bible Congregationalists also believe in the autonomy of the local church free of any supervising ecclesiastical authority Also essential to our Way is our conviction that each of us is free to understand Scripture as the Holy Spirit reveals its truth to us I have heard this doctrine called the perspicuity of Scripture the Bible s clarity and intelligibility to every hearer or reader Once I heard a Baptist pastor and Baptists are only Congregationalists who left our movement long ago speak of soul competency each soul each of us is competent to understand and live by God s Word and His will Finally Congregationalism teaches that every true bornagain believer is our brother or sister no matter the label on their church building Enough of my rambling Happy and blessed Thanksgivings to come and a joyous Christmas to you all The Nativity of Christ or Behold the Grace Appears By Isaac Watts Congregationalist poet and theologian 1674 1748 Behold the grace appears The promise is fulfilled Mary the wondrous virgin bears And Jesus is the Child To bring the glorious news A heav nly form appears He tells the shepherds of their joys And banishes their fears Glory to God on high And heav nly peace on earth Goodwill to men to angels joy At the Redeemer s birth The Lord the highest God Calls Him His only Son He bids Him rule the lands abroad And gives Him David s throne Go humble swains1 says he To David s city fly The promised Infant born today Doth in a manger lie In worship so divine Let saints employ their tongues With the celestial hosts we join And loud repeat their songs O er Jacob shall He reign With a peculiar sway The nations shall His grace obtain His kingdom ne er decay With looks and hearts serene Go visit Christ your King And straight a flaming troop was seen The shepherds heard them sing Glory to God on high And heav nly peace on earth Goodwill to men to angels joy At our Redeemer s birth Yours in the Lord Reverend Bob Hellam The Reverend Dr Robert Hellam is senior pastor at Church of the Oaks in Del Rey Oaks California In addition he served as a chaplain captain with the California State Military Reserve from 2011 through 2015 with prior active duty as an enlisted man in the U S Navy Bob earned his BA in English and his teaching credential from San Jos State University his Master of Divinity degree from Western Seminary and the Doctor of Ministry degree from Trinity Theological Seminary Bob is a member of the Monterey Bay Colony of the Society of Mayflower Descendants the Nims Family Association the Plapp Family Association and American Legion Post 591 He lives in Seaside California with his wife Connie MAKE A TAX EFFICIENT GIFT FROM AN IRA Consider supporting the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches NACCC or the Congregational Foundation CF by making a gift through your IRA Supporting the NACCC or CF this way provides the added benefit of avoiding the income tax you are required to pay on your IRA distributions Here are the details Donors must be 70 or older at the time the gift is made Donors must request a direct transfer of funds from their plan administrator to a qualified public charity Gifts cannot be used to fund a gift annuity or charitable remainder trust Each donor may give up to 100 000 per year Gifts can be used to satisfy the donor s Required Minimum Distribution Helpful materials can be found on our website www naccc org under Get Involved Support Our Work Please contact NACCC Development Director Debby Fulton at 414 856 1610 or dfulton naccc org to let us know your gift is coming or if you have questions 24 25

Recent Calls Dr DeWayne Davis Lead Minister Plymouth Congregational Church Minneapolis MN Rev Bradley Bunn Associate Minister First Congregational Church Mansfield OH July 1 2021 Rev Raefield Perteet Senior Minister Preston City Congregational Church Preston CT July 26 2021 Rev Kenneth Andrs Senior Minister First Congregational Church Waseca MN August 22 2021 Rev Edward Gabrielsen First Congregational Church Searsport ME September 12 2021 Rev Joel K Boyd Senior Minister Meadowbrook Congregational Church Novi MI September 12 2021 Rev Lynn Bohlmann Senior Minister First Congregational Church Beardstown IL September 12 2021 2021 Ordination Rev Jacquelyn Quirk Associate Minister Fox River Congregational Church Pewaukee WI August 28 2021 Rev Bradley Bunn Associate Minister First Congregational Church Mansfield OH August 29 2021 Rev James Macarille Senior Minister First Congregational Church Saugerties NY September 12 2021 Installations Rev Bette Bond Senior Minister Second Congregational Church Warren ME August 1 2021 Rev Clare J Gromoll Senior Minister People s Congregational Church Bayport MN October 3 2021 Rev Linda J Farmer Lewis Senior Minister Arbor Grove Congregational Church Jackson MI October 10 2021 26 CALENDAR 2021 Pastorates SAVE THE DATE In Search NACCC Online Prayer Circle Thursdays 2PM Eastern 1PM Central 12PM Mountain 11 AM Pacific For Zoom link https www naccc org naccc prayer circle PULPITS Senior Minister Cambria Congregational Church Lockport NY Community Congregational Church Kewaunee WI Congregational Church of East Sumner Sumner ME Dixfield Congregational Church Dixfield ME Enterprise Congregational Church Enterprise OR First Church in Pembroke Pembroke MA First Congregational Church Interlachen FL First Congregational Church Spencer IA First Congregational Church Toulon IL First Congregational Church Greenville MI First Congregational Church Wayne MI First Congregational Church McCook NE First Congregational Church of East Bloomfield Bloomfield NY First Congregational Church Little Valley NY First Congregational Church Salt Lake City UT First Congregational Church Wauwatosa WI Little White Church Malta MT Maple Hill Community Congregational Church Maple Hill KS Mount Hope Congregational Church Livonia MI Oakwood Heights Community Church Staten Island NY Pilgrim Congregational Church Green Bay WI Stafford Springs Congregational Church Stafford Springs CT Tinley Park Community Church Tinley Park IL Tipton Community Congregational Church Tipton MI Trinity Congregational Church Adams WI Associate Minister Plymouth Church Brooklyn NY SPRING CONVOCATIONS East Coast Massachusetts April 25 28 2022 Location To Be Determined Contact Person Rev Irv Gammon West Coast Nevada April 25 28 2022 Zephyr Point Presbyterian First Congregational Church Wauwatosa WI Non NACCC Church Senior Minister Baxter Congregational United Church of Christ Baxter IA First Congregational Church Fremont MI First Congregational Church of Morristown Morristown NY Mayflower Congregational Church Grand Rapids MI Pilgrim Congregational Church Billings MT One subscription is provided free of charge to each individual requestor who is a member of a church in fellowship with the National Association One complimentary Newcomer Copy will be sent to any person one time only upon request by a church in fellowship with the National Association A subscription to The Congregationalist is provided free of charge to each church in fellowship with the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches and one to each accredited theological seminary on the magazine s mailing list Single copies may be purchased from the National Association office for 3 75 plus 3 20 to cover shipping and handling We seek and gratefully accept voluntary donations to help keep this magazine in print The Congregationalist ISSN 0010 5856 Postage paid at Madison WI 537149998 Published quarterly by the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches 8473 S Howell Ave 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8473 South Howell Avenue Oak Creek WI 53154 0288 In honor of the 400th Anniversary of the Pilgrims Landing in Plymouth in 1620 and the 400th anniversary of the first Thanksgiving in 1621 our four part historical introduction and discussion guide Plymouth s Pilgrims Their Church Their World and Ours is available PLYMOUTH S PILGRIMS Their Church Their World and Ours Guide includes A youth and adu It version of our guide Key historical documents paired with each lesson r A list of helpful websites And a variety of other online resources I Free on our website Congregationallibrary org Congregational Library Archives History Matters Written by Linda 51111th Rhoads 14 BEACON STREET BOSTON MA 02108