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August 25, 2010
The Spirit
of Ridgefield Crystal Lake Presbyterian Church
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WEAVE begins September 8!
| 5:30-6:00 | all children’s choir kids and parents |
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5:45-7:00 | dinner (including kid-friendly options),
$5 per person (max $20 per family) |
| 6:15-7:00 | Sounds of Joy rehearsal |
| 6:45-7:45 | Adult Education (keep eating during class if you need to!) in the Fellowship Hall |
| 7:45-9:15 | Adult Choir rehearsal |
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The nursery will be open from 6:45-8:45. | |
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Kick Off Sunday, September 12
Join us the morning of September 12 as we begin an exciting new season at RCLPC. Lots of things are going on that day!
- Reverend John Dillon will be preaching
- New deacons will be ordained and installed
- Sunday School teachers will be commissioned
- Sunday School begins, 9:30-10:30
- 3rd graders will receive Bibles during the 8:30 and 11:00 worship
- Confirmation retreat noon - 7pm
Did you know your church is online too?
RCLPC is using social media all over the place!
You can continue your connection to the community, conversation, learning, and sharing on our Facebook Page and on our blog (rclpc.wordpress.com). Your RCLPC blog has a new look and new columns every day! Check it out for online Bible Study, sneak-peaks of worship, interviews with your RCLPC friends, and news and stories about your church family. Check it out and be part of the community in a variety of ways!
A Friendly Reminder
from the Stewardship Team....
Regarding the Gather, Grow and Go Challenge
letter that you received in the mail, please try to return your response slip in the envelope provided by Tuesday, August 31st. Thank you and thank you for your continuing support!
Drum Circle Returns to RCLPC
Now on the Second Tuesdays of the Month, starting September 14!!
You don’t have to be a drummer to participate—everyone has something to offer, and everyone is welcome! A Community Drum Circle is a fun, family friendly event designed to build community and help us experience release, stress relief, healing, and empowerment. Rev. Phyllis Mueller facilitates these “drumming for health” drum circles in many places around the county. This community drum circle will be held at RCLPC in Fellowship Hall every 2nd Tuesday from 7-8pm. The next drum circle will be on Sept. 14—hope to see you! For more info, contact Phyllis at 815.382.0004.
Pastors Book Group Returns
“Read with the Pastor Book Group” returns on the LAST TUESDAYS of the month at 7pm. Our September book will be Missional Renaissance by Reggie McNeal—a highly acclaimed book about what it means to be church in the 21st century.
Join your pastors in reading, then come to Fellowship Hall on Sept. 28th to talk about it!
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SAVE THE DATE!!
Sunday School starts up again on September 12th from 9:30 to 10:30am. It is going to be a fun year full of great lessons, activities and spiritual growth. Parents, look for information to be coming in the mail soon.
Reminder:
Confirmation Class starts
September 12 with a retreat from 12-7pm!
Ministry Fair,
September 19
It’s an all-new ministry fair at RCLPC! All over the church you can find out what kinds of mission and ministry we are doing, how we are the Body of Christ in the world, what it means to be part of an Ever-Widening Circle of Grace…and don’t worry, we won’t ask you to sign up for anything! And, if you get all the stamps for your “Passport to Ministries at RCLPC”... you will get a prize!
Memorial Service
A memorial service for Ernie Dunn will be held here at RCLPC on Saturday, September 11th at 10:30am followed by a reception in Fellowship Hall.
Howdy Partners
It’s prime picking time for all you gardeners out there. Red, ripe, juicy tomatoes, cool cucumbers, zippy zucchini, tender green beans; just thinking about it makes me hungry! So don’t forget to stop by the “Share the Bounty” table and stock up with fresh garden produce. All donations are greatly appreciated!
PADS Lunches
Please see the signup sheet in the Connecting Link. Assemblers are needed for August 29th and on Sundays during the month of September. After the 9:30am service, it only takes about 1/2 an hour to make these 25 lunches and they are so greatly appreciated by the recipients.
Shepherds Fold Preschool
Celebrates 10 Years
The Shepherds Fold preschool is celebrating it’s 10th anniversary here
at RCLPC. Cynthia is still accepting applications for the coming school year. Please contact Cynthia Maron.
Play, Sing at the
8:30 Service
Are you interested in playing an instrument or singing in worship at the 8:30 service? Chord sheets and recordings are provided. Band rehearsal is on Thursday evenings from 7:00 - 9:00pm. Please talk to Sherri Dees or email her at sherri@rclpc.org. |
 The RCLPC Café is about to begin!
Once again the RCLPC Café is open for business! This is a fun gathering that involves food and fellowship with friends. There are five dates throughout the year that the event will be held, and you will be asked to host at one of them. The first event will be a large group one at the church, and the following four events will be held in hosts’ homes with six other Café members joining you for the evening and bringing part of the meal to share. The following will be the dates for the coming year:
September 11, 2010 - 7pm; Large group opening event at the church
November 13, 2010 - Small groups in homes
January 15, 2011 - Small groups in homes
March 12, 2011 - Small groups in homes
May 14, 2011 - Small groups in homes
Everyone will be asked to bring an appetizer to our opening large group event at church, and the co-hosts will provide drinks (non-alcoholic) and desserts. Anyone who signs up as a member of the RCLPC Café will be responsible for either hosting a small group dinner in their home or co-hosting the large group event at the church on Sept. 11.
The main focus for the RCLPC Café is to have fun and get to know each other. If you are already a member of the Café, we will be sending you an email to sign up to either host a small group dinner in your home or to co-host the large group event on Sept. 11 at church. If you would like to become a member, please sign up in the Connecting Link at church. And finally, if you aren’t quite sure how this all works but think you might like to join the fun, please call Dale Prindiville or Kathy Rabe and we would be happy to talk to you. Bon Appétit!
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Men’s Breakfast Group
On Saturday, September 4th, the men of our church will be meeting at the Colonial Café located on Rt 14 (in front of the K-Mart Store) at 8:00am. At this meeting we will discuss current events and will discuss what the Men's Group would like to do in 2011. September 4th is on a holiday weekend, but that will not deter us from meeting. If you are in town please come. We do break off really close to 9am, so your Saturday is well protected and you will have a full stomach. See all the men of RCLPC on Saturday morning, Sept. 4th, at the Colonial Café.
Gentle Hatha Yoga Class Offered at RCLPC
Grethe Christensen is offering "Gentle Hatha Yoga" in the Fellowship Hall at RCLPC on Monday evenings from 5-6pm* throughout the month of August and September. These classes are for men, women and children--all ages. Donations benefit the youth programs at RCLPC. The double glass doors in front of church will open at 4:45pm. No reservations needed. Please bring a yoga mat. Grethe has been teaching yoga for over 30 years. You can call Grethe if you have questions. *Note new time and day!
Help for Pakistan:
They’re seeking dry ground.
Let’s help them find hope.
The people of Pakistan have suffered numerous natural and human-caused disasters over the past several years. Presbyterians have been in ministry there since before the nation of Pakistan was formed. We stand with them today in their time of need. The recent floods have brought record-breaking destruction to the country, with more than 1,400 people dead and more than 1.5 million displaced. You can make a difference in bringing God’s healing to a nation torn by devastation. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is responding through Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) and working with our ecumenical partners to help meet emergency needs – providing food packages, shelter material, and non-food essentials. Emergency health services are also being provided.
How Can We Respond?
Give – Give to support the relief and recovery efforts through PDA. Individuals may give through their local Presbyterian congregation, on the secure PC(USA) Web site or by sending their check to:
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
P.O. Box 643700
Pittsburgh, PA 15264-3700
Please include the special designated giving account DR000038 - Pakistan.
Make a donation by calling 1-800-728-7228
Act - Congregations and individuals can put together hygiene kits and baby kits to be distributed through Church World Service.
Pray - Join with others in lifting up the people of Pakistan and those seeking to provide aid in this critical time. As the eyes of the world turn to Pakistan, let us join our hearts in prayer.
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Tuesdays at Borders
Please join us every Tuesday at 10:15am at the Borders book store in Crystal Lake. We will be the talkative group at the book group table found at the back of the store! Questions? Contact Kathy Rabe.
Note from the Egyptian Entrepreneurs Program...
The whole group (from Egypt) had just a wonderful time with you and your church congregation members. Thank you again for such a warm welcome and keen interest with which you all greeted us. I was so pleased that our Egyptian guests were able to experience American friendliness, hospitality and to realize how interested people are in the world outside of their own. At the same time, I was also very happy to be able to share with you the information about this great program, which we are so proud of, and put you in touch with real people in whose lives you help make a difference by supporting our work in Egypt. You couldn't have made a better impression then what you did on that Sunday! Really, the group mentioned this meeting several times after that with smiles and joy; for all of them it was a wonderful experience.
Thank you so much, again, for everything (including name tag in Arabic :))!
We look forward to continued cooperation with Crystal Lake Presbyterian Church.
With much appreciation,
Ivana Smucker, Director of Programs
Hands Along the Nile Development Services, Inc. (HANDS)
http://www.handsalongthenile.org
"partnering Americans and Egyptians for development and dialogue"
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Immersion Education for Religious Leaders of All Faiths:
October 17-19, 2010
This BorderLinks delegation is a two-day immersion experience, connecting clergy and leaders of all faiths with the daily realities and stories of their immigrant neighbors. The delegation will assist religious leaders in understanding the immigrant experience in Chicago and the surrounding area. Participants will return home with practical resources and insights to engage their congregants around the divisive issue of immigration. Intentional reflection time will focus on appropriate and caring ways to accompany a congregation confronting this timely issue.
Join fellow religious leaders (all faiths welcome!) in:
Reflections on Religious Texts
Sharing and dialogue with Immigrants
Analysis of Immigration Policy
Imagining Congregations as Agents of Change
Free Trade and Global Economics
Devising Practical Strategies to Engage Congregations
Connecting with Faith-Based Advocacy Organizations
Dates: Begin: Sun., Oct. 17, 5:30 pm. End: Wed., Oct. 19, 4:30p.m.
NEW REDUCED COST: $200/person
Cost includes lodging in Chicago, all meals and programming. Our "home base" will be at the Brother David Darst Center, a lovely retreat center in the Bridgeport neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago: 2834 South Normal Ave. For more information about the space, visit www.brdaviddarstcenter.org. For more information or to register, contact:
BorderLinks Tucson Office, Education Dpt. ~ education@borderlinks.org ~ (520) 628-8263
OR Rev. Sara Wohlleb, Chicago Liaison ~ swohlleb@hotmail.com ~ (773) 334-9414
BorderLinks is an international leader in experiential education that raises awareness and inspires action around global political economics. As a bi-national organization, BorderLinks brings people together to build bridges of solidarity across North and Latin American borders and promote intercultural understanding and respect. http://www.borderlinks.org/ |
Mission News
from Ann Legg
 Report from Colombia
August 12, 2010
As most of you know, I am once again in Colombia to be part of a Chicago Presbytery delegation and to serve as an accompanier for Colombian Presbyterians who continue to live out their faith in spite of death threats from the paramilitaries.
When the Chicago delegation arrived in Bogotá on July 22, 4 out of our group of 8 stayed in Bogotá and 4 flew on to Medellín and then Apartadó. I was in the latter group. Apartadó is in the area known as the Urabá which is one of the most conflicted parts of the country at this time.
While there we visited several churches and the plantain plantation of one of them. At each church we met with members who have been displaced because of the ongoing civil war and the forcing of campesinos (farmers) off their land by the government and others who want to transform it into palm oil plantations, or they want the valuable minerals underneath the soil.
At one church a seemingly endless stream of people came forward to tell their stories of one or two or more displacements. We heard the same story over and over again of those who had their official letter affirming their displacement, but when they went to Bogotá to claim their benefits, they were told that the money was no longer there. Evidently, someone else had fraudulently been given that person’s benefit.
This year marks the 120th anniversary of the Colombian Presbyterian Church so on Sunday afternoon, July 25th, we attended a celebration worship service in Apartadó. Leah Fowler, who is associate pastor for education and youth at First United Church of Oak Park, preached. Worship included much enthusiastic singing and communion. One practice Colombian churches have that we might imitate is bringing all the children around the communion table and explaining the meaning. Each child is then given a grape in place of the bread and wine.
The following day both groups departed their respective locations and met in Barranquilla, headquarters for the Presbytery of the North Coast and the location of the Universidad Reformada (Reformed University).
While in Barranquilla, we met with more communities of displaced people and heard their stories. One group of farmers has been trying for three years to buy a piece of land from an owner who wants to sell it to them. They are already working the land and living on it, but thus far have not been able to get the governmental organization which is responsible for transferring land to the displaced to deed it to them. They requested that a letter be sent from our group and from Presbyteries in the U.S. on their behalf. That letter is being composed. They also requested that we meet with U.S. Embassy staff in Bogotá.
My accompaniment assignment began August 1st. So far we have mostly just been present in the Presbytery office, reading, checking e-mail, shopping or eating at the SAO (a supermarket, mall and food court) which is only a couple blocks away, and swimming early each morning. Right now we are in our rooms as it is raining for the second time today. This is the rainy season, and there are thunder storms almost every midday, late afternoon and in the middle of the night. Barranquilla is the only city in Colombia which does not have a storm sewer system. When it rains, streets fill with water. Some streets not only fill with water but become raging rivers carrying away people, cars, and debris.
If you would like to see a few photos from the Chicago delegation part of the trip go to
http://ann-mission.smugmug.com/ but be patient. Photos may take awhile to load.
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El Tres
El Tres is a small town located a half hour from Apartado and fifteen minutes from the port city, Turbo in the region known as Urabá where we would stay for six nights, from Wednesday evening, August 18th until Tuesday morning August 24th. It is a hot place with dirt roads, or rather, mud roads as it is the rainy season, and we quickly learned going places were best done in the early mornings when it was coolest. We were accompanied to the town and the church by the pastor of the El Tres Presbyterian Church, Elías, and a church elder who had been attending the Presbytery meeting in Apartado. Elías is actually a lay governing elder. He has been licensed and asked to serve as pastor for the church though he did not attend seminary. According to Elías, about 90 people attend church services on Sunday. Seventy-five percent of the congregation, including the pastor, have been displaced and many have lost family members because of the violence.
We stayed at the pastor’s home with his wife, their 8 year-old daughter and his 3 year-old nephew. Their living quarters are directly behind and attached to the church sanctuary. The house includes a front porch, a small living/dining room area, a kitchen, 2 bedrooms, an office for Compassion International and an under construction room which will become an indoor bathroom. Three classrooms for Compassion International, also under construction, are attached to the back of the house. There is no running water inside the home and no sink in the kitchen. Water is brought from reservoirs near the river through pipes to the spigot outside, where the water collected is used as needed for washing dishes and clothes, bathing and flushing the toilet. Another huge concrete container holds rainwater to be used for cooking, meanwhile, water for drinking and washing vegetables is purchased in 6 liter bags.
The church supports itself, in part, through sales of empanadas, corn, tamales, and cookies. With the money raised, they help families in need by providing sugar, soap and other necessities They also work a small plantain farm, which they call the parcela, and use the money raised there for their construction projects. On our final day, Monday, we had the opportunity to go to the parcela with the family and participate in the harvest of plantains. Bunches of plantains are brought in, cut from the main stem, washed in a special chemical and then rinsed and packed into cartons for shipment. Each carton of premium plantains weighs 25 kilos for which they are paid 5.50 USD. Plantains which are too small to be classified as premium are placed in different cartons. Both of these classifications are for export. Fruit that does not meet the standard for export is separated for sale locally.
Upon arrival the first night, a church service was about to begin, which we were promptly invited to attend. The service was Pentecostal in nature with enthusiastic singing accompanied only by hand clapping. This was followed by a prayer, scripture readings and a lengthy sermon given by a male elder in the church. At the end of the service there was a time for announcements and requests for prayer. Two people in the congregation asked for prayers for healing for themselves. They then came forward and stood in front as the pastor and elder placed hands on their heads and everyone prayed for them simultaneously aloud. Similar smaller services were held Thursday and Monday evening.
On Saturday night they held a special service which lasted from 7:30 p.m. until just after midnight with a 40 minute recess. It was very flexible in format with those wishing to sing coming forth to present a song or one could read from the Bible. Kaitlin was asked to read 1 Samuel 16:1-13, the anointment of David. The spirit that maintained throughout the four and a half hours was incredible that even by the end a majority of the church was still standing and clapping. The devotion and desire of the people in El Tres to praise and serve God was much apparent. These are a people poor in things but rich in spirit. Sunday’s service was not so long as we had been asked to give the sermon. Ann gave a testimony, the shortest “sermon” in the history of the church discussing the path of accompaniment, and Kaitlin gave a brief introduction.
On Thursday, Kaitlin was invited to help teach the children in the Compassion Project which is a program that takes place on the church’s property that promotes the welfare of children including here in El Tres. Children meet three times a week for classes. After a morning crash course on the Compassion Project, Kaitlin assisted the afternoon class first by reading a lesson on how God created the world. The children drew pictures of the world as they saw it, many drew flowers, others drew churches, and all were happy pictures. Despite the number of these children that had health problems, largely malnutrition, they were happy and participative in all the school activities. The children were excited about the presence of two women from the United States in their classroom. Kaitlin spent a large amount of time trying to convince them that she could not keep taking their pictures when they had to finish their drawings and game time consisted of an epic battle for who got to hold her hand. It was it was an amazing feeling of acceptance even amongst the children of Colombia.
As mentioned previously, the concern for the displaced is widespread through this church given the high percentage of displaced persons within the congregation, some of them families of the children that participate in the Compassion Program. After the service on Sunday, everyone drew their chairs into a circle to share their stories of displacement. The situation for the displaced in Colombia is very serious. They discussed with us their four greatest problems: health, education, employment, and a dignified living. The various stories of loss and of current struggles were first brought forth with reluctance, but then as the time went on more and more were willing to contribute their stories.
One church member has no job, no social security (health care) and lives in a small shack far too close to a very steep river bank that has been eroding little by little during rain storms. It is always a concern of whether or not his house will fall into the river.
Another discussed how their plantain farm was destroyed and he had to leave everything to stay with family in El Tres.
A woman who had been silent the whole meeting finally came forth at the end to tell how her family’s farm was destroyed and two of her brothers were killed. She has not seen any money from the program for displaced person for any of these losses.
One of the displaced men of the church discussed that one of the things they want most is the return of their land. He asked Kaitlin and Ann what they would be able to do in order to help them regain their land. This was the hardest question to answer because unfortunately all we as accompaniers are able to do is bring their stories back with us and educate people at home about the situation. Hopefully from bringing knowledge, we can also work to try and change the policies of the United States that so affect Colombians, particularly those that have been displaced.
More and more stories were brought forth, each containing loss: loss of homes and property, loss of lives, and loss of dignity. It was hard to hear and almost as difficult to know that many of the people that weren’t speaking were in too much pain to do so.
After lunch we sat around the table with an elder and the pastor. The elder sobbed as he related the loss of his land and the terrible conditions under which the displaced are forced to live. He spoke about the lack of opportunity for children and youth of displaced families. Through the forces of poverty that take away hope for a future, when the day to day is spent trying to figure out where the next meal will come from, many girls as young as 13 become pregnant and boys are recruited into the paramilitaries, further worsening the situation. The pastor told us that people come to church, but all the time are thinking about where their next meal will come from, where and when they may find a job, how they will educate their children, and where they might get the medical attention they or their families need.
The pastor then asked us the second most difficult question of the day of how if our presbyteries sent us back to El Tres to live, what we would do for the church and the community that comes hand in hand with the church. The problems are so overwhelming it is hard to know where to begin: of what is the greatest need, what is needed first. It makes one appreciate the dilemma facing pastors of churches in the Urabá that they try and take on every day for their congregations.
Our time here unquestionably worth the excruciating bus ride from Barranquilla to Apartado that we experienced a week ago to arrive here. We found everyone we met to be extremely hospitable and welcoming. They brought us into their church family with open arms through their kindness and gentle greetings of “te bendiga hermana.” The difficulty of our time in El Tres was not bathing from a bucket or then endless meals of rice, but the idea that when we leave, we leave them in the same situation as when we arrived and can only hope that through sharing their stories we can make a difference for them.
~ Ann Legg and Kaitlin Porter
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