From Our Pastor

“What have you learned these past few weeks together?” I asked the confirmation class last week.  They each have a workbook with space for journaling to which they each turned their attention quickly to remind themselves “what they have been learning.”  One said, “I’ve learned about forgiveness.”  Another said, “I’ve learned that we are to be compassionate.”  Still another said, “I found that some of the stories in the Bible are really interesting.”   

I made a conscious decision with this confirmation class not to require them to memorize anything.  For most of us, that doesn’t sound like our confirmation experience.  (Let’s be honest, haven’t you seen someone begin to twitch at even the mention of a “catechism?”)  Instead of memorizing a series of answers or facts about the faith, I wanted to talk about their faith.  What do they believe?  How do they see God working in their world and in their lives?  I wanted them to begin to answer the question, “what have I been learning?”  And more importantly, I wanted them to be able to connect some dots in their lives… dots between what we learn and what God is doing in each of our lives. 

Do you try to do that?  Do you try to connect the dots? 

Like many of you, I belong to a small group.  And so I considered the question for myself, “what have I been learning?”  And one of the things I’ve been learning comes from a few passages in 1 Peter that have been the focus of my group’s attention for the past few weeks.  Here are some of the highlights from chapter 1 and 2, as told in The Message (a modern translation of the scriptures.) 

“Roll up your sleeves, put your mind in gear… as obedient children, let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God’s life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness… Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God… Now that you’ve cleaned up your lives by following the truth, love one another as if your lives depended on it.  Your new life is not like your old life.  You’ve had a taste of God.  Now, like infants, drink deep of God’s pure kindness.  Then you’ll grow up mature and whole in God.”

As we prepare to confirm new members of the church on Pentecost, these words speak to all of us.  We all have tasted of God.  We all have a period of time, early in our journey with God to “drink deep of God’s kindness.”  But we all are called to certain maturity, a time when we “roll up our sleeves” and “follow the truth, loving one another as if our lives depended on it.”

The last time a community of faith made a promise to these students was as a baby, fresh with new life.  We promised to journey with them, believing that God was already working in their lives and that God will continue to work in their lives.  This time, those grown up babies get to make a promise back to the community of faith.  They will promise to continue the journey believing not only that God is and will continue to work in their lives… they believe that God is and will continue to work in your lives too. 

Peace,

Pastor Beth

Spotlight on Mission

Ours is a giving congregation. We have many outreach projects that reflect that perspective. We give for special PCUSA offerings - One Great Hour of Sharing, the Peacemaking Offering, the Christmas Joy Offering. We give spontaneously each month for “2 cents a meal.” We fill shoeboxes for the Feed the Children ministry and for Operation Christmas Child. We share in a worship service the first Sunday of each month at the Franklin Care Center. We collect for the South Brunswick Food Pantry. We pack food for the Feed the Children ministry. And the list goes on and on. We dedicate 5% of our pledged income to 16 different ministries—through PCUSA, through local ministry, and through global initiatives.  You are an incredibly generous community of faith.

The Outreach Commission thought it a good idea to help everyone become more aware of the mission projects that we support…year after year after year. Some of those projects change, but the commitment is the same: Jesus taught us to care for others with the stewardship of our time, energy, and money.  So, here goes. Each month we will have a Spotlight on Mission, an explanation of one or two outreach projects that we support routinely. When you come over to the octagon for a cup of coffee, note the chart that will identify and explain the mission projects on which we are focused.

In May we are highlighting two outreach ministries. In March our own Ross Uhrich spent his spring break building houses for Habitat for Humanity in New Orleans. We supported Ross financially, but more importantly, with our thoughts and prayers for his week in this mission initiative. We also are supporting the PCUSA outreach ministry Long Term Self-Development for Areas Affected by Hurricane Katrina and Rita. Both of these mission endeavors focus on helping those who suffered through those devastating hurricanes. Take a look at this Spotlight on Mission as you relax with friends and coffee after worship during the month of May.

Feel positive about what we do—it is God’s calling to which we are responding and it is good to know that we are following the essence of Jesus’ teaching—to love others unconditionally.

Mary Ellen DuPree Leonard

Outreach Commission

Celebrating Pentecost!

How do we mark such an important day in our church year???  By celebrating the Holy Spirit through music and sharing a meal together!  Pease join us on May 10, at 5 p.m. in the Octagon for a Potluck Dinner!  We’ve invited the three other Presbyterian Churches in our town, as well as the Indian Church, to join us for a meal and a musical concert! 

We’re providing the meal, so please bring a main dish that will serve 8.  Our guests will be providing the salads and desserts so it should be a great opportunity to worship together and experience some great home cooking and baking.  The music will include the talents of all the churches taking part and there’s great enthusiasm about sharing this time together.  Please plan to be there and join us as we…

CELEBRATE THE SPIRIT!

And a big THANK YOU to Phyl Richardson for the tremendous job she did organizing our “Green” Sandpiper!  What a lot of great information inside to help our environment!

Welcome New Members!

On behalf of our church family, we would like to welcome all of our new members: Stan Burd; Vivian Eghan, Gary and Barbara Luddecke, Peter and Susan Reimann, Deb Self, and Mike Wong.  We hope that you feel blessed in our midst, encouraged by our prayers, and join us in our church mission:

Ministers: Each and Every One

Committed to knowing Christ,

Growing as disciples,

Living the challenge every day

Please join the Hospitality Committee in welcoming these new members and making them “feel at home” in God’s house! Share a cup of coffee, invite them to join you in church activities, and get to know our newest members!

Alison Marigliano

Hospitality Committee

Supporting our Leaders

On May 31^st, our leaders will be going to Buckingham Place in South Brunswick for a time of seeking where God is working in our community and how we can read the “signs of the times,” i.e. what has happened in our church and in what direction we should be heading in our respective ministries.

To support them as they seek God’s will for us, we ask that you pray for them and ask the Lord to direct and bless them as they strive to serve us according to God's will.

A New Journey Begins…

We are so thankful to have such dear friends in our church family as Reese and Jo-Anne Feldman, but it is time to say good-bye as they begin their new journey to Sarasota, Florida, near their daughter.

Jo-Anne is not a stranger to us old timers, she was brought up in this church and has many wonderful memories of her childhood years. When Reese and Jo-Anne bought a home in the area, she was thrilled to be able to bring their daughter, Lauren, to this church. Lauren was brought up with our daughter Rachel and we all spent many happy times in Girl Scouts and Youth Group right at our church, which has always been like a second home. Reese always pitched in for anything we needed of him, whether it was preparing spaghetti dinners, car washes, or car pooling the youth to yet another outing.

Both Jo-Anne and Reese have served in many capacities in Church Office and we are so grateful for their insight, compassion, bright ideas, and wisdom. We know their next church will be richly blessed by their presence. We will definitely miss our updates on the Yankees and swapping Beatle memories!   Thank you Jo-Anne and Reese,

May gifts from God gladden your way…

And bring you the peace of this glorious day…

Joy for each sorrow…

Faith in His will…

And Blessings from heaven in all that you do.

God Speed! Come back to visit us soon!

The Feldman’s new temporary address is: 1020 Villagio Circle, Unit 108, Sarasota, Fl 34237

Alison Marigliano

Let’s keep talking about

Join us for a book discussion of Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy, by Donald Kraybill, Steven Nolt, and David Weaver-Zercher.

On October 2, 2006, a gunman entered an Amish school and shot 10 girls, killing 5 and leaving the other 5 critically wounded.  He then shot himself.  That same day members of the Amish community brought words of forgiveness to the family of the man who had slain their children. Amish Grace explores the many questions this story raises about the religious beliefs that led the Amish to forgive so quickly.

This book has been widely acclaimed by many, including book reviewers and our own Pastor Beth.  Let’s read the book and then get together to talk about it at the end of May.  If you’d like to host this event, please let me know. 

Sandy Chmielewski

Hospitality Commission

Bring your own

coffee cup Sunday

You say you want to be “green” but you don’t know where to begin, or you want to do more than you are to help the environment??  Well, the Hospitality Committee is encouraging you to bring your own Coffee/Tea/Juice cups on Sunday morning. Save on the landfill, cost of cups, and you don’t have to worry about staining your outfit (save on dry cleaning and washing)! We recommend that you put your name on it! 

So, come on, join us – you can do it!  Date: Every Sunday!  Time: All Day!

Alison Marigliano

Hospitality Committee

Another Opportunity from Feed the Children to

“feed the children”

Many of you go to the North Brunswick warehouse the third Friday of each month to pack food and other supplies for Feed the Children. What a great outreach ministry this is for our community of faith!

We have an additional opportunity through the Feed the Children organization. Each year the organization collects shoeboxes of school supplies to provide poor children with the items they need to start the school year. Is this too early to participate in this endeavor? It is not. Starting now enables mobilizing many sources—churches, community groups, concerned citizens—to take this on in a timely manner, so that, in September, the “Back 2 Skool” shoeboxes can be distributed in time to the children who need them.

If you would like to share in this endeavor, fill a shoebox with the following items:  pencils, pens, crayons, colored markers, colored pencils, a pencil sharpener, small note books, rulers, erasers, scotch tape, high lighter, glue, calculator, book covers, a small stapler, or anything along these lines that would be appropriate. Feed the Children would appreciate your wrapping the lid and the box itself separately in bright colored paper, so it comes as a gift (but not Christmas wrapping, as this is a start-of-school gift). Put a rubber band around your box to keep everything intact.

Bring your box to church on Sunday, May 11 (or any Sunday before that), and put it on the table in the narthex where you see the sign: Feed the Children “Back 2 Skool” shoeboxes. The Friday night “working crew” will transport them on the following Friday to the warehouse. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO JOIN THE “WORKING CREW,” TALK WITH MIKE OR ALISON MARIGLIANO for more details. Everyone is welcome in this ministry.

 Mary Ellen DuPree Leonard

Outreach Commission

What a generous congregation! With an announcement one Sunday and a reminder the next, our church family contributed $154 for the Franklin Care Center initiative to send a box (perhaps now two boxes) to soldiers in Iraq. Thank you for affirming our partnership in ministry with the residents of FCC. We responded to a specific request from the residents to help carry out their effort in caring and in doing so, we reinforced our partnership with them in ministry.

 Thanks to Donna Hollenbach for providing a new “grocery cart” for our monthly food collection for the South Brunswick Food Pantry. The old cart—probably at least 110 years old—literally fell apart and the new cart appeared, unsolicited, but clearly with our gratitude. Let’s fill it up and overflowing each month!

Mary Ellen DuPree Leonard

Outreach Commission

A congregational meeting will be held to elect officers and to provide end of year reports on Sunday, May 4, immediately following the service in the South Octagon.

Remembering…..

You’re invited to a special community Inter-faith service entitled:  “The Persistence of Radical Evil,” a Holocaust remembrance service on Thursday, May 1^st, 7 p.m. at B’nai Tikvah, 1001 Finnegan Lane, North Brunswick, NJ 08902, (732) 297-0295, www.bnaitikvah.org. 

Pastor Beth meets monthly with the local clergy group.  This year, they wanted to join together in remembering those who have and who are suffering genocide.  Various clergy will be presenting, including Pastor Beth.  This is a wonderful opportunity to gather as the people of God with others from our community.  All are welcome!

May Birthdays:

5/3          Marilyn Butler
5/6          Rachael Luddecke
5/10        Ruth Greenwood

Thought You’d Like to Know…

The Reverend Beth Scibienski, Pastor

At the church:  732-297-9182, X1

Home:  732-246-9984, Cell:  732-735-2112

Beth@communitypres.org

Nancy Luck, Church Secretary

Phone:  732-297-9182, X3  Fax:  732-297-959

Office@communitypres.org

Director of Vocal Music

Carlensha Grady

Carlensha1@aol.com

Accompanist

Tim Murphy

908-616-6668

Elders (called the Session) meet monthly to oversee and guide the ministries of the church.  They represent the congregation by prayerfully discerning where God may be leading our church through the following commissions:

 Clerk of Session, Financial Secretary

Laura Taff

ltaff9115@comcast.net

Hospitality – organizes opportunities that extend hospitality, such as greeting visitors as well as getting to know one another better. 

Sandy Chmielewski

s_chmii@yahoo.com

Gary Notte

gnotte@att.com

Outreach – coordinates extending and 

communicating our witness in the world.

Mary Ellen DuPree Leonard

meleonard@patmedia.net

Anne Kruger

akruger@bellatlantic.net

Resource Management – manages the resources of our church including staff, finances, and property.

     Leslie Cook

     lcook@brrsd.k12.nj.us

Spiritual Formation – leads those areas in our community that help us grow in our faith, whether by worship or by small groups.

Phyl Richardson

phylrichardson@earthlink.net

Carol Thomson

momacat13@verizon.net

Deacons of our church also serve by providing pastoral care.  If you have a need, please call the church office.

Moderator – Questions, please call:

Jean Golcheski

cjgol18@patmedia.net

Secretary – Prayer requests, please call:

Donna Hollenbach

dlhollenbach@comcast.net

Director of the Preschool:

Susan Hickson

732-940-1515

THE SANDPIPER Staff:

Eileen Notte, Editor

enotte@hotmail.com

Nancy Luck

Webmaster

Bunny Van Cise

cvancise@optonline.net

Now, who doesn’t just love a “baby!!!”

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