Friday, Feb. 28, 2025 Newsletter



For Sunday - Communion Sunday

9:00 a.m.: Holy Ground Contemporary Worship Service

 (in person in Fellowship Hall)

11:15 a.m.: Traditional Worship Service

       (in person in the Sanctuary, and livestreamed on Facebook and website)

A MESSAGE FROM REV. LINDSEY ALTVATER CLIFTON:

BEGINNING OUR LENTEN JOURNEY

Dear ones,   

This Sunday, March 2, we welcome our Transitional Pastor, Rev. Karen Kinney! I’m sorry to miss her first Sunday with us, but Laura and I will be away for a long-planned Winter Survival Trip in Cancun. As a reminder, the congregation is invited to an informal Meet & Greet after each service. Please plan to stick around after each worship service to enjoy some refreshments and conversation with Karen in Fellowship Hall (see additional details, below).

Like in recent years, we are using liturgical resources from A Sanctified Art, a talented group of mostly Presbyterian clergywomen, to guide our Lenten and Easter journey. This year’s theme is Everything In Between: Meeting God in the Midst of Extremes. I invite you to read their description about the series and the accompanying devotional below.

Blessings for the next steps in the journey,

Lindsey

This year, we’re letting the Gospel of Luke guide us through Lent. Beginning with Jesus setting his face toward Jerusalem (Luke 9:51), this worship series flows through several familiar stories - the Good Samaritan, Mary and Martha, the fruitless fig tree, the Lost Sheep, Zacchaeus, and more. Many of these stories are well-known in both sacred and secular imagination and hold significance in pop culture, church history, politics, and everything in between.

As we studied these scriptures, we were struck by how Jesus’ ministry disrupted the established social, political, and religious divides of his time. Jesus intentionally pointed out cultural and political extremes to emphasize the radical, inclusive, and surprising love of God. When we study these stories in their historical and cultural context, we see how they mirror the divisions many of us experience in our families, churches, and communities today.

Our theme, “Everything In Between,” invites us to navigate the polarities in our lives with more faith, intention, and openness to be transformed. You will see that each weekly sub-theme explores two supposed binaries, like “faith & works” or “rest & growth,” or “grief & hope.” We often consider these ideas to be opposing. However, as we explore these concepts within the scriptures, we find nuance and complexity. We find that these dichotomies are false. We might begin to see a full spectrum instead of black and white. We might find that God is present in between.  

And so, this season, we invite you to look beyond black and white binaries and easy answers. We encourage you to notice the dichotomies that define our lives, but also imagine where God might be meeting us beyond the categories we create. This Lent, we're trusting that God shows up in shades of gray, rainbow hues, and everywhere in between.

The bulletin for Sunday's Traditional service will be emailed to you on Saturday

HEARTS N MINDS ADULT ED CLASS: JOIN US ON SUNDAY

John Muir, the American Celt, had a transformational experience with the natural world, expressing his felt experience as the incarnation of the Divine. To know the depth and wildness of nature is to know God, he says. Muir comes to know experientially that everything is sacred and invites us to find kinship with nature and to care for it. In doing so, we come to know our own sacredness and connection to all that is Divine. 

Muir’s dedicated efforts to educate others about the value of the environment led to the establishment of several Natural Parks, the creation of nature preserves and wildlife refuges, and the protection of national forests. His contribution is still felt today.  

You are encouraged to do three things this week:

·      Experience nature in the spirit of John Muir.

·      Identify a sentence or paragraph in the chapter that speaks to you.

·      Bring a question to ask John Muir if he were alive today. 

All are welcome to join class leader Gail Watts as she guides us in discussion.

FOR SUNDAY – JOIN US FOR BODY N SOUL

Body N Soul, our intergenerational group, will be exploring the practice of prayer. Prayer relies on our belief that God cares for us and hears us. Through bible stories and activities for all ages, we will consider how prayer is a central spiritual practice for followers of Christ and how it shapes us and our place in the world.

The group meets on Sundays from 10:10 -11 a.m. in Fellowship Hall. All are welcome!

WELCOME EVENTS FOR REV. KINNEY

The congregation is invited to join together in welcoming Karen during informal Meet & Greet sessions following each service this Sunday, March 2. Stay after each service to enjoy refreshments and conversation in Fellowship Hall.

If you are interested in bringing a plate of baked goods to share during the Meet & Greet, please deliver them to Fellowship Hall before either service (by 8:40 a.m. for Holy Ground or 11:00 a.m. for Traditional).

In addition to this in-person, celebratory welcome, we would like to provide Karen with an informational welcome in the form of a digital "picture book." During the Meet & Greet events, there will be a "photo booth" set up in Fellowship Hall where attendees can get their picture taken (individually or in family units) to contribute to this effort. 

The booth will contain a numbered list where you can add your name and a few brief words of welcome or introduction to accompany your picture. The pictures and names will be compiled into a slide deck to be shared with Karen. This information will support her in the process of learning many new names and faces as she begins her ministry at FPC-Bethlehem. 

If you are not able to attend in person on Sunday, March 2, you can send an email to info@fpc-bethlehem.org with 1) your name, 2) an optional brief message, and 3) an attached picture (candid or posed are both fine, even a quick selfie will do) to add to the slide deck. Please send emails by Wednesday, March 5.

ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICE – THIS WEDNESDAY

All are welcome to join us this Wednesday, March 5 for an Ash Wednesday Service. It will be offered at 7 p.m. in Fellowship Hall, and will also be livestreamed on Facebook and on our website.

This will be a Communion service; you can prepare your elements if participating online: bread or bread-like item (cracker, pita, bagel) and grape juice, wine or water.

ELECTING A THIRD TRUSTEE

The Session has voted to have a brief Congregational meeting after the 11:15 a.m. service on March 9. The sole purpose will be to vote for the open Trustee position; the Nominating Committee has nominated  Sheldon Cooper – let’s meet him:

While serving in this capacity, he assisted with the launch, management, and follow-up for an extensive capital campaign that ultimately raised several hundred thousand dollars, a significant portion of which were used to fund much-needed repairs and upgrades to church buildings and infrastructure, which included its affiliated parsonage.  

Sheldon and Sandra recently returned to the Lehigh Valley (Northampton) to retire and be closer to family. Having reconnected with the FPCB, they are looking forward to actively serving the needs of this church to the best of their abilities. Accordingly, Sheldon is hereby seeking the FPCB congregation’s endorsement to serve as a Trustee.  

HI NEIGHBORS: BACK ON MONDAY, MARCH 10

Our programs begin at 9:30 a.m. in Fellowship Hall with a social time, followed by the presentation at 10 a.m. All are welcome - there is no registration nor cost to attend.

Many thanks to Susan Wolf, our volunteer who has once again assembled an exciting schedule of programs. We'll present nine programs through May 12 (no program on Monday, April 21 because of the Easter holiday).

FOR SUNDAY’S IN-PERSON WORSHIP:



• Child care will be available from 8:45 a.m. -12:15 p.m. this Sunday morning; please ask an usher for directions.
• Your children are a joy in our worship services, and should the need arise, “kid bags” are available for their use while they are visiting. They are in the Narthex.
• We offer nametags for folks to wear – these are for everyone! You can pick up as you enter the worship space; please clearly PRINT your first name.

THIS SUNDAY

•  8:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.: Child Care (ask ushers to direct you)
•  9 a.m.: Holy Ground Contemporary Worship Service, Fellowship Hall – in person only
• 10-10:45 a.m.: Meet & Greet Rev. Kinney, Fellowship Hall
• 10 – 11 a.m.: Hearts N Minds adult ed class, Parlor – all are welcome
• 10:10 – 11 a.m.: Body N Soul intergenerational faith formation, Fellowship Hall – all are welcome
• 11:15 a.m.: Traditional Worship Service, Sanctuary (in person and livestreamed on Facebook and our website, fpc-bethlehem.org)
• 12-12:45 p.m.: Meet & Greet Rev. Kinney, Fellowship Hall

WEDNESDAYS: 7 p.m. - Overcomer’s Outreach Christian 12 Step Recovery Group weekly meeting, via Zoom.com (meeting #: 868 2214 2960; passcode: OO-Beth)



CHURCH OFFICE AND BUILDING INFO:

Regular office hours are Monday - Thursday from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Many of the office staff are working remotely for some of the time, so please make an appointment if you need to see someone specific. The answering service (610-778-7003) can take your urgent pastoral concerns, 24 hours a day. 

IN CASE OF BAD WEATHER: Look for updates on our website (fpc-bethlehem.org), Facebook page, and WFMZ (channel 69 and wfmz.com). We will also put the info on our church phone message, 610-867-5865.