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First Presbyterian Church of Philipstown (FPCP)
The Church of the Open Door
Community News
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What to give up, what to add in. . . |
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By a happy accident, my family ate pancakes on Shrove Tuesday this year. I didn't realize it until we were halfway through our short stacks. "It's Fat Tuesday!" I said gleefully. "How perfect!" My teenage son gave me that old glance askance, so the spouse and I explained that eons ago, when we were small-town kids, there was always a Shrove Tuesday pancake feast, often as a fundraiser for the local Knights of Columbus, or the all-volunteer fire department, the VFW Ladies Auxiliary, and so on.
"I don't get it. Why pancakes?" the bemused teenager queried. This led to even more ancient history with some help from The Google: How in 600 AD, Pope St. Gregory told his flock that they had to give up animal products during Lent. Since Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, the faithful came up with the idea of baking pancakes and other sweet treats the day before, on Shrove Tuesday. Practically speaking, all this treat-eating ensured that eggs, milk, and butter didn't go to waste during the Lenten fast. Emotionally speaking, Fat Tuesday could be a blow-out before 40 days of self-denial.
Around the world, millions of people give up things for Lent as a religious practice, a sign of sacrifice, a test of self-discipline. I've often tried, though it was never required by any church I attended. Growing up, I adopted this practice in solidarity with my best friend Karen, a devoted Catholic then and now. Over the years, I've partnered with friends and colleagues to give things up, often for health or fitness reasons, like a promise at the office that "we won't eat sweets until Easter." At other times, I have tried in earnest to avoid self-indulgence during Lent and to do good for others.
It's hard to contemplate giving up anything for Lent this year when we've already given up so much, made so many sacrifices, suffered so many losses. Many of us are feeling exhausted and stressed and frustrated and depleted. I've decided that as part of my Lenten journey, I'm going to give up some bad things I've been carrying this plague year: anxiety, overwork, resentment, impatience, pessimism, despair. At the same time, I'm going to be intentional about adding in these good things, every day, for the 40 days of Lent: gratitude, rest, forgiveness, patience, optimism, and hope.
This week, let's think about the journey of Lent, and how that journey may need to be a bit different this year, for many reasons. What will our intentions be? Will we give up things? Will we add in others? If you are looking for inspiration to deepen your Lenten experience, click here to explore this week's 2021 Lent Devotionals, created by The Presbyterian Outlook. Remember that we are still together, even when we're apart. And the best news is that all of us are loved, all the time.
-- MZ Smith,Community News editor
PS: The pancake illustration above is "The Pancake Bakery," Pieter Aertsen, c. 1560.
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Join us SUNDAY, FEB. 21 for our 10:30 am service!
Our online worship services via Zoom are friendly, warm, and informal! Look for an email with your Zoom link. Or, request a link by emailing us at: 1presbyterian@gmail.com.
Communion will be served, with Rev. Rachel Thompson presiding, so please have your elements at the ready. Annie and Wally Becker will be our worship leaders. We look forward to beautiful music during our journey to Lent, by Music Director Tom McCoy. And: We welcome Elder Rob Trawick back to our virtual pulpit! Rob is a ruling elder at Germonds Presbyterian Church and a professor of philosophy and religious studies at St. Thomas Aquinas College. A former moderator of the Hudson River Presbytery, he is a member of HRP's Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy. He lives in New City with his wife Amanda. Welcome back, Rob!
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Anyone can join us from anywhere for our live, online, Zoom services!
Use the links below to connect with us:
To download the bulletin for this service: Click the picture above!
For info about online services and a link to download Zoom, click here.
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Please support our next Midnight Run on March 6!
Help us take food and critical supplies directly to people experiencing homelessness in NYC! Click on the picture to sign up!
We are grateful to FPCP member Ron Sopyla, who coordinates these monthly mission trips. Please drop off your donations at our church on 10 Academy Street from 11 am to 12 pm on Friday, March 5. If that doesn't work for you, email Ron at rsopyla@verizon.net and he will arrange a safe pick-up. Thank you!
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Meow! Meow! Did you finish
your CAT Survey yet? Hurry!
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This shamelessly cute cat pic is here to remind you to finish your CAT Survey by Monday, Feb. 22! CAT means Congregational Assessment Tool. It's an online survey and takes 20-30 minutes to complete. Answers are anonymous, but the opinions you share are critical to leadership in planning for our future!
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Meet Cleo, one of our fine furry friends. Cleo's humans are MJ and Barry, who shared this sweet image of Cleo with us earlier this year. Cleo says: Don't delay, take your CAT survey today! Meow! |
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During Lent, our sanctuary will be open a few hours each week for quiet reflection and prayer. You will find small battery-powered votive candles for you to light, and small note cards will be available so you can write down a name or prayer to place under the votive candles.
Visit the sanctuary Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays 11 am to 1 pm and Sundays 1 to 3 pm. When you enter, review the guidelines and then record your name on the sign-in sheet by the sanctuary door. Masks are required, and only one person or family group can visit at a time. Enter and exit the sanctuary via the main doors into the social hall.
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Prognosis
by J. Barrie Shepherd
This stark primordial dust fresh imposed
between my eyes this February day
fades swiftly and is gone,
no necessity to rub or scrub,
no enduring sign or stain remains
to mar my normal sunny outlook.
Still it shadows all that lies below
casts a somber darkness far across the days
and weeks, this penitential season,
recalls – if I permit – a heritage of failure
and defeat, a legacy of regular denial,
a bleak inheritance can only be redeemed
in broken bread, wine freely poured,
gentle words beyond a garden tomb.
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Please help if you can. During this health and economic crisis, we are grateful that we can serve more neighbors in need through critical mission programs like the Philipstown Food Pantry and the Midnight Run.
If you feel called to support this outreach, we warmly welcome any and all contributions. If you are a member of our church family and can maintain your annual giving at during this challenging time, we humbly thank you.
To donate to the Pantry online: Click the "Share" image.
To support Midnight Run and other programs: Click here.
Thank you and bless you!
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Visit our website and follow us on Facebook!
Call or email us today.
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