Word from the Pastor

My former Ph.D. dissertation advisory committee member, Rev. Dr. Katie Geneva Cannon always encouraged us to ponder the following question when discerning our path forward – how to live into our God-given potential more fully: 

“What is the work that your soul must do?” 



I think this question is one of those “big questions of our lives” that is appropriate for us to tease out, to explore during our Lenten journey. “What is the work our soul must do?”

Dr. Cannon wanted her students to recognize that they have been gifted unique gifts, a unique voice that could shape our collective wisdom about the ways of the world. That was one of the biggest gifts she bestowed on me—and many of her students would say the same—to trust my voice… to know that it mattered. The reality that my voice was at odds sometimes with other voices in my particular area of ministry, did not negate the validity of my voice. 

It seems so obvious to us in some way, but how often we give up on, give away our voice? Or as Alice Walker would say, give away our power… 

Dr. Cannon’s question has been, on the one hand, a tool of empowerment, of encouragement and support to the many who she taught. Yet, it has been a charge also – for she was challenging us to ponder, what was our calling, “the work” that we had the gifts, the passion, the love for. She inspired us to give our best, our full commitment to that work.

For Dr. Cannon’s encouragement and charge sprang from her lived example. This week, as we begin Women’s History Month, uplifting her incredible legacy is a fitting start. Dr. Cannon became the first ordained Black woman in the United Presbyterian Church in 1974. The Northern Presbyterian Church already had 153 white women ordained clergy at the time. She earned her PhD in ethics from Union Theological Seminary in New York. As she shared with us, she wanted to pursue her doctoral work in Old Testament studies, but that discipline was considered the most prestigious and out of the reach of women, especially Black women at the time. Dr. Cannon practiced and taught a “womanist theology” that promoted the inclusion of women of color in shaping the understanding of faith. In her teaching, she also challenged the practices and scriptural interpretations that enable the traditional white patriarchal view of religion, as well as the male-centered black liberation theology. A few months before her death in 2018, she established the Center for Womanist Leadership at Union Presbyterian Seminary in Richmond, VA, where she taught for 17 years. 

“What is the work that your soul must do?” Not allowing discouragement or obstacles to derail her in her work, Dr. Cannon encouraged us to lean into our soul’s work and “give our best so others can become better,” as she loved to say. And of course, she did not mean us to go down some individualistic rabbit trails. Her concern, her dream was always to create spaces where people from various backgrounds would find their voice and can shape our common life together. 

Friends, it is my hope that as we continue grappling with questions about our identity in all its different manifestations, our place in this community and in the wider global network, and the stories of scripture and our traditions during this season of Lent, we find more clarity about the “work that our souls must have” here, in and through Westminster. 

May we find joy and fulfillment as we travel.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Enikö

Lenten Study - on Thursdays, began on March 2, @6:00pm

Madeline Fields Halva and Pastor Enikö will facilitate a Lenten study on each Thursday during Lent. We will read an article related to our weekly theme, which you'll receive in the mid-week email a week prior to our gathering. The weekly discussions will take place in the Church Lounge.

Our Lenten study series will conclude with our Maundy Service on April 6.

Each week, we'll be reflecting on the theme/question of the week guided by scripture readings and a short article.

GATHERING 1 - Thursday, March 2, 6:00 pm - The Lounge

Question: How do we begin again?

Scriptures: John 3:1-17 | Genesis 12:1-4a

Article: "Blessing is God's Prerogative" from Original Blessing by Danielle Shroyer, p. 11-24 (Fortress Press, 2016)

GATHERING 2 - Thursday, March 9, 6:00 pm - The Lounge

Question: Will you give me a drink?

Scriptures: John 4: 4-52 | Exodus 17: 1-7

Article: “Only Bridging Can Heal a World of Breaking” by john a. powell. Yes! Solutions Journalism, The Building Bridges Issue, Winter 2020. November 11, 2019. 

Look forward to seeing you next Thursday, March 9!

Come, even if you missed the first gathering.

This is a great opportunity to invite a friend!!

Lenten Devotional

A beautiful daily devotional that includes scripture reflections, art, poetry, music, and prompts for journaling will guide our journey of seeking. You can pick up your devotional in Mackey Hall. If you'd like us to mail you a print copy, please contact the office.

The authors of our Lenten study at A Sanctified Art have also provided a special e-reader version of this year’s Lenten devotional, which you can access on your computer and mobile devices: online.flippingbook.com/view/928029194/ 

In order to protect their work, please refrain from sharing this link on the website or posting it on social media.

Lenten Icon

The intricate icon for our series that you see above captures some of the themes that we will explore through the 6 weeks of Lent. I invite you to read the description of its various layers and themes provided by A Sanctified Art below. Look for these themes in the weekly worship. I invite you to share your insights and questions during the sharing time in worship and at the weekly Lenten studie.

Daily Examen Another Way

One of my favorite poets John O'Donohue has a poem that offers simple questions to reflect on our day - questions to help us notice, to listen, to become more grounded. I invite you to take one or a few and stay with those questions. Allow feelings, thoughts to emerge. Jot down what comes to you in a journal.

Hope you enjoy it!

At the End of the Day: A Mirror of Questions

What dreams did I create last night?

Where did my eyes linger today?

Where was I blind?

Where was I hurt without anyone noticing?

What did I learn today?

What did I read?

What new thoughts visited me?

What differences did I notice in those closest to me?

Whom did I neglect?

Where did I neglect myself?

What did I begin today that might endure?

How were my conversations?

What did I do today for the poor and the excluded?

Did I remember the dead today?

When could I have exposed myself to the risk of something different?

Where did I allow myself to receive love?

With whom today did I feel most myself?

What reached me today? How did it imprint?

Who saw me today?

What visitations did I have from the past and from the future?

What did I avoid today?

From the evidence – why was I given this day?

~By John O’Donohue, To Bless the Space Between us: A Book of Blessings

Taco Tuesday



You are invited! Westminster supports the Open Arms Hispanic Ministries' fundraising banquet, TACO TUESDAY, on March 14th, 6:00 p.m., at the Dutch Kitchen in Dalton and will feature a catered taco bar including desserts and drinks along with a program of Open Arms information and highlights to follow. A free-will offering will be taken. Please RSVP by March 10^th to the Church House office (330-263-2398) or if you have questions. 

March 19th Sunday Worship Service and Lunch: 

"Open Arms Hispanic Ministries:

Welcoming and Accompanying our local Latinx Immigrants.”  

 We hope you can attend that morning. 

Open Arms Director, Haroldo Nunes, will give the reflection followed by

a Central American lunch,

after service with Open Arms’ Tutoring Coordinator, Kathy Troyer, sharing about Open Arms’ successful tutoring program.

School Board Meeting - Orrville High School Library

March 16 @ 5:00 pm

The Wooster/Orrville NAACP chapter is inviting all who are concerned about our public education system to attend the next School Board meeting at the Orrville High School Library on March 16th at 5:00 pm.

At its February 16th meeting, the Orrville Board of Education (BOE) heard concerns regarding the alleged application of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in the curriculum. Our local NAACP chapter shared a letter with local community faith leaders - a letter received from a parent, who feels that this hearing was an attack on public education.

The NAACP encourages our communities to raise our voices in defense of the integrity of our public education system at the March 16 BOE meeting.

You can read the letter and the Daily Record article about the February BOE meeting published on February 17 here. Please let Pastor Enikö know if you are interested in going to this next BOE meeting.

Volunteer Opportunities for the Viola Startzman Clinic

The Benevolence Committee is now offering support to The Viola Startzman Clinic.

They are seeking volunteers to send cards and notes of cheer to their clientele. You can write your own notes at home and drop them off directly to the clinic. If you do so, please mention that you are participating through Westminster Presbyterian Church.

You can also volunteer to do this at the clinic and they will provide the cards, pens and addresses. The Benevolence Committee is considering doing this as a group. If you are interested, please reach out to any member of the Benevolence Committee or contact Shelley Peterson for further information.

Join Us in Celebrating Women in March

March is Women's History Month, a time to celebrate and honor the achievements of women throughout history. This year's theme, “Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories," honors women in every community who have devoted their lives and talents to producing art and news, pursuing truth, and reflecting society decade after decade. 

To launch Women's History Month, PC(USA)'s Racial Equity & Women’s Intercultural Ministries and Presbyterian Women hosted a worship service celebrating women on March 1. This worship reflected on Mary, her prayerful song, and the sisterhood between Mary and Elizabeth. Worship leader Rev. Marcia Mount Shoop, Ph.D., is head of staff at Grace Covenant Church in Asheville, North Carolina. Her sermon, based on Luke 1:45-56, was titled "Scattering, Shattering, and Mattering." The worship is available to view on Facebook.

Saving Nature and our Planet Starts Here 

Juli Douglass-Gillespie

Three recent events in the world are on my mind this month, which show humans’ inextricable alliance with nature and vulnerability to both natural and man-made environmental disasters. Those events are: the one year anniversary of the War in Ukraine, the earthquake in Syria and Turkey, and the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Anyone who has watched coverage of war-ravaged Ukraine, and now the earthquake zone in Syria and Turkey, was horrified at the sight of collapsed hospitals, schools and apartment buildings. Each day the number of deaths from the earthquakes kept mounting, now past 50,000. After watching the film When spring came to Bacha, shown as part of the College of Wooster’s “Great Decisions” about Ukraine this year, I was struck by the huge amount of destruction to the natural environment caused by the violence of war. In the aftermath of Russian occupation in Bacha, there is a dilemma about what to do with all the dead bodies. In the midst of this, a woman in the film was talking about planting flowers in her yard, because it was early spring, the time of hope. I interpret this as a sure sign of the power of renewal in nature’s seasons and the accompanying beauty to help cope with the horrors of war. God has given us gifts in nature to heal our wounds.

Humans have not yet figured out if there is a way to release the pressure of the Earth’s plates moving in order to prevent catastrophic earthquakes. Nature’s cruelty in this case is beyond our reach. But killing one another in war, imposed by one man’s greed for power, seems senseless and cruel for all the victims involved. Didn’t God create all life on Earth to co-habitate in balance? Animals kill for survival reasons, then stop.  

Another environmental tragedy is the chemical spill from the train derailment in East Palestine, followed by a so-called “controlled burn” and release of toxic chemicals into the air, soil and water in a populated area. This was previously a treasured natural area, abundant in aquatic animals and fish, plants, birds, trees, insects. Thousands of these lay dead as a result of contact with the chemicals, and the residents of the town still don’t know the long term affects on their own health. This accident (and many others like it) could have been prevented.

If Jesus were here among us, what would he say about this? What would he do?    

Every choice we make individually about how we live in this world does matter to the environment – God’s environment, this Earth God put us on, and our only home. 

Our lives are short. Every day is a chance to do better.

I offer the following resources to check out. Most importantly, don’t forget to talk to others about what you care about in the environment.  

Information:

– Incentives for all to electrify: (With colorful and easy to read graphics, for anyone to access, whether member of CCL or not ) – Learn about the Learn about the IRA’s homeowner electrification and efficiency incentives | Citizens' Climate Lobby

One Earth Film Festival – good documentaries available for free. Starts this weekend. 

https://www.oneearthfilmfest.org/films-az

Definitions and explanations:

What Is a ‘Carbon Footprint’? And 12 Other Climate Buzzwords  https://nyti.ms/3CtP70q

Session Highlights from the February meeting

Session members began a discussion of ways to continue building a strong

membership. We look forward to ongoing conversations.

Eniko reported on positive developments with her Green Card application.

Bill Weiss was re-elected as Financial Secretary and Heather Veney was

re-elected to serve as Treasurer for 2023. Thanks to both for their service!

Benevolence reported another successful soup sale. Thank you to those who

purchased soup for a worthy cause.

March Collection Items

Spaghetti Sauce

Party Crackers (Ritz, Club, etc.)

Syrup

Ready to Serve Soups

Hygiene Items

Deodorant for Men & Women

Small Dish Soaps

Body Wash

Can always use toilet paper and paper towels

March - April

Hospitality & Liturgist

Westminster's worship and fellowship time is an important way to build relationships among all attending. 

We invite you to participate as a liturgist, assistant or provide flowers to decorate our alter. 

If you are able to fill one of these areas, 

please click here to sign up. 

Thank you for your contribution to our worship service.

Public Health Safety Update

WPC Current Status is:  Mask Optional. 

As masks may be required in specific, private areas,

please make note of any exception signage. 

Westminster Church will continue to encourage safe health practices 

and will adjust our guidelines as needed.

Thank you for your understanding and support to keep all of us safe.