Word from the Pastor

The verse “If God is for us, who can be against us” (Romans 8:31) was embroidered on the parament hanging from the pulpit in the Calvinist Reformed church where I grew up. As we looked up every Sunday, this statement—a rhetorical question really—assured us that with God in our midst, we have nothing to fear. That was not to say that life will be perfect, without hardships. Rather called us to trust that on the sometimes-topsy-turvy roads of life, as we face trying situations and as we experience joy, God is present. We are not alone. It reminded us that this is the promise of our scriptures.

You may know similar snippets of wisdom from this letter, like:

I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation… (1:16)

All things work together for good… (8:28)

Faith comes from what is heard… (10:17)

Depending on our theological perspectives, we may highlight these and similar verses from Romans to encourage, to comfort, to guide, or, in some instances, to pontificate about what Christian life should or should not look like. We may have spent significant time reflecting on the second half of Romans chapter 1 as we discerned what the Spirit has to say about same-sex relations. And we certainly are familiar with Romans 8, for we often hear it at funerals as an assurance that nothing can separate us from the love of God.

Romans scholar Beverly Gaventa* observes that we often travel through this letter like we were on “one of the hop-on, hop-off tourist buses, seeing the same highlights, every time we travel around the circuit. We never notice that we are in a vast metropolitan area.” In other words, we end up using some of these Pauline insights as golden axioms for life. We sometimes turn them into cliches, as one-size-fits-all solutions to problems we face in church, and in life. We easily overlook that in its rich nuances, complexities, even seeming contradictions, Romans presents us with a universal, cosmic horizon of the good news. 

Do you know the adage, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do?” It relates back to at least the time of 4^th century North-African bishop and theologian Augustine of Hippo, and it suggests that we should behave as locals do… try to understand customs, the ways life is conducted. 

So what do we do “when in Romans?” To find out, I invite you to enter with me into the metropolis of Romans during the months of May, as we look toward Pentecost. Instead of being mere tourists there, let us linger in this first epistle recorded in our Bible to see what Paul, this over-zealous disciple of Jesus comes to understand the commission he receives from the Spirit of the Living Christ.

What is this good news that he is called to proclaim to the end of the earth? How did he come to understand that God’s salvation—liberation and transformation of the world into a realm of justice and peace is not an individual affair… nor even one of groups of people (whether the church or ethnic or other groups), but the liberation of the whole created order from the grasp of the powers that Paul calls sin and death.

What do we do “when in Romans…” as 21^st century Christians? I hope you join me on this journey to find out. Let us enter into a conversation through the lens of the Epistle to Romans about what it may mean to live as Easter people.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Enikö

*Beverly Roberts Gaventa, When in Romans: An Invitation to Linger with the Gospel According to Paul (Baker Academic, 2016)

Westminster Book Group

The Westminster Book Group welcomes all! 

We are beginning a new book - My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies by Resmaa Menakem.

Our next meeting will be on 

Thursday, May 25 at 7:00pm.

At this meeting we will cover Chapters 1 through 3.

"The body is where our instincts reside and where we fight, flee, or freeze. My Grandmother's Hands is a call to action for us to recognize that racism is not only about the head, but also about the body. Menakem introduces an alternative view of what we can do to grow beyond our entrenched radicalizes divide and takes readers through a step-by-step healing process based on the latest neuroscience and somatic healing methods."

At our meetings there are no wrong questions. We honor each other by creating space for openness and vulnerability. 

We are meeting online to make it accessible for everyone. Here is the Zoom link for the gathering:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9154265912?pwd=eDQ3TUdUMmxBTGR5aVFNMnJJOWh4UT09

Meeting ID: 915 426 5912

Passcode: 353Pine

Feel free to invite friends. Hope you join us to share about life and faith... 

our passions and struggles!

Saving Nature and our Planet

Starts Here 

Juli Douglass-Gillespie

Jane Goodall calls it the “Resilience of Nature,” one of the four reasons for her Hope that the planet will survive. The other three are: “The Amazing Human Intellect,” “The Power of Young People,” and “The Indomitable Human Spirit.” I highly recommend reading this book, and you will be surprised by Goodall’s optimism as well as pessimism about the way forward, both based strongly in science as well as her reasoned and experienced connection with Nature. Everyone knows of her years of research in the wild, but are perhaps less aware of her non-stop lecturing and creation of programs to connect children and other vulnerable groups to action which will save their future.

Yes, Nature is indeed resilient, and that includes human beings, but that is the part I have trouble with. Especially when yet another IPCC report [the sixth, by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, released in March] gives humanity more startlingly bad news about how large the challenge is, including an urgent timetable to make change happen to avoid the worst consequences of climate change. Did the world pay attention this time, or is it just back to business as usual one day later, as Greta Thunberg declared in disgust? (For an evaluation from the Nature Conservancy, read HERE.) Global warming is in full progress NOW. The consequences of continually emitting too much greenhouse gas into the Earth’s atmosphere are here NOW. Or did you numb yourself to the news of the tornadoes that killed people and wiped out communities last weekend? “Oh well, I’ll pray for those people and ask God to give them courage to rebuild their lives.” “There’s nothing I can do to stop this from happening. My life here in Wooster is still pretty good.” “The scientists, engineers, technicians, and all the smart people will come up with the answers before it’s too late.” “Besides, I’ll be gone before the worst effects happen.” (From Presentation by College of Wooster Professor of Psychology, Dr. Susan Clayton, on Mental Health and Climate Change on March 4, 2023 at Citizens’ Climate Lobby meeting.)

There are so many excuses and rationalizations one can make to zone out on your personal role in climate change. Young people have a harder time with that, of course, since they WILL be around, and it’s pretty darned depressing for them, as you have probably realized through someone in your family.

My reason for writing this piece, month after month, is to try very hard to spur more and more of you to action to participate personally, as God wants us to do, in living our lives in such a way as to break the cycle of out-of-control emissions of greenhouse gasses. That is the key to saving ourselves and all the natural world. Those gasses which are warming our planet come from us – from each order on Amazon, from every trip we make in our car and from the production of our electric cars, from taking down trees in our yards, from the chemicals we spray on weeds and pests, dirty windows and floors, our skin, our crops, from buying endless supplies of plastic products (and that includes just about everything) which are not being recycled (since recycling is largely a myth), from all the To Go containers and masks that clog up our landfills, then pollute the landscape, the rivers, lakes, and oceans and then kill humans as well as

wildlife. The list is endless. We are hooked on every imaginable substance made from fossil fuels, and dangerously on the edge of the point of no return.

What I am suggesting this month is to take a radical look at how you can reduce your carbon footprint in every aspect of your life. No one seems to talk about simply cutting back, which is the most obvious answer to reduction. We can’t just stop all our activities. But the best alternative is to use less, waste less, buy less, re-use all that you can, and cut back drastically on that which you know is harming us and all life (think of plants, animals, insects, humans as being ONE). This is not just about buying electric cars and heat pumps, and installing solar panels on your homes. These are very expensive actions to take, though good ones. But these don’t excuse us from our bad habits as wasteful and destructive consumers in a society that is endlessly pushing us to buy, buy, buy. Take a good look at how much of your life you can change. The article posted HERE called, The Climate Impact of your Neighborhood might also help. (I apologize if you cannot access it from the NYTimes. Please email me if you want and I can gift it to you.)

I have neglected to say until now that we make these radical changes because Jesus taught us to love ourselves and others. God gave us this beautiful planet we call home. It has always been, and will forever be, our responsibility to carry out that plan. By using less and wasting less every day as an act  of love, we can give Nature a chance to be resilient.

Westminster Session Highlights from the April Meeting

Session started a conversation about how to celebrate next year's 150th anniversary of Westminster. Bill Weiss shared some materials from the 50th and 100th anniversaries.

Eniko gave an update on the status of her application for permanent residency. 

Session agreed to rename the Education Committee the Faith Formation Committee. The newly-named committee will include Madeline Fields Halva, Joel Chupp, Julie Gillespie, and Victoria Birk.

Joel shared the story of one of his friends, a homeless man in Wooster who has recently found an apartment in Orrville. He described the need for ongoing support for his friend and others in similar situations. 

We received thank you’s from some members who had received Easter Treats and Birthday Celebrations.

Volunteer Opportunity 

with Open Arms Kids' Camp this summer!

You can volunteer for any single day or as many days (or half-days) as you choose each Wednesday from 9:00 am to 2:00 p.m. in June and July. 

You can choose to be with one of three age groups (pre-school, early elementary or middle school Latino students), and you can choose to help where your interest lies (helping with learning themes: ex. gardening, cooking, dramas, art projects... helping in the kitchen (preparing lunches)... helping with outdoor activities... transportation ... and more). 

If you are interested, email Cheryl Weiss for more information. Helping out with the Kids' Camp is fun and rewarding!

May Collection Items



Food needs:

Spaghetti Sauce

Saltine Crackers

Canned Fruit

Rice or Pasta Sides

Hygiene Items

Dish Soap

Hand Soap

Razors

OneEighty has a need for Level 1 Trained Volunteers

Level 1 positions do not have direct contact with clients or confidential information. These positions require a one-day, 2-hour training and include responsibilities like sorting donations, filing/office work, cleaning, or gardening.

The next Level 1 Training Class will be held in MAY.

Interested? Contact Dwight Sprang, Volunteer Coordinator, at 330-264-8498 for more information.

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.

May - June

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.