A just and righteous man once entered a town filled with corrupt and unrighteous people. The butchers put their thumbs on the scales when weighing the chops. Store clerks intentionally shortchanged their customers who in turn routinely stole merchandise. Young men and women drank, cussed and fought in the taverns while little boys and girls cheated on their schoolwork. A general pall of sour nastiness hung over the town.
The just and righteous man began walking through the streets of the town shouting out: "Repent!" Turn your lives around! Become just and righteous! In response, the people threw rotten tomatoes and cabbage at him. They set their snarling dogs upon him and mocked him with indecent words and gestures.
But the man hung in there. "Repent!" he called out day after day as he walked through the streets and alleys of the town. "Change your ways! Become just and righteous! Repent!" The people continued to pelt him with rotten produce. Children taunted him and dogs lifted their leg on him. But the man persisted.
After several weeks the people grew tired of the man. They stopped hurling objects and abuse at him. The dogs left him alone. He continued walking up and down their streets calling them to repent and become just, but they simply ignored him and went on living their nasty sour lives.
One day, while the man was walking down a street shouting his message, a young girl approached him and said, "Mr. crazy man, we used to throw stuff at you when you first started walking around our town. We used to make our dogs bite you but now we just ignore you. How come you keep walking through our town yelling?"
The man replied, "Well, at first I wanted to save you. I wanted you to become just and righteous. But now I do it to save myself. I do it so that I won't become like you."
This old Hasidic tale offers some good food for thought and Lenten reflection. I can identify with both sides of the story, each of which I find present in my own life. Like the nasty folks in town, I too need to repent of my sin yet I resist or ignore the call to do so. Like the solitary man walking the streets, I long to transform the world into a just and righteous place, yet find myself struggling simply to resist conforming to its ways.
Our Christian faith reveals that we are a complex bundle of paradoxes. We are the ones who continuously need to be forgiven, transformed and reconciled yet we are the ones called to be agents of forgiveness, transformation and reconciliation. Christ calls us to be deeply immersed in the world yet not to be like the world.
In Lent, we delve deeply into the complex and disconcerting paradoxes of our lives and faith. We struggle to strengthen our commitment to participate in God's liberated and liberating reign of shalom while we confess that we are deeply entangled and implicated in messy relational webs of injustice and violence. We long to be a new creation while we resist the necessary transformation.
We deny the paradox of life - the paradox of our desire for shalom and our participation in injustice when we claim only the righteous side of the equation for ourselves and acknowledge only the nasty side of our enemy. We see this happening in our national life right now as some of our leaders simplistically divide the world into good and evil. In their view, we are the personification of good and they are the "evil doers." The other side does the same to us.
Lent is the time for us to experience and confess the tension of our life and faith. We long to follow Jesus Christ but we're afraid to pick up the cross. We desire shalom but we resist the necessary transformation. We're all created good but we all participate in evil. This is our life until the Kingdom comes, and I believe confessing this is a prerequisite to life in the Kingdom
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SET FOR APRIL 5-7
SPRING RETREAT
We're all set to head down to Slumber Falls again for our spring all-church retreat. Last fall we focused on spirituality and prayer. This time around we're going to focus on vision and ministry. A number of folks have expressed an interest and a need to begin a serious and well-focused vision process for our church to discern where God is calling us. Tom will be sharing a few different discernment/visioning models with the hope that a group will then emerge to plan and implement a vision process at our church. Please plan on participating. Slumber Falls will be beautiful, the food delicious and the company even better!
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Honduras Summer Mission Trip
In Early Planning Stages
A number of folks at our church have expressed an interest in participating in or supporting a mission trip to Central America this summer. We met in late January to discuss several options and decided to pursue some possibilities in Honduras. Tom was involved with a grass-roots development project in Honduras through the New York Conference and knows of another project currently being supported by the Walker Center for Global Mission in Boston. Tom, possibly joined by John Moore, will travel to Honduras in early April with the two co-directors of the Walker Center to investigate our involvement with the project and to plan for a larger group to travel to Honduras this August. The hope is that we can develop a long-term relationship with a community and make annual trips.
BLOODMOBILE
AT THE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH OF AUSTIN
SUNDAY, MARCH 10TH NOON - 4:00PM
"GIVE AN ARMFUL"
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NEW CHURCH DIRECTORY
IN PROGRESS
We are working toward a new church directory. Please help us out by checking working copy in the Fellowship Room, updating, correcting, making any changes that you wish to be in the directory. Especially, check your fax and e-mail, giving an easily, readable, copy.
T H A N K S !
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HAVE YOU MET THESE PERSONS?
(SEEN FREQUENTLY AMONG US)
Paul Pendleton
Natalie Rooney
Ken Harker
Jennifer Sims
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PLANNING AHEAD:
AUSTIN AREA INTERRELIGIOUS MINISTRIES SPRING EVENT 2002
HANDS ON HOUSING in ROSEWOOD NEIGHBORHOOD
APRIL 20-21
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED TO HELP IN:
Repairs ranging from painting to replacing a roof or vinyl floor. Where else could you have so much fun while doing good for your neighbors. in need.
(Substandard Housing is NOT an option)
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REGULAR SUNDAY WORSHIP IN MARCH
March 3, Third Sunday in Lent, 11:00 am
Psalm 95
John 4: 5-42
Psalm 95 is a processional hymn that moves from praising the God of creation to a reminder that the ancestors who traveled through the wilderness years earlier tested God with their inability to grasp God's ways. In John's Gospel, we read of Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well. This lesson, loaded with rich symbolism, shows Jesus offering the enemies of Jesus' people the gift of God's living spirit. We'll focus on the theme of hospitality as Jesus reaches across a boundary to welcome a stranger into God's fold.
March 10, Fourth Sunday in Lent, 11:00 am
Psalm 23
John 9: 1-41
Psalm 23 expresses deep gratitude for God's faithful presence and undying love. In John's Gospel, Jesus heals a man blind from birth. This raises a big commotion as the authorities and the healed man debate whether or not Jesus is a sinner for healing on the Sabbath or a man of God because of his ability to heal in the first place. The authorities eject the healed man for confessing his faith that Jesus is a man of God. Jesus finds him and reveals that he is the Son of man. We'll look at sight and blindness as metaphors for discerning God, and reflect on the consequences of confessing Jesus as the Christ.
March 17, Fifth Sunday in Lent, 11:00 am
Psalm 130
John 11: 1-45
Psalm 130, a Psalm of repentance, overflows with a theme of hope and God's faithful love. In John's Gospel, Jesus is summoned to the deathbed of his friend Lazarus where he raises the man from the dead. Besides Martha and Mary, many believe in Jesus after witnessing this, but the authorities determine that Jesus must die. This passage is incredibly rich in that it highlights Jesus' humanity through his weeping, his spiritual power through his raising Lazarus from the dead, and the growing plot to kill him.
HOLY WEEK WORSHIP
March 24, Palm/Passion Sunday, 11:00 am
Mark 11: 1-11
Mark 11: 12-19
Just as the eagle is a symbol for our nation, the palm was a symbol for the Jewish nation. It represented the hopes and dreams of a liberated nation free from the oppressive rule of foreigners, a nation ruled by a King who would institute God's justice and righteousness. After the Romans invaded Judea and burned Jerusalem, they minted coins featuring a broken palm to signify they had broken the will of the Jewish people. The gospels portray Jesus processing into Jerusalem with a palm-waving jubilant crowd yelling "save us." In our worship, we'll reflect on this event as well as Jesus' ministry and impending death in Jerusalem.
March 28, Maundy Thursday, 7:30 pm
Maundy Thursday commemorates the last command (mandatum) that Jesus gives his disciples: love one another as I have loved you. It also commemorates the last meal Jesus shares with his disciples, Jesus' washing of the disciples' feet as a symbol of service, Jesus' prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, Judas' betrayal, Jesus' arrest and Peter's denial in the High Priest's courtyard. In our worship, we'll reflect on these events, particularly the last meal and Peter's denial. We'll begin by sharing the communion meal in the sanctuary and then move out to our church courtyard to reflect on Peter's denial.
March 29, Good Friday, 7:30 pm
Good Friday commemorates Jesus' suffering and death on the cross. In our worship, we'll reflect on the impact of Jesus' death on our own lives as well as the continued presence of crosses in today's world. We'll include the crosses you have brought and placed in our sanctuary in our reflections and prayers.
March 31, Easter Sunday Sunrise 6:20 am, Mt. Bonnell
Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We'll gather in one of Austin's most beautiful sites to celebrate the risen son with praise, prayer and song. Join us to greet the dawn of a new day and the promise of a new creation.
March 31, Easter Sunday Holy Communion, 11:00 am
We'll continue our Easter Sunday celebration of Christ's resurrection and God's triumph over the power of death in our sanctuary with a service of praise, prayer and song. We'll include the celebration of Holy Communion at this service as we seek to share the new life the risen Christ offers each one of us.
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MARCH BIRTHDAYS TO CELEBRATE
14 - Margit Frances Briggs
15 - Clark Hubbs
Jay Harris
Mary Sinclair
22 - Kristin Galle Hampton
26 - John Towery
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P E R S O N A L S
by Catherine Hubbs
As it is being written on the evening of February 26, the freezing wind has given way to plummeting temperatures which remind Catherine and Clark of their introduction to Texas in 1949: "When the north wind blows in Amarillo, there's nothing between Texas and the North Pole but a barb wire fence." The same might be said of Austin. We are so grateful to Tom and Craig, the whole Freeze Night Committee and its organizers and hope to work with others in the community to provide more adequate shelter for the young homeless.
Corliss Gasparri has been pronounced cancer free! The only part of her that had not been x-rayed was her head, and when she began worrying that her memory is not as good as it once was, she was given an MRI. Mary Sinclair went with her and is happy to report that what she has is a brain and not much else up there. Congratulations, Corliss!
Rizer Everett and his daughter, Dot, made the most of a recent four-day visit from Albuquerque. The spent four delightful hours in the Bullock History of Texas Museum, ending with an I-Max film about dolphins. One of Rizer's neighbors took them on an interesting tour of the historical section of San Marcos, ending with a fine luncheon at a local restaurant. Dot helped Rizer cull several boxes of books they donated to the Austin library, and after she left, Rizer took three boxes of household items to Goodwill.
Savanna Sharpe shocked Catherine by answering her e-mail from New York City, where she is not Regional Vice President, Greystar Management Services. She writes: "a promotion, a relocation, a new place to live, a new church, new friends, new co-workers. I am happy to report most of the experiences have been better than my wildest dreams. I miss the Church that gave me roots in my spirituality....but pray for a continuing bond. Thank you all for such open affirming acceptance extended to me and my extended family." She is attending First Congregational Church of Washington, CT, whose pastor is Cheryl Anderson. It's small like ours, and they have made her feel right at home. She misses us and hopes to stay in touch. Her e-mail is the same, and her new address is: 8 Keeler Rd., Bridgewater, CT 06752 (860) 335-0224.
Having been away two weeks, Catherine was charmed to discover that an extra step and a handrail have been added at the church entrance to the Towery wing. Thank you, Vic Appel, the Building and Grounds Committee, and our custodian, Jay Harris. The old step, which used to seem quite easy when she was young, has been getter higher each year. And the handrail is a great help. A number of us thank you!
Pat Oakes reports that two members of our church recently brought Black History Month to life at St. Andrews School. In chapel services Jim Tomasek recounted his having been present and near the front of the audience massed at the Lincoln Monument when Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his "I have a Dream" speech. Pat writes: "He ended his speech with the suggestion that the school stand and sing 'We Shall Overcome.' --It was beautiful. Joe McMillan brilliantly tied together the Olympics and Black History Month with seeking the best within oneself and finding the 'fire within.' He also impressed the students with the fact that his Howard University fraternity organized a meeting in Washington, D.C. that featured both Martin Luther King, Jr. and Cassisus Clay (yes, the students knew that he is now Muhammed Ali) and that he knew them both."
Vic Appel is back from the East Coast, where he visited daughter Debbie and son-in-law Bob Knowlton and participated in the christening of granddaughter Emily Grace. The ceremony was held in the Congregational Church in Easton, Massachusetts, where Bob's family worships. Vic said that the minister joyfully carried little Emily Grace in his arms down the aisle to introduce her to everyone, and Emily Grace charmed the entire congregation with smiles.
The Pinkards just returned from a week-long Elderhostel Service Program at Eagle's Nest, a Navaho Reservation in Arizona. They served as teachers' aides in grades three to five. They helped in a special education class, and Tommie taught a reading group and gave a presentation of putting together a magazine. Sounds like a lot of fun, Pinkards!
Clark and Catherine Hubbs are back from Senegal and Mali Memories of a seaside village, beautiful mosques, very poor and friendly natives who tried to teach them to speak Wolof. Yes, they did go to Timbuktu, where the top of the Sahara Desert was blowing into town that day. Some people were wearing face masks against the dust. Clark was concerned that the average rainfall is being reduced dramatically. There is no family planning. A high point was a visit to the Senegalese village where their guide, Dennis Galvan, a political science professor, did his dissertation. He went ahead, giving them provisions for a banquet. They killed a goat and served the feast in huge bowls, from which everyone dipped a portion with their right hand. Dennis hopes to start a foundation to help the village preserve its heritage and serve as a model to provide education for the future.
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