After a series of delays that left us watching Jerry Springer in the Houston airport, John Moore and I made it to Honduras. Bill and Susie Briggs, co-Directors of the Walker Center for Global Missions in Boston, picked us up at the airport in San Pedro Sula and drove us to Yoro, a hot and dusty town located in the mountainous north-central part of Honduras. On our way we saw work crews continuing their post-Hurricane Mitch reconstruction of roads and bridges.
We visited the two communities in which the Walker Center currently sponsors projects: Plan Grande and San Jose de Machigua. Plan Grande is a marginalized indigenous community located on the outskirts of Yoro. San Jose, located further up in the mountains, took us four hours to reach by a footpath that was rather steep in some sections.
In Plan Grande, the Walker Center recently funded the construction of a nutrition center that currently feeds 35 children. In San Jose, the Walker Center is currently funding the construction of a medical center that will be completed in several months. Rather than sending volunteer groups from the US to build these facilities, the Walker Center provides the funding to hire local labor thus providing much needed income to poor families.
Arrangements were made on this trip to send engineers to San Jose to investigate a water project that will make fresh spring water more readily available to the community. Both San Jose and Plan Grande want to introduce new crops into their communities to expand beyond the beans that predominate agriculture in both places. Along with members of the two communities, we met with a non-governmental organization (SEDETESO) that specializes in agricultural assistance. SEDETESO believes it's possible that San Jose could plant apples, oranges, peaches, avocados and vegetables while Plan Grande could plant avocados, oranges, mangos and vegetables.
It goes without saying that these projects cost money. The clinic in San Jose will cost $16,800 by the time it's complete. The Walker Center has raised $10,000 and needs to raise the rest from churches committed to this work. The agricultural projects will cost about $2,800 for six months of technical assistance. A Swiss group may pay half that amount but it still leaves $1,400 and this doesn't include purchasing the actual trees.
In San Jose, John and I were asked if our church, in addition to financially supporting the projects just described, would rebuild a house for the poorest family in the community. A widow with several children, including an undernourished infant, currently inhabits the house. Rebuilding the house will cost about $1,300 in materials. If we commit ourselves to this project, we need to raise the money in advance and send it to our Honduran contact, Cristobal Vasquez Cabrera, a builder who oversees the various projects. The community would build most of the house before rainy season begins in July. Our summer group would complete the house. Depending on the need and the weather, our group may also take soil samples and deliver them to a lab for the agricultural project.
There is much more I could say about the trip beyond this brief description of the various projects. I came away feeling excited about the prospects of working once again in Honduras. I don't want to speak for John, but he seemed pretty pumped up with enthusiasm as well. The next step for our church is to decide what kind of commitment we want to make to these various projects, begin to raise money, and plan for the summer trip. On May 12 after worship, John and I will offer a program offering a lot more detail about our trip, the projects and the people we met. Adios!
MAY WORSHIP SCHEDULE
May 5, Sixth Sunday of Easter, 11:00 am
Acts of the Apostles 17: 21-31
John 14: 15-21
In the passage from Acts, we find Paul preaching to the council in Athens. Paul calls attention to the Athenian altar to an "Unknown God," teaching that this unknown God is none other than the one true God, the God who does not live in shrines built by humans but the God within whom all humans live. In the passage from John, we read the words Jesus shares with his disciples before he is captured and killed. He tells them their continued relationship with him after his death is dependent on their love and the fulfillment of his teaching. If they love as he has loved, they will know Jesus through the Spirit of truth that he promises will live among and within them.
May 12, Seventh Sunday of Easter, 11:00 am
Honduras Project Presentation After Worship
Acts 1: 6-14
John 17: 1-11
In the passage from Acts, we read the account of Jesus Christ's ascension. After the ascension, the disciples and some women return to the city of Jerusalem and pray "with one heart." In the passage from John's gospel, Jesus prays for his disciples before his death, asking that they may know eternal life and that they "may be one" just as God and Jesus are one.
May 19, Pentecost Sunday, 11:00 am
Guest Speaker: Steve Bewsey From Project Phase/LifeWorks
Acts of the Apostles 2: 1-21
In the passage from Acts, we read the account of the Holy Spirit appearing like mighty wind and tongues of fire. All who are filled with the Holy Spirit begin speaking in tongues and those who hear them believe they are drunk. Peter says this is a fulfillment of God's promise spoken by the prophet Joel: "I will pour out my spirit on all people." On Pentecost Sunday, we celebrate the birth and ministry of the Christian Church. Our guest speaker, Steve Bewsey, from Project Phase/LifeWorks, will speak on one of our church's most pressing challenges--our response to the homeless youth in our area.
May 26, First Sunday after Pentecost, Trinity Sunday, 11:00 am
II Corinthians 13: 11-13
Matthew 28: 16
In the passage from Paul's letter to Corinth, Paul concludes with a blessing that communicates a Trinitarian view of God as Lord Jesus Christ, God and Holy Spirit. In the passage from Matthew's Gospel, we read the account of Jesus Christ's final appearance in that Gospel. The risen Christ instructs the disciples to make disciples of all the nations and reassures them that he will be with them until the end of time.
WELCOME OUR NEW ADMINISRATIVE ASSISTANTçIf you have the chance, stop by the church office some week day morning to welcome Trish Karli, our new Administrative Assistant. Trish has worked as an Office Secretary at the Lutheran Seminary Program in the Southwest in Austin, and she's volunteered in the office at First English Lutheran Church here in the University Area. Trish comes to us highly recommended by her former employers who say she is very friendly and extremely well organized. So stop in and say "hi Trish!"
EASTER THANKS
I would like to thank everybody who helped make Holy Week and Easter a truly meaningful time. The Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services were well attended and moving. The Easter Sunrise Service gathered over 300 people on top of Mt. Bonnell. Thanks to all who organized this celebration of new life, from the folks who fixed and put up the signs, to the folks who hung posters all over the place, to the folks who brought donuts and hot chocolate, to the folks who reserved and lugged all the heavy equipment up the hill, to the folks who played instruments and sang solos, to the folks who came and celebrated God's triumph over fear and death. The day culminated with the celebration of communion in our sanctuary as it burst in bloom with beautiful Easter Lilies. --Tom
RETREAT FOLLOWUP
On April 5 to 7, we held our all-church retreat at Slumber Falls with the main program offered on Saturday. The program focused on discerning God's will for our personal lives and for our church life. In the morning session, Tom offered several resources and encouraged the participants to consider writing their own personal vision or mission statements, statements that articulate their experience of God's call for their lives. This spiritual discipline helps us remain focused and intentional in our ministry and life's vocation. In the afternoon session, Tom offered several methods that churches can use to discern God's will for their life and mission together, methods intended to lead the church to concrete and tangible action plans. This elicited a good discussion on previous visioning processes at our church: what worked in the past, what didn't work in the past, what we need to do this time around, and what we don't need to do this time around. The general consensus was that we need a visioning process that will energize us rather than exhaust us, and that we want to end up with concrete, tangible and achievable action plans and goals.
For the next step, Tom will convene a meeting of those members committed to crafting a vision process for our church. They'll review the retreat and construct the vision process they believe will be most helpful for our church. As the vision process develops and takes shape, more information will be shared. The goal is to maximize our church's ability to discern and translate God's will into powerful and effective Christian ministry.
THE "ADOPT MT. BONNELL" MINISTRY
You've no doubt heard of "Adopt A Highway." Well why not adopt a mountain? Not just any old mountain, but Austin's beautiful Mt. Bonnell, site of our annual Easter Sunrise Service. Vic Appel got the idea (perhaps an inspiration from God while singing Morning Has Broken) and pursued it with the Austin Parks Department. On April 17, Vic, Tommie Pinkard and Tom VandeStadt met with Max Moore from the Parks Department. Mr. Moore was very supportive of the idea. If we provide volunteers from our church to pick up litter and to plant climate appropriate plants in the planters, the Parks Department will provide equipment like bags and fertilizer. They will also offer on-site safety instructions the day of the clean up. Litter will be picked up only in areas designated as "safe-to-reach," like the top of the mountain and the area along the steps. We will not rappel down the side of the mountain to pick up garbage from the ravines. Furthermore, Vic is looking into placing a sign near Mt. Bonnell that will announce that the Congregational Church of Austin, UCC, has adopted Mt. Bonnell. A space on the sign will indicate when the next clean up date is and invite people to join us.
The Trustees, Building and Grounds Committee and Deacons have all endorsed this new ministry. Now it's time for the Congregation to vote on the proposal. A brief Congregational Meeting will be held after worship on May 5th to vote on the Adopt Mt. Bonnell ministry. A clean up date has been scheduled with the Parks Department for Saturday, May 18. During this first clean up, we'll see how many volunteers we can get from our church, how much work is really involved, how long the clean up takes, and whether we need to elicit the support of another church. Please be in church to vote on the 5th. On the 18th, please help us clean up the mountain on which we celebrate Christ's resurrection.
NEW DIRECTORY IN THE WORKS
The new Church Directory is currently in the works! Mary Sinclair is compiling all the names, addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses for members and friends. Please check your listing for the current directory. If there are any changes that need to be made, please give them to Mary when you see her in church or send them to her via e-mail (msinclair@Austin.rr.com). Thanks for following up on this. And thanks Mary!!
LIFEWORKS FOOD PANTRY NEEDS CANNED FOOD
Our Building and Grounds crew, including our custodian and jack-of-all-trades, Jay Harris, has been hard at work sprucing up "the Cave" over the past few months. Tom has been kidding Vic Appel and Jay that the bright whites and blues make it look more like a Greek restaurant than a cave. Anyway, it's much improved. LifeWorks, now holding their Friday afternoon drop-in program in the Appel Room, would like to begin stocking their food pantry in the room we've designated for that purpose in the Cave (or La Casa de Souvlaki--a nice Greek-Mex flair). LifeWorks would like canned fruits, vegetables, chili and soup, preferably with the easy pull-off top. LifeWorks does not prepare a meal at our church but they do want to start distributing canned food. Please bring these types of canned food to church on Sundays for your food offering and we'll use them to help stock the LifeWorks pantry.
THURSDAY EVE BIBLE REFLECTION
We continue to offer our Thursday evening Bible Reflection at 7:30. This is an informal gathering in which everybody is invited to participate. We use a lectio divinas format, which stresses the use of a passage from scripture to reflect on our own lives. The goal is to delve deeply into the scriptural text as a means of delving deep into the text of our own lives. Please consider attending a session if you have not already.
WE CELEBRATE WITH CORLISS GASPARI, LICENSED MINISTER
The Brazos Association of the United Church of Christ recently approved Corliss Gaspari as a Licensed Minister. Corliss, a graduate of Austin Seminary and a Deacon of our church, is now authorized to administer the sacraments of the church and to perform other ministerial duties. We celebrate with Corliss as she continues to respond to God's call in her life through Christian ministry. We offer our support as she pursues ordination within the United Church of Christ.BRAZOS ASSOCIATION SPRING MEETING
The Brazos Association Spring Meeting will take place on Sunday, May 5, 3 pm at Rolling Hills Community Church in Lago Vista. Registration begins at 2:30, to be followed by a short worship service featuring the different styles of music offered at the Rolling Hills Church. The business portion of the meeting will follow the worship. The church will provide an informal dinner of sandwiches and snacks after the business meeting. You are invited to stay for a musical program from the church's Faith and Fine Arts Concert Series which begins at 7 pm. Please sign the Brazos Association sign-up sheet in Fellowship Hall if you are planning to attend the meeting.
39th ANNUAL MEETING, SOUTH CENTRAL CONFERENCE
The 39th Annual Meeting of the South Central Conference, United Church of Christ, will be held in Corpus Christi, Texas, from Friday, June 7 to Sunday June 9. The event will be held at the Omni Corpus Christi Hotel Marina Towers. Saturday's banquet will be held at the Texas State Aquarium.
The theme for the gathering will be "Faith on the Move," and UCC President and General Minister, Dr. John Thomas, will offer the keynote address. Workshops will be offered in the areas of stewardship, church web-page creation, Christian education and church growth. If you would like to attend the Annual Meeting this year, please sign up in the Fellowship Hall and Tom will give you the information you need. The registration deadline is May 30. The deadline for insuring the Conference's group rate at the Omni Hotel is May 16.
PERSONALS
by Catherine Huibbs
Sarah Bentley and Bob Breihan are buying a house west of Austin, off Cuernavaca Road. They are delighted to have almost an acre of land, which allows for a long-time dream of building a guest house for private retreats.
Tom, Robin and Alex thank everyone who helped us move to our new home. Our new Home Address is: 12607 Andromeda Cove, Austin, Texas 78727
MAY BIRTHDAYS
2 Louise Froelich
3 Joyce Sinclair
4 Stephen Luna
6 Fran Briggs
11 Mel Oakes
13 Florence Castle
15 Jim Tomasek
16 Mary Charles Williams
18 Craig Headley
22 Julia Kato Kaneda
23 Heather Cole Fernandez
Ben White
26 Matthew Wilding
29 Matthew Tomasek
30 Kathleen Hawes-Domingue
31 Louise Whitworth
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