From Pastor Nick

Greetings,

Public gatherings for worship will be suspended indefinitely.  

I do not know when public worship will continue. However, I will follow the advice of our health officials.

When it is safe for us together for worship, I would like to combine both services for at least that Sunday. I will work with our Sunday school teachers to factor in how/if they would like to hold Sunday school at that time. When that date and time come— I will communicate it through our leadership.

I pray that you are all doing well. My family is well. However, my sister and her husband are under quarantine in Niagara Falls and my mother-in law has decided not to come to NY for Easter. I am overwhelmed with being a kindergarten and second grade teacher as I help to steady my kids world.

Our Divide and Conquer teams will still be checking in with you each week to see how you are doing.

(The building will remain open to allow the Food Pantry and Community Kitchen to still operate.) LeAnn will work from home most days but will have access to email and the phone will be transferred to her home so she has access to your phone call and the answering machine.

Thank you for your understanding and grace as we navigate these uncharted waters.  If there is pastoral need or you have questions please don’t hesitate to ask.

Greetings,

“When is an ending not an ending?” once asked Norman Petersen. The question is not as random as it may first appear. In the last pages of Mark’s gospel an editorial note states, “The earliest manuscripts and some other ancient witnesses do not have Mark 16:9-20.” The most reliable manuscripts of Mark’s gospel conclude, ‘Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid” (16:8). In other words, Mark’s original ending stops in mid-sentence and fails to provide an appearance of our Risen Lord. Such an observation may be unsettling at first, but I think requires of us to ponder, “When is an ending not an ending?”

Lamar Williamson, Jr., a New Testament scholar wrestling with Petersen’s question while studying the gospel of Mark answered, “When a dead man rises from the tomb—and when a Gospel ends in the middle of a sentence.” The strange ending of Mark’s gospel has held to much debate. Without getting too deep into the muck and mire of the history of biblical interpretation, I venture to suggest that Mark intended his version of the Easter story to end this way and that the Early Church did not need to add an appendix (Mark 16:9-20) to smooth the gospel’s ending.

In the original ending of Mark, we discover three moves that occur. In vv.1-4, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome come to the tomb. We find in vv. 5-7, a young man in the tomb who gives them a message, and in v.8 we are told the women leave the tomb. However, even Mark’s original ending provides us the core message of Easter when he writes, “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here” (Mark 16:6).

The gospel of Mark moves quickly to get us to this moment in history. For example, Mark doesn’t bother to tell us about Jesus’ birth. He barely lets us know that Jesus had been tempted in the wilderness. Mark’s gospel provides the bare bones of Jesus’ teachings and parables. However, Mark’s gospel is light on many of the details the other gospels give us. I think Mark does this on purpose. Mark doesn’t simply want us to know about Jesus, as if we have him all figured out. Rather, Mark wants us struggle to keep up with Jesus who is always on the move, to use our time wisely getting to know Jesus and growing deeper as his disciple. I believe Mark could have reported that first Easter in a myriad of ways but wants us to know that Mark 16:1-8 is not the end. We are invited to explore the tomb and embody the emotions of surrounding that first Easter. The goal as I see it, is not merely to receive an appearance of our Risen Lord as we stand within the tomb looking out, but to continue to encounter Jesus in our own “Galilee.”

I would like to invite you into the sacred drama of Holy Week, April 9^th – April 12^th. On Holy Thursday, April 9^th @ 7pm we will reenact the meal when Jesus washed his disciples’ feet. On Good Friday, April 10^th at noon we will leave from Moore Park to retrace the footsteps of Jesus to his death. On Holy Saturday is a day we continue to reflect on Jesus’ words, life, and death. On Easter Sunday, April 12^th, we gather in Gibbs Parlor @ 8:30am and 10:45am in the Sanctuary to celebrate the ending that is not an ending—the resurrection of Jesus Christ through triumphant hymns, awe-inspired moments of silence, corporate prayer, the reading and proclamation of the Easter message, and decorating the cross with cut flowers (flowers will be provided). Your presence would be a blessing.

Easter Blessings,

Nicholas Perry, Pastor

Tentative

Sunday, April 5 – Palm Sunday – Communion

8:30 – Worship in Gibbs Parlor

9:45 Sunday School

10:45 – Worship in Sanctuary

Holy Thursday, April 9 – 7:00 PM

Combined service with Hurlbut Church at Westfield

Good Friday—April 10—Way of the Cross

Noon— Moore Park

Easter Sunday, April 12

8:30 Service

10:45 Worship

  March 18^th, 2020

Greetings,

            I want to provide an update about our church and its activities. On Sunday March 22^nd, and Sunday March 29^th public gatherings of worship will be canceled (including Sunday School and Bible Study). We are heeding the advice of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Federal, State, Local government officials, and our denominational leaders. We will publish further updates of closures and re-openings through text message, email, church webpage, and Facebook postings. The church office will remain open during the week to help coordinate the needs of our congregation and wider community with pastoral support.

            A Sunday message will be provided on our church’s Facebook and webpage. In addition, there will be PowerPoint slides containing prayers, Scripture readings, lyrics to hymns, and links to music videos. Fortunately, many have already accessed previous Sunday messages when they were unable to attend Sunday worship.

            The people of our congregation come from a rich history. As Methodists, our days began with the use of circuit riders. A circuit rider was minister who traveled often by horseback in large loops around the country. This meant that the folks that established our congregation would go a month or more before the preacher rode back into town. Historically, this was a season of spiritual awakening and revival as congregations deepened their faith in Christ through personal prayer, the reading of Scripture, and the singing the songs of our common faith. Today is an invitation to return to the basics of our faith and to reclaim the rich heritage to which we belong.

            As Christians, we are all seeking God’s direction during this time of uncertainty. I want us to continue to listen for God’s voice. Perhaps, we can find meaningful ways as our earliest members to celebrate the hope we have in Christ and to make a difference for God’s Kingdom in our community. While we will not be holding public worship in church for the next two Sundays, it is a good reminder that the church is not a building; the church is a people. Please find creative and healthy ways of being the church: call upon one another with prayer requests, wrestle with Scripture together, share a prepared meal with a neighbor, etc.

The Community Food Kitchen at this moment will be serving take-out meals for their clients. The Community Food Pantry is operating without folks having to enter the building.  The Appleseed Pre-School is following in the footsteps of our school system and are closed until further notice. All church activities are canceled until the end of March.

The church office is open, and we are ready to serve and meet the ends of our congregation and community. Pastor Nick will continue to provide pastoral care during this time. Please be in communication with friends, family, neighbors, and church members. Let us know of any needs where we may be able to assist. There is no honor in staying open and there is no shame in closing. However, when church services are canceled folks tend to forget to continue to support the church through their giving. Please continue to send your gifts, tithes, and offerings to support the ministry and our beloved church employees. It is our responsibility to support both our congregation and its employees during this time.

There are a lot of unknowns. However, we must continue to trust in God and work together for a better tomorrow. If you have questions and/or concerns, please contact Pastor Nick or the church office. 

                                                                                                Blessings,

                                                                                                Nicholas Perry, Pastor

                                                                                                Office: (716) 326-3243

 

Greetings,

The tomb was empty; the body was gone. In the wonderful book The Undoing of Death author Fleming Rutledge announces, “all four Gospels report this [faith claim.]” There are many discrepancies between the gospels; Luke tells of Jesus’ birth in the small town of Bethlehem, Mark offers no birth narrative. In the gospel of Matthew Jesus helplessly laments on the cross, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken me” (Matthew 27:46)  but in the gospel of John Jesus fully in control offers stage directions to his mother and the disciple whom he loved from the cross saying, “Dear woman, here is your son, here is your mother” (John 19:27). Nonetheless, among the beautiful and rich variety contained among the gospel all state emphatically, the tomb was empty; the body was gone.

Read more…

“For nothing will be impossible with God.”

 (Luke 1:37)

In his Advent devotional, Why This Jubliee? James Howell remarks, “God comes to people who aren’t seeking God at that moment.” This holds true for Mary living in Nazareth two-thousand years ago. Mary’s story has played in the lives of women and men since the dawn of creation of two people “pledged to be married” (Luke 1:26). So far, there is nothing out of the ordinary. In fact, we have a handful of upcoming weddings already on the church calendar for the coming year.

This marks Howell’s words as notable, “God comes to people who aren’t seeking God at that moment.” As a society we spend little time “seeking God” during the Advent season. Much of our time is trying to find that “holiday spirit” through movies, music, and Christmas parties. Dragging out the years of accumulated decorations we beautify our homes and our church. We do our part of driving around town admiring the Christmas lights, baking and eating sweets, or trying to decide which gift to buy for a difficult relative. The moments pile up like a snow drift; Christmas comes and goes, and the next thing we know we are dragging, as are our neighbors, the tree to the curb.

It is refreshing to know that “God comes to people who aren’t seeking God at the moment.” This is what happens to Mary who is doing the typical things to prepare for a first Century Jewish wedding in Galilee. God comes to Mary through the angel Gabriel, she is “greatly troubled” by the angel’s announcement:

Don’t be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end (Luke 1:30-33).

Mary questions, “How will this be” (1:34)?  After all, she never submitted a multipage resume of her spiritual accomplishments or a curriculum vitae (C.V.). Mary doesn’t exactly apply for the job the angel handed to her. It’s the question that we all must ask. How is it that we bear not just a child but this child? God chooses the unlikely, a virgin to give birth to Jesus. God chooses unlikely people today “who aren’t seeking God at the moment.” The angel answers Mary’s deep question with a profound response,

The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God…For nothing is impossible with God (Luke 1:35;37).

This Advent and Christmas seasons, it is my prayer that you encounter the God who throughout history has made the impossible possible: uttering the world into existence, granting a child to an elderly and barren couple, parting the Red Sea, calming stormy seas, healing the sick, and raising Jesus from the dead nearly two-thousand years ago on that first Easter, to filling the church with the gift of the Holy Spirit. In your disbelief or shock may you respond in obedient faith as Mary who made herself available to the God who makes the impossible possible, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said” (Luke 1:38).

Blessings,

Nicholas Perry, Pastor

Advent Schedule

December 10 – 2^nd Sunday of Advent

7pm – Bible Study

5:30 pm – Evening Family Worship

December 17 – 3^rd Sunday of Advent

Children will sing during 10:45 Service

5:30 pm – Evening Family Worship

7pm – Bible Study

December 24 – 4^th Sunday of Advent – Cantata

Combined 10 am service (No Sunday School)

December 24 – 7pm Candle light Service

NO – 5:30 pm – Evening Family Worship

Christmas Week

Office closed December 25

Open 9 -3 on Dec 26

Open 9 – noon on December 27, 28, 29

December 31 – combined 10 am Fireside Service (No Sunday School)

NO – 5:30 pm – Evening Family Worship

Office closed January 1, 2018