March18,
2008
Easter
Sunday, 10:00amWorship
Christ is Risen!
He Is Risen Indeed!
New Folks Join Our Church,
Sudan and Guatemala Sojourners Will Be
Commissioned
After Worship, a Munch and Egg Hunt
St. John’s is the Place to Be!
Maunday Thursday, 6:30pm: Soup and Communion
Good Friday Sunrise Worship and Protest: Laurence Livermore Labs
Where do we go from here? This is Monday of Holy
Week and I find myself a bit tired from yesterday’s worship. We
went from the donkey ride into Jerusalem, with palms and proclamations
of joy and triumph, all the way down to the depth of soul in the Garden
of Gethsemene… in an hour and twenty minutes.
For
the sermon, I borrowed the question from the movie, "The Last
Temptation of Christ": In all those hours in the garden, what was Jesus
saying to, or hearing from God? “He
was deeply troubled,” says the Gospel.
And Jesus repeated three times, “If it be
your will, take this cup from me.”
This
is all we get, but those two lines are pregnant with mystery and
meaning. I didn’t borrow much more from the movie than the
question; it
was so long and boring I fell asleep wishing it would end. The Jesus in the Last
Temptation was too boring for anyone to want to follow.
Anyway, my attempt to play Jesus praying on that
night was both very difficult and very fun.
I was blown away.
I dropped in to pick up our boys yesterday at the
Bennetts, and managed to snag a piece of apple pie in the process. We
talked and laughed a little about the service, about how intense the
whole service was and how first-time visitors might have felt. It
is always nice to have a few church friends who like what is going on,
see the real Spirit of God moving at St. John’s, and yet also
see it as
a very “down home” human enterprise.
Bill asked, “Did you get it on
tape?” He
went on: “Then when someone in the church runs for office
they could
play little snippets on CNN, and the member would have to say,
“Yeah,
Max is like an uncle.”
I love that. It
is funny for both its positive and negative implications. Regardless
of whether I agree with everything I have heard him say, I suspect that
Barack Obama’s minister, Jeremiah Wright doesn’t
mind the controversy
or the comparison to “my uncle who sometimes says things I
don’t agree
with.” I do think the campaign may need a white progressive
theologian
and pastor to help interpret the context of church and preaching for
the broader American audience. No
way you listen
to 45 sermons a year without hearing something strange, controversial,
raw…at least if you have a preacher worth listening to. Unlike
a politician, a minister is not seeking to please the majority, but
hoping to be a reflector for the Word of God which travels through the
height and depth of life. Unlike
a politician
who is striving to be rewarded for merit and (especially an African
American candidate) making the public feel comfortable, sermons are
saved by grace. That
gives us more freedom to face the truth of the dark side, the underside
of society and human life. It
is a risk based on the hope that while Christ is crucified and buried
in a tomb, the stone will be found moved.
“Ye though I walk through the valley of
the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with
me.” The
heart of Jesus is heavy in the garden.
Christ does go to his death.
We are a mess, and God does call us on it.
So, where do we go from here?
To the resurrection celebration.
Christ has risen, and we will sing for joy! God is good, life is
beautiful… and funny. Love
is eternal. Happy
Easter 2008!
Pastor Max
Invite
family and friends
to come to church with you on Easter Sunday
and
stay for the egg hunt on the church lawn after the service. Anyone
wishing to assist the bunny with a contribution of colored eggs may
leave them in the church kitchen on Saturday or before 8:30m Easter
Sunday morning.
It's
spring! Good time
to learn flower arranging at this PrimeTimers event
March
25, 11:00, Sally Clark will do a flower arranging demonstration. She
will bring materials and also use pots made by the ceramics class.
Raffle winner will take home a flower prize.
Applications
for Camp Elmwood.
. .
our
summer outreach program, are available in the narthex and on the church
website. Camp Elmwood for campers ages 5-13 and teen
counselors ages
13-18 is July 28-August 1. Teen Leadership Camp for our teen counselors
is July 21-25. Please help us plan by submitting applications now and
pass on our flyers to friends and neighbors. The teen program is free.
The fee for campers is low and camperships are available as
needed.
The
final Lenten session on the stories of Jesus' resurrection. . .
will
look at John's gospel chapter 20 on Sunday, March 30. following
worship. John is full of surprises as he tells his version of the
events on that fateful Sunday morning so long ago.
St.
John's Organ Concert Sunday, March 30
Come enjoy the
4:00pm recital of organist Susan Matthews, who will treat us to a
performance of J.S.Bach,
Dandrieau, Bryd, Mendelsohn, and Mozart.
Dr.
Matthews is the principal organist at Grace Cathedral and one of the
most distinguished organists in the United States. Plan to stay for the
reception which follows.
Contributions
for the reception are always appreciated.
"Sacred
Space Denied: Bethlehem And The Wall," Sunday Forum, April 6
We'll
watch this special film, which lasts about 20 minutes, and afterwards
Molly McNamara will lead a discussion. The film explores the
expansion
of Israeli settlements, the perspective of Palestinians whose land has
been confiscated, and the limited access to the sacred spaces of
Bethlehem. The narrator is Peter Nagle, a graduate of Yale's
Divinity
School.
Lend
a hand at General Assembly!
It's
nearby this year! Our General Assembly comes to San Jose June 21-28,
and therefore presents an excellent chance to participate in and
witness the workings of the national Presbyterian Church.
It’s time to start getting actively
involved. Go to the COLA (Committee on Local Arrangements for GA)
website - www.pcusa-ga08.org
for a complete, easy-to-use list of job descriptions and for the easy
signup procedure. You can also sign up with your Local Church Contact
(Gail Peterson) or call the COLA office at (408) 286-0927.
Most
shifts are 4 hours and opportunities are available 8am to 8pm every
day. You may sign up for multiple jobs or shifts. There are 1,500 spots
that need to be filled! Choose
something that
looks right for you. There are all sorts of jobs available which
require various amounts of time and different skills. Examples: serving
communion at the big Sunday worship service, setting up before the
event, serving as an "ask me" person giving out information, greeting
at the airport, working in a booth, etc. Besides all there is
to do
and learn at General Assembly, if you volunteer you get to attend GA anytime
(with your volunteer name tag) and not have to pay
the $20 registration fee. Sign
up today!
Easter Sunday is the last day to
sign up for St. John's Annual Retreat, May 2,3,4
How can you pass up a chance to enjoy a
wonderful weekend with
your great church family at the oceanside of Asilomar Conference
Center?!
Contact Linda Bostjanick now
(please)!
Per
Capita Member Payments Are Due
It's
time for St. John's to pay for our share of 2008 ecclesiastical
expenses based on our membership last reported in the Annual
Statistical Report (there is a one-year lag).
The reported membership of St. John's as of 12/31/06
was 140. Each
member owes $27.50
for a total
payment by St. John's of $3,850. The
per capita payment is split as follows:
$16.54 goes to the Presbytery of San Francisco,
$5.17 goes to the Synod of the Pacific and $5.79 goes to General
Assembly. Think of
it as your city, state and federal taxes!
Please write a check to St. John's and write "Per
Capita Tax" on your check. You
may drop it in the offering plate or mail it to the church to the
attention of Elisay Digiuseppe. We
would greatly appreciate it if you would pay $27.50 per member in your
household. Thank
you!!
Thus ends this
issue of the St. John's Newsletter
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