No Turning Back. March Newsletter. Resources. Pastor David Tatgenhorst 568 Montgomery Ave

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1 Pastor David Tatgenhorst 568 Montgomery Ave Resources The pastor recommends the music of Carrie Newcomer, a folk singer from Indiana. Her new album is The Point of Arrival. Newcomer is a Quaker and often works together with Parker Palmer - on podcast and presentations. Her music is beautiful and spiritual in a down to earth, accessible way. She writes songs about every day occurrences and feelings, then she adds meaning and music often adds transcendence. Also, 74 Seconds to Judgment a play at the Arden which is only playing until March 3rd. Written by local playwright Kash Goins, this premiere production hits hard. He was inspired to write after the killing of Philando Castille in Minneapolis. Stay for the discussion afterwards if you possibly can. Spiritual Retreat Friday- Saturday, Mar. 15th-16th 5:30 pm, Friday to 3:30 pm Saturday Please reserve the time. From Pastor David No Turning Back UM Bishops called the 2019 General Conference of the United Methodist Church to find a way forward around the issue of inclusion of LGBT+ folks in our denomination, particularly in regard to equal rights to marry and to be ordained. The church has been roiled over this issue since 1972 when we took the unfortunate action of putting discriminatory language in our Book of Discipline. This General Conference failed by a small margin (about 60 out of a hundred votes) to take the way forward offered to it. This action is disheartening and will have unacceptable consequences for continuing discrimination against LGBT+ people. We cannot sugarcoat the damage to the lives of people who have been marginalized and dehumanized in our society and explicitly by the church. The United Methodist Church risks splitting and losing members and certainly losing prestige and authority by taking this kind of action. The action is indefensible. At the same time, I find myself finding ways to have some hope. The action is forcing people who have been relatively silent to find their voices and to be more forthright in their defense of our children and members of our churches, understanding what is at stake for the future of the moral authority of the church. The actions of General Conference are already being challenged in our Judicial Council. Some of the tenets of the Traditional Plan that was passed were already declared unconstitutional, and the Judicial Council will likely mitigate some of the damage done. The plan does not go into effect until January, 2020 and there is another General Conference in 2020 where the

2 What Gives Me Hope Pastor David Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you. - 1 Peter 3:15 Being hopeful (which is not to be confused with being optimistic) in this world is not easy. Hope requires some effort and some practice, but if we put that energy into looking for what gives us hope, we can develop it as a habit, like a muscle memory. What gives you hope this month? Here are three things that give me hope this month: the work and witness of Rev. Lydia Muñoz, District Superintendent Dawn Taylor-Storm along with Deacon Tom Lank, and others at the 2019 General Conference. the new effort of POWER Metro to form a Main Line cluster that addresses local issues for equality and justice. the life and light that comes from the children of our church. Thank you to our new members class, Ann Abbott, Beth Camaora, Terri Leone, Noah Nichilo, Scott Cooper, and Maria Wilson, for their commitment to God and themselves. We look forward to baptizing Maggie and Ben, and Noah on March 31st when we welcome this class into membership. argument over this plan will surely continue. If we avoid somehow a large exodus of people, these unjust policies and declarations will not stand forever. In the meantime, as I have been saying for weeks from the pulpit, our church is the same church it was before General Conference. We know who we are and we know that we welcome and value all people as they are. At this time, we need to especially protect and care for those who are vulnerable and disheartened by the careless proclamations and policies of our denomination, and we will redouble our work to create a future for all people within our walls. March will be a time to explore what it would take to have balance and rest along with activity and accomplishment in our lives. The latter gets rewarded, so sometimes we forget that the latter can t really happen without at least some of the former - balance and rest. We need to protect and care for ourselves to be able to do the important work that is in front of us, to challenge heterosexism, racism and sexism in our world. The busy month of March is a good time to think about this topic, since it is a time when our lives get more demanding as we prepare for the many activities of the spring. Gratitude Thanks to Anne Kybert for taking part in the Whites Confronting Racism workshop and for taking food to the Narberth Food Bank and for thinking about the church. Thanks to Bill Reim for purchasing new lights for the front of the church (which we will install at our workday on March 23rd.) Thank you to Pastor Joanne for leading our evening Bible study. Thank you to Lisa Santomen Hellberg for organizing the Lenten Spiritual Retreat for March 15-16th. Thanks to Lauri Cumming, Rick Hellberg, Cathy Clarke and Peter Ressler for working on the church budget and thinking about our finances. Thanks to Bill Reim for getting a new banner for the church, and thinking about lighting and design. Thank Pat Conroy for cleaning out the Lurwick Hall refrigerator

3 March, 2019 Lent - Letting Go of Hurry and Worry March 3rd, 2019 Transfiguration Sunday, Mardi Gras Luncheon Transfiguration Sunday is a holiday to celebrate the mountaintop experience of Jesus and the disciples, when Moses and Elijah appear with Jesus in a vision. We mark the Sunday as the last Sunday before Lent, the last Sunday before a time of reflection and slowing down in between Ash Wednesday and Easter. We use this Sunday to think about our identity as followers of Jesus. The sermon is titled Radically Christian. We celebrate Holy Communion in this service. The Men s LIFE group will have breakfast at 8 am. After the service this morning, we gather in Lurwick Hall to have our traditional Mardi Gras soup luncheon. Bring soup, bread or salad to share. We are inviting friends of the church to come to receive financial gifts from the Main Line Children s Festival. Read: Luke 6: Ash Wednesday March 10, 2016, 7:30 pm We have invited friends from Ardmore UMC and Lower Merion Baptist Church to join us for our Ash Wednesday service at 7:30 pm in the sanctuary. We will offer ashes and communion to recognize the beginning of the season of Lent and a time of reflection and preparation for Holy Week and Easter. The sermon this evening introduces our worship series with the theme, Busy. We will introduce music and themes we will be using and exploring for the next six weeks. In this 21st century world, many of us have come to believe, however subconsciously, that being busy is what is required of us and ultimately what makes us a good person. But perhaps we ve forgotten that God isn t looking for humans to perform as if we must earn God s love (or anyone s love) through succumbing to a faster pace for more productivity in order to be worthy. How can we be simply and honestly present in this Lent season? We begin by repenting or turning around from unrealistic expectations and false beliefs. Read: Matthew 6:1-6 March 10, 2019 First Sunday in Lent The sermon for the First Sunday of Lent is titled Busy: The Right Tempo. We think this morning about living a life in balance. We often think of Lent as a time to give up chocolate or meat, or something we like but don t need. Those traditions developed over centuries. But instead of thinking of giving up as punishment in some way, we are going to see it as making more room for God and moving in the direction of self-care so that we might have more spiritual and energetic reserves. in order to make more room, we are going to focus on de-cluttering and lightening up our lives. This week, we focus on finding the rhythms of life that feed us finding just the right tempo. This afternoon we join other churches in our area to supply a meal at Grace Cafe at Arch St. Church. We will again be making green bean casserole for 200 people. Please let us know if you can make a tray or if you can come down to the church to help serve folks. Read: Luke 4:1-13

4 March 17, 2019 Second Sunday in Lent Our Lenten retreat is on Friday and Saturday of this weekend, a great way to slow down and let go of hurry and worry. By the time we come to church on Sunday, we will be ready to imagine what living into Sabbath rest really means. Pastor Joanne will bring a message this morning based on the Psalms, titled Busy: Fearing No Evil. How does our busyness keep us from facing our fears? What will we have to face with more courage and determination if we slow down? Read: Psalm 27 March 24, 2019 Third Sunday in Lent If our full to do lists cause us to miss out on important being-in-the-present moments, perhaps it is time to reassess, to tune in to the bigger picture. As the saying goes, no one at the end of their life, says, "I should have spent more time at the office. Our theme for this morning is Busy: Tuning In. By this time in Lent, maybe we are slowing down enough, that we can begin to tune in more and realize a bit of what we are missing when we stay too busy. After the service today, we will have a Lenten Bible study in the parlor to follow us from the retreat and to be able to think with each other about our own spiritual journeys. Read: Isaiah 55:1-9 March 31, 2019 Fourth Sunday in Lent, Baptism & Welcoming New Members We are planning a big celebration of baptism and welcoming of new members for this Sunday. Please be in prayer for the families and individuals as they make their last preparations this month for this day. The sermon, Busy: Baptized Into Grace, will address the power of God s grace to allow us to live less frantic lives and to live toward the reality of an abundant, grace-filled life. The fourth Sunday of Lent is also the day when we take a special offering for UMCOR Sunday - the one Sunday to support the administrative costs of UMCOR so that all our gifts during the year can go directly toward mission around the world. Read: 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 The finance committee is working on providing ways to do credit card payments for the offering in church. We have a tablet and we just need to work out an attachment so we can swipe a care. We are finding new and better ways to pay our pledges! You can set up your bank account to make a regular contribution. Most banks can make these arrangements online with no cost. This way you save the fee that St. Luke pays for our online gifts. And your contribution can be automatic so you don t even have to think about it. Find our online donation site at The first time you make a gift, you input your routing information from your bank account, and after that you can make gifts any time you want without a checkbook or credit card! Thanks for your generosity to St. Luke ministries. May generosity be our watchword! We will share from our plenty. We will give for those in need. We will praise lavishly. We will encourage frequently. We will care passionately. We will love wholeheartedly.

5 Calendar Friday, Mar. 1: International World Day of Prayer, 10 am Saints Memorial Baptist Church Saturday, Mar. 2, 9 am Tools for Ministry at Eastern University Sunday, Mar. 3, 8 am Men s LIFE group 10 am Holy Communion, 11:30 am Mardi Gras Luncheon, Giveaway of funds from the Main Line Children s Festival Wed, Mar. 6, 7:30 pm Ash Wednesday Community Service Saturday, Mar. 9, Daylight Savings Time begins Sunday, Mar. 10, 11:30 Justice Seekers Forum, & Parents LIFE group 4:30 Grace Cafe at Arch St. UMC Tuesday, Mar. 12, 7 pm LIFE group Leaders Fri-Sat. Mar : Winter Spiritual Retreat Sunday, Mar. 17, 10 am Morning Celebration; 11:30 New members class Tuesday, Mar. 19, 7 pm Bible Study and Prayer Evening Wed. Mar. 20, 3 pm POWER Main Line cluster meeting Friday, Mar. 22, 6 pm Children s Celebration Movie and Game Night Saturday, Mar. 23: Church Workday Sun. Mar. 24: 10 am Morning celebration; 11:30 New Members class or Bible study after church. Wednesday, March 28th, 7 pm Bishop Johnson on the South District - Q&A about General Conference