Connected to be Blessed and to be a Blessing

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1 October 2014 Vol. 80 No. 7 Trinity United Methodist Church Merchantville, NJ Connected to be Blessed and to be a Blessing Jesus vision for us as his disciples is to live in joy and unity to the glory of God. As followers and disciples of Christ we are sent into the world to proclaim God s presence and love for all. The biblical principle of Beyond and Within captures the duality of Jesus desire for us. We are called to grow spiritually within so that we might be prepared to go beyond our doors as witnesses to Christ s presence in the world. The founder of our Methodist tradition, John Wesley, also modeled this understanding of Jesus in his practice of what he called the Means of Grace. Wesley taught that it is the practice of personal and social holiness or more specifically works of piety and works of mercy that keep us deeply connected to God. Works of piety are ways that God reaches out to deepen our spiritual relationship. They include: prayer, searching the Scriptures, Holy Communion, fasting, Christian community, and healthy living. Works of mercy are ways that God gets involved in blessing us as we reach out into the world. When we are involved in things like: doing good, visiting the sick and prisoners, feeding and clothing people, earning, giving, and saving all one can and then using our resources in ways that honor Christ, then God s blessings are multiplied in and through us. As we actively participate in personal holiness and social holiness through the means of grace, we become active participants in the future that God has already created through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. God s blessings to us all as we seek to grow in Christ, becoming more closely connected God s mission within us, through us and beyond us.

Celebrating Trinity s History While we look ahead to celebrating Trinity s 150 th anniversary in March, it s interesting to note that the people who formed our church had actually begun gathering

2 Celebrating Trinity s History While we look ahead to celebrating Trinity s 150 th anniversary in March, it s interesting to note that the people who formed our church had actually begun gathering each Sunday morning for Sabbath classes two years earlier, in These classes were first held in the home of David S. Stetson, which was then located on the Moorestown Pike (now Maple Avenue) but later moved to 32 Fithian Avenue in Merchantville. As the number of people attending the worship services grew, the group moved into was known as the Pay School, a small, wooden building opposite the present location of our church. Attendance continued to grow, and when a total of 73 (including 12 Sunday School teachers) were attending regularly, the decision was made to seek a meeting place larger than the school-house. From this information, it is easy to imagine the conversations that must have been taking place 150 years ago this fall as the worshippers squeezed into the school house each Sunday morning. They would already have been thinking and talking about what their next move should be. At least a few of them were probably also eyeing the empty plot of land across the road from the school house, which was owned by a man named James Finn. Eventually, the worshippers met on March 11, 1865 and approved articles of incorporation to form The Trinity Chapel at Merchantville. This is the date we ll be celebrating in March. But it was a highpoint in a year filled with activity for that early group of worshipers. Indeed, a few months after Trinity was incorporated, on August 5 th, 1865, Mr. Finn donated the 100 x 300 piece of empty ground located at the corner of the Moorestown Pike (now Maple Avenue) and Whiskey Road (now Chapel Avenue), to the church. That same day the church appointed a building committee, and the cornerstone for the new chapel was laid on October 21, A year after Trinity s incorporation, on March 18, 1866, the new house of worship, topped by a tall, spire-capped steeple, was dedicated. It was quite a busy time, and it all started just about now, 150 years ago! Cece Torok, with the help of The Story of Trinity Chapel in an article called The Origins of Children s Day, by John Smiley and William Weller. (This article was published in 1992 in The Historical Trail, the Yearbook of the Historical Society and the Commission on Archives and History of the Southern New Jersey Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church.) On Sunday, October 12th, Pastor Walt Mander will speak about our history in his sermon - Avenue of the Spirit

3 WST morning study group will be studying Psalms on Oct. 2 at 9:30 am. All women are invited to attend. SAVE THE DATE: WST Christmas Party Dec. 8 at 6:00 in the Chapel. Thinking ahead to the holidays and other gift-giving occasions: WST is selling Cookbooks for $10.00; Shop Rite gift cards in denominations of $25, $50 & $100. These are usually available after worship on Sunday mornings. These fundraisers go towards our goal of helping women and children. WST breakfast meeting at Pennsauken Country Club will be Sat., Oct. 18 at 8:30 am. A Note from the Music Director Please allow me to introduce myself, I am Doc Maddison the new Director of Music. I have been singing in church since my first solo, at age four, singing, "Lord I Want to be a Christian." I studied voice and music education at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, NJ. I continued to study voice until last year when my voice teacher retired. I teach General Music and AP Psychology for the Woodbury Public School system and have been in the chorus of Opera Philly for 22 seasons. I have also been an ordained pastor with the Evangelical Church Alliance since I have been a hospital and nursing home chaplain, mall minister, Executive Director of New Jersey Christian Endeavor, professor at Camden County College, children's pastor, youth pastor, and director of Christian Education at churches of varying sizes and denominations. Personally, I am the father of three. My oldest, Ben, is married and finishing seminary in Virginia. My middle son, Jon, is a lawyer in D.C. and is getting married in October My daughter, Diana, is a senior at Rutgers Camden and works in retail. I am excited to join your ministry team. I am looking forward to sharing my gifts and talents, nurturing your gifts and talents, and seeing what it is that the God we worship has in store for us! Vitamin D Deficiency As the hours of daylight decline, so does our exposure to vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin. Some researchers estimate that 50% of the general population is at risk of vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D deficiency can cause your bones to become thin, brittle or misshapen. Researchers are investigating the role of vitamin D and insulin resistance, high blood pressure, and immune function and how these relate to heart disease and cancer. Vitamin D deficiency can cause bone pain and muscle weakness, although there may be no symptoms with mild deficiency. Populations at risk include: Patients with osteoporosis Patients with a malabsorption syndrome Black and Hispanic individuals (those with darker skin) Adults over 65 Obese persons (body mass index >30 kg/m 2 ) Patients with disorders that affect the metabolism of vitamin D and phosphate (eg, chronic kidney disease) The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for adults is 600 IU of vitamin D a day. That goes up to 800 IU a day for those older than age 70. To meet this level, choose foods that are rich in vitamin D. For example, choose fortified foods such as milk and yogurt and fatty fish such as salmon, trout, tuna and halibut. If you are concerned about whether you're getting enough vitamin D, talk to your doctor about getting a blood test and whether you need a vitamin supplement. Barbara Wilson, RD, CDE

4 Attic Sale at Collingswood Manor The attic Sale of the Collingwood Manor Auxiliary will be held on Saturday, Nov. 8th. If you have any items you wish to donate as you clean out closets, they are needed for the sale. No clothing please. Jewelry is in demand. I will be collecting your items at the end of October or you can bring them to the Manor the afternoon of November 7th as we set-up for the sale. All money collected at the sale benefits the residents of the Manor. Any questions please call Karen Hoffman Hello Friends! As I write this note, summer officially ends and fall begins. Time for enjoying cooler temperatures, the changing color of leaves as they fall from the trees, mums, ornamental cabbages and pepper plants and of course pumpkin spiced everything! Fall also means that it s time for our Annual Conference meeting. Our meeting is scheduled for Tuesday evening, October 7 th at 7:30 pm. This will be the perfect opportunity to meet our new District Superintendent, Rev. Myrna Bethke while we discuss plans for the next year in the life of our church. I know that this may seem repetitive to some but I always want to express my appreciation to the volunteers who help with the service every Sunday. Thank you to all who have served as Worship Leader, Usher, and Fellowship Hosts. Another big Thank you goes out to the women who have been donating money to the Fellowship Hour Fund. Of course we always appreciate the job that Pat and Peter Johnston do with the Audio Visual system and also thanks to Kathy Mander, Sue Summers, Courtney Bird, and Madison Lapp for also doing a great job taking care of the A/V System when the Johnstons are away. church or another Methodist church including Trinity for 50 years or more. Cora Assenheimer, Carl Assenheimer, and John Smiley have the distinction of being members for over 75 years. Now that s something to celebrate. When you see any of the people, be sure to congratulate them on their dedication to our church and our Lord. What a wonderful blessing you all are! Please try to attend our service on Sunday October 5 th as that will be World Communion Sunday. During the month of November we will be focusing on Stewardship and making plans for the life of the church for Plans for our 150 th Anniversary Celebration are beginning to take form. You will see regular articles in the Tidings with historical tidbits about our church and the local area. The articles will also give you updates about plans for the celebration. It seems like Cece Torok, Linda Migliaccio, and the planning committee are doing a lot of work to be sure this will be a successful and enjoyable celebration. As I close, I wish that God will bless us, everyone! On September 14 th, we had a special service celebrating all of those who have been members of our Debbie Curcio Worship Committee Chairperson Donations of cash or food are always welcome. In our efforts to provide a bag of groceries to those in need we must purchase large quantities of food. For instance, we need 60 of every item that goes in the bags because we give out between 55 and 60 bags every month. Some items that we can use are: canned meat or fish, cereal, canned beefaroni or spaghetti, canned fruit. Thank you for your continued support.

1 st Marie Barnhardt 3 rd Joseph Thompson 4 th Cora Lee Page Bobbi Stagliano Ryan O Shea 5 th Susan Summers Charles Tissot Peter Johnston Christopher Weller 9 th Skip Harris 11 th Carol Swanson

5 1 st Marie Barnhardt 3 rd Joseph Thompson 4 th Cora Lee Page Bobbi Stagliano Ryan O Shea 5 th Susan Summers Charles Tissot Peter Johnston Christopher Weller 9 th Skip Harris 11 th Carol Swanson Claudine Jones 15 th Jenny Perkins 17 th Katelyn Plasket 18 th Beverly Holliday 20 th Brayden Keyser 21 st Chika Ezeiruaku 22 nd Charles Coward 23 rd Bill Taylor 26 th Araba Assan 27 th Amber Davis October Birthdays Breakfast at Pennsauken UMC October 25, :00am - 11:00am Pennsauken United Methodist Church will hold their First Annual Margaret Clark Memorial Breakfast: this month. Pancakes, sausage patties, scrambled eggs and hash browns will be served. There will be a bake sale with a selection of homemade goodies available for purchase. The cost of tickets are $7 for adults and $4 for children up to age 10. Proceeds from the breakfast will benefit Youth Programs of the Pennsauken United Methodist Church. Please contact their office for tickets or further information at Youth Fun Nights At Pennsauken UMC Movie/Skating Saturday, October 11th 6:00-8:00pm Fall Festival Saturday, October 25th 6:00-9:00pm All youth are invited to attend! October Anniversaries 3 rd Adam & Peggy Gillis 7 th John & Donna Perkins Annual Church Conference This year s Church Conference with our new District Superintendent, Rev. Myrna Bethke, will be October 7, 2014 at 7:30pm. It will take place in the chapel. All are welcome and encouraged to attend.

6 **NOTE: CLASS DAYS/DATES ARE CHANGING** PLEASE CHECK SUNDAY BULLETINS OR TRINITY S WEBSITE FOR LATEST INFORMATION There s still time to join - Dates TBA Dates TBA Dates TBA

7 Sunday Worship 10:45 AM The Tidings A periodic publication of Trinity United Methodist Church Summer Office Hours Tues. - Fri. 9:00 am - 1:00 pm (856) Fax: (856) office@gotrinity.org Website: Visit us on Facebook Sunday School 9:30 AM 2014 Trinity United Methodist Church 36 W. Maple Ave. Merchantville, NJ 08109

World Communion Sunday

2017 Trinity United Methodist Church Merchantville, NJ Pennsauken United Methodist Church World Communion Sunday World Communion Sunday Together, we enable national and international graduate students