Central Square Congregational Church, United Church of Christ July & August 2014 Steeple Sounds
The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good. -Genesis 1:12 I planted tomato plants a few weeks back. I always feel like I m taking a huge leap of faith when I attempt to grow my own food. There are few things in life that require that amount of faith. A person can do everything right; prepare the soil, water the appropriate amount, weed, even talk to the plant, but there s still the. The space, the spirit, the holy un-nameable ingredient that is required when in relationship with vegetation. It s not a coincidence that God brought forth vegetation and upon recognizing this holy event, paused to notice how good it was. It reminds me of the Mary Oliver poem, How Perfectly. How perfectly and neatly opens the pink rose This bright morning, the sun warm on my shoulders, Its heat on the opening petals. Possibly it is the smallest, the least important event at this moment In the whole world. Yet I stand there, utterly happy. When we engage in holy acts of wonder, when we plant a garden or begin a new and unknown path on our journey of faith, we are brought to points of utter gratitude and awe. There are few things in life as great, as powerful as the moment of recognition of the holy in our lives. This summer, as we engage the world around us, let us look with eyes of gratitude and awe. Let us celebrate the holy. In Christ, Rev. Beth
From the Board of Stewardship Summer is here. These warm weather months are rich in bright sunshine, outdoor activity, and vacations. It is time to get away and have fun. Let s face it, people find reasons not to go to church when the weather is nice. When worship attendance is low, so is the plate offering. Unfortunately the mailman keeps coming with the bills and expenses. Bills become difficult or impossible to pay. There are some things you can do to ease the summer financial burden at CSCC. 1) Sign up for EFT and have your offering transferred to CSCC automatically even if you can t attend worship. 2) Pay ahead your entire summer offering before the summer weeks go by. If you are able to do even one of the above suggestions you will have a significant impact on that burden. We hope everyone will be a good steward and help as you are able. Have a great summer!! Stewardship Church Fair Crafters!! It may be summer time but the Church Fair Crafters are beginning to think about the Fall Church Fair. We are a group of women who gather when we are able to make holiday crafts which we sell at the fair. We are always looking for people that would like to assist or come share ideas. We have set up a summer schedule and would like to invite you to join us! We need people to stuff items with fiber fill, base coat, detail paint, sew etc. So come and join us and create crafts for the fair. Here is the summer schedule. Please feel free to call anyone for information or ask for a ride to craft night. We always gather around 7:00 p.m. Monday, June 30 Gail Wright 516 Pleasant St. 697-7159 Monday, July 14 Jane O Connell 108 Spruce St. 697-3602 Thursday, July 31 Terry Reynolds 5 Beech St. 697-4666 Monday, August 11 Darlene Brown 283 Nichols Dr., 279-1420 Taunton
From the Open and Affirming Committee Welcoming congregations are made up of welcoming people, where everyone extends hospitality. - Growth
News from Youth Group The Youth Team is working hard over the summer to revitalize our Youth Program. New Youth Mission Statement: We are a safe and accepting Christian community, cultivating an environment of exploration and growth, enriched by relationships with family, friends, community and Christ." Like us on facebook: CSCC UCC Youth Deb Sorgman News From The Superintendent of Sunday School Sunday Summer School/Vacation Bible School This summer I am offering a combined program of Sunday school and Vacation Bible School. The program theme is God s Treasures. The children are visiting an Island where they have discovered a treasure chest filled with God s gifts to the world. Each Sunday the children will explore a different treasure theme through Bible verses, stories, crafts, games, explorations, songs, hunts, etc. The tent has once again appeared in the Fellowship Hall where the children may experience various activities, have a meeting place or quiet zone. The first Sunday the children divided into 3 teams and using a treasure map hunted for the treasure chest. Upon discovery they explored the chest to find that God s first treasure was the children themselves. They had an opportunity to create their own treasure chest to collect their treasures during the summer. Some themes they will be exploring are Jesus, love, faith, hope etc. In order to explore all the themes in God s Treasure box it will take 9 Sundays. The 3 other Sundays will be multigenerational Sundays. The dates for multigenerational Sundays are July 6 th, August 3 rd and August 31 st. Come and bring your child to enjoy as many Sunday s as possible. Offering Part of coming the CSCC is learning about mission. The children and I discussed what they would like to give this summer for their offering. They unanimously decided they would like to donate household items that could be given to the food pantry. They suggested items such as paper towels, toilet paper, cleaning products such as laundry detergent, dishwashing liquid, etc. They also suggested items of clothing they had outgrown. The offering theme for September is going to be items that maybe used by the Sunday School classes. They will need such items as Elmer s School Glue, glue sticks, colored markers, pencils, colored pencils, Fiskus scissors, paints, construction paper, white paper, staplers and staples, water color paints, poster paints and paint brushes. While you are shopping for your child s school items have your child choose an item or two for the Sunday School. Thank you in advance. Faithfully Yours, Terry Reynolds
*This calendar is subject to change at any time. For the most up to date calendar at all times, please visit csccucc.org.
*This calendar is subject to change at any time. For the most up to date calendar at all times, please visit csccucc.org.
Church Administration Pastor: Rev. Elizabeth Walden csccpastor@hotmail.com Congregational Administrator: Ellen Atherton office@csccucc.com Sexton: Dave Terpeny Minister of Music - Lin Schuller Accompanist - Julia Scott Carey Treasurer: Larry Brown treasurer@csccucc.com Office telephone: (508) 697-6016 Fax: (508) 697-8010 Website: www.csccucc.org Rev. Walden s Office Hours: Tuesday 10 AM 2 PM Wednesday 10 AM 1 PM *1:00 PM 3:00 PM at the Better Bean Thursday 10 AM 2 PM Rev. Walden is always available by appointment. Please use her email or cell phone to schedule with her outside of the posted office hours. Thank you. Central Square Congregational Church United Church of Christ 71 Central Square Bridgewater, MA 02324