“THE “DISPATCH”
First Presbyterian Church In
Volume
LXVII No. 7 March 2009
The Rest of the Story
Dear
Friends in Christ,
Long
time radio commentator Paul Harvey, who passed on at the age of 90 this
February, made a career of delivering 60 second radio spots depicting little
known aspects of otherwise iconographic elements of American Life. Those pithy audio vignettes invariably
concluded with the tag line, “Now you
know the rest of the story.”
And
so it is with us, at least in one sense, as we journey through this Lenten
season: We have heard the story of
Christ tempted by Satan in the Wilderness (Matthew
4:1-11). We have read about how He
turns His face to
There
are however circumstances in this life where we cannot know the rest of the story. One such circumstance is the story of First
Presbyterian Church of Orange, New Jersey.
We know the first part of the story.
Many of us are well aware of the long and fascinating history of our
church, reaching back to the earliest days of the great nation in which we
live. The story is full of nearly, or in
some cases truly legendary men and women of faith. We also know how our lives
intersect with what becomes our part of the story. Our minds and hearts are filled with the fond
remembrance of things past. But we
cannot know the rest of the story simply because THE STORY IS NOT OVER!
When
people speak of First Presbyterian Church these days it is often with an air of
thinly veiled worry or even mournful regret.
And while the reasons for such sentiments are perhaps all too clear, I
believe that because we are a people of the Resurrection; because we believe
that Christ’s tomb is empty; because He proclaims good news to the captives and
He appoints and anoints us to do the same, our story – the story of First
Presbyterian Church – that still unknown ‘rest of the story’ is inextricably
connected to Christ’s resurrection story.
Although
scripture would have us know that there have been those to whom is given the
gift of prophecy, (1st
Corinthians 12) mercifully (or so I am usually convinced!) this does not
apply to most of us and I know it doesn’t apply to me! As such, I absolutely cannot tell you any of
the particulars of what will transpire in the next year, or going forward from
that point. But I am convinced that so
long as we trust in our eternal Savior, there will be new life and there will
be a new day.
Wishing you every
blessing throughout this season,
Anthony Mark LaMort, Minister of Music
One Great Hour of Sharing – 60 Years!
Sixty years ago, as World War II was
coming to a close, the major church denominations in America joined together to
create a program of reaching out to people around the world who were struggling
with the post-war problems of hunger,
loss of lives and homes, and major displacement. Unfortunately, this “was to end all wars” did
not become a reality, and the needs of people continue.
Since 1949, congregations, including
our own, have continued to offer a wide variety of assistance to people around
the world. Our giving is distributed to
three on-going Presbyterian programs – Disaster Relief, Hunger, and
Self-Development of People. Newspaper
headlines and television keep us aware of the never-ending disasters which can strike
anywhere, at any time, and our donated Disaster Funds are available for
immediate assistance. The Hunger Program
and Self-Development of People do not make the Evening News headlines, but are
equally in need of on-going help.
Our gifts to this 60th
Anniversary One Great Hour of Sharing Special Offering . . . large or small . .
. will be appreciated by people we will never meet, but whose lives will be
forever changed. Our lives will also be
enriched, knowing that we are following the call of Jesus Christ to ”love our neighbors as ourselves”.
April 4,
2009 9 AM
What
is the
Something new and exciting is
happening in the town of
The
leaders of the University are offering First Presbyterian Church of
From now until May, the University
will be holding “place making” sessions with key constituents in local
government, business, and all interested parties in and around
Members of First Presbyterian Church
are heartily encouraged to attend the event on April 4th to learn
more about the
Tia Aery, Clerk of Session
Next Slated
Session Meeting
April 7, 2009
7:30 PM
Esty Room
Representatives
from the Board of Trustees of Presbytery will be presenting options for the
future of First Presbyterian Church of Orange.
All interested
Church Members are encouraged to observe this important Session Meeting on
April 7, 2009 at 7:30 PM in the Esty Room.
Tia Aery - Clerk of Session
New Members
If
you are interested in becoming a member of First Presbyterian Church of Orange,
notify Tia Aery, Clerk of Session. Moderator of Session, Rev. Daniel Martian
will be holding a new member class this spring.
Pastoral
Emergency
If
a pastoral emergency should arise, please contact Tia Aery,
Clerk of Session who will notify Moderator of Session, Rev. Daniel Martian.
Rev. Dan Martian will respond to all pastoral emergencies.
Tia Aery, Clerk of Session
(973) 228-5664 (home)
(973)313-0011 (work)
(973)954-6372 (cell)
tia@ihnessexnj.org
Sing to the
Lord a New Song
In
an effort to reach out to the community and as always, to continually praise
our great and glorious God with His good gift of music and song, the Concert series at Presbyterian Church
continues on Sunday, April 26th
at 3:30 pm with a program offered by jazz Guitarist Peter Biederman. Mr. Biederman is an excellent performer with a unique, truly
dynamic style. His music is full of
depth while remaining accessible. Please
make every effort to support your church’s concert series. Please consider inviting your friends and
neighbors. This can be a great way to
introduce people to First Presbyterian Church who might not otherwise connect
with us. As always, the concert is
free. A reception, with light
refreshments will follow the recital.
In addition to our Sunday afternoon
concerts, we have added a series of informal organ recitals immediately
following Sunday worship generally every
second and fourth Sunday. These brief ‘drop-by recitals’ will be no more
than 30 minutes in length and will follow a particular theme for the day. Upcoming programs are scheduled as followed:
March
22 “You Can’t Play That on the Organ” music you never thought you’d hear played
on a pipe organ including works by Scott Joplin, Paul Simon, John Lennon and Thelonious Monk.
April
5 “Hymnnodic Episodes” pieces based on familiar and not so
familiar hymn tunes. Please note that
this date is a ‘first Sunday’ as the ‘second Sunday’ in April is Easter.
April
26 “Maker of Organists: The Music of
Sweelinck” hear the
often challenging (for both performer and listener!) music of 16th /17th century
composer Jan Pieterszwoon Sweelinck.
May
3 “With a French Accent” Organ music from
May
24 “Stylus Phantasticus: The Music of Buxtehude” Organ music of Danish born
composer Dietrich Buxtehude.
Lenten
Worship
During
the season of Lent we
have added a Wednesday evening devotion and scripture study group to our
schedule. We meet in the Esty room each Wednesday at 6pm. We are currently studying the way in which
God restores community and communion to a world broken by sin.
Good
Friday is April 10th. We will commemorate Christ’s all availing
sacrifice with a service of prayer and devotion beginning at 12 noon, in the
main sanctuary.
Holy Week
Palm Sunday April 5th
Maundy Thursday, April 9th- 7:30 p.m. at
271
Rev. Daniel Martian, Minister
Good Friday, April 10th
A service of prayer and devotion at 12 noon
in the main
sanctuary at
Easter Sunday, April 12th
Festive Service at 11
a.m.
Special Easter Music
Holy Communion
Easter Flowers
This
year at Easter the sanctuary will be decorated with Easter lilies and
tulips. The Deadline for
ordering is Palm Sunday April 5th. The cost for the lilies - $6.00, for the tulips - $5.00
and for the Daffodils - $5.00. Orders may be placed in the offering plate or
left in the church office attention- May D. Smith or Joan B. Daly. Names will be printed in the Easter bulletin
as they appear on the form. Please
designate your choice on the form below.
One order blank for each memorial flower, please.
The firm
deadline for orders is Palm Sunday April 5th.
˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜
Donor(s)_____________________________
In Memory of
_________________________
Enclosed $____________
Lilies _______________________
Tulips_______________________
Daffodils
_____________________
----------------------------------------------------------------
Easter Flowers
This
year at Easter the sanctuary will be decorated with Easter lilies and
tulips. The Deadline for
ordering is Palm Sunday April 5th. The cost for the lilies - $6.00 , for the tulips - $5.00
and for the Daffodils - $5.00. Orders may be placed in the offering plate or
left in the church office attention- May D. Smith or Joan B. Daly. Names will be printed in the Easter bulletin
as they appear on the form. Please
designate your choice on the form below.
One order blank for each memorial flower, please.
The firm
deadline for orders is Palm Sunday April 5th.
˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜ ˜
Donor(s)_____________________________
In Memory of _________________________
Enclosed $____________
Lilies _______________________
Tulips_______________________
Daffodils
_____________________
Our deepest thanks to John Hammel – long time section leader and soloist with
our choir, for his outstanding years of service to the music ministry of this
church. John has gone on to share his
considerable talents with another Presbyterian church, and while we are
delighted that he has an opportunity to share his gifts with a broader
audience, he will be sorely missed in
Prayer
Concerns
Abiding Peace Throughout the World.
This month we seem to have a need for special
prayers.
Roosevelt Jr. and family –Toni’s son
Ida Douglas (mother of Beverly Douglas)
Phoebe Nwangw
(mother of Elizabeth Achebe)
Chiemezie Okobi
The Okani Family
The Pierce Family
Emmanuel Shu
(Joan Shu-Osobo’s brother)
Barbara Zeevalk
