Lent is drawing to a close with this being the final week of Jesus’ life, commemorated in a Palm Sunday procession and acclamation, transforming the meal in the Upper Room with his disciples into the eternal remembrance of what he would do for love, and his unjust death at the hands of conspirers and Roman brokers of power in keeping the Pax Romana.
Then, we see his own disciples give way, in contradiction to what they have professed: Jesus is Lord and the Messiah. The cock has crowed on betrayal, cowardly running away, and denial. Yet, like the Day of Resurrection on the third day, God vindicated Jesus’ innocence and raised him to triumph over death. Jesus would not leave his disciples… he met them, they recognized and confessed their risen Lord; they were forgiven, freed, and redeemed.
And, so, dear friends, are we. Thanks be to God!
“A Disciple’s Path” small group finished its six weeks of study together with a celebration dinner. Learning together, communion over a shared meal, and making new friends in the faith was special; yet, the real celebration is coming! On Easter Sunday, the traditional day for reception of new members in the early church years, four new members will join the body of Christ at Community United Methodist Church. They are Mel(anie) and Jim Lawrence, Cynthia (CeeCee) Middlebrooks, and Dennis Fehrmann. Welcome, dear sisters and brothers.
In the midst of ongoing work to prepare the sanctuary with its new lighting and visual functionality and “new clothes” of carpeting, some leaders have been imagining a way to utilize the space more effectively, flexibly, accessibly, and creatively. This discussion is taking form around special chairs, called pew-chairs, which hook together when that’s needed and separate for re-configuration or clearing for other needs. These are in contrast with heavy pews, which are typically fixed in one immovable arrangement. At the Church Council meeting of March 19 on ZOOM, a good discussion was held. While a decision was not made for or against chairs, the steps were taken to remove the bolts that would prevent the carpet from being cut should the decision be “for” chairs. In addition, the temporary return of the pews will get us back into the sanctuary without using folding chairs, pending future discussion and decision(s) by the Church Council.
I’m also excited for another reason! In less than a week from now, Nancy Gorman, Kathy Monte, Kim and Chris Wilhelm, and I, will join Mike Gorman’s study tour of the first century expansion of Christianity from Jerusalem to the Gentile cities around the Mediterranean Sea in Turkey, Greece and Italy. We’ll be pilgrims following Paul. We are grateful to God for you, the church of Jesus Christ, embodied here at CUMC! Pray for our journeys where our ancestors in the faith proudly claimed: Jesus is Lord! On Easter Sunday, one would call: “Christ is Risen”! And, others would respond: “Christ is Risen, Indeed. Hallelujah”! We’ll say and sing it on Sunday, together with them. Happy Easter!
Grace and peace in Christ to you and your family. We are Easter people! Amen, Barb
