In this Issue:
Vol. 3 No. 21
Covering 10/7/2007 - 10/20/2007
October 8
, preaching
October 30
preaching
ROCK SPRING NEWS DEADLINES CHANGING
Your Monday Rock Spring News deadline is moving! The Monday morning deadline has proved to be challenging and
unrealistic. So, the new Rock Spring News deadline will be every other Wednesday at noon. If it has not been turned in by noon on
Wednesday it will not make that issue.
So the rest of the 2007 deadlines are now:
October 10 -
October 21 to November 3
October 24 - November 4 to November 17
November 7 - November 18 to December 1
November 21 December 2 to December 15
December 5 - December 16 to December 29
LECTIONARY TEXTS
Sunday October 7, 2007
Lamentations 1:1-6 with Lamentations 3:19-26
or Psalm 137 or Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4
with Psalm 37:1-9 and 2 Timothy 1:1-14
and Luke 17:5-10
Sunday October 14, 2007
Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7 with Psalm 66:1-12 or Kings 5:1-3,7-15c with Psalm 111
and 2 Timothy 2:8-15
and Luke 17:11-19
CROP WALK: October 20, Arlington,
Virginia
"...and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the
needs of the oppressed then your light will rise in the darkness, and
your
night will become like the noonday."
-Isaiah 58:10
Last year Rock Springers raised $4,000 for the Church World Service and
the Arlington Food Assistance Center. The amount we sent to CWS was
enough to: 1) Hire and completely supply a de-miner in Cambodia; or 2)
Supply three water pumps and provide community training to villages; or
3)
Supply fishing nets and 6,000 baby fish to fish farmers in the Bolivian
Andes.
Crop walkers follow in Jesus' footsteps by helping those in need and by
spreading God's love and compassion with the world. Won't you join
us? Call or email Iris Gibson at 703-820-7164 or gibsons89@yahoo.com.
If you cannot walk, donate to Team Rock Spring. Someone will be in the
Saegmuller room after both services from September 23 through October
14. Or put a check in the offering plate. Make the check out to Rock
Spring with "Crop Walk" in the memo line.
ICE CREAM SOCIAL HONORING MARGUERITE LACKEY
The family of Marguerite Wysor Lackey invites her friends from Rock
Spring to celebrate our memories of her at an ice cream social on
Saturday,
October 13, 2007, at 2:00 p.m. The location will be the lounge at the
penthouse level of Vinson Hall, 6251 Old Dominion Drive, McLean.
The visitors parking lot is at the Kirby Road entrance to Vinson Hall
and the Arleigh Burke Pavilion. If you will join us, please confirm no
later than Sunday, October 7 to March Price by telephone at
703-620-4757.
5th ANNUAL HALLOWEEN SPOOKTACULAR!
Please
join JFFAL and YORS on Sunday October 28 from 5:30 to 7:30 pm in
Carpenter Hall for our spooktacular halloween pumpkin carving party.
Come
in costume or as you are for a pizza dinner, pumpkin carving, and the
famous YORS Haunted House -- if you dare. JFFAL will provide dinner
and
drinks (a free will offering will be collected). As always, this is a
BYOP (bring your own pumpkin) event. It promises to be a hauntingly
good time for all ages! Questions? Need a ride? Please contact
Ashley Martinage at 703/237-4925 or amartinage@cox.net.
FEBRUARY WOMEN'S SERVICE NEEDS YOUR
PARTICIPATION
Beginning in February 2000, a group of Rock Spring women have developed
and led the worship service for our annual celebration of UCC Women's
Sunday.
We have been blessed to witness an amazing process as together we weave
Scripture, prayers and music in new ways. And we have been gratified at
the
response of the congregation to this service. However, as we approach
2008, we are in need of an infusion of new energy and ideas if we are
to keep
this tradition going. A team would need to form soon to set the date
and determine the theme for the upcoming Women's Sunday. If you would
be
interested in participating, please contact Janet Parker or Eileen
Jinks.
PARENTS NIGHT OUT/KIDS NIGHT OUT
(PNO-KNO)
We welcome all children, ages 3 months - 10 years, to join us for an afternoon/evening of fun,
crafts, and games every second Saturday from October - June from 4:00 - 7:00. Sign up online at: pno@rockspringucc.org or on the sign-up sheet
in the Saegmuller room.
WOMEN'S FELLOWSHIP NEWS
Fall Bazaar, Saturday, Nov 3.
Women's Fellowship is sponsoring a bazaar on November 3 to earn funds
to replenish their benevolence coffers. All members and friends of Rock
Spring
are asked to donate handmade crafts, baked goods, services and special
items for the silent auction, and gently used items for the treasures
room.
Helping hands to run these areas and to cook are also needed. How are
you going to help? Board members to contact are Gail Briggs, Catherine
Gahres,
Barbara LaPlante, Robin Overholt. amd Ellen Swain.
Ladies' Night Out
Attend the first ever Rock Spring ladies night out on Friday, October
26, at 7:30 in the Saegmuller Room. This will be a 3D event: Decadent
Desserts
and Discussion. The topic for discussion will be an examination of the
role of women in the life of Rock Spring Church. This event is
sponsored by
the Women's Fellowship Board to create an awareness of both the current
opportunities for women to become involved in activities and to open
doors
for new ideas. Women of all ages and stages of life are invited and
encouraged to attend. If you need a ride, please contact Robin Overholt
at 703
527-9190
COME ONE COME ALL TO SING FOR THE ANNUAL ROCK SPRING CHRISTMAS
CONCERT!
Our annual Sanctuary Choir Christmas concert this year will be on Sunday, December 9 at 4:00 p.m. We will
be featuring a relatively new work (written in 2003) by Daniel Pinkham, Christmas Jubilations. We will round out our concert with
other seasonal music that will be enjoyable to sing as well as being satisfying to our audience!
I would like to invite any interested Rock Springers (members and friends from high school age on
up) to come and join us for our first rehearsal, Thursday, October 4, from 7:30 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. Rehearsals will continue on Thursday evenings
until the week before the concert, when we will have a dress rehearsal in addition to our regular rehearsals.
There will be child care on Thursday evenings given by our regular provider, Fern Lawrence.
Questions? Feel free to call me at Rock Spring.
Hope to see you on Thursday!
Elizabeth Kluegel-Niblock, Director of Music
GREEN ACTION: October 5-8 is a sales tax holiday for
purchases of select Energy Star-rated appliances and products. Energy Star-qualified products meet strict energy-efficiency standards set by
the U.S. Department of Energy and the EPA. This includes everything from compact fluorescent light bulbs and lamps to ceiling fans and
refrigerators. Buy it! Brought to you by the Rock Spring Eco-Justice Committee.
|
"Mission" - A New Definition
By Jim McRae, Chair
Annual Giving Campaign
Mission is frequently thought of as the church's activities in sending out missionaries to foreign lands or helping people in distant
locations. Inspiring Generosity, (UCC, 2002) defines mission in a much broader sense: it uses the statement that "mission is the church."
This is not to mean that mission is the purpose of the church, but rather that mission is the church itself. Mission is more than the church's
endeavors to promote peace and justice, and good works locally or elsewhere in the world--as important as these aspects of church activity are when
we are involved in helping people overcome adversity. Mission is also more than a list of all the things that a church does.
The viewpoint advanced is that mission includes everything that goes on in the church. Mission includes greeting attendees to the worship
service on Sunday morning, providing hospitality after the service, attending the meetings that keep the church functioning, and visiting those in
hospital. Mission includes unlocking the church doors in the morning to turning out the lights and locking the doors each evening.
Why is this expanded definition of mission important to our understanding of what Rock Spring Church is all about? When we come to appreciate
that all aspects of church life and church activity contribute in vital ways to the making of a church, we understand that what we previously called
mission--providing help and guidance to those outside the church family--would not occur if the other parts of church life did not also exist.
The smallest gesture of caring, the briefest offering of hope, the slightest bit of forgiveness, whether they occur in the sanctuary, in the nursery,
or in the parking lot are all elements of mission. These aspects of church life are in a sense the true grand works of the church.
When we understand the very existence of the church as mission, we come to see that the church is a unique means for accomplishing God's work in the
world. The church exists to bring love, hope, and generosity to whatever suffering and need exists always and anywhere. Mission is the
impulse to create and sustain the church. Mission is the will to do what it takes to keep the doors of the church open.
CALL TO ANNUAL BUDGET/
MINISTRY GOALS MEETING
All members of Rock Spring Congregational United Church of Christ are hereby called to the Annual Budget/Ministry Goals meeting on Sunday,
October 14, 2007, beginning with a light lunch provided by the Annual Giving Committee at 12:15 pm. A free-will offering will be taken
for the meal. Child care will be provided during the business meeting. The agenda:
-Receive, discuss and act upon the proposed Budget/Ministry Goals for 2008, as recommended by Church Council.
-Receive, discuss and act upon any recommendations from the Nominating Committee.
-Receive, discuss and act upon any other business appropriate to come before the meeting.
Significant and exciting visions and challenges will be shared. In order to make informed decisions, it is important that we have as many
members as possible participate.
The proposed Budget/Ministry Goals & other materials will be available from the office by Sept. 30.
-Denise Calvert, Clerk of the Church
Also,
Everything You've Ever Wanted to Know About Giving at Rock Spring Church, But Have Been Afraid to
Ask--So, now's your chance to get those answers, by writing to the Board of Finance at finance@rockspringucc.org. As part of the Stewardship Campaign, we're soliciting inquiries from
the congregation and we will respond to your questions. Be in touch!
A NOTE OF GRATITUDE FROM EDITH BLACK Thank you
for the many "Get Well" cards and notes of encouragement from my Rock Spring family while I await the results of a battery of tests. Being a member
of the Caring Ministry I realize the importance of the cards.
NEWS &
NOTES
We invite prayers for Sarah Ulis, recovering from surgery, and for Martha
Shinn, Elizabeth Hunter, Emily Haseltine, and Edith Black, who are all facing health
challenges. Congratulations to Cathy & Christopher Geeslin on the birth of their daughter (?).....insert further
information which Hank will provide. All are invited to an ice cream social to celebrate the life of Marguerite Lackey, to be
held at Vinson Hall on Saturday, October 13th at 2:00 pm. We pray once for more for the family of Rosemary Frederick, our
long-time church secretary, as the family inters in Memorial Terrace Oct. 20, the ashes of her late husband, Bob Frederick.
STAFF NOTES
Janet Parker has been invited to preach at the National Coming Out Day chapel service at Andover Newton School of Theology (a UCC
seminary) on October 10, and will be out of the office on October 10 and 11.
SERMON HONORS FOR CHUCK WILDMAN AND JANET
PARKER:
Chuck Wildman's August 26 sermon, "Set Free," was published in the Washington Times on Monday, September 24, as part of a sermon series they are
running featuring local clergy. Janet Parker was just notified that she won the "Pride Service Sermon Award" for her sermon, "The Ties that
Bind" which she preached on Gay Pride Sunday in June of this year. The award is sponsored by the Religious Institute on Sexual Morality,
Justice and Healing and co-sponsored by HRC, GLAAD, NGLTF, the Black Justice Foundation, and the Institute for Judaism and Sexual Orientation.
Both sermons are available on the Rock Spring website.
JOIN THE MULTI-FAITH FAST FOR PEACE ON OCTOBER 8
Leaders from the National Council of Churches and many religious communities are urging Americans of all faiths to fast from dawn to dusk on Monday,
October 8 to call for an end to the Iraq War.
The Social Action Board invites members and friends at Rock Spring who wish to do so to participate in this fast. Participants are encouraged
to fast beginning at dawn on the 8th. Those who choose to fast should participate to a degree that is appropriate for their age and health
condition. All are encouraged to drink liquids as needed. At the end of the day participants will come together for a short worship
service for peace followed by breaking the fast together with a potluck. We will gather in Carpenter Hall at 6:30 for this event. If you
would like to join together for this event and/or help with planning, please be touch with Marti Weston via e-mail (r2mweston@mindspring.com), phone (703-241-0704) or in person.
LIVING THE QUESTIONS INTRODUCTIONS: OCTOBER 21
and 28!
After both services on October
21 and October 28 Dwight Rodgers will be introducing the Living the
Questions (LtQ) adult education program to those
interested in participating. This is a 12 part program, which will be
scheduled throughout the year at times selected for the convenience of
participants. The LtQ program is decidedly progressive, and is
recommended for those interested in the challenges of contemporary
Christian
understanding and living.At the Introduction Dwight will pass out LtQ
handouts including the material for the first session, titled
Invitation to
Journey: the Role of Biblical Authority. (Titles of all 12 sessions
are at www.rockspringcongucc.org
under heading Christian Education: The Progressive Christian Church.)
Each session will
include a 30 minute video presenting comments from Marcus Borg, Jack
Spong, the UCC's Stephen Patterson, Lloyd Geering and other
Progressives,
participatory discussion of both the video and a previously distributed
5 to 7 page handout, and time to address questions and concerns of all
participants.
With Caroline Hufford-Anderson's consent, Rock Spring's LtQ sessions
are dedicated to the memory of the ever-questioning Del Anderson.
For the introduction to LtQ, meet in the Sanctuary transept on the Rock
Spring Road side beginning 10 minutes after each service on Sundays,
October
21 and October 28. Questions? Call Dwight at 703-534-8879.
YOUTH OF ROCK SPRING
Middle High YoRS will hold its
first lock-in Retreat of the year from Friday-Saturday, 10/5-6. This
will
be a fun time of sharing, silliness, and good YoRS fun! Please keep
your eyes on your emails for complete event details! All Middle High
youth, grades 6-8, are welcome and encouraged to share in the Retreat.
Due to the retreat, we will not hold our normal Sunday meeting on
10/7. For more immediate information, please email
yors@rockspringucc.org.
Middle High Dates:
10/5-6/07 Lock In @ Church
10/14/07 Talking about "Home," Planning for Haunted House
10/21/07 Work on Haunted House
10/21/07 JFFAL Halloween Party/YoRS Haunted House
11/16/07 MH/SH YoRS Lock-in with Potomac UCC Churches (@ RS-UCC?), and
11/17/07 20th Annual Fannie Mae Foundation Help the Homeless
Senior High YoRS will head out to LaserTag on Satruday, 10/6. Meet at church at 6:00; we should be back no
later than 9:00. Massive Planning Meeting has not yet come to pass.
Senior High Dates:
10/6/07 Laser Tag!--meet at church @ 6:00, we should be back no later than
9:00
10/14/07 Planning/Fun Lunch--12:00-3:00, lunch details TBD
10/21/07 JFFAL Halloween Party/YoRS Haunted House
11/4/07 Planning/Fun Lunch--12:00-3:00, lunch details TBD
11/16/07- MH/SH YoRS Lock-in with Potomac UCC Churches (@ RS-UCC?), and
11/17/07 20th Annual Fannie Mae Foundation Help the Homeless
For more information on our Senior High Youth Ministries, please email yors@rockspringucc.org.
RIDE THE BUS, WHY DOES ROCK SPRING HAVE A BUS?
Each Sunday for both services Rock Spring Church has a bus that shuttles from the front parking lot at Yorktown
High School to the church. The bus begins about 20 minutes before the 9:00 am service and runs until 15 minutes after the service begins. We return
folks to their cars after the service until all the cars are gone. We also run he bus at 9:45 am until 10:00 pm for attendees of the adult
theological video class and the choir. After that we shuttle to Vinson Hall to bring residents to the 11:00 am service. Then it's back to Yorktown to
pick up arrivals for the 11:00 am service by about 10:30 am and continue to shuttle back and forth until 11:15 am so if you are running late and
worry
about finding a space or finding the bus, we will have a slot for you and the bus will whisk you tot eh church. Again the bus returns people to
their cars after the 11:00 am service and does this until all cars have left the parking lot.
Why do we do this and why should you participate?
The surrounding neighborhood has always reacted to our overloaded Sunday mornings. We fill up the neighborhoods
and sometimes park inappropriately when the parking gets tight. When we constructed Carpenter hall and the Hunter building the county required us to
take steps to minimize the impact of our presence on Sunday mornings. The bus was chosen as the vehicle to do this. We need to remain true to this
solution.That's the background but the real reason is two fold it's the right thing to do and it's a fun social experience. You can actually get to
know some of your fellow Rock Springers. Give it a try and enjoy it.
Jim Meehan
Chair Bus Operations Committee.
DRIVERS WANTED:
You Don't Even Need A Special License
Our bus is an excellent asset for our youth programs, our training ministries and our other ministry groups such as Women's Fellowship and JFFAL. We
don;t just let anyone drive the bus, you must be certified by the Bus Operating Committee and pass a test drive. But, it is really quite easy. The
vehicle is not that big and it drives like a charm. But we need a cadre of approved drivers to help out those organizations that need a driver. We
also need some back up drivers in case our crack Sunday morning driver, Rico, has something come up and can't drive that day.
If you would like more information on this opportunity please call me, Jim Meehan at 703-237-2715.
Back to top
OWL NEEDS YOUR HELP!
By Christina Fairman
The OWL Launch Team is currently looking for people interested in leading the Our Whole Lives / Sexuality and Our Faith (OWL) program with our
fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders. We need two male/female leader pairs for our program launch in 2008.
We are looking for people who are skilled in, comfortable with, and have experience in working with children in grades four through six. Our
leaders should be people of faith, who are comfortable with helping young people to draw connections between the teachings of their faith and their
own sexuality. The OWL program provides a comprehensive curriculum, including curriculum designed to introduce the teachings of our faith to
the OWL classroom sessions.
You do not have to be an expert in human anatomy or the topic of human sexuality to be an OWL leader. The OWL Launch Team asks that potential
leaders have a basic understanding of human sexuality and anatomy and a willingness to further develop their knowledge in areas with which they are
not fully comfortable or familiar.
The OWL Launch Team is hosting a training for leaders at Rock Spring UCC in January of 2008. Leaders must successfully complete this
weekend-long training to teach OWL. The trainers for this event are UCC ministers and must sign off on each person at the end of the training
event; in effect, approving them to teach. This means that no one will teach an OWL class who is not fully prepared and capable of doing
so. There are no worries that you will not be ready or able to teach your class when the time comes!
You can find more information about the OWL program, the requirements for OWL Leaders, the time commitment, and the process for applying for a
leadership position at Rock Spring at http://www.rockspringucc.org/html/owl2/index.html.
If you would like to request more information and an application packet, email the OWL Launch Team at owl@rockspringucc.org. If you have questions, you can email the OWL Launch Team or talk to a
team member (Gina Dale, Ann Divecha, Ann Parcell, John Roman or Christina Fairman).
Please prayerfully consider becoming an OWL Leader at Rock Spring.
The Church Staff
| Senior
Pastor |
Charles L. Wildman |
|
Pastor for Parish Life
|
Janet L. Parker |
| Pastor for Children, Youth & Families |
Henry E Fairman |
| Director of Music |
Elizabeth Kluegel Niblock |
| Asst. Director of Music |
Edward Roberts |
| Office Administrator |
Ben Eckman |
| Administrative Assistant |
Lisa Mikell |
| Bookkeeper |
Lisa Mikell
|
| Property
Manager |
Don Bauman |
| Nursery
Supervisor |
Fern Lawrence |
|
Custodians
|
Willis Gardner &
Vicki Morales
|
| Bus Driver |
Rico Picarriello |
|
