1. religion and spirituality
2. christianity

IMMANUEL IMAGES
May 2015
May Worship Schedule
Sunday mornings – the heart of our life together
9:00 Sunday School
9:15 Nursery Care begins (infants – age5)
9:15 Choir Practice in the Sanctuary
10:00 Worship for All Ages – Sanctuary
11:00 Refreshments and Fellowship Time – in the Narthex
Sunday, May 3 – Fifth Sunday of Easter
Scripture: Acts 8:26-40, Psalm 22:25-31, I John 4:7-21, John 15:1-8
Our lectionary lessons today take us from Philip baptizing an Ethiopian Eunuch in the
book of Acts to Jesus’ proclamation that he is the true vine in the gospel of John. The Psalmist
considers the God who answers the prayers of the sufferers and the epistle lesson from I John
(one of the really little letters/books in the very end of the New Testament) describes God as the
God of love. Today we will be celebrating both sacraments as we baptize Beau Cherry and
share the Communion.
Sunday, May 10 – Sixth Sunday of Easter
Scripture: Acts 10:44-48, Psalm 98, I john 5:1-6, John 15:9-17
The season of Easter continues with the story of Jesus commanding the disciples, and
us, to love one another as he has loved us. Later in Acts the Holy Spirit is poured out on
Gentiles, something that surprised the Jewish followers of Jesus. In the epistle of I John we are
told that faith and love can conquer the world while in the Psalm we celebrate the glory of God
in creation.
Sunday, May 17 – Seventh Sunday of Easter
Scripture: Acts 1:15-17, 21-26, Psalm 1, I John 5:9-13, John 17:6-19
The psalmist in the first psalm compares the good and the wicked, and says the good
are happy or blessed. In the epistle of I John, the writer reminds us that those who know the
Son have life. In the gospel of John we hear Jesus’ prayer for his disciples and in the book of
Acts the disciples deal with practical matters and prayerfully select a replacement for Judas, the
disciple who betrayed Jesus,
Sunday, May 24 – Pentecost Sunday
Scripture: Ezekiel 37:1-14, Psalm 104:24-34 and 35b, Acts 2:1-21, John 15:26-27 and
16:4b-15
On the fiftieth day after the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the disciples are gathered
together in one place when the Holy Spirit descends on them in tongues of fire and the crowd
witnesses as they hear the disciples speaking in so many different languages. This is the story
of Pentecost, the beginning of the church of Jesus Christ and it is told in the second chapter of
the book of Acts. The Old Testament lesson also
speaks of the Spirit as God breathes life in the dry, lifeless bones that lie in the valley. The gift
of the Spirit is also mentioned in the gospel lesson as Jesus promises his
disciples the presence of the Advocate (Holy Spirit) in his absence. On this Sunday we are
planning to celebrate the Sacrament of Baptism with the baptism of Scarlet Luthy.
Sunday, May 31 – Trinity Sunday
Scripture – Isaiah 6:1-8, Psalm 29, Romans 8:12-17, John 3:1-17
The Sunday after Pentecost is often celebrated as Trinity Sunday. On this day we will
look at the scripture where Isaiah is called to be a prophet, the psalm where the voice of God is
found in a great storm, and Paul calls us to live by the Spirit and not by the flesh. The gospel of
John shares the story of Nicodemus’ secret visit with Jesus.
Sunday School Schedule
Plans for the adult Sunday School are in process, but we are still waiting for confirmation
from several speakers.
Prayer Breakfast
The Dorchester County Ministerial Association is again hosting the Annual
National Day of Prayer Breakfast. Formerly called the Mayor’s Prayer breakfast, the
event this year will take place on Thursday, May 7 at 7:00 am at Minette Dick Hall in
Cambridge. Tickets are $12 and available from Pastor Dale. We are pleased to
welcome Dr. Jose Rojas as the guest speaker. Dr. Rojas is an internationally known
speaker and motivator. We are also expecting a visit and musical performance of
gospel music from the “King” or at least one of his impersonators! For more
information, please see Pastor Dale.
Baccalaureate Service
The Dorchester Ministerial Association in conjunction with Cambridge South
Dorchester High School is hosting the annual Baccalaureate service for the graduating
seniors. This year the event is being moved from its usual Sunday night date and time
to Thursday night, May 21 at 7:00 pm. Rev. Yvonne Penn, pastor of St. Luke’s United
Methodist Church will be the speaker.
This year, at the school’s request, and with the Ministerium’s strong approval, the
public is invited and encouraged to join with the graduates and their families as they
prayerfully mark their transition from high school to their new endeavors. Please
consider attending the service and support the young men and women as their high
school careers come to an end and they begin a new phase in their lives.
Pastor’s Message
Do you ever have too many things to worry about? Are you ever overwhelmed by all of the
problems of the world? How often do you just want to hole up in your home and forget about
the world and all of the darkness around us?
My guess is that we all say yes to these questions. I know, just last Sunday I was talking with
someone who asked, “How many requests for help can I answer?” We all have our limits. There
is only so much we can do. But we are called by Jesus to love one another. We are called to
care for one another. And we can only do this if we acknowledge the problems we, and the
people around us, face.
One such problem that is gathering growing attention is Human Trafficking. According to
Wikipedia:
Human trafficking is the trade of humans, most commonly for the purpose of sexual slavery,
forced labor or commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker or others. This may encompass
providing a spouse in the context of forced marriage, or the extraction of organs or tissues,
including for surrogacy and ova removal. Human trafficking can occur within a country or
trans-nationally. Human trafficking is a crime against the person because of the violation of the
victim's rights of movement through coercion and because of their commercial exploitation.
Human trafficking is the trade in people, and does not necessarily involve the movement of the
person from one place to another. Human trafficking represented an estimated $31.6 billion of
international trade per annum in 2010. Human trafficking is thought to be one of the fastestgrowing activities of trans-national criminal organizations.
For the last year the Dorchester County Ministerium has been learning about this subject and its
connections to the mid-shore – and there are connections, there have been arrests in the region.
Human trafficking does reach into Dorchester County and the Ministerium would like to raise
awareness of this problem
To this end the DCMA is hosting an event with some very knowledgeable speakers and guests.
One of the speakers is Christine Dolan. Ms. Dolan, an Investigative Journalist, former CNN
Political Director, and Author of Shattered Innocence, a ground breaking investigation on human
trafficking, has seen trafficking first-hand in the U.S. and abroad. Commissioned by the
International Center for Missing and Exploited Children in 2000, she has reported on the subject
for the last fifteen years in the media and conferences in the U.S. and across the globe.
I have personally heard Ms. Dolan and was moved by her passion, experience and knowledge
and encourage us to support the DCMA’s seminar on Human Trafficking. Please consider
attending what should be an enlightening and informative session.
Human Trafficking Seminar
Thursday, May 21, 7:00 pm
Dorchester Center for the Arts
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MOTHER’S DAY BREAKFAST
The men of Immanuel will prepare breakfast to honor the mothers of
Immanuel UCC Sunday, May 10, 8:00-9:30am. All IUCC families are
invited to attend!
SPRING SALE - MAY 16
SPRING YARD SALE: Saturday, May 16 starting at
7:00 a.m. Needed for our table are white elephant items, good
rummage (no clothes, please), bakers (for the bake table), and lots of
helpers. Bring your salable items to the church during the week of
May 3. We will have chicken salad (sandwiches or cups) and soups for sale. Bake sale
items should be delivered to the church on Friday or early Saturday morning. Sign up at
the church to help with the sale or to indicate that you will bring baked goods. We need
customers too - so spread the good word.
SPRING SALE on May 17th at 7:00 a.m.. See prep schedule below
May 15 - Cook and de-bone and cut up chicken 11:00 a.m.
May 16 - Kitchen help - be at church at 6:00 a.m.
From the Hospitality Committee
GRADUATES
This year we plan to honor our graduates with a reception to be held
during the coffee hour following worship on June 7th in the Narthex.
We will also like to include some brief information on each graduate in
the church bulletin that day. Information sheets will be available in the
office or the Narthex for pick-up or we can mail it to you (contact the office). Please
send your information sheet to the church, call 410-228-4640 or we’ll take the
information by phone or e-mail: [email protected] (be sure to put the information
in the body of the e-mail - not an attachment as we sometimes can’t open attachments
due to programming differences.) If you have a photo that we can include, send that
to us as well by e-mail. If you have a graduate in your family (high school or college),
please contact the office 410-228-4640 so they can be included in our program.
DEADLINE: MAY 24, 2015.
EASTER FLOWER GARDEN
A big THANK YOU to all those who made our Easter Garden "bloom"
with the beauty of springtime, welcoming everyone as they came into
the Narthex Easter morning. The response was much appreciated.
SUPPORTING THE
WIDER COMMUNITY
FOOD PANTRY
Your continued support of our food pantry is very much appreciated and needed.
Robin Burton meets with clients usually twice per month (sometimes more often)
and each time many of the clients are asking if we have food available. It has been
gratifying to say “yes” and give them a couple of bags to pick up what they need
from what we have available.
While we ask that you remember the pantry on communion Sunday (the first Sunday
of each month), you may bring any and all donations to the church at any time. The
office is open Monday-Friday between the hours of 9am and 1pm.
STRENGTHEN THE CHURCH – INVEST IN THE VISION
Each day, visions and dreams are created in the hearts of many in the
United Church of Christ. Through the Strengthen the Church offering, these
visions and dreams can become a reality.
Strengthen The Church (STC) is a special mission offering to reimagine and
build the future of the UCC. Shared at the conference and national levels,
STC largely supports youth ministries and full-time leaders for new churches
in parts of the country where the UCC voice has not been heard.
As God calls our congregations to be the "church" in new ways, your generosity will
plant new churches, awaken new ideas in existing churches and develop the spiritual
life in our youth and young adults. STC funds will also be used to award grants to help
congregations communicate the "God is still speaking," message.
This year, our offering to “Strengthen the Church” will be received on Pentecost
Sunday, May 24.
ONE GREAT HOUR OF SHARING
On March 15, 2015 Immanuel took up our offering for “One Great
Hour of Sharing”. As noted in the newsletter for March, one of the
functions of this offering is to…
 Respond to disaster. OGHS provides emergency and longterm assistance to people in the aftermath of hurricanes, tornados,
storms, floods, tidal waves, fires, explosions, technological
disasters, civil strife, war, or other natural or human-caused events.
On average, OGHS responds to a disaster once every 2.5 days.
With the devastation in Nepal due to the recent earthquake, the fund is working to help.
Below is an email forwarded to us from the Rev. John Deckenback.
Colleagues,
I have been receiving inquiries concerning the Nepal disaster, and want to
share with you that we will be responding to it through One Great Hour of
Sharing. At least initially we will work with the Act Alliance, a consortium of
faith-based organizations headquartered in Geneva. Typically in these
situations, there is an immediate relief response, followed by long term
rehabilitation efforts. Our Executive for Disaster Ministries, Zach Wolgemuth,
will be updating the OGHS portion of the UCC website in the coming days as
more information becomes available. For churches and individuals who would
like to donate to our response, they can do so by designating to "International
Disaster Relief," either through on-line giving to OGHS or by check. I will be
leaving for the Middle East in a few hours, but specific questions can be
addressed to Zach at [email protected]
Thank you all for your ministries.
Peace,
Jim Moos
UCC Wider Church Monistries
MAY BIRTHDAYS AND ANNIVERSARIES
May Birthdays
Lindsay McDonald
Jake Creighton
Lucas Tolley
Linda Slacum
Kim Leonard
Ray Shelly, Jr.
Leah Krotee
Sara Slacum
Amanda Bair
Kyle Jackson
Brenda Pender
Jocelyn Spies
Helen Malkus
Ronnie McCollister
Brian Malik
May Anniversaries
Susie & Jim Creighton
5/2
Connie & George Barnett 5/7
Jill & Jason Segar
5/17
Tracy & Andrew Frase
5/20
5/2
5/2
5/3
5/7
5/7
5/10
5/11
5/15
5/15
5/15
5/16
5/20
5/23
5/24
5/24
BIRTHDAYS (Continued)
Kathy Kelly
5/27
Jillian Burton
5/27
Giselle Burton
5/29
Bill Cox, III
5/29
Don Rae
5/30
Ruth Bradley
5/30
Steve McDonald
5/31
Your Staff
The Rev. Dale Krotee
Janice Haller
J. Curtis White
Lynne Breil
Lisa Plummer
Stephanie Dixon
Pastor
Church Secretary
Choir Director/Organist
Pianist
Custodian
Nursery Care Provider
Your Church Council
Wallace Dodson - President
Chuck Hanson
Lou Jones
Terry Melius
Kim Bair
Diana Jackson
Bill Malkus
John Dodson
Kim Leonard
Bill Malkus
Church Contact Information
Office Hours - Monday - Friday 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Phone: 410-228-4640 FAX: 410-221-6419
E-mail: [email protected];
[email protected]
IMMAMUEL PRAYER LIST: You are invited to remember these people in prayer
Members of Immanuel:
Dorothy BURTON resident at the Dixon House, Easton
Wylie BURTON, Robin Burton’s father, health issues
Merilyn CUSICK, health issues, at home
Bill FOXWELL, facing health challenges
Evan KOZAK, undergoing treatment for Perthes disease
Helen MALKUS, health issues, at home
Cecil MURPHY, husband of Phyllis Murphy, at home, health issues
Friends of Immanuel Church:
Kim BROHAWN, granddaughter of Merilyn Cusick, facing MS
Henry & Darlene DeVOS, friends of Beverly Shelly, health issues
Kenny ELZEY, Julia Newman’s father, at Chesapeake Woods
JoAnn Hutton & her family, friend of many at Immanuel, health issues
Kali KNOPP, family of C.R. and Julia Newman, surgery & recovery
Sherry Meekins SATTERFIELD, friend of Don & Pat Creighton;
health issues
Hollie SMITH, friend of Robin Burton‘s parents, health issues, at home
Dorothy UDOFF, Jay Book’s mother and Debi‘s mother-in-law, at
Heartfields Assisted Living in Easton
Other Prayer Requests:
Guidance in Immanuel’s leaders for 2015 and beyond
God’s support in our response to Ebola epidemic
Members and Friends Serving in Our Armed Forces:
Christopher ANTENEN, U. S. Air Force, now stationed in the USA,
grand-nephew of Jean Haddaway
Timothy Scott MOXEY, JR.,U. S. Navy, stationed in San Diego, grandson
of Debi & Jay Book. Great-grandson of Ted Malkus.
Daniel MOSSBERG, U.S. Marine Corps, husband of Ariana Spillman-Wise,
stationed in North Carolina
Thomas PARENT, U. S. Army, friend of George & Connie Barnett,
serving in Colorado
Matthew L. Ruble, II, U.S. Army, nephew of Michal Dixon,
stationed in Seattle, WA.
Kregory TYLER, U. S. Navy, stationed at Naval Air Station, Lemoore, CA.,
grandson of Janice Haller and Don & Pat Creighton
Jimmy WINDSOR, U. S. Army, stationed in Virginia
MOTHER’S DAY BREAKFAST
May 10, 2014 Serving 8:00-9:30am
All Immanuel UCC family is welcome!
IT’S A “SPRING SALE
Immanuel United Church of Christ
Saturday, May 16, 2014
Sale starts at 7:00am
Tables available: $10.00
Call to reserve your sale table!
410-228-5167 or 410-228-4640
Enjoy soup, chicken salad,
Breakfast sandwiches
Bake table (contributions needed)